I was a little hesitant to watch it because I always see people saying that the male lead is very problematic in terms of narcissism, But honestly, I just found him hilarious.
And I don't think the drama tries to romanticize or normalize his behavior. Quite the opposite, we have a lot of other characters who constantly point out his weird behavior, including the female lead itself. In the first few episodes, you are not supposed to find his actions romantic ou anything like that, you supposed to look at him and think, "Damn, this guy really doesn't understand anything about relating to people."
He's very narcissistic, and I think portraying that kind of character is very difficult when he's the protagonist; it's practically impossible to make him likeable in the first few episodes. But that's what character development is for. I personally really like his development throughout the story, especially because it deviates significantly from this wave of "greenflagization" where male lead needs to be this perfect guy without any character flaws and no bad attitudes since episode one.
The main relationship is beautiful, and it surprises me that they managed to create such a healthy relationship when it had all the makings of a disaster.
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My favorite thing about the show was the female lead. Very strong, very badass. I loved her.
I liked the male lead as well, but I didn't find anything particularly remarkable about the story.
It was fun to watch, but I wouldn't do it again.
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Ko Munyeong is truly something else. You'll hate her, you'll love her, you'll understand her, you'll laugh with her, you'll get stressed out by her. And that's a perfect example of a great main character. She is someone who will make you feel things, good or bad, but you will remember her. Definitely.
Moon Gangtae is a character who might seem boring and uninteresting at first, but as the story progresses you realize he's not that person at all. He is someone who, from a young age, had to develop a social mask to live, and this caused terrible damage to his psychological well-being and behavior.
Munyeong is the one who inspires him to break out of his shell and be who he truly is. Gangtae is the one who inspires her not to hide behind indifference and to show her vulnerability. They unintentionally end up initiating each other's healing process.
The fairy tales are beautiful and carry lessons that I will take with me for life.
I also need to applaud the performances. The script is incredible, but the story wouldn't have hit as hard if it weren't for the brilliant performances of the main cast.
One of the best series I've ever seen, without a doubt.
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A very generic story, cringe moments that are too much to handle, the characters have zero charisma, and I finished the drama without caring about any of them. Even doing something this bad requires effort, so congratulations to the writers, I guess.
The love triangle they're trying to sell doesn't work because both the male characters are toxic lunatics. The male lead is extremely aggressive, and the second lead, in addition to being aggressive, also makes a living bullying her and other people. The female lead literally has to choose between a dirt cake and a dirt cake with embedded stones. Well, at least she chose the least bad option, but still: just no.
She basically has no personality and no charisma. And considering that a character who suffers so much doesn't evoke any sympathy in me... Yeah, she's really bad.
Besides those three, I don't care enough about any of the other characters because I found them all very forgettable. The only thing that stands out in this drama is the absurd cast, but this proves that if the script is bad enough, not even a powerful cast can save it.
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They took a terrible story and managed to get blood from a stone. They made the characters likeable, even the male lead, who is an abomination of nature in all other versions.
For me, the best thing about this version compared to the others is that they finally take bullying seriously. The protagonist has character development, but here he doesn't simply become a good person and face no consequences for the things he's done. I loved it.
And the female lead... God, what a goddess. Easily one of the most stunning women I've ever seen, I was completely distracted when she was on screen.
Anyway, it's a story that's a bit dated, but they managed to get the best out of it.
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The main couple is the cutest thing in the world. It takes them a while to really get together, but when they do, it's one heart-fluttering moment after another.
I particularly love stories of women entering male environments and humiliating them. And the criticism about "fans" who hate seeing their idols dating nailed it, I would love to see more shows addressing this topic.
It's a cute and lighthearted drama. That's it.
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Some people don't, but I personally love clichés. I just find it annoying when they're not well done, as I've seen in other dramas. Everything works here.
The secondary couple stole the show a little, but I don't think that's a bad thing. The main couple is also very cute and has great chemistry.
It's fun, it's lighthearted, the characters are good, and the soundtrack is iconic. Nothing less.
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I don't think the story is bad or that the execution is poorly done; I just came to the conclusion that this type of drama isn't for me. The most memorable thing for me is the opening theme song, which is PEAK.
The characters didn't captivate me, but I don't think that's the point of the drama. You're supposed to look at them and think, "damn, they're messed up." And when you see how they end up, you don't know how to feel. That's what it is.
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That ending traumatized me, especially because I had hoped for a happy ending for her and Pildo. But they pulled the rug out from under me and said, "no, that's not it."
It was a bittersweet ending, but that's the premise of the drama, so the execution was great.
The highlight of the drama for me was the plot twist revealing the true identity of her father. I was so gagged and it was very well done.
And despite being a short drama, it has one of the best pilot episodes I've ever seen in a series.
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The main couple could have been stronger; I didn't feel that much chemistry between them. And the last few episodes felt a bit dragged out for me and were hard to finish. Those are the only negative points for me.
Aside from that, I loved everything. It's a show that teaches a lot about the pain of letting people go from your life and the grief that remains in those who are left behind. The bride episode was a real standout for me; I confess I even cried a little.
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The main leads did an terrifying job of showing how much they love each other. I don't know how they did it, but I bought every second of it.
The only thing that takes points from this drama for me is the slow pace. The storytelling style really isn't for me, and it took me a while to finish because of that.
But the story is great and I was happy with the ending, especially because I was expecting a sad one and thankfully they weren't cruel to that extent.
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The chemistry is really the highlight here, and I would really like to see the two actors doing something together again. One of the first k-drama couples that I became truly obsessed with.
Me loving them so much contributed to the show's ending stressing me out. I hoped everything would work out and that they could find another solution, but the inevitable happened and I hated it. That open and unsatisfying ending is what lowered the show's rating for me.
Aside from that, it's a good drama and will entertain you from the first episode to the end, if you ignore the final episode lol.
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One of the things I really love about this drama and it was one of the things that stuck with me after I finished it is how they don't try to demonize makeup.This trope of the girl considered ugly who suddenly becomes beautiful overnight and now has to live with two identities is a very classic one, but in most of these stories, you'll always see the author clearly stating that makeup is the villain and girls shouldn't use it, that you should just "be yourself".
But here, the self-esteem and self-discovery of the female protagonist doesn't come from her abandoning makeup and living like that forever, because it's just lazy and too shallow. On the contrary, the female lead is genuinely interested in makeup and even ends the series working with it. It was nice to see.
About the love triangle... There's no triangle, lol. There are just two people in love with each other and a poor dude who falls in love alone on the side. To be honest, the only thing that stressed me out were the arguments involving those three.
I always see people saying that she should have chosen Seojun because apparently he "loved her more" (based on what? I don't know but anyway). But the thing that always goes through my mind is: even if he loved her more, why would she have the obligation to choose him for this? "He deserved to be happy" and Jukyung didn't? She never liked him, never saw him as more than a friend and never even gave him hope, but she should have stayed with him, even though she loved another guy, out of pity? This is horrible and honestly Seojun and Jukyung deserve better.
I mean, the scene of him crying on the stairs is very sad, but the guy made peace with his best friend, took the weight of Seyeon's death off his shoulders, and fulfilled his biggest dream of life, which was to become singer, but somehow he got the worst possible ending because he didn't get the girl at the end? It doesn't make sense to me.
Also, don't get me wrong, I love my guy Seojun, but him getting close to Jukyung with the sole purpose of hurting Suho and ending up developing a one-sided love always seemed more like karma from the universe than an injustice to me.
The main couple is cute and I like their development. I don't think they have screen-shaking chemistry, but I really like them together.
It's not a super original story and it relies on thousands of different clichés, but that's the premise and the drama doesn't hide that, so it ends up being well done. It's a good execution of what they set out to do.
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I've never really understood the second lead syndrome people have with this drama. I particularly like the couple that the drama presents, he's a jerk at the beginning, but he redeems himself, and I ended up liking him in the end.One crazy thing to me is how they try to make me believe she's considered ugly when she has THAT face, but anyway. South Korea and its weird beauty standards.
I found it funny that their grandfather called the musician useless when he's the only one of the three who's actually doing something productive with his life. Meanwhile, the lives of the other two are a mess lol.
I enjoyed watching it, but I don't think it's amazing, and there are things that annoy me. I like clichés, but sometimes I felt they were poorly executed here.
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I love that the premise of the story is basically: "What would happen if Ariel fell in love with Flynn Rider instead of Prince Eric?" and it's beautifully done.The dynamic between the main couple and the main group of characters is the highlight of the drama for me. Very fun, very enjoyable to watch.
The male lead is introduced from the start as someone of dubious character, so him being an jerk to the people around him was never a problem for me. There are a few moments where he tries to control what she wears, and that reduced some points from their dynamic for me, but I'll give the show a pass because it's from 2016 and I know it took a long time for this type of behavior to stop being normalized at these korean shows.
It was my first drama and it holds a very special place in my heart.
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