A Nostalgia-Filled Journey That Deserved More Episodes
This drama has a strong sense of nostalgia. Its biggest strength lies in the characters, all of whom are incredibly charming. If you enjoy the “friends-to-lovers” trope, this one is a must-watch. The story itself isn’t groundbreaking, but the way the characters interact makes it so engaging that you constantly want to see what happens next.The narrative is split into three arcs: the high school arc (the longest and, in my opinion, the best), the university arc, and the working-life arc, which lasts only about three episodes. The main drawbacks are that the university and work arcs feel a bit rushed, and the added love triangles are unnecessary this is mainly why my rating is slightly lower.
I also think the drama could have benefited from a few extra episodes. With more time, the characters could have developed more naturally, and the story could have explored additional themes, which would have been really interesting, especially since so many ideas were already well-developed during the high school arc. Despite these flaws, it’s still a very good drama that I’d recommend.
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The Perfect Crown for the Worst Acting
This drama is the perfect example of beauty over substance…The production is visually stunning, but that’s about it.
There’s no real emotion, no chemistry, and the acting is very poor in IU’s case. She doesn’t perform well at all, it almost becomes unintentionally laughable at times, and her facial expressions are quite unconvincing.
I watched three episodes and I won’t be going any further it’s disappointing. I keep giving it a chance, and every time I end up let down. There’s no improvement, which is frustrating for an acting performance that feels very amateurish.
As for the story, there’s nothing particularly remarkable. Honestly, it feels more suited for a younger audience, around early teens.
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Filing for Contradictions.
I’m only on ep 4, but honestly, I’m struggling to understand why this drama is being praised as “well written.” My biggest issue is how incoherent its workplace logic feels.Going into it, I expected something lighthearted like " What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim " the kind of romcom where you can switch your brain off, enjoy the chemistry, and don’t think too deeply about realism. I hadn’t even read the synopsis, so I genuinely didn’t know what kind of drama this would be. But the moment the story started taking its audit/workplace angle seriously, the contradictions became impossible for me to ignore.
The drama revolves around audits, ethics, workplace misconduct, and conflicts of interest, yet both main couples are built on clear superior/subordinate dynamics. In real workplaces, those relationships are considered sensitive because of the power imbalance and the potential for favoritism, conflicts of interest, unfair evaluations, or pressure tied to hierarchy. In many companies, these relationships must be disclosed to HR, and sometimes they’re not even allowed.
As a result, the premise ends up feeling contradictory. The story wants me to take its professional and ethical themes seriously while casually brushing past the exact kinds of workplace dynamics that would realistically raise concerns. A secretary openly pursuing her superior or a department head developing feelings for a subordinate should logically be treated as ethically complicated within the context of this story, but the drama barely acknowledges it.
What makes it even more frustrating is that the actors are genuinely doing a great job. The performances are solid, and you can tell they’re trying to make the material work. But despite that, I personally don’t feel any real chemistry between the main couple. They come across more like coworkers or friends, so the romance feels forced instead of natural. The progression of the relationship also feels awkwardly written , rushed , and poorly executed, which makes it difficult to get emotionally invested.
That’s why the whole thing feels like wasted potential to me. The cast is capable, but the writing undermines what the drama is trying to accomplish. If the series had fully embraced being a simple unrealistic romcom, I probably could’ve overlooked all of this. But once you build your story around audits, ethics, and professional accountability, it becomes hard to ignore when the main relationships directly contradict the themes the drama itself is pushing.
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It was more like a nightmare to me.
Sadly, I’m dropping this one. Idk, something just feels off. I feel like I’m watching actors play characters rather than actually seeing the characters themselves. The framing often throws me off, and the editing feels a little clumsy at times. The use of AI is also WAY too obvious in some scenes, which pulls me out of the story even more. I just can’t seem to get immersed in it.I don’t really feel much emotionally either. It feels like the drama is just showing us things without actually making us feel anything, if that makes sense. Even the dialogue feels kind of hollow.
The plot is also a mess. It feels like a random pile of events being thrown at you without any real depth or development, rather than an actual story that’s being built. Everything feels disjointed, and the pacing is weird and all over the place, which makes it even harder to get invested.
I also get the feeling that the drama took some inspiration from the C-drama When I Fly Towards You, but honestly, I don’t think I’m missing much by dropping it.The only thing I really like is the color grading sometimes. It has that kinda 2016 vibe that I actually enjoy lol. But yeah, that’s pretty much it.
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The taste didn’t last
From the very first episode, this drama really pulls you in with how clean everything looks and how well it’s written. The directing is on point, the shots are beautiful, transitions smooth, and the dialogue actually feels real. It’s so immersive you kinda forget you even watching a drama.The story follows a young doctor sent to work on a remote island, and that setup leads to a lot of unpredictable, funny, and lowkey touching situations. Watching him struggle through everything is both entertaining and meaningful, and over time the title really starts to make sense.
One thing I really liked was how they wrote the male lead. Yeah, I get why some people might be frustrated seeing him constantly push himself and sacrifice so much, but that’s kinda the point. Instead of patients being treated like objects, the drama flips it and shows how the doctor himself gets reduced to just his role. No matter how tired or messed up he is, people still expect him to keep going, like he ain’t human. That part felt real.
At the beginning, the show balances everything really well, comedy, romance, medical stuff, even some melodrama. The pacing feels right, nothing feels rushed or dragged out, and the relationships develop naturally. The main couple especially got real chemistry. Their interactions feel easy and genuine, and their relationship builds up in a believable way.
But around episode 6, that’s when things started to shift for me. The drama feels like it don’t really know what it wanna be anymore, like it’s stuck between being episodic and having an actual storyline. Some plot points get introduced but don’t really go anywhere, and certain character reactions just start feeling off or underdeveloped.
As it goes on, it starts feeling like there’s no real plot or stakes holding everything together. Stuff just kinda happens, repeats itself, and doesn’t really lead anywhere. That’s when I slowly started checking out, even though I was really into it at first.
At the same time, the characters start feeling kinda empty. Early on, they had depth, but later it’s like that development just fades away. I was expecting more from them, especially considering how strong the start was.
The main couple ends up going through the same thing. Even though they had a solid foundation, their relationship kinda loses momentum. The emotional intensity just isn’t the same, and it makes their scenes hit less.
That said, I can’t take away from the actors, they did what they could, and the overall vibe of the drama stays nice. The setting is beautiful, and there’s still a calming atmosphere throughout.
In the end, it’s a drama with real potential and a strong start, but it slowly loses what made it engaging. I still enjoyed parts of it, but overall it left me feeling kinda disappointed.
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My royal disappointment
Honestly, this drama feels like a collection of recycled, kitschy clichés with very poor execution. The characters lack any sense of naturalism, they come off as exaggerated and caricatured, and the progression of events feels forced and unconvincing. Im Ji-yeon’s performance is disappointing, and the male lead feels particularly stiff, which doesn’t help the overall dynamic.I genuinely don’t understand the hype. There’s nothing new or compelling here, it’s entirely predictable. You can already guess the culprit and how everything will unfold. Watching characters who are supposed to be in their 30s or 40s act this immaturely, with over-the-top expressions and childish humor, is more cringeworthy than entertaining.
As for the typical SBS-style humor, it’s the same issue as always, it’s loud, forced, and completely unnatural, more focused on spectacle than substance. There’s no real depth, and at times, you can’t help but feel bad for the actors. The tonal shifts are also poorly handled, jumping abruptly from one mood to another. The comedy overwhelms everything else to the point where even the serious moments feel insignificant and impossible to take seriously.
The dialogue is equally shallow, and the story relies on an overused “enemies to lovers” trope, the classic arrogant, money-obsessed CEO who gets “changed” by a woman. It’s nothing we haven’t seen before, and it’s not executed in a compelling way here.
There’s also no real “wow” factor, and when I finish an episode, I don’t feel any urge to continue or see what happens next.
Overall, it just feels like a waste of talent, especially when it comes to the actress. I’ll pass.
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