Fall for You (2022)

Extraordinary You/ Tiger and Rose vibes

There are a lot of dramas out there that are jumping on the "person falls into a novel" idea that Tiger and Rose did so well, sadly a LOT of them fail to live up to their hype and the story ends up not making any sense. This one though I think really did a great job of coming up with a unique take on it. The episodes are a little less than 30 minutes, and topping out at at 20 ep total it's a pretty quick watch. I recommend putting this on your watchlist asap.

It's a high school romance drama set inside a novel but it deals with a lot of real world topics in a realistic way including bullying, eating disorders, escapism, and personal growth. Will those issue really resolve themselves the way they do in the drama if we act in the same way as they did? Probably not, but how do we know if we don't try? I liked the overall message that was delivered and thought it was done well, entertaining, engaging ,and still gave us the lesson.

There's a bit of existential crisis/edge to the final third of the series but I like how it was addressed and wrapped up in the final episode.

Final Grades:
Story was pretty good, had one or two things that could have been tweaked a little so I gave it 9.0
Actors did a great job, I never fell out of any scene. 10
Music was enjoyable but forgettable, I don't remember any songs and I'm not humming it after it's over. 6.0
Rewatch, definitely. It's a short and cute series and I'll watch it again someday soon. 10.

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A cute, short drama somewhere in between True beauty and Extraordinary you

Overall the drama was great: I’m a sucker for a high school romance and it was addictive, I loved the enemies to friends to lovers trope of their romance as well as the fact that they still maintain the enemies aspect even when they’re in a relationship. I would’ve rated this so much higher if not for the fact that, A. there is NO KISS (unacceptable), and B. the ending was so confusing - this may be intentional so the viewer can decide how they believe everything ended as well as the dynamic between the two worlds but I’m just simply confused because I have no imagination (although I’ve just read some other reviews with good theories so I’ll probably go with one of them). :) But definitely worth the watch!

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Extraordinary You Feel in a New and Better Taste

At first, I thought that this drama will be similar to Extraordinary You, but actually it brings different taste. I even like it more than Extraordinary You because I like the characters of both FL and ML in this drama more. Their characters are really more favourable to me. I'm sorry for the comparison, but I think it may help audiences decide whether to watch it or not.

Story
It makes your heart fluttered. I've been watching so many kdramas since Boys over Flower era, but this drama makes my heart fluttered the most in all time. At a few episodes before the end, I also cried while being emotional with the drama. There is no part making me feel bored at all while watching it. Instead, it was so addicted that I cannot stop watching. I even had meals late and slept late to watch this.

Acting
Actors and actresses are quite new to acting, but ML and FL perfectly portray their chemistry that make audiences' heart seriously fluttered, so they have shown almost perfect acting skills. On top of that, their visual is so attractive. I hope they will have a bright future. I will watch them again if they act as a main role in future dramas.

Music
Music in this drama is not bad. It suits the drama perfectly except that it's not so addictive.

Rewatch
I'm already watching it again now because I cannot get over it.

In overall, it's a must watch for those who like school dramas or fantasy dramas.

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like extraordinary you-concept, but definitely a web drama (bubbly type of genre) version of it

(sorry for the grammatical errors :") )
I was watching this web series because they said it has a similar concept to one of the most talked kdrama series last 2020, extraordinary you. And well, this was a new updated one plus its not just about romance, its reflecting about decisions in life as well but through a fantasy concept. I like it actually, but I guess it would be nice if it has more scenes of discovering her story of why she existed other than because of her own decision of playing as the character of a webtoon series. But still I do love the concept, but it's more of a cute-bubbly type of genre that is similar to the kdrama series. I'll just make this note short since I'll be explaining what I like about this drama.

STORY/PLOT
First thing, the story tells about an Idol who is struggling about her career from fame and controversy, yoo jebi who unexpectedly turned into a character from a webtoon novel that she always read every time she gets stressed a lot. As she entered to the novel world, there she met her own character crush and the main male lead, je soo oh who fall in love with her from enemies to lovers. She met all of the characters from the novel, as her character was a villain turned to main female lead. As she ended up realizing her life from all the troubles she gets involved, with the help of the other characters, jin woo, shin han se, and lee dami. Well as the plot says, the story seems to be a well known concept like extraordinary you!! but then, since this is a web drama, I guess the concept is far from the drama itself. I like how it give me butterflies, especially the characters from the web drama too! But then, the story concludes of how their first encounter was, and that was when they were online chatmates!! How cute :')) Sadly, the other characters need to have an ending same with the main casts of their journey as they entered in the real world other than in the novel world :'))

CHARACTER & CAST
(i'll be mentioning the casts that I loved only :>) So there are two of them that are very known to me, especially the main leads. Starting off with Nana (from Woo!Ah!) as Yoo Jabi, Nana's acting projects are known to be all romance comedy with a bubbly character as always. I saw her for the very first time when she acted in a web series Mimicus with Jo Yuri!! Her characters are good ones and especially it has a bubbly personality because it really do fits her!! With her character, I think I do really find Nana pretty and attractive and her acting skills... hmmm need to discover her more her future projects soon, but still rooting for her since she has so much potential she could prove!! Then, here with have the handsome male lead from the novel and irl, Kim Jae Won as Je Soo Oh. Well I saw him first from a web drama series "Romanced" and from there I do really find him attractive and handsome as well! I also just discovered that he was also casted from a korean-philippine series as well directed by well-known actress director in the philippines Kristen Fulgar!! Wow, he chose this role as the attractive prince character from a novel and gosh he first with this role as well!! As his character, I do love it that the fact that he's like Haru from extraordinary you hahaha. A kind of clueless character but at the same time a heartthrob character!! Not that typical eye turner character that girls are falling in love with him all the time. But overall, his acting skills reached even higher a bit, but same as Nana, he must enter new roles that he never had to encounter it yet. And here, we have Yoon Hyun Sook as Jin Woo. tbh, its my first time seeing him in this role and I have less to say about him. His character is very loving and I do hope I could see him in his future drama projectsss! And lastly, the second lead who never gave a chance to be with Jebi, Shin Han se acted by Keum Dong Hyun. Wow I think he's an idol but his visuals are very attractive and I do really admire him so much! Hoping to see him casted in another web drama or drama series (plus I get to know him from this web drama for the first time hehe)

Overall, this was kind of a long note haha. But I do love how I gave an opportunity to watch this web drama and how I liked about how it was helping me killing my vacant time :')) But this might be way much better if the story needs to add more concepts like mystery and such. Also give ample time as well with the other characters to show their ending, they deserve a better treatment the same as the main leads :')) A good watch!!

Good for binge watch, really great for beginners as well! As I noticed, I think I'm getting old by these type of concept or genre of web dramas because next year I'll be turning 18 haha :')) but this was a great one tbh and how I wish I could have the same relationship as the lead couple like fate :'>

rooting for the casts!! hoping for better recognition!!

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amazing drama. for fantasy, slice of life and drama genre lovers, a must watch

i was pleasantly surprised by this drama. I started watching this drama only knowing the ML from romanced- so i cant describe to you my shock when i discovered there were 3 idols on the cast list? Nana and hyunsuk did absolutely amazing, especially hyunsuk- id love to see him in more dramas he plays his role so well. nana aces the main lead role well aswell, really embodying the character. Id say the romance in this is pretty good although this show is almost definitely not romance orientated (no hug or kiss). Plotwise, this show is perfect, my only criticism is at the end, some things go unexplained. i have my own theory that makes a lot of sense; all the characters live in the real world, but are transported into the novel universe in which time moves a lot faster than real life. Only some are conscious that they are in the novel (jebi, hanse)- the others think it is a dream hence their unawareness.

Honestly aside from the things about the novel universe that go unexplained and the lack of updates on the other characters at the end, this drama is almost perfect. Id recommend watching it.

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Had potential to be interesting…

Warning: this review is me being too passionate about a throwaway title from 2022, so there will be spoilers and autistic rambling, read at your own risk. (Also, I am a Zenith [fan of EPEX] so you may consider my bias towards Hanse [aka Keum Donghyun] to be tied to my adoration for Donghyun, when it is not.)

This show could’ve been amazing, but it very obviously suffered from a Webtoon writing style. I will go over a few comprehensive points of why this show failed to have a completely interesting plot.

1) Writing and Plot Screentime
2) The Magic System
3) The Hanse Principle (aka a waste of Character Chemistry)

Writing & Plot Screentime:

This show isn’t written terribly, which I should say hearing from me is high praise. I am very very picky with show writing, especially with phrasing and while I am not fluent in Korean the translation I read was quite one-to-one with the scenes so it was a lot more cohesive. [thanks cixif~]

I still have a lot of gripes with how the characters were implemented and how for the first half of the series Hanse disappears, which???? I mean I get why, and maybe there was a schedule error, but he is introduced in the first two eps and then is gone so like- anyways.

Jebi being an idol did make the beginning interesting, but it gets ignored deeper into the first half of the series because she no longer is one in the world of the novel. I think that was a bad decision, because being an idol, especially from a young age changes how you react to the world and go about your life. There could’ve been something interesting showing her adjust to not having to watch her actions constantly, especially since she was dealing with false accusations in the real world. This could’ve been such an interesting series if it dealt with how she genuinely struggles with having attention on her 24/7 to not having it, and how it made her anxious. She adapted too well, and even if the story is one she knew intimately, it would still mess her up to be there. Jebi didn’t even know where the original character lived, like I think there could’ve been an interesting emotional moment to oversee. Especially, considering the whole entire show was supposed to be about having these 2D characters pop to life.

All of them are still 2D the deeper you get into the show, we barely get information of any of their backstories, they all barely grow as people. We get no home life, beyond throw away comments, after Jebi becomes the “main heroine,” Dami and Eunhyun become background characters mostly, and the only times they get mentionined or shown is tied to Jebi in some way. I don’t know why Jaesuoh gets more background information than the main character, but it’s definitely Webtoon writing coming in strong.

I wish they could’ve balanced the plotline better, to make the show less about the love triangle between Jebi, Jaesuoh, and Jinwoo (which my poor baby got so pushed the the side for one of the main three), and more about the general idea that the book is not what it seems, and that the life in the universe is different.

Also, don’t get me started on Jaesuoh also being one of the ones who existed in the real world. That shit pissed me off so much, because their relationship was so boring to me. The chemistry between the actors got overshadowed by Hanse and Jebi, who their chemistry was perfect. (More on them in the Hanse Principle.) There are times where the fictional character falling in love with the personal from the real world is beautiful and you root for them, but I was not rooting for them in this case.

The Magic System:

Y’all, do I even need to say that the way they set up the book was like kind of lazy???? Oh you go there when you want to run away and leave when you want; doesn’t that present a lazy storytelling instead of having it be that the book is a sort of therapy mechanism that gives someone struggling stability and a routine? It makes no sense I’m bashing my head against the wall.

The Hanse Principle:

Alright, this shit is gonna be the bulk of this review because I am so- they did not ultilze any part of the Jebi and Hanse storyline. If any of you have read the various manwhas and web comics about these sort of storylines, you will understand my disappointment of them conforming to the same ending. Especially since, they showed Hanse and Jebi being so close.

Now, Hanse is such an interesting character, and even if I didn’t watch this show for Donghyun, I definitely would’ve loved Hanse. I am the type who likes blunt but also hurt characters, Hanse is sensitive and calm, but also puts on a mask in front of every character because he has to. He remembers, he is left behind, and he deserves better than the writer gave him. This show failed to show him growing, they also made him be alone like he has always been.

Hanse was a perfect person for Jebi, while maybe their relationship seemed very familial, it’s quite obvious that he liked her. We never got to hear it (the story overtook his feelings and never let him speak about it since), but once he settled with the story changing he helped her so many times, he remembered her when everyone else forgot. He was the first person to tell her he missed her when she came back for the first time. The fact Jaesuoh didn’t and he was in the same situation just angered me I guess, because Hanse was set up to be a character not taken seriously.

He was the one most affected by Jebi’s leaving, and he was the one she was closest to. I think that’s why I got disappointed in the love triangle, because they had a perfect male lead right fucking there. Jebi could be herself around Hanse, and vice versa, they were always hanging around each other, and Hanse protected her even when he was angry with her.

They trust each other, and the actors chemistry made their relationship seamless, but the writers made her choose Jaesuoh. I wish she could’ve chosen Hanse in the end, since they were both grounded in reality for so long, but he was pushed to the side again. Maybe some fans would not understand why, but I definitely think they failed to make the show not interesting, by making her choose the one option that was underdeveloped.

Jaesuoh was a terribly written character, who was possessive to a fault, and misinterpreted her actions so many times. The fact he distrusted her when she was with Hanse, like she couldn’t have a male friend at all. He barely cared for Dami when the WHOLE ENTIRE FIRST PART OF THE SERIES HE’S SUPPOSED TO BE “IN LOVE” WITH HER LIKE- Sorry very passionate because I think they could’ve done him better too.

Genuinely, I think this show could’ve become a cult classic in a way if it was written better, and a llowed the characters to become into their own instead of staying 2D. That’s my two cents I suppose.

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It's light romance highschool drama.

First, I don't want to compare it with others similar plot drama. The thing that make me hook into this drama is because hanse, I really love his character, as it develop a lot the plot of other characters.

Second, this drama is cool, the plot is okay for a light romance highschool drama, so if you guys want a chill no stress out drama, this should be your ongoing drama for real.

Third, it has 20 episode but each episod only contain 20 minutes so, its very light drama that you can watch even you have short amount of time to relax. So yeah, you can go watch this drama, the actor were awesome, all of them are goodlooking, and yeah it contain like 2% of harsh main villain but its still bearable.

Similar like drama:
Romance tiger and rose (100/10)

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Fall into novel done right

As far as I could gather, the chinese are expert in these kinds of plots.They produced a big number of these "fall into a novel" dramas. Koreans have done just a few and I have seen only two I did not particularly like: Extraordinary You and Pop Out Boy. The first one is hugely popular but the only thing I liked about it was the main male cast, a real eye candy who have gone on to forge huge careers for themselves. And I discovered the meaning of second lead syndrome there. Pop Out Boy was a cute little web drama, better than EY.

And then there is this one. The plot revolves around a young idol singer who suddenly finds herself a villain in her favourite webnovel. She unwittingly changes the plot of the novel and becomes a main FL in a love triangle. So as you see nothing new. But here is the turning point: this drama gives a scathing portrayal and expresses a severe criticism of social media and the power that a bunch of frustrated netizens hold in their little hands. And that is refreshing. The young idol singer is used to mean comments about her on SNS and even though she usually just waits for the storm to pass without commenting, it is visibly taking a toll on her. In order to escape it, she disappears into a novel and tries using the SNs for her advantage and it backfires badly making her realize that one needs to fight it and not just let it be and pay no attention to it.

Nana as the idol Yoo Jebi is perfect: innocent asn sincere and smart and realistic who suddenly gets to live her final year of high school anonymous. Gently and sweetly she brings about change in usual high school dynamics (there is "royalty" the F4, the four high school studs!!!And of cours a group of bullying mean girls! And the innocent punching ball! The usual high school cast of characters!)

No character is aware that they are in a novel: nobody thinks it is strange that there is noone on the roads (how did they manage to film so many scenes in public empty places? It does look like a "novel" village setting so maybe it was a soundstage somewhere...), that characters appear and then disappear without without anyone taking notice etc.etc. the usual novel tropes! And of course there is the second lead who almost gave me a SLS but the writers managed to put that threat under control quickly. Yoon Hyun Sook who played the SML was amazing, so sweet and pretty (I'd love to see him in a bl!lol).
This web drama did not have as many eye candy as EY but plotwise it was perfect. They even managed to figure out a credible solution for the main couple.

The resolution of internet troll problem is unfortunately overly optimistic! I personally do not believe in good human nature. People are not like that: everything most of us do is guided by the seven deadly sins and the internet is letting us get away with things that the good upbringing and education managed to curtail and limit before. Now it is feast for all, in blessed anonymity!

The story is really sweet, the actors are good, the writing logical,the world building credible and production value high.

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The Best Short Drama Ever

This. THIS. THIS! I cannot even BEGIN to describe how surprised and hopelessly in love I was with this. I honestly started to watch because I saw that Hyunsuk was in this and I am a major CIX fan. Putting Hyunsuk aside, THE LEADS??? Like, yes, Nana did phenomenal but the ML??? If you can’t already tell, I’m screaming and kicking my legs in the air, it was so good for this type of drama!

I’m not going to start in the plot because it was typical, girl reads a book and falls into it somehow as a villain character, but I am going to say I LOVE the way the directors USED the plot to make this drama distinct. It wasn’t well known and is still a short idol-studded drama but MY GOD, IT WAS SO GOOD. I don’t typically expect much from these dramas but I was waiting for the next episodes to release every week like how I had with other full-length actual dramas. That’s how much of a hold Fall For You had on me.

Do not even get me started on the OSTs. They’re so simple but they fit perfectly when they come on! The scenes, scenery, etc. was shot beautifully and the styling was adorable. I have to say, whoever actually wrote and shot this drama made it seem like it was a full-length hour-long kdrama and I lived for it. Fall for You was my life for a while and the OSTs were the only thing I listened to for days. I don’t think any other short drama will have this effect on me.

I can’t say anything was surprising or out of the ordinary but the way they showed the romance and chemistry between the leads was absolute perfection. I also adored the way they showcased Nana’s trauma even while she was still in the book. I like the way that she grew as a person and that she actually tried to give herself a solution instead of leaving it be. Absolute perfection and easy, quick watch :)

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A feel good kdrama

After all the thriller releases this year like night has come and pyramid game I felt like I needed a lighter drama. When I clicked on this I instantly knew I would enjoy it, it has that old kdrama drama vibe with a cutesy touch.

If you have watched extraordinary you, it’s very similar to that where the female lead falls into a novel like world. It’s so light and easy to watch and even the more boring episodes weren’t a skip.

The actress who plays Yoo Jebi is so cute and although I didn’t expect the best acting as I have never heard of these actors, they were really good! I have to give probs to Nana and the first and second male leads. But even the side characters like Hanse and Dami were really good. I especially like how they had separate episodes about their own issues and struggles.

Although this is not the most deep and meaningful drama it’s a cute watch, last 30 minutes each episode I found myself binging the whole thing. So definitely try this out!

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