Dropped It Once
The first time I tried watching this many months ago, dropped it relatively quickly after a couple of episodes. Mostly because at the time, I was looking for a series with actual substance. However, this is a perfect series if you enjoy the "mystical" genre and need something very casual to watch (i.e. don't care if you miss out on a conversation or two).The plot is simple/predictable, and that has its own entertainment factor, especially when the actors are still charismatic. Just go in without any expectations of a tightly-knit execution of a story. This is one where characters just drop in because it is convenient for the plot to progress. The fantasy/action visuals also have the low-budget feel but it does kind of tie into the series' overall comical theme.
Overall, it can still satisfy those days when you just want a couple of laughs, don't want to get in too heavy, and still catch a bit of feel-good moments.
Was this review helpful to you?
Great little drama
Mystic Pop-Up Bar is a great little drama which definitely strengthens around the half-way point of episodes. By the finale, especially, is a bunch of emotions that has a great story morale, and makes you want to see if there will be more in the future! The characters were amazing, although it took longer than expected for them to be "strong" in a sense, as in the first few episodes I found the characters to be lacking something of some sort? This can tie in to what I feel I didn't think was present in Mystic Pop-Up Bar, wow factor. For some reason, I feel Mystic Pop-Up Bar lacked wow factor, maybe due to the characters or story - if I felt a wow factor, easily an increased overall rating! Again, I wasn't a massive fan of the overused sound effects, however, the OST was absolutely sublime so this definitely made up for it, and even more!Mystic Pop-Up Bar is definitely a highly recommended drama for someone who is used to the fantasy/mystery sort of dramas, if you're not used to them, I'd suggest you perhaps watch one with an easier to follow or more tied-up story? Not to say this wasn't great though, as it definitely was great!
Was this review helpful to you?
?Snap Crackle POP IT! ?°8.2° °Excellent°
🍹This show is a long cold draught on a hot day: Refreshing.MPUB (2020, 12 1hr eps) is a story about the workings of the Afterlife, both up⬆ there, and down⬇ here. Many Afterlifers have jobs, while others have to do community service. Due to the creativity of writers Bae Hye-Soo (webcomic) & Ha Yoon-A, and director, Jeon Chang-Geun (What Happens to My Family?), it's fun to watch them do what they do.
Weol-joo (Hwang Jung Eum from Kill Me, Heal Me) runs a tent bar in Seoul as a front for her real job (eh, court-mandated community service, ahem), which is resolving grudges. She discovers that a local boy, Kang-bae (Yook Sung Jae from Goblin & The Golden Spoon), would be the perfect helper at the bar. That is because Kang-bae has a special talent for getting people to open up - No soju needed. Kang-bae has never been happy about this special talent of his, however. A gig is a gig, so he goes to work with Weol-joo and her bodyguard/Chef, Gwi (Choi Won Young from Under the Queen's Umbrella & Twinkling Watermelon).
Kang-bae is immediately plunged into hazardous assignments. Training is all on-the-job-as-you-go. It's hilarious when they step into a client's deep subconscious, without warning Kang-bae of how wildly and inappropriately dangerous their venture is. Only after he screams "BUG!" and almost drops them down the !!🕳🕳infinite abyss🕳🕳!! do they tell him the downsides of the J😱B. I did, actually, L🤣L! at that scene.
Another 🌃night, when Kang-bae comes to work, he walks through the tent door and enters a 🌞 field. In the background a jaunty band plays. It's the Afterlife Lottery Games! Next they have him partake in a criminal act that jeopardizes his 😱WN afterlife. Kang-bae can't even begin to get his balance🎢
The first few episodes mostly deal with stories of various clients. Some are amusing and some are tragic. Later, things take a more personal and dangerous turn. There are quotas to be met. There are bad guys to catch. There is Soju to drink. There are mysteries to be solved. Some have links to events 500 years past.
🍺There's a couple small logical chips on the glass, but the flaws are minor and few. This story is bright, full-bodied, and original. What imaginative delights the writer gave us. The acting and directing are a perfect pour. The cadence is also perfect.
So...pour the Soju and give it a shot!
IMHO...
🎬8 🤔6 🎭8 ⚡7 💓6 🦋3.
Age 13+
In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:
Modern Day:
Mad For Each Other 7.8 ~silly fun;
A Witch's Love 7.8;
Love to Hate You 8.9;
Her Private Life 8;
Touch your heart 8.2;
Crash Landing On You 9.1;
Oh My Ghost 10;
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9;
Love Struck in the City 7.3;
Hospital Playlist 9;
My Mister 9.5;
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9;
Something in the Rain 9
Historical/Period:
My Only Love Song 8.7 ~ excellent comedy;
Live Up To Your Name 7.6;
Mr. Queen 8.5;
My Sassy Girl / Yeopgijeogin Geunyeo 8.5;
Saimdang 8.5;
The King's Affection 8.3;
Mr. Sunshine 9
Action/Sci-fi/fantasy:
K2 8;
Private Lives 8.1;
Sisyphus 8;
Tunnel 8.1;
Signal 8.6;
Black 9;
Squid Game 8.4;
Kingdom 8.3;
Sweet Home 8.4
Consider a Chinese historical fantasy romcom: The Romance of Tiger and Rose (9.8), Love Between Fairy and Devil (8.9) or Japanese lite romcoms: Maid Sama (10), Mischievous Kiss Love in Tokyo (7.8), Love, Chunibyo And Other Delusions (8.4), or Toradora (8.5)
Was this review helpful to you?
fantastic in every way！！
rollercoaster of bizarre mix of tragic and comic but charming〜 only K-drama seems able to capture this mix of comic and tragic, light and serious in each episode。as it goes on it goes far from original idea of going into dreams with all kinds of scenarios crossing between afterlife and life and the back stories of main characters and their soul relations that adds interest〜what a fantastic finale:I had to watch last two episodes together and really did not see all that coming and I am happy with the ending〜and unlike some K-drama this was very well-judged length not too drawn out to lose the tension and fascination with the drama 〜I thought I saw Yook Sung Jae's cute face before and of course it was in Goblin！look forward to more by these lead actors *(*´∀｀*)☆Was this review helpful to you?
Basically korean version of yorozuya
contains of 3 mebers with their own characteristics and role in the team.some people might complain about main cast character development. but honestly their character development is actually the best so far than any msystic problem solving korean dramas i ever watched.
its not about how you solve the current problems. but its about how those you helped will proceed in their life/afterlife after it.
the concept is like "only you that can save yourself, what we give is just a single little push and some extra hands if you ever need it". love it
Was this review helpful to you?
Captivating
I had no expectations in the beginning. I only started watching this drama because of the lead actress since I loved all of her dramas but man did the story capture me along with the whole other cast. It’s a beautiful drama that keeps you interested on what to happen next. I was eager to watch each and every episode. It made me smile, cry, laugh and definitely took me by surprise at times. The director and the editors did an amazing job too. It’s one of the very few dramas I’m genuinely willing to rewatch.Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
the story is very very simple. this was better as a binge, tbh I don't think I'd have given it a chance higher than the 1st four eps and I'd have dropped it if I watched it as it aired, but it was also not as engaging as I'd have hoped. it got better by eps4-6 but as soon as it got it's footing it was so obvious how their "big picture" was going to turn out that I lost interest in the plot.the side plots were related to the big picture, each case reflected Wol Joo's own situation and concerns but they were somewhat really flat, idk, it was hard to connect to the side stories? though the messages were great and really inspirational, but they just felt too fleeting?
I know, I might be complaining too much so one would wonder why the high rating, but something the review ratings doesn't cover is the characters, their relationships and their depths.
the 3 mains had a really sweet chemistry and I highly enjoyed their bickering and "grudge" fights and I wished they'd have tried to make them a little more active outside the pop up bar, I know that was their home base but I wanted more action (and I don't mean fighting)
and even though their family bond was sweet I kinda wish they weren't related and just found comfort in each other regardless of the destiny makjang move "he's your long lost son/love" ;D
the best part for me was Kang Yeo Rin who's going to join my favorite female characters list, she was refreshing, independent, smart and always made the 1st move ❤ and I loved their chemistry, Kang Bae truly deserves the "sweet male lead" tag though I wish they focused more on them ;)
which makes me wonder, are romances better in non romance dramas because they focus on them less, so the "chase" is longer and there's no space for misunderstandings and inevitable breakups?
HWJ was slightly as overreacting as ever, but since this was a comedy it kinda fit the vibes well and I wish she'd act in another drama with Choi Won Young minus the long lost lovers theme ;D I want a pure secret like makjang
the OSTs were nice enough and I never rewatch stuff
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
cute but frustrating
I love most shows/movies SIG is in, and this is one of them but them disapearing and leaving eachother was very frustrating.The ending felt a little unfinished, I wish we could see more of their relationship bloom, and I would have wanted to see more of the side couple's relationship.
But honestly this drama was super sweet, I think a lot of people could relate to MC, it was an emotional watch, especially if you've suffered from an illness yourself, both SIG and MC portrayed their emotions extremely well, and this has become one of my comfort shows.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
A spirit who settles grudges
Ahhh this is the best drama trust me. If you have watched goblin, death game or tomorrow. You sure are going to love it. For me it was very good. It has fun elements it was so so emotional like u really have to cry in every episode, laugh like crazy in every episode too. It was a mix of bitter sweet. The stories were so good.The fact that they presented social issues in the series were so good. The relationship with parents were also so good.
Its so funny because yook song was just suffering in this drama and was neglected in goblin too. But his character was so kind humble and patient in the whole series.
Was this review helpful to you?
A trama se desenrola de maneira dinâmica e rápida, ganhou meu coração neste primeiro semestre
Esse trio dinâmico e entrosado começa apresentando um drama engraçado, algumas cenas até meio caricatas, mas com tempo vai se tornando mais reflexico, sem perder o ar comédia.O entrosamento dos personagem e a relação que eles vão estabelendo é incrivel e a evolução é nitida em cada episodio, assim como o amadurecimento de cada um e da relação entre eles.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Podia falar de vários aspectos que chamaram atenção nesse dorama, mas escolhi trazer pra vcs algumas mensagem e reflexões que me marcaram:
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
>O resentimento te aprisiona: em alguns episódios isso é mostrado através da mágoas dos mortais que precisa da ajuda do trio. Também é abordado nos problemas individuais dos protagonistas.
>Perdoar a si mesmo: as aventuras envolvidas em cada mágoa abordava o autoconhecimento, aceitação e o perdoar-se, para então se consolidar no exterior toda mundaça e ação que fosse necessária.
> Importância de se ter alguém para conversar e como isso ajuda na saúde mental: acredito fortemente que essa tenha sido uma das mensagens mais centrais do drama. Ter alguém para se abrir, aliviar suas dores. Elas nem sempre teram a solução, nas maioria das vezes isso dependerá de vc, de suas ações, mas o ato de falar com alguém te alivia e te auxilia a enxergar a vida de forma mais leve, ver uma luz no fim do túnel.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
"Milagres acontecem todos os dias. O milagre de estar vivo. O milagre de ter alguém ao seu lado. E... o milagre de poder beber alguma coisa junto com essa pessoa" Weol Joo
a trama se desenrola de maneira dinâmica e rápida que ganhou meu coração neste primeiro semestre, concorrendo seriamente a ficar nos meus TOP 2020 pelas reflexivas mensagem e algumas boas risadas.
_⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Ps: o último episódio foi corrido demais, mas não atrapalhou a lindeza do drama.
Was this review helpful to you?
Dias
Este Drama estava na minha lista sendo q nunca via, até q comecei a ver e nao co seguia dar pause nem para beber água. Chorei, rir, gritei, ele é maravilhoso, me prendeu de una tal forma, os protagonistas arrasram. Vai ficar dificil encontrar outro drama como este. Parabéns a todos os envolvidos. Estou realmente apaixonada. Como não assisri antes? Acabei de assistir e ja quero assistir novamente.Was this review helpful to you?
