101 Marriages (2023)

"Love" Story with Problematic and Antiquated Relationship Tropes

The forced marriage that turns to love can be fun with the right writing. Unfortunately, this series fell short. Though the leads had great chemistry their relationship was problematic. The ML basically pays the FL’s adoptive mother $50 million dollars to “rescue” her from her adoptive family i.e. mother who treats her like trash. Mind you, the FL had no romantic interest in the ML as she was in love with the SML. Once married, the ML proceeds to yell at the FL, manhandle her and lock her in the home when she doesn’t respond to him the way he desires.

Granted he does secretly pay for her incapacitated brother’s care, but that still doesn’t make up for his possessive treatment of her. When they finally divorce, which he initiates as he decides that he has to “let her go” so that she can be happy, he then follows her around town (essentially stalking her) and continues to do things to control her life, such as arranging an apartment for her without her knowledge and ensuring that she chooses that place for her new residence. Of course, the FL finally realizes that she loves him and, in the end, they reunite, but honestly I don’t see why. Despite them being close schoolmates in high school and him doing a couple of honorable things that would warrant appreciation, that evolving into her having a romantic love for him made no sense.

The SML and SFL were a cute couple. They had nice chemistry and a descent love story until that relationship was destroyed by the SFL’s mother and unfortunately materialistic needs. The corporate drama wasn’t well played and the storyline with the FL’s incapacitated brother seemed to be an integral part of the story to start, but then was immediately dropped and was only revisited for a blink and you miss it moment, late in the series.

This was a very entertaining show. I did find that I wanted to see what happened next, but the writing wasn’t good and neither was the love story. The acting was hit or miss and some of the designs of the scene settings i.e. the homes and businesses, left a lot to be desired. Is this worth watching. Not really. Would I re-watch. No.

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