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Completed
Summerdaze
4 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Jan 17, 2021
1 of 1 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 8.0

Well, that was a sweet and wholesome 4 minutes movie.

It was like watching someone's memories. Passing moments of happiness, unsureness, bravery, sadness and then hope. Even though this short movie is truly short, it portrays a wide range of emotions. Shot without any spoken dialogues, it relies on the small moments, touches, stolen glimpses.

The movie is filmed in a beautiful way. The scenery is truly breathtaking. Supported by a good choice of music, it has this magical, light feel to it, that makes you miss your youth, first love, that is often unrequited and traveling with friends - full of happiness and undisturbed joy.

That said, since the movie does not have any spoken lines, they should have been slightly smarter with the choices of music/sound directing. There is a moment that is not accompanied by any sound, and it makes it feel empty, not finished, unpolished. It should be full of ambient noises. That would create a great contrast to the dreamlike feeling given a few seconds earlier.

Overall, well shot, well acted, well directed and produced sweet, short love story.

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Completed
Good Girl
4 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Sep 13, 2020
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

The Girl Power won against Mnet's evil editing.

I went into this expecting the worst. Mnet making the girls seem evil and uncaring, like they did in Unpretty Rapstar. The emotionally exhausting feel of constant competition and shame of losing. And this show was everything but that.

I am not gonna lie, Mnet tried at first to show the girls is less than appealing light, but the cast was so amazingly fun, supporting and caring, there was nothing to evil edit. They gave up. And from that point I could focus on the perfect performances and the bond building between the girls.

The strongest point of the show was the fact, everyone could be unapologetically themselves without the need of toning down their personalities and thoughts.

Hyoyeon could enjoy performing without feeling like every stage depends on her as she was the senior compared to others, Cheetah showed her strong presence on stage and caring personality behind the scenes, Ailee was like a supportive angel making sure everyone is feeling good while enjoying the show herself, Jiwoo could shine bright with solo performances and truly show her true colors as a performer, Yeeun, who was lost and confused at first was able to learn how to define herself and be daring in chasing after what she wants, Jamie killed everyone with her cuteness, but also bold charisma, Yunhway brought this calmness and sophistication that left me in awe, Sleeq was just the best person on the planet and her growth and openness was admirable, Young Ji was a happy virus that woke everyone up with her energy and impressive skills and Queen Wa$abii who was tearing apart all the prejudice people might have for a daring and provocative performers.

It's a competition that focuses more on the bonding and personal growth of the cast, and not the competitive aspect of it. Even the teams they were going against were far more focused on just enjoying the process.

I cried a lot while watching. I got amazingly attached to the whole cast and did not want the show to end. It just felt like a new family was created. The change in the views the girls had about each other was amazing to watch. How all of them had such distinctive colors and yet they worked so well together. Pairings that made no sense at first created some of the best stages.

Overall, it was just truly touching. Not only did it have some beautiful and powerful songs and performances, but what is more important: a heart.

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Completed
Justice
4 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Aug 19, 2020
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0

Confusion, frustration, disappointment... since it could have been so good.

The writers in a writing room were like: do we want romance? melo? thriller? psychological? crime? buddy cop? family issue? gray character? psychopaths? serial killers? good characters with gold morals? tragic past? every cliche on the earth? yes.

The Good

I have to admit, it has quite well written side/supporting characters with nice stories and development/progression. Young Mi being the "behind the scene heart of the story", her and Hyeon Woo's scenes were some of my favorites and I was always curious where they would lead. Hyeon Woo has been just a huge mystery and I never knew what the heck he was thinking. There is also baby boy Dae Jin, who broke my heart. Definitely the best executed story line in the whole show.

Other good aspects of the drama were the editing and production value. The show was simply beautiful. I loved all the "from the floor" shots (low angle ones), even though they started overusing them at some point. But from an aesthetic point of view, it felt as if it was made for me.

The Bad

Lee Tae Kyung... What a boring main character. Legit did not care about him at all. Isn't it tragic? The main character being the weakest one?

The confusion I felt from the writing team. As if they could not make up their minds on what the drama is supposed to be. Is it a character driven drama set in a court/business setting? Is it a crime, fast paced one with action? Is it a psychological one with some good old psychopaths? What was it?

The set up of the characters and the plot was too long. It basically took 10 out of 16 episodes. While I enjoyed the last 6 a lot, the first 10 were truly off. It felt as if I was watching two different dramas.

The "I couldn't care less"

The romance... What was the point? It leads to nowhere, they have no romantic chemistry nor they look or act as past lovers. The only scenes that gave you that impression are the few when they are talking about it and you are like - oh yeah, they were a thing before the show started.

Yeon Ah character - I don't know if I was just not impressed with Nana's acting (though I know she ain't bad and has some good skills), but I could not connect with her at all.

Overall, I would not recommend watching. The only memorable bits and characters are the supporting parts, so it would be a waste of time. It was not a bad show, but I rather take a bad one that I can laugh about than the mediocre one, that I just feel bored and frustrated with.

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Completed
Illang: The Wolf Brigade
4 people found this review helpful
by Kate
May 28, 2020
Completed 3
Overall 5.0
Story 4.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 4.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
pew pew pew ratatatata
as a wise woman named Jo once said.

The biggest problem I had with this movie was the beginning exposition. It was supposed to give me a background of the story, sort of an introduction, but these few minutes just bore and confused me. I lost focus in the opening scene and it never came back. Giving me a narrator explaining all the history and all the information I need to know is the laziest way of starting the movie.

With that in mind, I barely cared about what was happening. It was a beautiful movie with a great cast, but it was simply not engaging. They introduced a lot of characters, and it felt like half of them just got lost half way through the movie, just to be brought back by the end.

Anyway, in a few days I will forget I have ever seen it, and even now I can't really tell what was the plot. There was some romance and no one was happy. Lots of fights and running in metal.

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Completed
Vincenzo
8 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Feb 14, 2022
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 7.0

Throw away the logic, let the pigeons in.

It was refreshing to see how they truly did not give a damn about realism and logic to such a ridiculous extent, but because of that, this drama had no business having 20 episodes, each 1 hour and 20 minutes long.

Realistically speaking, the whole plot would perfectly fit into a 2 hour movie. Instead, we’ve got around 28 hours of Vincenzo being cool finding a way to fight Babel, said “way” getting killed, Vincezno finding another way to fight Babel, that then gets killed… you get the idea. Strangely, even with this painful repetitiveness, I was not exactly bored for most of the watch time. True, I did watch the whole drama at 1.25x speed, but I enjoyed the experience quite a lot.

Surprisingly brutal, a few times reminding me more of a Saw movie, and not a k-drama comedy about a mafia. Not sure how, but this vicious take mixed well with the dumb jokes and plot points. The only time I felt like the show failed at mixing different moods was the way they handled Cha Young’s motivation to join the fight - that bit made me feel slightly uncomfortable and was not the best start to the series.

Song Joong Ki as Vincenzo Cassano was the selling point of the show, and for me, the performance was so strong, I did not even need more from the drama to keep watching. He is just really fine, and when he goes into full boss mode, I could not care less about the plot. Sometimes, this is all I need to keep me entertained.

Then we have Hong Cha Young played by Jeon Yeo Been. Love the actress, struggled with the character, especially in the first half. Her comedic vibe has been just too strong for me to like. Slowly she became less cartoonish, and more like a relatable human being - that’s when I started to appreciate her more.

I am truly not the biggest fan of Ok Taec Yeon as an actor. Has been a fan of his since his debut in 2PM, he is born to be an entertainer, but I was not even once convinced by his acting. Yet, I loved him as Jang Jun Woo. Don’t know if it’s just one lucky role for him, or he is starting to feel more comfortable in his acting, but I bought him as Jun Woo completely.

Some side characters and performances that caught my attention were: Kwak Dong Yeon as Jang Han Seo, Choi Deok Moon as Tak Hong Shik, Kim Yoon Hye as Seo Mi Ri and Im Chul Soo as Ahn Ki Seok. Not to forget Kim Sung Cheol for whom I have quite a soft spot.

I could feel all the money spent on the production leaking through my screen. Top notch might be an understatement. When you know the production team did not shy from spending money? When the soundtrack has 67 tracks - all of extremely high quality.

Still, the writing was just… empty? It serves amazing entertainment, and that’s it. There was no depth, no emotional attachment, no well developed plot. I’m still trying to figure out how the decision to make it into such a long drama was made. I can imagine the writer, director and the production team sitting in the bar, after quite a few bottles, brainstorming with ideas of a similar quality to “but imagine this: lizard people were behind it all along”. Some plot points were so outside of the box I was truly impressed with the creativity.

Overall, perfect brainless drama for some fun, light watch. Watching this as my neurons were being fried by Covid was a perfect choice and I don’t think any other drama could accompany me through that hell as well as Vincenzo did.

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Completed
The Great Shaman Ga Doo Shim
5 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Oct 8, 2021
12 of 12 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 7.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 7.0

Suffers from the limited screen time.

The Great Shaman Ga Doo Shim is a rather well written simple fantasy, high school romance that tells the story of Doo Shim, who rejects her abilities, and would rather live a normal life, and Woo Soo, top student in Songyeong High School who gets himself involved in the supernatural shenanigans.

Was I the target audience for this show? Definitely not. It caters to the younger demographic, and gives me quite a Disney show type of vibes - technically there is a message, but the lack of in depth perspective makes me not care that much.

With limited screen time, the writers did what they could to present a well structured and well paced story, that involves quite a number of characters and their side-plots. With a complex drama like this one, that presents the struggles of the main leads, their sweet romance, the demon hunting in school, revenge of the female lead, villain’s backstory and all the subplots of the students with the lowest grade, 20 minutes per episode with 12 episodes in total is just not enough. With that, some plotlines seemed rushed, some were barely touched, almost none of the characters had an actual depth.

I liked Doo Shim a lot. She had a nicely paced development, as she learned how to care for others and fight for the good. Straightforward, but caring. On the other hand, Woo Soo had little to offer - he was there as a romantic interest and for the sake of driving the plot forward. Sounds like a male lead taking over the usual job given to female leads.

The acting from the whole cast was good. Most roles were given to already popular actors with years of experience - even the two main leads. It could not go wrong in that department.

For a short drama like that, the quality of writing and pacing is still really good. Not gonna lie, the sweet, a bit cringey, but quite realistic teen romance gave me some flashbacks to my teenage years - sentimental vibes, but do I really want to remember the awkwardness that came with it? lol

Overall, it’s a fun, short story focused on presenting the fight between good and evil - both as external and internal conflicts. It sheds light on the competitive nature of high school experience in Korea, and how it looks different from the perspective of the adults (who claim it’s a good thing for teens) and kids themselves.

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Completed
The Victims' Game
5 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Mar 10, 2021
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 8.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 9.0

Interesting take on a typical procedural crime show.

In all honesty, I had a hard time getting into this drama. The first 3 episodes seemed like a retelling of the same old crime stories we have seen in many shows, with details and settings changed here and there. But as the plot progressed, and we got more puzzle pieces about what was truly happening, that's when I got invested.

In 8 episodes, the show was able to tell an interesting tale on humans' motivations, desperation, morality and despair. Why do we do what we do? What are the lasting consequences of our actions? How can our good intention turn into tragedy that, at times, is impossible to fix? How twisted one's mind can be.

The majority of the characters started quite unlikeable. They are morally gray - driven by their own agendas, showing how much of a hypocrite they can be. And yet, as the drama progresses, I ended up appreciating their flaws, which made them more relatable and real. Not to mention a rare case of getting a lead with Asperger, presented in a realistic way. Oftentimes dramas present people with Asperger as either incapable of living a successful life, or having extremely specialized skills on a level unobtainable by the general public (basically making them savants) - making the Asperger the core characteristic of the person. Glad it's not the case here.

The Victims' Game was also visually stunning. Granted, it might be too much for people who don't like gore, as they don't shy away from gruesome images of the corpses. The set design was perfect, and I truly appreciate how much work has been put into making it reflect reality in a great detail.

Each episode ends with behind the scene footage explaining the process of creating the drama. It shows how each cast member, writer, director and staff truly treated the story with care and tried to present the best possible result, with the help of many professionals from various fields of work.

The last episode was truly cherry on top, and became one of my favorite conclusions to any show ever. In my eyes, it was truly a perfectly directed and written ending for the series.

Overall, as long as you survive the first few episodes, and start to see the big picture, you will most likely love it. Surprisingly, I believe this show would be even more enjoyable as a rewatch. Knowing the full story would allow me to appreciate the individual episodes more.

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Completed
Overman
5 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Sep 2, 2020
Completed 0
Overall 5.5
Story 4.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
Another sad movie, that is supposed to make you sad, shock you, and then technically leave you with a hopeful outlook, but it didn't work out.

The best way to describe my view on it is: it didn't flow well. The scenes between leads had this deep, melancholic vibe, but then there were some scenes incorporated here and there that felt amazingly out of place with how graphic and detailed they were. As if the writer didn't know if they want to keep everything vague and leave some parts for the viewers’ interpretation, or if they want to shock the viewers with some "realistic" and tragic plot points.

There was one scene that was simply a heavy emotional bomb dropped on me, but nothing followed after. I had no chance to release the built up tension since the male lead didn't really do it either. It took me out of the movie completely. I had to pause and ask myself: what exactly have I just seen and why none of the characters truly reacts to it?

It wasn't exactly a short movie (average length) but it felt short because it lacked content. The portrayal of Alzheimer was superficial, taking into consideration the amount of scenes with the mother. They could have done a better job. Or leave out the majority of the scene and focus more on how the male lead sees his situation and how he describes it to others.

My biggest problem was probably Do Hyeon. I saw him struggling, but it never felt like he did. I didn't feel sadness, resignation, doubt, fear... The only time I truly felt strong feelings from him was during the "emotional bomb" scene I mentioned earlier. Whatever his character was supposed to feel, I wasn't connecting with it.

The ending seemed rushed. We found out all the tragic details and background story and then again: nothing followed. They went straight to a semi-happy/semi-open ending.

Overall, it had good potential, but it left me with a conclusion that even the writer was not sure what she wanted to portray in it and how she wanted to do it.

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Completed
Doctor Prisoner
5 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Jun 14, 2020
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
Not interesting enough for the frustration it caused. So what to do when it picks up only in the last 6 episodes?

Truth to be told, I had it in my dropped list for a good year before I decided to give it another shot. Why did I drop it in the first place? I did not care about any of the characters. Sadly, till the end, none of the main heroes/antiheroes convinced me to root for them. The true stars and scene stealers for me were: Sun Min Shik, Lee Jae Joon, Jung Ui Shik and Oh Jung Hee, while both Na Yi Ji and Han So Geum felt like undercooked ramyeon with no spice. They were boring, while the other characters were simply fun to watch them redeem themselves or at least bring some dynamics on the screen. I wish the final team formed earlier, because the interactions between them were the highlight of each episode.

How about the plot? Good-ish. The setting of the revenge was quite new. It's still revolving heavily on the good old "fighting for the company" trope, but since they introduced the prison as a framework for the plot to unfold in, it was more refreshing to follow. Too bad the plot was not consistent in these small details. For example, when needed, the recordings from CCTV were important, other times no one cared for them to be seen. These little things build credibility and give the plot a more realistic feel.

What's more, I have one minor complaint about directing and editing that stood out for me in a quite negative way. So Geum flipped people through her back and it annoyed me. First time it was fun, and the rotation of the camera was a clever trick. Sadly, they repeated it a few times and it lost its charm. If you want to present her as a strong woman who can defend herself, give her some other moves. It's as if she practiced this one move for years in self-defense classes. Lady, this is not enough... show me some punches, twisting arms, breaking legs...

What was the OST again? I cannot remember one song from it... I guess it means they were not that memorable. That said, I loved the peeping sound at the end of the episodes. It got me a bit excited for what was coming in the next one.

Overall, it's a fun revenge story, with two main "good guys" being its weakest part.

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Completed
Animal World
5 people found this review helpful
by Kate
May 19, 2020
Completed 1
Overall 6.5
Story 5.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
This review may contain spoilers
Am I too dumb for this movie or is this movie too dumb for me? Guess I will never find out.

Things happened... there was a clown, but not really. And aliens, but like fake ones. They played rock, paper, and scissors for 2 hours. But by the end they forgot about the rules. The main guy is hot.

I HAVE QUESTIONS THOUGH!

Why all the rules, why use the brain power with all the probability and math stuff, when apparently you can just steal the stars? Here's how you win folks!
Steal at least 12 stars, play 12 rounds without caring if you win or lose and be done. Have any extra stars by the end? Sell them. They just stole each other's stars by the end. So what was the point of the game?

Why did the big guy (close to the end) bring the diamonds in, when he was not planning to use them? What would he use them for? Was it only his backup plan if he lost, to get others to buy him out? This part was so random...

They should have explored the whole "psychological problems" the main character had. He thought he was turning into a fighting clown... and people around him into aliens... He needs help. I need help... this movie ruined my last 0.5 brain cell.

WHERE ARE ALL MY LADIES?!

Overall, watch it with friends, have a blast, try to understand the rules and the plot and then be angry by the end, because nothing really matters. Enjoy the beauty of Li Yi Feng (he drops the clothes at some point), the random existence of the mastermind Michael Douglas and that one hot asshole player played by Alberto Lancellotti.

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Completed
Jirisan
6 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Dec 13, 2021
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 6.0
This review may contain spoilers

Well written piece on rangers and poorly executed thriller mystery.

The drama did a lot of things well, but failed in a similar number. The plots surrounding the daily work and the challenges of rangers, the team bonding - all done in an excellent manner that made me care about these characters and their struggles. On the other hand, the whole supernatural murder mystery was so mediocre and poorly written, I am surprised it came from the same author as Signal.

What was the problem with the mystery? Starting from the bad pacing - sometimes we had a whole episode focusing on the case, sometimes it was completely overshadowed by other issues and not addressed at all. It never felt like a big part of the overall plot, never made me curious what the truth is behind the past events, nor who the killer is. By the end, when the story was finally explained, all I could think was: ok. It’s not like with the revelation of the murderer everything in the plot clicked into the right place, all hints made a complete picture. We were told close to nothing during the show, so the end fell flat.

What I enjoyed about the drama were the characters. Seo Yi Kang is for sure one of the more exciting characters to watch. Her determination and skill set made me want to root for her. Not to mention her amazing chemistry with Kang Hyun Jo. Being on the subject of the characters, Hyun Jo was such a waste of Joo Ji Hoon’s talent. He barely felt like a supporting character.

That said, the show was carried on the backs of the supporting cast. For me, the fun part has been to watch the rangers just do their work, bicker and interact with each other as they perform their duties. What I find curious - with the majority of the rangers being male, the writer decided to kill the few female rangers we were able to see.

The performance that stood out the most to me was Oh Jung Se’s portrayal of Jung Goo Young. The only storyline that truly made me feel sad, the only character I wanted to see happy, the only part of the plot that I was able to connect to on a deeper level. Yes, I had fun watching others too, but the depth of emotions they were able to evoke in me never got even close to Oh Jung Se.

Production value was obviously high. The shots of the mountain were breathtaking and a true feast for the eyes. Some initial CGI and green screen were questionable, but the use of special effects was better executed later on. Is the show being beautiful enough, though? Technically speaking, I can search for YouTube videos of the mountains and get a similar experience.

Overall, I feel like Jirisan ended on a disappointing note. It did not mix well the realistic approach of the rangers’ experience with a serial killer on the loose supernatural plot. I don’t even want to think about Disney ending with everyone being cured of whatever problem they had.

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Completed
Would You Like a Cup of Coffee?
5 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Dec 6, 2021
12 of 12 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 9.0

Hot coffee with a spoon of life lessons.

Would You Like a Cup of Coffee? is a perfect morning drama to accompany your coffee - setting you up for a good day.

The show presents a variety of episodic stories linked together by the 2nd Generation Cafe. With a short format of 25 minutes per episode, the viewers might feel like the stories were told in an insufficient manner, never explored enough, ever going too deep into the tackled matter. For me, that’s what I enjoyed about it. They expressed the ideas enough to make me entertained as I was watching, but left me with enough space to wonder about the topics myself. They opened the door and it was up to me whenever I wanted to close them or take a step inside.

The on-screen chemistry between Ong Seong Wu and Park Ho San was amazing. Well presented mentor-mentee dynamics that we don’t see much in dramas - pointing out the value of both: years of experience, but also the perseverance and determination of the youth.

With a cast full of well known names in both main and guest roles, the acting left nothing to ask for. Each character had their own colors that were portrayed perfectly on the screen - even if it was just a smaller role.

That said, this show can be truly enjoyed only in the mornings. I have seen one episode late afternoon and the magic was gone - it just did not hit right. It’s not a drama you would want to binge watch, but it’s a show that made me come back every week to get my own dose of warm feeling to start my day on a positive note.

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Completed
Thirty-Nine
3 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Mar 31, 2022
12 of 12 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 6.5
Rewatch Value 7.5
Thirty-nine is a slow paced, “eventless” drama that focuses on the characters and their relationships, when faced with a tragedy that cannot be stopped, while trying to keep their lives moving.

Honestly speaking, half way through the show I was not sure what exactly happened. Each episode was rather repetitive with just a few details changed here and there. I felt like the drama lacks focus, the core plot that would drive the characters forward. Rather, we had different stories for different characters that seemed separate in their tone.

While the drama does a really good job at presenting the friendship between the three female leads, I can’t do anything about being disappointed with the romance. Son Ye Jin and Yeon Woo Jin have little on screen chemistry, and their characters do not present an interesting dynamic to watch. Chan Young and Jin Seok’s situation is too over the top and makjang like for this type of a story. Joo Hee and Hyun Joon were the only pairing that worked well on screen, had great chemistry and a well built romance that was entertaining to follow, but with each episode, it got less and less screen time.

The disappointing love lines could be forgiven if they were not such an integral and important part of the plot, taking quite a portion of the screen time. Not to mention, realistically speaking, not every character needs a love line of their own.

Since the show tackles so many different issues, most of them are not explored enough. Some of the topics introduced are adoption (relationship between the child, biological parents and adoptive parents, views of the society on the adoptees, identity issues revolving around it), terminal illness (pain it causes the person who has it and their family/friends, accepting the inevitable, different choices concerning treatment or lack of it), emotional cheating and complicated romantic relationships, starting over with new passions and dreams at 39, and honestly speaking, probably more.

Even though the drama has three female leads, it’s a fact that Son Ye Jin stole all the spotlight. Jeon Mi Do’s portrayal of Jeong Chan Young did not leave any room for improvement, especially taking into consideration the complex situation the character was in.
While I enjoyed Kim Ji Hyun a lot, the character was written in a way that required less work. She did amazing with what was given for her, sadly she was often kept on the sidelines. Jang Joo Hee was there to fill the space as a 3rd friend. Which is a bummer, since the history of that character would perfectly fit into the story if utilized correctly.

The production was great, though the story telling itself could have been improved. Some essential information about the characters and their relationships could have been explored a little bit earlier - keeping me in the dark didn’t make me more curious about the plot, but rather frustrated me, since I did not understand the context of the events happening on screen. Another thing that kind of bothered me closer to the end of the show - they did not care about realism. Made sure everyone looks stunning and has full make up, not matter the circumstances the characters were going through.

The original songs, while truly good, were exactly what one would expect from a drama like that. None caught my attention, but they did fit the scenes they were played for.

Overall, it’s a really slow drama with a great beginning that loses the spark around the middle point. It had some great heartwarming moments, but a few gems cannot make this drama amazing. If only the middle part was as good as the last episode, which was truly a masterpiece.

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Completed
The Comments
4 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Dec 28, 2021
5 of 5 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 6.5
Rewatch Value 6.0

Noble intentions with lackluster execution.

Is tackling important issues enough to praise a drama? For me, no. The more serious topic we want to discuss, the more work and care should be put into creating the content.

Online bullying and harassment is dangerous, mostly because of two reasons: anonymity takes away responsibility, so people are not afraid to exaggerate their negative opinions, and lack of insight into the effects it has on the victim.

The show tried to convince me, it’s just a bunch of normal teenagers who made countless mistakes, because they were not aware of the negative impact their online behavior had. But it was not true. The Comments mixed online and off-line bullying, clearly showing these kids were aware of their actions, they just did not care about the victims.

The victims themselves were not exactly good people either, barely managed to be called gray, with the majority of them committing criminal acts and bullying others themselves. It made it impossible to connect to them on any emotional level.

The show completely missed the mark by the end, mixing different issues and situations that affected the main cast. Was it online bullying? Was it just bullying? Was it family problems? Was it depression? It never tried to show a full picture, but rather put the whole blame on one aspect. They were aware of the complexity, but they tried to direct our attention to just one thing.

That said, The Comments had quite a number of positive aspects. The cast did quite a good job in portraying the characters. Aye showed a whole range of emotions from happiness through the confusion, ending or anger and sadness.

The production value was also nice. They found quite a few ways of showing us the online activity, some emotional scenes were well accompanied with beautiful aesthetics.

Overall, I appreciate the effort, but I wish they tried a bit more to create a cohesive picture that well presents the dangers of the online world.

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Completed
Detention
4 people found this review helpful
by Kate
Mar 25, 2021
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 7.0

Psychological drama with supernatural elements.

Judging by the poster, I expected horror. Checking the genres, I expected a suspense thriller. At the end - I did not get any of these. It's a well crafted and written psychological drama that uses the supernatural elements to tell the stories of two young girls, and how they confront their past and the mistakes that they made.

Detention serves as a commentary on youth's problems and how they and adults perceive and deal with them. We follow two different stories, set in different time periods, yet resembling each other a lot. Liu Yun Xiang and Fang Rui Xin try to work around the restrictive and outdated school system and the twisted mentality of the adults running it. Both girls had to face family and relationship problems that led them to take, at times really drastic measures.

I loved some characters (the list was really short though), and hated many. Not everyone got what they deserve. There are some triggering themes included in the show, so I would advise checking the tags before watching it. That said, they were presented in a quite realistic manner, showing them as something serious and not easy to deal with.

The production value seemed high. The show is shot in an interesting and aesthetically pleasing way. Some camera work choices perfectly complemented the writing and the plot points happening on the screen. I honestly do not remember any song or instrumental used in the series, but I am confident they were all fitting (would most likely remember if they weren't - one always remembers what they dislike).

The acting was believable and the delivery was ranging from good to great. I only had a problem with Wen Liang's dad. The acting was just quite robotic and not on par with the rest of the cast.

Overall, if someone looks for a horror or a thriller with fast paced plot and a lot of suspense - this ain't that. If someone wants to see an emotionally driven story with romantic elements, that comments on overwhelming pressure that is put on the female leads, family drama and struggling in a constricting environment, with some nicely done horror/supernatural elements (mostly in first and last episodes), then this is for you.

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