Mystic Pop-Up Bar (2020)

One of those drama which makes you guess every episode!

And you can never guess it 100%! I like how it makes me want to continue watching this drama even though I read countless spoilers and reviews. It is one of the rare case of most drama where you need to watch to feel and understand the whole story. Kudos to the scriptwriter, director and actors, they did a really good job to portray the character development in the whole show.

It is heartwarming, tear-jerking, you feel like you are solving the issues together with them as a audience. It has been a while since I had this feeling. And the best part? What you thought was going to happen will be a surprise!

Try at least watching the first 2 episodes and episode 3's preview and you will know.

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Would you like a soju that will relief your grudge? Watch this

All I can remember is I had a fun ride watching this series and it's also bite-size because of it's 12 episodes. The plot is very interesting and the twists and turns are really exciting so I definitely recommend this drama.

The casts were also picked perfectly. This trio is really something worth remembering. This is fun ride that will take you to a different world and I really enjoyed it.

(I know this review is crappy because I made this months after I watched this series and I honestly don't remember everything that I watch by heart. I just remember the major details and how I feel about it. I'll edit this after I re-watch it this year.)

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This is a surprisingly solid watch, despite the fact that after episode 8 I started watching most of the episodes in 2x speed. I really liked this. It was short, sweet, light with a nice message (you need to have someone with whom you can talk about your problems, and you need to have a proper conversation to connect with people and clear misunderstandings). I don't know why some people complained about the last episode being too jarring. True, the last episode seemed a little rushed to wrap up the series, and yes it's a happy ever after ending but I think given that the whole series is very light and lacking in angst, that a tragic ending would have disappointed us all. The characters did a great job, and while I was skeptical of Hwang Jung Eum's acting, this character has suited her really well. She's acting her age, and has the right attitude to fit the character.

I think my main problem with the series was the colossal pile of nonsense that the main villain Won Hyung is. I mean, he's just salty because his father didn't pay him attention, so he murdered, betrayed his best fried, plotted treason, and escaped from hell to wreak more havoc? That's a bit of an overkill, right?

Regardless, this one really surprised me with how much I liked it. I definitely recommend it if you want to take your mind off of any tensions in your life.

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Absolute love!

Initially this title caught my eyes with the presence of Yook SungJae (my kpop heart felt some nostalgia of the old times), I the watched trailer and I had to watch the drama! It was amazing, I couldn't stop watch it!
The story keeps you with suspance till the end, it gives you important details long the way and not all at the beggining (risking that the watchers might already know how it could end and loosing like this their interest).
I could empathize with each of the good characters thanks to their stories., I almost shed some tears.

Drama Time Playlist check: Dive by Chung Jin Woo

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Unique and awesome gender role portrayals

I'll get the cons out of the way as this series wasn't perfect. The last 2 episodes felt rushed and the wrap-up employed a deus ex machina device for the ending; this cheapened the story, imho, which was otherwise great. Part way through, we find out that Wol Jo had a child with the crown prince and this led to her 500 year ordeal now. This didn’t sit well with me as she was hired when Yi Hon was suffering from psychological and physical disturbances caused by his nightmares. This essentially gave her a quasi counsellor role in his life at a time when he was vulnerable, especially since they were meeting in his dream realms, which can leave a potent emotional impact, enough for him to fall head over heels in love with her when he meets her in his own dream psyche for the first time and he becomes besotted with her and is giddy to the point that those near him notices that he was behaving oddly. In this sense, I felt that what Wol Jo did justified the salacious gossip as she had overstepped her professional duties and acted in an unethical way. Because of their power imbalance, it could be construed that she seduced him. However, I did not deduct stars from this for various reasons. One, no matter how vulnerable he might’ve been in the mortal realm, Yi Hon would’ve been lucid enough to choose for himself in the spirit world and he eventually chose a difficult path that gave him a chance to be reunited with her. For me, his free will, which might’ve been compromised in the incarnated life, was re-established here. Two, the pros of this series far outweighs any cons.

There’s a test that sets a standard for female representation in any work of fiction (whether lit, film or series) called the Bechdel test. It has a basic two prong condition of showing two named women talking with each other about something other than a man. Mystic Pop-up bar fulfils this test easily and goes the extra mile with having a female char start the show, who is not being sexually assaulted, molested or abused when she is intro’d. Those extra two are my own personal conditions but overall, all four conditions are fulfilled by male characters in fiction easily and effortlessly majority, if not all, of the time so it’s not unreasonable to expect the same portrayal for female characters. On this alone, mystic pop-up bar earns brownie star points.

The other brownie star points are clocked up by the male tritagonist Han Kang Bae. This dude is a seriously refreshing creation. What appeals to me about his masculinity is that it is quietly confident. On his own, he comes across as a bit nervous, uncertain and easily frightened. When reunited with his soul parents he is given a platform to show his strength as his unshakeable conviction for karmic justice is displayed over and over again. He is not beyond sacrificing his own well being and safety to help others and is a sensitive, considerate, kind and introspective young man, traits not normally demonstrated by or expected in a man however, these traits are the hallmark of a true leader, which Kang Bae, in his own unassuming way, is. But it is when he finds his complementary soul partner that his masculinity really shines.

Yoo Rin is a “thank gawd for this gal!” strong female character. She may be one of the few bodyguard type female character there is which makes her that much more special in film & TV land. She has an overabundance of energy and is the potent animus to Kang Bae’s more subtle anima, the literal yang to his yin. Brownie star points are racked up like a winning slot machine with this char. Yoo Rin makes a change from the usual portrayal of strong women with facial ticks, such as the over exaggerated pursing of the lips and eyes when talking portrayed by “strong” tomboyish woman Bok Joo (Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-Joo) and Ja-Din in Boys over Flowers. Yoo Rin has no medical or neurological condition and is your average human albeit a stronger and tougher woman because of her background in sports and martial arts. Most of all, she is feminine. Like all women, she can take or leave make-up (she leaves it). She can take or leave heels (she occasionally takes it but mostly leaves it for work) and she has long hair. What a multitasker! She is refreshing for the very fact that film and tv execs seem to finally realise that strong women are also (shock, horror, gasp) NORMAL!

And when Ms Normal meets Mr True Man, what we get is a fantastically functionally and healthy dynamic, as only a balanced yin and yang can give. There is a scene where Yoo Rin tries to amp up her tomboyishness to scare off Kang Bae, instead, he is in awe of her potency and vitality. Another scene has Wol Jo trying to speed things along between Kang Bae and Yoo Rin by getting her soul son to open a glued up bottle thereby showing his muscles. It fails spectacularly and Kang Bae thinks nothing of asking for assistance from the woman he admires. And when Yoo Rin opens the bottle top effortlessly, there was no shame or awkwardness on his part, it’s written on his face that he simply thinks she is awesome+. Quite frankly, Kang Bae’s masculinity is true and beautiful for the fact that he is never once threatened by Yoo Rin’s superior strength, vitality or assertiveness. He accepts her, completely. And that’s the true sign of a real leader and a real man. He doesn’t just stop there though. When captured by Won Hyung, Kang Bae doesn’t try to use physical strength to fight. He instead uses the biggest muscle a true man possesses to fight Won Hyung’s baiting—his heart. The maturity and insight he shows by being able to see the greater picture of his soul parents' suffering shows a depth that is rarely portrayed, or expected of, by male characters engaged in a romance story arc. I really like him. And I love his pairing with Yoo Rin. They work so very well together and both made me emotionally invested enough to finish this show despite the unethical glitch in Wol Jo’s story arc that I mention above.

I hope viewers will give this show a try. It’s not perfect but most pioneering shows will have teething problems. I do consider this a bit of a pioneer because of the different perspective of gender roles it was courageous enough to portray so I excused the glitches. And it is nice to see strong women portrayed as normal and feminine. Possibly the only thing I would’ve liked to have seen was Yoo Rin taking on Won Hyung. Because of her character profile, I felt she was the perfect person to fight against the amped up evil spirit. That would’ve made for a better resolution of her grudge, imho, but I can see why the writers needed Won Hyung elsewhere. Still, this definitely doesn’t take away from the well deserved 10 stars.

Oh yeah, and the Gout Lovers were FANTASTIC!!! I nearly died laughing. LOL

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Okay, so I have to give this drama some big props. I watched the first few episodes while it was airing got bored and put it on hold. But, of boy, when I got back to it, I couldn't stop watching. I'm so glad I didn't drop it!

Story: This drama just had so many twists and turns. I loved the fantastical aspect and it had all of the right bits of romance, comedy, and angst. I will say that I really liked that there wasn't a "love triangle" aspect to the story, which most dramas have. Instead, there are two separate romances which are both special in their own way. The story does take a while to get going, so stay with it for a while if you don't instinctively like it in the beginning like I didn't.

Acting/Cast: I've been wanting to see more of Yook Sung Jae since Goblin and he really shone in this role. I can't wait to see more roles form him in the future. To be brutally honest, I haven't loved Hwang Jun Eum in any role before, but I'm not sure that's entirely her fault. I feel like she usually gets type cast into characters who are very loud and boisterous which I'm not the biggest fan of. However, this is the first drama where I truly loved her performance. I'm going to give To All the Guys Who Loved Me a chance just because of this drama. It doesn't seem like Choi Won Young has done a lot of romance dramas, but I loved him as well!

Music: No OSTs really stood out to me

Rewatch: High! I really liked it!

TLDR; A personal unexpected favorite for 2020, add it to you PTW ASAP!!!

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Underrated, focus on relationships and love.

Mystic Pop Up Bar is drama that takes you along on a fantastical journey. It’s packed with humour, emotional backstory, well written characters who make you want to reach out and hug. The dynamics between the leads is so good! I wish their were more dramas with such a wholesome focus on familial banter and support. Each episode focuses on single stories. As the main lead strives to settle human grudges, we are introduced to various realistic scenarios which seek our sympathy.

This is a perfect show to watch when you want something that feels like a warm hug. With just twelve episodes, it’s an easy watch that made me wish that there was an epilogue or a spin off movie at least.

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GOOOOOOOD WHOLESOME DRAMA A CLASSIC

I LOVED THIS DRAMA, I BINGED IT IN 2 DAYS. It was an exciting drama each episode there was a different plot happening and seeing them solve people's problems and worries was heartwarming. The characters were amazing, the romance in this drama was a little different from what I was expecting but it was still good, i wouldnt say the romance in this was the major part, it was more the solving mysteries and the focus was on the female lead (hwang jung eum) and male lead (yook sung jae). There was a suprising revelation at the end but it was all good in the end. Comedy in this drama was good too. Overall the vibes of this drama were just so comfortable and cosy

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Refreshingly funny

Ahhhh, it’s been a while since I laughed so hard while watching kdrama! This one tickled me pink. The story is not really unique really but somehow with the actors and cinematography it just hit the sweet spot of refreshing, funny and just right. I admit I was very hesitant to watch because of the FL, she is sooo annoyingly loud and screechy in her other dramas (I could not go past episode 1 of she was pretty) but she nailed her character in this one. Sung Jae is just so cute I want to squeeze his cheeks, this kid is so pure, innocent-looking and such a joy to watch! I’m sure you will flaws in the story line but it didn’t matter to me. Go watch it and have fun!

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Wow expected only fantasy and got an amazing story of a family!

Oh my goodness. One of the best Kdramas I had the immense pleasure of watching.
It has everything a good story, a great atmosphere, good romance, great family moments, engaging episodes and a really good end to wrap it all off.
Such a satisfying ending truly. I love the fantasy elements, the supporting cast and especially the Main Characters and every scene they interacted with each other.
All the episodic cases are also both heartwarming and heartbreaking and the best part is how our MCs help these people move on or get their happiness, give them the push they need all the while relating to them and reveal a bit of the backstory related to those cases.
Truly well written. The Villain is good enough too.
Grim Reaper Chief is also a great supporting cast.

All in all Highly recommended if you like Fantasy, episodic cases, Found Family, Slice of type romance and happy endings. Get ready though to grab a couple of tissues to cry a little from both sadness and ultimately happiness.

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Come in for a soju and a chat

This was an extremely original concept for a show and, for me, there was a lot to like about it. I loved how each episode was like its own self-contained little drama. The music was wonderful. The special effects were really good. The story of trying to solve the grudges of others while holding onto your own was very good and I loved how in every episode you got another snippet into the back story of the main characters. There were so many funny aspects to this show, but with a serious base, and the two were well-integrated.

The acting: Choi Won Young as Chef Gwi was terrific. I'm used to seeing him in supporting roles as the driver or the secretary of the male lead, and he was really up to the challenge of a leading role. I liked his character from the outset and just kept liking him more and more. Yook Sung Jae as Han Kang Bae - he has that wonderful innocence about him, and he really conveyed the loneliness he felt because of the gift/curse that he had. Hwang Jung Eum as Wol Joo - I know she's kind of a controversial actress, people either usually love her or hate her. Unfortunately, she usually gets cast as someone that yells/screeches/screams a lot, with broad physical movements (think Lucille Ball) because she is good at physical comedy. I was pleasantly surprised that was not the part she played in this show. She starts out extremely cold and unlikeable, and as the story goes along and you find out more about her, you are able to empathize with her and the life she is forced to live.

Production quality: This show was beautifully filmed, full of bright colors and nuanced textures, drawing your attention to the sidewalks, walls, pop-up tent, etc.

I did not find this show romantic. There was a romantic subtext to it, but, for me, this was a show about building a family. Resolving differences, building trust, letting go of grudges. It was so heartwarming to watch Han Kang Bae go from being alone to being part of a family.

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