shu-mai
More than just your average Korean melodrama.
I really don't give out 10s easily but this drama has touched me and destroyed me emotionally in the best way possible. Not only was it a melodrama that made me cry tears of joy/sadness but it has challenged me psychologically, and really changed the way how I view life in general. TDLR, this is an emotional rollercoaster that will touch on mental health, childhood trauma, healing, acceptance, and self-love, and it is a rollercoaster that will be worth your time.Story: I was really scared that this would be a very sad/sappy drama that would romanticize mental illnesses, but I was wrong and I'm glad it didn't turn out that way. Moon Young has antisocial personality disorder. Gang Tae is a caretaker, but inside he is truly depressed and has no sense of self worth. Despite their differences, they eventually learn how to accept each other while keeping each other accountable. The story follows Moon Young, Gang Tae, and Sang tae's path to healing; there are a lot of bumps and dents along the road, but it goes to tell you that the path to healing is not linear, it is a journey. There is tremendous character development that will leave you satisfied, it didn't feel forced or unnatural, it was just right and well paced. I think the story was very well thought out from destigmatizing mental health to small, materialistic things like costumes. I remember reading an article in which the stylist did a lot of research in outfits for every character (ex: Sang Tae wears a lot of stripes because those with autism prefer wearing patterns, nurses wear pastel colors in order to portray mental health facilities as a welcoming place) in order to truly reflect them. At first I was quite thrown off as to why the show chose to have Moon Young be an author for children's stories, but these stories play a very crucial role to the story. It really shows that you don't have to be a child to relate to the lessons these stories teach; they reflect the child like side of the main protagonists and how vulnerable they are. Overall, I was really satisfied, the story felt realistic, and had a good balance of comedy, seriousness, and wholesomeness.
Acting: I could never see this drama succeeding without Seo Ye Ji, Kim Soohyun, Oh Jung Se, and the other cast members. Every interaction in the show felt so genuine, every character had chemistry with one another. Seo Ye Ji has the charisma and charm to portray an 'antisocial' character, Kim Soohyun knows how to truly act , his facial expressions are always on point. I am most impressed with Oh Jung Se's portrayal of Sang Tae. As someone who has an autistic brother, he plays a very accurate portrayal of someone with autism and I really applaud him and the writers for bringing more awareness and understanding for those with autism. Sang Tae and Gang Tae's relationship has a very special place in my heart and I truly loved seeing them grow and overcome the challenges they faced together. One of my biggest pet peeves is when writers cast supporting characters who don't contribute anything and are just fillers. Every supporting character (Ju Ri, Director Lee, Jae Su, Dr. Oh, Ju Ri's mom, etc.) had a contribution to MY, ST, and GT's growth, as well as for the other support characters, whether it was negative or positive. I felt as if they also had their own journey to growth and healing, it was very nice to see supporting characters have an impact on the story and weren't just there for comedy relief and fluff.
I don't rewatch a lot of dramas but I would l can see myself watching this again to relive the emotional rollercoaster and jot down some quotes/dialogue that were really well written. This show will always have a special place to my heart as it really changed my perspective on life and my own self. I feel like regardless of who you are and your background, you can take a lot from this show while seeing the main characters find their own happiness.
Was this review helpful to you?
Story: Is there a love story in this? Yes, but it's not the main focus of the story. I thought a love story was unnecessary, because the main focus was Jin Woo fighting against a hugely corrupted company / judicial system that falsely accused his dad, which I thought was 10x better.
This story is depressing, melodramatic, and I experienced a lot of moments where I was frustrated with the writers for making the story so sadistic and sad. But this frustration did not prevent me from enjoying the show; every episode was thrilling, intense, and played with my emotions wholeheartedly. There is so much satisfaction when you see injustice turn into justice and how the downfall of the villain is executed. There is always something happening in every episode, and I thought the story was well paced for a show with 20 episodes
Acting: I feel like in this case everyone's perspective on each character will be different based on your own morals, preferences, etc, but I found the cast to be amazing, but a little frustrating to watch as I questioned some of the characters and their significance to the story
Major props to Nam Goong MIn as the evil guy, he really knows how to make the audience's blood boil. I enjoyed Park Sung Woong as Dong Ho, not only did I love his Busan accent, but he is a very rational character that knows what's right and what's wrong, regardless of how the show/audience portrays him. To be honest, I found Seung Ho's character kind of annoying due to his stubbornness, but he is very passionate and ambitious. Park Min Young's character is very civil and determined, and at the same time she also was Seung Ho's emotional support. I felt the chemistry between Seung Ho and Min Young was amazing, but not in a romantic way at all.
Music/Overall: I haven't really payed attention to the music cause the opening theme song kind of overpowered the rest of the tracks and it constantly plays in my head (LOL), but pretty decent OST collection.
I am giving this a 9 for minor reasons (love story, over usage of flashbacks, frustration of characters, etc.), but If you like thrillers, want to take a rest from all those romance dramas, and cry from sadness you should definitely give this a chance.
Was this review helpful to you?
Story:
This is one of these dramas where one problematic situation that leads to another, where secrets are revealed new problems show up. The story starts out as it focuses on bullying and it slowly develops into focusing about corruption in school and politics. In response to this, Kang Ja (Kim Hee Sun) challenges the higher officials and is devoted to bring them down. Although she takes an extreme approach to the situation by pretending to be a high schooler, I can understand her intentions.
What I really liked about this drama is that it shows that people with power and wealth can help you get out of any situation even if it's unmoral. The drama challenges this idea by arguing that it is possible to defeat those kinds of people.This story really pulls you in by playing with your feelings tbFh. There are many scenes that will make you laugh, feel depressed, and even make you angry, but once it's over and the situations are all resolved it gives you a sense of relief, justice, and happiness (at least that's what I felt) Overall, this drama will make you feel like your emotions are like a rollercoaster and addresses corruption.
Acting:
If it's a drama that heavily focuses corruption, then you would expect that there are a hella lot of corrupted characters in this drama that will make you really mad, but considering that these actors are playing as the antagonists, they did an amazing job portraying their characters that can piss the viewers off. Kim Yoo Jung and Kim Hee Sun were amazing throughout this drama, their mother-daughter relationship really touched my heart. Lizzy, Goo Su hee and her minions were so funny. And Jisoo.....is bae af. He has a lot of potential and I'm looking forward to seeing him again in the future.
The only downfall I had with this drama was the characters. Some supporting characters were just irrelevant or plain stupid. There are some characters who annoyed me at the beginning of the drama but character development throughout the drama helped redeemed themselves such as Park No Ah (Ji Hyun Woo), Hong Sang Tae (Baro) and Ahn Dong Chil (Kim Hee Won).
Overall, amazing cast
Music:
The music really gives off an old school, "ahjumma" vibe to the drama lol idk how to explain it, but there was lots of jazz and soul OSTs. Although I wouldn't download their OSTs, they suit the drama's atmosphere overall especially "Crying Crying Crying" Ali
To conclude, amazing story plot and cast and would highly recommend this drama
Was this review helpful to you?
This is literally one of the best dramas I watched this year, starting from the first episode, I was already hooked. It only took me a day to finish and wow....so many things happened, it was amazing.
Story: The story is interesting and really pulls you in. It's about regular, everyday people who are given an opportunity to earn millions of dollars in this show called. "Liar Game". The game itself is unrealistic obviously, they even mention how it ruins ethical guidelines and morals of a person. However, to some extent this shows perfectly illustrates greed, mistrust, manipulation of the media, and how far people will go just to earn money. The story itself will blow your mind with the game's guidelines and how Ha Woo Jin (Le Sang Yoon) and the others perform throughout them with psychology...but is left with some unanswered questions in the ending.
Acting: Acting is amazing. Everyone was amazing, I can't express enough how Shin Song Ruk was born to play the antagonist/bad guy.
The only downfall I had was Kim So Eun's character (Nam Da Jung). Her character is supposed to be a naive, innocent, and kind girl, she does a good job displaying them, but it was irritating to watch her half of the time. There is a difference between being naive and being stupid. Throughout the drama it gradually disappears, but her character had a weak and a "damsel in distress" image left upon her. However, I can understand that her personality plays an important purpose throughout the story so it didn't annoy me a lot.
Music: I didn't pay attention to the OST, but the soundtracks made the scenes intense and keep you absorbed in the story.
This is a must watch, especially to those who are into psychological and suspense!
Was this review helpful to you?
Story:
The story plot talks about reality and sensitive topics that most dramas usually avoid. This story is based on psychiatry and gives you a reality of how mental disorders can affect a person's life and people around them. It also is a slice of life drama which focuses on love life, forming relationships and even about sex life.
To make things short, this drama focuses on people who try to overcome their mental disorders while trying to understand love and building relationships.
Acting/Cast:
The characterization was amazing. They made you laugh or cry.Each character had different personalities that formed a love-hate relationship with each other, you could say that they're an interesting group of people who treat each other like family.
The main pairing's (Gong Hyo Jin x Jo In Sung) relationship started naturally and wasn't overly exaggerated or expressed. Jo In Sung's character was the most interesting to watch, I really recommend keeping an eye on him throughout this drama. Although I'm not a big fan of idol actors, D.O has chosen a really interesting role for his debut as acting and has done a really good job
Music:
From soft ballads to songs that have a happy vibe, their OSTs are amazing to the point where I downloaded all of them onto my phone. My personal favorites are The Best Luck - Chen, It's Okay That's Love - Davichi, I Love You - Yoon Mirae, And I Need You the Most - Hey, and Sleepless Night - Crush. It also contained some old classic songs
I was satisfied with the ending too, so I really do recommend this drama, I hope this reviewed helped~
Was this review helpful to you?
