Rowoon and Jo Bo Ah bring out the best in each other

I'll start out with what I didn't like:

1. Hong Jo deserved better friends. There were plenty of strong female characters, but I am disappointed none of them were HJ's age.

2. Shin Yu's mom deserved a better partner. It bothered me that she didn't go through with the divorce. SY's dad being nice for 10 minutes doesn't make up for him calling her stupid. She was such a sweetheart and I think that makes it even worse.

3. There was way too much time spent on HJ'S senior coworkers relationship. Those are the only scenes I skipped during rewatch. It wasn't poorly written and they are decent characters, but I would have liked that time spent elsewhere.

4. They should have made it explicitly clear whether or not the spells worked. I feel like the director left it up to the audience and basically asked us...do YOU believe in magic lol

What I liked:

There is so much that I liked, that I'll have to be broad and brief or I could go on forever:

1. The flashback scenes paired perfectly with the modern day story. None of these scenes felt like filler and the tragedy of Aeng Cho and Mujin was heartbreaking. Sometimes Joseon flashbacks can feel like an extension of the modern day filming...idk if that makes any sense lol But the Joseon scenes had a magical quality and seemed to be from a completely different show. I loved that they were shot on location and that there was minimal green screen used. The snowy scenes were especially beautiful.

2. The chemistry between Rowoon and Jo Bo Ah really made their characters come alive. Do yourself a favor and watch the bts on YT. HJ and SY almost seem like an extension of Rowoon and Bo Ah. Literally everything about their scenes together made me smile. Even in the beginning when SY annoyed the sh-- out of HJ lol That's why this drama is a 10 for me. I want a rom-com that makes me smile.

3. Believe it or not I liked the "love triangle" between HJ/SY/Kwon Jae Kyung. I think it's because HJ and KJK played it off without any true toxicity. The scene where they are both racing to HJ's apartment is one of the funniest I've seen. Rowoon and Ha Joon played really well off each other. It's not obnoxious and you get the sense that these two men actually like and respect each other. It also helps that KJK isn't a sore loser.

4. An OST can make or break a series and the Destined with You OST was perfect. Delicate and gentle are two words I would use to describe it.

At its heart, DWY is pure romance with sub plots of supernatural and comedy. The point of the show is HJ and SY were destined to be with each other. The storytelling never wavered from this trajectory. The only way I see this plot falling flat is if they didn't end up with each other or if someone died. The spells, the curse, etc. were all minor plot devices made to push HJ and SY towards their destiny.

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