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Interesting premise that is ruined by the execution
While the premise sounds interesting, and the show kept me entertained at first, the overall execution is lackluster and disappointing, which is why I finally decided to DNF this 15 minutes into episode 5. The “conflict” between the male lead and Eve went on and on, but it’s the phone call between the twins that kind of killed it for me. I don’t even know what their thing with the lottery ticket is, but they are both so annoying: space twin is oddly whiny and shrill/childish, and planet twin is oddly dominant and both of them maximized the annoying effect they have on me.Episode 4 was already quite weird to be honest. Why would the space tourist, untrained and unprofessional as he is, be Eve’s savior… out of all possible people that could have helped her? Makes no sense. Everyone, be it in space or on planet Earth, wasted precious minutes “monitoring” and asking the same, tired questions instead of stepping in and getting their commander back inside… like,… I don’t know?
The whole … reproductive propaganda is also done distastefully. Korea has low birthrates at the moment, and this show is not really promoting having babies in a good way: the female characters concerned with the space reproduction don’t even have a say about the doctor (Kang Su or the male lead) treating their eggs and they generally have no bodily autonomy as of right now. So far, in 4 episodes, the CEO has just decided everything or fired everyone in the women’s stead, which is so icky. (Also, him blaming the male lead for Go Eun’s baby loss made no sense, her pregnancy was literally not viable and life threatening??)
Anyway, there is maybe more to say, but the show just didn’t do it for me. Moving on to the next👋🏻👋🏻
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Magical
I first watched this drama back in 2022, and really liked it. Though I found the plot a little confusing at first, I absolutely loved the male lead and the romance between him and Tae Eul. Personally, I love Tae Eul as a female lead and I would let her kick me if she really needed to. Maybeee her character seemed a little fiercer in the initial episodes, but she didn't turn into a complete damsel at all. I really loved the bickering and banter between her and Lee Gon, who is super funny himself. I loved Lee Min Ho's delivery of his lines in the show. Sometimes, it could be a little cheesy, but overall, I have rewatched this show twice, and loved it again and again. Both times, I only watched the romance between the leads to be honest, but it really hits😭💞 Even if the love story starts rather abruptly, especially from the female lead's side, I still love it so much. I mean, Lee Gon literally went through every universe to find Tae Eul... that's commitment!Was this review helpful to you?
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Nothing special to keep me interested
While I think the cast is very talented and good, I just couldn't continue the series. I almost made it halfway through but I decided to just drop it. Many people prefer shows such as "Dr. Romantic", so I will definitely give that a chance in terms of medical drama coupled with romance. Ji Sung has very pretty eyes and melted my heart one too many times, but that is not enugh to keep me interested :(.I need to vent my frustration with Kang Mi Rae:
She is pissed at her sister, our female lead, because she accuses Kang Si Young to having given up on their father and basically supporting the decision to let him die. Euthanasia plays a big part in this drama, it is controversial, everyone has their own opiniions on that matter. I personally support the decision to let the father find rest after spending more than one year on a machine that does the "living" for him. The man had already accepted that he might die even before being admitted to the hospital, but the family (of doctors) cannot bear to let him go. While the female lead, her aunt and her mother silently wish to finally let her father go, Mi Rae opposes to it. I get it, she doesn't want to see her father die. Her behavior, however, is very frustrating. The way she treats her sister because of the incident is just awful. So much hatred, frustration and hostility for something that wasn't anyone's fault. Mi Rae acts like only her (medical) opinion and feelings matter, that only she is right, and it pisses me off so! much. In those moments it is very clear that it's not Dr. Kang Mi Rae who has these opinions, but Miss Kang Mi Rae, the daughter. At this point, it is selfish to keep the man attached to a bunch of machines just because you can't let go, however hard it may be. This isn't life that he's living, he's merely existing, unable to (ever) do anything at all (again). Her treating her sister like that is just AH very annoying.
Next, the two antagonists, that nurse and the prosecutor, I'll keep it short though.
I don't know, if I found out that a doctor ended a patient's life who 1) was TERMINALLY ill, meaning he would have died anyway (with or without clinical trial) (and also in hell lot of pain too), and 2) (lowkey more importantly) was a kidnapper who killed two children, I would choose my priorities differently. The nurse is pissed because she's against euthanasia and also thought the patient didn't deserve to die; the prosecutor is pissed because he's against euthanasia and the death penalty (in general). However, I found their targeting Doctor Cha invasive and weird. Don't y'all have jobs??? Just chilling in front of the hospital (or even in the building) and lowkey threatening him.... that is just harassment lmao, that makes you no better to be honest. Doctor Cha served his 3-year sentence and is now out and about, saving patients' lives. Their motivations were... i don't know weird.
The OST was cute but not that great. Chemistry was fine. Acting great but the story just didn't pull me in 100%. Si Young could be a lil nosy sometimes and do just a lil toooo much idk.
Overall, disappointing considering its hype, but I don't want to spend any more time on that show, I'll watch some other medical romance drama lmao.
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Yummyyy!
This was cute! The food looked so, so good – I really would have loved a taste haha! I liked how the female lead took action often, I found her quite reactionary when necessary. Personally, this is not a grandiose series by any means, but I enjoyed its run a lot from start to finish, which makes me quite happy because Yoon A’s last drama … wasn’t for me to put it nicely. She plays these comedic characters well enough to keep my attention throughout! Now, the plot wasn’t that crazy, especially the political aspect. It was pretty watery, and I was emotionally unaffected from the events we see in episode 11 because I did not quite understand the grandmother’s motives to get rid of the late Queen. It’s not like she had a strong hold on the male lead after he became king, so why this plot? The ending was also quite funny … “We’re not telling you how he came back because that doesn’t matter” … okay?! 🤣🤣 That’s lazy, but I’ll let that slide because the show was overall very entertaining and visually pleasing! I only wish they could have toned down that filter … no one’s skin is THAT flawless to be honest… and everyone is pretty enough anyway! Good times!Was this review helpful to you?
Healing
The last 15 minutes made me so inexplicably sad and made me cry, I don’t know why🥹. This show was really comforting and served as a means to let go of some of my feelings, which makes me appreciate this gem a lot. Liu Yi Fei is incredibly natural in her acting in this show, she easily conveyed any emotions and really touched me with her performance. Li Xian: I only know him from some clips of “Go Go Squid”, and in those he looked rather stiff, so I didn’t know what to expect. He quickly proved to be very charming, fun and expressive (key word: eye acting😏) on screen, and I enjoyed all the interactions his character had.I think the show had too many sub-plots though. Too many stories to be told, and at one point I started losing interest and only cared about Hong Dou, granny, A’Yao, and the girl trio (girl friendships 🥰🐥🍓🌸🌷🌞🌈💜💕❣️), basically anything that involved our main leads.
The OST and cinematography were also simply sublime and so pretty!
Overall, a beautiful healing series that goes right into your heart with a dash of romance!
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Quite fun
This was cute and fun! I liked how bright and colorful the show was, it felt like an easy watch.CCIR sheds light on the competitive educational system, and how it negatively affects students in terms of mental health and behavior towards others (their parents or classmates). Su Ah, for example, may have a nasty personality for most of the drama, but I couldn't hate her because it was clearly a result of the academic pressure she has on her shoulders in order to be consistently high achieving in class. I also blame her mother and any other adult in this show lol. Seon Jae's mom... Su Ah's mental health drastically deteriorated: she had hallucinations and even fantasies about harming Hae Yi. Due to the pressure she felt, she viewed HY as an enemy that needed to be eliminated but we could see that she felt bad and that she was self-conscious. Hee Jae is another example of how academic pressure (and parents) can destroy a person mentally, especially because his mom continued to make the same mistake with Seon Jae.
The found family trope in this show is strong and great, I really liked it. Chi Yeol finally found his people, and Haeng Son's little circle was so wholesome. And I loved it whenever she'd say "Anyway" 🥹. However, I found the episodes a tad too long, I watched the second half of the show in double speed and also skipped a little. I thought I would enjoy it a little more than I did to be honest. The show is overall 'alright' - I don't know what it is, but it didn't catch me 100%. The OST was okay - average, there wasn't really a song that stood out to me. But: I really enjoyed the relationship between the leads. It offers some sweet and fun moments between all the teasing and bickering and is also overall quite mature. I didn't like how it was never clarified that Hae Yi didn't attempt suicide though. That was bad writing... my girl was kidnapped!
In conclusion: a cute little show that offers an insight into education and its dark sides and impact on mental health, but also a show with fun romance, friendship and found family.
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… well. Unfortunately, I didn’t like this show. My favorite thing about it was the acting and Lee Joon Gi’s and Moon Chae Won’s chemistry. Kim Moo Jin as a character was super annoying, I did not care about him and his old love (story) Hae Su. The real Baek Hee Sung got on my nerves so much, I’m glad he died. I got tired of the show after a little while… It was good but I didn’t go crazy over it, despite the hype. I just didn’t love it, which is kind of sad but I'll watch Lawless Lawyer next and I'm excited to see LJG in a different role! Was this review helpful to you?
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fun rom-com!!
(April 2022) This was so freaking cute: I loved every second of it. I randomly started this drama and it was exactly what I needed: cute, sweet, fun and good humour. You just have to fall for all the different characters necause they were toooo likable. Loved out main couple a lot as they gave me lots of swoonworthy moments, but I also reallyreally loved the second lead couple (which is usually rather rare lol). But Yeong Seo and Ha Ri both had such chaotic bestie vibes while the guys were calm, it was really fun to watch their dynamics. The humour wasn't overdone, the drama has the perfect amount of cringe and ridicule without going too overboard. To me, this is the perfect light-hearted K-Drama.My only criticism is that the ending felt a little too rushed, I would have liked one or two more episodes but other than that I really enjoyed this drama and can definitely recommend it. I have rewatched it twice already because it is such a comfort for me <33.
(August 2022 rewatch impressions) Every time I rewatch this drama, I know (again) why I love it so much: it’s easy to watch, fun, lighthearted and romantic. Truly something that soothes my soul<3(second rewatch).
(November 2024) Infinite rewatch haha! Still so, so fun and cute, I love this show so much. I laugh out loud so many times and just embrace the slight cringe🤣✅. Only thing is that Ahn Hyo Seop is a little stiff to be honest, but I love the show regardless!
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Not for me
Oh, this was not it. Everything that worked in “Love Me, Love My Voice” did not work here, I fear. This was not for me, and I feel like everyone was doing too much and nothing at all at the same time. Why does the male lead immediately care so much for a girl he doesn’t know? To the point that she literally moves in with him, like? Girl, he could be a freak, aren’t you scared of getting offed?? LYY was also just too intense for me. Bro loved looking at Yin Guo like this 👁️👄👁️, it made me uncomfortable😭😭. When she put that band aid on his leg… I thought I was going to 🤯 because why were they doing that much over a scratch?? I thought I could push through to get to their dating era, but the episodes just drag and drag – the leads just looking at each other wide-eyed, doing too much and yet nothing at all. It wasn’t for me, moving on to the next drama.Update October 2024: I kept thinking of this show, and picked it up again. I admit that I skipped episodes 23-29 and most of episode 30 to finally get to the end. Overall, this was alright - I guess -, but my initial thoughts are still the same. Again, small situations were kind of presented in such an over-the-top way that I just rolled my eyes👀👩🏻💻. Bro has a sore throat, and Yin Guo acts like he's on his death bed. When she visited him while he was ill, she kept bumping into that stupid box in his apartment, which pissed me off so bad BECAUSE IT WASN'T EVEN THAT DARK TO MISS IT?!👹👹 Like, if I can make out every piece of furniture, then it ain't dark enough for her to trip over her two feet. Again, bro was doing too much because her leg was slightly red from bumping into a box twice. Pleaseeeee. Also... Zhao Jin Mai was adorable in this show, she gave me black cat energy, however, her whiny voice was a little annoying sometimes because it made her sound like a 16-year-old 😭😭😐 Anywho, episodes 8/9-15 were quite enjoyable though, once she got back to China... I lost interest again 😐🚩. Anyway, I did it, I watched the show, and had an okay time!
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Performative and lame
Halfway through episode 8, and I decided to drop the show. I really love Esther a lot, and don’t mind her cute characters at all, BUT even if she is supposed to be 19 in the show… some of the things Jiang Mu does to get close to Jin Zhao are too much for me. It’s a little cute at first, but after a while it’s just annoying. The people who say, “Well, that’s how it’s written!”, … you need higher standards, because Jiang Mu is borderline infantilizing herself, and it’s just not that cute to be honest! (And just because it's written that way, doesn't mean that it's good!) Also, sometimes the styling is too cutesy, Esther is a gorgeous, gorgeous woman, but she does not pass as 19, so some of the hairstyles and clothing just look a little too young on her.While I really do like the cinematography, the OST, and the use of colors to help with storytelling, I just… don’t feel the vibes at all. This show feels so performative, every shot is meant to make everyone look cool, hot, and sexy—but in a way that feels disingenuous and fake. Like, you can tell that this is a show and that their actions are being directed and filmed, it’s not immersive at all. Also, it’s corny as hell: “I hate cream the most”… girl. WHO put that in the script!? The fight and race scenes are cool, but at the same time… eh, I don’t know. Since everyone is acting so “cool”, it ends up looking lame as hell to me. This feels like a really badly done web drama with a run-time of 5 minutes per episode. Some of the characters feel like caricatures, i.e., Wan Qing, the “baddie” girl bullying people, but lowkey just ends up looking embarrassing and desperate; Jin Zhao, the bad boy with a soft heart; the racer dudes … Lin Sui and Liang Yan Feng, who act and look like wannabe posers; Na Na… I don’t know, she’s just weird AND her advice sucks; the step-“mom” is also weird, I don’t like her (sorry, this just turned into a rant!🤭) It’s the end of the year, and I just don’t have the will or patience to dedicate my time to something half-baked and performative like this show. It’s good when you want to turn your brain off for a little, but it’s just too corny to withstand for me right now. Bummer.
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not good but not bad
I was curious about this drama since I had started it several years ago, but never actually finished it. Unfortunately, it did not catch me as much as I wanted it to. I really wanted to like it, and I (for one) think the acting is decent. Some people don't like the lead actress' acting, but I thought it was alright. The male lead is super handsome, and I found his acting pretty good since he had two act two contrasting characters. It's the story that just didn't do it for me: it did not make much sense sometimes.1) Mr. Grim Reaper is supposed to be experienced and smart and whatnot but then he keeps on talking to himself about "humans" and how dumb they are, he's overall super goofy and bad at hiding that he's a grim reaper like... Sir. Plus, he has no awareness of his surroundings and people possibly shadowing him. His grim reaper friends literally have to tell him to act more like human like cmon, where is said experience??
2) Mr. Grim Reaper wonders why the female lead cannot see HIS shadow in Moo Gang's/Joon's (? lol, I am not invested enough to figure that plot line out :( )body and then concludes it must be because he's wearing all black. Mf, maybeeee it is because the body you chose is already dead. How should the female lead foresee "your" death if the body already died bffr. I find my theory more plausible than his, how can he convince himself of that...???
So far, the cinematography is nothing out of this world, same with the OST. Overall, I am a bit disappointed. I decided to DNF this on a whim because I was just watching episode 7 and felt like I made huge process, only to see I had only watched like 20 minutes max... so yeah, it drags a little. There are other shows to be watched, so I'll let this one go !! :)
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well no!
I decided to watch this on a whim when it started airing, but now I just want this out of my watchlist lol. There is something about this show that feels cheap and low-budget, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but it *does* lessen my enjoyment.The acting of the leads is not bad, but the female lead's dubbing takes away SO much from her acting. Episode 5 nearly took me out, the VA did such a bad job. I get that them pretending to like each other in front of the concubines was supposed to be a little over the top, but the dubbing made this scene almost unwatchable. The action scenes are also ... not good. Especially the wolf attack in the first episode was badly done, and badly edited. I don't know what it is about the show, but it feels like they had 5 Dollars and a dream. The production is sub-par, which is a bummer because the leads are good actors in theory but completely let down by a bad script, mediocre direction and choppy editing. Couldn't be bothered to continue, therefore I'm dropping this before I end up wasting my time.
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Big love for my bamboo sprouts!!
What a wonderful show this was🥹💗 I had such a good time watching this drama over the last couple of weeks. Visually, it was incredible, and I just loved the styling and little details here and there. Such as when Zi Qi was invisible, and we could see Miao Miao’s hair ribbon being played with; or when they were sitting on the stairs, and all we could see were the marks their butts had left🤭🤣I just loved Esther and Yu Xi together, I cannot believe their chemistry was even better than in “Moonlight” (which says a lot because I LOVED them in “Moonlight”). They were both so fun on screen, and I loved seeing Zi Qi yearn and long for Miao Miao throughout the show😭💞 I also loved our little Bamboo gang in general, and the friendship that they had! 🎍🎋
Acting wise, this was great! Yu Xi has such great expressions, and his eyes can convey so much; truly, such a good actor!! And Esther was wonderful as well, she can act cute so naturally I love it so much! I also enjoyed the rest of the cast, I just wish the second male lead could have had more room to show his talents, I feel like he was a little underutilized to be honest. Regardless, I loved the cast, everyone had great chemistry and worked well with each other!🌟
The OST, cinematography and visual effects were also so, so good – this drama was such a feast for my eyes and ears, I loved it!! Although I have to say that it lost me a little bit after episode 23/24, but episode 28-32 were great again, so it’s fine. I will miss this drama now that I’m done with it … 🥹💞
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