Attic Cat (2003)

Alright, that was about the cutest thing that I ever witnessed! Watching Kyung Min fight his attraction so damn hard to Jung Eun was adorable and full of comedic gold! Seeing him squirm in his jealousy was amazing, and the two leads' dynamic was just perfection. If the drama had one criticism working against itself it's that we never really see these two have moments of a healthy relationship. Most of the drama is spent with these two bickering and being at odds, which is great for entertainment and story but it makes it a bit difficult to buy them as a long term couple in the end.

If this series had done a bit more to show instances of these two learning how to work out their differences, I'd be a little more pleased. That said, I so enjoyed how the lead actor was able to walk that line of being an asshole but so redeemable, and how the lead actress managed to show forgiveness without coming off like a doormat.

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Attic Cat is one of those dramas which, had I watched very early on in my drama watching career, probably would have enjoyed more. At first glance, It has the perfect setup for a developing romance: cohabitation hijinks, an opposites attract pair who tries and fails to deny their attraction for each other, and a female lead who is surprisingly vocal about her wants and needs. As an older beloved drama, I figured it had to be good for a reason, and at first, I was hooked.  

But Attic Cat went wrong when it broke kdrama romcom rule #1:  the drama should make you want the main couple to be together, in spite of their flaws. As I watched each progressive episode, I realized just how toxic Kyung Min and Jung Eun are for each other. I didn't want to root for them to be together; I wanted them to stay as far away from each other as humanly possible. Every shouting match, misunderstanding, and petty catflight took a promising show and pairing and nosedived them both to the point where this this show made me frustrated, angry, and annoyed.

That being said, the emotional immaturity of the leads and the imbalance in the KyungJung relationship are my biggest issues with this show.  Kyung Min frequently takes advantage of Jung Eun's kindness, hospitality, and feelings and puts her through the wringer.  He is selfish, inconsiderate, and just an all-around jerk whose character growth comes too little, too late to be worthy of Jung Eun's or anyone's affection.  He shows inklings at being a decent human being, but will take four giant steps back the minute he does something nice. The climax of his character arc doesn't really come in until the last two or three episodes, at a time where the story should be tying up loose ends and promising us the happy (and healthy) ending we all need. His awful treatment isn't just reserved for Jung Eun alone, but she certainly takes the brunt of it in a way that's both confusing and disappointing.

Jung Eun is just as culpable, with the way she enables Kyung Min's horrible behavior and rewards him with her affection, which is a waste of her potential.  She isn't exactly a doormat,  but her frequent slapfights witih her rival, Hye Ryun, and shouting matches with Kyung Min  prove this relationship is not healthy or worthwhile for either of them. Jung Eun spends most of the drama pining and pouting over Kyung Min's well-documented feelings for Hye Ryun, fighting with Kyung Min about Hye Ryun, or fighting with Hye Ryun outright.  KyungJung's relationship is steeped in pettiness and jealousy in a way that is not a productive use of either person's growth as a character and a couple, or a productive use of our time as viewers.

The second leads are not exempt from similar foolishness, especially on Hye Ryun's part - there's a particular force kissing scene that will go down as one of the grossest scenes in kdrama history.  Dong Jun, the second male lead and Jung Eun's boss, provides a bit of emotional stability and maturity to the show, but there are times where he goads Kyung Min into jealous fits which do not help the situation at all.

As much as I want to blame this parasitic and unbalanced relationship on the pair being college-aged, I've seen dramas with younger, equally problematic protagonists who actually experience development and growth and end up in more deserving relationships.  All throughout the drama, I couldn't help but compare this to Boys Over Flowers, as Kyung Min and Jung Eun share the same general personalities and temperament as Goo Jun Pyo and Geum Jan Di, respectively; but their trajectories as individuals and as a couple are starkly different, as Jun Pyo and Jan Di's climax is much more emotionally fulfilling and they both change to ensure they're together.

Plot wise, Attic Cat does nothing new, and is filled with the same standard tropes that come with cohabitating dramas.  If you've seen Full House, you've seen Attic Cat, but with more tolerable leads and a relationship that's actually endearing to watch.  The music soundtrack saves this drama from being unwatchable and often distracts from the awful toxic arguments occuring each episode.

Ultimately, Attic Cat is missing the emotional payoff and the maturity needed to make this the cohabitation drama everyone deserves.

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Cute Start, Frustrating Middle, Redemptive End

Where to even begin with this review? It was not good.

The male lead, Lee Kyung Min, is a dishonest jerk. He keeps LYING. Big lies, little lies, and not even white lies. Sometimes there’s not even a good reason for his lies that I can deduce; it just seems to be a habit he can’t break. It’s hinted that he’s quite smart but I don’t see it.

The female lead, Nam Jung Eun, is stubborn and doesn’t learn from her mistakes. While not exactly a doormat, she doesn’t know how to set boundaries, keeps giving in to the male lead’s whining, and also doesn’t know when to tell the truth. Also, I felt that she didn’t have the right to get angry at the ML when he goes out with the second FL. She does get better in the last two episodes after she finally calls Kyung Min out.

They are BAD FOR EACH OTHER. Toxic. They need to stay far away from each other.

I’m rating it a 6 though because there was an attempt to redeem Kyung Min, and Jung Eun did finally do something good for herself towards the end. I wish we saw some of that growth though. Kim Rae Won was very handsome here, I have to say.

The reason I wanted to watch this drama was because of Kim Seon Ho. No, he isn’t in this drama (he would have been 17 when this drama aired), but he did play the male lead role of Lee Kyung Min many years later in a play based on this drama. This show had very high ratings when it was on the air, and apparently it was so beloved that a play was made based on it. That made me curious about it, knowing I will never get to watch Korean theatre (since I don’t speak Korean). Maybe the play was better? I would have loved to see Kim Seon Ho’s take on the male lead.

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Решила посмотреть эту дораму, потому что о ней много говорили, как о чем то неординарном. Может быть для 2003 года это и так, но сейчас таких дорам - пруд пруди. Но, повторюсь, для 2003 года довольно мило и ... смело, потому что переспать с парнем уже в 1 серии, а жениться даже и не собираться, это для корейского сериала сильно.
Герои мне не понравились характерами, парень бесхребетный, ленивый, готовый наплевать на других. И хотя к концу он как бы поменялся, но суть все равно никуда не делась. Девушка уж слишком простая, из категории "вытирает о меня ноги, может быть от любви", фу, не люблю таких.
Конечно, и он и она периодически делали хорошие вещи, поступали правильно, но общее впечатление попорчено.
Как всегда, была соперница-стерва, был соперник-шеф тюфяк, причем его играл актер, которому на роду что ли написано играть тюфяков. Его бортанули и Весна для Одаль Джи, и в "Моя леди".
Отдельная песня - родственники, брр. Корейские дедушки-бабушки это страшные люди. Младшие братья вообще ни во что не ставят сестер, крадут у них деньги запросто. Мамаша героини тут тоже та еще.

Вот в целом. как-то не очень хорошее впечатление от этой дорамы.

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Comédia Romântica e Amor Não Planejado

"Attic Cat", exibido pela MBC em 2003, é uma comédia romântica leve e envolvente que conquistou o público com sua premissa simples e encantadora. A trama segue o relacionamento acidental entre Kyung-min, um jovem estudante imaturo, e Jung-eun, uma garota esforçada que trabalha em várias ocupações para sobreviver. Por uma série de mal-entendidos, eles acabam dividindo um pequeno apartamento no sótão, e o que começa como uma convivência cheia de conflitos logo se transforma em uma inesperada história de amor.

O dorama explora temas de crescimento pessoal e as mudanças que ocorrem quando pessoas de mundos diferentes são forçadas a compartilhar o mesmo espaço. Kyung-min, inicialmente egoísta e despreocupado, começa a amadurecer à medida que se aproxima de Jung-eun, uma jovem que se destaca por sua força e resiliência. A comédia leve e os momentos românticos fazem de "Attic Cat" uma obra adorável, capturando as complexidades do amor jovem e das dificuldades cotidianas.

Com seu tom descontraído e personagens cativantes, "Attic Cat" se tornou um clássico da comédia romântica coreana. A série oferece uma mistura de humor e emoção que toca o coração, enquanto mostra que o amor pode nascer nas situações mais improváveis.

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