The little rom-com that could... but didn't.
Oh, I can't hide my disappointment with this one.I will say that I don't regret watching this although I may sound like I did. First off, let's talk about the beginning or the first half of the show-- which was amazing. Okay, it wasn't anything brilliant, and it started off with its fair share of 'romcom cliche 101', but it worked perfectly well with the characters they'd introduced to us. The refreshingly imperfect leads were a bickering pair I could watch all day. Their chemistry was cracking, and I had sparkles in my eyes and a big fat ugly grin on my face throughout episode 1 to 7. "Nothing could go wrong with a 12-episode K-drama, amiright?" -- is what I thought to myself.
I was wrong.
A show that could've easily gone out with a bang, instead, fizzled out with a fart and that's literally the best way I can put it. This is what happens when-- as if it's a trend with K-dramas nowadays-- they push in a bunch of dumb conflict just to fill out some screentime and a couple episodes. In this case, it simply felt like the writers didn't know how to handle things anymore. They had a vision, but then after episode 8 or 9, it's like they forgot all about it. Like amnesia. Now, that's the only cliche they missed out on in this show because the writers were suffering from it themselves. The cliches felt like they were in the plot as satire at first, which was fun, until they picked out the 'bad' cliches from their big ol' cliche book. The rest became a sloppy serve of a has-been romcom.
There's a lot of things wrong about this little k-drama-- bad inconsistent writing, awkward directing, a bit of meh acting tossed in here and there etc. I'd say it's not worth the headache. But personally, I'm still glad I watched it to the end. The first half is truly worth it-- it was an 'enemies to lovers' feast, for sure.
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Gold medal for underdeveloping… everything.
What happened? Someone explain, because I am confused. What started as a loveable cliche mess, ended as just a mess. Around half way through I could sense it - no development, no quality of writing, no details to the storytelling, no real stakes…Personally, I just think there were too many characters and plots for that many episodes. We did not need the stupid siblings duo - truly brought nothing to the table. The side romance was cute, but also unnecessary. The writers should have picked either a tragic mysterious past or the power struggle in the company and focus on developing it more. Random ex to show up 3 times to cause a little bit of trouble that led to nowhere? Why?
I was watching the second half with constant thought - so much is happening, but why does it feel like nothing is happening? Maybe because the plot seemed more like a brainstorm on a whiteboard rather than a full narration with detailed setup and development… The way almost nothing got a proper closure…
What carried the show for me were the characters of Ah Jung, Ji Han and one and only unproblematic powerful queen Chae Won. These three were fun, entertaining, dynamic. Their scenes always left a smile on my face. These three also had an amazing chemistry.
On the other hand, every character other than these three was boring or frustrating, with little to no redeeming qualities.
What’s more, the quality of acting was on average mediocre - either because the characters were too poorly written for the actors to make it work, or because the actors just could not connect to the emotions they were supposed to present.
Overall, what a waste of time. Another case of a great first half and disappointing finish.
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from fun to being overly dramatic
Na Ah Jung (Jeon Jong Seo) works as a guest actress, playing various background roles. She has a gay friend Lee Do Han (Kim Do Han), whom she has known for 15 years. When Do Han needs a wife to appease his family, he asks Ah Jung to be his wife for 3 years. Do Han’s younger brother, Lee Ji Han (Moon Sang Min), is against this plan as he wants his brother to marry for a corporate alliance. Thus, he tries every way to break up their wedding, one being to make her fall in love with him. Ji Han and Ah Jung hate each other at first, but as he's trying, seems like he's the one who starts falling in love...It started out exciting, I was impressed with the actress Jeon Jong So who played Ah Jung, she's feisty, capable and independent. Her friend/enemy banter with Dohan and Ji Han is great. Their relationships development is comedic and chaotic. Lee Ji Han’s motive didn’t make much sense to me from the start, but it's fine as there were a lot of good stuffs.
However, the character I'm most curious about is Lee Do Han, as an openly gay man. It was intriguing when he’s introduced, but as the story goes, I'm disappointed with the lack of importance given to his character traits.
Frankly, it gets frustrating when the conflict starts. it’s hard to understand why the leads’ react so dramatically and how they made certain choices. Last four episodes were messy, and practically resolved(?!) Well, the cameo saves the ending... XD Glad it's only 12 episodes!
Find me on Instagram: @kdramajudge
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1Potential wasted due failure in execution and lazy script writing
Reasons to watch this drama✅ Hot Oppa with cute expressions
✅ Shower Scene which showcases his abs
Error 404, no other reasons found
just like how you were dumbfounded by my reasons to watch this drama, I WAS BY THIS DRAMA.
The writer of this show is like my college professor, trying all possible ways to get over finishing, the syallabus (script) asap meanwhile the students (audience) has no clue about what is going on.
Now let's get the review more likely the rant, started →_→
My initial view on the female lead was that I admired how she wasn't damsel in her distress and wasn't portrayed as a pushover or a crybaby. She embodied independence despite not having a job, maintaining strong morals, but the lack of communication between her and SML OH MY GOSH, like girl you have fake marriage with SML not the ML, it was awfully weird that she never told anything to the SML when they literally called each other bestfriends. Despite that, her subtle expression and acting, she's a great actress, you can watch her movie The Call, tremendous job there.
On the other hand, one major drawback of the drama was the male character. Excuse my bluntness, but while I adore Ji Han, his character had flaws. His opinions and views about certain individual often regressed, returning to square one inconsistently. He was too obsessive towards his brothers life, for idk what reason 😭
SML stood out as the most clueless and unaware character throughout the drama when in fact the story revolves around him. IMO he should've been the highlight of the show, but he was treated nothing less than a side character. He consistently lagged behind by at least 2-3 episodes in understanding what was happening, even when it concerned his own marriage. Unfortunately, his queer character arc wasn't sufficiently explored, representing a significant waste of potential.
Chae Woon was the most unproblematic SFL, they tried to portray in bad light but she was the only sane and realistic person here, sadly her screen time was not less than of a cameo despite being SFL
When watching a romantic comedy, the romance aspect is crucial for it to truly shine for me. However, in this drama, while the romantic element is touched upon, it lacks full development, leaving me feeling unsatisfied. To illustrate this feeling, consider the analogy of being served instant coffee instead of filtered coffee at a café, "you'd be upset, won't you?" Just as instant coffee represents a diluted or say incomplete experience, the romance here feels incomplete, lacking the depth of connection, affection, and chemistry expected in a romantic comedy. When key aspects like romance are only partially explored, it leaves me feeling as though I've only glimpsed a fraction of what could have been a more fulfilling experience.
Like instant coffee, it can be hit or miss; for me, it was a miss. Definitely the premises of the drama, was intriguing and new twist to contractual marriages, but the lack of plot, character growth, confrontation, communication and meaningful storylines, along with underdeveloped romance, made it a huge miss. While the characters had potential as the writing miserably falls in the other half of the show, making everything remained undiscovered and underdeveloped.
I personally lost interest by episodes 5 and 6. My attention span is short, so if a show isn't good, it doesn't hold my attention but as I start a drama I never drop it. There are many better romantic comedies out there, so it's not worth wasting your precious time on this one.
So skip this , you ain't missing anything (+_+)
Thank you for reading my review^^
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This review may contain spoilers
You really need to watch it in one go to be understanding of the characters.
I can find anything but the truth about this drama.1. Lee Do Han is in the closet and very scared of his chaebol grand father. He saw that his ex boyfriend was attacked so he flew to the US to escape, but his grandfather wants him to take over the company. His grandfather is old school and scared about his grandson secret that can be a treat to his legacy. So, he wants him to get married, even if it's for show. His grandson never told him, but he already knew, that how we discover that he's responsible for the attack on his ex. He kept his secret to everyone, even his own loving brother who's been by his side all his life. To protect his secret, he is ready to marry his best friend Na Ah Jung. She don't agree at first as she think he should be honest instead. Yet, she later agreed by need more than moral.
2. Lee Ji Han is a very dedicated brother. The grandfather despise him because he blames him for the death of his daughter. The grandfather will later see a video of the accident and realize how unfair he was to him. Lee Ji Han fall in love with Na Ah Jung by accident. They met before realizing who she is to Lee Do Han. She will become his wife but Lee Ji Han disagree, seing her as untrustworthy at first. Yet, their numerous fight made him fall for her, and does everything to sabotage his brother's wedding without knowing the reason of their wedding. When he discover his brother's secret, he's heartbroken for the lies from his brother as he never told him anything about everything. Not only the reason of the wedding, but the fact that Na Ah Jung knew everything about his brother, even his sexuality. Many people may have seen the fight between the brother and the harsh words about Lee Do Han choice of life. But if you watch closely, it's not about his sexuality, but about the choice he made of lying to everyone, especially his own brother. Lee Ji Han is right about it. You can live all you life lying about your sexuality, but you have to think of all the people you will hurt in the process. (I have seen so many women being lied to by their "straight husband"...)
Being gay is scary. Especially in the society we live in where homophobia is becoming very dangerous. So you can understand both brothers. Even if the family is accepting, the society is not and in chaebol's family, it's dangerous as they can loose everything with a scandal.
The whole drama was ok. Not a drama you wanna watch many times, but it's not as bad as people seems to say. Of course, watch it in one go. Weekly dramas are often difficult to fallow emotionally if watch when aired.
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Impossibly Disappointing
Sigh. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.I'm not going to explain why this drama failed in detail. Others have already sacrificed many of their brain cells to do so. Instead, I'll give you a short rundown of my thoughts.
Wedding Impossible had potential. It had a bit of a unique premise, a wacky start promising some over-the-top fun, and the opportunity to say something/showcase Queer representation in a mainstream K-Drama. I don't have to tell you that it failed on all counts.
I looked back at my notes and found one I made after the first or second episode: "Here's hoping they can achieve a fun drama while treating the Gay ML's sexuality and coming out with respect."
Oh, poor Noir. You naive, sweet summer child.
As the episodes progressed, it was clear the drama forgot or simply no longer cared about its premise. And rather than focus on what was supposed to be the main point of intrigue/source of hi-jinks and conflicts: Do Han using this sham marriage to hide his sexuality. They leaned into anything BUT that. And whenever the opportunity presented itself to delve into his struggles, how staying in the closet affected his relationship with his family, how the fake marriage was affecting his best friend and brother: They barely touched on it or simply pivoted and went, but what about the car accident from years ago, what about the poorly-built-up main romance, what about company politics and backstabbing, what about whining and complaining?!
And the worst part! The worst part is that this supposedly fun rom-com-style K-Drama not only didn't give the Gay ML a love interest (which is just plain Homophobic if you ask me): IT. WASN'T. FUN.
AND ANOTHER THING! Is it just me who finally noticed that they rarely used the word "Gay?!" Wtf. Are they scared of it?! If I didn't know the plot/wasn't paying attention, I would have no idea what Do Han's "secret" is when they're talking about it in some scenes!
By the time we got to the last few episodes, I just wanted it to end already. I found myself frustrated, annoyed, and just . . . Annoyed at myself for hoping for better.
If you're like me, a Queer person who, despite the odds, is kind of hopeful for good mainstream LGBT+ representation in your Asian dramas: I'm sorry to myself and you that we stuck this one out. Let's just collectively agree to go rewatch the Queer cuts from Nevertheless and Love with Flaws, drink some wine, and wait for Hwang Da Seul's next masterpiece.
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Like chewing gum...
It started out kind of fun, an easy watch with a pretty cool female lead and good looking cast. There was a slight stiff awkward yet playful vibe to the story and most of the characters as well. Entertaining as long as you don´t care about logic, because well there is none. While most of the story and quality is inconsistent there is one thing that never fails and that is the lack of logic in the plot.There are of course some well loved drama cliches, and an abundance of umbrellas but as the episodes passed by I realised that the awkwardness that worked so well in the beginning was actually just lack of direction and/or talent from the leads. Add to that the plot just goes meeh, the slight build up of the first episodes just goes flat there is nothing really interesting to see there and while there are a few cute lines and smiles here and there it all just went bland... like the drama got covid and kept trying all kinds of flavours but had lost all sense of taste... Just like chewing gum bursting with flavour the first 2 minutes untill it slowley turs in turns to this tasteless mass you may be able to make bubbles out of but the falvour is gone...
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I dont get it
I think the whole storyboard is bad and not fully fleshed out. I don't understand it at all. I get the fake marriage idea. But what is the problem of Lee Jihan? The "fiancé," however, hardly has any screen time. The whole fake marriage theme somehow becomes a sideshow, the fiancé isn't included at all. And if there are excerpts, they're offensive and don't fit. I don't understand some of the plot lines, the behavior of the individual characters, or what results from certain situations.Was this review helpful to you?
Went out on a whimper
This one started off so well and it had so much potential. Then for some reason the writers decided they wanted it to become a melodrama so we had like 3 episodes of unnecessary drama instead of getting actual rom-com moments. The final episode felt too rushed, especially since episode 11 felt like a waste of time. I'm really disappointed because I really liked the cast and story and in the beginning I was so excited because I thought this would end up being a great rom-com drama, but I should have known better than to trust kdrama writers. They inserted the same old tropes that I am sick of and yeah, annoying. Disappointing. I still enjoyed it up until like ep 7-8? But after that, it just got worse and worse and by the final episode it was too late to salvage it.Was this review helpful to you?
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Terrible writing. I finished this jeon jong seo
The writing is painful. I'm having to force myself to finish these last couple of episodes. It makes sense one of the writers has never written on a project before. I thought maybe the writing would get better, but then came episode 11 which was so damn bad. Add in the flat acting with it and just takes it all new level of bad. I can't believe they skipped a year and blew past that the son in law killed his wife. Wheres the families reaction to the news it was the son in law? What happened to the reporter? Then they made the secretary the new chairman of the entire company lmao. Did you want to see a-jung get her big break in acting? too bad they did it during the time skip smh. They let do Hans stalker ex off scott free with no punishment for outing do-han to his brother ji-han. What in the heck was that ending?????Why was the acting so bad? especially from the male lead. if I hadn't seen him in duty after school, I would swear this was his first gig. He barely had any emotion in the biggest scenes. his character was awkward and not in a good way, and the acting was flat. He almost has the same one expression in every scene.
Zero romantic chemistry between the main couple. Zero 0 none at all. at least they had a little chemistry when they were enemies, but after that, it was more like they were brother and sister. The one day get-away vacation was the least romantic getaway I've ever seen in a romantic kdrama. They literally did work in a field. In a way, it could have been cute, but they actually made it look so weird. he gets a small cut and then complains about for the rest of they day lmao. If there's one thing I can't tolerate, it's a weak kiss, and man, this one was WEAK. You only get one, maybe 2, in most kdramas(which has started to change recently. kdramas for some weird reason are getting a lot spicier know and it needs to stop) Make that one kiss count. Throw in some passion.
This show actually starts out interesting but then goes straight downhill. The fake marriage setup isn't even that interesting, and without the flashbacks of her with do-han, I can't even really tell their really friends. We barely got any interesting wedding planning scenes, and the wedding dress try-on was boring as heck. Did the writers have a bet on who could write the most boring scenes? We get no background info on the ex. why did they break up? why is he so mad? Do-han not telling a-jung about him, why? he dyes his hair for no reason, and we get no explanation.
The cafe worker Song sang eun has more chemistry with ji Hans assistant min jin woong than the main couple. they have a cute little romance going on. Their scenes were funny and adorable. The jealous family members hong in and kim ye won were pretty good too, those two together are hilarious. loved watching their scenes. Park ha in is very good in this, she plays her character the best out of everyone. Chae won just takes everything on the chin. I usually hate when the second female lead is a bad person, but in this, I would have loved it.
Jeon jong seo is an incredibly talented actress and so beautiful. idk who chose this script, but man, it was a mistake. The only solace for me is that enough people seem to like it to give it a high rating, so this project doesn't tarnish what's been a great run of projects so far. I've seen other people online agree with me, so I know there are those who will be hesitant to watch her next project, but it looks like it will be an incredibly serious project. So we should be getting a front row seat to the jeon jong seo I've seen in past projects.
I know she probably took this role so people would see her in a happier and fun light, but at what cost. I know she mentioned people seem scared of her due to her past projects, and she wanted to change their minds. She has to ask herself if she cares more about how people perceive her or about choosing projects that utilize her talent.
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I had this marked on my calendar from the moment I heard about it & not disappointed.
I'm a fan of the contract marriage trope mostly coz majority of them go from hate to love, which is my cup of tea. So, when I first heard about this drama, I immediately added it to my "plan to watch" list.Read a few people's comments that the actress is not that good or the drama is not that good. In my opinion, the 2 episodes I have watched were good. Right now, they are more interesting than "Dr Slump" or "Flex X Cop" for me. The first episode starts out a bit slow but halfway through it and I was hooked. The 2nd episode is real deal. It kept me interested for the entire duration of the episode and now I can't wait to watch what more unfolds.
3rd and 4th Episode: How adorable can the ML be? Both episodes were so fun to watch, from him saying "I'll steal you from my brother, make you fall in love with me, and dump you" to him going "I like you" in period of 2 episodes was so funny. He was also so bothered when he decided to change his approach and set her up on a blind date. She wasn't really that bothered about the blind date, wouldn't have been if the guy hadn't turned out to be pervert.
5th Episode was pretty much the ML saying horrible things about FL. I get the enemies to lovers trope needs some of that in the beginning but the descriptions he uses for FL are not tasteful at all. The FL was pretty hurt when she overheard stuff he said about her but had to pretend that everything was okay. She didn't even receive an apology from him.
6th Episode was ML going out of his way to ignore FL because he finally accepted that he liked the FL. He tries so many different ways to get over her, but remain unsuccessful. While I didn't much like the ML in 5th episode, I couldn't help but laugh some of their shenanigans.
7th Episode was so short. I wanted more of it. Everything was good, I'm on tenterhooks, waiting for the moment when ML finds out why the FL is marrying his brother. I hope he is accepting, but from the promo's it doesn't seem like it. Just finished 8th Episode, wow, now there's only two weeks worth of episode left. I feel like why is this one so short? And yet I can't wait to reach the end. Ai yo, I see the the current dynamics between the two, but the ML still thinks that the FL doesn't know the truth about his brother. He doesn't even know that she is in it for the her personal reasons. Waiting to see how he is going to react once he finds out.
9th ep: As expected, the ML was bound to find out that FL knew about his brother and the fake marriage thing. She should have told him, but the situation is overall shitty. This is the reason, I wasn't excited about them dating each other, at least clear things up first.
10th ep: This was such a good opportunity to have everything out in the open and make things somewhat right for everyone, but no, according to the Kdramaland cliche, the leads need to separate for some amount of time before they can have their happy ending, otherwise the world would fall apart.
11th & 12th: I'm so sad that its over. They break up in 11th, we have a 1 year gap and they get together back in 12th. 12th episode was so damn good. It didn't feel rushed, the ending was a bit weird but acceptable. I do love the scene where he both FL and 2ndFL keep throwing him at each other, you take him, no you take him.
Everyone kept talking about Kim Bum cameo, but I can't get over how gorgeous Lee Soo Hyuk looks as a groom.
Coming to the actors, like many viewers I do think that Moong Sang Min can do better as an actor. He is a treat to watch, but many of scenes seemed a bit awkward and not as emotional as the character deserved. But I just can't see any other actor in the role. Hoping to see more of him in romcoms. Jeon Jong Seo was a perfect fit for her role. I wouldn't mind seeing these two work together again.
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I had different expectations
Ok, so idk what made me have expectations that the ML will get attracted to FL post the fake marriage, and their wedding was gonna be impossible. *facepalm*Nothing of that sort happened.
The story is about everyone having secrets, and everybody knows others' secrets, but they don't know that others know their secrets.
I can't understand ML he says no, then yes, then no, then yes. The only saving grace was Fl who was bold and daring. All the heir drama was so pointless. SmL's acting was stiff. They did the Gay character dirty.
Anyway, it was filler drama for me, which I'd probably forget by this month's end.
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