This review may contain spoilers
All About My Mom needs a WARNING label. This may be kinda spoilerish, but I think the information needs to be provided. If a person has ever lost a parent from an illness, and doesn't want to vicariously experience the same emotions and pain, then this drama is not to be watched. I wish I had known, because I wouldn't have watched this.Now on to the story. It is a well written family drama. It isn't that makjang since there are no birth secrets, amnesia and other type Korean troupes. I have a few complaints about how the parents sometimes treated their children even though they went through the same thing. There are a few unnecessary characters that make unnecessary grief for some of the characters. But I guess there were side story lines needed. However, the character development is extremely well done and I became invested in the lives of the family. I like the pacing and the ending is daebak!
Each actor took on their role splendidly. I don't believe anyone could complain about a single person's acting. Go Doo Shim is amazing as Im San Ok. Watching her progression and seeing her life felt real. I didn't realize Oh Min Suk was such a versatile actor. He impressed me the most.
The music is good and appropriate.
I will never rewatch this.
If you like family dramas with deep emotions, then this is the drama for you.
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Parents are God's precious gift to us, so never take them for granted. Feel blessed for having them in your life and feel blessed if you had them at some point in your life. There are so many people that don't know that kind of love. It's an emptiness beyond compare, don't take them for granted and let them know you love them because you never know when they'll be gone. Don't let life keep you busy from them, life will always be busy this won't change, don't forget as we grow up they grow old too.
I started this drama expecting it to be an average enjoyable family drama, I did not expect to learn so much and feel the way I felt while watching it. This is such a beautiful realistic story about family, parents, mothers.. I doubt anyone can't relate to the mother daughter relationship, or son father relationship, or daughter father, son mother, bother sister and finally husband and wife. The way family bonds were portrayed here allowed me to connect on the personal level with how the characters were behaving and those relationships. I have seen many family dramas, All About My Mom is the 2nd family drama that I consider a masterpiece and an outstanding one.
Story: Your regular family, with issues of favouritism and conflicts between siblings and between kids and parents. The family bond is pretty much the core story of this drama. It's about those people's daily life and how they learn to live with each other. Siblings feeling inferior to each other because of favouritism. Parents feeling guilty for mistakes they've done in their life while raising the kids. A mother who loves her kids equally but shows it differently. A daughter who feels left out all the time, A son who feels burdened by his mother's over love and special treatment. It's almost impossible that you won't relate with any issue in this drama because this is life, and this is what family is all about. What can I possibly say about mothers? What words would do them justice? Mother: the only person who wishes you to be a better person than her and have a better life, the only person who will not love herself over you, the angel who will always give and give without expecting a return. No love in this world can be compared to parents love, no love in this world can be compared to a mother's love. This is the story that gives this beautiful angel the credit and regards she deserves. Nothing I can say in words that would describe what is a mother, but this story is more than qualified to do so.
Acting: 100/10. An award winning performance.
Here we come for the best part, the acting. The acting here in this drama makes other dramas with an outstanding performance look like nothing in comparison, and no I'm not exaggerating. What made this drama so popular with high ratings? what makes it special? Nothing about the story new or special. It's the way those wonderful, amazing, incredible cast have performed it. Brace yourselves this part will be long!
Go Doo Shim: as San Ok. Man, I need to stay away from you faaaaar away! I can't believe this wonderful woman brought tears to my eyes several times during the whole journey! I can't believe I cried like a little baby. I'm far from someone who can cry for her own problems in life, let alone for a drama. I loved it but also hated it, I loved that she melted my iced heart and broke me from the inside but also hated seeing myself cry for a drama. She made me reflect on myself many times and slapped me in the face with every lesson I learn on how you should appreciate your parents. We are not angels and we tend to think that just because we are humans and just because they are our parents they'll love us no matter what. Stressful life, upsetting things, depressing issues, having the hardest time in your life, does not excuse any selfish behaviour towards your parents. Go Doo Shim's acting wasn't acting, she was a true mother, a real mother image to the point where I felt the need to hug her so tight. She broke my heart several times as if she was really my mother. She won the Daesang award for her role here (2nd time winning). Her performance is what makes this drama a 10/10! She is officially my second favourite actress. My favourite sentence of her "Shut da mouse" aka "shut the mouth".
Oh Min Suk: as Hyeong Gyu. My most hateful character but my 2nd favourite actor in the cast! I hated him so much, I really hated him from the bottom of my heart. The amount of hate I had for him I thought for sure even if the dramas ends his character will have no redemption from me, but the writer proved me wrong. Oh Min Suk as an actor I've seen him before but never like this! Even as a villain in KMHM he did not stand out, an yet he is not even playing a villain here but that performance, man that performance...made me speechless! He is such a great actor, those scenes will forever be engraved in my memory I will never forget his scenes because I learned from him so much. The way he managed to make people hate him so much even though he wasn't a villian but at the same time appreciate his acting skills. All the comments all the reviews about this drama is regarding the cast and how emotionally flawless their performance is. While watching I'd always see such comments and reactions from people "I hate him so much I hope karma gets him, but the actor deserves an award". Officially fan.
Kim Kap Su: as Dong Chul. My 3rd favourite character and actor in the cast. I never really bothered feeling anything about any of the old couples I've seen in previous dramas. I never cared about parents relationship as husband and wife in previous dramas. I never paid attention to that aspect, but here it was totally different. Instead of the kid's love life and the kid's romance I cared more about the mother father relationship as husband and wife. I loved how this part of the story was written because based on real life experience it's very relatable and real. I loved the relationship and though his character is not the lovable character I still couldn't help but love him! He wasn't the perfect husband he wasn't what you'd want for someone like San Ok but he wasn't hateful person too. It is impossible to hate him! Though he has his selfish moments and carefree moments he also have his sweet moments. To me Dong Chul wasn't a bad husband, but he falls short in comparison to San Ok. San Ok is too wonderful of a person that people think she is too good for him. The way I saw it those true truly and sincerely portrayed what a husband wife relationship is, how it is when you have you companion with you all these years. I adored the way Kim Kap Su played his character! He is the cutest, sweetest, adorable father/ahjussi I have ever seen and the way he talks, the way he laughs, the way he calls his wife "Okaaa" aka his wifes name is the sweetest thing ever. I find it really cute that he calls his wife by her name and not "honey" like most married couples do in K dramas.
Eugene: as Jin Ae. Well, Eugene is forever one of my favourite actresses and I never skip any drama of hers. One of the reasons I started this is her. Jin Ae is the first surprise for me, because I wasn't expecting to relate and understand a character as much as I did with her. Her frustration, her feelings of being left out I can relate to it all. Her conflict with her brothers, her mother.. very relatable and her character the hard working person who always tries her best to win her moms favour. I'm sure many of you can identify her and relate to her. Eugene once again proved herself as a worthy actress, specially her scenes with her mom, the thought that this is all "acting" won't cross your mind. Jin Ae is the sweetest daughter a mother could ever wish for and you can learn so much from her.
The rest of the cast I loved them all, I may not liked all the characters but I loved the actors.
Music:
I loved all the OSTs, but the reason I'm giving this 10/10 is because of one song, "To My Wife" by Tae Jin Ah. The only song that actually manages to make my eyes tear, I still can't believe it but it had such an impact on me. The song was used perfectly in the drama, in the perfect scenes which stimulates all your emotions and you find yourself tearing up. I have a friend who cried without watching the drama, only from listening to this song. The singer has such a powerful husky voice and he feels so much in pain while he sings it. The lyrics are simply beautiful, from a husband to his wife.
Rewatch:
I don't rewatch dramas, I have very few special ones that I might rewatch. However family dramas in general are rewatchable and this one I think belongs to that list.
Overall:
Though this drama has romance but if you came here only for the romance then this drama is not for you. Yes it has romance, and more than one couple but the essential element here isn't the romance, it's the family bonds. If you came here hoping for makjang, plot twists, melodramatic events, things happening all the time...etc then this is also not for you. As I already mentioned this is purely family drama, it's all about mothers. A daily life of a regular family with normal daily issues nothing out of the ordinary. However if you want to watch something that hold such great values, something that could teach you valuable lesson and remind you of things you love and value, a drama that hold such beautiful meaning and carries a noble message about a creature we call angel, about mothers...Then yes I most definitely recommend it. I will miss this drama dearly.
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This review may contain spoilers
this is my first long drama ever and i'm glad i watched ,
it's pure family problems drama,
although it had many weak points in my opinion
1. the FL's character was so annoying and there is no chemistry between 1st main leads
2. there are many annoying characters in this drama
3. both moms are real B****** and annoying
4.there was no need for 54 eps. it's more than enough 44
5. there were no need for many characters except filling the drama
7. lots and lots of grief with no need at the last 12 episodes and repeated events
They were crying 12 ep nothing but crying
what i dislike about this drama
the 1st FL she is always wining and wailing and had a poisoned tongue just like her mom she is interfering every thing and took decisions by herself
the Fl's mom had a very bad character she always say harmful things then regret between herself
her tongue was toxic
the Fl's elder brother i used to hate him then loving him then ending hating him again
he is so selfish
the ML's mom she is like the snake soft and cute from outside but toxic from inside with very annoying character
most of the annoying characters which raised my temper a lot were women
like Aeng Du & Yoo hee &Nan sook they were the real example of real B****es
the elder brother's wife i hated her weakness in front of her son when it comes to her son she turned to be mean
her son was extremely impolite and he didn't even smell politeness at all
too draggy towards the end starting from ep 44 when the writer decided to make the mom got rare cancer and died with no need
he suddenly turned it into tragedy drama
what i like the most about this drama
The 1st ML was soooooo cute
and i was fond of 2nd leads
the youngest FL's brother and his love
Tae Joon and Bo Ah
i was waiting for their story every ep.
they were really cute i took my breath when they back together
the father although he was so weak and was a bunch of troubles but he was so kind and love his children a lot and was so helpful and adviced them well
I had a question
Why we should wait to know that someone we love is going to die to change our attitude from being mean to kind and nice ones and full ourselves of regret ????
Any way
really in general nice drama you can watch easily
RECOMMENDED ^_^
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Characters (My personal thoughts on them, my likes and dislikes):
----- Jin Ae: A daughter who grew up without receiving the desired attention and love that her brother received, felt alone and rejected. I've been a fan of Eugene since 'Loving You', she in my eyes is an astounding actress (will always be one of my favorites). I loved her character and I could easily sympathize with her. She loved her mom and just wanted to be loved by her (or shown it in a more affectionate way) and when she was given the short end of the stick seemingly every time she'd get angry and when her mom acted like a mom she'd get embarrassed b/c it was awkward for her. She admires her boss. Finds love in a "handy-man" lol - I personally really loved their story :)
----- Hoon Jae: Raised by a single mom in a rich home, he finds Jin Ae seeping into his heart and pursues her wholeheartedly ^_^ I loved this big lovable dork, a totally different side to Sang Woo then I have seen before - I especially liked those looks he'd give to his otherwise "rival" seriously so adorable, every-time he'd give that boyish look of competing to him I'd roll with laughter b/c of how funny it was and how adorable he looked. ^_^
----- Hyeong Gyu: I know this character received a lot of hate from the vast majority of the people who watched this drama but I honestly liked him for the most part, in the beginning he was stuck up and was only trying to reach one goal (riches) but when he settles down and starts to help Hye Joo, I really really liked his screen time and his character, he as his mom put it opened up his hardened heart. He does get on my nerves again soon after though and I almost started to dislike him a bit, but I was more disappointed with his actions than anything. His moments with those he cared for when he wasn't being rude was so precious in my eyes - especially in the last few episodes. So he was a favorite of mine.
-----San Ok Eomoeni: I loved her, I thought she was kind of mean in the beginning and not fair to her children, always favoring Hyeong Gyu and neglecting Jin Ae but as the drama unfolded my love for her character just kept growing, she was so precious and loved her children so much, and such a nice woman to all those who started to come into her family. The deepest character in the drama is her. She could make me cry with the things she said so quickly that at times I didn't even know I was being affected until my eyes started to burn and the tears started to fall. Such a powerful performance by this great actress. (she's become one of my favorite "mom" actors since I first saw her in 'Legendary Witch').
----- Chae Ri: Such a wild bright and engaging girl, I loved her sweetness and her rude charm lol, she knew what she wanted and she charged at it like no one else - easily slipping on shoes to fit her new environments without a care. Most of the drama I liked her alot - there were a couple scenes with her and Hyeong Soo that I thought were way too dramatic and all I could do was back up and laugh it off ( I honestly think the drama could have cut those overly dramatic scenes out of the drama and it would have made it better). She easily loved and cared for those in her life. A++
----- Hyeong Soo: For the most part he is a a sweet and kind guy but he had one major flaw that made me really dislike him for several episodes in the latter half of the drama - a HUGE inferiority complex - big self-pity. It really really got on my nerves and I couldn't help but call him pathetic and even a looser at times b/c of that attitude. But when he wasn't in that complex outfit he was a really great guy and I enjoyed every other scene with him.
----- Hye Joo: I liked her when she worked at the law office but she started to get on my nerves later on too, with her wimpy attitude of being such a fragile woman who cries at every turn and breaks with a little hard work (radish wrist -_-), she also had no discipline in her family with her son and her mother, she didn't set proper boundaries and rarely ever spoke her mind, she'd just tear up and whimper instead and that really got on my nerves, especially since her closed mouth ended up making Hyeong Gyu throw angry fits where it wasn't deserved. She was nice, but too meek. Her son was so sweet in the earlier episodes as well, but he also became a bit of a brat in the later ones (albeit his mom let him get away with it). Oh and I couldn't believe her and her mom wanted people to eat their very bad tasting food.
----- Dong Chool: I really did not like this character at all. He was such a flirt, always lost money, and even down to the way he moved, talked, laughed and dressed annoyed me lol (I've seen this actor in other shows so I was surprised with the character he portrayed in this drama - his acting was great but I hated his character). I don't think I could respect such a "father" or such a "husband". He was such a mama's boy that his wife struggled all her life - even after his mom had died. And who in their right mind would put up such a huge picture of their mother in their bedroom?!! So creepy! That did not belong in there at all.
----- Yeong Seon: Hoon Jae's mom, I really liked her in the beginning, but later on she gets SO jealous, at first I was amused at her jealousy, but then she started to act so childish b/c of it that I got annoyed at her attitude toward Jin Ae. I never hated her though and I still found her amusing with her jealously at times. I'm just glad this didn't go on for the whole drama b/c that would have been terrible lol - Overall she's a very nice person who just happened to be jealous when it came to her son.
Music was nice, I knew a lot of the background songs and the theme songs were nice as well.
I might re-watch this sometime in the future. I definitely recommend it to those who love family dramas.
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This review may contain spoilers
if never ending arguments doesn't bother you
my feelings after watching this are sadness and a great feeling of loss. let's find out why:I love slice of life's stories, and this one is kind of one, except this is a big chunk of slice. you'll get to know approximately all about the life of sanok, mother of 3, wife and daughter. but you'll get to know her trough the eyes of every one around her, from family to neighbors. the main contributor to this testimony is her daughter jinae.
the problem is that this family's greater dynamic is the fight. this show begins with 3 first episodes having an incredible content of fights. it's almost unbearable (it will get better afterwards, be patient). they say harsh words so slightly to each other that it puzzled me! the second dynamic of this family is the lie. they lie to each other all the time! all this stress ends up making sanok ill and die. the entire family got their dynamic changed through this process. the writer managed anyhow to add a happy ending feeling on that, so the sadness experienced through the show isn't crushing.
why I didn't like it and why you shouldn't watch it: as I said, 1- there is too much arguments, words' violence, and lies which shows no human respect. also 2- the story is about a parent dying from illness, and if you experienced it in real life maybe you will not appreciate being remembered of it. I usually don't add spoilers in my reviews but this warning must definitely be given. 3- the feeling of loss about how happier (and healthier) they all would have been if they just watched their mouth in the first place is sometimes overwhelming.
why I liked it and why you should watch it: 1- the actors' performances were really great. 2- even if I don't like arguing people, people are all different and this kind of family does exist. 3- people can change and it's always interesting to witness this transformation. 4- if you feel like you need to cry and your tears need some help. 5- the balance between what I liked and disliked is positive.
when watch this: when you have some time ahead because this 54 episodes' show is addictive and you'll have hard time pausing it. have fun!
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