michelleoc

What a lovely romance!

Start out with a contract relationship, hate at first sight, misunderstandings, a cold man and a soft-spoken woman, and you think it's going to be like every other Asian show you've ever seen. You'd be wrong. This is one of the few shows that I've seen that I revisit time and time again.

Ha Seok Jin plays Jae In, the typical cold, work-obsessed corporate man. The hair and makeup department did an excellent job with his transformation throughout the show. He starts out complete starched, his hair is perfect and highlights his always austere expression. Over time, his look relaxes and I loved seeing that.

Jun So Min plays DaDa, the elementary school teacher. She wears the non-stylish, comfortable clothes required for working with little kids all day. She's somewhat mousy, and at first glance you think she's going to be a doormat. You will have that impression corrected very quickly. She does not suffer fools gladly.

The story of how these polar opposites meet and become involved is wonderful, in my opinion. DaDa doesn't let Jae In get away with anything, which is funny to watch, because he's used to always being in control. These two have wonderful chemistry together and this show has some of the best kissing scenes out there! There's nothing earth changing here, just a terrific show, that I think you'll be glad you watched.

Read More

Loved it the second time around

This show really demonstrated to me that you need to be in a certain mindset for some shows. The first time I watched this, I HATED it! However, when a friend wanted to watch it, I decided to give it another chance. I'm so glad I did! This was a wonderful show! There was some silliness, some seriousness, and a beautiful romance. The flashbacks to the Joseon period were very well-done, and new clues were revealed throughout the show, so you never quite knew what was going to happen. This show has, by far, the best ending of any K-drama I’ve watched. It wasn’t thrown in as an afterthought, it wasn’t rushed, it was just lovely. I can highly recommend this show without reservation.

Read More

Meh.

This show started out well, but I thought it dragged A LOT in the middle. I did like the premise of the show, the secrets, etc. The male lead was wonderful, and I loved the concept of him loving her practically his entire life. The female lead, I loved her voice, and she is beautiful - her smile is just radiant - but I didn't particularly care for her character. She seemed unnecessarily pouty and kind of stand-offish. The second male lead - I LOVE when the secondary character turns out to be a good guy. They even turned around the second female lead - she was an absolute nightmare at the beginning, but at the end I liked her. The overall story was kind of slow and sometimes boring, and I don't understand why so many Korean dramas have the passage of time just before the end of the show. The characters have to go through so much to get together, and then they just kind of go along on auto pilot. It was a happy ending, just kind of brief and bland. There were a couple of good kisses, but I didn't find this show terribly romantic.

Read More

You have TOTALLY got to watch this!

This show will make you laugh out loud and make you cry. The characters are wonderfully written and portrayed by the actors. The romance was just lovely - he liked her first (I love when that happens!) and their relationship developed from friendship. This was a realistic portrayal of a developing relationship. They talked to each other, spent time together, etc. His romantic gestures were in the way he took care of her. He is the kind of boyfriend every girl dreams of, just wonderful in every way. I also loved the stories of the friendships between Bok Joo and the fatties, between the male lead and his friend and the development of the relationships between the two groups. Even the obligatory evil ex-girlfriend was well fleshed-out and you really understood why she behaved the way she did.

I was impressed by Lee Sung Kyung as Kim Bok-Joo. She portrayed the character in a way that, even though she physically didn't change much from the beginning of the show to the end, as you watched her she became so much more attractive. That to me showed that our actions help determine how attractive we are. She was a stalwart friend and how she behaved with her friends, and ultimately Jung Joon, was always supportive and positive.

The biggest surprise for me in this show was Nam Joo Hyuk as Jung Joon. I have seen him in supporting roles in a couple of things and was questioning his ability to tackle a leading role. I needn't have worried. He brought such heart to the role of Jung Joon. At the beginning he seemed like he was very immature and heading toward being a bully toward Kim Bok-Joo. He was able to walk that razor-thin line between meanness and playfulness successfully. He was strong, but when he showed his sadness and vulnerability it just about gutted me!

Wonderful ending. And cameos by Ji Soo and Lee Jong Suk were a bonus.

Read More

Great story, but not strong on romance

Very interesting premise for a show, and they didn't use too many obligatory Korean cliches. Taecyon and Kim So Hyun were both very good. His character really developed as the show went along (as you would hope) and he went from being a complete loner to finally letting people into his life. She was kind of a stalker toward him early on, but not in an irritating way. She was innocent, but not immature, and very sweet. Kwon Yool does an excellent bad guy and was very creepy. I loved the relationship between the two main characters because they were both misfits in a way, but together they worked. I rated it lower because I'm all about the romance and it was lacking in this show, in order to make time for the story and all the ghosts. I also don't like open eye kisses (and one of them you could tell that they weren't actually even touching each other) and the ending was very weak.

Read More

Could have been totally cliched, but wasn't

Light, lovely show. Seo In Guk was made for this role. The range of emotions that he displayed - scared, clueless, naive, vulnerable, playful - I found myself smiling throughout a good portion of the show. The female was very good also and they had such sweet chemistry together. If you just read the overview for this show, you might think that it will be just a re-mix of every Korean drama you've already seen. I mean, c'mon, wealthy guy/poor girl, amnesia, we've seen these things before. I didn't hold out much hope when I started this - I'll be honest, I was watching because of Seo In Guk. I very quickly realized that this show was going to knock down all my pre-conceived notions. This took the K-drama cliches and either turned them on their ear, or soften them so you weren't being beat over the head with them. Very good kissing scenes, nice ending without being rushed.

Read More

I think to call this a romance is a mistake, but worth watching

I'll start by saying this was NOT a romantic comedy. Comedy yes, but romance? There was someone that she was in love with, but there was no chemistry between the two, no kissing, actually no touching between the two at all. They could have been brother and sister, in my opinion.
I thought she had more chemistry with her editor! The lead actress was just precious. Her character, Etsuko, was very high energy with a positive attitude. At the beginning I almost quit watching because she had not taken any job in seven years because she only wanted to be an editor for one specific magazine - was she stupid? Did she think she was so special that she should be given a job that she had no experience in? I'm glad I stuck it out, though. She finally got hired as a proofreader (she thought she was going to be an editor) but made sure to tell the proofreaders that she was working with that she wasn't going to be there long, because she was going to be moved up to editor. Each episode focused on a new job she was working on. She learned a lot as a proofreader and taught everyone else in the process. I loved watching the developing friendships with the authors, her editor, and especially her proof reading colleagues. For me, this show was mostly about the clothes (how did she afford them? Where did she put them in that tiny apartment?). I loved the preview of the outfits she was going to be wearing before each scene. Etsuko was one of those characters that, on paper, would be a big pain in the neck, but she was so likeable that you just had to root for her to be a success.

Read More

Fun show!

This was a sweet story about a woman that's creating a dating game to play on your phone, and the president of the company that has absolutely no clue about women. Their relationship starts out antagonistic and the bulk of the movie is about their developing friendship. It speaks to the importance of friendship and how we often don't see a relationship for what it is, until it's almost too late. Yes, there is a large age difference between the two, but it really doesn't matter - she's mature, and he's very naive about the real world. The age difference made me focus on their relationship, and not how gorgeous-looking they were, which made me sink deeper into the enjoyment of the story. Part of it was filmed at Christmastime which made the whole thing kind of like a shiny package of happiness. The ending was happy, though as Asian dramas are wont to do, extremely rushed.

Read More

Come in for a soju and a chat

This was an extremely original concept for a show and, for me, there was a lot to like about it. I loved how each episode was like its own self-contained little drama. The music was wonderful. The special effects were really good. The story of trying to solve the grudges of others while holding onto your own was very good and I loved how in every episode you got another snippet into the back story of the main characters. There were so many funny aspects to this show, but with a serious base, and the two were well-integrated.

The acting: Choi Won Young as Chef Gwi was terrific. I'm used to seeing him in supporting roles as the driver or the secretary of the male lead, and he was really up to the challenge of a leading role. I liked his character from the outset and just kept liking him more and more. Yook Sung Jae as Han Kang Bae - he has that wonderful innocence about him, and he really conveyed the loneliness he felt because of the gift/curse that he had. Hwang Jung Eum as Wol Joo - I know she's kind of a controversial actress, people either usually love her or hate her. Unfortunately, she usually gets cast as someone that yells/screeches/screams a lot, with broad physical movements (think Lucille Ball) because she is good at physical comedy. I was pleasantly surprised that was not the part she played in this show. She starts out extremely cold and unlikeable, and as the story goes along and you find out more about her, you are able to empathize with her and the life she is forced to live.

Production quality: This show was beautifully filmed, full of bright colors and nuanced textures, drawing your attention to the sidewalks, walls, pop-up tent, etc.

I did not find this show romantic. There was a romantic subtext to it, but, for me, this was a show about building a family. Resolving differences, building trust, letting go of grudges. It was so heartwarming to watch Han Kang Bae go from being alone to being part of a family.

Read More

Time I will never get back

and I even fast forwarded...a lot!

I have loved KHY in other things I've seen her in, but I didn't find her suited to this part. Her voice, her pouting, her arms crossed, it was all just wrong. You know how some people can portray a character in such a way that even if they are unlikeable, you end up rooting for them? That was not the case here. I didn't like her at the beginning, and I liked her even less at the end. I hate to say it, but KHY may be typecast as the friendly, bubbly FL.

Lomon was okay, but he could have played a bit part and my feeling for him would be the same. Nothing stuck out about him here.

Personally, I thought the script was very lackluster. None of the actors seemed fully invested in their characters, I felt like they were just going through the motions. It meandered all over the place, never arriving at something that made sense. I didn't feel any chemistry between the leads, but that wasn't helped by the script. She was hateful, then suddenly they were dating because she decided that was what they were going to do, and she was still her hateful self. Definite lack of character growth.

And PLEASE! A 10-year time skip, one of which she was around him but didn't tell him?!?! One opportunity I think that was really missed, when the other gumiho spilled about all that she had done for him, when he thought it was the FL - it would have made more sense for him to discover that the FL was actually human and not still a gumiho. Or maybe that's what actually happened, but I missed it, because I was counting the minutes until I could be done with this drama.

Read More

How to ruin an otherwise okay show

I loved the main couple throughout most of the show. I especially liked the more mature skinship for a change. They were lovely together through most of the drama. I'm a sucker for "we knew each other as children" storylines, if they are managed well.
Yoon Kye Sang was very good as Min Hoo.
Seo Ji Hye was lovely as Ye Sul. She is stunning and captivating to watch. The scenes when they were together and laughing were a joy to watch.
I enjoyed watching Tae In Ho as the doctor. In everything I've seen him in, he plays a complete jerk, so this was a nice change.

Problems for me:
2ML. He seemed desperate and needy and cared only about his own feelings. This wanna be triangle went on too long.
2FL. He told her repeatedly that he thought of her as a sister, she didn't care. This wanna be triangle also went on too long, and her crying and carrying on was irritating.
FL was too wishy washy. I got the feeling she couldn't decide who she liked.
Hwang Bo Ra as one of the office workers, Ye Sul's friend. I normally like this actress because of her quirkiness. In this she was just extremely irritating.
The doctor's storyline. Dating someone for a week. That storyline made no sense, and it showed up periodically to fill time.

But the absolute worst, and what made me drop my rating like a rock:
Did a different writer write the last episode?! A serious drama suddenly turned into a farce, with physical humor and by turning the main characters into caricatures! These were not the same two people that we watched fall in love and I was SO irritated!

Read More

BEYOND pleasantly surprised!

The trailers looked silly, and Ahn Bo Hyun has never been one of my favorites. He's always been that support character that I've enjoyed well enough, but he hasn't wowed me when he's been the lead. All of that has changed with Flexx Cop. But let's back up a little to initial thoughts.

STORY: A chaebol that is used to playing RPG, suddenly finds himself as a cop. This could have gone quickly bad if he had been made out to be stupid. I loved how he was able to look at cases from a different perspective that the cops hadn't thought of. I also loved how he seemed to throw money at almost every case, providing help/resources that only his massive wealth could bring. I'm a big fan of having a case take just a little over an episode. This keeps it from being drawn out needlessly and keeps things moving.
Friendships: I loved to watch the development with the four main characters. Impatience/mistrust/dislike turn to caring and trust. I was halfway through the drama when it struck me how organically the friendships developed. With each case, the other cops grew to like Yi Soo. I love how they came to appreciate/like Yi Soo and were there to support him and keep him safe when he was struggling.
Romance: Hmmm. Okay, so I'll admit I'm a dyed-in-the-wool romantic. I thought the story line of the cop and the medical examiner was cute. However, I wasn't feeling it between Yi Soo and Kang Hyun. I think the writers purposely didn't develop it, knowing that they would have a season 2. I just really enjoyed them getting to know one another and coming to depend on each other.

ACTING: Excellent. Ahn Bo Hyun owned this role. He could have come off as obnoxious, but he played it so innocent that you couldn't help but like him from the get-go. He really had to run the gamut of emotions in this role, and he nailed every one of them. The scene toward the end with Yi Soo and Kang Hyun's mother just about broke my heart. Everyone was excellent in their roles, Kwak Shi Yang as Seung Joo kept me guessing for quite some time. I was disappointed in the direction he took, but I realize that's the only way it could go. I really liked the casting of Kim Shin Bi as Hyung Jin, the youngest cop of the group. He had the sweet innocence that played nicely against the more seasoned and jaded cops. The hero worship he had for Yi Soo was so fun.

MUSIC: There were some nice songs that faded into the background.

REWATCH VALUE: Usually, the only shows I rewatch are the good romantic scenes from shows I've watched. However, this was so good I'm going to watch it again right away!

WISH LIST FOR SEASON TWO: I'm not normally a fan of a show having a second season, because it's all been done in season one. Going from dislike to working together as a team - that was a big part of this season, and one of the things that made it so enjoyable. I don't know how the writers plan to do this, but I hope that they keep the format of a case an episode. And if you can't give us a good, hot, chemistry-filled, believable romance, just leave the romance out. They are great as friends.

Honestly, I can't get over how much I enjoyed this show!

Read More