Captivating characters and plot

I would have never thought, that I would end up loving this series. I'm glad I started it, even if I wasn't totally interested in it. This drama makes so many things right and has everything I want in a drama.

What I liked:
- The Characters. They felt real and engaging. They had their own problems and were realistic. I fell in love with them. Especially the two main leads.
- The chemistry was incredibly captivating. Before watching it I was wondering how they would handle the two age gap couples. Because sometimes it can feel a bit forced in dramas. But not in this one. The age didn't matter, no need to think about it. Lee Ha Nee and Lee Jong Won suit each other and they characters were mature and on the same wave length. It was a delight to watch them on the Screen. The fight scenes between them were full of chemistry.
- The acting was phenomenal. All actors and actresses made a great performance. Especially Lee Ha Nee and Lee Jong Won. I saw Lee Jong Won in the Golden Spoon, but that drama was lacking and I barely noticed him. But in this drama... he was outstanding. I never noticed how beautiful he is. He looked ethereal in this one. Props to the costume design. Sageuk dramas suit him. And as for Lee Ha Nee, I never saw her before which is a surprise since she's been around for some time. I loved her acting, it felt experienced and secure.
-The comedy. I am very picky about comedy. But the comedy was great in this one. The timing felt right, the editing and the actors are talented at conveying the comedic scenes.
-The romance. Oh I love a slowburn. No need for a kiss if the characters have this much chemistry. It was way more exciting this way. It just felt natural and made me want to see more.
- I was even interested in the politics and the plot was really good
-The ending was really good and fitting to the characters.

What I disliked:
-I rarely say it but... nothing. Nothing at all. I would have wished for more scenes between the main leads but on the other hand I don't, because it was great the way it was.

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my high expectations left me disappointed

It has been a while since i finished this drama. It's still difficult to make up mind about it. I waited for this drama for months. Since it was announced. I am a big fan of Shin Hye Sun, i love to see Ahn Bo Hyun too and was excited when he was casted as the main lead. Add Ha Yoon Kyung, add a premiss that could lead to a plot full of pining and Bingo. You created a Drama that is fully my taste. Now after some time i kind of want to write a review.

But... sadly something was missing. Don't get me wrong the Drama is good. But what is it that's missing? The Drama had sooo much potential. I have the feeling that the lack of chemistry between the leads is not the fault of the actors and actresses, but more the fault of the script. I didn't feel quite right. Maybe it was the way staged and produced it and the way they let the plot unfold. For example ake a look at the chemistry in Mr Queen and Yumi's Cells (or even Military Prosecuter Do Bae Man)... on a totally different level. So this might be not Ahn Bo Hyun's and Shin Hye Sun's fault, since i know that they are more than capable.

I don't need many plotlines or anything. Give me scenes which highlight the relationship between people and i am all here for it. With this Drama i don't know what went wrong and it bothers me that i can't name it. Especially since i wanted to love it. Don't get me wrong, it's a good drama. Just not as good as it could have been. At least for my taste. I still liked it. And the moment with Ji Eum's Mom (i think the end of ep3? i don't remember), the one where she is somewhat hallucinating... it grabbed me by my heart. They could have done more with her other lives, they could have explored more of her other lives. I liked the chemistry of the two sisters tho.

Please someone tell me, why this Drama is just a good drama and not a great one as it should have been...

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Enjoyable but with questionable plot-developments

First of all, i had very low expectations before watching this drama. That's where it surprised me. I especially enjoyed the middle of the Drama (Ep. 4-10). I actually thought this drama would turn out to be not my taste or to be bad. But i found myself really invested. At the beginning I thought of it as a feel-good Drama with some comedic elements, which i liked. It still had its meaningful moments. It's great to watch as an in-between Drama or if you're bored.

What i liked:
- Relationship development between the two leads-> I didn't mind the ex coming back because it was obvious that he already liked dong joo. It added a bit of drama to their romance and i was in the mood for it. I liked the romance in this drama up until ep 11. After that, i was somewhat bored (or it's more like that other plotlines bothered me, causing a loss of interest)
-Dong Joo's Father
-That the Drama had some Comedy (but where is the comedy as the episodes passed?)
- Yoo So Ra and Kim Il Sub

Where it went wrong:
- It felt like the tone of the drama changed with the passing of the episodes. I don't know why and it's hard to pinpoint, but it felt different. The following points could have played a part in this change
-Sometimes i did not understand the maleleads choices (Everyone's human, i can see past that)
-Why turn a friend into a bad guy and an enemy? I HATE this trope. Why would someone decide to write this? Make it make sense. If you do write this, please write it properly. Yes, i was surprised but to write a friend-betrayal, just to shock the viewer is not writing at its best. Yes i do sometimes like unnecessary drama in a Kdrama but not this type. It's a matter of taste and this development somehow gives me trust issues.
- Just introducing persons to let them die. The last deaths felt highly fabricated and they left me feeling nothing. Don't overdo it. I did not mind it at the beginning and middle of the drama. But everything felt wrong towards the end.
- The Father's death? NONSENSE. Nonsense if you ask me. Why kill him off? And so late. They wrapped up his death in only one episode. It's still the mainleads father after all, why brush it off so fast? The Writer probably wanted a meaningful death to be Dong Joos last person, but it still rubbed me the wrong way. Even the way he died...

After all these negative points why would i still give it 6.5 Stars (in my rating system = good)? I still enjoyed it the majority of the time and since i had low expectations i was positively surprised. I liked the tone of the drama (even though not towards the end). I had a good time. Can you compare it to the other dramas i watched lately (like D.P)? Of course not.
Not a bad drama. But i can understand if others rate this drama lower than me. It's always a matter of taste. I acknowledge the negative aspects and still enjoyed it more than i thought i would.

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More a sport-managing drama than a sports drama

And another drama that is hard to rate. I just finished it and I still feel conflicted. Nevertheless, I’m going to try to organize my thoughts and feelings about this drama.

What I liked:
- A packed storyline and natural feeling plot progression
- The Baseball scenes. I knew nothing about baseball. And honestly, I still don’t really do. But this drama evoked my interest in it and I might check it out more often. Before watching this drama, I had no thoughts whatsoever about baseball. Maybe only that it’s dull. Now I don’t think like that anymore. I actually appreciate the sport more and think it’s interesting. I do like sport dramas because they show passionate characters that push themselves to be better. I do like to see some rivalry and competitiveness. Sport dramas often have determined characters who you start to root for and it’s always satisfying to see them get better. I don’t really play sports but it’s something I respect and do love to see in dramas. Be it ssireum (Like flowers in sand), fencing (twenty-five twenty-one), Love all Play (Badminton) etc… You can find this passion in Hot Stove league as well. But it’s just that they focus on the characters behind the players and not the players themselves.
- No romance. I do love romance. And I do love romance as a side plot as well. But it’s a good move that there was no romance in this specific drama. The characters had no romantic chemistry at all. More like colleague chemistry
- The actors!!! If I correctly remember Namkoong Min even won important awards for this show and it’s more than deserved. This man can act. I liked him before but after My Dearest he became one of my favorite actors. It was nice to see him in an introverted and reserved role this time. The other actors and actresses did a very good job as well. I really like Park Eun Bin. I especially liked her in Do you like Brahms? And in Age of Youth. Of course, I’ve seen her in Extraordinary attorney woo as well. She was outstanding. But after Castaway diva, a drama that wasn’t my taste --- Wait I just realized that Park Eun Bin and Chae Jong Hyeop reunited in Castaway diva after being in Hot stove league together, now it feels a bit weird --- anyway Castaway diva wasn’t my taste and could unsee Woo Young Woo in her new role. That’s why it was nice to see her in a different role again.

What I wished for:
I normally write “what I disliked” but this time it’s a bit different. This drama is good. I’m going to give it a 8/10 which is in my rating system a “Great”. Following point are crucial as to why I can’t give it a higher score. A 9/9.5/10 rating would automatically belong into the “my favorites” category. The acting, the quality and writing of this drama is the reason why I can’t give a lower score than 8 but the next points are the reasons why it’s higher:
- Not enough baseball. I expected more baseball. Now I know what a stove league is and that it’s always off-season. But in my opinion this drama would have benefitted from more baseball scenes.
- I know that they fleshed out the characters. But I still couldn’t really connect to them that much. I did like the players and would have liked to see more from them. The ML was intriguing but seemed a bit unapproachable. But that seemed intentionally. That, what we could see of his private life was very heartwarming. It’s just that I don’t really connect to any of the side characters.
- The villain and disbandment parts were not very intriguing.

I don’t feel strongly about this drama, nevertheless because of the quality of acting and writing I think it deserves and 8/10 in my rating system. And it’s refreshing to see a slower drama without romance receiving a 8.7 rating.

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Nothing new but enjoyable

Do I understand if someone rates this drama lower than me? Yes! Was it something new with amazing storylines and characters? No! Did I enjoy it anyway? YES

I was in a little kdrama slump... a bit bored by the kdramas I was watching recently and their genres. This came at the right time. It's short and I liked the airing schedule. The Idea of this drama is nothing new but still interesting and the potential to take the road of a psychological thriller mystery. But it did not. The characters are kinda stupid and some lack depth. The thing is... I still continued watching and was invested and had my own theories. Yes, you could call the ending bad. I was fine with it because I actually did not really care about how it ends. Honestly, this drama is perfect for switching your brain off and relax. I very much needed this, and this drama came at the right time.

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