Even though the show may be predictable, but what lies in its beauty is its predictability. I enjoy watching a drama with substance, and even though it's predictable, it's still a joy to watch. It might not have the in the moments kind of plot where the drama puts you on the edge every episode, making you wonder whats going to happen next and etc, but it has the everyday ordinariness to it, and that's what makes me love the show so much. I'm aware that there are other drama who are also ordinary, but somehow, i loved that for a fantasy drama, one that plays with the age old legend of the mermaid, all they crave for is the simplicity and ordinariness of everyday life.
Jeon Ji Hyun and Lee Min Ho played their roles very well. And well, their chemistry to me, is amazing. It's not the out of this world chemistry where people will go omg, their chemistry is the bomb kind of thing, it's more towards of them being together, and being just like any other ordinary couple and their longing for something so simple that makes it special to me. I attribute their chemistry to the directors and producers of the drama too. Chemistry between leads is a subjective thing. It also depends on the direction and nature of the drama. If a drama is meant to be warm and fuzzy, and not hot and sizzling, then the way the main leads interact and act will also change accordingly to the direction of the drama too..
I would say give this show a try. You may or may not like it initially, but there's something special about wanting to be ordinary that makes it special to me. In addition, this show also showed me another side of Lee Min Ho. If i have to choose, this would be my favourite drama of his since his BOF days till now. And as usual, Jeon Ji Hyun, is amazing. She pulls off being a mermaid effortlessly when we know it's otherwise for her while filming!
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Not bad, Ms. Park!
It's quite funny how many commentators do an overall review of a series, here too, listing story, characters, with first, second, third and finally the final score.We learned this in school, it was called a reflection essay and here we apply what we learned. How beautiful, the school was not completely in vain, friends of the night.
I would like to celebrate here, deviantly, the merit of the author, that is Park Ji Eun, a beauty herself (is a compliment allowed, nowadays?). She writes creative, beautiful stories, from "Blue Sea," that wonderful story, to "Love from the Star," to "Crash Landing." Others, I am sure, are also excellent, but I have only seen these three by Ms. Park.
All of her stories are interesting, entertaining, also suspenseful and very romantic, the romance without drifting into the ridiculously cheesy. She never resorts to rude and brutal bangs, as is common in other shows, bravo, Ms. Park Ji Eun.
I wanted to get that off my chest, because dramas of the author scene are often poor. And what were the last words of the American poet William C. Williams on his deathbed: "There are a lot of shitheads out there".
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Then, halfway through, everything seemed so monotonous. It was as if it was necessary to know everything about their past before the present. I wanted the now to be more developed so that it wouldn't get so lost.
At some point in history you already know who the antagonists are, you know what they are going to do, but you don't understand why exactly. You know, a lot has not been explained. The past was something different, they had their reasons, but now everything is different, people who think differently, and it seems like everyone is living in the same nightmare with no reason to do things.
I kept watching just to see the ending, although I already anticipated that it would be ok. Unfortunately I can't give more than a 7 for this drama, I thought it would impress me more because it is a story with mermaids (which I love), but in the end people are just people and what you thought would happen , it happens. No big deal.
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The gold standard for K-DRAMA
The vibes and visuals are immaculate. The feeling of fantasy and enchantment is top-notch. The OST is immersive. The chemistry develops nicely. Heartwarming and touching beyond the main leads, supporting characters had personality. A+ comedic timing.LMH's best look in my opinion and one of the more interesting ML roles he's played. He's a "rich" boy scamming people and always running away from the authorities. The naive but quick learner mermaid falls in love with him who is sheltered by this weak and traumatized persona of his. All takes place in stunning settings. -0.5 for the overused clichés in the last episodes that added nothing, probably just to stretch run time. Perhaps this was when 18/20 eps dramas started to become 16 eps.
Must watch!
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This review may contain spoilers
Overall good drama, but memory loss aspect is tricky
I enjoyed most of this drama, but have a hard time dealing with memory loss and time gaps in plots. The last time we deal with memory erasure felt unnecessary and exhausting-- we just spent 19 episodes accumulating experiences with these characters just to have all of that disappear! And usually when I see the "X years later" cut-scene in a series, I start to lose interest. Thankfully, this happened at the very end of this drama, so I didn't have to lose too much interest for very long. Overall, I enjoyed watching, found the characters very likeable, and the plot to be captivating. Bonus points for a happy ending :)Was this review helpful to you?
Heartfelt drama
This is a show I've wanted to watch for a while but not necessary because it is such a popular one. The fantasy genre is one I really enjoy so I had to give it a chance.I really liked the idea of parallel worlds; I thought it was a bit tiring in the beginning since they were showing scenes from the past back and forth and you were forgetting what was actually happening in the present but it made so much sense later! I'm one of those who think the drama could have had 16 episodes, there were so many scenes who could've been shortened. There was a certain warmth in some scenes that made me forget about some imperfections. The last 5-6 episodes were so good, a lot of suspense but the last episode seemed a bit rushed. One of the best parts was Nam Doo's storyline from the last part of the drama.
The acting was very good: as always Jun Ji Hyun is great in comedies! She had great chemistry with Lee Min Ho, he did a really good job too. Liked a lot the supporting characters (Joon Jae's friends mostly).
The OST was quite generic.
To be quite honest, I wouldn't rewatch it that much; it started a bit slow but then it really caught up! There were a lot of funny moments though; those need rewatching!
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LMH's acting definitely improved a lot and I can finally understand why he has hoards of fangirls (sorry LMH for not jumping on the fangirling until now!) JJH is an adorable mermaid, the best. I liked how the characters stayed consistent throughout the show and also grew.
Highlights:
- all the cute romantic moments between the two leads had me swooning
- cute tie-in with their past lives
- beautifully shot show
- supporting characters were a riot and I almost never fast forwarded through
- the SFX and OST were amazing!
- cameo from JJS was the best cameo I've ever seen
- ending was satisfying
- villains did a great job acting
I would have liked to see more LMH planning out scams but the story focused on the romance than action. I thought the overall show was well-paced
I didn't expect to like this show as much as I did but glad I finally watched it!
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Second Time Watching It, First Time Appreciating It
This is the second time I watched it but this is the first time appreciating the series overall so I am writing this simple review. It did not have an impact on me the first time I watched it when it was released. Now, I feel like this is my favorite Jun Ji Hyun's drama, and this is one of my favorite Lee Min Ho's dramas alongside City Hunter and Faith.The chemistry is top-notch. Jun Ji Hyun is so good at carrying her male lead the same way she did with Kim Soo Hyun (My Love from the Star). She's my favorite character here, very funny yet charming.
What I love about this the most is the parallel-world concept of the plot. My grandma usually has a hard time understanding the changing of timelines in a series, but she seemed to be enjoying this.
OSTs? The best here.
A little downside for me here is how Sung Dong Il's role (Ma Dae Young) felt discarded at the near end of the series.
Still worth watching.
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It's a MESS, but it's a really fun MESS!
Let's start with the obvious! You're NEVER gonna watch this show, because it's well-written, because it's not! I could tear apart the story like a piece of paper.The base of the story is a mess, there are no rules, basically. I know, every fantasy is different, but I think they made a mistake with some things like that water part. That's basically the biggest plot hole in the story. If one simple drop of water can change her back to mermaid, she couldn't leave the house, basically. They should've done it like in other mermaid shows, like she's only changing when it's seawater.
Also, the crime story was handled poorly. Not to mention the mother story. I get that she divorced and left the house, but for the love of God, how can she leave her son as well? We didn't get a proper explanation of why or how it happened. That's not a real mother in my eyes! The law doesn't work like that, not even in Korea, she could've seen her son at least on a weekly or monthly basis.
The whole story was predictable, BUT with shows like this one, it's not really about the story. It's about the characters, and basically every character were great.
Jun Ji Hyun and Lee Min Ho were amazing together. Especially Ji Hyun. I can't believe she was 34 when they shot this Kdrama, yet she looked like the cutest puppy ever. Her (face)acting is something else! She was not only cute, and obviously beautiful as hell, but badass as well. The love story between them was not ordinary or new, but still, I was invested 100%!
Honestly, at first I was like: "20 episodes, why?" But it didn't felt long or stretched, because most of the episodes are like fillers, in a good way. It was like a weekly American show.
My biggest problems with the show, other than the writing, is the last couple of episodes, AGAIN! After they finished all the main story, I just can't understand why they had to start a new drama with her leaving, not to mention erasing everyone's memory. That was 100% pointless, and ridiculous. At first, I was like, why is her heart has a problem, but later we find out the reason, and that made the whole FAKE DRAMA even worse! If she had to leave because she needed time to heal, she should've just said it, not making a fuss about it, so the writers can waste time for unnecessary scenes.
She should just leave, for 3 years, everyone knows what happened, and come back later. End of story. I mean, two of them already knew she's a mermaid, they could've told his mother and the other kid as well.
The last 2 episodes could've been like those filler ones, living in peace, raising their kid etc. Also, we never get any real explanation about that girl who can hear her thoughts. I mean, sure, she remembers her past, but that's not a real explanation. Just because in the past she was a mermaid, it doesn't mean she's a mermaid in the present as well. We never see her mother or her father as well. At first, I thought the father is the guy who died. That would be a nice side story.
Anyway, like I said, you won't watch this show, because it's the best ever, it's a show that you're gonna enjoy if you don't about the story too much, because it's a LOT of fun, and the drama is well-written, most of the time.
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