amrita828

It makes perfect sense to me too. I usually go look for the "out of the choir" voice - which is, more often than not, the negative one.
Actually, I even find writing negative reviews easier than the positive ones. Explaining why we love something isn't an easy task...

What hard work! Thank you for taking the time to read us and put it all together, it must not have been easy. Great article! :D

The hottest topic is clearly the "time to write a review".

While I understand very well the impulse - at times the irrepressible need - to express our opinion on something we are watching, I share the opinion of those who are not happy with reviews written before the drama has ended.

It's not as though there weren't other options: the episode review section is at times like a deserted island and so is the discussion section, which exists exactly for the purpose of gathering people who want to talk about the show.
Why not use those?

A review is not a place to discuss a drama, it is, as you wrote quoting Wikipedia "a critical appraisal of a book, play, film, etc." Professional film critics sit through a film even when they hate it before writing a review; they don't run out of the cinema 5 minutes in to shout to the whole world "Best movie evaaaa!!!", or "don't watch this crap!".
What's even worse, MDL system does not allow you to write a review without grading it at the same time, which means that one truly needs to be a magician to give an OVERALL 10 to a drama by episode 4!

Respect is a mutual thing: readers should respect the opinion of writers even when they disagree, but reviewers should respect readers too, A little patience on the part of everyone can't possibly hurt. In the meantime, the comment section can flourish all it wants.

LOL, thank you.
Actually, I enjoyed writing it more than watching the drama too. ;-)

In Italy we wear engagement and wedding rings on the left too, and we aren't Asian. I know nothing of the nerve you mention, but the left IS the side of the heart.
This is like deciding the English, Malay, Japanese and so on drive on the "wrong" side of the road...

Yes, me too.
I'm sad the writer didn't have the guts to keep the initial, adorable quirkiness intact till the very end, since, just like you, I loved the messy and at times surreal feel of it all. The last episodes lacked that spark, but all in all it has been a very enjoyable drama that felt a little like a Summer adventure. :D

Fantastic review!
One I totally agree with and perfectly captures the tone of this drama. I love your food parallel, so much that I came here to write a review and leave with a satisfying sense of satiety and no wish to elaborate myself.
Thank you!

No, it's not only you.
The drama's as deep as a mud puddle, which made it a lot easier for me to drop it at the first sight of impending rain. :P
Never regretted my choice since. Kudos to you for the courage to compete it.

Let me clap to your wonderfully articulated answer, @Shoes!
I couldn't agree more. :D
I love Sae Woo for her quirkiness and for being honest from the very beginning and I love this drama for being sincere in such a "theatrical" way.

Let's throw them at the writer... ;-)

Lol, Purple, I don't recall ever reading a review of yours where you sounded this... annoyed. Not that I disagree, on the contrary.
And I second the question: why have we subjected ourselves to the torture? :P

Lol.
Most of my protest-inducing slips have been already mentioned either by you or by the other commenters. Hilariously so, I may add. :D

I have however a very small pet peeve regarding flashbacks. Nothing major, mind you, but it bugs me every time.
Since the director knows in advance a scene will be used for one or several flashbacks, I wished (s)he would film it from the protagonists different perspective. When we think back of something that happened to us, we don't see ourselves in our mind, do we? Say a character recalls her lover proposing: shouldn't she see HIS face in her mind? But no, the flashback invariably shows them both on screen, which is absurd! What should be a character's flashback, becomes OUR flashback... as though we needed it, lol.

Wow, you're one brave person! Are you sure you didn't wake up from that experiment with all your passwords gone? lol
In any case, thank you so much for sharing your experience in such a well written, witty and detailed way.

I'm afraid I'll never try this out myself: scepticism aside, I don't want to forget. My
favourite shows - as well as books - rely on emotions rather than plot twists, so that I purposedly re-watch or re-read them to feel that emotion again, What is more, in some cases I find the second watch even better than the first, so forgetting would defeat its object.

Thanks again for this highly entertaining article.
I'm sorry the kind Swede failed at enabling you to rewatch Healer. ;-)

It may have been the subs: they were a little messy at times.
And I was truly happy for him too. Innocent people wrongly accused must be one of the saddest things ever. At least he got to make great friends in jail. :)

It wasn't him who was sentenced to 35 years, but the real culprit, the one who set him up in the first place.
Since evidence of his innocence is now clear, Yoo's going to be freed from jail, hence the congratulations. :)

Among the dozens of articles about watching recommendations, this one stands out as a great subject for reflection and debate. :) Thank you!

I haven't watched these two dramas, but I can say from your description Lin Tia Mu's the real hero. In fact, I'd say she IS kick-ass, even thought she doesn't literally kick any ass. That strength should be a prerogative of physically tough, action driven people is as wrong a concept as it is obsolete.

However, to fully discuss whether kindness and endurance were weak or strong traits, I think we should move away from war/occupation scenarios. In times of war, courage takes several forms: history is full of examples of people who endured for a greater cause and in so doing won the battle, if not for themselves, for the good of others.

In a normal scenario though, meek acceptance isn't just as courageous, since what is the purpose of it? In modern society - at least in countries where there's peace and freedom of speech - strong people voice their opinion, even while keeping their kind nature intact.
This is why when we "judge" the characters of a drama, we tend to prefer those who actually do something to improve their lives, instead of sitting there and gently accept everything that is thrown at them.

LOL, thank you. XD
And I forgot to mention one more thing I adore about Sae Woo/Poong: their banters. They are charged with innuendos: the almond speech in the car, the "I keep thinking about the wok" thing at the bus stop and generally all their talk about food/hunger.
Someone tell me I'm not the only one who's interpreting them as double entendre... :S :P

What, that I'll end up withered? ;-) XD

I've been in love with Sae Woo from episode 1 and still am. I was waiting for her to realize where her romantic interest was and now that she knows, I know too: Poong all the way! ♥
That monologue of her on episode 19, when she's walking and imagining Poong while he repeats he likes her was brilliant! LOL
She's such a dear.

While I love Chil Seung as a character and a friend, I don't like his stubborn refusal to accept she doesn't love him back. She has a mind of her own and he needs to respect that. Protection is all good, but not when a man tries to protect a woman from her own heart.

Oh, and shall we talk about the way Poong looks at her? *drools*
I lose a 100 hormones every time. I'll end up withered. :P

I'm in love with this drama for reasons I can't even explain in words. It's quirky, it's surreal, at times chopped like those onions poor Sae Woo's mother has to peel (lol), and yet it's still the only drama I'm waiting for every week with thrilling anticipation.
The plot isn't anything that special, but the dialogues are, and so are the characters. Not to mention that some are as yummy as that delicious food. XD

Thank you, hope. :)
Next time, let's meet by a fantastic drama - stuff like Prison Playbook or Avenger Social Club just to mention a couple - so that we can share the joy instead of the boredom. ;-)