Anytime I find myself relating to the main character(s) of a drama on a personal, emotional, often private level, I know I'm going to end up loving a show, and this time was no exception. I was Very emotionally invested in Mi Rae's story, because I related to her Very deeply. I wanted to see her overcome her insecurities and give herself permission to live a fulfilling life, and it was so rewarding watching her open up and let others in.

What I probably enjoyed most about this drama is how subtly it dealt with it's subject matter. All throughout were these tiny moments and messages that compounded on top of each other. The story was never pushy or loud or obnoxious. It never tried to shout it's message from a rooftop. It didn't go for cliché or for 'Woman power'. It chose instead to weave a simple message into the everyday things characters said and did and felt about themselves. It created a message meant to be felt, not necessarily spoken out loud, which is where any true, genuine truth should be held and understood.

This drama is not without flaws though.

The entire finale was truthfully a letdown. While I liked a lot of how everything played out, it felt very rushed and out of order. Mi Rae and Kyung Seok get the happy ending together they deserve, but it felt a bit like the writers trying to create that 'perfect romantic ending' rather than just letting the characters be themselves. Soo Ah receives what I consider a fitting, and hopeful, redemption story that I wish could have started to unfold a little sooner as it would have helped the audience relate to her a lot better.. And I'm soooooo salty about how all of our side couples were sort of dropped by the writers at the end, because I wanted their happy endings, and we didn’t get them!!!

Ultimately, I was waiting for the drama to tie together all of the little, subtle messages it had been sending throughout the story, and that didn't happen. The focus on creating that 'perfect romantic ending' and trying to give Soo Ah an affective redemption arc took away from what was really the overall message of the drama. Beauty is subjective, and it's objectively in all of us.

(And for anyone wanting to know, yes. Cha Eun Woo is probably not the best actor, but I think his acting style worked fairly well for the character, and I didn't find it particularly distracting while watching.)

Despite my disappointment with the finale, this is still one of my favorite dramas that I've watched this year and definitely on my list of favorite dramas I've ever watched. It treats it’s characters and subject matter with thoughtful kindness, and that goes a long way in overcoming any other mistakes a drama might make. I highly recommend giving this drama a chance.