shubham singh
India
Very well written drama!
I never thought that a K drama of past will make me so engaged and kept me guessing and theorizing this much after every episode. This drama not only has a solid plot but also intelligent characters even the villains are rational in their action.Apart from the main plot and the relationship of its main group the story touches a lot of interesting points like - Importance of memory in a person's life, the role of memory in constructing ones identity, the idea of a crime free city and the importance of consent & privacy , treating foreigner as a threat etc
In every episode there were many thought provoking subjects difficult decisions to be made and there consequences to be faced in the future.
The way they connected the two time period at end was good the way they dealt with the shock was great too.
The only drawback I could see is a lack of heartfelt chemistry in the lead , I dont know if they purposely kept this way bcos the actors were great they just couldn't create a good setting for it.
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A drama about seeking approval, hanging by thread , abandoning , and realisation..
This Drama although being an office drama feels very different from other office drama where only one department is focused on most of the times and where leads are just moving around papers , printers etc.In this drama the various departments are used like tribal confederation in historical dramas.
Some departments showcased here are-
Headquarters- it is basically like King's counsel , the most powerful place where everyone wants to be and wants to curry favour with them.
HR - In peace times it behaves like a benign spy system but in bloody times it is like a king's executioner!
R&D - The brain of the company , this where the things get done. It has various teams and superstars and internal rivalry among them , basically the dream of every engg is to join it.
Product Planning - it basically comes up with innovative and marketable ideas for products and works closely with R&D!
QA - basically does machine testing of products and its equipment for heat , durability etc. In short the dept which maintains std and quality of equipment produced by company generally an anti of R&D!
Motor Dept - being the only core hardware dept in seemingly all software dominated dept basically the spine of the company but without it all ideas are just ideas!
I really like this series bcos it is one of those series which is informative yet interesting and generates curiosity , almost all the characters are intelligent and logical in their approach. There is a lot of planning , ambush , pettiness backstabbing , revenge going on but at the same time there are moments of growth , realisation, innocence, vulnerability, acceptance , letting go etc
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A Relationship about Real couple and real humane characters!
What a sweet surprise this drama has been! I started this drama with almost no expectation at all. The intro seemed cliché the starting episodes too seemed following normal tropes. But as soon as I watched the ML , I realised that his character has much depth than meets the eye , esp when you see how casual he was at his own B'day party , has a meditation room etc.What I really liked?
The most striking feature of this drama is that it has no real villain! No toxic evil people , just normal people doing there job who sometimes becomes greedy / ambitious. It is truly a mature drama about sweet people , there is no unnecessary misunderstandings , no push & pull ,it just maintains to be sweet through and through , a perfect drama to watch at the end of a tiring day!
The drama although has a very simple plot but the plot is not its USP but its characters , their conversations, their philosophy. This drama provides you with the sweetest SFL (Tong Hua), Ideal parents (Sheng's parents), Lovely
ex , and Caring boss and Manager. And very good OST!
All in all this drama is boost of optimism.
The things that I didn't like?
This drama is generally very realistic in terms of emotional expression , thinking and decision making, But in terms of professional responsibility it tends towards more fiction. The FL rarely does any serious amount of work and the amount of holidays she takes is highly unsustainable. The fact that her BFF is also her colleague and also rich, is too good to be true. Same goes for our male lead , celebrities are generally very busy either writing their song or practising and after release they do tours and at off times they constantly shoot ads etc But he just stays home and does almost nothing.
Apart from these minor inconsistencies , this drama does not have any high note /any sort of climax , so some people who binge watch may feel it to be boring , too simple or not spicy enough.
This drama is not for binge watch but to savour slowly bit by bit.
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Best c drama for mature audience.
If you havent watched this drama I can only say that this drama rewards patience and perseverance which is actually the central theme of this drama! So only start this drama if you are going to give a serious attention to it, this drama is definitely not for teenagers.This drama's main character is Minglan, it starts with her back story as a child and her sufferings and the cause of it. The people who were involved in it , to avenge them is her main drive.
But the main USP of this drama is how she actually plans for it or is she really the one planning? This is where I say its for adults cos not a lot of teens would understand her actions , her patience, her humbleness , her real reason for doing sth or rather giving up on sth.
All this leads her to meet someone of her own caliber a true partner for a lone wolf and this is when the real game starts and the show starts sprinting ( and that's why most reviews give it a slow burner tag).
All I can say about this show is that this hit too close to me personally, its such a great show that its a shame why its not world famous!
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A Masterpiece!
There is nothing more that can be said about this drama which has not been said already. So i can just start by showing my own dedication for this drama by opening an account just to review it after 2 yrs. You can tell about the quality of a drama if you cant find its replacement even after 2 yrs.Now to start, The people who should avoid this drama? - Pre- teens / teens , those who still live in fantasy world!
Who should watch it? - Any Adult or mature person with enough life experience will truly appreciate this masterpiece.
What is the specialty of this drama? - Other than the usual like smooth & packed storyline, Great acting , OST etc
the real deal of this drama is how it captures greatness in simplicity. Now dont get me wrong I
appreciate all the supernatural dramas too but this is on another level its like watching Breaking Bad first time and not finding words to describe it. In this show you'll see what walking with a heavy heart feels, what it really means to have a warm heart, what integrity looks like, what being a family really means , what guilt actually feels like, what to Love sby really means!(Not the lead), what renunciation really means, the joy of companionship, and last but not the least how to show immense Love, Respect and admiration without WORDS!
Any special character? - Other than the leads (3 bros and The girl), there are 4 special characters - 1.The lady shop owner, 2. The cleaner , 3. The grandmother, 4. the Monk. You'll know why they are special when you watch the show.
Any drawbacks? - The only drawback I can think of is a character related to the youngest brother that character should not have been given that amount of screen time, and That's why I am not giving it 10\10.
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End justifies the means , if you are ready to pay the consequences!
I really like the character of Butcher shop lady Yoo jae yi and The det. Oh ji wa , both of them were passionate, dignified , brave and fierce from the get go! I even liked the CEO of JL construction, who got sucked in the mess!Initially I was really annoyed with the Lee Dong shik and Han Joo wan , former was like creepy nut case while latter was an arrogant Mr Know-it-all! Only later when I saw there backstory I was able to digest it!
But still it doesn't change the fact that Dong shik did a lot of creepy overacting at the start , I don't know if it was to make the drama more suspenseful or it was to mask his intelligence and plans from the foes!
What I disliked -
Drama at the start is highly manipulative to the extent that it would give you a headache, I think the reason for it is that the plot was worth only 10 episodes , but they had to somehow make 6 extra ep , and the way they did that was to fill the initial ep with unnecessary confusion and fillers!
In the first half in every ep they would convince you that this guy is the villain , but you know that this not going to be the case and hence becomes a waste of time and you lose interest the next time they repeat the same thing in the very next ep! I think they forgot the difference bw misdirection and misinformation!
What I liked -
The second half was good everything was in the right place & pace, even the traps were understandable , the way they worked as the team was exciting,
If they had done a better work in the first half and didn't use those cheap tricks , I think it might have turned out to be the best suspense K- drama ever. Even as it is now it is surely in my top 5 suspense cop dramas.
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Ocean of love , kindness ,growth and understanding!
I went into this drama just knowing that its a happy love story without any headache.But I was pleasantly surprised by how cute , lovely yet realistic it is. This drama shows us that you can make a great positive drama based on real world circumstances without sugar coating. What I really liked about this drama is how they mange their life and carrier alongside their friendship and relationship.
Lead pair is awesome in this drama , I think they take 90% of the drama in both quality and quantity. Their relationship is so well built esp the starting scenes are really hilarious!
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A tale of woman who chose quality over ....
This is a movie which I put on hold for a long time and then in a moment of weakness I went for it ! I can say this is a movie which leaves you with a sense of satisfaction , warmth , a bittersweet after-taste and most importantly a great lesson for priorities in life and the experience to make tough choices.What I LIKED-
Acting of child actor from start to finish esp the scene where he delivers an awesome speech short , precise and meaningful !
All the scenes of the family were outstanding, the side character esp the Uncle was very comic and fulfilling.
What I didn't LIKED-
May be the slow start can put some people off but I think its subjective.
What i really missed was the lead chemistry, it was there but sth was missing , I personally think the director was more concerned with the focus of the story on the family as a whole rather than the leads.
The comeback story was clearly explained at the start but the other part of the story
(spoiler)
her ..seeing the situation was not clearly explained as to why it happened to her.
All an all in a right mood this definitely can take you to places!!
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How to use your emotions constructively to change yourself and your life as a whole!
Oh boy! where should I start. The movie starts with a new aloof girl in class and foolish ,aimless, happy , tall dude who is curious about her AND ends with a girl who is warm understanding and confident and the guy matures to almost a living Sage!I liked almost everything about this movie to the point that sometimes it gets too real to swallow to the level that if I had seen it 10 - 12 yrs ago I might have had suffered a real breakdown lol! I guess becoming adult changes things. That is why you see so contrasting ratings , anyone below 16 yr will generally give 5/6 rating and anyone above 25yr will give it 8+ rating , that is how it is!
If you haven't watch it yet , I wholeheartedly recommend it , although if you are young & emotional person and you have any exams close by then you should definitely put in on hold, till you have a whole free week to ponder!
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A comic delight and a josean parody !
This drama is a rare treat. The storyline is simple but what makes this drama special is the Queen herself, Kim so Yong is a character that will go down as a legend in K drama history. Every single scene in which she appears is full of excitement, fun and challenge.The only reason I am not giving it 10/10 is bcos of the last episode which was leading to the " scarlet hearth " road that possibly even scared otherwise such gutsy writers so they tried to change the direction at the last minute, hence people with rationality and feeling will really get awkward although hopeless dreamers might not even notice this!
All in all I will highly recommend this drama.
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