Start-Up (2020)

If you're here purely for Kim Seon Ho, this drama isn't for you.

I've never written a review before, but bear with me here.

I will focus less on going through everything about this story's plot and more about the fact that seems to have infuriated a lot of people, which is the fact that Kim Seon Ho's character isn't the main romantic lead. The reason why I decided to watch this drama is because I love Nam Joo Hyuk since I watched Weightlifting Fairy, and I had recently finished watching The School Nurse Files, where I absolutely adored him as well. I don't mind Kim Seon Ho as an actor, I neither like him nor dislike him (though I'll say I lean more into liking him than anything else) which is probably why my enjoyment of the show wasn't tinted by the fact that he wasn't the main love interest, and I was looking forward and throughly enjoyed the happy ending we got.

All of that being said— and you can call me biased because of this— I never really felt like Han Ji Pyung had any chance of being a real second love interest for Dal Mi. I don't think there was ever a love triangle; Dal Mi definitely was fixated on the boy from the letters but ultimately never really liked the Han Ji Pyung she met (romantically, that is), and the revelation that he was actually the one who wrote the letters changed nothing about those feelings— except maybe making her disappointed in the fact that it wasn't actually the real Do San who wrote them.

I think Dal Mi liked Do San from the moment she met him and the fact that she thought he was the boy from the letters was simply something that added to her initial attraction. She said it herself that the moments where Do San didn't seem to be the boy of the letters stirred something in her that she really liked.

I don't think there was ever any competition because like I said, there was never a love triangle. And I totally get people being disappointed that Ji Pyung didn't end up with Dal Mi, but a drama where that happened would have to have been a completely different story from the get go.

As I said in the headline, If you're here purely for Kim Seon Ho, this drama isn't for you. But if you're here for Nam Joo Hyuk, then it absolutely is.

It has emotional, funny, frustrating and intense moments that made it very enjoyable for me to watch, and after watching Record of Youth which left me feeling so utterly disappointed, this was a soothing balm for my soul.

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A filmmaker's review

First I'd want to comment on the technical stuff (cinematography, music, acting). As a filmmaker, I gave these ones a 10 because I'm not gonna lie, scenes were well executed and there was never a boring scene. A sign that production is good is when you actually watch everything instead of skipping parts just to watch the story (like what I usually do when watching series, my finger is just resting on top of the right arrow key ready to skip scenes lol)

Ok so now for the story, all I want to say is that they missed the opportunity to be one of the first dramas to end up with a second lead where more than 50% of viewers would actually be okay with. Like everything was setup so perfectly for that to happen, sadly the writers didn't grab that opportunity.

When I was watching the first episodes. I always told myself "This might be the first drama I watched where I can't really identify who the lead is" and that's what I actually liked. It's what got me hooked to watch until the end... But where it went wrong is they let Do San shine a little bit too late. By the half of the series, most people have already chosen their bet for Dal Mi and I assume it was Han Ji Pyeong.

So for the story, I'm rating this 7.5. I'm not giving it a very low rating because this series has been very inspiring for people like me who dreams of running a business too in the future. I learned so much especially the part where HJP compared business partnerships with wedding and divorce. It opened my eyes when considering my real life partners.

Thank you :)

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Some programmer friends recommended me to watch this drama. In turn, I recommend this drama to my other programmer friends. I myself am a programmer.

Finished watching the drama (twice!), I really enjoyed how it depicts start-up world in relatively good accuracy:
- started up at plain uncomfortable loft
- having full support by family members and close friends at first, and getting their doubts as time goes by
- focused on technical aspects instead of business calculations
- having little taste of design ("retro" business card!)
- easily challenged when there's technical problems to solve

The drama maintained the story pace successfully. It introduced main characters and their personal conflicts early and smoothly. I didn't remember moments when I got bored watching the drama.

Each character personal conflicts are well told. There are motives for each character decisions and actions, even for HJP indecisiveness regarding his affection to SDM.

The actors played well. I really like the elevator scene, the actors were using body language very well. Conversation between HJP and KYS (as the new CEO) was also interesting, portraying how their characters developed.

I will miss those Sam-san Tech guys.

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The Hand that Sunk a Thousand Ships

First off, I would like to thank the community that formed over the weeks of the live airing. The resiliency and maturity that these men and women showed in the face of such great adversity is enough to make one ignore the stifling heat of burning ships, the blaring horns of hypocrisy, and the sharp needles of mediocrity.

Sorry in advance this is a long read...

When a show leaves itself vulnerable to multiple strong fan made theories and analysis. This means only one of two things: Either the show was written really smartly, and the writer in effect, created a world filled with multiple exciting possibilities. OR, lazy, lukewarm, and predictable writing has left so many large plot holes filled with nonsensical plot points, and poor characterization, that fans are forced to shore up the shows many weakness with well constructed fan theories and analysis to plug up the holes. After episode 6, it is clear that the latter happened.

The show does a great job of producing and writing the first few episodes, to the point where a majority of the audience set their emotional expectation high for what is to come. Unfortunately, all these first few episodes manages to accomplish is to set the bar so high, that the remaining episodes look so poor in comparison, and make the fall much farther and more painful for the audience. As viewers continue to watch the show, they journey through a harsh and arid desert, where they will continuously see mirages of depth and complexity that never materializes as anything more than repetitive clichés and negative stereotypes devoid of any creativity.

Prior to watching this show, I have never heard of these actors or actresses, nor have I seen any shows made by this particular writer. At the beginning, a lot of hype followed the drama, with two A-Listers, an apparently popular writer, and an interesting synopsis. With these things in mind, I sailed my tiny vessel past the gilded French doors into what I hope would be a smooth maiden voyage for my first foray into watching a Park Hye Run drama. Little did I know that what awaited me past these gilded doors, would be a tiring journey full of infinite frustrations. As my boat continually capsized in the weak waters of Park Hye Run's writing, what kept me going was the shining light of Han Ji Pyeong's character, which the writer gifted to us in the first episode.

What kept me going was HJP's shining white light, illuminating a drab, boring, and colorless plot. Wherever he shone his light, the plot sparkled, whichever character he shared the light with gained color and depth. But the minute his light left, we are reminded of how dull and boring the world Park Hye Run created really was. Under HJP's warm light, metaphors started to grow, towers of theories began to rise, and the flowers of hope started to bloom. The writer may have known this, and used HJP's light selfishly to extend a love triangle way past its expiry date, in hopes of reeling in hopeless romantics who believe being a "Good Boy" deserves a happy ending. With each passing episode though, the metaphors started to lose meaning, the towers of theories began to crumble, and the flowers of hope began to wither.

In Kdrama, the characterization of second leads tends to be selfless, self sacrificing, and overall a good guy. So to prevent strong SLS in the Kdrama, they normally present a slightly weaker ML (or sometimes someone equally strong) who may start at a lower position initially compared to the second lead, but through PROPER character growth, is able to eventually take residence in the FL's heart. PHR did not get this memo. What we get instead is a severely weak characterization of the ML who takes almost the entire 16 episodes run to exhibit any character growth, that by the time the audience realizes he has grown, it is already too late, and no amount of force feeding by the plot is enough for the audience to accept the ML for anything more than a privileged and spoiled person.

The writer falls into the trap of making the ML too powerful, too quick, robbing audience of the satisfaction of the journey. When the ML first encounters an issue, we feel the suspense and nervousness of what may lie ahead. But after he effortlessly navigates each and every one of these hurdles, the excited and nervous emotions start fading away. So when the next hurdle comes, and we see the SST boys panic like headless chickens, all the audience can do is roll their eyes as the ML comes to save the day, and effortlessly surpass another hurdle. I feel disappointed that Kdrama writers continually makes their ML's too perfect. The flaws that the ML is suppose to have, is noticed by none of the cast, as his flaws are either ignored, or only show up when no one is around.

The FL, who is initially shown to have such depth and complexity through the letters that she writes, eventually succumbs to the "Damsel in Distress" disease of which has plagued Kdrama for years. The cure for weak FL's (Independence) have been available to Kdrama writers for years now, and yet some archaic writers refuses to give their FL this medicine. So it's no surprise, after such a strong start for the FL, she eventually succumbs to this disease. Her new persona, which is as shallow as a puddle, fastidiously focuses on "Big Hands" as the source of her emotional growth. Although "Big Hands" is meant to have some deeper meaning (which the show does a poor job showing!), the ridiculousness of how something intangible like love and emotions, can be measured so easily by comparing hand sizes, makes one laugh out of pity.

The other female characters which started out as interesting, complex, and powerful in the beginning never reach their potential. Instead they are treated as fashion accessories to make the dull Male lead's lackluster characterization pop out more. In fact the whole show felt much like the Male leads personal cheering squad. And yet, with the tsunami of support from both the other characters and the writer, the Male lead fails to take advantage of any of it, instead wallowing in the insecurities that has seeped from the writer's pen.

It was hard to feel the chemistry from both FL and ML, as the FL shared the same doe-eyed Bambi look whenever she saw the ML or the SL. The ML on the other hand felt like he was trying too hard to nail the look of an angsty, cool, and tough teenage who can cry at the drop of the hat. In most Kdrama I always place an emphasis on micro-expressions as the high production values, and numerous close up shots gives the actors/actresses the perfect platform to convey so much emotions with simple subtle twitches of their faces. Thus I was quite disappointed to see the main couple not take advantage of this, and instead produce misplaced or invisible micro-expressions that failed to convey the gravity of the situation, and missed the harmonic emotions the amazing OST produced.

The gap of acting between the "adults" in the show versus the "kids" was huge, to the point where the reduced screen time of the better actors and actress are felt strongly and visibly dropped the quality of certain episodes. And in the acting, the insecurity of the writing once again rears its ugly head, as the show tried it's best to throw in every single Kdrama romantic trope in the book to justify the non-existent chemistry of Suzy and NJH. The show was so insecure of the growing SLS among viewers, that they limited HJP any happiness, as if they felt that any ounce of happiness on HJP's side would overshadow the weak main couple. As if every HJP smile, would make an already lackluster main couple, even more dull in comparison. Such was the insecurity of the showrunners.

The writer ATTEMPTS to craft a story about a young group of underdogs who start from the bottom and work their way to the top thru hard work and determination. What we get instead are people, who have the deck stacked FOR them, who bemoan how tough life is. Not only does this not illicit the intended reaction from the mature and smart audiences, but the preposterousness of seeing people who have it all, complain about not having it all, induced many doctors visit among audiences who could not stop rolling their eyes. Nay, instead of getting a story about loveable underdogs like "Dodgeball", what we get instead is the Korean version of the Breakfast Club, where YOU WANT the kids to stay in detention for the rest of the show. These characters, once they achieve their success never exhibit the humility that comes from self-directed success, but rather the arrogance and superiority complex that come from people who did not properly earn their prestige.

The show missed the great opportunity to show a true or semi-true depiction of startups in the tech world. In fact, what could have potentially been a great medium to showcase Korea's burgeoning position in the tech world, instead decided to focus 70% of the plot on a love triangle that went longer than it needed to. And the foundation of the love triangle is a dangerous moral lesson. The lesson being that dreaming without a plan is the way to achieve success, and only when you throw caution to the wind, and don't bother with the technicalities of reaching your dream will you achieve success. It's a very naïve and narrow view of a world where the sharks outweigh the sheep. The little bit of business aspect that the show provides, can be replicated by reading the first paragraph of what a start up is on Wikipedia. The shows attempt to sound smart about it's poorly researched show, just gets a incredulous reactions from people who are actually in the industry.

If you start watching the show expecting a mature story showing realistic situations, this is not that show. Instead we are "treated" to a show about kids vs adults, and the cool kids versus the squares. Where we, mature audiences, are expected to root for the clueless kids who are basically attacking principles that we adults hold dear. In fact the central theme of the show is about how experience and wisdom is no match for the power of hopes and dreams. How being a dreamer is always better than being a pragmatist. How being safe, having a back plan, and being patient are for failures. All dangerous imagery for anyone knowledgeable about business. In fact the show is so in love with their own hubris, that they make this message a one sided one, where the adults are not only humbled by the children, but humiliated. There is too much romanticization for an industry and process that at times cause people to hurt themselves.

Some of the characters who started as adults in the show, quickly lose their maturity card, as they begin to exhibit symptoms of early childhood. The short attention span, the incessant crying, and terrible tantrums. In fact a good portion of the episodes felt like adults babysitting the children until they can learn to walk. And once the children learn to walk, they ignore the adults who helped them.

Since most of the people watching this show are over the age of 20, seeing a group of "struggling" characters succeed beyond a doubt without any regards for both an exit plan or a plan B, and throw tantrums and cry when they reach artificial, invisible impasses, felt very contrived and laughable. In fact, just like children, they expect the adults to take care of the invisible impasses for them, and to make the scary monsters go away. Because of all these immature themes within the main group of characters in SST it becomes hard to relate to any of these character who are not experiencing any real difficulties. And it becomes increasingly frustrating that none of these mistakes are properly punished but instead weirdly rewarded. As mature audience, we find it difficult to mirror anything happening in the show. What is supposed to be thematically realistic, often comes out as fantasy instead. Although Kdrama is meant as escapism, there is a limit to how much fantasy the audience can tolerate; Start Up's motto of "Sailing Without A Map", went so far pass the audiences' limit of fantasy, that it became hard for audience to relate, revel, and enjoy SST's many successes.

The writer, in her hubris, has taken the audience for granted. She continually mocks and ridicules the tenets that a mature audience holds dear. In her imaginations, the audience are but sheep who will accept whatever swill she decides to feed us. But due to the many negative feedback, I am happy to see that the Kdrama audience have matured pass the cages that these arrogant writers choose to impose on us. And as the criticism mount, so does the insecurity of the show.

There is a disconnect between the show and the audiences. Because just like the audience in a theatrical play, only we are privy to the actual good and bad acts the various characters do. And just like in a play the other character are oblivious to the manipulations and ulterior motives of the supposedly pure white characters. The frustrations mount when the showboating, privileged main characters expect a parade for every good deed he does, while the silently helpful supporting characters are unsung heroes. If fact the endless praise seeking of the main characters can be distilled into the narcissistic line "What do you like about me?".

During the latter half of the show, you might as well have started a new Kdrama, as the characterizations of the different characters are destroyed, then reconstructed without proper instructions; and the show basically erases all the plot points of the previous episodes. As the show trudges along a predictable and boring road, the audience keeps hoping that somehow the writing will get smarter, but instead the audience are indurated by stupidity after stupidity. And in the world of Start Up, stupidity is equated to intelligence.

Lastly, one of my biggest gripe with the show, has been it's portrayal of parents as ATM machines, and as disposable diapers. The unhealthy relationship of the ML and his parents is very conflicting towards Asian societies and the parenting that comes from it. In fact, what is normally seen as normal in current society is vilified in the show. But instead of addressing any of the inconsistencies in the family dynamic, the show instead decides to sweep all the issues under the rug, almost like slapping a tiny band-aid on a festering wound. The show chooses to focus on what mistake the parents to do the children, but never on the mistakes the children did to their parents. As someone who values family, I was a little disappointed that Start Up chose to romanticize and normalize this type of family relationship. The closest thing to a healthy family relationship on the show actually comes from the two people who are not related by blood, HJP and Halmoni. A lovely relationship that took it's bruises and scars from the writers incessant insecurities over her ML cloying need to be loved by everyone.

I would say, one of the best thing to come out from this show has been the amazing OST. I absolutely loved the music of the show, and already have them on repeat on my playlist. Also, the saving glory of this has been the presence of KSH. I won't talk too much about this, as others have written a lot about him already :)

All in all, a below average Kdrama that isn't worth watching. But I implore you to find a supercut or montage of all of HJP and Grandma's scene if you want to experience a good cry!

Hopefully everyone enjoyed reading this as I did writing it! >.<

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Certainly Not A Good Drama To “ Start-Up”...

‘Start Up’ had great potential to be a good drama from its opening episode. Aside from having the well-known talents of Bae Suzy, Nam Joo Hyuk and Kim Seon Ho as our main leads , the characters undeniably had the potential to be realistic and a “breath of fresh air” from the stereotypical cliches of romance dramas. Yet, story progression and cliches truly provided to be ‘Start-Up’ ’s own worst enemy, as Park Hye Run’s screenwriting began to tackle oddly immature themes in a show tackling adult characters , plot inconsistencies, dire characterisation and straying away nearly entirely from the main focal point of making one’s own way in the world in favour of lacklustre and poorly-written romance pairings.

Perhaps the two characters who were subject to the most injustice of characterisation and story writing in the drama are strikingly the female lead Dal Mi ( Bae Suzy) and Kim Seon Ho’s character Ji Pyeong. ( Although Nam Joo Hyuk’s character Nam Do San must certainly be addressed later on as the elephant in the room.)

In the beginning of the series, Dal Mi was an intriguing main character; a headstrong businesswoman with an intriguing backstory , stuck in a rival relationship with her sister and having a driving passion to succeed in the business world . Then, not even several episodes later, Dal Mi’s characterisation from an independent businesswoman with actual depth, is subverted in order to allow her to become the staid, obsequious and often emotionally insecure “ love interest” of Do San and Ji Pyeong’s affections.

It is important to stress that isn’t the case that Dal Mi shouldn’t have had a love interest or a relationship at all within the series. A “ strong” female lead can still be well-written as an individual(regardless of her relationship status). Instead, it is rather how this drama portrayed the baffling and incoherent relationship between Dal Mi and Do San; a pairing which was to be expected and certainly wasn’t entirely “bad” between the characters as individuals ( despite notable “ biased” feelings of some fans). Instead, it was rather how this pairing was built upon lies, deceit, insecurity, and emotional manipulation, which was often “glossed over” in favour of “ cutesy couple” moments between Dal Mi and Do San as the storyline progressed. Dal-Mi became the typical trope of the “ golden prize” for the male lead, rather than an individual with her own thoughts and feelings; a sad destruction of an otherwise intriguing character.

This naturally moves us onto the second male lead of the series , Ji Pyeong, the “ preferred love interest ” of Dal Mi amongst watchers of the series. As an individual , however, it was not entirely the case that Ji-Pyeong was a “ badly-written” character, but rather his scenarios seemed both unjustified and questionable over the duration of the drama.

Initially appearing as a solipsistic, yet successful businessman, the series brings a lot to light about Ji-Pyeong as someone who is inwardly altruistic ; hardworking in order to have escaped the poverty of his childhood, a genuine supporter who sees the “ potential” of Do San’s visions and who has constantly admired Dal Mi since childhood ( a major driving force of the series, which is sadly never explored or touched upon after its initial use). Naturally, however, Ji-Pyeong’s “ selflessness” often leads to his downfall and consequently because he undeniably puts up a deceitful guise in front of Dal-Mi , he naturally comes out with the short end of the stick by not “ getting the girl”. Nearly from episode one, it will remain apparent for viewers that Dal Mi and Ji-Pyeong have many striking similarities both within their pasts, careers, obstacles and even personality types. Yet despite the obvious pairing which would ultimately arise between Dal-Mi and Do San, these similarities between both characters were neither explored or developed within ‘ Start-Up’.


Yet relationships aside (and despite the obvious flaw of his “ selflessness” at times), Ji-Pyeong’s altruism also plays to his advantage within arguably allowing him to become the most emotionally-stable character of ‘ Start-Up’ . He never truly takes out his feelings upon the SST boys ( despite their sarcastic comments ), Dal Mi and maintains professionalism in the workplace, by helping Do San ( even after Do San manipulates and physically punches him) against all odds, possibly making him the one true mature, and unspoken hero of the entire drama .

Next it is important to address the biggest elephant in the room, the main lead of ‘ Start-Up’, Do San. Against all odds, Do-San is a surprisingly interesting character , but a terribly-written individual upon all grounds. He is initially introduced under the archetype of the “ loveable and lively dork”- a profound genius, lacking in social skills, with a sanguine ambiance. Naturally, this allows people to gravitate towards Do-San such as Dal-Mi as a love interest, and Ji Pyeong as a mentor . By default, Do-San should have been someone for viewers to root for; the underdog who becomes successful, goes through a life-changing journey and revels at the end of the series with his important life-lessons in business, morality and love .

Instead the irony becomes apparent within Do-San’s “friendly” nature becoming a facade for his insecure and often fractious personality over the course of the drama . If Ji-Pyeong is the kind-hearted and selfless soul of the series, then Do-San is the egocentric opportunist who plays “Devil’s Advocate” in the beginning of the series, before taking advantage of Ji-Pyeong’s kindness through various methods of emotional and aggressive manipulation , even punching him once because Dal-Mi was “ upset”.

Upon this side note of Dal-Mi, it is crucial to bring up what is exactly problematic about Do -san’s interactions and behaviour around the female lead. The main lead’s personality sometimes verged upon what is commonly known in psychology as “ covert narcissism”. Many of the notable traits of covert narcissism include imposter syndrome, subtle emotional manipulation, introversion and egocentric beliefs and wild fantasies over one’s own success or goals - nearly all traits present within Do -San’s character . In addition to his obvious desire towards succeeding in the business sector , Do- San’s greatest fantasy soon manifests through his obsession with being Dal-Mi ‘s “ protector”. This is not out of selflessness or as a consequence of helping Ji-Pyeong to look after Dal-Mi, but a dangerous daydream which soon grows into an unhealthy obsession to “ protect” her through emotional vanity and manipulation .

Rather than being a symbiotic process of both characters coming to grasps with their flaws and learning to heal their emotional wounds, the relationship between Dal-Mi and Do -San was simply uncomfortable and emotionally draining for viewers.

In addition to this the second female lead Seo In Jae/Won In Jae(played by Kang Han Na),felt like a character limited only to an extended background character . In Jae could have easily supported the pacing and depth of the storyline , giving viewers a break from the prolonged and cliche love triangle dominating the show . She had a surprisingly decent backstory and certainly potentially interesting character depth, that could have been explored in episodes focusing on her rekindled relationship with Dal Mi. Ultimately, however, In Jae was pushed out of the way in favour of the lacklustre paring between Do San and Dal Min; a crying shame, for a character with wasted potential .

Overall, “Start-Up” does tackle some intriguing dynamics of the business world, family and a “ dramatic ” love triangle. However, writer Park Hye Ryun did not do justice with this series- characters were often poorly-written or lacked intrinsic depth, the second-half became overly reliant upon immature cliches , tropes and plot holes to “ prop-up” the sloping storyline, and the main pairing was unhealthily built upon emotional gaslighting and insecurity, rather than sincere feelings and learning to overcome these problems symbiotically . Certainly not worth investing time within if you’re looking for a well-written drama .

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Perceptions

Well, as a matter of fact I must to say that every single one of us watch to a drama and/or movie and evaluate it from it's
own perception. I accept that my perception can differ from yours, but it's difficult to accept so much negativity.

I did learn here at MDL that a negative review also can be seen as a green sign. In other words I watch all those negative reviewd drama's just to conclude that the most of them really are a good watch.

In my opinion this really applies to Start Up. You can find everything in it, from family contextuality till the struggle of life with it's ups and downs. An interesting script and a good peforming cast.

I really enjoy this K-Drama, it was a good watch. Take a sit, pour a cup op tea and enjoy it.

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START-UP IS NOT JUST ABOUT THE "SHIPS", DON'T MISS THE WHOLE POINT.

The story was really inspiring. The viewers can see how much a start-up can really grow as a big company. Seeing the hardships of Dosan and DalMi to reach their dreams welcomed me to "follow my dreams".

Only JiDal shippers say it's disappointing. I get it that you want your bias to win over DalMi, but it's your fault for getting your hopes up too high when you know that the drama is made for NJH and Suzy in the very first place. Also, the poster says it all. Anyway, people who just see and measure start-up based on "ship" missed the whole point of the K-drama. Start-up is a series more than the love story. It is about family, dreams, and friendship.

Set aside what others are saying that it's not good. You'll see, Dosan and DalMi is a perfect match, too! ❤️

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Had potential but lost the track.

I would say this drama has one of the great starting that any drama can had, yep it start with a blast and I thought it has potential to become this years best drama, great starting, good backstory, amazing cast it had all potential to be the best but it lost the track.

Cons -
1. They made a very strong second main lead much better than main lead and the first episode was full of the backstory of HJK so it kind of gave hopes to the HJP fans that there is still chance for him.
2. No character development I mean there was nothing new aspect in characters they have same personality from starting to end.
3. This drama should be based on start up but it ended up dragging love triangle all the way that's the thing made this drama a disappointment. I am not upset because of who got the girl thing I am upset because if female lead gonna end up with male lead then what is reason of making 2nd lead perfect?
4. The male lead. One the main reason of failure of this drama I know many of NDS fan's que is what did NDS did wrong but thing is he did nothing, really nothing it was one of the poor written character of the drama without any character development.
5. The female lead. In the first few episodes I thought SDM had potential to be one the strongest and clever female lead, but it became kind of miserable you know they use the concept ( typical ) knight saving beauty.
6. The lovestory between main leads wasn't that interesting.

Pros -
1. Beautiful cinematography I must say the cinematography was great with beautiful camera anglrs.
2. The strong backstory.
3. The relation between HJP or I say Good boy and Grandmother was potraited beautifully it was the thing I liked most in the drama.
4. Ost and soundtrack was amazing I must say.

Overall it was an average drama if you are big fan of main leads or you have a lot of time free then you should watch it. It wasn't all waste of time but it's also not worth of time,

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START UP becomes MESS UP. The writer / production team seemed to be wasting the potential in this drama.

After watching episode 12, I had to change the review about this drama.
This drama is very promising at the beginning because the theme, storyline and actors are very good. But only for the first 8 episodes.
From episodes 9 to 12, in my opinion, the quality has decreased dramatically in terms of the storyline.
The only thing that kept me watching was because of the character Han Ji Pyeong, who in my opinion he was a very extraordinary scene stealer.
As the second main character, he can attract the attention of many audiences to beat the main character.
There are still 4 more episodes left, but I didn't expect much.
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This drama went from 만점 (100) to 빵점 (0) real quick ?

The issue isn’t the fan ship war that has erupted lately.

It’s that This has become the most important question for viewers to judge whether they come out of the drama slightly satisfied or not: “who the female lead is going to choose as her beau?”

•The second female lead has been reduced to a poor cameo role; who despite being sister, daughter & granddaughter doesn’t even get told in 3 whole years that her Grandma is losing eyesight.

•The female lead turns from an independent, almost self-raised woman with a bold personality to a damsel in distress who cannot function without help from the men in her life.

•The Start Up title is a bait. We start off with a group of inexperienced + Zero business knowhow but passionate people who hope to become the next Steve Jobs or Google. Whilst the first half of the drama gives you hope that this team will slowly learn how to become entrepreneurs and encounter common start-up problems.... We end up with a bunch of (very) immature people who rely heavily on plain luck to secure investments, recognition & success and then proceed to Sell off their company in ONE day without any forethought about their goals. The drama then proceeds with a misplaced time skip to gift this team success & wealth from jobs at other companies.

•One of the worst time skips ever. Not just because the actual scene transition was terrible. First due to when it takes place, it robs the characters of the opportunity to reflect and learn from their mistakes. Second, zero character development in 3 years skip. Everyone seems to have frozen in time. (stagnation) Third, all the previously struggling characters have found (lucky) career success & wealth and we miss their journey through it.

•The show seems to Romanticise/gloss over undue violence and immaturity Especially in a workplace/professional area. (Guys if you punch your mentor At work or school because he made your girlfriend cry after your Own friend told Him to tell Her the “harsh truth, no feelings involved”..... You will be kicked off campus/site and not allowed back in. There may also be lawsuits on assault.) The main characters consistently & unrepentantly make business decisions based on personal emotions- love life, jealousy, euphoria, entitlement. I cannot stress enough the lack of maturity a bunch of 25+ somethings show in their Place of Work- that even teenagers in contrast can seem more wise.

•The male lead has been reduced to a whining entitled toddler who, like a broken radio in order to gain sympathy points from everyone around him, keeps crying & repeating he “has nothing” just because his love life isn’t sailing smooth. THIS, despite the fact that he has 2 very loyal friends, supportive parents (regardless of their expectations of him they still invested into his loss-making, no-real-plan, debt-run business for 3 whole years prior to the show start), a close cousin who’s more like a brother that does marketing for him for basically free, genius coding talent, handsome & tall looks, a warm family house (not an apartment!) to return to.... and after a time skip, even becomes successful & wicked rich..... Like dude, what the hell more do you want ?!? And what’s more ridiculous is that he’s the most well-off character in the show. One of his own friends has lost a brother to suicide. The girls have a dead parent + blind grandma + enemy like stepfamily. The other guy is a literal friendless orphan whose success is all self-made......


It’s a wonder we’re still watching this drama. The effort of the actors, the pretty cinematography, the enticing OST. There’s not much else bringing us back except needing to know the conclusion of a drama we already invested our time & energy in.


*credit to someone*

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The worst regression of a plot and its characters I've ever seen

This entire drama is a fraud. It pulls you in from the beautiful pilot episode filled with symbolism, breathtaking cinematography, and the heartbreaking backstory of who you THINK is the main lead, Han Jipyeong. And then it pulls the rug from under you.

Nam Dosan is the main lead, though he had a 10 second clip only in episode 1. Regardless, he was great in the beginning. Relatable, cute, dorky, and very lovable. Until he's not. I really can't pinpoint where this happened, but Dosan quickly became the most toxic, manipulative, serial liar with anger issues and violent tendencies, male lead who never gets called out for his actions. In fact, he is rewarded for everything he does, good and bad. Why? Because he's the main lead, of course! Duh.

On the other hand, we have Jipyeong, our second main lead who feels like the main lead but is treated like a punching bag and a waste disposal. Everything revolves around him: the plot, the letters, the character development, and the relationships with all the other characters. He is the heart and soul of the story, no matter what the writers were trying to convince us otherwise. This was in part Kim Seon Ho's doing, as he breathed life into his character. What I firmly believe happened was that Han Jipyeong was not MEANT to be as loved as he is. Rich, quick-witted with a sharp tongue and a self-made man, he could've easily become the antagonist of the story, but Seon Ho achieves in making him out to be a beautifully flawed human, a man who grew up with nothing and has had to fend for himself all his life. Props to Kim Seon Ho, who was a hidden gem that was discovered through this mess of a drama, and for that reason only I don't regret watching it with my entire self. As much as the viewers learned to love Jipyeong, the more the writers began to hate him, and his entire character arc ended with a whimper, leaving us unfulfilled and demanding justice for him.

As for Seo Dalmi, our female lead, the writers were amazingly horrible in developing her. She went from being independent, hard-working, dream-filled to a pathetic and helpless nobody who couldn't do anything without the help of a man. We never really learn what she's thinking, or why she's doing anything, or the reasoning behind any of her thoughts or actions. Honestly, I don't even know who she is. The show failed in fleshing her out and showing any sort of character growth and development on her end. She's a mystery box. You can't predict anything she'll do or say because nothing about her is consistent. Very disappointing.

Overall the show advertises itself as a business youth drama, but it really isn't. It pretends to be one until the plot falls apart and character development is thrown out the window. Plot holes everywhere, dead storylines, and "main" characters are more like cameo appearances- AKA Kang Hanna. The writers forgot the overall arc of the story and instead focused on a love triangle that went nowhere for 10 episodes. In all honesty, the plot could've been concluded in about 6 episodes. It dragged on for so long and so painfully, with virtually nothing happening in the second half. Without Seon Ho's portrayal of Jipyeong, I really doubt that this show would've caught the hearts of the viewers, and as amazing as he is I would still never recommend anyone to watch this show. You're better off watching clips of him on youtube.

Lessons and morals of the story? Cheat, lie, play dirty, fight your mentor and those who help you, blame others for your failures, never be grateful to your friends and family, use "fate" to explain your mistakes, and win the girl. Wonderful, very heart-warming.

I don't think I'll be watching another Bae Suzy or Nam Joo Hyuk work for a while to cleanse my palate from their portrayal of the worst characters in kdrama history, which is ironic given that I started this for them in the first place.

1/10.

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Ignore the Noise

Dear reader, I urge you to give this series a chance if you enjoy coming-of-age dramas (including talk of dreams, aspirations, failure, innovation, identity, family, friendship, feeling lost, finding love), as well as lovely cinematography, production design, and direction.

Does this drama have flaws? Yes, plenty. The writing goes up and down at times, some storylines are rushed (the revenge plot), and there are characters who should've gotten more screen time (Injae). If you're not a fan of romance in your dramas, then this show is not for you. If you're not a fan of love triangles, this show is not for you.

All that said, overall, Start-Up is a good time. All of the characters are complex and flawed, which makes them interesting. Every shot is absolutely beautiful, and the familial/friendship themes are effectively explored. If you've ever felt lost (particularly in your twenties, as those are the leads' ages) and weren't quite sure what you wanted to do with the rest of your life, you can probably relate. It is certainly not a documentary about starting a tech company in South Korea, but it does utilize its accelerator environment well. The strengths of Start-Up lie in its cast of colorful characters, its emotional throughline, and its visual excellence.

If you're thinking of watching this show but are wondering why there are people online who seem passionately invested in hating it as if this show killed their first born child (and you don't mind spoilers,) continue below:

The online reaction surrounding this drama while it's been on-air is some of the most ridiculous and inane I've ever seen in a K-Drama fandom (usually only present in large western or anime fandoms), and this is due to the ship war and the different "teams."

Here's the thing: while the drama did spend an unnecessary amount of time on the love triangle, it was never a true love triangle to begin with. From the first episode, when the cherry blossom petal flew all the way from Dalmi and landed on Dosan's head, if you've ever watched a single K-Drama ever, you should've known what the endgame was going to be. Even more so in Episode 2, with the slow motion walk toward each other during their first-meeting-cut-short and when Dosan showed up at the networking party looking like Cinderella at the ball.

Throughout the course of the story, Dalmi had shown exactly zero interest in Jipyeong as a man, either romantically or sexually. Not even when she was suspicious of Dosan being two separate people did she consider Jipyeong in a romantic light. She’d been curious about him, yes, and clearly valued his friendship and mentorship, but anyone who genuinely hoped she was suddenly going to finally see, in the eleventh hour, how he was the nice guy she’d been looking for all along were going to be sorely disappointed.

It was never going to be Jipyeong, but for some reason, shippers deluded themselves into thinking there was some sort of secret story underneath it all that only they could see. They wholeheartedly believed there was going to be a big plot twist (even though there was never any indication of such), and when the coupling went the way it was always going to go, they got all shocked Pikachu face. And then got angry at the hole they dug themselves into. The most ironic part is that the show has a good amount of symbolism and attention to detail. Just not the symbolism and attention to detail certain factions thought they saw.

Start-Up is not a work of genius, but it's fun and all the actors are fantastic. The OST is out of this world, and there is plenty of comedy and emotional heft to go around. In any case, this is a drama best binged, as it's more cohesive that way.

Ignore the noise and check it out if the synopsis seems interesting to you. And if you don't vibe with it, stop watching and simply move on with your life.

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