Per amore e per destino (2023)

Its Rowoon watchable for that alone. But it is also an interesting premise with a nice romance.

9/10 is my rating. This is a 2023 South Korean romantic fantasy drama with 16, ~60 minute episodes.

First I provide a unique synopsis then reviewyj

Lee Hong-jo (Jo Bo-ah) is a lonely civil servant who does not realize her life is about to get a whole lot more complicated. Jang Shin-yu (Rowoon) is a rich chaebol but also a very talented attorney. The two hVe very little reaskn to cross paths if fate was not at play in their destiny. Hing-jo finds that she must get a property demolished that Shin-yu owns and when she goes to discuss the matter with him itis dislike at first site. As the situation unfolds they discover they are linked through a 300 year old forbidden book that was sealed in a wooden box awaiting Hong-joo. The book seems to be some silly compilation of spells but Shin-yu knows too well the curse filled darker side of the book. Can the two lift the curse and unravel the mysteries of the past? Are they destined to be together?

Review

I started this immediately following having watched Rowoon in “She Will Never Know”. In that role, he was super sweet and very demonstrative with his affection. In this series he is serious, cold and aloof. The two roles are night and day and yet Rowoon plays them equally well showing he has exceptional acting talent. It is hard to rate anything he is in very low because he is a very handsome and talented actor.

The paranormal, quasi magical back story adds a very interesting element.

Overall I liked it and it ends happy with major plot elements resolved. I recommend it for those that like reincarnation, cold male lead who falls hard for the girl, revenge in bullies and heart warming romance. I might rewatch it some time in the future.

Spoilers*
They seemed to build a lot around the spells and spell book early in the story but then it had no great validity later on. Did the spells work or not? It was like they were going to go that direction then changed their mind.

There were several people that existed in their past life that reappeared in this one with no clear reason why they were around her in the current life. Like her psycho stalker, he was in her past life. Did that have anything to do with his obsession with her in the present? Like Kwon Jae-kyung (Ha Jun) her downstairs neighbor, he drove the incident leading to her death in the past life, in this life he is a romantic interest. Why?

The bloody red hand he had a lot of episodes with that happening early on then he just did not. Even before the curse was broken he quit having the red hand episodes. It would have been better if the characters had talked about it.

He was so dopily in love with her in the beginning supposedly because of the spell. Later when it seemed it was not a spell at all there was no real explanation then for his earlier behavior. It was out of character for him.

I liked when Hong jo finally stood up to her bully Yoon Na-yeon (Yura). I wish though Shin yu discovered more how his ex girlfriend had treated Hing jo back n their younger days. He broke up with her for cheating but I felt like he never fully understood just how awful she was. He stayed in that relationship way longer than it seemed he should almost as if he was reluctant to let go. And never stood up to his dad to say look you are being harsh with my current girlfriend but look who you picked.

For some reason there was this focus on a second couple’s romance to the extent they showed their wedding near the end of the series. Which would not have been odd except they did not show a wedding with the lead couple.

#DestinedWithYou
#Rowoon
#JoBoAh
#Yura
#HaJun

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More romance than fantasy

I expected this to be a fantasy romance similar to Tale of the Nine Tailed (also starring Jo Boah), but was a bit disappointed in the lack of fantasy elements! The plot revolves around Hongjo (Boah) who is given a spellbook from Shinyu (Rowoon) and decides to use the love spell to make her work crush fall in love with her. Naturally, things go wrong. Meanwhile, Shinyu desperately needs her to cast a spell to cure his disease that is seemingly incurable, and worsening. After the first few episodes though, these fantasy elements seem to be totally lost! While past lives and family history get brought up, I thought there would be a lot more going on with the spells/generational curse/etc. than there was.

Watch for the romance and it's a fantastic show. Rowoon and Boah have great chemistry as the main couple and are super fun to watch. But if you wanted to watch this for the fantasy elements, they're not there in much capacity when compared with other fantasy romances.

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I'm a sucker for a good romance and chemistry.

This was just so cute!

Idc about the stalker, the past lives, the curse, the witchcraft/shamanism…this drama as a ROMANCE alone EATS.

Rowoon is like a proper romance leading man (which was a welcomed surprise as the last and only thing I’d seen him in -to completion- was Extraordinary You, years ago and he was just a babee).

The chemistry, the longing, the denying, the kisses, the looks are all a 10/10

The way this man speaks about his feelings is honestly what sold this drama for me.

I believe that he loves her with his everything and the prospect of her not loving him back or wanting him would absolutely break him.

I do think they should’ve landed on one solid antagonist or genre tho. We’ve got a stalker, crazy ex-girlfriend, and a past life/curse threatening to keep them apart. Is it a fantasy, romcom, or thriller?

Because there are so many things to keep up with, everything feels like it’s happening in the background.

You start the drama thinking the illness/curse is the biggest issue needing fixing and the intrigue of it draws you in, but you soon forget it as it fades into the back.

In comes the stalker and he does take over our mind for a bit but then he starts sharing screen-time with the weight of their past life and I honestly started to wonder if either of these things even really matters.

We should’ve just scrapped all of this and made it a romcom fully. The romance is what carries this drama

or at the very least, make the weight of the curse/past life setup something that mattered.

I mean it’s literally the synopsis, how could it have become a footnote in the story?

This is a great drama if you want a swoony romance to give you the fuzzies with a twinge of thriller. If you’re looking for a real fantasy drama, I might suggest you look elsewhere.

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Netflix's Top 10 TV Global Non-English seven weeks aired on JTBC Aug 23, 2023 - Oct 12, 2023

This review will not assess cinematography, mise-en-scene, lighting, diegetic etc.

Destined With You (This is irresistible Love) 2023

Director: Nam Ki Hoon (Tunnel 1987) (Kiss Sixth Sense 2022)

Screenwriter: Noh Ji Sul (100 Days My Prince 2018)

Main Actors: Jo Bo Ah as Lee Hong Jo/Aeng Cho (Female lead Onju Civil Servant)
Rowoon as Jang Shin Yu/Jang Mu Jin (Lawyer)
Ha Joon Kwon as Kwon Jae Kyung Advisor to Mayor (Second Male lead)
Yura as Yoon Na Yeon (Mayor's daughter, decorator, ex-Girlfriend to Shin Yu


Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Comedy

This is a love story encompassing three hundred years that requires you to suspend logic because Shamanism, Karma, Curses, past lives and reincarnation must be accepted.

This drama uses non linear storytelling, flashbacks that DON'T fill in all the blanks.

You will be left with questions because the screenwriter, director purposely allowed the audience to develop their own theories of what happened and what will unfold.


If you lack patience, need to interrupt the story at every turn, this isn't for you.


Surrender yourself to this drama; get lost in the beautiful love story between Hong Jo and Shin Yu, you won't be disappointed.



The Princess Bride (1987)
Grandpa to his Grandson stop interrupting me.

Destined With You reminds me of Secret Garden (2010)

Recommend the OST



Lighten up Francis

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A Light Yet Entertaining Rom-Com

First of all, watch this without any expectations.

I find this drama super enjoyable and fun to watch. Although there are parts of it that I'm not fond of but overall the story is engaging and make me want to keep on watching.
I know there's a lot of negativity towards the drama or the actors, but for me, the casts were perfect fit for their roles and the story was interesting enough for me to keep watching it despite my busy schedule (I really watched super late some days).

Ok first of all, Rowoon's acting really improved a lot, I probably love his acting here in this drama and will be my favourite. As he act as "Jang Sin Yu", I sometimes almost mistake it as his own character in real life (that's how impressive his acting to me is). He sure is not only just handsome and tall but his acting is on point. Hope he will keep improving as his acting career soars.

Well.. there's a lot of hate towards Jo Bo Ah acting. However, I don't really agree to it. For me, her acting is always good and on point. I've watched several of her dramas and movies and she did deliver and portrayed her characters very well. I will always root for her in dramas. Her acting as "Lee Hong Jo" was a great one (compare to her last drama where she played a tough character).

Of course, the one acting as villains were as good as the main one to the point I started to hate them every time they showed up on screen (LOL).
All the side characters were great as well. They were cute, funny, sometimes annoying but always fun to see them on screen.
Therefore, I think the producer and writer did really well casting all the actors & actresses befitting all the characters they portrayed. Good Job!!!

Story line, well how to I put it, its easy to follow not as complicated as it sounds. For me the story was very engaging and kept me on edge towards new eps.

In the end, it's back to your own preferences. As for me, I always try to watch several episodes before deciding whether to continue or not without being biased towards the comments. (There were some dramas that disappoint me that I either dropped it or hate it after finish watching it).

Oh one more thing, that all the of CGI they used here are very cool (especially the bloody hand that sometimes appears, it did gave me the creeps).

I do hope you will enjoy this drama as much as I do. Try watching a couple of eps and decide then.
Hope this review will help you . ^^

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Ooof I wish I never touched this drama

Alright, this isn't the WORST drama ever but, I try to pick my dramas carefully so I don't waste my time but unfortunately , this just wasn't a good choice. There isn't really many things to like about this drama honestly. I didn't like the female lead, and besides his outstanding good looks, I didn't like the male lead very much either. And I know the drama is called "destined with you" but come onnnn, I thought they would at least fall in love for reasons other than destiny. I just didn't find their love line believable and I found it so annoying that the male lead would just not break up with his girlfriend, out of "loyalty". But cheating was okay? So confusing and irritating. Also this female lead...my goodness, it really was like watching a damsel in distress of 16 EPISODES. Even when she let herself become bait, like that was the best you could do? Anyways moving on from those two, the office people were INSUFFERABLE. I hated those two girls, and they literally added nothing but negativity and horribleness to the story. I could have definitely done without them. OOH! And of course I couldn't forget about Sin Yu's Dad!! He was absolutely horrible too and clearly a terrible judge in character. I don't know why they just insisted on making him a blockage for all things good for our male lead along with a verbally abusive husband. But yeah, he just added onto the list of things making this drama a chore to watch. The only character I liked in this story was Jae Kyung, and even then its not like the bar was too hard for him to clear.
Whelp I'm glad I'm finally done with this drama, so I hope I can move onto a much better drama. Bye for now!

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The chemistry is UNDENIABLE

It's all worth it because of Rowoon and Jo Bo-ah. They were amazing, a joy to the eyes both charming and beautiful made the story work even if the story itself was weaker in comparison.

Acting/Cast:
It's all about the amazing Rowoon and Jo Bo-ah. The end.

Music:
Great music >>>>>>> Park Won (박원) - It's You <<<<<<<<<<3

Story:
Could have been better. I dont like stalker concepts but the back story taking as through the protagonists' past life together was amazing. Never seen beaten up people look more beautiful on screen (joke) <3 No one liked the female lead's coworkers lets be honest. And why did she have to live in that neighborhood? And what is up with the psychic grandmotheer is she for them of against them. Also no reason to base have a love story on a love spell actually ended up making the audiance confused about the male lead's true feelings. Bad script indeed.

Rewatch Value: Yes. For the chemistry between Rowoon and Jo Bo-ah!

Over and out <3

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DON’T TAKE IT PERSONALLY ITS JUST MY OPINION!!!

Sry but I watched it for rowoon only , the chemistry between the main leads wasn’t as expected . The support characters was more interesting , funny and sometimes annoying . I honestly deeply hated the 2coworkers of the fl i took it personally are they even friends omg i thought i will see any growth as the show goes on but nuhhh even until the last ep when the fl asked them to get closer and improve their friendship and invited them over they refused saying the hot guy in the first floor moved out and agreed when she agreed to bring her bf over OMG i don’t think the writers have any real friends at all . It was okey at first in the first few ep they treated her trushly I thought its okey its for the plot and to show us the growth in their friendship with the fl (that’s what I expected) but even in the last ep they’re still the Same .

The fl personality pissed my off the first 5 eps . She does improve but not that much there was massive plot holes and wired story lines sometimes the lines between the main leads was sooooooooo cringe it literally gives me the ick . The story about the past life wasn’t bad but the ml was the crown prince or smth like that whyyyyyy he was sooo weak he couldn’t do anything for his love . He killed her so they can’t or smth , what’s the pointtt of killing her whyyy she really suffered alot for him while he was watching. She almost died infront of him and he just watched with no tears .

The curse was nonsense (the past life fl ) once said who kill her his all generation will die in a young age until the hole generations of this family comes to an end . The ml’s father isn’t cursed why??? Why only the ml suffered from the curse or illness

As I said b4 the drama was a 16 ep long advertisement for both Samsung and Tiffany&co . Like in the scene the fl fell into the hole she passed out but the samsung phone survived it 😂 and many other scenes where the phone is the only one survives , the tiffany bracelet and the samsung phones had more screen time than the support characters

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Too drawn out

November 2023
I know this has been really popular and just about everyone loves Rowoon (including me), with Jo Bo-ah having lots of fans too, but... I really struggled with it. Sorry for the negtive review, to those who loved it and perhaps read this.

Unusually for me, a big bugbear was the irritating incidental/background music. Once it irked me, I couldn't zone it out.

The main characters around Hong-jo and Shin-yu, were mostly horrible....

From just awful work colleagues (apart from HJ's team Manager, Eun-young), to Shin-yu's father (so unkind about his mother's intelligence), and a delusional girlfriend; all very unlikeable.

I was also not keen on either lead character. One never took control, strung people along and was frankly, weak. The other was mouthy with one character and yet almost weak around all others.

A few tropes I really don't like, such as the father disliking their off-spring's chosen partner, just because they have no parents and are a 'nobody'; and the usual delusional girlfriend. Done. To. Death.

Apart from that, so many scenes were waaaaay too drawn out and slow, full of long stares and bizarre silent phone calls (where one calls other and then says NOTHING... what is all that about!)

HJ's female co-workers are completely bat poop and also delusional... I didn't find them funny at all ~ really not good writing. One in particular was thoroughly unlikeable.

I often found scenes childish and ridiculous; I mean, a Parks worker with no vehicle, no appropriate equipment/clothing, yet often expected to deal with situations for which they are totally unprepared. Like having to wipe up blood, but not having anything to do so with! Or someone with a suspected stalker, going to remote places alone. Eye rolling.

The story also didn't flow. Scenes felt jerky and disjointed, almost like segments stuck together, at times. The MC can regularly be found randomly standing on a beach, for no apparent reason, just gazing into one another's eyes.

Utterly ridiculous plot lines. Especially around the worst example of promiscuity ever, which just because someone is dating, is apparently openly talking with a man, even though there's a space between them (ie, not cuddled up).

There's also an appalling scene with an octopus, too, that really upset me. Totally unacceptable to me, I'm afraid (and 'culture' doesn't cut it, in a developed country that should know better by now). It wasn't even necessary. Hope to God it wasn't real ~ I'm honestly not sure.

There were scenes filmed in the same location as See You In My 19th Life (Mujinjeong Pavilion, with 'falling petal' fireworks), that actually felt like they almost mirrored that part of the other drama. It felt too similar and really distracted me.

So disappointing and I'd looked forward to this drama, too.

The cast weren't a problem, but actually the drama's saving grace. However, apart from some of the historical scenes, the story was just not for me.

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