michelleoc

An extraordinary show

Let me start by saying that Romantic Comedy is my "go to" genre (this is not one!), and I don't give out a rating of 10 willy-nilly (must hold my attention throughout, without needing to fast forward, must be well-written, must have a high rewatch value, must have at least some likeable characters, can't be too melodramatic, and it has to have a good ending (wasn't too sure about the likeability of the characters, but they soon changed my mind. This was definitely more on the melodrama scale than I normally like, but MAN!)

This drama is written so well. I really appreciated the originality of it. Okay, we've seen the grim reaper thing done before, but this is in a category of its own. I loved how every episode introduced new characters for the reapers to get involved with, and no storyline was extended too far out, enabling us to move on without getting bored. There is a LOT of serious material that gets covered - suicide, bullying, the cost of fame, tragedies of many forms, and each episode gives attention to these issues, and we definitely see the seedy underbelly of human behavior. There were some episodes that were more difficult to watch than others, but they were so masterfully written, and you really get a feel into the complexities of people's feelings and what leads them to contemplate ending their own lives. The three main Reapers, when we first see them, are hard, unyielding, by-the-book and, honestly, not very nice people. When a half human, half reaper enters the picture, he really shuffles things up. We get the privilege of seeing him change them, as well as the other way around.

ACTING: Kim Hee Sun, Yun Ji On and Lee Soo Hyuk were excellent as Reapers. I really felt like their coldness was from centuries of doing this job, and it took Rowoon as Choi Joon Woong to come in and shake things up a bit. I especially enjoyed watching Yun Ji On - I've not seen him in anything before. He seemed so flat in his acting at first, but that was just his character, and when it addressed his storyline, my heart broke for him. Rowoon's character was a bit of a mess, floating through life, unable to get a job, etc. Lee Soo Hyuk tends to always play these mean, hard, unyielding characters and he's the same here, but once we get his back story it all makes sense. It's enjoyable to watch him "become human" and really start to care about others. I love Kim Hae Sook in anything I see her in, and she was excellent as the Jade Emperor. She had to be more strict with others in this role and that was a change from the way I've normally seen her. I also have to give a shout out to Kim Young Ok as Lee Jeong Mun (episode 13, I believe) - she is a seasoned actress that I always enjoy. I would love for her to be my grandmother, with her sweet face and voice.


CINEMATOGRAPHY/MAKE UP/ COSTUMING/SPECIAL EFFECTS: On point! It had a very noir feel about it, lots of blues and blacks. The make-up was very good, especially as it related to wounds, etc. Costuming was good - they put the Jade Emperor in some gowns that would have been ridiculous anywhere else. The special effects were used well, and not overdone just for the sake of having special effects.

MUSIC: For me, the music faded into the background, which I appreciate. I do remember one piece that was a cello piece and it seemed very dramatic and I thought it was perfect for where they put it.

EMOTIONAL INVESTMENT: I binge watched this in two days. I cried in a few of the episodes (and I'm talking ugly cry!). I didn't want to do anything other than watch this, but when it was over, I must admit to feeling sad. I seriously cannot recommend this show highly enough, and anything I say can't do it justice.

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Too drawn out and boring for me

This drama just went on and on. I fast-forwarded through A LOT of this show, just so I could finish it. The main couple didn't even get together until episode 24 and there wasn't much progression with them up to that point. They didn't like each other, until they did. The dubbing bothered me (especially the voices of the children), the subtitles were not well done (the name of the team kept changing), and I didn't really find the actions/behaviors of a lot of the people realistic. For example, one of the multiple girls that likes the ML gives up her skating dreams just so she can stay close to the ML. Then there are the rest of the girls on the skating team. They were complete bullies throughout so much of the drama, and the amount of disrespect/insubordination they displayed to the coach absolutely would not have been tolerated.

The only reason I even rated it as high as I did was the main couple. When they were together, they were just precious. They had a number of meaningful conversations that lent themselves to the two actually growing fond of one another. They were supportive of one another, and them watching other couples to learn how to date? Cute!

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Typical rom-com

I watched this a couple of years ago and decided to give it another go so I could review it. Loved the cast, loved the house, and there were numerous moments of cuteness. However, the second female lead going back and forth between the two men, the main lead watching out for her, I had a hard time knowing if he liked her or not. I wish they had written the ML with stronger feelings. Him constantly running to help the second female, really made it hard solidify the relationship between the leads.

The development of the relationship between the men was interesting to watch. They went from hating one another to having each other's backs, and they weren't even aware of it. There is a scene of the three men at the hospital sitting together that is really cute.

The second to last episode was absolutely the best, but as seems to be normal, for Korean dramas, the ending was rushed/minimal.

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You'll love Chief Kim!

Now THAT’S what I’m talking about! I had seen scenes of this show and I’ve read a few of the reviews. I was pretty sure I wasn’t going to like this show because 1) it’s not a romance; 2) I don’t care for over-the-top or slapstick comedy; 3) I don’t like when shows have a ton of villains. Since I’ve not recently had terrific luck with finding a fabulous romance, I thought I’d give it a try. This show was a pure joy from beginning to end. It had me laughing out loud one moment and in tears the next.

WRITING/STORY: Extremely well-written. For me, there were no draggy parts (hard to find in K-dramas, unfortunately) and there was no “throw away” dialogue. Every word spoken had a purpose, which might be confusing at the moment, but it would be explained in later scenes. I loved how they used flashbacks – something would happen that didn’t make sense, and they would go back and show what had happened behind the scenes to lead up to that point. It’s hard to find a show, especially one with a cast this large, that has fully fleshed out characters, from the main leads, all the way through the supporting characters. I have to like the characters to really be invested in them and I was worried about the character of Chief Kim, because he was a con man and his facial expressions often seemed cartoon-ish. His character development was fun to watch. Watching him grow as a person, but also seeing how much he helped everyone that he worked with, how his co-workers gained strength from what they learned from him…it was so special. The writers did a great job of letting us delve deeply into each character, get to know them better, and then you can’t help but root for them. They were very three dimensional and completely developed. The humor was often very exaggerated, but it fit in very well with the story. There was A LOT going on in this show – multiple villains, and lots of accounting stuff – I have arithmophobia so that was kind of painful, but the journey was just so much fun.

ACTING: Everyone in this show was absolutely amazing, but I have to call out a few that were complete stand-outs for me. Most of the other actors I’ve seen in other shows, and they were so good in this. It was fun to see Kim Seon Ho and his dimples, as a bespectacled nerd, which was a change!
Namkoong Min as Chief Kim – I was so impressed with him. He completely owned the part of Chief Kim. He was funny, playful, eccentric, and yes, a little bit crazy. He would pull these faces that would have me laughing out loud. He had to display such a wide array of emotions, and when he wasn’t being goofy, his intenseness was spot-on. You could feel his confusion as he started to leave his old life behind and actually let others into his life. There’s a line early in the show about him “fake crying” because what he feels isn’t real. Later on, when he cried, it just about broke my heart.
Lee Jun Ho as Yool – now, here is a villain you love to hate! I’ll start by saying that he’s just so beautiful, I got a little lost in him every time he was on screen. I was hoping that he would redeem himself, and the way the writers handled his storyline was excellent. I loved watching how he reacted to the female lead – a hint of a romance that is never actually addressed. (If you haven’t seen him in Just Between Lovers, he’s excellent in that as well!)
Kim Won Hae as General Manager Choo. This is an actor that is normally used for comic relief. He was extremely funny in this, but we got to see so much vulnerability and caring from his character. I especially loved his scenes with Chief Kim.

MUSIC: At the beginning, the romantic songs just didn’t fit with what was going on, but later on they made more sense. I absolutely LOVED hearing the Descendants of the Sun music when one couple met for the first time, so funny!

REWATCH VALUE: There aren’t a lot of shows that I would re-watch, but I think I’ll watch this again in a couple of weeks. It might be fun to watch it, already knowing the end.

So, I can wholeheartedly recommend this show. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll love the characters, and you’ll be glad you watched.

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Worth watching for the four main characters

Let me start by saying that I could watch and listen to Woo Do Hwan read the telephone book and be perfectly content. He is exquisitely attractive and he has a wonderful, deep voice. There are certain actors/actresses that you just feel drawn to, for whatever reason, and for me, he is one of them. This show is the Korean version of Dangerous Liaisons/Cruel Intentions, which almost kept me from watching it. I do not like to watch people being mean to others, especially without reason. I was pleasantly surprised by the triad friendship of Kwan Shi-Hyun (Woo Do Hwan), Choi Soo-Ji (Moon Ga Young) and Lee Se Joo (Kim Min Jae). To say they were each dysfunctional would be an understatement. There were a lot of very amusing scenes with the three of them interacting. These were scarred people that grew together as friends, to protect each other and build each other up. When the three of them were in scenes together, I felt sometimes like I was getting ready to watch a traffic accident - I didn't want to watch the way that they were behaving, but I just couldn't help myself. And when Shi-Hyun gets involved with Eun Tae-hee (Joy), their chemistry was smoldering. They were wonderful to watch. Woo Do Hwan's transition from cold and calculating to being in love was intense, and there were a few scenes of him trying to be "cool" that were funny. At the beginning, he's pretty emotionless (as a character, not the actor), but once he falls for Eun Tae-hee his smiles just light up the screen. I even thought the way he said her name was special. Joy reminded me a lot of Kim Go-eun from Goblin, and I found that a little distracting. I have to admit I was fascinated by the relationship of these four people, and I could have cared less about their families, and found myself fast forwarding through the family stuff. I'm not giving anything away to say there is a happy (though too rushed and short) ending, along with the obligatory separation for years. Seriously, why do they only give us four minutes for the ending?!?!?! And how many years have gone by? She says that she's made the same wish every year. They were such a lovely couple, I really wish they would have devoted more time to the ending.

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Just my opinion

I know that a lot of people liked this show, but I couldn't, for the life of me, forgive the mess that I was watching. I was very disappointed in the writing, not the acting. Lee Jong Suk and Park Hae Jin were both wonderful in this mess of a drama. I'm all for suspending disbelief, but this show, in the first place, didn't seem to know in which direction it wanted to go. Baddies that don't die no matter what happens to them, a change in the focus of the show (N. Korea was a good starting place, but went horribly awry), things happening in a hospital that have absolutely no foundation in reality, name/identity changes (who can keep up with the names?), and it seemed like the inmates were running the asylum! The ending was very disappointing and caused an even further suspension of disbelief - the main characters disappear for a year - did no one look for them? Ugh!

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I can see what all the hype is about, but...

Should you try it, I'd say yes. Chinese dramas, especially historicals, are absolutely not my favorites, save a couple of exceptions. I liked this one well enough, but I didn't love it. Please remember that this is my personal opinion.

The good:
Gorgeous lead couple.
Excellent enemies to lovers, with a slow progression as they get to know one another.
A strong female lead that remains strong throughout. She had a sharp mind, was kind, and stood her ground.
Cute side love story.
Beautifully filmed.
Costuming and the sets were good.
Happy ending.

My issues:
FL reminded me so much of Zhao Lusi without her charisma. I kept waiting for more wit from her.
Why do people have to have multiple names? Keeping everyone straight was a nightmare for me!
Entirely too long, with long periods of nothing happening. I had to FF too much.
I can't forgive them killing off my favorite character.
Boring, abrupt and lazy ending.

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My eyes got a ton of exercise - rolling them at the ridiculousness of this drama

Liked:
-the cola scene
-Jeju
-the FL finally making friends with her long-time adversary.

Disliked:
-The FL in the first few episodes was working my last nerve. I didn't find it funny; I found her irritating and pitiful.
-Typical rich man/poor girl story, done much better elsewhere.
-This may seem random, but her clomping all over Seoul and Jeju in 4-inch heels was just so unbelievable, since during so many scenes she was running. Get this girl a pair of tennis shoes.
-Whenever the ML got mad and was yelling, very over-acted.
-"Oppa" girl - it's hard for me to watch someone that has no self-respect and tries to hold on for the sake of holding on.
-ML's brother - always gets feelings for the woman his brother likes. What happened to him, anyway? Suddenly just disappeared.
-Too much back and forth - "yes, we are going to be together" "oh never mind, we aren't going to be together". This drama would have definitely benefitted from fewer episodes.
-the last two episodes. Did they get a new writer? They were FINALLY together and then the FL decided she "lost something" and moved to Jeju to work, didn't know if she wanted to get married. Isn't it a natural progression when you supposedly love someone so much? He gave her specific instructions - when you come back, if you are wearing the necklace, I'll know you are ready to think about getting married. But did she follow those instructions? No, she sent the jewelry box back to him with a note in it. You know immediately that he isn't going to open the box, why should he? Then his secretary sees the note and mentions it? Oh, and through all this, she's wondering why he isn't calling her! I really hated the FL in the last two episodes. The ending was abrupt and unsatisfying.
-The show is old and it didn't age well.

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Title should have been ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER

I have never been so misled by clips like I was for this one. I was looking for a romance. I have enjoyed both lead actors in other things, and I couldn't pass up Xu Kai in something contemporary. But the clips that I watched were the total of their interaction throughout the entire drama! I did enjoy watching the ML go from cold and ruthless, to someone who actually cares about others and basically inherits a family. I could never actually tell when the FL started to like him, but they were cute together. However, all of their scenes would have taken up two episodes (and I'm being generous. The romance tag should be removed or moved to the end of the list and changed to "slight romance".

The focus of this drama (80-90%) was about the FL's mother. She was a toxic, loud, disrespectful, overbearing, money-grabbing, immature, domineering mother. I know that respect for parents in Asian cultures is important, but there is a certain point in time when a husband needs to step in to try to curtail the behavior, or the child will deliver an ultimatum. I was determined to finish this drama, hoping for redemption, but it was too little, too late.

Spoiler examples:
1- the mother worked with the FL's ex-boyfriend's sister and organized a huge engagement party. Huge affair, balloons, flowers, ballroom, friends and family. The FL was sent on some fake premise, and when she opened the ballroom door, she saw all this. The couple had already broken up (of which the mother was well aware), but the mother was trying to force her hand.
2- the mother takes her obnoxious relatives to the high-end hotel that the FL is the new general manager and asks the staff for the best rooms and the best treatment, and discounts. The daughter arranges all of that and says that she'll pay for it out of her own money.
3- the daughter SPECIFICALLY told the mother not to come to her workplace. The mother shows up with lunch while the FL is holding a staff meeting, trying to cement her job as boss. The mother interrupts the whole thing and tells the daughter to send everyone to lunch because she (the FL) needs to eat.
4- they are staying in a home that turns out to be the ML's inheritance. He brings his stuff to move in and she refuses to leave. Husband and FL both try to convince her, with the FL saying she'll buy them an apartment, and still she refuses. ML says that the house is big enough for all of them, but she won't give up the master bedroom, the other rooms are for when her kids come home, so he ends up sleeping in the attic.
5- ML pays for both FL's parents to get a complete health screening. There is something abnormal in her tests and they want to do more testing. Instead, she roams around pouting and being all dramatic, then packs a suitcase and leaves home without telling anyone where she went. The whole family is out searching frantically for her (because, of course, she has turned her phone off), only to find her in the town they lived in years ago that she always complained about. The whole family shows up and she refuses to leave. Days of begging and pleading go by, and she finally agrees to the testing, to which she finds out everything is fine.

I have never hated a character or the way it was written more than this. Unless you are a glutton for punishment, I'd suggest you run away from this drama.

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I blame the writer.

The best thing about this was the bad guy. Namkoong Min was chilling and brilliant in this role.

I also liked the humor of the cops, sometimes they weren't very bright, but ultimately, they worked well together and solved the crime.

This drama felt very drawn out to me.
-It took forever for the crime to finally be solved (he was caught, he escaped, his body wasn't found, they closed the case, what?!)
-If the characters would just talk to each other, things would have been figured out much sooner.
-She knows that someone is after her, yet she's wandering around on her own.
-Her sense of smell is thwarted by rain. They were close to finding an entrance, and didn't bother to look around, just stood around trying to come up with a solution.
-She knew someone was after her but never bothered to lock her front door.
-They are getting married and she still called him Detective Choi.

As for the actors. I really liked the ML.
The FL, she cried in almost every scene. She had mannerisms quite often like she was blind. Blank stares, not looking at who she's talking to, etc.
Some of the actors with smaller parts were overacting.

So, overall, I guess it was okay, but the most positive thing I can say is I finally get to remove it from my "to be watched" list.

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Brilliant cameos!

This is a light and sweet story. I felt that the actors all did a good job, except for Ji Soo in her crying scene toward the end. Granted, it might be played for laughs.

The idea of escaping reality for a man that loves you regardless (one of the characters said the "HAVE TO" love you) was interesting. The alternate reality scenes were beautifully filmed.

Ji Soo's character was getting on my nerves, being unable to start a real relationship, because she was afraid for the end of it. Has she not heard "It's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?"

My favorite episode was 7, when we got to hear the ML's thoughts and how he came to like her.

Seo In Guk never disappoints. Him playing two parts was bonus for me.

Sure, there were things that made absolutely no sense - how was the fake boyfriend able to send mail and call?

But if you want a break from heavier dramas, this is a great palate cleanser.

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