Once Upon a Cliche

Love Joy and Choo Yeong-woo but not really this show. It's not unwatchable, but I found myself tuning out most of the time and didn't really feel the characters. The cast did okay in their roles, although it was difficult to really feel the relationship between the leads since it was very cliche. I feel like almost every scene in this show is a cliche.

I can see the similarities between this show and Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, although I don't think either of them are a copy of the other, just happen to have similar plots and characters. This show is definitely not as good as Hometown though. The story is average and progresses how you'd expect a cheesy countryside rom-com to play out. I'm usually okay with seeing some cringey, cliche scenes in dramas but there were a few scenes in this show where I physically cringed and rolled my eyes (like the scene where the peaches fall on top of Ahn Jae-young and Han Ji-yul shields her).

The side characters and townsfolk were kind of annoying, especially the loud and aggressive women who were constantly fighting and screaming at each other. I'm not a fan of love triangles, and this show has one of the most annoying love triangles I've seen in a while. I can't really see how anyone could have 2nd male lead syndrome for this show, as Lee Sang-hyeon frustrated me to no end and I constantly found myself tuning out whenever he was on screen. No hate towards the actor, but his character was incredibly annoying. Typical 2nd ML who does nothing but chase after the FL, but he does so by being blatantly passive-aggressive and rude towards the ML for no reason at all other than that the FL might be interested in him. The whole jealous 2nd ML and ML thing was overly played out, and there were points in the show where the FL and ML wouldn't be able to interact with each other for almost the entire episode, only to have the 2nd ML swoop in every chance he could get. There were also so many instances when the FL and ML would finally get a chance to talk with each other and progress their relationship, and then some cliche interruption happens that disrupts everything just to drag it on further (like a phone ringing, someone calling one of them over, etc.)

Some people may find this show enjoyable, especially if you're not picky with good plots or well-established characters. If you're looking for something simple to put on in the background or to waste time then maybe this show is for you. I was literally watching as the credits started playing on the last episode and was like "wait... is this the last episode?" The conclusion wasn't completely satisfying and caught me off guard.

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Cheesy Fanfiction Loaded with Fanservice and a Side of Time Travel

I was really excited to watch this show after hearing all the great things about it. It seemed liked everyone was talking about it like it was up there with Queen of Tears, so maybe I had my expectations set too high to begin with because I was rather disappointed with how it turned out. The show isn't entirely bad, but it's very lacking.

I thought the overall tone of the show was fun. There were some funny moments and cute interactions between the leads, but most of it is overshadowed by the poor writing and lack of character development. The cast did good in their roles, though there is a bit of overacting that I suppose kind of fits with the quirky vibe but does seem out of place sometimes. First time seeing Byeon Woo Seok in a leading role like this, so I was excited to see how he does. I think he did good considering the poorly written character he had to play, but some of the overacting bits and exaggerated comedic expressions were a little awkward to watch. I do like how Seon Jae was not your usual cold and lifeless ML that we see a lot of in K-dramas, and he had a bit of a fun personality which was refreshing. Kim Hye Yoon did good as well, but I do agree with others that say her character could be a little annoying at times. The rest of the side characters were kind of just there to be there. They didn't really add much to the story, and I kind of wished the writers would have given a little more screentime to delve into the complexities around time travel and how that can impact relationships in Im Sol's life (something that Twinkling Watermelon did great on). Maybe more focus could have been on Seon Jae's depression and how Im Sol tries to help him through it (like the show "Seasons of Blossom"). The lack of character development for any of the characters, especially the leads, made the emotional aspect of the show suffer. I didn't really feel connected to any of the characters, so it just kind of felt like the writers were trying really hard to make me feel emotional and invested when I was anything but. Everything just seemed very surface level, like they had the potential to dive in way deeper when it comes to time travel and attempting to save a loved one by going back to the past, but instead they focused more on cliche fanfiction-like romance to make hearts flutter. But at the end of the day, even those heart-fluttery moments didn't really feel real or genuine since there was very little character to feel connected with and I wasn't even emotionally invested in their relationship. The time traveling was confusing at times and didn't really make sense. I wasn't a fan of how they kept switching between time periods and basically "resetting" everything multiple times. It got repetitive very quickly and the push-and-pull with the FL got boring.

The villain was kind of a joke. I still don't really understand what the point of him was, and I feel like the writers really tried to squeeze by hoping that no one would notice how poorly written his character is. He didn't seem all that threatening to me, especially when the script was rather predictable and I could tell based on the numerous dramas I've seen with similar villains that it was going to end up playing out the same way. He was just a crazy bad guy who was only there to progress the story when needed and add some conflict here and there. Every time he showed up on screen with his one bad eye I was like "oh great, I forgot about this guy".

I wasn't familiar with Lee Seung Hyub before this show, but he was surprisingly a breath of fresh air. He added that bit of comic relief while also not being too obnoxious or annoying. Im Geum and Hyun Joo were kind of funny and cute sometimes, but mostly just annoying and were clearly there to add comic relief. This wasn't really necessary since the show itself has enough comedic moments.

Then there's the love triangle with Kim Tae Sung. I read that his character was actually written specifically for the show and wasn't in the original. It seems like most people love him, but I felt more annoyed than anything else. His character was also not developed well at all, and he seemed kind of pointless until the last few episodes. He would just show up every now and then to add cheesy fanservice and jealous ML scenes. The dialogue in his scenes felt especially cliche to me when looking at it from a writing perspective. Like it's painfully obvious it was just fanservice most of the time, and of course they had to have the FL's past self be in love with the 2ML, while the present day FL is in love with the ML. Both Seon Jae and Tae Sung are constantly fighting for Im Sol's attention and love (more rivalry fanservice incoming), but both have very little character outside of this and this continues until basically the very last episode. It's hard to see how you could have 2ML syndrome when his character isn't at all interesting and very underdeveloped, added with the fact that he only has a few scenes here and there and doesn't really contribute much until the very end.

Sorry if my review seemed all over the place (I was really just typing whatever came to mind). Overall, if you're looking for a cheesy cliche rom-com that isn't necessarily groundbreaking but just as an easy watch, then this show could be for you. If you're looking for more of a complex story and deeper connections with its characters, then you might want to look elsewhere.

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Had to watch at x2 speed because of the script

This show was very hard to get through, even at x2 speed. The acting isn't bad and the cast did good in their roles, it's just the script that is so lacking. When it comes down to it, the show is basically just three guys simping after the girls the entire show, while the girls just keep them wrapped around their fingers with the help from the clearly biased writers. 95% of the show consists of some form of misunderstanding or unnecessary drama that causes the female characters to become upset with the male characters, only to have the male characters try and chase after them and win them over for the next 3 episodes, and then it just repeats. You get maybe a few minutes of brief happiness and cute moments in their relationships, only to have another misunderstanding and lack of communication happen that causes the girls to become upset again. If you can get past the 95% of conflict in every relationship in this show (especially the two leads), then I guess the remaining 5% is somewhat enjoyable. Unfortunately, the conflict and drama lasts up until the very last few episodes, so at that point you basically have to suffer through the FL being mad at the ML for the entire show.

I think part of it is that the show is definitely catered more towards a specific audience that just enjoys seeing handsome guys chase after the girls in a show, and care less about a good script or balanced characters. Most of the male characters in this show are written so poorly, while others are just evil, corrupt, sexist, or harassers. The ML, Xin Qi, was especially done dirty by the writers. His character had barely any character outside of his heart condition and simping for the FL. Even his heart condition was put on the backburner in order to focus more on the "jealous" boyfriend moments and making him act like a child for the majority of the show in order to win over the FL. I swear I barely ever saw him actually working, he was just pursuing the FL the entire time, whether it was to get with her or to see his child. I can't even count how many times the writers pulled the "jealous" boyfriend card and had Xin Qi following the FL as she met up with countless guys that were only written in to create these jealous BF moments. And yet there is no 2FL or love rival to Min Hui (unless you count the childhood friend who died, but she's only in the show through flashbacks). I wish they had given Xin Qi more to his role besides pursuing Min Hui.

The side characters aren't much better either. Some of the conflicts were written so poorly that I cringed. Cao Mu wanting to break up with Jia Jun just because he was planning on proposing to her made very little sense. If she truly cared for him, why wouldn't she try talking it out first and working things out? Why immediately try breaking things off? At one point, Min Hui got so upset with Xin Qi because he "didn't trust her", even though he told her that he just wanted to find out the truth about what happened to his childhood friend. This happened literally in the same scene where he finally confessed to her and it looked like they were going to finally get together, all because of the cliche "plot-twist" connecting all the leads together (I'm trying not to spoil too much, so forgive the generalizations). Min Hui then proceeds to stay mad at Xin Qi for multiple episodes, all while Xin Qi spends the entire time trying to apologize and make it up to her, even though he's not entirely in the wrong either. If anything, Min Hui also didn't trust Xin Qi enough to tell him about his child or the events that happened in the past, and she also lied to him about pretending to be his dead childhood friend. She also treats him like dirt for the majority of the show, and the writers also seem to use Xin Qi as sort of a "punching bag" when it came to embarrassing himself, acting like a child, being constantly rejected but still pursuing, and always being in the wrong even when he wasn't.

To sum it all up, Xin Qi was too childish and there was no push and pull to the lead relationship because he was just simping the entire time, Min Hui was too angry the majority of the show and didn't let anyone explain themselves (only leading to further misunderstandings). There were so many moments when she would eavesdrop on others talking about her and would only hear the negative things said, and then walk away right when they start talking about the positive things about her, leading to yet another misunderstanding that isn't even resolved well. Cao Mu and Chen Jia Jun were admittingly cute together despite the age gap, and it was refreshing to see them together when there was so much conflict between the ML & FL, however Cao Mu did not treat Jia Jun very nicely at times, and Jia Jun was just another Xin Qi in that his whole world revolved around his love and nothing else mattered. The love triangle with Zhou Ru Ji was unnecessary and just made misunderstandings even more painful to watch, and his relationship with Zi Zhu was not very interesting or cute. Of course, the "evil" characters are obviously evil, so I don't need to talk about disliking them because they were meant to be disliked (just obvious sexists and harassers). I did really like the kid who played the son (Quan Quan). He was a good actor for his age and did well in his role, although he was that stereotypical kid role that you see in many of these dramas, where he's just way too smart for his age. I will say that the character Cindy was one of the only characters that I didn't really have a problem with. She was just fun and had a good personality.

Started off watching at normal speed, then bumped it up to 1.5x, and then found myself watching at x2 speed nearing the end because it was so repetitive. Maybe if you don't care for well thought out scripts or balanced characters, then you'll enjoy the show. Maybe if you just want to watch handsome guys simp after the girls for 28 episodes then you'll like it. I guess it just wasn't my cup of tea. Thanks for reading to the end if you made it this far!

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The Mediocre

Was very excited for this show after seeing the trailer since Chae Soobin is one of my favorite actresses. Of course Minho caught my interest as well! In the end, the show is mediocre and the plot is not that interesting, and with only 8 episodes and quite a large cast, it just fails to deliver any real emotion or characters with depth.

Like the characters had the potential to be interesting, but I feel like trying to fit this many character storylines and conflicts into one 8 ep series didn’t work. Found myself wishing they spent a bit more time on the ML and FL relationship instead of some of the other storylines in order to at least make their relationship more impactful.

That being said, the main relationship didn’t work for me. Soobin and Minho had potential for great chemistry, but the writing and plot progression ruined it for them. The FL starting off the show by cheating on her then boyfriend was kinda weird to be honest, and her trying to play it off so non-chalantly was even weirder (not really setup for a likeable FL). I feel like they were trying to go for a more ‘mature’ feel to the show by doing this. The ML spends the entirety of the show chasing after the FL even after being brutally rejected. This didn’t really make sense to me, and it really hurt the emotional aspect of their relationship and the eventual payoff at the end when the FL is supposed to realize her feelings for the ML because there was no push and pull. It was just the ML simping for the FL the whole time, even when he’s rejected he just shrugs it off by claiming it’s more fun to be rejected at first or something? They could’ve at least spent more time after the rejection to show how bad it made him feel, and maybe make him avoid the FL for a bit just to give the opportunity for the FL to realize her feelings? I just feel like the whole ML being so persistent the entire show didn’t make for a compelling buildup to the relationship. The stakes felt very one sided. Meanwhile the FL spends a good portion of the show being depressed because there are two (at one point three) guys chasing after her.

FL’s character was rather shallow and kinda annoying at times. Cheating on her then boyfriend with her ex, lying about it, constantly rejecting the ML while getting back together with her other ex while at the same time having feelings for the ML. She then dumps her boyfriend and like five minutes later ends up getting together with the ML? Just didn’t seem right to me, the timing is all off. Also the ML has very little character to begin with. He literally spends the entire show chasing after the FL and doing everything she asks, but when it comes down to it, he had nothing else to his character except for his feelings for her. He’s supposed to be a photographer, but that’s barely shown or addressed throughout the show, and even the side characters had more individual character development than the ML. Feel like they could’ve done a lot more with the ML’s character and backstory, and maybe given him something more other than the FL to drive his character.

Side characters were okay and fun. Joseph was entertaining and a fun character, as well as the model friend. Some of the scenes, especially the conclusions near the end were very cliche and wrapped up a little too nicely to be realistic, but oh well it is just a show. Minkyu’s character was a little annoying at first because he seemed kinda forced into the plot and his eccentric personality didn’t seem very realistic, but he gets a little better throughout the show, although I do think his character wasn’t really necessary.

You could probably skip this show and not miss out on much. But some people may find it enjoyable enough, especially if you don’t care as much about deep character development or relationships. It’s a rather short series so if you’re debating on watching it you might as well give it a try!

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I wanted to like it

I might be in the minority here, but I really struggled to finish this drama. The overwhelmingly positive reviews made me go into this show with high expectations, but also made me even more disappointed in the end. Not everything is bad, but there are way too many parts that frustrated me to watch or was just plain boring.

The casting was good. All the actors and actresses played their roles well (no hate towards any of them). The visuals were great and the show itself was filmed in a visually stunning way (although dark and bland sometimes). As with most shows that I'm not a fan of, the problems mostly lie in the writing and execution. This drama is long, taking into account parts 1 and 2, with some episodes being over an hour long. This wouldn't be a problem if the show actually kept my interest the entire time, but there were so many scenes that were just dragged out for way too long, and so many repetitive situations. The two leads going back and forth arguing with each other became extremely repetitive and annoying very quickly. Gil Chae's character was not very likeable for the majority of the show (especially at the beginning), and the way she treated Jang Hyun in the first half was frustrating to watch to say the least. She would constantly blame him for things, badmouth him, and was just plain rude. So many times Jang Hyun would help her or save her life, and all of this would go unnoticed. He would fight and hurt himself in the process, only for very little acknowledgement and little payoff in the end (in fact, Gil Chae would often get upset with him instead). Gil Chae being "in love" with Yeon Jun in the first half was so frustrating to watch. So many times I thought she would finally come to her senses and move on from this unhealthy relationship with Yeon Jun, only for her to fall right back in to blindly chasing after his affection even though he's already in a relationship with her best friend. It didn't help that Yeon Jun was incredibly annoying for most of the show, especially when he admitted to having some feelings for Gil Chae while also seeing Eun Ae.

Side characters were okay, although boring at times and helped to drag out the story for way too long. Ryang Eum's dynamic with Jang Hyun was interesting and not something that you see often in these types of shows. Gag Hwa was also a pretty interesting character, and sometimes I felt more chemistry between her and Jang Hyun than with Gil Chae. I didn't really care at all for Yeon Jun and Eun Ae's relationship (even though Eun Ae was a very good character in my opinion), as Yeon Jun was not very likeable.

The vibe of the show started off as a historical rom-com, but quickly turned very dark, violent, and moody. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I do prefer rom-coms over dark shows. The first two-ish episodes were great in my opinion, but I soon found myself wishing there was a fast-forward option to get through some of the boring scenes and repetitive dialogue. Namkoong Min, who I acknowledge is a very talented and well-respected actor, did this thing throughout the entire show where he would talk in a very slow manner. This was obviously done for dramatic effect and to increase tension in his scenes, but I found this also dragged out his scenes for much longer than they normally would have been. He would take a pause between every few words or sentences that dragged out his dialogue scenes waaay too long. I don't know if this was just me who noticed this?

The story itself became boring very quickly. I haven't seen Gone with the Wind, so I can't really make comparisons with it. The story just felt dragged out, and some parts like Jang Hyun losing his memory twice didn't really make much sense to me. The ending was okay I guess, I think I was just glad that it was finally over. The relationship between Jang Hyun and Gil Chae was cute at times, but I couldn't really feel the chemistry. Often times I wondered why they were so obsessed with each other (especially with Jang Hyun towards Gil Chae), as I felt like their relationship lacked a strong connection that made me want to see them together. The constant bickering and push&pull in the first half didn't really lead to a good build up to their relationship, and then the introduction of Gag Hwa into the story and her dynamic with Jang Hyun made it even harder to feel the connection between the main leads. I felt like most of the show Jang Hyun and Gil Chae weren't even together.

Overall, rather disappointed to say the least. You may enjoy this show if you like historical/costume & period dramas. I prefer modern-day rom-coms so maybe this show just wasn't for me.

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D.P. stands for Dumb People

Pretty good show, a little on the slower side at times, but with intriguing characters and situations. The two leads in the show do an excellent job playing their roles, and their chemistry together was one of the best parts of the show in my opinion.

Acting is great, story is good. This show will definitely make you angry, keep that in mind. There are so many characters who deserve severe punishment for how they treat others during service, but unfortunately not too many of them get what they deserve. Plenty of gruesome, humiliating, and downright infuriating bullying scenes with little payoff at the end in terms of change in behaviors or punishment for their actions. One of the things I hate the most in this world is when people think too highly of themselves and treat others poorly, and this show has a lot of that. This show is mostly just scenes of individuals who think they're better than others and abuse their power, only for the victim of the abuse to turn around and abuse the next person down the ladder. Almost like a domino effect.

Overall, a good show with a decent story and great acting. Just prepare to be very angry.

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Huge fan of Song Kang. Nevertheless,

First off, this show made me feel the same way Cheese In the Trap and Love Alarm made me feel after watching it. Sure, the cinematography, soundtrack, acting, and cast are great, but the characters and plot progression ruined it for me. I was thoroughly enjoying this show the first few episodes because I was really rooting for the two leads to end up together and work out their problems, but as the show progressed it just dug itself deeper and deeper into this hole and now, with one episode left, I really have no hope for it.

Song Kang's acting is great, but his character is terrible. I started this show because of the cast, and Song Kang is one of my favorite actors right now (as a straight male, even I think he's good looking), but this show does him literally no justice. Essentially, he's one of the "main characters" but is portrayed as a villain. Do-hyeok (another great actor) shows up through drama-line convenience in order to start a love triangle, which I did not care for at all. He's literally the total opposite of Jae-eon and is sort of forced down your throat as a loveable, innocent, and seemingly perfect childhood friend love interest whose existence seems to center around Nabi. Very little character to showcase and his personality just seems way too convenient for drama purposes as a second male lead. I shouldn't really even say second male lead, as he's basically the primary male lead at this point. Basically what happens is Jae-eon and Nabi are happy together for a second, and then some misunderstanding or doubt arises causing them to drift apart, and then Do-hyeok comes out of nowhere to kiss Nabi's wounds and Jae-eon is left on the curb looking like the bad guy of the show. I can't root for Jae-eon anymore because the show keeps making him look more and more like a jerk, and I can't root for Do-hyeok because his character is so uninteresting and has very little depth.

Again, props to the acting, but boo to the characters. The show had so many opportunities to resolve some misunderstandings between Nabi and Jae-eon if they'd just give them a single scene where they sit down and actually communicate instead of making vague comments to each other. I was basically just waiting the entire show for at least SOME of the misunderstandings to clear up, but instead they just kept adding more and literally 80% of the scenes with Jae-eon alone with Nabi was just him trying to make-out with her. There are so many side characters with their own relationships going on, and literally all of them have progressed waaay further than the two leads. All of the side character relationships have been progressing at a good pace, whereas the two lead's relationship has been going backwards since like 3 episodes in.

Even with all of this, my biggest frustration with this show is how they execute Song Kang's character. They initially made his character seem like he was going to try and change in order to be with Nabi, but instead they kept digging him deeper and deeper into this hole. Are we not going to clear up the misunderstanding that he had a girlfriend while he was seeing Nabi? There's one scene in particular where Nabi finally asks Jae-eon about him having a girlfriend, and instead of replying like any normal person would (by saying no, I don't have a girlfriend), he instead says "does that matter?" What. Why? The misunderstanding could have been cleared up right then and there.

I think I've ranted for long enough. Overall, started off good and then fell off. Lots of misunderstandings, very little communication, so many side relationships, and super convenient and depthless love triangle.

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Not perfect but still enjoyable

Fun and cute show with a good cast and somewhat interesting premise. Jo Yuri did amazing (seems like her roleplaying in IZONE payed off), and Nana was one of the highlights of the show. Story is okay, nothing groundbreaking and there are some plot points that aren’t really addressed by the end. Ending does feel a bit rushed and the resolution in terms of character relationships could have been more impactful. Acting was good overall, especially for a web drama, though there were a few scenes where the acting was a little over done and exaggerated. Han Yoo Sung was a good male lead and a very likeable character.

The main issue I had was with Ji Soo Bin. I didn’t really care for his character much during the show and he often just annoyed me in most of his scenes (and he has a lot of scenes). He was mainly just a walking self-pity party and seemed to only care about his own problems even though many of the other characters had it just as bad. Found it very hard to like his character until the very end, which made it difficult to like the relationship between him and Oh Ro Si. Kim Yoon Woo is a good actor, just his character was annoying.

Otherwise a good show! The main cast did great in their roles, and I have to give credit to Nana for doing an amazing job and being one of the highlights of the show. Jo Yuri and Yoo Young Jae as well!

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My Overly-Sweet Mobster

I pushed through but I think I regret it. A bit of an unintentionally frustrating show.

The comedy is definitely the main point of this show, despite the fact that it's not really that funny. The humor is very silly to the point of it being cringe, and many of the side characters (like the mobsters) are so obviously supposed to fill a specific comedic role, but the character development and execution is so poor that it just comes off as cringe and completely see-through when it comes to the writers' need to include every single rom-com trope. So many scenes with the side mobsters felt completely unnecessary simply because I wasn't given any real reason to care for them as characters. Sure, they were given brief backstories and introductions, but none of it felt genuine or realistic given the comedic nature of the show, so we're just left with empty surface-level characters and are still expected to care about what happens to them and their relationships with the leads.

The ML is an interesting character being a mobster and all, but is portrayed as child-like to the point that I couldn't imagine any realistic scenario where someone would be in a relationship with him and not be put off by his exaggerated reactions and fear of human contact. There’s a scene where he’s sitting on a bench next to the FL as she tries to scoot closer to him and he reacts so over-the-top to the point that he’s literally shaking out of even the thought of making physical contact. This made me completely disconnect from the romance. The FL spends too much time lingering on feelings for a boy she knew as a small child (yet another "destiny/fate" trope), which to me feels like a simple way for writers to create drama and "emotional" scenes without having to actually put in much effort, because the trope writes the narrative for them. On top of this, the ML does the typical ML thing of not being able to communicate properly which leads to misunderstandings and angry FL scenes, which ultimately leads to him having to apologize.

The FL is not much better to be honest. She’s silly just the like other characters and does not act her age, has trouble communicating like the ML and instead gets upset but doesn’t try to talk it out at first, and continuously jumps back and forth between the ML and 2ML despite “rejecting” the 2ML. Not really in a romantic way, but definitely feels off when the 2ML is already so head over heels for no reason and doesn’t know when to give up even after being rejected.

The 2ML is rather annoying, but I guess I just don’t like love triangles. It’s your typical love triangle you’ll see in like 90% of rom-com dramas. And of course his name is coincidentally the exact same name as the boy the FL has been looking for. I feel like his devotion and lowkey obsession with the FL doesn’t really make sense. We’re not really given a solid explanation as to why he’s so committed to winning her love despite being rejected. The constant jealous ML vs. 2ML scenes throughout the show got boring and annoying very quickly. Sometimes it felt like the writers were trying to find any reason or opportunity to insert the 2ML into the scene, even if the scene would have been better off without him in it. The ML even expressed in a scene with the FL that he didn’t like how she was hanging out with the 2ML all the time, yet this didn’t really change the large amount of screentime the FL & 2ML have together throughout the show. I nearly dropped the show after the scene where the FL is in danger (as usual) and the 2ML swoops in and takes the blow for her. I really didn’t want to have to sit through an entire episode where the characters have to take care of and feel guilty for the injured 2ML, especially when the ML was already going through so much with the conflict in his company. They should have focused on the ML’s conflict instead in order to give the ML & FL an opportunity to develop their relationship instead of shifting the focus on to the 2ML again. There’s also a 2FL, but she’s barely in the show and honestly doesn’t contribute much to the story or the love triangle.

The side relationship between Ju Il Yeong & Koo Mi Ho was admittingly pretty cute despite its flaws. Sometimes I felt more excited to see them together than the leads. Still not really enough to overlook the basic plot and tropes. There’s also a villain played by Im Chul Soo who does a good job in acting, but his character is so intentionally evil that I can’t really take him seriously. It seems like the writers wanted him to be a Joker type villain with all his mannerisms, even down to the “why so serious?” line in one of the episodes.

Overall, almost everything about the show just felt uninspired and recycled. Like the writers had a formula for rom-coms that worked in the past, so they decided to just switch out the characters and call it a day. The plot progression always felt like it was playing out exactly the way the writers wanted it to play out, but in an unnatural way. It’s like watching the script unfold scene by scene without any real emotion or excitement behind it. Maybe I’m just experiencing drama burn-out considering the amount of positive reviews for this show, but there are definitely plenty of flaws nonetheless.

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Visually appealing, poor writing, cringe cliches, characters with potential let down by the script

Maybe I'm just not the target demographic for these types of shows. I'm a huge fan of rom-coms and have seen a few chinese/historical shows before, but most of the time I end up dropping costume&period dramas. I stuck through to the end of this one just to see how things play out, but it was difficult.

The show itself is filmed well and looks better than most chinese dramas I've seen. I really liked the character Shao Yao (ML's sister). I think she did a fantastic job portraying her character and every scene with her felt refreshing. Even though her side romance wasn't the most developed, it still felt worth the screentime and I enjoyed the chemistry between her and Shen Huan (at times I felt I enjoyed their chemistry more than the leads). The main romance between the two leads felt okay. I think their on-screen chemistry definitely took a hit with the poor writing and cringe cliche moments, but they did their best and made it kind of work. The progression felt a little slow at first, but it wasn't too bad. Unfortunately it's hard to really feel that connection between the two when the script is so full of cliches.

It kind of seemed like the ML didn't really get that much screentime compared to the other characters. Towards the end he definitely got more scenes, but near the beginning and middle of the show I feel like I barely saw him at all. The show focuses more on the FL I suppose, but it felt weird calling him a ML at times when he just showed up for a few short scenes and then dipped for the rest of the episode. Like he would only show up to remind us that he's the ML, and then disappear again. Him and the FL didn't get as many scenes together until nearing the end, and even then it was kind of on-and-off. They would meet up, have some flirty heart-fluttering moments together, and then separate and go about their individual scenes. Kind of hurt the chemistry in my opinion.

FL is too perfect. I love the actress, so no hate towards her (or any of the actors/actresses for that matter), but I wasn't a huge fan of how they wrote her character. She was supposed to be the "not-you-average-FL", but instead they just made her completely flawless and strong to the point that there was nowhere left for her character to go. The writers couldn't find a way to develop her character because there was nothing to develop. She was forgiving, caring, responsible, everyone looked up to her, she helped others all the time, etc., so she had very little character development throughout the entire show. The ML on the other hand had some potential to be an interesting character, but he didn't get as many scenes and was kind of used as an accessory to the plot most of the time. Sometimes it seemed like he was only there to add the romance into the show but didn't really provide much outside of that despite being a commander. The whole commander plot could have been a very interesting one to pursue, but it was put on the backburner most of the time and not really utilized to its full potential.

Also, sooo many side characters. This wouldn't be bad necessarily if they were actually interesting or if I actually cared about any of them. It seemed like they introduced a new side character with their own problems every couple episodes, in which the FL has to find a way to help them. Many of the side characters over-acted a little too much at times as well. Exaggerated movements, yelling, facial expressions, etc., like that one mother character they introduced at one point (I honestly don't remember her name) who was just crying in every scene she was in. I wish they would have focused more on developing the main characters instead of introducing more side plots.

And as with most of these romance shows, there are quite a few cringe cliche moments. Ones that kind of break the immersion for me sometimes, but I suppose it just comes with the genre. I guess you can give this show a try if you think you might be part of the target demographic. If you are then you'll probably love it.

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Painfully Cliche And Poorly Written But I Still Continued Watching

There's so much I found frustrating with this show that I don't even know where to begin. Going into it I had my expectations set really low since the rating wasn't the highest, but I thought I'd give it a chance since I liked the cast. Unfortunately, the show probably deserves a lower rating than what reviews indicate. Since I can't organize my dislikes in a coherent storied way, I'll just provide a list of things I liked and didn't like instead.

What I liked:
- The cast (for the most part). Lin Xin Yi and Luo Zheng played their parts well, although the cliche scenes and poorly written story didn't make it easy for them.
- The chemistry between Xin Yi and Zheng was good (when they weren't fighting or misunderstanding), as much as the script allowed.

What I disliked:
- The story is very poorly written. Full of cliches that I physically cringed when sitting through. Characters don't really make logical decisions or communicate with one another. Kind of felt like a fanfiction story written by someone who wanted to make themselves the main character and live vicariously through Yan Xi.
- The way conflicts were handled and resolved. It seemed like every time something happened that added conflict to the story, Xi Cheng was the one who had to step up and try to fix things, whereas Yan Xi was portrayed as the victim in every situation (even when it was her fault or partially her fault). It seemed like Xi Cheng had to take responsibility for so many of the conflicts that occurred, even when he wasn't really at fault, yet the show tries to brush past it like it's normal. For example, when Yan Xi gets annoyed at Xi Cheng because she sees him interacting with his "ex" (even though they work together so it can't be avoided), so she goes out to an arcade with Fu Bo Ya and even takes him out to dinner. Then she happens to run into Xi Cheng and the "ex" eating at the same restaurant (yet another cliche), and gets so mad to the point that she storms out and Xi Cheng has to chase after her. She then proceeds to kick him in the shin and yell at him for eating with another girl, even though she's literally doing the exact same thing eating with Fu Bo Ya. At least Xi Cheng tried to draw the line between him and his "ex" early on (and acted mean/indifferent to her most of the time), whereas Yan Xi was openly friendly and hung out with Fu Bo Ya so many times, even though Xi Cheng expressed his discomfort with it. Such a large portion of the show was spent on the two leads getting jealous of each other for no good reason, and Yan Xi acting hypocritical made it so much harder to watch.
- Speaking of love triangles, this show has some of the most painfully hard-to-sit-through love triangles I have ever seen. Fu Bo Ya and Nangong Lui Li were so incredibly annoying that I actually skipped through some of their scenes (which is something I rarely do). Fu Bo Ya was conveniently everywhere all at once, and was always there to swoop in whenever one of the female characters was going through a hard time and it was so annoying. He just felt like a forced constant distraction that just slowed everything down and added unnecessary drama. Lui Li was just as annoying, but at least she was kind of supposed to be annoying for most of her screentime, whereas Bo Ya wasn't "intentionally" a nuisance until later on in the show. Bo Ya's sudden "departure" from the show near the end was so cliche and out-of-the-blue that I actually laughed a little when it happened because of how absurd it was. And why was Lui Li depicted as such a psychopath for the majority of the show? Her character went full psychotic Joker villain mode and it didn't really make sense to me.

...I'm going to try and keep the rest of these points short since I've typed too much already.

- Xi Cheng gets blamed for everything. Even when it's not entirely his fault, everyone blames him (including his grandma).
- The whole "secret" thing goes on for way too long. Yan Xi not explaining herself was so painful.
- Very cliche and unrealistic views on relationships. The scene when Situ Shuo has to box a professional boxer in order to get Lu An An's number was weird. I don't know why it was supposed to be romantic, and I don't know why she didn't stop him from getting hurt sooner.
- Xi Cheng's OCD thing didn't really play as big of a role as I thought it would. That one time Yan Xi tried to use his OCD against him because she was jealous of him eating with Liu Li was kind of messed up and just brushed off.
- Some of the acting was off at times, even with the leads (I think Lin Xin Yi did a very good job though).

I'm probably missing so much that I wanted to mention, but this review is so long already. Thanks for sitting through my complaints if you read this far!

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Maybe a waste of time? Maybe not...

Starts off strong, keeps you watching just to see what happens next but not necessarily in a "this is a really good drama" way. More like "wait... who is she going to end up with?" Keep in mind I did not watch the first season since the reviews weren't too great and I have not read the webtoon/comic it's based off of, but I decided to give this season a chance since I wanted to see Jinyoung and Kim Go-eun together. I was still able to understand and pick things up pretty quickly despite not having seen the first season.

Positives:
- The cells were interesting and mostly fun to watch, although they can be a bit "in the way" when you just want to see what happens next to Yumi and Babi. Fun to see how they visually represent emotions and feelings mostly everyone has gone through. It does make typically short scenes drag on though.
- Acting is great, whole cast played their roles well.
- Nice to see Jinyoung and Shin Ye-eun together again, even if it wasn't the best of circumstances.
- Cute moments, heart fluttering moments, funny moments, dramatic moments
- Keeps you engaged for the most part
- The soundtrack for this show is great and fits well

Negatives:
- Some scenes drag on for a while since they have to show how the cells react to the situations
- Can obviously tell it's based on a webtoon given the way things play out. Ending is a set-up for another season?
- The show makes you go through two whole seasons with two different guys, only to have both of them discarded at the end in order to set up another love interest for the next season.
- By the end of the show, Babi and Woong are still not over Yumi, yet she's already off trying to find another guy. I wish they could've at least had Babi and/or Woong move on or find another love interest. Just seems weird to go through entire seasons with these characters and their relationships only to have them tossed to the side anyway (other than being swayed for a moment, Babi was such a great guy, and Woong seemed okay too despite being kind of stalkerish and overly-obsessed with Yumi, yet neither of them get a real happy ending).
- Some unrealistic moments that scream "webtoon plot progression" and unnecessary side plots. Woong suddenly becoming successful and rich, Ruby and Control Z's sudden relationship that I didn't really care for, editor Ahn Dae-young's plotline that was admittedly funny but not really necessary.

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Predictable but still a lot of fun

I was very surprised at how good this show was. I had it on my list of shows to watch for a while, but I kept putting it off because I didn't think it would be that good. Definitely one of the better dramas I've seen in a while. The story is interesting enough to keep you hooked even though it is rather predictable (I actually enjoyed the predictability of the show, made it more of an easy watch and just pure entertainment).

The characters are fantastic, and all of the actors and actresses did a great job playing their roles. The relationships between the characters seemed very genuine and the chemistry between the lead cast was great. One of those shows with character relationships that just makes you smile. Also teared up a few times watching, there are some very emotional moments.

Overall, somewhat underrated drama with great characters and an easy-to-follow plot. If you're looking for a good drama to just watch and have fun, definitely check this one out. Excited for a season two!

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Interesting concept, though nothing groundbreaking

Was interested in the concept of the game when I decided to watch even though I'm more of a rom-com guy. Definitely an entertaining watch. The cast did a fantastic job portraying their roles. Lee Jung-jae did a great job playing his character, although it took a little getting used to his character given his personality at the beginning of the show. Heo Sung-tae did a great job as the thug guy as I wanted him to die a very gruesome death very early on. Jung Ho-yeon as Kang Sae-byeok was definitely my favorite out of all of them. Her character was intriguing and I found myself rooting for her the most.

The show focuses on the greed of individuals and the power money can have over a person. The motivations behind the creation of the game and the leaders who control it didn't really stick with me, and there really isn't any clear punishment for those running the game by the end of the show (probably setting up for a season two). A lot of gruesome deaths, annoying people making stupid choices, and some heartfelt moments where I actually teared up a few times. The game itself is rather straightforward and isn't anything particularly interesting or thrilling to watch, although it is enough to make you continue watching to see what happens next. The main "game" is really the relationships between the characters and their greed versus morality.

Overall, an fun and exciting show that's worth a watch. You may need to look past the absurdity of the game itself, as it could never happen in real life, but the show still provides entertaining situations and characters who you'll be rooting for.

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The Midnight ____ in Hagwon

Such an amazing cast let down by a mediocre-at-best script. I went in to this show with rather low expectations considering the relatively low rating, yet I was still left disappointed. It's not all bad, like I enjoyed some scenes with the two leads together when they weren't arguing. But for the most part, the show is just boring and the story tries so hard to make things dramatic to the point that it becomes kind of unrealistic, which is not very good when you're trying to go for a more deep and realistic approach to a romance drama.

The overall tone of the show is supposed to be more mature, with less focus on cliche romance and more focus on genuine people struggling with normal life problems. The vibe is there, but the execution was very poorly done in my opinion. I suppose this was supposed to be more of a slow burn drama, which maybe just isn't my cup of tea, but I felt consistently bored and uninterested throughout the show and had to start watching the episodes on the computer in order to utilize playback speed options to watch at 2x speed. Even then it was kind of a struggle to get through some of the longer episodes. Everything felt rather muted, with long drawn out conversations and actual lectures you have to sit through like your actually in the class. There was one scene that focused on Mr. Pyo's lecture, and I understand it was supposed to be an important scene for his character development, but it just dragged on for so long and was basically just a full on lecture you have to sit through. Most of the school stuff (which is 90% of the show) I felt completed uninterested in, and often found myself tuning out which made it even harder to figure out what was going on later in the show. The show is titled "The Midnight Romance in Hagwon", but there really wasn't much romance. The very little romance we did get was admittingly pretty cute, and I think the two leads are great at acting and did their best with what they had. Most of the show focused on the education drama and the whole conflict with the grey witch or whatever. The chemistry between the leads was good for the most part, although it felt like most of the time the FL saw the ML as an immature kid and treated him as such. This was addressed in the show, but was still there up until the very end.

Some of the dialogue didn't feel very natural. The way that some of the characters talked to each other and interacted didn't seem like the way actual people would interact or have a conversation, which made it even harder to see this as a realistic drama. One of my least favorite episodes, episode 10 (which I'll talk about more later), had a scene between Mr. Pyo and Seo Hye Jin where he informs her that he's quitting, and the entire scene dragged on for what seemed like forever. Most of the dialogue didn't make much sense to me considering I was tuned out most of the time, so I had to sit there through 15+ minutes of Mr. Pyo talking in a very slow, monotonous manner with slight psychopath vibes as the FL sat there with an overly dramatic scared expression like she just saw a ghost.

More on episode 10... this episode was a struggle to get through for me, and I almost dropped the show at this point. As mentioned, the episode starts with the incredibly boring drawn-out scene between Pyo & Hye Jin. Honestly, I know that Pyo had probably some of the most development as a character in this show, but I still found it difficult to like him, so I hated having to sit through an entire episode essentially all about him. I'm not kidding when I say that the entire episode focused on Mr. Pyo. It seemed like every scene with dialogue mentioned his name at some point. This is the same guy that through a fit at the beginning of the show just because Hye Jin was challenging him and I think slapped her (or almost slapped her, I honestly don't remember) in front of everyone. Like, I don't know if you should really be a teacher if you can't even control your anger when someone challenges you, especially when you end up resorting to violence. The writers try to turn his character around, which seemed a little out of the blue considering he was barely in the show since his tantrum, and he wasn't established as a likeable character to begin with. He does sort of redeem himself by the end, even if his character seemingly did a 180 and all of sudden became a main protagonist. The FL frustrated me a lot during this episode, and was honestly kind of frustrating throughout most of the show. She was supposed to have a lot of inner turmoil and conflict with doing the right thing and surviving in her field while trying to educate the students, but most of the time came off as rather stubborn and somewhat arrogant. She spent most of the episode visibly shaken and scared during and after her conversation with Mr. Pyo. I was trying to wrap my head around why she was so terrified like she just witnessed the paranormal, and why she decided to visit the antagonist. She felt responsible for Mr. Pyo quitting and potentially ruining his life as she figured he wouldn't be able to survive elsewhere. This is great and all, but I could honestly care less about Mr. Pyo at this point, and he hasn't done anything likeable to justify her actions in trying to help him, and it definitely doesn't warrant an entire episode dedicated to him and the FL's dramatic shookness over something that seems so trivial. The FL does this multiple times throughout the show, where she'll encounter some form of conflict or setback and she'll act so distraught to the point that she's literally falling to the ground with a blank stare. It seemed a little too overly dramatic in my opinion, and I felt like the stakes with the conflict wasn't nearly serious enough to realistically evoke these reactions.

The FL & ML spend most of their screentime together arguing. The cute moments we do get are cute. The acting during these arguments are really good, but the constant fighting between two characters who are so firm with their beliefs and values made it pretty difficult to sit through. Like full on scenes between the two just yelling at each other trying to convince the other to do things their way, often leading to the FL storming off and the ML having to chase after her and apologize, even if both were being equally stubborn. It really annoyed me when, after the FL's conversation with Mr. Pyo, the ML sat down with her and basically tried to guide her through the situation without even bothering to ask what was really going on and how she felt. This obviously angers the FL and she storms off like usual (without explaining what was really going on to him so they could work it out), only for the ML to have to get lectured by side characters on how to be understanding and a "good boyfriend" so that he can learn his lesson and apologize. This didn't really make a lot of sense when looking at his character up until this point. I feel like his character was already supposed to be mature and understanding enough to be able to realize that that was the wrong approach. I feel like he should have been smart enough to realize these things without having to hear it from someone else? The FL's lack of communication and stubbornness also didn't help a lot of these conflicts with their relationship, and it seemed like she still viewed the ML has a student who needed guidance that only she could provide him.

As for the other characters, Kim Hyun Tak was there but I didn't really feel much for him at all (he was kind of annoying imo). The bad guys are obviously bad guys and do bad things, though I will say that Seo Jung Yeon was pretty good as a villain (albeit poorly written and cliche). The side relationship between Nam Cheong Mi & Choi Sung Gyu was cute but not really necessary. Cheong Mi was a good character, but I felt like she was a little too convenient at times and didn't really have much character development. She spent a lot of time being the "reasonable" one who guides the others during conflict and often showed up when other characters are crying to provide emotional support. I kind of wish they gave some of these scenes to the FL/ML instead to help develop their characters and relationships.

The ending felt very anticlimactic given the build-up throughout the entire show. I'll be honest, I wasn't really following much of the storyline at this point since I was mostly tuned out, so maybe if I was more invested it would have been a better pay off at the end. Many people seem to defend the writing by bringing up how it's supposed to be more realistic and dive deep into the intricacies of toxic education systems, but I'm not sure where the line is between a misunderstood and deep story versus a boring and confusing one. I'm leaning more towards boring, but maybe give it a shot and you might disagree?

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