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This review may contain spoilers
Not enough romance for me
Disclaimer: this is my own opinion. Everyone's tastes are different. If asked, I wouldn't tell anyone to run away from watching it, but it was a disappointment to me. I think it was the writing that let this show down for me. It was drawn out, and often uneven. Was it a comedy? A drama? It couldn't seem to make up its mind. The story was somewhat interesting, but, in my opinion, could have been improved with some editing.What I liked:
Kim Hye Yoon as Kim Jo Yi. I really like this actress, and her voice is great. I liked them turning the tables and making a woman in a historical show be the strong one. She was strong, outspoken and was willing to fight for what she wanted. Sometimes her wide-open, doe-eyed looks were overdone.
OK TaecYeon as Ra Yi Eon was okay here. I've never been blown away by his acting (I think I need to watch Vincenzo), and he managed to portray a wide-eye innocent well here. Some of his expressions were over the top, which worked when they were trying for comedy, but not when they were attempting seriousness. The scene with him and the bad guy (one of the MANY bad guys) on the edge of the cliff was seriously overacted.
Choi Tae Hwan and Park Do Soo. Hated him with a passion, which was the intention. This was a character that was definitely a hamburger short of a happy meal. Absolutely no conscience, he kind of lived in his own psychopathic world. His smiles at absolutely inappropriate times were chilling.
The friendships. The sidekicks, the friendships made along their journey, found family. I liked watching these relationships develop.
What I didn't like:
Way too much palace intrigue. I was surprised, because by all the clips I'd seen, this seemed like it was going to be very light. It started out that way, and then turned pretty heavy for most of the rest of the episodes. And how many scheming bad guys does one show need?
The romance felt like it was added as an afterthought at times. We got some cute scenes of them realizing that they liked each other, then episodes full of neither one of them wanting to get married, then a rushed, unsatisfactory ending.
They talked about how all he wanted to do was cook, that's what he wanted to do with his life. Suddenly, it was forgotten. We never got to see evidence of that passion until the very end, and even then, I didn't think it was portrayed correctly.
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Watching this I thought I was frozen in time
For me, this was so slow. I felt like I'd been watching it forever, imagine my surprise when I was only on episode 5! I stuck it out, hoping it would improve, again, I'm only speaking for myself, it didn't.There were a couple of positives:
1) Chae Jong Hyeop. He had the great ability to go from nerdy to "spy" in a moment. He did a lot of switching back and forth. One minute he's someone that has no drive, just wants money, then the next he is standing up for the underdog.
2) I loved Im Chul Soo's scene in the last episode when the police asked him what other jobs he's had, and he referenced his characters from other dramas. That was so funny!
Otherwise, too many bad guys, a wasted and useless romance (romance is my favorite genre, but don't try to fit it in where it doesn't belong), lots of repetition, and I'm still not sure how I feel about the ending.
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That’s time I’m never getting back
The story was soooooo slow! There was so much unnecessary stuff in this drama, my fast forward button really got a workout.I really didn’t like the FL. Always trying to be “cute”, stalking the ML, and do not even get me started on how irritating her voice was! Why do they tend to use female voices that are so high pitched and irritating? It was like she was talking baby talk through the whole thing.
I’ve seen the ML in other things, and he always plays the same type of character.
So, for me, this was one I’m sorry I wasted my time on.
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Surprised to see Jackie Chan!
Some of the acting at the beginning was very over the top, but then it got better. Watch it in a dark room, because a lot of it is very darkly filmed and it's hard to see what's going on.This is a fantasy about a store and its mysterious owner who sends and receives letters through a time portal. Three youths happen upon the store and take up the mantle of writing letters. It shows us views of the past and the present, and how our lives intersect, even when we aren't aware of it happening.
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Main actor was captivating
There was a lot to like about this drama. There always seemed to be something going on (sometimes too much), yet I still felt the need to fast forward through a bit of it, mostly because of the storylines that bothered me.Liked:
1) Fan Zhi Xin as the male lead. Cold, powerful, driven. I didn't like his bent toward physical abuse at the beginning, but luckily, they got rid of that. I enjoyed watching all of the changes he went through as he fell in love. I also appreciated that the ruthlessness that he portrayed didn't completely disappear when he met her. He still had that going on, just not with her.
2) Chemistry between the leads was excellent.
3) Awesome kisses. The Chinese dramas are starting to get better about this.
4) Interesting storyline with some twists and turns and something that I didn't see coming.
5) Redemption of the 2FL. Up until then, this is where I fast forwarded a lot. She was unbearable, she overacted, and she was more than just a little crazy.
6) Happy ending, though it was pretty flat.
7) Fight scenes were good.
Not so much:
1) FL. Well-acted, but I vacillated back and forth on whether I liked her or not. She wasn't your typical simpering female, which I loved. The song "Stand by Your Man" kept playing in the back of my mind. She believed in him throughout. But wow, did she make some stupid decisions!!! SPOILERS: going into her house when it's been broken into, following the bad guy. And the biggest thing that bothered me about her, she bit the ML, twice!! That was just so immature. END OF SPOILER.
2) Plot loopholes. There was a lot going on, but some things just didn't get wrapped up, explained well.
3) FL's friend. I am so tired of seeing clingy, stalkerish females. Trying to act cute, but they are just irritating.
So, overall, if someone asked if they should watch it, I'd say yes, but I don't think I'd go out of my way to recommend it.
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Zhang Xin Cheng surprised me!
I've seen this actor in a few shows, and he tends to play kind of an arrogant, bratty, somewhat immature character. In this movie, his acting was very understated, and I enjoyed watching him. I loved the character he played. He liked her from the beginning and was there for her, to cheer her up and to support her. Slight spoiler here only - I loved the scene of them toward the end of the movie when they hugged. You could see the love on his face, and he held on tightly and burrowed his head into her shoulder. It was lovely to watch. -End of spoiler.The only reason I didn't rate this higher was that there was entirely too much with the terrible mother. Believe me, I got the idea, without having to see her and hear her every few minutes. My heart broke for the FL, being raised in that household.
This is a story of first love, of idealism, of dreams realized, and dreams lost. I could really feel the pain of their youth, being trapped in the fact that they were youths, so decisions weren't theirs to make. Then, when they grew up, I could feel their longing for them to get back to the way they used to be.
Sweet ending. I understand that there is an additional scene during the credits, but YouTube cut it off right there. They made the right decision in making this a movie and not an episodic drama.
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Relatively quick YouTube watch
I happened upon this drama accidentally, and before I knew it, I was completely sucked into it.Liked:
-Short drama
-Cute main couple
-for the most part, good, supportive communication between the leads
-side couple that didn't take up much time
-a couple of slow, sweet kisses
-ML's smile
-no evil ex
-no evil parents
-actually, I really liked the storyline of his mother and what she was doing for him.
-cute ending
-watching this just made me smile
Didn't like:
-I don't know if it's because it's on YouTube or what, but the sound was funky, with the music being out of place and overpowering
-the translation left a lot to be desired. Mixed up personal pronouns, sentences that made no sense.
-the FL was a little hard to stomach at times. She seemed to be scheming a lot. And toward the end she told a lie that was just mean and uncalled for.
This is a show to watch if you want to just turn off your brain, not be troubled by unlikeable people and/or angst, and just go along for the ride.
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Quick show that isn't too terribly cringy
Interesting concept for a show. I don't know if it was just the way the wording was translated, but I was really bothered by him calling her a "tool" to help him.Of course, there's the evil person in power, as well as the evil ex-GF that comes back after years. The advantage here, is that I didn't have to suffer through hours and hours of them because the series was short. The editing is often a little strange in these short dramas, but I prefer them to the extremely long dramas bloated with time-wasting filler of too many story lines or misunderstandings that go on too long.
The main couple was very cute together and after the first few awful kisses, that got better as well. We got a cute happy ending that could have been extended a little bit for viewing pleasure, but it was a better ending than a lot of dramas give us.
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Wow, that last episode hit me!!
I happened upon this show quite by accident. The idol group has been done, but get a bunch of guys together, fill the room with their testosterone, and there will be drama! They were young, immature, foolish, just like every other young man in the world. Add to that the pressure of constant practice, your life basically being an open book, and the demands of fans (whether fair or not) and this was an interesting watch.I was initially concerned about the age gap, but it was very downplayed, and at the end of the drama, they were both adults.
My rating of this show went up mostly because of the last episode. Up until then I was probably at a 6-7. I have to say that I cried through most of the last episode. The struggles/dreams/separation of 8loom are eerily close to a current K-pop band, so this really affected me. I was moved by the heartfelt conversations by the members to their fans from the stage, as well as the beautiful show of support by the fans. It was very touching.
If romance is your main reason for watching this you will be greatly disappointed, it is by no means the focus. After reading a lot of comments, the ending seems to be open enough to allow for you to decide what happens to the couple. I, in my little romantic heart, believe that they were beginning a relationship.
It's a quick watch and I'm glad it found me.
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Great cast, but...
This show started out well. The main leads had terrific chemistry together. I loved the ML's character, the FL not so much. This was a character that seemed to feed off of drama that was going on around her, and if there wasn't drama, she would create it. Though she was the older of the two, she was so immature compared to the ML.The FL's mother - oh my gosh, just the worst! I know that Korean culture places high importance on respect for your elders, but there has to be a line somewhere. To just let your mom walk all over you and decide your future, that's just wrong.
Costuming was good. I especially loved the cream-colored wool coat he was wearing in the rain. Why was I focused on the clothes? Apparently, I wasn't loving the direction of the writing.
Great music, but it didn't fit in with the drama at all.
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Oh my gosh, I'll never get that time back!
I love Nam Joo Hyuk, which brought me to this drama. I think I'm going to start using more discernment. The first few episodes really irritated me, then I moved into full-on boredom mode for the rest of the drama. Oh, my goodness it was slow. It was like watching paint dry. I wasn't particularly caring about any of the characters, since there weren't actual hooks to draw me in. The ending was apparently a happy ending, but I didn't like it either.And, considering that its alternate title was Bride of the Water God, the water scenes were just the worst!
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It should have been called Love to Play You
If you don't want to take the time to read my long-winded review, I can recommend this show if you want over-the-top characters. Sometimes the characters seem like caricatures of real people, but that is for comedy effect. This rom-com could actually be called a rom-com. There was romance and a lot of comedy, which is refreshing if you are trying to cleanse your palate after a serious show.There were a number of things I liked about this show:
-Yoo Teo as Kang Ho. I enjoyed the way the actor played the part (doppelganger for Ok Taec Yeon, so what's not to like?!) as well as the way his character was written. I liked him almost from the start, he was wound a little tight, granted, but quickly redeemed himself.
-Kim Ji Hoon as Won Joon. Him and his beautiful head of long hair! I liked the way his character struggled to straddle the line between manager and friend, not always being successful. When, in the last episode, he said to 2FL "Are we still in our same life?" that gave me all the feels.
-Kim Sung Ryung as Soo Jin. I love her in everything I see her in. With her distinctive voice and the way she always plays slightly off center, I always enjoy her performances. I loved the character she played here - being the underdog and then standing up for the underdog. She seemed like the kind of woman that never had a woman friend before, and was glad of her friendship with Mi Ran.
-That it was only 10 episodes. It wasn't long and drawn out, with tons of filler.
-The playfulness of Kang Ho and Mi Ran in later episodes. Their chemistry was fire.
-The director that didn't speak throughout the whole show.
-The last episode was cute. This made me rate it a bit higher than I was planning to.
-The lawyers in Mi Ran's office, including the ex-boyfriend. What a misogynistic bunch of Neanderthals, but they redeemed themselves in the best way at the end.
However, there were some things that I didn't care for:
-The character of Mi Ran. Throughout this show, I didn't like her. First, her saying that she'd been with 100 men. I struggle with this in romances (for the women AS WELL as the men). Romance is about finding that one special someone. I've heard that you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince, but that doesn't mean you have to sleep with them. Her reasoning for sleeping with them was lame, and as a potential partner, I'd insist upon a clean bill of health before I got too close. I was hoping for some hate turned to love (tricks played on one another, etc.), but that wasn't the case. She found out early on that he wasn't the way she thought he was, but even after he confessed his feelings, she was still playing him. She continued to talk about a 3-month (maybe a year) relationship limit, and her not wanting to get married made me feel like she wasn't totally committed to him. They were awfully cute together toward the end, but I still felt like she wasn't willing to totally trust and invest in the relationship.
-The massive amounts of drinking done.
-It is possible to portray a woman being strong without her being a b*tch and beating people up all the time. I felt like she needed to get some anger management counseling.
-Why, oh why, do they need to bring in an ex-girlfriend all the time?!?!
I really struggle with shows where one of the main characters is not likable. That affects my enjoyment of the show in a big way.
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Not for me
I'd say give it a try and don't go by what I say. I write reviews mainly so I can remember what I liked or disliked about a show.When I saw the cast for this movie, I got so excited. I mean, really! However, I had to drop this due to coarse language, female objectification and continuous sexual references, talking about sex, thinking about sex, etc. There are just certain things I choose not to subject myself to.
Kim Woo Bin is true-to-form and looks really cool with all his hair combed forward. He usually plays characters that are pigs, and you shouldn't like him, but there is something just so sweet about him.
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I thought it would never end!
Don't shoot me, this is just my personal opinion, but what did I just watch? There were a couple of things that I liked about this drama, but truthfully it irritated me no end. I don't actually think I should have rated it as high as I did, but it did have some redeeming value for me. I watched this show a couple of years ago and just watched it again after watching You Are My Glory and loving Yang Yang.What I liked:
1)Yang Yang - he's better in YAMG because he's grown as an actor, but here he was very cute. He doesn't show a lot of emotion, but there is something so magnetic about him, I kept watching, waiting for his smiles. He knows how to do good kissing scenes. Unfortunately, it looked like he was kissing a piece of wood here. I blame the actress or the way she portrayed the character. In the kissing area, she's of the dead fish variety, until the final episode.
2)Good CGI for the gaming.
3)The Hao Mei/KO storyline.
4)Episode 30 - they turned up the heat in this episode!
5)His friends were funny.
What I didn't like:
1)Zheng Shuang as Wei Wei (both the actress and the character). She had the wide-eyed look down to a science. She is a stunning woman, but she didn't display much range in this role. He facial expression pretty much stayed the same the whole time. She was treated unfairly (a lot) but her expression never changed. Very poorly done kissing scenes. And her character? She was supposed to be this brilliant computer science girl, but once she got with Xiao Nai, she was just an accessory hanging on his arm. Up until they met in person, she was this cool young woman, the type that other women admire and aspire to be. They met and it was as if her IQ immediately took a nosedive. She couldn't look at him, she was doing all this stupid internal dialog, she was behaving in a silly manner (was it supposed to be cute? It wasn't).
2)The dubbing. This is always a problem for me in Chinese shows, but it seemed especially bad here. I swear, the FL and at least three of the other females were dubbed by the same person with the same high, squeaky, breathy, irritating voice.
3)Too much gaming. I get it, it's a show about gaming, but come on!
4)Her friend group, especially Er Xi. They behaved in a juvenile matter all the time, chasing each other around, tickling each other, etc.
5)The character of Er Xi. She gets special mention because of how much she irritated me. The high dubbed voice, the overacting, the yelling, the immaturity. Ugh!
6)I didn't come into this show expecting realism, but the way that everyone fawned over Xiao Nai all the time was absolutely ridiculous. Women running toward him and standing around him talking about how handsome he was. He comes into a room and everyone takes out their phones to take pictures of him in all his handsomeness. Conversations cease, staring begins, and the thesaurus comes out to come up with new words to describe how handsome he is. There is one scene in particular that stands out. They are trying to take graduation pictures when he shows up. No one can pay attention to what they are supposed to be doing because they are all enthralled by him. The photographer says, "Handsome guy, go stand behind that tree." That pretty much sums it up, If he's in the vicinity, he must be fawned over.
7)Mean girls. A plethora of them, each one more mean and scheming than the other. They were portrayed as "the popular girls", but with the way they badmouthed Wei Wei to her face and to everyone around them, there was NO ONE to stand up for Wei Wei and tell them to shut up? It was verbal bullying at a very high level.
8) ASMR. We were privy to EVERY indrawn breath, surprised breath, and sigh of Wei Wei.
I would love, love, LOVE to find a Chinese romance that I didn't have to use the fast forward button so much. The concept of the romance was cute, but not executed that well, and there was SO MUCH boring stuff to get through!
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I liked it a lot more than I thought I would
Sometimes I read reviews, sometimes I don't. I love romance, melodrama, not so much. I don't know what made me start watching this, especially after reading so many negative comments. This was the classic chaebol melodrama, class separation, back-stabbing family, etc. I liked the main characters for numerous reasons, however.Uee as Yoon Ha. This character could have been a spoiled rich girl. But, even with all the money and status, her family was a nightmare, each and every one of them. She tried so hard to get a scrap of affection from each of them, but they were so busy trying to climb their way to the top they had no use for her. She decided to break free and work as a part-timer at a grocery store. She has rebelled against her status and wants to live like a "regular person" (though she's still living in her family home and living off their money, so how free could she be?) I liked her. She appreciated and was true to her friendship with Ji Yi. (there was wonderful sismance here).
Sung Joon as Joon Ki. I really liked his storyline. He wanted to be in the upper echelon and wasn't above trickery to get there. I loved watching his interactions with others, I was never quite sure about his motives, if he was being truthful, or if it was all to get ahead. His character grew a lot throughout the drama. Plus, he has a beautiful deep voice.
Park Hyung Sik as Chang Soo. I had a love/hate relationship with this character. Multiple shower/workout scenes - loved. He's a beautiful crier. He is so cute when he is drawn to a woman and I really liked his surprise at liking a woman "for real" after having just been a player previously. Chang Soo and Ji Yi had a very cute relationship that was, for the most part, fun to watch. He's got that sarcastic humor down to an art. Good romance and good kisses. My problem with this character was his being a total doormat to his mom. She was going to decide who he married, she threatened Ji Yi multiple times and made no bones about the fact that marriage was for status. I absolutely hated how weak he was. It reminded me of the ML in Boys Over Flowers, who I hated for the same reason. You're absolutely in love, but going to marry who mommy tells you to. Even toward the end, I felt that he was compromising with his mom and felt that there would always be a problem there.
Im Ji Yeon as Ji Yi - effervescent personality. Loyal friend. Forgiving soul. I didn't like some of the conversations she had with Chang Soo - "I've decided I'm going to like you", etc. I went back and forth between admiring her and thinking that she needed to get a spine.
Jang Hyung Soon as Chang Soo's mother - Surprisingly, I loved to hate her. She was a force to be reckoned with, but her scenes between her and her son were fun to watch in a "there's an accident on the other side of the road and I don't want to look but I can't help myself" way. And when she met Ji Yi, you always felt that Ji Yi had the upper hand and Chang Soo's mom was busy trying to figure out where she went wrong. Funny!
I went back and immediately re-watched the final four episodes to see again the growth in the characters. They learned from their mistakes and were moving forward. I liked how none of the main characters were over-dramatic, for the most part. The ending was kind of love/hate for me. As usual with K-dramas, the ending was kind of rushed. We got a proposal (loved) but we also had a married couple that went through so much to be together, but now all they do is squabble. That was a letdown for me.
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