Was It Love? (2020)

Skip The Final Episode

It's funny and at times extremely heart-wrenching. I liked the cast, the directing and the story was engaging but ridiculous at the same time. The final episode was absurd and basically phoned in which is extremely disappointing after sitting through 16 episodes (the ending was unsatisfying). I was impressed however by how long they were able to draw-out who the father was, I usually don't have the patience for it, but they kept me engaged with the other storylines. I thought it was well acted especially the child actors, the main character is enjoyable for the most part (nice facial expressions-great scene of her defending the children from the kidnappers in the van), but she was a disaster as a mother. They try to portray her as successful single mother, but obviously the grandmother helped raised the girl. The mother couldn't even tell her daughter or her own mother the truth about who the father was, "she lied for 14 yrs" creating unnecessary pain for all involved. I may need to take a break from Korean Dramas, tired of getting disappointed with final episodes. Crash Landing On You also had a strange ending as well.

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not as bad as many of the reviews say, but the FL is incredibly frustrating

I didn't hate this as much as many other ppl say.

that said, the FL is incredibly frustrating. she is the cause of almost all the problems the other characters have, and yet she sees herself as the victim.

i understand why ppl may drop it, but for me, it wasn't so bad as to need to drop. also, I liked the ML. he was certainly imperfect, but I got where he was coming from.

the OST is basically the same cover of that Cranberries song over and over again.

overall, it's not the worst thing I've ever seen, but I wouldn't go out of your way to watch this either. this drama is may e for when you've already watched every other drama. then you can get to this one.

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Worst writing for a female lead; many unlikable characters; maybe worth watching for Son Ho Jun

Did we see the limit in Song Ji Hyo's acting abilities here - or was the writing of many characters in this show really that bad? Show pushed too hard for laughs and fake drama. Maybe still worth watching for Son Ho Jun's huge versatility. Whether you put him in comedy or drama, he excels.

It's not really a matter of the story being unlikely - because for me it's in the telling. This show's biggest problem was a matter of tone. It just didn't know what mood to strike. This resulted in a very strident characterization of the female lead, and cartoony characters like the Chinese mafia gang member, the successful actor Ryu Jin, and Song Ji Jyo's female rival. What a waste of the cast. Too many unlikable characters.

Too bad about this story really. It had too many subplots going on that watered down the story and diverted from the central, worthwhile plot - how did single mom manage all those years without the father of her child.

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Promising beginning but then most of the characters devolved especially FL character

7.5/10 is my rating. This is a 2020 South Korean romantic drama with 16, 70 minute episodes

First I provide a synopsis then review.

Synopsis
Noh Ae-jung (Song Ji-hyo) dream was to produce films and she passionately studied film at University. Her capable and energetic nature toward all things film related caught the amaros attention of several of her fellow film students two of which went on to become famous. Ae-Jung’s dreams were derailed when she became pregnant and she did not tell the father and instead disappeared from the scene for 14 years while she raised her daughter. She worked a variety of jobs and tried to focus her work in the film industry. She finally gets a break when the CEO of the Production company she is working for promotes her and it looks like she will be able to realize her dream. But the CEO tricked her into signing a shady loan then disappears leaving her with the debt and the sinking company. When Ae-Jung discovers a novel, rights owned by the production company, which is ripe to be convertedd to script she sees a chance to turn the failing company around. The novel, that just happens to be the first work of a now famous author, could not only save the company but launch Ae-Jung’s production career. She just has to get a lot of people onboard and her efforts bring the men from her struggling student days back in her life. Oh Dae-oh (Son Ho-jun) is the famous writer who is seeking revenge on Ae-Jung for breaking his heart. Ryu Jin (Song Jong-ho) made it big as an actor but feels like Ae-Jung is the love who got away. Goo Pa-do (Kim Min-jun) owns the company where Ae-Jung’s CEO took the loan and winds up investing in her current endeavor to recoup his loan. Oh Yeon-woo (Koo Ja-sung) is a younger man who Ae-Jung saved at one point and he wanted to marry Ae-Jung and take on the role of father. Will Ae-Jung be able to make her dream come true with the help of these four very different men? Who is her daughter’s father? Which man will win, or reclaim, her heart?

Review

You may start this and wonder why there are so many negative reviews. The first episodes will pull you in and you may like all the characters and wonder how people could have disliked it so much, But it takes a turn when you find out what is really going on. To its credit this is one of the few with multiple romantic interests where I had no idea who she might end up with until well into the series. She had something special going on with each of the men, they all seemed interested and she treated them all like close friends that could be something more. I also was unsure which one was rhe father of her daughter. It made the first 3/4 of the series interesting as we tried to figure out who it might be. I liked the pre-teen daughter. But the Female Lead (FL) character became so unlivable to me at a point it was hard to continue watching. In the reviews I read some liked it but most that really liked it was more due to the actors than the story. I suppose if you feel the situation justified her actions then you could feel differently.

Spoilers*
I don’t know if it was Netflix influence trying to Americanize the series but I really disliked Ae-Jung’s “I don’t need a man” stance. She was very anti romance to the point of being mean to the men around her. When the misunderstanding that had kept them apart was cleared up she continued to treat him coldly and refused to help him form a relationship with his daughter. The only thing he was guilty of was he did make a bad choice in allowing a young girl that had a thing for him that close, but he apologized for that part, I was also disappointed in other characters I felt sympathy for Ryu having to be the sounding board for his friend when he liked the girl so much himself. But finding out that Ryu Jin deleted her text was a despicable action because it made seem like he would hurt others and cheat to get her. After that him being there for Dae-oh when he was so extremely heart broken took on a different feeling as he largely caused the situation or at least him having no clue why she left. Jo Ah-rin (Kim Da-som) did not care she was coming between a relationship with a child involved and thought it was very selfish and ridiculous to cling to someone who clearly rejected her romantically. Ae-Jung was just mean and the fact that Yoon-woo characterized her as sweet was confusing as I only saw her as very self serving and selfish. She did have her sweet moments with him but she also had other times when it felt like she led him on and other times when she was cold. I thought she was wrong to not tell her daughter the truth. She and the grandmother created an environment where the young girl did not feel she could ask about her dad. Even after Ae-Jung finds out her daughter wanted a father and was looking for him she still refused to let Dae-oh be involved in his daughter’s life. Even if he had cheated on her or ignored her text, he was still the girls father and she was wrong to cut him out of her life. Her daughter wanted to know who her father was but she did not clear up the misunderstanding he abandoned her. It made me not like Ae-Jung in the last few episodes. Keeping the child to herself and not telling her the truth of the situation led to a lot of unnecessary pain for father and daughter.

The ending was disappointing. it felt like he gave up his career, sacrificed it for her. After a completely unnecessary separation there is a short scene where they reunite then the end is her walking her daughter down the aisle at her wedding. That skip forward was awkward as it seemed not a lot changed between the couples or between father and daughter although many years had obviously passed. At least from what we could briefly see, All of the men were together sort of standing up for the young woman as a like a dad unit with Dae-oh leading that as a nod to being the biological father. It was weird. So it seems she never acknowledged her father and Ae-Jung was still playing the dual role of mom and dad. The fact that Dae-oh was there showed he was still in their lives but, given the FL wushu washy treatment of him I had no confidence they were together in a meaningful way. We finally get to see the gangster guy and the “bar” owner flirty and also the two actors but years have passed and they only made it that far which was also disappointing. It seemed to set things up for another season but I wouldn’t watch as it was such a train wreck with the dental relationship I have no trust any further stories would be any better..

Let me fix the ending how it should have went: Dae-oh cloisters himself off at his place but only for a few months. He and the FL hold a press conference addressing the rumors. He tells the public that the book he wrote was his truth at the time, but now that he has reunited with his first love he found out the truth.The production company will instead be working on the amended version of the book, and the movie will be released in tandem with the new novel. He goes into seclusion to finish writing the novel how it should be (and the screenplay) to finish as quickly as possible and they reunite when it’s time to film. When the film is released, they go to the opening night with Ha-nee and she learns the full story of her parents. She finally forgives her father and calls him Dad. The end. Had the ending went more like this it could have ended well. But it did not end well in my opinion.

Not one I would rewatch or recommend.

#WasItLove
#SongJiHyo
#SonHojun
#SongJongho
#KimMinjun
#KooJasung
#KimDasom

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A frustrating guilty pleasure

There was a lot I liked and quite a bit I didn't. Plus points are a likeable cast of characters, played by decent actors, with not too many cheesey or clichéd moments and a female lead character that's not a wet weekend. The men that end up gravitating back around her, are all very different. I liked how she didn't see herself as a victim, was independent, yet had her weaknesses. Her mum is played by a favourite actress, whose character was so supportive. The young actress playing the daughter/granddaughter was excellent and it was refreshing to see a mature young character that wasn't selfish and overly needy or full of cuteness and little else.
What I didn't like was the complete lack of communication, which became totally ridiculous. The initial misunderstandings were believable and understandable, but later, there were too many occasions when explanations were interrupted and never forced, even though the facts were crucial. Situations where the plain truth would have been most rational people's first and only response, were instead met with frustratingly weak and ridiculous ones instead, making things worst. This meant any empathy or sympathy with those characters just vanished.
That aside, there were quite moving moments and some funny ones, which are what made me enjoy it overall.
It's not one I would watch again through.

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Nothing Special

As a Running Man fan, the major reason I picked up this drama was because of Song Jihyo. However, the typical trope of the damsel in distress and all these knights in shining armor trying to protect her is so overdone and this drama does not add anything special to it. To add on to the cliche, all these men turn out to be wealthy, or popular bachelors. The drama tries to make Aejong seem more independent by showing her as a diligent producer, which is okay, but it does not make her stand out from the previous female leads that have done this trope. The story also fails to fully address the overarching concept as to who the father is. Aejong has already met the three men from her personal life, yet, how come she doesn't seem to be worried that one of these men will see her daughter and might think it's their child? She spent her whole motherhood trying to hide the father, yet, these men show up and she doesn't seem fazed by it.

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Serious disappointment

It’s absolutely ridiculous and self righteous the FL is. Up to Ep 13 she’s still not honest with her daughter. Daughter believes that the father left them once so could leave them again and the lousy mother doesn’t explain than she was the one who left him without letting know she was pregnant.
What I don’t understand is how she still insists on holding on to her grudge as if it justifies all of her lack of honesty. She keeps refusing the ML because she wants to be independent but she’s not an island. Does she not regard her mother and sister at all? Independence does not being alone. Wonder Woman indeed. In Ep12 she supposedly strides off to take the lead by getting the evil Jennifer to pay for posting the rubbish about RyuJjn being her daughter’s father. But she does nothing. Everything was done by everyone else and she just took the credit. The FL’s character got more and more unlikable towards the middle. Just tell the girl who her father is already. And every time someone finds out. She says she will handle it and act like it’s the other person’s fault.
The storyline really wandered off into nowhere like a drunk ant. And yet I am going to try to finish it because I’m hoping the show will resolve somehow.

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Starts out promising with gorgeous male cast but ultimately disappoints.

Overview: Ae-Jong is a single mom with a 14 year old daughter and big dreams of becoming a movie producer. One day she has the opportunity to make her dreams come true... while attracting the interest of four guys (three from her past and one new). Will she fall for any of them? And might one of them be the father of her daughter? Must watch to find out

Reactions: I initially found the female lead annoying — too helpless and over dramatic as a character, to the point where it is not clear why the male leads like her so much. I initially stuck with the show because the male leads and female supporting cast (especially daughter and her landlord/friend) really sold the show for me. The plot is light and moves along slowly, and there are many cliches but most of the characters were initially so fun to watch (eg., a fight scene between two men that devolves to hair pulling and wrestling made me laugh, and drama with the PTA at the daughters school) that I didn’t mind. However over time the lack of character development really became noticeable and I became frustrated because we never see enough positive interactions in the past to understand why any of the characters like the main female lead or to root for a relationship going forward. I stopped feeling invested in the story and couldn’t follow through to the end.

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I enjoyed it but a lot could of been better. The writer likes creating trouble. Quite a few good dialogues. Character development.
Main leads chemistry was good. Sad that we didn't get much of it onscreen.
Sad that Aejeong didn't explain the situation well herself. Writernim obviously male biased. But guess it's realistic, most people wouldn't.
Actors saved it. I usually skip 2nd leads. I hate triangles etc. But most of the characters were likeable in their own right. Music on point. Would rewatch certain scenes. Despite the constant troubles, something obviously kept me watching and rewatching eps while waiting. I drop dramas like skin cells usually. Hope the main couple reunite in another drama. Honestly want the female lead with each of the guys in the future. Goo Pado.

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Watch this after you've watched a complex drama.

Watch this after you've watched a complex drama. This drama does not require you to think too much! It's basically a cool off drama that you watch in between thrillers or historical dramas lol.

It started off good, but by episode 6 it becomes decent (bearable to watch). Thus far, there's absolutely nothing good about the male lead character (the writer/director). Btw, I am on episode 8. He is arrogant, he is passive aggressive, and he is overbearing. In the beginning of the drama, he planned to get revenge on the female lead character after 14 years of breaking up. REALLY? Basically, his revenge was to be mean and childish. BTW, I wonder if he's the same guy from Love Alarm? I am not sure whether or not I will drop this drama, but I do like the school teacher, and the famous actor. The very attractive gangsta has to go or rather, should have never been in the story. It would have been better for the writers to have made his character a competitive film agency (who wants to steal the female lead character, clients, movies, and talent), instead of a gangsta.

Things that make this drama weird or unrealistic are:
1. Attractive gangsta (the character, not the actor).
2. The fact that there are four attractive (some famous, some normal) men, all liking one middle aged woman at the same time.
3. If one of the four guys is her child's father (which I think it's the writer/director). It's weird that there was no emotion shown by the female lead character when dad and daughter were together for the first time ever.
4. The hot younger teacher living with his student mom (conflict of interest).

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