So at the start of this drama, I definitely thought it was going to be a decent watch, even though it contains much of the drama cliches we all know. The starting pair Ren and Xui Mei have very good chemistry together and injected some of the flavor into the story, (or lack of it). However, I suppose my biggest problem is the the sudden switch of pairings halfway through the drama to Ren and Maemi. I am not complaining because the OTP was changed, but the fact that I saw no inkling of a "romantic" relationship starting between them. Yes, I understand that the actor who plays Maemi (in my opinion is better), but it would have made more sense to let Ren show more affection to Maemi instead of showing us a heated relationship between Ren and Xui Mei. All in all there were good parts and bad parts in the drama, so watch at your own risk! There is a fair amount of eye candy though!
So what can I say about TWTWB. First of all, the cinematography is absolutely out of this world. The scenery shots are all beautiful, pastel, blended and even the costumes are pretty much a perfect fit. It's like the drama is a painting. Getting that out of the way, the story is pretty much your standard melodrama. It's full angst, deep love, bromance, and unwavering loyalty of all kinds. Even some of the would be villains are redeemed. For me, 5/6 of the drama was amazing. BUT, the last few episodes were a bit rushed and full of loop holes in my opinion. There are some characters, mainly Moo Chul, that I would have been glad to see get more screen time especially at the end. He was jipped and glossed over! Plus, the whole happy ending seems almost farcical to me on one level. Perhaps its because I've seen the movie version first, Love Me Not, that it has biased me against the drama. The ending really seems unrealistic. I did hear rumors that netizens pleaded with the writer for a happy ending. I understand why his best friend did what he did at the end, but HOW did he survive it? EH? Just thinking back to how Maru in Nice Guy almost was a goner reminds me of this. Why would Boss Man let him go too? Hmmm? Anyways, overall, it is a great drama, plus or minus the ending, depending on what you prefer. For me, I could have cut it off at any section before the last 6 min and have been satisfied. To end on a happy note, I believe this is one of Jo In Sung's greatest performances. His sorrow and self-torture was portrayed deeply and every gesture spoke of his feelings. As for Young, it is one of the only roles I ever liked her in. If I didn't know she could see, I really would have thought she was blind! Jin Sung and Hee Sun were lovely secondary characters and surprisingly fleshed out. Overall, this drama is worth your time!
