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Doesn't work on so many different levels
This is my first review on here, but I just had to write one after seeing all the positive reviews and the rating for this show. They are not just positive, they are extremely positive with messages like "best drama ever", "masterpiece" and so on. I don't get that at all. Well, most of them are from 2015 and I watched it in 2022, so maybe this show just aged really badly. But I don't think so. And here's why:Story: The overall idea of the many alternative personalities of the main lead is quite nice, I have to say! With this number of alternative personalities, so much would have been possible. But it was wasted, not explored at all. Instead, the drama was packed will all kinds of other things. It felt to me as if they wanted to make it a comedy, a love story, a mystery thriller and a story about a big corporation. And a doctor/patient story that educates the audience on psychiatric ilnesses. That's a lot. Probably not impossible but the writing here is just too bad and in the end, nothing makes sense. An example of a show, also including multiple personalities, where it made sense in the end and were the depth of the mind of the "patient" came to life is "Bad and Crazy" (2021). Also the other big aspect of the story, where they have a build-up of 18 episodes to make it appear as if there is a big dark mystery behind everything is weak, as they - spoiler alert - just don't deliver in the end. The biggest mystery to me was how I managed to watch this till the very end (self-torture, I guess ...).
Acting: the male lead is a phenomenal actor, but that doesn't help much if the writers and directors don't use his full potential. The female lead is horrible: overacting, screaming, crying like a baby, being happy like a kid - the child actor in the flashbacks was more serious than her! I have not seen her in other stuff, so I don't know if it is her inability or the director's choice! The writing for this character is definitely not suitable for a grown-up doctor and lover. Her character didn't bring anything to the story. The side actors are okay, no complaints here. I noticed the main female's dad and the psychiatrist professor as positive. However, the writing for most of the side caracters is, again, bad: the main female's brother really behaves like an a**hole the whole time (there is a 3-minute explanation somewhere in the end, that makes totally no sense), the male lead's mother, father and grandmother all are horrible people and there is little to no explanation on their behaviour in the end, the secretary is just like a dog that comes when called but is irrelevant to the story, same goes for the second love interest, and so on.
Editing: I noticed several times that the story jumps around quite a lot between places: one second they are all in his house, then her house then the company headquarter without a good reason and often without a proper segue/transition. And, but that's a K-Drama staple, overuse of flashbacks.
So, overall, I think there was so much potential, but it was executed so poorly. Definitley not worth 20 hours of your life!
Most memorable bits: Shin Se Gi's cheesy lines, Yo-na chasing after the idol and the brother (funny, but a bit homophobic) and the doctor ignoring al privacy standards without even blinking.
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-Some pretty good acting from Ji Sung! Was able to portray each character really well. Hwang jung eum was pretty good, at times I was like ...mehh :/...but other times was really good. I really liked seeing her in this character after watching Secret (which was also a good drama where she and Ji sung acted really well in) Another big cheers of good acting to park seo joon!
-Music was on POINT! Loved how each character of Ji Sung had its own instrumental.
- Had some really funny scenes, like I almost died
- I fell in love with Ji Sung
Cons
- Story was really good in the beginning....then I don't know what happened near the end. All of the 'conflicts' in the drama didn't really get solved. I felt like there were some big loose ends in the story. Like the writers got really lazy near the end. Wasn't happy with the ending. Good beginning and middle though which made me stick through the drama. I really did want to love it but it was so poorly put together at the end.
There's one part of the drama that really bothered me between two of the main actors I won't say who. I don't know why they did that. Also the writers made some actors in the story seem so important in the beginning but at the end they were totally irrelevant...
I think I'm being very generous by giving it a 6....maybe that's because of the pretty funny moments, good acting, and music.
It was a good drama. 7.5/10. I wish i could give it more, had potential to be GREAT.
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With this kind of complicated premise, it would have been helpful if they hashed out the “rules” of the personalities a little more.
I didn't expect this show to be so funny. But seven personalities in one body can get you into a lot of interesting situations.
Can we just give Ji Sung 10 million awards? This guy deserves all the stars.
This drama really put this actor through the loops. The characters and challenges that Ji Sung goes through in this drama to create different personalities in really wacky situations is so phenomenal. What an actor. What. An. Actor.
Do Hyun
Do Hyun is compassionate and gentle. He is at a disadvantage because he doesn't remember what happens when his other personalities are in control. The other personalities do remember and so they make deliberate attempts to confuse Do Hyun in order to be in control of the body. It was very strange to have the one personality leaving video messages for Do Hyun to find when he re-awoke. Also, his other personalities are enemies with himself. Do Hyun takes full responsibility for his actions when he wakes up – the poor fellow! You'd think that after all this time he'd just try and not show his face to the numerous people he's offended but he awkwardly strives to make things right.
It was interesting to see Do Hyun take some really active and practical measures to monitor his mental health to stop the personalities from kicking in. He was determined.
Shin Se Gi
Hello guyliner. This personality is smart and conniving. He knows how to pretend to be Do Hyun. He's the bad boy personality and the bad guy all wrapped up into one. I liked how the drama made a point of Se Gi having to bear the brunt of Do Hyun's unpleasant experiences and how he is the protector.
The ongoing fight that Do Hyun has with this character is sinister and intense but also very heart-breaking.
Yo Sub
Yo Sub was a bit cliché at first but he really brings out a beautiful side of Ri Jin and his character improves. Again, Ji Sung's quiet portrayal of him is intense and effective.
Ri Jin
She does a lot of yelling. When she's happy she screams, when she's angry, she screams. When she's drunk, she screams. She gets irritated a lot. I preferred her sweet side which is unusual for me. I usually like the ferocity of a heroine but Ri Jin's shining moments were when she was sharing her heart and quietly expressing feelings. That's when she seemed the most genuine.
A lot of the times she has so little common sense that it frustrates me. But other times, her psychiatric brain is working just fine and she just has the perfect comebacks.
But her dramatic moments seemed like overacting. It was hard to tell if it was just Ri Jin's superficial personality or the actress' weird portrayals of her.
Siblings
Ri On and Ri Jin are awesome sibs. They're great. It's the cutest. Ri On as a brother is way better than a boring best friend sidekick. He is so brilliant and funny. I really really liked this guy. His comic and tragic side is beautiful. I like that his dark side isn't even part of the main tragedy but it's just as heartbreaking but in a different way. He's just so wrapped up because he loves his sister. And when he turns on the serious badass side? Daaamn.
Ki Joon
I liked this guy a lot even though he had to play a stereotypical bad guy. But his expression was far from boring. His portrayal of the uptight guy who seems put together but will explode if things don't go his way, is flawless.
You know it's a good drama when I've got way too much to say about every character. How amazing is Ri Jin's mother? That compassionate and maternal look on her face is so beautiful.
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This review may contain spoilers
Tips for First Time Watchers
Watched this drama twice, the first time way back in 2015 and the second time just finished it yesterday to give a 10 rating (rare from me, only for masterpiece performances). Since there are already hundreds of great reviews of this drama, I will just write on tips how to watch it for the first time: for either viewers who love to take time watching one quality drama (slow-takers) or viewers who binge-watch dramas or do not have much time to watch drama (fast-takers).I was completely confused and raked my brain when watching it for the first time, as this show is not one light fluffy romcom that you can just breeze thru for killing time. For the second time I was more able to enjoy the romance and comedy features, the superb acting of Ji Sung, Hwang Jung Eum, and Park Seo Joon, and the OST.
SLOW TAKERS FIRST TIME VIEWERS:
- Put aside some ample time to watch at least one full episode (1 hour) as this is not the one you can watch 5 or 10 minutes while doing chores to be picked up the rest later.
- For every episode: write down any catchy details as they provide clues for the mystery. You may have to go back watching that particular episode.
- Pay attention of the Cha Do Yun's family tree that Oh Ri On made. There are a lot of members in that family to confuse you on who is who.
- Pay attention of the clippings and pictures collected by Oh Ri On. They provide the past story of plot and characters.
- Pay attention of the introduction of each Do Yun's multi personalities as their appearances shape the plot.
FAST TAKERS FIRST TIME VIEWERS:
- There are so many flashback scenes in this drama you can skip some of them. Flashback of a certain personality or events can be skipped or fast forwarded as they only compile of what you already watched before. But do not skip flashbacks of historic events of 21 years past that are explained by some characters.
- Look for the explanation of the multiple personalities on the internet.
- Look for Cha Do Yun's family tree in the internet. But beware it provides also the important connection that is a huge spoiler of this drama that can take away the thrill of revealing the mystery by yourself.
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The story was very intriguing for me. A third generation chaebol with 7 different personalities (aka Dissociative Identity Disorder) falls in love with the psychologist treating him. Honestly, I think it's amazing what the body can do as a result of a defense mechanism. DID itself is something amazing. Of course, people with this disorder suffer greatly and it definitely isn't fun or great or amazing for them, but if you really think about it, it's unbelievable. Completely different personalities living in one body? And this is real? Similar disorders could be schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, but DID is by far the most extreme. Okay, now that we've gotten past my fascination. At first, I was tentative about starting this. She falls in love with a guy with DID? How is that going to work, is she going to shun all the other personalities and only give affection to one? I had many worries about the plot in the beginning, especially with Shin Se Gi coming out right off the bat. However, those worries quickly evaporated as the story continued. The writers wove the most creative storyline, managing to cover everything. It's as if they could hear all my worries. "Oh, you're worried about this? Well here you go now it works and it makes sense." "Oh, what about this you say? We got that covered too."Claps for you.
The cast was hands down amazing. I don't even know what to say about Ji Sung...is he some angel sent down from heaven? By far the best actor I've seen. (solely based on opinion and everything I have watched in my short lifetime so far...don't kill me (heal me HAHAHA IM FUNNY) The fact that he managed to play all the different personalities so convincingly, with different ways of speech and different gazes....Wow. Just W.O.W. Hwang Jung Eum didn't disappoint either, her specialties are crying scenes honestly, which is good because crying is often the hardest challenge actors/actresses have to face haha. Nobody likes a hanging tear that refuses to fall out. Oh Ri Jin was slightly annoying at times with her screaming and screeching and such, but I guess you just have to accept that that's how the writers wrote the character out to be.
There were only a couple songs that stood out to me, but the music was very fitting so it's getting a high rate. But just, Auditory Hallucinations UGH that song kills (heals) me. I'm so funny I know. I should go on a gag show. Although y'all would probably throw tomatoes and other various fruits and vegetables at me. ANYWAY. I love it so much and I am beyond mad that I can't find it anywhere at the moment. But it's okay, I can wait. A little bit.
Rewatch is a definite yes for me, even though I almost never rewatch. This drama was just that good.
Overall, this drama is really setting the standards high for 2015, and I highly anticipate what's to come. I must say that as great as it is, it's still a close second to Healer. Healer is just pure amazingness, and I'm waiting for the drama that can come along and knock it off the throne. Once again, all of this is based merely on opinion and preference, so don't kill me (heal me....Ok ok I'm done for real with that it's already old yes yes I know you saw it coming...But you gotta admit it was a little funny....no? ok...) Ok I'm done annoying you with my terrible humor. I hope this review helped you, and I encourage you to watch this beautiful drama. While it was at times very tragically sad and melodrama-like, there were also many times where I laughed until I cried. Happy watching!
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Ji Sung was one of the actors that I am really not fond of. But watching this drama totally changed my mind. Ji Sung is one of the best Korean actors out there! He has a so-freaking-amazing-I-could-not-put-it-to-words acting skill and good looks to boot (I was so stupid not to notice this before). But seriously, I fell in love with all the characters he portrayed. If I were Ri-Jin I would not know who I would ask to stay. The sweet goody-two-shoes Cha Do Hyeon or the possessive hot alpha male Shin Se gi. Seriously, Shin Se gi is badass!
I love how the story was well-written, how each cliffhanger always proves your suspicions wrong, how the tables are turned and how twisted their fate. It is not the typical kdrama and I love the pacing of the story, not too fast nor too dragging.
If there's a tiny little bit dislike I have for this is its lack of ROMANCE. Sure, there are some love scenes, but the characters are so beautifully made that I could not get enough of them. Other than that, all I have is love for this drama.
All in all, it's one of the series that is well worth of your time. Something that would not disappoint until the end.
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I agree especially with the first, very detailed reviews here. Others have said it so well. I really enjoyed KMHM and will watch it again in the future. It is the kind I like to see more than once. Lots of heart, lots of laughs. I think it will become a classic!
How perfectly Ji Sung created each "personality"! Each "person" came to life so vividly onscreen!
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I loved everything about this show! all of cha do hyun's other personalities are hilarious and he did an awesome job in portraying all of them. it feels like a totally different person (awesome acting from jisung!)
The other actors did a good job with their roles, Rijin can be a bit overwhelming at times with her loud crying, but it fits her character well, so thumbs up!
There were points where i was really wondering what would happen, and the writers really surprised me at times! amazing plot and not too predictable.
The feeling i have after just finishing this right now, is like i lost my good friend and lover. I got so indulged in this drama that i felt like it was my own life. But, i guess that's what you get for watching it for several days straight ;) I'm gonna miss Cha Do Hyun and his other personalities, i wish i could take them out of dramaland and bring them home T^T
It even got to the point where i had a dream about this show. I still can't get over the fact that i finished it
The OST's are really good! it got me into the mood of this drama and i am toatally gonna download a few (or all) of them!!
I would totally recommend anyone to watch this show. It has romance, comedy, suspense and a lot of surprises! There's something for everyone! :)
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So my friends saw this drama and they hyped it so much that we had to see it together. We marathoned watched 10 episodes and when I came home I continued on my own. Two days later I was done with all episodes. For me its very unusual to have an drama marathon and that says alot about how good it was!The story of the drama and the acting of all of the roles is such an great match it must have been made in heaven. I can not emphasise enough on how good of an actor Ji Sung is. He manage to make 7 different characters very easy to different from each other and put all of them in one body. I have not seen his acting before so I was surprised to say I found one of my new favorite actors. I think he has so much talent and he makes the drama and his role almost creepily good. I must say he makes the drama even though the other actors of course gives him a lot of help. Especially Hwang Jung Eum as the female lead, whom also shows off great acting in this drama.
The story is well written and has so many details showing up episode after episode. I was afraid that it would be too many strings to handle but without giving any spoilers I would say the director managed it very good at the end. I think that even though you could say this is an wrong way of showing an disease it was an very good try. I think the script made it justice even though it also had a lot of humor to it. Be prepared to laugh thru most of the episodes even though it hold alot of seriousness!
I would see this drama again just to see Ji Sung’s gold worth acting and also go back to the memories with my favorite character mr.Shin!
I absolutely think you should give this drama a try, it will probably surprise you!
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Story: 10/10
I don't even know what to say about the story, everything was just perfect. The writing was written to perfection and the directing was absolutely put together so well. I will say this, each episode made me laugh till my stomach hurts, cry until I couldn't cry anymore, and make me fangirl like any other fangirl would
Acting/cast: 10/10
Man oh man did the cast break my heart and put it back together again. The acting and the cast were absolutely spectacular and incredible, and can we talk about Ji Sung because for me that man is an acting genius, he made me laugh, cry, angry, and just made me feel all the feels.
Music: 10/10
The music was amazing as well, so beautiful and mesmerizing at the same time.
Rewatch value: 10/10
I am just going to say this, this drama will be in my top 15 of 2015, no doubt about it. This is no doubt in my mind that I will be watching it sooner than later.
Final thoughts:
If you're reading this drama, please oh please go watch this drama. I promise you will experience all the feels and will not regret it. This drama in my own opinion will be the best drama of 2015.
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Kill Me, Heal Me is almost the opposite. The actors aren't ones that many people watch because of their fame or overly-good looks but are quite talented if you give them a chance. I realized that Ji Sung is like a hidden gem after watching Protect the Boss. Although I don't see many people "fangirling" over any of these leads because they don't seem to seem to have that type of attractiveness about them (not their age or the looks I mentioned earlier because while they're not stunningly blinding, they're obviously not ugly either and people like So Ji Sub and Gong Hyo Jin are older but seem to possess this quality that I can't quite define-- perhaps "appeal" is the right word?), they have charisma. Their facial emotions and gestures are far from the emotionless ones found in Hyde, Jekyll and I. In fact, many times, I truly believed that the personalities were distinct characters, and I do have my favorite (Nana, of course). They were not only a comedic team comparable to Infinite Challenge and Running Man at times, but played more serious parts believably as well. In addition to the acting, the music was one of the better soundtracks I've heard so far. The only downfall, I'd say was in the writing. The plot was interesting and suspenseful at first, but got dragged out far too long. They abused flashbacks, and replayed them like the viewers had short term memory problems of some sort (the same clip three times in one episode is two times too many). Instead, I would have loved if they filled that time with more moments with the personalities. Thankfully the last episode was a pretty good one, though I'm not sure if the way that they handled the issue is one that I'd agree with for moral reasons. I'd recommend this drama if you like romantic comedies mixed with drama and don't mind stories that get dragged out because the acting is worthwhile.
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