Reviews

If you go in expecting seriousness, violence and a thrill - then you'll be disappointed.

Contrary to all the mediocre reviews on here which are written around the time of the show's release (and hype) - I'm writing from when the hype is long dead and I'm now watching it a few months on.

I do think if I watched this during the hype, it would have been disappointing, but having gone into the show with no expectations - I thoroughly enjoyed it very much. I also wasn't an SJK fangirl before watching the show, having seen him in Descendants of the Sun (and didn't fall in love with him during that time like everyone else lol) - I can safely say that after watching this I am very impressed with his acting and can see why he is popular not just because of his looks.

If you go in expecting seriousness, violence and a thrill - then you'll be disappointed.
It's a show that's serious but with a funny undertone, where the undertone sometimes overpowers the seriousness (?) I loved that they took the Mafia genre known for being dark/violent- and flipped it on it's head by injecting some good old K-Drama cliches, tropes and humour which I loved. Yet at the same time retaining the violence and Vincenzo's anti-hero character throughout the show.

To some, the sudden gag moments may be jarring, though I found them laugh out loud funny and didn't find them jarring at all, but well timed. The absolute fan-service story-writing does undermine the seriousness, but if anything it made me love the show even more. As a long time KDrama viewer, I actually found these cliches comforting. Can I join the consigliere fanclub too?

This does all come from a place of glorifying the Mafia/violence, which can be problematic to younger viewers however.

Were there plot holes? Yes. Could the characters be written and explored better? Yes.
But only yes if you're taking the show too seriously with high expectations, rather than a typical K-Drama (and from the trailer I can see why they may have overhyped it too much as something else). That's not to say K-Dramas can't be of quality writing and there sure are plenty out there. However, it seems to me that the writers wrote it as a timeless K-Drama piece to be enjoyed whenever and wherever, rather than some next-level disruptive show with some deep meaning. They wrote it knowing and intending it for the international K-Drama lovers - who specifically watch K-Dramas for their cliches and tropes across time.

Loved all the many easter eggs, Taecyeon's acting was fantastic. The quality of shooting , editing and cinematics are very impressive. I am a SJK fan convert and I can see why he is daddy now.

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I hadn’t expected to actually like it this much but I was pleasantly surprised how much enjoyable I found it.
I think the strength of this drama is definitely the female character. It's been a while since I saw a woman written like a normal human being. Writers seem to confuse strength in a woman with aloofness, coldness, and belly full of schemes especially if they are writing a career woman. Because a woman can’t build a career if she’s not a ballbuster. Or they’ll give you a woman on the other end of the spectrum so immature and whose sole focus is on a man and a man alone. I half the time question if these writers have ever met a woman or it's just misogyny and patriarchy shining through.

The female lead here is an ambitious woman in her 30s. She is smart, good at her job, and here is a kicker, she’s actually nice. She knows how to draw boundaries, is firm but never arrogant or rude. She works hard, knows when to fight and when to retreat. This woman actually looks and acts like someone who’s matured with wisdom gained through lived experience. Even when she was breaking up, rejecting a romantic advance, or responding in a workplace exchange she was never a screaming shrill woman. She never threw tantrums or cursed out people even in places you wish she had. She did everything with dignity and poise. She really was the selling point for me.

The other thing I loved about this drama was how it used our female lead and her best friend to showcase two women, who made different choices in their lives and what problems they face. And more importantly how there is no such thing as a perfect life. One chose to work, the other to get married and when things get tough they look at each other’s life and say “at least your life is better than mine” only for life to show them that what seems perfect is only surface level. Each choice has its own issues, its obstacles, its own freedom, its own happiness. The drama showed us how each woman navigated through it while supporting each other until they came out the other side. It wasn’t dramatic, it wasn’t heroic or epic it was ordinary life. I found it very relatable.

The romance was indeed a slow burn. It was also sweet, mature, and more importantly very much less cringe ?

Now having gone all gaga like this doesn’t mean it doesn’t have problems. I found the work issues rather repetitive at times. I strongly feel this drama should have been about 5 episodes shorter.

The best friend seems to have things available to her at each moment she needs it — having a hard time finding a job, oh I happen to know the kitchen has an opening and omg a housewife for a while and you happen to be a great cook… you don’t want to cook anymore and need something else... Uhm you used to play the drum in college? my band just so happens to have our drummer walk out on us, what a coincidence… what’s that you say? You don’t feel like being a professional drummer.. wait here’s a random guy who happens to own a music school for kids who coincidentally happens to hear your performance and want to hire you at your own term, you don’t like kids ah, not even your nephew? but that one odd kid whom no other music teacher can get through miraculously clicked with you and wants you and you only… ? — please it wouldn’t have killed them to make her struggle just a little.

Another issue would be the terrible taste in jewelry this drama has. Be it the “expensive” dream catcher looking thing they claimed to be a necklace and draped over her neck or the “charming” simple necklace made out of love or the one designed for competition under grueling mental and emotional gymnastics, all looked cheap and tacky. This may seem like a nonissue but the male lead is a supposed wanna be jewelry designer. You can’t tell me the character you want to make a successful career as a designer make things that look like ones my baby sister picked from Clairs. Sorry, I can’t accept that.


"Compared to the 18-year-old or 20-year-old who's still searching, I like myself better in my 30s. Although nobody thinks I'm cute anymore, and I'm aging by the minute, the 35-year-old me compared to my past, knows me better than I've ever before." — As someone in their 30s, I related to this on a spiritual level.

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Wow drama

Guys if anyone thinking to watch or not just go ahead and watch tis drama, so cute and lovely story initially i didn't like ml character but later on lol he is so sweet and gentle to her and they both were so in love to give up their career but still a claps to their acting and yes side couples acting also good i thought i can see more about them but after 15 episodes scenes were less but anyhow the story about main keads good superb and authot who has written tis story should get an award and ml he has such a face lol i fell for him and fl oh my gosh she is so cute and the way she calls him by name hahaha i wonder how is she in real life but tis story is about career love and family more about the reality good make more such dramas thanks for the drama i enjoyed it

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My wish is to be an adult like you

***Not sure if what’s in here that may be considered major spoiler but there might be minor ones so proceed with caution***


I got recommended this drama over 2 months ago by a user whose name I forgot (i feel awful and I apologize ). I did watch it at that time and in all honesty, it's the drama that pulled me out of a very long drama slump. This drama has two of my favorite tropes - age gap and noona romance!

The drama revolves around Junko Harumi and her three suitors. Once a model student in her middle and high school days, life hasn't been going smoothly for her after she failed to enter Tokyo University. Now 31, she works as a tutor at a private institute where things are not so great. Her romantic life isn't doing any better either. It is at this point in her life that she meets Kyohei Yuri and becomes his tutor. While she worries and shows frustration about things not working out in both her career and her love life, Janko is very oblivious to notice the 3 men that show interest around her. Masashi Yakumo is her smart cousin that went to Tokyo University, who's had feelings for her for a long time. Kyohei Yuri is a disorderly high school student she's tutoring and Kazuma Yamashita is Kyohei ’s teacher in high school.

The drama shows how not getting into Tokyo University has affected Junko. Her relationship with her mother, her confidence in her own self, her feeling jaded about the trajectory of her career and romantic life. It also shows her innocence and her kindheartedness. The only thing about this woman the scriptwriters did that irked me is she pulled out her back every other episode and they use that as a sign of her “getting old”. People I promise you 31 is not that old and we in our 30s don't need to walk around in canes. What is happening! T_T

Anyways, Junko may have had an unfortunate setback in life but she was compensated by having three wonderful men vying for her affection. I love that all the men were non-problematic, genuinely nice, and mature men each bringing their own strength to the table. If I wasn't slightly biased towards one of them, I at one point was thinking she should just take all three and start her own harem. I kid, I kid... (maybe :P)

I enjoyed a lot of things about this drama and the romance. I understand to some people a student/teacher relationship is not something they like. But the relationship is developed in a nice way and no lines were crossed while they were in a teacher/student relationship. I think one of the things that I liked about this drama is the similarity to a real-life event from my childhood. We had a teacher whose love life was like a legend when we were in high school. It is said that this teacher fell in love with a girl when she was still his student. But he never made a move, in fact, he was so unforgivingly strict with her she was convinced he hated her. He waited until she finished her 1st year of college before asking her out. They are married with kids and known as having a very close relationship. It's like one of those romances you find in novels or movies so you can imagine why their story would be popular. Watching this drama actually took me back in time and reminded me of a story I had long forgotten.

*️⃣To the person who recommended this to me, thank you so much!!! I enjoyed this very much. So much so I had the urge to run out and dye my hair pink and the only thing that stopped me was my hairdresser not being available.

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The story falls into your typical drama setup, and given the popularity of adding gaming into the story has been popular especially in 2021 when both You are my Glory, & Love Scenery were released, and previously Kings Avatar, Love O2O.

Both LuLu Xu and Lin Yu deliver good performances as the main characters.

Is this a cheat code to dating a celebrity? No, but it leaves it to the imagination of potential possibilities
Even Dilraba' & Yang Mi's names were mentioned during the drama.

Obviously the selection of music is limited during a drama, however it being about music especially when Liang Chen enters the TV show competition, they could've maybe added1-2 more songs to add more diversity.

It was a good heartfelt drama, with not too many negative moments. While there are some adversities, such as image, other love interests, they were not excessively pushed as other dramas have done.

Its interesting that they met in the first episode during a flashback moment, where Lin Yu's character remembers because that's probably his first time hearing her music, and eventually developing his celebrity crush, but Liang Chen doesnt. While it was also obvious how Lu Jing discovers who Little Box was because she forgot to turn it back on, if you missed that scene they never really recap/explain it again.

The test of any relationship is long distance, at least in drama. It was evident in "You are my Glory", and it brought back nostalgia when Lin Yu in "Put Your Head on my Shoulder" left to go abroad for sometime, and then eventually came back.

Overall, it was a warm but simple romantic comedy. The soundtrack it what originally led me to watching the drama (Liu Yuning did the intro song for You are my Glory, and credits song PYHOMS)

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Drama with great pacing and execution plus life lessons learned

Ah! Good Doctor! I'm not really a fan of medical dramas but I decided to watch this one as I like both Moon Chae Won and Joo Won and I did not regret my decision to watch it as it's a really good heartwarming drama.
There are many things that makes this drama great. One is that the pacing and the execution of the drama is perfect, and kudos to the writers. The characters are very well developed too, you have likeable characters and most of the "villains" of this show are also given a good side in this drama (some of them even developed to become good characters). Many heart-warming life lessons as the doctor characters heal and overcome the difficulties their patients face. Among the many characters here, the main character of the autistic servant Park Si On is very important to the developments of many characters plus the life lessons provided in this drama. Let's not forget the acting, for me everyone did amazing. Joo Won as the autistic doctor Park Si On, Moon Chae Won as Park Si On's fellow doctor/future lover Cha Yun Seo, Joo Sang Wook as Kim Do Han, even young Kim Hyun Soo as In Hae did great. I have to give a shout out to Yoo Hae Jung as patient Eun-Ok, she was so amazing especially when her character seems very wild at first.
There's really nothing I can fault with this drama. The only thing though with this drama is I felt that career-wise, Moon Chae Won should not have chosen this drama especially after the successes of The Princess's Man, War of the Arrows, and Innocent Man during the two years before she did this drama. Don't get me wrong, Cha Yun Seo is a great character and I love how understanding and helpful she is of Joo Won's character. It's just that I feel the character doesn't give her the chance to show more of her acting skills unlike the previous works mentioned and I feel like she should have chosen a more female centric role. I have no choice but to respect her script decision though and despite what I said earlier about her character and the acting she had to show for this drama, the drama did show a different side to her acting (this character is more light and warm-hearted then the previous works mentioned). Plus I'm still glad she has a drama like this in her filmography.
Attesting to the greatness of this drama is how this won best drama in 2014 Baeksang and even got a US remake that now has many seasons. So what are you waiting for, watch Good Doctor now!

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HONESTLY....

Let's be real. This drama wasn't perfect. In fact, it was far from it. But I don't think it deserves to be hated just because it's "mainstream" or "too many people watch it" and my personal favorite, "just because of those dang dimples" . If you didn't like it, or some parts of it, at least state some actual reasons as to WHY. So here's my take on it:

Negatives:
Firstly, that summary really doesn't prepare you for what's in store when you start watching, so I felt kind of deceived. By reading the summary, it makes it seem that Hye Jin is the character we need to watch out for, or focus on but actually it's not. Well, it was based on a movie called "Mr. Hong" which never really occurred to me, so I guess I should have expected that.

Second, there were so many events/conflicts that were introduced, but in the end became so disjointed from the main plot. Some of these had so much potential but they weren't utilized well, and it just pushed back the main plot up to the last 3/4 episodes. They became scattered fragments of a story that were left forgotten, strewn all around the main plot. I've seen this pattern in some dramas before, and I must say I always get disappointed when it happens, ESPECIALLY when the first few episodes were so darn good.

And third, with the same train of thought as the paragraph before this, I felt like we were just fed good moments, fluff, cute bickering, interesting plot and main conflicts, during the first half of the drama, just to make us stay. Just to please us with fanservice and the typical plot lines that makes fans squeal in delight, without actually progressing the story. Just giving us small glimpses every now and then, but it just kept getting pushed back.

Well, these were my reasons as to why I couldn't give it a perfect 10. But still, I do believe that it doesn't deserve anything less than a 7, at the least.

Positives:
Honestly, Hye Jin is probably my favorite FL so far. She was fairly consistent throughout. She showed growth as an individual, but managed to retain her morals, her beliefs, and her personality, despite being in an environment that may have shamed and disliked it at first. She knows what she wants, and she does what she needs to do to get it. She's unapologetic with her taste and her interests, which is so empowering as a woman. Definitely my favorite character (after I-jun of course ?)

Speaking of I-jun, I honestly LOVED the side characters and the cast!!! They played the characters so well, special shout out to I-jun and Cho Hui!!! Both characters were so well thought out and well played, and even though they didn't have as much screen time as the others, every time they were on screen my eyes were glued to them. So good! The side characters all had their moments to shine, and I really loved learning about them. Though I do admit that their stories took up so much time, which I believe caused the main plot to be pushed to the side. Still, I really do love the chemistry of all the characters.

***this is where the SPOILER is***

Third, I absolutely LOVE the fact that they made Chief Hong a normal human being. I'm glad that they didn't make him some kind of prodigy in engineering or mathematics (w/c was what I was expecting, tbh), or some kind of unexplainably lucky man that suddenly rose to power. As he said, he was just a normal person with a desk job. I love it. I love how realistic that part is. He was just a guy who studied engineering, but got an unrelated job because of a sunbae who helped him out. Honestly, it happens to the most of us, and this is just one tiny detail but IDK man, I really appreciated that.

So okay, this drama isn't perfect at all. It has plot holes, missed opportunities, it overused the leads' chemistry, and it pushed the main plot to the side at some point. But wow it was fun to watch! Sometimes when I have absolutely nothing to do, I remember some cute and funny scenes and I would immediately come back to watch it again. It's gives you a warm feeling and I'm really going to miss that warmth every weekend. La la lalala lalalala~

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Holyland 2005

original adaptation is best ！ not great fan of yankee or gang dramas but I like here how it shows Yu transforming as an individual and also realising importance of friends both personally and in fighting 〜 and at a deeper level this drama shows a man in a real fight for existential survival and this lifts this drama above simple entertainment：he fights or he's bullied、 but even fighting and winning the battle never ends as life itself is a battle〜don't agree this is too short it is just right to ensure the pace and development of the story without useless repetitions of fights just for their own sake and for me there is no boring episode〜fights are exciting but scary〜 theme music great?

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This story deserves more than a score of 10

This series will fill your heart with all the beautiful elements of a storyline, casting and characters. Kudos to the whole crew, actors and writers. This is a well written story with strong characters.

From High school to college to growing up and getting married, it tackles all difficulties in life. Failing and achieving high score in school to failures in startup and being successful and getting married. The cast are so perfect for all their role, seemed like they are really well chosen to act so naturally and delivery their character perfectly.

Your heart will be extremely satisfied watching this. thank you to the whole crew for such a good story!

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One of the lightest and most touching dramas of the year!

In a world where everything is stressful, I’m so thankful for a drama like HCha to exist. It’s such a breath of fresh air seeing everyone interact in their own way. The characters are all fully fleshed out with their own side stories to make you fully immersed in the village of Gongjin. At moments the drama touched on several life lessons, each of which where very touching- you could feel the characters’ emotions (and admittedly I teared up quite often). The sad moments were contrasted by lighter moments to have you ROTFL ?

Props to Shin Min-ah and Kim Seon-ho for bringing Yoon Hye-Jin and Chief Hong to life! I loved seeing all their bickering and banter turn into a light and fluffy romance~

The drama did hit a few minor snags along the way, such as a few characters making questionable decisions. However, it was very in character- so although there could have been different decisions, everything flowed together naturally.

By no means is HomeCha a perfect drama, but for what it is, it’s excellent. If you’re looking for something to destress, have at it!

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Amusing revenge tale

I generally avoid drama involving terrible breakup, annoying love triangle and cheating. But I decided to give it a go since this drama is very short and the beginning was interesting enough to get me glued. I am glad for once a writer clearly know my style of story. The story is all about giving it back what those trash deserve and moving forward in life for good.

I am happy that the friends rightly called that trash as an embarrassment and horrible memory to put him on place. And had a happy ending to become together.

Would have rated it full. But as much as I am someone who crave romance everywhere, it felt unwanted here. Maybe because the lot of slow-mo and dreamy stuffs couldn’t match the charm and reality of other scenes ? That’s a personal opinion though ! The every day get together in coffee vending machine and the first time outing of bartenders when their bar got closed for repair works were super sweet and attractive though.

Finally I appreciate that the girls took the matter in their own hands rather than clinging to ML for help. Women today have more heart and courage in life than men. Be it love, life or business.

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I really liked the show

This isn't going to be a long review but anyone thinking of watching it do it! I really liked the drama. I found it really interesting bcuz you could see how Jiwoo was fighting everyday and giving her upmost all to get to her goal. While doing that she kinda loses herself and like she says is ready to do anything and everything. I really like how there were people who helped her grow and open up:) What really surprised me though is the ending as someone who was watched countless dramas, I'm aware that there aren't many non happy rainbow and sunshine endings, so the ending caught me a little off guard (very). I really look forward to the continuation of the show . If there is one cuz to me the ending was kinda satisfying, like I said there aren't a lot of non atleast a little happy endings in dramas so i thought it was very refreshing and im a sucker for sad stuff:)

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Its passable but for some reason not as fun as the original

this show was ok.. its a remake of welcome to waikiki and that show had me smiling ear to ear most of the time..

this one not so much.. im not sure i would have watched this version past episode 1 if not for serena chen

the show hits all the notes of the original but for some reason it felt less fun.. more restrained.. not as crazy or over the top.. the main couple romance felt off for some reason.. it doesnt feel as compelling.. as the original

the sister with the actor felt a bit more consistent and more flow with it..

that third couple.. well.. thats just what it was.. something to follow the original.. really no sparks at all

the jokes felt flat.. or again more restrained. the baby was cute when u saw her.. though really.. they couldnt afford a bigger baby doll.. so jarring when they used the doll.. instead of a real baby,. u can really tell..

wasnt bad .. wasnt great.. passable is the best i can say about it..

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Absolutely brilliant - one of my favourite dramas in 2021

This drama had me hooked from the beginning. They did such a great job in introducing the characters, showing their development and completing each story line. It was a refreshing, feel-good and realistic drama. Each episode was exciting and I was never once bored.

The relationship between the main couple was very well developed. They showed us that they talked a lot, they laughed together and first became friends before anything else happened. Also, they did not use the typical plotline of misunderstanding because they actually talked with each other.
I really enjoyed that they fought society's stereotypes such as the man has to confess, the man has to propose, the woman has to do all the house chores and even that they both wanted to be intimate with each other and not only one person. Their relationship felt genuine and they had awesome chemistry. Additionally, I enjoyed that there was a lot of skinship. It made everything more realistic.

The only thing that bothered me was that once the couple got together firstly, that the female lead changed a lot. Of course, it was to show that she was in love but it did not do justice for her strong and fierce character that she was before. Also, that they included her hitting him because they did not want the others to find out about their relationship was too much for me. You should never hit anybody to that extent.

Furthermore, the other storylines kept the show interesting. The ratio between the main couple and the side stories was well done. They included topics such as sexual harrassment, marriage issues, being old, sexuality and many more. In general, the stories of the neighbours were interesting and also well thought-through.

All in all, the show was considerate of the current times and more advanced than other dramas I have watched. It was refreshing to see a more realistic story. I absolutely enjoyed this drama and it became one of my favourite dramas. The last few episodes made me cry so much but in a good way. It is definitely worth the watch.

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Enthralling hard crime drama

First, be aware of the tags and description, this drama is +18, it shows many hard "gore" scenes.

This drama has intrigue storyline with well though cases and is switching between the outside crime investigation team and the struggles of our main lead in the prison. What I really liked is how all the cases and also the characters somehow all were connected and you can see it slowly unfold with every episode you watch.

The good camera quality, also the color nuance and the great accompanying music are very well chosen for this kind of drama and enforce the suspense fully. The main actors are doing awesome job, but what surprised me was the acting of the supporting characters. The actor’s expression let me be part of the whole world and I could feel the desperation and feeling all characters went through. The OST is also very well made.

Liang Yan Dong is one real mastermind in solving crimes. We could see through his eyes how some crime could have happen and this helped us to follow his genial thinking much more. With his thinking and profiling I was really surprised about what he could think of. I also found him really great teacher to the young and hot blooded Ren Fei. Ren Fei was my favorite character who really grew as character with the drama. I really enjoyed his character. From female actresses I was amazed by the performance of Eleven Yao in her role as Wu Yu Xin.

Now to the only flaw I have with this drama: The police was shown in bad light, couldn't really contribute much to solving the cases, were often clueless and also made some stupid decisions, which lead me to roll my eyes sometimes and to look at Liang Yan Dong's super deduction ability much more.

Altogether it is one really good suspense crime drama with great visuals and quality. You can see good production here.
S1 ends with big cliffhanger and shows also some secrets at the post credits. Don't forget to watch S2.

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