protagoniste

An all time favorite ❤️ Feeling a little wistful over the thought that they couldn't make a show like this one again even if they tried because we don't use landlines in this way anymore..

This drama has a good romance main plot but everything surrounding it and the way it is written feel trite and uninspired. I find the leads and their dynamic so fun but the rest is weak. I'm surprised there's a controversy surrounding these two. They are both adults and Jeon Doyeon is really good.

Fun, a little wacky and very intentional in its portrayal of every character ! The show never lets itself get too caught up in its drama and the humor always comes at the right time. We move so seamlessly through the story that we don't realize both the romance and the palace intrigue are progressing rather rapidly. It has its own problems but this is a nice change of pace. LOVE the two leads and love all the ladies

A gem ! I will miss all of them.

Hi there ! Sam Soon talks about wanting to lose weight and starts a few diets but she never actually loses weight. I don't know if that's helpful, haha

The plot is rather dull but it has a certain comforting quality to it that kept me watching. The beginning is a lot better than the closing episodes but that's not uncommon for K-Dramas. The characters were definitely memorable and I can see why it was popular at that time but if you're a first time viewer (like me, in 2022), I'm not sure you'd still find value in this.

Took a beloved manga classic and turned it into a cute modern romance cdrama ! Nodame is more adorable and Chiaki is less acerbic, which was honestly fun to see. Plus it gets rid of some jokes and it remodels some characters that I think were in bad taste on the OG author's part. The biggest downside is that for a drama about music, the musical scenes weren't captivating at all.
This is a sweet take on this story that later gets dragged down by side couples I didn't care about.

Poor writing skills and poor pacing. The melodrama would have been bearable if the drama knew how to balance things out or to make us look forward to plot and/or character development. But they only manage to make the audience feel tired and frustrated. I used to think they finally got the rhythm right but it's been worse lately and I don't think I'm going to finish this, it's turning out to be one of the worst K-dramas I've watched this year. Taeyang and Taejun used to be interesting characters on their own and now I only feel sorry for them and wish this would end already. How are they going to drag this to its completion — at 16 episodes ?

I agree ! It was clear from the first episodes this would mostly be about romance and the characters dealing with the past events and learning how to move forward. I don't know why other viewers keep on waiting for things the drama has never made clear it would provide. From the start, they haven't set overarching goals re:badminton, we only know that they want to play in the Olympics eventually.

Too much melodrama. I like where their relationship will eventually lead them in the end so I know the payoff will be worth it but the pacing has been way off. I thought the focus on Taejun's character and his attitude as an athlete the previous week was a good choice but right now I'm very disappointed by the new episodes.

This romcom is average and predictable but makes up for it by giving its audience a generous amount of funny scenes. What I appreciate the most is its length ! More romance Kdramas should be cut down to 12 episodes... in this case, they could have even gone with only 10 or 8 of them.

They're starting to find the right balance between dramatics, romance and humor ! This week proved the drama can switch tones without being jarring. So many scenes I liked, and all of them with a different set of characters

DW It's ok to rant, I'm not over that ending either ! The last 3 episodes were massively disappointing ☹️ There were probably other ways to express how fleeting youth and a first love were so I don't really get why she chose to go with that particular scenario

I agree! The scenes showing Yijin as an older friend to Heedo were far better than the romance

Oh about Search:WWW.. It also had several problems but my biggest peeve was that none of the love interests were fully fleshed out characters (they were The Younger Man, The Husband and The Cute and Dorky Meet Cute Guy, haha). 2521 was an improvement in the sense that Yijin and Jiwoong were written like real characters but this screenwriter still seems clumsy at writing male characters and their relationship to their love interest.. for example, I still don't get why Jiwoong and Yurim's loveline was even necessary ? And for them to stay together this long ? It was all so bizarre.

I hope everyone on this page became Kim Taeri fans through the show if they weren't already ❤️

I agree with your speculation ! The relationship progress made sense but I wasn't into their romantic scenes.. so many aspects of the show felt novel and/or fun and this just wasn't one of them to me. I think it might also be because as their relationship and the show progressed, the episodes and pacing became worse.. This is only my opinion, of course

I felt this drama did a great job with the youth theme ! There is something I'm especially grateful for: this screenwriter let her female characters have real relationships with each other and complex feelings about each other. It's so interesting and beautifully explored in the first half of the drama. I also find it exciting how they gave all the fun romance tropes to Heedo and Yurim. A breath of fresh air ! They allowed these two to be complicated and to have layers to their feelings and attitudes in relation to each other and that is so precious in the K-drama landscape.

I liked all the side characters as well. Kim Taeri is magnetic and so charismatic on screen the other cast members can't quite catch up to her but it's alright and I applaud the effort. I appreciate the opportunity this was for them especially for Bona, Choi Hyun Wook (who was fantastic! Moon Ji Woong deserved an episode too!) and Lee Joo Myung. However, there are two things I have to point out that are maybe only relevant to me:
- The cinematography is pretty but I don't like the directing. A lot of scenes feel choppy and emotionally distant because of the way they were filmed and edited.. it took me out of the moment several times. The cast was endearing enough for me to let this go.
- This screenwriter cannot, and I mean CANNOT(!!!), write romance. It's never sweet or cute. It's not beautiful or sad either. It's funny but so are a lot of other scenes that have nothing to do with romance anyway. It's just there. And it drags on. It was already a problem for Search: WWW but the romance storylines in that one were more boring so I guess this is an improvement in some way. Still I like the themes of the drama. But I didn't find the romance engaging compared to the fencing, the rivalry and the friendship.

The story could have benefitted from having a few more episodes. Maybe 20 to 24. You could tell the pacing was off when they reached the 12 episodes mark.

Looking forward to Kwon Do Eun's future projects ! Maybe she'll get it just right next time.

The story is not especially original but the cast is great ! They all have chemistry with each other which is surprisingly rare. It makes for fun and natural scenes. In a sense, this exceeded my expectations ! The first episode was a mess but I advise anyone who wants to watch this to just push through it.. it gets better, lol.

Outstanding performances from everyone here ! Lesser actors would have made a mess of these emotional scenes.

A refreshing watch ! Stylistically, there are a lot of fun and cute ideas and it's charming in its sincere efforts and playfulness. The writing of side characters is the drama's biggest flaw imo but it has a lot of heart so it's a real treat

Thank you for letting me know 😊 That's such a shame I would have loved to watch all the deleted scenes but it's a relief the drama is still as charming and enjoyable then