mrdramatic
The good Abuser
The title is the theme of the drama. The writers go to great lengths to victimize the bad mother and don't shy away from using a cheap cliche to make the viewers feel pity for her.And talking about cliches. The main plot event is another cheap drama cliche. Then you also have cartoonish and completely forgettable antagonists, and a number of very obvious comic relief characters.
It is not all bad though. The actors do a good job with the given script. The cinematography is competent.
Still, to me, this is probably the worst k-drama of 2023.
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A gentle man
Wow, a 2023 kdrama that doesn't have past life grudges to resolve or any murder mysteries or crazy stalkers to deal with, just a straightforward romance!I really loved the falling in love phase of this drama. The nonverbal communication was great, the looks, touches, hugs. It became my feel good show.
I didn't care much for the mandatory, albeit pretty tame, drama towards the end though.
Overall I very much recommend it if you are looking for something chill and warm-hearted.
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An epic story of healing
Sam Dal a damsel in distress is healed by her white knight, brother from another mother, lifetime lover Yong Pil.Sounds epic, doesn't it?
Beware though, this is drama land. Don't expect plausible character behavior or a coherent plot.
On the other side, there are plenty of asian dramas that manage to be plausible and coherent. So should we really be that lenient with the ones that aren't?
Alas, I can't.
PS: There are some decent support characters and side stories and also some totally pointless ones too, like Sang Do, a total waste of screen time.
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Funny Turns Silly
As the Rule of Funny goes, the limit of suspension of disbelief is directly proportional to the funniness.And yes, it works just fine for the first half of the show or so. Unfortunately the behavior of the characters becomes increasingly dumb without being funnier. The FLs in particular start to overact heavily. And it doesn't help to have supporting characters behaving normally, in a jarring contrast to the leads.
I really struggled towards the end, kept watching mostly because of Lee Yoo Ri. If it wasn't for her I probably would have dropped the show.
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Underrated
I applaud the writers attempt of a more scientific approach to time travel. Even if there is some pseudo scientific entanglement for story reasons.Ultimately though all time travel events are transitions into parallel universes (alternate timelines). And it is quite interesting to see the protagonists struggling with this concept and trying to fix things.
The acting is fine. No one stands out in particular though. The special effect are okay. Background music and sound effects are quite good in creating tension and suspense. The script is a bit heavy on dialog at times. I think 12 episodes would have been more than enough to tell the story.
It's one of the few shows that would linger in mind for some time after watching an episode. And is thus worth a 9/10.
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You should've asked
This drama goes for the worn-out Misunderstanding trope. A twenty years old and childish misunderstanding at that.The main story could have been over in five minutes if the lead characters just talked to each other. But I guess eighty percent of all dramas would not exist if the characters just communicated their issues.
It doesn't stop there unfortunately, and the writers are really pushing it by using the Falling Into His Arms trope multiple times.
Then there is also the immature petty behavior of the ML, that feels off-putting at times.
So is there anything good about the show?
I actually liked the mischievous SFL. As flawed as she is, at least she has no issues communicating what she wants. :)
The story as such is simple and light-hearted. They didn't try to drag it out and kept it 10 episodes short. So the pacing is good.
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Disappointing compared to the prequel
Soundtrack #1 had a beautiful couple growing from friends to lovers. It felt sweet and delicate.Soundtrack #2 on the other side has a dislikable emotionally immature ML, still very much in love with the FL but also wanting revenge for the breakup pain he suffered, the poor boy. But his love is of course stronger than his hate, for now at least. I don't want to witness what happens once there is some discord between them in the future.
There is also a weak ass love triangle, with the second love interest baking out without even putting up a fight. I really wish she would have ended up with him, instead of the immature ex.
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Crude comedy turned mystery thriller
This is a weird one. You have a comedy in the beginning gradually transition into a murder mystery and thriller towards the end.A stroke of genius? I don't think so.
You have the FL, an animal vet turned psychic, (reluctantly) sexually assaulting people to solve crimes. The ML is a thug with a badge. He physically assaults the FL a couple of times and blackmails her to solve crimes for him using her psychic abilities. And this is all fine in a bizarro comedy world.
But here you have the characters transition towards more plausible and realistic behavior, creating a weird dissonance with the beginning of the show.
The mystery thriller part is actually pretty decent. I just feel that it would have worked better without the crude comedy.
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Hate-watching material
This is one of those dramas with unlikable main characters.The ML in particular is a special kind of selfish and manipulative piece of shit. The FL also has her issues, but is at least someone you can sympathize with. She at least tries to end their miserable relationship. But he of course won't allow it.
They both need therapy. That people close to either of them fail to recognize and suggest it is dumbfounding.
About halfway in, I skipped to the end, didn't see myself making it through the other half of the episodes. And the writers unfortunately, or expectedly, went for the "romantic" ending, yikes. I think the much better ending would have been for the main characters, especially the ML, to recognize their issues and go separate ways.
If you look for something to hate-watch, go for it.
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Maybe about six episodes of actual plot
I am a sucker for the supernatural. So of course a show called "Doom at Your Service" would grab my attention.And yes, the first three episodes deliver. The mysterious creator, her subordinate destroyer (ML) and the human girl (FL) somehow getting involved with them. It is all quite intriguing and gets you hooked.
Unfortunately the following episodes focus mostly on worldly affairs: FL coping with her fate, her romance with ML, and a love triangle between support characters. It all comes with copious amounts of emotional padding, a procession of static scenes with a lot of talking, whining, crying, accompanied by sad background music of course.
I've tried to sit/skip through it, driven by my curiosity about the supernatural element. But I just couldn't make it and dropped the show after ten episodes.
I wish there was a six episodes cut without all the needless filler. I believe it would make for a much better drama.
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