Love Forward (2012)

Wow 22 weeks has gone by and I still cant believe it took that long to finish this drama…

Story: Unpredictable like you won’t believe. Sure there’s cliché situations that may turn people off but dramas in general are a cliché. As long as you accept the things that happen then you will be able to enjoy it. My favorite thing about the story was the laughs. There were a ton of funny scenes and it was cool how they were sometimes used to offset the more dramatic scenes. One major thing I wish the writers focused more on was the lovelines. I’m all for switching lovelines but there has to be a point after halfway but well before the ending where the love lines are clear so the viewer can connect and understand why that happened. What I'm getting at is by the end you still have no idea who ends up with who until the last 5 minutes, which I felt made the ending feel rushed and sort of a letdown in a way. Don’t get me wrong, I am very happy with the way things turned out, its just the HOW I would have liked to seen. The story also could have benefited with a shorter episode count to make it less frustrating.

Acting/Cast: I had no idea who any of the actors were at first. But I was pleasantly surprised that the 4 main leads could actually act! Not only that, the 4 main leads all had chemistry, which made the switching of the loveliness very believable. I did think the two female actresses were stronger actingwise than the men. The supporting cast was a bit weaker and a lot of overacting (to be expected in T dramas) but I came to appreciate their characters.

Music: So another surprise is the fact I liked the OST. I just found it fit perfectly for this series and they played a lot of the same songs so they became memorable that I wanted to download it to my ipod.

Rewatch: I would like to watch this again for all the funny scenes and when I want to come back to these characters, but not for a few years just because it really does feel like a long drama.

Overall, you can really tell Love Forward tried to separate itself from other romcoms but there was plenty that could have been done better. Still, I found it one of the more enjoyable Taiwanese watches.

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This is one of the most in-depth slightly cheesy romance dramas I have seen, and I have to admit that I am loving it. If you are just looking for the normal elements of drama (hot men, cheesy romance, undying love, fights, jealousy, love triangles and squares), this has is all. It just presents it in a way that for once is not entirely brainless or cliche.
The characters at first come across as superficial, and perhaps unappealing in their stupidity at times. But by the end of the second episode, they have significantly developed. This story embodies that tactic that Asian dramas do so well--just when you think you abhor a character you find out that they had good reasons for being so annoying and your whole outlook changes. There are no truly good or bad people, just normal, everyday characters learning to live with the very real problems in life.
Ultimately this is a story about what makes healthy love and relationships. The best friends who have little in common but undying devotion to one another. Those people who relate to one another because they love the same things. The enemies that you just love to fight with, and who ultimately you are far closer to than you ever expected. The love of parents, as it should be and as it shouldn't be. The boyfriend and girlfriend who love like teenage girls dream of but who find that this type of love is too Romeo/Julietesque for their own good. It deals with destructive love and destructive relationships. This is a look at humanity and how they interact, and the writers have done a fabulous job at making their characters multifaceted. I highly recommend this show because of its unique approach to these much loved themes.

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