A fun little drama. Having an entire drama themed around postpartum is something we almost never see in drama. The postpartum club kept things alive while sticking to the theme, rather than spending postpartum at home. It also helps that it was only 8 episodes, otherwise, it would have gotten stale easily. The comedy was decent and kept it light. They actually used real babies which is a must for such a theme. Uhm Ji Won was a great casting choice as the lead mother. I wanted the main couple to have more attention since the drama did a good job starting with them. The other mothers' stories were fine but could've been better.
Great casting choices, all of them were a good fit for their character. Doo Na is such a natural she always stand out. Glad to see Cha Tae Hyun in more main roles. It's hard to find a mature drama that isn't overly melodramatic or infested with tropes. It started off as a slice of life to get us accustomed with the characters, their backstory and their current status. It took until the last third before the characters began to spill out their guts and get serious. Aside from the supporting cast, all of the four leads were elegantly written, well developed and interesting on their own. It's a solid drama and I thoroughly enjoyed the journey, however, there were a few things that held it from reaching higher. I wish the cinematography would have been better with tighter compositions and theme. I also wish there was more investment in creating a suitable soundtrack. Upping the production value in these two areas would have helped the drama in creating a memorable atmosphere and nudge it to be one of the best of its genre. One last thing, I wonder what Hwi Ru whispered to Seok Moo in the final scene?
It's a decent thriller mystery with an interesting premise and a good performance by the lead. Namkoong brought a lot of character to his character while trying to work with what turned out to be a mediocre flawed script with the usual plot holes. The pacing became problematic halfway through, as it felt sluggish and failed to maintain an engaging momentum. Its length is a contributing factor to that. The village story wasn't big enough to work with. Both female leads were poorly written and their inclusion affected the drama negatively. There was a poor attempt to force a romantic plot line which felt contrived and disrupted the narrative coherence. It would have been fine if they were to commit and go through with it rather than abandoning that. Both female leads lacked chemistry with Namkoong whether it was friendship/professional/romantic. The ending followed a typical and predictable pattern for its genre resulting in an underwhelming and unsatisfying ending. There was clearly a massive bait trying to capitalize on the "multi season" trend.
The scuffed production from the beginning wasn't a good sign for what's to come but I was willing to give it a chance. However, it quickly became apparent that this level of writing was clumsy at best. The writer pulled a poor attempt trying to create a mature drama about complicated adult relationships but all these relationships came off as amateurish and bland. The sever lack of chemistry between the characters didn't help either.
This drama was hands down the worst portrayal of police force I've ever seen. They were unbelievably bad at their job, even for 'police' drama standards. This is the most important aspect the drama needed to nail but failed to do so and resulted in a lukewarm detective/thriller drama. Both Soo Young's backstory and the main villain were lame and disappointing. The only redeeming quality was its cast, specifically the main cast, other than that the drama is straight up a failure. Not even Jang Hyuk contribution helped it. Speaking of which, Jang Hyuk looking like professor Snape in the poster lol.
Regarding season 1: I found it to be very flawed from all angles and it only served as a learning experience for those who carried on with the second season. Its portrayal of a cult lacked a compelling thematic foundation, opting instead to draw inspiration from cheap rip-off D-grade movies themed around cults. Where cults are extremely over-dramatized to the point of crossing the supernatural territory. The cult apparently possessed super powers of hypnosis with only a few words spoken, even towards people who weren't perceptible to religious and spiritual beliefs. Everything surrounded the cult came off as cartoonish even within the context of a 'drama'. The narrative itself struggled to carry its own weight, particularly as it primarily focused on the perspectives of the outsiders. It always felt as if it was building up towards something bigger but it never got there. For a 16-episodes run, it needed a proper world building and foundation for the cult. Establishing a distinct "character" for the cult would have provided a stronger identity. Back to the outsiders, having the drama led by teenage characters was another weak aspect of it. Bland and cardboard characters. The mystery element was a crucial part of the drama yet it was lacking and under-delivering. The first season would have fared better as a standalone one-off movie rather than a drama. It doesn't make any sense why the drama was rated this high, according to MDL standards, especially when season 2 effectively addressed most of the issues with the cult and delivered an overall better package!
Regarding Season 2: It managed to deliver a much more compelling package than season 1. The most important part is that it handled the cult theme properly. The characters and the cast were a lot more appealing than season 1. Having a more adult leading characters rather than teenager was a plus. Uhm Tae Goo was a perfect casting choice for his character. The story had a better and more natural progression than season 1. However, it got sloppier the closer it got to the ending. Speaking of the ending, it was a bit underwhelming and not as grandiose as I hoped it would be. Second season should have been a stand alone drama unrelated to the first one, not even in the name. If you don't feel like watching two seasons then you can ignore the first one and just watch the second.
Regarding season 1: I found it to be very flawed from all angles and it only served as a learning experience for those who carried on with the second season. Its portrayal of a cult lacked a compelling thematic foundation, opting instead to draw inspiration from cheap rip-off D-grade movies themed around cults. Where cults are extremely over-dramatized to the point of crossing the supernatural territory. The cult apparently possessed super powers of hypnosis with only a few words spoken, even towards people who weren't perceptible to religious and spiritual beliefs. Everything surrounded the cult came off as cartoonish even within the context of a 'drama'. The narrative itself struggled to carry its own weight, particularly as it primarily focused on the perspectives of the outsiders. It always felt as if it was building up towards something bigger but it never got there. For a 16-episodes run, it needed a proper world building and foundation for the cult. Establishing a distinct "character" for the cult would have provided a stronger identity. Back to the outsiders, having the drama led by teenage characters was another weak aspect of it. Bland and cardboard characters. The mystery element was a crucial part of the drama yet it was lacking and under-delivering. The first season would have fared better as a standalone one-off movie rather than a drama. It doesn't make any sense why the drama was rated this high, according to MDL standards, especially when season 2 effectively addressed most of the issues with the cult and delivered an overall better package!
Regarding Season 2: It managed to deliver a much more compelling package than season 1. The most important part is that it handled the cult theme properly. The characters and the cast were a lot more appealing than season 1. Having a more adult leading characters rather than teenager was a plus. Uhm Tae Goo was a perfect casting choice for his character. The story had a better and more natural progression than season 1. However, it got sloppier the closer it got to the ending. Speaking of the ending, it was a bit underwhelming and not as grandiose as I hoped it would be. Second season should have been a stand alone drama unrelated to the first one, not even in the name. If you don't feel like watching two seasons then you can ignore the first one and just watch the second.
The first half is what the drama should've been and the second half is what the drama shouldn't have become. The start was decent enough with a compelling concept and characters, however, everything began to crumble down after the first half. The pace significantly slowed down, an overwhelming amount of repetition and flashbacks was shoved in, the mystery was over at that point, the cat and mouse chase became boring and there was a general decrease in the collective IQ of the masses. Nonetheless, the story itself was weak and didn't explore any interesting ideas. The whole thing was infested with plot holes even after excluding all the supernatural elements. The inclusion of romance was a hit or miss at times. I'm disappointed that Park Won Sang didn't have a bigger role in the drama.
The drama sits in a weird position of not adhering to neither the long daily drama segmented formula nor to the standard 16-episodes weekly ones. It's closer to the latter except being a poorly stretched one. There were a handful of couples but most of them were bland without much chemistry or dynamic. The main story was too thin for the drama to function and it's clear that they didn't intend to invest much in it but rather just let it be driven by whatever the couples were doing. You can't consider it as a slice of life either because of the direction it took. It's hard to recommend when it's too dry.
A very bland and uninspiring office romance drama. Absolutely nothing stands out about it, not even the chemistry. The backstories were boring as well. They sprinkled a few side stories at the beginning but only gave attention to the main one while the rest ended up being neglected. Even the main couple's story ended up being underdeveloped. On a side note, it's another drama where they draw parallels with Kim Tae Hee for being the beauty standard. For the past 20-something years, Korean writers are still placing Kim Tae Hee as the benchmark of beauty and I still don't know why.
Whenever you see TV Novel in the title of a drama here, make sure to not have the slightest expectations, it's really helpful. One particular feature of these "TV Novels" dramas is having single digit IQ characters and this drama was no exception to the rule. At the end of the day, it's done purposely because it's easier to digest and provoke. At least it wasn't as bad as Eun Hui (2013). The cast was barely average, however, it's hard to stomach when almost every single character was selfish and trashy without proper character building and motivation. The love square seems to be identical to most of the other TV Novel ones, two good vs two baddies. Speaking of which, the two main lead were such a bad pair with no chemistry. Lee Min Woo looks older than his real age and this only made the age gap much worse.
The entire drama and the main couple's relationship was built entirely around bonding over their each others trauma. Not necessarily bad but it felt it was purposely designed that way to manipulate the viewers' emotions forcefully. This was pretty obvious from the very beginning with how they portrayed and handled the female lead's boyfriend. You would fell for their trap if you were a newcomer. The music choices were odd and mostly cheap, in addition, the dubstep soundtrack was completely unfitting. Anyway, if it wasn't for the forestry scenery then the drama wouldn't have had much to offer. Throwing in two attractive leads together isn't enough anymore.
Good concept, nice first episode and a decent selection of cast. However, for a thriller/mystery drama, the writing was unbelievably moronic to the nth degree. Blatantly mocking the viewers every step of the way. Every minute decision was deliberately stirred away from any sense of reason for the least optimal path possible. It even failed to deliver something with its climax, the whole last few episodes were the weakest in general.
This family drama revolves around three brothers, each with their own distinct characteristics and struggles. The eldest brother faces challenges in life and always reach a dead end, the middle brother is obsessed with money, and the youngest brother relentlessly pursues the love of a girl throughout the drama's 70 episodes. Unfortunately, the relationships portrayed in the drama were plagued by extreme seething toxicity, which undermines their overall appeal. The drama lacked a clear overarching goal and instead focuses on a series of smaller, successive problems. Which resulted in underdeveloped storylines for most of the couples in the drama. Out of the three main couples, the youngest one had the most nonsensical relationship. While the banter between him and Eo Young may have moments of endearment, it can also be seriously annoying at times. The depiction of the three brothers' relationship was a mixed bag. While there were instances where their brotherhood shined and offered glimpses of potential, it ultimately fell short of delivering a truly compelling dynamic. Overall, the drama had an appealing set up but it didn't fully utilize that.
6 
I found it to be very flawed from all angles and it only served as a learning experience for those who carried on with the second season. Its portrayal of a cult lacked a compelling thematic foundation, opting instead to draw inspiration from cheap rip-off D-grade movies themed around cults. Where cults are extremely over-dramatized to the point of crossing the supernatural territory. The cult apparently possessed super powers of hypnosis with only a few words spoken, even towards people who weren't perceptible to religious and spiritual beliefs. Everything surrounded the cult came off as cartoonish even within the context of a 'drama'. The narrative itself struggled to carry its own weight, particularly as it primarily focused on the perspectives of the outsiders. It always felt as if it was building up towards something bigger but it never got there. For a 16-episodes run, it needed a proper world building and foundation for the cult. Establishing a distinct "character" for the cult would have provided a stronger identity. Back to the outsiders, having the drama led by teenage characters was another weak aspect of it. Bland and cardboard characters. The mystery element was a crucial part of the drama yet it was lacking and under-delivering. The first season would have fared better as a standalone one-off movie rather than a drama. It doesn't make any sense why the drama was rated this high, according to MDL standards, especially when season 2 effectively addressed most of the issues with the cult and delivered an overall better package!
Regarding Season 2:
It managed to deliver a much more compelling package than season 1. The most important part is that it handled the cult theme properly. The characters and the cast were a lot more appealing than season 1. Having a more adult leading characters rather than teenager was a plus. Uhm Tae Goo was a perfect casting choice for his character. The story had a better and more natural progression than season 1. However, it got sloppier the closer it got to the ending. Speaking of the ending, it was a bit underwhelming and not as grandiose as I hoped it would be. Second season should have been a stand alone drama unrelated to the first one, not even in the name. If you don't feel like watching two seasons then you can ignore the first one and just watch the second.
I found it to be very flawed from all angles and it only served as a learning experience for those who carried on with the second season. Its portrayal of a cult lacked a compelling thematic foundation, opting instead to draw inspiration from cheap rip-off D-grade movies themed around cults. Where cults are extremely over-dramatized to the point of crossing the supernatural territory. The cult apparently possessed super powers of hypnosis with only a few words spoken, even towards people who weren't perceptible to religious and spiritual beliefs. Everything surrounded the cult came off as cartoonish even within the context of a 'drama'. The narrative itself struggled to carry its own weight, particularly as it primarily focused on the perspectives of the outsiders. It always felt as if it was building up towards something bigger but it never got there. For a 16-episodes run, it needed a proper world building and foundation for the cult. Establishing a distinct "character" for the cult would have provided a stronger identity. Back to the outsiders, having the drama led by teenage characters was another weak aspect of it. Bland and cardboard characters. The mystery element was a crucial part of the drama yet it was lacking and under-delivering. The first season would have fared better as a standalone one-off movie rather than a drama. It doesn't make any sense why the drama was rated this high, according to MDL standards, especially when season 2 effectively addressed most of the issues with the cult and delivered an overall better package!
Regarding Season 2:
It managed to deliver a much more compelling package than season 1. The most important part is that it handled the cult theme properly. The characters and the cast were a lot more appealing than season 1. Having a more adult leading characters rather than teenager was a plus. Uhm Tae Goo was a perfect casting choice for his character. The story had a better and more natural progression than season 1. However, it got sloppier the closer it got to the ending. Speaking of the ending, it was a bit underwhelming and not as grandiose as I hoped it would be. Second season should have been a stand alone drama unrelated to the first one, not even in the name. If you don't feel like watching two seasons then you can ignore the first one and just watch the second.