Sweet Enough To Give You A Tooth Cavity…
If there’s one thing South-Korean mini dramas absolutely love with romantic-setups it is the “reverse-harem” trope. Unsurprisingly ‘ Peng’( 팽) is no exception and offers viewers the typical cutesy sweet “ potential love interests” for the seemingly “ average” and “ older noona” ( who in reality is only supposed to be thirty) female lead.
Of course it is wrong to entirely critique ‘ Peng’ as “ unwatchable”. Go Sa Ri ( Yoon So Hee) is a 30 year old woman who finds herself rethinking her life decisions after she parted ways with her former boyfriend.Soon she finds herself in a sticky situation as she finds several potential love interests entering her life with complicated feelings evidently growing for them.
The acting is a mixed-bag admittedly. It is hardly Oscar-winning and there are certainly moments where you might question certain line deliverances, but it is certainly passable to watch . Main actress Yoon So Hee has starred in many guest roles over the years but likely is more recognised by K-pop fans for her starring roles in music videos for boyband EXO, an uncredited role in a music video for SHINEE and in one of Super Junior’s concert tours. The actress certainly was decent enough as our female lead and did add her own sweet charm to her role. However the biggest problem with the casting choice for So Hee as Go Sa Ri was that it was hard to truly believe she was the authentic age of her character.
Of course this isn’t to critique the actress or her character Sa Ri entirely. She’s a fairly hardworking heroine. However to explain this point about age further it is important to establish that a younger actor/ actress being cast to play an older (or even vid verse ) isn’t always necessarily a bad move by the casting crew. Often it can work to a drama/ storyline’s advantage by interpolating both with the necessity of their character’s looks, personality or context within the storyline . On the other hand what makes us feel as though a character is truly the age that the writer has mind doesn’t just come down to physical appearance but very subtle touches such as emotions, maturity, popular culture references, generation gaps or social interactions. In ‘Peng ‘ whilst we did see Sa Ri mope about her age at times and show a more mature side also, these key plot touches rarely had more of a quintessential role within shaping Sa Ri’s identity or authenticity as our female lead .
In fact when it boils down to it Sa Ri rarely felt as though she had a more of a realistic edge. She rarely felt flawed or would be allowed to repent for her actions, by often taking central state as the “ victim” or “ pitiful” and even when we did get glances into her life sans romantic relationships, her “ friends” would rarely interact upon a basis which didn’t involve relationships or romance. Even more in-depth glances into her past as well as her familial environment we’re fairly in- existent throughout the drama rarely giving Sa Ri to feel like a well-written female lead.
Naturally the major driving factor of the cutesy pastel-infused romantic setup of ‘ Peng’ boils down to Sa Ri’s “ potential love interests”. ( Unsubtly hinted by one of Sa Ri’s male colleagues that Sa Ri should get married as “she’s getting older”.)Typical of this genre the male leads are mostly used as the “ shiny boy toy” trope with being either fairly good looking, fashionable or a trope archetype in themselves but are mainly used as plot devices to keep the plot moving rather than to have more evident character depth and growth.
Sa Ri’s first “ potential love interest” is Pi Jung Won ( Choi Won Myung). Pi Jung Won is the classic “ childhood friend” trope. Knowing Sa Ri the longest , Jung Won arguably knew the most about Sa Ri out of all the other suitors. The biggest problem with Jung Won as the “ childhood friend” is that whilst he unsurprisingly has “ liked Sa Ri since forever” he never really addresses what initially attracted him to her, his own complicated feelings with Sa Ri viewing him as a fraternal figure as well as meekly remaining in the corner with his hidden feelings until “ necessary plot” drives him out.
Sa Ri’s next potential romantic partner is Yeon Ha Rim ( Kim Hyun Jin). The biggest thing to address about actor Kim Hyun Jin is that in real life he is closer in age to So Hee than his younger onscreen counterpart. His onscreen persona being the embodiment of the “ younger guy”, there’s undeniably mixed feelings for viewers towards this onscreen potential chemistry between their characters ( especially as he does begin to dominate a lot of screen time by the halfway mark). Whilst undeniably Sa Ri does not hide her initial awkward feelings and there are some evident “age appearance” issue addressed , it may raise more questions for viewers by the more sugarcoated approach to realistic factors such as cultural norms, controversy and perceptions towards age gap relationships in South Korea.
Then there’s Sa Ri’s potential suitor through Ki Sun Jae ( Joo Woo Jae)- . Sun Jae embodies the classic “ he’s my boss” and the “ CEO” trope. His potential chemistry with Sa Ri has its strengths and weaknesses. On one side he’s arguably the most mature, decisive and affluent out of the other love interests. On the other hand Sa Ri’s evident discomfort towards pursuing a romantic relationship with her boss does put some strain on their relationship as employer and employee.
Then finally there’s Jeon Woo Sang ( Lee Seung II). Sa Ri’s ex, Jeon Woo spends his time pining over Sa Ri. Whilst some viewers may see this as “sweet”, others will likely see Jeon Woo’s actions as verging upon being a stalker and megalomaniacal from wanting to know about Sa Ri’s love life following her and waiting outside of her house on several occasions.
The final decision by Sa Ri was beyond anti climatic. It was not necessarily bad per say that Sa Ri made this choice as it was upon her own grounds, however, rather than providing this choice with more explanation or build-up, Sa Ri’s decision truly gave the series a poorly-inserted deus ex machina ending; added for the “ unexpected”, yet lacking in more coherent character direction or growth in the process.
So what is left to say about ‘ Peng’? As a miniseries ‘ Peng’ is pretty much what it said it would be on the tin; a romantic show reverse- harem about an older woman choosing her potential romantic love interests. Whilst the show was lighthearted, it often seemed to struggle with conveying more depth to the characters, plot drive ( aside from romantic misunderstandings and lacklustre tropes) and a decisive ending with many profound themes often feeling sugarcoated. Whilst not unwatchable per say ‘ Peng’ lacked that specific zest of being an engaging , memorable or well-written storyline with an ending that will make even the most patient of viewers towards what on earth you just wasted your time upon.
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That being said, this drama does a pretty good job of representing the entertainment industry including the good and the bad. You have the female lead who just happens to get lucky over and over again making her way to the top while her friend has to claw her way up to the top doing a lot of shady things. Some actresses have to fight their way through and continue to fight to maintain their position, while others just genuinely get lucky and their talent is recognized. I also loved how they depicted the complicated relationship of frenemies and business rivals. Another cool thing is that it has some pretty epic celebrity cameos of actors appearing as themselves, including Orlando Bloom. At times, especially in the beginning, it felt like this drama was being used as an outlet for Tencent to advertise/promote its other projects / movies...especially with its star studded celebrity cameos. However, it was still fun to watch because you never knew who would show up.
Another thing I liked is that the male lead is "allergic" to females due to some traumatic past. While I have seen this plot multiple times in other dramas, I liked how the female lead is no exception to the rule. He is allergic to her as well and that is one of the complications of their romance that he has to overcome. The chemistry between the two leads is pretty good and it's fun seeing them go from enemies to lovers. Scenes between these two characters are more romantic comedy, whereas the rest of the drama is more of a melodrama with the female lead pursuing her dreams of becoming a recognized actress.
One of things that hurt the drama is that it is pretty lengthy and the last 10 episodes or so dragged. At the end of the day, I did enjoy this drama and felt like it was worth watching once (especially for Push). I don't plan to rewatch it though.
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At the beginning this drama seemed to be a light and silly romance but soon became all pain, tragedy and suffering. Even the happy end doesn't feel so happy. The prodution is low budget, the action scenes are most laughable and the acting is not very good. The protagonists were ok, Ireine Song was the best for me, the poor girl had to cry many liters, I bet she had to drink much water to rehydrate. The ML made a good job as the fool but when he was "normal" he was just like a store mannequin that cries, but he is very beautiful and this compensates any flaws LOL.7/10 for me.
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gave me video game vibes
I was just looking for something new to watch when I stumbled upon this series. I got curious because the plot literally made me say 'what' because it is confusing.The story was actually nice. It may make you question things especially how fast the progress is and the camera setting. The actors are really good and my favorite is Chang Ryul. His character might come out crazy but he is just desperate to save his father and to get the kidney lol.
They made the ending looked like there is a possibility of season 2 so I am looking out for that. Overall a nice series to watch. 6 eps of about 35 mins each
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I THINK I LOVE YOU
Sometimes you watch something that leaves you feeling so much and yet not enough, this drama was one of such works. Plot wise, after the many high school bls, this story was exactly the something different I was looking for. Though, was it really something different? Cuz this is literally the current world situation, only difference is, it comes with a side of rainbow and it has its own background soundtrack.Listen, before I start this review, I need to get this off my chest. No one but the people responsible are at fault for Victor's death. From how I saw it, nothing could have saved Victor that day, no matter what, he would have died. I saw a lot of people angry at Tanwa for not telling Trin until it was too late. People, did we watch the same thing? Did you not see the kind of character Victor was? That boy did not take no for an answer. How many times did Trin reject him and how many times did he keep insisting? And since Trin became their teacher, did he not constantly advice them against the protests, and did Victor and his friends listened to him? No, so did you think Victor would have listened to him this time? Victor was about to leave, and felt he owed it to his friends to stand with them one last time, there was nothing anyone would have said that he'd have listened. Even his mother said after his death, 'he died fighting for what he believed in,' so she knew it herself, Victor would have been at that rally no matter what.
Trin & Tanwa
So yes, I was angry when Trin took some of his anger on Tanwa for Victor's death. It hurt that after seeing the way Tanwa's father treated him, Trin hit him and then left him. Trin got Tanwa to stop running away and faced his emotions, to open his heart and love, and then, he left him, and ran back to France. And the moment he said he was leaving I dead ass went, 'Yes, ran away, of course running away is your speciality, you did it when your girlfriend died too.' So yes, I was in my feelings andwas like, yeah if those two don't end up together I'd be fine with it, let them heal and move on, Tanwa don't need to be around whatever quilt Trin is feeling. But.
But, but, I also understood Trin. It's in human nature to think we could have done something to make a difference when things like this happens. Would Trin had been able to talk Victor out of going this time, when he hadn't been able to talk him out of anything so far? Would he have reacted the way he did if he'd known Tanwa actually warned Victor, but Victor made him promised not to tell him? We'd never know. Cuz at that moment, giving the information he knew and the hurt he felt, he reacted accordingly, so I understood Trin, but it still hurt that at the end of the day, Tanwa was the one who was left behind again, cuz in trying to please two people at once, he ended up breaking a promise and losing the man he loved.
But Tanwa grew, and it was beautiful to see. We met him as this carefree hippie who didn't care about anything, just here to enjoy life and make paper cranes. But with Trin he changed and it was nice, but then everything fell apart for him again. First he broke, completely, but slowly, he put the pieces together and I was so happy for him. Thanks to his that one friend with the hair who never gave up on him. That father, all he did was be a father like he was supposed too, so he gets no thanks from me.
As for Trin he actually left France and came back home to make a difference, and he didn't sit on his arse, and actually worked on making change, though when the side he choose got hard he left again. Sure he said he could continue doing the work he was doing out of the country, and perhaps he could, a pebble thrown at one end of the ocean could make a tsunami at the other end of the world, so yes he could, but for half of the finale, I felt like he was running away, probably, he was doing both. And I don't blame him, this was the second time his pain was being written with the same ink and ending.
Personally, I think they'd both would have survived on their own if they hadn't ended up together again. But, I'm glad Tanwa learned to respect himself, choose himself, and grow before he decided to speak out and then go and try to make things right with Trin. They both needed that time to sort out their feelings and heal, and they were stronger for it when they got back together.
Krailert & Naran
I am surprised one of these two didn't die. I am not gonna lie, I watched this whole drama thinking Krailert was a coward and he was gonna die a useless death. Yes, I was cheering on him, happy when he was all in love and hating on clothes and playing piano, but my opinion of him was not much.
Cuz really, he was in a marriage he didn't want. He did what his superiors told him with little to no opposition, and most of the time his best effect was to wish the soldiers under him would listen to him, and make sure his nephew wasn't anywhere near whatever disaster was coming. Even the day that Victor died, yes he tried to save the students, even tried to send Trin out on some errand to save him, but in the end because he didn't really hold any respect or power in the army from his soldiers, after all this years, his men disobeyed him, and he ended up losing the one trusted man he had.
And it wasn't that he didn't try to do the right thing or speak up, it was just that he held so little power, that his voice and effects meant little to nothing in the long scheme of things. Yes, he did what he could, but it wasn't enough, which got me thinking with how much power his father in law held, how the eff did he end up with none but that dude with the cigar ended up with so much? Was it because he was too kind, too nice for a profession in politics when he'd rather be playing the piano naked? Either way with a family like his wife's backing him, him basically ending up a 'yes, sir' dude at work was unfortunate. Though his ending was an unhappy trophy husband, so really, short end of the straw.
So, I was so so so happy when in the finale he grew a pair and finally spoke out, though, what good it did him, he was immediately arrested and was about to die or imprisoned for life, until his wife came in to save him. But even so, I was so happy that he decided to speak up and to tell the truth, even knowing what consequence he would face. Both Naran and I were very proud of him.
Naran, spoke a big game of wanting change, of wanting to tell the public the truth, and for a while he was passionate about it and did it, but when he kept being silenced, he allowed himself to be silenced. Sure there wasn't much he could do with a boss like that, but thinking about it, he'd write, tried to push, be silenced and he'd let it go. He knew how horrible those politicians were, yet, he didn't really talked those student out of anything, just stood in the crowd with them with his camera, taking shoots and videos that never saw the light of day. Even Victor's father's book, in the end it was actually Krailert who called in that favour for him to get it published.
Yes, he had no power when against such powerful people, but the pen is mightier as they say, so... Anyway, I was glad he quit. And also, he could have had his own publication had he lied and stayed with his girlfriend, but it was good he didn't want to add to the pain by staying with her. I was happy he came clean and let her go, otherwise he'd have ended up in an unhappy, suffocating marriage like Lert did. Though, was a one way ticket to wherever he went any better? Probably.
Was their ending sad, yes, but again, I am still shocked not one of them died and they both made it alive. Though, are they even alive? He was forced to leave the country alone without even seeing the man he loved one last time, and Lert was threatened to remained in an unhappy, unwanted marriage as a live-in sperm donor. So, I say alive with huge question mark.
Secondary characters:
Dhevi :
I was not surprised one bit that Krailert's wife was pulling strings. Literally, her hair was never out of place no matter the time of the day, of course she was silently a force to be reckoned with. Woman to woman though, does forcing a man you know does not love you, plus in this case, wasn't even intimately interested in you, ever make this people happy? What did she get out of this? A husband who is dead inside? A baby? Bishes be crazy. Naran's girlfriend hit him with a shoe and moved on, what Krailert's wife did was just cruel. Girl why? And all that to save force cuz of social norms? What was the point?
Victor:
I liked that loser. He was so adorable when he was in love, and I'd admit, I was lowkey looking for drama and going, 'you know what, just one, one tiny kiss.' I know it would never happened cuz Trin saw Tanwa one time and was a goner rearranging his bookshelf in the middle of night, but still, I was delulu and wanted something, I'd have taken a very firm handshake even, In the end, he died for what he believed in, gone too soon, yes, but he left a mark on the friends he left behind and that counts for something.
Veera:
His death hit so hard, cuz at one point I was like, hmmm he loves the wife too much, you think he'd snitch? Shame on me for thinking bad of him, cuz he didn't. In the end whether for Dhevi or Krailert, he was loyal, and died protecting them. Poor boy didn't even get to attend his fake wedding. I still feel how sad and hard I cried during that episode where both him and Victor died, and with Mile singing Dawn in the background while everyone broke down in tears did not help. Damn that episode broke me.
Which brings us to why everyone on this cast needs to win an award, especially the four main leads. Everyone did so amazing with their characters and actually looked like they enjoyed coming to work and producing this amazing series for us. And it was an amazing series. I loved every moment of it. The plot was wonderfully executed, and everything from the cinematography, direction, editing, costumes, casting, script and the music made me like it more. Speaking of the music, the original soundtrack was amazing, I saved almost all the songs on the show to my playlist. Loved them!
I highly recommend this to all bl/drama lovers out there, cuz this is so much more than just a bl drama. The genre and topic might not be for everyone, but if you are looking for a drama with good plot, direction, acting and overall amazing production, give this one a chance, it's one of the best bls/dramas that I've seen that's come out of the Thailand. I am looking forward to more from the cast. BeOnCloud, thank you!
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It's always easy to kill off one of the main characters the viewer likes and affect his emotions in such a way. On the other hand, making a beautiful love story with a happy ending, THAT I consider art.
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1I love all the shows done by the director and the writer of Reply 1988: from Reply 1997, Reply 1994, Prison Playbook and Hospital Playlist but Reply 1988 is not only my favorite work of the combo Shin Won Ho/Lee Woo Jung (director-writer) but also my favorite Kdrama of all time.
After watching this for 3 times, the show still has the same impact every time i watch it. You will laugh and cry, laugh some more, and cry some more. This is not just a mystery love story, but it's more about family & friendship. The story sounds simple but you will be amazed how the show was perfectly directed and written. You will finish this series and you will feel that you are part of their story.. that they are your friends and you are their family as if you know all of them. I tell you this show has many characters but you will know each and every character in the series. That's how brilliant the writer is.
You might not be hooked right away just by watching 1 episode. When i recommend this show to my friends, i always tell them to at least watch 5 episodes before deciding to stop or continue. I know a lot of us has this tendency to just watch the pilot episode and decide if we will continue to watch or not. Reply 1988 is a slow paced drama. It is slow but a lot of things are happening in all of the characters. You will not be bored in every episode. There are so much funny and heartwarming scenes. And the more you finish each episode, the more you will get hooked and won't realize that you already finish the entire 20 episodes (some of the episodes even last for 2 hours).
If you want a feel good drama, i strongly recommend this. It is very nostalgic, realistic, heartwarming, funny and romantic. The show does not need major twist and unrealistic villains. It is as real as it gets. It is definitely a CLASSIC and truly a MASTERPIECE.
"A time so warm and pure, that it was painful. Can you hear me? If you can hear me, answer me, my 1988, the days of my youth." – Sung Deok Sun
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Rom Com that Rom Coms
The plot gets a 9.5 from me because it said “rom com” and it delivered romance and comedy. If you’re looking for angst, drama, suspense, historical accuracy, etc this show is not it. It stays light and stress-free; conflicts resolve relatively quickly. A feel-good show if you need a pick me up.I loved the chemistry between the leads. They have a playful chemistry and the battle of wits was entertaining. & Personally for me I loved the FL. She was confident, intelligent, independent, and sassy. And I’m a sucker for MLs who fall in love with their FL’s confidence and strength. I thought they did a great job building on their romance—lots of late night conversations and voiceovers that show you the WHY of them falling in love. Their romance never gets sidelined for secondary characters either.
It’s not a show to make you think hard but it still does a good job with character developments. There’s a running theme of freedom that focuses on the FL and the women in the show; and through the men in her life, you see why she falls for the ML as he’s the one who loves her for who she is and respects her autonomy.
Other pros:
- fun secondary characters
- a solid ending that stayed true to the genre
Cons
- some choppy editing/plots but I’m assuming they had to cut down to 26 eps from the rumored 30. I always give cdramas a pass towards the end lol.
( Edit: Will add that some of the plot at the end may feel out of place but it’s clearly written to reflect the “freedom” theme and how certain people’s perception of love can be confining. The plot towards the end exists to flesh out how much the leads mean to each other even if they’re not always vocal about it. )
Anyway, recommend people giving this one a shot. I think it’s highly underrated and anyone who’s a rom com fan, will likely enjoy it. :)
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I wasn't originally planning on watching this, but I don't regret choosing to. This is the kind of drama that I could repeatedly rewatch multiple times because the story is so sweet and lighthearted.
Although the plots rather simple, I still loved every second of it. It's so visually beautiful, the bright and happy feeling you get when watching this ahh I'm so soft. The relationship between Hong Jo and Kim Sol Ah is so cute and my heart always flutters when they are together! The cast was really good too, I liked all the characters. I also found myself laughing a lot while watching this, the humour is light, it won't make you crack up and wheeze but I still loved it.
The drama overall was so heartwarming and I will definitely rewatch it in the future!
By the way, the cat isn't that creepy. Some people think it is, but it's not that bad. It's kind of cute
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I have watched so many dramas which had a really strong beginning but all went to disappointment. Not this one! It won't dissapoint you until the very end :)
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A bad series, riddled with writer and director errors.
It was one of the worst series I've watched recently. It was completely fake. Nothing was complete; it was wrong, incomplete, flawed, completely unrealistic, and completely fake. I was hopeful at first because it featured Liue Xie Yi. I thought it couldn't possibly be a bad series. I wish I hadn't. It's a shame for this actress. Meng Zi Yi and her chemistry are zero. Meng Zi Yi is simply unsuitable for this series, this character. Her wide-eyed performance, her wide-eyed, angry, murderous gaze in every scene, whether positive or negative, her inability to adjust her gaze, and her coldness are the hallmarks of the series. There's supposedly love between the two; they're in love, to death. But I never saw it. Such a fake. I never felt it throughout the series. Aside from a couple of hugs, we never saw any closeness. They crammed some of that into the final episodes. Those were miles away from reality. It just didn't happen.Princes aren't princes, Princesses aren't princesses, the queen isn't queen. She's the worst. While she's the prince's maid, I think she seduces the king of another country. She becomes his concubine and then kills the queen. Because these details aren't fully presented. They're fragmented. She's ruined a country like this. Not a single intelligent person is saying anything. How can a queen be so casually wandering around, having a secret affair with a prince, and worrying about petty things?
This queen and one of the princes are burning in a fire. Yet, the door is open. If she had left, she would have gone somewhere else. That's what we're shown. She escapes with only a slight burn on her cheek. The prince burns to death. Yet, there are people waiting outside. No one sees this woman leave. They watch. She returns to her country in this state. She continues her evil ways. It's completely lame.
The fight scenes are also lame. There are very obvious flaws. They're visible. They're filmed without seriousness. The series is full of fakery, soullessness, triviality, and carelessness. Everything but the actors is bad. The script, direction, costumes, and makeup are terrible. I gave it a 6,5, but I gave it to the actors. I gave it to the effort. It's a 5.5.
How do we understand mistakes? Let's say the princess is 10 years old and her teacher is 25. She trains them as children. The princess arrives at 25, the teacher arrives at 40, but she looks younger than the princess. Not a shred of makeup, no aging, not even a mustache. It shows a time 10 years later. Negligence, indifference.
The prince and princess relationship. They haven't seen each other since childhood. Let's say at least 10 years. There's no trace of longing. There's no warmth of reunion. It's distant, cold, and completely unprepared.
The state teacher receives a decree from the king. He's going to give it to the princess. He puts her to the test. If he accepts the decree during the test, the arrow moves, and a doctor shoots the woman. If he doesn't accept the decree, the woman is saved. The decree burns. The princess doesn't accept the decree. She saves the woman. You wonder who the woman is. The doctor who knows the princess's poison turns out to be. In that state, he starts making an antidote. Why does the teacher choose a doctor and a poison doctor instead of someone unqualified? Does anyone understand? I don't. Then this doctor cleans up their poison. In other words, he saves the princess and the chancellor. Especially in the final scene, they capture the empress. They would hold her, tie her up, make her talk, and punish her in some way. They could learn the antidote. But they don't. The empress is telling them a story. They listen. Then the plant from which the antidote is produced appears. The empress strikes the candlestick, and the plants instantly burn. It turns to ash. They can't save her. That's the kind of scene. The aftermath is even worse. The empress imprisons them. She leaves them in the middle of the fire. Good God, you know. You wonder who's saving them. The teacher does. So, the wounded, unsure, shabby, barely standing queen was about to kill the princess and the chancellor. They were saved by the half-dead teacher. A complete disgrace. An impossible scene. How can you make a series this bad? If someone sabotages it, this is all it will get. So, I congratulate these guys. I didn't like them. I congratulate the actors, except for Meng Zi. I didn't like her either. Meng Zi was the second or third lead. He's transitioned to lead acting, but he can't quite show the success he has in second and third roles here. My opinion: He needs to adjust his gaze. He shouldn't brag about his big eyes. He should learn to use them. He's used to the evil gaze. He constantly looks like that. He's wrong. He should play the villain opposite the lead actor. He'll go from success to success. It suits him. I'm sorry I criticized him so much. He should watch the series. He'll see for himself that it's not. Liu Xue Yi is quite good. I like her. Her face is an actor's. She plays it. She was very good. Liu Ling Zi played the villain, but in my opinion, she was better than Ming Zi. At least she looks good. Her posture and approach are much better. She's a more suitable candidate for the lead actor. Fang Jin Fan is an actress with potential. She has a pretty face. She's childish. Once she gets over that, she'll be a good actress too. Xu Jing Ya surprised me. It was her first drama, but I thought it was good. It'll happen. He needs a little more experience. I found Gao Han very successful. He was especially excellent in his scenes with Maggie Huang. He showed off his extreme obsession with her very well. Well done. By the way, I also found Maggie Huang successful. Bian Chang, Wang Jia Xuan, and Zhang Zeng Yang were standout actors.
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2-Storyline/Plot : Almost the same from the anime though it was a bit rushed and lacked many important events which made it feel wrong sometimes. However, script writers managed to take the right path after a lot of struggle.
I watched the anime so the story was predictable to me. As for those who haven't seen the anime, this storyline may seem really absurd to watch.
3-Acting/Cast : Teppei was one of the main reasons I watched this since he's cute and *insert shallow feelings*.
Beside that, I don't believe that the acting department wasn't that amazing or appealing; it was acceptable overall.
4-Music : It was kind of a normal music not too special not too lame.
5-Rewatch value : Well, people who fell for it hardly would defenitely rewatch, others would think of it as a waste of time.
6-The ending : It was satisfying. it wasn't the type of ending that would make you jump of your seat so don't expect too much.
7-Overall : It wasn't that bad but it wasn't that great either. It could've been much better yet it wasn't a disappointing adaptation.
P.S : For those who watched the anime and liked it you may want to watch this without high expectations or prejudices; it will much better that way.
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A DRAMA TO DROP EARLY- TOO LONG AND TORTUOUS
Story: This is a story about marriage, mothers-in-law, raising children. The thesis of the writer - the characters must be rude, mindless, selfish, overbearing, dishonest, uncaring, unethical, and basically devoid of normal human responses.The main couple meets at work. The older male is the number 2 man in a huge investment firm and meets an upstart new young employee and falls head over heels with her ending in a quick proposal and one nightstand. She immediately becomes pregnant. Since the company has a no dating rule -- their decisions from this point forward become the source of "FANTASY and what makes this drama insufferable but still lures you to watch. From the point of this ill-begotten decision (which is really early in this 40 episode drama) the viewer must watch this marriage fall into an abyss of hell.
Curiosity will cause you to continue to watch, but after a while, you are watching and screaming at the television
What is family and why is there all of this negative energy in this family? If you ever thought you were in a bad marriage situation - well you will not feel that way after watching this drama.
I am just going to list the WHY I HATE THE FEMALE CHARACTER (not going to dwell on the MALE CHARACTER because I viewed him as STUPID, A WIMP, and IMPOTENT.
1. what would be the natural order of establishing a family with this first quiz? Who leaves the company?
2. when the company does not welcome pregnant employees, and you know it - what should you do as a pregnant woman (especially when given an opportunity?
3. When you are pregnant what do you decide to ingest or who chooses where you are going to give birth?
4.When you have a premature baby and your body has not healed what is the first thing you worry about - your job or the baby?
5. Why do you listen to your divorced, sick, selfish mother when making decisions?
6. Why don't you take the blame for your bad decisions and not shift them over to your husband7
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7. Why are you so jealous and accusing of "affairs" when you are the coldest most argumentative woman ever portrayed in a drama?
I can go on and on and continue complaining about the writer's portrayer of this character. As you begin to feel something is seriously wrong with the messages of this drama to any viewer, in any country - let alone the country of origin you should tell yourself - HIT the REALITY button and DROP. Even enduring to the end will make you unhappy. Without revealing any more spoilers., I issue a precautionary warning - this is an ABNORMAL relationship and don't believe anything the writers spew at you - especially the ending.
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