Danni
Buffalo, NY
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EDIT: This is NOT a rip off or the same thing as "In A Good Way". I'm going to assume that viewers who are saying that haven't watched more than the first few episodes and feel that because there is a group of characters the story follows over the years that makes them too similar. I feel those people are really losing out on watching a really great drama, but of course that's up to them, it's just a shame.I have to say right off the bat that this is hands down one of the best Taiwanese Dramas I have ever watched. The last episode is arguably the best ending to ANY Asian drama I've ever seen despite the bittersweet feel it had.
Story (10 out of 10):
Wow. Where to begin with such a thoroughly thought out and beautiful story. If ever there was a realistic drama, I feel this would be a great example. There is such depth and nuance that it is hard to put into words without spoilers. This series takes a story that has been done many times in dramas, but isn't afraid to go all out with it, it packs so many feels that you barely have time to catch your breath. Even if some things were arguably predictable, it didn't take away from the story, because of the realistic way it played out. 16 summers in 16 episodes feels so appropriate, and I feel is one of the best examples of demonstrating the passage of time. Too often it feels that dramas take place over the course of days or weeks. Fang Wei De states at one point how time passed more quickly when everyone was having a good time, and that certainly felt tangible in this show. I just can't praise the ebb of time in this show enough.
I really appreciated that we are presented with our core characters as children and see them through their experiences into adulthood, the character development is real in this. The ups and downs, and how words and actions DO have consequences whether it is in the form of regret or in the form of enlightenment. Often times, I feel like characters will say and do things in dramas with little to no repercussions, but that is not the case in TWWW, and that is why I feel it is certainly one of the best dramas I've had the pleasure to watch. There are no evil type characters, just times when people make bad or sometimes even horrible mistakes... but instead of going overboard, we're able to see each character as a person, with real problems, real emotions, and having to again really deal with what comes after.
Another big thing is closure. This is handled SO well, and it doesn't come off as though the writers were just trying to wrap things up in a nice neat bow, but to further demonstrate life in general. My only regret is not being able to articulate well enough just how great this story is.
Acting/Cast (10 out of 10):
I've only ever seen Leroy Yang in Love Forward (2012) and while I enjoyed his prickly businessman persona in that, I wasn't all that impressed. However, he more than impresses as Fang Wei De. He definitely plays jerkish well, but the latter half of this series, just took my heart and breath away. I'm definitely going to be looking into his other dramas when I can because I could seriously be missing out. I really can't think of any other Taiwanese actor to fill that role than him.
I've seen Tiffany Xu quite a bit and in general it feels like she always plays characters I can't stand. I first saw her in Autumn's Concerto (2009) and later Drunken to Love You (2011) and especially had the urge to want to slap her characters. She's had supporting roles in It Started with a Kiss (2005) and ToGetHer (2009). She's been in many other dramas, but those are the only ones I've seen so far. Having said that, I was glad to NOT hate her character in TWWW. She did something pretty awful, but the way things played out, I was even able to forgive her by the end.
Despite Ruby Lin having such an extensive drama/film career this was my first time experiencing her acting and I have to say it was great. I felt she played a great strong female lead. I always like the spunky female leads that don't take any crap. She's strong, but has a sensitive side and I think she handled them both really naturally.
Rounding out our Quintet is Jason Tsou (Ding Guo Qing) and Melvin Sia (Wang Jun Jie), this is my first time seeing them in a drama, so I really have no frame of reference but definitely I felt they owned their characters and made them feel relevant. I find sometimes when you have more than 2-3 leads in a drama the other tend to fall by the wayside or just blend into the background or at worst are just straight up forgotten. Not in this case though.
Each actor brought their A game as far as I'm concerned and it really paid off.
Music (9 out of 10):
I'm still upset that I'm unable to download Eric Chou's - Let's Not Be Friends Anymore song on itunes. Some may feel like it was overplayed, but I'm not one of them. It's such a beautiful song that was really much more than a theme song. It was the only vocal that I really liked, but even still, I felt the OST went very well with series and I enjoyed the instrumentals.
EDIT: Eric Chou's song actually IS available now on iTunes, I guess they wait to release OSTs until after the drama airs (I'm so used to K-dramas releasing singles while airing - I'm so spoiled :P ).
Re-watch Value (7 out of 10):
I wouldn't re-watch the entire series only because I don't think my heart could handle the intense feels, but there are definitely some funny and powerful scenes that are worth re-watching.
Overall (10 out of 10):
I would HIGHLY recommend this drama to every Asian drama lover. It really has it all and even though there are drama tropes scattered throughout they don't come off as tropes, but just great moments within a great story. It is not perfect, but honestly I felt especially in terms of writing and story this is pretty damn close. There are no questions regarding the characters motivations, there aren't any WTF?! moments that are never resolved. It's just a really well made drama that definitely deserves more praise than it may receive.
Some have compared this as a knock off of In A Good Way....please. Not even close. In a Good Way WAS a good drama, don't get me wrong, but it was not nearly as thoughtful as this drama, not nearly as well written. What they do have in common is that they begin in the past and you see the characters grow throughout the years a la Reply 1994 and Reply 1997. If you want something more upbeat, sure, that is In a Good Way, and then down right LOL by comparison is the Reply series.
Lastly, the writers did a great job of closing out this drama. The last episode was not filler or BS like most dramas seem to be nowadays. It was beautiful and I highly recommend having plenty of tissues when the onion ninjas come for your eyes.
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The story was pretty decent until about the mid-way point and then it just went completely off the rails into unbelievable land. As an avid drama watcher, I know that I go into a drama suspending belief because if you've been watching a long time, you know that's how it is. Most dramas have a lull about mid-way even the best dramas, but this... yikes. It just lost its way and never came back for me. The end was highly anti-climatic for me, it wasn't satisfying at all because I felt the characters' problems were really only due to their own stupidity rather than any real outside threat.
The acting didn't really help much. Aaron Yan is adorable, especially as Xiao Luo, but I feel that contrasted with Tia Li's stiff and rather emotionless face almost made it seem like he was overacting. As great as Aaron Yan is, it didn't save the drama or the couple for me. I actually was far more interested in the supporting couples than I ever was in the odd love triangle/square. In other circumstances where the character's actions make sense, the acting probably would've come off a lot better, but when characters begin to act like 2 year olds and common sense goes straight out the window, it's hard to feel anything other than annoyance. I try to not skip through episodes, but in all honesty I did it quite a lot and still was perfectly able to understand what was going on and save myself from the urge to cringe with not my palm to my face but the keyboard.
The music was pretty good, nothing stellar or what would have me running to iTunes, but it wasn't bad. Had some catchy upbeat music.
Having said all of that, I will not be re-watching this or even recommending it too anyone. I really hope that Aaron Yan's next drama doesn't involve the noble idiot trope and that Tia Li loosens up and shows some real emotion (crying profusely and looking blankly down or into the distance does not a good actor make) :P
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I was really hoping to have a nice review to write for this title, but alas, it's just not going to happen...Story (6.5/10):
Once the reviews start coming in I'm sure one thing that they'll mostly have in common is how well this drama started. It may not have necessarily been reinventing the drama wheel, but it did stand out. The latter half of the show was when everything went downhill...which is punny and makes me giggle thinking of a particularly awfully choreographed fight scene during the last 10 minutes of the show #spoilernotspoilerIregretNothing!
I thought it was interesting that both of our mains were interpreters which isn't something I've seen in a series before. They also went on location which was refreshing. I also liked this dramas take on the "other guy" (second male lead). In most dramas he seems almost perfect in comparison to the male lead, everything the male lead isn't in the most positive way. The other guy in this story was far from perfect and kind of a d-bag, but I feel it's mainly due to how annoying the "other chick" (second female lead) was. I think it was definitely interesting seeing how the main leads lives were entwined all of their chance encounters. It really felt so sophisticated and well written in the beginning, but then all of the ad naseum of standard dramas began and that made me sad. It makes me wonder if there was a writer change. Things just stopped making sense character wise, especially for such intelligent people.
I also was very dissatisfied with the ending for many reasons though I can unfortunately not share without spoilers. I think some people will disagree with me, but it felt rushed and disingenuous to be honest.
Acting/Cast (6.5/10):
The acting was pretty hit or miss for me. Huang Xuan and Cheng Jia Yang was the best actor by far and probably the only actor who I felt didn't have one bad moment of acting. I haven't seen him in anything else, but I'm certainly looking forward to those dramas now.
Yang Mi as Qiao Fei... This one is a toughy, I don't think she's bad, but I think my dislike was more so for her character which made me a bit biased. It's a bit disappointing since I first saw her in the historical drama "Palace", though I guess that's considered more of a contemporary historical as her characters travels back in time, so it's a great sort of fish out of water story. At any rate, I enjoyed her acting in that, just not so much in this.
Li Xi Rui as Wu Jia Yi - My favorite female character from beginning to end. I loved her expressions and I think her sassy attitude endeared her to me. I'd really love to see Xi Rui in another drama and hopefully as the female lead, so I'll have to check out her details page. Anyhow, she was perfect opposite Zhang Leon! Speaking of which...
Zhang Leon as Wong Xu Dong - He is so friggin' adorable! His character and of course that boyish grin of his, make me fall in love why don't you?! This is my first time see Zhang Leon in a drama, and while I don't think his character allowed for too much in the way of deep acting, I still felt like he added a nice light touch especially for the latter half of the show. I found myself skipping scenes, but not his.
The rest of the cast was just ok for me and I feel like they could've really been filled by just about any decent actor. Not that any I didn't list were terrible by any means, but just didn't stand out to me. Though I may be booed for saying this, but the actor that plays He Zhe totally looks like Asian Butthead, I just can't unsee it...
Music (7.0/10):
I really like the "Mon Cheri" opening song and the soundtrack was really nice and fitting for the show. I think it was probably the nicest and most consistent part of this drama to be honest.
Rewatch Value (1.0/10):
This is not a terrible drama and I don't regret watching it, but I skipped through it too much and there really wasn't anything about it I'd care to see again. Maybe some of the cute scenes between Jia Yi and Xu Dong, but honestly not much else. I would definitely tell others to give it a watch, I just don't think I could sit through it again.
Overall (6.0/10):
Even though I feel this drama started out really strong, it just fell apart halfway through and lost me. While it started off really good, it just wasn't good enough for me to feel it was much more than an average drama which again isn't bad, but I just don't think overall it was great. While it doesn't ruin the entire series, there was some seriously bad acting at times and some things that I felt they were trying to convey seriously and I either rolled my eyes or laughed out loud. It's a real shame that the ending especially felt so rushed and anti-climatic considering how well it started out the gate.
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The Acting/Cast (7.5/10): This drama introduced me to male actors, Jasper Lui, Sean Lee, and Yorke Sun, who I'm looking forward to seeing in many more dramas. As previously mentioned, I really liked Puff the most in this of the three dramas I've seen her in so far. She plays a good strong female lead, it's nice to see a girl who stands up for herself and doesn't take any crap, but of course also has a sensitive compassionate side as well. It was also nice to see a male lead that was genuinely kind-hearted and a nice guy, not a huge jerk that later changes. Nice guys DO get the girl! Learn from this other dramas! The acting was pretty par for the course for me. I didn't feel anyone was lacking, in fact, I think the actors did a great job of making the characters their own and distinctive from one another when they could've easily just been part of the scenery.
The Music (6/10): The opening theme was nice, and nothing was really bad, but nothing I felt that stood out either or anything I felt compelled to go itunes to try and download. I think it's just a nice middle of the road soundtrack.
Re-watch Value (5.0/10): I think this is well worth watching at least once, but I don't know that I would go out of my way to recommend it or re-watch it personally. If someone asked me if they should watch, I wouldn't dissuade them. There were some cute romantic scenes that I felt could be re-watch, but as a whole not as much.
Overall (7.5/10): I gave this a 7.5 overall because it had some really great feed-good adorable moments in it. The leads and even supporting characters had great chemistry whether romantically or not and with such a large cast, that's pretty great. I loved that the side characters had their own stories but nothing that sucked away tons of screen time from our leads but when it did it was okay because it was interesting at the least and adorkably romantic at most. I didn't feel compelled to skip episodes and while I did skip some of the storyline here and there I didn't find myself doing it a lot, mainly because I felt invested in the side romances :P
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I have such mixed feelings regarding this series which my ratings pretty much reflect... here goes...>>>The Story/Writing (6 out of 10):
I'm likely to be in the minority, but there came a point where I just didn't like the writing and felt it went horribly wrong. The first half of the series was pretty decent, you have the set up for the love triangle, what I call the "Other Chick", "Other Guy" (which are just the secondary leads, but that's my lingo) and the "Other Other Guy" (the jerk that no one likes who is in love with the "Other Chick"), and the heartbreaking past of our hero and heroine and how fate steps in to bring them together. Everything is going pretty on par with what's expected and then inexplicably our hero just goes nuts. Not literally, but there are two major "WTF?!" moments for me where I was literally yelling "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!? WAEEEEE?!" I was so flabbergasted that I just couldn't even anymore. I can't really say anymore without using spoilers, but by the end of the series, I no longer liked the "hero", Hyun Wook. To be fair, the drama deals with what is apparently a very taboo subject in Korea and so it was hard for me to wrap my mind around what was so wrong.
Regardless, I felt the writers wrote themselves into a corner with the hero and then chose to completely disregard his actions to concentrate on another obstacle for the main couple only to completely disregard THAT in the end, a la Heirs (don't even get me started on that series.... I'm afraid to even review that for fear of the hordes of rabid Lee Min Ho fan girls that would come tearing into my doors and reverse defenestrating). It's not even that this show really suffered from the usual problem writers seem to have of how to effectively end a series, but more with it not making sense due to refusing to tackle the real problem, which was the hero's lies and actions regarding his lies. I didn't have secondary lead syndrome, though it begs the question, was the hero trying to force the viewers into it at some points. I felt the "Other Guy", Shi Woo was one of the best secondary leads I've seen in a while, which made the ending that much more of a I can't even.
>>>The Acting/Cast (7 out of 10):
The biggest draw for me was of course Jung Ji-Hoon (Rain) because I loved him in "Full House"(2004), and I recently started watching "Sang Doo, Let's Go To School" (2003) which started to grow on me. Rain is just bursting with charisma (and of course there's the part where he's really easy on the eyes) and he is seriously a talented entertainer and actor... which is why I feel bad that this was his first drama in 4 years. I feel bad because the writers ruined his character, Hyun Wook. Rain can definitely act and I hope to see him in a lighter rom-com because while he's great at intense, I enjoy his humorous side more, less of Broody Mcbrooderson.
I really liked Krystal in "Heirs" combined with her onscreen boyfriend Yoon Chan Yeong (played by the ever adorable Kang Min Hyuk). They were great and what carried that show for me. Now in My Lovely Girl, I'm not sure if it was the fault of the director or that the role was just to big for Krystal to carry, but I felt like her character, Se Na, had little to no romantic chemistry with Hyun Wook, the love of her life. Some called her the Korean Kristen Stewart, but I wouldn't go THAT far (I would if we are talking about Park Gyu Ri from Nail Shop Paris of Horrors though - if you want to know how I REALLY feel please see my review on that atrocity). I felt like Se Na unlike most female leads was more introverted, she didn't bawl when she got emotional, she shed silent tears, you could tell she was holding it in. To be fair though, she said a lot of things that never quite matched her actions though. I would've liked to see more passion towards her man, a little less talk a little more action please (and by that I don't mean sexy times...though there' wouldn't be anything wrong with some lovin').
I'm not going to go through each character, but I think I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Kim Myung Soo (L), as Shi Woo. I liked him in "Master's Sun" (2013); as young Joong Won where I first saw him and I'm looking forward to seeing him in "Shut Up Flower Boy Band" (2012) once I get the chance. His character made the most growth and made the most sense throughout and he was great at portraying that. He starts off as you'd imagine an immature idol would, but he definitely matured leaps and bounds by the end and the lead, Hyun Wook should've been taking notes.
I felt the rest of the cast could've been filled by just about any good actor, no one else really stood out - though some were enjoyable to watch.
>>>The Music (5 out of a 10):
For a show about the music industry it was just a bit ho-hum for me. Not bad, it was nice, but nothing I felt I really needed to download or even really stuck in my head.
>>>Re-watch Value (1 out of 10):
I will not re-watch or recommend this drama to anyone. I'm not saying it's an entire waste or anything. Some people, actually, the majority seem to love this drama, but in a sea of dramas I feel this easily gets lost and there's nothing special about it.
>>>Overall (6.5 out of 10):
I didn't feel like I wasted my time watching this, the last 5 or so episodes I was really struggling. I guess not so much with the last two because the thing that bothered me the most that most viewers didn't even seem to think it was a thing, I just decided to pretend didn't happen. But I feel that if you are forced to do that, the writing is pretty bad. Part of me wanted the two to be together, but I think that had more to do with liking Rain, and not at all liking the character he was portraying... which is what makes me wonder if that's the reason so many viewers were so forgiving of the things his character said and did, simply because they were seeing Rain and not Hyun Wook. Or perhaps, trust is not something they find as important in a relationship as I do. I don't know, but I was not really happy with the ending and found the last episode to be fluff that fell completely flat, rather than tying up loose ends of the plot....and some pretty important ones too. Again though, I won't be recommending or re-watching this, but I am looking forward to see Kim Myung Soo and Rain in their next dramas because they are really good actors that deserve a good characters to portray within a good solid story.
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This drama starts off strong right out of the gate but it steadily fizzles and loses steam halfway through. The ending falls completely flat as it tries to make you sympathize with characters that don't deserve it, and support couples who have no chemistry between them. On the positive side, there is closure and no loose ends.
Acting/Cast (6):
While Kim Jeong Hoon has been great in series like Goong and I Need Romance, such was not the case in Her Legend. He was by no means bad, but his character never develops or grows during the series. He is just as immature in the beginning as he is in the end and at times all but throws tantrums. However, I don't believe it's through any fault of his own. I feel the faults in this drama lie with the writing and directing, as none of the characters really change or grow. It's also likely why there is next to no chemistry between the actors by episode 10. While the acting is good, it's just not enough to make up for the bad writing. Having said that, the first 4-5 episode were very well done and what kept me watching until the end, hoping that the show would bounce back.
Music (6):
The music was fair, there wasn't anything that stood out as being good or bad.
Rewatch Value (2):
I would not watch nor recommend this drama to anyone. The only reason this is rated a two, and not a one, was for the solid first 4-5 episodes.
Overall (3):
Not the worst drama by far, but not good either. It has its moments for sure, but moments here and there do not make for a great satisfying drama. When the writing for a drama starts to stray it's up to the actors to shine through and hold it up until it finds its way back, but unfortunately it doesn't happen here due to lack of chemistry. The beginning was strong and came across as it was well thought out, but the end feels rushed as the major plots are all resolved in the last episode. This drama also spends time telling the viewer how things are, such as who a couple is, but fails to build up to it properly, so it can leave viewers wondering where the romance is coming from all of sudden. A rom-com this is not. Very little romance, very little comedy, a lot of time wasted.
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Story (1 out of 10):
Where to begin with this mess...and that's putting it nicely. The story was barely coherent, it was episodic and most things didn't do much to further the plot. It really felt like the writers thought this sounded great on paper but it failed on screen, like they thought if they combined all the drama tropes they could think of there was no way this could fail. A lot of times, things just happened for no good reason, people said and did things without ANY build up so emotions and meaning fell flat. The ending was horribly anti-climatic and gave a sense that the writers thought they were clever, when really, they just provided one of the most infuriating pieces of drivel... I think I actually feel the migraine of Nail Shop Paris Past come to haunt me this Halloween Night (how appropriate to be writing this now). This series starts off slow, trudges along for 6 episodes and just ends. You could literally watch the first two episodes and the last two and never watch anything in between and you would be missing very little. It was a miracle I made it through all 10 episodes with my sanity.
Acting/Cast (2.0 out of 10... only because I feel bad for Song Jae Rim):
Though the writing was arguably the biggest fault of this series, the acting was mediocre at best from everyone but Song Jae Rim. He literally became the only reason to continue with this series at one point. I felt bad for him for being stuck in this drama because he had so little to work with. This was my first time seeing Park Gyu Ri in action, I was thoroughly unimpressed. She's a good example of an idol trying to turn actor gone wrong. She was so stiff and nearly emotionless. I felt any deep emotions were so forced and fake. I never was able to warm up to her character AT ALL. You can only blame bad writing so much. The other two guys and side characters just faded into the background and were just there to look pretty I guess.
Music (1.0 out of 10): Unmemorable. Meh.
Rewatch Value ( -(2^(N-1)) <= google it): I'm sure it goes without saying, but I'd rather do just about ANYTHING else than EVER re-watch this abomination.
Overall (- out of 10): I would never recommend this to anyone ever. In fact, if I knew some poor soul was even thinking of watching it I'd strongly recommend them to not waste their time... unless of course they like gouging their eyes and ears with a rusty pair of scissors... I mean, I don't know what that's like obviously, but I'm sure it's probably pretty on par with this monstrosity.
On top of all this, how can you call your place of business "Nail Shop Paris" and provide people with the most hideous looking nails in existence?!? *Flips table*
-Fin.
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Cinderella and the Four Knights
2 mensen vonden deze beoordeling nuttig
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Not a complete waste of time, though that's hardly a compliment...Story 5.0/10:
The story had potential, but it left a lot of things unresolved while throwing in some tropes towards the end that just seemed try-hard. I'm getting a bit ahead of myself though. I think the show did a decent job of selling the Cinderella piece, Ha Won has been getting the short end of the stick most of her life, she's got the evil step fam, the whole poor status going on, but she's got that spunk, that will to not give up, and despite all of the BS thrown her way, manages to grow into a decent young lady! Unfortunately, I can't say too much more about my thoughts on this title without spoilers, but it was just a middle of the road drama. I honestly watched because there wasn't any other shows on during those days. It had enough to keep me watching until the end, but I did skip over quite a bit as well. It had the forced cohabitation trope, but somehow I still found myself disappointed. There were a couple of scenes that were squee worthy, but overall...meh.
Acting/Cast 6.5/10:
So starting with Jung Il Woo as Kang Ji Woon... I didn't really care for his character, there's the jerkish characters that have a good reason, and then there's just straight up jerks and I felt he leaned moreso in that direction. Not that there weren't good reasons for some of his angst and jerkish ways, but I was unclear about some of his motivations. As far as the acting piece, while I'm not a huge Jung II Woo fan, I feel he does some fine acting, and to be fair none of these characters other than Eun Ha Won seemed to have that much depth to them any way. I've only seen him a couple of other times. The first time I saw him was in "Flower Boy Ramen Shop" (2011), I loved the drama and he had some cool/romantic/squee moments, but really didn't like his character in that either. In "49 Days" (2011) (omg the tears felt like they lasted that long! lol), I think I liked his acting and character best, really top notched. I also saw him in "My Fair Lady" (2009), but again, such an annoying character, that's literally all I can remember thinking back on that dram (though to be fair it was a pretty sub-par drama anyhow. I hope that perhaps I can see him in another good role again soon, I know he can do it. I really need to see "The Moon that Embraces the Sun", I've only ever heard good things about it, I just haven't had the time to watch.
Park So Dam as Eun Ha Won. This was my first time seeing Park So Dam, and I really liked her acting, I always love spunky kiss ass female leads like Eun Ha Won that don't take any shit! I love how she stood up for herself and for others as well. It looks like she's been in a lot more movies than dramas so far, but I really want to make time to see "Beautiful Mind" as I love love love Jang Hyuk, and I'm interested to see her opposite a really good actor (sorry Jung II Woo, no offense!).
Ahn Jae Hyun as Kang Hyun Min. God this character was annoying as hell! Without giving any spoilers away his reasons for doing things....so dumb. I'll just leave it at that. I think I could've looked over the not so great acting if at least I could've liked the character, but alas... to be fair it looks like he's only been an active actor for a few years, but I've been pretty not impressed so far. I think he's okay as a supporting character, like Song Yi's younger brother in "My Love From Another Star" (2013), and Park Tae Il in "You're All Surrounded" (2014). I didn't see him in "Blood" (2015), but I'd heard nothing but terrible reviews and while I usually don't let that deter me from watching something (I do stand by making your own educated decision over just taking a reviewers words for it), but I think I was busy with other dramas and just never got around to it. I'm not sure I will since I'm also not a big fan of Gu Hye Seon (though apparently he is since he married her lol), I liked her in "Boys Over Flowers", and "Angel Eyes" wasn't too bad, but I shudder at the thought of "The Musical" lol. But I digress, I think this drama could've done without his character and would've been just fine.
Lee Jung Shin as Kang Seo Woo. I actually liked Seo Woo, but his character had no real purpose IMHO. He was just kinda there, and I did feel bad at one point for certain spoiler filled reasons, but honestly, his character was pretty weak and didn't grow or change in any substantial way as characters should in a story. This looks to be Lee Jung Shin's first main role, so I can forgive some of the stilted acting, but I feel he's got potential. It also rounded out CNBlue members in dramas lol I'd already seen the rest of the guys in one or two dramas a piece I feel like the circle is complete! lol I wouldn't mind seeing him in something else, hopefully something that's got some better writing.
Choi Min Sung as Lee Yoon Sung. I didn't realize until I looked up his filmography that I'd see him in a supporting role as lead waiter in "Pasta" (2010), Aw, he was so adorable! Unfortunately, I haven't caught anything else he's been in, though I hope to. As Lee Yoon Sung I felt he played the stoic character very well, and while I'm sure I'll be in the minority, I honestly had hoped after some early scenes in the show that he would be a romantic interest for our lead female (pls forgive this one spoiler?), but alas he wasn't which was saddening since of the Four Knights, I liked him the most. I also felt that he totally got screwed over for the latter half of the series, but I honestly can't say more without some spoilers...but ugh. I felt like he had some good chemistry with Park So Dam. I'm looking forward to seeing his next drama whatever that might be, and see if I can't find some time to catch him in his earlier roles.
Lastly, Son Na Eun as Park Hye Ji. I'll chalk up her stiff and not so great acting to just being young and early in her craft, with this being her first main role. I haven't seen any of her previous dramas which she was a supporting character in. Her character wasn't so bad in the beginning and I actually felt pretty bad for her, but unfortunately she became highly annoying and whiney and so my empathy and compassion went bye-bye. As a secondary female lead, Park Hye Ji was underwhelming at best. There unfortunately isn't much else to say about her.
With main roles out of the way, there is the supporting cast, but I don't have anything better to say unfortunately. While I rated the acting and casting highest in the categories, it was still pretty much middle of the road, it wasn't the worst I've seen, but wasn't anything to write home about either. I feel like any good actors could've been switched with those cast because there was no real depth to the characters, I'm sure the actors did the best they could. I often say that actors need to step up and it's possible even with poor writing a drama can be decent at the least, and this drama was just ok, but I think that's the best they could've hoped for. Again, so many plotlines were introduced but then dropped or forgotten. smh
Music 5.0/10:
I usually don't have much to say about music. This was nice, felt like it went with the drama, just middle of the road, pleasant, but nothing I felt I need to run to itunes for.
Rewatch Value 0/0:
1 since I can't seem to choose zero. While there were a few moments that were cute or even invoked a squee, it was all pretty forgettable... I couldn't even tel you what those moments were now lol
Overall 5.5/10:
I wouldn't tell someone not to watch it, but I wouldn't recommended it either... but if it was like a choice between this or Nail Shop Paris, then yes, most def watch this. :P
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Story - (7 of 10):
I feel that SO many dramas start off strong and instantly capture my interest, but fail to keep up that intensity at any other point. This is one of those titles that is packed with drama, but the intensity of it is quite hit or miss for me. The setup is done very well, I am instantly in love with Miss Yoo Jung Hwa and her little ones! The first few episodes setting up the rest of the drama is done so well, and it's why I found myself sobbing like a baby when tragedy inevitably struck!
Even when we're taken into the future years down the road, I was really looking forward to the characters coming together again after so much happened. How did they grow? Were they still the same, or was their spirit broken? I had questions I couldn't wait to find the answers for. But sadly, as with many dramas, the tropes seem to water things down. As the mystery surrounding the set up begin to unfold, it's turns into a whole lot of "wtf, really?" and cringing and sometimes both at the same time. I'm not a fan of time lapses unless they are truly meaningful. The show does it well in the beginning, not so much towards the end. People were out of character, and the few last episodes felt drawn out. I feel like this series could've easily been 16 instead of 20 episodes and probably been a lot better for it. I think it's above average if even just for the beginning.
Having said all of that, I truly did like most of the characters and the actors are unquestionably great. Which segues nicely...
Acting/Cast (7.5 out of 10):
Gu Hye Seon as Yoon Soo Wan - I'm sure I'm not the only one who saw her first in "Boys Over Flowers" (2009), and I felt she fit the part very well. I then saw her in "The Musical" (2011) which I found very hard to get through, likely it was the writing, I don't know, but her acting was pretty awful in that. She was also in the Taiwanese version of "Absolute Boyfriend" (2012), but it's hard to judge her in that since she was dubbed over and I don't feel like the physical acting was likely very difficult. Then I heard how awful "Blood" (2015) was (though I still may give it a chance), so I was pretty hesitant when I first started this drama. However, I feel she did a great job in this one, and while her character had me face palming quite a bit towards the end, I fault the writing more so than her acting.
(Lee Sang Yoon as Dylan Park / Park Dong Joo) - While I may have been hesitant to watch this because of GHS's performance in The Musical, " I fell for Lee Sang Yoon as Prince Gwang Hae in
"Goddess Of Fire, Jeongi" (2013)! He plays the soft spoken yet stoic characters very well it would seem. I never doubted for a moment that Dong Joo was anything but completely in love with Soo Wan (though I can't quite say the same for her - he DEFINITELY loved her more if ever there was a couple you could say one love more than the other). I thoroughly enjoyed his acting in both dramas, so I'm looking forward to seeing more!
Kim Ji Suk as Kang Ji Woon - I'm not going to go through all the actors, but I feel I HAVE to mention KJS because I've seen him in SO many dramas, and I just want to SCREAM that he hasn't nabbed a Male Lead Role and gotten the girl (at least as far as I've seen thus far), he always get that awful second lead role. If ever there was an actor that gets my second lead syndrome senses tingling, it's this guy! For his main roles, I have seen him in: Personal Taste (2010), I Need Romance 2 (2012), and Cheongdamdong Alice (2012). I've also seen him in The Vinyard Man (2006) and Sassy Go Go (2015), but those, at least to me, were more supporting roles. He was a real jerk in Personal Taste, so he wasn't really on my radar then, however, OH.MY.GAAAWD....I Need Romance 2... In love with him since! If you enjoy him as an actor, see him in that, I had second lead syndrome so damn bad (I'm usually completely unaffected since I've been watching dramas for the better part of 15 years now). I was hoping for much more from him in Cheondamdong Alice too, but he could only do so much with that character. Now that I've digressed beyond what's reasonable (lol), this is my second favorite of his dramas. Ji Woon was a bit too much of a pushover for my liking, I know there's only so much he could've done, but I don't know. I definitely felt his character Ji Woon really loved Soo Wan, but I felt like the character just didn't bring the passion!
Kim Yeo Jin as Yoo Jung Hwa [Dong Joo's mom] - I would be remiss if I didn't mention her because oh my god did she have my heart and tugged at its strings SO hard. I feel like KYJ was made for this role, I just can't imagine another actress filling her shoes! Even though I've seen her mostly play motherly roles, she just fits them so perfectly I can't even complain! I think I first saw her in "Can You Hear My Heart?" (2010), then Trot Lovers (2014), and more recently in Sassy Go Go (2015). She really was, for me at least, the heart of this show, omg, Miss Yoo Jung HWAAAAAAA! ;_;
The rest of the cast was very well rounded, though I felt Kang Ji Woon's mother could've been played by any decent "betchy mom" type actress lol I wish that age differences weren't so taboo in Korea, I mean MAAAAYBE if it's like a girl or guy wants to date someone that is old enough to be there grandparent that's one thing... but I don't think 12 or even 15 years is THAT bad. I won't say anything else, but there was a side love triangle that I really enjoyed. I also enjoyed the camaraderie between not only the 911 staff, but Hyun Jyu Ni as Police officer Cha Min Soo and Kwon Hae Hyo as Kim Woo Chul (I love this man in just about all of his roles - emphasis on Kim Sam Soon (2005).
Music (6.0 out of 10):
I think it had a nice soundtrack, it went really well with the tone and mood of the show. Nothing compelled me to spend money, but made for pleasant sound to my ear holes.
Rewatch (1 out of 10):
I almost feel like I shouldn't bother adding this piece to my reviews as a low score (for me) doesn't mean it was a bad drama. I'm not sure if it's that I'm picky, or I have a short attention span or what, but there are very few dramas I rewatch (or as I like to call it abridge ie watching all my favorite parts again). Perhaps I'd rewatch the first few episodes, maybe, if I was to rewatch any part of it, but very likely no. I wouldn't dissuade anyone from watching this series, I just don't feel it's rewatchable (though to be fair, most melos aren't).
Overall (6.5 out of 10):
Again, VERY strong beginning, but it started to lose me with all of the contrived coincidences towards the latter half. Some people were just a little TOO connected. That's why despite some really strong performances, the drama was just a little over average for me. At times I had difficulty not skipping parts that felt like they dragged and my eyes spent more time rolling back in my head than watching the screen.
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