I would like the preface this review with two points: I have only come to watch K-dramas the last half year or so and it is possible that some of my gripes with this drama spawn from cultural differences.

For myself some of the appeal of K-dramas is the that when extremely cliche characters or moments appear, the cheese somehow charms me despite my skepticism. Unfortunately, for most of Man to Man, there were too many problems to be balanced by its few strengths.

My first complaint, which some others have addressed, is the chemistry between the leads. I don't have problem with how Cha Do Ha was acted, but how she interacted with K. I can't recall a single instance where I really bought into the relationship between the two leads. I will differ from many others' opinion here as the bromance between K and Yeo Woon Gwang also didn't jive with me. It suffered from the same problem as the lead romance in that it felt abrupt and completely forced. It just felt like there was a relationship time skip the audience wasn't privy to.

On the other hand, every secondary relationship I bought hook, line, and sinker. The acting by the cast felt solid and their work is what got me through the show. Interactions between most characters was believable with some real tension to match. I particularly enjoyed the moments between Song Mi Eun and Yeo Woon Gwang. I would also say that each actor made good use of any solo time in front of the camera. I never found myself doubting their characters, just the interactions between the leads. Their strong performances never achieve excellence for me, but I don't feel like it's the casts' fault.

It was the writing that never sat well with me. I can forgive egregious plot holes, of which there were many, if there is great character interaction or development, but with the strongest character interactions being outside the main leads, the relationships struggled to make up for the flawed story. Almost every plot device used to further the show could have been solved in much easier and less convoluted way, which is fine. I came into this somewhat expecting it since it's a k-drama, but the show also had the problem of approaching many things with the subtlety of a mallet to the face.

Which is probably my biggest problem with the show. I am unsure if this stems from cultural differences, but the show kept telling me how to think and feel and that kept breaking my immersion. Bros don't have to repeatedly tell me they're bros; I should be able to gather that watching their awesome interactions and general bro-yness. The music was much the same way. While the music themes may not have been poor in choice, their execution was god awful. I am a firm believer that music when used well, or consciously not used for that matter, greatly enhances the audience's feelings. Instead, the timing and volume of the music felt like the director was screaming at me "GET HYPE!" at occasionally silly times or worse yet, during a later scene in the show "YOU FEEL SAD NOW!". Uhm no?

This show reminded me a lot of one of my favourite shows thematically which may have contributed to my poorer opinion of this show due to the comparison. I've seen a strong romance, great character development, and a reasonable plot all wrapped in a spy action/comedy. I was more than willing to overlook that show's flaws because of its strengths. As good as this cast was, they were given some very poor material to work with and in the end, they really couldn't save it.

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