John Smith

I think you are selling the other characters short if you think that the differences between Rong Hao, Little Orchid, DFQC, and Chang Heng are due to luck. He needs to bear the responsibility for the choices he made. He should have never let his circumstances dictate his actions. He possesses traits of a tragic character, but he went so far down the path which was clearly labeled, that feeling sorry and bad for him would ring hollow to me. There are four episodes left, and maybe a chance for him to change the way he is perceived. I might start if the fog of his obsession were lifted at least a little.

It might be because they want peace and quiet in the hospice.

If six dramas and one movie, having female leads like Nam Ji Hyun, Won Jin Ah, Kim Yoo Jung, Kim Ji Won, and having over 21 million followers on Instagram is failing projects, can we all be so lucky to fail like that?
I say thankfully he got out that hamster wheel of action romances and decided to showcase his other abilities. Do you really want to see a 62 year old Ji Chang Wook struggle to fit into his leather pants and too tight turtleneck as he runs out of breath getting on the city bus to go rescue the great grand-daughter of one of his former clients in Healer12? Forget a weapon, the only protection he might have is a diaper.

I can imagine being a female must have made it tougher in situations that she and the lead found themselves in.

Great minds think alike... even in different languages.

I only said that given two choices versus reality, how it was portrayed was more real (but less real of course) than the usual standard drama fare (even less real than less real). That is how I saw it. With the short window these "cases" have, we are left to fill in the blanks of bit and support characters. That we all fill in the blanks with different thoughts and ideas is not surprising. I mainly watch for the two main leads, but hope they get back to healing with fake persimmons rather than drunk driving revenge.

I actually thought the way it played out was much more real than what you normally see in dramas. If your child is torturing herself because of something you did and others know what happened, you are not going to continue to torture your child to get away with it. If not the father, certainly the mother would force the situation. Too many times dramas make it so that one person can call upon the weight of power and magically suppress everything to get away with it. Then the others involved are just supposed to bottle it up and deal. Then an even more unreal plot of vengeance is started by the other party. I think the biggest difference here is that his daughter was in the car, and that usually does not happen in dramas. Granted, all of that had to be squeezed in one episode, but much more in line with reality than what usually happens.

I think by length, 16 episode Korean dramas are about the same as the 24 episode Chinese dramas, but I think the 36 episode dramas are more comparable because Korean dramas have more "meat and potatoes" versus the "fluffy sweetness" that Chinese dramas can put in their romantic comedies.

There is definitely a larger plot that is woven into the main leads' love story and plenty of other side stories that have just about everything you can think of in a good drama. I am not sure how deep they are, but I think the more you are invested in their stories, the deep and more motivating they can be, and the drama benefits as a whole.

It is a Little Orchid-Dong Fang Qing Cang world and everyone else is just living in it.

My viewing experience has been that the episodes seem too short and the dramas has gone by too fast. I say that in a positive light. While the drama does have points that give you time to digest what is going on, it never feels like it drags. I watched this as it was airing, so I had to wait for episodes, but since you seem to be just starting and have a lot of episodes to watch, do you think it is a long drama and the episodes take forever or are they flying by for you too?

I have watched all 30 episodes, and the way they treat the side characters is just like other dramas. The closer they appear to be to the main couple, the more screen time they get. There are some dramas that have second or third couples and their focus is romance and doing their own thing, but I do not think that is the case here. Romance, friendship, and family, yes, but this is a drama where everything revolves around the main couple.

Episode 6 must have been the shortest 70 minute episode I have ever seen. It was really good and just flew by. I really enjoy how they tackle sensitive and weighty issues, but in a digestible (lighter) manner.

After watching some BTS and interviews with him, he just seems like a really cool guy.

I think the drama is really good so far and JCW has really brought his character to life. His character is one who thinks no one could like him, but anyone who has spent time around him likes him. That is the vibe I get.

Of course the person in charge of deciding what goes on during treatment and the one who makes the rules for the hospice have the final say. But people do not go to hospice to recover or live as much as relieving pain and preparing for the end. I would never want staff, patients, or volunteers to feel like they are forced to do something, but I think a happy medium can be reached. It is probably always in a state of flux. I think that has been touched on a few times, and the introduction of the ML has not made things any smoother.
I was being a bit facetious when I said that he should be the one leaving. I do think his somewhat rigid perspective works better in a hospital, but someone like him is needed here too because it is going to always be a life and death situation and there has to be some guardrails. I do not think we have seen it yet, but I am sure all wishes do not go as planned and a Dr. Yang is going to be needed.

They made that kick so memorable, and had mentioned the incident several times in a the first few episodes, but has taken a back seat (vehicular pun not intended). I still think it is possible, because is he really going to sleep there long-term? Plus the issue with the dog has been raised, so maybe they will circle back around to it. As much as I would love to say "their lives are so chaotic, I wish they could just simply be together", I think even though things are progressing better than I thought, their relationship will probably be tested by others and each other.

They are not in a hospital, but hospice care. Two different types of places. I am sure Dr. Yang has his story of why he is there, but he is the one that should be leaving if he cannot accept that. It is a drama so everything is a bit played up, but I can imagine everyone learning and healing in some way before the series is all said and done. I do think it is weird to have the dog just running around, but he seems to be an important character so I just gloss over that.

About the romance, I thought it was going to be a cohabitation style romance. When she broke his car mirror and was going to have to sell her place, I surely thought Gyeo Re and Son would end up staying with her in lieu of payment and that is how it would develop.

I am not sure what the gold and money is all about, but he looks to have his own problems he is dealing with too and I am sure they will flesh that out at some point. So far, everyone has got a story, and we have seen bits and pieces of it. I do not think this will be a "case of the week" style drama where the focus will be on granting wishes. I think the patients will be the vehicle that we see the growth/healing of the main cast.

I am also a bit surprised how much I am enjoying this. The setting and synopsis scream tear-jerking melodrama which I do not like, but this is not that. There is a good balance of warmth and uplifting that cuts the emotionally draining sadness. At least to me.

The ML was never cold. He may be terse, rude, and closed off, but not cold. He reminds me of a puppy that was mistreated and abandoned. He is slowly starting to want to feel feelings and allowing himself to trust others. You can see him reaching out and then pulling back. He looks confused and unsure about what to say or do and how he should even feel, but it is obvious he has a big heart and a childlike goodness that has not been extinguished despite his rough life. JCW could stick to cupcake romances or action heroics and be really successful, but he takes roles that allow him to showcase his acting chops and delivers time and time again.

It is a popularity contest, but also lookism and ageism all in one. Beauty is so subjective, my list would probably change depending on when you ask me (and who asks me). Regardless of what I think (I did not vote), if the #100 actress were to personally ask me to vote her #1, I would.

I think Filipino dramas have main couples that star in multiple dramas, and even though Taiwanese dramas do not do that, you will often see the same main cast working together. I think Chinese dramas will draw some talent from within one company, but there are just so many dramas, so it is probably easier.
I watched that a few years ago. It may be that Joe Chen is a Taiwanese star, but it is amazing that she has been playing romantic FLs for 20+ years. And still looks amazing.

Not today. I hope it does not turn out like Lost in Kunlun Mountains (another Xu Kai drama) where it must have been filmed then edited so heavily, it seemed like either the cast or the viewers were missing time.

The 20+ most popular South Korean dramas on MDL are all romantic comedies or have elements of romance. Ji Chang Wook and Choi Soo Young's most popular works have elements of romance in them. They are both attractive people. Most MDL viewers seem to enjoy romance. I can 100% totally understand why so many people ask about romance in this drama regardless of the title, setting, or genre. People look for things they like, and they like to look for things they like in the things they want to see. That is why the first question people will ask is about romance. I remember watching Vincenzo while it was airing, and those same sort of questions and comments would pop up from time to time. It seemed to be romance adjacent and picked up towards the end. This one is much more forward with it.

You should have more confidence in the MDL community. We are capable of being critical without being criticizing, and can tell the thoughtful from the thoughtless. There is even a report feature if things get out of hand in a way that is detrimental to the page.