Middle-of-the-road for me
Overall, I found this to be a cute show, but I don't feel like I would have missed anything if I hadn't watched it.Story: I struggled with the character of Misaki through the first few episodes. She was very flighty and obsessed about getting kissed. She liked Chiaki and told everyone that would listen, but she could hardly talk to him. Then she liked Kanata. When that started and how that happened is kind of a mystery - he's a complete jerk. If I was Kanata, I don't know that I would be able to trust her feelings. I do have to say that the relationship between Misaki and Kanata was pretty organic. They spent a lot of time together, originally antagonistic, then becoming friends. Their chemistry was excellent. There were some side stories that made no sense and went nowhere. Plus, there was an older, creepy landowner guy that kept showing up and that storyline just disappeared. As usual with Asian dramas, I was pretty disappointed in the ending, it was pretty boring.
Cast: The actor and actress that played Kanata and Misaki were both good. The actor playing Chiaki was okay as well, though there wasn't much for him to do other than be handsome. I felt like the actor that played the youngest brother overacted quite a lot, which took me out of the story, which is unfortunate, because he had a good storyline.
I really enjoyed the cooking scenes, and the dishes were a treat for the eyes.
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Drama Special Series Season 1: White Christmas
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So impactful!
Let me start by saying I don't care for psychological dramas, crime dramas, and I don't like watching things about mental illness. This story brings forth the question, is someone born to evil or do they learn it? So many reviews talk about how they binge-watched this show. I could only watch one episode a day because it stressed me out so much!I thought the story was very original, even though this isn't a genre I normally watch, I could tell that I was watching something that you rarely see. It was very Lord of the Rings. Who can say what you would do when your life is on the line? Does your true self come out?
The acting was phenomenal by everyone. I've seen most of these actors in other projects, and their work here was top-notch. At times their behaviors were very frenetic, but only when called for. For the most part, their acting was very understated, a lot being displayed in just facial expressions.
The camera work/cinematography/location really gave a feeling of darkness and fear. Each character was fleshed out very well, and you got more of a feel for them and their behaviors as you progressed to the next episode.
Without giving anything away, I had to deduct for the total implausibility of a few things that happened, in an otherwise believable (though terrifying) situation.
The music was not your typical music - it ranged from hard rock to opera, and it all fit in very well.
Rewatch value is low, only because, once you know what's going on, it doesn't hold the same impact.
I can highly recommend this drama.
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This review may contain spoilers
They threw everything at the poor female lead!
Love LMH, but hated his character and his hair! He was just weak, and gave in to his mother. She was evil personified and I didn't like how there were no consequences to all the evil things she did. Gu Jun Pyo never grew. He was a bully, then a weakling for not standing up for Jan Di. Gum Jan Di was just darling. Very spunky. I loved how all the guys really grew to love her and want to take care of her. I loved her family. I hated the ending, I felt it really fell flat (again, if you're in love, you just disappear for years and then come back?), and I feel very strongly that she ended up with the wrong guy. Given the choice between Gu Jun Pyo and Ji Hoo, who in their right mind would choose Gu Jun Pyo?!?!?! I know a lot of women are drawn to "bad boys" but he was not a very nice person overall. And their relationship consisted of them fighting all the time. Not a healthy relationship. There were also too many episodes and every tragedy that could befall Jan Di did - attempted rape, EXTREME bullying, kidnapping, injury that ended her swimming career while trying to save the ML, malnutrition, nosebleeds, exhaustion, parents forced to move away to find work due to his evil mother, public embarrassment by his mother, forced to work as a servant, having your house torn down, ML engaged to another girl and having to help the girl plan the wedding, and having the ML not remember you due to amnesia. There were a few sweet scenes between ML and FL, but MANY, MANY more between FL and 2ML.I do have so say that I have re-watched parts of this many times, mostly the scenes between the FL and 2ML. Theirs was just such a wonderful pairing.
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A good, short drama with some missed opportunities
I kind of enjoyed this show, for what it was. I realize that, with the limited number of episodes they had that they couldn't go into too much, but there were missing pieces for me. The biggest missing piece for me - why was he the only one going through this? I did enjoy the reincarnation/fate aspect of it, but there seemed to be so much left unexplained.The acting wasn't the best I've seen. Each person seemed to have a struggle of some sort. I don't know if it's actual acting ability or more due to the script, but reactions and interactions often felt forced.
I loved the music. The songs were lovely and heart-felt.
I must say that the ending was very rushed and unsatisfying for me. I was thankful, at that point, that I hadn't invested more time in this drama.
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Not much happened throughout the whole show
The show was cute, but there just wasn't anything happening. Each episode brought more of the same. I don't like a lot of angst in the shows that I watch, but there has to be some kind of drama to drive the episodes forward. This did not have that. You could literally come in on any episode and not feel like you have missed anything.I thought the highlight of this drama was the architecture. The house on the rocks was really cool. The office where he worked, surrounded by walls of books was nice too.
Acting - Zhao Yi Qin as Su Mu was the typical cold, emotionless man that we've seen countless times in countless other dramas. I do have to say that he is VERY attractive, and once he warmed up a little he was a joy to watch. Ding Yi Yi as Tian Tian De...hmmm, I don't know if it was because of the writing or her acting, but I just wasn't impressed. She is a beautiful young lady, and they made a cute couple, but she spend an inordinate amount of time being "cute".
The dubbing in Chinese dramas is always problematic for me. WHY in the world do they use the same woman with the same whiny voice in so many of these?! Then there are the open-eyed, still-as-a-statue kisses. Please, if you want me to believe that they like each other, there needs to be some kind of emotion!
I'm not giving a spoiler to say that I REALLY loved the scene with the ear buds. That was an extremely cute and sweet scene, but not enough so to make up for the rest of the show. I'd say that if you want to watch something sweet, with no drama, and you don't want to get invested in the characters at all, give this show a try.
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Good acting
I really like Park Shin Hye and Lee Jong Suk. The whole Pinocchio thing seemed to have been put on the back burner for the last half of the series -it was so front-and-center at the beginning, and then suddenly, they moved on. I think Lee Jong Suk cries better than any other Korean actor, and he did a lot of it in this series. I really liked the second male lead and how he wanted her happiness over everything. So many times the people are only interested in themselves which makes them very selfish and not someone you'd want to love anyway. Good storyline, happy ending.Was this review helpful to you?
Pretty good
Since I love romance (especially rom com), there was not enough romance for me, lack of chemistry between leads (I didn’t feel the focus was romance.) That said, WONDERFUL show about friendships. Friendship between female leads and between the female lead and 2nd male lead. I totally had second lead syndrome - Siwon was terrific. They didn’t use the usual storyline of possessive people or evil parents, which was much appreciated. She didn’t seem too upset that he was leaving for a year - which kind of went along with the lack of chemistry.Was this review helpful to you?
Good main couple
Now for Radio Romance, Kim So Hyun was plucky and stuck to her guns and didn't turn out to be the doormat I was afraid she would be. Yoon Doo Joon - how in the world can he convey so much emotion just through his eyes? They were a wonderful couple. I didn't care for Yoon Park until about halfway through the series, he was a little over the top until then. Typical evil parent storyline, which was irritating. Competing team at the radio station were irritating as well. Personally, the highlight of this series was the relationship between the two main characters.Was this review helpful to you?
Dysfunctional people need love too
First, the synopsis is not correct. The character of Na Ji Young is not a "rugged individualist". She suffered from depression, antisocial personality disorder, and probably a couple of other disorders. She was a mess, and she wasn't a nice person at all. Then you have Park Byeok Soo, who had problems of his own - he couldn't stand to be alone. So you've got her that can't love, and him that loves too much. This was a difficult watch for me because I wasn't able to relate to their personalities.However, thankfully it was only two episodes so it didn't get mired down in filler that is so prevalent in Asian dramas.
The acting was good, and once they got together and opened up a little it became more enjoyable. This drama emphasized the damage that people that are supposed to love you can do. It also brought to light - is it better to have loved and lost or never to have loved at all? She didn't want to let anyone in because she was terrified of being hurt, yet her transition of putting herself out their to her co-workers reaped positive results. The photo montage toward the end of the show gave us a glimpse into their future lives. One amazingly hot kiss was a treat to see.
I felt that the woman playing the psychiatrist did a poor acting job. She was entirely too flippant to be dealing with other people's psyche. She could so some serious damage.
I can't totally recommend this drama, but due to the fact that it was short, I was glad I watched it.
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Full of irritating characters
There were quite a few irritating characters in this drama. It went a little bit deeper than the typical rom com, but I felt like the acting was bad, or maybe it was just the writing. I had a hard time relating to any of them. Jasper Liu is so cute, but he always smiles at inappropriate times. Puff Guo has pouting down to a science, and not in a good way. The characters had a lot of immature traits to add to the unlikability factor. This was a show that I "watched" and was not able to invest myself into at all, which is a shame. I did love the cooking scenes, however.Was this review helpful to you?
Korean "Fame"
It was fun to see these actors in earlier roles. I almost switched it off after the first episode because the FL was so hateful. I stuck with it though, because I refuse to give up on things. It had a "Fame" vibe to it. The competition to be the best, to stick to your guns, and still find a way to forge friendships was well fleshed-out. I thought the friendship development was very realistic. I do have to say that I despised the ending. But that's just me. It frustrates me to watch something all the way through and have the ending be an afterthought.Was this review helpful to you?
Enjoyed this one
This was a very good show. Lee Jong Suk was good. He's a good crier and he is just so beautiful - easy to watch. Suzy did a much better job than she had in other things I've seen her in. I do have to say that the brother and the friend looked so much alike I always had to figure out who I was watching, which took me a little out of the story. It was an interesting premise and I liked how each episode tied up a small loose end, but kept the overall mystery intact. The music was PERFECT - created lots of tension. The ending was terrific. This is one of those shows that has some pretty good kissing scenes, and it is a drama that I go back to periodically.Was this review helpful to you?
Seemed like a low budget show
So, overall, the show was very cute and they packed a lot into six episodes. I enjoyed when their bodies were switched. He did an excellent job of portraying a more feminine form, and she did a great job of being more "tough". Being short, there was not any wasted time, which I always appreciate.The only reason I rated it down was that the production value was seriously lacking. It seemed more like an After School Special. The lighting left everyone (especially the male lead) with a slightly yellowish tinge. And the makeup on the male lead was awful. It wasn't until the last couple of scenes that he looked attractive.
Barring those things, the story was good and they did a good job of character progression - they both got to see that the grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence, and they could appreciate their own lives a little more.
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This romance made me happy!
I enjoyed this drama a lot. This was one that I smiled most of the way through. The main couple was so cute together and their chemistry (romantic and otherwise) was just wonderful. I loved the height difference between the two and that just made his care and tenderness toward her more marked. If the “we knew each other as kids” trope is used well, I really like it (I’m a sucker for fate/destiny), and it was done very well in this drama.WRITING: I loved the way the two main characters were written. They were both mature and independent but together they were better, like they were more complete. They weren’t selfish. I appreciated the progression of the relationship, we really got to see everyday conversations that demonstrated why they came to like each other. They never swayed from each other. Arguments have to be used to create tension, and I thought this one was handled well, and resolved quickly. On the surface, it seemed very immature, but when you stop to realize that neither one of them had been in a relationship before, it made sense. Thank you, thank you, thank you for not rushing the ending. I’m probably in the minority, but I didn’t care for the second couple at all. I didn’t see how they could like each other at all – he was completely closed off and she was just a hot mess! I loved Cong Rong’s cousin and he was good for comic relief. I also appreciated that they didn’t bring in a totally evil, conniving person to try to keep the couple apart.
ACTING: I found no fault with any of the actors, but I especially loved Fair Xing (as Cong Rong) and Daddi Tang as (Wen Shao Qing). I was totally on board with them as a couple. Fair Xing had some very cute expressions and eye rolling that added to her likability.
COSTUMING: I loved the way the main couple was dressed. She wore a lot of suits that were tailored beautifully, and he always looked great. However, the way they dressed U Lin Huang (as Chen Chen – 2nd female lead) as very jarring and over-the-top. She looked especially tacky next to everyone else in her torn short shorts and high-top shoes.
SKINSHIP: There are some wonderful kisses in this drama, as well as a lot of hugging. Thankfully, she didn’t have that terrified look that the female has in a lot of dramas when she gets kissed.
REWATCH: I will definitely re-watch this one, but I’ll fast forward through the second couple’s scenes.
This was a drama without a lot of angst and good development of the couple’s relationship. It had a light feel to it and just swept me along with it. I’m so glad I finally broke down and watched this one. I was reluctant, because I didn't care for Put Your Head on My Shoulder. This is one that I will definitely go back and revisit when I get stuck watching shows that don’t have enough romance in them.
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WAAAAY too long!
This show would have been great if they had gone to about episode seven and then cut to the last two episodes. The writing/storyline got on a continuous loop of stalled story! The middle episodes were almost painful for me to watch, because it felt like the writers threw every trite stumbling block at the characters, and the story STILL wasn't moving forward. And I was really bothered with how many bullies and evil people were in this, If I was school-age and moved to Korea, I'd be afraid to go to school. And the adults? Don't get me started! The second male lead's and Sunbae's transition to evil made no sense and was just another time wasting filler, I felt.The lead actress was, in reality, only 14 when she filmed this. Some people were bothered by the age difference, but I didn't notice it, because there was one really bad kiss and a couple of hugs and that's it as far as skinship went.
The actors did an okay job with what they had to work with, The acting felt unnatural and forced in a few places, but that might have been due to the script.
I did love the mention of the ML looking like "that idol from Infin...I don't remember." Very clever. The soundtrack was good and lent itself to the feelings of loss when that was what was being conveyed.
Once again, you made us suffer through way too many episodes and the happy ending is the last five minutes of the show. So abrupt and unsatisfying.
So, if you've actually watched everything there is to watch and you've got some time to fill, watch the first few episodes and the last few. You'll get a complete picture of what is going on.
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