Plushie
Candyland
This review may contain spoilers
A flawed but entertaining and emotional ride.Con man deceives blind girl into thinking he's her deceased brother. This premise just screams melodrama. And like many melodramas, it's full of ambiguous characters, tearjerking situations and unbreakable bonds. In my opinion, That Winter, The Wind Blows is not that original since it's based on an already established work, but among so many "Cinderella" dramas out there, it sure stands out as a demi-original but overly unlikely kind of drama.
I like to begin my reviews with positive things I have to say, so let's just start: The camera work, the scenarious and everything about the picture of this drama was plainly beautiful. The atmosphere becomes heavy when it needs to be heavy, and also light and endearing when need be. Amazing work of the director, also, the close ups on the right place just made me stare in awe at so much detail put on the scenario.
Also, I have to praise Jo In Sung and Song Hye Kyo for their amazing acting. In Sung not only gave Oh Soo all sides of his personality, but much more. The way he cockily smiles but then suddenly cracks down in tears is simply amazing. His chemistry with Hye Kyo was superb, and you can really believe that those two are pained, lost individuals that find comfort on each other. And Hye Kyo...oh, for a moment I thought she was really blind. Seriously, her interpretation is so perfect that if you don't know that she can see in real life, you would actually believe they hired a blind actress.
Kim Tae Woo was perfect as well. I began the drama really hating his character, but as episodes passed by I started to feel for him, and appreciate his inner turmoil. That's something only a good actor can do. And props to Bae Jong Ok, another ground breaking performance. However, I would've liked if her motives and backstory were better explained because the way they did just seemed all over the place.
Props for Kim Sang Beom as well, he made a cute pairing with Eun Ji. However, althought I really love Eun Ji, in this drama I didn't really feel her character. It was like she wasn't even that necessary to the plot except to have a third partner in crime who helped from time to time. Also, she was annoying at times and to be honest, althought she's a good actress, I would like to see Eun Ji playing another type of girl/personality.
Another thing I didn't quite like was how sometimes the drama was too self explicative. The audience is not dumb, we can clearly see what's happening so there's no need for overexposition. Mainly the way they did, turning the explanation very difficult and sometimes confusing. For example (SPOILER), when Oh Soo finds th room where Young makes her video diary all trashed, it was obvious that Young did all that since she was the last person on that room. It didn't take a genius to guess that, so the demi-flashback shown was unnecessary.
Other miss was how progressively draggy and, dare I say, boring the drama became. I have to give a little of slack since the plot doesn't give much to work with except interactions between characters, however I could picture this drama having 14 episodes and still being the same. Many conflicts were somewhat unecessary, and sometimes they threw characters we barely even knew that ended up changing the whole story, in a very confusing way.
If this is rewatchable? Yeah, but maybe after some time like six months or even a year, not something you would want to rewatch more than twice.
All in all it's far from perfect, but entertaining and emotional enough to keep you hooked. It's not an unforgetable drama even though sometimes it tries too hard to be, but also not quite forgetable because you can still rewatch and feel for the characters.
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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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This review may contain spoilers
One of my favorite dramas of all time. This is an emotional, cute and at times heartbreaking ride. This review contains some spoilers
I've been following Kim So Hyun's works since I saw and loved her in Missing You. Really, she became one of my favorite korean actresses, everything about her is so natural and sincere, her acting really gets you on the character's skin and makes you laugh and cry whenever she does. One of the most promissing(if not the most) actresses out there. But the show doesn't resume on her acting, I also thought Yook Sung Jae did an excelent job as the problematic yet quirky Tae Gwang. Seriously, he and So Hyun had such chemistry...(I'm still butthurt because they didn't end together)
Gushing aside, the story was also pretty well executed, with just some flaws and plot holes here and there. I know that this amnesia plot is extremely overused, but instead of just being used as a plot device, the amnesia is well developed and it even helps on the development of Eun Bi. Seriously, she goes from a girl who lost her courage, to someone who could impersonate her twin's attitude and then changed (again) to someone who could fend for herself and face her problems instead of running away.
The love triangle was also well executed, but poorly solved. *SPOILER* Really, I can't believe that they built such a relationship between Eun Bi and Tae Gwang, only for her to end up with the guy that spent basically the entire drama longing for her sister. I'm still pissed at this.
Another thing that could be promissing but ended up poorly executed was Eun Byl's character. Really, the girl was like no other I've seen in dramas (at least so far) and I surelly wanted to see more of her, and therefore more a development for her character. It was like a breath of fresh air when she finally showed up and gave the bully girl what she deserved. I was the entire time cheering: "You go girl!" Also, kudos for Kim So Hyun for managing to deliver two completely different characters.
Also, apart from romance and characters, I really liked the way this series handled issues like bullying. It was very saddening to see how much one is willing to hurt the other only because of their own internal struggles. Even though I didn't like the character one bit, I have to congratulate Jo Soo Hyang's job, because it was so well done that she made me really hate her but at the same time sort of understanding where she came from.
All in all, it was a very good drama. I openly recommend you to watch and fall in love with this coming of age story.
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This review may contain spoilers
Let me start saying I didn't watch the other remake (or even the original one) or read the novel, so it was the first drama I watched with this story that was told plenty of times. And let me say this made me want to watch everything (including the chinese original, saddly I didn't find it yet). Scalert Heart has an overused plot, or at least that's the impression I've got after reading so many chinese novels with almost the exact same description. However, instead of China, it takes place in Goryeo and, unlike many heroines I've seen in these kind of novels, the main character seems rather docile and ingenue. Althought don't be fooled! This drama is a rollercoaster and it will make you cry more than an infant.
Let's start with the acting: what can I say except superb? I know that IU was not great at all, but at least she made a half decent job in some scenes, and her forever frightened face kind of mixed well with other scenes too. But the real star I'm talking about here is none other than Lee Joon Gi and his portrayal of the dark, traumatized and passionate Wang So. Seriously, he got me crying, smiling, squirming and cheering for him even though his decisions and actions weren't always likeable. And let me say that it's very difficult for me to feel this way about a character.
Other thing I really liked on this drama was how morally ambiguous every character was. Even some characters I didn't like from the beginning, I felt some sort of empathy for them (except Wang So's mother, that bitch). And their morally ambiguity is more than justified given how living on a palace, pratically sparring for the throne, is stressing. Really, I also liked how Hae Soo's love interest changed through episodes, which gave us a really well done love triangle. One thing I always hated on kdramas was how most of the time the second lead has no space on the female lead's heart except friendship, but this one did a good job by balancing both love interests instead of doing one-sided crushes.
The music was also addictive and made me feel warm and sad at the same time. I know it seems strange to mix such modern and upbeat music to a historical drama, but everything was mixed so well it gave me not only good additions to my playlist, but also made some scenes seem so much sweeter.
My only major complaint though, was how they dealt with Soo's time traveling and adjusting to a whole different era. It was like they began to develop it on the first few episodes, but then suddenly she was already used to everything and how everything worked. It just didn't feel realistic at all. I understand that with her more submissive, sensitive demeanor she can blend in easier, but her life suddenly changing from one thing to another was mostly handwaved.
And now to finish this review, I'll talk about the ending(spoiler free): I know many may complain about it, and I agree in some parts, but overall I think it was great. It gave me the goosebumps, made me cry a river, but still I wouldn't change a thing. That's how I feel about this drama: sure it had it's flaws, but the overall picture was so well done, it made me cry and have the feels for at least two days. Not every drama makes me like that.
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The plot is rather simple and dare I say cliché in some aspects (boy meets girl, insta-love, CEO and employee, cold emotionless guy vs sweet shy girl). However, it adds original and rather fun things like the virtual world battles and interactions. Also, kudos for adding such a contemporary theme like games and gamers. It was really refreshing to see not only boys but also girls playing virtual games.
However, even if the plot is somewhat decent, I don't think the characters or even characterization was well done. I mean, let's admit it, the main couple was a bit...too perfect for my taste. Nothing wrong with having capable main leads, but the two seem more like Mary Sues than actual capable, independent characters. I would've liked it a lot more if their flaws and problems were highlighted more (or even there to begin with, I didn't see ANY major flaws from each character), because they didn't feel realistic to me. But I kind of liked the way they trusted and confided in each other, but still felt a tad bit unrealistic (really, every couple has problems).
Also, the acting was stiff to say the least. I didn't feel anything at all from both parts. Yang Yang is drop dead gorgeous and a hella of a kisser but nothing more than that. I know his character is supposed to be this distant, somewhat emotionless guy, but he could've given much more than just the same cool, cold guy that we are tired to see in dramas (at least I am tired).
Zheng Shuang has the same flaws: a pretty face (also justified since her character is supposed to be pretty) but nothing much more than that. She lacked emotions and expression, what was supposed to be quirky turned out to be just plainly awkward. I know that because I've read the novel this drama was based on, and let me say the novel's Wei Wei was a lot quickier/ funnier than ZS portrayal, which made me like her more than when I watched the drama (even if she was still a Mary Sue).
Side characters were well played, and actually more developed than the main ones. I liked the subtle bromance between two of Nai's life long partners, but it's so subtle and undeveloped that it made me wish to see more, luckily I read the novel and got what I wanted.
All in all it was addictive but turned out to be underdevoloped, which is sad given it's 30 episode lenght. Honestly, I've seen dramas with a lot less episodes but much more fulfilling in terms of acting/plot/development. Also, the episodes seemed draggy sometimes and pointless. I think it would be better if it was 16 episode kind of drama, since the lack of depth and not much to do with the plot could allow this one to be a sweet, funny journey. But what's done is already done anyway.
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