scenophile

I think I was expecting something more contemplative and thoughtful when I picked this up; it turned out a lot different.

The first thing that jumps out at you is that it feels like a low-budget web drama, with all its over-the-top humor and dialogue, questionable cinematography, and and silly subplots episode after episode. The first few ones are especially weak because it introduces one-off characters that I couldn't find it in me to care for, and they were part of subplots that felt really low stakes and random.

Another thing that's important to note is that there's an element of fantasy here. I wasn't a huge fan of it and the low-budget style doesn't help with it.

I also didn't really click with the romance. I can see what the drama is going for, but the unnatural acting combined with a very stoic ML led to a lack of build-up and chemistry between the leads. If this was a longer drama that spent more time on character arcs and had its lead have deeper conversations, it might've worked, but I found the ML too stiff and the FL too flat.

Honestly, I watched this for Chae Jong Hyeop but after finishing it, I'm confused about why he would accept this role. Catchy theme song though.