Had some nice twists and turns but the ML CDK is so horribly unlikable.
I spent almost the entire series completely hating on his arrogant, self-absorbed, entitled ass and can't believe how the writers wrote that kinda ending. The one drama where I cringed at every single time he made a move on the FL. Ehhh...
The FL Jian is such a strong, independent character; how she ends up that kind of weak-ass ending, dealing with that borderline stalker-ish behavior is plain disappointing.
Overall: An addictive experience, but a bad rating for how that ending leaves you.
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When it comes to Korean audience, family dramas are on older generation’s watch list. I am sure they get to learn a lot from this drama, that is if they are willing. Money and fame is not everything in life and don’t guarantee happiness. If you force your children to live their lives according to your own wishes they will be unhappy and so will you.
All character were pretty realistic and human, even though they could have been portrayed on a deeper level. The character development was slow and a bit stagnant. There were many boring moments too. But I still like this drama, I think it was very refreshing. A bit of a cliché but not so much. Though, I must admit that the chemistry between most of the couples was kind of nonexistent and the only couple I actually rooted for never happened… But anyway, this was not a romance drama and love was just a side plot.
This is an excellent "background drama" to watch while you are doing house chores etc.
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Amazing ❤
My Golden Life was my first South Korean drama that I have watched and I am so glad that to say it will not be my last. The cast were first class actors and the music is still in my ears and has been since I finished watching last night. From the first episode through to the last I was hooked with so much emotion. Everything about the show touched on bits of life that not everybody wants to see or hear such as depression or death however, the actors did it with so much passion and sensitivity that these two subjects will have made an impact on most viewers.Was this review helpful to you?
Weird twist, but thankfully not fatal
This is the longest K drama I have watched in my last 12 months of binging on Kdramas. Overall, I like the human emotions for all its follies in almost all characters. While the ML comes across as sweet, but a little funny face lacking the intensity at times. The story loses it a bit, when the ML undertakes manual labour for livelihood from being a corporate honcho. Seriously? If that was indeed the quality of the talent the Group had, one wonders how did they every become big. However, the writer completely loses the plot when suddenly the FL, who has clearly fallen for the ML and never denies it, suddenly turns around and asks the ML as to what he has ever done for her post the ML quitting!!! This is so lame, ludicrous. A one line answer to this- While the FL leaves her loved ones for money (yes she unabashedly does it, and thankfully the plot never rationalises this weakness of character), the ML gives up all the money and fame for her (of course, he adds self-respect and all that also to dilute the love angle). The plot could have always got one of the side characters (may be SML or Jisoo) to remind the FL of what he has done for her, besides finding jobs, and all. Worse, to make the ML look bad, he acknowledges that the FL has helped her in making ppt. Making a ppt? Yeah, someone should have told that moron that you get that done at 10$ /slide. Anyways, seems the story wanted to somehow create a crack and stretch the re-union and it does succeed there. An thankfully, the viewers get a clear sense that they will get back together. But the abrupt break-up is so forced, insincere and illogical, that such a strong plot has left me with this part as the reason why I am writing this. Funny, no? Anyways, an eminently watchable series and I might just watch the series in parts for the romance parts.Was this review helpful to you?
Surprisingly enjoyable, but could of done with less episodes
The fact that i watched this all the way through really surprised me, The genre in this that had hold of me was the class division between the families, so if you're into that you'll really love this drama. The beginning starts off strong but the middle weakens a little picking up again during the end which isn't a surprise because it is 52 episodes long. You'll see continuous family drama, class divide, brother/sister rivalry, romance and mental health being addressed. Every few episodes the writers will throw a curveball that you didn't see coming and the ways the actors have portrayed these characters has been astounding. It talks about real challenges in life and how class and money can drive parents to do hard things for their children. Highlighting rich and middle class family differences really gave this drama a lot more depth and kept me watching till the end. The emotions expressed through both families and the characters growths make you feel for them but also makes you feel frustrated watching them go through this.The drama really didn't fail to make everyone connect to it, it doesn't matter what age you are or where you're from this drama will hit a personal note for you as it reaches out to address a lot of problems and changes within family/siblings relationships. The only downfall i would say it thats its a very long drama to keep up with, and in between does drop and become slow but keep your patience to keep watching. It's worth it. Although i wouldn't watch the whole drama again, i would probably watch bits and parts of it that really connected with me. The love stories in the drama also are not only a side piece, they really are integrated into helping the characters grow and the storyline. The enjoyed chemistry of Eunsoo and Taehwan. Overall, an well done drama, it delivers drama till the end.
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ML and FL doesn't belong together
I didn't like that ML is still chasing after the FL at the end of series. They should have gone their own way separate from each other. ML is stalking her after putting her and her family through so much pain. ML is poorly written character.This is the one drama where i disliked the ML so much that i wanted him out of FL's life. In the end, he even colludes with FL's friend to make the FL think it is a coincidence/fate. Regarding other storylines, it was good pace and better ending for all of them. If only FL found another man who loves her and ML just remains as a brother, the drama would have been much better. Just because he was ML, they tried to link him with FL even with all the pain between them. The ML seems like an idiot who can only focus on one thing at a time - either the corporation, or love or his company or his lifestyle or family. He can never balance these things. He gives up everything else for one. And late feels sad and apologizes over that fact but never learns. He never thinks things through and just apologizes when the damage is done. And when the apology is accepted, he gets back doing stupid things that can cause more pain. Follows a selfish lifestyle and apology cycle.
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I really love how all the characters act and it will really make you make, I've cried so many times while watching those sad scene ? but i really fell inlove with them.
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STRESSFUL YET ENJOYABLE
This is my gateaway korean drama and walla! Thanks to this I am now a korean drama addict LOL!The very reason that I watched this drama is not because someone recommended it, but I found the premise a bit strange although it has still some of the cliches, the writers add some spice to it, eg. the main leads used to be siblings LOL!
I really enjoyed the first half of the show, as it is not your classic forced romance, well it is understandable because of the longevity of the drama. The romance plot on its first half now shifts with its family themed drama and I'm still okay with that. However, on the last parts of the show, there are still many plot holes on different characters, especially with the main leads. I'm totally okay with the concept of the show's ending since I'm not really fond of the typical hapilly ever after romance but I really think that it can be done better, it can add more minutes in the last episode.
The very reason why I enjoyed the show is because of the lead's phenomenal acting, This drama made me a SHS fan because of her acting prowess and his performance in this drama is top-notch! If she cries, you will cry. If she laughs, you will laugh because of her natural acting skills. PSH, on the other hand, really portray his character well as a chaebol who falls in love to her 'former sibling' (STILL LOL!) and gives up his wealthy lifestyle to cope up with SHS's turned miserable life.
The OSTs are also a great factor in the drama as it will really ignite the scenes and your emotions if you hear it playing.
With all of this. I would recommend this drama to those who loves Romance-Family genre since of its nice balancing of themes. It will also teach you different lesson in life and no doubt that you will love your family more after watching this. However, because of its lengthiness, I would not recommend it to those who loves fast-pace drama but if you like the opposite, you will enjoy this and will drive you watching because of its mixture of comedy, romance, and emotional scenes.
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This review may contain spoilers
This is a family drama that portrays the life of two families that get entangled through the Haesung Group‘s loss of their granddaughter Choi Eun Seok who ends up been raised by the Seo’s family for 25 years. The cast did a great job bringing their characters to life but there are too many subplots that don’t get enough time to be properly developed. The leading couple has good chemistry when they are together but their story became redundant as Choi Do Kyung (played by Park Shi Hoo) tries to maneuver his mother and grandfather’s antics to control his life as a “chaebol” and future leader of Haesong Group and constantly fails to explain and make sure that Seo Ji Ahn (played by Shin Hye Sun) understands his motives behind his actions; hence, for the majority of the drama, Seo Ji Ahn spends her most of her interactions rejecting his loving and caring proposals. Although the leading couple deeply cares for each other and are constantly lending a helping hand throughout the drama, they don’t get to truly the time together to put a united effort to overcome their vicissitudes and be together truly until the last few minutes of the drama that concludes with the most insipid ending. Was this review helpful to you?
A show about finding happiness in one's life
The show centres around a family of six and their journey to find love and happiness in their lives. Due to the failure of the father's business, the family was plunged into a near poverty state and each of the children had to find jobs, putting their hopes and dreams on hold. Despite the hardships, the family was filled with love and joy for each other.However, the family is soon thrown into chaos because of an incident that happened in the past. They come into contact with a rich family conglomerate who live in a different world to them. The show follows each character's lives and how they cope with the ups and downs of life amidst the clash with the rich family.
Being over 52 episodes long gave the writer time to flesh out each family member's story arc, with the exception of the youngest son, who shined in every scene he appeared in with his rich family counterpart. The dialogue and each character's motivations were largely consistent and well done with only some minor plot holes that was probably due to the emphasis on fleshing out each character. The director and his team did a great job in moving the story along and the editing was top notch as was the exemplary OST which is memorable enough to warrant separate listening sessions.
I initially thought it was a challenge to watch such a long drama but from episode 8 onwards, I became fully invested in each character and wanted to watch each episode as soon as possible, just to see what happens to them.
Lastly, the acting overall in this drama was very good. Most of the actors did well enough but the real powerhouses of the drama was the lead actress Shin Hye-Sun (SHS) and the actor who played her father, Cheon Ho-Jin. I first came into contact with SHS in the hilarious drama Mr Queen. While she was not strikingly beautiful, I found her performance as a womanizer in a woman's body to be spot-on and incredibly entertaining, enough to the point of wanting to watch her previous work. Seeing her display an incredible range of emotions in this drama just left me with great respect for her talent and skill. I laughed when she laughed, smiled when she smiled and cried when she cried. It was that good. The father who is an experience actor also played his part incredibly well and all fathers can identify with how he felt, being the head of his family, and wanting the best for his children's life.
Overall, it is worth a watch as many of the arcs mirror real life and how each of us strive to find happiness and our own golden life.
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My first Family Drama .... and it did not disappoint
Suggested on Netflix and I have to admit, I dove into this drama without really any research and was hooked after episode 1.I then realised there were 52 episodes!!! I almost gave up right then and there but finally decided to stick to it. (I usually never started a Drama that had over 16 episodes until COVID hit and I had more time).
One more Chaebol drama, but this world I could really relate to, they took their time and developed it well. With 52 episodes, there were many scenes that dragged on and I'm sure they could have wrapped it up in 45 episodes easily.
I think every character got the ending they deserved, however I am sure that after 52 episodes some could have been wrapped-up better, I felt they just crammed everything in the last episode.
All in all, It was certainly a new experience, but one I am willing to try again.
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Best ever
I have seen this drama years ago, and yet it's still the best family drama I've ever watched.It was an emotional rollercoaster.. You have no idea how much I cried in this show.
If it wasn't so long, I've started rewatching it right now.
At the same time, the plot is very realistic, so you don't see all of these other coincidences you usually see in other dramas.
There is love stories as well, but as someone who lost his father in recent years, I could totally relate to how the father was feeling. The acting of the father in the story was amazing as well. I have no idea how he could convey so much through his facial expressions.
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