Reviews

Amazing story, production, and ACTING!

This drama blew me away and definitely exceeded my expectations. I looked forward to Han So Hee’s acting when the trailer was released and after watching her in this action/crime genre, she did AMAZING!
The whole plot was very smooth and there wasn’t any point in the drama of dragging out the story. Every moment was important and captivating.
This drama is filled with intense action and incredible emotions! I watched the whole drama in one sitting because it was SO good. There were a lot of twists and turns that were shocking even if it was somewhat predictable or not.
In the end, I was filled with a huge and intense emotion with some sadness but it offered a realistic outcome.

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workplace romance, grumpy/sunshine pair, love triangle

This one was cute but it’s also the first Korean BL where I really felt like the characters were being seriously ill served by the length. (Usually with Korea’s BLs it’s story/plot that suffers the shorter runtime.) These boys just didn’t have much oomf to them.

Essentially this was a sweet and fluffy story of a willing and eager sunshine boy saving a grumpy chef from himself which featured an unnecessary love triangle that was too underdeveloped for the amount of angst that resulted. On the bright side, everyone was VERY pretty. And that was a very bright side indeed.

Did I enjoy it? Hell yes, they beautiful! Did it have any substance to it beyond the pretty? Not even slightly. Do we want more than that? Ya know? Sometimes... no, no we don’t.

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A disappointment

I was not impressed with this drama and found it boring and depressing. I didn’t care for the characters except for the boss the one female lead fell in love with and his assistant. The two older female leads were dull and not the least bit feminine. The young one was a greedy, immature, materialistic, gold digger. I don’t understand the rave reviews I have read here and haven’t found any redeeming qualities in this drama. I can’t really identify with any of them. I guess opinions about this drama are geared to the culture you come from and can better identify with the plight of these characters. It must be getting a lot of high praise for a reason, but reason eludes me.

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Surprisingly Good!

I don’t expect much from C-dramas so I go in with low expectations. The Sweet Girl, however, exceeded those expectations. Not once in the 24 episodes did I get bored and press the fast forward button. I think that’s due to most of the drama being focused on ML/FLs romance rather than side romances or intrigue. Don’t get me wrong, there is, indeed, intrigue as a competing workshop tries to cheat their way into winning the chamber of commerce’s competition, but those scenes are kept at a minimum. Just like the secondary romance between Su Yi and Lvshai. Also, there’s plenty of psycho chicks who think they’re the only ones worthy of ML/SMLs love because somehow hanging around them entitles you. But, the psycho chicks, although annoyingly sure of their own worthiness, in no way has a rat rear end’s chance of coming between ML/SML and FL, and subsequently get banished by ML/SML for trying to do so. Nice to see men that take immediate action against these toxic women. Well, anyway, on with the review.

This period piece was set – I think – in the 1920s, which immediately wet my interest. Any time I find a C-drama set in a historical time period other than the dynasties, I pounce like a cat on a mouse. The costumes were romantic and a welcome change to the typical dynasty garb. I just wish more of the women had 20s hairstyles – really only Su Yi’s mom fulfilled that wish. At least, the men had short hair (although with A LOT of product in it), not man buns or long flowing tresses.

ML – If I didn't have a bad case of SML syndrome right from the start, I would have liked him better. Also, if his hairstyle for the first half hadn’t remind me of Edward Scissorhands, I might have like him better…but it was cute how he could expel a puff of air from his mouth and move that one strand of hair on his forehead. Wonder if he could do that naturally or it took him practice. I was impressed with the actor’s ability to express his character’s emotions. His expression turned so sweetly loving when he looked at FL (once he’s fallen in love with her, of course). He really did look like he adored her. And he expressed a fair amount of angst when FL nearly died and then when she was scheduled to marry SML. He also brought humor to the drama – not laugh out loud humor – just smiling to yourself humor. I would have been perfectly satisfied with FL’s choice if it weren’t for SML syndrome.

SML aka Mr. Pei – FL didn’t fall in love with him, but I did, and my heart broke for him as FL gravitated toward ML. I guess that’s the advantage of proximity. Honestly, there was no reason for her to choose ML over SML other than proximity…and the script told her to. Mr. Pei was sweet and kind and elegant. He was so happy when the evil Mrs. Qin arranged for him to marry FL, and my heart broke once again when she was snatched away from him at the last minute. Too be so close to your dream and then have it taken from you – no wonder he hated ML after that! Yeah, he strayed in the psycho chick territory for a while – she’s not yours if she loves the other guy, sweetie - but I still loved him. I kept telling FL that there were worse things than marrying Mr. Pei, and she just wouldn’t listen to me. Darn it!

FL – a typical spunky heroine although she was also incredibly stupid. How could she not know for 20 episodes that ML knew who she was? How could she think that he was in love with the previous Manager Lu when he told her to her face over and over again that he loved her? I can understand thinking he used you to get the book- since you heard something to that effect - but there’s no way she can't know that he knows who she is unless she’s just stupid.

Second couple – Su Yi and Lvshai. They were one of the first C-drama second couples that I was actually interested in - probably because the scriptwriter/director kept their story to the minimum. Their romance didn’t distract from the MC. I did find SFL’s timid behavior rather annoying, and honestly, would these Chinese parents really accept their son marrying a maid/shop worker? I know we’re in the 1920s, but these parents were surprisingly kind and accepting of their son’s choice in wife. Not that I’m complaining – I’ve had more than enough meddling Asian parents! I’m always happy to see nice Asian parents – although I could’ve done without the concubine thing. Sad to know that kind of stuff was still going on in the early 20th century.

The villagers did get on my nerves. First of all, what is this? A village of women and children only? How come Agui was the only male in the village? And why was FL the only woman willing to stand up to the bad guys? I guess the helplessness and dependency of the villagers just rubbed me the wrong way. Also, Grandma had TB but somehow recovered? TB was pretty deadly in those days so I found her recovery a bit far-fetched.

Finally, the ending seemed a bit odd to me. Why would FL suddenly decide to take the kids and head out on an adventure, leaving ML behind? Did she get bored because she was no longer Superflash? I don’t get it. And then ML runs after them to join them in their travels. Uh, who's minding the shop and producing money? Why did this family suddenly decide to travel when everyone was perfectly content at home for the previous 24 episodes? Just makes no sense to me.

But, overall, this drama exceeds my expectations, and I would highly recommend it.

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Not amazing, just acceptable!

Initially I was avoiding this drama, as I thought will not be on my taste.
I watched first episode and I want to discover more, so I watched each episode till the end.
I may say that this drama contains some weak scenes, but I was able to pass through them, as I liked a lot acting of the main leads.
I got a big disappointment on the last two episodes of this drama:
1. I did not like how the director create the scene when Vincenzo go to save the girl .
2.I didn't like the ending, if the screenwriters created a love connection in this drama, they should offer to the viewers a scene with "I love you", the one with "I miss you", was not good enough for me.

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Indeed an Action Thriller!

Honestly watched this for Han Sohee (Jiwoo) and she didn’t disappoint at all! Her acting was topnotch and she was able to portray every bit of emotion that was needed for her character. I was also pleasantly surprised with Park Heeson’s (Choi Moojin) acting as well! He nailed that badass gang leader character and was also able to portray his character’s depth as well.

The series was also well filmed. They did a great job with setting the tone for each and every scene all throughout the series. The action scenes will also leave you wanting for more! Han So Hee really did a great job performing all those stunts.

The only thing quite unfortunate for this series was that the story was quite predictable especially if you have watched a lot of noir gangster movies or series. It was especially the case for me as I already had a hunch right from the earlier episodes on who was the killer. Mostly because the premise of a gang leader taking someone under his wing to ‘supposedly’ help fulfill their revenge is quite common in my opinion.
The unexpected romance was in the end was honestly quite a surprise but it doesn’t necessarily mean it was bad. Especially if we’ll try to understand Jiwoo’s character wherein she finally met someone who knew the other part of her but nonetheless still believed in her until the end.

Overall, it was still an enjoyable watch for me and I didn’t mind the predictable plotline because they still managed to execute the story in a unique way.
It indeed lived up to my expectation of it being an Action Thriller!

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Cute, But a Bit Basic

How to describe The Tasty Florida? It serves you several overdone romance tropes in a bite-sized, visually pleasing palette cleanser. Like most KBLs, the unfortunately low number of episodes combined with their short length leave us with a story and romance that feels a bit rushed and under-developed. Backstories regarding missing/dead family members, childhood experiences, and that pre-relationship tension-building could have benefited from further exploration and exposition, but I know that having a healthy budget that would allow the time to really explore these issues in a Korean BL is hard to come by. That said, those would have been the main factors to distinguish this short BL from others, so the lack of focus on them leaves this feeling rather typical. Instead of being memorable for the storyline, this one (to me) will be remembered more for the setting and set.

That said, the drama was simple and sweet and had me smiling in I think every episode from all the uwus. The chemistry between the two leads was pretty decent. You could tell they were comfortable around one another, and there was a naturalness and ease about their interactions with one another. The acting overall was solid; I only felt like a couple of the supporting cast was a tiny bit stiff, but nothing terrible.

I really enjoyed the OST. The songs were catchy and light and matched the vibe of the drama very well.

Overall, I would recommend, especially if you need something cute and fluffy.

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Beautiful cute story you should watch.

Okay so I am usually very picky when it comes to dramas especially historical dramas. Many dramas have death and may not have a happy ending. The story overall is so cute. A thing I love about is the actors and actresses they are all good looking and act very good. It takes place in historical times but has some more stuff that cansa years after an example is a car also the houses in it and lastly the hair for the guys is short not long. If you like laughing I recommend it. Many people may like some sad stories this has some sad parts but it’s cute and a beautiful drama it has to be one of my top 3 dramas. The music is beautiful and I love the music.

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Great start, a bit lousy middle but with meh outcome

Her story is exactly like as every lead of revenge drama has: Death of family member-killer is unknown-desire of revenge-getting ready for mission-undercover (ah this thing is a must)-a lot of killings and action-big disclosure of killer (the ultimate twist)- then revenge is done! so yeah it is the same path as it's always been but just a little change we have a girl... who can fight well.. very well, very very well, and honestly, it's entertaining.

It's quite predictable, none of the 'twists' really shocked me or made me "What? Whoa!... or what just happened now?" (maybe there's only one scene as an exception), from the beginning I almost knew who was the real villain.. so the thing is the big revelation isn't surprising at all... maybe you'll end up saying, ah I knew it! so yeah you're definitely getting the satisfaction from your guesses being spot on lol But it's intriguing and story dynamics are interesting as well. I mean who doesn't love to see badass FL, who loves to win every time and is an expert in beating people. So even though it's not the best plot out there but something that'll entertain you.

Characters are one-dimensional and kinda stereotyped, their actions are only as of the story want and what the story needs. Maybe it's the time factor that affects here, we don't get to explore characters well... even the leads, we only see one side of them.

Ji Woo is shown as one man oops my bad one-woman army (literally)... I mean she just kinda fights with a looot of people and never actually loses lol which is quite unrealistic... I mean almost everyone is armed and trained fighters but I don't think there's a need for realism for this kind of drama. She has the ultimate goal for her life so yeah she does nothing else other than that basically no life. She's rash and impulsive which end up making a lot of trouble for her.. but we don't get the cliche personal development thing out of this one lol.. she's reckless till the end. We've our lead character flawed not the ideal or moral one, well this one adds points for me. Han So Hee did a really good job, especially with the fighting scene.

Moo Jin's presence kinda overshadows everyone or mostly it's coz of Park Hee Soon brilliant performance. I truly enjoyed his acting and seeing him on the screen lol.. even though he is well you know. His character was interesting and had more shades than anyone.

Pil Do ah the character to get the story where it should... I wasn't connected to his story, even his backstory was more like, let's make characters having tragic backstories. So just we can emphasize with them, wasn't a great tactic :')

It was going well till it wasn't... coz then they have to add some unnecessary bits, I was literally like... "WHY? this wasn't needed" things are just thrown to you without any context, and we just have to accept it even though they make no sense at all!

Cinamatographically it's good... having that typical Netflix touch. The color palette goes well with the tone of the drama. I loved the soundtrack again this one Netflix thing lol, there aren't many songs only a few but more than enough and perfectly fitting. Bgm was also good, in the start is a bit off, but it gets better with time.

Action: Fighting scenes is the thing I truly enjoyed... they were entertaining and satisfactory lol, not too much but enough.

This isn't out-of-the-box or extraordinary but definitely an interesting watch. I was hooked from the very first episode and never stopped pressing the next episode till the end so yeah quite addictive too, best to binge

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If you're looking for action then this is the right place.

The action scenes in this series is really good. And the background music just hits on point. Soo Hee ofc nailed her role.

Plotwise the story is pretty much predictable. But if you see this as an action drama, it delivered it. There was enough blood shed to make me happy.

Park Hee Soon is a great actor. The dynamics between Moo Jin and Ji Woo was well written. Ji Woo riding her bike was a great pleasure to watch. I loved each and every scene of her bike riding.

Also I didn't want Tae Joo to die. May be end up in hospital but not dead.

Overall it's 8/10 for me.

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Titular Character nailed it

●FIRST IMPRESSION
Kdrama always had tons of layers to its story. Initially, they will make you curious and with each episode, it gets more and more intense, suspenseful, and enjoyable loaded with humor and romance.

●PLOT VIEW
This drama had touched on some social issues like the single mother, same-sex relationship, rape in a delicate way. Although rape is touched superficially it makes me go teary-eyed. The life of a single mother trying hard to regain her lost status was commendable. But the most commendable is HO GOOS LOVE. There is a quote and it fits here perfectly “I Respect Any Man That Can Heal a Heart He Didn't Break and Raise a Child He Didn’t Make”
Ho Goos to stay beside the woman he loved, since school days even though everyone considered him a fool because of his name but he stays true to his love and follows what his heart says. Supporting the Do-DoHee and in every decision but also guiding her to the rights and wrongs is what made this story so special. Because in this love story ML is shown weak having a soft heart while FL is shown strong but has a feeble heart. They both were made to complete each other.

●ACTING
>Choi Woo Shik nailed his role as the titular character. I have always seen him doing comic characters but this drama showed what he can do. He evolves as a compassionate and silent romancer. He showed the character maturity which no one had seen.
>Uee as DoHee was strong physically but still needed a hand in the crowd. She portrayed the vulnerable girl nicely.
>Gang Chul was one of the fun persons to see and his dilemma towards HoGoo was humorous. He also had growth from mean to good person.
>Ho Gyeong is was a ticking bomb for me. Her one action almost changed the fate of these characters. And why be so biased about one look. Everyone looks pretty.

●MUSIC
It is nice but not memorable IMO. BGM was great although.

●REWATCH
I would love to see the goofiness of Ho Goo and his compassionate love. all of the Ho-Goo parts is actually is worth rewatching.

●APPRECIATION
>The animation scenes were precise.
>Ho Goos drawing book, he drew exceptionally well.

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