Happiness

Great Leads, Disappointing Writing

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I decided to watch this drama because I saw a clip from the opening scene. Dramas that start with a “jumper” scene get me hooked. Don’t ask...I like depressing shit.

Acting/Cast: A solid cast with good acting. Too bad most of the characters aren't likable at all. Easily, the best thing about this drama is the leads. Actually, it may be the only thing I liked about this drama. Uh oh... Well, there were two other characters that I really liked...but apparently the writers didn’t. Their stories didn’t play out so well… 7.5/10

Writing: This isn’t really a zombie plot. They’re more like vampires. And the story is more about the psychology of the people in the apartment building rather than the infected, vampire people. So this drama is not very scary and the infected people aren’t much of a threat. I was only scared once, which was during “The Thing” scene (if you know, you know). I did like that they were more like vampires that struggle to curb their thirst for blood and are able to stay human if their willpower is strong enough. I thought that was an interesting concept because there’s still a chance for that character to survive and continue to interact with healthy characters while creating different dynamics between characters. I also like how the relationship between the two leads developed. They had a really sweet best friendship that slowly turns into something more. Seriously, it is relationship goals for me…I’m jealous. Okay, now for the bad, which is everything else. I really like “trapped in a building” plots and “hostage plots” because I like seeing a group of various characters develop through the course of the drama and learn to work together to survive (My favorite K-drama is White Christmas if that tells you anything.) This drama has that kind of plot, but instead of getting well-developed characters that grow on me as I watch, I got mostly unlikable characters that get worse over time and a couple likable characters that get neglected or completely ruined. It was so disappointing for me. The two leads are the only decently written characters that stay that way throughout the entire drama. The “villains” in this drama aren’t typical either. Is there really a true villain? There’s so many characters in the drama that are terrible people. It’s to the point where I really don’t give a shit about the security of the building. Let them all get infected. They deserve it. It reminded me of that movie The Mist (I hated that movie). There’s this stupid twist toward the end of the drama...that’s when the drama really lost me. We already have so many “everyday people” turning into murderers, we don’t need any more thrown into the mix. Just...why?? I guess you would call that an “overkill”. The writers killed the story with that stupidity. I mean, the cops letting a known murderer run loose around the building from the beginning was stupid enough. Oh yeah, they also kept referencing COVID in the drama, which really annoyed me. As if COVID is anywhere near comparable to this infection. 2/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama is well-produced. The SFX is well done. I was also pleasantly surprised to see some cool actions scenes from the male lead, Park Young Sik (박형식). The soundtrack is so good. It’s rare for me to say that. It has a fun, action-y vibe to it. Maybe the soundtrack is the reason why I enjoyed this drama as much as I did. 8/10

Entertainment Value: Despite the lack of likable characters, it was entertaining. I binged this drama. I got pissed off by the end though, which drastically lowered its score for me. It was like a beam that broke the camel’s back, so to speak. After all that work I did overlooking a lot of smaller irritations here and there, the writers rewarded me by punching me in the face. Thanks for that… 5/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 5.5/10. Even though the writing was bad, I really liked the leads and their chemistry together. Their relationship was so sweet. But, are the leads alone enough for me to recommend this drama? I don’t think so.

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Chef's kiss

I don't usually write reviews because I haven't really found a drama that is worth the time put into it but damn happiness is truly a master piece. I loved everything about it from the plot, to the execution and even the cast
Unlike most kdramas a lot of the plot wasn't so predictable and it wasn't an overly romantic and long drama. I loved the fact that even though some episodes where slow paced and had little action it didn't feel dragged or boring in any way
I hardly watch horror or zombie thrillers because I'm prone to having nightmares but happiness is a series that i would rewatch again and again no matter how much I get scarred. The antagonist perfectly executed their role so much that anytime i see them in other dramas i can't help but hate them. Most of them were truly narcissist and self-centered to the core. And please don't get me started with the main leads from the Mal's deep love for her to her slow and steady falling for him. It was also rare to see a badass female lead who wasn't overly self-righteous and knows how to play the bad guy. The ML was also good at not allowing his character to be overshadowed by the FL. And last but not the list the little girl who lived with the main leads . It was so touching to see that even though she was scared and sad to be away from her parents she tried so hard to remain though so that she wouldn't be a burden. So all in all it was a perfectly executed piece.

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A New Light Shed on the Eternal Search for Happiness

* On a starting note:
You would wonder why I gave an overall score of 9 when I rated the story 7.5! My numbers don't add up because this work is just as complex.
* "Happiness" is a depressing apocalyptic take on the classic Search for Happiness, I thought it would be another survival story but it was so much more.
I would say the story is the weakest factor this drama has, while the acting, twists, and characters are one of the best I've seen taking into consideration it's a 12 episodes show.

* After the Ending note:
I feel dizzy.. like I know it's a 12 episodes drama but dang I wanted it to last longer.. guess the producers did everything they could to cook such a deep show in only 12 episodes.
Even with all the plotholes, I still rated this a solid 9/10 for the drama, characters, and development! It's been a while since I got this immersed on a show! I even was waiting for someone to jumpscare me until the very end of the credits 😂😅 cuz I was already so traumatized over all the jumpscares.
My favorite part is how much you would see from each character and the development of many - be it for the bad or the good-! The twists were quite good too! The acting was superb that almost every character had its own light. I sobbed a few times and was fumming at others.
I liked that this time it wasn't poor people are good, rich people are bad, this time the drama adapted the reality approach that a person cannot be judged until you have lived with them!
People's true nature isn't something easily discovered nor judged. This is the core charm of Happiness for me.
And of course another charm was showing us what is the real HAPPINESS whithout mentioning it once in the drama!
This work kinda reminds me of webtoon I've read years ago called DeadDays, I can't remember the details but I totally get the dejavu.

* just wanted to end this saying that you will be left thinking and appreciating the Happiness you have in your life through the misery of HAPPINESS

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I know I'm very late in watching this drama but it's been on my list since it aired and I finally watched it. AND I LOVED IT!
It has a capturing start and without wasting time on background stories, the drama jumps right into the main plotline. It shows the imperfection of humans in such an amazing way. How greediness and selfishness comes to surface when you are put into such situations.
Yet the two main leads show us the true meaning of being selfless and living for others. The male lead is so gentle but good at his job ad the female lead show she cares about herself first but we find that she also puts herself last. Although mostly all of the residents are bad in one way or another, the main leads don't hold a grudge against them and help them and do their best for everyone until the end.
Even though this drama isn't focused on romance, I love the way main leads portray their love without any words. Also them being married makes everything ten times better in my opinion.
A lot of the scenes did have my at the edge of my seat. It wasn't exactly gory but it was enough to make you jump.
In the end I really thought that Yi Hyun died because I had not seen any spoilers thankfully. I couldn't have been any more happier for the happy ending.
One thing I really hoped to see was what happened to Han Tae Seok and his wife in the end. I understand showing the cure would stretch things too far but to see his ending would have been nice because I actually liked him.
Overall I enjoyed the drama and would recommend it 100%

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If you expect an AOTD like scene then it's not like what you expect

I love how they create new type of zombies that's fresh and not to common to watch . The story mainly goes around the apartment and the two main actors . What i remember the most is my anger to Mr Oh and you'll find it out in the drama. Also it's more on saving people and choosing the right thing to do . There's so many things that will happen in just a second and prepare to be shock every minute. I will also recommend you to prepare for the last scene how it make me go NOOOOOO ! Hehe i love the cast and over all they made a great job naking this drama (◍•ᴗ•◍)❤

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The main couple is the best part

Oh dear. This one is so universally beloved on the internet that I’d been saving it for a long time; as a lover of the zombie genre (the fast ones) and of healthy, best-friends-to-lovers romance, I felt like this had everything I could ever want. In the end, though, I felt like it was just okay.

The best part of the show is the main couple — I loved every scene they had together, and I loved how much they communicated and supported each other through everything. But I felt like they were very underutilized.

Even though this drama is filed under Action and Thriller, there’s actually very little of each. Compared to most zombie outbreak shows, this one is relatively contained: for most of the episodes there’s one or two that pop up, but they’re fought off or pushed outside the building, and everyone retreats to their apartments and their food rations.

I don’t mind a bit more organization and government response, and Han Tae Seok is actually one of the most intriguing characters in the show, but I feel like the show needed to escalate much more to make the stakes feel higher and for us to see the main leads in a more raw and desperate state. We got a little bit towards the end, but it felt very late and the scale just never felt as big as it could’ve been.

Additionally, when the plot started expanding, there were a few unnecessary plot elements that were included. The “people are the real monsters” theme is very common and I enjoy it, but it didn’t quite feel cohesive. Sometimes the character decisions didn’t really make sense, and the “zombies” ended up being pretty underutilizedwith the final resolution being too quick as it jumped to the epilogue.

Ultimately, I think this is a very character-driven drama, which is good if you like that sort of thing. I think the side characters were all very well done and there’s adequate commentary through them about human greed and selfishness — I just wish the drama moved the plot forwards while it was doing all that.

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Amazing Drama!

To be fair, it's my first time ever watching a zombie apocalypse themed drama. I've never been interested in stuff like this but considering that, I quite enjoyed this drama. This drama made me feel mad yet sad. The characters made me furious because of their selfishness and instinct to betray others for the sake of their own life. I kept telling myself to understand where they're coming from because they're suffering too but I just couldn't. But they got their punishments and I'm happy. I thought the main guy was going to die, but thankfully he didn't. Overall, I enjoyed watching this and I totally recommend.

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Few Zombies

The story is about a woman who becomes the main character after getting a scratch from a zombie. The zombie origin is from drugs that have already been distributed all over the world. The woman then survives along with her boyfriend and the people who live in the apartment. But, the military locked the apartment to make sure that no one is come out. This is where the story becomes interesting.

Sadly there are not many zombies like swarm zombies. It's only a dozen of zombies that they have taken on this K-drama.

I thought that the ending is... Just watch it by yourself XD

It's recommended to those who like zombies but not the hardcore one :)

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Tries to do too much and fails, although somewhat entertaining

This was interesting like as of writing this the rating is 8.8 and I'm not donkey enough to believe 8.8 on MDL means good because MDL often has ridiculous ratings for some of the worse things I've seen.

Now I won't spoil anything like most my reviews have no spoilers.

The synopsis was interesting but the story they had just did not work for me.

The issue is this series ...

- Has elements of comedy but not to the level of Shaun of the Dead or Zombieland
- Has elements of survival but not to the level of the move The Night Eats the World
- Has elements of investigation and discovery but not to the level of even The Last of Us or World War Z
- Has element of action but not the main focus like Train to Busan, All of Us Are Dead, World War Z etc...
- Feels like a light heart story so you don't get that gritty or dark vibe

What this means is it gets pulled into different directions and doesn't work.

Either you lean into a gritty-dark investigation type of series or you go comedy-survival for a light series. In the context of this series where it's about a fake marriage to get an apartment in a complex I feel the they should have leaned into the comedy side without investigating or military.

The story would have been better for me if it was like focused on a couple the male and female leads who aren't friends but mutuals because of other friends and they decided to fake a marriage. The comedy aspect is them hiding their fake marriage from nose-y residents in the complex.

Then you explore the residents and their mysteries/secrets while overtime they get outed. Then you have love develop between the leads because the whole fake to real love is something people like.

Thing is comedy doesn't rate well and has to be perfected but at the same time I got no clue who the heck is putting 8.8 on MDL for this series like that's just crazy to me.

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