Yupon68
USA
Yes, She Can: Themes of Power and Love…and Feminism
I love the cast and most of the series. It is true that at some points its narrative pace weakens, and there are some transition issues perhaps from time constraints. However, when this 20-episode drama is good, it's very good. Some scenes are delightfully hilarious, others charming or deeply moving: the makers did a great job of developing characters and relationships. I think if it had been tightened and trimmed into 16 eps, with a less hurried writer, the series would have been gold. Still, the story and characters are strong, and the themes of loyalty, protectiveness, devotion, and love are explored tenderly. The series never is boring unless one views the dark sides of historical sexism, homophobia, classism, jealousy, abuse of power, political intrigue, assassination, murder, and struggles for position or justice through combat and power plays as boring. Or one never finished the series at all. For me, the real excellence of the series is its belief in friendship, loyalty, and love that "sees" and embraces the beloved, no matter the shifts and even threats. It is the series' greatest theme, and the actors deserve praise for their gifted performances in telling their characters' often tragic but also triumphant stories. And the most important take-away is that “Yes, she can.”Was this review helpful to you?
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Great cast with important themes about true love, friendship, and beauty; nice pacing, often hilarious, touching, and with a satsifying ending. It’s not a 10 for me because I felt HJE was often over the top in her acting, which can be the director’s fault. But I didn’t enjoy the shouting and grimacing. Within the story itself, I felt PSJ’s character was the one who needed more attention by the writer since he rises above the lies that are told to him because of his love for HJE’s character. His character truly understands what love is, and I’m not sure any of the others really did. PSJ as usual was pitch perfect, truly one of Korea’s finest actors. In every scene, though, because he is so good, it was as though he was in a different drama, on a different level.
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Begins okay but loses its way
The scores for this series steadily go down; in fact they plummet. Though KDrama and films are among the best in the world—maybe THE best—most fans know that they are not all superb or even all good. So when many people who love it so much score some of them like this one so low, there is a reason. We feel they are not very good, and there are too many more that are. I watched all 6 eps, and regarded it as a muddled mess, heavily influenced by the western demand for repetitious violence, sex for sex’s sake, cliches, weak character development, and just a lot of plot and character confusion. It’s a shame because though they work so hard, the actors’ talents are wasted in this series.Was this review helpful to you?
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Excellent cast and direction; good series that flattens out
Wonderful cast and direction. But to me the series seemed to split, bog down, and then fall apart. When this happens, and the series has both a superb cast and fine director, then it’s either the writer or the promo people behind the scenes wrapping things up instead of coming to closure. Or both. At any rate, the first half is excellent and totally involving, quite intricate and an emotional roller coaster. Second half didn’t seem to match the tempo, and characters were flipped so much it was sometimes not very believable. But I did like the series, which is why I was disappointed by the pacing and seeming flattening out. Yet the cast is really great throughout. Recommended with reservations.Was this review helpful to you?
Cast Shines in This Boardroom Drama
I will watch any series/film Lee Bo Young is in. She’s one of my top 10 favorite actors as is her great husband, Ji Sung. And the entire cast in this one is also outstanding along with most of the writing and directing.Though I usually don’t care for boardroom politics and business shenanigan plots—which sometimes bog down this story also—it is generally a very enjoyable, satisfying series. Particularly fine are the delightful engagements of characters and, except for the occasional unfortunate screeching, the strong, confident women in mutually supportive and leadership roles are a delight.
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Great cast and director; weak female character development
This is a good series, but it does sag occasionally because the sequencing can be too long and limp for the actual plot and character development. Not enough attention is given to developing the female leads or the relationships between characters. It puts more emphasis on plot than on character development, but even then the writer leaves too many holes that she continues to spin, and not effectively. However, the series can definitely be recommended for its terrific cast and directors who keep the audience’s attention throughout despite the writer’s occasional oversights.Was this review helpful to you?
Predictable Zombie Fest
I thought the cast worked hard and well. But I also thought this series could have been limited to about 8 eps at the most. For me there was too much repetition of Zombie tropes and cliches in the storyline as well as from the genre itself, and slow pace-often dragging itself along. Frankly, I got tired of the Zombies and am probably tired of the whole genre. And this one guy making what amount to apocalyptic decisions is not believable. That said, I really did like the cast, who made me care about them, which kept me watching. But still, the plot itself is predictable and underwhelming except for a few threads that touch the heart. It is okay, but no Train to Busan, Sweet Home, or Kingdom.Was this review helpful to you?
Violence in the schools is assault.
I am both a parent and a teacher.The behavior from the first episode is not “bullying” but assault. Let’s call these attacks what they are. Assault is a crime no matter the age or the perpetrators’ roles whether directly attacking, or making the attacks possible. Rather than the numerous drama series showing the criminals attacking other students always with impunity, expose physical and verbal assault in the school system for what it is: a crime punishable by expulsion and imprisonment.
For the victim to become obsessed and as vicious as the criminals—while understandable—makes her no better. I am still waiting for a brilliant writer like this one to stop the histrionics and go after the criminals and their supporters carefully and methodically and legally until they are expelled and imprisoned. Because it never should have gone as far as it was allowed. And it won’t stop until it is exposed and punished in the courts. That said, everyone in this drama is excellent. Think how much more they could have been in a true revenge story resolved through the courts.
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This review may contain spoilers
Respect the Audience
When you offer a love story about two really sweet people who take care of others and are devoted to one another, you do not then tack on a deliberately hurtful ending without explaining anything at all. Nothing. We don’t know why it happened. We don’t know why the writer did it almost immediately, and we don’t know why his beloved never tried to find him, ask about him. For so many years……Nothing. Yet the couple the writer and crew taught us to love never would have done that to one another, nor would a good writer have done it to the audience who loved them.Was this review helpful to you?
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Sad Exit for a Great Actress
Considering the cast and director of Train to Busan, this film should have been far better, but the writing and storyline are both thin and clumsy. Some scenes are simply dropped in the middle as if they couldn't figure out what to do with them next. So the film ends up fragmented and changes into an often frenzied, overly long action piece. However, there are some nice visuals in set designs, the two veteran female leads are wonderful, and the mother-daughter story is moving. The tragic death in May of Kang Soo Yeon is heartbreaking. She was a deeply respected Drama star in the original Korean Wave, so this film should have been such a comeback for her. Instead, it is her sad epitaph: And she is wonderful. RIP Lovely Lady ?Was this review helpful to you?
Importance in Hallyu — The Korean Wave
This is a classic that helped begin the early years of the Korean Wave and the careers of the leads. It was one of the first Korean movies I saw, about ten years ago when I was just discovering the brilliance of the Koreans, who have remained my favorite filmmakers ever since. So “Musa: The Warrior” has a special place in my heart, not least of which is it’s having introduced me to the beautiful, brilliant Jung Woo- Sung. This artist is still a major force in Korean Films and Dramas— one of the best actors in the world. His portrayal of The Warrior is commanding, filling the screen: charismatic and absolutely breathtaking.Was this review helpful to you?
