Tae Ho
In the shining galaxy of A.N.JELL, Bangtan Sonyeondan & CNBLUE
I watched this straight after Stranger, so I will try to incorporate some of the judgments I have about that one into this review since both predominantly carries similar underlying premise although the themes are different (I know).
First off, with every other markers that differentiate the two shows removed, I do find the pacing of Stranger a bit slow and draggy especially in the middle parts. Stranger is understandably a show written that is more focused around character development rather than the plot (it's quite a slow burner), so the writer of that show goes around many circling episodes trying to shade every character in the proximity of the main protagonist as the main culprit in order to confuse us. This kind of screenwriting works really well if you are not too much of a stickler for a show well-paced and one that centres itself largely on the actual development of the story. I wrote a full review on Stranger here.
https://mydramalist.com/profile/7596411/review/58045
While You Were Sleeping, on the other hand, I found to have successfully blended the complexity of being character-driven and plot-driven at the same time incredibly well. Trust me, the brilliance of the screenwriting and directing in this drama really blew me away! This is the reason I am utterly baffled at some other reviewers who thought this show was boring in any shape or form. I am not even sure if we watched the same show at this point.
While You Were Sleeping started off strong, and needless to say they actually managed to keep the show on high for the rest of the episodes till its conclusion which is admittedly a very tough feat. In fact, I do not find a single moment in this show that was boring and skippable. I even dare to say that every single scene is important and adds a very important dynamic to the overall impression of the story. When I first began this show, I was afraid that the execution is going to be messy or confusing, since they are playing with dreams/future back and forth. Nevertheless to my surprise, the writers and directors are incredibly skilled in telling a very interesting story in a compelling way.
The main trio as the protagonist of this show works incredibly well together. I dearly appreciate how there's no love triangle in this, although there is a one-sided love. Jae Chan's character is incredibly sweet and funny and Hong Joo is just so fun to watch, being the quirky and intelligent reporter that she is. Woo Tak is literally a heart stealer in every scene, with his incredibly charming smile and warm personality. Even all the supporting characters are important from the assistant investigators at the prosecutor office, the other three prosecutors and the Chief, Woo Tak's sunbaenim police officer and Hong Joo's mother. Every character is so loveable and brings to your heart a lot of warmth. I am also amazingly in awe of Nam Da Reum who delivers brilliantly all the nuances of Jae Chan's younger self as the troublemaker kid but also one who went through really difficult times. I am usually not a fan of any villain character but seriously hats off to the writers for giving the antagonist in this show an incredibly well-written backstory, which is greatly complemented by the immaculate acting of Lee Sang Yeob. He's utterly detestable from beginning to end, and ironically it worked great!
The acting by all the casts are on point as well, in particular Lee Jong Suk and Bae Suzy did incredibly well in their crying scenes. I am sure you will agree when you arrive at those particular scenes. This show also has a really incredible plot twist at the later episode, thus I think you'll really find the whole experience very enthralling.
Many of the OST in this drama are truly exceptional and adds incredible feels to the viewing experience, especially during the sad and romantic scenes. My favourites are the songs by Suzy, Davichi, Eddy Kim, Roy Kim and Henry.
The rewatch value for this drama is exceptionally high. This is actually one of the shows I have watched in kdramaland that I hold very dearly in my heart, and found that the perfect score doesn't do the show justice since it's value to me can't be expressed in any numeric forms. It's really so special to me, and the reason it's so special is that it's been executed incredibly well in all aspects that I consider very important to make a kdrama successful and utterly memorable.
Enjoy the watch!
First off, with every other markers that differentiate the two shows removed, I do find the pacing of Stranger a bit slow and draggy especially in the middle parts. Stranger is understandably a show written that is more focused around character development rather than the plot (it's quite a slow burner), so the writer of that show goes around many circling episodes trying to shade every character in the proximity of the main protagonist as the main culprit in order to confuse us. This kind of screenwriting works really well if you are not too much of a stickler for a show well-paced and one that centres itself largely on the actual development of the story. I wrote a full review on Stranger here.
https://mydramalist.com/profile/7596411/review/58045
While You Were Sleeping, on the other hand, I found to have successfully blended the complexity of being character-driven and plot-driven at the same time incredibly well. Trust me, the brilliance of the screenwriting and directing in this drama really blew me away! This is the reason I am utterly baffled at some other reviewers who thought this show was boring in any shape or form. I am not even sure if we watched the same show at this point.
While You Were Sleeping started off strong, and needless to say they actually managed to keep the show on high for the rest of the episodes till its conclusion which is admittedly a very tough feat. In fact, I do not find a single moment in this show that was boring and skippable. I even dare to say that every single scene is important and adds a very important dynamic to the overall impression of the story. When I first began this show, I was afraid that the execution is going to be messy or confusing, since they are playing with dreams/future back and forth. Nevertheless to my surprise, the writers and directors are incredibly skilled in telling a very interesting story in a compelling way.
The main trio as the protagonist of this show works incredibly well together. I dearly appreciate how there's no love triangle in this, although there is a one-sided love. Jae Chan's character is incredibly sweet and funny and Hong Joo is just so fun to watch, being the quirky and intelligent reporter that she is. Woo Tak is literally a heart stealer in every scene, with his incredibly charming smile and warm personality. Even all the supporting characters are important from the assistant investigators at the prosecutor office, the other three prosecutors and the Chief, Woo Tak's sunbaenim police officer and Hong Joo's mother. Every character is so loveable and brings to your heart a lot of warmth. I am also amazingly in awe of Nam Da Reum who delivers brilliantly all the nuances of Jae Chan's younger self as the troublemaker kid but also one who went through really difficult times. I am usually not a fan of any villain character but seriously hats off to the writers for giving the antagonist in this show an incredibly well-written backstory, which is greatly complemented by the immaculate acting of Lee Sang Yeob. He's utterly detestable from beginning to end, and ironically it worked great!
The acting by all the casts are on point as well, in particular Lee Jong Suk and Bae Suzy did incredibly well in their crying scenes. I am sure you will agree when you arrive at those particular scenes. This show also has a really incredible plot twist at the later episode, thus I think you'll really find the whole experience very enthralling.
Many of the OST in this drama are truly exceptional and adds incredible feels to the viewing experience, especially during the sad and romantic scenes. My favourites are the songs by Suzy, Davichi, Eddy Kim, Roy Kim and Henry.
The rewatch value for this drama is exceptionally high. This is actually one of the shows I have watched in kdramaland that I hold very dearly in my heart, and found that the perfect score doesn't do the show justice since it's value to me can't be expressed in any numeric forms. It's really so special to me, and the reason it's so special is that it's been executed incredibly well in all aspects that I consider very important to make a kdrama successful and utterly memorable.
Enjoy the watch!
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