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Flamin Hot Cheetos
Being a drama that came out around the late 90s I can see how it might be drawing flak for its take on relationships and societal norms. Deep down, it was all about love, loss, and redemption, painting a vivid picture of intertwined lives against a turbulent backdrop, however, it failed to create a healthy structure to contain the story. The most important first step was to create a convincing scenario and story to sell their flaming torturous love, but what we got was only brief montages during the first episode. Every time they met they were filled the screen with displays of passion but there was no bases for it to carry a good impact, let alone, a lasting one. A core part of the story was the dynamic between the four leads, however, the second couple became much less relevant in the second half which made the new trajectory boring. Initially, the drama was heading somewhere while making a statement with how it dealt with gender roles and societal expectations but suddenly it gave up completely on the idea and resulted to the same old same old, reinforcing stereotypes from the 90s instead of shaking them up. I wonder if the broadcast received criticism from the public? On an unrelated note, most female leads from the 90s speak excessively timid and subdued most of the time for some reason, even when their colleagues of female supporting cast are speaking normally. Anyway, the drama was somewhat alright for its time.Was this review helpful to you?
Brainless Behaviour
This drama was a constant coin toss for me, swinging between great and bad throughout, this included the story, characters, jokes, and, in particular, cases. Every case related to one or multiple subjects around neuroscience for the doctor to talk about, however, some subjects were poorly executed and questionable. These ones were totally forced and stretched thin just for the sake of including them. Other cases were actually interesting. The humor as well was a big hit or miss, especially with the male leads. The drama placed too much focus on the male leads while neglecting the remainder of the cast dynamic. On the other hand, the detective wife didn't fit quite well and it took until the last few episodes for her character to finally blend. The drama had its good moments with its witty humor but it lacked in many areas to be a solid drama.Was this review helpful to you?
Bloodless Behaviour
It's a decent short drama but far from perfect and too many problems held it back. Although it was meant to be on a lighter tone and considering its short format, the drama was passing through a lot of social and workplace problems too quickly despite the drama establishing depth to some of the characters. It created some disconnect and cohesion problems along the way. A possible easy fix to the problem is having it turned into a full 12-16 episodes regular drama. The characters and their archetypes were well established and fit well in their respective roles. There was a lot of potentials to be had in the first place. Another victim to its shorter runtime was the last stretch of the story, in particular the last 2 episodes. It presented the final points of tension and jumped to the resolution very quickly and abruptly. Although it's a decent watch but at the end it was a wasted potentials.Was this review helpful to you?
Weatherless Behaviour
Just at a first glance, the synopsis isn't encouraging to launch the first episode. The only thing left is to check out what were they gonna do with the forecasting setup. They failed to establish why their job is very super important early on and waited a while to do so, nullifying the little bit of early tension it could have had for a good hook. As expected, forecasting turned into a small side plot. They barely done anything with it after a few episodes. The story was straight up not good. Whatever plotlines the drama had, it didn't put enough effort to bring them to the finish line, everything just magically worked out. The writer had no clue how to write and establish human and love relationships. What made matter worse was the non-existent chemistry between the leads. Even further much worse, the atrocious dynamic between the four leads, what even was that?!Was this review helpful to you?
A Mental Coach
The drama kicked off with a solid start, drawing its audience with a compelling premise and a cast of captivating characters. In the first half, emotions ran high as we were watching the dynamics between coaches and athletes. The character development was superb, and the storyline was peppered with unexpected well written materials that sat the expectations high for what's to come. However, as the drama progressed into its second half, it seemed to lose some of its momentum. The pacing felt uneven, with certain plotlines dragging on longer than necessary while others seemed rushed and unresolved. The writing got a bit lazier and less profound. It couldn't deliver the same impact as the first half, even with its climax. Despite these shortcomings, the drama still had its moments of brilliance, particularly in its character development and for its strong promising start.Was this review helpful to you?
This Is So Sad Alexa Play Lonely By Akon
Unfortunately, the drama took the least favorable route for a makjang drama. What makes a good makjang is having a reasonable push and pull balance for its conflicts, however, this drama tipped the scale all the way to the other side. The result is having an utterly doormat female lead which led to a miserable experience for the viewers. Throughout its runtime, everyone was pushing her around with all kinds of abuse, but there was never a real push back. Waiting in desperation to see her bite back but the drama didn't allow it. The attempt to show her standing up for herself resulted in a successful failure, as expected. There were other problems relating to balance all over the drama. The ending as well followed the same pattern, denying the viewers a reasonable amount of satisfaction after all the preceding events. God bless the ML's aunt, Jung Eun suk, for keeping the drama tolerable and watchable. One more thing, the drama definitely feels like it was cut short, hence, why the last 3-4 episodes were scrambled together really quick. There were even some obvious signs like attempting to introduce a new character/side plot at episode 41.Was this review helpful to you?
Jinxed By Design
Sucked at first sight, actually. It certainly failed to leave a good first impression. The first episode was horrendous in all regards, especially when you get some context later on. Subsequently, this led to all kinds of problems with the narrative. At first, the story presented a big predicament to overcome, as described in the synopsis, what would ML do once he meet her again, but the drama decided to nullify the tension in a record time and turn the drama into a mindless slice of life with bubbly visuals. The unusual romance was never justified, the drama also attempted to play the same scenario for their romance at the end but it only made things worse by creating an unnecessary new diversion that came with it more problems, it just doesn't work unless one of them was mentally challenged. One of the drama's genres is mystery, but there was barely any and what was present was surface level cheap addition.Was this review helpful to you?
WHERE'S THE MONEY LEBOWSKI?
Reading the plot alone seemed like it's going to be a lot of fun and it didn't take more than the first scene to convey the same thing. That first scene also had the drama's signature soundtrack running along with it, which totally sold me upon hearing it. It played dozens of times throughout the drama and it was always a banger for its scenes. The story was chaotic in the right way and the added light comedy and suspense created an enjoyable mix. A good selection of cast was present with a varied dynamic between them. Each had a small part with a side story running in parallel, although some of them I wish they had more time especially when considering its relaxed runtime. Otherwise, it could've benefited from a shorter runtime. Despite some shortcomings, it was quite an enjoyable watch.Was this review helpful to you?
A Bitter Aftertaste
It wouldn't have been a culinary piece without pulling the classic "like my mother used to make it" move with the nostalgia hit like Ratatouille. Cooking extravaganza, orgasm by taste, sabotaging rats, exotic ingredients, old rivals, and lvl 99 hidden chefs, they're all here as you would expect from such a theme. However, I wish it stuck to its culinary theme more tightly. There were a few detours here and there that didn't fit well. The butcher arc, specifically the first 2 rounds, was an example of the drama shifting away from the main characters and cooking. The drama also added a little bit of "supposed" romance but it was one of the driest displays of romance ever, they even turned it into a quick love square for one episode. The brothers rivalry was meh, I didn't like its progression nor its resolution. Aside from everything else, the one thing that pushed me to the limits was the inclusion of the deplorable trope of excessive constant interrupts. More often than not, cutting scenes and conversations short. This deplorable trope left such a nasty sour taste that I couldn't shake it off. It ruined what I might have liked about the drama.Was this review helpful to you?
Macaroni Noodle
To put it simply, the drama was not good. Selling a love story between an android and a human is a tough task on its own but the lack of chemistry and a functional dynamic between the two made it an impossible task to achieve. Not only the female lead was bad as a character but her inconsistencies pilled up more problems. Allegedly, she was his bodyguard and a strong headed ex-UFC fighter but she always ended up being the weakling princess who needed saving. I thought the drama might do an interesting play between the real guy and his duplicate android but the drama didn't put in the slightest of efforts in that regard. In fact, the entire narrative the drama went for was a load of crap sucking out any possible merits that might arise.Was this review helpful to you?
Justice of The Dead
The drama had a good mix of cases and personal attachments which helped raising the tension and to have higher stakes. Most of the cases were interesting and entertaining. On the other hand, season 2 cases had less personal attachments other than 2 incidents, one around the middle and another for the last case. Stella existence was problematic to the drama, both the character and the actress. She was out of place and her scenes were insufferable since her introduction. She was added to the drama as a fun and quirky element but that backfired immediately. Sally was her replacement in season 2, the drama attempted to replicate Stella but ended creating a worse version which made her scenes even more insufferable. I can't stress enough how insufferable both of these characters were. Season 2 had another unsuccessful addition, that is the character Do Ji Han, his character took away from the drama rather than adding or enhancing any value. Judging by what they did with season 2, It's preferable to not get another sequel. Unfortunately, they left a lot of threads open for a possible continuation. On an unrelated note, the corpses in season 2 had more censoring than season 1.Was this review helpful to you?
My Lawyer, Mr. Jo 2: Crime and Punishment
1 people found this review helpful
The Bad Sequel
In season 1: The introduction threw a wild scenario with a big stretch which helped attracting the viewers but the drama didn't return to the main case until the last 1/4. Meanwhile, it added fillers in the middle with okay cases but nothing interesting or outstanding like the initial jolt of rush, however, these middle parts helped connecting the characters together and form their relationships. The male lead character played out well with the setting and Park Shin Yang did a good job with his portrayal. The female lead was the most useless character in the drama. She had no role to play in anything other than being an insignificant side character. The return to the main case was good but unfortunately the drama went a bit soft in the punishment of the culprits.Moving to season 2, I'm sure that season 2 is the worst non-consecutive sequel I've seen in any drama series ever. It's truly impressive how these seasons were in stark contrast to one another. Season 2 had a bad introduction and setup right away. There was a big disconnect between the male lead and his struggles. Which couldn't achieve the same impact as season 1. Everything the drama built, developed and achieved in season 1 was neglected in season 2. All cases were random generated garbage with little to no coherency to its theme, story and character. The male lead character was almost nothing like season 1. They went as far as erasing his past. He became a new character played by the same actor. It's a good example for how a character can change with a different director/writer even when hiring the same actor. Other than the 2 main lead, the drama had a full list of immemorable selection of cast members, completely blending into the background and turning into a white noise mush. Right from the beginning the female lead was the antagonist here but the drama built her story and character in a comical cheesy wronged by society kind of way. Her character had no real weight and ended up falling flat despite being played by a veteran actress Go Hyun Jung. The drama's attempt to make the viewers sympathize with her case and struggles at the end with an emotional climax was unsuccessful. If you really want to watch season 2 then don't watch it immediately after season 1, come back to it a month later because otherwise it will ruin your experience with season 1.
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Forget The Sequel
The introduction threw a wild scenario with a big stretch which helped attracting the viewers but the drama didn't return to the main case until the last 1/4. Meanwhile, it added fillers in the middle with okay cases but nothing interesting or outstanding like the initial jolt of rush, however, these middle parts helped connecting the characters together and form their relationships. The male lead character played out well with the setting and Park Shin Yang did a good job with his portrayal. The female lead was the most useless character in the drama. She had no role to play in anything other than being an insignificant side character. The return to the main case was good but unfortunately the drama went a bit soft in the punishment of the culprits.Moving to season 2, I'm sure that season 2 is the worst non-consecutive sequel I've seen in any drama series ever. It's truly impressive how these seasons were in stark contrast to one another. Season 2 had a bad introduction and setup right away. There was a big disconnect between the male lead and his struggles. Which couldn't achieve the same impact as season 1. Everything the drama built, developed and achieved in season 1 was neglected in season 2. All cases were random generated garbage with little to no coherency to its theme, story and character. The male lead character was almost nothing like season 1. They went as far as erasing his past. He became a new character played by the same actor. It's a good example for how a character can change with a different director/writer even when hiring the same actor. Other than the 2 main lead, the drama had a full list of immemorable selection of cast members, completely blending into the background and turning into a white noise mush. Right from the beginning the female lead was the antagonist here but the drama built her story and character in a comical cheesy wronged by society kind of way. Her character had no real weight and ended up falling flat despite being played by a veteran actress Go Hyun Jung. The drama's attempt to make the viewers sympathize with her case and struggles at the end with an emotional climax was unsuccessful. If you really want to watch season 2 then don't watch it immediately after season 1, come back to it a month later because otherwise it will ruin your experience with season 1.
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The IDOLM@STER Universe
Back then when they were transforming the IDOLM@STER IP into all sorts of different media, including a Korean drama because why not? The drama itself played out exactly as you may expect and the first episode gave the necessary impression to set the expectations going forward. The cast members consisted mostly of idols so you may expect varied degrees of on-screen presence and performance. The drama explored one of the girls stories every 1-2 episodes but these were extremely predictable and bland, offering no variety, theming or appeal. You would expect this type of show to be much shorter but for some reason they went for full length, I guess they had the IDOLM@STER budget.Was this review helpful to you?
An Entitled Princess
A princess traveling to the future is a decent concept that allows for a big playground to take it in all kinds of directions, however, in this iteration the drama somehow managed to craft the scummiest kind of setups, sucking out any sense of engagement or enjoyment which made the story plain bad. It's such a simple concept that could've been exercised easily into an appealing package. Anyway, I appreciate the 2000s aesthetics with the scuffed tailor shop and the gangsters, a quick nostalgia dose. The drama was one of Sung Yoo Ri's earliest works and she has come a long way since then. The cast had a good selection of members, of which, nowadays, some retired or passed away, rest in peace Lee Sun Kyun. It's unfortunate seeing them involved in this drama but at least they made it more worthwhile.Was this review helpful to you?
