Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Don't be too good to me, what if I really like you ?
If there was any list of classics in Kdramas, I would always put this one on that list. It was the first drama I gave a 10. Never say goodbye song due to which I was drawn initially to this drama.It has most of the cliches Kdramas are famous for - Love triangle, Cohabiting, Fake-siblings, X-year timeskip etc
All of these cliches are done in a beautiful way.
Yoo Rin is a 20-something girl with having a pile of debt which she owes to some thugs. Running from such people is how she meets Gong Chan. Gong Chan helps her unwittingly, that's how this story starts.
One nice thing I found about this drama is Gong Chan and his grandfather's dynamic. Even when grandfather betrays his trust, he still manages to do his filial duty. Usually, in modern dramas a ML/FL if is betrayed by parental figure, they resort to (though temporarily) rebellion almost immediately.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Mostly light but does have some sad moments
8/10 is my rating. This is a 2005/2006 South Korean drama with 16, 45-60 minute, episodes.Joo Yoo-rin (Lee Da-hae) grew up with a father whose gambling, swiindling, lying results in a lifestyle of constant moves. She is a native of Jeju Island but has spent many of her years in Japan, China and many other places on the run from either her father’s gambling debts or the fallout from the latest grift. She often bears the brunt of her father’s deeds and has learned to lie and scheme herself to survive and to repay her father’s many debts.. By chance or perhaps fate Yoo-rin encounters Seol Gong-chan (Lee Dong-wook) while running from some gangsters. Two worlds collide when Gong-chan (sole heir to a hotel chain) discovers Yoo-rin speaks multiple languages and he just so happens to need an interpreter. He hires Yoo-rin to Interpret for visiting Chinese businessmen. During her as interpreter, YAvisiting one of Gong-Chan’s vacant mansions. When the short term job is over, Yoo-rin decides her homeless situation can be solved by secretly staying in Gong-Chen’s vacant mansion. which sets them up for another hilarious encounter. Gong-chen is a bit distracted by his grandfather’s failing health and a search for a lost granddaughter which will fulfill his grandfather’s deathbed wish.
He is not having luck finding the granddaughter and is worried his grandfather will die with regret. A passing comment that Yoo-rin resembles the lost niece results in Gong-chen thinking up a way to utilize his home invader’s unique skills -playing the role of the lost granddaughter Seo Jung-woo (Lee Joon-gi) is Gong-chan’s friend since childhood and is also heir to a fortune. He encounters Yoo-rin and protects her from the gangsters. It is love at first site for him as he has traveled the world and been with many women yet never met anyone like The mysterious Yoo-rin. Kim Se-hyun (Park Si-Yeon. is a rising tennis star and the girl who broke Gong-Chan’s heart after leaving him to pursue tennis. She is back to win his heart back and is not happy with the growing attraction between aging-chan and Yoo-rin. Grandfather,energized by seeing his “granddaughter” makes a miraculous recovery and now it seems Yoo-rin and Gong-chan may be locked in their lie.
Spoiler 🚨 I really like parts of this movie but didn’t like other aspects. It was almost cringe worthy in the beginning some of the lies Yoo-rin was telling and sort of hard to watch. I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to like the couple together because I’m just not one that likes lies. However after the first couple of episodes, it calmed down a bit and some character development happened and I saw a whole other side to Yoo-rin’s character that made how she was more understandable. I found myself very angry at the past girlfriend for leaving Gong-Chan like she did and it seemed like he accepted her back too readily. I really liked his best friend and I actually liked him together a lot with Yoo-rin they were a lot alike in many ways and he was always rescuing her. Towards the end I had a hard time understanding why the grandfather couldn’t forgive her easier because she had saved his life and they all loved her so much and she lied to them but it wasn’t her choice to do so and they had a really good reason. I also didn’t like that they found the actual granddaughter towards the end and it really added nothing to the story. I thought maybe she would’ve been a character that we had seen but she was a whole new character and we didn’t even really get to know much about her at all to be able to cheer on her relationship with the grandfather. It felt like a missed opportunity for a plot twist. I guess coming from a family with someone who is adopted it just makes no sense to me that someone you love that deeply would not become the same as family to you. To me family is not so much about the blood but more about the relationship. And they spent a large part of the story showing how that type of relationship develops between Yoo-rin and Gong-Chan’s family members. I loved the friendship between Ging-Chan and his best friend and I’m glad that the competition over the girl did not ultimately tear their friendship apart. Their friendship reminded me of the friends in “Boys Over Flowers”. I felt like the ending was a bit rushed because we had waited so long to see them get together and some of the other story elements resolve but all of that really happened in the last half of the last episode and we only saw them together the last 10 minutes or so. I would’ve rated it higher if the ending had felt less rushed. I was really surprised that 3/4 of the way through I was having tearful moments because the story got really sad in parts. That was a surprise. It had been so comedic through most of it but having such heavy, sad moments was a real change. I also liked the relationship she developed with the entire family and felt sad towards the end when they basically turn their backs on her although they did go to bat for her later with theGrandfather. But you didn’t get to see the reconciled relationships very much because it ended so quickly. It was good and I would recommend it just not as a top choice. It is an older drama and it’s amazing how you can tell by the filming and the way people act without even knowing that ahead of time.
Was this review helpful to you?
The characters that I didn't really like are Bae In Sun & Jang II Do, I felt that not only they didn't match the others in the level of acting but also felt like their story was imposed and unnecessary.
Was this review helpful to you?
Overall, just a fun and heartwarming drama that can even stand the test of time. Must watch for any k-drama lover.
Was this review helpful to you?
I still listen to the ost and it gives me shivers every time I play it
The elevator and airport scenes are a must.
Lastly how can I not fall for the sexiness of Lee Dong Wook ?
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Good Classic Kdrama
I watched My Girl at the recommendation of my friend and I did enjoy it overall.Story- The plot was good but unfortunately at maybe episode 10, it really started to go downhill with repetition and tons of missed opportunities for the leads to come clean and fix the issue. Yoo Rin spent too much time crying and attempting to stay away from Gong Chan for my liking (I know it was meant to enhance the drama but after the first few times it got a little annoying to watch 😭). I would have liked to see the leads be more affectionate though and be together for longer. There was also no need for 16 episodes, it was long enough for us to see second male lead become somewhat of a bad guy for a little and honestly was just unnecessary; the last maybe 3-4 episodes just showed a lot of repetitive back and forth between the leads. Despite what I didn't like though, I think the basis of the story is pretty interesting and it's also an older drama so even though I'm mentioning these things it didn't majorly take away from the shows. Shows change over time and this show probably fit into the type of shows being produced at that time/ well loved when it came out
Acting/Cast- The cast was good. I think some of it was a bit over the top and kind of awkward to watch but for the most part it was supposed to be like that so the cast was good 👍
Music- I liked the music, it was the same 2-3 songs playing but I think they fit the show and was nice to listen to :)
Rewatch- I probably wouldn't rewatch this show because the episodes are 60-70 mins each and the last few episodes weren't my cup of tea but the show was interesting and funny!
Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
I love the OST in this kdrama and even now i am listening to it.
Park seyeon can not act and she should not get any acting role. She is only bad in this drama.
Everything else funny and charming.
Ending is ok but i rather see opposite.
Was this review helpful to you?
very pretty and very silly classic, a watershed for kdrama
I recommend this for rainy days, snowy days, slow Friday nights or whenever you want to relax. Enjoy. The Hong sisters' 2nd script, their first hit, their trademark trustworthy dialogue and cool plots already evident. Std. length, 16eps at 1hr ea.Very pretty and very silly fun involving Jeju Island, Lee Dong Wook, Lee Joon Gi and Lee Da Hae. Two chaebol heirs, LDW and the beautiful LJG, and a poor girl who lives by her wits asked to masquerade as a family member...if it seems familiar it is nearly two decades ago and lots of series have tried the formula since. Deathless stuff.
Truth and lies, think of actors and filmmakers. A fable ( from a 13th C compilation!!) of the king with donkey ears is not used as a frame, but something like a comment on the action. His secret, shouted into a bamboo grove, is repeated on the wind like urban myths. The king uselessly mows the bamboo down..
The liar says the best lies in a con are outrageous, the best liars are persistent and shameless. Kdrama in a nutshell. Love alone cannot be lied about for very long. A great kiss and confession are late, look for the little catch of air in the throat of the listening recipient..
The personal fantasy sections are great. Also a drunken ramble along a sidewalk cursing obstacles. Snow and snow globes are overdone. Glass-walled elevators ; hotel setting. The eavesdropping scenes are particularly nice since each one is done differently, and obvously, when lying is a problem, listening is a hard necessity. Product placements mainly the latest phones in 2006, lots of fun.
The show is more polished for a general audience than the HSs' first, on purpose. Until Hotel del Luna (12th show), Hwayugi (11th), and Alchemy of Souls (13th), this show (2nd ), My Girlfriend is a Gumiho (6th) and The Greatest Love (7th) were the most popular.
The excellent experienced director Jeon Ki Sang, is the same as for Sassy Girl Chunhyang. The composer, Oh Joon Sung, of an interesting soundtrack which wraps around the ends of scenes often in emotional counterpoint (to move the audience along?) went on to a long career after this, his first.
A positive welter of pop culture and older movie/show references is too much for me to parse, but the lover's farts from Goodwill Hunting are there for future Phds.
I have read that My Girl in 2005 was a watershed in the depiction of strong independent FLs. I think that in MG the Hong sisters also reduced the amount of corrosive manipulation by the MLs as well, at least that is what I infer when I watch other shows from that era.
first posted aug 8th 2024 on Viki
Was this review helpful to you?
Oh my goodness, just why?!?!
Bad costuming, bad hair, and some bad acting. It was an old show and didn’t age well. I realize that production values have improved over the years, but this felt like watching a bad home movie. I'll be the first to admit that I don't care for people that are liars or con-men, so this one was problematic for me. Their separation throughout the show made no sense at all. They had no respect for one another and no chemistry. I had some second male lead syndrome though. It's also one of those shows that I watched again because I hadn't reviewed it and hoped it was better than I remember, but unfortunately, it wasn't.Was this review helpful to you?
