TL;DR? Save yourself the time and agony of a jumbled plot line and just watch Ma Boy instead.
Man, this show. If there were ever a text book case of the old adage, too many irons in the fire, this show would be it. Some of the things this ambitious show aimed to cover: gumihos, ghosts, hidden identity, romance, love triangles, writing, nail art, medical issues, mysteries...the list could go on and on and on. Seriously. When I started episode 10, I knew the goal of my review would be to convince people not to watch this drama. At the end of the series, I still am so far away from recommending it, but I can argue that it really wasn't as bad as my brain kept insisting.
I think I'll start with reasons why you should save yourself the hours you would spend watching this show before jumping into the few redeeming qualities it possesses. First, this drama was just all over the place. I mean, one second it's about a girl pretending to be a boy so that she can get more info on the guy she wants to write a story about. The next, we are dealing with ghostly rape and shaman mothers. Yes, I did just say ghostly rape. Cause, you know, that's a thing.
This drama reminds me a lot of KPop TUA. Not because of the gender bender aspect, but because none of the acting is that good, and the characters are all so young and fresh and have no idea what they are doing as actors. I think if they wanted to have so many balls juggling up in the air, they should have gone with some veterans. But given the storyline, what veteran would have accepted a role?
The romantic aspect of the show was 4 parts irritating, 1 part cute. None of the characters could ever make up their minds about anything. I suppose in some way, that makes it pretty realistic. The indecision and fighting got old pretty quick though. I'd have liked it more if Bunny had picked Alex or Kay at like episode 6 and then we had happy episodes in between, not waiting til the end to find out who she will end up with. The constant back and forth was just tiring.
OK, now to the few redeeming things that make this drama, at the very least, skimmable. First, Kay. Even though his character was poorly written, the actor really did try and give his all in the role, and I really think there are times where he did an amazing job. His struggle with his sexuality was cute, and he was really graceful about it at times. The danger of gender benders is that writers can really make homosexuality sound like a fate worse than death. And while I understand that Korea is a different society than where I am, it's refreshing to see a character not too emotionally distraught over the idea that they might be gay.
Jin and Ji Soo would be the second reason this drama is worth a skim. Their relationship, for the most part, was the cute breath of fresh air this drama sorely needed. Even when they were fighting, it was mostly adorable.
I could have swore I had more redeeming qualities to list, but none are coming to mind. I wouldn't say that I regret watching this drama necessarily, but every single week I was yelling at the TV trying to figure out why I kept watching. It was oddly compelling, wanting to see how the characters would work things out in the end. That being said, I still don't think this drama redeemed itself enough in the end to be worth the time. I'm glad I finished it, but unless you have the patience of a saint, and the ability to MASSIVELY suspend disbelief, you might try something else instead. The popularity of gender bender dramas ensures that there is something immensely more enjoyable right around the corner.
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