Reviews

Low stakes and oversaturation of characters

Before going into this, it was already pretty clear that Strong Woman DBS, which had one of the most iconic kdrama couples ever, was a difficult act to follow. I'm going to try and get all the comparisons out of the way first. While I wasn't a HUGE fan of the humor in SWDBS, it knew well enough to take serious moments seriously, and everything else was strong enough to make up for it; I loved the leads and the murder plot was thrilling and high-stakes. This drama has the same issue with its humor, but its other aspects are either weak or worse.

The humor just isn't my style at all. There's a lot of physical humor and over-acting; it might be fine if it was only used in select moments, but I felt like it permeated every second of drama, even big fight scenes and what should've been tense moments with antagonists. Overall it made the entire tone of the drama seem kind of off — as if nothing actually mattered because it was all for laughs.

The drug plot felt low-stakes not just because of the tone, but also just because of the way it was written. I don't think anyone going into this drama should expect any profound commentary on drugs or class issues in South Korea. The drama seems to try every once in a while with an offhanded comment, but it really doesn't go much deeper and it's even self-contradictory sometimes. There's parts where they touch upon it, but they also make its lead a "good billionaire" because she's kind with her money and because she pulled herself up by her bootstraps. It felt contradictory to any commentary, just so viewers could get some #girlboss moments.

In terms of characters — I'm not a fan of ensembles to begin with and this drama is a good example of why. It felt like there were so many characters and so many subplots that none of them got enough screentime to be complete, and less important subplots took over more engaging ones. The drama spent SO MUCH screentime on the grandmother's romance, which felt slapstick and unserious, while Namsoon and Heeshik's screentime began to dwindle. And as the drama went on it felt like more and more antagonists were getting introduced as random side characters, and because they served no purpose other than to trigger plot points and had no backstory or personality, they began to blur into each other.

The only antagonist that really had a good story was the villain Ryu Shi-O, but my bigger issue with him plays into my low-stakes criticism. He was just...a bad villain. He has physical abilities, sure, but his plans, goals, and motivations weren't that clear, and most of all I just can't believe that he couldn't piece together anything our protagonists were planning when they were being so obvious about it. I mean...Namsoon's acting...

With so many things going on, romantic lines didn't have enough screentime for good development. I'd already mentioned not caring about the grandmother's romance, and while Namsoon/Heeshik were the best in the show, it felt like they didn't really go deeper than both of them being cute.

Honestly, I think there's an audience for this somewhere out there — maybe someone who likes quirkiness and shenanigans — but it's not me. I'm giving this a 2 (and not a 1) just because it didn't utterly infuriate me as much as me just not really caring.

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One word - masterpiece

Oh my god.. what a 1st episode. Amazing. I didn't expected anything from this series, but from the start to the end, i didn't even get bored for a second. 'Masterpiece', that's what I want to say about the starting. 1st episode have to be engaging and they have done it so well mainly by developing the characters and portraying the tension between the main leads. And by the way, their chemistry was overflowing. who made this casting deserve an award, because they were living in their role. And my precious baby kaownah , he made a guest role and gave his best.
Overall I loved everything from its 1st episode itself and I'm going to watch the rest of the episodes for sure. Do not miss this series because nowadays it's rare to find a different story like this.

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Arguably the best

This k-drama did (almost) everything perfect. The acting/cast was phenomenal. The main four actors are all such great actors (plus they’re all so attractive). The music fits perfectly with all the scenes, adding a powerful emotional element. The OST is also just so fun to listen to regularly. I definitely cried in the last episode. My only complaint is that the ending was a bit rushed but all the other amazing parts of the show make up for it. Overall, a very family-friendly, binge worthy show that I’d definitely rewatch several times. Candidate for best k-drama of 2023, if not all-time.

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Can’t go wrong with this

Great romance-comedy show for newbie k-drama watchers. There is a decent amount of action and violence for those seeking thrill. Plot develops relatively quickly and every episode has cliffhangers that reel you in to the next episode. Also gives a good taste of what life is like in North Korea while occasionally adding the classic South Korean business element for those who want familiarity. Music adds strong emotions to many scenes. Would rewatch maybe once a year. Overall, you can’t go wrong with this kdrama. You either love it or at the worse, think it’s mid. Hard to hate on this show.

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hard life of high school girl

The movie is better then i though. I was expecting a B level movie made just for the message or the practice of some new talents, but i found the message of the movie very compelling and the final production was not bad at all. The actors were decent (even though the extras were funny entering and exiting the scene to try to make it more believable), the story had more dimensions with side characters and there were some very emotional moments, especially the last scene where ... oh, no spoilers.
The movie is a high-school drama and a tragic death mystery. The mystery elements serve the story well, slowly revealing more information and so increasing the interest until the end. I was especially attentive since i saw it without english subtitles and had to concentrate to understand some dialogue but certainly i missed few things due to not being able to understand everything. so if you'll give this movie a try, stick with it until the end.

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LOWER YOUR EXPECTATIONS

Before watching, please lower your expectations! This is totally different if you think this is will similar with Bong Soon version.

Everything is fine until ep 3, but after that the plot is mess. Idk how the writernim think, but they just wasted all potential. Main lead didn't even get the 'spotlight' that they deserved. The 'superpower' even only showed in early episode and closed to ending. So many cringe scene esp grandma and her bf (I always skipped this part ). They can use this time for better scene pls. So many important things still not explained. How they solve every problem also the worst.

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I WANNA GO BACK AND JUST FALL IN LOVE!

I don't know where to start. My heart is so full right now. Getting the chance to meet Zhang Lurang, Su Zaizai, Gu Ran, Jiang Jia and Guan Fang's precious high school life to college to working individuals makes me tear up. I really loved every scene and I enjoyed everything. I definitely recommend this!

This became my favorite chinese drama dethroning Hidden Love. I need to give it to my main guy Rangrang. 😗

This story starts with a one sided crush from the female lead, trying to get closer with the male lead. Her persistence and her hardwork and she gives him assurance even though they're just friends. You know she likes him but he does not confess until they're old enough to take responsibility of what they have. And the male lead's confession is everything. I basically screamed when he confessed. It was the best timing. Their college scenes are one of the best.

THEY'RE MADE FOR EACH OTHER 🌻⭐️
They never made each other doubt
They always put each other first
They always find time
They are perfect for each other
I am so so happy for them

If I'd have someone like Rangrang in the end, then it's gonma be worth it 😭

I'd give everything just to have a Season 2 for Gu Ran and Jiang Jia. This would be the best since I want to see more of them. 🥰

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If conforming to madness is a way to achieve happiness, you can give this a try.

/ Actual Rating: 7.5/10

/- I find it a long drag determining the turn of events between the chaos and the development of the characters during their lockdown. The writers probably cannot figure out where they will put the plot twists especially with the "psychopath stereotype" fiasco it had at the latter part of the show. I seemingly thought I will have the suspense of what I had with Money Heist Korea (might just be the intro similarities).
/- Nevertheless, they missed the opportunity to develop Kim Se Hoon's character. Poor guy.
/- Lastly, Lee Bo Ram had the chillest role on the rooftop.

P. S. Commendable if this was filmed at the height of the emerging CoVID-19. They did a great job with the normalcy of the setting.

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If you should one history drama only one what would you recommend? I would say My Dearest!

If you should watch only one history drama then this one! I can’t, this drama got me involved in it so much! First I wasn’t sure if I should watch it and I doubt it if it’s fits my shoe. I didn’t watch a really good history drama till now with everything involved but mostly romance and love trying to overcome all obstacles. I can’t believe I found this one! Can I ever go back watch it for the first time. The cinematography incredible, the actors omg so great and the storyline the plot it’s amazing and I still try to figure out how to overcome it! This Drama deserves more than xxxx plus and a 10 rating and I hope and wish it gets so many great things … it’s epic! This here is only my little view on things without trying to give any spoiler! The one time I felt so about a drama was as I did watch Goblin. This is the second time in my Drama life when I feel like this and I know one day I will watch it again … I need to rest now and overcome this depression to not see this two again on screen. I really wish u could do that for the first time again. <3 much love to all the involved 🥹

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disappointed

I was looking forward to this drama as swdbs was the first drama I've watched and my fav. I have been disappointed.

The first episodes were so good! I kept looking forward to saturdays and sundays. But I feel like the story was focused more on the grandma's love life than nam soon's. The chem was so much better with the villain than with the ml, that I started to lose interest. At ep 10-12 (I think) the relationship between nam soon and hee sik started developing too fast that it was superficial. I was team ml but i hated the fact that it was so focused on the villain. I understand that they did that to enhance the effect of breaking the villains heart, but it overpowered the chemistry between nam soon and hee sik. + I didn't like how the fl acted like a child. at first it was cute or wtv but later it felt like hee sik fell in love with a child.

I'm not saying Its super bad, but I wouldn't waste my time watching it if I were you.

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I get it... but I don't

This piece of beautiful cinematography reveals some important flaws of the society that we live in but also shows how a specific part of it is suffering without us even knowing.
I liked that it showed something raw and real without focusing on the bl part which actually came pretty natural. The chemistry between the actors seemed pure and I loved that. They really managed to express difficult emotions.
On the other hand it seemed to me that it was one of those films where 'nothing happens' but it actually does. The plot looked like it was going nowhere so I was a little confused as I was watching it.

The ending didn't sit right with me and I was hoping to find someone here who I can talk about it but I am the first review so feel free to talk to me.

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Disappointingly overrated

Ning an Ru Meng started off very well and somewhere around the 15th episode I was convinced this was one of the best historical dramas this year, It certainly had all the right elements: a potential redemption arc, political intrigue, interesting characters.

Let's start with the positives: I enjoyed many things on the show. The flashbacks to the previous "life" were very engaging and well tied to the present. I enjoyed many of the characters and their little arcs. Among them the characters with the most engaging character arcs were You Fangyin (whose arc kind of ended very early on) and the princess (a very good performance from Liu Xie Ning). The political drama was overall quite enjoyable till the second half of the show, although a lot of it wasn't particularly complex or unseen before.

Now the negatives:

The romance. Yes, the “romance”. Replace the handsome Zhang Linghe with a not-so-pleasant-faced actor and many of the things he did to Ning will appear creepy. Yes, very very creepy. A teacher who has power over her - who can kiss her forcibly and make her cry. And how many times did Xie Wei do this? Episode 32, episode 34, ep 36. This toxic love story is sold to audiences at fantastic paces. In episode 34 Ning tells XW that she does not love him, so what is his response? Basically it was something on the lines of- “the things you’ve done for me prove you love me” and then he drags her outside and forces her to plunge a knife into his stomach. Hmm. Ning has done a lot of good things for many people- does that mean that she loves them all?

Well, that brings me to the person she actually loved for most of the show - Zhang Zhe. She loved him so much that she died for him in the previous “life”, and she retained those feelings. It soon became obvious that the two of them loved each other. So, circumstances allowed his feelings for her to grow - he was certain she loved him too, and in this life there were no real barriers to them being together. In fact, as it is established later on, her father would have readily chosen Zhang Zhe as a son-in-law. Yet, the novelist/screenwriter decided to put an end to this love story in the most ridiculous way possible. No-one breaks up with the one they love when their beloved is suffering. Soon after his mother died, Ning decides to break up with him and she chooses to do it by pretending that she never loved him, wringing his heart dry. It was absolutely convenient for the story not to show Zhang Zhe much later either, and neither do we watch Ning weep over him.

What was the reason for that breakup? Truly insignificant. In order to prevent him from hurting further, she hurt him even more. It truly makes no sense. Are the novelist and screenwriters suggesting that good people don’t end well? Evidently, one need not look further than Zhang Zhe to find that.

In truth the purpose of cutting short this love story short is to allow the male lead and female lead to get together. By episode 34 however, she herself says that she doesn’t love Xie Wei. Of course, everyone is busy convincing her that she DOES love him. The music is suggesting that, and all of XW’s crazy, obsessive behaviour suddenly appear romantic.

Show don’t tell- evidently the screenwriter forgot that.

Xie Wei kisses Ning’s forehead after she is flogged by Xue Shu. As I said earlier- replace ZLH with someone ugly and this won’t fly that well. Her father happens to see this and confronts XW indirectly, but XW’s reaction is hardly apologetic. Instead it’s almost as though he owns her. Then when he goes “crazy” he kisses her forcibly. The background music really presents it as the most romantic scene ever.

This toxic “love” story is presented as the most beautiful one and that is truly a concern. The wrist-pulling, force-kissing abusive ML is presented as an ideal partner? Is it 2023?

I think had this story been placed in the back burner I would have been somewhat okay with it, but when the screenwriter decided that the ML and FL must be together the plot turned to ridiculous mush. All the palace politics that had held my attention earlier dissipated.

This show started off solid - it was interesting, and then it nosedived its way into a toxic “romance” with the historical bits taking . The performances have been good, and ZLH may have received his best role so far. I really enjoyed several characters and I wish the show makers had spent more time on those character arcs.

Overall I am so so disappointed. and I think 8 is already too high.
(My actual rating: 7.75)

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