catherine
Mary Stayed Out All Night
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Fizzles out
This actually has a really good premise, even with all the cliches — disapproving parent, generational secrets, amnesia, cohabitation, contract marriage, etc. I felt like it actually started out really endearing, especially because the main male lead wasn't the typical cold and abrasive character, but was rather playful, fun, and nice to people who deserved it. I also liked the second female lead was nice and reasonable.As the drama went on, however, it started to feel like we were reliving the same plot over and over the characters either became static or got worse. The entire drama was driven by the disapproving parent and even the music and the drama sub-plots seemed to take a backseat. The potential generational secrets fizzled into nothing, and both second leads just became irrelevant and horrible. I also just could not stand the second lead in this, so the fact that the love triangle was dragged on for so long (and mainly by external factors) was really annoying.
Our two main leads also just seemed to lose their identities, especially the FL who started off so strong — optimistic, yet able to stand up for herself and be mature. All that went away when the parental figures started to take up more screentime, and any plot elements just fell flat.
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A beautiful and satisfying masterpiece
I'll admit I went into this one with a bit of trepidation; I haven't watched many period pieces and the first two episodes were just confusing and loudly overacted — and the CGI was kind of bad.Now having finished all 50 episodes, everything hits different. This is one of those dramas that I, who never rewatches things in full, would actually rewatch because there is just SO MUCH to the story. It's big-brained and even though I found myself figuring out small plots pretty quickly, it was still enjoyable to see the characters figure it out, and the final wrap-up was satisfying and mind-blowing. Essentially, this drama is intensely plot-driven, every episode moves the story forwards and even small scenes are endearing, foreshadowing, or have delightful easter eggs in them. This is one that grows on you over the episodes and sticks with you forever.
There are so many characters but that just adds to the beauty of it; upon rewatch you see every character differently, you notice their habits, you revisit their backstories, and more. The character development and personalities for everyone are so natural, and this drama perfectly depicts morally gray areas. Every single character plays their part in the story and they do it so well.
I'd be remiss if I didn't point out the two leads especially, who are such intriguing characters and have such fleshed-out stories and personalities. Thank GOD for such intelligent and communicative characters, who actually figured things out to move the plot forwards instead of having things occur by happenstance.
And yes, it's censored but they did such of a good job of showing the WangXian relationship implicitly; the chemistry was there, and there are just so many little hints (visual symbols, motifs, quotes) that make the slow burn just that much better.
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Realistic but unremarkable
I had heard comparisons between this and Go Ahead, which I loved; LCDF though, just didn't hit me the same way. On the one hand, I appreciated that no drama was over-the-top (which is understandable, considering that it's based on real events), but on the other hand, it felt almost boring.I definitely enjoyed second ship which seemed to have a little bit more spark, but at the same time there were moments where they just kept things from each other for too long.
Ultimately though I still enjoyed the subtle way in which the leads fell in love, and I liked that there was no over-dramatic third-party villain. The characters were realistic, their problems were relatable, and the family issues were touching.
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Nostalgic but messy
I had my reservations going into this, thinking that the story itself was a little creepy. It was, but it wasn't as bad as I thought and I actually quite liked that the main characters had to really get to know each other slowly.Ultimately though, my issue was with a lack of depth in the characters. This includes the mains, but also refers to the side characters; none of them felt likable, whether it was because they were constantly a doormat or because they acted like a SFL that the drama was trying to pass off as a good character. The only character I really loved was Zhang Ming-Rui, but it really felt like he got the short end of the stick.
Regardless, I actually enjoyed the relationship between the two leads and their backstory for the first part; unfortunately, like a lot of C-dramas, once the big conflict hit, it felt like everything just fell apart. Misunderstandings skyrocketed, there was the dreaded lack of communication time skip, etc. Things just got really messy and it felt like nothing in terms of family background was explored as much as it could have been.
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The best kind of stressful
First Thai movie ever! This was so intense and I swear no movie has ever made me root so hard for academic dishonesty. The best part of this movie is undoubtedly the cinematography and sound; it might feel over-the-top for some, but for me, it really felt like the movie bought into its own story and that made me buy into it as well.Bad Genius was so much stress, but I became so invested in it and was really rooting for all the characters. The way the movie talks about class inequality and moral ambiguity is also just so subtly and artistically weaved into the movie.
Enjoyed this so much — a story about cheating on standardized exams may not seem like much, but there's a lot to love.
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Your Name Engraved Herein
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Poignant and bittersweet
Made me feel a lot of nostalgia for Taiwan even though this took place before my time! It was a really beautiful story — really poignant and subtle with the way it delivers references and relationship dynamics. The pacing was a little up and down and I have mixed feelings about the time jump — I wish there had been more balance and more development in the time jump.Ultimately, I just loved the entire vibe of this movie, and I'm a sucker for this type of quiet yet fiery yearning slow burn. The entire movie felt bittersweet in the best way.
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Wholesome
This had a really pure, aesthetic ASMR-ambience kind of vibe — the kind that makes me want to sit in a tea shop for an entire afternoon. I appreciate the communication between the leads and the lack of ridiculous drama tropes, and just overall the simplicity of everything.Ultimately — this is an ad for a tea shop in Korea (which I will look for for sure if I ever visit, so it accomplished its goal) but there's really not much plot at all (and honestly it's not very heavy on the romance aside from implications) but the vibe of the show is really enjoyable.
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Revenge dramas are ALWAYS fun
I'm a sucker for a revenge plot, and this one caught my eye because it was business and brain-oriented, not like the other revenge dramas where the main guy just goes around beating up bodyguards and secretly recording corruption. No, Park Saeroyi did everything BY THE BOOK, and I appreciated so much that he was willing to play the long game.I was super into this drama for most of it. Even though the romance was unusual, I actually didn't have an issue with the age gap, because we saw Saeroyi fall in love with someone who stuck with him through the years, instead of the typical "first love" trope.
One point of the romance that did sit badly with me, however, was a non-consensual kiss which I would've preferred was actually a dream.
A lot of people have complained about the car crash writing of the last three episodes, and I pretty much felt exactly the same way. I would've loved it much more if PSR just continued with his plan and most of the conflict remained business-y, instead of suddenly throwing over-the-top kidnapping, gangsters, car-of-dooms, and hostage situations into the mix. In doing this, it essentially didn't give me the redemption arc that I wanted (that would've been more realistic and heartfelt) but also seemed to make the situation much less realistic and out-of-control.
Still, I loved how this drama managed to balance smaller sub-plots with different characters that addressed LGBTQIA+ discrimination and racism in Korean society. It's definitely not something you see in every drama and they handled it pretty well.
A gem of a character I wish got more screentime was Ho-Jin, the nerd who was bullied who went on to be a genius financial advisor. I loved that he had such strong character development and found it in himself to "forgive" his bully at the end, knowing that being successful and happy was the best revenge he could've gotten. Beautiful scene.
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It's Okay to Not Be Okay
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Beautiful from beginning to end
One of the most beautiful dramas that I've ever watched, both literally and figuratively.The characters are all so lovable and realistic — and your heart hurts for every single one of them, even the side characters that get featured for a few episodes. The thing about their character development is that it's just all so NATURAL, and it comes from the small, everyday interactions that we see between them. And to add to that, the drama did an amazing job giving everyone growth and yet maintaining their personalities throughout it.
The plot was amazing and not a single episode was unnecessary. For a drama that handles such heavy topics, IOTNBO made me shed ugly tears or laugh out loud in all the right places. It's also super refreshing to just have a plot that flows naturally, uninterrupted by dumb drama tropes like noble idiocy and miscommunications.
There's a main plot point in the backstory about MY's mother that have left some people questioning and saying that the writers left out a decent explanation — while I understand that, it's really not a problem with me for this one big reason: it's really not the point. What matters is that the characters WERE scarred and used by people in their past, and regardless of what exact form their past comes to haunt them, they're finding ways to heal together.
With that being said, I still enjoyed the first half of the drama better — before the mom sub-plot, because it felt much more emotional when their pasts felt like a dark cloud hanging over all of them. The latter half didn't quite have the same gut punch.
Still, the entire vibe of the drama is just beautiful, especially the transitions in the earlier episodes. Throughout all sixteen episodes though, the aesthetic remained consistent and everything, from the OST to Seo Yi-Ji's wardrobe (!!!) was top-notch.
This drama and its actors deserve all the Baeksang awards — ESPECIALLY Oh Jung-Se.
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Action over substance
In theory, this was a really good story about a righteous detective going up against a corrupt chaebol, but the execution of the movie turned out kind of rambling and messy.I spend a lot of time at the start trying to figure out who was who, and it definitely took a while for the story to get started.
All in all, this felt like a lot of action and not a lot of substance, and the actual detective work seemed to take up less time than hand-to-hand combat and physically running around after people, rather than using brains (which is usually what I prefer to see). The story turned out to be a lot more simple than I expected, which was a little disappointing, even though the action itself was really good and it held up.
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I surprisingly didn't hate the side characters in this one, though some of the dynamics and age gaps were weird to me, and I didn't feel so invested in the secondary relationship.
I did feel like the last few episodes dropped off a little after they reconciled, and that a lot of the talk about marriage and the disapproving parents were more tedious to watch.
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With that being said, Anna felt like an afterthought. She barely showed up in the first few episodes and never really had an active role in the plot (No, K2 watching her cook ramen badly through the CCTV doesn't count). All that fashion show stuff and the Barcelona Angel stuff...it felt unnecessary.
A lot of the political terminology went over my head (STONKS?) and I honestly felt like the reason for "revenge" really wasn't strong enough. I never felt connected or cared about the girlfriend that was killed, and I think all the Kumar-gate talk was confusing. It probably could've been stronger it had been connected with CYJ/Anna's backstory.
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This is seriously close to one of my favorites, and it could have been, with a few tweaks. Other than that, the premise is seriously intriguing, the cinematography is gorgeous, the romance was natural, and the plot twists were gut-wrenching.I think I just wanted a bit more mystery with the criminals. There were some, but the show used a lot of dramatic irony — telling the audience who was at fault before the characters knew. It's a powerful tool for sure and I loved the frustration it caused me, but at the same time it got very formulaic, especially when it came down to The Big One at the end. I think my favorite subplots were the earliest ones — the car accident which was one of the best first episodes I've ever scene, and the domestic abuse one when cop and reporter's dreams clashed.
Going off of that, I think the show did a really good job with the mini-mysteries style. I'm usually not a fan of these because it reminds me of kids' shows where trouble pops up and is resolved in an episode. But WYWS tied them into the lives of our main characters really well and that's why I felt so emotionally involved in every case. Still, I kind of wish that the characters hadn't won pretty much every case they had, because I felt like a loss at some point would've made the antagonist (already a very powerful character) seem more competent.
With that being said, I thought the antagonist lawyer was a really good character but could've used more backstory that was unrelated to the main characters. He did a lot of evil things but at the same time seemed to have a conscience and some disgust towards his clients. He seemed to be really powerful and good at being bad, but because the main characters always seemed to defeat him, I never felt like he was on the same playing field.
I also wish the dreams were utilized more in different ways; I loved it when the question of knowing and changing the future became unclear, and the drama discussed how changing the future doesn't always mean "better." There's a lot of potential in what "the future" entails but the future mostly used it only as a tool for the main characters to get ahead in their reporter/prosecutor adventures.
With all those things being said, however, I still really loved a lot of things about this drama, especially the Investigator plot twist that totally BLEW MY MIND.
The ending mostly wrapped things up with a nice bow, though I have to say I have an aversion to the Vehicle-of-Doom trope despite how they reasoned it. The main characters were really good together and I loved both their personalities (humor was an added bonus), and I think the OST and the aesthetic of this entire drama really completed it.
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My favorite part of this was Seol, who went from the antagonist in S1 to my favorite character in this season. She was straightforward about her feelings, good at thinking through the situation, and knew when to stand up for herself and her friends. Loved her in this one.
What I didn't enjoy was that there was a serious lack of communication between the characters, especially the two main leads, who I lost a lot of love for. They never talked to each other about anything, and conversations were either unnaturally bubbly or just awkward and not there at all. They really didn't seem like the same people they were in S1 and I felt like some of the issues (like that goddamn TEACHER) were never really resolved. Between the main girl and her best friend, there was also a sudden lack of communication that annoyed me.
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Even so, however, the drama was a little too goofy and ridiculous for my liking; I don't have an issue with that itself and I actually appreciate that the drama didn't take itself too seriously, but overall, it was hard to get emotionally invested because of it.
I also felt like it trailed off at the end a little with very repetitive reasoning.
Other than that, the character development of the rich characters were actually very well done, and I especially grew to love the second lead. The male lead was a great character as well but he didn't change much. The second female lead was probably the weakest of all. Even though her character was initially interesting, ultimately her character development didn't really go anywhere and it was hard to pinpoint exactly what her personality was. The main character grew a lot too, but the acting left a lot to be desired.
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