So Not Worth It: Character Opinions

by ur mom, November 25, 2021

25 18

Hello and Welcome!

Disclaimers:

This article is full of spoilers; do not read it if you haven't completed the drama;
Do not take this article seriously, I was being pessimistic.

I was gonna name this article So Not Worth It: Character Analysis but reading it back over, it's just me ranting about what I liked and didn’t about the characters.

I’m just gonna go over some general points about this drama, a little calm before the storm. I LOVED the posters for this drama. So colorful and pretty. There were also some very beautiful shots. And honestly, this sitcom had so much potential, and I liked the idea of an international campus, which is the perfect setting with so much diversity. The acting wasn’t the best but was pretty good, and all the actors suited their roles. I would describe this sitcom as wildly mediocre. Not great, but not absolute garbage either. They needed better writers, man.

Now I’m going to be a little negative. Something was off. I don’t know what it was, but just by watching the whole thing, I noticed something was missing, and I can’t for the life of me put my finger on it. Please let me know if you feel similarly, so I don’t feel delusional. Next, they sort of messed up the laugh track. It felt like a coverup for awkwardness. Lastly, it was supposed to be funny, but I do not think I laughed once watching all 12 episodes. Did I smile at a cute couple here and there? Yes. If I did laugh at the scenarios that were supposed to have me rolling? Not once. One last thing, they mentioned a couple of times how they’re in a sitcom and about product placement, but it wasn’t even ironic it was just kind of like??? Ok?

Now, let the real hate begin!

Park Se Won

From what I’ve seen, the opinion on Se Won is pretty negative, and I for once fully agree:) I think there’s so much character development that could’ve been explored, but the writers just kept putting more situations that made me dislike her more and more. She’s been through a lot, but that doesn’t mean she should frame herself as the victim whenever she can. Not to mention how selfish and hypocritical she is.

In the beginning, when she sold Hyun Min's shoes, it frustrated me so much because it was obvious to EVERYONE how much he loved the shoes. She had no right to do that, and it didn’t even look like she was regretful. I also dislike her abuse of her role as a TA. Yes, I understand she’s struggling and needs money, but college kids are broke enough. If she’s in a position of power, she shouldn’t take advantage of that. It says a lot about her. But you know, even if she was gonna make money off it, she did not need to be as mean and rude as she was. 5 mins in, and I already had a terrible impression of her. I don’t want to ramble about her too much, however, one other scenario I disliked was when Jamie was gonna get surgery before her. I do think it was sort of set up by Jamie and the clinic by the looks of it, but it doesn’t negate the fact that she tried to stop him from doing something she was gonna do herself. And her treatment of Jaime before they start dating bothered me as well.

Minnie

Another awful character! Are we really surprised, though? Minnie is a cheater. There is no discussion to have about that. I feel like it was played off as “funny”, but it wasn’t. And 2 times?! Nah. I don’t even know what to say about her because she was just so very shallow. With the whole middle eastern dude, the minute she found out he wasn’t wealthy, she lost all interest. Literally, throughout the whole drama, she’s portrayed as boy crazy. We didn’t even get much on her background or anything, so that was a bit disappointing, especially since she seemed likeable. She had potential :/

Hyun Min

Okay, we can all agree that the writers did him very wrong. Why did nothing ever go right for him?? Personally, Hyun Min was the saving grace of the show, along with Carson. He’s so innocent and pure, I do think he can be quite naive and a tad bit stupid, but it added to his charm. He was a good friend, and from that one day with that tutor, a good lover too. I just wish he got some type of happy ending. There are so many things I want to bring up, but they all went wrong for him: the lottery, the girlfriend, living in the dorms, every girl before the tutor, his mom's ex-boyfriend, the list goes on. He was meant to be like the funny guy, but I just felt bad for him. If there’s a second season, I want to see him on top of his game: a happy and healthy boy.

Sam

I have very mixed feelings about him. I think the writers were trying to pin him as the comedic relief type, but the constant lying with red ears was just sort of ironic and unoriginal? (what is this, Pinocchio?). I don’t think any of it was harmful, though. Again, not much to say about him besides that he’s very naive. What sort of ruined him for me were his distasteful comments about Islam and Muslims. I think it was a really bad idea to insert those types of comments, only feeding into inaccurate negative stereotypes about Muslims. Very ignorant. Not a memorable character.

Jaime (Shin Hyun Seung)

Jamie’s so adorable. Even though he’s been through a lot, he was so empathetic towards everyone. He's quirky and awkwardly funny. I enjoyed seeing his development and growth, especially with being a famous actress’ son, standing up for who he loves. He was also willing to do part-time jobs and whatnot, something he’s never done before just to take accountability for his actions (which wasn’t even his fault). Also, quite a talented singer, unlike his girlfriend :)

Terris Brown

Another contestant with some great character development! Terris is shown as this sort of a player, and I like how they concluded his story. He’s very easygoing and chill, definitely the type of person I’d love to be friends with. I liked how the drama shows the progression of him and Il Seop. It was a really good representation of LGBTQ, and nothing was overdone or unrealistic. I grew more fond of Terris as the drama went on, and I do wish he got more screen time, but from what was given, he seems cool.

Carson Allen (aka my spirit animal)

I loved Carson. She is me, and I am her. Carson was done very wrong, but I love how she handled it. She was also the type of character who I liked more as the drama went on. Her relationship with the officer was unfortunate, but for someone who was shown with extreme anger issues, in the beginning, I liked how she didn’t go all ham and beat his ass (as she should’ve?). She handled it very maturely. When Jaime and Se Won’s relationship was secret, and she found out, she kept it a secret. I also liked how she encouraged Terris and Il Seop and was so supportive! Carson is a real one.

Hans (Joakim):

Was Hans even real? He gave me very much robot vibes. Hans… Did not really have a personality. He was pretty boring. I do like his respect for his family and country, and he stayed true to that. He also stood up for his beliefs, like with that whole shrimp situation and his protests! What I didn’t like was his treatment of his friends sometimes. I think with a bit of work, he could’ve been incredibly funny, especially with his monotone type voice and presentation, but the writing kinda sucked, so I can’t blame him.