1) The first couple was cute but I found them a bit boring and the masturbation addiction really threw me off, as I didn’t expect it to center the first 2 episodes. I liked that they openly mentioned how sex/masturbation compared to some dramas where they hide away from it especially highschool ones.
I kept watching as I didn’t know what to expect and was pleasantly surprised with the second couple.
2) This couple need to have their own drama, the actors chemistry and looks really kept me hook on their episodes. Their plot is good, the fake dating trope was really well done and their end of story really wrapped up well. Their kissing was so much better than some other couples in dramaland, it wasn’t cringy or awkward as you would expect from highschool dramas. Like I already said if you don’t want to watch the full drama episode 3-5 are the much watch and you will not regret it. If I ever rewatch the drama I would be likely to just go back to this couple as I already done twice already.
3) I was slightly disappointed with the 3rd couple, I really didn’t like how the plot surrounded the girl’s weight, (especially the fact that in my opinion she ain’t fat but more towards healthy). Additionally I couldn’t enjoy the 3rd couple to the fullest as the second couple really put the bar high and therefore it was hard for them to keep me as hooked. The ending also left me slightly dissatisfied, but overall this drama is a good watch.
The music didn’t stick out to me so I won’t talk about it as I got nothing to say.
Was this review helpful to you?
The Woe And Joys Of Adolescence …
Teen and high school storylines are not an unfamiliar subject in South-Korean popular culture , with myriads of teen films, productions and dramas being churned out every year en masse in South-Korea. However whilst many South-Korean film and drama enthusiasts find themselves drawn again and again to these setups , the typical depiction of “squeaky clean” high school life has left many enthusiasts torn about whether South-Korean directors and producers should try to push the boat out towards a more “ realistic” presentation of teens.
‘ Adult Trainee’ can be found somewhere between daring and eye-brow raising - belonging in one of the notably categories of South-Korean “ teen productions” which attempts to market itself at an older age demographic as well as being “ raw and truthful”.
This is certainly reflected within casting choices of rookie and lesser-known actors as our main lineup . However whilst this does create certain benefits for the storyline by respectfully a more mundane presence of the characters onscreen ( aside from the initially controversial casting decision of Miyeon), certain line deliverances and scenes admittedly could differ within quality and performance. Of course this isn’t to critique the cast or bring down their talents as actors. However it is crucial to point out to those expecting impeccable performances that you may be slightly disappointed by the final result.
The storyline itself is composed of three storylines ( and evidently three “main couples” ). Rising rookie actor Ryu Eui Hyun is the notable main character of the first few episodes as Seo Jae Min; a high-school boy addicted to sexual gratification and attempts abstinence in order to focus upon spending more time with his crush. Yet before we could even delve more into the highs and lows of Jae Min’s tale we are suddenly whisked away to another school and experience through notably conservative high schooler Yu Ra ( Jo Yoo Jung)’s exploration of casual relationships with a boy, as well as our final story through the problem of single high - schooler Na Eun( Kwon Young Eun)’s first experiences of love and feeling self-conscious about her body.
The seven-episode miniseries wasted no time within diving into each storyline and their problems, yet with a short time to cover these plot points and characters, it should come as no surprise that these executed plot points and characters could often feel incomplete.
Admittedly‘ Adult Trainee’ does interweave the subtext with some more “risky” issues of teen relationships. However it often felt as though the show wasn’t entirely sure which direction to go with these messages at times with more serious scenarios often being “ fixed” by feelings, romantic relationships or love, rather than taking the screen-time to focus upon character-building or growth.
In the miniseries we rarely saw these opportunities to understand more about our main characters’ social and emotional interactions.
Admittedly‘ Adult Trainee’ does interweave the subtext with some more “risky” issues of teen relationships. However whilst these “ problems” did touch upon some realistic issues for teens and helped to motivate plot-angst , ‘ Adult Trainee’ rarely took time to diverge from problems defining the characters. More realistic teen issues such as relationships with friends or family, likes, dislikes and searching for personal identity were rarely touched upon and even our main characters often felt shoehorned into particular tropes such as the “ infatuated teenage boy”, the “ goody-two shoes high-schooler” and the “ bullied girl” rather than well-defined or subversive approaches to the cliche archetypes.
In between the more “heavy” topics in ‘ Adult Trainee’, the miniseries does interweave the plot with notably more comical scenes. The comedy is fairly lighthearted- enough to generate perhaps a chuckle for audiences and necessary to take the weight entirely off certain issues , but admittedly variable in quality from scenes and context.
The ending of the series acted as a deadlock for ‘ Adult Trainee’ - enough to just briefly finish off some plot points of the final storyline, but admittedly lacking in an over-arching sense of fulfilment and satisfactory completion for audiences.
So this leaves the ultimate question; is ‘ Adult Trainee’ actually worth watching? ‘ Adult Trainee’ is a short miniseries which attempts to present itself as a more “ realistic” depiction of teenagers. ( Alongside comical scenes which may differ for audiences dependent on personal tastes.)Acting performances admittedly did vary from certain episodes and scenes but a possibly unfamiliar cast lineup for audiences will likely give the series some fresh appeal. The more “ daring” messages of the series whilst addressed, admittedly did feel slightly downgraded and lacked an impactful punch. As a consequence whilst the split narrative of the series for different episodes spiced up the storyline, characters often fell flat due to little time for audiences to digest their personalities and growth onscreen by instead often being shoehorned into romantic setups.
Overall ‘ Adult Trainee’ was the epitome of a “ binge-watch” drama to watch when you have nothing else to do; not unwatchable and certainly entertaining within its different plots, setups and heartwarming messages , but admittedly lacking in more subtle character growth, plot buildup and diverse as well as more relatable and realistic issues for teens.
Was this review helpful to you?
definitely a MUST watch! not your typical webdrama
i personally loved the 3rd couple more than the other two but all 3 couples in one school and their stories are all really good too!- couple 1 showcases a teenage guy and his journey to become a better person for his crush. (ep 1-2)
- couple 2 is about childhood best friends who makes a "fake" relationship deal; (ep 3-5) while
- couple 3 is about an "overweight" girl who always gets bullied and her popular guy crush ! (ep 6-7)
though you might find it "cliche" it's really NOT! i cried towards the ending and each couple's approach towards every situation is realistic as all leads are teenagers. the ost too is so good as well! you'll find yourself smiling alone before going to bed like an idiot because all 3 couples has huge chemistry. go ahead and give it a try!
Was this review helpful to you?
a pleasantly relatable watch
Kudos to this series for being straightforward when it comes to the uncomfortable but relatable topics it chose to tackle in it’s short run. Ofc more could have been explored, but I am impressed with what I saw. Korea, can we have more types of these shows with these types of characters? this was a pretty good show.The show focuses on three teenagers experiencing different issues in life and figuring out how to get through them. My personal favorite story was Jaemin’s. The bits with the online class he was taking had me laughing. Not only was it relatable but I can totally picture a guy doing a no-fap challenge to get a girl he likes. Yu Ri’s story hit close to home with me because it’s kind of what I’m going through currently in my life. I’m sure a lot of girls out there are waiting for a genuine guy with good intentions to come their way but instead end up feeling disappointed and used. I’ve yet to see the last episode but the ending to the first two stories are satisfactory. I’m glad to have finally found a show with teens who have realistic issues that are relevant to their age because you don’t see that much in the kdrama world.
The acting is good too despite the no-name cast(except for Miyeon). All the actors involved seemed to genuinely portray teens in an approachable way, which was fantastic for the viewer. If you’re looking for something quick, lighthearted, and not too silly, then this show is for you.
Was this review helpful to you?
Good Enough
Korean Drama "Adult Trainee" is a short drama that sets itself apart from the rest of short school dramas because it deals with more taboo ish issues, especially the sexual awakening of the students. However, and even though the mood was light and fun, the stories weren't equally enjoyable.Admirably, the second one was the best, with a good couple that had chemistry, along with an intense romance. The first story, on the other hand, was cute, but concluded rather awkwardly. The third one had potential, but the ending that was given to it could have been better.
Other than that, the drama had nice performances and a good pace.
So, overall, 6 out of 10.
Was this review helpful to you?
Exijo un drama completo de la segunda pareja!!!!
Solo vengo a decir que lo único que disfruté del drama fueron los episodios 3, 4 y 5, la interacción de la segunda pareja me pareció excelente, pero que gran desperdicio, la trama de ellos dos fue lo más interesante de todo el drama.Del episodio 1 y 2, la parejita muy cute, pero solo eso.
y ni hablar de la última, no me gustó nada como trataron el tema alimenticio. Se puede ver que la chica está bien, se ve saludable, pero decidieron hacer creer que para ser aceptada tiene que estar en los huesos!
La chica simplemente quiere verse y sentirse "bonita" por lo que dicen los demás, nunca piensa en ella y su felicidad, que triste.
Was this review helpful to you?
Good as Hell!
I recently watched this drama and I suggest you give it a try.Idk I see many comments and reviews saying they liked the second story, but for me first 2 episodes were epic ✨
Their acting was so so good...and the story was awesome.
About the second story ep 3-5 I liked it, but it wasn't my type.?
I have read stories like this, so it was pretty boring for me (a type of cliche)
I got a little bored so I skipped a lot of parts in ep 4 and 5.
And finally, I got bored so I dropped the drama.
I somehow tried to watch the third story...but I couldn't ?
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
This is just a rant about the last storyline
I didn't watch the first couple, the second was definitely the best, but the third was deeply disappointing. The closest I've witnessed in a Korean drama/movie where the girl wasn't super thin and perfect and got the guy is Lovely Sam Soon (and she's maybe 10 lbs overweight; wouldn't even be a thing in Western media) the rest are all about people who get surgery to become beautiful or they end up alone but learn a valuable lesson about self love or whatever. It's ridiculous.Did I think she should date Kang Joon? Not really given her endearment for him was mostly based on his looks. Could she have ended up with someone else who liked her as she was? Um, yeah. And she should have.
I don't know why they try to be inclusive while also giving girls who look like her the impression they're not deserving of a normal romantic storyline that isn't centered completely around accepting their weight like... isn't trying to be so blatantly body positive but not giving characters like this the same endings as the others just saying people who aren't the beauty standard aren't normal but should love themselves anyway? What message are you trying to get across by friendzoning these characters anyway it doesn't come of as representation at all.
Was this review helpful to you?
So refreshing
I was so skeptical about watching another teen drama with mean girls, tiny skirts and rich hunks. It's tiring that there are infinite number of those.However this turned out to be such a pleasant surprise. Candid, cute, refreshing.
Story one and three especially are so refreshing. Feels good to know that there are smart sensible teenagers even in the cruel world of selfish high schoolers.
And of course story two - what a heart throb that kid Rowoon or however he spells his name- is. The FL is also not bad in that story. Very cute first love story.
Clean production, great music, smartly made - very sharp and appealing drama.
Was this review helpful to you?
Different with a twist of Funny
Okay so honestly i stumbled across by an edit on Youtube which showed the second couple and thought okay this is interesting.Firstly I must say that this is the first Korean drama that I have come across that's really short and literally only 30 minutes long in each episode.
So the first two episode are to do with the high school that has addiction to porn and masturbating's which i am sure every man nightmare at around that age, anyway he likes a girl who thinks that is disgusting, (clearly she has never done it herself or gets wet) and he joins a group that helps stops the habit, things go his way and he makes it through 100 days and gets the girl in the end.
The second couple is for me the best, not only was the ML really good looking and you knew how to carry himself well, but here you got the conservative girl who is a little mad that her bestie and her ex have hooked up and she is bothered by this as this was her first love, first for me my bestie hooking up with an is definitely no friend of mine, and also I did not really like the way the friend always seemed to be wanting to hang with her and sort of throwing in her face that she got the man. Anyway she comes up with a crazy idea to have a fake boyfriend and boy next door is only too happy to help out, I did love the scene of him doing pull up and she gets to peak through the window (lol) this couple was really good and funny compared to the first one.
The other couples well there is not much there to say, there stories are pretty the same I really didn’t like how the plot surrounded the girl’s weight, additionally I couldn’t enjoy the 3rd couple to the fullest.
Overall ‘ Adult Trainee’ was the epitome of a “ binge-watch” drama to watch when you have nothing else to do; not unwatchable and certainly entertaining within its different plots, setups and heartwarming messages , but admittedly lacking in more subtle character growth, plot buildup and diverse as well as more relatable and realistic issues for teens.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
This is strictly about Eps. 3-5 (GO WATCH NOW!)
I was hesitant to watch this show because A.) I do not normally watch web dramas and B.) I like committing to completing the dramas I watch, I didn't want to skip around. HOWEVER, I just could not resist this drama, it was everywhere on all my social media feeds so eventually I just gave in.I tried watching episodes 1-2 and 6-7, but I could not get into the first story line and I had already spoiled the third story for myself out of excitement and it left me disappointed. Taking all of this into account I decided to just check out the middle episodes to see what all the hype was about and I ended up thoroughly enjoying it.
What was so good about it?
1. Friends to couple done right! The two main leads were soooo cute and likable and their transition into liking each other wasn't awkward or lacking in any way.
2. It was realistic, in that unlike other school based dramas where anything over a rating of PG-13 is never mentioned or acknowledged, here it was embraced. This drama approached these subjects in a hilarious and relatable way that I found charming rather than harsh or unpleasant.
3.I loved that there was no mean second lead female and instead the FL made a new friend that added much more to the story.
4. The FL held conservative views on the physicalities of being in a romantic relationship and stuck to her beliefs until the end. I liked that she didn't change (not that otherwise thinking is wrong), but I like that she was confident enough to follow what she felt and go at her own pace it was a refreshing take.
5. KIM NAM HO, so fine, so charismatic, and in the end so adorable. What he said in the end to the FL's question had me screaming!!! I felt like I had to rewatch everything again to re-analyze their interactions. The amount of times I replayed that single scene, it was endless....
If you need a quick drama fix, just want to kick back and embrace the quirks of hilarious high school love, this is the one for you. Its endearing and warrants more episodes, I am sad that the story was only 3 episodes long and not even its own singular drama. I hope they make a remake with more episodes or something similar. I also expect to see more main lead roles from both Yoon Hwan (Kim Nam Ho) and Jo Yoo Jung (Ban Yu Ra).
The only slightly irritating thing that had a little redemption:
Ban Yu Ra (FL)'s "bestfriend," Kang Da Hyun was so irritatingly 'innocent,' tbh it felt like mostly an act. What kind of friend does that? But also Kang Da Hyun's pushy-ness to double date and have the FL take pics of her kissing her ex-boyfriend. These situations made me want to claw at the screen. I understand that everyone has the right to their happiness and like good for her for finding someone she loves, but it was mostly at the expense of Ban Yu Ra. I was so glad that FL took a break from her supposed BFF at the end, and expressed how uncomfortable she felt. I wish that KDH would have come to FL first and told her everything because her having to find that out on accident was probably more hurtful. KDH would have been a good character and likable if it didn't feel like she was purposefully being naive and aggravatingly irreproachable.
*Feel free to disagree, all was written with respect and simply to express my opinions.*
Was this review helpful to you?
Awesome as a mini-drama!
1st story (ep 1-2): 8.52nd story (ep 3-5): 9.5
3rd story (ep 6-7): 9
If i rewatch this show, will rewatch only for the 2nd story. But the other dramas are not bad either. They're good too. These dramas focused on some uncommon sensitive issues of teenagers in a very subtle way. The 2nd story had the perfect blend of romance and comedy. Wish there was a 16-ep drama about this couple. Other two stories did not have much romance element but watching them was fun as well. Also, I'm a very impatient person, can't keep watching slow stories. All stories in this drama were quite fast. Do watch it if you are also into fast-paced drama and romcoms!
Was this review helpful to you?
