This review may contain spoilers
Poor plotting, lack of chemistry, no identification with leads
The plot is way too contrived and relies on several clichés and ridiculous, forced external conflict to develop. Lack of patient confidentiality is central to how the story develops, which to me is demonstrative of how poor and inorganic the writing is.
Overall, I thought this show's plotting was on the bad side of soap opera, with much of the conflict coming from deranged stalker psychos that push the characters forward. At one point in the show, the FL basically says outright that she didn't know if their relationship could last because she was out of danger from a stalker. And that's just it, their relationship seemed fueled by forced feelings of obligation brought about by antisocial deviants, more than from the chemistry of the characters themselves. I don't want characters falling in love because some sick paparazzi pervert pushes them together, but because their feelings emerge naturally from their dynamic, personalities, and freely made choices. Having some shamelessness in setting up a plot is fine, but this show is shameless throughout.
The leads are passable in their independent roles (the ML more than the FL), but I felt like they were poorly suited actors to pair with one another. Visually, they didn't work for me, and I thought their roles and acting were also incompatible. It wasn't convincing to me how their romance developed from antagonistic to loving. I really like this dynamic which is what attracted me to this show, but here it didn't work. Their dynamic seemed more like uncle and niece, since the actor is obviously way older and more experienced than the actress (and yet the age dynamic isn't brought up). She does a bit too much deer-in-the-headlights, doe-eyed listening, especially early, though there were aspects of her characters I thought she did well with. Her friendship with her sister is very engaging and cute (as is the sister's whole character honestly), and she's well-suited to the underestimated, shallow idol type. As far as my viewing went, though, I didn't feel any strong connection to the leads, their motivations, or the choices that they made.
Lastly, I felt like like the ML's powerful memory should have both caused more conflict and been able to solve more problems. The show didn't maximize the potential of its setup and focused too much on a weak, and frankly confusing, backstory plot. I wouldn't recommend this, especially for those who prefer character-driven stories.
Overall, I thought this show's plotting was on the bad side of soap opera, with much of the conflict coming from deranged stalker psychos that push the characters forward. At one point in the show, the FL basically says outright that she didn't know if their relationship could last because she was out of danger from a stalker. And that's just it, their relationship seemed fueled by forced feelings of obligation brought about by antisocial deviants, more than from the chemistry of the characters themselves. I don't want characters falling in love because some sick paparazzi pervert pushes them together, but because their feelings emerge naturally from their dynamic, personalities, and freely made choices. Having some shamelessness in setting up a plot is fine, but this show is shameless throughout.
The leads are passable in their independent roles (the ML more than the FL), but I felt like they were poorly suited actors to pair with one another. Visually, they didn't work for me, and I thought their roles and acting were also incompatible. It wasn't convincing to me how their romance developed from antagonistic to loving. I really like this dynamic which is what attracted me to this show, but here it didn't work. Their dynamic seemed more like uncle and niece, since the actor is obviously way older and more experienced than the actress (and yet the age dynamic isn't brought up). She does a bit too much deer-in-the-headlights, doe-eyed listening, especially early, though there were aspects of her characters I thought she did well with. Her friendship with her sister is very engaging and cute (as is the sister's whole character honestly), and she's well-suited to the underestimated, shallow idol type. As far as my viewing went, though, I didn't feel any strong connection to the leads, their motivations, or the choices that they made.
Lastly, I felt like like the ML's powerful memory should have both caused more conflict and been able to solve more problems. The show didn't maximize the potential of its setup and focused too much on a weak, and frankly confusing, backstory plot. I wouldn't recommend this, especially for those who prefer character-driven stories.
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