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Romcoms always get unfair flack from viewers. It generally goes like this: everyone is usually on board during the beginning, shy away during the conflict, then trumpet about how disappointing the drama was because it wasn't 100% romance or 100% comedy at all times. Some people want escapism at all times. Some people love to hyper-fixate on one element of the drama and let it ruin their experience overall. And that's fair. People tend to digest their media differently. I enjoy it when the couple fights. I like it when they come up against almost insurmountable obstacles. I like it when they cry and when they can't communicate. I also love a good fantasy element to the story, especially if it's historical. Not to say that this drama had too much conflict. There was a perfect balance between romance, comedy, and angst, which is very hard to do in this era where people demand only the first two.

This is a drama where the couple's chemistry shines above the rest. It got many comparisons to the still airing Perfect Crown at the time and for good reason: its premise, characters, and romance worked together in ways Perfect Crown didn't get a chance to demonstrate. The story itself is nothing new: a time-slip romance drama where someone from the past finds their way to the future. But if you're expecting new in the romcom genre, then you'll definitely be disappointed. These are time-honored tropes that this drama carries out exceptionally well. Enemies-to-lovers, hostile meet-cute, corporate scheming, CEO chaebol main lead, white truck of doom, meta-acknowledged product placement, etc, etc. Everything comes together solely due to how fleshed out our main characters are. They could have very easily been reduced to caricatures, but instead are allowed to have scenes on their own and personal conflicts.

Do I think the drama could have benefited from a longer runtime? Absolutely. Do I think it was a complete disappointment in the runtime it had? Not at all. It was an enjoyable journey throughout. I had fun watching it, fun talking about it, fun thinking about it, and just fun overall. Usually, I don't publish reviews at the end, because I don't really care for the MDL rating which is never accurate and always fueled by more hostility than the actual drama deserves, but I understand the dopamine effect of saying whatever you want to say now, especially after reading these other reviews.

I feel like in this age of poor media literacy, so many people don't understand pacing, writing, or plot. Their attention spans are mid-tier. Not to mention the poor quality of the subtitles themselves, which contribute to the problem of media literacy. Then again, if you're looking for quality critical thinking from MyDramaList of all places, then you're better off actually watching the show and forming your own opinions.