6
Wasted potentials (as always?)
It's really disappointing to see a drama with a good and enjoyable start just to wither away later on, that includes everything even the cast. As if every single person that was involved in making the drama got tired of the project. Although the earlier parts were enjoyable but I was rolling my eyes every single time Je Yi & Soo Yeon show up on the screen and broke the momentum. They were both easily the worst part of the drama in general. As expected, by the time we got to see the real culprit, it turned out to be a caroonish joker knock off with zero effort put into writing him. To state the obvious, Namkoong was doing an unbelievable amount of heavy lifting to keep this drama afloat. The OST was decent at the right time, while other times it was just some background noise. It's still a decent watch and the slightly shorter runtime was helpful but temper your expectations a bit.Was this review helpful to you?
Better than season 1
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.
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Poor
This drama primarily focused on serialized cases involving child abuse, while gradually developing its overarching plot. However, it failed to delve into anything profound or captivating, lacking the ambition one would expect from the first drama with such a theme. Furthermore, I don't think they did a good job handling the subject anyway. Its characters are its biggest problem. Initially, most of them were given over representation but eventually they didn't contribute much to the story. The FL's daughter was barely seen or given any involvement in the plot, wasn't even seen in the last episode. You would think she would be because of the theme and what FL went through.The characters remained static, lacking meaningful dynamics or genuine human emotions, which is particularly disappointing given the drama's thematic focus. In addition to the shortcomings, the color grading employed throughout the drama was remarkably poor and even embarrassing. The constant shifts between overly saturated green tones, flat magenta hues, and subdued blue shades were highly distracting and detracted from the overall visual experience, if it had any to begin with.
Ultimately, this drama offered little beyond a series of sad child abuse stories. It failed to deliver a compelling narrative or explore its themes in a profound and meaningful manner.
On another note, Soo Yeong is somewhat a fierce cop/detective yet there was a brief scene in the last episode of her being physically abused, that was the most redundant and unnecessary scene in the drama. It served no purpose to the narrative and contributed nothing to the story. On another another note, it's a mockery seeing people defending Eun Ho, if an old ugly guy was to play his character then nobody would dare to say anything.
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Watchable but didn't quite deliver
Good choice for casting female leads but a very poor one for casting both male leads. Where did they get them? From the back alley? Weak screen presence and no chemistry with neither of their female counterparts. Unfortunately, the looks are deceiving and we didn't get what we initially thought. Just from watching the first 1/4 you may think this is about family relationships, sisters relationships and mother-daughter relationships but that was only a small part (20 eps in total?) before switching to an unnecessary work place competition and love triangle quarrels. Other dynamics were neglected too, like the other two sisters from the poor family with their old/new sister or like the troublemaker father with either of the daughters. The climax was weak, it gave all the attention and screen time to the love interest instead of the family as a whole which made Geum Ran's conclusion amongst the weakest because the drama ran out of time to even consider giving her a real wrap up other than a generic sudden change of character one. I liked the drama initially and its set up but it didn't quite deliver.Was this review helpful to you?
Not so good first half, dogshit second half...
Awful writing. The writer had absolutely zero idea how to balance the bad guys and the good guys. There were barely any story other than the cheating, the rest were barely random snippets. Which resulted in an unreasonable drag, especially after the first half the drama was pretty much over but the writer went full random throwing anything at the viewers to get to the 128 mark. That illness at the end was pure rage bait for the viewers. You can feel the painful stretch. Each turning point took forever for this reason. Anyway, this is the writer's first project and it's not looking good at all.Was this review helpful to you?
Idiots
The only possible way to be able to produce 140 episodes is through extremely improbable coincidences, absolute negative IQ characters and intense cartoonish overdramatization. Feels like a robbery in broad daylight to have this kind of ending/wrap-up after 140 episodes of numbness. I hope the cast got paid enough because even for them it must have been difficult to endure. I can't stress enough how dunce the writing was. Anyway, it's designed to be this way so whatever.Was this review helpful to you?
Okay....
Keep in mind this is a sitcom not a drama, well, kinda. Just like any other sitcom, the comedy is what makes it or breaks and it's the main focus or so I thought. The first half was a proper sitcom with lots of jokes but the 2nd half kinda turned into a regular family drama focusing on the characters and keeping the jokes to absolute minimum. A handful of episodes would pass without a single joke, I completely forgot it was a sitcom in the 2nd half. Also, the 2nd half shifted the focus to the younger couples mainly, you barely got to see any of the elders. I'm not sure why they took it that direction, the writer was probably changed if I had to take a guess.I enjoyed the first half for what it had to offer but the second half failed to hold my interest. The characters and their stories weren't mature enough to compensate the change of genre and direction. Whenever they had some bloopers at the end of an episode it was always funnier than the episode. FYI, the drama had no canned laughter.
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What a joke...
This drama is without any doubt the worst 'TV Novel' drama from KBS ever. Awful from start to end.Was this review helpful to you?
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Blue-Eyes White Witch
Right from the first 8 minutes introduction they failed to.... no, just failed. The entire story's setup involving the kids was absurd even for a silly makjang. It quickly became apparent that the drama was attempting to do something different from other daily makjang but the execution was nothing but comical, even while adding hints of unintentional parody. I couldn't stand how the drama was structured with its storytelling, it was really tiring how every single key information had 3 layers of truths that kept throwing the blame onto 3 parties. It was really exhausting repeating the same pattern 30-40 times. There's a lot to be said while breaking down everything but I would be repeating myself so here are some random bits. I found it particularly cringe when characters called themselves and each others witches with nicknames, for example 'The White-Haired Witch'. Despite being the face of the drama, Yoo Kyung's lifelong revenge wasn't finalized due to some events which is disappointing. It felt like the male lead suddenly confessed his love with no proper build up or showing prior interest beyond some sympathy, it happened too early in the story even though he was a womanizer a couple of episodes ago. Moreover, the male lead was mostly useless and didn't play as big of a part as most of the other characters. Midway through he was just there wasting time while occasionally being an unfunny clown. I guess he was just there to give the female lead a hug every now and then. On the flip side, the other male lead, Ji Ho, was in every other scene more than any character in the drama. One last thing, the overall vibe and tone later on was very detached and different from the few first episodes (after the kids story setup). If I had to mention something positive other than the cinematography being up to the modern standard with the majority of projects, that would be how secrets don't linger for too long which is because of the aforementioned repeated pattern.Was this review helpful to you?
The Aries Maidens
The drama turned out to be very different from its initial premise, setup and introduction. Things were changing too frequently and taking a different direction at every turn, this can be both a good and a bad thing. The Aries maiden, horseback riding, school dynamics, and the 'dark family secret', all became irrelevant after a few episodes. The main focus was on the love triangle with the pseudo delinquent guy. While the transition wasn't necessarily bad but I wish they kept exploring the initial elements, especially the Aries maiden dynamic and horseback riding. That Aries theme song definitely stuck in my head. One thing that stood out was how everything was interconnected which allowed the drama to draw all kinds of parallels between what was going on. The writing was surprisingly good and multilayered which saved the drama with the change of directions, however, it still has its flaws with handling many of the side characters. The biggest misstep was the inclusion of that one male teacher, it was very unnecessary, it didn't fit any part of the story and done more harm than not. Despite some problems here and there it was a decent drama from the 80s.Was this review helpful to you?
SUIKA!
This slice-of-life drama was a quirky concoction of midlife crises, emotional constipation, and nostalgia. It’s not going to set your pulse racing or redefine the genre, but it got enough charm to keep you interested, for the most parts. The story follows Motoko, a 34-year-old woman whose life got a kick in the pants when her friend absconded with 300 million yen. Then, there was a sexually frustrated manga artist, a melancholic professor, and an emotionally stunted young landlord. It was basically the setup for a comedic entanglement, but instead, you get slow-burning introspection with the occasional dash of the familiar Japanese absurdity. There’s something hypnotic about watching these women fumble their way to self-discovery, finding happiness in their mundane fractured lives. It had this warm nostalgic glow all over it but that couldn't save it from some inconsistencies and shortcomings. Particularly with its 2nd half where the drama already exhausted most of the personal stories around the housemates and what left was a lot of emptiness. There was an opportunity to dedicate an episode for the young landlord since she was the fourth wheel in the dynamic. Suika was the kind of drama that doesn’t try too hard to impress, and somehow that was its biggest charm. It wasn't revolutionary, but if you’re in the mood for a contemplative drama with a few laughs and a lot of heart, this one might be worth it.Was this review helpful to you?
Surprisingly Good
At the surface, the drama explored the abuse cases as expected from reading the synopsis, however, the rabbit hole was much deeper than initially thought. Each episode peeled one layer after another with more haunting revelations up until the last episode. I was worried we would be presented with a superficial showcase of some traumas but the drama actually took its time with each of leads' struggles and constructed a solid story. Although it went off the rails a little bit at the end but nothing too outrageous. I would've hoped if the ending was more grounded but one can look at it serving a theatrical over-exaggeration for the final act. Moreover, the constant jumping back and forth between different periods could've been done better. The side abuse cases didn't hold up compared to what the leads were going through nor did they blend well with the story. Aside from the intense cruelty, that one menacing soundtrack caught my attention. It's the same soundtrack that was used in Silent Hill 2 (White Noiz) which is strange because it's not the same composer. It definitely gave the drama a unique signature that was absolutely chilling whenever it played, though they almost didn't use it in the last couple of episodes.Was this review helpful to you?
Love? Never
The drama’s main plot revolves around a woman whose one defining characteristic is being perpetually sad. Why is she sad? Who knows! The writers certainly didn’t seem to. Maybe because the men in her life are about as reliable as a dial-up internet connection, or maybe it’s because the script was clearly written by someone going through a mid-life crisis and decided, “You know what’s relatable? Pain. Just… constant, nonsensical pain.” Nothing really makes sense, it was unbelievably dull as everything kept going in empty circles through the same events. Every man and woman were interested in the leads for some reason. Breakup was an expected element in such a plot but it was seriously poorly executed. It's the type of breakup you might see in an anime at the first slight misunderstanding, justified by a cheap trope rather than proper character writing. Why would their love be so great? The leads romantic chemistry has all the fire and passion of a wet sponge, it just couldn't sell the viewers on the long distance relationship and love. The drama was just a bloated, meandering, self-indulgent slog that mistakes misery for profundity.Was this review helpful to you?
Lost in Translation
Unfortunately, the drama wasn't as it appears on the surface. Presumably, it was set in China with most of the cast being Chinese, meanwhile the Korean main lead was more of a sidekick and a clown in the story. Although there was a little bit of change but the writer didn't put in the effort to work on his character. Aside from the initial premise of the plot, up to being scammed, the drama got stale and they began to introduce love interests at every down time. That was why they forced the Korean ML to get a love interest so he doesn't fall behind, even then, it fell short and uneventful. I would much prefer if they worked on his character contrary to how he was presented earlier in the story. The story progressed and ended in a very old fashioned Chinese way in delivering lessons and such. On another note, I liked some of the unexpected scuffness like the boom mic peeking on top of the frame.Was this review helpful to you?
