WORTH THE WAIT. HIGHLY RECOMMENDING
Everything about this series is very good. The setting, the plot, characters, ost, acting and everything is so perfect. You can feel what the characters are going through with their excellent acting. Acting is so good even we can ourselves feel what they are going through. I'm so in love with the OST and the special thing is Barth's song is called Tanrak. I really love this ❤️🩹.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Uff....
One of the messiest short dramas I’ve watched… But honestly, the "messiness" of the plot isn’t the problem here.This is a story about Liang Chen (LC) and He Wei Xing (WX).
They first meet when WX accompanies a friend to a photoshoot audition for LC’s clothing brand. But instead of the friend, LC becomes captivated by WX—and chooses him as his model.
From there, the two gradually grow closer day by day. Problems begin to arise when LC’s fans start noticing their closeness, while the other models become jealous of WX’s sudden rise and his relationship with LC.
So, how will their relationship turn out in the end?
That’s basically the main story. However, the biggest issue with this drama on MDL is that it actually consists of two separate parts, yet they are not properly listed there.
The 1st season—8 episodes, 15–20 minutes each—is actually great. It’s clear, well-paced, and tells the full story of how LC and WX meet and fall in love. As a standalone, it works perfectly.
Then comes the 2nd season, or what I called special episodes—4 more episodes, same length. This is the one listed on MDL. And honestly? It sucks. Confusing. All over the place. Feels like random scenes without context.
I watched it first—completely lost and frustrated. Only later did I find a review by CCJM mentioning a prequel. That’s when I realized: I watched them in the wrong order.
If you don’t know about Season 1, this “special” season makes no sense at all.
So overall:
* Season 1 (prequel/demo): 8⭐ — solid, heartfelt, well-told
* Special Episodes (listed on MDL): 2⭐ — messy, disjointed, underwhelming
* Averaged together, that leaves the drama with an overall score of 5⭐..
If you are planning to check this one out, make sure you track down the 8-episode version first, or you will be completely lost!
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Brutal, Over-the-Top, and Extremely Satisfying
This drama hooked me right from ep 1. It starts with horrifying bullying and a student’s suicide, so the atmosphere is dark and frustrating from the beginning. But then the ERPB inspector enters and starts beating the bullies up, and honestly… it felt insanely satisfying. After watching so many dramas where bullies keep getting away with everything, seeing them finally get punished felt refreshing.
The show is definitely over-the-top and unrealistic.. one man beating 20–30 thug students alone is crazy..
But I genuinely didn’t care because the drama knows exactly what kind of fantasy it wants to deliver: villains losing instead of constantly winning. Sometimes you just want to watch criminals and bullies get immediate karma instead of waiting until the final episode.
What I liked most is that the drama didn’t only focus on abusive students. It also showed toxic parents, corrupt systems, and adults enabling violence. Some episodes were emotionally frustrating, especially the ones involving manipulative parents and the pressure they put on their children. Hyeon Min’s mother drugging her own son for academic success and u jin's mother stalking the teacher were the most disturbing parts of the drama for me.
The female lead annoyed me at times especially her voice when she screamed was irritating.... she acted recklessly and wasn’t very strategic, but I did like her almost maniacal energy. The villains were genuinely infuriating, which made their downfall even more satisfying.
Overall, this show is not subtle, realistic, or emotionally delicate. It’s loud, violent, dramatic but that’s exactly why it works.
If you’re tired of watching bullies constantly win in dramas, this one is incredibly satisfying to watch. I honestly hope it gets a second season.
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Good start but mediocre ending.
I can’t believe I sat down and watched every episode without skipping.I love Jinzhao’s character. She’s unapologetic, smart, and cute. She knows her worth better than anyone else. She treats everyone the way they want to be treated.
Lord Chen, on the other hand, is cunning and wise. He’s exceptionally good at what he does and is truly the best person for his position. I can't wait to see Ci Sha again.
I do sympathize with Xuan Qing a lil bit, but his motives in the end were simply unacceptable.
I’m having a hard time with Ye Xian. He’s so annoying and always wants everything to go his way without considering other people’s feelings. But in the end, I was devastated when I realized he was willing to sacrifice himself for what he believed in. It was an incredibly powerful scene, and I’m still in awe of it.
The biggest disappointment for me was the ending. After all the family conflicts and political drama, we only got about 10 minutes of a subpar ending with no real climax whatsoever. Episodes 38 and 39 were so good that I gasped and cried while watching them.
That’s why the final episode felt so sudden and mediocre in comparison.
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koo kyo hwan best actor
i really love this series, i watched it twice because i was amazed how koo kyo hwan act as hwang dong man. this drama is masterpiece💕💕i also love the ost of this drama, i really feel every emotions in this series, every cast is perfect for their role, this drama gives you hope, and the screenplay is also powerful that you want to treasure every lines.
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VERY SLOW PACE
If you are the bored type, you will definitely need several breaks to finish this film, the duration is also quite longIn terms of story, uhmmm, not that cool. but the story makes you feel annoyed, especially if you have the same special experience.
The acting was good, and the ending wasn't enough in my opinion
This is the first time I've watched Yamaken become unemployed, it's a bit funny haha
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there was not much to the story, and it was pretty forgettable.
my favorite part about this was Yoo Jinseok. he's a great actor, and incredibly handsome! he carried the entire drama tbh.
the younger character was extremely annoying. there's a difference between being persistent and being borderline harassing. he consistently kept crossing the boundaries no matter how many times he was warned.
I also think they should've cast a different actor in that role. Lee Chang In did not suit the role of a high schooler/freshman in university. him acting cute and coy pretending to be a high schooler was borderline cringe ngl.
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This review may contain spoilers
Conpletely Different from Start to Finish
This show was a rollercoaster to say the least! I will try to condense my thoughts by the 3 parts of the show.Beginning:
Absolutely loved the beginning. They start off as college students at the age of 20 and their romance initially starts. The show begins really lighthearted and fun and I ship the couple the most at this point. I was upset when FL breaks ML heart because I felt like he didn’t deserve that.
Once we get brought back to the present we find out she broke up with him, not because of the falling out but because her brother has an accident that leaves him disabled for the rest of his life.
In this new chapter of their life where they’re 27 and doing well in their successful careers they find their way back to each other. Although I like their college romance the best, this part is pretty good too. It’s filled with so much fluff so I can’t complain, but then the problems start to arise…
Middle:
Once the 2nd ML is introduced the show starts losing it for me. One, I’m already not a fan of love triangles. Love triangles usually consist of some rando trying to get between a relationship, I don’t find that romantic, I find it disrespectful. And that’s what happens in this case. Korea is so obsessed with characters staying “true to themselves” and sayibg their feelings, but in the States, a guy going after another guy’s girl is just disrescpectful and would’ve been nipped in the bud. My issues with the FL starts here. She knew her boyfriend was getting jealous and that the 2ML liked her but she insisted on some weird friendship instead of shutting him down completely. It just pisses me off!
The FL ends up breaking up with the ML for the 2nd time, and I never really understood why. I wasn’t under the impression that she started developing feelings for the 2ML, but she said she felt bad or sorry to the ML, which I’m not sure why she would feel sorry unless her feelings changed.
Anyways, they breakup. This leads the ML to quitting his job and moving to Portugal where he goes to culinary school tk ultimately become a chef. I will like to say from the earlier parts to when they were in a relationship, the ML held too much importance to their relationship. Like he really let it dictate every other aspect of his life and I didn’t find it cute how when he got jealous, instead of talking it out with the FL he would ignore her for days. That is NOT what you do in a relationship?!
Anyways, I liked the storyline of him in Portugal, I just think it was a bit dragged out at times. But in this section of the story is where the 2FL, who was introduced earlier, really comes into play and she confesses her feelings to ML and starts a relationship with him. I actually rather like the 2FL. Unlike a lot of people, I’m never really swayed by 2nd leads, I usually stand in full support for the main couple. But seeing as how the FL broke the ML heart 2x, I liked that the 2FL actually appreciated the ML, and I thought that she was pretty cute.
End:
The third section was a lot! I really struggled to fjnish the show at this point. The show started off so light hearted and comical and changed into 4-5 episodes kf pure depression. Between the revelation of what happened to yhe FL in the 5 years that they were split to the best friend of the FLgetting cancer, I felt so emotionally drained! I DO NOT like the fact that the FL broke the ML heart, but also that she git married to the 2ML! Nit only did they get married, but theh also had a kid together. At this point I nk linger shil the main characters. I feel like she chose her happy ending and it did not contain the ML, the onky reason they’re able to find their way back tk each other is because of the unfortunate events that leads tk the FL’s daughter dying. If it wasn’t for that tragic event, she would’ve been living happily with the 2ML and I feel kike that thought just completely ruins the romance. Not to mention, I actually like the ML with the 2FL, and they’re planning to get married, I had no hopes for the main characters getting back together, but atlas they do… well kinda
I felt like the writes were so lazy in end. I didn’t see any new romance that would have changed the ML’s feelings if he genuinely had loved the 2FL. Which makes me irritated that he would even consider marrying her when he never even loved her. Mind you, he was with her for 4 years and had only been with the FL cummulatively for 4 months?!! Anyways, he just felt pity and care for the FL, which is okay and totally reasonable given the circumstances, but I’f he wasn’t gonna get back together with the FL, why woukd he break up with the 2FL? It really was unfair to the 2FL. I felt like the writers really sucked for making the 2FL back down and basically mutually end things with the ML. It was so unrealistic and anyone could tell she wanted to marry him, but they let him off easy, where any real person would have been livid! Especially her parents! I would’ve have to get him for breaking my daughter’s heart!
Just to note briefly, the side couples were alrigtht. I felt really bad for the friend because she wouldn’t be able to have kids snd that’s all she wanted, bht I liked her relationship with the FL’s brother. And the ML’s sister with the ML’S best friend really pissed me off ngl. I know they were supposed to be comedic relief, which Sang Yi was, but the sister pissed me off from the start of the show to the end!
In the end, I give the show a 7/10. It started off strong, funny and romantic, but just went downhill after a while. The middle section with the ML in Portugal was a bit boring, but it was different so I didn’t mind it too much. For a while, I liked not knowing whether the main charactes would end up together or not, but then I actually hoped that they wouldn’t. In the end, I wasn’t happy with their vague ending because I felt like the FL coontinued to shake up the ML’s life and just her kept influencing him to make some pretty big lif choices but he never had that affect on her. Which reminds me how at the very start of the show he said, she was a woman he should have never met again. I just feel like if he was gonna end things with the 2FL, he could’ve at least gotten back together with the FL. Instea dwe get this vague ending where they really don’t seem to end up together, yet they’re friendly and on good terms, but I doubt that’s the case with the second leads. And it was also sad seeing the FL become a shell of herself because of her loss. I wouldn’t rewatch the show, not unless it was just the first few episodes.
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Beautiful visuals and music with an interesting story
Some are slamming this, but I am looking forward to seeing more. I'm wondering why many keep referring to the FL as a "villain" She is the hero! Sometimes I wonder if people that write reviews have actually seen the shows. I feel the FL is doing a good job but I feel she is written to be a little over the top. I don't believe it's overacting as much as scenes that make her seem like a spoiled brat. Some of her actions seem unbelievable for a girl that was raised by a general. The ML is now one of my faves. This is about the 3rd series I've seen him in and he is steadily growing as an actor. One of my few nitpick about production value is the sped up scenes. At some point the editors of historical dramas will understand that instead of speeding up someone running, or horses running you can simply cut into the scene at a later point. Otherwise your drama will come across as cheap and poorly produced. Still I am enjoying it for what it is, and have not had to fast forward through boring scenes and I'm glad there are not 40 episodes. In the US I guess we have gotten used to fast paced shows and sometimes the slow burners are boring and talky talky. It could be that too much dialogue in another language can sometimes make me sleepy, but I have not had that problem with this show.Was this review helpful to you?
let's laugh...
if you want to laugh from the beginning until the end of episode. watch this drama for sure!!!new season please. im not a fan of cha eun woo, but he's good. becoming better and better. I watch kdrama not because of the actors, I just love kdrama a lot. sound better. good story always. and this, let's just laugh all the to the end. hahahahaha
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I will always love you KIM SABU NIM
for me, Dr. Romantic is a really good story. this drama teach me a lot in real life. I will never ever forget this drama and Kim Sabu nim for the good drama and teach me a lot to be more Human in reality world. Thank you so much. I wish for more season before Kim sabu nim retired and aged. 1,2,3, please more season 4 and 5.thank you so much for the wonderful drama...
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This review may contain spoilers
Ryu shouldn't have let Johan go so easily
All good except Johan's left, and the baby somehow became a 4-5-year-old kid.All this time, Sumiko and Ryu made no attempt to contact Johan. Why??? It wasn't until the very end that Johan's sister contacted Sumiko and told her something about him.
Bro, they lived together, and Ryu had known Johan for a long time through thick and thin, but he just let Johan go and made no attempt to contact him. That was the most unbelievable part of this tale.
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human healing
if you’ve watched it’s okay not to be okay and loved it, you should definitely check this out.the actors all did an amazing job by bringing the characters to life and the story was just woww just amazing.
it’s like those types of shows/ movies you can’t just rewatch but just want that feeling of watching it for tge first time over and over.
in the end watching this felt like not an escape from reality but a look through reality.
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Not The Best But Still Good
The quality of the production was good despite not having a huge budget and the special effects were decent for the budget they had. The acting was pretty good for the most part and I don't think the script was too bad but there are definitely some inconsistencies in the storytelling. I can't tell if it's just the editing or if it came from the directing side as well but there are contradictions in some scenes and the flow of other scenes felt off like they were out of order or missing some context that might have come from a deleted scene. Overall I liked the story being told, it was the way it was told that could use some improvement. I didn't have any issue with the fact that the show takes place in three different languages (Korean, Thai and English) especially given the fact that half the main characters are aliens but some may find this irksome. They managed to keep it interesting with a couple little plot twists but nothing too outrageous or unbelieveable and they tied off the loose ends of almost all the characters in a way that was satisfying and actually kind of sweet. To conclude; I think this is a cute little multi-national BL that shouldn't be taken too seriously, just sit back and enjoy the wacky antics and romantic moments and appreciate the happy ending RaonWooju get that we didn't get from KimChay (KinnPorsche).Was this review helpful to you?
Anticipated adaptation but did not disappoint
As a huge fan of the original manhwa and the Blue String Universe, I went into this adaptation with high expectations, and thankfully, it delivered.It still hurts knowing that the original manhwa got axed because it remains one of my favorite school-action series ever. Among all the Blue String Universe titles, this one always stood out to me because of its unique take on justice, bullying, and the adults willing to step in when the system fails. Seeing it receive a live-action adaptation felt both exciting and bittersweet.
The biggest highlight was undoubtedly Kim Mu Yeol as Na Hwa Jin. From the moment he appeared on screen, he embodied everything I loved about the character. The charisma, intimidating presence, confidence, and unwavering sense of justice were all there. As someone who has read plenty of manhwa adaptations, I can honestly say this is one of my favorite live-action portrayals of a manhwa character. He didn't just play Na Hwa Jin; he felt like he walked straight out of the panels.
Jin Ki Joo as Im Han Rim also deserves praise. While I wouldn't necessarily call her portrayal a completely accurate depiction of the character from the manhwa, she still delivered a strong performance. She brought her own charm and energy to the role, making the character enjoyable in her own way.
What I appreciated most was how the drama stayed true to the spirit of the source material. The themes of school violence, justice, and protecting vulnerable students remained intact, while the action sequences were engaging and satisfying. It captured the essence of why fans fell in love with the story in the first place.
As with any adaptation, there are a few changes and compromises, but overall, this is one of the better manhwa-to-live-action adaptations I've watched. For fans of the Blue String Universe, it feels like a rewarding tribute to a story that deserved much more time to shine.
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