Happiness (2021)

Estoy decepcionada, esperaba mucho mas de este drama pero solo vi 3 capítulos y me costo mucho de lo lenta y aburrida que me resulto, a pesar de que me gustan los actores, en lo personal no sentía química absoluta entre los dos, los personajes principales son planos, sin expresiones, irreales, la forma que actúan a pesar de ver lo que esta sucediendo es absurda ¿Quién esta tan tranquilo ante algo así? entendería si uno de los dos lo estuviera porque es su personalidad ¿pero los dos?, la trama se me hace muy conveniente para los protagonistas como si fuesen super héroes que son mas hábiles y fuertes que los demás amo la temática zombie porque es movido, rápido, sabes que esperas ver, pero esto es demasiado lento y la forma en que manejan todo el asunto de las infecciones no es realista por ningún lado.

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Which character are you in Happiness?

I started watching HAPPINESS for Park Hyung-sik. This is his comeback drama right off his military service. I've always found him adorable in Do Bong Soon and Suits. My go-to music video is his version of True Colors for the OST of Trolls with Lee Sung-kyung. (Watch here: https://youtu.be/mLmioSZk5-0 )

I'm not a zombie apocalypse genre fan. I never watched Kingdom nor Sweet Home and I unknowingly watched Train to Busan in the theater without knowing its zombie plot (because Gong Yoo).

But this series makes it to my top 3 for 2021, making it to my immortal favorites list Goblin, It's Ok not to be Ok, Hotel Del Luna, It's Ok that's Love, Beauty Inside and Full House. It's nothing at all like that cheesy CLOY or that sweet to the bones DoTS, or that fluffy romance Hometown Cha Cha Cha.

HAPPINESS is a 12-part series that explores humanity post covid times, while the world gets broken by yet another kind of virus. I love how the writers have exposed different levels of evil in all forms, how desperate times transform people into monsters or bring out kindness, how kabits will always be kabits, how the prodigal son is always welcomed home by his parents, how sibling love overcomes sibling hatred, how money really means nothing in this world, how fake people live fake lives, how mistrust in the government is seeded, how it proves that private companies with massive funding really run the world, and how a home is really based on family, loyalty and love.

Watch it not for the gore, nor the cinematography. I won't rate it much based on those. There ain't much romance and definitely not much skinship and intimacy. But watch it for the characterizations and reflect upon yourselves which character you transform into when we are all at the worst and most desperate of situations.

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This is the larger-scale version of sweet home. ( or should I say smaller version??)

This is the larger-scale version of sweet home. ( or should I say smaller version??) - why did I say this?? Cuz the apartment complex is larger but then the spread of the virus is less.

Han Hyo Joo, way to go queen!! Her acting just leveled up!! Love her so much. And the chemistry between her and Park Hyung Sik!! *hearts* *hearts*

Sheesh, my poor heart tho. I made sure to watch this in the daytime, cuz I don't usually like watching horror. Yess I'm a big girl but horror?? No- No

well, the Happiness in the whole thing comes in the last 5 minutes of the very last episode. So hang in there. (haha)

P.S - It took me 16 episodes to realize that the female Lieutenant in the story is the second female lead in "Tomorrow with you" *chuckles*

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Quite chill and easy-going amidst the danger, sprinkled with bits of romance

This isn’t your usual zombie apocalypse. Not so much on the plot but on the overall vibe and tone.

Our leads are capable, level-headed, and work great as a team. They complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Their partnership is rooted in trust and years of friendship.

The show’s length works very well in fleshing-out the story and various characters’ motivations (as opposed to 2-hour movies) but it’s also short enough that viewers don’t get exhausted with the twists (compared to the usual 16-episode kdrama length).

I’d say this is one of those few shows where the stars in the sky actually aligned and all the elements that make a show work, works.

There are no weak links in the actors and the characters they play. The plot is familiar yet compelling from the start and it shines because it's written tightly with a dose of freshness . The director's vision, pacing and overall production values match the story well.

All these together culminate into 12 hours of awesome. Highly recommended.

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One of the best in 2021

I loved it. I really liked the chemistry between both actors and the entire cast did a great job. I was abit hesitant with the first two eps but since it has such a great opening sequence, i continued and things only got better and better each coming episode. The only thing that didn't let me give it a 10/10 was that it needed a couple more episodes to have proper closure for all the characters but it was overall one of the best kdramas this year and great action, thriller and romance combo. I'm def going to rewatch it as well

SPOILER
Some things were left unanswered, mostly about the whole infection) in my opinion but if you're not too nitpicky, you're going to enjoy it for what it is.

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Why you should watch this drama?

For the first time, I have watched a movie/ drama that has zombiesque, blood-sucking monsters who have been infected due to a virus (called the mad-people disease). This is a perfect drama for those who love fantasy and apocalyptic novels, dramas, books and movies. I won't go into the details of how and what the story is all about the summary available on the website is enough to give some idea as to how the story will unveil, there may be things and events that you cannot deduce from the summary which is why I would say even if you are someone who doesn't like watching genre of this sort.

I too personally am not a fan of horror but still, I wanted to give this drama a shot, mostly because I like Han Hyo Joo. At first, when the drama was airing I only watched a single episode and didn't think much before quitting it, it was a little too much for me especially the fact that it was a drama that had zombies in it. When I started watching this drama again just to kill time and also to try out a different genre than what I usually like I will say I got completely hooked on this drama, the plot, the characters and how well each actor played their role. I wasn't able to stop myself from thinking about the next and next episode I wasn't able to sleep peacefully until I completely watched this drama. Definitely, there are some gory details here but they are way less scary when compared to other zombie movies/ dramas that have been released so far.

You will get to know a little bit more about how humans are by nature after you watch this drama. I personally thought that this drama was a perfect representation of human beings. And I really hope that if you take up this drama and will like it as much as I myself have liked it.

Thank you for reading.

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Solid watch, great leads

I think there are three major things this show is focused on: the leads, the dynamic between the residents of the apartment complex, the ethical questions in treating a "zombie" disease.

The leads are excellent. They have great chemistry and are both such unique, well-developed characters. Not only do they have awesome romantic tension, they also just work really well together on-screen in all their scenes. Whether they are holding hands, standing silently with their arms folded, fighting zombies or going to bed, you really feel like these two people are a team. I love how the writers side-stepped a lot of the usual pitfalls while still using tropes, too. They communicated with each other, protected each other and trusted each other, from beginning to end. You love to see it. The tension derives from how and when they choose to profess their romantic love, not a question of whether they love each other romantically.

The dynamic between the residents did get tiresome for me. I found the selfish and back-stabbing characters got old fairly quickly, and I wished they'd had some more gruesome losses at some point, just to shake things up. I also would have loved to see one of them redeem themselves. I feel like the rich lady would have been a great candidate for that. I also wish that they had done one bigger, more intense mission. I felt like the turning on of emergency power could have been longer and more high-stakes.

The concept of the zombies being treated with empathy, and of ethics of killing them was also interesting. I liked that these zombies went through periods of "thirst" (more like vampires getting out of control), which made the question of mindlessly killing them more complex. You were always reminded that they were human beings.

I have a few other quibbles: I felt like the happy ending/cure was rushed; I was frustrated that she decided to go back for the male lead rather than give up her antibodies --- what if she IS the only person in the world who can cure it? You could save him faster??; and I felt like there was some issues with the logistics of their forced quarantine. Overall, nothing too major, but keeping me from ranking this higher.

Overall, worth the watch!

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Are monsters human or Humans monster?

This show focuses more on human nature than other mainstream Zombie flicks. So it can be rightfully concluded that, Monsters are not the main focus here.
Nobody has faced an zombie apocalypse but we did face quarantine, keeping that into account, we can't expect the whole story to be loophole free.
But trust me the story keeps getting better. You don't know how a character will react as we don't know anything about them.
As the story only takes place over a span of two weeks, don't delve expecting a load of character arcs but just focus on the present.
But what kept it going was the awesome performance of the cast. *standing ovation*
There was immense chemistry and not much romance to keep us focused on the plot. But whatever much was served, was totally delicious.
Not a rewatcher but i would rewatch for some of the immense lead couple's badassness.

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Perfect candidate for the ultimate favorite drama

This drama has basically everything you want. Romance, action, "deep philosophy" (with all that betraying and emotional stuff), and to top it all off, one of the best, if not the best looking main leads.

At first, it was slightly tough to get through the story due to their goodheartedness (it was to the point of being foolishness). Stupidly brave and "naive" main leads (for the lack of a better word) were always a pain for me, but im glad i stuck around. After episode 6, it got a lot better and the characters just improved a whole lot.

The other lead, Han Tae Sook was also a damn good character, even if they didnt give him that much screentime. Rational and not hotheaded, but stil humane enough that you would be able to sympathise and like him.

The characters in this drama is just 11/10, maybe could have had a little more romance, but really couldnt ask for anything better.

Music wasnt that prevalent, at least i dont have a strong recollection of there being much music with significant effect in the improtant scenes. The OST is pretty good though, helps with making the emotional vibe of the series.

Main leads themselves wouldve gotten a 8.5/10 at least from me, but with all the extra bits stitched in between, it really makes the series one of the best ive ever seen.

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The story itself is promising. This is supposed to be my cup of the since I love zombie drama. With the hype and stellar reviews, it didn't live up to my expectation. I can even say wth with the praises? it started well but fell flat at the end. The casts.. Han Hyo Joo's acting is not my favorite and also she is supposed to be bad ass. But when she and Park Hyung Sik's character need to be strict, they went soft. Hence, so much unnecessary problems arose. At the end almost the rest of the cast just went cuckoo (for wealth, for power, etc.) and this is seems like lazy writing and an easy way out to me. The problem is so serious, yet, just days after the government applied the Martial Law, the outside world immediately resumes normal activities like no one bites each other before without proper explanation. How can you sure you already contained all the infected, and not assuming there are still infected to pretends to be normal lurking in the shadows? Even during covid, we are still in at least two weeks lockdown. When the armies catching the crazies from Building 101, the supposed to be infected from Next after they supposed to be dead, act like they are not having the urge to drink blood from healthy people while at the beginning, people got infected way easier and could going crazy almost immediately. However, it is quite entertaining if you can forgo all those things, thus I gave it 8.5

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I love it

But there are just way too many idiots and selfish characters in this drama. My goodness. The FL has zero impulse control, which makes me wonder who hired her for a law enforcement job because those people need to be fired and blacklisted. 6 episodes in and the idiocy of some of the residents is almost unbearable. Seriously, how stupid can a person be?! This drama is pretty much a reflection of what some countries are dealing with in regards to idiots and the covid-19 pandemic. Many people are only concerned about themselves, what they want, and couldn’t care less about the next person. Like the resident rep, some people are more concerned with maintaining their status than being an actual good person. Like the lawyer, some are more concerned with making money than breathing. Like, seriously! People are turning into zombies. What is he going to spend money on? This may be the end of the world as he knows it but I guess he gotta make that paper! Smh. The vlogger, omg, the vlogger. What a selfish little brat. That man is such a bum. Don’t even get me started on the doctor. That man is the scum of the scum of the earth. All of that being said, I am hooked on this drama. It’s action packed and the storyline keeps me on my toes. I love it but many of the characters are insufferable. Had I been in this situation and witnessed all of those brats, I would have escaped with the only other 3-4 people with half a sense and let the zombies take the rest of those idiots.

Post completion edit: Every episode, my eyes were wide open! 10/10 superb drama. Very well written and produced.

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