I always find it challenging to find a decent romance asian drama that I can actually enjoy. The problem that I find with many of these dramas I have watched is that they leech onto misunderstandings and miscommunications which negatively the characters involved. These instances are usually accompanied by characters purposely not addressing or trying to solve the issues at hand. Whether it is to create more drama, surprise the viewers, or make the final reconciliation of the characters more meaningful, it frustrates me so much and deprives me of the happiness I expect from watching a romantic show. Furthermore, the root of my frustration is the unjustifiable actions of the characters involved with these issues.
The sequel to this drama, Bad Romance, did an excellent job in doing exactly this and pissing me off lol. Throughout the drama, Knock, to me, acted like a complete petty and disrespectful bitch toward Korn. He would get upset about the most minor things that Korn did not even know of (due to the stupidity of the problems) and essentially torture Korn for a couple of episodes until he wanted to make up with him. Of course I could tell Knock didn't have any bad intentions for Korn and actually deep down was a kindhearted individual, but he stretched the issues WAYYYY too much and far. Bad Romance also focused too much on the heterosexual couples, when what I really wanted to see were two gay guys happily in a relationship together. You could therefore imagine how unsure I was about watching Together with me as I was afraid it would be equally as frustrating and boring. However, I couldn't stop myself from thinking about Knock and Korn actually having bed and kissing scenes (according to articles I read at the time regarding Together with me) and the need for closure, so I caved in. I can now confidently say that I am glad I watched Together with me.
ACTUAL REVIEW
STORY
For ONCE I found a romance drama that is both understandable AND enjoyable. Before watching Together with me I really thought that Knock would act the same way with Korn and treat him like a bitch in Bad Romance. Contrary to what others might say, I think that Knock's actions were completely normal and in fact made this drama more realistic. Let's be honest, Pleng is a manipulative bitch and it frustrated me whenever I saw them together for that reason. During their screen time together I would always think to myself "U BITCH KNOCK WTF GO TO KORN THIS PLENG BITCH MEANS NOTHING TO U". This frustration, however, did not rise from unjustifiable actions, so it therefore did not ruin the whole drama experience for me, rather, it made it more realistic. Imagine if you were to get drunk and sleep with ur best friend while already in a relationship, be in denial about your feelings, and be confused about your sexuality, all while not wanting to hurt your girlfriend who claims to have done alot for you. What people fail to realize is the reality of the situation from Knock's perspective. Since people know that Knock and Korn are destined to be together, they automatically assume that any obstacle or delay in their relationship is a bad thing and shouldn't happen without considering the internal confusion Knock feels of liking someone of the opposite sex and not wanting to disappoint his girlfriend. Furthermore, Knock's on and off flirtatious behaviour with Korn is an expression of this confusion and is a quality of the drama I did not mind at all for that reason. Of course, it would be nice to not be frustrated and just watch Korn and Knock acting lovey-dovey with each other, but there was a perfect balance between these sweet moments and reality that made this drama just as good as watching a completely happy one with no kind of drama. HOWEVER in a few of the very later episodes, I felt like they dragged on Knock's confusion-based actions and just made him look like a complete idiot which I will not go into detail about because then I would have to spoil what happened ;). You will know what I'm talking about if you have a similar mentality to me lol.
Korn is just a sweetheart who always wants the best for others, especially Knock. I believe that he did not misunderstand any of Knock's actions, rather, he was just jealous which honestly made the scenes with him and knock following the jealousy even hotter and more enjoyable. I can't say much more though ;)
To be completely honest I was really only interested in the story of Korn and Knock (despite Farm being so fucking adorable) that at about episode 9 I started skimming through every scene that did not involve Korn and/or Knock so I don't really know for sure what happened to the other characters' relationships. Quite frankly, however, I don't care LOL. If they ended up doing stupid stuff I didn't care because like I said before I only focused on Korn and Knock's relationship with the involvement of Yihwa. Speaking of Yihwa, she never fails to impress me as one of the most bold, badass, and kindhearted characters who helped Korn and Knock get together. If it wasn't for her, they probably wouldn't have gotten together at the end of it all. That's all I'm gunna say though :).
To sum it all up, a great realistic story (concerning Korn and Knock) with the right amount of everything EXCEPT for the little bits near the end as mentioned before. I would rate the story a 10 if it weren't for those bits, but unfortunately I must consider them in my final rating.
ACTING/CAST
Yihwa's characters was hands down the most exceptionally played. For one thing, her sarcastic tone in almost everything she says is absolute gold. The actress who played her really gave Yihwa that badass yet caring friend image in a very realistic way. The actors who played Korn and Knock did an amazing job at making the kiss/bed scenes very realistic and passionate. That's literally all I want to say lol. These reasons alone were why I give acting such a high rating.
The rest of the characters were played well to be completely honest. I just don't want to write about them because I'm not really interested in them... :)
MUSIC
I don't really focus on the music used in a drama/film, but if I have to say one thing it's that the music used in this drama was relatively better than in most dramas I have watched. That doesn't mean I actually like the music they used though, but it is more bearable than some of those shitty ballads some korean dramas I know use off the top of my head.
REWATCH VALUE
I would never watch this drama again. There would really be no point in doing so other than watching the romantic scenes between Korn and Knock. Instead of spending 520+ minutes watching stuff I already watched with full knowledge of the situation I could easily go on youtube and watch any scenes I want from the show knowing the context behind them. I just find that in general dramas/shows are always worse after the first time they are watched due to a combination of their length and full knowledge of their situations.
OVERALL
For my overall score I obviously did not consider each full category. The following points were the only ones that I took into consideration:
- Lack of stupidity (overall and of the main characters)
- Hot scenes between Korn and Knock
- The satisfaction the ending provided me with
- The desire to finish the drama
On one final note, I'm glad I watched this drama. Not only did it revolve around a homosexual couple composed of two very attractive men, it also made the situation of this couple very realistic for the most part. If you're bored, feel lonely, and/or want to watch two asian guys together romantically, this is the drama for you. Did I mention the amazing and hot bed and kiss scenes?
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