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Coffee Prince korean drama review
Completed
Coffee Prince
12 people found this review helpful
by manicmuse
Jan 4, 2016
17 of 17 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10.0
Acting/Cast 10.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 10.0
Some old dramas don't stand the test of time, or live up to all the hype. That is not the case with Coffee Prince. I've just finished marathoning through this classic (again), and I still love it just as much as the first time! On the surface this is another romance about a girl who pretends to be a boy, and gets away with it, and a spoiled rich guy who falls for her. What makes Coffee Prince different, is that there is so much more depth than is usually in KDrama romances (yes, even the good ones). The themes are more realistic, and the content is more adult. Coffee Prince shows us how extremely complicated love can be, while still being fun to watch. The cast is perfect. Yoon Eun Hye is the most convincing androgynous character I've seen in any drama. It's more than her just looking enough like a boy, it's her whole demeanor that makes the idea of her being mistaken as male completely plausible. Gong Yoo is charmingly goofy, and instantly crushable (watching this began my minor obsession with him). Equally crushable is Lee Sun Gyun, who I would fall in love with again later in Pasta, but is much more kinder, gentler, and understanding in this role. Then there is Chae Jung Ahn, who is frustrating to watch, and hard to like, but equally brilliant. The chemistry between them all is amazingly acted, and their story is well written. People who aren't fans of romances normally, may appreciate how imperfect this story is. There are also plenty of cute moments to inspire butterflies in die hard romance fans. It also has the most beautiful love confession in the history of dramaland period ! (or rather, exclamation point) The minor characters are also very well played. I loved the dynamics between the Coffee Princes too! This is the kind of cast that you miss when the show is finally over. I can't believe Lee Eon died shortly after, but he was my favorite of the other "princes". The only thing mediocre about this drama is the music, which is fine, but I did not rush out to find the soundtrack, even after obsessing over this drama. The other criticism is that the drama does become a little less engaging in the final episodes, but at that point you will probably love the characters so much that it won't make you love the show any less. The ending wraps things up perfectly in my opinion. My main reason for writing this review now, even though this was one of the first dramas I ever saw, was to promote it's re-watchability. It also manages to not feel as dated as many dramas tend to be over time. Besides the flip phone technology, this drama could easily be successful today. It's also very timely, concerning issues regarding gender roles and sexuality, which is a hot topic these days. In that respect, maybe it's ahead of it's time. So, yes, of course I recommend Coffee Prince! It remains high on my drama favorites list, with no signs of being bumped lower any time soon. If this is one of those dramas that you always meant to watch, but never got a chance to, just do it! This is one of those occasions when it is safe to believe the hype! *warning: not only may you very likely crave coffee while watching, but you may either be tempted to eat everything in your fridge, or be too disgusted to ever eat again, after watching Eun Chan eat!*
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