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Not a show you regret watching, but…
You can also just watch a compilation of the best scenes on youtube and get a similar experience. Honestly speaking, I watched it for the enjoyment of flirting between Juns, and not the actual plot.That’s honestly what the show has to offer - really enjoyable moments with great chemistry. It’s such an unrealistic fanfic scenario with unrealistic casting, but you can still enjoy it, because Choi Jun just delivers with each and every pick up line and obvious flirting.
I don’t really have much to say about the plot, because it does not really exist. Rookie interns doing their rookie work unrealistically well, while one of them gets into a situationship with the team leader. Nothing makes sense, but no one watches it with their brain sharp and focused.
The acting was decent. During the romance scenes the cast did great, some more daily life moments felt awkward.
Overall, I really liked the first two episodes, but later I just needed more than just great chemistry during some scenes to truly keep my interest.
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The first few episodes bombarded me with many plot twists and "shocking revelations" to the point, I started to call the show "soft makjang". So many things happened, I was left in a state of confusion, but it made the show that much better, since the main focus of the drama is the aftermath and the process of healing and re-connecting with the family. We were getting to know the facts with the characters, learning bits and pieces, which helped me empathize with them more. I could understand why they struggled with the new situation, since I myself was confused about what was truly happening.
It touches on subjects such as LGBT, rape (did not happen during the show, but one of the characters was a victim of it, and it played a part in their story), ending a relationship when both sides do not agree on when and how to part ways, misunderstanding based on differences of characters and how you show you care for people.
Through the 3 siblings, we can observe different struggles people face in life. The oldest, Eun Joo and how she always tried to be strong, level headed and control her emotions. The middle sibling Eun Hee, trying to keep the family together and pacify all the sides in times of conflicts, acting as if she is carefree. The youngest Ji Woo, who tries to find himself, learn how to be independent, as he watches his family fight with each other.
I just truly cared for these characters, so when the drama ended, I already missed them. Did I cry? Yes. Not to mention, it has some of the best, natural and well paced romance I watched this year and the best "not a confession" confession scene (you'll know when you see it).
Did anything bother me? Not really. I was not that interested in the Sang Shik and Jin Sook story, and it was the weakest part for me personally, as I was annoyed with some choices both of them were making.
Overall, I have a feeling I might rewatch the show, or at least a few scenes this year. The good set of characters was for sure the core value of it.
Ps. Kim Ji Suk... damn, he fine.
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I’m not even mad about bls delivering all the cliche tropes, romances based on misunderstanding, the amazing soft angst, the naive lead falling for the grumpy lead that we’ve got in the post from straight romance stories. These plots sell, these plots attract the biggest audience and these plots are simply entertaining. And this is kind of what we’ve got from the Unintentional Love Story.
It was a fun journey to follow. While Ji Won Young was a painfully frustrating character at first, I cannot deny - this child grew on me. Surprisingly, he delivered some of the best and most mature lines out of all the characters. Yoon Tae Joon was one of the soft emo guys that makes your heart ache just the right way. Dong Hee and Ho Tae were rays of sunshine impossible not to love.
Truth to be told, at some point I started to be more curious and invested in this second couple, and I cannot stop myself from being quite disappointed with the lack of screentime and development, and only hope for a separate show that will follow their story.
The quality of acting depends on which actor you will focus on. Personally I enjoyed Han Do Woo's and Won Tae Min's performances the most (which was also one of the reason I enjoyed following their characters’ story more).
Cha Seo Won did an amazing job with the “I’m hurt, but I want to hide it and control my facial expression, but I still need to show it enough for the audience to see” scenes. Moments when we need to both clearly see what emotions the character is feeling, but also understand they want to hide it. On the other hand, Gongchan delivered a deer caught in headlights acting - mostly looking confused or scared with his pretty big eyes.
The kissing was basically like trying to stick two magnets together by the same pole. I could literally see how much force they had to put into getting so close together. I laughed... badly.
Production was great. Vast improvement from many k-bls. Would appreciate a little bit less smoothing filter on the actors’ faces though.
Overall, for such a nice watch. Not as emotionally touching as I wished it would, but something I for sure do not regret watching and would probably recommend others to check out.
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Enjoying the angst that comes from misplaced revenge.
Call It Love was emotionally aesthetically pleasing. What I mean is, even the sadness, anger, frustration, regret - all were presented in a way that did not make me feel emotionally exhausted and tired. I was relating to and appreciating the sorrow.What the show did an amazing job with was showing different sides of psychological issues - for some people it makes them completely detached from social interaction, for some it makes them forget about their needs, others would focus on the negative emotions as their driving force, some would be able to accommodate their lives around their issues. Depending on the character, their personality and past experiences, we saw all the different sides of how we as humans deal with difficult emotions.
About the cast - we got blessed with some well written and complex characters and well delivered portrayals of them. How the same people could be victims and perpetrators. How everyone had to learn from their mistakes and figure out how to set boundaries, but also respect the boundaries others set. How to understand yourself and be able to communicate with others. How to move on from past, how to move forward with the future, how to find happiness and peace.
Were all the characters well written, with many layers? Not quite. While Ahn Hee Yeon did a good job with her performance, Kang Min Young did not exactly have much to offer except from being yet another external factor the leads had to deal with. Similarly, Choi Sun Woo existed only in the context of leads’ issues and struggles, and presented no personal plotlines.
Cast wise, Kim Young Kwang ate the role. One of the most versatile actors we get in mainstream shows. Can do drama, action, comedy, romance, thriller - you name it and you will get it in one of his roles. In Call It Love he presented so many raw emotions from Han Dong Jin. Even though the character was not an open book, not the most expressive guy out there, it was still clear for the viewers what he was going through, what he was thinking and feeling.
At the same time, while for most scenes Lee Sung Kyung did great (it’s a role we have not seen her in yet), there were just a few moments where her delivery was too monotone and at times felt empty.
As for the production - I loved it, but I can see why someone else could hate it. The colors were not saturated enough and the whole show was presented in this pink/purple filter. For me, it perfectly fitted the overall mood of the drama, adding to the melancholic and stoic feeling. What also caught my attention was how the shots were centered vertically. In many the characters were presented in only 1/3rd of the screen. For me it seemed like the same way they were not centered in the frame, they were also not centered in their lives - still unsure about their place, a bit lost in their surroundings.
All that said, it’s a typical “you either vibe with it or not” drama. The same visual aspects I loved could look ugly and weird for others. The same characters I related to and enjoyed analyzing could be frustrating and unrealistic for others. The same dialogues I found touching, others could see as faking profoundness with no depth.
Why not a perfect 10 from me? I did not like some of the conclusions and I wished a few characters were developed better. For such a complex situation the drama presents, some aspects just lacked nuance.
Overall, I already miss this drama.
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“Even if you failed yesterday, even if you crumbled today, another tomorrow awaits us”
And we did crumble so many times watching this show - all the tears, all the frustration, all the healing after. This show is a long journey and even though at times exhausting, it’s so worth it.What I really loved about Mental Coach Jegal was the complexity of the characters. The flaws were not just random setbacks - they all had a solid explanation and served as an amazing character development arc. I liked how the show kept reminding us that what we see is neither the beginning nor the end of their journey - they had their own struggles in the past, they have their own motivations for the future, and what we see is just the present self that keeps changing.
It’s like that for Je Gal Kil,Cha Ga Eul, Park Seung Ha, Lee Moo Gyul. There is more to these characters than we initially think. I honestly enjoyed the majority of them from the start, and even Goo Tae Man was impossible to hate.
That said, the character I found difficult to accept at first was Park Seung Ha. I honestly found her more unlikable than the bad guys themselves. It was too hard to ignore the lack of professionalism in her previous conduct in her professional life. The drama is magical though, and I started to appreciate her more and more as the story progressed, and her past actions, while not excused, were explained in a way that I could move on and see her for who she was - a flawed human being, like the rest of the characters.
I think that's the overall positive aspect of the drama - it's rich in different contexts and (both internal and external) factors that influence the characters, and the solution is not easy to find, since no one solution can solve all the problems.
Then we had the villains and antagonists - some better, some worse. I feel like the main villain was underwhelming in terms of the lack of depth. With all the characters being so complex, he just did not fit that picture. As if the last stroke of the brush in a masterpiece was done by a 5 year old child.
Then we have Oh Dal Sung - trash, the truest cockroach of kdramas. At some point I was not even frustrated or angry about his character, I was just tired. I wonder if there was any other way to deal with his story without hurting the overall quality of the plot and other characters’ arcs…
That said, for a show that is focused so much on the internal fights and struggles within the characters’ mentality and approach, the writers did quite a good job with presenting the villains that overall did match the plot and pacing. Although some were more of a plot device, not individual characters, I still found a certain value in the way they were written.
About writing - I don't think I've ever watched a drama where I really wanted to write the quotes down. I’m more of an “appreciating in the moment and moving forward” type of person, but here - the narrations and dialogues were so well written I just had to pause the scene many times and type down the words to share with others. They just hit all the right spots and were relatable on an indescribable level.
“??? ???? ?????? ???? ?? ??? ???? ?? ???'? ???? ??? ??? ?? ????? ?????? ???? ??? ???? ???? ??? ???'?. ???? ?????? ?????? ??? ?? ????, ??????? ??'? ?? ???? ?????? ?? ???? ???? ?? ??? ??? ????? ??????.”
Big picture wise, Mental Coach Jegal addresses many important issues, both specific to the sport related environment, but also the things everyone can experience in their lives. I am amazed how they managed to make it all logical and have a significant impact on the plot and the characters. Without going into any details, the various traumas and issues the characters had to face, different ways they all dealt with them, whenever victims have any responsibility in what happened to them and how they should or should not handle the aftermath, the lack of support, inadequate support, shame, psychological issues - there are so many themes and topics it’s impossible to write them all down. And I honestly feel like the majority of them were dealt with proper respect and maturity from the writers.
To the acting. Jung Woo is a master of chemistry. He truly made a perfect team with each and every character. There was not one interaction he had that felt boring or flat. He could talk to a tree and I would find it the most entertaining thing ever. Him and Kwon Yool are a duo I will miss for weeks. The way he found a perfect balance between the comedy and seriousness, how Jegal was both eccentric and relatable. I am truly amazed.
I expected a phenomenal performance from Lee Yoo Mi and it is what I’ve got. I started the show because of her and I was not disappointed. She perfectly embodied the idea of someone being both vulnerable and strong.
All the rest of the cast did an incredible job. I cannot think of one performance or scene that was lacking in any aspect.
The production had a similar effect on me as the writing - I could not stop myself from screenshotting. I especially liked the use of the wide shots - they often looked like beautiful paintings.
All that said, the drama was not perfect, even if at times it felt like it is. Few things that could have been improved and can be seen as flaws.
First of all, Je Gal was introduced as a famous mental coach and writer. He was not a nobody, he was like a celebrity. But his fame was downplayed and non-existent after just a few episodes. I feel like him having rather high social status would be an issue for the plot to unfold the way it did, so that fact was just… ignored and removed from the equation.
Rather poorly done transition between the leading genres/plots. At first the show was more or less a sports slice of life with comedy. At some point it changed into a political drama with comedy, and that transition was not done smoothly. You can literally tell which episode is the turning point and it’s a clear cut deal. I did not mind where the plot went, it made sense. I was bothered with how it was executed.
Not utilizing enough “No gold medal” club. I feel like they either should have been even more in the background, or more prominent. They were neither the supporting characters, nor just a filler background - somewhere in the middle that I could not get attached enough to truly care about, but also not insignificant to just accept whatever happens to them. Since I loved each and every character in that group, I did wish we had seen more of them, especially in the middle part of the show.
Some questionable relationship developments I could do without. While they made sense character wise, I also felt like they were not truly needed plot wise. I could understand why they happened, but I also asked myself - did it have to happen?
To sum it up - it was not a perfect show, but for me it was close to perfection. By the end, I was so attached to the characters I honestly feared the day the show would end. I was not ready to say goodbyes.
I think a great show is not a perfect show, since these don’t exist, but one that makes you ignore/forget the flaws. They seem so insignificant compared to all the positive aspects, you just don’t mind them. Mental Coach Jegal did it for me. And I’m known for complaining about the most minor details ever. Mental Coach Jegal had some convenient solutions by the end, but I can’t bring myself to lower the rating, even if some aspects were not perfect in my book.
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Uncanny in all the best ways. Painful in the most beautiful ways.
Not gonna lie - the whole show made me feel extremely uncomfortable more than once. Escapism in the purest and scariest form. Heaven never sounded more like hell. The truth is, happiness only exists in contrast to sadness. You can only cherish what will eventually cease to exist.Sci-fi is a genre that’s extremely hard to ace. You either don’t get enough information to understand it and get immersed in the created world, or the creators overexplain everything, and it seems like a wikipedia page. Yonder managed to keep the balance from start till the end. They gave enough exposition through dialogues to make sense of the sci-fi elements, but they also used a lot of visuals and simple storytelling to explain and expand the rest.
The core of the show though is its philosophical theme centering around happiness, grief and meaning of existence. My brain hurts after watching it. It invites you to dwell on so many complex issues that are hard to grasp just by watching - it made me want to think about them more, even after the episodes ended. What is happiness? How can we achieve it? What gives life meaning? How to deal with grief? Can one get prepared for death? Not to mention the whole ethical side of exploiting people’s pain dressed up as compassion and the selfish and egocentric side of humans.
On the storytelling side - they did an amazing job with pacing. Each scene was meaningful, nothing was dragged, almost nothing felt rushed (on that “almost” under spoiler comment below). The show just flows so well. I would say, it seems better as a binge watch, treating it like a long movie. The breaks between episodes might slightly take one out of the immersion. I honestly regret starting it right when it aired, instead of watching it all when it finished.
Performances - from phenomenal to not memorable. That said, some characters were not exactly written with much depth, and only served a purpose of pushing the plot forward (mostly Hacker Park and the doctor working with them).
Shin Ha Kyun… This man. How is this even possible for him to keep surprising me with his skill? Where’s the limit to his talent? No words to describe his delivery of the character.
The choice of the songs perfectly elevated all the scenes. Did I cry? Yes, many times.
Production value was top notch. Yonder is like a beautiful art piece. Loved everything - the angles, the lighting and use of colors, the proper use of close up and slow motion, the camera rotation that were never overused. The subtle and well designed special effects.
There was one element of the conclusion/reveal by the end that I did not exactly like. It was well written and integrated to the story - it was just my personal preference for the show not to include it. I like when the shows that create an existential crisis in me keep things more open and vague - left to my own personal interpretation. But what I’ve got was a more solid answer to one question, that somehow felt like a contradiction.
Overall, I truly loved it. It’s for sure a show that needs to be analyzed and watched with brain on. Not because it’s so complex plot wise, or hard to understand. Rather, because it tackles many serious issues and questions that are worth asking yourself, and finding out what is your answer.
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Well written romance with questionable friendships.
One of the most wholesome friends to enemies to friends to lovers scenario I have seen. I believed in everything that happened between Pran and Pat. The chemistry might not have been sizzling from the start, but it was undeniable and extremely natural as the plot progressed. Both Nanon and Ohm did an amazing job portraying actual emotions and love, instead of simple attraction.That said, almost everything that surrounded the romance was mediocre at best, and bad at worst. The friend groups were ridiculous. It was not just teens disliking each other - we had harassment and abuse that could not be explained by them being young. The parents were just as immature and selfish, which led to a number of problems for the main duo.
Luckily, a lot of scenes were saved thanks to the female characters Pa and Ink, who seemed to be the only people with some brain cells and willing to use them.
Bad Buddy was carried on Nanon and Ohm’s backs, and if it was not for their stellar performance, it would not get half of the love from the audience. Me, and many others were willing to ignore quite a number of flaws, because what these two actors did not screen was worth it.
Another great aspect of the show was the OST. Not only were all the songs perfectly fitted for the scenes, but also… they are simply great songs that I wanted to listen to even outside of the drama.
The production value was definitely good. I loved the set design, the filming and editing. Sadly, I feel like all the focus and hard work directing and writing wise were put into making the romance storyline, forgetting that all the supporting characters are also what make the show. The pacing of all the side plots was not great and some conflicts had a Disney type of resolution.
Overall, worth the watch for the main couple. Truly amazed by the skills of Nanon and Ohm. Even with at times questionable writing, they made me enjoy the show and giggle more than once from both the comedy and the romance.
Bad Buddy was a bit like taking a walk in a beautiful mountain, but then seeing trash here and there, that’s just slightly ruining the view. Then you get to the top, but it's a restricted area… that sums up how I feel about the ending.
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Fast Food entertainment with a secret ingredient - crack.
This show took me to the times when I was a young teen reading Harlequin Romance and being obsessed over the domineering, rude, but deep DEEP down inside actually good and caring male leads. The best type of trash entertainment anyone can offer.This is just that, but on screen format. Fang Tian Yi is hot and that’s the main trait this man possesses. That and good kissing skills. Saying Dong Ting Yao is brainless would be an understatement. Girl got so easily manipulated and used - customers at McDonalds have more respect for the workers than the majority of the characters had towards hers. The rest of the characters were just place holding NPCs.
The plot? Nothing made sense - her falling in love, him being surprised she does not trust him, the conspiracy and the barely existing investigation. The level of abuse she faced and always being completely fine the next day.
So how come I binge watch it all in one sitting? Because it’s a good type of trash tv. One that does not pretend to be more. One that is here for your entertainment and your eyes, giving your brain a moment of relaxation since you shouldn’t use it watching it. It’s a makjang, but with more shirtless scenes and abs and less kimchi slaps (but overall slaps it delivers). It’s so dramatic you end up having fun even during the intentionally sad scenes. You are here for chemistry and abs only!
Why does it also work? Because it actually has good acting and production. As cheap and ridiculous the plot is, it’s actually packed in a nice to look at box with pretty costumes, pretty faces, pretty make up, pretty set and pretty abs.
Overall, I think it should have been shorter, but it’s still highly enjoyable. I guess even with my brain off, at some point I just could not take how stupid female lead is. Enough is enough.
Now I regret my choices as I drink my coffee trying to wake up. I’m too old to stay till 3am to watch dramas.
Side note - that one guitar string they kept using, am I the only one who got Chuck Norris vibes from it?
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This review may contain spoilers
I love Sang Ha, I do, but this was painfully mediocre.My biggest problem was how Sang Ha's story and the romance were disconnected. They felt like two different shows. We had fun comedy and fluff between main leads, and punches and threats with debt collectors. Both put next to each other just didn't click well, since they almost always were presented separately.
The characters were also quite a mess. Sang Ha and Jin Woo had both half a brain cell that they must have shared. The bad guys told you they will ruin Jin Won's chance to win by throwing water at him? You tell Jin Won about it. It's that simple. It's not like his debt was a secret. They could have easily prevented it from happening, without Sang Ha going after first place (good for him tho). Why did he even cut contact with Jin Won after the marathon? His whole logic for winning and paying the debt was to protect Jin Won and be able to keep running with him (as he "passionately" screamed at his face in the last episode)... but then he just left? LoGiC.
Jin Won with the whole "go buy yourself proper new running shoes" when Sang Ha already told him he is running early mornings to deliver milk, because he ain't got money, but he needs to pay the debt. Something didn't click right in Jin Won's brain I guess. Not to mention that punch in the last episode. WHERE THE HECK IT CAME FROM? Not once they hinted that Jin Won might be a one to react aggressively with physical force. And here he is punching a kid in the face. This is called bad writing, ladies and gentlemen.
The debt storyline was truly the worst part that ruined the whole show for me. Why they couldn't keep it simple with a sweet romance is beyond me. The debt collectors went from punching the kid in the face, to crying when he finally paid it off, giving some bullshit, out of place, emotional reaction. Not to mention, apparently in Korea, when your parents die when you are in middle school, you don't go to an orphanage or foster family. You are left alone to deal with it... Go figure
It had some cute moments, I'm not gonna lie, but instead of watching the whole show, you could watch the highlights on youtube. Even the last scene had to be ruined by making them run in semi formal clothes ON A DATE. We get it, they are runners. Damn the writers... Why?
Get rid of the debt angst story, use the few minutes you gained to develop the relationship a bit more, and it would be easily 9/10 for me.
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Seeking shelter while striving for home.
Another good Korean BL that in a vague manner presents many interesting ideas and opens the door for some personal reflection. What do we want from life? How can we achieve it? Can we force it or the timing has to be right?We witness enough of Lee Yoon Dae and Cha Soo Hyuk’s past and present to understand why they are suffering and why it is hard to break from the vicious circle of the mystery. Lee Yoon Dae might have escaped, but he has no direction. Cha Soo Hyuk has the direction, but does not know how to escape.
Personally, I did find Soo Hyun more interesting. The way he was trapped in a toxic environment, the way he did not know how to give up the responsibility that was not his in the first place. Truly heartbreaking, but also understandable and relatable. Trying to deal with more than you can handle, always pretending that you are fine, you are strong enough to keep going. Living in a paused life.
On the other hand, Yoon Dae managed to voice his grievances and remove the toxic people out of his life,, but it left him alone, lost with no direction, no plan. Wanting stability, but not knowing how to achieve, where to start. Wanting someone to care for him, testing how far can push the boundaries before he gets abandoned.
While the potential of finding what they needed in each other was there, the question became - is the timing right?
A vague story needs a solid performance to carry it, and I'm happy to say both Lee Jae Bin and Jang Woo Young delivered. I did find some moments in Jae Bin’s acting a bit tense, but nothing too distracting. Jang Woo Young simply ate the role, there is nothing to improve in my eyes, nothing to correct.
For a short, rather low budget drama, the production value was great. Loved the use of dim light, low the rather dark and grimm setting, perfectly capturing the somber reality the characters were living in.
We also need to talk about the intro, because this is easily the best intro we have gotten from any k-bl ever. Perfection does not even capture how perfect it was - from the style to the music. Then, it should not be that surprising, the whole soundtrack was great.
Overall, yes, it was vague, yes, it lacked detail, yes - the presentation of the ending could have been improved, but it’s still a good show with well captured serious topics that gives you more than just a romance.
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The gem among the online content.
I don’t think it’s possible to find a more real, fun and natural show than this. Never seen actors, idols or other celebrities act more like themselves than here - no censoring of behavior, no fake politeness. Jessi knew how to bring the best out of people and make it amazingly entertaining, while staying true to herself.She made every segment of the show so fun to watch. Her bold and open attitude left no room for boredom. Yes, she is loud and might seem intimidating at first, but the girl has a pure and loving heart. Even if I was not exactly a fan of the person whom she interviewed, the episodes were still extremely funny to watch - she has that talent.
Script? Don’t know her and neither does Jessi. You can see how she flips through the pages and at the end says whatever she seems fitting for the occasion. The lack of formality and more “chatting with a friend” and less “being interviewed by MC” vibe created a good space for celebrities to be more themselves without feeling judged.
I truly have nothing bad to say. I rewatched so many episodes it’s scary. Some of my favorite episode include ones with (in chronological order):
Haha (07), Eric Nam (10), Lee Sang Yeob (25), Sung Hoon (36), Highlight (49), TXT (63), Ateez (68), ITZY (69), Haha (79), A Pink (85).
As you can see, for many of them idols were the guests. We know how careful of their image they are, so it was refreshing to see them just have fun, joke around and be influenced by Jessi’s “I don’t care” attitude.
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The almighty pen.
From a writing perspective, it’s closer to a 7.5, but I had so much fun, I cannot rate it lower than 8.5. It was quite an exciting watch, delivering all types of frustration and thrills, but ending on a rather mediocre note.Honestly speaking, the first half of the show was a good 10/10. It had everything one might want from a show like this - cute fighter, psycho brain, cinnamon roll who just wants to help. We’ve also got all the blood, pain, violence and the main character - the pen! I was eating it all up, could not stop watching and barely stopped myself from screaming at my laptop.
So what happened in the 2nd half? The drama changed from more plot/action driven to character driven… and it focused on the character I honestly cared the least about. With each and every scene I just started to hate him more and more. For all the buildup, all the tension, all the accumulated frustration in me, I was not delivered a proper closure. I understand it will have a second season, but even with that, rather than being excited and hopeful the drama left me fearful if they will deliver a more proper ending this time. I don’t want to dive into it and get a half baked potato with the last scene.
That said, the show presented a glorious friendship/bromance between Shi Eun and Soo Ho and I could not ask for more on that part. Both characters perfectly played off of each other's traits and the dynamic was just fun to watch. They were perfect partners in crime.
Oh Beom Seok was a complicated character and I don’t think the director quite well delivered what they planned with him. I feel like there was something missing with the way his character was developed. For such complex internal and external struggles, I was completely indifferent to whatever was happening to him - which is ridiculous as he is the center of last 4 episodes.
Plot wise, saying this drama lacks realism would be a massive understatement. Some scenes were so ridiculous and over the top I was just laughing. At times it was even hard to feel bad for these kids, because the situations they were in just made little sense. And this is one of the reasons I enjoyed the show. I watched it for the over the top scenarios. I wanted excitement and hype, and not pain and anxiety. That said - fear not, Weak Hero Class 1 still manages to create decent stakes and make you care for the characters, even if your brain sees the nonsense happening on the screen.
I appreciate how the drama tried to showcase what happens when someone is in a circle of violence. What they missed is to show why some characters were able to get out of it, while others got swallowed deeper and deeper.
Production value was good. Loved the fighting scenes, and loved the different approach the characters had to them. They delivered realistic blood and realistic amounts of it - someone gets punched, they will bleed, but ain’t no bloody waterfalls going on. Some scenes were quite aesthetically pleasing, though I wished they included more visual symbolism here. This is something I felt like the drama lacked.
The acting was the one that surprised me the most, on the positive note. I knew Park Ji Hoon is good and that's why I am even more amazed he delivered even more than I expected. This type of character so so easy to mess up. To create the aura of intimidation, you need some skills. to make him look empathic on top of that, is even harder. And Ji Hoon managed to do it all.
Choi Hyun Wook was honestly adorable. That said, I kind of felt like this is more violet, better at fighting version of the character he played in 2521.
Hong Kyung did a great job with the character he was given. Even if the writing for him felt rushed, he did great at portraying the change and desperation.
Overall, fun, violent and exciting. The characters were interesting, some more and some less likable. The conclusions for specific plots and situations could have been better. Perfect binge watch material.
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So dumb, yet so entertaining.
Deep has a negative brain cell energy and I live for it. It's a pure brainless entertainment: the writer has no brain, the characters have no brain, and by the end of the movie, you will also have no brain.All the build up tension and clock ticking to the tune of death are hilarious when you know there is a ridiculously easy solution to the dilemma the characters are facing. I was watching the movie laughing, face palming and asking “why y'all making it so difficult when it’s not?”.
I mean, I knew they were all dumb when female lead asked about money and not side effects at the beginning of the movie, even though she is a medical student ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
That said, the characters being so stupid, which leads to the plot being so stupid, was exactly what I liked about it. It’s supposed to be a thriller, but damn, I thought it was some dark comedy on crack.
Production wise it’s cool. Love the soundtrack, and I found it truly fitting. The effect used when showcasing the messed up perception after sleepless nights of the main cast were well done. I had some issues with the directing in terms of pacing… felt a bit jarring.
The plot twist was there… and I was like OH! But then I went into Oh? Wait… what? And then I had to remind myself that no one is using their brain in the movie, so for them the actions might make sense.
Overall, not smart, not groundbreaking, but truly fun to watch. The cast had amazing chemistry and sold the story through their acting. I love the bond, I love the friendship, even if they all shared one brain cell. Stupidity entertaining till the end. It’s the first time I truly adored such a bunch of idiots, and just for that this movie deserves a medal.
That said, Deep left me with one question: How easy is it to study medicine in Thailand if these 4 idiots not only got in, but also passed at least a few semesters?
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Suspension of disbelief needed, and not because of the fantasy elements.
I’m usually one to say that we cannot excuse lackluster execution simply based on the short length of a show. Here though, I feel like that was truly the biggest issue, and no matter how they would try to approach the story, it would not improve much without additional minutes of runtime.The story itself, the premise and idea behind it - great. It was truly a refreshing concept for a BL. Dealing with past trauma was the major theme in the show, but I feel like we get to that idea only by the end of the show. That’s when it hit me and the ending made a perfect scene in the context of the whole drama.
How about romance? It was decent. Lee Hyun Jun and Moon Ji Yong had a rather good and natural chemistry, but the way Shin Jae Woo was written made it hard for me to truly appreciate their scenes together. His antics and rather child-like demeanor makes more sense by the end of the show, but it still makes it hard for me to see them as more than just friends.
The thing about Shin Jae Woo’s character - he acted like his younger self. At times, I felt like his behavior as a child in the past, and now the grown up did not differ that much. Did it make his interaction with Ji Hoon cute and entertaining? Yes. Did it interfere with the romance for me? Also yes.
Then there was also the problem of realistic progression of the feelings. I kept asking myself “when, why and how did Ji Hoon fall for Jae Woo?”. They barely meet, Jae Woo was acting borderline creepy and weird around Ji Hoon. Does the guy just have a peculiar taste in men? Not to mention the strength of the feelings. My man, you barely met this guy. This is not a Shakespearean story to have people deeply in love on the first meeting.
That was one of the issues we usually have to deal with when watching short BLs. I kind of started to accept that, but it’s still worth pointing out with hopes of improvements in the future.
I have some thoughts about the ending, you can find them in a comment under spoiler below. Overall… I’m just not completely sure I understand the mechanics of it… It was also the part that made me question how far I am supposed to ignore logic and reality.
Acting wise, better than many K-BLs. Were these groundbreaking performances? No. They were believable though, and that’s all I need. Moon Ji Yong for sure did the best, especially in the last episode - one scene truly impressed me.
The OST - perfection. All songs worthy of being added to a playlist to listen outside of the show. “Time” was my favorite. The melody and the vocals were just amazing.
Overall, it was fun. I liked the characters and their interactions. I wish the show was longer so the pacing would feel more natural, and the relationship progression would not feel so abrupt.
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This review may contain spoilers
Disclaimer: I did not like this drama. It will be a harsh rant review so if you don't think you can handle it, don't read it. If you do read it, don't write to me that I'm hurting people's feelings with it.What’s more: I do NOT care about the novel. I do not care how well everything was explained and shown in the novel. I’m reviewing the drama. If the show cannot be consumed without my prior knowledge about the plot of the novel, it speaks volumes about the quality of the drama itself.
At first I refused to rate this drama. I had truly no idea what rating would do it justice. For how they handled certain topics it should get -100, but the acting was decent, at times even good, the set design, audio editing, lighting and other technical aspects were good too, and these definitely do not deserve such a low rating. That said, since MDL forces me to state my stars, I will go with my feelings, be as subjective as possible and give it “well deserved” 2.5 stars.
DIRECTING/WRITING
Sadly, the lack of experience in directing is quite obvious. While there was a lot of thought put into „steamy” scenes and how to show them in the most attractive, sensual way, not the same amount of work had been put into directing and showing the overall plot. The biggest problem I had was the confusing time progression and weird time jumps without proper explanation.
Another aspect of directing that caught me off guard was a random and rushed beginning. Why we did not see how the friendship of Type and Tharn was established? All we've got was one line of Type saying Tharn is good looking, nice and most likely will help him get a girl and exactly 1 minute and 17 seconds of them meeting for the first time three weeks ago.
The fact we did not see these two establishing the relationship and spending time together as friends was one of the reasons Tharn's big love seemed so out of place. After seeing the whole drama, it's safe to assume he fell for Type before Type found out he is gay. But we did not see that, so with how badly Type was treating him, it was given I would question Tharn's sanity and reasons behind his feelings. When did he fall for Type? That's the question the drama does not really answer.
Unanswered questions, scenes that seem to have no reason for existing, loose ends - all of them happened at some point. I kept seeing people asking questions about certain plot points and plotlines and the only way to understand the reasoning behind them was to hear from someone who read the novel which was usually followed by continuous excuses of time restriction.
If you know you cannot possibly fit all the plotlines in the time framework set for your drama, you should rewrite it. As much as I liked the “Korean” guy and his roommate, they should not be part of the plot. Not only were their characters not developed, they brought close to nothing to the show, but instead have taken away the precious time that could be used to develop the main plot and explain all the unanswered questions. You need to be smart with how you write and be realistic about it. If you know you only have 12 episodes and a lot of work to be done on the main characters and their relationship, don't waste your time on side characters and plotlines.
THARN'S CHARACTER
I know he has a lot of supporters and many people were extremely protective over him and hated Type quite a lot with how he treated Tharn. That said, while Tharn was quite a nice and sweet guy in the second half of the drama, the first few episodes showed him as a creep who disregards any type of personal space and is willing to sexually harass someone just to get back for the name calling.
Many people may claim that giving someone hickeys without a consent or rather being fully aware the person would not agree to it, is not a big deal, but it is. They were not friends back then, not a couple. Type was asleep after getting drunk. Imagine that you woke up one day and it turned out that some guy you knew, but did not have a good relationship with, gave you hickeys all over your neck and upper torso. Do you find it cute? Romantic? Innocent? I would either call the police or inform my professors about it.
Also, what kind of sane person instead of punching a homophobic asshole says they will screw him? What's in the brain of that man? I would not want to touch a guy like Type with a stick. Kissing him as revenge, giving him hickeys. It's so amazingly illogical I cannot even try to grasp what was going on. All the touching of Type's face and giving him forehead kisses when he was asleep (before they were a couple, back at the beginning when Type hated Tharn) were not romantic. It was gross and weird and inappropriate.
What also amazes me about Tharn, is how not observant and ignorant he is about the feelings of people around him. How he failed to see Lhong was sabotaging all of his relationships? How could he not see the frantic behaviour of Tar when he came to see him, which obviously would lead to the conclusion something is not right? How he ignored Type’s mental struggles and instead of educating himself about the symptoms of his mental health issues, he ignored them.
TYPE'S CHARACTER
Since I'm planning to write in more detail later on about all the mental health issues, I'll just focus on how his character was written. From the beginning there was not much thought put into developing the characters and showing their gradual change and how it happened - as a result, Type’s character is extremely inconsistent. They bring up his trauma and homophobia when it fits the storyline, forget about it when they want to progress the sexy scenes and at the end of the day, nothing makes sense. Even not taking into consideration his hatred for gays, he was not a nice, lovely and a good guy that I would root for. He was an asshole, way too impulsive and had close to zero redeeming qualities. I failed to see why I should cheer for him and his happiness when I simply did not like him as a human being.
MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES
Total disregard of any mental health topics in this drama frustrates me so bad it's exhausting to watch. Let's start with Type being sexually assaulted as a child by a pedophile, in the present times, having phobia and generalized hatred towards gays and PTSD that was miraculously cured by the power of love and blowjobs. No mention of him going to a psychologist or psychiatrist. No previous treatments as a child.
This leads to Tharn's inappropriate behaviour towards Type when he had panic attacks. If you are the clear reason for someone's panic attack and they tell you to let them go in a hysterical manner, you don't hug them closer to you, you let them go and bring help. There is a reason why rape victims are treated by medical staff of the opposite gender than the person who attacked them, why the police officer are not of the same sex as the attacker. The scenes with Tharn being the cause for the panic attack AND the one that calms Type’s down (sometimes with quite sensual touches) just shows how not willing to do any type of research on the topic the writer was.
Episode two, the scene where Tharn almost sits on top of Type, being angry about Type insulting his father - first Tharn is trying to annoy and make Type angry, when Type starts to have panic attack and begs him to let him go, Tharn says “I just want to help you relax. Calm down” as he caresses his face and tight in a clearly sensual manner, Type gets even more anxious still begging for Tharn to let him go and not hurt him. At some point, finally Type is able to move and he kicks Tharn away from himself to which Tharn says “What the hell is wrong with you, Type?” and I want to ask: What the hell is wrong with the person who wrote this scene? If you fail to see how disturbing and wrong and weirdly written this scene is, I have nothing to tell you.
That said, not all of Tharn’s reactions to Type’s attacks were wrong. When Type woke up in the middle of the night and he himself grabbed Tharn and hugged him, it was a good decision to hug him back and with a calm voice make him feel more at ease. This was one of the instances when I was nodding my head thinking - the boy is slowly learning what is appropriate and what is not. The joy was usually short lived though.
The whole PTSD, panic attacks and all the mental health related issues Type had are gone by the time he and Tharn are together. Why? Because they have no purpose to the main romantic plot anymore. They were just tools to make the romance more angsty, be a good excuse for Type’s hatred towards gays and make “steamy scenes” more “steamy”. After all that, without any professional help, by some random miracle, Type was cured. Why exactly do we need mental health professionals when you can just cure your problems with one good blowjob?
The writers also make Tharn look like an extremely self centered person who is not willing to learn and research about the serious topic concerning the person he claims to love. While his lack of proper reaction could be partially an excuse before he knew about Type’s past, after he found out, the fact there was not even one proper serious talk about it amazes me. Not even once Tharn asked if Type often has the panic attacks, how he should act when it happens, if he tried to get professional help. Nothing. The topic is gone and not mentioned again.
Tar’s depression, suicide thoughts and how the heck no one noticed it for so long? I refuse to believe that his brother did not even once come to his room before that one accidental time in the middle of the drama. It’s close to impossible for him not to know how bad his brother’s mental health is, seeing how he wasn’t truly trying to hide it well. Tar was also the only character that was mentioned to receive mental health help from a psychiatrist, how good the help was is a totally different issue. His character is still better “treated” by the writers than Type. They at least tried to show different symptoms of depression and all the more realistic implications it might have.
Lhong’s story is another way of explaining bad behavior by giving a character a tragic past. While I kind of appreciate the additional episode and the background info on Lhong, I’d say it was an amazing waste of time. Good 70% of the time in the episode was just flashbacks to what happened in the previous episode and just a few new scenes showing Lhong’s past. Why not use that time to truly develop and dive deep into this character’s motivation? He obviously had huge mental health issues, yet again, they are not being addressed by anyone.
Both Lhong and Tar should be in observation in the hospital for some time, since they are either a danger to themselves or to others. I guess, mental health help is a concept that does not exist in the universe created by the writer.
San’s love for Tharn when they were younger was quite disturbing too. The idea that he wanted to take Tharn’s virginity because he was young, cute and innocent just sounds wrong for me. Those are the adjectives you use to describe a child. I have no idea how old Sad was when their relationship happened, but it did sound alarming to me.
WHAT I LIKED
I must say, I kind of enjoyed some fluffy scenes of Tharn and Type. I had to force myself to ignore and try not to remember all the stuff that happened in the first half of the show, but when I was able to do that, the scenes were quite cute. I liked the domestic scenes when Type was playing with Tharn hair. I guess I enjoyed their interactions the most in episode 10. Truth to be told, I would not mind this drama that much, or even like it, if the writer did not introduce the topic of sexual assault on the minor and mental health issues that follow. It was just so poorly written, I cannot ignore it.
My favorite character was for sure Techno. He was one of the best written and most realistic ones. Also, probably the only one without huge trauma and mental health issues. I enjoyed most of his scenes and Mild acting was quite good.
One scene that stood out for me was when Type was confronted by his friend after that friend confessed he is gay. It was a well written and well filmed scene. I just wished there was a follow up, since it was an amazing opportunity for Type’s character growth.
It’s important to add: the last episode was a MESS. Like… “how is Lhong not in prison” was the only thing on my mind when I was watching it. I could not focus on anything else.
Overall, the quality of the production was not bad, the acting was good, the chemistry between characters was nice, the music was fine, the technical aspects were well thought through… The writing… was tragic. Did I over-analyze it? Probably. Some might say I should not try to dig deep into this drama since it’s just a romance BL and they are not supposed to be taken this seriously. I would like to say though, the author themselves introduced those deep, tragic and thought provoking themes in it, so I cannot be blamed for taking it too seriously. I cannot ignore such a bad representation. It would make me feel guilty.
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