Reviews

Absolutely love it, just go and watch it!

As a lawyer, this has to be my favourite legal drama. Not because it was always right or anything, but just because it was so different and interesting. The cases were not a rehash of your usual situations you see in such dramas. They were actually super interesting and new. That was very engaging as a viewer! Plus just the whole slice of life feel to it.... aah, this show has my whole heart! After a very long time, a show made me genuinely happy (and sad to be ending).

I still think we deserved a better ending, but that's just because I personally do not do well with open ends. But I think in my head, I'm fine with either way it could go. Just the acceptance of love in their lives makes me so happy to see the growth of our leads and makes me so happy for them. It's genuinely one of those dramas where you see character growth, love, happiness, sorrow, raw emotions and everything that comes with it.

Stellar acting by the entire cast as well. Specially Lee Jin Wook. I've become a fan!

Have I said it before that I absolutely loved this drama? And that OST? Because I really really do.

*on my way to shed tears of joy and sadness*

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Persi in un bicchiere d’acqua

Ho guardato Beyond the bar per i casi che venivano presentati, tutti sempre molto interessanti. Ad un certo punto della serie però mi è iniziato a sembrare che tutto dovesse essere concluso nell’immediato, l’ultimo episodio ne è il perfetto esempio: la rincociliazione tra la madre di Hyo Min e la sorella, la proposta di matrimonio, l’appuntamento di Seok Hoon e Hyo Min con cui ci hanno illusi che potesse svilupparsi qualcosa di più. Senza considerare che molti personaggi erano superflui, considerando che non era dato loro spazio, o comunque, lo sono divenuti nel corso della serie
(esempio? tutti i colleghi associati di Hyo Min). Inoltre, a volte Hyo Min sembrava del tutto inespressiva e un po’ troppo bambina per la sua età.

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A legal drama that pleads its case but refuses a verdict

When I first pressed play on Beyond the Bar, my expectations were decidedly modest. Yet episode by episode, the series drew me in, not only through the depth of its performances, but also via the intriguing legal cases and the quietly simmering romance between its leads. The glances, the silences, the near-telegraphed complicity: all suggested a love story unfolding in slow motion.

To be clear, I would have had no qualms had the series chosen to forgo romance altogether. But once a narrative dangles breadcrumbs, once it invites us to imagine a possibility, it cannot simply turn its back on that promise. The ending, with its abrupt refusal to acknowledge what had been so carefully planted, proved a bitter disappointment. It is a peculiarity of certain K-dramas to veer into endings that feel closer to tragic Russian cinema of the mid-20th century, inconclusive, open-ended, almost wilfully opaque. Sometimes such ambiguity is refreshing, but here it felt like a betrayal of the emotional contract established between script and audience.

This unease was compounded by a certain narrative convenience. Many of the cases, while initially engaging, demanded a suspension of disbelief so great it verged on indulgence. Too often, courtroom conflicts seemed to echo the protagonists’ emotional states with uncanny precision, a structural coincidence that strained credibility. Moreover, the FL’s tendency to disclose work details to friends was ethically implausible, not to mention legally questionable in many jurisdictions. It jarred in the same way as imagining a psychiatrist recounting patient histories over drinks, or a head of HR casually relaying dismissal details at lunch.

Then there is the matter of communication, or lack thereof. The ML’s backstory with his ex-wife, in which a seismic personal decision was apparently never discussed, rang hollow. Are there marriages that implode in silence? Certainly. But the notion that a high-profile lawyer, whose career depends upon words and negotiation, would never articulate his grief or reasoning to his spouse felt dramatically thin.

The secondary couple, though popular with some viewers, barely registered for me, consistently overshadowed by the leads. The closing shot, marked with the cursive "Esquire," fails to deliver closure, leaving viewers with a lingering sense of incompleteness.

The series’ main flaw lies in the director’s uncertainty over the romance, which created a tonal imbalance and left a promise unfulfilled. Yet the leads’ compelling performances carry the drama throughout. Would I welcome a second season? Absolutely. Likely? Uncertain. The series offered the carrot, only to hand us a handful of weeds.

Beyond the Bar delivers strong performances and gripping storytelling, yet its open ending leaves a sense of incompletion. After investing in the characters and their journeys, one can’t help but wonder: can leaving a story unresolved ever truly satisfy the audience? In this case, the answer feels clearly… no.

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Beautiful love story

I really loved this show. I thought it was really well done. The acting was top notch, chemistry top notch and the script was good too.
There were some continuity mistakes in the show (small irrelevant issues), the one that stood out to me was Mek getting hurt by Dech's father, leaving a big wound on the back and a later scene/episode we get a scene where Dech is rubbing Mek's back and there is no scar or wound present at all haha.
Another issue was that the show was very unrealistic and lots of times had to turn my brain off, cause they were kissing and holding hands in public yet had little consequences. Yes homophobia was present but not as bad as it probably was at the time, but it's ok, it's a fictious tv show.
All in all I was pleasantly surprised by the show and it filled the void in my heart left by IFYLITA.
Ps: I'll miss them 🥹

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Beautiful. I just wish they hadn't left us hanging at the ending.

Quote 1:
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I think marriage is built on love. Over time, that love just changes shape.
Love between a couple, starts with passion, goes through reality, and ends in solidarity.
Losing passion, doesn't meant losing love.
Solidarity, loyalty, belonging.
They're all just different forms of love.
- Yun Seok Hun (Episode 12)

Quote 2:
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If love is about looking at each other, Marriage is about looking in the same direction.
- Yun Seok Hun (Episode 12)

Quote 3:
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Marriage isn't the process of culmination of love, but the process of exhausting it.
- Kang Hyo Min (Episode 12)

Quote 4:
--------------
Some love stories are epic tales and some are short stories.
Just because you wrote a short story doesn't meant it's a failure.
It means that one book has ended. You need to write another one.
One with a passionate romance.
- Kang Hyo Min (Episode 12)

The writer did such a beautiful job on the entire drama, but most specially the ending. The 4 quotes I shared are some that resonated with me as I watched the final episode.

Although many dramas were airing, at the time, this is the one I looked forward to the most every weekend. I found everything about it appealing, the actors, the characters, the storyline, the production, and the setting.

It is going on my rewatch list, I just wish they hadn't left me hanging because I desperately wanted them to have a start and things did look promising but I need more!!!!!

This reminds me a little of Judge Vs. Judge. If there's a season 2, I'll watch, but it's highly unlikely.

I'm so sad that this only had 12 episodes.

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“I’ll never let you die.”

this was good for a standard death game series, and by good i mean it was mediocre but still entertaining because of the deaths and waiting for the mafia reveals and subsequent crashouts. however, all of the fun i had despite the flaws gets overshadowed by the ending which i’ll talk about later.

first i have to talk about the characters. there’s nothing wrong with sticking to stereotypes—especially in the mafia/werewolf death game genre where the same kind of characters can be found in every installment—but they didn’t really take the chance to explore any of them, especially jun hee who’s backstory was hinted at and yet we didn’t get more than the same flashback scene twice which was disappointing. despite yoon soo being the main character and us as the viewers experiencing everything from her perspective, seeing all these crazy hallucinations with her, i struggled to even remember her name because she wasn’t all that memorable. the supporting cast, especially cha woo min and ahn ji ho, definitely outperformed her even despite their antagonistic roles in the show. there wasn’t a single emotional scene in these twelve episodes that even made me tear up (and im a VERY easy crier) which means there weren’t any characters i felt even remotely connected too. the actions of the characters themselves are also incredibly disappointing as everyone is so… questionable, especially during the final two days. the only person who was playing the mafia game properly was somi as she was manipulative and managed to turn the attention away from herself for most of the game, which i was hoping from cha woo min’s character so seeing him stick to his stereotype was disappointing.

now for the worst part of this drama, the ending… i don’t have anything new to add to the conversation that hasn’t been better worded by others who’ve written reviews, but it was completely unnecessary to add in the plot twist of se eun’s parents keeping all the students in a constant mafia game loop as revenge for them being the cause of their daughter’s suicide. i would’ve been perfectly fine with this show being a genuine ghost story or if the kids were in some kind of limbo/purgatory for what had happened to se eun, i honestly think the latter would’ve been a better twist than a virtual world. it made no sense for EVERY kid, including yoon soo who was literally friends with se eun and didn’t even know about the bullying, to be forced into the punishment because half of them couldn’t even be classified as bystanders as they literally didn’t know she was being bullied. as for the bullying itself i was expecting something much worse from how eun ha and so mi were acting when they learned this was connected to their dead classmate, but a shitty deep fake just left me disappointed honestly. the ending really ruined the feelings i had to this show prior to the last twenty or so minutes because i genuinely enjoyed it even though it wasn’t the best up until the ending.

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JUST THE BEST!!!!

The acting, the expressions everything is a 10 out of 10 for me, loved the cast, the story the music everything. Cheng Lei and Song yi really brought the characters back to life. Honestly when the trailer first came out I couldn't understand anything, but nonetheless I was excited and I wasn't at any point disappointed when it dropped, drama that kept me wanting more with each episode. A huge fan of Cheng Lei too, the last drama I watched of him was MJTY, didn't see his cameo in FOF, unfortunately even his presence couldn't make me watch that show, maybe I'll give it another chance in the near future. And this is my first drama of Song Yi, didn't watch Destined so..., and I was impressed with her, she ate and left no crumbs, maybe I'll add Destined to my watchlist. Overall just the best, definitely watching it again very soon. And those people giving it a bad review, all I can say it, You need to improve your taste buds....... so many good drama's came out this year and safe to say this is my second favorite (first being when destiny brings the demon ofc), with only a 0.0000000000001% difference. Can't wai for Cheng Lei's upcoming dramas...

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Real blockbuster of a tale with two sets of strong ML & FL

I’m not normally a fan of Dilraba as she mostly leaves me cold but I felt she did really well in this even though the plot line was a little predictable as she leapfrogged over everyone in her path (just by being an ‘awfully nice’ person) to become the most important ‘saviour’ to complete strangers who trusted her completely despite knowing nothing about her.
Leo Wu was brilliant as the main ML, smouldering and dark one moment, adoring of his FL and fiercely protective the next.

I will admit that my favourite characters were played by Zhao Lusi and Lui Yuning. They were a fantastic match and I love everything both of these actors have been in and their chemistry as Hao Du and Le Li A did not disappoint. It was off the charts as they went from hating each other to being unable to live without each other. They were incredibly watchable and their character development was subtle at times but so beautiful to watch.
The storyline was excellent, the acting, production values and costumes amazing but I don’t understand why there always has to be a main support character that gets killed off - I didn’t think this added anything to the plot.

Wonderful all rounder but probably not one I’d watch again

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The hell was that

Despite all the negative reviews i still gave the series a chance because in reels the couple looked cute.

I hated the ending. First of all the scene where grandfather and grandson was talking near the tree at the end episode ig had no depth. it was just 'Goodbye grandpa' and puff, scene change like WHAT?

The grandfather didn't even stop him let alone getting emotional on his grandson's departure. Everything felt rushed, no depth. It felt like only Guan Ri Qing was grieving rest nobody gave a fuck. Specially the grandfather. Bro, your grandson left the world and the next thing is you are kissing and having lovely time with your lover. The writers had a random thought and executed without thinking and planning. Loved the chemistry and actors though. .

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Great story - can’t wait for the sequel

From the get go I was invested in this drama and pleased to see that Yang Zi and Li Xian work just as well together as they did in Go Go Squid.
FL & ML are so good together and the chemistry is excellent even though this is not a typical romance story in the beginning. He quietly watches from a distance and readies himself to step in even as she solves her problems on her own, each success she achieves makes him more and more proud of her as well as fiercely protective. In the beginning she sees him as an irrelevant playboy wastrel but by halfway through the series she begins to realise all is not as it seems and becomes intrigued as to what he is up to. Theirs is a slow build romance that develops naturally as they realise that they are stronger together than apart and start to notice each others strong points rather than perceived flaws.
Miles Wei is brilliant as Lui Chang, the pathetic, down trodden ex husband of the FL. He is bulldozed into marrying the spoilt princess Yu Zhen. Yu Zhen spends most of her time trying to sabotage FL rather than work on the sham of a marriage she has forced upon a man who suddenly realises he should have stuck with bride #1 which leads to several of the problems FL faces. By the end ML, who has a real problem with Yu Zhen’s father, realises he has to deal with the whole family not just the patriarch which makes his mission even more complicated.

Can’t wait for the sequel and would happily watch this again.

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