Many point out the plot was very thin, and I totally agree. It was the same thing that was streeeeetched out throughout the 16 episodes. But I didn't mind that: in real life, things often aren't so fast-paced, and though I enjoy plot-driven dramas it often feels like it comes at the expense of time spent on the characters. Good plot-driven dramas compensate by making their characters vibrant by the writing, but in this one, I wouldn't even say the characters were exceptionally well written: rather, we really spent a looooot of time on them, on their developing relationships, and that, with the excellent acting, made the characters extremely touching for me, in a way that felt natural.
It was my first time seeing both Do Joon and Kim So Hyun. Do Joon (Su Ho) was perfect, and so expressive in subtle ways. Kim So Hyun (Geu Rim) was wonderful as well, in a surprisingly mature way. Geu Rim got under Su Ho's skin from episode 1, and it was thrilling (for me, more thrilling than watching epic action scenes or CGI) to watch all his poorly repressed attraction and affection. Su Ho's villain mother and PD Lee were complex, unusual and endearing characters, as well as a handful of other smaller characters. I must say the casting made it all: Yoon Park, Oh Hyun Kyung, Ha Joon, Kim Ye Ryung and Kwak Dong Yeon (but his talent was wasted!) all struck me as very very good actors, and without their talent their characters would've been one-dimensional and flat. What I appreciated about the drama was that all these characters relationships evolved, but in a way that didn't feel cheaply dramatic. I mean there were no epic misunderstandings, the characters remained coherent with themselves... I always admire characters that resolve conflicts without betraying themselves, and without creating too much damage: there was plenty of that in this drama, to the point that some found it boring. Most characters didn't go off their rails at a conflict. I liked that. Song Geu Rim especially fit the bill in terms of what we want in a modern female romantic lead: sensitive, resolved, competent and grounded.
This drama should really be watched purely as a romantic show. As a romance junkie, I was delighted, but if that's not what you're looking for there's no reason to watch this drama. Radio Romance took a lot of time to detail the different stages in a romantic relationship, pre and post dating. Angsty looks, tender looks, jealousy (and even a little sexual innuendo) galore! Yayyyyyy! They certainly didn't skim the romance in this show, and it was both grand (all that love! all that intensity! all that longing!) and realistic (learning to deal with the possessiveness in the early stages of the relationship, needing some space...). This is what sailed me through the show, despite its flaws, such as: Jason was an odd character played by a talented actor that never truly made sense in the story, there were good but small characters that were sort of dropped along the way (Geu Rim's mom, DJ Moon were great characters that had more importance in the beginning), and there were some pretty cringy lines (but this is an emoooooootional drama hehe, so I can deal with the corniness).
On a purely superficial note, I was in love with Do Joon's style from beginning to end, despite many protests -- I guess I just have bad taste like that :^)
I loved this drama! But not everyone will, hehe :^p
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The acting was phenomenal. Yoon Doo Joon was great. I was surprised to see the stark difference between him in Radio Romance and Let's Eat. I could truly see and believe that he was sad. Most cold male leads tend to just be aloof and annoying, but he even when he was cold, the sadness seemed to radiate off of him. His character development was definitely the largest in the show, but I think that's because he also just had more room for development.
Kim So Hyun was good as usual. I didn't really notice the age difference till I starting about, but by then it became hard to not notice. Thankfully they stopped perming her hair (which emphasized her age) around that time and she looked more mature. Aside from that one minor qualm, I enjoyed her role. Her character development was there but in a more subtler form. She became a more confident writer, but other than that I don't think she really had much to develop. She was strong, persistent, and hard working. I do feel like she started to respect herself more, compared to the beginning of the show where she threw away her ego in order to the first DJ to be on time for the show or to recruit guests. Don't misunderstand, she's not a timid candy character, she just was willing to go all in to achieve her goals.
The ending felt a bit forced. Ji Su Ho's mother suddenly became viewed in a more sympathetic manner. She supposedly cared about him more than money. I think that if that's the type of ending that the writers wanted, they should have shown some glimpses of her love for him earlier.
It wasn't perfect, but it was satisfying enough.
The only time felt the show was a bit boring was during the later episodes. The beginning and middle were interesting. The shows would have been much better if writers had introduced the sub-plots (backstory/murder cards) earlier and had expanded on it.
The show is a bit cliche, but it's surprisingly not cringy either as I find most cliche shows tend to be.
The OST wasn't super memorable, but I do felt that it fit with the show.
Keep in mind that I also binge watched this, so my experience was probably different than others who watched it while airing.
All and all it's a decent show. It's definitely not the best, but not the worst either. If you're looking for a good old-fashioned romance drama this would be it.
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Watch for yourself
Okay, I made an account just to make a review on this. The story is simple, but sometimes simple is needed. If you go by the reviews you might turn around and not watch it like I did for a while. Yes, it takes a while for them to get together but a slow burn is better than fast paced work. The ML looks at the FL with so much love and they have moments that gave me butterflies. This show also made me look at radios differently, so give the show a chance instead of going by the reviews. (they want 500 characters for excuse this kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk)Was this review helpful to you?
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This review may contain spoilers
Clichés done right
*SPOILERS ALERT*I nearly didn't watch this because of the bad rating but I'm glad I gave this a try because I ended up loving it ! The main plot of the show is the romance so don't expect any action, nail bitting suspense or a real documentary on the radio's world.
I personaly think that all the characters are very well written. The only one I didn't really understand was the doctor. I think it would have been better to erase the part of the whole "I'm gonna send you letters accusing you of a murder that happened 12 years ago because I want to see you cry" and see a real friendship develop between the two instead (it didn't add any real suspense so it was kinda pointless). I loved the relationship between the male lead and his "rival in love". I was scared of the love triangle at first, but the writers handled it well and I didn't have any second lead syndrom (it's often the case for me so it's worth mentioning). Even so, I really liked his character, he was fun and a little crazy but it was a nice contrast between him and the main lead. Concerning the latter, I loved his character development, but I admit I was a little worried when he called the female lead 20 times a day in the middle of the series (fortunately he calmed down at the end and the female lead wasn't afraid to voice her thoughts concerning that !).
The female lead was also the main reason I loved this series. She was understanding at the right moments but it didn't stop her in pursuing her dreams (unlike in certain dramas where the female lead kinda forgets she has a life the second she gets a boyfriend). I personally thought they were very cute and funny together, and some scenes between them were very emotional so what's not to love ?
I wasn't bored at all so I was a little surprised when I saw certain comments saying that but to each their own, it can't satisfy everyone that's for sure ^^ So if you want a cute romance where the relationship between the leads takes its time to develop, with some funny moments and loveable secondary characters, I urge you to give this series a chance :)
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Good main couple
Now for Radio Romance, Kim So Hyun was plucky and stuck to her guns and didn't turn out to be the doormat I was afraid she would be. Yoon Doo Joon - how in the world can he convey so much emotion just through his eyes? They were a wonderful couple. I didn't care for Yoon Park until about halfway through the series, he was a little over the top until then. Typical evil parent storyline, which was irritating. Competing team at the radio station were irritating as well. Personally, the highlight of this series was the relationship between the two main characters.Was this review helpful to you?
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This review may contain spoilers
I must say, I was really excited to start this drama because Yoon Doo Joon is one of my absolute favourites, words aren't enough to describe how in love I am with him, and I also enjoy seeing Kim So Hyun act. I think she's a talented young lady who is going to deliver better and better dramas as time goes by.There might be some minor spoilers ahead so please stop reading if you haven't watched the drama yet.
The fact that Ji Soo Ho struggled with depression hit way too close to home because I've been, as well, struggling with depression my whole life. Some days are good, some days aren't but no matter what I do, it's always in the back of my mind. Now, seeing depression presented on the big screen really made me smile because I could see myself in Soo Ho, I could understand him as a person and his struggles. I am in no way one of those people who always complain about under-representation because it's simple: I'll watch it if I like it, I won't if I don't. Producers are in no way obligated to do as I please and I find it really annoying when I see people whine about it so I never expect someone to produce something that represents me, but it was nice to see Ji Soo Ho and how he dealt with his problems.
Song Geu Rim was in no way one of my favorite characters, she might be one of, in my own, personal opinion, Kim So Hyun's most boring characters. She didn't necessarily do something wrong, I just couldn't get myself to like her. I didn't, in no way, dislike, she was just...meh for me.
The romance wasn't something incredible either. The chemistry wasn't off the charts. Most of it was pretty chaste and it's understandable seeing as Kim So Hyun doesn't have that much experience with romantic dramas and the group of people the drama is made for, so I'm not complaining about that. It just didn't make me feel much. They were, however, a good fit.
It started boring me halfway through but I managed to finish it because most of the characters were cute and, as I said before, I really like Yoon Doo Joon and Kim So Hyun.
All in all, it was a nice little drama about love and character development and I would recommend to watch it if you're into cute, puppy-like romances.
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The PDs behavior is over the top and unchecked but not harassing. He's at least 10 years older, too old to act the way he does and too old to be pursuing a relationship with a subordinate. I wonder how the writers will play this out...he's pretty tame by sexual harassment standards, but times are changing????.
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But with that said, this drama was very nice to watch, it has a cute story, both leads have a bond since they were young but they don’t know it and by fate they meet up again years later and end up working together.
The female lead works as an aspiring writer for a radio show and the male lead works as a famous cold and arrogant actor. He also has insomnia and barely has a good night sleep or sleeps at all, even tho he takes medication to sleep.
Funny things start to unravel between the two as they start to work together, him starting to learn how to be less cold and inside of his own shell and she grows into a good and confident writer, while both start to have feelings for each other.
Later on, they discover and remember things from the past and the feelings between them get deeper.
There are so many heart warming moments in this show that its really nice to see.
Both the male and female leads have great chemistry and they are so cute together you cant help but like them and enjoy this drama.
The side characters are also entertaining so it helps to keep the drama balanced and not everything is about the melomelo of the romantic part.
You have to watch this at least once in your life, if you believe in fate and how meeting someone can actually change your life for the best.
You will end up with a filled and warm heart after watching this :)
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FEEL GOOD WATCHING
I loved this series. As other reviewers have said it is simple love story with a few twists and turns. Naturally there are people trying to get in between them and playing dirty tricks. Chemistry between the lead actor and actress is good and natural. The only part that irritated me was the lead actress being so apathetic at times. Really when someone slaps you in the face you don’t just stand there, right? In the rl world you can’t be so timid if you want to succeed in a career in radio. I shed a few tears but no major crying thank goodness.Was this review helpful to you?
actually this drama storyline is just average, its showing how can a person changes after meet his first love and how can a family that broken inside changes along with the first and second lead actors when on radio
and how a radio broadcating can be people's place to open up about how that people feels
but this drama looks interesting till the end bcs of actors acting so so great, can bring this story good overall
always love kim sohyun and yoon doojun acting
GREAT GREAT!!!
they never fail me
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