Bizarrely addictive
First: it's not a great drama. Let's be honest. But what is a great drama? I watched it. I liked it. I even wrote a review about it. This is a total guilty pleasure show. Don't expect an Oscar level screen play. If you want smexy kisses, obsessed male lead, and can overlook weird cgi and plot holes, this is the drama for you. I can honestly say: I've never seen anything like it - and I've been looking 😂Was this review helpful to you?
Slow Burn Slice of Life
It took me eight years to give this drama a try. I was living in Korea when it aired and the hype was so high that I couldn't bring myself to join the masses. As the years went by I heard mostly negative reviews from my foreign friends and only my Korean friends seemed to like the drama. I pretty much knew the plot and never felt the need to watch it due to the mixed reactions from everyone. The only reason I finally watched it is because I've been on a Jung HaeIn phase somewhat against my will - and no one will dispute this is the drama that launched him into leading man roles.To begin, I should say that anyone who is not Korean or doesn't know/hasn't experienced Korean culture will be frustrated with the majority of the drama. It is not a typical Kdrama rom com or soap opera. The styling, characterization, and pacing are quite unique even by Korean standards (which probably explains why it was such a hit here in its home country). A lot of the drama focuses on the family dynamics and social standings that many Koreans still have but that many other cultures find difficult to empathize with or understand.
I would not recommend this as a drama to binge. It seemed better to me in 1 - 2 episode increments - exactly as if it were airing. The episodes felt more like watching the daily lives of the characters than an actual drama. It was romantic - yes. It was also boring at times, exciting at others, frustrating, funny, and sad.
The good things:
The characters felt like real people. They weren't perfect, they had ups and downs, they had feelings that were mostly relatable. The acting was on point - everyone was locked into their role. I personally liked the scenes that lasted longer than most dramas, letting the actors really commit to their character and making the situations seem even more real.
The romance/chemistry was present. Almost no critics of the drama actually had issues with the leads chemistry - they were a very cute and watchable couple.
The story was good - so many reviews hated on the plot, but to me it felt like a real family, workplace, and home. As someone who lives in Korea, I could relate to so many little moments.
The bad things:
The music was too distracting. It got slightly better in the later episodes, but using the same songs so many times made them lose whatever effect they might have had.
The slow motion was overused as well. Montages seem to be this director's thing, but I wasn't captivated by all the dramatic scenes showing the characters having fun or not having fun in a time lapse. Perhaps this is partly due to the fact that most of the slow motion scenes were set to the overused music.
The final few episodes. Without major spoilers, some of the choices made by the main characters didn't exactly match up with how they were portrayed from the start. It felt a bit as though the writer had a pre determined plot to follow and had to quickly figure out how to make it happen in 2 episodes.
In conclusion, not everyone will enjoy this drama. If you want to give it a try, I will say that a certain understanding and/or appreciation of Kculture (especially family/Confucianism) will allow you to view more objectively. If you like men who fall first and are soft little puppies for their women you will like the main lead. If you like episodes that feel like watching someone's daily life, you will enjoy the story. If you don't like those things, you will probably feel frustrated by this drama.
I'm glad I watched it - probably won't watch it again, but it's definitely on my 'worth it' list.
Was this review helpful to you?
Bad Boy Good Girl?
I like both the leads and I liked the drama too. The actual story wasn't anything new, but the characterization was an interesting twist on bad boy/good girl. He's the bad boy but he's not that bad and she's the good girl but she's not that good. It was a well executed dynamic and chemistry (as expected from both the leads) was great. Spice not too high but tension was thereWas this review helpful to you?
Guilty Pleasure Watch
This was my first MXY drama and it's sort of a guilty pleasure now - I keep coming back. I'm a sucker for dramas where a hot younger guy is obsessed with an older girl and this one hits all the right spots. Story is meh, but chemistry is 100% and there's something about a big hunky dude all hung up on one woman that is just chef's kiss. ML is teetering on the psycho line, complete with forced kisses and crazy schemes, but he also has a sweet desperation to him and never actually forces the FL into anything. MXY is a total beefcake as always and fans will not be disappointed with his shirtless scenes. Is it an Oscar worthy drama? Oh boy, of course not - but do I keep re-watching? Yes indeed.Was this review helpful to you?
Adorkable Fun
The main downside to this show is how difficult it is to stream (with subs or without). With some methodical searching you can watch nearly all of the episodes with subs, but not in the same place and with varying degrees of quality (res & subs).If you go to the trouble, you are in for a treat - especially if you are a fan of any of the members/groups. The show proudly embraces something we never thought we'd need to see - a bunch of male pop stars in their 20s (sorry Tony & Heechul) struggling to satisfy the various beauty requests from an equally star studded guest line up of gorgeous female Kpop/Drama stars.
The premise of each episode is for all the men to awkwardly greet each other and guess (aka hope) who the female guest is going to be. Once the 'princess' arrives, she has some time with the boys to quiz them on various aspects of the female mystique and watch them attempt to appeal themselves through dancing, singing, role playing, etc. After this, she gives them her makeup criteria (e.g femme fatal, girl next door, etc.) and disappears into an adjoining room while the boys get a tutorial from their on set celebrity makeup artist, who does his best to point them in the right direction. In S1, they practice on mannequins; S2 on (gulp) actual models. After the female guest observes each guys' final result, she chooses who will complete which step of the makeup routine (foundation, eyeshadow, blush, etc.). One by one, the boys head off to have some intimate makeup time, during which they attempt to both cause the lady's heart to beat faster and complete the makeup successfully. The episodes finish off with a final reveal of the look and the visiting 'princess' choosing one member who gave her the most heart throbbing moment.
It's a surprisingly funny and cute show. The best way to find subbed episodes is to visit the fan sites for either the boy group members or the visiting female guest.
Was this review helpful to you?
