Plushie
Candyland
What a trainwreck it was, but still with some good things that made it somewhat watchable.
The story was nothing new at all: the same ol' rich boy-poor girl dynamic and all the elements it includes (a.k.a evil parent, snobby female rival etc). Maybe the only original thing was the addition of the USA first arc, but not even that was done well. Seriously, I cringed so hard everytime an american actor spoke. Also, it didn't add much to the narrative at all, they could've skipped the entire trip and still have the same product in the end.
Acting ranged from mediocre to very good. I have to voice my disappointment of what an incredible character the female lead, Eun Sang, could've been. Seriously, at first I liked her different attitude than most female leads, but then she started to become whiny, helpless and literally a cry baby with few moments of defiance that just couldn't save my impression of her anymore. I'm a bit confused on that, if it was Park Shin Hye's delivery or just a poorly written script. Maybe a bit of both, since aside from crying, I didn't feel much coming from PSH.
Tan was another lead that could've been good, but turned out bad. Really, he was one of the most annoying main leads ever. And I have to agree with many people that Lee Min Ho was too old to play a high schooler. Heck, I know they tried to conceal it with makeup, but in a few close ups you could clearly notice how he wasn't a young boy anymore.
I think this was one of the few dramas that I found the side characters and couples a lot more interesting than the main. Mainly the dynamic between the mothers of Eun Sang and Kim Tan. It was really delightful to see how their friendship developed, and I have to praise the actresses for deliverying such an incredible perfomance.
Continuing on the side characters, I also simply loved Bo Na and Chan Young's relationship. A million times better than the main couple. Props for Krystal as well, this drama made me like her very much. Another character that shined , even though some of her actions were petty and mean, was Rachel. Something about her seemed so real, and it would've been a lot better if the writers developed her more.
And last but certainly not least, I have to talk about Kim Woo Bin. Oh, Kim Woo Bin. He was the best, his character was the best. He made me loathe him in the beginning, understand and feel empathy for him in the middle and love him by the end. And that scene with Eun Sang's mother...damn, that was one of the most well done and emotional I've ever seen.
However, even if a few performances were good, the overall wasn't. I guess I could define this drama in one quote: What could've been. Everybody was so excited about it from the beginning and the story, although not original, could open space for so many conflicts and development. And not even the music was decent. Seriously, I wanted to rip my ears off everytime I heard the lyrics "Love is the moment..."!
The story was nothing new at all: the same ol' rich boy-poor girl dynamic and all the elements it includes (a.k.a evil parent, snobby female rival etc). Maybe the only original thing was the addition of the USA first arc, but not even that was done well. Seriously, I cringed so hard everytime an american actor spoke. Also, it didn't add much to the narrative at all, they could've skipped the entire trip and still have the same product in the end.
Acting ranged from mediocre to very good. I have to voice my disappointment of what an incredible character the female lead, Eun Sang, could've been. Seriously, at first I liked her different attitude than most female leads, but then she started to become whiny, helpless and literally a cry baby with few moments of defiance that just couldn't save my impression of her anymore. I'm a bit confused on that, if it was Park Shin Hye's delivery or just a poorly written script. Maybe a bit of both, since aside from crying, I didn't feel much coming from PSH.
Tan was another lead that could've been good, but turned out bad. Really, he was one of the most annoying main leads ever. And I have to agree with many people that Lee Min Ho was too old to play a high schooler. Heck, I know they tried to conceal it with makeup, but in a few close ups you could clearly notice how he wasn't a young boy anymore.
I think this was one of the few dramas that I found the side characters and couples a lot more interesting than the main. Mainly the dynamic between the mothers of Eun Sang and Kim Tan. It was really delightful to see how their friendship developed, and I have to praise the actresses for deliverying such an incredible perfomance.
Continuing on the side characters, I also simply loved Bo Na and Chan Young's relationship. A million times better than the main couple. Props for Krystal as well, this drama made me like her very much. Another character that shined , even though some of her actions were petty and mean, was Rachel. Something about her seemed so real, and it would've been a lot better if the writers developed her more.
And last but certainly not least, I have to talk about Kim Woo Bin. Oh, Kim Woo Bin. He was the best, his character was the best. He made me loathe him in the beginning, understand and feel empathy for him in the middle and love him by the end. And that scene with Eun Sang's mother...damn, that was one of the most well done and emotional I've ever seen.
However, even if a few performances were good, the overall wasn't. I guess I could define this drama in one quote: What could've been. Everybody was so excited about it from the beginning and the story, although not original, could open space for so many conflicts and development. And not even the music was decent. Seriously, I wanted to rip my ears off everytime I heard the lyrics "Love is the moment..."!
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