City Hunter (2011)

I feel like this had so much potential — I'm a huge fan of the vengeful vigilante trope. But it ended up not being as great as it could have been for me, for several reasons.

Nana was a terrible female lead. It felt like they tried to spoonfeed the audience — every other sentence about her was that she was strong, badass, independent, and just not scared of anything. But her character was honestly really weak, both physically and mentally. Nana was a damsel in distress, but her constant "Wow, you aren't afraid of anything!" and I'm-such-a-fighter attitude honestly made it really annoying when she needed saving every other episode and never really got involved in the scheming, which is what annoyed me with MLFTS as well — the female lead was practically just there to be a love interest, to be used as a hostage, and there was barely personal growth.

With that being said, the fact that they focused so much on the romance was honestly annoying and I fast-forwarded through all the montages of their moments together. I was much more interested in the vigilante/action aspect than the romance, and the romance was also extremely cliche, with "I'm bad for you, don't love me" being the only reason they weren't together yet.

Jin-pyo was an annoying character as well, but he was the most intriguing by far, with the whole anti-hero thing going for him. I couldn't see his story going any differently than the way it did.

The action twists were really good and the backstory was fleshed out well. The fact that there were these mini plot arcs throughout the drama for each of the corrupted officials and how they were dealt with made things really interesting and I kept looking forward to the next one, especially seeing how the prosecutor's view of things would play along side-by-side.

Yet, I don't think anything really surprised me, and something about production style made a lot of scenes seem less dramatic than they could have been. I felt like the ending was kind of anti-climactic as well, and Nana stayed annoying til the very end.

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When I had decided to finally watch this drama, it was basically on the fact that Lee Min Ho was going to be the lead(I had just finished watching Personal Preference). But, I had also heard that it was based on a Japanese anime and manga series, which I love, and I figured all the Korean dramas that I've watched based on an Anime have been great so far - so what the heck. I waited until it was about 8 episodes in when I couldn't wait any longer, and for good reason! This drama was amazing!! I watched all 8 in one sitting, and when I reached that far I hated myself because then I had to wait for the next weeks episode! It was painful to have to wait for it.

City Hunter had it all; mystery, bromance, comedy, action, shiny cars, and let's not forget the romance! Each episode was so packed with suspense, I fell in love with the show the first episode! With 20 episodes, you would think it dragged on, but the flow was actually on schedule. I also really enjoyed the OST for this drama, and that is really rare for me! I had never actually watched the anime of City Hunter, so I don't know if it actually was similar to it, but I believe it was good on its own. I loved all the action in this drama, along with its great film quality. The acting was also quite incredible; with Lee Min Ho (looking quite fine) I had previously just watched him on another drama and thought he was great then, but when I watched City Hunter, I didn't see him as his character in Personal Taste, but as a whole separate person. I thought Lee Min Ho actually rose to a whole other level with Lee Yoon Sung - his character. Lee Min Ho really captured Yoon Sung, making him my favorite in the series along with his hot cool moves! Haha

All in all, I Highly recommend that you watch City Hunter! It is NOT something you would want to skip out on!!!

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Story: 9/10
the ONLY reason i gave the story 9/10 is because PEOPLE DIED WHO SHOULD NOT HAVE!!!!
10/10 for making me cry my eyes out and look like a weirdo in front of my family! :L

Acting/Cast: 10/10
you couldn't have chosen a better cast for this drama, i mean...Lee Min Ho, need i say more?
the other actors/actresses were AMAZING and you were really able to connect with them as their personalities and the way they reacted to certain situations was so believable. I fell in love with all the characters: even the bad ones!

Music: 10/10
the music suited the drama VERY well, in certain fight scenes they used the slower music and i think that worked really well because they focused more on the emotional side rather than the 'oh i'm gonna beat the cr@p out of you now with some intense music' it was very touching

Rewatch Value: 10/10
i would definitely be able to watch this a million times over and not get bored, it's one of those dramas that even though you know how it's going to end and you know all the little twists the writers put in, you can't help but want to watch it again: it's addictive!!!

Overall: 10/10
This was such an amazing drama! i can't believe i never watched it before. at first i thought it was going to be just one of those dramas with a load of hype and then when i watch it it's a bit of a let down. Trust me, it is TOTALLY worth watching this!!!!!! Warning: Do Not Start Watching Unless You Are Prepared To Get Addicted!!!

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I liked a lot about this but there was also a lot that bothered me. Still it was a really good show and I would totally recommend people to watch it if you like action and a touch of romance, hot guys and intrigue. However, for me, it lacked the ending I crave and so I base a lot on what I think of an ending. It wasn't a bad ending just not my kind of ending. It was too ambiguous for me and not the final, polished, finished, fabulous ending I like. But as it was not meant to be a romance drama it still ending well. It seemed to leave it open for a second part. The story was great and though not typically my type of show it was very good.

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I really enjoyed the story. Some parts were funny, some were breath holding thrilling and some very wet from all the crying. Even tough there isnt much to criticize about the story I feel they could have done more. Sometimes I felt the story was dragging a bit and the pace was slower as considered good. And of course I would have loved to see one more kiss of the leads just for a dramalovers sake. ^.^ As for the acting, I loved it very much. Everyone was really good except (It really pains me to admit it) Lee Min Ho. His looks are undeniably and unforgettable over the top. But I felt thats all I got from him. A pretty boy. During all 20 episodes I tried very hard to see past Lee Min Hoo' Face and see the man who grew up as a drug lords son somewhere in the jungle and who now wants to take revenge as the city hunter. But I couldn't. not really. I'm a LMH- Lover, dont get me wrong but the more dramas I see of him the more disappointed I am because in every drama he plays the exact same role. (himself?) "His" role may be perfect for PersonalTaste but as for the city hunter he didn't convince me at all. As for Kim Na Na, she did a perfect job. Well, except maybe in the last 10 minutes sitting around weirdly but that's maybe just me. As for the music, it wasn't bad or anything just nothing that stuck with me... In general I am really glad I watched this drama so my advice for you: Go and watch it! ^.^

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This is the first drama I ever watched and it made watch 4 others after it just to find something similar (that would make me feel the same)

I loved it, like really loved it

The acting is excellent (except maybe for Kim na na), the roles are gorgeous.

the action is good, the fights are well coordinated, lee min ho is hot, funny and very sad.

The music is perfectly matched, I now have the OSTs in my Ipod.

I loved the story, inteligent and well sewed ...

it has been a bit slow in the beginning and I expected more dialogs in the end...

but still perfect

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