Reviews

More like Dumbstruck

I only give this a 6 because of the casting and because it seemed they made a minimal budget do what it could for the quality of shooting the scenes, I think those two things hold up quite a bit for this show on their own, everything else makes no sense.

I commented that this show is what I'd get if I ordered The Eight Sense from Wish dot com, because let's face it, visually and aesthetically, Hanjoon and Yoo Jae look like remixes of the ML's of T8S, and the show seemed to be angling for a similar editing style but it is ultimately a failure because they missed the mark by a mile.

The disjointed story and questionable characterization aside, because those are whole other issues on their own and I won't even go there, the editing of this feels like the production staff originally filmed for ten eps and then lost a bunch of footage somehow, and for whatever reason they decided not to reshoot. So they gave the job to the editing staff to put together what remained on film however they could...then the editing crew said f*ck it and quit, so they passed the job to an intern or someone's semi-popular Youtuber kid.
In the end, what we got feels like a story missing chunks of sense and scenes and a whole point.

Basically;
THE GOOD:
- The casting and acting pass muster.

THE BAD:
- The story doesn't connect much of anything to, well, anything, not even it's barely developed plot idea, and the loose ends are so numerous, legends will tell of it still unraveling even after it's long , long over.
- Yoo Jae as a ML love interest. No thanks. There are two kinds of of a-holes, one type acts like a dick but is still likeable because essentially their behaviour is mostly harmless or skin deep over all, and then there is the type who acts like a dick because they are a dick and their behaviour is trash. Yoo Jae is the latter.
- The music (while I don't generally pay much attention to it) was strange and loud in some places.
- The final two episodes are a waste of everyone's time. They could have finished it more decently on episode 6 by editing in Yoo Jae's suggestion to 'date', then time skipping to the final scene of episode 8.

It never got UGLY, because really, it never got anywhere, so...

HIGHLIGHT:
- Welp, I liked Han Joon.

I don't recc this.

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This drama is worth it to watch just for eye candy alone. The ML is handsome with a great body and that look that makes you want to melt. If you decide to watch this, don't analyze or even think too much about the story. I got confused here and there and thought that I'm missing something. But I guess it's just because it's a shortened episode. But doesn't bother me that much. I can still understand the whole story. The short episode is another positive of this drama actually. I watched this as it aired, and it only took 20-25 minutes of my time each day to continue watching. The darn thing is the majority of the episodes kinda ended in a cliffhanger, so you're left wondering until the next episode aired the following day (I guess this wouldn't be a problem if you're watching in one sitting).

The major blow of this drama is the ENDING. What kind of ending is that?!?!?!!?!?!? I have so many questions afterwards about the ending. How and How and How come and How come?!?!?!?!

Anyway, this is a thrilling watch if you're just looking for something easy to watch, yet fast paced and short. You will enjoy it. The eye candy and the OST is a bonus. I really like the songs on this drama but have trouble finding it on either Apple Music or Spotify.

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Begging ML who ever pay him he date there daughter

it was even shown as a right normal thing to ask money from a woman you already breakup and if she doesn't give you, then blame her
ML is a Begger who first date a girl for her money then he meet other girl so now he date her thinking she is rich but he moma do not give him money
WHILE HE SHOW HIS FAKE PRIDE

5/10 was given only for kim ji suk and lee chung Ah story
why this drama doesn't give equal screen time to all 3 sibling but only focus on Sister being
main lead story was only disappoint
and why was Mr.Park bo gum was even casted in the show if you were not going to use him at least for 5 min in one episode
MAJOR Thing this drama just forget INCEST between SOO JIN and MIN SOO they share same father and were in a relationship and was about to get married sp this drama is saying they did nothing during there relationship or that doesn't even matter, because now his exgf is his sister, half sister who share same DNA with him

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When choosing to watch a student-made film, one doesn't typically expect to come across masterpieces, although sometimes there can be pleasant surprises. Despite tackling a challenging subject, this short film managed to make me laugh, not because it was bad, but rather due to the evident budget constraints that led high school students to portray the roles of parents with teenage children.

However, despite the poor technical quality and performances that may elicit amusement, the film remains watchable due to the intertwining of the two main characters' stories. It is interesting to observe how these young aspiring filmmakers and screenwriters depict school bullying alongside an unstable family situation and the pressures exerted by parents who compare their children, leading to sometimes disastrous consequences.

This film made by high school students is a testament to their creativity and dedication, despite the limitations they had to face. While there are aspects of technical execution and acting that could be improved, it deserves to be appreciated for the important themes it tackles and the evident determination of the young filmmakers to share their vision with the audience.

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what... a MASTERPIECE... just BRAVO!

“There’s a saying, ‘A mother can replace anything in this world. But nothing can replace a mother.'” – Mr. Son

In general, you know that a drama will be one of your all-time favorites as soon as you watch the first episode. I had this feeling with this drama. The pace is exactly what I love. In two episodes only, we already had a grasp of the situation. There wasn't one episode that was boring, and it's really hard to make an episode as thrilling as possible especially when it exceeds 1 hour.

First and foremost, let's talk about the story itself. It's mainly revolving around the utterly complicated relationship between a mother and her son. What I liked about this drama is that as the episodes go by, we felt like we grew up with them. We see Kangho's birth, his first steps, his traumas, his love-life, his true passion (drawing), his coldness, his cuteness, his kindness. It's really rare to have such a complete character. We basically know everything about him and it helps us understand him more and be more invested in the story. We also have a grasp of Youngsoon's story and her reasons behind her abusive behavior towards her son (I do not condone this type of behavior whatsoever and whatever the reasons may be) . Besides her bad acts, I still like her as a human being. She suffered way too much in her life. From losing her parents and brother, her husband, her pig farm, and almost losing her son, I'm really wondering how she was able to maintain a kind soul. She is a bad mother indeed, but she isn't the type to do it willingly and without any emotions. Kangho's accident was a way for her to redeem herself. "Please let me be a bad mother once again, Kangho", she said while teaching him how to eat after his accident. She is fully aware of her doings and isn't proud of it. When she hit Kangho's calves, she healed it while he was sleeping, when she ripped his drawing, she sticked it back. Kangho is fully aware of this and this is why he doesn't hate her this much.

“What I really wanted to avenge was your life they utterly destroyed, and the pain you felt living as a bad mother to your most beloved son.” – KangHo

However, what gives life to this drama are the supporting characters, especially the Jouri village. I really got a "Reply 1988" vibe from this, and funny thing is that the trio "Kangho-Mijoo-Samshik" is born in 1988! We had different families reunited in a tiny village growing together, bickering, laughing, crying, they truly rely on each other and love each other. Each character had its time to shine, even Tiger the dog and Lion the pig had their time to shine! I really like the fact that they put up the tiny-village-family-looking trope in this drama, it lower our heart rate and makes us laugh for a tiny while. I'm personally a big fan of dramas with a variety of genres, I don't remember liking many dramas sticking to a single genre. Hence, if you're like me, you will absolutely love this show. Thriller, mystery, family, life, romance, comedy, law, and i'm sure that I forgot other genres.

Let's get into the acting. Wow... just wow. Ra Miran, Lee Dohyun, Ahn Eunjin, Choi Moosung, Jung Woongin, Yoo Insoo... and the list goes on and on. The cast was perfectly chosen. Every single actor nailed their role, every single actor was able to depict the role and give life to it. A little thing I want to add, THE TWINS ARE SO CUTE. I wish them the best in their upcoming endeavours and hope they will become amazing actors in the far future! I hope this drama will get a lot of Baeksang nominations!

A good bad mother may not be perfect, but she does her best and sacrifices everything that she has just to see her child succeed in life. Taking a step back, Youngsoon loved Kangho to death and could do everything for him, her approach to show her love was wrong. I'm just glad that during that dark time for both Youngsoon and Kangho, Mijoo was able to be his ray of sunshine that made him believe that life wasn't that bad. Love can do wonders.

“One day, when everything ends and I can return to your side, I wish to lie in your arms and eat mung bean pancakes just as I did when I was a little boy.” – KangHo

"I wanted to become the best mom for you, but you only get one life and it was my first time being a mom, so I'm sorry that I wasnt good enough. I prayed that I'd become your mom once again, and if that ever happens I promised I'll do better" - Youngsoon

I hope that Kangho and Youngsoon will reunite one day and do as Kangho and Youngsoon wished, to eat his mom's pancakes and be pampered by her. After all, we will all always be little children to our parents.

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Very good

I'm like 5 years late to the party, but anyways, here we go. I really liked this drama. The storyline was paced well, it was interesting, funny, goofy, dramatic. I didn't even mind the endings of the characters too much, I usually dislike when there are too many deaths. I think that only one (1) of the characters didn't have to die. I always have a soft spot for the third wheel characters, would definitely give my hand in marriage to Qi Shao lol. I appreciate that the producers made two endings although I expected a little bit more from both of the endings (like for example a truly happy happy ending with all the characters being shown getting married, having kids or simply having a good life and a true, sadder ending). Overall, I really don't have much to complain about here. Maybe the CGI and some of the music wasn't fitting, but that's really not the end of the world there. If you're a "always thinks about how to make plot more logical, why the characters acted like that and why the writers wrote this action contrary to the character's storyline, I hate the punch in the gut with completely turning the tides of the storyline" type of person, this drama is definitely a must watch.

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Loved the first 6 episodes, but sadly the last 2 kind of ruined it for me..

This series started off so well, but sadly the last couple episodes just ruined it for me.
One thing that bothered me is that while I can definitely see Yoojae's jealousy, I don't think they did enough to show that he had real romantic feelings for Hanjoon. I do feel like he did, but maybe just didnt understand fully his feelings for his friend. They didnt show that in the series well though. Which made the ending jump to dating weird to me. It mostly felt like he was dating Hanjoon in order to not loose him. I dont believe that, but its kind of how it came across.
I wish they had showed the moments after the kiss scene and showed Yoojae have this moment of realization afterwards.. That small moment, along with the jealousy he'd already been feeling, would have added so much.
Speaking of the kiss.. I'm not one to really care about kiss scenes, if a series is good I like it regardless if there is one or not. However, I really dislike angled kiss scenes. I would rather see a flat kiss than an angled one, thats just my opinion. These two do have great chemisty and the storyline was good so it doesn't bother me to much, but it still annoyed me.
I could have easily overlooked that though because again, to me, kiss scenes to do not make or break a series. What annoyed me the most was the last two episodes. I'm sorry, it was rushed and terrible in my opinion. The fact that it went from Hanjoon avoiding Yoojae, to not very long later them talking and deciding to date, then the cute basketball/jealousy scene, like a half a minute montage, and now they've been dating 100 days... seriously 🙄
We barely even got to see them act together as boyfriends.. The last 5 minutes of 9 and most of 10 were mostly for drama that had barely been set up in the first place.
Overall I liked this series, but the ending fell flat for me. Sadly it fell victim to what other kbl's have.. Not enough runtime. I feel like if this series had been given 40 minute episodes it could've been so much better!

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Good general drama

The overall high level story from start to finish is very engaging. Just about anyone from any country can relate to the day in and day out highs and lows that is portrayed in this drama. But as with anything now in 2023 you can see many subtle undercurrents about things in general. Some of the other reviews made comments about this being a China promotional drama to draw tourists back to China. Not sure how accurate that really is but from a drama story stand point it truly stands out because it actually feels like a story about every day people meeting, becoming friends and helping each other while also trying to find their way without the current stress that society has pressured people into believing they have to do certain things in order to consider yourself successful.

There are truly many very heart felt natural moments through out the episodes and all of the actors and characters have meaningful parts thru out. While you can say there's a FL and ML to the drama this has to be one of the few dramas where many characters had pretty good supporting side stories to the main story. The main story and side stories were all very well entwined with each other kudos for pulling that off since that's usually very rare to have happen in most dramas.

The OST was very nice and mellow but towards the end it got repetitive but still nice.

Totally amazing that I actually watched a cdrama that didn't have someone either stealing, killing, getting revenge. While they did manage to have someone die of cancer which seems almost mandatory these days. At least this time it was more to set the whole rest of the story instead of drawing out a bad ending. Lots of Chinese idioms and culture with very positive outlooks in general.

Will probably rewatch again a year or so from now to compare 2022/2023 to how the future is for China. Don't see how it's getting straight 10's except for trying to push towards a high rating to get more people to watch. Sort of feels more contrived to push certain themes and views to foreign viewers.

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Who edited this? I wanna talk.

Oh, boy. Where do I even start?

First, let's talk about the acting. The actors, especially Kim In Sung, were pretty good at acting out their emotions. However, the chemistry between the two main leads (especially on Zuho's side -- sorry Zuho), was not the best, which unfortunately is not surprising in a K-BL, especially one with an idol. However, I don't know if that was truly the acting or if it was the editing, writing, and/or directing that left me feeling this way, since we didn't actually get to see much of their relationship develop due to the weird scene jumps.

As for the plot, it had so much potential. Had the story been told in a linear fashion (without flashbacks) or had a better way of telling us what date it was (so we could better keep track of when something happened), it might have been better. But because it was edited in a way that made it seem like essential scenes had been cut, it just left me with whiplash whenever we cut to another scene without any resolution for the past one. (One big example, and a spoiler, is when Yoo Jae tells Han Joon they should date. Han Joon doesn't even reply before we cut to them dating for 62 days. Like, what?? How?? When?? Please give me more information about how they got to this point!) I would have loved to see the conversations that resulted in the events we saw. Seeing them talk, while it might not have been incredibly important to moving the plot forward, would have allowed us to feel the characters get closer and their relationship deepen. But instead, we got plot points directly cut to plot points, with no time to breathe or understand how we got there. They set up so much, especially with the family problems, only for them to be completely ignored at the end. What happened to Han Joon's mom? It felt as though they used her mostly as a plot point to cause some last-minute drama and then boom! Nothing after that.

Ultimately, I think this suffered from what most K-BLs suffer from, and that's too little episodes. Yes, the actors could have had chemistry readings or workshops (I say this a lot for K-BLs, don't I?), but in the end I just think the biggest issue was the runtime. Had this series had a longer runtime, they could have let the characters and situations be fleshed out more and given us scenes that better explained why certain characters acted the way they did. Instead, we got strange cuts that led us to situations where we were left wondering how the characters got there.

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Good drama but could be better

Ok finished the drama, I really liked it but still I think it could be better. In the last few episodes they wanted to bring everything forward, I think that if they hadn't brought in family problems, we could enjoy more moments together and more character development. This series definitely lacked more screen time for a better story, there are scenes (many) that leave us without explanation, some cuts are poorly executed, they made zuho's character very "dirty".
Even so, I enjoyed every moment of them together, they had chemistry and they didn't need the "kiss". The last scene was beautiful and meaningful, very cute. Thank you Zuho and Insung for this project (directors and producers fck each other, for not lengthening the story)

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How do you flop a romcom motif?

I’m just baffled at how you reference so many romcoms (ie, have posters that reference iconic romcom posters, have episode titles that are iconic romcom tropes) and STILL create such a mid series. OffGun’s chemistry is fine enough but KhaiThird? Absolutely not!! How do you create a romcom where you are yelling at the screen every chance you get foe the main characters NOT to end up together? I sometimes felt I was in the wrong for judging Khai so harshly when we are viewing the series from Third’s POV. But then he would do something on screen that is terrible regardless the POV! Anyway, cool concept, unlikeable characters.

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More like a glimmer rather than being starstruck

I've said it before and I'll say it again: This should have been a movie. Or, at least, been released all at once. The cut-off of many episodes felt unsatisfying and, overall, just got in the way of the flow of the story.

Also, it seemed like scenes were missing, and I'm sure a longer runtime would have added more depth to it . . . However--strangely--I'm not mad about it.

Maybe it's the indie vibes and solid acting that won me over and made me see past its flaws.

Just about Zuho: I do have to bring up how great it was to have him, being the fairly famous K-Pop Idol he is, actually speak out against the hate he was getting for acting in a BL, and not just that, but openly voice his support, love, and respect for the LGBT+ community in his response.

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At least it wasn't as bad as Eun Hui

Whenever you see TV Novel in the title of a drama here, make sure to not have the slightest expectations, it's really helpful. One particular feature of these "TV Novels" dramas is having single digit IQ characters and this drama was no exception to the rule. At the end of the day, it's done purposely because it's easier to digest and provoke. The cast was barely average, however, it's hard to stomach when almost every single character was selfish and trashy without proper character building and motivation. The love square seems to be identical to most of the other TV Novel ones, two good vs two baddies. Speaking of which, the two main lead were such a bad pair with no chemistry. Lee Min Woo looks older than his real age and this only made the age gap much worse.

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Too tragic for a drama. Made this into a docuseries instead?

Please forgive me, regional folks, this is not meant to disregard or disrespect your history and the tragic horrors behind it.
This is more a reminder for me to never watch this again.
If I had read that this was so Tra gic, I would've never watched it.
If truly this particular romance was so tragic, I would've preferred to see the actual people, their real names, careers etc.
In short it could have been a true story or a true documentary which are made very aesthetically now.

To take history, put your own spin on it again is fine.
But to take history, put your own spin on it, heavily load it with beautiful romance and then kill the lead is like pulling the rug from under our feet and bring us crashing down, breaking our teeth, heart and everything else.
Not acceptable for me.

So yes, it was a tremendously beautiful drama - music, cinematography, costumes, hair make up etc of the '80s, and every actor was stupendous.......but sorry, the ending destroyed it.

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