Cruel Romance has a fast paced story with an overall good main story to tell and is elevated by the lead couple chemistry. A surprise for me was that there was a nice touch of humor, specifically in regard to how the male lead was written and acted. Many times masculine characters in C-dramas can be overbearing and rigid and while the lead here can be and is domineering on occasion, he never became a caricature, and he evolved and grew as the drama progressed. This nuance given by the writer and performed by the actor is much appreciated. I also thought the actress did a solid job even when the writer didn't do her any favors. Another Pro to this drama is the bad guy is done very well and is given a good story arc throughout the drama. I judiciously used my fast forward as regards to the side story. Sometimes I found it very involving and other times a bit to over the top for my taste. Nothing against the excellent actors, but I was mainly in it for our lead couple. My main reason for the downgrade to an 8 is I can't overlook that the writer basically made the lead gal a candy. Also, due to I assume a lack of creativity, the story takes a wacky turn toward the end and goes sideways. In my opinion, the writers threw the actress under the bus with a ridiculous story arc. It gets back on track thankfully, but I was very disappointed. One last issue is the editing. There are a few scenes which literally look like they were thrown together at the last minute and give you whiplash as you try to figure out what the heck just happened. However, I generally watch dramas for the story and this one overall I enjoyed.