Promising, but disappointing.

First Impression:
I first started this drama with pretty low expectations because I was bored in life. After the first few episodes, I was pretty hooked on the storyline and was expecting more for the climax and ending. However, it is sad to say that I came out disappointed with the last 12 episodes of the drama.
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Story: 5.5/10
The story description pretty much summarizes the first ten episodes of the drama. It's exciting and you just can't wait for the next episode to come out. However, by episode ten, you're just waiting for the big reveal and the ending. With the viewers believing the drama will end at episode ten, we all left disappointed as the story gets unnecessarily dragged on. The last twelve episodes are repeats of the same conflict and unnecessary build ups to a very disappointing reveal. This drama could've been solved in 10 episodes, but nope, we need all the non-existence sweet love scenes and unnecessary "that was dumb" moments. In conclusion, the story line seemed promising but beware to be disappointed.
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Acting/Cast: 7/10
This is my first lakorn of both main leads and so not a very good first impression.
Let's start off with the lead actress: Fah Yongwaree Anilbol. Fah is no-doubt gorgeous and stunning. However, the character she played on the other hand is not that great. I tried to understand her decisions and her feelings, but I just couldn't empathize with her. Nabi was the, "I'm tough but soft inside" type of girl. Independent, sure; but very, very, very emotional. More so than her character needs it. It's understandable that her only family, her sister, is missing, but as any Thai lakorn, the acting has to be over the top. But Fah does seem like a promising actress. She reminds me a lot of Mai Davika and Mook Mookda, so I hope her future roles would showcase her skills better.

Next, we have the lead actor: Joss Wayar. Okay, bit biased, but he does have a hot bod. However, that does not blind me from his lack of character development in the drama. I wished they focused on that a little bit more in the drama, but the transition of a bad boy to a good boy after falling in love was just non-existent. You just assumed he became a good boy because he fell in love with Nabi, there were little no scenes showing the progression (even after 22 episodes). Typical Thai drama troopes but how it was laid out in the drama was just terrible. Overall, hot, but hopefully his upcoming roles will redeem this role.

My favorite character of all: Nat Myria. She is a goddess! I love her acting. I know, I know, she plays the villain chacter, but I couldn't help but fall in love with her character. Why couldn't the writers do the same for the two main leads? But, Aunt Wee is such a complex but human-like character that brings out the evil and good within people. She had reasons for her action, although not excusable, and even though she was greedy for love, she didn't put herself in the spotlight for attention. Her character development was the best among all of the characters and her ending was beautiful.

Okay, next is Luke and Jan who plays Nabi's best friends: Pong and Saen. Um, so, no thank you. At first, I was rooting for their character but then you just realize that Saen is too good for Pong and needs to move on. But I'm looking forward to seeing Luke act in "Oh My Boss". I wish the best for Luke and Jan's future in the Thai industry and will be looking out for them in the future.

Last two chacter that I believe needs a shout out is Win's parents: Chet and Wa. Oh my goodness, how did the best guy in the world fall in love with the worst human on earth? Chet, Win's father, is the sweetest, lovest, most understanding guy ever. On the other hand, Win's mother, Wa, is the most manipulative, self-fish, and conceited person ever. No surprise, Wa passes away. Yay, no one really misses her. On the other hand, Chet was probalby the one of the best actor to watch out there. My sisters and I even joked how if we were in Nabi's place, we would've picked the dad over the son based off of their character in the drama (LOL).

And all of the other characters don't really matter so let's move on!
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Music: 7/10
This drama makes sure you never forget the theme song. The song was good, but I would never listen it again just because it brings up the bad memories of this drama.
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Rewatch Value: 1/10
I wish I could put this as a 0/10, but MyDramaList won't let me. Never will rewatch this drama. Erased it from my Watch History and my mind. Just, no. Maybe in like 20 years to rewatch Aunt Wee's scenes, but otherwise, no thank you. Did not enjoy the drama, don't even know why I finished it. Could've been better. Literally skipped all the main leads scenes since it was just so hard to watch them be together. The writers tried to make it look "romantic" but it was just a big no-no sign of an abusive relationship. I seriously don't know how they rekindled their love (magic?).

Thank you to those who made it to the end of my rant. If you haven't seen this drama, this is a warning. Watch at your own risk, not really worth your time. But if you loved this drama, I respect your decision. There were few redeeming qualities of this drama (aka the aunt) but it wasn't enough to save this drama.


SPOILERS
To those who have finished the drama, didn't you find it funny how they dragged on the drama for 22 episodes and the producers finally decided that it's too long and did not one, but TWO time skips in the last episode? No? Just me, welp. Bye!

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Sweet Enough To Keep You Going

WARNING:
At the very bottom of this review, there will be spoilers. Please just scroll through past that part if you aren't interested.

First Impression:
I first started this drama because I saw a clip of it on YouTube where the main lead was sweetly asking the female lead to go back home with him after she almost suffered a miscarriage. Since it was getting around my final exams and I was finding ways to procrastinate, might as well watch something sweet to pass the time. I quickly finished the first few episodes within one day since it was pretty fast-paced and the storyline developed pretty quickly. However, around episode 9 or 10, I started to lose interest. The storyline gets repeated, the push and pull between the leads happen, and it just kept happening back and forth. I eventually finished it 5 five days later and here I am.

Story:
Here are the typical Chinese drama tropes in this drama: arranged marriage, the cold male lead, the bubbly and smart female lead, supportive side leads, jealous side characters, etc.
I honestly didn't mind most of these, but what really bothered me was how many times the word "divorce" was brought up in this drama. This was the first time I saw the word "divorce" was being casually thrown around like 50 times in a historical drama, especially since divorcing was so taboo back then. The main leads almost got divorced like 5 times in this drama.
What I did like about the drama was how sweet the main lead was when he warmed up to the female lead. As always, she was his soft spot. Even though he was always trying to do what was best for her or trying to protect her, it was always a struggle.
The main conflict of the drama wasn't even brought up until halfway through the drama and didn't even pick up speed until the end, so the middle part of the drama was just full of lovey-dovey moments. So if you enough dramas where there are a lot of lovey-dovey scenes, this one is it (there are even many side love stories).
I'm also going to rant about the ending of the drama at the very ending, so if you don't want that, please just don't scroll to it.

Acting/Cast:
Caesar as Chu Xiu Ming was a big shocker for me. After Meteor Garden in 2018, the majority of the F4's went incognito until 2020, including Caesar. Caesar in historical clothing was an interesting turn of events. I wouldn't say he matched the historical theme perfectly just based on just this drama, but he looks fragile for his character. Chu Xiu Ming is a handsome and young general, which breaks all stereotypes of a typical general. Caesar's portrayal of Chu Xiu Ming was okay for the most part. I would say the writing and character set up of Chu Xui Ming wasn't the best. There were many plot holes with his emotions and I wasn't able to keep up with his quick emotional changes in each scene. For example, he'll be super sweet in one scene, stern in another, aloof in the next one, then mysterious in the next. The transitions of the scenes weren't the best but you could get a grip of the overall feel of each scene.
Tang Min as Shen Jin was pretty decent. I tried to watch her in Chef Hua earlier this year but quickly dropped the whole series. Her character portrayal in Chef Hua is very similar to Shen Jin. They both are optimistic, bubbly, carefree, but ever so often needs to be rescued by the male lead (insert the falling and then is caught by main lead scenes in slow motion). Shen Jin is strong-minded, stubborn, enjoys freedom but can be very, very petty. Most of her actions were to get back at the male lead or was to just have fun, which usually leads to a lot of trouble. She also enjoys drinking ( like a lot) and there are plenty of scenes where she is just drunk and acts rashly. Her type of character is not usually my favorite, but her portrayal of this type of character is much better in this than the first 8 episodes I've seen of Chef Hua.
The side characters are pretty new to me. They all are pretty decent, but my favorite side character is Shen Jin's mother. Her mother's love for her daughter was so beautiful. Even though she was always pushed around as a maid turned concubine, she had her own morals and held strong to them.
The other side character's love story like Shen Jin's maid and Chu Xiu Yuan's love story was cute and added more fluff to the story.

Music:
I loved the opening theme song, "Only For You". I was sweet and played at the right moments throughout the series. The main lead also covers the song and it's pretty good too.

Rewatch Value:
If I'm feeling in need of some sweet moments in my life, I would definitely rewatch scenes of this drama on YouTube. I wouldn't rewatch all of it just because I'm bored, but the lovey-dovey scenes are pretty cute to not rewatch.

Overall:
Not bad, but not perfect. If you want to pass time watching a more light-hearted drama, this one is it. But if you are looking for more serious dramas like Eternal Love, Princess Weiyoung, or Joy of Life, you might not enjoy this drama as much.








WARNING: SPOILER OF THE ENDING
Okay...so what's the point of adding the modern scene in this drama? Like, they got a happy ending, what's the point of paralleling the historical part to the modern part, unless they are hinting towards a second season. I wouldn't mind a second season, but at this point, I'm more than happy with the story ending where it is and a second season isn't really necessary. Plus, they portrayed the modern-day Chu Xiuming as shy and soft which is out of character for him.
Additionally, prior to that, WHY DID THEY SKIP HOW CHU XIUMING AND SHEN JIN GOT SAVED FROM THE SAND PIT? Like, tadah! We didn't know how to properly come up with a solution to save them from this tragedy so just use your imagination. Now I'm super curious about how they got saved. If the others found a way to open the platform, the only way is to pull them out with a rope. Even so, with how deep they were in and with the continuous sand falling in, it would be hard to get them out. They got their happy ending, even the overly jealous sisters got a happy ending. For a historical Chinese drama, I would say this ending is way too happy to be true, but hey, I don't mind it either compared to all those heart-wrenching endings like Goodbye My Princess.

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Typical Dramatic Slap/Kiss Thai Lakorn

Looking for a Thai drama with a stubborn female lead, a romantic male lead, a jealous/revenge seeking villain, lots of slap/kiss, and an (untypical) one-night stand? Well, you came to the right place!

FIRST IMPRESSION:
I first started to watch this drama after hearing mix opinions about it from my sisters. I didn't have much expectations when going into this drama. However, the first episode took me by surprise. Like, what??? It's not even one episode in and we already got babies? Throughout the whole drama, I was frustrated by the main leads and the push and pulls. However, the last few episodes finally filled in some plot holes, the villains were more humanized, and the romance started to pick up.

STORY:
The beginning of the story line was something Thai lakorns writers have never really done before. The main couple had a one-night stand, with the female lead drugged and the male lead who fell in love with her at first sight. Basically, what happens is that the he was tricked into thinking the female lead wasn't "innocent" and paid to sleep with her. It was very disturbing at first but he lives in guilt about it throughout the whole drama. Typical drama happens. Company rivalry, hidden mistress, jealous villain, supporting best friend, kidnapping, sweet second male lead, hospital scenes, police station scenes, and numerous slap/kiss scenes (not that big of a fan of it). However, one thing that really stood out to me was how the writer choose to end Parin's father and Pam. I honestly think that the ending for those two was better than most endings for most Thai villains, which I really enjoyed. Overall, typical Thai lakorn story line with a hint of sweet and bitternees.

ACTING/CAST:
I personally never seen any dramas of the main leads. I have seen dramas of the elder casts like Parin's parents, Mita's parents and aunt, and Pam's drama (Thep Sam Ruedu). For Parin and Mita, I think they did very well in portraying their characters. There was time where you could really feel their sadness, their anger, and their love for each other. So far, I would say I'm a fan of both of them and would probably check out more of their dramas. Two of the characters that I absolutely loved in this drama was Parin's father, Chatchai, and Pam. They both did excellent at playing their roles, especially in the last episode. They both made me tear up with their last few scenes. The twins were also really cute! I hope to see them act more in the future. I would also like to praise Na and Chen's acting. They both had GREAT chemistry and I ship them on a whole another level. If they ever have a drama out together as the main leads, I would definitely put it on my must watch list. However, I would say the character who stole the spotlight was Na's father. He was such a joy to see each time he appeared on screen and the way he supported his daughter's relationship was hilarious and sweet at the same time.

MUSIC:
The music didn't really play much of a role in supporting the drama. There was very few scenes when I actually even noticed the background music. I did eventually search up the songs and realized that Punch sang the ending song. I absolutely love Punch's voice and would biasely say that that was my favorite song of the whole entire drama.

REWATCH VALUE:
I would probably rewatch the last few episodes since it's more lighthearted and sweet. The first ten episodes, however, I would pass since it's the same thing over and over: slap/kiss 10x, realize I love you but I'm not good enough for you, after awhile I realize I actually want to be with you, but no I won't accept you back that easily, etc.

OVERALL:
Overall, it wasn't that bad. I would say be in the upper 50% of my watched Thai dramas. It wasn't lacking anything much, but it definitely had much more then I excepted. The romance was okay. The second couple definitely made up for the headaches the main couple gave us. The drama was VERY DRAMATIC (for all of you "I must have drama-drama" lovers). I would suggest for active Thai lakorn watchers to watch this, but if this is the first time you're watching a Thai lakorn, I wouldn't suggest it.

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LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT BUT IT GETS MESSY

Overview:
Before going into this drama, I had very high expectations since Aum and Bella is one of my favorite Thai actors and actresses. It took me seven years to finally get to this drama, but here are my thoughts and opinions about this drama!
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Story: 6.5/10
As the synopsis stated, the story revolves around a rich man name Naantrai who fell in love at first sight with a beautiful village dancer name Nueanang. Naatrai pretends to be a middle-class manager who manages the village. Because Nueanang's mother died from a broken heart after being left behind by Nueanang's father who was a foreigner, Nueanang's grandfather refuses Nueanang to fall in love with Naatrai who is a city boy. Not only that, Naantrai's overbearing mother does not approve of a low-status woman such as Nueanang as her daughter-in-law and prefers the rich Kaekai. Through all these adversities, will Nueanang and Naantrai's love be strong enough to face all these trials?

Personally, I was somewhat turned off by the idea of love at first sight since the way they portrayed it in the story was a bit more on the lusting side. However, as Naantrai starts to know Nueanang more, he falls in love even harder. It was pretty sweet up until episode 7 when $#!+ starts to go down and the genre just turns 360. It becomes more mysterious and hateful. I mean, Naatrai's mother and "fiance" were already hateful enough but I guess the scriptwriter thought that wasn't enough. I would give the first half of this drama a solid 8 and a 5 on the second half. The beginning was so well-developed but the climax and conclusion had so many plot holes and didn't live up to my expectations. It was a decent ending but could've been worked on a bit better.
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Acting/Casting: 8.5/10
My, my, my is Aum just HOT! Aum as Naantrai is 100% believable. The way he expressed his emotions made me weak. Of all of Aum's works, the most notable scenes are his "I'm angry at you" scenes, "I'm sorry, I was wrong" scenes, and "I love you with all my heart" scenes. This drama no doubt had all of these scenes. It was nice to see how his acting style was pretty consistent even compared to his older works. On the other hand, Naantrai's character was a bit overbearing. Yes, he can be sweet and understanding, but no man can be perfect. Naantrai also has a bad temper and tends to make rash decisions and quick assumptions. [SPOILER] Personally, no matter how much I love Naantrai, I wouldn't have forgiven him that easily just because I love him. If he wasn't able to trust and listen and figured things out instead of being angry and jealous, I would've liked him way better.

Then there is Bella who plays Nueanang. Like most of Bella's drama, Neanang is a beautiful young lady whose beauty captivates men from far and near. But what shines even brighter is her beauty inside. And due to that, there tend to be jealous characters (which this drama provides 4 of them for entertainment ;D). Even though Nueanang is physically weak, she's mentally very strong. She knows what her morals are and sticks to it even to the very end. Although this is a very typical Bella role, she did pretty well.

And then there are other notable characters like Khamfai (best friend of Nueanang), Saengkum (second male lead), Daoden (second female lead), Aunt Wandi (servant of Naantrai's household), Tun (Naantrai's brother), and Mae Nai (Naantrai's mother). I've seen many of these actors here and there from other dramas and they always add spice and entertainment no matter what their roles are. It's the same with this drama, they had so many background characters that really added to the plotline.

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Music: 8/10
I found this drama after my sister sent me the OST to this drama and the singer's voice is so sweeeeet.

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Rewatch Value: 6.5/10
I would rewatch this occasionally, but it wouldn't be my go-to drama. I could definitely do without watching the second half of the series.
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Overall: 7.5/10
Overall, I'm giving this drama a generous 7.5/10. At first, I was going to settle for a 6 but felt generous enough to rate it higher because of the acting/casting. The main downfall of this drama has to be the loopholes. Although the scriptwriters did try to fill the loopholes in, it still didn't make perfect sense. Plus, the forcefully and non-consentsual scenes were a big turn-off. It was just kind of a "huh?" moment for me why the scriptwriter felt like they needed to add that, but again, this is a 2014 drama. Is it suppose to be romantic? Is it suppose to make you mad? Like, what's the purpose of those scenes? But overlooking all of that, character development was decent. There was a lot of unnecessary anger and vengeance, but what do you expect from a Thai drama? The most redeeming quality would be the chemistry between the main leads. I would've liked it if there were more screen time for the second main lead's stories to develop better, but this was a 15 episode drama so it was super rushed. All in all, casting and acting redeemed this drama. The storyline and characters were typical, nothing new here for the Thai industry. I would classify this as a filler drama, but if you LOVED this drama, good for you! Some other dramas I would recommend for you would be Hua Jia Sila, Jam Loey Rak, Badarn Jai, and Jai Rao (2008). Lots of anger and vengeance but are good typical entertaining dramas.

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Beautifully Written Out

Overview:
Most of the dramas that I have seen have been mostly Thai, Chinese, Taiwanese, and Korean. I've dabbled into a few animes but I've dropped most of those quickly since they're so long. I am not patient enough to watch all of it without skipping to the end (if there is an end) and spoiling it for myself. However, if you want something short, sweet, and simple, this Japanese drama is for you!

Story:
Since there are only 8 episodes, the storyline was developed very quickly and the romance picked up within the first two episodes. There were a few typical drama tropes like sweet second main lead, evil/mean mother in law, fake marriages, inheritance, etc. However, the storyline never got boring nor draggy. I finished this drama all in one sitting because it was so addicting. It felt like I just finished watching a movie rather than a drama. Everything dialogue was well written and every scene was just beautiful. There was a purpose for each scene and action. I haven't seen many Japanese dramas, but I would definitely rank this drama number one on my list. Additionally, one of the main reasons I loved this drama was how they really showed the villain's purposes. Most of their reasons weren't because they were flat out psychopaths and evil human beings. Instead, the reason they choose a certain decision or path was due to moments of emotional breakdowns and uncontrollably fear for the future. Most of the time, some dramas really do the "villains" injustice and so having some relatable and understandable villains really makes you appreciate the storyline better.

Acting/Cast:
One of the main reasons I never really got into Japanese dramas is how cringy the acting usually is. There's typically a very overdramatic, innocent, naive, cute young girl and a very handsome, stoic, cold ice prince as the lead (but this is just based on hand few Japanese dramas I've seen, no hate). The thing I really liked about this drama was the female lead was very different from the typical Japanese female lead. She was strong-minded, mature, and dedicated. On the other hand, the male lead wasn't a flat out jerk (minus the first 1 and 1/2 episodes, just ignore that). He's not "cold" because that's just his character, he became that way because of his deary, traumatic, depressing childhood. The cast for both the main lead was great. Their chemistry was ON FIRE. I really have to give props to the male lead's evil mother. She acted her role very well and freaked me out quite a bit. Overall, the acting was surprisingly very pleasant to watch. I didn't have second-hand embarrassment at all and the acting was very natural. I'm super in love with the cast and I'm definitely going to have to check out their previous works.

Music:
The background music was okay. It sometimes makes the scene more dramatic than it needs to be. Otherwise, it wasn't too bad.

Rewatch Value:
I would 100% rewatch this drama. It's just so short and sweet. If I ever just need a break, this will probably be on my first to rewatch list. It's not a fluffy as some other dramas, but sweet enough to get me going.

Overall:
I'm glad I didn't pass on this drama. It changed my whole perspective of Japanese dramas. I'll probably try out some more to see what is there to offer. Overall, great storyline, cast, and ending. The ending was really, really, really good. The last episode took us on a whole roller coaster ride (still overcoming that shock though). I could not think of a more perfect ending for all the "villains" and the main leads happily ever after.

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Probably My Favorite Version of "She Was Pretty"

Overview/Comparison/My Random Rants:
If you have seen the original or previous remakes of this drama, you are in good hands! This remake definitely lives up to the hype. If you have not seen the original or previous remakes of this drama, don’t worry, this is also a good place to start.
If you haven’t seen the previous version of this drama, feel free to skip to the story section since this part is just comparing this version to the previous ones.
The original Korean version, “She Was Pretty”, was a pretty decent, solid drama. I felt like the main purpose for the original drama was to give the main couples a chance after “Kill Me, Heal Me” where Park Seo Jun was in an unrequited love triangle. Besides that, I think “She Was Pretty” was a good drama. It was enjoyable but not a super memorable drama.
On the other hand, the Chinese version “Pretty Li Hui Zhen (2017)”, was about the same as the OG. Everything was basically the same, except the story got dragged out. Personally, I found that annoying but oh well, it wasn’t terrible.
For this version, “Kanojo wa Kirei datta (2021)”, I fell in love with this version! Personally, I like it even more than the OG. Reasons why:
1) It wasn’t too draggy. Ten episodes summarized the whole plot perfectly.
2) Male lead isn’t a douche half of the time. (Okay, maybe like the first four episodes).
3) Female lead’s character development was more prominent.
4) Main lead’s chemistry was on FIRE!!!
Currently, I’m still watching the Thai version, “Me Always You (2021)”. This one hasn’t been my favorite. In fact, from what I’ve seen so far, I’m not a huge fan. I feel like they over cartoonized the female character, but that’s just Thai dramas in general. In many of the Thai dramas, either the main girl is super quirky, strong, and independent, or the main girl has no backbone and is in a toxic relationship with the male lead (insert smiling clown face). This one has to be a mix of both from what I’ve seen so far. Hopefully it will get better and won’t drag out too long.
Overall, my ranking for these three dramas are
1)Kanojo wa Kirei datta
2) She Was Pretty
3)Pretty Li Hui Zhen
4)Me Always You (2021)


Story: 9/10
Where do I even start? The way the writer edited this story from the original version was just beautiful. In the original version, I always contemplated if the male lead really loved her for who she is, not just because she turns out to be his childhood crush. As a recap, this story revolves around the female lead who used to be a beautiful young girl who everyone adored for her looks and intelligence, including the once chubby male lead who was ignored and bullied by everyone. However, in a turn of events, the lives of the leads are now flipped. The female lead is now “unattractive” and is constantly bullied for her looks, and is also struggling to find a steady job. On the other hand, the once chubby male lead is now a handsome, fit, and domineering deputy chief at a famous editorial magazine. In a matter of seconds, fate brings them back together. However, due to the change of appearance of the female lead, she decides to keep her identity a secret from the male lead as she continues to work alongside him.
What I liked most about the story was the character developments within all of the four main leads. It was refreshing to see how the same things like words of assurance and a little pushing can really affect someone in the long run.


Acting/Cast: 10/10
The cast was perfect. I could see a lot of similarities between this cast and the Korean cast. Koshiba Fuka, our female lead, did an amazing job. I could feel her emotions and felt all of her happiness and sadness. Her character was easy to understand and felt very natural. Next, we have our male lead, Nakajima Kento. Lowkey reminds me of Simon Dominic, and boy, are they both hot! He played his character well but on the other hand, his character is confusing. This is the same for all three previous She Was Pretty. He was a sweet innocent kid and then boom, he’s a domineering jerk. Like, what happened in the middle? A + B = C …. But what is B? Sweet and innocent + ? = Domineering Jerk. Regardless, you start out questioning whether you like him or not and then you end up loving him. Akaso Eiji and Sakuma Yui also did a pretty good job with their characters. They didn’t overshine the ML and FL, but their addition to the cast and character really made this drama shine even brighter.


Music: 8/10
The beginning and ending songs were typically pop songs. They were refreshing to hear throughout the drama.


Re-watch Value: 10/10
By the time I have released this review, I have already re-watched this drama 3 times. (Edit: 4 times). It’s just a very simple drama to watch whenever you are bored or need to pass time. Every time I watch it, it feels refreshing. I’ll probably re-watch it a few more times before I go find another drama to do the same.


Overall: 9.5
Overall, probably the best version of She Was Pretty. There wasn’t much to complain about the storyline nor the cast/acting. It was a pretty wholesome drama and good production quality.


Spoilers and Beautiful Moments:

Honestly, the ending was so beautiful. The moment when Hasebe put his hands on her cheeks and said, "Ai, you've become so beautiful" was such a sweet moment. The way Sato Ai smiled and looked like she was about to cry was so beautiful. The theme of finding your inner beauty and accepting yourself as who you are was such a beautiful theme. Although this theme was also carried out in the previous versions, this one felt more realistic and awe-inspiring.

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Short and Sweet

Story (8.5/10):
The storyline was simple, yet engaging. A young girl who meets her first love again, except now her first love is no longer able to walk after a car accident. Even though she is aware of the challenges that may come if she chooses to be with him, she stayed true to her feelings and was there for him whenever he was at his weakest. The story was very inspiring and realistic with the way how it was portrayed.

Acting/Cast (8/10):
The female lead did well with portraying the feelings of a young woman who admires her first love from afar. Her character was simple but very understanding. The male lead also did a pretty good job of portraying the frustrations of being handicapped. He was selfless and kind.
Since this is a movie, there wasn't a lot of time to show character development, but you could see how each character stayed true to who they were. I think that was one of the things I really appreciated.
The side characters like the parents and the nurse really bring out the essence of the movie. I feel like they were the reality checkers for the most part, but also the ones who really understand the struggles of the young couple

Music (7/10):
The music wasn't really there for most of the parts. Whenever it was played, it was quiet and was there to fill up the silence.

Rewatch Value (7/10):
I'll probably rewatch this movie again way later down the road. It wasn't too romantic or too emotional. It mostly just focused on the mental and physical challenges they had to go through as a couple.


SPOILER!!!!




One of the things that I really enjoyed was that the ending was very realistic. I know there were a lot of people who hoped that he would be able to walk again, but I feel like that would defeat the whole purpose of the movie. As the male lead said, "Just by being together with you, my world will be perfect". I think that was a beautiful ending. She loved him when he was walking, and even now, she still loves him even though he is in a wheelchair.

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Well, well, well. Here we go again.

Overview:
I stumbled upon Unique Lady 2 before I even realized there was a season one. It took me a whole entire week to get through season one, but 3 days to finish season two. I'm surprised, I actually enjoyed this season a bit more. The difference between my rating of season one and season two went up by 2.5 points. Here is my season two opinion and rating along with my overall thoughts of both seasons combined!

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Story (8/10):
(THIS PARAGRAPH CONTAINS SPOILER FROM SEASON ONE: SKIP TO NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU DON'T WANT ANY SPOILERS FOR SEASON ONE)
Continuing on with the plot of season one, season two starts right back where season one left off. Spoilers for those who have not watched season one, please skip this paragraph and move onto the next one. The story picks up from where Luo Jing chooses to restart her last life chance to save her true love, Wu Mei. But to her surprise, Hua Hua, her shining knight in a white dress came and sacrificed his life for her. Luo Jing is living her life as the unofficial side wife of Wu Mei since her adopted father is a captured criminal. She struggles to adjust to this lifestyle as Wu Mei's royal consort, Princess Ruyu, bullies her day and night. On the other hand, another shining (legit) prince, Prince Xiu Wen, comes back to stir up jealousy and trouble within the city. Along with that, can Luo Jing help the city from the grasp of evil lurking characters?

Well, to start off I personally like how the story progressed in this season way much more. Despite some terrible typically Asian drama trope that the scriptwriter had to add in, everything else was pretty decent. The love story definitely progressed more in this season along with new side characters that added some spice and sweetness. The overall storyline started off strong, got weak during the middle, but ended off strong. Overall, a solid 8/10.

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Acting/Cast (8/10)
Well, well, well. This is where I begin to rant.
After watching season one, I really hoped that season two can redeem some of the lack of character development from season one. It definitely did. Great improvement!

First off, Luo Jing, our main character. Her character was way much more bearable for me to watch on screen this season. It was less awkward once she fitted into the historical culture after experiencing culture shock from the first season. There were times where she got really petty and dragged it on for quite a while, but there's always got to be something to compromise with all the good qualities within the main character. For Jade who acted as Luo Jing, over the one-year period, I could definitely see some improvement with her acting skills. She has beautiful features and a lovely style. I'm looking forward to seeing her future works. (P.S. I think it might just be me but Jade reminds me of the actresses Joe Chen and Shen Yue)

Next up is our tsundere male lead, Wu Mei. Wow, is this the same guy from season one? Just kidding, just kidding. Wu Mei definitely came off as a sweeter and kinder character in this season (maybe because he found love) and although he still has his temper, he's still as intelligent and quick-witted as usual. His character was way much more likable in this season for sure. Simon who plays as Wu Mei is still an eye-candy. Even with his mustache he still looked hot. His acting is still about the same from the last season, but overall not bad.
(P.S. Is it just me, but something about Simon's eyes just charming)

Now on to our side male leads. This is where I go, "Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh no no no." These three guys put me through a tough roller coaster ride from season one up to the end of season two. I guess I'll start off with our mysterious man in white, Hua Hua or Elder Hua. Well, it's a pleasant surprise to see another actor replacing the season one actor. They had a whole story to explain this face change and everything and that just went over my head. I was glad to see that it was hinted that he will not be a lonely soul but his short-lived screen time was gladly appreciated. Next is our ride or die, Mr. Richboy Xuan Yu. Xuan Yu was the best friend that had to solve all the main couple's misunderstanding and petty little arguments. On top of that tiring job, he has to take care of all his stores and restaurants, leaving little time left to spend with his lovely fiancee. That was definitely going to stir up some trouble. However, even after all of the crap that he had to take for being the side male lead, his kindness shined through all the way up to the end of his last scene. Bravo Mr. Richboy! Last, of all, the one who stole all our hearts, Prince Xiu Wen. A change of identity, but I'm honestly not surprised. If you're going to make him the second main lead, you got to step up his competition a little bit. Like every second male lead, come with the second male lead syndrome. I don't think I'll get over this for a while. The scriptwriter tried to redeem his sad fate by having someone by his side, but it still hurts knowing how much he loved Luo Jing. I think the part that hit me the hardest was towards the end when he finally gave up Luo Jing. As they were sitting on the roof the night before he was going to leave, he looked at her and said, "You know what you mean to me".

Last of all, the supporting and evil characters. As I wished and foresaw from the last season, I knew that there were going to be sparks between certain side characters. I was happy to see love blossom between side characters that deserves their own happy ending. The evil characters also did very well. I'm surprised by how much back story the scriptwriter actually gave the evil characters. Overall, I'm satisfied by the amount of character development this season building off from the first season.

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Music (8.5/10):
I personally liked the songs a little bit more in this season than the last. The opening OST was sweet and beautiful. Definitely going to be added to my study and sleep playlist!

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Rewatch Value (7/10):
I'll probably rewatch this drama probably in a year or so. Maybe earlier if I'm bored. I feel like this was a one-time drama like with General's Lady. There were cute scenes, but very cringy. I usually enjoy the cheesy lines and everything, but this one was way too much for me to handle. For example, "I am your breakfast"...Okayyyy. But yeah, if you live for that kind of cheesiness, no judgment. This might be drama for you!

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Overall (8/10):
I personally enjoyed this season way much more than the previous one. The chemistry was great. There were a lot of lovey-dovey scenes for those who enjoy those sweet moments. Overall, not too bad. Not my favorite drama of all time but another decent one to pass time on.

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SPOILERS AND LINGERING THOUGHTS
My last lingering thought of this drama is if another girl was to enter the same gaming system, would she also have the same male lead choices as the Luo Jing did? I know she mentioned that one day, Prince Xiu Wen will be the main character in his own story. But what if he never gets to be the main character? What if the system has pre-designated Wu Mei as the main character for every player? What if Wu Mei was pre-designated for Luo Jing? Would Luo Jing be then cheated out of her love experience? However, if these four male lead gaming characters are based on real live guys, then why is it hinted at the end of the drama that only Wu Mei remembers Luo Jing? Did Wu Mei also go inside the game? Did the other three guys go into the game too? If so, why don't they remember her? Is there going to be a season three????
Personally, I hope not since I'm pretty satisfied with where this ended. Sometimes, we just need it to end somewhere and be okay with it. For example, with the Eternal Love series, I was personally okay with it ending at season one but then they continued on, and on, and on (overexaggerating here but you get the point?). Like it was the same cycle over and over with the storyline just being repeated but with different choices and small changes in the situations. It just got tiring and I eventually dropped the series in the middle of season two. Same with the To All The Boys Netflix movie series. They seriously could've ended it at the first movie, but with the three books and all, it just continued. I personally thought the third movie was a disaster. So the moral of the story, let's just end the story here with only two seasons. I'm perfectly fine with it. But if there was to be a third season with the same cast in the modern-day, I would probably try watching it but I can already feel lots of unnecessary drama and fighting. Again, the two seasons of Unique Lady already had a lot of repeats due to the chances and multiple lives the female lead character had. Let's call it happily ever after!

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SWEETNESS OVERLOAD!!!!

Story (9/10):
For me, I really enjoyed the lightheartedness of the storyline. It started off with a sweet high-school love story and continued onto college and into the real world.
The first half of the drama really keeps you on edge with the progressing storyline and new characters. However, I did find the last half of the drama a bit more draggy. However, the end really does leave you satisfied and smiling for the next couple of days.

Acting/Cast (10/10):
The acting and cast of the two main leads are just PERFECT. Wang An Yu plays as the male lead, Jiang Zheng Han, the smart and dedicated young men. Xiang Han Zhi plays as the female lead, Xia Lin Xi, the intelligent and caring young lady. (P.S. I still can't believe Xiang Han Zhi is only 18!)
The chemistry between the two main leads was very convincing. Every moment they had together was beautiful and makes your heart flutter. They really carried the drama through. What I liked most about the portrayal of these two characters was that they were really mature for their ages. Together, they showed a love story between two individuals that was understanding, respectful towards one another, and was there for one another through thick and thin. Very few of these mature relationships exist in the Asian drama world. Most of the Asian dramas I have seen with has main lead are over-domineering or are unrealistically "cold" but I've been seeing more and more of these more realistically mature relationships.
The supporting actors were memorable and each of them really supported the storyline as a whole.

Rewatch Value (9.5/10):
I would definitely rewatch this drama multiple times. It's super light-hearted and you never get tired of seeing each of the steps that leads to the main lead's beautiful ending.

Overall (9/10):
Overall, this drama is my cup of tea. It's similar to Le Coupe de Foundre in the way of how the story progresses, but the portrayal of each character is simple yet memorable. Three words I would describe this drama is simple, sweet, and mature. Definitely would recommend this drama if you're looking for one that is light-hearted and full of romance.

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Ummmm....Okay. Very Gruesome.

Overview:
I have only watched the first half of Nakee and skipped to the ending because it was so long and draggy. However, my sister said I should definitely try watching Nakee 2 since it's short and sweet. It wasn't as good as I thought it was going to be, but it wasn't as bad either. But here is my opinion about it.

Story:
Story-wise, it was okay. The majority of it was very predictable and there were clues everywhere. However, the main no-no for me was how bloody the drama was. I watched it with an empty stomach in the morning, yet I still felt very nauseous. I closed my eyes whenever dead bodies were shown so I can't tell much about how gruesome they were, so watch at your own risk. The romance between Nadeech and Yaya wasn't really there since it focused on the plot and conflict the majority of the time, but I don't really have a complaint with that either. The end of the drama does give us closure from Nakee so I would say I'm satisfied with the ending, although you don't get a lot of scenes with Ken and Taew.

Acting/Cast:
We already knew that Yaya was a natural beauty, but this drama definitely shined a light on it. She played the role perfectly and expressed her emotions very well. Nadech wasn't as naughty and playful as his previous roles were. It showed a lot more of his mature and serious side compared to his playful side. Ken and Taew's acting is still as good as always. The cast was just perfect and the acting was on point.

Music: link to the eng sub music video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfFUhB8FgC8)
Okay, let's give a moment of silence to this wonderful masterful sang by Kong Huayrai. I FREAKING LOVE THAT MAN AND HIS ANGELICAL VOICE! I also found Nakee because of this song, otherwise, I would have overlooked the drama and this movie. This is probably my favorite Thai drama OST by far. The lyrics match the storyline perfectly and Kong's voice is so beautiful to listen to. I was sad it was only played once in the movie, but the timing for it was perfect. He needs to sing more Thai OST's because his voice is just so perfect!

Rewatch Value:
I wouldn't rewatch this movie often just due to my weak stomach seeing all of those bloody scenes. Maybe once in a long while, but I feel like it's a one-time thing for me. I need something more light and fluffy after watching this. If you're a hardcore romantic drama watcher like me, you'll feel the same way. But if you are someone who enjoys thrillers and mystery you'll like this more than us romcom peps.

Overall:
It would have missed this drama and movie if it wasn't due to the OST. This was something I usually wouldn't watch just because it falls under the mystery genre. However, it wasn't too bad of an experience.

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A Guilty Pleasurable Drama

Overview:
As this was Kim's first leading role, I was definitely impressed with how good her acting was for a newbie. I finally came around to watch this drama (and the rest of the series) around 5 years after it was released. I would say this was probably my favorite out of all four of the series.

Story:
Most of the storyline was easy to follow along. Warm-hearted doctor accidentally saves a foreign prince, falls in love, and goes through challenges to be with him. The only different thing about Nam is that has three fraternal siblings, which each has their own love story and series. All three of her brothers definitely filled up the gaps of the story when things got to serious and their comedic timing was always perfect. The storyline was a prefect blend of romance and drama. Nothing too dramatic, but not anything underwhelming.

Acting/Cast:
I am such a huge fan of both main cast. I loved Aum since Jam Loey Rak and Badarn Jai. This drama made me fall in love with Kim and I have been a fan of her since. Kim and Aum's chemistry was definitely there, but lacking in some parts in the drama. I loved how much Aum expressed his emotions throughout the whole series. He made my heart fluttered so many times, even though it was chessy (yes, I live for the cheese).

Music:
I don't remember any of the songs from the drama. It's been like five years since I've seen this drama and yet none of the music has stand out in my memory. I usually remember the main song from each Thai dramas I watch (because they get overplayed so much) but sadly, I don't have one for this drama.

Rewatch Value:
I would definitely rewatch this dramas for the romance and the brothers. It's a more light hearted drama with a few intense scenes. However, if you are more interested in the more serious Thai dramas, I would recommend Piang Chai Khon Nee Mai Chai Poo Wised or Raeng Pradtanaha.

Overall:
This would fall under my top 10 Thai drama category. It just suited my cup of tea which had a perfect blend of drama, love, family, and comedy. As this was Kim's first lead role, she definitely deserves her recognition. The rest of the 3 series wasn't my cup of tea, but they were still pretty interesting. So do check those out too!

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A Beautiful Remake

Overview:
I absolutely loved the first version of this drama that was released in the 2000s. I've always been a big fan of Thai Boran's, especially the ones with magic and folk stories involved like Sung Tong and Kaew Na Mah. I was kind of late to this remake, but I eventually did watch it. I haven't found any English sub for this drama so I went ahead and just watched it without any English subs. My Thai vocab is very limited so I could only catch the dialogues here and there. However, if you're a fan of Thai Borans and seen the remakes, you know that the storyline is basically the same. There aren't any major changes in the storyline, which I actually appreciated. Out of the majority of the Thai Boran remakes, this one is probably my favorite so far.

Storyline:
I'll post down below in the comments for a more detailed storyline and minor spoilers.

Opinion About the Storyline:
I wasn't too disappointed with the storyline. It was exactly the same as the parent version. However, if you don't like long, draggy, repetitive storylines, you might not like this drama. The storyline is pretty repetitive and the main conflict lasts about 75% of the time. The 25% was the beginning where everything was setting up to the major plot conflict, a little romance here and there, and maybe 0.01% of it was the ending of the conflict. Just when you thought the conflict was solved, just be aware it's not really solved. There were parts where I skipped because it was just VERY long scenes of flashbacks, crying scenes, longing for your loved one scenes, and fighting scenes. If you minus all of those above, instead of a 69 episode drama, you'll probably get around a 45 episode drama. But hey, no complaints with flashbacks with sweet Rahoo in it. For the editing of the drama...yep, Thai Boran CG's are still cringy and terrible as it was 15 years ago. You just have to overcome the unrealistic look of it and you'll get used to it. Out of the three siblings, I loved, loved, LOVED, Rahoo and Suwanaparn's storyline the most. It carried out a little way too much, but it was an upgrade from Piroon's (cheating/affair) love line. Jinda, Ong Isla, and Sam See's love triangle hurt way too much. They never gave us a moment to appreciate Sam See's love for Jinda because he was born and designated to be the "bad guy". I think the overdid Jinda and Ong Isla's sacrificing love for each other and Sam See's jealous love for Jinda, but it wasn't as bad as I remember. Piroon's love story was just not it. I didn't like it in the older version, I still don't like it in this version. He has a kid, a wife, but still went for Absornsuwan. It just wasn't it, like I felt bad for his wife the majority of the time until her jealousy got in the way. Overall, not bad. Still as good as I remember it to be, just a bit longer than I remembered. If anyone is willing to sub for this drama, I would love you forever and more!

Acting/Cast:
Out of all of the acting, I would say Suwanaparn was the best actor/actress out of all of them. She had the most acting experience out of all of the cast and she expressed her character very well. The rest of the cast is pretty new to me. Most of them are the new actors/actresses for almost all of the Thai Boran remakes. The acting isn't too bad, it was enjoyable, but the chemistry isn't quite there yet. Maybe because it's a historical drama when intimacy was a taboo thing back then. I'm actually pretty excited because the couples in here have done other dramas together, so I'm definitely going to check them out. Compared to the previous cast, I would say the casting for this version was on point. I wouldn't change the cast at all, it was perfect.

Music:
You know how it is in Thai borans. There is one main theme song that is pretty upbeat and describes the storyline and it gets overplayed ALL THE TIME. On the other hand, there's one main sad song that gets played during flashbacks, sad scenes, deaths, etc. And there you go, the two songs in the drama.

Rewatch Value:
I would definitely rewatch the sweet and funny moments in this drama, but you'll have to dig for them. However, I would definitely, 100%, will rewatch this whole entire drama if English sub was added to this drama.

Overall:
Overall, not bad, not bad. I think I actually like it better than the parent version. I'm definitely going to have to check out the rest of the new Thai Boran remakes like Kaew Na Mah, Sung Tong, Den Narm Lom Fai, etc (I know, I know, they're like a couple of years old but I just haven't gotten to them yet). Well, definitely do check this out if you have seen the parent version and enjoyed it. Otherwise, I would like to warn new Thai drama watchers, these Thai folk stories seems a bit absurd and different from your typical, sweet, modern-day Thai dramas. However, they are very enjoyable since it's something very refreshing and traditional.

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Yaya and Nadech? Yes, please!

Overview:
I first watched this drama in 2011 and finally decided to write a review about it. This was my first lakorn I watched of Yaya and Nadech and became a huge fan of them. The first time watching this drama, I skipped around after the first 12 episodes when things went downhill, but after nine years, I finally rewatched the drama again. But if you are into the typical sweet, yet sour love stories, this might suit your taste.


Story (with a few minor spoilers):
Saichon is an orphan who was the eye candy of Min Island. Everything about him is perfect. He's hot, young, sweet, strong, etc.. Then comes in Nai Fah who was found washed ashore after a storm. Nai Fah lost all of her memories so the best choice for her was to stay on Min Island. Saichon eventually becomes the caregiver for Nai Fah and they slowly fall in love. Figures out, Nai Fah is a rich girl from the city and her older (adopted) sister, Fahlada, is trying to find her. The first twelve episodes focuses on how Nai Fah and Saichon falls in love and eventually gets married, while Fahlada is trying to find her sister. After that, when Nai Fah was forcefully taken away from Saichon and back to her sister, who happens to be evil, jealous, and selfish (typical villain traits), everything goes downhill. I skipped around because Saichon literally became a different man; plus he became rich after he saved a rich businessman (and that change of hairstyle really caught me off guard). When Nai Fah returned to the city, she went through surgery and regained her previous memories while she lost her memories from Min Island. Therefore, Saichon just thought that Nai Fah was faking everything and regretted her time with him on the island. He then proceeds to gets angry, possessive, jealous, and he literally sexually abused Nai Fah. Those were the main parts I skipped since I'm not a big fan of Thai dramas fantasizing rape. The ending was okay. The sister didn't really get what she deserved, she got more than what she deserved. I think it might just be me, but I was kind of sad that Nai Fah didn't regain any memories from Min Island. However, I did find it sweet how she chose to believe in Saichon's love for her. Overall, this was a pretty good storyline up until episode 12.

Acting/Cast:
To this day, Nadech and Yaya are still one of my favorite actor/actresses. Their acting has improved since 2011 so if you want to check them out more, definitely do! Their acting really shines in Leh Lub Salub Rarng. Their acting in this drama was pretty good, but you could tell they were still was developing. No major complaints though from this drama.

Music:
Two songs were repeated throughout the whole series. It really played with your emotions, like sometimes the song makes the scene really sweet, but sometimes it was just overplayed. It's really hard to not miss the background music but I think it could've been toned down at some point of the drama.

Rewatch Value:
Knowing that it took me 9 years to finally re-watch this drama, I would say rewatching it was not as thrilling as watching it the first time. I would definitely rewatch the first 12 episodes again, but not the last 9 just because it was not my cup of tea.

Overall:
Overall, this was a good drama, minus the last half of the show. The first half was a extremely good yes, but the second half was an eh. If the second half of the drama wasn't so extremely long and draggy, I think I would put this drama in my top 10 favorite Thai lakorns. But as of right now, it'll have to sit in my top 20's.

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UMMMM....OKAY

Overview:
I hesitated to watch this drama for a whole month after seen parts of season two. However, now that I'm done with season one, I'm obligated to watch the second season. But in the meanwhile, here are my (mixed) thoughts about the first season!
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WARNING: THE FOLLOWING REVIEW MAY HAVE LITTLE SPOILERS ABOUT SPECIFIC SCENES. I DON'T GIVE THE FULL CONTEXT OF THE SCENE BUT JUST ENOUGH FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND WHAT I'M SAYING. READ UPON THIS ADVISING!!!!

Story (6/10):
At first, I was really confused why dramalist had the first season split up into two parts but in total there are 24 episodes.
First of all, the storyline of the female lead entering a gaming/historical realm has been pretty common in the C-drama field. For example, the drama "To Get Her". Other similar dramas where the female lead enters a historical period are "Eternal Love" (all 3 seasons) and "The Romance of Tiger and Rose". For this particular story, the female leads sign-ups for an online game where she is able to experience "love". Since the female lead is a "nerd" and doesn't want to find love in the real world, she decides to go on this adventure to find love in an online world. To her surprise, she had more options than she could imagine. A mystery heroic swordsman, a hot-bod imperial guard, a sweet rich young master, and a hot temper royal prince. Who shall she choose?
Personally, this story set-up was promising but cringy. I didn't know what to expect. There were times I was just so done with the plot that I had to take a break from the drama and recover from my traumatic experience watching the drama. Usually, whenever I'm dedicated to a drama, I finish it within at least 3-4 days. However, this drama took me over a week to actually finish. I wouldn't say I didn't enjoy parts of the drama, but the storyline was definitely not my favorite part of the drama. It could've done better with the creative side of the plot but it fell flat mid-way through the drama. The only thing that is keeping me from rating the storyline from lower than a six are all the male lead characters' involvement in the plot. Not only did they save the girl from dying multiple times, but they also saved the storyline from going downhill.
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Acting/Cast (7/10):
First of all, the cast for the female lead Luo Jing. She's gorgeous and has a bright smile, but her character just made me want to pull out my hair for 90% of the show. I feel like, with Asian dramas in general, the trend is to always have a female lead that is quirky and "different" from every other girl out there in the world. The same can be applied to Luo Jing, but a bit worse since her character was not well developed. Since she came from the modern-day, she is naturally going to act a bit differently due to cultural differences. For example, when she had to dance for the king, she wore a very short black dress. In my head, I went, "OMG...she did not just do that." I just had to skip over that entire scene due since it was too overbearing to watch (Don't worry, this is episode three so not too big of a spoiler). She spoke a lot of English and was veryyyyyy outspoken for a girl in ancient times. However, over time, I did see that she adjusted more to the historical-cultural aspect of the game and it was less hard to watch. For Jade who played as Luo Jing, her acting was subpar. Since this is one of her first dramas, she has a long way to go to hone her acting skills. Overall, I can't really blame Jade for her acting when she's given a very under-developed character to start out with.

Next up in line, we have the male lead, Wu Mei. I have very mixed feelings about this boy. Just to give you a short description of him, he's hot-tempered, overly emotional, argumentative, hard to get along with, and a bit of a jerk. But IT'S OKAY because he's rich and hot (insert eye-roll). It was just soooooo hard for me to like him in the beginning because he just rubbed off of me wrong. If he wasn't rich and hot (and a prince), he would just be known as the jerk in any typical Asian drama. Like okay, he's got mommy issues and brother issues and that is the reason why his character is like that. Okay, cool. He seems like someone I wouldn't try to typically associate myself with. However, throughout the drama, seeing him soft at times really got me (that's how you know I'm easy). But when I started to notice he was caring and selfless when it came to the female lead, I started to warm up to his character a bit. I started to root for him more often up until the last few episodes when I was kind of done with his character too. For Simon who plays as Wu Mei, he's a good-looking guy. His acting was a bit better than Jade but it still lacked in some scenes. But overall, I personally like Simon as an actor.

Next, we have the three second-main lead. Yes, three of them. Xiu Wen as the imperial bodyguard, Xuan Yu as the mysterious swordsman, and Jin Chen as the rich master. In total, I personally felt like these guys had a better character setup than the two main leads. Xiu Wen had to constantly battle whether he stays loyal to his feelings for Luo Jiang or loyal to his country that desperately needs him. Xuan Yu was a mystery until the end where you were finally able to understand his regrets and undying love for Luo Jiang. Jin Chen was selfless and always there to support Luo Jiang during her weakest time. Like girl, why settle for Wu Mei when you can settle for these three better options? But then again, dramas don't do that. Dramas like tsundere characters. For example, in "To All The Boys (P.S. I Still Love You)", Lara Jean and Peter Kavinsky were totally made for each other but we all know deep in our hearts that John Ambrose was obviously the better choice. Same thing here. But it's okay, these three guys deserve more than just a sad unrequited love. All of the actors who played them were pretty good. After watching season two, I'm definitely going to go check on their other works. These three guys are the reason I rated this section a 7. Without them, I'll probably give this section somewhere between a 5 and 6.

Finally, we have the side characters such as Luo Jiang's maid Xi Que, the Flower Queen Ying Yun, Wu Mei's guard, the Wet Nurse, the Prime Minister, the king and his wife, and so on. They all definitely did a good job with their roles. My favorite characters would have to be Luo Jiang's maid Xi Que. She is like Luo Jiang's ride or die. It's sad that in most Chinese dramas, we have these selfless maids that have undying love and loyalty towards their master but then that's it for them. We don't get to see the other sides of them. But that's the main purpose of having them in the script, they are there to just support the lead characters and help clear up misunderstanding for them. Then whoosh, they disappear until they are needed again. I wouldn't mind seeing a love story for her maid (possibly with Wu Mei's guard) since she had such a lovely character. The evil characters were so manipulative and gave me chills at the end. I'm so looking forward to seeing the chaos they pursue in the next season.
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Music (8.5/10):
The OST and background music was something I appreciated. Like any other historical dramas, the sad songs during those sad scenes always hit hard. This one didn't hit as hard but the songs were beautiful. I'll probably add them to my study and sleep playlist.
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Rewatch Value (5/10):
Will I rewatch this drama again? I don't know, maybe sometimes done the road when I'm feeling bored. This drama was okay. It's not up high on my rewatch list but if I ever just think of this drama sometimes in the future, I think I'll probably skip to the last 10 episodes to do so. Otherwise, I think I'll stick to rewatching "Ten Miles of Peach Blossom" and "True Beauty".
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Overall (6.5/10):
I think this is the lowest I ever rated a drama since I only usually write reviews for dramas I personally enjoy a lot, but this drama is an exception. I'm usually pretty generous with rating a drama by overlooking the plot holes and under-developed characters. However, this drama was so mentally draining due to second-hand embarrassment that I just couldn't rate it any higher. To end off on a good note, I'll list some of the things I actually liked about the story in general. The chemistry was there, but I was just confused how a few near-face touching, close-up looks made them fall in love. Maybe my brain just skipped those parts but after you overlook how they fell in love, you start to appreciate their chemistry a little bit. The cast was actually pretty good. They weren't all overly good-looking (minus the main leads) or too awkward with their acting. It was comfortable to watch them and be enjoy looking at them (especially the side male leads).
Well, now it's time to move onto season two. See you guys in the next review!

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WHAT A ROLLERCOASTER RIDE!

Story (9.5/10):
First off: No, I have not read the Webtoon. I only have read up to chapter three like two years ago. However, after watching this drama, I probably will have to pick up on where I left off. So I won't have insight on the similarities and differences between the webtoon and the drama.
Regardless, I love the set up of the storyline. Lim Jukyung is a girl who does not fit into society's beauty standard. The most heartwrenching part of this story is that she is well aware of it, not only that, there are plenty of people who made sure she was aware of it. Due to this, she "transformed" herself using the gift of makeup and "beautified" herself. That is the heart of the storyline. Then comes two handsome and charming boys who enter her world and things happen.
What I liked most about the storyline is that even though it follows the typical Korean drama tropes (a love triangle, rich boy/poor girl status, cold and aloof boy/warm and down to earth girl, and etc.), it wasn't boring or repetitive. Instead, I find that the storyline was very refreshing and relatable. There were plenty of tear-jerking scenes (I cried three times watching this drama) but I also laughed like crazy. The majority of this drama focused on the main girl's character development and her love story (and the love stories of the people around her).
The only thing that refrained me from giving this a full 10/10 is that even though the main characters were well written, the side characters (specifically the "villains") were lacking character qualities.



Acting/Cast (9/10): SPOILERS AHEAD
Moon Gayoung plays as Lim Jukyung, the girl who struggles to fit into beauty standards but eventually becomes a goddess. I have only seen Moon Gayoung in Heartstrings (2011) and EXO Next Door (2015). I haven't seen any of her recent works. However, in the two dramas I have seen her in, I liked her a lot. She played as the bratty but sweet sister in Heartstrings and the shy next-door neigboor in EXO Next Door. I've seen clips of her in Tempted and her acting skills really wowed me. I can say her acting has definitely improved since 2011 and she did a really good job as Lim Jukyung. I know everyone wanted Jisoo from Blackpink to be Lim Jukyung, but I honestly think that Moon Gayoung really aced this role. Besides that, I really enjoyed the character development of Lim Jukyung in the drama. It took a while, but with all the love and support she had, she overcame her biggest fears and insecurities.

Next up, Cha Eunwoo as Lee Suho. Oh my goodness, he is hot (obviously)!!! Everyone knew that Cha Eunwoo was for sure going to get this role, like come on, he is the living Lee Suho. The only drama I've seen Cha Eunwoo was in My ID is Gangnam Beauty (2018) and the first half of Rookie Historian (2019). His character as Lee Suho was similar to his character as Do Kyungseok in Gangnam Beauty but very different in many ways. Some similarities are that he's hot, rich, cold, got daddy issues, and he already liked the main girl before she became "pretty". However, I would say that the biggest difference between his character in Gangnam Beauty and True Beauty is that in True Beauty, you can actually feel his character. Like, his character was more human. He showed more emotions and felt real.

Hwang Inyeop as Han Seojun, can someone grab me tissues! My, my, my. My goodness are you perfect. I haven't seen any of Hwang Inyeop's works before but I'm already a big fan. We can all agree he has taken our hearts away. From the first appearance to the last, I just keep wanting to see him. I was a Team Seojun until Suho shows up and vice versa (hey, I'm indecisive). Words can not explain how much I loved his character, especially how Hwang Inyeop portrayed his unrequited love for Lim Jukyung. This second lead syndrome was similar to the Netflix movie "To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You". Laura Jean/Lim Jukyung and Peter Kavinsky/Lee Suho are made for each other, but John Ambrose McClaren/Han Seojun are made for the fans. As a wise woman once said, "A hero has to stay with the heroine. The male supporting role belongs to all." (Chen QianQian from The Romance of Tiger and Rose).

Park Yoona as the scary Kang Soojin. Can we all agree that Kang Soojin had so much more worth than just being an obstacle for the main leads? Like, she was a very, very likable character. How could they do her dirty? But then again, from what I heard, she was the bad character in the original webtoon. She had bad issues with how her dad raised her, but besides that, she was a good character. She didn't judge Lim Jikyung for how she looked, she protected her from bullies, and accepted her willingly. Her biggest mistake was betraying Lim Jikyung out of jealousy. I remember watching Park Yoona in Hotel del Luna and every time I saw her eyes, it gave me chills. The same goes for her character Kang Soojin. When she turned "evil", her cold eyes and look of satisfaction can give you nightmares. I'm waiting for the day when Park Yoona would get her own drama as the main lead!

The side characters were great! My favorites were definitely her family, especially her siblings. They each made the story fun and diverse. Did you know the actress who plays as Lim Jukyung's sister was also in Heartstrings? I was so shocked when I finally realized it was her. She played as a cute college student in Heartstrings and seeing her all grown up now made me feel nostalgic. Seojun's sister and Jukyung's brother had the cutest side story ever! Her parents also made me laugh and cry many times throughout the drama!



Music (8/10):
I didn't pay a lot of attention to the OST's. The only time I actually listened to them was when Seojun sang them. They were cute but very fitting with the emotions during each scene.



Rewatch Value (10/10):
This is definitely my to-go-to rewatch drama. There are just so many scenes where you can rewatch and not get tired.
I remember rewatching Seojun's okie-dokie yo scene a billion times before I was satisfied (I still rewatch it to this day). I don't think I can get enough of the sweet yet funny moments. It's cringy, but it fulfills the inner girly-girl in me.


Overall (9/10):
Overall, great drama. I know some of the webtoon fans were not too happy with the deviation of the original story, but I fairly enjoyed it. The only reason I'm not giving it a full 10 is that I really felt like the villain characters lacked depth. The bullies were there to bully because they felt superior to Lim Jukyung, but why so? They showed up multiple times even after when they weren't really needed and so I was expecting more for them. Same with Kang Soojin. Yeah, I get that her jealousy got to her but I really felt that her character got played dirty. More realistically, the Kang Soojin we know from the beginning of the drama would tell Lim Jukyung that she just got her feelings messed up and is fine that Jukyung and Suho are dating (they really should have ended her jealously there, they could've used the bullies to do the "exposing" and such). However, they didn't end it there. They really brought out the darkness in her, which I found really upsetting. I think it's because I really, really liked her character and couldn't accept that she could turn "evil". I was happy that she eventually got to apologize, but it still didn't do her justice. She just left the scene and came back as a more mature woman. I really wished we got more of her side of the story.
Otherwise, I'm glad at where it ended.


(P.S. Am I the only one who's curious if Han Seojun can find a woman who he can like as much as he did with LIim Jukyung? Someone who he can actually love more than her? I sincerely hope he does find the one. Jukyung was great, but I honestly did not think they were meant to be. Not because Suho came first, but because Jukyung was not even able to develop feelings for him even after 3 years. And at that point, even if she knew he liked her, I don't think she could've forced herself to like him since Suho left such a big imprint in her life. Can we get an extra episode of Han Seojun finding the one?)

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