My Calorie Boy (2022)

Calories Not Required--Good Youth Drama

Wish this had a different title because that was only the starting portion of the series. This was a good youth drama; I've only seen the ML in one other drama as a supporting character but have never seen the rest of the cast, however I was interested in the plot and for the most part it didn't disappoint.

Pros: Great storyline overall with characters lives interweaving between school and home. Everything was believable and each character evolved properly. Not one was perfect, they were flawed human beings but it wouldn't have been believable otherwise. I really liked both ML and FL's bond as well as their unwavering belief in each other and their friends. How their little group formed, started with 2 girls liking the same completely oblivious to the female population guy and the way that turned around. Also really liked that the parents of the little group were just as flawed in their decisions if not psychotic (XJJ x2's mom with the knife incident; no idea why she wasn't shown seeking out mental treatment for that). Teachers were shown to be just as human with faults like their students. Everything from eating disorders, depression, one track minded parents, quitting school to help family, bullying, sabotage, cramming for exams, cheating; standing up for themselves, each other, and their teachers. It was basically normal high school with a few extra things.

Whether hard times or not, they banded together and helped one another even if it was in a backwards way. But that's what made it so believable and funny, because it was real teenage lives as they moved from 11th grade through 12th grade and into taking their college entrance exams to decide what they wanted to do with their lives. Parents and their relationships plus fights, parties, togetherness. This series had it all. It's an underrated little gem that should be watched. The OSTs fit exactly as they should.

Cons: Mainly, I had problems with the editing. Especially towards the end, it really wasn't believable to me that the trope they used to separate the leads would start with all parents of ML and FL making FL keep that secret about his dad being sick. Here they're preaching that kids need to relax before the college entrance exams and you saddle her with this? She's not an adult; I'm surprised she didn't have a breakdown. That was the most unrealistic.

Also, a bit too much propaganda was chucked in rather randomly and was very unnecessary. Like let's not shove the indoctrination of youth in this nice and easy series.

Lastly, the last episode was beyond bizarre. How does that time lapse happen without any warning? At least write it on the screen that XYZ years have passed; instead it went from her getting her score from the exam and yelling on a bridge to waking up in her own apartment with a job at a design firm; it was a total whiplash. No smooth transition whatsoever. And the reason they had to keep the leads arguing for more then half of the episode is over an internet misunderstanding that he thought she was dating someone else while in college and so he blocked her? What even? HE happened in the last 3 minutes but so much was missing; many scenes including both of them in college, the painting she made for him that she never gave him. In the beginning of the series she did a lot of shrieking instead of talking that it made me almost drop the series but I'm glad I didn't. They need to stop writing FL's as these shrill voiced kids. In any case, editing in the final 3 episodes seemed to be really poorly executed and that's what I had the largest problem with.

Would I recommend it? Yes, it's really a great youth drama. Take away from the editing at the end and I would definitely still watch this again.

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