True Beauty (2020)

na época era boa

Eu acompanhei esse dorama desde a prévia, lançou em 2020, nessa época ninguém ligava para uma história surpreendente, um bom casting ou ost, atualmente há milhares de doramas muito melhores que essa bomba.
Creio que oque carregou este kdrama foram os atores, a história é chata, ultrapassada, clichê demais da conta, cansativa, os episódios podem até serem bons e avançarem de uma forma boa, mas o final parece que volta para o começo, não tem um enredo legal, não tem um significado, os episódios parecem que não tem caminho, e simplesmente avançam para o óbvio, o menino bonito fica com a menina que sofre bullying, ou que se acha feia, tudo acontece de um jeito tão tedioso.

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Lighthearted romantic comedy with a touch of social commentary

True Beauty is a South Korean romantic comedy-drama that tackles themes of self-acceptance, societal pressures, and first love. While the show boasts a popular cast and an intriguing premise, it has received mixed reviews.

Exaggerated Style and Uneven Humor: The drama's over-the-top, almost comical style might not resonate with everyone. Some find the humor falls flat, and the central conceit of makeup's transformative power is debatable. The protagonist, Lim Ju-kyung, isn't drastically unattractive without makeup, and the makeup itself doesn't create a dramatic transformation.

Awkward Messaging and Redeeming Qualities: The drama's handling of societal emphasis on appearance can feel clumsy at times. However, the show does pick up steam as the romance progresses, particularly with the introduction of a character's tragic backstory and the development of a love triangle.

Comparisons and Cast: While "True Beauty" doesn't take itself too seriously, viewers might find other dramas like "18 Again" and "Gangnam Beauty" deliver similar themes with a more balanced tone. Despite its shortcomings, the show benefits from a well-chosen cast. Moon Ga-young delivers an energetic performance as Ju-kyung, while Cha Eun-woo and Hwang In-yeop bring their charismatic visuals to life, resembling characters straight out of a webtoon. The supporting cast includes seasoned actors like Jang Hye-jin and Jung Joon-ho, adding further depth to the story.

Overall: "True Beauty" is an enjoyable teen drama with a likeable cast, but its execution might not be for everyone. If you're looking for a lighthearted romantic comedy with a touch of social commentary, this show might be worth checking out, especially if the later episodes with stronger character development and plot twists pique your interest.

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I decided to watch this after seeing a lot of the reels from different moments of the show. I grew attached to the characters after seeing them in those little snippets so many times and wanted to watch the show. Unfortunately it felt like the reels that I saw were the best moments of the show. This just did not live up to the hype for me. It was enjoyable enough but missed the mark in other ways.

Story: the basis of the story and the title is about how the main female lead Joo Gyung was always called ugly for having an acne filled red face, big glasses, and large eyebrows. She was maliciously bullied in school for her appearance until one day when she was able to transfer schools. At the new school she had learned how to apply makeup and wear contacts which changed her appearance so much that she was then considered a real beauty. Life was dramatically different for her because of the makeup and she was always worried that her true face would be revealed. Of course she meets someone that finds out about her secret and he ends up falling for her and not caring what she looks like with or without makeup. This concept last until about the halfway mark. Then the second half of the drama focuses more on the love triangle of the 3 leads where the 2 male leads are best friends and an unexpected event separates the main couple for years but the secondary lead stays by her side.

In terms of story it has a very simple concept that has been seen many times. My gripe with the concept however is that while makeup can completely transform your face, it can't change the texture so often when they show her without makeup and she has acne but somehow has perfect skin with makeup I tend to roll my eyes. Also when her secret finally gets revealed its like all of a sudden her 'ugly' no makeup appearance is not that different from with makeup. She adds a pair of glasses and her skin is slightly pink but that is it so calling her ugly for that seems offensive. While her new skin care routine would have helped improve her it was still annoying to watch everyone around her act like she was so dramatically different without makeup.

The love triangle. This is one of the shows where I fell hard into second male lead syndrome. While the main male was fine and everything, I still felt myself leaning far more heavily into the second. His character was so endearing and relatable that it is impossible not to like him. And while you understand the ending I actually found that I did not like it very much because it felt like the female lead did not care about his feelings at all. It felt callous since he has stayed beside her for 2 years and they had gotten so close that even all their friends expected him to care for her when she was drunk. But her care of his affection was not handled well at all. While she did not need to return his affection she could have handled it so much better. It left me mostly just feeling sorry for the second male lead all the way up until the end.

Acting: as far as acting goes it was acted fairly well. I was especially drawn to and impressed by Seo Jun. He was by far my favorite character throughout the entire series. The actor portrayed him so well and he was so entertaining to watch in all of his scenes. Su Ho was also acted well and the actor did a good job of transitioning the character from arrogant jerk with a chip on his shoulder to shy and nervous teenager in love for the first time to the more grown up version. The side characters also all held their own and did great. Joo Gyung was the one that got on my nerves the most. The actress often used this baby sounding voice that I really did not like but other than the voice she did act the part well. I also had a very hard time liking the character very much pretty frequently.

This series had several fun and memorable moments but the writing really let the show down. Joo Gyung was a very hard character to truly like for me so this show holds little rewatchability for me.

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I connected with True beauty

I feel like writing this review might be a little bias because i connected with true beauty personally. Growing up having acne was really touch especially when beauty standards are always set unrealistically. Luckily my skin has cleared up now but i could connect to every emotion Lim Joo Gyung was feeling. Every episode keeps you excited as to what's going to happen next and makes you feel for the what every characters is going through. I like that they made her character goofy and not perfect all the time, especially at home when she would wear those clothes and even her relationship with her brother. Honestly on point I dress like that at home. But all of that aside, this was a very well rounded drama with developed characters tackling serious issues, like body appearance, mental health, suicide and bullying etc but in an light hearted way.

The great humour in the show is credited to how the characters were written and the actors playing the roles, Lim Joo Gyung's clumsiness, cuteness and growth made her the star of the show for me, the actor displayed all the right emotions with ease that i believed her to be Lim Joo Gyung. It was nice to see for a change writers writing characters like her that are goofy and not always behaved well, like how a girl is expected to be. She believed in herself, her dreams and did not value herself less because she wasn't doing well academically which is a great message to sent to young girls and boys watching. Eun Woo and In Yeop also did a great job portraying their characters, the cast was very well chosen for this show. They all added to the story and emotions so well as each character had their own growing to do. Although the time skip was a little off putting it did not hinder the story as much, if anything this drama could of been 20 episodes. All around a amazing romcom. Although the drama was very basic in terms of love and the second lead syndrome, including all the cringey moments it somehow worked.

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What "my ID is Gangnam Beauty" tried to accomplish, True Beauty succeeded

The first half of this drama felt like one of those guilty pleasure dramas that don't necessarily have the best story, are usually cliché, but they still make you giggle incessantly. Somewhere around the middle mark is when it hits you that the story really is just about a girl wearing makeup, and her having to constantly get out of a situation that could show her real face. Drama which could all be avoided if she just put on makeup before she left the house.

I am not saying this is a bad drama. What I mean to say is that it's very one-dimensional, but that that's what actually makes it good! That is until the episodes go by, and you're nearing the end, and you realize they NEED to add some drama because there hasn't been that "big" problem yet which needs to be solved. And as predicted they added the most unnecessary drama, and also decided to push the love triangle that should have been solved long ago.

Besides that, the acting was good. Ga Young was brilliant. The way she carried herself differently with makeup and bare-face was really amazing. It almost felt like 2 different characters, and I think that was an intentional choice. She is stiff and nervous in makeup because that is not her. Then, when she removes the makeup she is relaxed and outgoing.
Cha EunWoo.... uhh. How do I put this nicely? If you took his character from my ID is Gangnam Beauty and related it with this, there would be absolutely no change to the story. They are the same person. I dont know if this was intentional, but it made for unavoidable comparisons throughout the whole series. The character was painfully boring. I began referring to him as "white bread" after just a few episodes. He has a pretty face. That's it, that's the character.
In Yeop. Oh boy. It is really rare that I get "second-lead syndrome", and I had it BAD. I won't go into detail, but if SuHo is white bread, Seojun is tiramisu.

In conclusion, do I recommend? Yes, if you enjoy cliché drama that would almost never happen in real life (and I do). Would I watch it again? Maybe, but I would skip the last couple episodes.

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The best

This is my favorite life drama of 21 that I've watched so far. In True Beauty, you have all possible emotions. You laugh, you cry, you are angry, you are angry, you are happy, you are apprehensive, you are shocked. Everything.
I love Jukyung's overcoming story with her looks and the standard of beauty imposed by society. I love that Suho loved Jukyung because she is who she is and not what she looks like. This couple's story is completely perfect. Only those who watched know that their story was fate.

The grapefruit couple, more hilarious impossible.

Hee Gyung, an empowered woman who does what she wants and not what they say.

If Yeon, Suho and Seojun: a perfect friendship, of pure companionship that unfortunately ended in tragedy. But it was amazing to see what this friendship with Se Yeon was like before the fatality happened.

Everything was perfect. Only point to be desired was that I thought they could have shown an out-of-date Seojun with a girlfriend with reciprocal feelings.

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Uma adaptação gostosinha de assistir

Na época em que o dorama foi lançado, eu estava no meio da leitura do Webtoon. Estava super empolgada, principalmente porque o elenco é muito bom, mas acabei abandonando na metade. Agora que faz tempo desde que li o Webtoon e consegui ver o dorama sem me influenciar demais pelo que eu já sabia da história, foi uma experiência muito gostosinha.

A história tem suas inconsistências, o Seo-jun não tem chance alguma nessa adaptação e isso talvez faça até mais sentido por se tratar de um dorama e a possibilidade de se apaixonar por ambos os leads ser muito nula, algo que só pôde existir no Webtoon. Até hoje não entendo porque a possibilidade de ir a um dermatologista não é explorada na história, já que a questão toda da Jugyeong é a acne, mas gostei de ver como nos últimos episódios ela começa a tratar a maquiagem de maneira menos obsessiva, usando-a quando deseja. Achei infantil a maneira como os colegas de classe reagiram de início ao saber que ela era tão diferente sem maquiagem (o que é risível porque ela realmente não é tão diferente assim sem maquiagem), mas que bom que o dorama seguiu uma abordagem mais "tudo vai dar certo no fim" e acabamos por não odiar nem culpar nenhum personagem, pois todos demonstram uma certa evolução do começo até o fim da história.

Gostei muito da atuação do Eunwoo aqui, sei que muita gente não gosta tanto do seu trabalho como ator por achar ele inexpressivo, até eu mesma já pensei assim, mas sinto que pelo que o personagem Lee Suho exigia, ele foi excelente.

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It's a so-so drama.

Personally I think this drama is quite consistent till episode 9. As an individual who's been watching dramas since 2018, especially romance dramas with portions of drama and family I could already predict what would happen in these mainstream romance dramas. Honestly this drama had me very intrigued for most parts and the cliff hangers left me persistent and longing for the next episode. It's a very heart-warming and enjoyable drama, the drama is suited to the mood of casual enjoyment. It's very cute , love the camera work, outfits, setting and cast. OK so HONESTLY, it's quite funny, like at numerous scenes I was laughing in the dark in my room, trying to not burst into high volume laughter in case of waking anyone up. I recommend this drama to anyone who wants a some-what steady paced drama and anyone who is a beginner will really enjoy this.

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for its genre, it's a really good drama

I feel like a lot of people dislike TB because they consider that it's cliché and that's it's been done before. Honestly I don't disagree, but that's just the thing: it's a high school drama about an insecure FL and a ML who helps her gain confidence...
I agree, it's been done before.
But frankly I feel like describing the drama this way doesn't really give credit to the execution.

I loved the main love story. My heart broke for Seojun, like everyone else's did, but I frankly didn't want him to end up with Jookyung. I agree that he practically carried the entire drama on his back and he's the reason why it became this popular, but I didn't mind him as the second lead, I just wish they had worked a little harder for him to have a happy ending. I feel like they used his pain to make the drama more interesting but I mean.. isn't this what writers are supposed to do? Make the story more dramatic? The ending hit hard because it made me wanna sob. That's the whole point.

So back to the main couple, i really loved them. I think they had chemistry and that their entire love story was well-written. At first I was scared they would drag out the whole "he doesn't know it's her" plot line but turns out he finds out rather quickly. People hate on Suho because they love Seojun but i just don't agree i think both characters deserves Jukyung just as much. Suho and her were just meant to be I guess. Suho went through so much and i didn't see him make one decision that was rude or out of line. I also feel like the pure, 100% love he had for Jukyung was exactly what she needed, whereas Seojun teased her too much. Although it's something, as viewers, we love, it might not be as fun for her who literally hates how she looks.

HOWEVER I loved Seojun's character so much that I really hope they write a character like him again as a main lead. Cause i agree, he's amazing. His earrings and hair and personality and naturally smokey eyes are what made this drama what it is!!!!I'm tired of seeing similar ML, although I loved Suho.

I loved Soojin's character, because it allowed a female second lead to pick herself up. I feel like male second leads are always like seojun: jealous of the main couple but still supportive at the end. Whereas the female second lead is always so toxic and manipulative. And sure soojin is all of those things but there's much more than just her jealousy behind it. You can really feel the build-up of her anger and pain because of the abuse she goes through at home. Her acting was great too.

Oh and finally the OST?? chef's kiss. Whether it's how do you do, Missing you, starlight, or even those 1:30 mins of Seojun singing flower pot? I finished the drama a few weeks ago and i still listen to all of these all the time.

Overall, I feel like you need to remember this is a high school drama, okay? It's mostly about the vibe, the outfits, the OST, the love story. Yeah it's basic but i feel like the execution is great, and I rewatched the scenes a billion times. Watch iiit and keep and open mind.

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Is the Juice Worth the Squeeze?

I watched True Beauty with no context of the webtoon. I followed Cha Eun-woo here from Rookie Historian Goo Hae-Ryung. This drama is somehow extremely cliche, but also incredibly stress inducing!! There is way too much back and forth in the plot in an attempt to keep viewers hanging. It was like a slow, emotional torture. I was rooting for Cha Eun-woo, but I was still driven crazy by the back and forth of it all, though I knew she would likely end up with him.

They will not let you be happy or relaxed for a single episode of this show. And yes, I mean that in a bad way. It isn’t that you can’t figure out what will likely happen…just think of the thing that will make you cringe/you don’t want to happen, and that is EXACTLY what will happen. Some of the mean girl stuff, not just the blatant bullying, but the betrayal of her friend gave me major anxiety. It was disappointing and stressful.

I thought they did a good job adding humor. The acting overall was really great. I am new to Cha Eun-woo, so I am confused by anyone who thinks he can’t act?! His character, demeanor, EVERYTHING was SO different from Rookie Historian Goo Hae-Ryung. Hwang In-youp did a great job and was one of the most lovable second male leads I have experienced.

I agree with some comments about them not properly fleshing out some big points like: inner beauty, self-confidence, suicide, mental health, etc. I don’t think that the FL was as helpless as some reviewers believed…she did some things I wouldn’t have, but I think that it could’ve been landed better. In a country known for TOXIC beauty standards, NO girl has Cha Eun-woo holding her hand through the school day or running all over Seoul to console her. I wish they had a better message surrounding this.

Overall, I watched this to spend time with Cha Eun-woo, and while he served some major ~looks~ in this show, I didn’t get to enjoy it as much as I hoped. I liked his Mr. Darcy vibe, but there was too much imbalance of stress vs happy moments in this show. I felt like I only got 3 good smiles—boo!! Every time something good happened, I was filled with dread of a bad thing to off set it. If you have anxiety, depression, etc., you may find the juice here to not be worth the squeeze. If not, you may find this okay to watch, as long as you don’t fall for Hwang In-youp, which is also a challenge! Fighting!

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