Jinxed at First (2022)

Better than i expected

After a mumber of series i just gave ip on after a few episodes i was not exoecting much. The initial episode was hood but i found the lead actress a bit irritating. As the episodes passed i realised this was just her attempt at showing a young kid and as subsequent episodes had her character as older i found her scting ok. The story had a few holes but it moved along quite well until the last 2 or 3 which seemed drawn out unnnessarily . The whokhe series would have worked better if thry had edited out enough stuff fir teo less epsodes.
The above lines may read l8ke i didnt like it but i did. Worth a watch and the first new series i have completed in a while. I give it 8.5 which is a good score for me as i have only rated 2 series a 10.

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How did we get here?!

I went into this one open minded. I wanted to like it as I have a soft spot for In Woo but this one missed the mark for me. Specifically the ending. The rage that followed watching the final scene took hours to calm.

Story
Not my favorite but it has some potential. Most of the time it felt like they were starting really interesting story lines then tying them up abruptly. The characters (which I'll talk about next) all felt one dimensional which made them hard to relate to, even during their hardships. Finally, the ending. I don't think I've seen a drama conclude in a way that made me that upset. She lost her memory, neve gained it back and they just got married. Oh, and they have a child. I'm sorry but no. Absolutely not.

Acting/Cast
I'm going to be honest, these actors were only doing what was written. I blame them for 0% of why I didn't like this drama. Seul Bi is not only the least relatable character of the bunch but Seo Hyun could only do so much. This was the case for all the actors. I've seen some of their in other roles and they have range. At the end of the day, actors are sometimes going to take roles that aren't great because they have bills to pay.

Music
The only high mark for me was the Music, specifically Lee Solomon 'Please Know My Feeling.' That song ear wormed it's way into my head for days, which only reminded me of the ending and cycle of anger started all over again.

Rewatch Value
*Walks away and shuts the door*

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annoying

dropped on episode 6. like a lot of viewers as I read later. it was difficult to continue watching, and after episode 4 I just watched in order to finish it, but it was too annoying. it's very frustrating because the synopsis was good and the ideas were so unique. but, they failed to deliver to same level of content after episode 4.

I realized watching this that I really appreciate story about people who can see (guess) the future. it could have been a very good drama, but they just stick to one scenario: she is kind and naive, and the bad guys are powerful and heartless, and the poor little thing just get out of this mess by the grace of gods (and a little bit with her ability).

for the story to exist she must lie and conceal everything she knows, and this is more and more artificial over time.

when to watch? if you have nothing more interesting to watch
audience: family friendly

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Great start. Honestly has a really confusing story.

It was good to watch Na In Woo as a ML in another drama after Marry My Husband. The leads had good chemistry and they made it interesting watch during the first 5-6 episodes. It was a bit depressing once he found out about her situation and identity.

While I understand the pain he was suffering he told her to go back to a place where she was held captive so that she could be used by other people. That really soured the romance part of it for me. I actually agreed with him when he said that "How can I like you when you keep lying to me." Although the words were hurtful to Seul Bi, she could have told him the truth sooner when he asked her. But once he told her to go back and didn't really check up on her, I was kinda over the romance thing. Especially when he suspected that the people who he was sending her back to had killed his mother and tried to kill him.

From then onwards, I just watched to see how it unfolded. He said a lot more harsh things to her when they ran into each other (it was for her own good). Once he made up her mind to forgive her for the death of his mother who was murdered because FL ran to ML, he came around and decided to protect her by being with her. He was so sure that the FL loved him that he took her for granted. Even with her powers, the FL was never that sure about his feelings for her.

Lets not even talk about the dynamics between the FLs parents, her biological father kept her mother locked up for so long so that he could use her power for his own greed. In the end she ended up living with up. That relationship was so damn toxic and so difficult to understand. He shouldn't have been forgiven.

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A hidden gem - It's a solid romantic comedy with interesting elements

8.5/10 is my rating. This is a 2022 South Korean romantic fantasy television drama with 16, 60 minute episodes. Also known as Jinx's lover.

I will first provide a synopsis then review/comments after

Synopsis
Seon Seul-bi (Seohyun) has been shut away from the world along with her mother Lee Mi-soo (Yoon Ji-hye) for her entire 20 years. She lived in such isolation that she knows little of how the outside world works. The Chairman who is keeping Seul-bi and her mother isolated believes he is doing it to protect them and others from their negative energy. The women come from a long line of Shamans who used to advise kings but their history combines fortune and misfortune simultaneously. As such they, and those before them, have been both revered and feared. Mi soo has been no different, the Chairman has utilized her shaministic skills to further his business interests but has kept his distance despite having some romantic involvement. Seon Sam-joong (Jun Kwang-ryul), the chairman, is a redeemable villian and it is apparent there is way more to the story of his relationship with Mi soo and his reasons for locking them away. Gong Soo-kwang / Go Myung-sung (Na In-Woo) meets Seul-bi when she escapes into the city and determines he is her Prince. Something about the vulnerable girl sets off his protective nature. What can all these complex characters learn of and from each other? Is there a place in the world for someone that has such power or is the best for all concerned for the shamans to remain in isolation? What happened in the past and what does the future hold?

Review/comments

I loved Seul-bi as do most of the characters in the series. She has a child like innocence and yet is both highly intelligent and extremely caring and compassionate. In the first part, the parallels to the little mermaid were intentional and unmistakeable. Common objects were fascinating to her because she had never seen nor used them. I had a harder time with Soo-kwang because he was very harsh with Seul-bi. I felt like he would shower her with affection then turn his back on her for things that were out of her control. Some of it was cultural I know, the whole "sins of your father" angle, but I still had a very hard time with his emotionally abusive behavior at one point in the series.

*Spoilers. For the most part this was very enjoyable and I would have rated it much higher but for some aspects that I felt were unfinished or unnecessary. I really dislike the amnesia trope. It was a little more palatable in this one because using her power caused the amnesia. Still it felt like she was starting all over with all the relationships she had which made it feel like the first 14 or 15 episodes were a waste. Her mother died and, because she didn't remember anything, there wasn't a lot of mention of that. She had just developed a relationship with her father but he simply disappeared off the radar. Her relationship with the market people was different because she didn't remember the time they spent together. They alluded that she might be getting her memory back when her child said mom knew where all the characters were which is something from her past, but it wasn't definitive. The concept that the business had been built through the efforts of the female shamans therefor the only way to get rid of the "curse" and allow her to live a normal life was to dissolve that business seemed ike a complete waste. I also felt like, because she lived her first 20 years with no freedom, she should have had all the advantages of the wealth that had been accumlated to live the next portion of her life free and with the benefit of everything that had been gained from the sacrifice. It felt like the Aunt was just being spiteful over her sister's death in wanting the company to dissolve. We joked half way through when we suspected that she was actually the Chairman's daughter, and when her brother was expressing romantic interest, that there would be a Luke and Princess Leia like moment when they said something like "somehow I knew, somehow I always knew" and it was a bit like that. Her brother was like those feelings I had for you must have been because you were my sister. It was a bit amusing because the parallel for Star Wars fans was obvious. It was the only way I would have felt okay with her not choosing 2nd guy. Because he was awesome. Lead guy lost my support when he was blaming her for his mother's death and being so cold to her. I loved her abilities. She was a force to be reconed with but never used it in an evil way. So, I thought, for me a more preferable outcome would have been if all that negative energy nonsense wound up not being true in her case and that she was able to continue to help people. But they had to do away with the magic for some reason so she could be an ordinary person. I didn't hate it but it would have been even better for me if she had been able to retain her amazing abilities.

Overall I highly recommend this. There are a few detractors but the overall story is interesting, unique, and compelling.

#JinxedAtFirst
#seulbi
#NaInWoo
#SeoHyun
#TrueVisions
#Na-Inwoo

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had potential

The storyline overall had so much potential but at some point it just went downhill, pretty fast I'd add. The first half of the show was great and all the plot twists happening around episodes 12 and 13 gave me hope that all of this could go somewhere but it just didn't. As it goes on it makes less and less sense and so many bits of the story get left behind, even important ones I'd say. The ending was cute but SO rushed and considering everything that happend beforehand it just didn't make sense as well.
I've definitely seen worse so I wouldn't say it's not worth watching at all, but it's not a drama that I'll remember either.
Honourable mention to the seodong market cast, so many great actors where gathered. Their vibes and their adorable relationship with the female lead definitely made the drama more bearable and enjoyable

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"It Is What It Is."

If I were to review this drama more critically, the rating would be far lower than 7/10. But I went into this knowing, for the most part, what kind of ride I was in for: I wanted something on the lighthearted side, full of wild neighborhood shenanigans and a pretty couple whose relationship is so cute it made my eyes water. My expectations for Jinxed At First did not exceed this list. I'm a realist. So, no regrets here.

Did everything go off the rails around episode 10? Absolutely. Did I almost wish I had stopped watching around episode 6? Sort of. I think this drama would have greatly benefitted from shorter episode times, perhaps as a bite-sized webtoon a la Go's Starry Night. As it stands, with 16 full-hour episodes, it got draggy, repetitive and convoluted. It couldn't decide what genre it wanted to be. It felt a little like watching a TV show having an identity crisis. I was like, baby, what is you doin? It tried to go in depth with too many characters and thus many of the arcs fell totally flat or didn't feel properly resolved or earned. I had the feeling by the finale that a lot of the ending was revised during reshoots.

But, that being said, the first 6 or so episodes were UTTERLY divine. Syrupy, heart-swooping, butterfly-inducing romance that made me clutch my pillow like a teenager. Seohyun has never wowed me before, and this character is the Born-Sexy-Yesterday trope personified, but she did well here and her performance felt genuine enough that it didn't veer into what could have been Manic Pixie Dream Girl territory. Na In Woo was such a delight, though. He's relatively new on the scene but I have a good feeling about his career. He has great comedic timing and delivery, and DAMN, this man's look of yearning and despair is unparalleled. Every time he gazed at Seul Bi with tearful eyes my heart shuddered in my chest. He is very charismatic on screen and I'm looking forward to see what he does next, but his chemistry with Seohyun was strong and their love story delightfully adorable (until it got bogged down by plot devices).

If you're willing to skip through some slog later on, this one is a worthwhile escapist fantasy. Just keep your finger near the fast-forward button.

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