Family (2023)

I liked Family: the Unbreakable Bond

Overall I found this drama silly but entertaining. Granted I couldn’t figure out who the good guys were and just knew from the top.

The family was heartwarming most of the time.

I was Surprised as Do Hoon was that Yu Ra was a sniper also.

Heartbreaking that a government can so callously and coldly use children as if the end justifies the means when they killed them.

Of course, it goes without saying that Jang Hyuk is one of my favorite actors and I have enjoyed every drama that he’s costarred in with Jang Na Ra. Although there’s not any romantic chemistry between them I enjoy watching them together.

I wish Cha Tae Hyun had more scenes. I have to watch episode 1 again because he is that funny.

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My confidence in this drama shattered in the end

I was thrilled at the news of Jang Hyuk and Jang Nara working back together again. No questions asked about their chemistry with a number of dramas they have paired already in the past that I all enjoyed watching.

With this recently concluded drama, I could hardly praise it watching the first six episodes. I have issues such as:
1. The comedy aspect wasn’t funny at all.
2. The story was short of bits of conflict to kick off my curiosity.
3. They have gone beyond the limits of standards in the area of showing the kid’s romance. The idea was acceptable, nevertheless, they could have done it in a way the child’s innocence was still there.

The remaining episodes turned out quite interesting with the back story of Jang Nara and how they found out their connections to each other who were all once belong to the original “Union”. The rooftop scene of the couple where they both spotted each other as snipers was a momentous scene to reckon with. I did have a good laugh with the “earthquake” excuse that Jang Hyuk used to mislead his father’s suspicion as to why their house looked like a rumble has just happened. I was amazed to see again Jang Nara being cool, tough, holding guns, and fighting despite her soft looks just the same as when I saw her in “Sell Your Haunted House”. And then the little girl became a darling in the rest of the episodes. You will love the warm conversations between her and the character of Taegu.

The story depicting an ordinary family with the two main members endangering them due to their undisclosed jobs did not fully showcase the depth of what each member can do to hold the family together and unbreakable as what the title implied. The ending was ambiguous, it seemed like there should be a follow-up season. Additionally, I felt bad for how lame the character of Taegu was made here. He received extensive training at a young age to be a special agent and was supposed to be one showing a strong, decisive, and sharp-minded person but he was easily traced, wounded, and always caught off-guard by his opponents. I’m sorry to say but his role was like a nuisance and can actually be omitted.

It was also a pain in the heart and how it was told in this drama that working for the government as a special intelligence agent was not an honorable job at all because your life could easily be discarded and ended serving as the sacrificial lamb.

In conclusion, after stating my likes and don’t likes, I find it not entirely a flop but a frustration for the Jang-Jang team-up comeback project.

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I really liked it

I was skeptical about watching this after reading many negative reviews. But I gave it a try after watching a few scenes on YT and Insta, Overall I enjoyed watching it.

positives:
- Comedy is its main plus point, 80% of the scenes are very enjoyable.
- Actors did a great job, even the supporting character's acting was really good, so i was able to enjoy all scenes not only main leads scenes. mainly that kid did a great job.
- I don't like tragedy kind of scenes, i usually skip them (cuz our real life is anyways messed up why make it more sad by watching fictional sad scenes..lol) but here even emotional scenes will end up making you laugh cuz they added humor there as well haha..so I didnt have to skip those scenes.
- I really liked how they didnt complicate things after knowing the truth, that went smoothly, I liked it, cuz that was more realistic, both wife and husband hid stuff from each other, they had their own reasons and when both got to know the truth they understood and respected those reasons, unlike other shows where no matter what reason usually leads dont use their brains to put them in their partner's shoes and think about why they had to hide stuff, obviously if your past was dark and it brings nothing good to anyone but can make things worse, especially when you want to start a new life. thats common sense but most people dont understand it, all their think or care about is 'she hid this from me, so she betrayed me, i cant trust her anymore' even though they claim to 'love' them they cant think about their partner's feelings and the reason why they had to take that step, and forget everything he/she did for them and all happy moments and go to 'i hate you' mode for no reason, that pisses me off. but in this show ML never misunderstood her, he always stood by her side and protected her, accepting her past with open arms..I really liked that.

negatives:
- Some episodes were boring, attacking and stuff, cuz this show was more of a comedy and the mystery side was weak even though the past they showed of FL was interesting but it didn't have much impact on the present storyline, of course, her childhood villains did come back trying to threaten her into completing tasks but it wasnt a big thing cuz FL was just one of such people they were after, and just using them to kill few people..and it was like they introduced 3-4 chracters and all were trying to kill each other without the others knowing it..if it made any sense.... anyways, what am saying is this part of the story was kind of weak and boring.

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Amazingly Absurd/Strangely Realistic

This project is helped by experienced actors and competent technical staff, but weakened by being a story with excellent setups but too little time to pay them off.

Among the things to appreciate in the story is the character interactions, the comedy which I found to be cringe and still ended up amused. Talented actors playing their roles pretty well and since it's a comedy you can expect more of the absurd to slap you on the face.

The strongest elements of the story came in the initial part, taking the form of a slice of life and the struggles of a father, in an unconventional job he can't speak much about, unable to balance both his home and work life. This is creating great strain to him and his family even though it's a family full of love.

The plot is weakened by an overarching thread that doesn't have the details and development that worked well with the slice of life elements. This I think for some will be a turn off. The mystery elements in the story didn't quite support the overall plot.

Thematically what I appreciate the most in this work is it's treatment of family life and marriage. In particular a modern marriage with all the flaws that make divorce almost inevitable without some extreme measures; and how meeting the needs of both involves lots of negotiation and sacrifices on the part of both; and the extent both the man and woman must push for each other to protect the relationship, even if it entails putting trust at risk. This is paralleled with the interactions with the extended family. Contrasting family as tied together by blood, friendship and/or marriage.

How many lies do we tell our loved ones? How do they affect our friendships and relationships with each other? What effect does it have in our relationships with each other? What does it take to stay together despite the many mistakes that we make?

As for it's examination of marriage and what it takes to make it work is quite poignant, considering drama explorations of marriage tend to be quite simplistic. For the marriage to survive and work out it involves making serious choices. Same is to be said when it comes to being a parent. Being a sibling. Being a child. Be it we are orphans who suffered exploitation and abuse at the hands of the authorities in our lives affecting how we have relationships with others; or grown up in a loving close knit family forced to take employment than traumatizes and warps your personality.

It is why I praise the actors while lamenting the overarching plot. The setup for too long for the type of climax we were being given, that I wonder if it would have been better to sacrifice it and have it as more episodic stories with the family's absurd shenanigans. True such a thing would get old real quick but it would be tempered by the growth each of the characters learning their lessons and overcoming their weaknesses as they suffer through the consequences of their actions.

Music and cinema work is excellent. Competent action and stunts. Music that works excellently with the story. Themes that explore the most important relationships we have in life. So the only things that hurt the show is plot and re-watch ability.

I'd give it an 8. Settings and Characters are not cliche though might seem to be at first. Explores a wide variety of themes really important to explore given the social issues of our age due to the breakdown of social institutions and public trust and it's impact on family and work life. Great visuals and costumes. Competent Action, drama and Comedy. Which would have benefited more from more time and care given to the characters and their development.

The set up should have been shorter or the story made longer with less repetition. Not bad story for a family to set up discussions about these issues, and the things we sweep under the rug. That element I think counts in favor.

This show is not for binging. It's more useful for family members to have honest conversations about the choices they are making and how they affect each other.

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I had mixed feelings after watching the first three episodes of this Korean drama series. I had high expectations based on the plot summary, hoping for a thrilling storyline like "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" or "Flower of Evil." However, the show took a different direction that didn't match my initial expectations.

One thing that made me uncomfortable was how the series portrayed child romance, which felt inappropriate and disturbing. This aspect detracted from the overall viewing experience and raised ethical concerns, which might not sit well with many viewers.

However, it's important to remember that everyone's perspective is subjective, and the series may resonate differently with others. While it didn't meet my expectations, "Family: The Unbreakable Bond" might have unique elements that appeal to a different audience.

In conclusion, my initial excitement for the series was not met due to deviations from my expectations and the uncomfortable portrayal of child romance. However, I understand that opinions on TV series can vary, and the show might have redeeming qualities that I haven't explored further. Ultimately, it's up to individual viewers to decide if the series aligns with their preferences and values.

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Korean dramas are starting to wan for me. I haven't found a drama without giving it bad ratings or just plain dropping it. This is stemming from me trying to avoid rom-coms which Korea has more than I can stomach. It's because of that the reason why I've hit a Korean drama slump. I haven't been able to find anything good since last September!!!

This drama as always started off strong. But then each episode after that drags on about this dysfunctional family's lives. The only interesting thing about this drama was the two little kids. They were fun to watch but they had to have the little girl act like a love sick puppy which was adorable to some point.

The MML & MFL didn't bring much to this drama. I like the MFL in Sell Your Haunted House. I could watch that drama over and over. Even though I dropped this drama I don't know if she fights in this drama.

This drama does heavily focus on the family bond hence the title but it just dragged on and on about the husband sneaking off once every episode and assassinating someone. He and his wife always trying to conceive but keep failing. Then the wife's I hate you moments...Then out of the blue the MFL is the culprit of trying to undo what her husband is trying to accomplish. I stopped watching after that. I found myself just skimming through each episode and realizing I wasn't missing anything.

I told myself that I was going finish watching this series after I reset my brain from watching each ad nauseam episode but I haven't been back to watch it. I think I stopped after episode 6...I'm not sure. I usually wait till episode 5 to determine if I should finish or not. I tried to make it but I guess it's not going to work out... Just like the rest of the dramas I've been lucking out on.

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I can't take it anymore!!!

I was surprised to see such a low rating for a Jang Nara Kdrama and a fun plot summary. Since I have Disney Hotstar I thought I could give this a try despite the low rating and I absolutely regret it! I regret wasting 2 hrs of my life on this drama.
The story could have been interesting if it wasn't for the so called Comedy element of this drama that was more frustrating than comedic.
I don't like the Male Main Character (not the actor's fault of course) and I don't like the sub plots. I just can't stomach this drama anymore.
This isn't a comedy I can enjoy! ever!

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you can have fun with the series, but come with moderate expectations

I saw one episode that was interesting, which means it was not disappointing
Their husband and wife relationship is also cool, only their daughter is a bit annoying sometimes
And that kiss sequence between two first grade kids is too early in my opinion. If they were at least 13 years old, I wouldn't have said anything.
But the way you said in the comment, wow, these two kids are kissing, I thought, Oh, what kind of kiss you want to go, but it wasn't to the point of pecking, but still it's not suitable for a 6/7 year old child.
It causes premature puberty and other things that I have nothing to do with and it has nothing to do with me

My last word is that you can have fun with the series, but come with moderate expectations

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Disappointed

I tried so hard to like this show. I like Jang Na Ra, I like Jang Hyuk, and I like spy/thriller/action. I even like comedy. What I can't stand are family shows (the 50 or 100 episoder type). I thought I could tolerate the little kids altho I'm not usually a fan, but the daughter was cute enough. However, after 4 episodes, I am throwing in the towel because there are just too many better shows out there (Black Knight, Good Bad Mom, True to Love) which I love far more than Jang Hyuk and Jang Na Ra's chemistry.

As usual, this show was trying to be too many things, often a fault with underperforming shows. To me, the greatest fault was in emphasising the family drama angle. It was cute in the first episode but soon got tiresome by the second episode. While the spy/thriller angle was there in the background, it was never interesting enough for me to want to know more or to get to the bottom of the overarching mystery (there was none).

It tried to be a Mr and Mrs Smith remake, and if it had the same spy pacing as that movie, maybe it could have worked. Right now however, I'd rather watch spy-thriller only dramas than this mixed genre. Maybe I will come back to this one day when I have nothing else better to watch because I have Disney subscription anyway. But for now, it will languish in my list of dropped shows.

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