This drama tested every last bit of my patience.

Everything in it was done at the most shallow, surface level possible. We were given no insight into why our characters made the decisions they made, no deeper look into their inner struggles and desires and motivations; no emotionally revealing conversations between the characters or internal dialogue to bring us into their inner worlds; no explanation for what our female leads ultimate goal was or if she even had one; just a bare bones story trying real hard to be devoid of any substance. Which is all the more frustrating as it had so much potential for substance. The bones of a good story were there. The writers just never put any meat on them.

Understand that none of this is the fault of the actors or actresses. They did the best with what was given to them. (Although I truthfully wasn't impressed with Yong Jun Hyung at all.) I quite liked both female leads and am more angry For them for what a crappy story they were handed than I could ever be At them. Chae Seo Jin is aces as Oh Go Woon, and that's the main reason I didn't end up hating her or her character. They're both too lovable. But while Kim Min Young is clearly just as good of an actress, and Lee Seul Bi had some really solid character moments in the first handful of episodes and in the finale, neither of them were ever given a chance to shine. Chae Seo Jin/Oh Go Woon get all the screentime, and eventually, you begin to think the posters and teasers were all just an elaborate lie, and Lee Seul Bi isn't the main character after all.

I will say that there is a lot to enjoy about the finale. The first half ties up a number of plot points in ways that are genuinely satisfying. It also offers up some deeper explanations and explorations of the drama's theme that the story was sorely lacking before that point. Honestly, episode 12 has more story development than all 11 other episodes combined, and it dulled some of the frustration I had going into it. But the second half of the episode is a total waste, and the episode as a whole brings up some really fascinating ideas that the drama Could have explored and Should have explored but Didn't explore, so it ultimately just leaves you feeling frustrated again.

Should you watch Coffee, Do Me A Favor? No. Coffee, Do Me A Favor is not a good drama, and you should not watch it.

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I was not initially interested in watching this drama. While I love myself a good noona romance, and I love Gong Hyo Jin as an actress, the plot synopsis didn't sound like my thing, so I decided to give this one a pass. But the more I saw and read about the drama as it aired, the more I wanted to watch it, so maybe a month before the story was going to end, I decided to pick it up.

Ooooooh my goodness was that a good decision. I liked every character, I liked the murder mystery, I liked the drama's intentional focus on difficult topics, I loooooved the noona romance, but what I liked the most was Dong Baek.

I may be blaspheming a previously viewed and loved drama of mine, but I genuinely think this may be the closest I have ever come to relating to a drama female lead in every single way. Dong Baek's particular life circumstances, single motherhood, child abandonment, running a bar frequented by all the neighborhood men to the chagrin of their wives, none of that speaks to my life. But the way Dong Baek expressed herself, the way she saw herself, the internal sadness and disappointment and bitterness she felt over her life, that was spot on. She is definitely a kindred spirit.

Overall, this drama is a ten for me, from start to finish. I highly recommend it.

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So teeeeechnically, I have one episode of this left, but my thoughts and feelings about this drama are totally set at this point, and I know the last episode isn't going to change them, because I know the last episode is going to be just as superb as the rest of the series has been, so I'm writing my review now.

And yes. That is the sum up of my review. I think this series is superb.

Why do I think that? It's very, very simple.

Tian Qing is a compelling character, struggling with questions about her identity and coming to terms with the answers she ends up discovering. Her journey to understanding and acceptance is heartfelt and truthful and speaks deeply to that desire in all of us to know who we really are. Cheng Nuo's journey of dealing with his past and allowing himself to heal from it and forgive his family for their mistakes and failures provides so many lessons on what it really means to love those around us and let ourselves live a full and meaningful life. And Tian Qing's adoptive father, Jia He, the foundation upon which the entire story is built, is so honorable and upright and kind that you love him immediately. You understand just what a profound impact he has had on the people around him and feel compelled to emulate him in your own life, to be that kind of person yourself.

This is a drama about healing and forgiveness, identity and knowing who you are, being true to yourself and true to what you know is right, living a life of service to others, and doing the right thing even when it's hard. It's a drama about truth, and that is why I love it so much and think it so incredibly superb. (The cinematography is also absolutely stunning and lush and vibrant, a character in and of itself. The drama's worth watching solely for that if none of the other reasons compel you.)

The only thing that is going to push people away, and I hate that I have to make this caveat, but here we are...

Is that this drama is slow.

It's an unfortunate reality in Asian drama world, that slower dramas that focus more on character and story then creating thrills and excitement simply do not get the praise and recognition they deserve. Instead, they're called boring, or uninteresting, or poorly written, or some other unfair and unflattering insult. And as I'm sure you can see from some of the comments and other reviews here, this drama has received it's fair share of those insults as well. But believe me when I say, those are not fair critiques. A slow drama is not a bad drama, and to rate a slow drama as bad simply because it is slow is poor reasoning. It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea, and as I said in my review for another similarly paced drama, Andante, they aren't typically mine either.

But I watched this, and I felt something. I watched this, and I appreciated the characters and the story. I watched this, and I'm glad I did.

Now this is technically where the actual review ends, but I have some further, broader thoughts I want to share that aren't directed solely at this drama, so if you're interested in reading them, well then here they are, lol.

Minus Fated to Love You (my first ever drama) and the Started with a Kiss series, I didn't watch any Taiwanese dramas for the first however many years of my drama watching life, preferring Korean over pretty much every other country (for context, I've been watching dramas about ten years, maybe longer). However many years ago though, I dipped my toes into Taiwanese dramas again with Just You, and loving it to pieces, decided to give some other Taiwanese dramas a try. There was Office Girls (high marks from me, even if I did find the female lead frustrating), Aim High (very strong and enjoyable start that got me invested, but then devolved into obnoxious, annoying, uninteresting drama about one of the secondary romantic couples and completely ignored everything else the drama was Supposed to be about), Miss Rose (dropped without even meaning to, because the story stopped being interesting, and I can't even remember anything that happened now), King Flower (I tried so hard with this one and just couldn't make it through), Easy Fortune Happy Life (Hate It), P.S. Man (also Hate It), I Do2 (they got one decent episode in before completely ruining the entire thing), Rock n' Road (I wrote an entire blog post where I re-wrote the drama to make it actually good), and Pleasantly Surprised (it...bored me? I guess?). Which the exception of three dramas, I dropped all of these. And one of the three I finished (Rock n' Road), I did so out of obligation.

So as you can see, I had very little luck with Taiwanese dramas the last time I tried to get into them, and because of it, ultimately stopped attempting to watch them altogether. They didn't seem to be very good, I wasn't enjoying them at all, Korean dramas were checking off all the boxes on my drama needs list, and there are so many dramas out there anyways that why waste my time on ones I clearly am destined to not like?

Well, I think I can unequivocally say that if this is the direction Taiwanese dramas are going in now, count me back in, because this was a compelling story from start to finish, and I like being compelled to watch something because it's good.

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This is not a formula drama. What I mean by that is that unlike traditional dramas where the story and characters rely on a set formula or trajectory to show them where to go, this drama does it a little differently. There are premises, possibilities, seeming drama conventions set up in the beginning, some of which end the way you expect and some of which do not end up where you think they will. The drama itself has been described as slice of life, and while I don’t know if I totally agree with that label as the drama contains a concise journey for each of the characters all of whom change in some way over the course of the story, the style of storytelling has a very slice-of-life feel to it, so I understand why people would think of it that way. The story has an easy, relaxed way about it, which is definitely one of it’s selling points.

Personally, I came to like this drama a lot more than I initially expected, especially after seeing the first couple weeks of episodes. The female leads, with the exception of the single mother, start out…rather unlikable. They’re selfish and difficult and frustrating, and while I definitely empathized with them both and their struggles, I didn’t relate to them at all. But over the course of the drama, I started to appreciate both of these women better. Neither of them changed drastically by the end, although they did both go through a level of growth as people, but I came to understand them better. They’re both still unlikable in their own ways. They both still have personality flaws, but I came to like them because of that, not despite it. On the other hand, the single mother has somewhat of an opposite trajectory. She starts out seemingly sweet and thoughtful and somewhat meek before revealing a more layered view of herself that I can appreciate from a storytelling point of view, but that left me unsatisfied from a viewership standpoint. I don’t know that this ever made me dislike her as it was intriguing and enjoyable watching her reveal a strong, subtle confidence that lay underneath that surface level demureness, but at the same time, there was this feeling of selfishness in her character that I didn’t like very much.

I was particularly disappointed by how the writers chose to end the potential budding romance between the single mother and her co-worker. In a drama like this, I guess I should have expected as much to happen, but the sting certainly could have been lessened if they hadn’t left me feeling like he had been left with the short end of the stick. Her words to him at the end felt…harsh and unfair and left a bad taste in my mouth.

Overall though, I really enjoyed this drama. I’m nothing like these women, and I don’t know that I would ever be friends with women like them in real life, but I came to love all of them, despite and even Because of their flaws. They felt like real people with real personalities and real struggles and real hopes and goals and dreams. They felt human, and I appreciated being the chance to glimpse into their world for just a moment.

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I binged this all the way up until the last three episodes, and up until that point, I was totally enthralled and invested. Then I came back for the last three eps and realized how silly the story is. Some dramas are incredibly good at creating forward motion and sucking you into that forward motion, without ever having to tell a real story, and I think that's the case with this drama.

There's not a lot you haven't seen before. Girl gets dumped by her boyfriend; old friend shows up suddenly and decides to help her get her boyfriend back; as they spend time together, feelings develop; girl successfully gets boyfriend back, but by then she's completely over him; old friends almost girlfriend comes back, and now he feels obligated to stay with her; leads avoid telling each other how they feel because they think they're both in love with other people; the secondary romantic leads plan out their lives with the leads, and the leads go along with it even though there's no logical reason to; the leads Finally break it off with the secondary leads in the final quarter of the story but Still don't tell each other how they feel. And yes, there's an unnecessary time jump in the last episode.

But there is a happy ending, so I guess that's a good thing.

It's really just...nothing to write home about.

The relationship conflicts do start off fairly believable. But they quickly become irritating. Initially, it's understandable why Jae Won feels so conflicted after his almost girlfriend comes back. They were basically 'spoken for' with each other at the beginning of the story, so his feelings of obligation to her make sense. They genuinely liked each other once, to the point of each of them privately contemplating getting married. But the drama doesn't give us any sort of compelling backstory to their relationship and why it would make sense for them to possibly be together over the main couple, or alternatively, why it wouldn't. Of course, almost girlfriend eventually ruins herself as a character by being incredibly selfish later on, and you feel absolutely No sorrow for her and the situation she's in anymore, but before that happens, you can understand Jae Won's dilemma. (The whole thing also makes him look a little bit like a dick for basically promising himself to someone and then as soon as she leaves for a little while, falling for someone else, but I don't really have the energy to tackle that right now.)

But Eun Woo has no excuse for why she went along with her Ex' obnoxious plans for them to get back together, and to get Married, no less. 1) They broke up because he cheated on her (which he continues to do after they get back together, although she never finds out, so it's never actually addressed). 2) There is no reason, character-wise or story-wise, for him to want to get married to anyone when he obviously likes playing the field so much and doesn't appear to have any sort of genuine feelings for Eun Woo. 3) He's unendurably selfish and boring and honestly quite unintelligent. And most importantly, 4) SHE DOESN'T LIKE HIM ANYMORE!!!! Like, I get stuffing her feelings for Jae Won down, because she thinks that he's in love with someone else, but why does that mean your only option is marrying your awful ex whom you don't even like???? There is the option of....simply not doing that.

Again, like I said in my round-up of the story in the second paragraph, they do both eventually break things off with the secondary leads, but not until after what felt like an eon of just going along with whatever the secondary leads had to say. It's just silly and unnecessary and stupid.

This is the second project I've seen Jin Ki Joo in, the first being Secret Life of My Secretary, and she really excels in these cute, aegyo-like roles. (So much so that I really don't even want to see her play more serious characters, because I like her style of aegyo so much.) This is the first project, however, I've seen Hong Bin in, and he alternates between passable (usually whenever his character is being more sad and serious, and I honestly found some of those moments kinda cringey to watch) and quite enjoyable ( mostly whenever he's engaging in banter with Jin Ki Joo). Ki Joo definitely carries this drama and is probably the main reason, outside of how good the production team was at creating that forward motion I mentioned, for why I ended up finishing this.

So yeah. This is a cute, if generic and cliché and occasionally cringey story; good for a quick binge when you need some fluff, but not really something you'll find yourself grabbing when looking for something with substance.

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The reviews and many of the comments for this drama seem to be from people who didn't really get what this drama was trying to do and don't personally enjoy dramas that move at a slower pace, which is rather unfortunate as that has unfairly colored their reviews, in my opinion. Yes, this is a slow drama, but that is intentional. You need only look at the title to be able to see this.

Andante- moderately slow; usually used as a direction in music

It's perfectly understandable that slow paced dramas are not for everyone, and they're honestly not for me most of the time either. Even with Andante, a drama I clearly very much enjoyed based on my rating, I took multiple long breaks in-between watching episodes, because it really was just slower than what I enjoy in a drama. But that is not a flaw in the drama. That is a personal preference that I fully recognize. If you do not enjoy slow paced dramas, I recommend that you maybe watch something else, because you might not be able to fully appreciate the story this drama tells.

That being said, if you enjoy slow paced dramas with simple but affecting storylines, then I highly recommend Andante. It's thoughtful and moving with stellar performances by the entire cast. Even Kai does a decent job. But I have to say, my favorite character is Bom. It's technically not her drama, but it also kind of is. She's the driving force behind much of the story and character progression, and her story arch is a deeply emotional one that spans the entirety of the drama. It's ultimately through Bom's actions and words and presence that the rest of the characters are pushed into growth and reconciliation and developing new hope for the future. If no other reason compels you to watch this drama, then watch it for Bom.

Word of warning: The last two episodes are a sob fest, so have your tissues at the ready.

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This is a dumb drama. Outlandish plotlines, ridiculous characters, an over-the-top story that has you constantly rolling your eyes and face desking at the mind-numbing stupidity.

This is also 100% on purpose and the main reason you would watch this drama in the first place. You're meant to laugh at the utter stupidity of the whole thing, the constant employment of 'dumb' humor. And maybe feel a little moved by the genuine heart peeking through the layers of goofy along the way.

I wouldn't personally watch this again, because these kinds of dramas just aren't my thing, but I did get a lot of enjoyment out of it watching it once, and I can see why other people would really love it.

It's a dumb drama with a lot of heart, and if that's something you enjoy, then you will definitely enjoy this drama.

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This was a disappointing drama.

I was part of the subbing team on Viki, and my original plan was to either watch each episode after the initial English subs were put out then go in and do my part or go ahead and do my part and watch the episode in full afterward.

I quickly discovered that neither way was going to be possible, and the only way I Was going to be able to watch this drama without pulling out my hair was to just work on the subs and get the highlights as I worked.

Every time I attempted to sit down and watch a full episode...there were too many things I hated about the story for me to enjoy it. Namely almost everything around the kidnapping plotline, ie. the entire premise of the show and kind of an important aspect of the story that you need to enjoy if you want to enjoy the show overall.

When the drama focused on the female leads difficult work environment and her life growing up, it was very poignant. I found her to be the most relatable and empathetic in those moments, and I wanted to see more of them. When the drama focused on most everything else, I wanted to quit watching.

My main complaints with the kidnapping plotline are as follows:

1) The main characters behavior was unrealistic. The idea that a kidnapee would ever have enough power in a kidnapping situation to force the kidnapper to create and sign a contract between them was just dumb. Wholly and completely dumb. The idea that the kidnapee would be able to dictate to the kidnapper instructions on what food to cook for them and clothes to buy them and coffee to get them was dumb. Wholly and completely dumb. And the idea that the kidnapper would ever, for one moment, grant any of these demands is dumb.

Wholly and completely dumb.

2) The main characters behavior was maddening. The female lead made terrible decision after terrible decision that was never appropriately acknowledged as terrible and rarely had any repercussions and she never felt remorse or regret over them and I JUST WANTED HER TO FEEL A LITTLE BAD FOR KIDNAPPING A PERSON THAT'S ALL.

The male lead would get rightfully angry about being held hostage and then get over it within the same or next scene like he wasn't actually all that chuffed about it. At least be consistent, buddy.

They bickered with each other the entire time, and it was Not. Cute. because it was about the fact that she had kidnapped him and he rightfully wanted to not be kidnapped.

3) There was very little effort put into making the characters actually fall for each other. Feel sympathetic towards each other maybe, but not fall in love. And I wanted them to fall in love. Despite the myriad of flaws with this drama, the leads had spot on chemistry and could have brought a really great romance to the screen.

But they didn't.

I want to make it clear that I don't hate this drama because it was unrealistic. I don't have any problem with it being unrealistic. Stories like this Have to be a little bit unrealistic if they want to sell the idea of a kidnapper and kidnapee falling in love without it coming off as messed up and wrong. (Beauty and the Beast, anyone?) The problem is that the writers didn't understand how to write this story so that it didn't come off as messed up and wrong, so it always just felt Wrong.

There's plenty more to say about the rushed and poorly fleshed out story and the lack of real character or relationship growth throughout much of the drama and the terrible with a capital T ending that was clearly caused because of issues with the production company, but honestly, I don't care enough to talk about any of that. You'll have to read someone else's review if you want to know more.

All I'm gonna say is this drama was terrible, and those of us who watched it deserved better.

And so did the actors.

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This drama was my crack drama all the way through episode 14 when, for reasons I'm not even sure of anymore (maybe I was abducted by aliens and they messed with my brain? probably just because some of the side plots were draggy and frustrating though), I lost all interest and never finished the last two episodes. I finally went back and watched them this evening, and I can't lie. The obsession I had with this drama when it was airing has significantly cooled. I don't know if that's the drama's fault, time's fault, or my fault, but it is what it is.

This is definitely, however, a crack drama with some mild makjang thrown in for good measure, and if you like crack dramas/light makjang, you will like Cinderella and the Four Knights. I don't know that the story holds up to intense scrutiny, and like I said, some of the side plots are draggy and frustrating, but...we're all drama druggie's here. And we'll put up with a lot to get our fix, am I right?

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I think the story presentation in this film is what the drama version was shaping up to be before the entire thing fell apart (although obviously expanded and more fleshed out in the drama).

The movie does a good job of hitting a lot of the major points of the story and making them all flow together and make sense in relation to each other, but I do have to wonder about something. If I had watched this without reading any of the webtoon or watching any of the drama, would I have actually understood what was happening? I'm not sure I would. While as I said, they do a good job of making things make sense in relation to each other, they don't do as good of a job making sure it all makes sense as a whole so that the audience actually understands what's going on. The storytelling style reads a little slice-of-life but in a way that is somewhat confusing to follow at times.

I also have to be honest and say that I don't think the cast here is as good as the cast in the Kdrama (even including Park Hae Jin; his character just feels different in this movie, not nearly as sinister and mysterious as the Kdrama version, and I'm honestly more impressed with his portrayal in the Kdrama), but they definitely all still do a good job, and I didn't hate any of their performances.

As for the ending, probably one of the most important aspects of the movie since the drama ended so terribly and the webtoon author was forced to change her ending because of it so we'll never actually see how she originally intended it to end, I don't think it's really the direction the story Deserved to go in, but at this point, I'll allow it. I think everyone deserved a happy ending after having to put up with the mess that ended up being the drama.

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I must start this review by fangirling over the female leads amazing wardrobe and lamenting the fact that the official website for the drama does not have individual shots of each of her outfits, because I would have been screenshotting each and every one. Etsuko is Stylish, and I want to be her when I grow up.

Ok, now that that's out of the way, I can fangirl about the actual drama itself.

This drama is really good! Etsuko is an extremely likable female lead. Personable, tenacious, thoughtful, intelligent, bubbly, kind, she puts a smile on your face and makes you wish you Were her and had a best friend who Is her. Of course, the rest of the characters are nothing to sneeze at. A perfectly wonderful boss, a snarky/difficult editor who's really quite nice once you get to know him, a lovely little ensemble team working in the Proofreading department, a male lead who's thoughtful and introspective and a little quirky, a relatable second female lead struggling to fit in at her job and find meaning in the work she does, and of course, all of the interesting authors you get to meet along the way. There's no one in this drama you ever really dislike.

I LOVED this drama's intense focus on a career field that isn't glamorous or showy but something that happens in the background without any fanfare. It's repeated multiple times throughout the drama that no one ever hears about proofreaders. They don't get the recognition they deserve, something that frequently frustrates Etsuko. But that makes the job of a proofreader all the more important and worthwhile, because proofreaders aren't doing it for themselves. They're doing it for others. The drama ties all of this together nicely in the last couple episodes with the publication of the male leads new book which focuses exclusively on writing about people with jobs that operate in the background yet hold fundamental value to keeping the rest of society running smoothly. The message is clear: You're work may never been seen or noticed by most people, but it holds meaning, and that's what matters.

I truthfully don't have much about this drama to complain about. I wasn't on board with the romantic pairings initially, because the potential opposite pairings have some bang on chemistry that really makes you wonder what they're relationships would have looked like instead. But I did warm up to the writer's OTP's of choice over time, and I do think both couples are compatible. Was I disappointed that we don't get to see our main couple become official at the end? Yes. I don't totally buy Etsuko's reasoning for putting their budding relationship on hold till future notice. It would have been one thing if the two of them had been causing too much of a distraction for each other in their work and daily lives, but they don't. Quite the opposite, in fact. They both do a fabulous job of supporting one another and encouraging each other and pushing each other to give their best in their chosen fields. But her decision, their decision ultimately, was not so far out of the realm of possibility for me to be flipping tables over, so I'm willing to forgive the writers for it.

And surprisingly, I actually really like that Etsuko doesn't successfully transfer to the editorial department of Lassy at the end. As much as I think she would absolutely flourish there, and it's obvious that she will eventually get that transfer because why would you Not hire her for your fashion magazine (and there's no way Etsuko would let anyone or anything stop her from doing it), it felt more natural and realistic for her not to leave the Proofreading team just yet. This is a story about the importance of people whose work takes place in the background, after all, and I think Etsuko needed to learn that lesson before finally achieving her dreams.

So in the words of Yukito, 'For those who work with pride and keep this world afloat. I cheer for all the plain, wonderful people.'

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Look, we all know what we come to these particular types of movies for. Cheesy, dramatic, a little non-sensical, but sweet and innocent romance, and this movie has all of that. No, it's never going to compare to movie's like She's All That or Never Been Kissed or Ten Things I Hate About You, which absolutely nail these sorts of storylines, but it's certainly an enjoyable compatriot in the teen romance genre and not a waste of your time to watch.

I will admit that I found the second half of the movie too cliché for my personal tastes, and the lead character's personalities start off great but slowly become more bland and milquetoast by the end, but none of it is so egregious that it made me dislike the movie or the characters. It was just disappointing to see happen. Of course, these are hallmarks of a lot of these types of movies, and often some of their biggest draws, so don't let this convince you not to give this movie a try. It's sweet, and you just might like it.

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I was all ready to give this movie a rating of ten. Then we hit all of the angsty bits in the middle, and I had to change my mind.

It’s not that I didn’t find anything to enjoy about this movie. Au contrare! I love the beginning and the end, the funny way our leads relationship starts and the romantic way they walk off into the sunset with each other. It's just the middle I want to rip out and set on fire.

Silly plot devices that do nothing but drag the story down have no place in stories that begin end in such cute ways. Get outta here with that nonsense.

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