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Sexless Tea Party
You'd think there was room for this deep dive into human desires and the messiness of relationships, but the drama just stumbled into this predictable mess of melodrama and characters you could barely see through. The characters were supposedly torn apart by the whole moral dilemma of their sneaky affairs but they did the bare minimum in that regard. Even the romantic tension felt somewhat forced and lacking. The drama would've benefited from only focusing on the main infidelity but here everyone was cheating on one another. Too much noise. In comparison, all the previous points also applied to the JP version except that they were even more drastic and detached in that one.Was this review helpful to you?
Under the Queen's Stares
The drama really needed a better introduction to establish itself properly, it took me a while before it captured my interest. Others may not have the patience. By the time the drama finished, I had no idea how many princes were there. Most of them barely got any screen time, yet had some small side stories. While the prominent ones didn't develop enough. Quality over quantity would've been the right approach. I found the ending to be too subdued, soft, and tame after spending 16 very long episodes of building tension through countless slow-mo shots, mean stares, and passive-aggressive empty threats. This was another area that was lacking, the drama needed more ways to build tension. The drama had some unjustifiable, unwarranted, and under-delivered preachy moments that yanked the viewers out and ruined the atmosphere. This seems to be a common trend with modern titles. Anyway, I see that "Comedy" is one of its listed genres, although it had relatively lighter moments every now and then but these didn't adhere to the comedy genre in any shape or form. I would remove the tag as it's misleading. Speaking of misleading, the synopsis's description of the queen's character was mostly wrong and didn't translate as such into the screen.Was this review helpful to you?
Our Gloomed Youth
The story kicked off with the female lead getting falsely accused of murder and the prince is connected to the incident. So how would they structure the drama around this narrative? They had the female lead spend most of the drama hanging around the prince waiting for something to pop up for the story to move again, which didn't happen until the last few episodes. Unbelievably long and draggy for little to no story or character development. Everything can be summed up with 6 episodes without compromising anything from the narrative. The romance and the secrets were too delayed to care about, instead of laying them out evenly. Which made romance redundant by the end. Aside from the initial few episodes, I don't see anything appealing in this drama.Was this review helpful to you?
A cheap flick
Went from promising to disappointing real quick. Cults and hypnosis/mind-control is the worst combination to make a mystery/thriller/horror drama. It gives the writer an unlimited pass for a lazy writing and this is what we got here. The cast was alright tho.Was this review helpful to you?
Lazy
Soulless and dry. Not a good office romance. All men were creepy and cringe while women were selfish and entitled. Not to mention the dead chemistry with all of the three couples. The story was practically dead on arrival. Painful progression and dreadful execution.Was this review helpful to you?
YIKES!
It's exactly as bad as the synopsis made it sound and its execution was 10 folds worse. I feel sorry for older cast such as Ahn Nae Sang and Kim Hee Jung to have this drama in their resume. The entire drama was disastrous enough but the leading cast was the worst part of it. The actors/actresses themselves and their respective characters were failing and stumbling every step of the way with no chance of recovery.Was this review helpful to you?
Good
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?Was this review helpful to you?
Shit
Sometimes there are few selected dramas that shouldn't even be submitted to the network for approval and this is definitely one of them. My soul has been drained out from this abomination and I don't feel like writing too much. It's impressive how one writer can fuck up this hard. It takes a talent! This drama is classified under "rage bait kink" and "fucky wucky ending" labels, it's manufactured that way. This drama is a waste of carbon emissions. If I'm not clear enough, you're very much highly recommended and advised to absolutely turn around far away from this cancerous tumor.Was this review helpful to you?
Who in their right mind made this awful soundtrack at the ending of each episode? Who thought making a mix of violin and dubstep would be a good idea? Have mercy on my ears!! My biggest problem with this drama is the pacing. It took about 20 episodes for the story to be fully set up but it turned to an awkward slice of life fighting inside the kitchen with minimum development related to the culprit identity until the last chunk of episodes it picked itself up again. The cast was fine but both female leads were lacking in many areas. Both in regard of their performance and character writing. Anyway, not a fan of the ending either.
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Nakayama Miho
Update: I watched and wrote my comment a few days before the news broke out. I'm in utter disbelief upon hearing the news of Nakayama Miho passing away at the young age of 54. During the past couple of weeks I went into a binge-watch of all her projects from the 80s and 90s, she was a truly striking, talented and fun actress that gave a unique signature to all the projects she's been in. It's unfortunate what has happened and she will be missed dearly. Rest in peace, mama idol!The drama mirrored the reality of its time with idols culture, ironically, nothing changed since the 80s. Given the setup, the formula was pretty clear with how things were going to be laid out. Each episode gave a focus to one of the characters while cycling through some jokes. Most of these episodes were alright in general but some of the running jokes lasted a bit too long. Take for example the constant interruption of the married leads' 'first night alone' which lasted for several episodes. In fact, they never showed that the leads were actually just sleeping together even after marriage, aside from being together in a bedroom. The female lead's age probably had something to do with that. Instead of wasting time on that and other similar things, they could've gave a reasonable showcase to how they met, fell in love and decided to marry. Anyway, the drama had good dynamics between the characters, nostalgia inducing OST and 80s vibes so it was decent enough.
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Ride or Die!
Another agonizing project reminding me how much I miss Choi Jin Shil. May she rest in peace. This drama was a real wild ride for all kinds of reasons. Right from the beginning you will notice the gigantic production value, one of the main reasons was their official sponsor Hyundai who funded it for more than 1.6 billion won (3.5 billion won today) in production costs, not to mention the provided cars, factories and locations in the US. It didn't come as a surprise since this was during the economical boom in the 90s, they were swimming in gold. They were even throwing some shade at Honda for sending industrial spies. In reality, they wanted to beef with another company but they didn't want to generate bigger controversy. I don't remember any other drama doing such a move! More on the production, copyright laws didn't matter back then so it was no surprise they had tracks by Michael Jackson for example. Speaking of which, the soundtrack was so damn good especially with the jazz pieces, it's also the same composer who worked on Sandglass (1995). The scenes that were attached to these jazz pieces were interesting, dramatic and theatrical.The drama stood out as a compelling piece that combined powerful storytelling with deeply resonant themes, making it a memorable experience. It traced their journey with authenticity that felt raw while exploring the conflict of ambition, resilience, and the human spirit. There were a handful of diverse characters each one brought something unique to the table, their intertwined relationships were equally interesting as well. Visually, the drama captured the essence of the mid-90s, with its gritty urban settings and evocative cinematography enhancing the storytelling. It also had some wild scenes on some views and depictions, including violence and two sided racism in the US, extreme misogyny and other socio-political spectacles. It would've been absolutely wild to see this coming out today.
Nonetheless, not everything was sunshine and rainbows, the drama had a few hiccups that held it back from achieving true cinematic greatness. The drama had a cruel side to it with how it killed some of the characters, merciless and unexpected. The narrative had an interesting blend of drama and introspection, highlighting the challenges faced by those striving to achieve their dreams against all odds. However, there were major gaps in the narrative with some of the characters and events. Some decisions and directions in the story didn't fit the overall view of the drama. Additionally, although there were a handful of repeated flashbacks but these weren't too offensive due to the accompanied soundtrack and the general 90s vibes. One last thing, I really wish the drama had more dialogue in the last episode with a better wrap up to other key characters (especially and specifically Choi Jin Shil character), it deserved a better refined and fine-tuned send off. Despite its imperfections, the drama was a great watching experience.
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Another Bait & Switch
Well, this was a bit refreshing, initially. The drama had a good run throughout its first half with a solid setup around the character Young Shim and her drawn character Youngsim. It allowed for quite a few of funny scenarios and bits. Song Ha Yoon did a great job in bringing the erratic nature of both Young Shim and Youngsim to life. However, the drama dipped hard in the realm of mediocrity around episode 6, turning the drama into the most bland and generic displays of soulless cliché romcoms. Forget everything the drama built up earlier on. The female lead life story was built on her father's character Youngsim and her erratic personality but that was abandoned. It's really unfortunate for the wasted potentials it initially had.Was this review helpful to you?
Fanfic Junk!
Oh dear! How could a full production team, crew and cast members be this damn oblivious to what they're making! The drama was the apotheosis of human failure, an insidious plague upon the landscape of television, a wretched abomination birthed from the depths of creative bankruptcy and soulless commercialism, a festering wound that infects the very essence of storytelling with its repulsive presence. Its premise was a nauseating blend of techno-narcissism and romantic idiocy, an affront to the intelligence of any sentient being unfortunate enough to bear witness to its abomination, a grotesque mutation of what once passed for entertainment. Characters were grotesque caricatures of humanity, mere vessels for the perpetuation of vapid romantic fantasies and insipid melodrama and their interactions were a cacophony of soulless platitudes and contrived emotional manipulation, each scene got progressively worse than the last. The writing was an insult to the very concept of coherent narrative structure, a labyrinth of a garbled mess and mind numbingly banal dialogue that defies comprehension. In fact, this drama wasn't just bad television, it was an abomination of the highest order, a blight upon the collective consciousness of humanity and the very fabric of reality itself that must be expunged from existence with extreme prejudice. Anyone who dares to defend this abhorrent monstrosity deserves nothing less than eternal damnation, condemned to spend eternity in the deepest, darkest depths of cinematic purgatory, tormented by the ceaseless repetition of its insipid drivel until the end of time itself. Anyway, it could've been worse, I guess.Was this review helpful to you?
Cityless Behaviour
Initially, the drama was captivating with its picturesque setting, charming characters, vibrant village life, and delightful slice-of-life moments. The dynamic between the village people created a lively and heartwarming atmosphere. Each character brought something unique to the table with lots potentials and the slow burn romance between the leads was a highlight, initially. However, as the focus shifted to the romance between the leads around episode 11, the vibrancy of the village dynamics began to fade and the the drama lost some of its spark. At that point, the drama turned into a very long compilation of cheesy uneventful dates sequences while neglecting the small-town dynamics and community interactions that initially drew me in. Their interactions became more unbearable as the drama went on and the male leads supposed problems were an additional let down. Anyway, it wasn't perfect to begin with, Yeong Guk & Hwa Jeong triangle and story was the weakest link in the village and borderline ruined many scenes. The drama could've definitely used more people in the village and more stories, even if it were to add more sidekicks. Moreover, many of the stories from the village started and ended within a few scenes/episodes. I really wanted to see more investment in the Pub owner rather than Yeong Guk triangle. Eventually, the resolution turned out to be just acceptable. While the drama remained enjoyable overall, the overall decline in quality after the leads got together was a really big disappointment.Was this review helpful to you?
Courtless Behaviour
At a first glance, the drama got a commendable cast bringing adequate performance to their character. The initial events and the 4 first episodes were eye catching, interesting and kept you looking forward to see where the story is going. However, the story just didn't quite measure up. It's like they've got all the right ingredients, but the recipe just doesn't come together. They very rarely went to court after that, it turned into mystery/investigation. They were also building a mystery around the male lead trying to insinuate something else about his character but that got boring really fast for how obvious and lazy their attempts were. Finally, the last 2 episodes and the climax were weak in general for a finale, nothing interesting or appealing came out of them. Don't expect much beyond the initial few episodes and the decent cast.Was this review helpful to you?
