Eleison

Now that I've finished this, I can say I enjoyed it. It was refreshing because it was a tweak on the typical Kdrama formula (with the filming, shots and even plot), with an ML who supports the FL quietly and never overshadows her character to take center stage or steal the limelight (he became pretty sweet and adorable by the end, though). He did pull out an important card at the end, but it was heartbreaking and heartfelt, not a very "he swoops in on a white horse to save his lady" feel at all.

On that note, I enjoyed the perspective of the female-centric focus that highlighted different struggles women face in the workforce, in politics, and society. I thought it was accurate in how silly, annoying and frustrating it can be! 😂

I don't usually like office dramas very much, so I think my overall dislike of that genre kept me from being able to like this more, and while I found the politicking super confusing at points and sometimes had no idea what they were talking about, I found the inner workings of local politics (as portrayed here) fascinating. The unfamiliarity of that world kept me engaged because I liked learning new things even when I was somewhat lost (had a similar experience with Hot Stove League (also an office drama) since I know nothing about baseball).

I did feel like the rom-com element slowed down as the story moved into the last 1/3 and felt like their relationship didn't go anywhere. They totally teased them getting married in one scene and then left us hanging. 😂 They did have good chemistry, though! One gripe I have with female-centric stories is they often seem very reluctant to marry off their FLs, as if that's something only men want? 🤔 Can't you be a girl boss and be married with kids and/or in love with your husband?

I liked that all the characters were flawed in some way, and that you got to see them grow throughout the course of the drama. It was a fun, quirky--even at times a pretty thoughtful--watch!

I liked it better after she was older, too, which is after Episode 8.

That scene in the first episode is flashing forward to a scene we haven't encountered yet, I think.

Also, I think the fact that he still refers to her as "teacher" is part of the comedy, which largely comes from the ML struggling to adjust to modern society. He gets some of it and some of it still goes over his head and so he hasn't grapsed yet that she's now his equal. It seems like this is part of his arc. To work through what customs he's grown up with and is familiar with that he can let go of without losing the essence of what it means to uphold the values that matter in both his own society and modern society.

I think of BOFs as the darker, more angsty, teenage-geared version of Pride and Prejudice for East Asia that Pride and Prejudice is for the West. Both wildly popular (with BOFs being much newer, of course), and both with a similar premise: the story follows a selfish young man who's inspired to change after meeting a young woman who unexpectedly captures his heart. Both stories have managed to enchant audiences/readers with their charm.

The way I can describe the Thai version of BOFs for those familiar with Pride and Prejudice adaptations can picture it like the snappy 2005 Keira Knightly and Matthew Macfayden adaptation, while the older, more "original" BOFs versions (Taiwanese, Jdrama and Kdrama versions) are more like the 1995 BBC Pride and Prejudice with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth in that they are much longer and inspired the more "recent" versions.

While all versions of the BOFs or Pride and Prejudice adaptations hold their unique charms, they each have their own set of strengths and weaknesses that make them enjoyable (or hard to watch 😅) in different ways. Unlike Pride and Prejudice, BOFs has problematic content that the more recent versions have thoughtfully addressed, and this is the main perk of the newer adaptations.

If you want a dive into the iconic enemies-to-lovers Asian drama classic that is BOFs (but don't want dated toxicity and a ridiculously long episode count), the Thai drama's probably a good place for you to start. It still wrestles with some of the very disturbing, darker elements found in the original story (and is still adequately dramatic and over-the-top), but does a beautiful job creating closer friendships and more obvious redemption arcs for F4 (and most specifically for our ML: Thyme Paramanaantra (aka Gu Joon Pyo (Korean)/Domyoji Tsukasa (Japanese) /Dao Ming Si (Taiwanese/Chinese))).

It's because the characters have an arc. If you kept watching, you'd see them make progress by the end, but in a much more satisfying and convincing way than the Korean version does. Gu Jun Pyo does change in the Kdrama, but WHY he does, and how Jan Di influenced him positively, is never explained. This drama will actually address what causes the ML to change.

It is lower budget, but the writing and thematic pacing is much better. It moves much faster, but the other BOFs dramas are all WAY too long and have so much filler and angsty fluff. What is the "actual story" you don't think this version captured? Isn't it a story about how an ordinary, kind, warm-hearted, passionate girl inspires a bully and his friends to become better people? This drama tells that story...

I also loved how they forced every character to deal with the fallout of the lies they told, and the painful freedom that comes from exposing those lies. It was hard to watch, but really poignant and powerful.

The ending is only tragic for those with SML syndrome. 😏

Yes! 😂😂

This is one of those few times that the amnesia plot actually enhanced the ending!

Tae Sung: "How long have you been together?"

[Sun Jae and Im Sol in unison: ]
Im Sol: "Not too long."
Sun Jae: "15 years."

[Tae Sung looks confused...]

😂😂😂😂

I would say there are many endearing characters in this, and the leads do an amazing job. I do think some of the hype is over BWS's looks, but he's acting very well and has great chemistry with FL, so it's solid without that (unlike in Strong Girl Nam Soon, this is a good drama that happens to have a particularly gorgeous ML whose looks enhance his great work).

The time travel logic is a bit all over the place, so don't look for airtight writing in that regard. It makes enough sense to sell to us without feeling confused or frustrated.

The comment section always attracts contrarians right after a drama ends. I've come to expect it. They just like to get a rile out of people. :) It'll die down soon!

It bothered me at first but I eventually got used to it as I watched, and she is pretty darling if you keep watching. Totally get the hype around her after seeing this drama. Though it didn't happen immediately for me.

Just like Korean dramas butcher English, with a handful of exceptions (i.e. Henry Lau, Ahn Yeon Seop, Ok Taec Yeon--are the only ones I've seen who pull off English with aplomb and in a convincing manner as fluent speakers) . 😋

I think they're setting Jun Ho up to be gamjjok or someone related to him. So I definitely think you're picking up on bad vibes they're intentionally sending out for us to pick up on.

They never did explain that, I don't think, or why Sun Jae and In Hyuk were on such bad terms in Episode 1. 🤷‍♀️ My opinion, though, was that it wasn't suicide, since we find out later the taxi driver was still out to get them in the original timeline.

"What is the fate of this destructive love affair?" Um, hopefully something befitting the comeuppance of a cheater. I've heard male/husband infidelity is quite common in Japan; if so, how would any Japanese woman find this a romantic watch? 🤔 Baffled by who their target audience is for this.

The poster does a clever job of telling the plot without you having to read the synopsis. I was intrigued to see if my guess was correct from the poster. Kuddos to whoever designed it!

Does it count if we saw flashbacks of several? 😋

Their chemistry with the FL and flirting is very similar, but ML in LR is goofier and the drama overall funnier/more slapstick (while also being more serious; it gives you more emotional whiplash in true Kdrama fashion) than HL. HL is very chill with no crazy serial killer or time travel plot and is a simple romantic story and somehow compelling to watch while still being relaxing. I think SJ is a better character/person than DJX (a few things about him annoyed me), but you will get similar vibes from his romancing of the FL to the ML in LR and the leads in both dramas do a fantastic job playing their roles.