the story was nothing amazing, it's the usual love triangle, evil friend, bullying scenario. but that wouldn't be such a problem if the strong message about self love and acceptance they strived to spread was conveyed in the right way !

i think true beauty completely missed the mark on that. the subplot about jukyung's journey to accepting herself and her appearance, as well as getting empowered was totally hidden by the love triangle and futile fights. i wish they empasized this a lot more,, the arguments that were supposed to show jukyung's path to having a good self esteem were not compelling enough, kind of sloppy and misleading. moreover, the sad second lead trope was pushed too far, making seojun feel very miserable. and do not let me start on the lousy last episodes,,,

but true beauty also has good sides, it's really well produced, the sets and colors were very pleasing to the eye, the actors did a great job. the supporting actors were adorable too. i really enjoyed the side loveline which was extremely refreshing !

if you want a sweet, cliché, high school love triangle (bad boy + intelligent leads), this will be perfect for you! but do not expect a lot of depth and strong messages!