This drama stars Jung Hae In as Moon Ha Won, an emo super genius who is socially awkward but endearing. I thought his performance was great, but there is nothing in the writing to give this character much depth. We see flashes of his past, and the AI company where he is making this mysterious device, but even when this drama ended I felt like I didn't really know his character well at all. Since most of this drama centers around him, this made me easily less interested. He is matched with Chae Soo Bin as Han Seo Woo, a much more warm character but an empath who's emo in her own way. My trouble with Seo Woo is that I really like the actress, and at times wanted to like her character, but she was so ridiculously nosey she was often frustrating to watch. It's a typical "let's heal each other from past loss" love story. These two actors are the only redeeming part of this drama in my opinion, and honestly, it felt like a lot of good but wasted chemistry, unless you really enjoy watching good hugs... a lot of hugs... so many hugs. They really deserved a better-written script.
Why was the script so bad? First of all the story is completely confusing and all over the place. The connections between people, the technology and why it exists, and the random flashbacks make it extremely hard to follow the story initially. It is beautifully shot, which sets the mood, but with no comprehensive story to follow so, I was ready to drop this drama early on. I was encouraged to keep watching for the couple development (which I was told would get better), and I did become swept up in that story, but even that story didn't end up having much substance as the drama went on. This drama basically revolves around two major traumas. One trauma is in the past and slowly revealed through flashbacks. The other trauma is inspired by the first trauma and was so nonsensical to me I couldn't even react to it emotionally. Again, the scenery is beautiful, lots of running/walking/running again through the snowy forest. I could probably sum up most of this story as snowy flashbacks, hugs, talking into a blinking device, random plants, and piano... and that brings me to the supporting characters.
The supporting cast is also great, but with badly written episodes they all become pretty forgettable. My favorite character was Lee Jung Eun as Kim Min Jung (the maid from Parasite) who was such a fun character but her going from patient to random friend felt so disjointed that her story, although interesting, felt totally unrelated to the main plot. Lee Sang Hee as Jun Eun Joo who runs the Boarding House, was great support for Seo Woo, in spite of her own issues, but after an interesting start, she just faded into the background.
The most annoying characters in this were the other "leads" Lee Ha Na as Moon Soon Ho, Ha Won's older niece, who played obnoxious well, but I honestly couldn't stand her character. There's also Kim Sung Gyu who did a good job as Gang In Wook, the brooding pianist, who by the time more about his character was revealed he was still completely unlikeable to me. There is also a suggested connection between them that didn't work for me at all. Then there was Park Joo Hyun as Kim Ji Soo who is also oddly solemn and mysterious and most of her role in the drama was spent speaking in a soft way that kept putting me to sleep. Without spoiling too much, she is the person that this whole drama revolves around, and it doesn't help that she was really boring to me. She also made the male lead feel more like a creepy stalker than someone she had an amazing history with. Once she had less screen time the story finally picked up for me. In that case the writing and acting, I think, were to blame.
Would I watch this again? Although I'm curious to see if the story makes more sense a second time, and I thought the cinematography was beautiful, it was so torturously slow to get through that I can't see myself doing this to myself again. I fell asleep three times during the last episode, which relied on too many tired tropes. Once it was over I was still unsatisfied. I was left with so many questions, especially about this AI tech that was barely explained and Ha Won as a character beyond his traumas. They try their best to give most of the characters some kind of closure/resolution, but I cared so little about them at the time it didn't matter. It almost feels like it should have been a movie instead. They could probably edit this drama down to 2 hours of relevant scenes easily and I would like it a lot more.
Overall, this drama dragged with the intention of being deep when it actually lacked much substance and was often unnecessarily vague. This drama was more mood than real feelings for me, with a lot of the characters overreacting or just sulking and crying. The themes include unrequited love, women who can't mind their own business, trauma caused by guilt and lack of closure, literally running from confrontation, depression, being stuck in the past, curing insomnia and healing through hugs... with the insomnia thing being ironic because it often put me to sleep. If I knew how it would all end I would have dropped this drama when I wanted to initially. If you like the first episodes then I would encourage you to continue, since it does get better, but I would still be reluctant to recommend this drama as one to watch. I did like watching the romance develop, but I would rather see them matched up again in a completely different drama. There are sparks of redeeming qualities in "A Piece of Your Mind", but those pieces didn't make up an enjoyable KDrama whole.
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What I liked
This drama started off strong, hitting all major points of what would be a good drama. Strong female lead, a steady plot, great villains and sweet pacing. The female lead carried the show in the beginning and I was rooting for her to thaw out our main lead and get the chemistry going. ( I really want to throw in a spoiler here...hm let's just say if you like night time romance...forget about it).
After about 33 percent of my time spent watching this show what I liked turned in to
What I disliked
Let's start with repetitive scenes that kept going in a cycle. Once something was resolved, it propped back up again just to start the same story over. The pacing suddenly started to drag and characters actions no longer made sense.
What is interesting is our male lead acting really was awful during the first half of this show, but after the show started going bad his acting suddenly got better...
Do you enjoy watching flashbacks back to back to back??? Well this is the show for you, at least 20 percent of this show is comprised of them.
I am not one to drop a show just because it is a train wreck already, I must see it to the end...so after watching the ending I must say...
Yup the show ended just like this review ended three freaking dots!
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‘ Business Proposal’; The Revamped Rom-Com Formula With A Few Tricks Up Its Sleeve…
It is likely that most K-drama viewers can agree that the late 2000s to early 2010s was an era in the world of K-dramas predominated by melodrama and angst . Indeed for better or for worse, ‘ Business Proposal’ attempted to capture that in its rom-com formula.
‘ Business Proposal’ focuses upon Shin Ha-ri (Kim Se-Jeong- ‘ School 2017’, ‘ I Wanna Hear Your Song’ and ‘ Uncanny Counter’), a relatively new researcher at one of South-Korea’s top conglomerate enterprises, GO Food. Ha-Ri has always had an unrequited crush on Lee Min-Woo( Song Won-seok- ‘ Swan’, ‘ Switch’ and ‘ Never Twice’), a close friend since their university days. However after having her heart broken once again by Min-Woo, Ha-Ri soon begins to reevaluate her feelings.
Meanwhile Ha-Ri’s best friend and chaebol heiress Jin Young Seo ( Seol In Ah- ‘ Sunny Again Tomorrow’, ‘ Beautiful Love, Wonderful Life’ and ‘ Mr Queen’) discovers that she will soon be forced to go on a romantic date with a rich CEO’s son, much to her displeasure.Asking Ha-Ri to take her place, Ha-Ri agrees to do so in order to pay off a family debt.
When Ha-Ri shows up as Jin Young Seo, she soon discovers that her “date” is with the president of her company, Kang Tae Mu ( Ahn Hyo Seop- ‘ My Father Is Strange’, ‘ Thirty But Seventeen’ and ‘ Dr Romantic 2’).
Kang Tae-Mu is a straight-laced and career-orientated individual, even being labelled by his grandfather and founder of GO Food, Kang Da Goo( Lee Deok Hwa- ‘ Age Of Warriors’, ‘ Suspicious Partner’ and ‘ Hit The Top’), as a “workaholic”. ( Especially after the incident surrounding his inauguration ceremony.)
The “first date” is calamitous for Ha-Ri but unbeknownst to her, Tae-Mu has felt differently. Confiding in his chief of staff , Cha Sung-hoon (Kim Min-Gue-‘ Romance Special Law’, ‘ Perfume’ and ‘ Snowdrop’) that he will marry “ Jin Young Seo” ( aka Ha-Ri) in order to keep his grandfather off his back, Ha-Ri’s ordinary life is soon filled with an assortment of complicated and sticky misunderstandings.
‘ A Business Proposal’ is based on the lighthearted rom-com webtoon, ‘The Office Blind Date’ ( ‘사내 맞선’) by Hae-Hwa. Adapted to the small screen by screenwriters Han Sul Hee ( ‘ Ugly Miss Ae’, ‘ A Love Story’) and Han Bo Hee ( ‘ High Kicked!: The Revenge Of The Short Legged’ and ‘ Standby’), “ will likely appease and dissatisfy viewers of equal measure.
Of course, it is important to specify that ‘ A Business Proposal’ is supposed to encapsulate a certain “easygoing nostalgia” from rom-coms. For the most part ‘ A Business Proposal’ did possess a lighthearted, easygoing and fluffy edge; occasionally tipping into angst-ridden melodrama in order to “spice up” certain events of the narrative and keep viewers intrigued . ( This was particularly apparent with the “clandestine ” events surrounding the main leads’ relationship as well as lingering questions throughout the narrative surrounding the traumatic past of main male lead Kang Tae Mu.)
It is important to point out that the main leads in the series played by Kim Se Jeong and Ahn Hyo Seop were fairly delightful. Indeed despite some strained initial interactions onscreen, Se Jeong and Hyo Seop possessed a surprisingly easygoing chemistry as the series progressed between their onscreen personas.
However their onscreen roles Shin Ha-Ri and Kang Tae-Mu were admittedly not without their writing flaws. As a female lead and the main heroine of the series , Ha-Ri was established to be the “ hardworking” archetype. On the other hand, it is hard to ignore that while Ha-Ri does continue to maintain her hardworking ethos alongside her complicated feelings for Tae-Mu, she could sometimes be passive with her reactions and actions in the events of the series. ( This became apparent at times by Ha-Ri being “ beckoned by the calling of plot dilemmas” rather than character growth.)
For example one of the most noticeable problems of the drama arose from Ha-Ri’s personal drive and motives. Although it is arguable that Ha-Ri may have done so as a consequence from direct and indirect influences by her parents ( although the same cannot be said particularly for her brother per say) , it was hard to truly define or highlight exact causes given by Ha-Ri for entering this profession as a food researcher with sincerity. (Although this may seem like a nuanced and minor background point, it could’ve easily allowed Ha-Ri’s character to possess more definitive edges.) Instead Ha-Ri was often subjugated to the role as the “ thinker”; a brilliant idealist with a multitude of possible projects and new ideas for the company . However even as viewers, we rarely saw some of these ideas being taken further by Ha-Ri chasing her own dreams , or at least attempts by the female lead to become more ambitious with her imagination. ( Of course this may seem like a nitpicked detail but it seemed odd that the narrative would often highlighted Ha-Ri’s dexterous talents as a food researcher and her possible ideas but rarely pushed forward for it to the synchronic with the female lead’s character growth and development.)
Of course, this naturally brings up the discussion surrounding Tae-Mu and Ha-Ri’s relationship throughout the drama. Although as mentioned previously the onscreen chemistry between Kim Se Jeong and Ahn Hyo Seop is surprisingly dynamic, there is admittedly a lot to discuss surrounding their onscreen personas’ relationship.
Perhaps the most evident point of discussion and initial debate around Ha-Ri and Tae-Mu’s relationship can be sourced from one of the trope-induced setups of the series; “the contractural relationship”.
Admittedly Ha-Ri and Tae-Mu have both consented to the relationship and for different reasons. ( Ha-Ri’s motives being sourced for money to help pay off a debt while Tae-Mu’s causes can be found in order to appease his grandfather.) On the other hand it is hard to ignore that the initial treatment by Tae-Mu towards Ha-Ri as merely being a “ cause to an end” for his troubles ( and vice versa to an extent with Ha-Ri) as well as even offering money to Ha-Ri as an incentive to keep his grandfather off his back, could feel as though it was problematic by the narrative rarely pointing this out as a serious issue of discussion.
Of course it would be wrong to suggest that Tae-Mu and Ha-Ri doesn’t grow beyond the roles of the contractor and the contractee. As the series progresses and impassioned feelings grow for one another, the narrative relished within opportunities to highlight the obvious feelings of the “ lovelorn” main leads for one another. In later episodes of the narrative , this would often trigger an onset of misunderstandings and attempts by the main leads to “ cover up” their situations from work colleagues and family alike. Although the series did gradually present their potential onscreen relationship with more overt honesty ( especially with regards to Tae-Mu telling Ha-Ri about his traumatic past), this did often gloss over earlier issues of the series as a consequence. ( This was mainly due to the fact that Tae-Mu and Ha-Ri’s initial problems even for the effect of “ tension” such as Tae-Mu’s attempts to convince Ha-Ri with money, Ha-Ri’s reaction and fake guises as well as later treatment by Tae-Mu, were rarely brought up openly by the characters in order to acknowledge their mistakes and accept all of their faults as a point of further character growth .)
Under the creative leadership of screenwriters Han Sul Hee and Han Bo Hee, ‘ A Business Proposal’ offered viewers with a pacy narrative filled with the events surrounding the main storyline as well as several subplots in order to pad out the drama’s screen time .
Of course, thus isn’t a particularly unusual tactic used by screenwriters. However while this did offer opportunities for viewers to be intrigued and captivated by the events of the narrative, it could often enforce the classic dilemma of juggling a lot of different storylines. This could often lead to some of the minor counterplots of the series feeling rushed or somewhat anticlimactic by the ending of the series.
Perhaps one of the major subplots to discuss within ‘ A Business Proposal’ surrounds the potential onscreen relationship between second male leads, Jin Young Seo ( Ha-Ri’s best friend) and Cha Sung-Hoon ( Tae-Mu’s chief of staff). Young Seo and Sung-Hoon were characters who possessed less definitive storylines than the main leads.
Of course this isn’t particularly unusual per say in a drama but it seemed as though the series often moved away from initial inferences given by Young-Seo and Sung-Hoon’s character arcs to be explored in more depth. ( This can be particularly applied to Young Seo’s family situation and naivety rarely being brought up as a point of character growth, as well as Sung-Hoon’s own familial situation.) Of course Young Seo and Sung Hoon were supposed to play the roles of the “ assets” to the narrative and screen time . ( Although admittedly Young Seo was shown to make an executive decision with regards to her own dreams by the ending of the series, it was rarely given a concise buildup.)
Although Young Seo and Sung Hoon’s onscreen relationship was surprisingly sweet and offered lighthearted respite at times from the angst taking place in the main storyline, it could often feel rushed as a consequence of inconsistent screen time given to the secondary couple. In addition to Young Seo and Seung Hoon’s potential relationship being used as a major subplot, there were also minor focuses to draw out the narrative upon Ha-Ri’s workplace colleagues ( especially in order to highlight the potential onscreen chemistry and jovial animosity between her superior manager Yeo Eui Ju [Kim Hyun Sook] and team member Kevin [Im Ki Hong]), Tae-Mu’s grandfather and his fixation upon soaps and makjangs, Ha-Ri’s parents, Ha-Ri’s old crush Lee Min Woo and his initial jealousy towards Tae-Mu as well as Young Seo’s “ love rival” offered as comic relief, flamboyant and the eccentric Marine Group Director Jo Yoo Jung( Seo Hye Won).
Nevertheless it’s wrong to entirely digress ‘ A Business Proposal’ without acknowledging some of its impressive feats, specifically the directing leadership of Park Seon Ho ( ‘ Birth Of A Beauty’, ‘ Suspicious Partner’ and ‘ My Strange Hero’). Throughout episodes, ‘ A Business Proposal’ displayed some impressively mesmeric and creative touches; differing from minimalist palettes to vivid and slick editing cuts. Although these imaginative touches dwindled in later episodes and instead highlighted minimalist approaches to filming and palettes, it certainly offered an onset of aesthetic shots throughout the first-half of the series. ( One of the most memorable scenes coming from the narrative bringing to life the cover story for Ha-Ri and Tae-Mu’s “ initial encounter”; Ha-Ri imagining a monochrome and drizzly day in New York, before her entire being-quite literally- is brightened up by the sudden appearance of Tae-Mu and a canary yellow umbrella onscreen.)
For those intrigued about the accompanied soundtrack, ‘ A Business Proposal’’s OST is mainly comprised of an array of saccharine, upbeat and lovelorn ballads; some of which were admittedly generic and quick to disappear from memory. However, fast-paced tempo song ‘ You Are Mine’ by VICTON (빅톤), sweet vocal track ‘Love, Maybe’ (‘사랑인가 봐’) by SECRET NUMBER and ballad-style composition ‘ Melting’ by BAMBAM were particularly noteworthy tracks.
‘ A Business Proposal’ offered its audience with a nostalgic sweet and lighthearted topping of angst, cliches and romantic relationships throughout the duration of the series. Although ‘ A Business Proposal’ boasted an unoriginal plot premise with several writing flaws and tropes, the narrative did surprisingly offer several unexpected takes upon the setup, with decent onscreen chemistry between the main leads as well as imaginative takes upon filming and editing. Overall while ‘ A Business Proposal’ may not appease everyone with its niche dilemmas and plot premise, the series will offer a sugary and sickly sweet ride for anyone looking for an updated and lighthearted take upon old-school rom-coms. Overall, a decent binge-watch.
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Jack & Joker: U Steal My Heart! Special Episode
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This review may contain spoilers
Jack & Joker: U Married A Standee
It's not even about how everyone sat in their fancy wedding outfits and watched Jack marry an ugly cardboard cutout standee with Joke's face on it, deep kissed said cardboard, or Hoy driving them to their honeymoon. No, my confusion was about my feelings. Like, was I supposed to cry or laugh at that scene? Yes, I felt sad when Jack kept insisting Joke was alive, but when Hoy walked that ugly cardboard standee down the aisle, I was laughing like a hyena, still, I couldn't help but go, 'Dafug is this? Throw the whole special away. As a matter of fact, burn it with fire. Yeet it into the sun, I don't want it.'First off, these writers made us sad for nothing. We all saw the spoilers, so I was prepared, still, I dreaded that I was about to sit through 2 hours of back and forth just to get my heart broken. Even so, I did, cuz you know, we survived The Best Story, this would be another sad ending YinWar drama we forget and pretend it never existed. But then those few seconds happened and I'm like... then what was the point? Why you made me emotional for no reason? It was 5am on a Saturday people! The disrespect!
Unpopular opinion: I'd have been sad and angry if Joke died died for real, but I'd have accepted it. The concept of this whole drama is how harsh and unfair life can be, so it would have been on brand. Now, I don't know if I should rejoice that Joke is alive or not, cuz he looked so terrified when he woke up, so really, did we even win? And at what cost?
Listen, and I'm being serious here, so like, are we all going to collectively forget about Jack marrying that ugly cardboard cutout with Joke's face plastered on it or?? And did they just sat there and watch his man make out with a standee? Please, please, I need them to release a video of the real scene and not Jack's delulu version we got. You know, for science, and also I need more 'WTF am I watching?' that turns into laughter videos.
Frankly, I'm torn about that scene. On one head, I keep thinking, so everyone sat in their fancy dresses and watched Jack make-out with an ugly cardboard standee? Then Hoy drove them to their honeymoon all emotional like: 'I'm glad I was the one who drove them.' Brother What? HAHAHAHAHAHAH but then, the other part of me, the human one who saw Jack loose his mind to the point of insanity felt so bad. Cuz, that boy who'd been through so much and fought and came out on top was now hiding from reality, living in a make believe world just to get through the pain of losing someone who meant the world to him.
I am confusion. I'm caught between laughing like crazy or crying on top of my lungs. Yes, that scene where they were eating and sharing it with an invisible Joke made me emotional, when Joke's parents broke down I felt sad, but then I remembered how Jack hauled that cardboard standee into their married chambers and rolled with laughter. Why? Just why? Who wrote this?
PLOT:
Is it just me or that whole plot felt convoluted and unnecessary? I don't know, it came off forced to me, like they were scraping the bottom of the barrel just to find something to turn into a problem so they can destroy our hearts with Joke's death. I mean, bringing that annoying forgettable character out of jail just so he can lick his teeth, shut about whatever dafug he was talking about and kill our fav, was that necessary? All that for the fucker to die off screen without me even enjoying him getting blown to bits. Meh.
And why the hell these people never have a fully smart, worked out plan and contingencies for these things? Like they walk in there with a half baked plan, some gadgets Tattoo made, (he said he isn’t making any money so how useful and reliable are they even?) and expect everything to be sunshine and cookies. People, you're smarter than this! Be smarter than this!
This I liked:
- Tattoo and Aran playing gay chicken. I wonder who would win.
- All that teerak Jack & Joke kept calling each other. New, but adorable.
- How their friend group is still going strong, although it seems everyone is poor and they're basically surviving off air.
- Toi Ting's funny and honesty sass.
- Grandmama in that dragon suit to ask for Joke's hand for Jake. Hahaha, I love that woman.
- The sign for a second season.
What they could have kept:
- That unnecessary plot, I'm all for it if it's leading to a second season, otherwise what was the point?
- That one dimensional villain, can they please let him go already? He's so uninteresting that standee had more character.
- How these characters after everything they've been through always walks into danger with no concrete plan, thoughts of backup or even calling police for help. Like?? Are you all new here or something?
- Killing Joke and then doing a cop-out. Like if you gonna break our hearts just do it, don't make us cry and then give us hope that comes with a terrified looking Joke. If they kill him off again...
- I'm not sure I love or hate that wedding scene. It took me out of the seriousness of the story and now I can't stop laughing.
Anyway, all signs are pointing to a second season, so I am sat for it. I can't wait to meet the characters again and see if they finally get their happy endings.
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DON'T WATCH IT
Don't watch it... Cheap ahh cgi and lol probably spent more on the actors rather than actual output of this adaptation. I'm not hating the actors or anything (even though some characters they're portraying is wayyyyyyyyy of from what they're depicted on the novel) I'm just pissed at the director for butchering OUR(THE FANS) novel.Was this review helpful to you?
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another not my cup of tea
honestly i can't really remember which series are not my cup of tea but definitely this is one of them. it's not that i don't like it but i just can't really understand the whole story line. what's the point of go young's love life story, i simply don't really understand. it feels like i just follow along his life story without any exact outcome/summary. that's it. again, it's not that i don't like it, i enjoy every go young's love story, but i just feel like it can be elaborated more for the summary or main point of this series. my brain can't interpret that.honestly it confused me at first because i don't know which one is the main lead beside nam yoo-su. it broke my heart when the second male, the photographer, died. then it confused me again and again because every man seem not to be the main lead, not until that nursing student. but yeah maybe the main point is that go young's love is now gone because of what he did. idk.
maybe will not rewatch it because it's on viki and i don't really have any subscription of platforms. so.. yeah. not my cup tea but still a good one.
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I have now discovered that when a romantic drama that seems typical becomes stagnant and a trope it sucks. However, when a drama that is unique and has so much promise does it's like a knife to the gut. I became so ticked off with the last 7 episodes that there is no redemption for this drama. Maybe it's my fault for reading so much into the drama and expecting awesomeness. Everything I thought meant something was stupid. Such as the color scheme of beige switching to vibrant colors, it's never fully addressed though there is a turning point in the drama. I actually wonder if the writer had somewhere to go, but someone on the side was like no make this an average and underwhelming murder mystery.
That's right. It all boiled down to a murder mystery that happened years before this plane crash. Which is perfectly fine. Except that the drama treated it's viewers like we were dumb and couldn't figure it out right away. So the last 5 episodes are all “What really happened?” and I had guessed it around episode 5 if not sooner. Sighs. So let me tell you it was boring.
Not to mention that the killer apparently “accidentally” did it, but it was someone else who pushed him over the edge. Somehow meaning that the 4 murders he committed on the island where, okay? No really. He gets a happy ending painting with his friends. DESPITE THE FACT THAT HE MALICIOUSLY KILLED PEOPLE. Murdering his own friend and continued to try to kill people until the end.
The true awesomeness of Missing 9 is in the first 9 episodes. (Holy drama! Did this drama curse itself?) Was the dual storytelling of the timeline of the plane crash, the past of the idols, and the present in which the one survivor is trying to piece her memory together. Somehow Missing 9 found this perfect balance of psychological thriller and horror, with humor. I loved it. Characters who were clearly annoying stereotypes became well developed on the island. I truly believe that if the writing hadn't given up on itself that the idea of solving the old murder from before would have been enough to deliver this drama. Yet the last 7 episodes tossed all of the character development and commonsense out the window. Then continued to shoot it up as it sped by in the getaway car to abandon the storyline that the writer clearly didn't know how to wrap up.
Normally I do a rating scale of my average rating per episode which is actually 5/10 for Missing 9. The first 9 episodes are at 8/10 rating, and the last 7 episodes 2/10 (to be honest right on the verge of 1/10). So I look at the 5/10 average episode rating and compare to the numbers I put in for MDL's rating scale (which is 3/10) and figure it out from there. (Yes, I put a lot of though into how I rate.) To be quite honest I am so tempted to go back and lower all my episode ratings on the first 9 because I now realize that the show's story goes no where. Yet, I can't because those first 9 were awesome for me and despite the story losing itself it deserves it. (Though I'm still bitter.)
When the writing was good the actors were amazing. YES, even the idols did a magical job. They balanced fear and humor well in the first 9 episodes. It's not their fault their characters became tacky in the last half, they acted what was created. The music was all right, though I can't really remember it right now.
In the end this was another drama that I had high hopes for and faith that the writer wouldn't give up on the story in the latter episodes because it didn't know how to end. Part of the problem is I had too much faith and believed in it. That the first half of the show was truly amazing. Yet, the last 7 episodes were so utterly painful that it killed Missing 9. I will never rewatch this drama again, and I will think back on it with absolute and utter dejection. In a move I normally don't make I am rating this completely on feeling. If I went by my normal system I'd pick between 3/10 to 5/10. (Which is why I wrote that huge paragraph on my rating system above so you could get an idea.) However, the last part of this drama ruined everything. It made characters that started out annoying and grew into pretty awesome characters, annoying again. I couldn't stand characters that I loved from the beginning. Not to mention that the female lead was so awesome and then just turned into a damsel at the end. *Sighs* Everything hinged on a clearly obvious plot line. In then end this drama transformed into a painful drama memory that I wish I could forget.
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1Wasted Potential At Its Finest.
I don't even know from where to begin. The writers tried to bite off more than they could chew and it's laughable.As a casual watcher, if you want to watch seemingly captivating characters with plenty of potential get half baked storylines and an immaculate wardrobe and decor, this one is for you.
First and foremost, believe me when I tell you that the writing and pacing for the main characters is very akin to trekking on a jeep. The *main characters*, who have more than enough screentime. Not the supporting roles. And this is one of those rare times I felt that the side characters were much more well written and had succinct storylines with the very limited amount of screentime. Scratch that-- by the end of the drama, their scenes were the only ones I didn't fast-forward.
Now that the biggest issue I have with this one is out of the way, let's get down to business.
• When Charan, an art Professor with a double identity as a guard who protects the ruling King's family, the Assavadevathins, is sent for a secret mission to retrieve their hidden heir, Khanin, back to Emmaly, he does not know that whom he is about to bring back is going to set forth a series of events that might just change his life forever. Meanwhile Khanin, who is still bitter after being harshly uprooted from everything and everyone he knew, decides to agree to enter a Royal competition to secure the throne for the Assavadevathins in exchange for information about his supposedly dead adopted father.
☆ The Good:
• I think the actors did a wonderful job portraying what was given to them. Even challenging characters.
Shout out to JJ in particular, because for a character that was air dropped, he managed to evoke emotions with his performance, particularly during his final appearance. And NuNew during the first 3 episodes, where he really had to express and face difficult circumstances.
Ava's actress was no joke too. She was very expressive, particularly in EP9.
Then there is Jimmy and Ohm for Ramil and Paytai. They tried their very best till the end, considering the 'half baked' situation, and most of the conjectures about their past and personalities were made solely based on their minute performances; something which is no easy feat as characters like Ramil tend to get easily dumbed down as evil. Both the characters of Ramil and Paytai are emotionally taxing and they managed to steal the thunder and overshadow what was supposed to be the main story.
Also, I adored Chakri. Particularly during his solo shenanigans.
• Everyone had convincing chemistries, which might be one of the reasons this drama managed to stay afloat. Particular note on Khanin and his adopted father's scenes -- they were natural and reminded me why I stuck on till the end.
• The costumes, sets, even the music at times all blended in well.
(I do think the that frilly outfits worn by Khanin were overboard as it looked like his clothes either matched his hair or the decor of the palace half the time. It's a good thing that NuNew could pull off the princely air, otherwise I would have never been able to take Khanin seriously. Ava's, Calvin, Paytai and Ramil's outfits were beautiful, though, without being flashy. )
• I even forgive the writers for the absolutely cartoonish representation of a fictional nation, but with an actual Royal family still alive and kicking, they'd be playing with fire if something even close to reality gets portrayed on screen.
(I took it as one of those fictional Young Adult novels with similar settings. )
☆ The Cold Pricklies:
What I genuinely cannot wrap my mind around is the fact that the scriptwriter is the same one behind "I Feel You Linger In The Air".
• The villains. Writers should learn to write good ones, or choose to not include anyone if they can't pull it off well. This was the last straw for me.
There is another 'villain', but you know that something is terribly wrong when viewers support him.
How in the world am I supposed to root for a character when his entire family were depicted as shady, ignorant and selfish? I frankly did not want the Assavadevathins to win ---- major issues were swept under the rug in favour of poorly written redemption arcs that not only downplayed the seriousness of a situation, but also portrayed the other characters in an unsatisfactory light.
I hated Prince Tharin till the end. They writers made him act like a rabbit when he should've been the one in the frontline. I find it impossible to believe that he was selectively blind to all the ongoings until Khanin arrived.
• There was a certain way the scriptwriter chose to introduce the various royal families and the places where they stay--- Khanin would somehow simply go off to visit that place under some excuse whenever it happened . Which was futile as it did nothing to his character.
It took 8 or 9 episodes before there was some movement relevant to the story because Khanin seemed to have forgotten all about his adopted father.
• As for the main character.... Khanin might be one of the most under-utilized ones I've seen. He had the most screentime, yet his plotline was stuck in a monotonous cycle for half of the show. Yes, him clinging to the one person he could trust was natural. But, they overfrosted their cake.
Which is sad because NuNew is a multi-talented and fantastic performer. *knock on wood*
Very sure that he could've pulled a much more challenging role than this spongecake of a story. The other kids got that part, though. (Ramil, Paytai, Ava, Jay.)
They spent episodes on him doing nothing substantial, choosing to stuff all his development within the first and last part of the drama. By then, all the time we needed to connect with him had become cold.
Which might be why so many people are pissed off.
He seemed to be the most relaxed at times even, considering that he should be the one throwing pots and pans instead of meekly accepting his role as a dress-up- doll. What happened to the Khanin from the first 3 or 4 episodes? Where was his desire to know more about his adopted father and all the shady shenanigans that were going on?
Even he gets forgotten during the final episodes.
• Charan -- How they managed to mess up one of the main characters, out of all, I do not know.
I liked his character much more when he wasn't being viewed through Khanin's eyes. Once he became involved with him, all his enigma was erased and he was reduced to a mere love interest.
And after EP13, I'm convinced that his family was brainwashed/he has some form of Stockholm Syndrome --- the Charan from the early episodes wouldn't simply let things go the way he did. (This is indirectly related to my first Cold Prickly.)
Initially, we could see him bend himself to the rules and even get tired of being tossed back and forth like a bargaining chip. Something he himself says. He almost feels relieved that Khanin simply didn't see him as a disposable person.
It's evident that he knows a lot and has even seen a lot. He could get information and dig through things for Khanin; yet all that gets swept under the rug in favour of his 'love story'. Which I didn't root for as much I thought I would. It just didn't feel natural.
He had the most secrets to keep and his association with a shady character was interesting. Yet, it didn't get fleshed out. All of that was stuffed behind dialogues and you expect me to buy that?
Zee Pruk can act, but I'm starting to doubt that he is getting typecasted in such roles.
• Khanin and Charan's romance needed natural progress - it was new or never established prior to the story, which doubles the writer's and director's task for making it appear convincing to the viewer. Instead, I felt suffocated by the amount of sugar they were attempting to insert into what could've been an excellent portrayal of power dynamics -- the story is supposed to be between a royal guard and a Prince.
What I got was insta-love, which I dislike. Charan seemed to be okay with being tossed about as long as Khanin was involved and Khanin's character lost all purpose for several episodes to fit in their romance.
Never thought I would say this, but watch Cutie Pie if you need a convincing relationship portrayed by the same actors.
Charan and Khanin's relationship literally had no challenges or hardships to get through. It's okay if they didn't have any, but it shouldn't come off as insipid. I liked their rapport much more when they were out of their uniforms.
• This is also one of the reasons why I find the other Royal kids' storyline much more rivetting... and enraging. Both Ava and Ramil had something challenging to get through, regardless of how their characters are written. (Ava being sweet and Ramil being arrogant to everyone outside of his home.)
Then there is Khanin, whom we see, spents most of his time touring or attempting to romance Charan. What was the point of all that? Other than shedding more light on the supporting characters, it brought no development for Khanin. Who learns and seems to promptly forget about his connection to the Snake family; goes for drinks and fun at the Phoenix family and enjoys some pearls before meeting someone at the end of EP8, where the story begins to give him the leverage he needed to get through the competition. But, even then, he doesn't seek the answers for himself.
• Ramil might not have the same amount of screentime as Khanin, but every scene of his kept me intrigued.
There was 'something' to know. His upbringing was clearly convoluted, considering that he was the sole heir for many years and his father's draconian methods to keep him in line put him under a constant state of pressure.
[There is a speech from his side in EP11 which perfectly describes his actions, so I understand where he is coming from and why he is the way he is.]
It's also evident that Paytai, a selected 'companion' was the only other real 'friend' he had. That too, one who was approved by his father.
• Jimmy described his character and couple as the bitter palate cleanser which is exactly what it was.
I wondered why he seemed to say that his character was a balance for the 'sweet' parts, since it looked like he had more potential than to just become a background character. Turns out that he was 100% right.
Don't expect any progress in Ramil × Paytai storyline, which I deem is one of the absolute worst, since they had a very interesting one to build up on and the writer decided to throw it away hastily. I'm calling it half baked because EP14 just nails in the fact that I, as a viewer, don't know anything about their relationship or how it works out.
Where was all the seemimgly established relationship dynamics among the three?
We are introduced to Paytai as a 'companion', who is supposed to get hit in Ramil's stead; then we have Paytai's dream in EP4, which explains his reaction ... yet, I don't know where their relationship stands.
Did Prince Rachata know about it? Did Ramil even know that Paytai cherished him? Because the first few episodes gave no hints about it.
I don't see any steady writing that could bring a neat denouement to these two. Their past remains a mystery. But, atleast Paytai seems elated by the way things went down for them.
• Same with Ava, who is much less restrained, yet has to live with the fact that the misogynistic rules of Emmaly will forever paint her in an unsatisfactory light for her father, however hard she tried. She was the token female character for women empowerment; she clearly displayed defiance and endured endless training... for what?
Her friendship with Ramil is very interesting since Ramil seems to loosen up around her and she gets his nature to an extent. Where was all that?
• Calvin existed just so he could go back and tell his family that Emmaly sucks. Jay is like the only character who seems to know what he wants right from the get go, and where did all that go?
Net is a really good actor, but he needed a stable backstory for it to shine through. His expressions matched mine half the time he was on screen -- wanting to disappear from the spotlight/pure confusion.
• What happened to everyone's mothers? Particularly Ava and Ramil's, since it's not told what had happened to them.
There are women, who played pivotal roles in shaping the events that occurred to the characters'. There are like three of them, even in the main poster and it's even hinted that something major that had taken place in the past was linked to one of the main characters. Yet, everything got stuffed into an episode. Which was purposeless as they had tons of time for an actual build-up instead of a deus ex machina.
• The good thing that this drama brought? It helped me discover excellent actors.
I am now genuinely curious about Love Upon A Time. Also, somehow Ohm's unhinged tweets (which might be his method of actively engaging with fans, considering that he seems to know fandom behaviour well) made their way to my twitter timeline -- it made me explore the fandom of Thai BL pairings (which seems to be companies' attempts to save time and money for conducting additional screentests and workshops/acting classes; a quite logical option), their fandoms in extension; and control of fanservice in general.
It also makes me stress that a few casual viewers like me, who don't follow pairings or fandoms would prefer a good story to elicit the right emotions. Chemistry alone can't save a drama, and The Next Prince, for all it's opulence, relied solely on the actors' strengths to power through.
☆ Final Thoughts:
It's not a terrible drama if you have it on double the speed, and choose which part to watch as you won't miss much even if you skip. But, if you prefer strong scripts and storylines, I suggest you run away from this one.
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The ending ruined what could've been a masterpiece...
It's such a shame because every single episode of this drama was amazing and I loved it so much but the ending was so rushed, badly written and left so many plot holes and unanswered questions. I'm not upset because it was a bittersweet ending, Youth of May has a sad ending but that's one of my favourite dramas of all time. I'm sad because their break up at the end was so out of character. I get that the writers wanted it to be realistic but the whole drama they're portrayed to have this amazing connection but in the last episode they give up on it all and loose touch, we're not even told if they still remain friends. Its disappointing because the burning questions we have throughout the whole drama are never answered... T_T I don't think I could ever rewatch this drama which is such a shame! But aside from that awful ending the soundtrack in this drama, the friendship and the amazing fencing sences are top notch. My advice is to only watch to episode 15.Was this review helpful to you?
2
1This review may contain spoilers
I am my own Pawn..
Oh how I wish I could love this drama more.. I really wanted to, like absolutely wanted to love it.. And I genuinely wanted to rate it higher.. The first half made me feel like it had so much to offer.. It was good, the cast, the story, the way everything flowed and then somewhere around the halfway point, the drama looked me in the eye and started gasping for air.. It felt like it just gave up.. The expectations were real.. Sure it's another historical CDrama about a woman who dies, gets reborn and wakes up ready for revenge even if she has to burn everything down.. We have seen that.. Except we haven't really seen it like this.. At least that's what the first half made me believe..The script, the revenge plot and the political intrigue were all pretty good to an extent but the production quality was an absolute letdown.. Quite a few times it felt like I was watching a low tier drama.. The VFX was pathetic and some scenes had almost no energy.. While some of the ML's action scenes were a blast to watch especially when he stepped in to save the FL, then again, there were also scenes that were really poor.. There's one battle scene where the FL fights alongside the ML and her soldiers and she is slicing through the enemy soldiers, but the whole scene lacked any sort of energy.. It looked like her slices wouldn't even cut a paper let alone a human wearing armor.. There was no energy or intensity at all.. I would blame the director for this..
The heavy use of AI really hurt this drama and took away a lot of the sense of realism.. Seriously, it was bad.. The war cries, the large scale battle scenes.. When you are looking at an army of 3000 men, you should feel something.. Here it all felt lifeless, almost like looking at a watercolor painting.. Some better editing, camera work and a bigger budget would have made this drama a spectacular watch considering the cast..
The cast, well they were top notch.. Gave some solid performances.. Chen Duling as Chu Zhao was seriously good and honestly this role felt like it was tailor made for her.. Except for the action scenes, I guess.. Anyway, she carried the whole drama.. Then again the entire story revolved around her, so she kind of had to.. Zhou Yiran sort of surprised me.. He was really good as Fu Jiu, but his character was underutilized.. He sort of disappears after 16 episodes and barely gets any screen time after that.. On top of that, he had no real impact scenes in the second half.. No fights, nothing that really made him feel like the male lead.. This just added another dent to his identity in the drama.. I wish they had done more with his character.. There was a war going on after all.. They could have shown more of his battles, how he killed the enemy state's prince and so much more.. I don't know why they chose to leave out that part of his arc.. I get that this is Chu Zhao's story but they had a great opportunity to use his character to bring some excitement to the last leg of the drama..
" Zhao, You were meant to soar up there..
And my role is to uphold you "
The chemistry between the main leads is so good that it makes you keep watching even when the story starts to bore you.. Layered and not overly sweet.. Good stuff..
We have to talk about the supporting cast too.. Tang Xiao Tian and Gao Mao Tong were impressive.. The Deng Yi and Xie Yan Fang rivalry was intriguing, but it just becomes too much.. There's so much back and forth between them, but nothing really happens for a long period of time..
This is the kind of drama that would have been okay with lesser episodes.. There were quite a lot that happens that we could have done without.. The pacing feels aggressive yet somehow it just drags on and on.. But at the same time it feels like the drama could have had more episodes as well.. Because it feels like they cut out a lot of the good parts just to make room for the court drama and the political tension.. Characters who were carefully built up suddenly start making decisions that feel like they exist only to push the story to its conclusion.. Deng Yi backstabbing Xiao Xun was one of them..
Overall, I am disappointed that I couldn't rate it higher.. It's not bad, it genuinely isn't.. It just feels like they spent the first half trying to make something special but settled for something average after that.. It's so obvious that quite a lot was cut and in that process we lost a lot of good moments, character arcs and visuals.. This is definitely going to be a 14 episode drama on a rewatch..
P.S. I loved that deep red palace aesthetic and the costumes..
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" To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die ".. - Thomas Campbell
What should I start with?? I hated most of the characters in this drama.. Except obviously our leads and a few of their friends.. The adults especially were just infuriating.. So much of the pain and damage in this story gets buried under the guise of pride and so called values.. It was frustrating to watch.. I managed to avoid the spoilers for so long so I went in expecting something else but definitely not this..Great leads, great performances.. And Zhang Jing Yi is just the best thing about this drama.. What a career she's been having.. She is an impressive actress and she seems to be on a path to glory.. Zhou Yi Ran was good too but obviously this was Jing Yi’s drama..
Now, about the mother character.. In a drama like this, where emotional acting is key to elevating certain moments, you would expect her to deliver a pretty solid performance.. But honestly she didn’t.. It just didn’t feel real to me.. No offense but maybe someone else would have been better suited for that role..
Love is the brightest element here..
But it's also the start of a disaster..
Just a heads up.. The following might sound harsh but that’s only because of how irritated I felt while watching.. No offense to anyone.. This is just how it came across to me..
I honestly hated the FL’s family and her relatives from the core of my heart.. The father was a spineless worm and the mother was a clueless, dumb woman.. They didn’t deserve their kids.. Just giving birth and working hard to raise them isn’t everything.. They were partly responsible for everything that happened.. Every individual in her life failed Qiao Bei Yu.. Her parents failed her too, especially her mother.. Its so hard to understand this, a girl died, their child, their family and nobody except the FL seemed to care?? It took her mother 14 eps to show some concern for her dead daughter.. To open her mouth and question the people who were also part of the reason for her death.. And it took her close to 20 eps to actually react.. Yeah she was depressed, fine.. But does that really take away the blame?? Qiao Bei Yu literally ran back to them, asking for help, begging them to protect her.. And they still sent her back to those monsters they called relatives.. And oh God, where did they even bury her?? Why couldn’t they at least fight for a better place for her??
" Their love is silent but profound " Is it worth it if they couldn't protect their daughter?? Is it worth it if they couldn't make sure their daughter lived a life without being constantly harassed by people?? And is it still worth it if they couldn't protect her even from their own relatives??
I wasn’t expecting this drama to be so story driven and deep..
I liked the ML and his family’s story.. It was scripted well.. Their issues were nothing compared to the FL’s family, so it was actually nice to get some screentime away from that mess for a while..
Something about the couple.. With all the other irritating parts this one really got to me too.. The FL was way too harsh on Ming Sheng.. The only person who was truly ever there for her, who did so much for her and she called him a burden.. I don’t understand how anyone can think that breaking someone’s heart just to push them away is the right thing to do.. What justifies that?? His mother left him, he is distant with his father, his grandfather died.. And now the person he loved told him she hated him and called him a burden.. How is he supposed to feel?? She chose her family.. Fine, good for her.. But is that how you treat someone who did so much for you??
Now the romance part.. It was obviously minimal.. Well they were teens dealing with issues that would be too much even for adults but, they were sooo good together.. The chemistry was strong.. And Zhou Yi Ran the forever green forest.. He was her Lighthouse.. ( You will get the reference if you have watched the drama.. ) I so badly wanted to see their dating era.. But we didn’t get that.. Still that’s alright.. I just hope we get to see them together in a modern drama soon.. The romantic finale was really good but it ended up feeling a bit too short all things considered.. After everything they went through, I just wanted a little more time with them together..
Overall this drama is excellent.. But I think a lot of the poor reviews and lower ratings come from people expecting something else entirely.. It was never just a romance drama.. It’s heavier, more emotional and painfully real at times.. Just go in with no expectations..
A life unremembered is a life truly lost..
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I had expected this to be a successful second season to a beautifully written drama.. Even if not better than the first but at least close to it.. But honestly, it wasn’t.. And I totally understand the low ratings.. I really do.. I am not going to blame the story itself.. If this had been a standalone drama or not a continuation, it would have actually been an excellent one.. But it wasn’t.. After watching 34 eps and waiting 5–6 months, you shouldn’t have to sit through another 12 eps of push and pull between the main leads.. Especially letting someone like Liu Lang who is a complete nobody affect their relationship.. The court politics, the mutiny and everything else were solid, but most of what happened in the first 12 eps felt totally unnecessary.. The foundation for the characters was already built.. What they needed to do was move the story forward.. Instead they were still stuck in the same loop.. Repeating what had already happened in the first season.. Honestly I respect the commitment the writing shows, it knows what it wants.. But I didn’t quite get the fulfillment I was hoping for.. I am only whining because I expected more..If it were possible to erase someone from the story.. It would be Liu Lang.. Enemies?? Yeah I hate them.. But what about people who stay close to you and backstab you?? He literally got his life back and is living well because of the FL and yet he tried to destroy her relationship out of jealousy?? He was supposed to be like a younger brother to her.. His sister did the same thing and now he followed right in her footsteps.. And the fact that this guy hit the ML and still got let off?? I was honestly disappointed at how easily he was forgiven and also how his stupidity and jealousy were sugarcoated as concern for the FL.. Sure he got his redemption arc but he didnt pay for his mistakes..
Liu Chang was pathetic in the first season but here he completely turned into a character unworthy of any pity.. He did some truly nasty things.. It was actually satisfying when the FL hurt him repeatedly, the stabbing scene especially felt good.. But honestly, he still didn’t suffer enough.. That’s why I wasn’t satisfied with how things ended for him.. He should have suffered more pain..
I actually felt sorry for Princess You Zhen.. The cycle of her life was truly sad.. Hurt by the men around her, including her own father.. I am glad she didn’t die in the end.. It meant she had another chance at life, another opportunity to start over..
Ep 19.. I think they were too hasty in confronting Prince Ning.. I mean he literally crushed their decade old plan in just a few days, it felt way too easy.. And the final confrontation, the war could have been handled much better.. It just goes to show how little attention was given to the parts of the story that didn’t have the FL on screen..
While I wasn’t completely satisfied, this was still a watchable conclusion to an amazing story.. In the first season even though Mu Dan was the anchor, the others mattered too.. But in the second season, it became all about her.. No one else had a satisfying storyline.. Even the ML felt underused and sidelined, just to elevate Mu Dan’s character to glory.. I really wished everyone had a meaningful presence..
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A complete basketcase, this drama tried to use formulaic writing and tried and tested cliches to manipulate the viewers into liking it but failed spectacularly.To be honest, in the beginning I didn't understand all the criticism. Sure, it was a superficial romance drama with more beauty than brains but so were many others and everybody liked them just fine.
The cast was doing a good job, there was funny banter, a potential mystery, bromance and I for one, even managed to feel chemistry between the leads. I liked it and wanted to know more.
That feeling lasted for all of about 5 episodes and then the show went to shit in the most extraordinary fashion.
First of all, you know how greedy the drama makers are for money to the point that the product placement in this show is blatant, ridiculously irrelevant and just shoved in your face time and time again. After a point, it feels like you're not watching ads in a drama, you're just watching one big ad with bits and pieces of the drama in between.
Then comes the lacklustre romance. Albeit slow and full of filler at first, you still hoped it would build to something beautiful but suddenly they rushed it to the point that before ever even letting you feel that they have feelings for each other, the couple already exchanges love confessions, plants a kiss or two on each other and acts like they have been in love for a century. And you're just awkwardly standing at the sidelines being like um guys, y'all just met a week ago...
I almost felt like I missed some episodes where they fell in love but apparently it wasn't me it was the writer who did that.
The character development is so bad and the roles are extremely poorly written that I am pretty sure the cast couldn't have saved them even if they tried their best.
Kim Go Eun is a charismatic actress and I like her a lot. And her character here is a badass, loud mouthed cop who needs no saving which is why it made me root for her at first. However, you can't help but see the way she changes from being extremely rude to the ML in one episode and then says I love you in the next. And ofcourse, conveniently it happens right after she sees all of his riches. I am not thinking gold digger, you are.
She also conveniently turns into a weepy damsel in distress whenever they need to hype the hero at her expense. Strong but weak enough for the hero to save her again and again.
Her doppelganger, which is a great opportunity for any actor to show versatility, is literally the same as her original character with bad hair and a bad attitude. No acting change there and they just popped a ridiculous wig on her head to convince us to believe she is a different person.
Now comes Lee Min Ho. As beautiful he is, this man with sparkling gorgeous mischevious eyes has been conning us into believing he is a good actor since many years. It's not that hard to figure out that he recycles his expressions in every drama but lets not go there. He plays his role convincingly enough to give you flutters in the stomach.
He is the perfect dashing super hero who can do no wrong here with excellent fighting skills, Jedi level intelligence and is basically Einstein with a pretty face and a horse.
That's fine we like our romance heroes to be all that but it's not fine when you also try to convince me that this flower boy can suddenly transform into this brilliant and ruthless king/ mafia boss nobody can mess with. I can't buy that because he simply lacks the intensity to be one and honestly we are shown nothing in his background or story to prove otherwise.
So everytime he tried to be a serious king, to me he just felt like a toddler wearing his daddy's oversized shoes and shaking his fist trying to assert authority. Did I find him cute? For sure. Did I take him seriously? Hell no.
Some people said that it's a very hard to understand show and that those who don't like it, actually just don't understand it. Let me pop that bubble right here. It's a very simplistic plot with confused and lazy writing trying to mask itself as complicated. This is a tactic used by the writer because naturally if you make people feel like they don't get what's going on, they're gonna think the show is smarter than them and end up being impressed.
Let me tell you, I understood everything that was going on and it ain't that deep. It's a very commercial show with one goal alone: making money. That's why without putting any thought or effort into plot and execution, they casted hype worthy actors, ripped off another OST, and produced a dumbed down version of Goblin. Unfortunately for them, no amount of Lee Min Ho's boyish smiles can fry our braincells enough for us to lose the ability to tell a good script from bad.
Yes, the cinematography and direction is beautiful but there's only so many pretty color pallets, shots and sceneries you can enjoy till you start to question the bad writing.
Despite all the flaws if you still want to check out this show and just want one reason to push you towards it, then that reason is Woo Do Hwan. Who tried to save the show with his excellent acting and scene stealer self by bringing forward two characters who despite looking the same are entirely different people.
He brought forth the bromance and laugh out loud moments that act as the show's only saving grace. Yeong/Eun Seup are the best characters in the drama and you can't help but fall in love.
But the writer, ever so stubborn on digging her own grave steals that little happiness from us by reducing his screentime as much as possible. Take that as you will.
The skinship in this show is actually pretty decent with some excellent kisses. However, the romance is so poorly paced (trying to be intense just by the FL's cringeworthy crying scenes that pop out of nowhere without any reason) that you never get the feels you otherwise would. Again, I blame the writing because the two main leads have excellent chemistry in real life behind the scenes that just doesn't translate on-screen.
The villain, like every other character is poorly developed, one dimensional and his scenes (the very few there are) are horribly yawn inducing. The second FL (Prime Minister) and the second ML (Shin Jae) were both flat characters left with unexplored potential and by the second half, for the life of me I couldn't begin to make myself care about their stories.
Yes, there are a few scenes that are designed to make people react and make your adrenalin rush but even those scenes are extremely cheesy and come in to being with the help of the most unrealistic and ridiculous plot devices, that you can't help but laugh at.
Ending words: Quite definitely, a lost cause, you should watch it only if you want to take it as a bad parody and laugh at it, instead of with it.
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I call this drama the king of circles to my friends. Why? Because this drama goes in circles over and over and over again. The problem is that this drama should have never been over 10 episodes. The writers stretched this plot so thin that most episodes after episode 9 is the characters talking about the same thing without the plot actually moving forward. It stayed inside of a repetitive state that almost became unbearable to watch. The only thing that kept me watching was Woohyun and Seul Bi who were the only light in this drama. Also the drama has some of the dumbest plot devices I've ever seen.
As for the cast, I think they did an okay job. As most of you know this drama stars the young wonderful actress, Kim Sae Ron, and the two hot Infinite band members as her leading boys, Woohyun and Sungyeol. Kim Sae Ron is the strongest actor in this drama. While I do think Woohyun and Sungyeol do need to work on their acting a bit it wasn't that bad. I think Woohyun was the luckier one in the character choice because his charisma shined through. Sungyeol's character is one of the oddest characters I've ever watched. The writer's made a complete 180 with his character around the halfway mark and decided to make him the villain. Too bad they forget to give him real character motivation to make him a villain. It made Sungyeol's character hard to connect with and at one point I could say I really hated his character. There is a difference between teen angst and just being an asshole. I actually felt bad for Sunyeol (the actor) that he got a character like this. As much as I started to dislike Sungyeol's character the worst character to me was Angel Sunbae. He is a character with no purpose and almost seems to be used as a tool after a while. He would be gone for 3 episodes and then pop back up just to cause drama. He had no other purpose other than being an asshole. This also lead me to questioning the whole angel society because somebody should be regulating these angels.
The writers failed to give the rest of their characters any depth too. They had so many students there and it's a shame that they didn't use them to their advantage. Some of the students had cute romances but I felt like they could have built on these characters a lot more. By the way, the adults in this drama act like children. I have never seen adults act so irresponsible in my life before. They were even more childish then the students were.
The strongest part about this drama is the music. I usually don't pay attention to OSTs but this one is very good. It was the best thing about this drama to be honest.
As for rewatch value, I give it a 2. I would never go back to watch this drama but if I did it would only be to see the beginning of the show.
I would only recommend this drama to people who are fans of Infinite or tell them to watch the first nine episodes for Seul Bi, Woohyun, and Sungyeol (when they actually had common sense) and then skip to episode 18.This drama to me, story and character wise, wasn't good. Even the cute moments between Seul Bi and Woohyun weren't enough to make me stop disliking it. The writing was just too repetitive and the characters refused to grow at one point.
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