onceiwaskingofspain
Fun Homage to the Classic Cross-Genre Complex Romcom, But Lacks Depth and Finesse
Good Things:
* The communication. For a largely tongue-in-cheek romcom, the leads actually sit down and talk things out at important junctures. They're not exactly good at it, but they try; and that counts for a lot in a Kdrama.
* The dog. Pets getting karmic closure was unexpected and delightful.
* The entourage. ML's ghost employees (and the itinerant guests) are practically a Greek chorus. Their running commentary on anything and everything runs the gamut from hilarious to poignant, and it's the highlight of the show.
So-So Things:
* The hasty closure. The plot has a lot of loose ends to deal with, and the overall wrap-up is satisfying but trite.
* The octave change. Despite the horror/supernatural revenge murder mystery main plot, it's very slapstick until things start getting serious around midway and the shift in the characters and story is jarring.
* The red flag SML. There's a love triangle, and he's a great big 'yikes' of a character.
Bad Things:
* The derivative story. If you've seen Mystic Pop Up Bar, a lot of the narrative elements are going to be very familiar. Which is iffy, because MPUB is an adaptation of a webtoon and the similarity skirts the line between imitative flattery and outright knock-off.
* The episodic vs arching narrative. Both are rough around the edges, and it doesn't quite successfully pull off smoothly integrating them even with the help of an extended flashback.
It's a homage to the complex, cross-genre romcom plots of the mid 2010s. FNOS! doesn't have the same depth as those older dramas, but it's still an enjoyable, nostalgic romp in the medium. Recommended if you enjoyed other karmic supernatural episodic mysteries like Hotel Del Luna / May I Help You? / MPUB, prefer comedies with a serious undertone or fun, frenetic stories with a little bit of everything.
* The communication. For a largely tongue-in-cheek romcom, the leads actually sit down and talk things out at important junctures. They're not exactly good at it, but they try; and that counts for a lot in a Kdrama.
* The dog. Pets getting karmic closure was unexpected and delightful.
* The entourage. ML's ghost employees (and the itinerant guests) are practically a Greek chorus. Their running commentary on anything and everything runs the gamut from hilarious to poignant, and it's the highlight of the show.
So-So Things:
* The hasty closure. The plot has a lot of loose ends to deal with, and the overall wrap-up is satisfying but trite.
* The octave change. Despite the horror/supernatural revenge murder mystery main plot, it's very slapstick until things start getting serious around midway and the shift in the characters and story is jarring.
* The red flag SML. There's a love triangle, and he's a great big 'yikes' of a character.
Bad Things:
* The derivative story. If you've seen Mystic Pop Up Bar, a lot of the narrative elements are going to be very familiar. Which is iffy, because MPUB is an adaptation of a webtoon and the similarity skirts the line between imitative flattery and outright knock-off.
* The episodic vs arching narrative. Both are rough around the edges, and it doesn't quite successfully pull off smoothly integrating them even with the help of an extended flashback.
It's a homage to the complex, cross-genre romcom plots of the mid 2010s. FNOS! doesn't have the same depth as those older dramas, but it's still an enjoyable, nostalgic romp in the medium. Recommended if you enjoyed other karmic supernatural episodic mysteries like Hotel Del Luna / May I Help You? / MPUB, prefer comedies with a serious undertone or fun, frenetic stories with a little bit of everything.
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