Unpopular Opinion: I didn't love this drama.

I binge-watched Flower of Evil over the Christmas holidays with my boyfriend, but I think I'm going to stay away from melodramas for a while.

I think the show has a lot of interesting elements that make it stand out. Firstly, the ML is not your typical good guy. He has antisocial personality disorder and his dad is a serial killer, so from the beginning the show keeps you guessing on his motivations/actions. Part of what makes the show good is you keep wondering - would he have done ____? what is he really like? is he really a bad guy?

In terms of romance, I feel like the ML and FL were a good couple / complemented each other. The flashbacks in each episode were really well done and made me want to keep finding out about their love story and past together. As the show progresses you also learn more about the ML and I felt so bad for him. It was so sad seeing the flashbacks of him in the village being taken to be exorcised and the other stuff that he went through. This is definitely a show that makes you think about prejudices and people's judgements and what actually makes a person evil.

I was enjoying the drama until Episode 9, which is when things just went downhill for me. Once the real Baek Hee Seong opened his eyes, I feel like the drama was just a bit too melodramatic for me. Previously I felt like every episode ended on a cliffhanger and that made me want to keep watching, but by that point it's quite obvious that the ML is a good guy and nothing bad will happen to him so a lot of the suspense is gone. There were multiple times where things could have gone wrong for him...and then they just don't happen so it feels like they were pulling their punches at that point with the plot. I'm all for happy endings but I feel like in a suspense drama there needs to be more stakes/uncertainty to keep you watching.

It felt like regardless the ML would be okay and the plot pivots to finding the accomplice, which I wasn't that invested in.
It also got a bit predictable when it came to the bad guys and what they were going to do. Watching episodes 9-15 were honestly a struggle, but I didn't want to just drop the drama without giving it a shot to get better later on. The reveal about the ML's father's death was interesting but I wish that they delved into that more later.

The acting was good but ultimately the plot was just too much for me.

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Underwhelming plot and chemistry between the leads

This type of drama is not my usual thing but the trailer looks so promising that I was waiting for the drama to drop on Netflix.

I think the first few episodes were fine but then the plot sort of took a nosedive and the last 2-3 episodes I was just plowing through to see if it would get better. Despite all the crazy stuff that happens in the show, I found it quite underwhelming and I think the issue is that I just lost interest / stopped being invested in the characters. With the messy plot and lack of chemistry, I found the conclusion quite unsatisfying despite being a "happy ending".

I think one of the biggest cons of the show is that I just didn't find the romance between Seo Hye Seung and Lee Hyung Ju believable at all. He goes on dates with other women and even sleeps with one of them, and then all of a sudden he loves her even though they've just been on one dinner and gone on a boat trip together? Hmm.

I think the character I felt the most strongly about was the villain, played by Jung Eugene. I haven't seen any of her dramas in a while, but I think she played the part of the evil mistress really well although I would have liked to see more depth to her character. I feel like she was just pure evil and there were no redeeming qualities.

I would pass on this show, unless you really have nothing else to watch.

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Cute drama with childhood friends becoming lovers

Cong Rong and Wen Shao Qing were childhood friends, until she moved away and since then he has been waiting for her to come back. Although the premise is a bit cliched, it really worked!

In the beginning, the ML is the only one who knows that they were childhood friends and he's the one that is aggressively pursuing her while she is like nope, bye and then over time she grows to like him as well. This is a show full of cute scenes and sweet moments between the two leads.

I feel like the pacing slowed down a bit in the middle, once they were together, but overall it's an easy show to binge watch. The show also gives a lot of screen time to the second couple which was great. They were a bit unconventional but really grew on me and I got super invested in their relationship.

Two things:
--I legit had to go back to watch it again because in one scene the ML cut an avocado into quarters, the seed included LOL. I guess noone in the production crew actually eats avocado.

--I found the ML too pushy sometimes and it didn't come across as just being flirty to me - like her having to sleepover at his house when she had a concussion. I think the FL is stubborn and doesn't like to rely on people, but I found his behaviour too much at times.

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Cute, cheesy & clichéd but good if you're looking for a light-hearted drama

What I liked:
---The ML and FL are super cute together, and the way that he looks at her and treats her will make you go "awwww".
---There's a second male lead, but no love triangle / misunderstandings that drag out the plot
---I actually really liked the pairing of Meng Na and Sang Tian's brother.

What I didn't like:
---There were a few plot holes / instances that didn't make sense to me even bearing in mind that this is a drama where ridiculous things happen
---I feel like towards the last few episodes, they just threw in conflicts to further the plot / keep going and then they were resolved so easily that it was kind of anti-climatic. Literally EVERYTHING happened and got resolved in the last few episodes and then you get your happy ending, but it just feels really unrealistic.


*SPOILER DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED*


His illness is cured, the university gets a female hockey team, the mom was super disapproving and then just agrees to let them date after one conversation? It's all too cheesy. Also the grandma reveal was so random and unnecessary.

Cute drama, but I'm not sad it's over.

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Chaotic, extra, and wacky comedy about doppelgangers and taking down a conglomerate

This show really reminded me of the Fiery Priest when I started watching it. It has a few of the same actors / actresses, including Honey Lee, and the plot is also wacky and outrageous.

This show is a bit chaotic, super extra and because of all the comedy it gets away with unrealistic scenarios. I had so many questions at the beginning and then throughout the show they get answered.

I did find the last few episodes to be not as good. One of the big questions throughout the show is what happened to the real Kang Mi Na? When they finally revealed it, I found it a bit disappointing / hard to believe, even with all the unrealistic scenarios that had already happened.

But I did enjoy watching the show and I think it's a good show to watch it you're looking for something easy and light. Despite the comedy, there are also touching moments and some romance, although I wasn't super invested in them.

7-7.5/10

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This isn't a bad drama, but I don't really have the motivation to keep watching

Dropping the show after watching until almost the end of episode 10.

One of the main reasons why I started watching Run On was because of all the positive comments I saw on here from people who were really loving the show, but I think it just isn't my cup of tea. It's not that it's particularly bad, but there isn't really anything to keep me watching. I think overall the show is just kind of confusing and boring, and I couldn't feel the chemistry between the two leads. The only moment that I thought was really cute was the parking lot kiss, and I feel like that was just because Siwan is really cute when he smiles. The misunderstandings that they have are confusing too - she always blames him but I feel like she isn't good at communicating either.

The ML is hard to read, it seems like he just lived not caring about anything and now he is starting to make his own decisions and live his life. The FL keeps talking about how he is super considerate of others and not himself, but I feel like rather than being considerate he just didn't care and did what he was told. He does grow throughout the show and you can see that he is trying to discover his own path and figure out what he wants to do, which I'm all for but I think I'm just not personally very invested in him.

That being said, I really liked how he defended the runner who was getting bullied. The only reason I might keep watching is to just skip ahead to the scenes where they play out how that goes, because thats the only part of the show I'm actually invested in seeing how it turns out. I watched Lee Jung Ha compete in the Unit, and although he's still a rookie actor I enjoyed seeing him in the show.

I also felt like there were some discrepancies with Seo Tae Woong - how is he supposedly famous but he only has 1000+ followers on Instagram? And his fans have a name but their group hasn't debuted? Maybe it's because he's a minor character so they didn't really pay as much attention but details like that take me out of the story / make it confused.

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This is mostly a romantic drama about frenemies that become lovers that also touches on some heavy topics like suicide, stalker fans, etc. due to the two leads being in the entertainment industry. I really like the premise of the male lead being a celebrity and the female lead working at an entertainment company and it's interesting to get a glimpse behind the scenes so to speak.

For the most part, the show was fun and lighthearted, and featured lots of different celebrities who did cameos but there was some heavy stuff for a few episodes and it felt like the show took an ominous turn in the middle. It makes you think about the crazy stuff that celebrities have to put up with as people in the public eye.

When they were talking about their friend who passed away it reminded me of Jonghyun from Shinee and I wonder if the writers chose to include this plotline to bring attention to the struggles that celebrities face. And even though it wasn't apparent from the beginning, you realize later in the show that their friend's death deeply affected everyone around them in different ways.

Overall, I enjoyed watching the show and looked forward to new episodes each week. The main couple are very cute together and the supporting characters were good too. This feels like a mostly fluffy entertaining drama that dips its toes into heavy topics and then ended on a light note again.

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This is a fun show with heartfelt moments and a good mix of action and comedy

Looking for something heartwarming? Looking for some fast paced action?
I feel like this show has a little bit of everything mixed in with it. There are kickass moments where you're rooting for the good guys and get to see justice served, but also unexpected heartbreaking moments. And if you're in the mood for utterly ridiculous comedic scenes? Those are there too! Some of my favourite comedic scenes include the team raiding a press conference and the mayor getting waste water dumped on him and an epic money heist which hinges on the ability of a certain strong dude to fake leg cramps. The show actually reminded me of the Fiery Priest, which is full of some truly epic comedy gold. (The fart scene in the vault? A classic.) But back to the Uncanny Counter.

So Mun is a really good main character - and despite getting superpowers all of a sudden he's not some perfect protagonist. You can see So Mun growing throughout the show from being this impulsive, naive kid who runs into dangerous situations by himself like a dummy to learning to be patient and relying on his teammates. His teammates are also complex characters with their own backstories and their friendships and personalities are part of what make the show worth watching.

You also get to see other people mature through the show, including the mayor's son who starts out as this major bully and transforms after being shown true kindness for the first time in his life when he is at his lowest. I feel like there was this theme of redemption with him and So Mun was a driving force in that. I don't know if he'll show up in season two but I really want them to be friends.

One of my only gripes with the show was with the Yung people and their unreasonable rules, where the Counters weren't even allowed to protect people and were just supposed to rid the world of evil spirits. I'm glad that later on they got permission to deal with the bad guys but that was seriously wack - also the way they welcomed back So Mun so suddenly after kicking him out seemed so fake.

In the last few episodes a lot of stuff happens and I found the reveal about So Mun's powers kind of weird / sudden. But I thought the show ended well and despite this being a show where you sort of know the good guys will triumph in the end, the journey there is fast paced and unpredictable with some major plot twists along the way. I'm not about to go binge read the webtoon, but I would watch season 2 if it comes out.

I would give this a solid 7.5-8.
Category: Comedy, supernatural, heartwarming, action

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This is a lighthearted, cute drama that is really easy to watch and requires low commitment, since each episode is just 24 minutes long. I didn't feel ready to commit to a long drama and was looking for something chill and this hit the mark.

It is sort of instalove, but they're a really cute couple with a lot of chemistry and there are lots of kissing/bedroom scenes. From the beginning, she's trying to get his attention and try to make him like her, whereas he's always teasing her and their relationship seemed very natural. Each episode touches on different things in their married life as they get used to each other and grow in their relationship and it's a drama that's very easy to watch and doesn't require any deep thinking since there's not really a plot.

Despite it being a fluffy drama, there's also substance and I like that they grow as people and in understanding each other. The struggles that they face seem realistic to a new couple as well, especially since they were strangers.

The only thing I found kind of weird was how quickly the FL lead said I love you, but I think that maybe it was a mistranslation. I don't speak any Japanese but found it a bit strange so I googled and she said Suki da 好きだ, which can mean I like you / I love you depending on context. I also had to wait a bit for the last few episodes since the eng subs weren't out yet, but the episodes are all subbed now!

There's also a random masseuse in the show that doesn't add much to the plot, but he is very good looking.


7.5-8

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This show was like an expectations vs reality meme

This show seemed like it had a recipe for success.
• amazing cast, lots of well-known actors and actresses including Sung Dong-il, Park Shin Hye and Cho Seung Woo whose dramas I've enjoyed in the past
• really interesting premise
• high production budget

Unfortunately, the execution really left a lot to be desired. It's so unfortunate because the show had so much potential. It's like spending $300 on ingredients to make a cake, and then trying said cake and finding that you accidentally over-baked it (so it's now dry af), the frosting tastes funny... and was that supposed to be one tsp or one tablespoon of salt? Great ingredients do not make a great cake and it was the same with this drama.

PLOT
The drama centres around a woman who goes back in time to save the world and a genius who is responsible for saving/dooming the world. As the show progresses and new details emerge, the plot gets more and more confusing. The time travelling aspect made everything really chaotic and not in a good way.

Beyond the confusion of time travel, sometimes I didn't think things made sense. There's this scene where the FL doesn't know what a jjimjilbang is and she has also apparently never had real fruit before, which I found unrealistic considering she was living in modern day Korea up until the age of 8 or 9.

ACTING
There were so many familiar faces in this drama - some who I have loved in previous shows. I've been watching PSH since she was in You're Beautiful and one of the reasons I was excited about the show was because Cho Seung Woo from Stranger was in it. But I feel like this is an instance where the acting could not save the show from the plot. And if you watch dramas for the romance - the chemistry just wasn't there for the main couple.

THE END
Seriously. I get all the way to the end, and this is what I get?!
I'm left with nothing but disappointment and this review.
I know that not all shows have happy endings but when I've struggled through 16 episodes in hopes that it gets better / to find out what happens, then I feel like I'm at least hoping for an ending that wraps everything up nicely. Instead I feel like I'm left with questions.

For a drama that had a production budget of over $18million, I found some of the CG effects kind of fake. There was one scene in the beginning where the ML saves a plane from falling which was cool and the show had some cool moments but overall it was really disappointing. I honestly don't think I would have continued watching if I wasn't watching it with my boyfriend. We watched it along with Vincenzo (which is a way better drama in my opinion).

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I didn't expect to enjoy the show this much.

Honestly the whole reason I even put this show on my watch list was because of Lee Young Ae. I read an article where Kim Hye Joon (who plays K) was talking about the show and being able to work with so many talented actors/actresses and then realized that the lead character of the show was Lee Young Ae, who was in Jewel in the Palace. For those of you who don't know about this show, it aired back in 2003 and was probably the first kdrama that I ever watched. I have a childhood memory of being in Grade 3 or 4 and watching it with my parents at night. It was truly an iconic show that helped pave the way for kdramas becoming popular world wide and so when I saw that this show had the same lead actress I had to check this out.

I came into it without any expectations really and the first two episodes where they're just introducing the characters and setting the scene were a bit boring for me but starting episode 3 I got hooked on the show. It's only 12 episodes and they really make use of every minute because this show moves fast. So much happens and it's not a traditional crime show where the detective is trying to figure out who the serial killer is and it ends with that.

Pretty much off the bat you know who K is and it's more of a cat and mouse show where they are trying to outsmart each other. Other than Lee Young Ae, this drama has so many notable actors and actresses including a few from Hospital Playlist, one of my favourite shows of all time. I really enjoyed the team dynamic and how every person brought their own unique charm. There were some actors I wasn't familiar with that I really liked, like Baek Sung Chul who plays Santa. He barely talks in the show, and has probably a total of less than 50 words spoken in the entire script but despite that his acting still managed to shine because of his mannerisms, facial expressions and gestures. Kim Hye Joon who played K the serial killer was entertaining, more than slightly unhinged, but also someone that I felt sympathy towards. And this is unrelated, but I was pleasantly surprised that this drama had a super heartwarming gay relationship.

This is a show with endless plot twists that are super unpredictable and it's definitely one of those wacky, off-beat shows with dark humour but I was surprised at how much I ended up enjoying it. I don't usually pay much attention to the music, but the soundtrack really fit with the vibe of the drama and each episode ends with a cute animation which I liked. It can be extremely dramatic - the drama references plays and sometimes the drama itself uses dramatic lighting and other techniques that make it seem like a theatrical production but it all fit in with the overall vibe.

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FYI: There are two seasons to this show!

I have lots of mixed feelings about this show after just watching the finale. I don’t typically watch period dramas but decided to check this out after one of my favourite authors mentioned it on their blog and was hooked! This isn't your typical period drama, and takes place in a fictional land named Daeho where there are mages. The trailer definitely doesn’t explain much and the premise is quite confusing, so you have to pay attention to all the details. I think it's one of those shows where you just have to go along with the flow and figure things out as you go.

Sometimes the plot is really ridiculous and dramatic, and Naksu had some pretty extreme training methods. In Jang Uk's place I don't think I would like her very much, but I think the romance progressed well and was believable. The advantage of the first season being 20 episodes is that it didn't feel like instalove and you could see their relationship grow as they go through experiences together.

The plot is quite complicated and does get heavy, but the comedy really helps to break it up. The show has a star studded cast, and they are all very good at comedic timing and breaking up the tension so that despite the sometimes heavy plot, it's still entertaining and easy to watch. Some things were a bit predictable/obvious like finding out who Naksu's body belongs to, while others came out of left field for me.

I didn't realize that there were going to be two seasons, so I was expecting a happy ending in the last episode and was super unprepared for what actually happened. I get why they are going in this direction but at the same time, I really liked Jung So Min as Mu Deok and I don’t know how season two is going to work. I feel like it’s not going to be the same.

They did a good job of wrapping up some of the plotlines in season one, like the backstory behind the Choi siblings, but at the same time there were some things that happened that didn't make sense to me. For example, how was So-i able to just dig out the worm just like that when it was supposed to be a threat to keep her under Jin Mu's control? And why would everyone die if Naksu used the ice stone? I also found Jang Gang's ending to be quite abrupt and not very satisfying. I feel like there could have been more closure for Jang Uk.

Season two airs in December, so the good thing is we only have to wait a few months to see what happens next! Hoping that season two will be as good, although I'm really going to miss Jung So Min and I wonder how the chemistry will be between Go Yoon Jung and Lee Jae Wook.

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I was not ready for this show to end. I admit, I actually put off watching this for a while because of how many episodes there are, but by the end I totally could have watched more. It’s done in a similar vein to the Reply series, where you watch a group of friends grow up together and the female lead actually even looks like Hyeri from Reply 1988.

The show offers a really realistic depiction of how relationships happen in real life, whether good or bad. Not everyone who dates ends up staying together, and relationships are messy and unpredictable and sometimes end in heartbreak. The show shows a diverse number of relationships and really strong friendships as well.

It’s my first time seeing Richard Wang in a drama but I really liked his character Lu Shiyi. He treated Xiaoju so well - buying her snacks, finding a job for her, even helping her figure out what major she wanted. He’s so thoughtful and kind, even when he knows that she doesn’t like him back. Lu Shiyi and Xia Xiaoju really were best friends and they share so many memories together it's like they are dating and she just didn't know it at the time. Xiaoju likes her other friend, and yet all of her romantic moments are with Shiyi. She even accidentally confesses to him. It's like before she knew it, he was the perfect fit for her. However, I honestly wish that we got more episodes showing their relationship after they get together and I feel like I'm left with so many questions about the show at the end.

Also completely unrelated to the story but the product placement feels very natural on the show, and is almost unnoticeable whereas most dramas nowadays are just FULL of product placement so that was very refreshing.

8/8.5

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I’m a sucker for anything dance related, so this show is right up my alley.

I had already heard of some of the dancers, like Honey J and Hyojin Choi but the show introduced me to a lot of new faces and it was cool to see everyone's dance styles and the crews perform.

The first episode was probably the worst - with some of the camera work in the dance battles really bad where you couldn't even see the dancing properly but it got better after. I think it's the same production crew that does SMTM because they use the same sound effects and so it's understandable that the filming was rough at the beginning if they're not used to filming dance battles.

I probably wouldn't rewatch the entire show, but there were iconic moments that I would happily rewatch and you can find the performances on Youtube. Overall this is a good show to watch if you're at all remotely interested in dance. There is some drama too (because of course it's reality TV) but honestly that sort of fades and I feel like the dancers genuinely cheer each other on which I liked.

It's a 7.5 to 8 for me, but I'll round it up since there were some truly great dance battles in this show.

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Happy 10 years to SMTM!

One of the things I appreciate about SMTM the most is getting to discover new rappers / rappers that I haven't heard of personally. I don't keep up with the Korean hip hop scene at all, other than listening to random music on Spotify so SMTM is really my only source of knowledge. I've been watching it since SMTM 3 or 4 and I'm sure I'll be watching it for however many years it goes on for.

This year they switched things up a bit, with an appeal round where rappers can plead their case and giving producers a Producer Pass so that they can save teams in the 1vs1 battle that they feel deserve to have both members advance. I really liked this because I feel like in the past really talented rappers have left the show during that stage.

The biggest negative this season was that during the semi-finals, there were issues with some of the sound mixing and for some of the stages the songs sounded really bad, like the backing track was missing or something. What I ended up doing was just looking up the song on Youtube and then playing it at the same time as the show so that I could enjoy the performance and song at the same time.

I also ended up watching the finale a few weeks later than the rest of the show because I was waiting for the eng subs, and I don't know if thats why I wasn't super interested in the last episode unfortunately. There were a few performances that I liked, but I personally found the rest of the show to be better. It's also 3 hours long and it's a live performance format so that might be why.

If you're not interested in watching the show and just want to watch some bits and pieces, here are some of my favourites!

(Spoiler alert)

1 vs 1
-Koonta x Unofficial
-Don Mills x Ourealgoat
-Gwangil Jo x A-chess

First Live Performances
-Reset (Since x Tabber)
-Meeting is Easy, Parting is Hard (Basick)
-Gganbu (깐부) (Koonta ft. Yumdda, Ash Island)
-Thorn (Gwangil Jo ft. Gaeko, Justhis)
-Press F5 (새로고침) (Geegooin x Anandelight ft. Gray)

Semi Finals
-High (Anandelight ft Lee Hi)
-Hopefully (Koonta ft Jung In)
-Dissonance (Mudd the Student ft AKMU)
-BE! (Sokodomo ft. Paloalto, Lil Boi)

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