usagisaiko

Totally disagree, I think it's the opposite when it comes to Japanese writers who do multi-genre comedy! I thought it was hilarious. Miyama etc are into puns so it's all wordplay, and they're supposed to be ridiculous, along with a lot of pop culture references. There are plenty of other legal or crime dramas that aren't comedy genre if that's what you're looking for, and I thought this was a creative way to shine a light on that topic rather than give it a heavy treatment which we've seen plenty of. There are always so many sweeping generalizations made about Japanese drama on this site...

@Skye-N-Rain
FYI eds: There are a couple typos I see here that maybe you could correct...

In case some people who haven't seen these and want to look them up (and then can't find them due to spelling):
- Aogeba Toutoshi
- Jimi ni Sugoi! (how fitting ^_^)

And a few that might have already messed up the particular poll:
- Nezumi, Edo wo Hashiru 2 is listed as 2 different historical dramas
- Sanada-maru is on the line above it with Natsume Soseki no Tsuma instead of on its own line

Wow. Disappointingly weak.

FYI if you can't access those other links, you can watch it subbed at gooddrama.to. I was pretty disappointed though...can't believe the screenplay won an award. The concept was great, but the screenplay had surprisingly no real emotional depth and felt shallow, like a barely worked draft. The direction also felt generic and soulless...actually, a lot of aspects felt soulless. The story should have been emotionally charged and suspenseful and felt as complex as it was claiming to be, but instead it felt flat.

Aside from the main characters, everyone was totally one-dimensional, and they were given so little to work with. A waste of talent, considering what great actors like Cha Seung Won and Song Yoon Ah etc could have done with the story in better hands and with better content. They did what they could, but actors can't save bad storytelling. Dangit, the more I think about it the more annoyed I feel, b/c this should have been a great film and instead felt hollow and even cheap. As much as I dig CSW I actually really regret wasting time watching this. But if you do choose to watch it, just know you need to ffwd to the end of the credits to get the real ending. No real new info unless you can't guess the 'surprise' already by then.

Never has a thermos been so captivating. I don't think I stopped smiling through most of this drama!

Do you know where to watch all 50 eps with subs? Most sites I know of only have raw or edited down series.

I passed this one by at first in spite of the great cast b/c the synposis and fluffy image made me assume it would just be another romcom drowning in cliches. Glad I believed the first reviewer, who was spot on. Dark Chocolate! So much hilarity, cleverness, and the good kind of cuteness that's somehow both genuine and poking fun at itself. It's like they took on some bet that they could take on every single trope in the genre and do something fun with it. I haven't laughed so much through a comedy for awhile...Seo In Guk proves again that he can make any comedic role so much more hilarious, and his chemistry with everyone is awesome.

Seems like some didn't love the humor as much as others, but I thought the script was brilliant (save for the last couple episodes), as was the cast and production. I didn't find it draggy as there's no endless repeated conversations or flashbacks etc for the most part, but if you find the pace to slow down toward the end, just watch on double speed and you'll most likely enjoy yourself.

Best Korean Drama of 2016: Six Flying Dragons, Please Come Back Mister, Task Force 38,
Best Comedy Drama: Please Come Back Mister, Shopping King Louis, Task Force 38 (Also, most underrated category!)
Best Romantic/Comedy Drama: Shopping King Louis, Oh My Venus
Best Historical/Sageuk Drama: Six Flying Dragons
Best Action/Thriller/Suspense Drama: Pied Piper
Best Actor: Jang Hyuk (Beautiful Mind); Yoon Ah In (6 Flying Dragons)
Best Actress: Oh Yeon Seo (Please Come Back Mister)
Best Supporting Actor: Byun Yo Han, Park Hyuk Kwon, 6FD
Best Supporting Actress: Shin Se Kyung
Best Villain: Park Hyuk Kwon (6FD)...cannot believe I'm not seeing this more!!!!
Best Couple: Yoo Ah In & Shin Se Kyung
Best Up and Coming Actor of 2016: Yoon Gyun Sang
Best Bromance: Ma Dong Seok & Seo In Guk (38 Task Force), Rain & Oh Yeon Seo ^_^ (PCBM)
Best OST: 6FD, Moorim School, Shopping King Louis

I'm not a fan, but I thought she was quite well cast in this one and really enjoyed the drama as a whole. Her character is this unique kind of understated, elusive old soul who lives outside mainstream culture. Very different type of drama than her usual. It's a mix of light mystery and family drama with a splash of tasteful romance...plus nerdy stories about notable Japanese literature.

the previous link expired, but drama.net uploaded it since

Yeah, there was no foreshadowing really, no sense of that character's guilt or knowledge of the situation previously, and then it's just thrown in there at the end suddenly in a weird way...so it just wasn't believable. And then it poisoned the whole story aspect of the few people who believed in her and the potential of her being able to find some redemption. So the end didn't really even feel 'satisfyingly' tragic but just mottainai

Just to comment on some of the complaints here, without the so-called overacting, there would be no humor or style to the story! And the weight of the theme would end up feeling over-earnest and stale, whereas instead it feels fresh with these characters...who are a huge part of what makes this drama so entertaining. I thought the actors did a fantastic job of making many of their character types feel unique. From the hilariously Napoleanesque tax dude to the fascinatingly wily Owada to the old-school hero flair of Hanzawa, it was a pleasure to see the plot roll out in both arcs.

I gotta say that I feel J-dramas often get criticized by foreign audiences by irrelevant standards, as if they were made primarily for an audience outside Japan?! Anyway, glad there's gonna be a second season after all.

Not too big, it's an asadora so each ep is only 15 minutes!

Not sure I can see what this has to do with the directing in Liar Game, which hurt my brain to just try watching...this isn't the same genre of drama at all. I wasn't a fan of the end, and it seems like some people hated this all the way through (so I can't say whether or not you would), but I just wouldn't compare it to LG at all. This was watchable and had a decent story, I thought

Two extremely different time periods, no? This is super early history as opposed to beginning of Joseon, like 1400 years I think

Gotcha. I haven't seen this one, which is why I asked. Wasn't obvious to me in your sentence! Thanks a lot for replying. I'll have to watch this one as I was disappointed with Ghost but thought the concept was good.

Put this one off too long--was about 10x better than I expected based on reviews I'd read. It wasn't 'heavy' or dark, but had lots of substance, thoughtful writing, some excellet acting (esp. JH and Han Seok Kyu in his super demanding role) and was highly entertaining to boot. *But* I kind of want to strangle the original novel writer...and whoever thought it would be a good idea to not adapt a better ending by better utilizing some of the great potential provided by the fictional characters.

No spoilers, but for those who've seen it and know what I'm talking about, did anyone else think they completely wasted the potentially amazing plot devices/characters/relationship of Yeon Doo and Gaepayi? That last episode could've been written completely differently and accomplished so much more thematically, not to mention...well, no spoilers! Since this is categorized as a tragedy on this page, I'll just say I don't feel like the storyline warranted the melodrama of the last episode, and could've actually held more weight without it. And I'm all for well-done tragedies that thematically require a certain ending...but this just seemed like a waste of the characters. But I loved most of it and would recommend it to anyone regardless.

Which one failed in your opinion? Ghost or this drama?

The ending isn't bad at all. I felt like they did their best to rewrite it two episodes shorter and tie up loose ends. I think what they actually did was just cut most of their planned scenes down to be shorter. The only negative effect of that is a tiny bit less dramatic tension, but there are tons of dramas that do the opposite, which drags things out! If anything, this just moves the plot along faster. I (and most people, it seems) was satisfied with the ending...even though I wasn't a huge fan of where the relationship went due to the casting of the female lead. However, I don't think two more episodes could've changed that for me--in fact, it would've probably just dragged it out--and I *did* like where the plot went, which I seriously doubt was changed to accommodate for two less episodes. And it seems like lots of people loved the relationship in spite of the weird casting choice, so you might too! You should check out the drama if it's been one you've been wanting to see. Don't worry about the 'reworked' ending.

Oh, sad to hear about SH Ryeo! I haven't started watching yet, but I had high expectations for something this high budget and with an actor like Lee Joon Ki. So you feel like it isn't a good script then?