Colum H
UK - Yorkshire Free State
Nice little Noona/Cohabitation/Contract Marriage show
Well I actually really enjoyed that - at least the bits I didn't skip past. Loads of the usual cliches but still came over as quite fresh. My enjoyment was pretty much driven by the leads, most of the secondary characters I found supremely uninteresting to unpleasant. The little brother and the 2nd couple especially pissed me off spoilt bitch and wrist grabby man.Tang Jing Mei I find difficult to cope with as well - she's like a live-action IG filter, though I am ashamed to be so put off by her looks.
The lead couple gave a great performance with some really nice chemistry and some laugh out loud moments. There was plenty of kisses but the hugs were the winners for me. They show cased an adult mutually supportive relationship with little foolishness till the last few episodes which had a Because this is my First Life feel to them. If I rewatch the series I'll not bother with the last two or three.
The Lawyer stuff on the whole bored me but I did appreciate the Me Too ness of it all.
All in all worth a watch if any of the headline appeals.
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Too disjointed and quick.
Both the J and the K versions blew me away, I've watched them both multiple times. This version failed at pretty much every level to drag me in. The plot didn't make sense to me - just too complicated to flow and the relationships just didn't ring true enough. Both Xhou Xun and Chen Si Nou had the acting chops to have really pulled it off but the script left them with too little to work with.The way they reworked the elements of the story - the set up, the escape etc. was just too disjointed and too quick. By the time half way came I'd lost interest - could have been great.
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Some films only Japan can make
I've just rewatched this and I came to up my score and even write a review.I'm a Kdrama fan for all sorts of reasons - the production, the accessibility, the slightly more acceptable misogyny, the lack of reliance on sex. Yet there are some amazing dramas out there that only Japan can do! You find them slipped in between the slightly brutal, sexist, infantilised main stream fare but shining with a gritty, oh so strange yet oh so normal light.
This is one of those, not because of the subject matter but because of the way it is handled. Without the glam slick entertainment of Kdramas or the censorship and lightness of Cdrama or the terribly preachy brutality of a US drama this manages to put across it's message with a heartrendingly understated realism.
The story is well told, the casting and acting is superb, the music supports but never overpowers the emotion.
Kakihara Rinka deserves the honours but Ikuta Toma deserves your attention.
I thoroughly recommend it.
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A strangely engrossing tale let down by the ending
After a spate of all "chemistry" and no plot C dramas I stumbled upon this one and was very pleasantly surprised. The synopsis was unappealing, but I gave it a go and was hooked from the first episode.It's an excellent mature, romantic tale with a good dose of melodrama thrown in. The pace is slow and the acting understated yet compelling. Both leads perform well oozing a gentle pathos that draws you into the tale. The supporting cast all did well with no one letting the side down.
I skipped very little of the first 15 or so episodes and stuck with it pretty well up till the mid-twenties where it veers off into a different tale entirely, one which interested me only slightly. Which was a shame as, if woven correctly into the story from the start, it could still have held interest.
On the whole though, a great watch; not fluffy and saccharine but still sweet. Maybe one for a more mature audience.
The music wasn't bad.
Worth a watch.
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This review may contain spoilers
Of it's time - Aggressive, selfish violent stalker ML
I made it through a fair bit with a fair bit of FF and a fair bit of gritted teeth but I should have known better and dropped it earlier.This is just a warning review - It's 'of it's time' so be prepared for - being a single mother gives every petty twat the right to publicly abuse you - the ML acting like a spoiled child - showing his love by physically and mentally abusing the FL - being a stalker and using all sorts of emotional blackmail and threats to get his way - even the FLs son; the various rubbish parents, and crazy one sided lovers. The FL who succeeds against the odds -
The friend zoned mighty nice SL etc. etc.
If you've watched older dramas in particular you've seen it all before, the terrible ML and a 'nice' female lead who inexplicably 'loves' him, shouting, bullying, crying - it's arse don't watch it.
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More Enjoyable than I thought
I tried this on the off chance and actually enjoyed it in the end.As stated in other reviews the whole thing is based on a lack of communication between the leads but hey at least they had a reason for it - immaturity. I found it much easier to cope with than when two supposedly mature competent people can't just talk to each other. Consequently i found it easy enough to go along for the ride.
The Jerk lead is weak not wicked the FL is strong and likeable the kid is CCCCCCCUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTTTTE!
The SLs have enough flaws that you don't mind them coming in second and everyone gets a dose of redemption.
It isn't great by a long shot and you can skip various bits like most of the last 2 episodes cos we've all seen that trope before. All in all though nice, light and feel good.
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The family is the best bit
I enjoyed most of the first half but gradually got battle fatigue and ended skipping through the second half. For me the family dynamic was the best part and the twists but turns they took slowly wore that away.I didn't really feel the chemistry of the main leads or the other younger couples, Choo Ja and Jung Do had the chops instead. The Makjang plot elements were dragged on too long after I'd worked them out and the baddies were a little too one dimensional to hate rather just be irritated by.
Still I forced my way through to the end so not a waste of effort.
I'd watch Choo Ja again but probably not anyone else.
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Meh
First couple of episodes dragged me in but then it slowly but surely spat me out. Just, well, what a waste! some ok music some pretty good acting chops but a pants plot.Nothing you haven't seen before done much better. The villains are the most entertaining of the bunch and maybe slightly less cardboard cut out than the boys in blue. The best of the acting comes from PHS and HSH who manage to build relatively believable and human characters despite the writers' best efforts. The rest of the cast ranges from functional to who? The fights start off pretty well with some gut wrenching blows and fast action but again they just can't sustain interest.
Plus if you are going to make some skinny small woman beat up thrumpty much bigger heavier and more muscly men at once then give her special powers or something, it's just too much of an immersion breaker otherwise - because physics and biology.
Throw in plot holes, implausible coincidences, inconsistent characters, predictable twists and betrayals and it achieves meh!
Park Hee Soon and Han So Hee deserved better.
Got to episode 7, just, with a lot of effort and then gave up.
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A good try
I'll start by saying I thoroughly enjoyed this despite it's ever more obvious flaws.The first few episodes work pretty well - it's a bit too quick in places and has some jarring switches in pace but the cast and the effort they put into the setting pull you through.
The initial foray into the Lunar complex and the rising tensions between the characters are probably some of the strongest and best parts of the whole drama. Aided by some strong performances and unique characters.
Unfortunately the 'homage' to Alien amongst others and the risible main elements of the plot don't mesh well. This some fairly pointless twists and revelations starts to chip away at the foundation that was laid so well. Some terrible CGI takes things down further and the Oh So Inevitable betrayals and bizarrely foolish decisions by characters really pull things down.
The ending is unfortunately muddled and rushed to the point of loosing a great deal of the dramatic tension it initially promised.
It could have been so much more, a more consistent first half, maybe even a longer wait for the 'why we are really here' reveal. A more convincing Alien Thing (sorry hard to say without spoilers) better cgi a decision to go with the slow dark tension or the action horror or rather than pay homage to Alien to learn how to mesh the two from it.
Still some fine actors and a whole hearted attempt to do Sci-Fi kept me watching. I appreciated the effort put in and the little things they attempted - no eye candy here - lots of space suits and lab coats though. enjoyable but probably not rewatchable. I should really rate it lower but I'm a sucker for Sci-Fi and I did watch it all.
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I took 3 years to finish watching.
I've just finished watching Ho Goo's Love around 3 years after I started it. I'm really unsure about rating this.I've dipped into this on numerous occasions and really it's taken me 3 years to watch the first half and a day to watch the second half.
On paper it would seem a great show for me to watch, Romantic Comedy, no Jerk ML, powerful FL, a baby - just so many of my favourite elements. Yet I struggled so hard to keep watching I just kept hitting cringe walls for the comedy, the characters failed to endear themselves to me, the plot twists left me cold....and yet.... I kept seeing it listed on various sites and would dip in for another episode or two.
Then yesterday it showed up on Cereal (YouTube) so I tried it again and watched from 8 - 16 pretty much back to back. It still wasn't perfect and I still was irritated by a number of character choices but I enjoyed it all the same. I have a pretty good memory so I didn't have to recap but it's not so good that my memories weren't softened by time. Would I watch it all the way through if I rewatched it? I doubt it.
So the basic story is pretty good but the execution wasn't always compelling. A lot of interesting topics are dealt with but not always in a good way. The side characters did enough to keep you interested.
I thought on the whole the acting was fine the veterans were of course on point and everyone else gave their characters life. Choi Woo Shik isn't a favourite of mine but I coped with him in this Uee just has an inexpressive face once you get used to that her acting is fine.
The music was ok, nice and bouncy in places.
Rewatch ? I have literally no idea - maybe?
Try it if the plot sounds good it might reward you.
Be aware it has some trigger things like abortion, bullying, sexual violence, homophobia etc. they come up but aren't dealt with terribly.
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Not Bad!
So nothing ground breaking here and nothing done to perfection but all in all some good cheesy fun.Park Bo Young is very good at playing a part that seems written to highlight her skills and all the rest of the cast put in good performances to back it up.
There's no real attempt to try anything different and to some extent that's a good thing, you can just relax and enjoy the fun.
The music isn't cringe worthy or memorable.
I might watch it again to fill some time but I'd be skipping past some of the scenes especially with the ex.
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Right Ingredients Wrong Recipe
At first sight this looked like a sure fire win. A more thoughtful plot, plenty of violence, beautiful scenery and an interesting cast though the two leads are new to me. What went wrong with it is harder to pin down as it's all fairly typical.They spend at least a little time setting the stage so you know what's going on. There's the usual woman in a fridge to provide impetus. There's some beautiful scenery, some great cinematography and some angst ridden protagonists. A star turn by Cha Seung Won channelling the Devil King is fun too.
But I found myself too easily distracted from the backstory and fluff making it harder to be pulled in by the set pieces.
The main fall down for me was a total lack of empathy for the main leads - I didn't really like them so I didn't really care what happened to them - it's a hard hurdle to get over. Neither came across as cool or relatable or even consistent. Every time I started to like them they did something to annoy me. Add in some really brain dead decisions especially later in the film and...meh.
Another pet hate of mine is torture porn I get an OOOH! I bet that hurt moment then I get bored and want some plot or action, the best torture scenes are marked by anticipation rather than special effects (cf. the hairdryer scene from Man from Nowhere). You guessed it torture porn rears it's head for too long and with totally unrealistic ability to still function thrown in.
On the plus side there a some excellent shootouts the finale being particularly fun, some comedy gold in places and some great acting. Would I watch it again? Nah! I don't think I'd even skip to the shootouts.
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Bonkers stuff that devolves into Makjang
I'm half way through episode 18 and I doubt I'll finish it but I've got to say I think it's worth taking a chance with.The first dozen or so episodes were great, just total over the top bonkers goings on. The good were mostly good, the bad were terribly bad, who knew what else they were going to chuck in there and it was great. Not a great drama, plot etc but great fun.
This ought to get a strong female lead tag for Ha Hee Ra's portrayal of the Foolish Mum I really enjoyed her character. All heart and affection but fierce in defence, I thought she did a good job of portraying an adult with learning difficulties rather than defaulting to childlike innocence.
Unfortunately as the episodes came to their closing quarter the Makjang weep fest started to take over and my interest waned. This was aided by my loathing for Shin Hyun Joon's portrayal of the Dog Seller Ahjussi - it got to the point where I couldn't bear to watch his scenes. His stuttering comic turn, clown routine just didn't mesh with his crying and pathos or his gangster/business persona. Awful.
Story: Rollicking nonsense heading into a weep fest (if I ever watch the last episodes I'll tweak this). Don't expect anything and just jump in.
Acting: Ha Hee Ra and Kim Hyun Joo are great and well worth watching; most of the rest of the cast give serviceable to pretty good performances. Kim Tae Woo is properly awful as the husband and Ahn Seo Hyun gives a good turn as the prickly daughter. Shin Hyun Joon! was it him? the writer? the director? someone ought to be punished for it.
Music: Meh to average but not finger nails on a blackboard awful.
Rewatch: Maybe some of the beginning episodes for that level of WTF?
Flawed but surprisingly enjoyable romp let down my needless Makjang and a clown.
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Almost Great But Still Sweet
On the surface this is a sweet tale of love crossing the boundaries of class/fame with a Japanese twist.Much of the action revolves around the workplaces of the protagonists giving it an episodic structure with an overreaching story arc. When it works this a warm and very human love story when it doesn't it becomes trite and a little problematic.
Story: The underlying tale is simple and individual episodes are used for life lessons and moving the story slowly forward. Sometimes the plot gets a little 2D to teach those lessons and sometimes some quite startling anachronisms show up. I found the chap slapping his wife (which of course brought her to her 'senses') particularly hard to stomach.
The addition of a Love Triangle and Noble Stupidity in the last episodes didn't help matters and I found myself just skipping through to finish.
There are though plenty of laughs and sweet moments.
Acting: The two leads were excellent both bringing their characters to life for me. Fujiwara Noriko's Hikaruko had a child like simplicity and honesty which I found endearing rather than irritating., which is quite a feat.
The main support characters played their parts well.
Music: Was OK
Rewatch: Maybe parts of it - or at least the first 8 maybe 9 episodes I don't think I would bother with the last two ever again.
TLDR sweet little take on Notting Hill but showing it's age.
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This review may contain spoilers
A sweet Drama but ultimately too flawed.
To a large extent this drama is carried by Sumida Moeno playing the blind, deaf and mute girl Umi which she does with some aplomb. She manages to keep your sympathy and emotions on a tight rein. Watching her growth is thought provoking and heart warming.There are some great moments and some laughs to be had but unfortunately the rest of the cast and story can't keep up with her. The occupants of the boarding house are too clichéd to really resonate and the main leads never quite pull you all the way in. The Rock Idiot is a little too stupid and Hana a little too unlikeable. A large part of the problem is the way the story is told, dwelling on uninteresting side character vignettes to illustrate the morals of the main story rather than letting the main characters and the story carry themselves. The narration works only haphazardly as well.
It's worth a try to see if the sweet outweighs the sour for yourselves.
Spoiler****Spoiler***
My real problem with this and why I couldn't bring myself to finish it was the whole fighting the ex recurring story arc. Without this I could have finished it and mostly enjoyed it, though perhaps mourning a lack of bite.
Watching the Rock Idiot get a pounding yet again this last? time with the rest of the cast as witnesses just left me cold. Even the longed for reward from Umi wasn't enough to make me continue. Whatever the writers thought they were evoking by that pointless bloody scene the result in myself was disappointment and bathos.
A shame - I will never watch it again.
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