True Beauty (2020)

Juste pour passer le temps

"I'm missiiing youuuuuu".
Foutue chanson.
Elle me suit quand je passe l'aspirateur, elle m'obsède quand je me rase les aisselles, elle vient me faire chier quand j'arrose mes plantes. Quelle idée aussi de regarder ce drama...

Mon avis ne sera pas forcément très éclairé, disons-le tout net. Quand je critique une série j'aime bien connaître le contexte et avoir des éléments de comparaison, ne serait-ce que pour savoir s'il y a eu une vraie prise de risque de la part des créateurs, ou si on nous a pondu une intrigue déjà vue et revue. Et je dois avouer que question dramas, je suis beaucoup plus habituée aux lakhorns Thaï et aux BL asiatiques tous pays confondus qui, dans ces deux cas de figure, n'ont pas grand chose à voir avec les KDramas traditionnels. A part "Qu'est-ce qui cloche avec la secrétaire Kim", "Cinderella and Four Knights" et "Boys Over Flower", je suis donc assez novice en ce qui concerne la Corée (pour des raisons uniquement pratiques : y'a quand même vachement moins de W et de J dans les noms thaïs ce qui est tout de même plus commode pour s'y retrouver, quant aux BL coréens le casting est très réduit donc je ne passe pas mon temps à jongler entre les onglets de l'ordi pour savoir qui joue quel personnage et hein, de qui ils parlent, déjà ? Surtout que sur Viki, dès que je mets le drama en pause, ça rame au moment de relancer la lecture... promis j'arrête là avec les digressions). Bref, les habitué.e.s seront peut-être plus objectif(ve)s sur le sujet, mais il faut bien que je me lance un jour.

Il semble que les critiques soient assez mitigées sur True Beauty, une bonne partie de l'audience ayant été déçue. Soit parce que les gens n'ont pas aimé les différences entre le Webtoon (que je n'ai pas lu) et son adaptation télévisuelle, soit parce que l'intrigue est bourrée de clichés voire neuneu et n'apporte rien de nouveau dans le paysage des KDramas, ou bien encore parce que les attentes étaient tellement élevées que la déception en a été d'autant plus grande. Je suis d'accord avec tout ça, mais comme je l'ai dit plus haut, je serai moins sévère parce que j'ai moins d'éléments de comparaison et que j'ai quand même passé un bon moment. Mais je ne le reverrai pas, il ne faut quand même pas pousser. Il est vrai que cette histoire n'a rien d'original, malgré son sujet de départ qui m'intéressait (une jeune fille harcelée au lycée parce qu'elle est moche devient une pro du maquillage et se transforme en déesse, et elle finit évidemment avec le gars qui était déjà amoureux d'elle quand elle avait des pustules sur la tronche). Néanmoins, les acteurs sont beaux et jouent relativement bien, on a quelques moments légers et rigolos, et perso les clichés ne m'ennuient pas spécialement à part quelques exceptions, donc je ne dirais pas que le visionnage était une torture.

Là où ça commence à coincer, c'est que j'ai du mal à croire en la mocheté de l'héroïne. Franchement, elle est plutôt jolie même sans maquillage, et je ne vois pas pourquoi elle est si obsédée par le fait de "dissimuler son vrai visage" quand il suffirait d'aller chez le dermato, ça coûterait moins cher et ça prendrait moins de temps (surtout que la différence n'est pas flagrante, d'ailleurs rien ne l'empêchait de porter des lentilles dès le début). Mais c'est vrai que sans ça, on n'aurait pas eu d'histoire, alors passons.

Un autre point m'a sérieusement agacée : au début, j'admirais beaucoup l'une des amies de l'héroïne. Elle était badass, n'hésitait pas à défendre les élèves victimes de harcèlement scolaire ou à botter les fesses d'un pervers preneur de photos sous les jupes des filles dans le bus, bref, la féministe en moi s'est dit "enfin une nana qui connaît le sens de la sororité". Que nenni... Il a fallu qu'elle devienne une evil bitch dans la deuxième moitié du drama... tout ça parce qu'elle était amoureuse du boyfriend de l'héroïne. C'est marrant comme dans les séries, les filles peuvent se déchirer pour une raison aussi futile (alors que la planète regorge de choix), quand les mecs, eux, ils ont le droit de se taper sur la tronche pour des prétextes vraiment graves et sérieux (la mort d'un pote, au hasard). Désolée, mais chez moi ça ne passe pas, et en plus ça ne m'arrive jamais. Déjà ma fierté m'interdit de courir après un mec qui me snobe, ensuite je me frite rarement avec mes copines ou mes collègues femmes, donc le cliché de la fausse amitié féminine ça me gave à un point... 'Soupir'...

Autre élément qui m'a énervée : pourquoi faut-il toujours que l'héroïne fasse les yeux ronds et une bouche en cul de poule à la moindre occasion, tout ça en prenant une voix de bébé ? Tiens ça me rappelle le drama taïwanais Moon River (que je n'ai regardé que parce que mon chéri d'amour Gao Shi De jouait dedans) : l'héroïne est badass, c'est même une pro des arts martiaux, grande et longiligne qui plus est, mais elle donne l'impression d'avoir 2 ans dès qu'elle ouvre la bouche, ce qui est aussi ridicule que perturbant... Il faut croire qu'en Asie, on doit avoir l'air d'une éternelle mineure pour espérer pécho, sans ça la domination patriarcale serait sérieusement ébranlée. Mais Cthulhu en soit remercié, True Beauty nous épargne au moins les moments gênants où la gamine en question court derrière un trouduc mal luné en étalant sa mignonnitude pour se faire pardonner ses erreurs (erreurs qui soit dit en passant, n'existent souvent que dans l'imagination dudit trouduc... ). Et pour compenser, parce qu'il y a quand même des moments que j'ai trouvés sympas, la romance entre la sœur aînée de l'héroïne et le prof de littérature m'a fait sourire jusqu'à la fin. Je n'ai pas l'habitude de voir des personnages féminins aussi déterminées, courageuses, prêtes à se faire virer parce qu'elle tiennent plus à l'honnêteté qu'à garder leur job, sûres d'elles et entreprenantes avec leur crush (en général celles qui courent en premier après un mec sont les méchantes de l'histoire et elles se font vite remballer), et pour qui le cadeau de mariage idéal est une méga caisse à outils. Pour le coup, si je n'étais pas l'aînée de ma fratrie, j'aurais bien aimé l'avoir comme grande sœur moi aussi.

Cela mis à part et je vais me répéter, c'est vrai que l'intrigue de ce drama ne présentait absolument rien d'original. Tout y était prévisible, à aucun moment je n'ai senti mon cœur battre ou je n'ai eu peur pour les personnages, les soi-disant rebondissements de l'histoire volent rarement très haut et on ne va pas dire que l'héroïne a de gros enjeux à gérer. A mon avis cette série se destine surtout à des adolescentes qui n'ont pas encore l'âge et la maturité nécessaires pour faire preuve d'esprit critique ou se montrer un peu plus difficiles. Mais qu'importe, je n'ai pas passé un trop mauvais moment, et au moins True Beauty vient s'ajouter à ma petite liste de KDramas visionnés. A l'avenir j'aurai un peu plus d'éléments de comparaison, c'est déjà ça de gagné.

Leggi di Più

HUUUUGE SECOND LEAD SYNDROME (long review read at your own risk lol)

I thought this drama was pretty good, it had an amazing casting and was overall an okay drama. I didn't like a lot of things about it though, in my opinion, they completely wasted many opportunities to give us depth about the second lead characters such as Han Seojun and Kang Soojin, and make the overall show more enjoyable. The female mc (Lim Ju Gyeong) didn't really have the type of character development I would remember because it happened in an instant. This concept seemed overused and became more dragging like the webtoon, but I will say I absolutely loved the OST for this show. My favorites were definitely "Fall in You' and "It Starts Today", they had many great tracks that I occasionally listen to.

The moral story was lacking for me and rather than a feel-good confidence drama it ended up like any other romance cliche, which isn't bad, but considering the casting, I would've expected more from the plot as well. In all honestly, I wouldn't have continued to watch the show if it hadn't been for the second leads and side characters, their small moments in the show compensated for it, but the person who really stole it for me was Han Seojun. I really learned a lot from him watching the show and as a die-hard team Seojun, I was incredibly disappointed with the ending. The ending closed as many holes as possible in the vaguest and unsatisfying way possible which was really sad because it had so much potential. The female lead was also a basic pushover who was oblivious to everything and not very interesting personally.

This show followed so many cliches, it isn't the type of drama that gets you on the edge of your seat wondering what's going to happen next or who she is going to end up with, instead, they make it painfully obvious who she's going to end up with. This show was advertised as a "love triangle" when in reality that wasn't it at all, it was just Suho and Jugyeongs love story with Seojun being the sweetest guy ever and getting absolutely nothing in return, he got the worst ending out of all of them. Would not recommend it as a classic "love triangle" drama when the female lead showed absolutely no interest, as no interest, nothing towards the second lead. Just once I would've liked to see that first love isn't final love because that trope is so overused in my opinion.

Hwang In Yeop and Moon Ga Young had the type of chemistry that I would expect from the main couple, seriously every scene of them together made my heart skip several beats and I was blushing like crazy. HIY just continued to surprise me with his acting skillset throughout the series, I remember the amount of hate he was getting when he was first announced in the casting because he was 30 at the time and a rookie actor, but what I saw from him in the drama was a whole new level. I wouldn't write this review if I said I didn't know my way around kdramas, I've watched several of them and when I'm telling you his acting stole the whole show I mean it. This man is the true definition of 18 again and his acting was so incredible it seemed like he has been doing it for years. Quite embarrassing to admit but going into this I thought I was going to be in team Suho because of how much I love Eunwoo but ended up making a whole fan account of Hwang In Yeop instead because of his visuals and talent.

Would I recommend this show to anyone? Not really, unless of course, you're a sucker for cold rich boys with daddy issues, a diehard Eunwoo fan, or someone who loves cliche romances.

Leggi di Più

cliche, nothing special but enjoyable

As a rom-com lover, watching so many dramas of the same old plot and love triangles gets me so tired and this was one of the many dramas that i enjoyed because I love rom-coms but also loathed to watch because of the cringe characters and the boring-same-school-romance-as-every-other-55-kdramas-out-there type of plot. Jukyung is so dense and cringe (not hating on moon ga young tho because her character is supposed it be like this) and I get annoyed so much by her that I just wished none of the two guys ended up with her. On the other hand, Seojun (played by Hwang In Yeop) totally stole the show for me and it was the hope of seeing him happy with Jukyung (although i dislike her) that motivated to continue watching because seojun best boy. Overall 6/10 for plot which is actually quite generous tbh.

Rated it a 8/10 overall which is quite good because despite the cringe and cliche plot, I found myself looking forward to watch the first 12 episodes. I liked Seojun and the stories of the side characters like Jukyung's brother and sister really brought up the comedic genre of the series which made me put aside the cliche plot and continue watching. Would recommend this drama for people for want to jump in the bandwagon/ hype, its not super bad aside from the annoying characters and basic plot and I guess it doesn't hurt to watch a typical kdrama. Oh and they have really good OSTs too.

Leggi di Più

Funny, sweet & touching Webtoon adaptation

I thoroughly enjoyed watching this drama! I was excited for every new episode each week and the writers like to keep you on the edge of your seat with the new promos.

I read the webtoon and although the overall story is quite consistent, there are many changes to the plot but I found them refreshing. The characters in the drama version are very well written and had plenty of character growth throughout the drama! The love triangle, although it was tedious especially near the end, is the main focus of the show from the first half.

I found that the relationship of the main couple blossomed very naturally and all their scenes together were super sweet. Some people are disappointed because she doesn’t end up with who they wanted, but both male leads were terrific and both worthy of being chosen. I just preferred the main lead because the story focused a lot more on their relationship and it wouldn’t make sense for her to end up with SL (unlike in the webtoon where the SL has more of a relationship with JK). The main lead helped her grow as a person and loved her for her true self which deepened their relationship. Although I appreciate SL’s character as he is super sweet, I just preferred their relationship to be best friends. Too many viewers invalidated Jugyeong’s feelings and cared more about the fact that she didn’t choose the guy they liked. I don’t understand how people don’t see how great the main lead was as well- he is cold at first but he shows his softer side and he cares for and treats JK so well. He overcomes so much trauma and became a better person by meeting JK and vice versa. That is why I love them together-their relationship helped both of them become better versions of themselves.

Let’s talk about something other than the love story! The high school friends and family of the leads were all super fun and well incorporated to the story. The majority of this drama is very light-hearted and fun, but you’ll see they add a perfect mix of deeper scenes that touch on bullying, self-confidence and overall mental health.

Thanks to the writers and staff who made a wonderful drama that made me laugh, cry and enjoy every second of it! I would recommend this drama to everyone who enjoys romcoms (and despite the fact that it looks and starts off really cheesy, it gets sooo good and I don’t usually like cheesy dramas)!

Leggi di Più

So much good stuff!

This was an amazing show and I'll tell you what I liked and leave anything negative (which I felt there was) for the end.

STORY LINE: though not necessarily totally original, was very well-done. The old story of being bullied because of not being "pretty enough" was pretty hard-core in this one and, for me, those scenes were very difficult to watch. This is one of those shows that speaks to a serious topic, but you are enjoying the ride for the lessons learned along the way. There was always a lot going on. I'm not patient for shows that have a lot of "dead time" in their stories, where you could skim a lot and still not miss anything. This was not one of those shows. It actually took me longer than normal to get through, because I kept going back and re-watching episodes. There were many, many laugh out loud moments (Moon Ga Young is excellent at physical comedy), and yes, some very touching scenes. I absolutely loved the way they had the main lead know her secret early on and the things he did to protect her. This show made me question, as so many other have - do Korean women really fawn all over handsome men and talk about how handsome they are right in front of them? That always seems so strange to me. The story delves into the lengths we are willing to go to be accepted by others, the criteria for friendships, an interesting family dynamics. There are multiple families shown here, and a couple of them I thought I would have to disown myself from that family! I felt, at times, that the female lead was too weak and was upset that she never stood up for herself, but I'm speaking as an adult. I know that as a teen you look at things differently. She wanted to be accepted.

MUSIC: It seemed to me that there were just a couple of stand-out songs, but they fit perfectly in the show. As the second male lead was a singer, this got to be highlighted.

ACTING: Moon Ga Young as Lim Joo Gyung was excellent! As the "ugly duckling" (I hate to even say that, because she wasn't ugly even without makeup. But those ridiculous eyebrows!!), you really felt her loneliness and need to belong someplace. The bullying was extreme and hard to watch. She's a good crier and did a lot of it. She was good at the physical comedy aspects, especially the scene where she went home and just laid, dejected in the doorway. I loved how, through everything that she went through, she was so positive and sweet.
Cha Eun Woo as Lee Su Ho - he started out extremely cold (which I never could totally figure out the reasoning for it) and as he got to know Joo Gyung and other people at school, he warmed up. He portrayed an almost perfect man/boyfriend. He was sweet and caring and always watching out for the girl he liked. And can I just say he has the deepest voice I think I've ever heard?
Hwang In Yeop as Han Seo Jun - he started out with a chip on his shoulder, he was hard and kind of gangster-ish. But when he started liking Joo Gyung, things really changed. I have to say that I suffered from second lead syndrome. It was under control pretty much until the last two episodes (addressed later in this review) when I was re-thinking who she should end up with. In the last episode when he is on stage and the camera goes up close on his face, oh my!
Park Yoo Na as Kang Soo Jin. Joo Gyung's first friend at her new high school. Yoo Na played this part excellently. She had a big shift in her behavior and I have to say there were some scene where she actually gave me the creeps.
Jang Hye Jin as Joo Gyung's mother. I love this actress. I first saw her in CLOY and loved her in that. Here, she's kind of an overbearing and bossy wife/mom (though some of it is understandable), but when she finally discovers what has been happening to Joo Gyung, her protective instincts kick in and she becomes a total mama bear. The scene when she apologizes to Joo Gyung had me sobbing.

RELATIONSHIPS/CHEMISTRY - Joo Gyung and Seo Jun were totally cute together. He opened up and she could be herself. As their feelings developed and when they held hands, etc. it was lovely to watch. Their kisses were kind of hit and miss, and it's really unfortunate when the last kiss you see of theirs is totally without chemistry and obviously fake.

Joo Gyung and Seo Jun - this was another darling relationship and I would have to say that their chemistry was amazing, since they were only friends. I loved seeing the exact moment that he realized he liked her. I loved that she was so clueless to his feelings. I loved that they usually bickered like brother and sister. I loved that he was always looking out for her, going to her when he thought she was in trouble, and defending her when it was needed. I also loved that he usually didn't know why he was behaving the way he was. Upon writing this, apparently this was the relationship I liked the best.

Su Ho and Soo Jin - they used to be friends, became enemies and, once secrets were revealed, developed a bromance that was fun to watch.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE/THAT IRRITATED THE HECK OUT OF ME: At episode 13/14, everything was wrapped up nicely. The writers felt that they needed to add a couple of episodes. My problem with this is that all throughout the show, the male lead had been there for the female lead, caring for her and supporting her. Episodes 15/16 brought about a STUPID two-year time jump which had the male lead behaving in a preposterous way. He just left the country and broke up with her?!?! Though episodes 15/16 worked to bring him back to Korea, etc., my problem is, he's been gone for two years without contact at all and comes back and expects to pick up where they left off. Add to that, she's had two years with the yummy second lead, who is obviously interested in her (she was clueless, however). They do have a conversation about how they should have stayed together and had a long-distance relationship, but if he realized that while in the US, why didn't he call her?!?! I felt that he was totally in love with her up until he left and it derailed at that point for me and I was angry. The last two episodes show what happened with everyone else, which was nice, but I just lost respect for the male lead.

That being said, I'm SO glad I watched this, and perhaps when I watch it again, I'll just watch it without the last two episodes.

Leggi di Più

Will go down in history as amazing!

This is a drama to stay up until 3am to watch! I love the whole story from beginning to end. The main characters chemistry and love triangles felt authentic and original. This should go on everyone’s must watch list and go down in history as a must watch for kdrama beginners! And veterans!

The sisters love story didn’t feel like a time filler but part of the actual story. I usually don’t care for the secondary characters but all of the couples and peoples storyline’s felt important. The dynamics were non traditional and modern. The mental health message throughout the show is good for young people to watch.

Leggi di Più

full of chlichés

I could not have watched this show by alone all by myself. What made this show fun was watching it with my sister, without her I would not have finished it.

The first half of the show was very good, I was very engaged in the characters and what was going on in the story; however, the second half I found to be very boring.

What can I say… who I was rooting for was not winning, he didn’t get as much screentime as he should of and he deserved more.

Also, I have never seen a show with so many stereotypical clichés before. I could not even begin to count the amount of times the maid lead fell into someone’s arms an accident.

Leggi di Più

Different, yet memorable and remarkable

Summary
True Beauty is an adaption from the popular webtoon series that goes by the same name. It is quite evident to point out - if you're not a webtoon reader - that this story follows a completely different path. This drama follows some of the same events, however, the outcomes are vastly different. Overall, I found this drama to be quite enjoyable to watch, especially during these times. The comedy is astounding and there were several memorable moments that will go down in K-Drama history. I think this drama did bring out some of the best in all the characters that cannot be easily interpreted and felt from the comic but undermined some of the feelings and struggles that some of the characters did go through. Some may argue that they were saddened by the approach that the directors took with changing some of the scenes and characters, but I think I liked their approach in which I'll explain why further down the line. The sub-plots were quite interesting and the romance itself was satisfactory. Albeit saying this, having to aid my broken heart, I will probably not touch another love-triangle drama anytime soon.
Disclaimer: I believe that from this drama, I became a Hwang In Yeop fan and I have grown to love his character. This review has no intent to be biased towards any of the characters as I love them all overall. I will try to be unbiased as much as I can whilst still giving my honest opinions. As much of the love story I value, character/character development is a big element for me in what is defined as a good drama or not.


Storyline/plot
The story itself was quite mediocre. The drama mainly revolves around a girl who gets bullied for her indifferences in her looks, until she discovered the wonders of make-up and transforms herself. She moves to another school and upon starting a new life there, she gets immediate attention. It focusses on her journey in accepting and loving herself as well as finding a support system that truly accepts her for the way she is. The overall story itself is quite a cliche, but as the drama develops, the story does deepen and becomes meaningful and cherish-able.
It delves into serious real-life issues that are prevalent in our society that include: suicide, the life of being in the idol scene - the good and the bad, mental health, trauma, insecurities; family dysfunctions, and disparities. The sub-plots were quite interesting, but I didn't feel like there was enough closure or explanation behind some of the plots.
What enticed me to like this drama was how thought-provoking it was. The character's actions, decisions, and attitudes really made you think beyond what the story is telling you and encourages you to analyse and build an understanding behind each of the characters behaviours and intentions.
The reason why I like the direction the story was going for was because it made the audience have something to look forward to, rather than following the original story which will defeat the suspense that was building up for the ending of the show. Arguably, this is meant to be an adaption so if they weren't going to follow the original storyline, then they should have given this drama a different title.
The romance for me, was satisfactory, I loved the relationship that had some cute moments and developments, but when it comes down to chemistry, I didn't feel much of that, in my opinion. I think the chemistry was more directed to the friendship. But still, the bond for the three characters was remarkable and unforgettable.
Let me mention the comedy that this drama brought. I loved all the scenes that included some comedic value in them. It made this drama light-hearted that balanced out the more serious scenes that it entails.
The downsides to this series, however, is how the story did divert the attention away from the original storyline and decided to include a love-triangle. Whilst I do believe that it made the show more entertaining and kept the viewers engaged, the execution was quite anti-climactic. I think they should have focussed more on the female narrative with the love-triangle coming after; that way it could stick to the storyline's true intent. Another critic I would make is how some of the serious scenes were quite exaggerated to the extent where it became more humorous rather than emotional which really deflated the emotions that were behind that scenes in the first place. Lastly, the ending felt a bit too rushed with a time jump, it would have been better to have at least two more episodes to really wrap-up the whole series

Cast/Acting
Suho
Suho is known as the top-student and is quite taciturn, mundane, and has a cold-like exterior. Throughout this drama, we get to see the story of his dysfunctional relationship with his Father and the constant battle with his mental health due to unfortunate events that are revealed later. As the drama progresses, we get to see more of his caring side as he opens himself up a little bit more to the world. This drama brought justice to his character and how his emotions and past traumas manifest into his actions. He had his effortlessly humorous moments. I particularly liked his character development in how he handled tough situations over-time, for example with how he dealt with his unhealthy behaviours. His story overall is quite touching, and you'd feel like you want to reach into your screen and give him an immense hug amidst it all.
However, the one thing I don't like was how they made him look 'creepy' in some scenes, this isn't something that bothers me immensely, but I wanted to point that out because whilst it brought a bit of comedy into it, I did find it a bit uncomfortable if I was put into the character's shoes, but that's just my personal opinion.
Knowing Cha Eunwoo from Astro, I had no prior knowledge of his acting skills. For the first drama I've watched that Eunwoo starred in, I am thoroughly impressed by his acting and his portrayal as Suho. He executed the emotions of his character outstandingly that really got the audience to feel for his character. Overall, Suho's cold demeanour towards others, except for the very few people he cares about definitely swayed the viewers, but as time went by, he came out of his shell. His growth is worth mentioning and as a viewer, I felt proud like he was my friend as well.


Jugyeong
Jugyeong is the 'angel' of Saebom High school with her beautiful looks that attracts attention across the school, but underneath that mask lies deep struggles in self-love, self-acceptance, and trauma that shaped her into the person she is known as. She also has a dysfunctional family which was shown more in the webtoon. Jugyeong is a selfless and kind-hearted character that never fails to be there for others and empathises with those around her very deeply. She is the most memorable character for her dorkiness, clumsy and child-like personality. I loved her character development the most as it shows her overcoming her struggles with assertiveness and confidence. Her story is very empowering and inspiring that I could resonate with some of the feelings that she felt throughout the drama and it made me want to hug her as well. I especially loved the relationship development between herself and her family which was touching, indeed, the message behind her story is heartfelt and something that I wish I had known when I was a teenager. To some, her character can be very unlikeable due to her naive-ness and clueless traits, but that can be justified.
This prompts me onto my next point that I did find her character unlikeable at times due to her being portrayed as naive and her somewhat selfish acts that took place, though these were subtle and didn't cause me to dislike her overall. Again, the character was well portrayed I really did feel connected to her as an individual.
Watching Moon Ga Young from her previous role in 'Tempted', I was amazed at how vastly different these characters are and Moon Ga Young was competent in showing the goofy, but emotional side to Jugyeong. She is one of my favourite actors out there.


Seojun
Seojun, shown to be the badass; unlikeable; presumptuous character in the early stages of the drama, stole the hearts of many viewers out there, including myself. Seojun has a very baddie and somewhat intimidating exterior, but later, shows his caring and soft side. He has a very dorky, goofy, and selfless demeanour and is a family-orientated person. It is fair to say that he created one of the most iconic moments for the drama with his humour. At first, it showed his overarching responsibility as the older brother, but that kind of faded away over time. We first see him being stirred into trouble with a group of guys from a different high school. However, this subplot wasn'twell executed because we never saw the events that led up to the incident and Seojun's relationship with them. This drama touched upon Seojun's trauma against the idol scene and his mental health towards his past unfortunate events. We later see that his self-blame and handling of the situation was expressed very negatively that caused a detrimental effect on someone that he cared for. The reasonings were later revealed. As a result, his character development was very touching, and he is the true epitome of holding accountability for his actions. As the drama progressed, we saw a much softer side to him towards the one he liked. It is quite true to say that out of the events, it broke the hearts of many and made us feel truly hurt with every scene he was in, but out of that, more love for the character was developed. Overall, I particularly loved the dynamics to his character that made him more realistic and relatable. I'll repeat for the other two characters, he was a character that I also wanted to give an immense hug for.
I do have to say that Seojun was kind of treated like a side-line character that did not have much background to him as the drama went on. The drama didn't do justice to Seojun's feelings compared to the webtoon and didn't show much of his life story which I was quite saddened about.
Watching Hwang In Yeop in previous roles like the 'Tale of Nokdu' and 'W.H. Y', I think he did an outstanding job in portraying Han Seojun with the character's dynamic personality and displayed his emotions brilliantly. I'm glad he was able to play this character as I wouldn't be able to imagine anyone else playing Han Seojun the way Hwang In Yeop did


Sujin
Another top-student and was known as the 'strong female lead' for her amazing skill in martial arts and the protector of her friends. Sujin is shown to be quite competitive in life with a strong and powerful demeanour. Although she is shown in that way, we do get to see her more vulnerable side which is where her story comes in. I liked the approach the writers took with the disparities of her character as it leaves the audience feeling for her much more. I especially love her character development.
Park Yoo Na does an incredible job in showing the two sides of Sujin and my love for her as an actor has really grown from 'Sky Castle', she's amazing.

Extra points on Seojun and Suho
I feel like it's worth talking about Seojun and Suho as individual characters side-by-side because, from my perspective, I do believe that this drama kind of sheds light on the contrasting situations between these two.
I firmly believe that these two characters portrayed their struggles in different ways. Suho, having nobody by his side to support him emotionally, he was left alone with tackling his inner demons. He felt loneliness because of having nobody. This left him to deal with events that came up in his life in an unhealthy way.
On the other hand, Seojun had friends and family by his side, this means that he was able to deal with the events that occurred in his life in a slightly healthier way. However, with that being said, Seojun never had anyone he was able to confide in. He had people that were there for him to fill in that space of emptiness, but he did not have anyone that he could truly relate to and be himself with.
The moral of the story is, I believe that one can struggle in different ways. You can feel lonely with or without people and that solely depends on who you have around you. Therefore, I value the friendship that the three main leads have. Jugyeong was able to fill in that space and change their lives as well as them changing hers. Thus, I think this show was meaningful to watch for the development of the three and their individual stories.

Honourable mentions
The supporting cast have been heavily involved in the story, bringing depth towards each character. The show doesn't just present the story of the main characters, but also shines a light on the supporting cast and their personalities. They included everybody that brought together this drama and made it 'True Beauty'. Tae Hoon, Hyun Gyu, and Soo Ah are definitely supportive friends that you'd want in your life, HeeKyung is one of those independent and strong female characters that play opposite gender roles in a relationship, Mr. Han is the supportive teacher we all need in life with his cute, clumsy and innocent personality; Cho Rong with his funny and relatable personality traits, Juyoung and his hilarious, cocky and dorky personality, Go Woon with her adorable and strong exterior and Jugyeong's hilarious and supportive parents. And lastly, Se Mi. Although she is the antagonist of the show, it wouldn't be 'True Beauty' without mentioning how her relationship with Jugyeong brought this story together I loved how all the individual characters that contributed to the value of this drama with memorable moments that we will all cherish.

Music
The music was quite fitting to the drama with my favourite song 'Missing You' and 'it Starts Today'. There wasn't one song that really stood out to me and the one that was deemed as the number one song for the drama. I think that every song was good in its own ways.

Rewatch value
I'm not really the one to watch an entire series again, I would only watch the highlights, however, I would rewatch this drama to relive the moments that this show has brought and understand more things on a deeper level. On the contrary, I wouldn't want to because of the emotional rollercoaster that the show put us through. But on a serious note, there were some happy, laughable, and treasuring moments this show had that made the audience connect with the cast and the story more, so I would deem this as rewatchable.


Conclusion
I would recommend you watch this to get the best of both worlds, if you're a webtoon fan and if you want to see the story being brought to life. Would I say I'd prefer this over the webtoon? It's not a straightforward question to answer as both have their pros and cons. As I said, you would have more connection with the characters like if they were your friends that you don't feel much in the webtoon.
If you're not a webtoon fan, then I would say it's a light-hearted, sweet series that is fun to watch. But that's all down to your personal tastes.
To conclude, I was undermining the story at first and was doubtful of the direction of where this drama was going, but I turned out to like this drama more than I'd thought with a few beautiful messages behind it. It's worth a watch. You can delve deeper into the other topics that are included in the story that's not just about the romance. The most integral thing out of the series I would mention is the chemistry between the actors behind the scenes. It was touching and cute, very family-like. Also, to mention individual efforts that were made towards the series. I believe these are a crucial element in bringing together a memorable and well-executed drama.

Leggi di Più

Fun time!

Short: Webtoon style "hyper real" (expect the characters to be dialled up to 110%) like others such as Extraordinary You. TRUE BEAUTY isn't about makeup, TRUE beauty is the real YOU, confident and with courage. In this drama, she takes that journey. Great actors, great characters. Music is ok but didn't stand out as much as others have. All the usual tropes, love triangle, breakups, they-met-as-kids etc - it is kdrama after all - but I thought they were largely written in quite sensibly :)

Detail:
Some really interesting characters in this - the female lead struggles with her appearance and being bullied and it leads her to the roof of a tall building standing on a ledge contemplating her future. The male lead happens to be there because previously his best friend had jumped from that ledge and he was remembering him, he pulls her off to safety.

She learns about makeup, and moving to a new school arrives transformed as the most beautiful girl in the school, where she quickly gets lots of friends and happiness.

So... my initial thought as the drama starts in this way is... oh I do hope there's a bit more depth to it than "make yourself pretty so people will like you" and thankfully there is. She struggles with her appearance throughout going to extraordinary lengths to make sure nobody can see her "bare face" fearing that friends will instantly turn to enemies. Indeed, there is one moment in the story... which I won't go into... and it's played out really well as everyone reacts strongly but not all for the same reasons, and it ultimately provides a lot of courage for her as she realises if you're around the right people it doesn't matter at all, and if you're around the wrong people - they don't matter.

What was really good for the female lead was seeing her grow from a girl in school to a young adult as she steps into her working life - going from the struggles of school to figuring out what she wants to do and then pursuing it vigorously, as she goes from someone near the bottom of the school leagues to someone who is driven fiercely for what she wants to do. I think everyone goes through that transformation as they get frustrated with the doldrums and stress of school and switch to doing what they are truly passionate about.

The male lead doesn't go through the same length of journey at all, and while I have no objection to his character and enjoyed its participation in the story, he was there as the supporting character for the female lead, without a doubt.

The SECOND lead however - was easily one of the strongest and best characters i've seen in a drama in a while. His strength of character even in the latter episodes when he would have been completely ok to pursue what he wanted, took a better path instead, choosing what he knew she wanted. Difficult to go into detail about why this moment towards the end struck me but it was really well done. He's a misunderstood character at the start who is acting out, but this is not your average love triangle. Sadly, he's doomed to suffer the fate of all second leads unfortunately (I don't consider that a spoiler because if you go into a drama expecting it to end with the *second* lead... you're probably not reading the room ;) ).

Secondary characters... the female lead's sister and the teacher - funny as heck (as are her whole family tbh). So refreshing to see such a strong woman knowing what she wants and just going for it with all the force in the world. Absolutely her mothers daughter, but equally good to see the cheeky bit later on when it's clear that it's not entirely one-way and he can pull her strings too (I am probably explaining it badly - but suffice to say, it is a well balanced relationship :) ).

Her friends - one of them goes through a bad time and becomes the bad-person, and I was very pleased with out how that was concluded.

All in all, some really great characters and performed well by their respective actors and actresses.

It is a webtoon style drama, like Extraordinary You, so expect your characters to be dialled up to 110% - it's done in a nice way that works well and is fun throughout :)

The ending is nice and drawn out, it's chilled and feels really good.

Why not a 10? Purely because I think that while they nailed the problem with the way she felt about her self image and about the bullying at school I'm just not sure they actually nailed the conclusion to that quite as well as they could have. I can't put my finger on it, because she got her moment with the bully, she got the support from true friends, she supported someone else in the same situation and helped them, and got the courage to be her true self. So i'm not sure why it's niggling on me, but... it is. That's why I only took a half off.

TRUE BEAUTY isn't about makeup, TRUE beauty is the real YOU, confident and with courage. In this drama, she takes that journey, and it's the day she turns up to her new school in her bare face she becomes the True Beauty.

Leggi di Più

I Cannot Get Over this Drama

Oh my gaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssh!

True Beauty is an elite drama- totally on another level.

Story 100%
Humour 10000%
Cast 100%
Second Lead 100%
OST 10000%
Bromance 1000%

This is the first time I watched a drama back to back because it was too good to stop. When I started out, I feared there would be the usual high-school/teen drama cliches and yes there were some I-definitely-saw-this-coming scenes. But amazingly, that iddn't take away from the drama's freshness. It was still amazing and refreshing.

I loved Soo-ho and Ju-kyung together - there were cute without going over the top. Cha Eun-woo is not a good drunk to watch though - my only complaint from the drama was that scene. I loved Seojun! He brought life to this drama! Oh my gosh, I was really rooting for him but there was no way he gets the happy ending *sigh* But my absolute favourite character was Hee-kyung. Yo! Incredibly well-written character - hilarious, strong female, unapologetic about who she is and what she wants. I want to be Hee-kyung when I grow up.

My dilemma now is - how do get on with my life after True Beauty?

Leggi di Più

There were aspects of this drama I really liked. The cast were great and Moon Ga-young portrayed the bullied-for-her-looks Joo-kyung, excellently. She was sweet and somehow quite innocent, whilst at the same time pretty resilient to the horrible crap she had to put up with. She also found it within herself to support others, even though she never got the same most of the time. I didn't like the way in which her character cried though ~ often not about stuff you would and then about stuff you wouldn't.
Cha Eun-woo's character was nice to watch, as he opened up and grew with each episode.
Hwang In-youp's role was more consistent through the episodes and one that I liked the most. He wasn't fluffy or difficult and a lot more open and outspoken.
What I didn't like was what I felt to be a very superficial portrayal of how girls, especially, are judged on their appearance. Yes, it happens to guys too, but not as much.
I just felt that the whole issue was somewhat undermined. The bullies, as usual, seem to get away with it. It shouldn't be up to kids to sort out, but stopped in its tracks by teachers and the establishment. That's just never seen.
The bullying in this was horrible and her own family were no better. I really disliked the mother.
One character in a latter episode, suggested a dermatologist and I actually cheered! The character's biggest problem was actually her skin/complexion, which could have been treated, not her actual looks.
The angle of being outed for wearing makeup was also somewhat contrived, especially when the main ones harassing her, wore plenty themselves! No one thought to point that out though.
One thing it did show were more-unattractive-than-her peers, judging the looks of another. It has often occurred to me that it's not uncommon for the people that judge the looks of others, to be really quite ugly themselves... I wonder what they see when they look in the mirror?!
I also dislike violence against kids by adults and, again, this was shown with no real consequences for the perpetrator. That kind of suggests there's no way out in that situation and it therefore has to be accepted.
There were also several parts of the plot in the storyline that were simply glossed over, to me, rather than being concluded sufficiently.
I also don't find toilet humour that funny, especially when overdone and featuring in more than one scene. People throwing up on others and seemingly thinking that's acceptable, also puts me off; as does treating someone else's home and belongings as their own. Just not amusing to me at all.
Whilst the cast were great, the story just wasn't for me.

Leggi di Più

A delightful romantic comedy with an endearing heroine.

The story began with our heroine who’s had to live her whole life with her community's overwhelming opinion that she was ugly, culminating in a horrific bullying incident that induced her to almost taking her own life. After pulling herself back from the depths of despair, she sought help from an online beauty guru and when a chance to transfer schools arrived, she remodeled herself through the magical powers of makeup. As she navigates the new high school while hiding her “ugly” past, making friends and grappling with all the newfound attention from boys (especially two in particular), she learns to face her fears and reveal her true self.

First of all, I must say that I very much enjoyed this show largely due to how charming Moon Ga Young was in portraying Ju Kyung. She was so endearingly funny and genuinely cute that it was hard to dislike her, even when she made questionable choices. What is with this director who is able to capture the charm of the actress through their character (hey there, Extraordinary You's Kim Hye Yoon)?

Ju Kyung is sweet and kind. But her reluctance to speak up for herself, her tendency to run away rather than fight back; these behaviors will certainly create frustrations for the viewers, as I also felt the same. From the lens of an adult, the problems of teenagers bordered on trivial. And yet, you cannot deny the reality of it; because as much as I wanted to pull her aside and tell her that looks aren't everything, that there will be more to life than what happens in high school, I also understood her insecurities completely and the choices she made as a result, because they were universal. I sympathized with her sentiments, especially after watching Moon Ga Young portrayed Ju Kyung with such heartrendingly realistic despair. I was appalled at how cruel her peers could be. So when she was able to make a fresh start and simply be happy because she was able to make friends, I was happy for Ju Kyung too. Yes, the new friends flocked to her because she was pretty but it was also clear that they genuinely liked her. The teachers fostered a warm environment as well, especially one kind, emasculate teacher who had a funny love line with Ju Kyung's beautiful, confident sister. One of her new friends included a girl named Soo Jin (Park Yoo Na), whom I thought was super cool for a good portion of the drama, then felt nothing but disappointment in when the writer took a lazy turn by making her character a typical, conniving second lead in the end. Or maybe that was the point; because of how strong and righteous she was, protecting her friends like a guardian angel, her betrayal at the end cut deep. I was also a bit disappointed in how long it took for Ju Kyung to confront her bullies, though I rooted for her all the same. It was sweet that the courage to face her fears came from her kind heart; wanting to protect her friends was ultimately what gave her the strength to stand up to the bullies. It was a fist pump moment but I wish there was more to see of the positive changes in Ju Kyung than what was shown. And there was much left to be desired in the bullies meeting their comeuppance.

Anyhow, the majority of the drama was certainly a fun ride and a mood lifter. This was in every respect a romantic comedy because the romance had me laughing and feeling the butterflies all at the same time. It had one of the most interesting love triangles I've ever seen (and I typically hate love triangles); I felt Ju Kyung’s chemistry with both boys. But not in the way you think, in that, it's clear who the heroine likes and who she will end up with (deserving and more on that later). Instead, it's simply that the second lead, Seo Jun (Hwang In Yeop), contributed to the story in a way that was wonderfully interwoven into the main plot; he wasn't just there to spur the story for the leads. Ju Kyung and Seo Jun's interactions were just as interesting and uniquely comical. Also, why is it that when your parents are friends, you instantly become friends? Any gap would close so quickly whenever you're thrust into such a situation that you don't even know what hit you. And this is exactly what happened to the two of them, as their moms turned out to be friends. Ju Kyung went from feeling intimidated by this bad boy from school she barely knew to comfortably teasing him that she'd tell on him to his mom, ha. And then this delinquent, of course, developed a huge crush on her; it was an absolute delight to watch (roar!). And I’ve gotta say, if you can rock a mullet, that’s an achievement in and of itself. The man is HOT. But then he had to go and completely capture us with his heart of gold too. I recalled spotting Hwang In Yeop for the first time in Nokdu Flower as a quiet assassin and thinking he was intriguing then. Well, he is simply amazing here. I look forward to more roles from him. And that voice!

Having said all that though, and I may be in the minority here but, I am team Su Ho (Cha Eun Woo) all the way. And I say this not as a fan of Cha Eun Woo. This was actually my first drama in which he starred in, and I am well aware of the fact that he is famous for his looks just as much as his lack of talent. But, honestly, I thought he was decent here as an actor. Of course, comparatively, Moon Ga Young and Hwang In Yeop were a step ahead, but overall, there wasn’t much to complain about. As bland as he may have been, there was no denying his attractiveness in a conventional way. Su Ho was a complete jerk (actually, all the boys were) in the beginning but then he fell for Ju Kyung first, in all her pimply glory. It's really cute. In one instance, he says that he doesn't see a difference between Ju Kyung with makeup and without makeup. He said it without much fanfare, as if it was a matter of fact; it made it all the more convincing and sincere. As much as I like Seo Jun, I was a solid team Su Ho in that respect. Ju Kyung was at her worse, or her truest self, when she was with him and that's whom he fell for. He was there for her from beginning to end (except for that short noble idiocy right before the end, which I chose to forget because I liked the drama too much to be so critical about it). He was the only one who had seen her barefaced, fed her food when hungry, shared hobbies like their mutual interest in horror comic books, tried to make her feel better when upset, protected her, etc. It's all super adorable and he's pretty swoony while doing all of it. It was even better once he confessed; he was understanding, patient, attentive, devoted. In short, he was the perfect boyfriend. They managed to do what a good number of dramas could not, and that was, to keep their relationship compelling, even after they started dating. They were simply adorable together. Ju Kyung was such a klutz around him. Second-hand embarrassment is strong here but it was so funny that in the end, I found myself thinking her bumbling adorable more than anything else. There were many scenes where I had to pause, squealing and screaming at her to just STOP because in that split second you figured out exactly what she was about to do that was bound to be uber mortifying, like when she told Su Ho to LET GO, thinking he had stopped her from leaving when it was just her shirt caught in the door. Or that time she sat on his shoulder. Omg, I busted my gut laughing. This girl, I'm telling you.

Admittedly, the comedy bordered on over the top at times, filled with antics and slapstick humor. But the truly funny, literally laugh-out-loud parts significantly outweighed the exaggerations, so I tolerated it. And even then, it didn't make me want to skip scenes.

This was certainly not a perfect drama. It started out refreshingly different but ended up predictable. Even so, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. So much happened in each episode that words would not do justice to convey how entertaining this show was. You'll miss out on all the fun if you're merely reading about it so just go watch it.

Leggi di Più