TOO SHORT!
Its not short and sweet, it is too short! I need more!I love watching short series because netflix trained me to binge and its a torture to wait episodes weekly. However, the fact that i am wishing there were more episodes or at least longer ones is a testament that i fell in love with these characters and i would have love to see more, and to know more about their issue and characters.
Things i love:
1. Pacing
2. No mention of the word gay or homosexual or whatever their preference is.
3. No unnecessary dragging of the conflict. They were both adult enough to discuss and solve it.
4. Just the right amount of intimacy, and nooky nooky.
5. And lets not kid ourselves, Jang Eui Soo is so sexy even his hair deserves its own series.
Like i said, i want more. Maybe they can release an extended version. Will i recommend? Definitely!
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1The tale of two straight chefs who try to be lovers and enemies but fail at both.
I am keeping this short and sweet, because well, the series is very short and so sweet it is the equivalent of a diabetic coma. Now, the opening scene is a feast for the eyes, just like that other food BL Bite Me (which has a multitude of its own problems). That is, we fade into the "Hot" Chef of the duo showering, shirtless, and showing the goods as much as Asian television will allow.Now, I suppose this should have been a warning (Hindsight is 20/20 ya know). The production team on both shows were basically letting you know what you are here for, and its not story, characters, plot, or drama. You are here for hot guys and maybe two of those hot guys will kiss before it's all over and done with if you're lucky. Nothing more and nothing less.
If that is all you're looking for. If that is all that is required to be a success in your book. If that makes the time spent here decent enough. Then by all means, this will not disappoint. But if you expect anything, and I do mean anything, above this very low, low, (Did I say low?) bar, then you likely aren't gunna be too keen on this in the end.
Now, My Sweet Dear begins winningly enough. While the production shows its seams, the budget clearly at the shallow end of the Korean pool, the series does a decent job of choosing where to spend that budget. Yes, the show reminds me of 1990's US independent Gay cinema (Trick anyone? Anyone?) production, but it does have a banging soundtrack that is ready for all the girlies to hit shuffle to on Spotify. And well, that's the core audience here. As long as the music is good, the boys are hot, and they have lovingly long stares, it wins.
Well, kinda. You do get a trickling of "Well like on a snowy or rainy day where I just need something bubbly and cute," that seems to say its not REALLY worth your time, but will do if you need it to.
Jang Eui Soo as our new, attitude filled, hot shirtless chef Jung Woo, comes out swinging. In the beginning he gives it his all and makes a character you instantly do not like, but still want to drool over. He's cocky, arrogant, conniving, and all kinds of sexy that led every commenter from here to Mars to brainstorm backstory in hopes of clearing his asshole set-up. But, that backstory never materializes and, well, you are left with who and what his character is, and that aint very pretty.
Somewhere Eui Soo gives up. I'm not sure where, but his acting becomes more cardboard-like and his swagger dissolves as the story progresses. Did he realize what type of series he actually signed up for and just decided, ehh, who cares?
Lee Chan Hyung never manages to turn our other half Yoon Do Gun into anything more than a grumpy one dimensional statue. He seems bored from the beginning. Wooden in every interaction. And uncomfortable when the script tries to force him to do anything resembling intimacy. But, the character of Do Gun does come off as the victim and kind. So you can at least still root for him. If you want.
There is another player in Laura, the owner of Laura's, the restaurant that houses most of the story. She is a villain. That is all you will learn about her. So I guess, let's move on just as the series did.
Now, the premise is outrageous; a Michelin star chef being forced to compete with a no name to keep his job. It is preposterous in every way and, well, you just have to swallow it if you really want to sit through the 8 episodes. (They are only like 12 minutes so its an easy gulp.)
Somewhere in the middle you will become invested and will be treated to yet another long winded frolicking BL beach scene. Wasn't Why R U enough? This is basically the "middle" of our story development in the series, simply they go to the beach.
Then in episode 6 the underlying plot gets turned on high, but it never simmers. It just comes to a raging boil in episode 7 and then is immediately taken off the flame. When this very simple easy plot actually manages to create tension, conflict, and drama, it is snuffed out unceremoniously for the sake of creating a happy ending.
Characters serve the sketched outline of a plot and do not act or behave like human beings. Instead they are Ken Dolls ready to be posed in an empty forever smiling embrace for viewers to set as their wallpaper. You will get that kiss guys, but it will make you squirm in discomfort and make you wish that maybe they just held hands (I'm a gay guy and I'd rather see that from these two....that is bad). And well, for no apparent reason one lead forgives the other lead for everything, just because, and you are served an audience tested and approved ending.
OMG THEY ARE LIKE SO CUTE AND ARE MY LIFE. ITS SO FLUFFY AND AMAZING AND MAKES ME SO HAPPY. JES IS SOOO HOT!!!! DO YOU ALL KNOW WHERE I CAN FIND THE OST?
And Korea says YES!!!! We won again!!!!
But, did you? Really, is this what you wanna call a win?
Anyway, 4.0/ D-, 2-Stars. Hardly worth watching.
If you wanna add some zest, make a BINGO card before you start and mark down BL plot points and endings...It will be fun!
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This review may contain spoilers
Want Something Sizzling Hot? Look Elsewhere
Overall: Well that was a thing. Though it has similar flaws with most Korean BL (rushed/choppy plot), I'm downgrading it because of the odd/bad ending. Watched on Viki.Content Warnings: there's some manhandling - wrist grabbing, shoving to the ground
What I Liked
- the music
- the original premise of opposite personalities, we have a strict/disciplined guy vs free wheeling/out of the box thinker type guy. (unfortunately it didn't play out as I had hoped)
- that they showed some consideration for one another (not wearing perfume and covering sharp kitchen corners)
- juxtaposition/parallel of the opening scene between the two protagonists
- I did chuckle a couple of times
- that ear nibble/bite
Room For Improvement
- the nonsensical plot: why wouldn't the boss just fire the chef and hire the new one? The chefs should have teamed up at the end and opened their own restaurant together to teach the boss a lesson. There were no people at the fairground, how did the ferris wheel run? How do these chefs have so much free time? Why would the first chef's friends congratulate the 2nd chef???
- choppiness: scenes would just leap from one thing to another, how did they get out of the freezer?
- overdone cliches: "I can explain" (2 minutes of silence and gives no explanation) "I refuse to listen to your explanation (although you had 2 minutes to give me your explanation) and I will never speak or see you again in my entire life even though we work together"
- the flat, cliche evil female character who also has zero repercussions
- lack of explaining character motivations: why did the 2nd chef sign the contract? He has a really nice apartment so he can't be broke?
- the ending, they didn't talk/date for 3 months, what??? The parallel was nice but we all know they should have kissed at the very end.
- some shaky camerawork
- I felt bad for that octopus
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The biggest flaw of the show is the fact we truly know nothing about the characters. What are their motivations? Why do they do what they do? Why is Jung Woo working with Laura? What is his goal? Why is Do Gun so into keeping true to the basics and so against the innovations and new ideas? Why is he obsessed with working at Laura Dining? What is Laura’s deal? They did not explain anything. Literally not one thing. Who is Jung Woo anyway?
It’s also the first time I felt exactly zero romantic chemistry on screen between the main leads in BL. While I enjoyed their bickering and them having fun, their romantic scenes just made me feel slightly uncomfortable, because it felt like they were not that into it either.
The acting was good. Both Jang Eui Soo and Lee Chan Hyung have acting experience to back up their performance.
Production quality is what we usually get from k-bls: indie web drama vibes. Personally, I truly enjoy these aesthetics.
Overall, fine to watch when you are in between BLs and have nothing else to watch. Would not prioritize this over other shows though. It’s like a filler show.
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some serious cringe going on here but has Jang Eui Su in it so who cares
This is rubbish compared to Where Your Eyes Linger and my initial thoughts were Jungwoo's hair was terrible but he's still a complete beast so it was worth watching. Actually by the end I was into the hair. The other lead had a slight Jimin vibe about him (not sure where I'm getting that from - not his attitude - probably just the lips/wishful thinking). They both came across pretty straight but it didn't really bother me.Not much of a story going on but there were several cute bits and it was nice and short - easily digestible.
All the guys working in the kitchen were sweethearts.
The model ferris wheel unveiling was fucking hilarious.
The music was HORRIFICly bad
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Over romanticize love story
The eight episodes doesn't even give me the feelings of having butterflies but instead it was a moment of watching another cliché and fan service drama. Jang Eui Soo's controversy about his reply to a friend on his Instagram really affected my watching experience. I thought the story may lift up my mood or at least be a worthy of my time to watch but unfortunately it doesn't.The tension of the show is super irrelevant and doesn't explain in a clearer state. What's with the rivalry and head chef competition summoned by the owner of the restaurant? She can have fired the guy if she doesn't want him to work for her any longer or the guy himself just submit a resignation letter with facing such an unethical treatment. It's very annoying for me to see a plot that doesn't make any sense at all.
Another thing is that the existence of the supporting cast looks like nothing but a nuisance decoration, they did nothing but to laugh and standby on the kitchen. All of the actors in the show looks unnatural, it looks like they just acted because they needed.
The only good thing about the show is how they captured the satisfying and great looking dishes alongside with the playful camera angles of the scenes. This is probably one of the boring Korean BL drama I've ever watched. Below average show that explicit an uninteresting storyline.
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I Tried
I really tried with this series, like really tried. Of course, I was excited to start this knowing that Eui Soo would get to shine again. I had seen some comments and it seemed that everyone had mixed opinions. I went into this anyways with high expectations cause it's Eui Soo, and of course, I trust to trust him. (I've got to stop doing that). But, sadly, and for the umpteenth time in BL, I was let down. My Sweet Dear was a beautiful setting with the most uninteresting plot and gorgeous leads.Let's Dive In.
I was so conflicted on whether I should state that I completed this series or dropped it. But, it's a little bit of both? I'll go ahead and say I completed it, but I'm just putting it out there that I only made it to episode 6, and did some skipping and watch like the first 5 minutes of episode 8. I'm being so literal when I say that I fell asleep every single episode. Crap moved at such a slow pace that it felt like we were stuck in molasses or something. For the first 4 episodes, nothing goes anywhere, literally, nothing happens. I usually give the first episode a chance, since I usually don't like first episodes, but even after that, I'm just mouth-drooling bored.
I'm not even gonna lie, I really don't remember anything. I was so uninterested that my pet peeve of missing dialogue flew out of the window. I could care less what they were saying or what they were trying to accomplish. I got bits and pieces out of the slits of my eyelids while they began to close. From what I can remember, Eui Soo's character is some new guy in town that is trying to run the other lead out of business, but through something, they end up working together and falling in love? I'm sorry, I really didn't have the mental capacity to keep up with (or even care at that matter) with the plot. Eui Soo's good looks could only go so far (and man, what that dude is just so beautiful).
If this were a girl/guy story, I think it could've worked better. In my honest opinion, I don't believe this was the right role for Chan Hyung. His supposed "in-love" with Jung Woo is so unbelievable and pretty non-existent. He just doesn't pass that vibe. He tries, but it doesn't work, which isn't his fault, this was just not the role for him.
Overall, There's not much I can say because I was either half asleep or just started not caring. I can't believe I'm giving this series such a low rating, but I truly could not get into this series for the life of me. If I'm 6 episodes into the 8 that it has and still can not find any appeal, there's a problem. I feel so bad for not liking this more than I feel like I should've, but god, it was just so boring. there was no chemistry, and to be completely honest, I didn't love Eui Soo's character (besides his ridiculously beautiful stature and windswept hair).
Ratings:
Story: 6 (I feel like this is pushing it. I want to go for more of a 5, and maybe slightly less since I don't remember much of anything at all, but I'm giving 3 stars alone for just me not paying attention all the way, and the three others go towards the slight cheesy tropes that I can't help but love).
Acting: 7.5 (This feels kind of low, but I kind of was too bored to really pay attention to the acting. I didn't like Chan Hyung all that much, but Eui Soo was decent. I'm giving the majority of the stars to the supporting characters cause I thought they were good, and kind of gave me some sense of relief. Another star goes to Eui Soo's smile alone).
Music: 3.5 (Wasn't distracting, but wasn't noticeably good either).
Rewatch Value: 1 (I set all my RV to 1 cause I need to keep watching, not rewatching, but there isn't a slight chance that I'll ever even come back to this series. Maybe if I feel bad for not actually finishing it, but honestly, I won't).
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Underdeveloped and boring
Again and again, we're getting underdeveloped snippet-shorts from Korea, that should be producing quality LGBT shows over and over again. We keep being disappointed and go back to Thai/Taiwanese dramas that offer much much more. My Sweet Dear is not an exception to this rule.
STORY:
Talented head chef Do Gun is being challenged by a newcomer chef Jung Woo, and the shitty restaurant owner Laura. Laura decides make both chefs compete for the title of the head chef at her restaurant. Working together brings the men closer and they develop feelings for each other. But the Jung Woo holds secrets, so will the main leads end up together or not?
SPOILERS AHEAD
People, none this makes sense.
Do Gun helped Laura get her first Michelin star. What is the goal of a 1-star restaurant owner? Getting the 2nd star obviously. And not by firing the old chef!! Okay, adding a new one might be a way to go. But Jung Woo's lack of experience is baffling. What is wrong with Laura? She wants to fire Do Gun, so what's the point of this competition? Also, a Korean wanting to open an Italian restaurant chain around the world? THIS is the plot? Are you even serious???
Dear Do Gun, if my boss disrespected me this way, not telling me the head chef that there will be a new employee coming in who might replace me, basically telling me I should start seeking for a new employment, just in case, I'd be completely pissed and hand my notice immediately. Laura has put Do Gun in some sort of restaurant style Hunger Games, and she knew who's winning anyway. She had a nametag ready with Jung Woo's name already, for goodness sake.
And for this whole "romance" thing. Do Gun might enjoy the presence of Jung Woo. But getting so emotional after 2-3 weeks of "romancing" that was constricted to bashful handholding and few smooches? Do Gun being heartbroken because some arsehole turned out to be a liar makes me realise that he's taking this whole thing too seriously. Yes ok, Jung Woo's feelings might be real and there is a real spark between them. But this whole "relationship" built on lies just screams of red flags.
Dear Do Gun, pack up, leave Laura and Jung Woo and stay away from them. Get drunk with your friends, cry a bit about that arsehole ex-boyfriend who stole your job, and that shitty boss who disrespected you, your dedication and your talent, and move on!
CAST:
The only reason ANY of this holds and makes sense is the acting, especially Jang Eui Soo who plays Jung Woo. He'd have a chemistry with a chair, let's be honest about it. Also, he looks great with long hair. I've seen other BL shows with Jang Eui Soo so I know he's excellent. It's a shame that his talent is being wasted on dramas like this one.
On-screen Do Gun, played by Lee Chan Hyung is doing very well too. You can see the quite good engagement with the character. But he can't do much, if the screenwriters are treating his character like a naive stupid child that is used by his boss and coworkers.
Other actors are just a bland mix that cannot shine enough because of a poor writing and a short screen time.
PRODUCTION:
It was an alright produced show, clearly shot during the pandemic. The streets and areas are empty. For a luxurious restaurant, it doesn't have many customers, but I guess there were restrictions in place during the shoots.
Again, too short for any proper character or relationship development. Those Korean short BLs for Viki start seeming like a weekend project. I don't see any dedication or attempts to make it something ambitious. Strongberry also produces shorts, but these are better developed stories that are well thought.
Episodes of this drama are predictable. You know in which episode the main characters are gonna develop "feelings" for each other, when there will be a fall-out, you know the ending. Nothing new. At times I found myself thinking about other things than following the subs and still didn't loose much of a story.
As for the English subs, these were excellent, thanks to team on Viki. First two episodes are free to watch, the rest is behind a paywall.
MUSIC:
I finished binging the show and hour ago and I absolutely cannot recall or hum any of the tunes that were played. I remember them being some basic k-pop songs that did not interfere much and were not annoying. Just boring and bland.
The only thing that stuck in my head was the music box melody which was 'O Tannenbaum', and it made me laugh a bit. Classic German Christmas song as a music box melody. Okay, I haven't seen that one before.
OVERALL:
Predictable. Boring. Underdeveloped plot with holes.
You want a 2021 restaurant-oriented Korean BL drama that is a bit better developed than My Sweet Dear? Try Tasty Florida instead. It's got slightly more reasonable plot. And no music boxes playing German Christmas songs.
P.S. Poor octopus.
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Fair enough
Usually i prefer lots of kiss scene and few sex scene when comes to any series. This bl drama is simple and sweet but not according to my expectations. A guy name choi came suddenly as competitors for yoon do gun. At first it says he is very famous and abroad garduate topper students but u will know slowly, they starts with head up and end ups getting together. At first it was great in the middle suddenly get into on thing their romance. I wish u they could have shown little more about their fight and love.After some point story again came back to the track, deceit, love, romance you can see everything. This simple love story gives u hopes of love. If u reality then obviously bl drama gives of some hop but when reality hits u, u feel lik these drama are just,it rarely happens that next competitor is also gay and u feel in love with that guy. But somehow u want to feel this type of romance. Thanks to maker who created simple yet beautiful love story.
Interms of story i will say they are good except slightly and sudden change in the middle, foe suddenly changed to curious, otherswise overall i can say good story in korean bl series after few misses. Interms of acting they are good enough. Handsome boys with emotion and good enough acting makes u feel they are real. Especially i like the emotion display of yoon do gun, you can read his eyes what he is feeling, i can see his acting talent. Interms of music, direction, cinematography everything is good.
I can say overall this drama is worthy to watch. This simple yet sweet drama will give some hopes of love from around you. Binge worthy
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Strong start, such a confusing ending...
Up until episode 7 I was really defending this drama. It's very aesthetically pleasing, the actors have nice chemistry, plus they're gorgeous, and the soundtrack is wonderful. I was really enjoying it! It's a cute and short drama. They don't all need to be groundbreaking.But episode 7 and 8... The conflict is confusing and the resolution even more so. The angst went from 0 to 100 so fast and back to 0 just as quickly... Jung Woo says let me explain and I thought we'd get some clarity but we don't even get to hear it because Do Gun's already moved past it. Just when I thought it couldn't get any more confusing, suddenly it's three months later but they've not seen each other? Why?
I'm glad I watched it, they're cute and there's definitely some noteworthy scenes but in terms of the story, while I was fine when it didn't look like it had a solid plot at first, they lost me when it all stopped making sense. I genuinely do not get Laura's problem...
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It's not bad as most the reviews out here, but certainly has its flaws
Well looking at the trailer and the title, I wasn't exactly expecting anything way too serious and dramatic and anticipated it too be all the way fluff for the mainstream female BL watchers out there. But I was wrong! The progression of the two guys slowly getting close and intimate with each other, until one of them gave in and braced his inner desires, felt very natural and realistic to me (Me being a gay guy myself). The situations is somehow believable and something which may happen in real life.Well most of the watchers out there may disagree with me, but as for the mainstream BL watchers out there, whom I know are mostly female fangirls and not actual LGBTQ people out there, I sincerely request you guys to take know how most real gay relationships work by perhaps asking any gay friend or colleague you may know, before you go ahead and start ranting about your expectations from the show. Most gay relationships, at least the major 90%, evolve from lust, sexual explorations and curiosity, and hardly from just mere emotions and conversations, and your cutesy falls and cheesy gestures. The gay world won't really fit into your typical stereotypical straight world.
The show had its fare share of BL tropes, but were not as much evident and cringey like say Light On Me or Tasty Florida, which I felt had mostly plasticky 2D characters with no sense of realism at all.
The show gave somewhat indie vibes, paired with good amount of OSTs made it a very pleasant and refreshing watch. The show doesn't go hardcore into the gay world like the small production houses like strongberry and matchbox go, but doesn't go too BLish either. It was a subtle watch. The chemistry between the leads felt intimate enough, though i expected more of a proper passionate kiss from them.
Now coming to the bad parts. The script had very lousy writing. The writer just made sure to fit in every cliché BL trope into the time slot, enemies to lovers, evil female villain, drama, happy ending. The female character is not exactly a villain here in the story, for it is her restaurant and the shortfall of profit gives her every right to replace the head chef, but just to maybe have a more diplomatic approach as to not come off as extremely materialistic, made her first employee go through a self test (not so plausible justification of her actions, but yeah :/). The story did have hell number of plotholes. Everything was going on smoothly until we reach the final two episodes
The ending was the worst part of the show. Without giving any sort of justification by Jung Woo for his actions, Do Gun was so quick to forgive Jung Woo for his inexplicable actions which stopped his source of livelihood, just for the pure sake of a Happy Ending. The concepts for the names of the dishes were too lousy and just felt like a freshman winding up his last minute assignment. The colleagues who spend more time with Do Gun, instead of feeling bad for their star chef, started cheering for Jung Woo instead. Why would any sensible colleague do that?
Not the worst show to be watched, but rather a laid back and relaxed watch. Best to be enjoyed in your free time and preferably binge watch as it's short enough. Not to keep too many expectations.
*I AM MOSTLY LENIENT WITH THE KOREAN BL RATINGS AS THEY HAVEN'T YET FULLY EVOLVED INTO A PROPER MARKET YET, BUT I CERTAINLY WOULDN'T LIKE IT DELVING INTO A CRINGEY UNREALISTIC FANSERVICE WHICH MAJORITY OF THAI BLS DO*
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Nope!
is it me? Am i the problem or what? Maybe I was too excited for the show that it set my expectations so high? Arghhh, it sadden me to say this but this was not it for me. I ussually enjoy K-Bls for sure but this one was not the one.Am i the only one who did not feel a strong chemistry between the two male leads or? Is it just me? I need to know! the romance between them was not mathing. (cries in bed)
They are both good actors but in this one it left me with more questions. Who are they really? What is their backstory? why are they the way they are? their love felt more like a basic friendship and not a romance. Again is it just me that felt this?
Nope maybe if the plot was better.
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