Wonderful World (2024)

Wonderful World is a wonderful drama

I saw Lie After Lie from the same writer so I was positive that this story would be something to look forward and Kim Ji Eun, with all the director and actors and whole team, did not disappoint.

Every episode was great. All the actors were amazing. I especially love Kim Kangwoo and Cha Eunwoo. I really felt that Suho loves Soohyun but I did doubt a little. The storytelling was so great it made me confused. Eunwoo did a great job portraying Seonyul especially his pain. I just knew he's a great actor. And he's so passionate for doing all those action and motorcycle scenes.

The cinematography, bgm, and soundtrack is amazing!!!

Love love the ending! It was beautiful and healing.

I'm gonna miss this drama. Will surely rewatch this!

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Worth the watch

From the beginning to the end, the story captures the loss of family and the different ways we process it.

I really like the portrayal of how loss can bring people together, and how sometimes grief judges our perspective on a situation.
I never watched a K-drama that captured me from the beginning to the end, but this show really did.

From the acting to the story to the music, this show is really worth watching. The chemistry between all the actors were great, and it brought out really great storyline between the characters and the overall storyline

would really recommend people watching this 10/10

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A Powerful Portrayal of Loss and Redemption

A heartbroken mother who returns home from imprisonment after killing her son’s murderer; only to discover more shocking & disturbing truths!

I had commented on Kim Nam Joo’s acting skills in my “First Impressions” and I had like to take my words back. Daring and inspiring, Eun Soo Hyun might be murderer, but to many; she could be a source of strength. Both Kim Nam Joo & Cha Eun Woo have strong portrayals in this murder mystery that is centered around a forlorn mother who finds it difficult to accept her young son’s death. The first two episodes quickly steamroll through this catastrophe, so the remaining show is focused on Eun Soo Hyun’s journey as she seeks justice. Cha Eun Woo’s Gwon Seonyul is a character shredded in mystery; for the first half he plays an idealistic role and switches to antagonism in the second half. Gwon Seonyul is majorly a misled son who seeks revenge for his parent’s supposedly wrongful death; until he discovers the horrid truth that leads him on the road to redemption. This was one of those shows that leaves you guessing but beneath the veneer, it strongly supports the notion that “Justice might be delayed but it is never denied”.

Read the complete article here-

https://kcdramamusings.wordpress.com/2024/04/14/wonderful-world-series-review/#more-734

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Took A Major NoseDive South!!!

14/04/2024
Last Update:

SPOILER ALERT!

The last two episodes were boring and not so thrilling, but at least it left no loose ends.

Eun Woo was great in the earlier episodes, but not so much in the last 4 or so.

If this had stayed consistent with it being sinister and twisted like it seemed to be from the start with her being the target of revenge and and it not ending well for certain individuals involved - it would have been better.

Instead this turned out to be nothing more than political corruption at the core which is nothing new to movies or television.

08/04/2024 (April)
Update:

12 episodes in now and it seems this one borrowed a page or two from Sky Castle and stole a few chapters from Penthouse.

With this drama unfortunately there is a good measure of overused tropes such as: the cheating husband, a best friend's betrayal, the cover up of murder plus political corruption overload.

It did have some interesting moments, but not enough to really make it outstanding or original.

As for the extra marital affair side to it - that carried over through at least six episodes and still has a presence.

Something about it just hasn't t oozed enough oomph for me nor has it gone where it could have after the first 2-4 episodes. It could have hit the ball out of the ballpark if they had kept us guessing right until the end as well as her remaining the target.

Instead for me it has become a real hit and miss.

02/03/2024 (March)

I've really really tried to like this series, but can't stand Kim Nam Joo as something about her doesn't appeal to me as an actor at all.

To think I was looking forward to this drama being released!

Will still give it a chance, however, as there are other actors plus I want to see if it is worth continuing or dropping.

What has bothered me about her?

One example is her character, Eun Soo-Hyeon, at her son's funeral - it was hard for me to connect to her as a grieving mother as she simply wasn't believable or convincing enough for me - not one bit.

Another example - when rain starts to fall on her when she is sleeping at her son's grave situated on a hill, she carries on sleeping like it is a normal thing everyone does or something. It isn't a normal human reaction at all! No natural reflexes, flinching or twitching. When unexpected rain falls and you are sleeping it would most definitely trigger a physical response of some kind like being suddenly startled, maybe opening one's eyes and grimacing at the change of weather or instantaneously shielding one's head and face from getting too wet. Some kind of response! Not nothing.

Joo's acting has been over the top in some scenes and underwhelming in others.

Was her acting licence obtained from the back of a cereal box or what?

SPOILER ALERT!

About the drama itself:

a: The storyline isn't original.
b: Two episodes in and it is a bit slow going in parts and centres mostly on the aftermath of Eun Soo- Hyeon's son's death and her being in prison.
c: E.S.H took the law into her own hands and that is why she is in prison.
d: It seems the person she ran over mightn't have been the one that actually killed her young son.

Think I have worked out who the real culprit is, but if there are unexpected twists along the way anyone could be the guilty party.

Eun Woo's character is right at the start of episode one (suspicious as) and in episode two is teaching a choir "Oh Holy Night" as well as at the prison when she runs her hand under a sewing machine by accident, also, working at a car wreckers (I think) as well as eating there with his mates. Either he really is doing a number of part time jobs or is a secret Undercover Agent...

I really hope that he isn't going to be her new love interest if her marriage goes South. Not sure how young his character is supposed to be, but in this series it looks like he is in his 20's and she is in her late 30s-40s yet at times could easily pass as a 50 something year old. I think she is on the older side as it took years for her to conceive if the translation was right.

Am all for friendship and healing - just nothing more.

I will be watching more episodes to give it a fair go, but if Kim Nam Joo keeps failing to impress me with her mediocre acting...

Fighting!!!

EPISODE THREE:
SPOILER ALERT!

Bit of an interesting twist in this episode...

It seems it isn't a car wreckers, but possibly a junkyard.

When Soo-Hyeon finally found the "boy" that survived the fire, Seon Yul (Eun Woo), the closure she was trying to establish really was for the prisoner that died - not him. He said as much as well and it seemed like she opened up a can of worms - she should have just left him alone from there on instead of stalk him like she did.

Kim Nam Joo wasn't too bad in this episode plus the character Eun Woo plays is about 29 years old so I had it right about his age group.

What has taken an interesting turn is that someone is stalking her and her family - the son or relative of the one she murdered. There is a chance he might be connected to Seon Yul as there doesn't seem to be any photos of Seon Yul on his wall, also, Seon Yul seems to live a bit of a double life.

There might be an actual connection or it could be just a coincidence.

Is Seo Yul the real deal?

The husband having an affair is a bit cliche or an overused trope - it would truly be incredible had it not gone down that road.

Somewhat predictable especially as she was in prison for 6 years and wanted out of the marriage.

This drama may head towards Seon Yul saving a damsel in distress and becoming a hero if there are no ties between him and the murdered man's son. It all depends on what twists they want to introduce or not. The thing is - Seon Yul has something else going on (photographing people/school break in for documents) so there is a chance he may be working with the other younger man, on the other side of the law or definitely a secret agent.

He could still be something else altogether as well - someone quite sinister.

I wonder how predictable this one will be or not as it continues...

EPISODE FOUR:
SPOILER ALERT!

Maybe not as intriguing as the previous episodes, but what has been great is seeing a different side to Eun Woo's character - as in a darker side that is tormented by his past.

He may still turn out to be a hero after all.

Kim Nam Joo still keeps a poker face, but at least she isn't rubbing me the wrong way like she did in the first two episodes.

I think this series will become more and more predictable unless it switches back and forth to confuse it's audience - it isn't too bad and I do want to watch more of it to see how much further it keeps me entertained. However, it is Seon Yul I want to know more about as well as seeing him in more scenes then the stalker followed by everyone else...not so much Soo-Hyeon.

If this was mainly on Seon Yul, the stalker and small doses of poker faced Soo-Hyeon it would be one heck of a roller coaster ride I reckon.

EPISODES 5 & 6:
SPOILER ALERT!

The storyline is kind of so so and feels like it is a rehash of multiple tropes like the marital affair, death of a child, the want for revenge and others connecting from the past to present.

With episode 6 it did leave us on a cliff hanger at the end, but maybe it shouldn't be a complete surprise as there have been obvious hints throughout plus Seon Yul was in the car at the very beginning.

His character is becoming more and more interesting as the plot thickens though - either he is an up and coming secret agent/undercover cop or a serial killer in the making.

What we do know is - he isn't the person we were made to believe and therefore could be a total deviant hiding behind a facade. Also, it seems he might be the "actual son " of the man run over by Soo-Hyeon and the woman hospitalised in a coma.

Or... is he someone else?

There is some connection between the stalker and Seon Yul as I'm sure the stalker gave Soo-Hyeon the name of the woman in a coma.

Episode 1 didn't exactly leave anything to the imagination with Seon Yul in that car facing you know who.

Time will tell!

Somehow I feel the husband of Soo-Hyeon is connected to everything that happened from the very start for some reason because he isn't exactly clean cut or are we being mislead.

EPISODE SEVEN:

It is all coming out in the open now.

Seems the only connection between him and the stalker is that both want revenge and justice, but directed at different people.

However, the Politician husband has everything to do with it all, I reckon - just not sure to what extent.

Will there be any further twists to turn this around - am sure hoping so!

EPISODES 8-10

It is getting more and more boring and totally predictable.

Am so over the *husband having an affair or three" trope - the affair should have been wrapped up over a few episodes not been drawn out through episode after episode like a long lasting nasty smell that just won't go away.

Eun Woo has improved as an actor, but this drama series has taken a real nosedive South in the last three episodes or so and am not sure if it can redeem itself for the remainder of the series.

Who knows?

All I see is someone dying if he continues on the same path and no real winners because of what else goes on in the background with other players - something has to give at some point and someone will pay the price.

However, this doesn't make it original or unique as others dramas have been there and done that already with a similar tone.

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How do you make the world wonderful?

At first I picked this up because I wanted a revenge story, one where the bad guys get their just desserts and the good guys win. But here goes "Wonderful World", flipping the script on its head and making it so much more compelling than I first thought. I was watching this series with bated breath, expecting a glorious downfall and for the villain to get their sweet sweet comeuppance.

But this story is much more than revenge. Its main focus is actually healing and love. After so many episodes where we see how this world is ugly and cruel, we also get to see the beauty, the sincerity and the care that other people put in the world. And I think that showcasing these two realities that coexist is very important, since it is quite easy to get swept up into either one of them and forget about the other.

Regarding the acting, I will have to say that I loved Cha Eun Woo in this so much! I think he was really shining in this role, and while I do plan to watch the other dramas with him, I really hope he gets more roles like this. I don't know how he is in romantic comedies, but I really liked this type of role on him and I hope he'll get more like these.

Kim Nam Joo was also amazing, I literally fell in love with her subtle, yet deeply moving acting. When she cried, I cried tenfold, and I really was able to empathize with her character so much.

I hope other people will get to watch this as well!~

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Addictive from the go

When I decided to try to watch, only because of a good review on Cha Eunwoo performance in it. I don't remember watching any of kim namjoo's drama or movie so she wasn't the attractive point for me. However, the storyline was so good from the go that hook me up till I couldn't stop. It was a bit meh when they use the repetitive classic story of cheating-husband-with-the-friend to add salt on the wife's wound. The good thing is they keep the pace fast and didn't drag the problem to a couple of episodes.

Overall, I really like how this drama shows the realistic relationship between people. Everyone has gone through sufferings, losing people they love, but they didn't emphasize who's gone through harder. They didn't forget, but they showed that there's still a life after that, and there are people who held them dearly still waiting for them. Even when people make mistakes, it doesn't mean that the sincerity they have shown was fake either.

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Wonderful Euwoo

I rarely watch kdramas right now because I'm too busy but something about Eunwoo in the trailer made me so curious and I'm so thankful I watched it because this kdrama is so impressive. It's one of the best I've ever watched. The sory, the acting, the music, everything is perfect, even the acting of support characters are great. Kim Namjoo and Cha Euwoo's acting are top notch. I will never forget Seonyul, a character that will forever remain in my heart. Kudos to the scriptwriter, director, all the cast and all the staff and crew of Wonderful Word. You are all wonderful.

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