Piece of life Genre...
It's funny and at the same time angst. The balance between comedy, mystery and crime is drawn very well. The characters are real and there is no flawless know-it-all hero or heroine here. This is such a beautiful drama . Truly a piece of life genre . Very simplistic drama , starts off as a regular drama . But with every passing episode it gets better , places where you get you feel and live every characteristic's view point. The characters development is dynamic!Not the typical romcom you'd expect ! But a very mind blowing drama! Highly recommended, a sweet worthwhile drama.
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Unlikely blend of romance and mystery
I'll admit I gave up on this show twice when it first aired. That's because I didn't even get through the first episode. I only returned to it 3 years later when it was on Netflix and I had run out of things to watch.First off, the synopses found online for the show really don't do it justice. The drama is an unlikely mix of romance, underdog, and murder mystery. The real hook (for me) is the serial murder angle, which only appears right at the end of episode 1. Just based on the dongseng-noona romance alone, it's not my type of show even though I really like both Gong Hyo Jin and Kang Ha Neul. They're both excellent actors. However, the unlikely pairing of the romance with the undercurrent of a serial murder hooked me because the killer isn't revealed right until very nearly the end. I hate similar cop-serial murder mysteries of late where you know exactly who the serial killer is and part of the appeal of those dramas involves seeing it through their eyes.
All the characters in the village are loveable even though they don't start off that way. I like the folksy vibe and country-side setting of this and similar shows such as Hometown Cha Cha Cha and Our Blues . If you enjoy serial killer shows, suspend your skepticism and give this a try because it's not a straight cat-and-mouse show but also has romance and underdog drama, with a small slice of comedy thrown in. This show has something for everyone!
I deducted 1.5 stars because I felt the last 4 episodes were unnecessary. They dragged the show out beyond 16 episodes and went in a ridiculous direction.
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You will need tissues
I will admit that it took me a long time to progress from episode 1 to episode 2 cause I couldn't just get into the story. I was a little unsure of what to think about it. But then I actually said "I'm going to finish this" and for me it took a couple more episodes before I was able to be fully invested and by then... there was no turning back.Like the headline says, you will need tissues because you will cry/tear up multiple times through watching, especially in the latter half. I love the combination of romance with drama with crime investigation.
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This drama was jam packed with wonderfulness. While the serial killer part of the storyline takes a backseat to the town life of Ongson, it definitely added some spice to what might have been an otherwise unpropelled storyline. This does focus more on how everybody influences each other through everyday life. While the drama did move a little bit slowly, and I did feel like they could have condensed it a little bit, they chose instead to cover every minute detail. There were no loose ends in this bad boy. I do think one of my favorite parts about this drama was that Young-shik's character was just an honest-to-goodness gem. He wasn't one to play games and beat around the bush, and he only wanted the best for Dong-baek. It was refreshing compared to the copious amounts of cold-hearted male leads in many dramas. I like a good dramatic romance as much as the next one, but this one definitely felt more real. It was sweet and the Ongson community aspect had me cheering.
The drama pulled everything together nicely and the character development was great. (So much character development, yass) All in all a nice watch.
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This review may contain spoilers
first of all 20 episode was too much for this drama and make it slowbut not slow enough to make me get bored or dropping it
the usual 16 was more than enough and reduce all these unnecessary details
the last five eps. was all about Son Dam bi and investigations more
the acting was great specially son dam bi
and Kang han neul although he is not handsome but really he was brilliant and amazing actor
i've to say the directing was great and made the drama rich
i hated so much the FL character i found it annoying many times and i saw her weak, selfish towards the ML
every time she concedes easily and said let's break-up
even when she had the choice, she conceded him easily without trying to convince her son by time
i liked the ML character so much and i saw what happened to him really unfair from the FL
and they kept telling the ML stick to her
don't leave her
bear her ..... what about her guys ??? isn't she had to do the same ???
And she Deprived him from being a father
for the first time i supported what the ML's mother did to her
she was really unfair and selfish
i saw the psychological part wasn't convincing
because the killer was insisting to hurt the FL although she didn't humiliate him once
and told her i'll kill every one around you with no logical reason
and at the end, he just left her ???????????????????
for me the end was a little flimsy and lukewarm
but the ML's romance was really amazing and delightful which made me keep going on watching ^_^
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The drama had, first of all, great performances, especially from the three main actors and actress. The characters were pretty interesting too. Another thing that worked for them was the mystery. Although the episode before the last on seemed like it had wrapped up everything, the last one was pretty intense and had a nice, unpredictable twist. The romance, in addition, was good at first, but, honestly, it got a bit boring towards the ending. But the family drama was just right.
So, overall, eight out of ten.
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Female lead ruined drama
The cast was great. Every actor was great except the lead. Her role was written as meek but the actress did not pull it off. FL and her son were so grating I had to forward many of their scenes.The FL was self centered, selfish, prideful, annoying, etc. I was over her woe is me I’m a poor orphan shtick after the 3 episode. She was she was absolutely insufferable.
But everyone else was great. Story was good but the FL character really soured the whole drama.
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This review may contain spoilers
Cute story but boring and confused
Well, i love happy endings and romance and that kept me going...PLOT - not very interesting but maybe it portrait the preconceptions of a society based in hold and unffair values. The murders were unnecessary for me and very boring. Like they want to give some suspense and mystery...didn't work for me... The murder was as awful as that part of the plot. And how can anyone tried to help Heung Shik, when they know (or supposed to acknowledge) that he knew about his father's homicides...
But, the problem is the lack of consistency of most of the characters, like a strong and powerfull Dong Baek that is always crying or a group of women (that behave in a stupid, traditional and very hurtful way with an orfan and single mother) that treated her like family in the end.
CHARACTERS -
Dong Baek is a strong and independent beautiful woman that should be portrait like that. She raised her kid alone, she is an entrepreneur and lots of guts. She manage to stay positive and a beautiful soul that helps everyone.
Yong Shik was sillier than i want him to be. He was annoying sometimes and i think he could be a positive, supporting and free spirit boyfriend without being, sometimes, portrait as a silly and dumb guy.
Jong Ryul family was boring and i can't understand why he says that he was very imature and young with 27 years old, when she, who was kept invisible by Jong, abandoned him. He was selfish, self centered, even more when he wanted to take his son from her mother. His wife Jessica and their marriage was laughable.
Hyang Mi was an interesting woman, made cold and pragmatic by the hardships she endured. Wish there was a better development of her character and that she wasn't portrait like she was in the relationship with her stupid brother. Liked her relationship with Dong Baek.
Gyu Tae and his wife Ja Young had some strange chemistry but it kind of worked. He was funny and delusional but a nice person, i guess, and she was a strong and alpha female wife.
Duk Soon was a character that i don't understand. She suffer almost the same as Dong Baek and still treats her like venom or a disease.
Pil Goo is as selfish as a 8 year boy should be. He is strong and protective towards his mother. He seems like an adult sometimes with, of course, behavior of a ignorant child as he should be! Like it!
Jung Sook was Dong Baek mother who abandoned her. Her past is like a mystery (don't know why there is a "daughter" that appear and then disappear). She goes to say goodbye but ends up redeeming herself. Fortunately i had a happy childhood so i can't say if her relationship with her daughter makes sense...
ACTING - despite some of the characters weren't interesting for me, i thing the actors and actresses made a very good job. Most of them, anyway.
OST - don't remember so it was not very good for me.
REWATCHABLE - No, never. I was rooting for Baek and Shik but his silliness and her cry made the romance fade away for me and seemed like it was more of supporting than romantic feelings...
SUMMING UP - i think i watched too many kdramas to like this one as much as i wanted. Far better dramas than this one for me, even though i think Gong Hyo Jin, Oh Jung Se or Kim Sun Young are very good at acting...
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The plot is quite realistic and the whole story strongly emphasizes how important mothers are and that they can do anything for their children. This drama teaches you that family and relationships are very important and that you can get through any obstacles thrown at you by helping each other. When the Camellia Blooms is an incredibly funny, heartwarming, and at the same time heartbreaking drama coming from the relationships of the characters and their backstories.
The acting/cast of this drama was also perfect, each role given was perfectly suited to them. While all of them seriously portrayed their characters perfectly, I'd have to praise Kang Ha Neul for totally nailing everything! He did such a great job acting as some kind of over-the-top, straightforward, a bit idiotic character. Much love for you Kang Ha Neul!
Overall, this drama was an absolute treat! This is a must-watch drama! I wouldn't have ended the drama any other way; no loose ends, just perfect!
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warming, comfortable drama with lovely ML and FL living t h e hard, life
I was looking for a new drama for a long time. I’ve already watched every new drama, rewatched my fav one and I was looking for something warming, not common, with smart, independent FL and sensitive, but with masculine energy ML.This drama is about life. Just life. when characters have to work hard, have their own problems and no one is waiting for Prince Charming.
The romance between FL and ML is something worth watching. I probably won’t rewatch this drama, but imo everyone should see it once in its lifetime
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