Peridot83
A joyful take on opposites attract . . .
All these years later, this drama holds up marvellously. While early episodes suffer a bit from the overacting, pettiness and villains of your average daytime melodrama/soap, the plot settles in on something a little more profound. Sure, there isn't a point to many of the minor/supporting characters, but it's hard to mind when the drama stayed engaging and kept pace in so many other ways.
The key of course is in the main couple as both actors play the opposites attract chemistry to perfection. You instantly believe Kim Soo-Hyun as the cold, cynical intellectual alien with a bit of a naive younger vulnerability and Jun Ji-Hyun as a dramatic, ambitious and self-involved star actress who pretends to be cynical but actually shares a similar vulnerability. Not only are they excellent on screen separately, but they have a great sense of comedic, romantic and tragic timings.
The big weak point in this drama is the music feels dated and overwhelms some of the scenes. The drama has good rewatch potential.
I grade other criteria as well:
Complex Themes - 7.5
The explicit theme is that loving and caring for others makes a life worth living and creates the feeling of home. A theme I enjoyed was that it's better to commit to love even if the future is uncertain, rather than a relationship without love just because of finances and societal expectations. Also, sometimes you need to let family members suffer the consequences of their actions.
Character Growth - 8
Both characters become more vulnerable, and human over the course of the show. They are not the same in the beginning as they are in the end (though the character growth is predictable).
Complex Female Characters/Dynamics - 7
Cheon Song I is a great character - full of ambition and joy for life. She, however, has a typical frenemies relationship with fellow friend/actress and conflicts with her stage mother.
Production Budget/Design/Cinematography - 8
The wealthy characters have lovely penthouse flats, great clothing, well-designed spaces etc. There's lots of shots outdoors not just on sets, there's some decently creative takes on how to display Do Min-Jun's powers especially his ability to stop time and walk through doors into other spaces. Very few of the special effects feel super dated which shows how much thought must have been put into it.
All these years later, this drama holds up marvellously. While early episodes suffer a bit from the overacting, pettiness and villains of your average daytime melodrama/soap, the plot settles in on something a little more profound. Sure, there isn't a point to many of the minor/supporting characters, but it's hard to mind when the drama stayed engaging and kept pace in so many other ways.
The key of course is in the main couple as both actors play the opposites attract chemistry to perfection. You instantly believe Kim Soo-Hyun as the cold, cynical intellectual alien with a bit of a naive younger vulnerability and Jun Ji-Hyun as a dramatic, ambitious and self-involved star actress who pretends to be cynical but actually shares a similar vulnerability. Not only are they excellent on screen separately, but they have a great sense of comedic, romantic and tragic timings.
The big weak point in this drama is the music feels dated and overwhelms some of the scenes. The drama has good rewatch potential.
I grade other criteria as well:
Complex Themes - 7.5
The explicit theme is that loving and caring for others makes a life worth living and creates the feeling of home. A theme I enjoyed was that it's better to commit to love even if the future is uncertain, rather than a relationship without love just because of finances and societal expectations. Also, sometimes you need to let family members suffer the consequences of their actions.
Character Growth - 8
Both characters become more vulnerable, and human over the course of the show. They are not the same in the beginning as they are in the end (though the character growth is predictable).
Complex Female Characters/Dynamics - 7
Cheon Song I is a great character - full of ambition and joy for life. She, however, has a typical frenemies relationship with fellow friend/actress and conflicts with her stage mother.
Production Budget/Design/Cinematography - 8
The wealthy characters have lovely penthouse flats, great clothing, well-designed spaces etc. There's lots of shots outdoors not just on sets, there's some decently creative takes on how to display Do Min-Jun's powers especially his ability to stop time and walk through doors into other spaces. Very few of the special effects feel super dated which shows how much thought must have been put into it.
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