Lovestruck in the City (2020)

Had me lovestruck watching this!

I have to be honest. I would have never watched this K-drama. The cover and the title didn't pique my interest, but I ended up watching this due to my boredom and desire to explore. Well, you've probably heard the saying, "Never judge a book by its cover". That's how I feel about this K-drama, to me, it's a hidden gem, and I hope more people will fall in love with it just as much as I did.

The story is unique, it has multiple love stories, but they are all connected to some extent. It delves into many aspects of love, including the ability to love oneself and others. To be honest, I don't think I've ever sobbed so much over a drama before. Love is truly complicated.

The acting was great. I might sound weird saying this, but I feel like some actors carry a vulnerable, sad vibe, and they happen to be amazing at acting out those feelings. They selected such a talented group of people, in my opinion, to portray emotions that some people could find difficult to express or comprehend.

The music was.. different, I can't put it in other words. It had many unique songs, and they were played at the right time, which captured the moment perfectly. It made the scenes feel real, as if I wasn't just a watcher but there with them. It made me connect with the feelings they felt. Which is fascinating!

Have you ever watched a K-drama that was boring? In my opinion, Lovestruck in the City was the opposite of boring, it was entertaining. I never got bored watching this. Oftentimes, K-dramas include long, pointless scenes. You've probably come across scenes like.. the main lead staring into the ocean for 5 minutes with no lines and no emotion, which is pointless! But this one had me captivated, I was so interested in how the story would progress.

What stuck with me the most was the light-a-candle scene, it's my favorite. Where the best friend Rin-yi gave comforting words and encouragement to Eun Oh. It melted my heart. And it made me realize that we all need a friend like her in our lives.

It would've been a 10 for me if the last two episodes were different. I feel like they (Rin-yi and Kyung Joon) shouldn't have broken up, and we didn't need a new relationship involved. I hoped that they would focus on the main couples. It was a bit out of character, I was taken back during the last episode, where we suddenly got a new couple, and that mainly brought down my enjoyment.

I usually don't write reviews because I'm not a master of literature and I don't have the sort of fluency a writer does. But I felt like writing a review. You know... I only write reviews of K-dramas if they impact me a lot. They have carved out a space in my heart, and I want to express my feelings about it to everyone who reads this. Even though I might not be great at it, I hope that someone finds this useful. If someone is reading the reviews and is unsure if they will like this, I suggest you try watching the starter episodes. If you don't like it, you can immediately switch it off. And if you end up liking it, then that would be amazing! :)

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READ THIS IF YOU'RE UNCERTAIN ON WATCHING THIS DRAMA OR NOT

I think the drama brings out a new type of genre/story for K-Drama, after asking around, a lot of people dropped drama due to the "weirdness" of how the story of the drama unfolds (most of them dropped the drama in the second episode).

A lot of people aren't ready with this kind of concept yet in a drama, they expected this drama to be like another simple lovely love story. the love story in this drama is the closest thing to reality.

People are confused with the interview IN the drama, and since the drama has approximately 30min/episode, they find it hard to understand (for the on-going viewers). but after I suggest them to keep watching, they started to understand how the story goes, appreciating the uniqueness of the drama, and they ended up loving the drama. so if you want to understand how the drama goes, just keep watching, and I promise you, you will end up loving it.

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Heartbreak in the City

Likes
1. The Yangyang scenes were the best. It really made us feel Jaewon and Eunoh's summer romance. Plus the cameos of Lee Sang Woo and Lee Sang Yoon.
2. Ji Chang Wook as Jaewon is whiny and mopey but so cute. How can Eunoh break up with a great guy like Jaewon??
3. Every episode is only 30 mins so it's an easy watch, otherwise i would have dropped this earlier.
4. Great OST! I wish they release the OST with a photobook/poster.

Dislikes
1. Hard to really like a drama when you dont like more than half of the cast. I only liked Jaewon and Gyeongjun. I didnt like the 3 friends, and definitely disliked Sunyoung.
2. Eunoh was horrible. And this drama dragged the whole story about why Eunoh wont tell Jaewon what happened to her. It was so frustrating. I think the better ending was for Jaewon to accept the breakup and find another girl and Eunoh will regret everything she did.
3. The second couple wasnt any better. Rini was a pain and i cant believe she broke up with Gyeongjun and not the other way around. I think Gyeongjun was patient and supported her while she was too selfish.
4. Didnt really care about Geon and Sunyoung. They could not be in the story and it still wouldn't matter.
5. They said there's a possibility of season 2 with Minho's story but i think unless they come up with a better story and better cast, i wouldnt bother watching.

Rating: 7

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This drama is related, show us the complexity of feeling/mind from different POV

Lemme tell you first that I just happened to watch this drama because of Kim Jiwon is forever my bias, but after watched all 16 episodes, this is my honest review.

For the very first eps (about 1-5 eps), I had to agree that the story was kinda slow, and a bit hard to understand to the point some peeps dropped it or called it boring. But then, I remembered that this drama was just about 30 minutes for each eps which was only worth 2 eps of normal kdrama for its 5 first eps. And imo, it's too early to judge whether it's good or not. So, I decided to keep watching.

Surprisingly since ep 8, I'm hooked. I started to love the concept of IV format of each episode that told us different topic from any perspective (POV). It made me realise the complexity of human's feeling/mind.
It brings a vibe such as 'you'll never know how it feels, because you don't stand on his/her shoes'.

In summary, imo this drama is simple & fresh to be watched, yet it's related & show us different perspective about life, love & relationship.
And since it's already finished, better give a try to watch ya!

Kudos to nice storyline, great chemistry, great acting, great OST, great production, and all factor's involved!!

Definitely will rewatch!!

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Had potential

I gave it a 7 bc it was original, funny and focused on many ppl but didn't live up to its potential.
What I liked:
1.amazing photography
2.originality (interviews and flashbacks)
3.FUNNY
4.JCW ofc. He proved how talented he is w all the emotional scenes and not just in action dramas
5.The other couples and friendships were very cute and funny
6.it was fast paced and pretty entertaining
What I didn't like:
1.The FL. I hated her and her reasons for what she did made it even worse. She is extremely selfish and is Drowning in self pity, hurting those closest to her and leaving the guy she married without Context behind bc 'she is too ordinary and her ex cheated'???! This just gives me 'I was abused/oppressed, so I can do it to others' vibes
2.some episodes were just there as a filler so I think 12 eps would have been enough
3.Rini. In the beginning she looked sweet and all and in the end she broke up w her bf just bc he was worried about her? And yes it's her life and she can choose to do whatever she wants but she kept secrets from her bf and then expects him to know what happend without telling him... Idk
4.the friends. When eun o told them the truth they were mad she didn't tell them not that she did smth no one should do. They knew how Jae won nearly became an alcoholic and they were still like I'm so mad why didn't u tell me.
5. Jae won became just pathetic w no self-respect or dignity? I expected more from him and I don't think Eun O deserves him. AT ALL

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Waste of Time

To be honest, one of the worst kdrama ever watched ! The story is very dull and undeveloped with no real ending.
I can understand that the drama is trying to focus on relationship and how it should be handled but with that it lose the purpose of being a drama and become more as educated.

I must admit that some parts it was great and made me want to know what would happen on next episodes but i found my self skipping alot later on as nothing is presented and things are goring with useless circle

Anyway i find it not worth watching at all nor i do recommend anyone to do if you are looking for Love story

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Fun and Frustration of Dating and Relationships!

This is a fantastic series that attempts to put things into perspective regarding dating and relationships. Anyone who has dated or been in any kind of a relationship will almost surely find himself/herself relating to one or more of the six characters (three men and three women).

The series is mostly light and humorous with some occasional serious tones. Fortunately, the series is so deftly told that it easily transitions from "comedy" to "drama" without batting an eye.

As anyone knows, dating and relationships can be fun and exciting when they begin, but soon grow into frustration and turmoil the longer they go on. As one character points out, "Relationships are like wars. Easy to start. Difficult to end."

The series is filmed like "The Office" in which a small documentary team follows the characters around and asking questions such as, "Is it possible to have a positive break-up?" or "What does the word "first" mean to you?" The answers are often compelling as well as humorous.

The characters begin to realize some deep truths regarding relationships. Most people enter them to prevent lonelines or because they don't like themselves, and they expect someone else to fill in the "gaps" and "holes" that they feel are dotting the landscape of their lives. Of course, entering into relationships for these reasons means that the relationship is already doomed to fail. Why? Because unless you love your Self first, you cannot possibly share what you do not have with someone else. And the other person soon realizes how unfair it is to be pressured into being the sole source of happiness for someone else.

To be in a relationship means to accept your partner as they are. Eun Oh Lee makes a truly provocative and wise request to Jae Won. "Can you accept me for who I am? I'm a mess, and I have a long way to go before I find myself." Acceptance and awareness of dysfunction is probably the ultimate key to having a successful relationship. After all, relationships aren't about filling gaps and holes. They are about sharing. And ultimate sharing cannot be experienced until absolute vulnerability is attained.

The series is masterfully done, and the actors expertly handle their characters like prime jockeys handling their horses. They bring tears and laughter to a subject that has befuddled nearly every person in every culture since the beginning of time.

My favorite scene is Rin-Yi standing up for herself after her boyfriend basically tells her how he's ashamed of how she lives her life. Shame has no place in any relationship. Don't let people use "shame" to tell you how to live your life. The only real shame they feel is for themselves.

I have seen more and more of these types of series coming out of Korea where the writers are virtually crying out, "Let people be who they are! Stop trying to control everyone and everything!"

Along with the characters, you'll likely find yourself sharing in their laughter, fun, and frustration as Korea continues to churn out the best shows in the world, in my opinion.

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A drama that deserved more hype

I watch multiple kdramas at one time, but Lovestruck wasn't in my radar at all last year. I was busy watching super-hyped dramas like Mr Queen, Start-up, True Beauty, Run On, Uncanny Counter and then Vincenzo all at the same time while Lovestruck was running. I feel it's a drama that has suffered from poor timing and sheer bad luck as the other dramas were so over-the-top brilliant and successful!

This is a fantastic love story and deserved so much more hype, good ratings and reviews! It's probably in my top 10 romance dramas of all time (not just kdramas).

In summary, it's a feel-good drama with a modern urban setting and fantastic visuals. It's well-suited to the Netflix generation of slow, modern romcoms that explore realistic relationships. It seems to be better suited to a western audience than an audience expecting the structure and tropes of kdramas though. JCW is fantastic as always, but I absolutely detested FL's selfish behaviour. Despite that, the beach scenes, the cinematography, the romance, the openness of conversations, the music, etc make it a worthwhile watch. I might just take up surfing thanks to the series. It certainly deserves a higher score than it has on MDL!

PS: Check out the song "Kiss me" by Isaac Hong. So good!

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This show is great and horrible at the same time. Must watch but must also understand why it is bad.

It's gonna be a long one so please - read everything to understand my point of view.

First of all, this is the second drama where my favourite actor Ji Chang Wook plays a very nice dude - a man who is honest, friendly, fair towards everyone (Suspicious Partner being the first such a show) but as a "reward", he's betrayed by a woman he loves and by his closest friends. You read it right - it looks like a fluffy, pure, supporting, slice of life friendship but LITERALLY all of them are assholes and all have betrayed him a couple of times. First time - they betrayed him by being 100% passive, not believing him, pretending that they were doing something when they did nothing while they saw his suffering for a whole year - this is the first time - such people are not real friends. They should have listened to him, talked to him, helped him getting over his los or help him figuring out what really happened. The second time when they betrayed him is not as obvious but it is even worse - basically - after the big "reveal" from our FL culprit (somewhere around 14-15 episode), they should kick her ass and punish her for her behavior - not forgive her, not stupidly comfort her nor support her like we see here. Especially, since throughout the whole show, they seemed to criticize the "camera thief" when they did not know her identity yet. After getting to know - boom - magically she's ok, they support her because she "had her reasons"... It is a total bullshit. By doing what they did - being passive towards the only good guy here who does not betray anyone (all the rest had their stupid moments and they screwed up with their own relationships while the ML was totally pure throug the whole show), then comforting and accepting the stupid but more important - CRUEL! - behavior of the FL culprit - they betray both the ML and they show that they do not have any dignity nor any self-awareness about themselves. A truth is that a friend sometimes needs to punish another, scold another, not forgive another to teach a proper lesson. That is what true friends are also for. Friendship is worth anything if you can lose it due to your stupidity. If everything may be always forgiven, if friends will not scold you for being an asshole - those are not friends and this is not friendship. FL used her friends and used their mutual friend whose hart she had broken. She should have been punished by the real friends - real friends of her - not even him. The real friends should not forgive her, should take the ML's side and punish her heavily for what she's done. Here it's even worse because the friends are actually mutual - connected through another relationship. I've been in a similar situation where one of partners in my friends' couple behaved like shit and I fucking scolded him like hell, broke contact with him even though I did not personally know the girl he was with - it was my girl's friend - I still could understand who was wrong here and I did not want to support such an asshole even if he was my friend back then. But let's concentrate on the main heroes of the drama story.

The ML loved the FL but not only that. He was for her in her worst hour, he helped her, he saved her from depression and from breaking apart. She left him WITHOUT ANY REASON - just a stupid, ungrateful - you know who. She had a couple of chances to make things right, to repent for that and to solve things - but no. She was a coward - that's true. That may be something hard to overcome. Ok, I get that. But this man literally saved her in all the possible senses, she behaved as wrong as possible and she was mentally stable enough to open up a company, to live her life for such a long time, to use her friends after understanding their relationship with the man she betrayed. She changed to a better, stronger person because of the ML and there was literally no reason for her to not try and make things right. The worst part is however, that she was totally cruel. Not only wrong but cruel towards the ML. It was cruel, very cruel. He gave her everything, she gave him suffering in the worst way possible, then escaped any responsibility and still happily used their mutual friends to be her own support. How do you call that? Is there even a proper word?

Then our masochistic ML. There's literally not reason for him to forgive her. There's no reason why he suddenly starts working to rebuild it (again - he does it on his own, it's all his work in the end!). She did nothing. She did nothing to rebuild it. She was just forgiven and rewarded with a love she did not deserve but THAT IS THE WORST STUFF IN THIS WHOLE SHOW - SHE DID NOTHING TO REGAIN IT! IT WAS ALL DONE BY A ML WHO HAD NO REASONS TO DO IT!

Such a decision just kills a great potential of the scenario. The premise seems great. The general idea, the relationships, the characters themselves - totally ideal for a great drama. It might have had a lot of things - real friendship, happy ending, real love, a lesson of how to screw up things and then repent for them, work hard to finally make them right. It didn't happen. Nothing of this great potential has been actually brought into life. It was destroyed - by a stupid plot, stupid characters' decisions, no guts, no positive message.

In the end, it wraps up the negative behaviors in a package of a beautiful, true friendship and forgiveness. This is bullshit.

At the same time, the premise is so great and the technical part of this show is great. The idea stays too good to waste by not watching it but you should have all the terrible things listed by me in mind.

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Realistic love story in a refreshing format

1. Ji Chang Wook’s plortrayal of Park Jae Won was over the top. He displayed such a wide range of emotions in every episode that made me appreciate him even more as an actor.

2. His chemistry with Kim Ji Won , the lead actress was incredible ❤️
3. The story is told in interview format which was very different from any KDrama I have ever watched.
4. I have watched this twice and will watch it again! It was that good!
5. The OST is fabulous. Listen to Kiss me Kiss me by Issac Hong. It’s on you tube. It really pulls you in to the sweet passion of our lead couple.

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Unexpectedly became one of my favorites

This drama was absolutely magical. I loved how ridiculous yet normal and realistic it was, and I’m so incredibly happy for Ji Chang Wook, who had 2 pretty disappointing dramas before this one. The beginning was quite slow for my liking, but by the middle of the drama, I was absolutely hooked and waited impatiently for each new episode to come out. The acting of all the characters was absolutely phenomenal, and I honestly can’t think of any bad thing to say about this drama. The flow of the plot was wonderful, and each story progressed beautifully - not too rushed but also not too slow. The only reason I can’t give this drama a 10 is because I’m very greedy with my 10-star ratings, and I can’t pick out anything exceptionally phenomenal about this drama to deserve the full 10 stars. This has definitely been an absolutely wonderful experience nonetheless, and I would absolutely recommend watching this to anyone. Lovestruck in the city had one of the sweetest, most satisfying endings of all time!

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