michelleoc

Spoilers, Spoilers, Spoilers

I tend to be very specific in my reviews, just so I can remember what I watched. I put off watching this one, because so many people didn't like it, but, since I like Kim Young Dae, I decided to give it a try. And I can say that I am so glad that I did! Lots of spoilers in this, so if you don't want to know what happens, all you need to know is that I recommend you give this one a try for yourself.

What I liked:
The story. I do have to say that their past life was more well-developed. Their current lives focused more on other people. I have the attention span of a goldfish, so for me to not have to fast forward at all says a lot. I thought it was very engaging, though sometimes suspending disbelief was more difficult than at other times. I did feel that they spent too much time in showing us that they loved each other, rather than letting us feel their love.
Kim Young Dae. I loved him in Sh**ting Stars. I thought it was unfortunate that he was cast as yet another celebrity, but that's a minor quibble. My only real complaint was he was often too emotionless, but I also have to say that he has the most expressive eyes. I could see them change as he looked at her. Minor complaint - that one lock of hair in the middle of his forehead that was longer than the rest that hung over his nose - did someone just forget to cut that piece?
Pyo Ye Jin. I wasn't sure if she could carry a lead role, but I was very impressed. There was something about her that I can't quite explain why I think she was perfectly cast. She's not beautiful in the typical K-drama sense. Sometimes she would look very pretty, other times just like the girl next door. Her carriage and bearing in the past life were perfect for her role as someone from a powerful family forced to be a slave, but she wasn't about to be anyone's doormat.
Jung Woong In. He was the best villain I've seen in a long time. He was so charismatic, he commanded every scene he was in. And on the creepiness scale, for me he was off the charts!

What I didn't like so much:
Dead fish kisses. I think this was the fault of Pyo Ye Jin. She just looked really uncomfortable. Can the director not see how bad a kiss looks? I think sometimes that no kiss at all is better than bad kisses.

What I hated:
The ending!!! MAJOR SPOILER ALERT. So, this guy has been a ghost following her for 1500 years, in love with her all that time, never wants to be without her, but he disappears when the bad guy dies. The body that the ML had inhabited died. But he disappeared while the funeral was going on? He kept thinking of her name all the time, wanted to meet with her to talk about it. The bottom line? He has no memory of her or the love he had for her!! I'm sorry, to me, that just diminishes their love story. What made it especially sad was, since he was famous, for her whole life she'd see him in projects that he's done, and throughout her whole life she'll miss him and be sad. I know one of them said they'd be together in their next life, and we got three minutes of that next life, when she almost falls and he catches her (is that the most overused trope ever?!?) They said a couple of inconsequential things to each other and stood far apart, staring at each other. THE END. I'm sorry, if I can believe that the guy came back to life, I could certainly believe that he'd remember her somehow. It really made me mad and I dropped the rating a bit because of it. How hard is it to give us a lengthy, happy ending after keeping them apart the whole time!?!?!

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Thank goodness it was relatively short

I will begin this review by saying that I normally don't watch historicals, especially Chinese, because they always seem so unrealistic, too much satin, and ridiculous hairstyles. That said, if this is a genre you usually watch, give it a try, because there was a lot of cuteness, but I just judge harshly.

What I liked:
-FL is gorgeous, and I mean gorgeous. She lit up the screen.
-Though I wasn't enamored with the ML, they were really cute together.
-A nice mother-in-law.

What I didn't care for:
-Dubbing. Just why!?!?!
-The translation was so bad. Not just mixing up him/her, but there were so many times I had NO IDEA what was going on, because the words had nothing to do with anything.
-Choppy editing.
-Too much internal dialogue, sometimes it seemed that they could hear each other's thoughts, sometimes not.
-The fight scenes were laughably bad.
-was that supposed to be music in the background, or a sound effect or what?

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Suffers by comparison

This is my personal opinion. If you are wondering if you should watch Family by Choice, I would say yes, because I realize I'm in the minority here.

Yes, I watched Go Ahead first. No, I didn't love it. I felt it was entirely too long. However, Family by Choice, left out most of the episodes that had heart and, for me, wasn't able to recreate the bond of the found family.

What I liked:
-The acting was good.
-They didn't have both male leads fall in love with the FL.
-Ju Won's friend Dal. Loved her storyline with Hae Jun.
-Ju Won's dad.

Not so much:
-A lot of bad kisses. Not feeling the chemistry. Actually, I didn't believe the romance. It could have been left out.
-The actors looked exactly the same from high school to 10 years later.
-San Ha's dad. He was just there for the food and alcohol.
-I wasn't really able to feel the strong bond between the siblings, because we didn't have enough of what they went through as children to stand together against the rest of the world.
-Ju Won's dad was a lovely character for the most part; however, he seemed to love the boys more than her!
-an ode to terrible mothers. Every mother in this show was a nightmare.
-bad mother shout out - Hae Jun's mom. So, you leave and don't come back for 20 years. The reasoning was extremely weak, and she was being such a martyr. Then, moving close so she can see him from afar. Then, they have one conversation and all is forgiven.
-storyline for Ju Won's dad and Hae Jun's mom - came out of nowhere and ran at lightning speed.

My biggest complaint:
-San Ha's storyline. I had so many problems with it.
-First, both parents were gone when his sister died. Did Child Protective Services not get involved?
-San Ha saying he wants his mother to keep thinking his sister's death was his fault. Why?
-This storyline overshadowed every other. It was extremely toxic. The actress did an excellent job, I hated her so much.
-Why would he go and take care of her? It might have made sense if he was underage and had no choice, but he was an adult. Respect for an adult/parent is one thing, but to suffer abuse from your mom for over 10 years? Plus, he was in med school - even a bystander could see that she needed psychiatric help. She should have been committed.
-I completely lost respect for him when he went to see her and got on his knees at her bedroom door. What the heck!?!?!?
-This storyline, for me, seemed to overshadow all the others, which really drove my enjoyment down.

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The scenes in Korea saved it for me

The good:
when they were in Korea (meant more to me because I just returned from my first visit there).
The not good:
-The acting. With some of the actors, you could actually almost hear what was going on in their minds, "Now I walk to the door, stop, turn." Wooden or over the top acting by all.
-The makeup for the FL. The pink, pink cheeks and the pink lipstick. Learn to blend the makeup, people!
-The storyline. I've seen this story 100 times done better.
-Costuming. The women all dressed so skimpily and sleazily. Are shorts, midriffs and high heels a thing in the workplace? Not a good look for anyone.
-No chemistry between leads, partially because I felt like I was watching them "act".

My rating is only what it is because of the Korea shots, otherwise it would have been even lower.

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Exceptional Acting

For me, this drama had an unnecessarily convoluted plot, and it seemed like every episode I was thinking, "Ah, yet ANOTHER bad guy." That being said, if you haven't watched this show, you really should. I'll admit that this isn't my normal genre. I have watched other shows of this type, but never have I seen better acting or such a wonderful relationship as the two leads had.

Yoon Kye Sang as Myung Joon. He's a father desperate to save his daughter, and as such he will do anything. However, we see throughout the drama that he still has a moral compass and wants to do the right thing. I've seen him in a couple of other shows and enjoyed him, but here, in this part, he absolutely shone.

Yuna as Ro Hee. She is someone to watch, for sure. Her part was emotionally intense, difficult to play without showing too much emotion. She had been used in her short life, and when she comes across Myung Joon, she finally finds someone that cares for her. More often than not, she is the adult of the relationship, and that's fun to watch. Her emotional range is amazing. For the most part, she was required to be unemotional, but in the last episode the dam breaks and she falls apart. I fell apart with her. Watch her closely, she doesn't have the mannerisms of a child, but of an adult. When sitting on the couch, her hands are folded the way an adult in charge would be. She was exceptional.

I also appreciated the respect she commanded, that people listened to her even though she was "just a kid".

This drama was worth the time, and then some!

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Short on romance, but some very laugh out loud moments

Liked:
1) Lee Jung Eun as Im Sun made this show for me. I've always loved her as an actor, but wow, she totally shone in this role! Her comedic timing is brilliant and she's very good at physical comedy. She was strong when needed, and vulnerable when necessary. If I WERE to watch it again, I'd probably just watch the scenes with her in it.
2) The Im Sun/Ko Won relationship. I loved it. I appreciated that the writers showed a little bit of what is required of an idol, and I liked how he learned her secret early on. Their scenes were wonderful, and I liked how they showed him most with Im Sun rather than Mi Jin.
3) Choi Jin Hyuk. Always.
4) Mi Jin's best friend. I loved her supportiveness, and they had some emotional scenes together.
5) Mi Jin's parents. At times they were irritatingly over the top, but in the end, I enjoyed watching them. Lee Hak Chan as Mi Jin's father, this may sound strange, but I love his face.
6) The mystery and the red herrings. I was surprised by the culprit, and that doesn't often happen.
7) The OST, especially Jung Eun Ji's Stay. She has a hauntingly beautiful singing voice.

Not so much:
1) Jung Eun Ji as Lee Mi Jin. Her pursed lip talking got on my nerves. Was she trying to be cute? Pitiful?
2) The relationship between Mi Jin's best friend and the ML's office mate. He was WAY too old for her!
3) The lack of romance. Literally the last few minutes of the last episode. I'll include lack of chemistry between leads. I couldn't even root for them to get together; I just wanted the show to be over by that time.
4) The styling. ML - all I could focus on was his ridiculously pointy sideburns. 2FL - terrible haircut, possibly achieved by using hedge trimmers. Mi Jin's mom - her red lipstick was absolutely caked on.
5) The female prosecutor served no purpose.
6) WAY too many flashbacks! The show could have been shortened if they'd left most of them out.

So, all in all, I enjoyed it. It's a fun watch if you want some laughs, but just look for too much romance.

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Chae Jong Hyeop - seriously!

Story - it was a really interesting premise, but wasn't executed as well as it might have been. I loved the idea that he thought in Korean, so she had no idea what he was thinking. However, she's known and worked with Akito for years and never heard his thoughts? She said that she has to look in someone's eyes, but there were times when she was hearing their thoughts and not looking them in the eyes. I really loved her being able to "talk" to her dad - that was very touching. However, the writer of the book showing up in the last two episodes felt like it was just thrown together. The older scientist guy was seriously overacting, the second couple was a wasted of time, and Nikaido Fumi as Yuri often seemed outmatched by Chae Jong Hyeop.

Chae Jong Hyeop is absolutely the star of this show. Open, energy-filled (think puppy on the loose), and innocent, I loved his joie de vivre. Him going back and forth between Japanese and Korean was a feat in itself. He was open about his feelings, not afraid to put himself out there. His smile could seriously power a city.

Nakagawa Tuishi as Akito was very good as 2ML. I adored him in Today's Kira-Kun, and if you haven't seen it, you should.

Though there was something a little off about this show, it was short, low angst and Chae Jong Hyeop made me smile, a lot. Watch it, I think you'll enjoy it.

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Really fun watch!!

Loved:
1)Uhm Tae Goo as Ji Hwan. Tough on the outside, marshmallow on the inside. I loved watching his progression, not only in love, but in life in general. His little confused pout was so cute. He's got that deep, sexy voice going on, that goes along with his physical power to make him dangerous without lifting a finger.
2)Found family - Ji Hwan and his baby deer. Each of them played perfectly against the others. I cried a little a couple of times with these guys. I love how they took her in, took care of her and loved her.
3)Childhood friends. I know a lot of people hate this trope, but I love it!
4)ML and FL - I was disappointed in their lack of chemistry together, but they were so stinking cute!
5)The comedy. I'm not normally a big fan of slapstick comedy, but it's been a while since I have enjoyed a ROM-COM so much.
6)The OST. Didn't love the bubbly intro music, but the rest was beautiful.
7)Costuming for ML and the baby deer.
8) Im Chul Soo as the Meow Group boss - he was so amusingly over the top.
9)Eventual bromance between Ji Hwan and the prosecutor.
10) Hot scene between 2ML and 2FL.
11)Cute ending.

Didn't Love:
1)The content creator that wanted Ji Hwan.
2)The storyline of the second couple - ESPECIALLY the accidental pregnancy. It took away a lot of time that we could have been watching our main couple.
3)Not enough time for our main couple to be together.
4)The prosecutor took forever to grow on me. Finally, in the last couple of episodes, I was on board with him.
5)Kisses were poorly done.
6)What was with the pink satin suit on Ji Hwan!?! He looked gorgeous in everything else, but was he going to prom or something?
7)FL bangs and clothing. The bangs looked like something from the 70's and they dressed her in the worst, oversized, unattractive outfits.
8)Drunk kisses.

Hated:
1)Ji Hwan's father.
2)Episode 15. We moved from a rom-com into a violent drama in the blink of an eye. I felt like someone else had written that episode and it belonged in another drama. Unnecessarily bloody and violent. There were any number of ways that they could have brought some tension to our characters without changing the feel of the entire show. This is why I had to drop my rating.

However, I can heartily recommend this (if I had to do it over again, I'd just skip episode 15) rom-com, because it did the comedy so well. I also always like seeing so many actors that I've seen in other works.

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