BullandPear
Norway
My Rating: 9.0
In Short: I really liked the premise of this, It's simple, but original and effective, and gives off a "slice of life" vibe that I enjoyed. I also liked the cast, particularly our "lock and key" couple.
Pros: A realistic view of relationships in four different age groups, with a refreshing cast, great music and lots of charm. I also really liked the 14-episode format. For me, even 16 episodes can sometimes be way too long.
Cons: I would have liked to see even more interactions between the boys, not just their lives outside of home. I feel like the great scenes in the last episode really show us the potential in this. After all, five people who live together are bound to interact and influence each other a lot.
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This review may contain spoilers
I'm a little surprised that I watched this entire show, because I was thoroughly disappointed by it early on. Too much of this drama just didn't make sense. First off - let's start with the title. While Yoon Se Na was an honest and well behaved girl, she was not lovely or playful, as many translations of the title says. I don't quite see why all the men wanted to spend time with her, because she really sucked the life out of each encounter she had with other humans. For this I mostly blame the script, and some wooden delivery of it. The show did not make me believe that Se Na actually wanted to be a songwriter, she just seemed coaxed into it by Hyun Wook. It also did not help that almost every secondary plot point was either underplayed or completely disappeared. My Rating: 6.0
In Short: This love story between a boring young girl and a completely unprofessional CEO was truly dull at times and slightly enjoyable at others. The only plot point I enjoyed was lonely idol Shi Woo, though they could have done way more with that as well. SIGH
Pros: The setting is one that I usually enjoy, though it did not feel organic in this show. However, the lighting and filming is really enjoyable, and the dog is cute. The music was also quite good.
Cons: It really bugs me when most of the characters on the show are senior management for some company, and absolutely none of them know how to do their job. Everyone at ANA was unprofessional, and let their personal feelings decide at every turn. Also, the main lead kept his secrets (and lies) for about 8 episodes too long. And the last episode of the show was one of the worst episodes I have ever seen. Somehow, our leading lady was suddenly a complete a-hole for no specific reason.
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My rating: 9.0
In Short: The first half of this drama was absolutely hysterical. As soon as the angst hit, the drama was a bit more middling, but still enjoyable. The Jang-couple chemistry was great.
Pros: A great cast, and a wonderful set of side characters. I particularly enjoyed Mi Young's mom, Secretary Tak and Dragon. I also quite liked the music.
Cons: Could have been trimmed down to 16 episodes with great effect. The noble idiocy was a bit too drawn out.
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My Rating: 9.5
In Short: This drama was a really entertaining and suspenseful story of an unconventional hero. I thought after the first few episodes that Kang To was pretty much irredeemable, but the character development and acting was spot on for our complicated hero (and his equally complicated nemesis/bro).
Pros: Joo Won was a revelation in this. He really sold this complicated character and I look forward to seeing him in other things in the future. Also, the 30s is a very interesting era for a historical drama like this. I do not like sageuks very much, but this was right up my alley, with great sets and fabulous fashion.
Cons: Torture. Lots of torture. Some of this was hard to stomach. The female lead was a bit bland at times, but that fit the story well. I was also a bit apprehensive concerning the anti-japanese feel to the drama. Since I am not Korean, I do not carry a grudge against Japan, but I guess it can be compared to Germany in WWII, they sure are portrayed as evil in WWII movies, but I do not consider Germans today to be evil in any way.
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In Short: Fun situational comedy, but the heroine in this drama is far too idiotic for my taste. The boys are great though.
Pros: Fun and silly premise. The boys are great, though the idol house seems unrealistically great.
Cons: Super-idiot female lead who constantly speaks formally to everyone. Does not get less annoying with time.
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My Rating: 6.5
In Short: This show started out with funny humor and a fantastic comic-booky vibe, but this was unfortunately lost in the melo of it all. I really struggled to understand the motivation of all the characters. For me, they all seemed nonsensical. WAAAAAH
Pros: Secretary Ko was unbelieveably adorkable. He and the set design really stole the show for me.
Cons: Quite difficult to understand what is going on, and I think that it might not be a language barrier thing… So many of the plot threads were just really badly though out and badly executed. Plus, there were entire episodes with just melo staring and flash-backing. Lee Dong Wook did a good job with hilarious overacting which fit the show well, but he looked really tired.
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In Short: A thrilling ride. Wish it included more bromance in the end. These brothers seem to have forgotten that they were best friends.
Pros: Suspenseful and action packed with complex characters.
Cons: Some plot holes. And I do wish the great bromance that we started out with could have been carried through. Does not seem likely that a person would not recognize his own brother when directly at him from short distance.
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In Short: Well produced, but the infuriating characters and the cry-fests towards the end made me want to scream. A bit surprised that Oska and his boytoy were the only characters I actually liked in the end. And omo-queen secretary Kim of course. And I might have liked the tracksuits. Don’t judge me.
Pros: Good premise and hilarious at times.
Cons: Infuriating characters, and unexplained plot devices ahoy! HATED Seul throughout the drama. And why was Lee Jong Suk there? Horribly underused character.
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In Short: The only k-drama I've seen that has not involved any central romance. I really liked the characters and the message in this drama, and I think the realism of it separates it from other high school dramas, which are often pure fluff.
Pros: A good focus on friendship and team work, likable lead characters and no unnecessary love triangles. The two lead students were infinitely cute together. Sharing blankets is for real men.
Cons: A bit hard to connect to the flashback events that supposedly happened during middle school, when the roles are played by 25 year old dudes.
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My Rating: 8.0
In short: All in all, I enjoyed it. However, I would have enjoyed it much more it had been a bit shorter. At the very least, they should have removed the actual WOC competition part. Actually risking the king's life for a military competition is just dumb, and the change of setting really sucked the life out of the drama. They could also have done without the countless horrible conversation in "english".
Pros: The secondary coupling really stole the show for me in this. Jo Jong Suk and Lee Yoon Ji were fabulous. They could have been the entire drama as far as I was concerned. Lee Sung Min was also adorable as the royal hyung.
Cons: I think Ha Ji Won overacts in everything. Luckily, this character was, compared to her character in Secret Garden, an actual badass. That certainly helped, though she was still the most dull character in this. And what does that title mean? It certainly does not make sense in english...
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My Rating: 8.0
In Short: Bottom line: This show was really funny! I liked its absurd approach to humor and parodies. I also really liked that this drama was just as much about friendship and life goals as it was about love. I like ambiguous love triangles that happen naturally, and was satisfied with the developments.
Pros: The hilarious parodies and cute characters made this drama for me. I also quite like a supernatural twist, as well as a modern twist to old stories.
Cons: This drama had an unfortunate episode cutdown. This resulted in a somewhat rushed ending, where the last 5 minutes were basically nonsensical for me.
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In Short: Laugh-out-loud hysterical comedy. I liked the premise, and I loved the characters in this. Gong Hyo Jin is as likable as ever, Cha Seung Won is brilliant, and Yoon Kye Sang’s dorky smile got me every time.
Pros: Well paced, brilliantly casted and truly charming. Ding Dong!
Cons: The metaphor overdose was a bit tiring by the end of it. Also, the time skip past the mortal danger was a bit of a let down.
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My Rating: 6.5 (Extra point for Eun Ji’s singing)
In Short: This drama SHOULD have been the story of Jung Eun Ji’s character’s path in the music industry with some zippy side characters and a cute romance. Instead, the drama felt claustrophobic, like there is only one rival to threaten your career as a rookie is in any way plausible. The plot got totally lost in standard male lead idiocy and completely bonkers female second lead murderous tendencies. What a waste.
Pros: Jung Eun Ji is fantastic. Every time she sang, I forgot the drama was horrible. I want her to get another good leading role, as this drama wasted her talent completely. The secondary characters were also very cute (Shin Bora was especially funny here)
Cons: Everything in the plot for the second half of the drama. Especially the final episode was horrible for me, as it had every single person acting out of character.
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My Rating: 8.5
In Short: A charming and witty show that was only limited by the viewers opinion on the age difference. Personally, I think the 28 year old ladies should stay away from the high schoolers.
Pros: The charming side-characters, including the family relations, Min Suk’s high school buddies and the retail team made this show. I also liked how Min Suk was high school level immature. They did not take the easy way out with the age difference. I also enjoyed the quirky heroine, who stayed her weird self throughout the drama.
Cons: The age difference bothers me a lot (for the ages they are in now), and I feel like the show could have benefited from focusing a bit less on the romance, and more on these characters finding themselves.
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My Rating: 9.0
In Short: I really liked the cold open structure of this show, along with its fun and realistic characters. This drama made me wish Han Groo was the female lead in all dramas.
Pros: I often have trouble relating/sympathizing with female leads in dramas, but Jang Mi completely won me over. The pacing of the drama was also positive aspect for me. I also really liked the complexity of the parents.
Cons: I would have liked a little more depth to our secondary characters. Especially Kang Se Ah lacked depth, because I sincerely doubt that she was meant to be that malicious and nonsensical.
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