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Twists, and explosions that left me wanting more.
This is one of those dramas that is pretty much guaranteed to keep you on your toes, and is most definitely an easy binge as the pace is fast the twists are endless (some more predictable than others), the possible outcomes in every episode are like 8 and each episode ends with a cliffhanger making you feel that need to click on that next episode button.Add to that the acting (not only abs) of Lee Seung Gi, the endless charm och Bae Suzy (acting too), the cold second male lead and a bunch of fun not ridiculous characters and you have a really good drama. This is not a romance, but much like in Big Mouth (same writers), the romance in this is top, top, both chemistry and sweet scenes and would have made a great romance drama if they would have given the romance more time and episodes... but that said this definitely satisfied my need for romance.
Though I am not a fan of second seasons this is a drama that desperately needs one, making me lower the score a bit, other things that lowered the score where some unrealistic stuff, some stereotypes, and things that made me role my eyes. However the story it self is really interesting and considering all the twists and details, pretty impressive. The characters are mostly complex. The explosions and scenery is lovely...
Definitely a fun drama!
P.s. it is another drama I watched with my hubby that he actually enjoyed and wanted to binge. I also dropped it mid episode the first time I started it but picked it up a few years later and got hooked from the start. So If you are not feeling it right away you may just need a break. Also pay attention to the details, they matter more than you think.
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Social Criticism At It's Most Confusing
This was so much fun, while I did want to beat a few people up as well as mute the mom and sister... I still found myself enjoying this just a little bit to much...As this is a drama that talkes about class, and by that I do no mean school class, or being classy but the actual blue collar white collar socioeconomic class... power relations, masculinity the works and it does it beautifully... Fine you may need to dig a bit and there are a lot, and by that I mean a lot lines that are there to show the absurdity of gender and class conventions that if taken out of this satire context would seem a bit sexist... So they are pretty much putting these things out there. I am willing to admit that some of the stuff they put out there had me guessing wondering are they serious or are they just trying to show this stuff as the line between progressiveness and whatever I should call it can feel a bit blurred... And thing do become kind of absurd... And I guess I liked it.
While I hated the female leads mom and sister I did really enjoy watching all four leads, their lines, thier characters, their interactions mimics.. muscles... As well as the use of the word sexy" and "uterus".
That said the wrap up was a bit to fast, so I would like a few more episodes. But other than that this is an easy binge and a whole lot of fun...
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You will need to both love the cast and Hate to Love to love this show
Some would say that the definition of insanity is repeating the same mistake over and over again and expecting a different result, so by this definition the mother in this drama is indeed insane, and to be honest that may not be the only reason for the audience to come to that conclusion.As this is the story of the mother who wanted to make up for lost time by controlling her grown up kids and how every single attempt at that pretty much backfired. The boys are lovely to watch, not really boyfriend material and have indeed been deeply traumatised by their very rich on money but poor on love childhood. However I do not think I would call them gentle except for maybe they youngest bro. That said I loved them all. As for their points of rebellion/love interests I would say the first one was sweet the second not really my type and the third had a lovely character but was not very well performed.
One thing you may want to know going in to this is that this drama is very much a drama that can easily be split in to 3 more or less completely detached parts. One for each bro with a so called special at the end, so if you find yourself thinking hey this couple is not my cup of coffee you could actually just skip it and move on to the next.
This is also a drama packed with the hate to love trope as well as a bunch of well known and love drama cliches such as the oh so beloved co habitation, misunderstandings, ex comes back, poor woman rich man, power relations etc... There are also a bunch of sweet friendships, backstabbers, cheaters and women who hate women... As well as a how of society double standards towards women showing us yet again how women get blamed for pretty much everything if they show the slightest interest in pleasuring her body... While a male can be a serial cheater but still be viewed as the victim of seduction.
Was it good? no not really... Was it bad no not really? But The boys may not be gentle but they are indeed a pleasure to watch so while I may have wanted to give the plot a 6 9/10 of the cast made me smile whenever they appeared on screen making it worth my precious time. So if you are unfamiliar with the actors and do not like the first episode I advise you to drop this as most of what makes this drama worth your time is the feeling you get from watching the cast and not so much the plot...
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A broken lighter and a run away princess... who turns in to a knight
Another drama that could have been great if they only cut it in half... or skipped a bunch of draggy scenes and unnecessary detours.As this is indeed the story of the pretty naive but bad ass princess who falls in love with the broken lighter. The broken lighter has a bunch of red flags and completely lacks communication skills, he has however learned the hard way how to manipulate his surroundings to get what he wants instead of using actual verbal words.
The princess, has parents who pretty much want to control her, do not value her opinion at all an basically oppress her in the name of "mommy knows best" basically forcing her to either do as they say or find ways to lie to them. And while the parents here are pretty much as awful if not worse than most parents in c- dramaland they do make way for a lot of character development for the female lead and are one of few examples of controlling parents who actually contribute to the plot in a good way. However this was underdeveloped and I can not believe I am writing this but I would have wanted a little bit more screen time for this part of the plot.
The romance in this is top tire, with or without being in an actual relationship the leads have great energy, bickering, great chemistry, a bunch of beautiful scenes and though you will have to wait for the kisses, the drama does offer a bunch of steamy kisses and more. The female lead is pretty much addicted to the male lead but manages to be so without becoming pathetic (odd but true). Oh and they do seam to have a basic idea about consent .
So what is it I am trying to say here...
The main coupe may not be goals but they are indeed entertaining and fun to watch. However the surrounding plot with all its twists and turn make little to no sense, there are some good and important lines and scenes here and there about second chances, struggles, bullying, jealousy (a lot of jealousy), needing help to climb mountains, betrayal, inequality all done pretty ok, but they made it feel cluttered and draggy and just prolonged the main couples struggles and took up screen time.
Some parts of this are great others meeh, the pacing and time skips are kind of off too. Some of the long build ups are wrapped up with unsatisfactory lines or flash by in a second. One moment they are kissing the next moment it is 3 years later. Inconsistent as it may be it is gif worthy, and binge worthy fluff worth a watch.
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Pretty...
Sometimes a person just needs some mindless drama, with pretty cloths, evil characters, and the promise of the results of peoples hard work on chiselling abs and back muscles. Overwhelming throbbing masculinity that forces itself upon some helpless femininity... Watching a man take charge....in a firework display of lies, power and deceit...And this is indeed a place to see that, at least the first few episodes the amount of times the male lead removes his upper clothing flexes his muscles and forces himself upon the female lead in a guilty pleasure kind of way is indeed almost overwhelming. Later on we also see the big difference in hot and sexy use of ones body to overtake another person in a less evil way and the forcing ones self upon another person in an evil not so sexy way. It is all in the way the lipstick is smeared and the hair.
But the male lead does seem to keep his shirt on more and more the more what would seem like plot unfolds.
The male lead is indeed fluent in writ grab, throw over the shoulder and hiding stuff. But has indeed done his ab work and besides the whole forcing himself upon the female lead seems kind of nice, besides the forcing was done for a good cause, since women who have been forced upon are deemed taken and therefore can only marry the man who did the deed... Showing us how lovely it was to be a woman in the past.
The female lead changes sides more than a tennis ball at Wimbledon, and it is indeed a miracle that she survives past the first episode.
Then there is a voice of reason or more the voice of the viewers among the characters who won my heart... There is also a bunch of more or less evil, cleaver and annoying characters among the cast.
So if you choose to watch this shut off your brain and enjoy the view, just know that the frequency of the power demonstrations by removing clothing become less and less frequent as the episodes pass by.
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My heart fluttered... and it was nice
This is a story about the humans behind the idols and trainees. The secrets, the pain, the struggles... the evil media, evil ceo and of course the evil fans who seem to forget that idols are humans too... But most of all this is a story about friendship, falling in love and moving on... With lots and lots of pretty faces, music and shiny stuff... With more or less predictable twist and though there is a lot of shiny stuff things are not always so bright...I admit it I am a huge sucker for this type of dramas, and have had the male lead in this on my crush list for quite a while... the female lead was pretty decent but nothing wowed me about her... though she did have her moments the over all impression was good enough... however her group mate Yu Ri Ah and the at times slightly evil second female lead La Ri Ma stole my heart... and well so did the boys groups such sweethearts the whole bunch...
It was a lot of fun to watch the main couples way to becoming a couple and try to figure things out.It was especially fun to watch the male leads shift from ice cold to completely obsessed to cold as ice in the same scene... As well as the way he looked at anything that had to do with the male lead with melting eyes... she on the other hand was not as easy to read as the guy... However once they did they became kind of meeh...
What never became a meeh was the interactions between the group members, as well as the other couples... they were all lovely.
There are very few annoying elements in this drama, but there is some cringe that should make me take away stars but my new found crush on half the cast kind of made up for those parts. So Is this drama actually worth 9,5 stars... probably not, but it is highly bingable, highly entertaining and just my cup of coffee...
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Short and sweet
Well saying a short film is short seems a bit like stating the obvious but I still seem to do that a lot... oh well... This was nothing special but it does the job of giving you just a little dose of sweetness, easy to watch, easy to find light gay representation. The acting could be better and the music was rather annoying but the cinematography made up for it.The story itself teaches us the pros and cons of trying to write out ones wishes online as well as to be carful what we say...
They also teach us that smoking is... sexy but can be bad for you in ways you never thought of...
At the end of the day these were pretty ok spent 8,5 minutes or so...
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Youth is not always easy but can be really sweet....
A drama that starts off with an umbrella scene is bound to be good... Started off well and kept on with a shimmer of fluff and lip gloss this is an easy to watch easy to fall for drama.To be honest this drama is not perfect, groundbreaking or particularly good and it probably does not bring anything new to the screen... But there is just something fuzzy about it that takes you in and before you know it you have seen all the episodes and want to see more of these two leads support each other.
The parents in this drama are a guide on how to mom and how not to parent, showing both prejudice agains single parents , some typical rich parents stereotypes but also the importance of trust , respecting kids boundaries and valuing teens as actual human beings. Again as parents we do not own our children, responsible for them yes! But our kids are not there to make us proud or ashamed... They are human beings with their own emotions, dreams and aspirations our job is to support them and make sure they reach 18 without to much damage... And this show had both sides of this story done pretty ok. But this is not the main plot...
The main plot is that of teens, supporting each other with the help of music, bubbles and an umbrella. It is sweet, way to short and not very problematic... just fluff, fluff and more fluff...
Does it actually deserve 9 stars quality and story wise , probably not, but it made me smile and that counts for a lot too...
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The Vulnerable Kids that confused me
I have always known that the most dangerous time for a woman in a relationship is the moment she wants out. I did not know that that could also be the most dangerous time for her parent... Bringing us to a pretty cruel start of love, betrayal and well murder... Shown a long side kids being brutally betrayed by the adult world over and over a gain... Showing us how hard it can be to trust the adult world as well as how extremely vulnerable these kids actually are.There is a lot of duality, confusion for the viewers (okay maybe just me) and a whole lot of very complex characters, making you feel all sorts of emotions. The kids acting was soooo good, I truly felt for theses kids. I also felt that the writer did their best to make the viewers understand the context in which the adults sucked, showing us that thought they where very unreliable they were humans too... ok evil murderous, revenge seeking blood thirsty humans at times but that is also part of humanity I guess... Desperate times and all that... All making this drama a lot to take in and to be honest I am not really sure what I watched... As this drama takes you on a journey of all things complicated, friendship, trust and a whole lot of issues. And by a lot of issues I mean a lot of issues... What keeps this from becoming a full 10 from me where some unnecessary fillers here and there, some parts just did not keep my interest... While I do get that confusion was this series way to keep us on our toes and though I do like both staying on my toes and some confusion I feel that some parts needed to be made more clear.
Oh and though I firmly believe these kids where mostly vulnerable there wheres some bad sides to them too.... But with adults like those who can blame them? Not Me?
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Seemingly endless pianos and violins...
This drama has a lot of good to offer the story is they type to both piss people off but also has a whole lot of sweetness, longing and at times meaningful dialog. Though I may not always agree with the dialog they do show a slightly different approach to some pretty important stuff... again not that I always agreed with the way they handled things but I could recognise some of the strings of thought in there and I liked that...The family and friendships shown here are adorable. There is also an adorable second couple that more or less outshines the leads and could probably get a series of their own.
Unfortunately all is drowned out by endless monologs, piano music, violins... And flashbacks... I wonder if we ever get to her the people talking without the sound of a piano... Honestly I was wishing for just one moment of silence, but do not think I got it.
I have seen that there is a movie version to this that is 2,5 hrs long, that should cut out some of the flashbacks but not all as I am sure you could easily boil it down to 1 hr of pure storytelling if they would just have done som soul searching and editing.
The chemistry is decent, the acting inconsistent but good when it really matters and Nut/B1 is adorable from start to finish. The scenery is lovely and there is a really cute dog in there too.
In conclusion, if you can find the movie watch it instead of the drama, if you watch the drama prepare yourself for flashbacks and montages...
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A sweet quick fix of sugar and love
I am almost ashamed to write a review for a 2 minute commercial, or infomercial, or I don´t know 2 minutes supporting love... With rainbows and stuff. But hey it is on MDL... So le'ts go... these are 2 minutes packed with color, flirting, dimples and even a twist or two... all in less than two minutes. I dare say it is a must watch for all Gameboys fans out there and a good way to spend 2 minutes for those who have yet to have fallen for the cast of Gameboys...2 feel-good minutes to watch whenever you need a quick fix of sugar...
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Sloow but interesting
Sloow, sloow, fast, slooow, slooooooooooooow, slow... boom done... so goes the pace of this drama... As they show us that music can be more erotic than math, a Wook, a poetry reading, getting ones hair washed and motorcycle put together,,.. If a picture can say 1000 words then a piece of music could probably say a 1000 emotions and a bunch of words too... or so it seems as most of the dialog in this drama is replaced by classical music. Unfortunately I do not speak classical music that well... but what I did understand was pretty intense... It could also be the accompanied heavy breathing sweat and looks on the performers face... Forever changing the way I hear the sound of the piano and yes I have seen both the movie The Piano and Do you like Brahms this is in a league of its own...The drama incorporates politics complicated and sophisticated enough to put any historical to shame. As the female lead here is equally as smart as she is scary... Is she an evil mastermind, just another cold female lead, is everybody just a pun in her very elaborate game? Or does she have a kind heart hidden in there somewhere... Well one thing is sure the only time she seems human is when she listens to music and the only time she smiles is with the male lead who just happens to be 20 years younger, poor.... lonely but kind and a musical genius... How they interact, who´s got the power and if there is a heart in there somewhere is what you get to find out if you trouble yourself with watching this drama.
However this is slow, like really, really slow... you could probably easily watch it in triple speed just to slow down for the few moments of dialog and you will just think the music is a bit fast... but other than that you would not notice anything.
Bingabilaty: low
Entertainment: medium
Interesting story with interesting twists: high
Leads: top, top. top
Annoying side characters: not so much
Another strength this drama has is how they show extremes... poor/rich, good/evil, smart/not so smart.... Musical genius who knows only music/regular people... as well as the difference between sugar mommy, age gaps, romance, friendship... An age gap that bothered me less and less as time went by.
So in short it is definitely a drama worth watching but you have to have a lot of patients and enjoy power struggle humour, political twists and sloooooooooow paced everything....
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Sweet, fun, fluffy...
This drama is like a great mix of most of my favourite tropes done well , not great but pretty good a highly addictive very bingeable and with pretty lovable characters and pretty cinematography. As they mix Go Back Couple, with The Brightest Star in The sky threw in While. You Were Sleeping and added maybe just a dash of What Is Wrong With Secretary Kim. And may just may make you want to fall down a well...This drama excelled in use of umbrellas ad they were probably present in every episode and used for all from flirting, slo mo romance but best of all they were even used as weapons! The budget for confetti and cleaning up confetti in this drama must have been huge almost as big as the budget for umbrellas and hoodies.
The drama also has some of dreamlands sweetest parents, friendships and shows lovely ways of handling some popular drama cliches. However the part of the main plot that is not romance, is kind of draggy and feels pretty unnecessary, it is as if it is only there to add some seemingly never ending propaganda monologs, fire and action all things that are not nearly as interesting as the chemistry, dynamics, family relations, and romance in the rest of the drama and is what brings down the score from a 10 to a 9, but if you skip past those parts you will se that the rest is a lot of fun as this drama has it all bickering siblings, bickering couples (yes I like bickering), caring, snow, slow or glass, slow mo rain... a smart and mature female lead who can actually stand up for herself , a swim team, boxing and even a puppy...
Also! There is a scene were a guy actually asks a girl if he can kiss her??? In a C-drama? What are the odds?
In numbers:
Bingeabilaty: 10
Main Couple: 10
Side characters: 8
Annoying elements: very few
Umbrellas: 10
Fluff: 10
Frustration: 9
Definitely one of the better C-dramas out there.
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Confusing in a good way, but too loud
This is one of those dramas where you just want to send 60% of the characters to anger management and find yourself astonished by the fact that all still have their jobs.But if you look past the constant yelling, outbursts of rage and fighting you will find some pretty sweet volnarable and lovable human beings...
The story is interesting, confusing in a good way and keeps you (kept me) on your toes for the most part. The characters are complex and the line between dream/reality good/evil are very blurry which is something I personally really appreciate.
Officer Yoon, the one female officer is really cool she is smart, funny, bit too emotional and shows a very subtle way trying to make her mark without becoming macho herself... in a macho environment. We also get to see more or less subtle acts of sexism and harassment who cater to my personal prejedus of how it was to be a woman in the police force in the 80s. It also showed how little a man had to do to seem dreamy and make a girl feel respected (basic human curtesy). Subtle but very real portrayals of day to day seism in the work force. Her acting however seemed a bit off, but it could be her role too.
The friendships and bonds made here are definitely a good point, as well as the mystery but the best and most scary part is still the blurr... But a lot was ruined by the yelling and my constant wish to send them all (yes all) to therapy to work on handling their emotional issues.
Definitely a decent watch, just mind the yelling and emotional reactions.
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Third (time) is the charm...
The first (Khai) is a total player and insensitive jerk but Second (Two) and Third are just sweet and adorable right down to Bones who is also such a sweet soul.. this drama has a lot of my favourite tropes, and hits lot of good spot.The drama is entertaining, painful at times but easy to watch, easy to binge and has very few annoying disturbances and mostly lovable characters.
I was truly impressed by guns acting in this drama, he really conveyed all the emotions (mostly pain) of falling for your best friend. A performance that definitely stood out and made me want to see more of him. Most of the rest of the cast did a pretty decent job too, with the exception of one or two side characters most the shortest roles were well written and well preformed.
What I loved about this drama was how all bad behaviour was called out for what it was, but also the show of conflicting emotions and knowing that person is bad for you but you can not help but love them a reality that I unfortunately think many can relate to. And though those who are jerks in real life really change it is nice to dream of a better world...
The next thing I loved about this drama was the bromance, crew friendship though they where sexist jerks a times they were pretty decent friends and I just loved how they supported each other (especially Two and Third).
Definitely a drama I recommend all GMMTvs lovers out there, I also think this could be a good starter drama for those who are curious about GMMTVs dramas.
Also, for those of you who remember Earth from A Tale of a 1000 stars, he does a good job here too, but it took a while for me to recognise him, his styling here is not nearly as good as in ATOTS...
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