Reviews

As an aspiring sports psychologist, this is definitely a very interesting one for me to watch! I love how there are elements of sports psychology within each episode, which is good as it gives this new field some spotlight. Also, it is the perfect time to come up as I can claim this as 'revision' as my exams are coming up!

Academics aside, this drama is upbeat, cheerful, hilarious with the necessary tear-jerking bits that is essential in a good k-drama. Another reason why this drama is so good is because it looks at the different dimensions of love: self-love, young love, family love and unrequited love.

As you go through each episode, it sends out a sometimes subtle, sometimes clear message of being able to accept oneself before being able to accept others. Also, that there are certain times when the things that have been said/done cannot be taken back. Despite its quite cheery surface, it tackles a lot of life lessons, which is a good thing as you'd want to watch a drama learning something about life.

I'd recommend this to anyone, especially those who are interested in sports and the psychology of it (and the athletes) and also those who are just a sucker for love, whatever kind that is. It also has really funny moments and I'd bet it'll make all the tears worth it.

This drama, swag.

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I am not very good at writing reviews, so i apologize in advance.

Story:
In my opinion the story is good but it could have been better. There were some plotholes, but they covered them well with a lot of plot twists. I hate the ending since it's like the story is suddenly cut off. I do hope that they will make a second season at some point.

Acting:
The acting is okay compared to many other japanese dramas. I liked the cast and their portraition (is that a real word?) of the characters. The characters felt real and somewhat relateable.

Music:
I didn't think that much of the music, mostly because i didn't really pay attention to it. In my opinion it was lacking. I liked the Intro/Outro song.

Rewatch Value:
I think it has an okay rewatch value if you don't watch it soon after the first time. I think i might rewatch this in a couple of years and still love the mystery without being able to remember the twists.

All in all 7/10

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This drama had both good and bad traits, but unfortunately, didn't feel like it stood out very much. Because I am a sap, I loved the corniness and humor towards the end of the drama, but these were the only traits that really stood out to me. That being said, the humor was mastered greatly and it made me laugh throughout the drama. It had some darker edge to the drama, probably thrown in there to balance the corniness and humor, but it was handled okay.
What brought my marks down for this drama is that the romance itself didn't seem that noteworthy. For all the time and script dedicated to it, you would think that the romance would be superb, but it felt sort of dull. Perhaps this is due to the lack of build up that it takes for the two main characters to get together, and the fact their romance happens so quickly. The romance (while funny because of the humor) just didn't provide the audience with substance to make it significant or special. It felt kind of dry, so much so, that the side romances were actually almost handled better (with more depth) than the lead romance itself.

So for the main romance, I rate this drama low, 5.0.
For the side romances, I rate this drama 7.5.
For humor I rate it 9.0.

It had potential for me, just didn't quite achieve it.
Overall, 7.0

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This is basically Lost In Austen with kdramas. The premise is almost exactly the same, the difference is that, here, the person being inserted in the story does not belong to the same culture as the story itself, that is to say, she's a white girl in an idealized version of South Korean culture, solely marked by what kdramas depict of it and what tropes they use. Therefore, they call it "DramaWorld" as if a) kdramas were the only dramas out there and b) by solely referencing dramas, they think they're allowed to take it lightly with how idealized the representation of South Korean culture actually is.

For what it is, I guess it's entertaining, they make fun of tropes and say some things a lot of us are thinking when watching dramas in general (my favorite quote being the male lead admitting to being a jerk) and they do twist things up a bit, which is rather interesting to some extent. It's short and ends with cliffhangers so you could end up watching it all in one sitting and be fairly entertained. I don't think they're aiming for it to be realistically depicted, since it's all more or less in an ironic tone, exaggerated acting and weird choices aren't too much out of place. It's not the best performed drama out there, not at all, but it's not taking itself seriously either, so it doesn't really bother that much that it isn't. For the most part, because Justin Chon can be too much for me sometimes in everything I've seen him in.

My main issue with the drama is linked to something I've noticed in the last 7 to 10 years in the kpop world and not so much (or almost at all) in the jpop world. When kpop became more exportable to English-speaking cultures, especially in USA, people who came into the world of Asian music and dramas then started sort of expecting it to be catered to them rather than seeing it as something made for other audiences, a foreign product of which they were guests to, something I believe jpop fans were always used to. For example, I started seeing kpop Youtubers criticize kpop bands for not using English grammar correctly in their videos, or seeing kpop fans question why the bands they liked had to "bother to go to Japanese shows and sing in Japanese at all" and things like that. Instead of adapting to these products, the new crowds started expecting the products to be adapted to them and their western views, and I found it particularly curious how kpop, contrary to jpop, started attempting to cater back to them.

Taking that into account (especially when I compare this to Lost In Austen, which was my first thought upon seeing it) I feel that this drama is more the North American view of what kdramas are rather than a kdrama in itself. This is taking what an American white girl idealizes from kdramas, as in tropes, cliches and plot devices, and romanticizing that in a fictional world where culture isn't even mentioned. When cultural stuff appears, it's rather as a "drama genre" or a "trope" rather than an actual cultural representation, separating this "DramaWorld" from South Korea as a whole. This makes me uneasy, because it reduces things that are a product of South Korean society and culture as "just kdrama things" under the view of the American white people who were in charge of creating this and, by extension, of the protagonist, who rather than trying to subvert the cliches or question the narrative, idealizes what is problematic of kdramas and overlooks what is culturally specific.

I understand this drama isn't meant to be serious, that it's meant to be a parody, but to me it represents the western view of South Korean media, pushing aside what it really is trying to be. If this had been about this white girl learning things from this culture and also influencing the female protagonist of the drama with some of her western ideas, to create a change of perspective for both (I hate to say this, I really do, but kind of what Teen Beach 2 was about) or if it had been about a South Korean girl getting into the world of dramas and questioning what she considers her idealizations and aspirations of her own culture, then it would have been much more interesting to me. Even as a parody.

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I love everything about this drama. The people, the intrigue, the mystery...and the food. If ever I saw a drama that made me hungry almost instantly, it's this one. All of it just looks so good...it's like you can almost smell it through the screen. Is that a little weird? Maybe, but it's the only way I can think of to describe what it feels like to watch this show.
Speaking of feelings, if you are looking for a show that really has the potential to tug at your heartstrings (as awfully cringey and cliche as that sounds), this is definitely that. It's a very calming and sentimental show to sit down and watch. It feels like I should be snuggled up in a blanket with a cup of tea at the end of the day watching this. (Now, I say that, but there are some episodes that made me cry...I don't cry at movies...take that for what you will.)
When all is said and done, though, the episodic bite-sized nature of this drama is part of what really made it enjoyable for me. I didn't have to commit to a bigger story every time I wanted to watch it. I could just watch an episode (though, let's be real...I never could stop after one) and get an encapsulated story within that half-hour (there is one exception...the only two-parter that falls around the halfway point...that one WILL make you cry).
Long story short, I will definitely be watching this one again. The first time I saw it, I honestly didn't want it to end, which doesn't usually happen for me. This is the first time I ever saw a drama and legitimately wished it was real...that the restaurant was a real place that I could go and get some amazing kimchi spare ribs and talk to the man that never judges you, always welcomes you with open arms, and is always a shoulder to cry on should you need it. Now, if you'll excuse me...I'm off to book a trip to South Korea.

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Best drama everr.
Totally in love with the story, plot, and great cast !
I watch it nonstop even 50 episode seem so short to me.
Only kang ji hwan can pull it off the protagonist
The lead female is a total beauty, watching her turn to adult is lovely.
Also i love how the evil guy jin tae hyun bring the characters. It's soo amusing!

All in package : touching romance, with a lil bit comedy scene.
Revenge, greeds, money,power,loyalty, criminals.
All of them seem so realistic!

There's another drama named "incarnation of money" starring kang ji hwan too, and has a bit similar story.

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