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DramaHeroine

The Pages of a Fairytale

DramaHeroine

The Pages of a Fairytale
Completed
Cheese in the Trap
4 people found this review helpful
Feb 20, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 10
Rewatch Value 9.0
This review may contain spoilers
I think the story presentation in this film is what the drama version was shaping up to be before the entire thing fell apart (although obviously expanded and more fleshed out in the drama).

The movie does a good job of hitting a lot of the major points of the story and making them all flow together and make sense in relation to each other, but I do have to wonder about something. If I had watched this without reading any of the webtoon or watching any of the drama, would I have actually understood what was happening? I'm not sure I would. While as I said, they do a good job of making things make sense in relation to each other, they don't do as good of a job making sure it all makes sense as a whole so that the audience actually understands what's going on. The storytelling style reads a little slice-of-life but in a way that is somewhat confusing to follow at times.

I also have to be honest and say that I don't think the cast here is as good as the cast in the Kdrama (even including Park Hae Jin; his character just feels different in this movie, not nearly as sinister and mysterious as the Kdrama version, and I'm honestly more impressed with his portrayal in the Kdrama), but they definitely all still do a good job, and I didn't hate any of their performances.

As for the ending, probably one of the most important aspects of the movie since the drama ended so terribly and the webtoon author was forced to change her ending because of it so we'll never actually see how she originally intended it to end, I don't think it's really the direction the story Deserved to go in, but at this point, I'll allow it. I think everyone deserved a happy ending after having to put up with the mess that ended up being the drama.

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Completed
Girl's Life
0 people found this review helpful
Feb 13, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 7.0
This review may contain spoilers
This movie is far too short and fast-paced to really do a lot with it's plot and characters, and the main actress is obviously very green, but the female lead is very likable and her struggles relatable and her ultimate triumphant over them rewarding making this an easy, enjoyable watch.

I liked how kind Haruka always was in the face of very mean people and how she always chose to focus on pushing through her struggles and finding a way to be successful rather then getting revenge. She never mistreated others but always stood up for herself, and she knew what she wanted in life and was willing to work to get it. (Her pet turtle was also a cute added element to the story.) She may not have had a lot of book smarts, but she quickly demonstrated her street smarts time and time again.

It was a cute movie with a likable main character, and I enjoyed watching it.

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Dropped 8/20
City Hall
2 people found this review helpful
Feb 13, 2020
8 of 20 episodes seen
Dropped 1
Overall 6.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
I have one reason, and one reason only, for why I dropped this drama.

Cheating. There is a strong case of cheating in this drama, and I cannot abide it.

Yes, many will consider the cheating pseudo-cheating as the male lead's fiancé is an awful person, and their relationship is more for show than out of love, and they both acknowledge that. But all of the things said cheating brings along with it are so glaringly awful, I refuse to put up with them.

There's how it completely distracts the female lead from her goal of disrupting and changing the political landscape of her town. The story is meant to be about tackling government corruption and laziness and just downright ineffectiveness, but instead, it becomes about two people having a secret, untenable relationship that ultimately makes them both miserable, because they're not being honest with themselves.

There's how it ruins the female lead as a character, because instead of fighting for justice, she's mopey and whiney and constantly pining over this secret relationship and ultimately becomes the type of person who's willing to hurt others and sacrifice them for her own personal gain.

There's how it highlights that the male lead is so selfish that instead of breaking off his engagement to a woman he doesn't love so he can be with a woman he does, he would rather go through with the engagement and eventual marriage while stringing the female lead along beside him, never to be first in his life, always to be second.

And then worst of all, the fact that the female lead knows full well that the male lead is engaged and, Believing It To Be A Genuine Relationship, goes along with the cheating anyway. You want to make a case that he's not cheating on anyone because he and his fiancé don't actually love each other, fine. I'll let it slide. But her? She thought his relationship with his fiancé was real, and she was okay with ****ing that over.

Not. Cool.

Now maybe all of this was intentional and later in the drama the writers were going to show the leads just what kind of people they had become, just what they had sacrificed out of their own selfishness. Maybe there was an entire redemption arc planned. But I read spoilers for the later episodes, and that's Definitely not where I saw the story going.

I'm not saying that stories shouldn't talk about and address cheating, that characters are never allowed to cheat in a story, but I sure as hell am saying that a drama that portrays cheating as somehow romantic and not a big deal and easy to gloss over is Not a story I want to watch. In any context.

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Completed
A Thousand Goodnights
19 people found this review helpful
Feb 13, 2020
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
So teeeeechnically, I have one episode of this left, but my thoughts and feelings about this drama are totally set at this point, and I know the last episode isn't going to change them, because I know the last episode is going to be just as superb as the rest of the series has been, so I'm writing my review now.

And yes. That is the sum up of my review. I think this series is superb.

Why do I think that? It's very, very simple.

Tian Qing is a compelling character, struggling with questions about her identity and coming to terms with the answers she ends up discovering. Her journey to understanding and acceptance is heartfelt and truthful and speaks deeply to that desire in all of us to know who we really are. Cheng Nuo's journey of dealing with his past and allowing himself to heal from it and forgive his family for their mistakes and failures provides so many lessons on what it really means to love those around us and let ourselves live a full and meaningful life. And Tian Qing's adoptive father, Jia He, the foundation upon which the entire story is built, is so honorable and upright and kind that you love him immediately. You understand just what a profound impact he has had on the people around him and feel compelled to emulate him in your own life, to be that kind of person yourself.

This is a drama about healing and forgiveness, identity and knowing who you are, being true to yourself and true to what you know is right, living a life of service to others, and doing the right thing even when it's hard. It's a drama about truth, and that is why I love it so much and think it so incredibly superb. (The cinematography is also absolutely stunning and lush and vibrant, a character in and of itself. The drama's worth watching solely for that if none of the other reasons compel you.)

The only thing that is going to push people away, and I hate that I have to make this caveat, but here we are...

Is that this drama is slow.

It's an unfortunate reality in Asian drama world, that slower dramas that focus more on character and story then creating thrills and excitement simply do not get the praise and recognition they deserve. Instead, they're called boring, or uninteresting, or poorly written, or some other unfair and unflattering insult. And as I'm sure you can see from some of the comments and other reviews here, this drama has received it's fair share of those insults as well. But believe me when I say, those are not fair critiques. A slow drama is not a bad drama, and to rate a slow drama as bad simply because it is slow is poor reasoning. It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea, and as I said in my review for another similarly paced drama, Andante, they aren't typically mine either.

But I watched this, and I felt something. I watched this, and I appreciated the characters and the story. I watched this, and I'm glad I did.

Now this is technically where the actual review ends, but I have some further, broader thoughts I want to share that aren't directed solely at this drama, so if you're interested in reading them, well then here they are, lol.

Minus Fated to Love You (my first ever drama) and the Started with a Kiss series, I didn't watch any Taiwanese dramas for the first however many years of my drama watching life, preferring Korean over pretty much every other country (for context, I've been watching dramas about ten years, maybe longer). However many years ago though, I dipped my toes into Taiwanese dramas again with Just You, and loving it to pieces, decided to give some other Taiwanese dramas a try. There was Office Girls (high marks from me, even if I did find the female lead frustrating), Aim High (very strong and enjoyable start that got me invested, but then devolved into obnoxious, annoying, uninteresting drama about one of the secondary romantic couples and completely ignored everything else the drama was Supposed to be about), Miss Rose (dropped without even meaning to, because the story stopped being interesting, and I can't even remember anything that happened now), King Flower (I tried so hard with this one and just couldn't make it through), Easy Fortune Happy Life (Hate It), P.S. Man (also Hate It), I Do2 (they got one decent episode in before completely ruining the entire thing), Rock n' Road (I wrote an entire blog post where I re-wrote the drama to make it actually good), and Pleasantly Surprised (it...bored me? I guess?). Which the exception of three dramas, I dropped all of these. And one of the three I finished (Rock n' Road), I did so out of obligation.

So as you can see, I had very little luck with Taiwanese dramas the last time I tried to get into them, and because of it, ultimately stopped attempting to watch them altogether. They didn't seem to be very good, I wasn't enjoying them at all, Korean dramas were checking off all the boxes on my drama needs list, and there are so many dramas out there anyways that why waste my time on ones I clearly am destined to not like?

Well, I think I can unequivocally say that if this is the direction Taiwanese dramas are going in now, count me back in, because this was a compelling story from start to finish, and I like being compelled to watch something because it's good.

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Completed
My Tutor Friend
1 people found this review helpful
Feb 13, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
The only thing that keeps this film from being 100% perfect in my eyes (well, minus an incident or two of perverted humor, which I always find pretty tasteless) is the lack of a romantically intimate moment at the end, ie. a kiss, a long embrace, the main couple walking off hand in hand, something. Of course, it doesn't actually matter that this doesn't happen. The movie works perfectly well on it's own without any of those things. I'm just an out and out sucker for rom-coms that end with an intimate, romantic moment of some kind, and this movie doesn't have that sort of ending.

Don't misunderstand. The leads do end up together, and it's really cute (and pretty hilarious) how it comes about, so don't read the above and think that this is some sort of flaw in the movie, because it's not. I just have specific expectations with my rom-coms, and this movie hit all of them expect this one.

Moving on from my ramblings though, lol. This movie is laugh-out-loud hilarious, features two leads with bang-on chemistry and great repartee, a fun and funny premise, very much a Korean teen rom-com classic. It will probably feel dated to some people as at this point, we've pretty much all seen a lot of what it has to offer already. But I personally think it's one of the best from it's time, and stands the test of time pretty dang well, so I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys these sorts of films and even those who maybe generally don't.

It's a fun time all around.

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Completed
Wednesday 3:30 PM
7 people found this review helpful
Feb 11, 2020
15 of 15 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 10
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
I binged this all the way up until the last three episodes, and up until that point, I was totally enthralled and invested. Then I came back for the last three eps and realized how silly the story is. Some dramas are incredibly good at creating forward motion and sucking you into that forward motion, without ever having to tell a real story, and I think that's the case with this drama.

There's not a lot you haven't seen before. Girl gets dumped by her boyfriend; old friend shows up suddenly and decides to help her get her boyfriend back; as they spend time together, feelings develop; girl successfully gets boyfriend back, but by then she's completely over him; old friends almost girlfriend comes back, and now he feels obligated to stay with her; leads avoid telling each other how they feel because they think they're both in love with other people; the secondary romantic leads plan out their lives with the leads, and the leads go along with it even though there's no logical reason to; the leads Finally break it off with the secondary leads in the final quarter of the story but Still don't tell each other how they feel. And yes, there's an unnecessary time jump in the last episode.

But there is a happy ending, so I guess that's a good thing.

It's really just...nothing to write home about.

The relationship conflicts do start off fairly believable. But they quickly become irritating. Initially, it's understandable why Jae Won feels so conflicted after his almost girlfriend comes back. They were basically 'spoken for' with each other at the beginning of the story, so his feelings of obligation to her make sense. They genuinely liked each other once, to the point of each of them privately contemplating getting married. But the drama doesn't give us any sort of compelling backstory to their relationship and why it would make sense for them to possibly be together over the main couple, or alternatively, why it wouldn't. Of course, almost girlfriend eventually ruins herself as a character by being incredibly selfish later on, and you feel absolutely No sorrow for her and the situation she's in anymore, but before that happens, you can understand Jae Won's dilemma. (The whole thing also makes him look a little bit like a dick for basically promising himself to someone and then as soon as she leaves for a little while, falling for someone else, but I don't really have the energy to tackle that right now.)

But Eun Woo has no excuse for why she went along with her Ex' obnoxious plans for them to get back together, and to get Married, no less. 1) They broke up because he cheated on her (which he continues to do after they get back together, although she never finds out, so it's never actually addressed). 2) There is no reason, character-wise or story-wise, for him to want to get married to anyone when he obviously likes playing the field so much and doesn't appear to have any sort of genuine feelings for Eun Woo. 3) He's unendurably selfish and boring and honestly quite unintelligent. And most importantly, 4) SHE DOESN'T LIKE HIM ANYMORE!!!! Like, I get stuffing her feelings for Jae Won down, because she thinks that he's in love with someone else, but why does that mean your only option is marrying your awful ex whom you don't even like???? There is the option of....simply not doing that.

Again, like I said in my round-up of the story in the second paragraph, they do both eventually break things off with the secondary leads, but not until after what felt like an eon of just going along with whatever the secondary leads had to say. It's just silly and unnecessary and stupid.

This is the second project I've seen Jin Ki Joo in, the first being Secret Life of My Secretary, and she really excels in these cute, aegyo-like roles. (So much so that I really don't even want to see her play more serious characters, because I like her style of aegyo so much.) This is the first project, however, I've seen Hong Bin in, and he alternates between passable (usually whenever his character is being more sad and serious, and I honestly found some of those moments kinda cringey to watch) and quite enjoyable ( mostly whenever he's engaging in banter with Jin Ki Joo). Ki Joo definitely carries this drama and is probably the main reason, outside of how good the production team was at creating that forward motion I mentioned, for why I ended up finishing this.

So yeah. This is a cute, if generic and cliché and occasionally cringey story; good for a quick binge when you need some fluff, but not really something you'll find yourself grabbing when looking for something with substance.

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Completed
May Who?
3 people found this review helpful
Feb 11, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
This movie is incredibly goofy and sometimes dramatic but also unexpectedly charming in it's style and execution. The young actors give stellar performances, and the story has a genuine heart at the center to ground it's more over-the-top elements.

The main conceit of the film, May's condition, is very well handled. While completely made up and unbelievable, it's very well used to explore the nuances of not fitting in or being unable to connect with your peers and feeling heartbreakingly alone and different. And May herself is extremely likable, so you automatically feel for her and the struggles she faces.

Pong, while extremely likable and well-written in his own right, is unfortunately also the source of my least favorite aspect of this film, as the first half has a number of plot points (of his own making) involving some unnecessarily perverted and degrading humor. I very much could have done without that or even have been willing to accept it if the behavior had been followed up by some form of appropriate consequences or punishment. And while some of the characters are rightfully angered by it, and he does attempt to write the wrongs, it's never fully dealt with, and I didn't like that. (Especially in a film aimed at a young audience that is extremely impressionable.)

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise of the film is the animation. You don't expect it when it first shows up, but it quickly becomes a vital addition to the storytelling. The animated sequences are not only superbly done, they're also incredibly creative and a lot of fun and serve as an important tool for exploring our characters and who they are. I loved seeing Pong's imaginative stories come to life on screen (minus the perverted parts).

And I guess my final thought about this film is wow, does the last third of the movie have a lot of twists. They're well-utilized and heartfelt, but they also sorta keep coming, and you start to wonder if they're ever gonna stop.

So yeah, this movie is really cute and enjoyable, and I kind of want to immediately watch it again, lol.

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Completed
When the Camellia Blooms
21 people found this review helpful
Dec 28, 2019
40 of 40 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
I was not initially interested in watching this drama. While I love myself a good noona romance, and I love Gong Hyo Jin as an actress, the plot synopsis didn't sound like my thing, so I decided to give this one a pass. But the more I saw and read about the drama as it aired, the more I wanted to watch it, so maybe a month before the story was going to end, I decided to pick it up.

Ooooooh my goodness was that a good decision. I liked every character, I liked the murder mystery, I liked the drama's intentional focus on difficult topics, I loooooved the noona romance, but what I liked the most was Dong Baek.

I may be blaspheming a previously viewed and loved drama of mine, but I genuinely think this may be the closest I have ever come to relating to a drama female lead in every single way. Dong Baek's particular life circumstances, single motherhood, child abandonment, running a bar frequented by all the neighborhood men to the chagrin of their wives, none of that speaks to my life. But the way Dong Baek expressed herself, the way she saw herself, the internal sadness and disappointment and bitterness she felt over her life, that was spot on. She is definitely a kindred spirit.

Overall, this drama is a ten for me, from start to finish. I highly recommend it.

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Dropped 21/32
I Wanna Hear Your Song
1 people found this review helpful
Dec 8, 2019
21 of 32 episodes seen
Dropped 1
Overall 5.0
Story 4.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
I wish Dramalist let you put gifs in reviews, because this review would just be a series of WTF gifs.

This drama has no purpose, this drama has no direction, this drama has no compelling reason to exist. All of the characters are stupid, the plot is circular and illogical, and cringe-watching is only fun up until halfway through, because by that point the cringe isn't even amusing anymore.

This is literally one of the worst dramas I have ever watch-dropped, and you should DEFINITELY skip this one.
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Oct 20, 2019
1 of 1 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
'Your dream doesn't have to be your vocation.'

I would say this sentence sums up not only this special but the Pretty Proofreader series as a whole. When you first start it, it seems that this will be the story of a girl pursuing her dream and ultimately succeeding. And it absolutely is. She absolutely pursues her dream throughout the series, and she absolutely finds success in the special. But what this special reinforces for us, and what the series proves to be saying all along, is be open to possibility and change.

The original series has a clear and well-written ending that is satisfying and the creators easily could have left the story there, but this special feels somewhat like a True ending to Pretty Proofreader. We get to see our female lead achieve her dream of becoming an editor for her favorite magazine and be successful at it before realizing...she's just too passionate and good at proofreading to give it up forever.

While I certainly would have been happy to see her thriving as an editor for Lassy, because the writers most definitely could have taken the show in that direction and it would have worked, I have to admit that a part of me wanted her back with the rest of the proofreaders as it just feels like that's where she belongs.

And potential viewers of this drama and drama special, I'm happy to say...

She's back on the proofreading team!

It's a slightly different role from the one she had before, instead of proofreading books, she's now proofreading Lassy itself, but it's the same little office space with the same crew, and it just leaves this wonderfully full, happy feeling in your heart to see them all back together.

This is a ten star drama and a ten star special for me.

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Completed
Be Melodramatic
11 people found this review helpful
Oct 17, 2019
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
This is not a formula drama. What I mean by that is that unlike traditional dramas where the story and characters rely on a set formula or trajectory to show them where to go, this drama does it a little differently. There are premises, possibilities, seeming drama conventions set up in the beginning, some of which end the way you expect and some of which do not end up where you think they will. The drama itself has been described as slice of life, and while I don’t know if I totally agree with that label as the drama contains a concise journey for each of the characters all of whom change in some way over the course of the story, the style of storytelling has a very slice-of-life feel to it, so I understand why people would think of it that way. The story has an easy, relaxed way about it, which is definitely one of it’s selling points.

Personally, I came to like this drama a lot more than I initially expected, especially after seeing the first couple weeks of episodes. The female leads, with the exception of the single mother, start out…rather unlikable. They’re selfish and difficult and frustrating, and while I definitely empathized with them both and their struggles, I didn’t relate to them at all. But over the course of the drama, I started to appreciate both of these women better. Neither of them changed drastically by the end, although they did both go through a level of growth as people, but I came to understand them better. They’re both still unlikable in their own ways. They both still have personality flaws, but I came to like them because of that, not despite it. On the other hand, the single mother has somewhat of an opposite trajectory. She starts out seemingly sweet and thoughtful and somewhat meek before revealing a more layered view of herself that I can appreciate from a storytelling point of view, but that left me unsatisfied from a viewership standpoint. I don’t know that this ever made me dislike her as it was intriguing and enjoyable watching her reveal a strong, subtle confidence that lay underneath that surface level demureness, but at the same time, there was this feeling of selfishness in her character that I didn’t like very much.

I was particularly disappointed by how the writers chose to end the potential budding romance between the single mother and her co-worker. In a drama like this, I guess I should have expected as much to happen, but the sting certainly could have been lessened if they hadn’t left me feeling like he had been left with the short end of the stick. Her words to him at the end felt…harsh and unfair and left a bad taste in my mouth.

Overall though, I really enjoyed this drama. I’m nothing like these women, and I don’t know that I would ever be friends with women like them in real life, but I came to love all of them, despite and even Because of their flaws. They felt like real people with real personalities and real struggles and real hopes and goals and dreams. They felt human, and I appreciated being the chance to glimpse into their world for just a moment.

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Completed
Andante
12 people found this review helpful
Sep 19, 2019
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
The reviews and many of the comments for this drama seem to be from people who didn't really get what this drama was trying to do and don't personally enjoy dramas that move at a slower pace, which is rather unfortunate as that has unfairly colored their reviews, in my opinion. Yes, this is a slow drama, but that is intentional. You need only look at the title to be able to see this.

Andante- moderately slow; usually used as a direction in music

It's perfectly understandable that slow paced dramas are not for everyone, and they're honestly not for me most of the time either. Even with Andante, a drama I clearly very much enjoyed based on my rating, I took multiple long breaks in-between watching episodes, because it really was just slower than what I enjoy in a drama. But that is not a flaw in the drama. That is a personal preference that I fully recognize. If you do not enjoy slow paced dramas, I recommend that you maybe watch something else, because you might not be able to fully appreciate the story this drama tells.

That being said, if you enjoy slow paced dramas with simple but affecting storylines, then I highly recommend Andante. It's thoughtful and moving with stellar performances by the entire cast. Even Kai does a decent job. But I have to say, my favorite character is Bom. It's technically not her drama, but it also kind of is. She's the driving force behind much of the story and character progression, and her story arch is a deeply emotional one that spans the entirety of the drama. It's ultimately through Bom's actions and words and presence that the rest of the characters are pushed into growth and reconciliation and developing new hope for the future. If no other reason compels you to watch this drama, then watch it for Bom.

Word of warning: The last two episodes are a sob fest, so have your tissues at the ready.

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Completed
Jimi ni Sugoi! Koetsu Garu Kono Etsuko
5 people found this review helpful
Sep 19, 2019
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
I must start this review by fangirling over the female leads amazing wardrobe and lamenting the fact that the official website for the drama does not have individual shots of each of her outfits, because I would have been screenshotting each and every one. Etsuko is Stylish, and I want to be her when I grow up.

Ok, now that that's out of the way, I can fangirl about the actual drama itself.

This drama is really good! Etsuko is an extremely likable female lead. Personable, tenacious, thoughtful, intelligent, bubbly, kind, she puts a smile on your face and makes you wish you Were her and had a best friend who Is her. Of course, the rest of the characters are nothing to sneeze at. A perfectly wonderful boss, a snarky/difficult editor who's really quite nice once you get to know him, a lovely little ensemble team working in the Proofreading department, a male lead who's thoughtful and introspective and a little quirky, a relatable second female lead struggling to fit in at her job and find meaning in the work she does, and of course, all of the interesting authors you get to meet along the way. There's no one in this drama you ever really dislike.

I LOVED this drama's intense focus on a career field that isn't glamorous or showy but something that happens in the background without any fanfare. It's repeated multiple times throughout the drama that no one ever hears about proofreaders. They don't get the recognition they deserve, something that frequently frustrates Etsuko. But that makes the job of a proofreader all the more important and worthwhile, because proofreaders aren't doing it for themselves. They're doing it for others. The drama ties all of this together nicely in the last couple episodes with the publication of the male leads new book which focuses exclusively on writing about people with jobs that operate in the background yet hold fundamental value to keeping the rest of society running smoothly. The message is clear: You're work may never been seen or noticed by most people, but it holds meaning, and that's what matters.

I truthfully don't have much about this drama to complain about. I wasn't on board with the romantic pairings initially, because the potential opposite pairings have some bang on chemistry that really makes you wonder what they're relationships would have looked like instead. But I did warm up to the writer's OTP's of choice over time, and I do think both couples are compatible. Was I disappointed that we don't get to see our main couple become official at the end? Yes. I don't totally buy Etsuko's reasoning for putting their budding relationship on hold till future notice. It would have been one thing if the two of them had been causing too much of a distraction for each other in their work and daily lives, but they don't. Quite the opposite, in fact. They both do a fabulous job of supporting one another and encouraging each other and pushing each other to give their best in their chosen fields. But her decision, their decision ultimately, was not so far out of the realm of possibility for me to be flipping tables over, so I'm willing to forgive the writers for it.

And surprisingly, I actually really like that Etsuko doesn't successfully transfer to the editorial department of Lassy at the end. As much as I think she would absolutely flourish there, and it's obvious that she will eventually get that transfer because why would you Not hire her for your fashion magazine (and there's no way Etsuko would let anyone or anything stop her from doing it), it felt more natural and realistic for her not to leave the Proofreading team just yet. This is a story about the importance of people whose work takes place in the background, after all, and I think Etsuko needed to learn that lesson before finally achieving her dreams.

So in the words of Yukito, 'For those who work with pride and keep this world afloat. I cheer for all the plain, wonderful people.'

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Completed
Kahogo no Kahoko
2 people found this review helpful
Aug 17, 2019
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
I've struggled when it comes to Japanese dramas. I have frequently found myself starting a Jdrama and quickly noping out because it's not anything like what I wanted/expected. First and foremost, I don't trust any Jdrama genre tags. Just because it says romance or rom-com (totally unrelated example; not the bane of my Jdrama existence or anything) doesn't mean there will be the kind of romance or romantic comedy you're looking for. Second, there appears to be a much wider variety of subject matter when it comes to Jdramas compared to Kdramas (my personal drama country go to), which makes it that much harder to find that specific type of drama you're looking for. Third, it kind of feels like Jdrama production teams are just experimenting by throwing things at the wall and seeing what works and then sometimes not even really caring if it doesn't work. And fourth, everything about Jdrama production is just Different. Different acting styles, different camerawork, different forms of story-telling, etc. etc. etc. I've had to come to the conclusion in recent months that in order to find, watch, and enjoy Jdramas, I have to leave All my expectations at the door, because they most likely won't be met except in the exact moments when I'm not looking.

I tell you all of this to say that when I find a Jdrama that works for me, it's kind of a big deal. And this Jdrama worked for me. Very, very, deeply worked for me.

There's honestly not a single thing about this drama I could complain about. We're presented with an unusual, but still very real and relatable and easy to connect with family who may fuss and fight but will always love each other at the end of the day; multiple life situations grounded in reality and tackled by our characters in satisfying ways; and a female lead who may be spoiled, but who is easily one of the kindest, most determined, easiest to root for female leads in all of Asian drama history. Kahoko is just likable, and you want to see her succeed.

I highly recommend this drama to anyone who watches Asian dramas.

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Completed
Kahogo no Kahoko - 2018 Love & Dream
0 people found this review helpful
Aug 17, 2019
1 of 1 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 5.0
Story 5.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 5.0
This review may contain spoilers
I finished the original Overprotected Kahoko series earlier today (I'M IN LOVE WITH IT), and in my eagerness to consume more media about this wonderful cast of characters, I immediately jumped into the special. And I have to unequivocally say that I am Not in love with the special. In fact, it's not only not worth watching, it almost tainted my feelings for the original series.

It's not that the special is necessarily terrible. It's just........not exactly good either. The characters are still the same, and the situations are (mostly) in line with something you might expect them to go through (although there were a few things that had me side-eyeing), but because the writer doesn't have the luxury of ten episodes to really flesh things out, the whole thing ends up feeling very rushed and incomplete. I think if this had been a ten episode season 2 instead, it probably could have been just as good as the original season as all the necessary ingredients are there. But as it is, it's just a disappointment.

Overprotected Kahoko (the original series) has officially made it into my top ten favorite Asian dramas of all time, so I definitely recommend watching it, but I would suggest skipping this special. It's a waste of time.

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