Ace
This review may contain spoilers
Promising Start that lead to a disaster
THINGS I LIKE(+) Strong starting hook
(+) Relatively strong to decent acting
(+) Diverse and inclusive cast
(+) Plot is somewhat inspiring
(+) 1-2 memorable OSTs
THING I DIDN'T LIKE
(-) Story quality decreases half way through
(-) Unnatural and misplaced romance throughout
(-) Flat antagonists that becomes more illogical as the plot progress
(-) Major plot scenes felt forced
(-) the main character Park SaeRoYi only accomplish his goals through luck
REVIEW
The opening episodes did an exceptional job to draw you in with a very unjust conflict that reliably foreshadowed the themes of revenge. The first 3-4 episodes was executed in a very unpredictable manner that was great at making you second guess on where the plot was going and made it effortless to binge watch. However, I can't give the same compliment to the rest of this drama as the scenes begin to drag soon after and this got worse later on.
(Spoilers) By far the biggest issues I have with this drama are the characters and their character development. Firstly, our main protagonist Park SaeRoYi really wasn't all that intelligent as a businessman. Had he not luckily got YiSeo to fall in love with him, he would have not even come close to his success in the end as he did. In fact, both of the women that loved him were far more competent than he was. It only took a numerous amount of second chances where he'd almost completely run his company to the ground due to his stubbornness before he was able to learn from his mistakes. And technically, Soo Ah was actually the one who destroyed Jangga, not SaeRoYi. Secondly, I also just cannot relate to YiSeo's character. It made no sense to me that she would love SaeRoYi so much just after learning about his past whereas before she was a girl who did not give a f*** about anything. Her character is quite controversial among all the reviews I've seen - people either find her creepy and overly obsessive or admire her dedication. Either way, her character as a whole is just a huge stretch especially if you consider how little she knew of Park SaeRoYi before deciding to dedicate her entire life around him. I also want to comment on HyunYi (the chef of DanBam). She came from a background with zero education and experience of cooking and somehow she is able to be beat Jangga just by some trial and error style learning with YiSeo's taste-testing? Like, I wish the world was that easy. The last comment I want to make are for the villains - both Jang Geun Won (the son) and Jang Dae Hee (father)'s character just feel really flat and one-directional. The son being reckless is something I can see but Dae Hee is the CEO of a massive corporation. Yet, his way of thinking is just way too immature for anyone close to being as successful as he is supposed to be.
Overall, I think this drama had good ideas and meaningful intentions but tried way too hard to make a grand finale for this story resulting in poor and disconnected execution.
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This review may contain spoilers
An Ice Rink Worth Sliding
Overall, this drama is surprisingly good. The synopsis is kind of on the basic side but the story telling and the morals told from this really outweighed my initial judgement. Acting was for the most part very natural with the exception of a few scenes that felt odd but for a good intention of adding comic relief. Speaking of comedy, this drama has one of the most diverse cast of funny yet likable side characters I have seen from a drama for a long time. To top off 'icing' on the cake, the songs in this one were also worth a mention although they aren't on the highest tier.Specifically, the music and background sound design was a bit plain but provide a very real atmosphere and tone to the scenes, which this drama tries to do. Throughout the story, it tries in many directions to motivate and captivate the audience with relating the common day-to-day struggles we endure. Our careers, our passions in life, the depression some of us face, our loved ones, our friendships, the importance of family, are just some of the motifs this drama offers to bring to life. Throughout the time of every person's life, they will face highs and lows and this drama depicts that picture perfectly. At one point, I actually was on the borderline of crying and that is rare among dramas in this age.
In summary, I would describe this drama as a drop of fresh dew from the 'icy' early morning - it's full of positive life messages as well as subtly emotional scenes very relatable to many problems we face in the current age. The ice theme also fits excellently whilst adding an unique touch.
-Spoiler Alert-
This is my personal list of rewatch value for anyone interested:
1) EP 17 – Shaohua Festival. Features Huanhuan crying happy tears after acknowledging Liao’s romantic gestures, the nerdy roommate online chat containing some interesting and inspiring bits and Yui Wei’s cute interaction with the Shi Jia in peppa pig mascot
2) EP 23 – Li Yubing’s parent misunderstanding of his sexuality and first kiss scene. Additionally, some may find the ice skating team field trip bit to be enjoyable
3) EP 24 – Weiwei saving Li Yubing and Tang xue’s secret meetup and Tang xue’s roomate ‘punishment’ for hiding the relationship from them
4) EP 27 – Tang Xue father’s confrontation (quite sad and relatable), and Bian cheng’s defeat and exposure was quite satisfying
5) EP 30 – One of my favourite episodes. Weiwei and Zhou Ran’s character development and Li Yubing's attemp to help out his friends by consulting manager Ma
6) EP 35 – YuYan’s full recovery and his reveal to YuBing to help him get together with Tang Xue
7) EP 40 – Bian chang’s character development and all side character couple scenes. Overall story resolution
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One of the few Chinese dramas that I can binge watch and that's saying something -- story is really GOOD! Park Solomon has proven his status as a highly skilled actor - In this drama, he portrayed so many different roles and characters - not only were they impressive, but very believable and passionate. Started this drama because of Park Solomon, I was not disappointed. This drama also had great pacing and a memorable OST (ending).
- STORY -
Story was inspired by the webtoon Lookism. I decided to give it a read after getting into this drama and there were major differences. Despite lots have complained about this drama not following the webtoons, I consider this drama adaption very well done, even better than the webtoons in some aspects. The overall plot is really good but I do have to point out some scenes were kind of off-logic and unbelievable. However, these can be overlooked for the direction of where the plot is trying to go.
- ACTING -
I'm thoroughly impressed by the acting in this series. In fact the best I've seen for a high school youth drama. Park Solomon's duality really shows here with him looking like a sad pathetic puppy to an incredibly confident character. He learned Chinese just for this drama. However, overall the whole supporting casts were very talented as well. As much as I didn't like the chubby WenShuai, his character is made to be pathetic and it was effective.
- MUSIC -
I'm not really picky with OSTs but this drama had good sound design during most scenes and some of the OST was really good and fits with the drama really well. Lookism, the ending OST really really sets the mood for the later half of this drama.
- REWATCH -
Rewatching value is subjective. I really don't rewatch much, but for this drama, I might rewatch a few scenes.
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Not only that, every episode is similar to each other. It almost felt like the show was trying to hypnotize my brain. I only finished this because I really wanted it to be good.
Don't recommend. If you must watch it, stop after the first episode.
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Some parts are slow but it's also a short series. Very much enjoyed Park Solomon (male lead)'s performance and visuals! The female lead is pretty good - I didn't like her at first but I think it was intended as a part of the plot. There is good character development in here and a cast of strong side-characters.
Some episodes of this drama is honestly not needed but I guess it was to introduce/maintain the" revenge" concept.
Overall, a surprisingly good drama for the clique school student settings.
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20 min into the first episode, it's already very clear that the show doesn't take itself very seriously. There are scenes later on that explores a more serious tone but I won't call it "dark" which a lot of the other reviewers complained. In fact, I find that it adds more depth and complexity to Bong Song's character and abilities. The male lead also did very well in this drama - his character really draws you in and paired very well in contrast to the female lead. Music is done really well and it lets the audience know when the story wants to show a funny or a serious moment.
The only complaint I have is that it does slow down a bit in certain parts and the crime component in the end feels a bit forced, but nothing ground-breaking here that would make me stop the series. I suppose for some people, the main premise could be a bit too ridiculous for them to handle, but honestly, just watch this with an open mind and you'll be quick to get sucked into it! I think it's that good! VERY ENTERTAINING!
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Secondly, the soundtracks are pretty on-point. The opening especially, has a very iconic sound - it fits well with the drama's concept and I actually ended up adding it to my playlist.
Lastly, the concept - romance and video games isn't exactly the classic pairing but this drama made it work - and it was actually very refreshing and adapts very well with the modern era. This drama is very sweet and endearing - very good at showing the innocent sides of a perfect romance story. Unfortunately, that's also where the problem lies -- it's TOO PERFECT.
For pretty much the entirety of the plot, there is almost no real conflict. Boy and girl falls in love and then you get 20+ episodes of nothing but romance. There are some characters who tries to get in the way but it felt like they were merely pebbles in a large plot of land. The character that Yang Yang (male lead) plays is unrealistically too perfect. But despise this major flaw, it somehow was entertaining enough for me to finish it.
If you enjoy light, white vanilla romance, this drama is for you. Plus, pretty sure 90% of you came with Yang Yang anyways.
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From first impressions, this drama may seem like a very light-hearted love story between 2 youths. However, as each episode unfolds, you realize how much depth this story surprisingly has. The story itself has does have some repetitions - at first, it seemed like bad editing, but as you continue, you will soon realize more and more, that the story was made this way on purpose to send the right message. I was very surprised of how a simple on-the-surface plot can be transformed into a feels-train with its hidden complexity. Needless to say, this is a must-watch imo
CHARACTERS / ACTING
This drama really only focuses on one character - Yoo Tak, which at first seemed like a generic character.. and he actually is. As someone who enjoys music, Yoo Tak is very relatable and you will see how he makes mistakes not just for the sake of drama. Among L's work, this is definitely one of the better roles he does done. The lead actress also did very well on her character.
MUSIC
The music in this mini-series is absolutely mesmerizing! There are a few scenes in this drama where nothing is actually presented visually - but the music coupled the situation so well that it was actually driving the story and gave it life and meaning. Particularly, there's a light guitar track with some vocals that really enhanced the experience.
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This drama started off very well with good background set-up and character introductions. The fragrance theme is used very creatively in this drama as both a competing product and weapon. Overall, this drama is worth a watch for anyone who enjoys an interesting use of fragrance in story telling and many plot-twists.
STORY
The story's first three-quarters is very good, playing with ideas of crime, family relationships and personal morals. The theme of betrayal and sacrifice is very strong and characters are constantly forced to be make difficult decisions, often between family versus personal morals. The film shows good moral messages throughout the story as characters succeeds and fails. The plot is excellent until the last quadrant... where the director tried to force melodrama in scenes where it doesn't belong - unfortunately, the ending turned out to be extremely bizarre and unimpressive, when it could have been a lot better.
CHARACTERS AND ACTING
Character development is huge in this drama. Throughout the plot, all significant characters would actively experience, learn and change their behavior, for both the better and the worst. At certain part, however, the difference in character behavior becomes unrealistic drastic, making the acting feel unnatural and the character hard to believe
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