2
jimjamjelly
London, England
This review may contain spoilers
Writing takes a nosedive after episode 6
Wow. Kim Sae Ron's DUI truly destroyed the momentum the show had built up and they did NOT stick the landing. What started off as simple, yet focused, story meandered into a laughable mess. Bringing in Siwon to serve a major role in the climax was a huge mistake. His presence earlier on the story did not warrant the role he played later on. And the other female character? The definition of deus ex machina. The production should have just bit the bullet and kept Kim Sae Ron for the last two episodes. Her role was just too significant to have been written out in that manner, and it didn't align with her character's values to fuck off to the Rome.The cast and action sequences are really what made the drama stand out. The writing was, initially, much better than your usual K-Drama fare and didn't rely on any of the tired tropes we see in crime-thriller K-Dramas. It felt more cinematic in its nature. But the characters behaved so stupid, at times, that it just felt silly. Hyeon-ju, Gun-woo, and Woo-jin making bad decisions wasn't nearly as bad as seeing President Choi and his knifers make such obvious blunders. Those two knifers had death flags the minute they appeared on screen, but I wish their deaths hadn't been so stupid. You're a VETERAN in the business yet you're not covering your tracks when going against a HUGE gang? Dumb. The ending just emphasised everything that was wrong with the writing prior to the concluding episodes.
Should have been a BL btw. Gay subtext was crazy lol.
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The Beginnings of an Auteur
Its very weird watching As Tears Go By after seeing Wong Kar Wai's later works. His directorial style is very much in its infancy here: saturated colours, slow motion fight and chase scenes, shooting in the dark -- contrasted against more orthodox forms of camerawork.The story itself is much more traditional. Being in the mind of the characters' takes a backseat to a formulaic plot about street gangsters. The ending is clear before we've even hit the halfway mark. But its set apart from the others because of its atmospheric love story.
What shines most here is the romantic atmosphere that Wong creates. And I don't mean between Andy Lau and Maggie Cheung (who are playing first cousins, ick). Its the passionate devotion between Andy Lau's Wah and Jacky Cheung's Fly that's the heart and soul of this film. Both men want the other to live a good life. To be safe, happy, and thrive. Their push and pull is painful to watch. They're like magnets and it makes sense that one cannot truly live without the other.
I absolutely adore Maggie Cheung - she's talented, gorgeous, and commands the screen. But she has very little to work with and is probably the thinnest of the characters in this film. Ngor suffers from being nothing but a love interest. Forgotten by the plot and her man, unless its convenient, and ultimately one of the most forgettable of Wong's female characters. If I had watched this film first, instead of In The Mood for Love, I might never have continued with Wong's filmography as I would have thought he's just terrible at writing women.
I'm glad I watched this -- even if it was just to see where Wong started and how he evolved for the better.
*copy and pasted from my Letterboxd review*
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A love story with a fantasy backdrop
"Love Between Fairy and Devil" works best when its primary focus is on the love story between the two leads. This is why the first 1 - 9 episodes feel like 5 minutes long. We get to see a two people who should be enemies - and are seemingly ill-fated - fall into a pace and companionship that will lead to authentic love. The story suffers when it spends too much time on its antagonists and when it introduces random subplots that are never followed through properly. But this is mostly a problem during the last third of the show although its impact is glaring because the ending felt rushed and unsatisfactory. I enjoyed the journey between Orchid and Daqiang, but I wanted the resolution to be much more concrete. Instead, it left more questions than answers.Great chemistry between Dylan Wang and Esther Yu though.
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Tonally disjointed with a nonsensical plot
Sigh. I'm so disappointed with "Vincenzo". I didn't expect a drama about a Korean adoptee who becomes a consiglieri in the mafia to be the second coming of "The Godfather", but I did expect much more than a legal drama that reduced the courtroom to a circus with a seemingly invincible and ridiculously deranged villain.The first three episodes definitely have their flaws - most notably the strange comedy that feels disjointed from the more serious tone of the main story. However, the plot seems to have direction. Vincenzo's goals are clearly defined, the conflict that prevents him achieving said goal is established, and the event that spirals everything out of control is executed perfectly. The build up of tension across those three episodes left me with my jaw on the floor and ready to see how Vincenzo executed his revenge through both legal and illegal means.
But, by episode 5 I was already beginning to feel tired with the drama: the writer was speeding through so many scenarios, it was clear to see that he was going to run out of steam and that the story would drag across 15 more episodes. And I was correct. Because by the end of episode 9, not only is Vincenzo no longer calm, collected, calculative and cunning, but he's just plain stupid. He executes all his plans in the most haphazard obvious way, its a surprise he doesn't end up dead within five minutes. The writer keeps telling us that he's this intelligent mafioso, but honestly, how the hell did he last as long as he did in the mob by acting so carelessly? There's knowing when to show your hand to your enemy in order to push them into the corner, and then there's being so blatantly obvious it gets you and everybody else around you killed.
The legal stuff in this show requires so much suspension of disbelief it'll make your eyes roll into the back of your head. Anyone with an understanding of the South Korean political, economic and legal environment is aware of how much corruption is rife within the system. But courtrooms have principles and the way Hong Cha Young operates in court would get any lawyer in jail for contempt and could even lead her to lose her attorney's license. Its just so ridiculous. Its straight up comedic.
Speaking of comedy, the humour in this show is just so bad. One minute we go from seeing someone getting their head cracked open with a hockey stick, and the next minute we're suddenly thrust into a slapstick scene with the residents of Geumga Plaza. One episode basically shows a character with a domestic violence record as the source of comedic relief (really homophobic episode too). Even dark shows need moments of reprieve, but these sudden shifts of tone are so silly it undercuts the intended seriousness of the story and even results in the (many!) deaths that occur as feeling like cheap stunts. This show's body count is already so needlessly high after 9 episodes that the deaths lose all meaning. There's absolutely no pathos. And how am is the audience supposed to root for characters who keep getting other innocent people killed? Just highlights how Vincenzo is basically a dumb ass in a nice suit.
The acting and the direction are the only things that kept me going for as long as I did. Song Joong Ki somehow manages to make Vincenzo seem like a smart, cunning, almost Michael Corleone-esque character even though the script is constantly working against him and his Italian is atrocious. Jeon Yeo Bin does the best she can do with her character: her face acting when she's allowed to be more than just an over the top drama queen is honestly really good. She's capable of conveying anger, sadness, grief in ways that don't seem exaggerated at all. I'm definitely going to check out her other work, hopefully she gets more material that helps her shine as actress, because she really doesn't have much to do here besides be a bitch or Vincenzo's lackey.
There are some excellently directed sequences here. Episode three is definitely a stand out in terms of direction. The director is very aware of ways to build tension. But it can't cover for how bad the story is.
Don't waste your time and watch "Flower of Evil" instead if you want a good, tightly plotted thriller that isn't brought down by the more ridiculous aspects of the writing.
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Almost, but not quite there
This was so close to being a perfect drama: the comedy was funny, the acting was good, and the story moved at a really good pace. The relationship between the leads may have begun as contrived, but the development was genuine with the chemistry being off the walls good. The same goes for the second couple too. Where things fell flat, however, is after episode 7. The conflict was annoying and made the story stagnate. The grandfather behaved too out of character, and I felt the focus on his disapproval of the relationship took away from more development from the two couples. I would have liked to have seen some weddings and a happy-ever-after, instead of watching several episodes of the Grandpa's meddling. Overall, it was a good drama, and the writers did manage to stick the landing despite their meandering near the third act.Was this review helpful to you?
PPL and Propaganda piece disguised as a rom-com
When you fast forward through the awkwardly placed advertisements and the excessively tedious scenes about China's space race (waste of money, resources and detrimental to the environmental btw), you get yourself a cute, light-hearted romantic comedy that is mostly carried by Dilraba Dilmurat.Dilraba is a charming and dynamic presence onscreen, especially in contrast to her leading man, YangYang, who looks like he's posing for a magazine every time he moves. The scenes that focus on the latter - which there are a lot of them as the drama goes into strange science-fiction territory - are pretty boring. The dialogue is difficult to understand, YangYang's acting ranges between looking serious and mildly surprised, and the propaganda is so blatant and annoying. I swear, if I took a shot every time a character said "For the glory of the motherland" I would be passed out drunk on the kitchen floor.
Nevertheless, the scenes in which are leads are together are sweet (even if they do sometimes feel shallow with all the talk about looks). Dilraba and YangYang have good chemistry together which makes up for the latter's otherwise boring and wooden presence onscreen.
I would not watch it again, and would advise anyone who is interested in watching this for the leads and the romance to fast forward through all of the aerospace stuff and treat episode 30 as if it were the last episode.
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Ouroboros' main problems lie within its unoriginal story and how said story is executed. I'm not saying that is a bad thing because plenty of stories are unoriginal, story writing thrives on borrowing elements and themes from one another, but its how these unoriginal stories are tackled that is what makes them original. Do I make sense? (I probably don't because I'm an insomniac, and my brain is muddled due to lack of sleep). I digress - my point was, Ouroboros doesn't do anything different with its story to make it original. Most of the major plot twists can be seen from a mile off and have been seen before. It makes the scriptwriting seem a bit lazy and contrived, because an intelligent viewer has already figured out something major before the characters had. There are also lot of plot holes. They aren't exactly massive, but they're important enough to be detrimental to the score of the drama. After you watch Ouroboros you'll probably be sitting there wondering why so and so's backstory wasn't properly explored before they popped on screen, or what happened to so and so after so and so was killed. The villain of the week type structure that the writers were trying to maintain for the first 4-5 episodes, whilst attempting an overarching storyline, is what contributed to the problems in plot. There's also a massive sense of inevitability from the outset of the drama.
However, despite my criticisms of the predictable nature of the drama, I do commend the writers for managing to keep the MAIN major plot twist unpredictable. I did really go WTF when the BIG big reveal was revealed, and when the drama ended. And as I said before, whilst there is a massive sense of inevitability from the beginning of the drama, the ending will genuinely have you sitting in shock for a couple of seconds (maybe more of you're a more sensitive viewer).
Whilst the story might not be particularly innovative, the characters sure are. Ryuuzaki and Danno are not your typical one-dimensional revenge drama male leads. Both believed they had gone off the righteous path a long time ago, when they were really still struggling between right and wrong. Ryuuzaki found it difficult to fight between his desire to avenge the only mother-figure he'd ever known or just forget his vengeance and move on with his life with a woman who cared for him. Danno - who just seemed like a ruthless, yet intelligent, yakuza - who didn't want anyone to see the real him and was still holding on to the love he had as a child and was willing to sacrifice himself for another's happiness. Whilst the two did do quite immoral things and sold themselves as dishonest men, the trajectory they went through for redemption - and eventual happiness - was befitting and highlighted their essentially child-like souls. I also think that the two had one of the sweetest and endearing bromances as well. The two characters were also played wonderfully with great nuanced performances by Ikuta Toma and Oguri Shun - who had a great dynamic with each other.
Inspector Hibino was also a beautifully sincere and resilient character who learnt that forgiveness can be more important than justice when it comes to the people you hold near to you. Although she went through a lot of pain during Ouroboros' run, her trajectory made her grow as a person and see the world in a wider sense so you just knew that her scars will heal and she'll come back even better. Ueno Juri played her so wonderfully that I forgot she's the same actress who played Nodame - she really became Hibino Mizuki.
The supporting characters were also great and there wasn't a single character or performance I disliked. The villain, though, was a bit eh but otherwise the rest of the cast managed to hold their ground and deliver nuanced performances despite the three leads being at such a magnanimous level of talent.
At its heart, Ouroboros is essentially a character study which redeems the somewhat lacklustre plot since the characters in Ouroboros are so relateable and are backed up by an excellent cast. Don't watch Ouroboros if you're hoping for something that breaks the mould in the revenge genre, but watch it because you'll be moved by each characters trajectory and the realness of their suffering.
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There's all so much stupidity I can take in a drama,before it all becomes too much and starts to have an actual affect on my brain. TGWSS was never the most clever of stories, with its presentation of wholly incompetent cops who spent more time eating than trying to catch a serial killer, but I forgave it - for a short time - for being able to work its way around the laughable police work in favour of exploiting our heroines smelly eye. However, once we hit episode eleven, the contagious disease of stupidity seemed to have spread to our heroine, herself, who became both a Noble Idiot and a Complete Idiot. From then on out we can see a continued series of events where characters decide to confront known murderers and get in murderers' cars. Even the intelligent and bitching Lieutenant falls victim of the strain of stupidity that seems to plague the innocent characters of Smelly Girl.
The heaps of plot induced stupidity that riddled Smelly Girl is a clear sign of poor and undirected writing in an attempt to make enough story for a 16 episode drama. Smelly Girl was a brainless plot that was far too long; ten episodes, max, is all it needed to set up the murders, investigate, romance, and catch the killer. There was absolutely no need to throw in some sacrificial lambs to ruin a perfectly healthy relationship in order to drag out an already thin enough piece of string.
I was only half watching by episode 13, and by episode 14 I started skipping a ridiculous amount of scenes so the damn story would actually *go somewhere*. It wasn't until episode 15 that I become interested, once a more, before I promptly switched off all concentration and fell asleep.
The only possible saving grace of Smelly Girl was the romance which could have been perfect - emphasis on the could - if only the writer had left it to blossom, instead of unfairly cutting it off because the heroine felt 'guilty' for a totally nonsensical reason. I absolutely hate Noble Idiots/Sacrifical Lambs, but I hate them even more when the reason for their behaviour is absolutely pathetic (not that Noble Idiocy can ever be justified). It was so frustrating to see the heroine making the decisions on her own and taking the hero's right of agency away from him even when he said her guilt did not matter. She became unbearably thick, so thick that I thought someone would have to beat the goddamn message into her.
If you value your brain cells I strongly recommend that you stay as far away as possible from 'The Girl Who Sees Scents'. Don't be fooled by its snazzy premise and cute OTP, because that all goes down the gutter in favour of general foolishness.
NB. If I was a cop in S. Korea, I would be highly offended by how absolutely useless the police force is portrayed.
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Whilst it certainly started off well - with the first 5 to 6 episodes being good - TWTWB eventually ran out of steam before it even hit the halfway mark, turning into a limp, thinly spread out drama with glaringly obvious plot holes that were almost migraine-inducing. Just when you think that the plot is heading somewhere interesting, the writer goes and fucks everything up making you feel like you've been had. I found it to be a major insult to my intelligence when The Big Reveal was finally revealed after being dragged on for what felt like a milllennium. What was revealed was already known by the audience RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING, and after that nothing much happened. There was no explanation of the characters' motives and neither was there a satisfying story of redemption (or failed redemption). Instead, all we got was needless exposition and lots of angst. Which meant I wasted 16 bloody hours on a weeping mess. A weeping mess that wasn't even fun to watch. And what was with that totally deceitful and illogical ending that totally disrupted the tone of the show? I could forgive the ending in Innocent Man because the whole show had been the total opposite of TWTWB and it was what I wanted to see, and was totally deserved, despite the execution being rather iffy, but the ending in TWTWB was just farcical. Don't even get me started on that creepy as fuck faux-incest either. I'm still trying to wipe that out of my head.
Sometimes a weak plot can be saved if the characters are relatable. However, TWTWB's writer seems to have failed on all fronts because all of the characters were flat as a cardboard cut-out and failed to ignite any sympathy from me. The only one who was remotely interesting was Hee Sun, otherwise I couldn't have cared less about what happened to the rest of them. Oh Young was the one I hated the most - she started off as selfish and conceited, and she ended as selfish as conceited. She also talked too much, way too much, and most of what she had to say was repetitive, superficial and incredibly vapid. But at the end of the day, her character progression was like all of the others: it simply did not exist. How the two leads ended up falling in love with each other is simply beyond me, but I guess toxic attracts toxic
I've seen a lot of praise in regards to the acting, namely the performances provided by Jo In Sung and Song Hye Kyo. Honestly, while these two were quite good - and I use the word in the prespective sense - their performances suffered during the latter parts of the drama. Jo In Sung's tendency to overact when it comes to more emotionally powerful scenes is cringeworthy and Song Hye Kyo's face eventually came to resemble that of a dead fish. OK, I get it, she's blind, but that doesn't hinder her ability to look like a human being on screen. You can tell these two became tired by their performances, but who can blame them when their characters were so pathetic to begin with?
That Winter, The Wind Blows decides to threw logic out of the window in favour of a highly stylised drama that lacks both a proper storyline and depth. It's plot induced stupidity is an insult to intelligence and its characters are some of the most insufferable people to date. If I hadn't enjoyed the first 6 episodes,TWTDB wouldn't have scored more than a 2. If you like to be respected as a viewer, avoid it all costs - and I mean ALL.
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I really appreciated how the dramas conflict wasn't based on "good" vs "evil", but was an intrinsic battle that Chiaki himself had to overcome. Chiaki isn't just critical of those around him, but he's also highly critical himself which prevents him from being able to form valuable relationships with people and thus understand music better. Nodame is the person that challenges this struggle of Chiaki's and helps him - unbeknowst to him - to discover a vast capacity to love people (as well as to overcome his fear of flying). Here we have a mistmatched pair who are able to understand each other and help the other to grow.
The romance might not be in your face, but the subtlety is a thousands times more touching. The way Chiaki is so deeply affected by what Nodame says, does and plays shows that a beautiful sort of love his forming. He might not realise how he feels, but the audience is able to clearly ascertain that there's more to his feelings than a massive appreciation for how Nodame plays the piano.
Speaking of subtlety, I really love how character development is portrayed in NC: its poignant, subtle, and unexpected. It is isn't simply expressed through words, but through actions and - most importantly - through music. Music is a vital part of our lives. It is the one thing that is able touch people's hearts and bring people from all walks of live together. 'Nodame Cantabile' is able to capture the profound affect that music has on its characters lives as we see a character letting go of all of their inhibitons and becoming one with the music. This is most prominent with Chiaki - the tension in his shoulders seems to disspitate when he lets himself become one with the music and his orchestra during the last episode. He's relaxed, free and loving every minute of what he's doing. Being able to portray all of that without words takes both great directing and great acting.
Most people talk about Ueno Juri's portrayal of Nodame when NC is mentioned, but I think that Tamaki Hiroshi is the real star of the show. His performance of Chiaki is so sensitive that I can feel Chiaki growing up and learning how to love more vividly through the way he plays with intonation, his eye expressions, the way his body moves with passion whilst conducting and the small smile that plays around the corners of his mouth. The connection Tamaki Hiroshi has with Chiaki's character is so compelling, I really can't imagine anyone else playing Chiaki. I look forward to watching more of Tamaki's work.
For one to fully enjoy 'Nodame Cantabile' one has to overlook the slightly too anime-like execution of this drama. The humour is what prevents the story from gaining that perfect 10 - it offsets the tone of the drama due to its overly whacky and slapstick nature. I guess its part of the dramas charm, but I would have personally preferred it in smaller doses. The most aggravating part of the humour was the violent tendencies that Chiaki had towards; punching and throwing really ain't cute, and it did leave a bad taste in mouth.
All in all, 'Nodame Cantabile' has become a firm a favourite. It's beautiful, poignant and charming, and despite its silliness it manages to convey a touching message about love and music. The finale will leave you swelling the absolute grandure of Beethoven's Symphony No.7 as well as the overwhelming amount of emotion that managed to be conveyed through barely any dialogoue in the last 15 minutes. It's definitely one to watch and should not be skipped!
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...which was bloody fantastic. 'Liar Game' is the third drama I've given a ten to, in the short amount of time I've been watching dramas, and out of those three dramas it is both the one I believe to be the best and the one that I enjoyed the most. Ten doesn't mean that I found it to be perfect (as perfection is unattainable), but since it has superseded many of the dramas that I've watched - both quality and entertainment wise - I thought it justifiably deserved the highest possible score.
'Liar Game' thrilled me, played with me, kept me guessing and sent my blood pressure rising in the best possible ways. The pacing was on beat and the tightly plotted 12 episodes managed to sail by without the assistance of makjang, noble idiocy, sacrificial lambs or filler. When I say that there was none of that present in 'Liar Game' I mean that there was absolutely zilch, nada, zero traces of any of the aforementioned tropes. The show was able to stand on its own two legs without relying on ridiculousness.
It presented a study of human behaviour - how we react and change (for better or worse) when it comes to trust. I don't see it as being a drama that is about how far people will go when it comes to money. Of course, in the context of the game, money is important, but 'Liar Game' teaches us that humans - people - are more important. It is people that make the choice to lie, cheat, betray and thus put others at risk - not money. Money is just the pretext, 'Liar Game' (both the drama and the game itself) is about all about people and how strong their characters are. It is also people who choose to watch others being pitted against each other, for money, to get an ounce of their weekly entertainment.
The games itself in 'Liar Game' were actually very intelligent and intricate. It might have been a bit boring to watch the explanations and rules of each round, but without them it would be difficult for some people to understand whatever the hell was going on. (The rules were useful when it came to the Poker round because wtf was going on there). Some people have said that they found the games 'boring', but that's besides the point, the interest doesn't lie within the games themselves, but within how the contestants survive the games. Each round served as a perfect backdrop for the deceit and breakdowns that were to follow.
The people in 'Liar Game' were of a brilliant variety. Not much time was spent on backstory (which was both refreshing and appreciated given the 12 episode length of the drama), but I managed to ascertain the personalities, motives and regrets of not just the three leads, but the principle supporting cast as well (Jamie, Ja Dol etc). And that is because LG had both a brilliant writer and a brilliant cast. These people grew into either more beautiful or more hateful as the machinations of the Liar Game got to them. I must add that this drama did really well by breaking the K-Drama trope of a woman being evil if she wears heavy make-up - more specifically, the darker the lipstick the darker her soul. It was excellent to see Jamie retain her grit, intelligence and vampyness whilst also being transformed into a person who has opened herself to being able to trust the right people.
A lot of people have said that Kim So-eun's character - NAM DA JUNG - was annoying because she was too stupid and remained stupid. I beg to differ on that topic; whilst Da Jung is most definitely too trusting and naive - AT THE BEGINNING - she most definitely does mature. Yes, she still trust, and yes she is still a very kind person, but she matures into someone who can both question her allies whilst maintaining her ability to trust them. As each round progresses she becomes more considerate and mature. She might not ever have become a toxic person, but she definitely isn't the same Nam Da Jung that was presented at the beginning of the show. And I think Kim So-eun does a wonderful job at portraying Nam Da Jung's growth, emotional sensitivity, understanding, empathy and her huge ability to love and show human compassion (which is especially evident in the final few episodes). Her performance was consistent, clean and considerate. I'm surprised that she is yet to land a main role on public broadcast.
I found it very interesting to contrast and compare the characters of HA WOO JIN (distractingly attractive Psychology Professor turned ex-con) and KANG DO YOUNG. They were like two ends of a horseshoe: polar opposites, yet very similar. Both men are geniuses, both men are incredible when it comes to lying, both men are fantastic strategists, both men are difficult to trust, but both men have very different goals and very different moral leanings and obligations. Their similarities made them clash, whilst their obvious differences intensified their - sometimes frightening - rivalry. I don't think the tension and fear, that crackled in the air whenever these two men looked at each other, would have been present if Lee Sang Yoon and Shin Sung Rok hadn't played their respective roles. Both men brought an undeniable energy to the screen and they were also able to bounce that energy off of each other. The performances were so natural it never felt like a hero was delivering dialogue to a villain, but it felt as if two enigmatic men were engaged in some fierce contest of the Mind. It was sparkling and wonderful to watch.
I think it would be easy to type-cast Shin Sung Rok as a The Villain after his roles in both 'Liar Game' and Stars, respectively, but he manages to make his villains different. I found a way to empathise with the emotionally scarred, twisted, pathological liar that was Kang Do Young whilst I couldn't have cared less for the utterly selfish bastard he was playing in Stars.
Lee Sang Yoon was very hot as Ha Woo Jin. There was something incredibly magnetic about his performance as the enigmatic rugged Psychologist. His gaze, his manner of speech, the way he held himself all resonated 'genius'. His frosty demeanour didn't come off as arrogant and cocky, but reserved and observant.
The lack of romance didn't bother me at all; it was refreshing to see the female lead being able to develop multiple healthy relationships with the other male characters. It is clear that Da Jung and Woo Jin cared for each other quite deeply and the way they develop that relationship isn't through childish bickering, but through learning who the other person is enough to understand and trust them. I'm not going to deny that there wasn't a huge amount of chemistry between Kim So-eun and Lee Sang Yoon, but not once did I get the urge to scream JUST SHUT UP AND KISS HER at my TV.
'Liar Game' could have been betrayed by its ending, but thankfully it wasn't and it finished on a high. Not everyone got what they deserved, but if they had that would have betrayed the whole message of 'Liar Game' - the real world is not ideal, it isn't a place where people can survive by being too trusting or too suspicious. Sometimes, good people don't always end up with every material thing they SHOULD have and sometimes the villain gets away with it. If 'Liar Game' hadn't been a drama that set out to challenge people's world-view, then the ending would have been terrible, but it wasn't. I was glad to see that the non-villains came out of the experience as people who had grown and changed to have a better understanding of both other people and themselves (this was most notable in the case of Jamie).
In regards to the slight openess of the ending, I totally wasn't bothered by it, and it is quite clear that the writer most definitely intended for the ending to be open in order to run onto a season 2. However, whether or not we get a season 2 is totally up to tvN. What's most important is that the main conflict was resolved, so even if we don't get a season 2 there won't be any loose ends left over. I'm all in favour for a season 2, with the same cast though, because I am so ready to see these characters AND actors on screen again.
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I was expecting weepy melodrama due to it supposedly being modelled on ‘Romeo & Juliet’; however, ‘The Princess’ Man’ served up a lyrical romance, fierce conflict, an intricate and detailed plot and perfectly constructed three-dimensional characters that never failed to show growth or depth.
The romance and political intrigue were two sides of the same coin: the power-hungry Grand Prince Sooyang’ daughter (Lee Se Ryung) falls in love with his just mortal enemy’s (Kim Jong Seo) son (Kim Seung Yoo). Se Ryung struggles with the love for her Father and her moral alignments - which align with that of her father’s enemy - whilst the latter is caught between his love for Se Ryung and his strong desire to kill her father. Neither is unaware of the grave brevity of the situation that they are in. Se Ryung is no love-struck child, but a woman who knows the difference between right and wrong and (initially) attempts to resolve the lover for her father with the love for her man. Love and politics are inextricably linked to one another, which prevents the intrigue in the The Princess’ Man from wearing thin as it is impossible to think of a way the two star-crossed lovers can resolve the political tragedies that greatly hinder their chances to be with one another - thus making the drama even more compelling.
The intrigue doesn't simply act as a backdrop for Se Ryung and Seung Yoo’s love, but it is equally as compelling (at some moments, it is even more exciting) as the romance. The discord is wholly understandable and its impact is hellish. Lives are being torn apart, families are being broken and then restructured, friendships are being betrayed but not fully abandoned. Episodes zip by with major developments and revelations that leave you pressing the button for the next episode. Nothing disappoints and everything has an impact.
One’s heart will be left with a deep impression by this poetic and tragic drama that all should watch.
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The dialogue was sharp and witty when it needed to be, and touching when it needed to be. It set the tone right, unlike most other romantic dramas (which later fall into the melodramatic category). I'll admit that it became a bit of a melodrama during the final two episodes; however, it never completely fell into the weepy melodrama that I was expecting it to and it retained the majority of its comedic charm throughout its run. I also admire how the romance never fell flat and that the leads didn't play a long match of love ping-pong with each other.
However, the two story lines that were running concurrently against each other didn't feel united. Yes, the characters were linked to one another, but the murder mystery didn't quite sit well with the romantic developments. Cheon Song Yi was so far removed from the whole murder intrigue and when she was involved she was simply being used as a pawn during the villain's evil machinations.
The story would have been so much more cohesive if Song Yi was sleuthing with Do Min Joon and Lee Hwi Kyeong, instead of just watching a suspicious video of a dead girl with a woman who is obviously very scared and not thinking much of it.
Because the two story lines failed to develop and link with each other, the drama felt unnecessarily dragged out to me. And whilst the two second main leads certainly weren't the most annoying 2nd main leads in drama history, they just turned out to be vapid and lacking in development. Yeah, Hwi Kyeong was nice and was brave to stand up against his brother, but that's all he really was. I didn't see much of point in Yoo Se Mi's character...she didn't really make you feel anything towards her - she was just there.
But the drama did present a believable romance. Although Cheon Seong Yi bears a strong resemblance to the young girl that Do Min Joon saved 400 years ago, that it isn't why he falls in love with her. Yes, he's interested in her because of that resemblance - both that interest is just sheer curiosity. He falls in love with her imperfections: she might be blunt, hot-tempered, and a bit crazy, but it doesn't matter to him. He loves her. And she loves him. Also, I am very glad that it was never a one-sided love story!
Finally, Jeon Ji Hyun shines so brightly in this drama. I really can't imagine a 3-dimensional character like Cheon Seong Yi being portrayed by anyone other than Jeon Ji Hyun. I know most of the surrounding hype in regards to YWCFTS was centered around Kim Soo Hyun, but this drama was really made by JJH. It wouldn't have had the same attraction if she wasn't the main. KHS is not a bad actor, but he has the tendency to be wooden and I don't believe he has established the same amount as screen presence as JJH has.
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Could have done without the excessive overkill of flashbacks (this writer really needs to let schemes and plans unravel themselves). Whilst I found the open ending fitting for a drama that was taking place over a time span of two weeks, I didn't appreciate the allusion to a possible to reunion between Jang Tae San and Seo In Hye. I believe that their relationship was solidly finished 8 years ago - despite the circumstances. Asides from fond memories and lingering affections, I never felt anything more between the two, especially when one considers how far both have them have come in 8 years. A time period of two weeks doesn't suddenly stop Seo In Hye from loving her partner of 4 years. I refuse to believe that In Hye was only going to marry Seung Woo because she was "grateful" towards him. Tae San's sole object of affection should really have been his daughter.
(Not say that I would have minded him getting together with Prosecutor Park Jae Kyeong. There was definitely something between the two, but then again maybe not.)
Got to admit, I started to enjoy the drama less during the final act because of all the flashbacks, the silly ways that the villain would slip through the net and the increasingly irrelevant presence of Tae San's daughter. I get that she's sick and Tae San is fighting to survive in order to save her, but we don't need to see constant scenes of her basically saying she wants her Mum and Dad to get back together once everything is all over.
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'Angry Mom' also suffered when it came to setting the tone; the drama was verging on being dark and melodramatic to being slapstick funny, the show didn't actually set its tone until we reached the halfway point. Less patient viewers would have probably have already dropped the show by then as the messed up tone made AM feel like it didn't have any sense of direction, and it actually became quite boring during episodes 6, 7 and 8.
I didn't actually get a feel for the show until the second half of the drama, which, although not perfect, was defintely the best part of the whole show. The tone was solid, the twists were genuinely surprising, the pacing was swift and the tension was rife. It kept me on my seat, and I didn't feel the need to fast forward any of the scenes in order to make the 70 minutes go by faster.
Alas, the first half of the show was an utter bore and suffered from too many problems to make it earn a score higher than 5.0.
It was fun watch during the second half, but 'Angry Mom' really isn't anything special. If you want a good high school drama, skip this, and watch Shut Up! Flower Boy Band instead.
NB: Dear Angry Mom,
Thank you for introducing me to the perfectly adorable Ji Soo. I am utterly grateful.
- akisame
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