What makes this drama worth watching is the acting and character development. Jang Na Ra is so adorable as Kim Mi Young. I like how her character blossoms under the guidence of both male leads. Although she becomes more confident, she doesn't lose that air of naivity and kindness. What can I say about Jang Hyuk? He can act any role he is given. Lee Gun is a strangely over the top, down to earth character. He takes life as it comes and deals with his emotions in peculiar way. I like that he is Mi Young's advocate from beginning to end (even when he is mad). That laugh is just too great. Choi Jin Hyuk's character, Daniel must be a glutton for punishment. He loved unconditionaly with almost no hope of it being returned in the way he wanted.
The music is great.
I might rewatch this some day.
If you like love stories, then this is a good drama to watch.
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What's so amazing about this show is that it's got such a simple storyline. You basically know the beginning, the middle and the end inside out. You know what's going to happen and how. Despite all of that, for the fact that you still anticipate every episode, still blush and giggle at the romantic moments and still cry your eyes out at the sad ones, the writers deserve commendation. A truly beautifully written show with direction. The pace was so smooth, the transitions were so effortless that you just go with the flow of things and I never thought I was watching a show, rather listening to someone's story. There's a huge difference if you really think about it.
I already know that there was a Taiwanese version of this show (which I haven't watched) plus there was the usual girl-meets-boy plot so I can't really say it's a very original concept. I can't compare the show versions either without watching the Taiwanese version either. But all I can say is, this show occupies a truly special space in my heart. I've cried in many dramas, but this is only the second time that I've cried while feeling the characters' pain deep in my bones (the first being in Love Rain)
The main credit for this attachment that I have for the show goes to the actors. Jang Hyuk simply blew me away. He is such an outstanding actor. I've fallen in love with his acting. Since I began the show I've seen a couple more of his works and he was just wow. You can just look at his work and see that he is a really brilliant and seasoned actor. There's this special magnetic quality about him that you just cannot take your eyes off the screen when he's on. It doesn't matter what he's doing, you'll still watch him. And he played the role of Gun to perfection. He WAS Gun. The parts where there's sadness, Jang Hyuk makes you bawl your eyes out. His eyes are lethal. His mannerisms are so bloody realistic that you just feel so mesmerized and forget that it's just a show and not something that's happening in real. He's beyond words.
While I couldn't connect with Jang Na Ra's acting in the earlier episodes, she totally captivated me later with her ability to live her character. These two phenomenal actors gave such a breathtaking performance that it's hard not to fall for them and their characters. The support cast was equally good. There moments of ridiculous comedy but they were quite endearing too. I couldn't make out any mis-castings.
The music. Oh lord what do I say about the music of this drama! It is simply magical. I can't think of another word. It's got the power to transport you to another world. To the world of FTLY. Even now when I listen to the tracks Goodbye My Love (By Ailee) and Destiny Sonata (By Jung Dong Ha) I get lost in the flashbacks of this show and my eyes end up tearing. It's embarrassing but that's what the music of this show does to me, especially these two songs. Such powerful melody and lyrics, it just goes straight to your heart and you feel the emotions. Perfectly made for the show.
I will definitely absolutely without fail rewatch this drama. I don't think I'd be able to live without watching Gun and MiYoung for long. The couple was one of the best I have ever seen in any RomCom. I will recommend this drama to everyone who loves to watch a good love story, or wants to see some really good acting by some of the most brilliant actors around. This is so much more than just another RomCom. This show becomes a part of your life. Don't miss it!
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Kudos to the writers, producers, directors, production team, actors, music editor (outstanding OST) and everyone involved in this great drama!
I laughed; I cried; I felt every single emotion expressed by the actors.... that's how awesome they were!!! There were so many nuances incorporated in the writing... enjoyed the parodies, the references to other dramas...the music selection, etc. etc. etc. etc...
Lesson learned.... do not be fear what has not happened...enjoy every minute, every second .... LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH!
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And I can't forget the secretary Tak, this man add a humor to the drama. The other characters are not good enough and some of them are boring and annoying. The OST was great specially "Good by My Love"
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And why?
Firstly, the story.
The story is great. I mean come on its very romantic when a lonely and insecure woman that is looked down upon is kind of saved by the prince on a white horse (Come on, whether or not you like it, it's still very romantic) the thing is, where the show makes a turn from the typical White horse Handsome prince, is when you see that Lee Gun (our main lead) turns out to be this extremely hilarious nutcase. Good looking, Yes. Prince like, Yes. Sane, NO! But that is what makes the story differ from the Taiwanese version and doing its own thing.
Secondly, the cast.
The cast for this show is great. Fun thing is that the only one I knew of before watching was the female lead, Jang Na Ra. But I ended up loving the character that I thought I would hate the most. Lee Gun (Jang Hyuk) made me seriously love him in this show! He captured the crazy and nutcase(y) persona of Lee Gun so well and I felt that this man really don't give a F about how crazy he may look, he just went full on doing his thing and that ended up doing this remake a favor. It made the show so much more likable. It made the show so much more funny and when comparing it with its predecessor you really feel the difference just looking at the two main leads. The female lead, tho okay and really feeling like the post it note girl, sometimes felt like she was just there rather than being the biggest (second biggest) character that she was suppose to be. And even after the magical change that every damn character goes thru (in nearly every drama) she still felt the same for me and that was a tad wrong. However I do like Jang Na Ra as Kim Mi Young and she did do a good job. Maybe I'm just blinded by the great performance by Jang Hyuk, too bad.
The second male lead for me was totally useless. Sorry. I didn't like his character in T version either to be fare. And even tho I've started to like Choi Jin Hyuk quite a bit I really felt that he should've dissed this role. Because it was not memorable for me. I liked that Dylan (T version) never had a lot of drama around him, but in this version he ended up being a bit to much romantic. So the cast was okay, but really the reason for the score where because of Lee Gun. Awesome job!
Now we will talk about the music and here is also the reason for the magic that the show produce because this OST is perfection on it's own. It so wonderful and fits the show like a glove!I had to rewatch some scenes just for the perfection showing on my screen. Ailee is greatness itself singing the songs here and because of the show, I'm now a big fan of hers.I found myself bawling my eyes out and much of it because of the musical score.
The rewatch score is mediocre i know. The thing is that even tho I really liked it and all. I've sadly already seen the T version 2 times and even tho the two versions differ quite a bit, it's still the same show, at least based on the same story and in the end it shows. Maybe I will find myself watching it again in the close future, and to be honest I hope I do.
Overall and lastly, this show is good! Whatever you heard from me this show is a great show. Its a funny show as well as a sad one. It'll make you cry rivers and also make you laugh your lungs out. However If you have watched the T version you will compare the two, it's nearly impossible not to. I do hope that the majority of you reading this is newbies to Fated to love you because then I will whole heatedly recommend the K version to you. My mistake was that I already had seen the T version when this jewel came out and I just know that if I hadn't seen that first and this also was my first introduction then I would have loved it so much more. Truly a great show with an extremely crazy but lovable main lead that will make you love his crazy ass.
Happy Watching!
Mivaaa
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Some dreams should just stay dreams
I've seen this a few years ago, and maybe I can somewhat understand the direction this drama was trying to take, but it doesn't convince me in the very slightest, and shouldn't even be called a romance, maybe a sad, ill-intentioned drama with themes of romance. I dont know what it is with writers and romanticizing bullying and abuse, but to put it plainly, its sick and not normal. ML is consistently a constant trainwreck, treating the FL like sh*t, then realizing he has feelings, apologizes, takes her out, then treats her like shit again. in all honestly, if a fortune teller told me that this drama was my future, i'd tell her right back that i'm just gonna have to die single then.Was this review helpful to you?
Unlike many other disappointing TW to Kdrama remakes, this one was amazing! I could see and feel the chemistry between the two leads and the feels were definitely there when needed. Each expression made was on point, especially at the heartfelt scenes. I've never seen either of the leads' works before, but they did a great job with their roles and I fell in love with both of them by the end! The plot is typical and VERY cliche but it has a nice twist to it. The pace was quite nice, maybe a little draggy in the end but not too bad. The first half hits hard for sure.
As for the music, Ailee did amazing. Her voice just makes you want to cry even more when you hit the sad scenes! I personally prefer the sadder songs for any drama OST, so I guess I'm biased already. The other songs didn't click with me as much but they still did what they had to: make you cry in a sad scene or get you hyped up in a cute/happy scene. I didn't really like the English song though...
Bottom line is: this drama is refreshing for a cheesy, cliche rom-com. I don't see a need to compare two dramas that were released in completely different years. Yes, the original was stupendous, but there is no reason to be closed-minded and not give the remake a try!
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While the plot has clichest of cliches, the Taiwanese version was very successful- enough to have a Korean remake. While I could never get onto the boat for its Taiwanese version, when I got to know about the Korean adaptation I wanted to try it out nonetheless. It doesn't disappoint in any way. While the story has its funny, romantic and some typical eye-rolling moments it never loses its magic. Even the repetitive and slow parts of the drama arrive, they still keep you glued to your seat.
While I had my issues with the story, I can't help but not fall for it. The entire credit goes to its cast. Jang Hyuk and Jang Na Ra are both actors I love immensely. My love for them increased ten folds after this drama. They have an electric chemistry and make you feel what their characters are feeling. When they cry, you'd want to cry and when they smile, you'd want to smile. They are the heart and soul of the whole drama. Both of them acted so well that they had me close to tears several times in a drama and mind you- I never even tear up while watching Kdramas.
The OST is terribly repetitive but for me personally it contains two songs I can never get bored of. Baek A Yeon and Ailee both have wonderful voices and the song 'Goodbye My Love' is one of the best songs all this year.
Apart from that, the drama is flawed in several places and far from perfect. It still manages to give you a light yet angsty watch, while creating a lasting impression on your mind. I recommend this drama to all lovers of romantic dramas because that's one thing this drama sold me on- its romance. It will be on my mind for quite some time.
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Gun - I just love him, that laugh omg, he was great in iris2 also. You could see the sincerity in his acting and feel his emotions. His body is great too and that freaking hair needed to go.
Mi young - just a lil tiny cute sweet snail. She doesn't have much expression because she's sad more than happy in the show and even her laugh is cute. She was great in school 2013 also
Gun and mi young- really awsome tog, their romance scenes kept u glued and laughing coz something always happens beforehand. I would like to see them tog even after the show or in other dramas.
Gun and secretary tak- these two should do a spinoff or host a show, what a hilarious bromance.
The stepbro- hes alil annoying in the beginning but u start loving him when he tries to get approval from gun, he gets hilarious and cute too. Btw he and that step mom look related
The side actors each did a great job esp the grandma and mi Youngs family . Daniel is just cute and tall. The prenatal teacher is hilarious too on how the just kept popping up
The music has become my 3rd favorite ost "goodbye my love - ailee"
Side note how did they get away with those lil skits of how a baby is formed and also with gun in his therapy session
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This review may contain spoilers
Good chemistry
Jang Hyuk and Jang Nara had really good chemistry together. I loved how playful they were with each other. I felt that his acting was, unfortunately, over the top a lot of times, and that laugh, ugh! I also either wanted to go at his hair with a pair of clippers or loan him a barrette, his hair was ridiculous. My favorite scene with him was in ep 18 during the press conference. He was understated and you could really see his fear and hope and love shining through in his acting without all the antics. I did NOT like the drugging aspect of the show, and there was an awful long time for them to be apart, after the obligatory three-year separation. When he was pretending to be someone else and they were texting one another, that was very cleverly done, and gave us more opportunity to see them together. I also loved the storyline of him taking the female lead's mom as his mom. Very touching. Choi Jin Hyuk as the second male lead was excellent, and his deep voice...yum. The ending was very cute and you get to see a wedding and what happens in their lives after that, which I always like after spending all this time watching a showWas this review helpful to you?
A whimsical and zany watch that does a good job at pulling at the heart strings.
Fated to Love You is one of those shows that has a really high emotional IQ. Everything just felt instinctively right at all times.It was so right that there are so many favourite things to pick up from this drama. First off -its cast is its crowning glory . The pathos delivered by every component of the cast was stellar . A second has to be the themes explored . Every one of the themes was so fleshed out that there is no room for you to sit and debate. The evolution of the motifs is also remarkable . Probably the best drama motifs I have ever come across to be honest . There was the snail , the man cave , the dogs, the rings , the art , the 9 and 6 , and many more . All made entire sense and made the continuity of the show superb and really fun to watch.
The acting was pretty faultless. Some may find Jang Hyuk's Lee Geon difficult to pallet but he grows on you . Je na Ra's Kim Mi Yeong is a literal saint and kudos to the actress because that role was so nuanced and very easy to get wrong .
The format of the show is also one of it crowning moments . I found the unconventionality and eccentric execution of the script very refreshing especially for a rom com which can get rather hum drum and basic. However- Fated to Love You really does stand out in its tackling of zany , romance , comedy and melodrama. Yes, its rather sad and has tremendous melodrama however it ultimately makes Fated to Love You a generously rewarding drama for everyone.
Now why does it have an 8? Well- do you like a very well fleshed out second lead story? Where the main female lead spends so much time with them (second male lead) that they might as well get together? Where the male lead is kinda horrible and a tad bit difficult to root for but you feel bad and reconcile that ,whatever, they belong together though you are still not convinced?
I'm petty when it comes to rom coms and I prefer some succinctness and tightness to the premise. That annoyed me and I did utilise the fast forward button. However - if you are not petty like me and find it rather dimensional , adds to the story , shows expert character arching then you will like this aspect . It does actually make dramatic sense in the end. Also , noble idiocy is way too drawn out but again- it all made dramatic sense.
I also love a good and understandable ending but the ending managed to exasperate as I felt a certain trope was overused and therefore this show could not inch out a 0.5 out of me to make it 8.5. However - I reiterate ,this too made dramatic sense as it is called "fated" to love you after all.
OVERALL- Yes it’s flawed(by my standards) - but it really is a very good and fun watch ( I binge watched it and I am by no means a binge watcher) and one will know that they have watched a gem . It truly is up there in the world of rom com.
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