The Penthouse: War in Life (2020)

Amazing!

You need to watch it! The plot twists, the actors, the romance, the misterys. EVERYTHINK ITS AMAZING! If you are too sencitive then dont watch it... There is many blood... But still everythink its amazing. The actors did a great job! This drama is my favorite! If you like mysterys and school dramas then this drama is for you! Btw....This drama can get on your nerves... hehehe
When you start watching the first episode of the drama you know for a fact that this will be EPIC! The parents and the kids have their secrets and it soooo interesting. And how every parent want from their child to be the best in their school so they can get in to Cheong A Arts School. This drama kind of remind me of Sky Cstle but its wayyyyyy better!

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Penthouse: War in Life (2020) - I find the drama really ridiculous, I guess it gives out a makjang drama aura too much which was not what I am expecting. The drama has it’s own ups and downs, and I am hooked with how the drama turned out especially in the ending parts. I did got bored in the middle part, I think because the beginning was so intense that it looks like a joke to me as a watcher. I don’t really like the ending as well, and I guess they did it to look forward to the season 2.

The actors are really brilliant, but I’m not particularly impressed with Eun Byeul, I find her too much in the acting field but I think they did over emphasized her character. I find the drama messy as well in terms of pacing and all.

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PENTHOUSE SEASON 1

Where can I even start?

This season was amazing!! At first, I was like.. nope. not gonna like this one. But when I actually watched it for the first time, I realised how wrong I was. The acting was incredibly wow! Especially when Seo-jin is mad, the way she does it though is pretty cool. I also love Rona and Oh Yoon Hee. The way they were once suffering and were poor but suddenly became super powerful and rich. Shim Soo Ryun, wow her character was also incredible as well, she's really powerful and strong and will get anything she wants, like for example the way she watched Anna die infront of her, but was even lied by her own friends! And husband!

Joo Dan Tae, don't get me even started on this one. I hate him so much for everything! (not bothered to explain but you know what I mean) . I also hate the kids, not to mention Joo Seokyung, Ha Eun Byul and Jenny Seokhoon & Minhyuck. Their so sick in the head, especially what they did with Anna, I will not forget about that one.

Sang Ah, Kang Ma Ri and Gyu Jin were also like the comedians in the show. They are funny and a bit dumb at the same time. I also hated how they used to tread Oh Yoon Hee!

Moving onto the ending. Correct me if I'm wrong but we didn't know about Na Aygeo at the time right? So I was pretty shocked when I thought I saw Yoon Hee killing "Soo Ryun" even though things were completely twisted.

Brilliant Season 1 with a mysterious storyline, loving it!!

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A review from someone who barely watches Kdramas - A Lengthy Review

For those going into this show who aren't used to over the top situations accompanied by over the top acting, I'll give you the fair warning that this show contains a load of all that.

Lets begin with the acting, and how it ties in with the character portrayal:
Pros:
The actors and actresses themselves execute their roles perfectly. They each have distinct mannerisms that really bring the characters to life. They embody whatever evilness, smugness, or good-ness their character brings to the show without revealing all intentions; yet they still help the viewers to understand that nature of said character. It leaves room for the us to make deductions about each character, and in that sense, I thank the directors for not treating the viewers like idiots.

The best examples of this would be Cheon Seo Jin, played by Kim So-Yeon, and Shim Suryeon, played by Lee Ji-ah. Seo jin herself is a damaged woman who grew up in what most would call a toxic family, and her actions and over the top-ness are understandable in that sense. Kim So-Yeon clearly understood that this character would act irrationally, overtaken by her emotions most of the time, and that is how she portrayed it. As for Lee Ji-ah, her character Shim Suryeon was a force to be reckoned with the whole way through the season. She held her character's composure, and knew when to put on a different front as if she was acting a whole other character.

Cons:
Definitely the over-the-top-ness of it all.
The directors HAD to be intentionally making the characters act way over the top. To be quite honest, I'd only recommend this show to those who can tolerate and don't mind this type of acting.
I was alright with it because I expected this sort of acting already judging by the kdrama scenes I've seen through the shows my mom used to watch, but its definitely not for everybody.

Music:
Ill keep it short and sweet. This is a kdrama that revolves around opera and classical music, of course the music is gonna slap.
Admittedly, some of the soundtrack can get repetitive, but eventually it just becomes a signature thing that gets you a bit hyped. There ARE a few moments though where electric synth would come in or something like that, and you could only think "What were they thinking with this music choice", but overall, its filled with some absolute classical bangers.

Characters:
There's just so much to say....
Pros:
It begins on an exciting note that sadly dials down after that first scene, but it gives you time to get a grasp of each character,, along with their roles, social status, pasts, and relationships.
This is a character driven story for sure, so by understanding why each character makes the decisions they do, it only helps to expand them. It leaves the viewers wanting more from what they've seen. The viewer wants to see how each person will develop, and you will find yourself rooting for at least one person for sure.
These characters you grow to understand more are what keep you hooked in the story as they are pushing the the plot.
You will find yourself rooting for at least one person, and will be constantly impressed by how certain character plots develop.

Cons:
Some characters are left with nothing, just given a brief backstory so the viewer can go, "Alright. Fair enough," but the directors seem to refuse to elaborate on any of those things. Sure, they might bring it back later, but why show it now? Especially at such a time where other much more important things are going on?
There are also times where someone acts completely out of character, and you're forced to just overlook that moment since it makes no sense with the story. It just feels like an afterthought to make a character seem more 3-dimensional.

One of the things that bothered me most was that the kid we're supposed to care about the most, Bae Rona, was just so.... uninteresting and unlikeable. She couldn't communicate at all despite what they show earlier of her being witty. She is also shown as kind and generous, but she comes off as bratty, and her (supposed to be) strong willed mom lets her Rona walk all over her. I'd rather much see the progression of a complex and consistent character such as Seojin's child, Eun Byeol.
The worst part of all in the character writing, was that they always had chances to develop a character, and they just WOULDN'T.

Finally, Plot:
Its messy and the execution is, dare I say, bad.
It feels like a story where the writers had so many good ideas. Ideas that didn't flow, but they decided to write it in anyways. It's enough to keep you engaged and enraged, but so so messy.
Sometimes, events that happen just feel like they never happened. They jump from plotline to plotline so quickly, that its hard to see where everything ties in, and you're just left hoping that they bring something back up since it makes no sense to overlook it.

Final Remarks:
If you're somebody who deeply cares for story and character development, this show isn't for you.
But if you just want a good time, hell yeah, that's why I stuck around. Its not a show meant to be hyper analyzed, even if the directors intend it to, because if you hyper analyze it (like I just did), there are way too many flaws to count.
It can leave you ooing and ahhing, and honestly, its feels like a guilty pleasure the whole way through.
I wouldn't normally recommend a show this objectively bad, but if you just wanna turn your brain off and/or be entertained, watch it.

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DEFINTELY NOT FOR THE LIGHT-HEARTED!

I'd like to start my review off with how amazing the acting in Penthouse was. The acting was phenomenal and the emotions expressed by each actor and actress were beautifully done. The actors and actresses in Penthouse portrayed their characters incredibly well, to the point where you begin to hate the character as if they were real-life people. 10/10 acting, amazing cast on this drama!

The plot is basically a murder-mystery with a huge pit of revenge mixed in, which turned out to make a lovely drama. There were a few times I'd be watching Penthouse and think that there should have been more common sense written in, but the many plot twists and unexpected events definitely make up for it.

Without a doubt, Penthouse is intense, it's frustrating. Myself, I couldn't handle it at first, I stopped watching it for a bit, but recently decided to pick it back up after seeing a clip of a later episode. As soon as I picked Penthouse back up, I became immersed and practically binged the rest. There's plenty of likable qualities about this show.

I'll conclude my review with the last point I want to share. The first season was great, don't' get me wrong, but I really don't see how the show is planned to stretch out for 3 seasons. The first season by itself has 21 episodes, and I think it has pretty much concluded what was formed in this season, not much unfinished business SPOILER WARNING (besides the justice that Logan Lee might get for Shims murder, his revenge against Dantae, and (maybe) the publicity & justice of SeolAh's murder) I can see the second season working, but not a thrid season. Will the two following seasons live up to the first season? Will it be worth it to watch? Who knows.

Overall, I decided to give Penthouse a 9.5, because the acting was amazing, and despite the few times where I wanted to completely stop watching because of how frustrated I was the drama was overall amazing.

I totally recommend this drama, it is a fantastic watch! But only to those who can handle watching very intense shows, with dark topics.

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Surprise shorty

Well to begin with, I saw small amount of clips of the show of the teenagers that made me curious about the show, and when I started to watch it I accidently saw some spoilers for like the second season. But oh well.

To start off, the people I suspected to be good werent and the ones that was good isnt as good as one wishes. Which annoys me, it's quite obvious to me who the murderer was after like a few episodes, but also like Dan Tae i kinda want to punch him in the face. Like I knew he was shady like from the get go, but also like the very beginning I kinda wished he was a better man to be honest, they looked so sweet in the first episode until Seo Jin get her hand all over him.

But in all honesty, Yoon Chul deserves better than toxic Eun Byul and Seo Jin tbh, (And yes Ive seen the second season as far as I could. I also feel like Yoon Hui was being judged way harder than she deserved to because of the death of Seol Ah. I feel like sure she killed someone, and all that, but it to begin with was a drunken desprate mistake. And all she wanted was for her daughter to get a chance in life, because she's born to be just her daughter.

At first I gravely disliked Ro Na, because she was in all honesty such an asshole towards her mother, then again she a teenager, but she's also extremly cocky in ways that's annoying, but then again she carries the talent for it, which also proves that she's truly Yoon *Hui's daughter. I was kinda expecting Ro Na to be Yoon Chul, and we'll see with the second season for sure.

At the end I do really appricate Ro Na because she's starting to see what it's truly about and that she knows that her mother is innocent is also a big god yes, and the relationship between Seok hoon and her, is so cute, I truly wish for them to have a future.

The role I came to hate and love the most at the same time is Logan Lee, in all honesty he annoys me enough for me to hate him and I love that about him when he shows up as the gym teacher, I knew when he got there that it's clearly logan Lee, but in all honesty he took me through a loop. But also if he loves his sister so damn much, why didnt he give her money, why didn't he help her? why was she so poor, when he was so rich? And if she's so important to him he would have made money rain on her. His parents clearly dont' have much to say. But oh well.

The side characthers crack me up. I get more and more respect for them each passing episode.

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IF YOU HAVE A TENDER HEART, THIS IS NOT FOR YOU!!! - proceed with extra care.

This drama I finished a couple of days ago was amazing, I love the story the line, the actors were amazing, and the visual was sickening. This drama is about a group of rich families that most care about their social status and basically being the best. I would recommend anyone to watch this drama, there are multiple seasons. I don't really want to spoil anything but here is my take on the story.

It is about finding out who killed this orphan girl who got into one of the best high schools for opera then after graduate they get into one of the top universities. She was a tutor for the main family for those who live in Hera Place, she had a secret identity because at one point she was adopted aboard by a family that used her for her bone marrow for their son after the operation she sent back to Korea for something she did do. After she got into the school the kids of the family did not like that a poor tutor under a fake profile is going to school with them and that she is better. So did do many things to her ( watch drama to find out). After her identity was found out by the parent ( one of the parents is the principal of the music school) she was fired and was threatened to leave the school until she saw something that she should ( watch drama to find out what). The story gets more thrilling after her death, this is where all the madness starts to occur.
- It is about uncovering the mystery of her death, and a small hint ( she is an orphan, and why would someone try to uncover the death of an orphan with no FAMILY).

- Penthouse would go down in history as one of the most intense drama but also as one of my favorite drama of 2020. I did not expect the plot or intensity of the drama. I wait every Monday and Tuesday just to watch this drama. That is how good it was.

- Can't wait for season 2.....

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Very difficult to watch and not lose patience!

Is it enjoyable? Sure, it's a rollercoaster ride. But it's filled with an incredibly ridiculous amount of contrivances in order to keep everyone in their place and not get their come uppance.

This isn't a new thing in Kdramas of course, nor indeed shows from other countries. But this series in particular feels like they just make it up as they go along. The amount of "just happened to be at the right place at the right time" scenes are nuts.

They have a trick of showing you one thing, but have actually written it a completely different way, so if you are someone who likes to figure out where things are headed, don't bother!

It sounds like I didn't enjoy it. I did, particularly a couple of the female leads. But I must admit that I got sick of the impossible situations that you wouldn't figure out for yourself in a million years. It takes a lot of patience and suspension of disbelief to follow this show, so definitely isn't for everyone.

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It's hard to write everything I'm feeling rn

Before watching this, I had read some reviews on how similar it was to Sky Castle (which I haven't yet finished), yet I didn't expect the similarities were so glaring, especially in the first episode.

~Plot~
The plot is an "okay" plot, it doesn't keep you captivated as long as it should. At first, I was watching to see who killed Min Seol A, and the bad guys get punished, but my interest to know who the murderer was, slowly died down, then I cared more about the infidelity case, Soo Ryun revenge, the identity of Logan Lee, but still I lost interest. It felts like so many unnecessary scenes, and events were added up to increase the episodes run.

~Characters~
The characters in penthouse are not meant to look as good people, the drama doesn't aim for that, they show the reality (sometimes exaggerated) of life. Even the two characters, that are supposed to be the "good" people in this show are hard to like, e.g Ro Na, and her mother, the only difference between Ro Na, and the other rich kids were their social background, she was very ungrateful to her mother who was willing to give up even her life for her, and Oh Yoon Hee was annoyingly naive she, has been betrayed twice, gone through so much yet she didn't mature a bit, both of them treat their problems with violence. Then there's Seo Jin, who only cares for her power, and little for family, I feel pity for her poor daughter who tried to please her, both are wrong but still.. Joo Dan Tae was just poor evil, and controlling. There are some comedy relief characters that I liked though, like Kang Ma Ri, Lee Gyu Jin, yes they are bad but they gave me a good laugh even though they were just puppets in the game of power. The actors tried their best, (a shout out) to the younger cast who really stole the show, and the actors and actresses of Logan Lee and Soo Ryun!!

I rarely listened to the OST, because I always hurriedly skipped to the next episode, but the times I did, it was okay.

Rewatch value: 5.5. I don't recommend this to people who easily get angry or annoyed though, and the rewatch value is only for special scenes that I saw the actors/actresses really outdid themselves, but rewatching the whole drama from the beginning..no thanks.

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This show is completely bonkers, and very stressful to watch, and it’s quite good!
I think having this dramatic AF show revolve around a murder mystery worked well, and the pacing of finding out what happened that night was really well done. The various reveals are all interesting and nothing feels like it completely came out of nowhere. The writers definitely set out with a clear picture in mind with who did what that night and weren’t just making it up as they went along. There are a lot of plot twists and even as they’re often absurd it works within the context of the show. They also have good plots aside from the murder mystery, especially the revenge plot. Tbh most of the characters are absolutely the worst, but that’s kind of the point. This is a show about terrible people doing terrible things. You’ve got about 3-4 “good” characters you’re rooting for, and there is payoff where they win little victories. But it’s a constant battle. These characters are filthy rich and they’re terrible, and all the crazy stuff that happens fits in that framework. There is so much happening all the time, that even recapping an episode would take considerable time. I do think the show is written really well! All of it does get a bit crazy and you do have to suspend your disbelief, but you basically have to do that to watch this show in the first place. It’s a good show if you like drama, revenge/underdog stories, and really pretty sets and costumes. The 21 episodes flew by, and I’m looking forward to even more emotional anguish in season 2!

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