Love from the UK

I enjoyed Love Next Door even though I sometimes threw a cushion at the screen. It wasn't perfect but I would recommend everyone to watch it. I have looked forward to seeing it every week but I wish Netflix didn't hold back episodes like it does. I have watched other series on week nights which is a shame ...
Actors from the smallest to the older were lovely and there were no weak links.
For scripting and direction, I hope there will be a part 2 - in which case I would like to see more passion and dialogue time for the main leads. If the parents can be nice in the end, there is no need for them to be like ogres in the beginning and being more human suited them.
Don't waste such gems like Jung Hae-min and Jung So-min - making them just kiss and hold hands for weeks and weeks when the poor lad has been waiting for years just doesn't seem realistic!

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Flawed characters, flawed families

It would have been nice if this was written as a straightforward love story with the occasional car accident but the characters dropped in from the beginning with traumatic childhoods, abusive parents and power crazy family businesses. Plus deaths, debt and unsuitable spouses. This does seem to be a trend in South Korean drama.
Jun descended like a tortured soul and just oozed past mistreatment. Both the main leads, Go Ara and Lee Jae-wook were exemplary in their roles and their roles were definitely written as two very flawed characters who mad bad decisions a lot of the time and were almost impossible to help. Jun's inability to open up about his past, his family and his illness were clear to see and his and Ra-Ra's relationship was filled with understandable potholes. How many people do we know where one suddenly says goodbye for no reason and disappears?
I know many families where cancer is hidden and treatment undertaken secretly. If people acted rationally, all people would get their cancer treated on time. If Jun was to get cancer we would all have wanted him to tell Ra-ra and for her to stay by his bedside until he was cured but real life is very far from cosy dramas.
The rest of the cast nobly kept humour going through all the difficult storylines. I've scored this quite high because I was upset by the last episode but I thought the screen writer was trying not to mollycoddle us. Odd ending though!

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Well I loved it

I'm in the UK and initially I was put off by the eccentric characters and weird storyline but in 2 or 3 episodes I was finding this series funny and well worth watching. It was a touching romance and a brutal picture of how parents can behave in South Korea. Certainly an eye opener. I appreciated the fact that suicide wasn't shied away from and that sometimes the youngsters were the best people to help. The damage done by teasing, gossiping, and plotting was chilling to watch.
I warmed to all the main characters and thought they were acted with thoughtful evolution through the series. You can still fall in love if you're a bit weird. All the masses of students who did not have speaking parts did seem to represent a real institution. So well done everybody.

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"Because this is my first life" Unusual storyline. Thought provoking

For me, this series was mainly about the way human beings find it difficult to communicate in relationships as well as the dating versus marriage conundrum. It was interesting to see how S Korean society is adjusting (or not) to declining birth rates and an eye opener for me about a lot of other pressures playing out on women. I thought all the cast were good and all the main male and female players had interesting roles.
If I have one thought for others watching, it would be that it looked to me as though Lee Min-Ki was directed to act as someone with a diagnosis such as social anxiety disorder or OCD. This so affected his character's ability to converse with female lead Jung So-min that most of their episodes were barely producing an improvement in their "no touch marriage". So be warned that you will not automatically warm to these characters. I thought the script and direction gave a very hard task to the lead couple and I applaud them.
Would I recommend? 100% yes.

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Our Blues - review from England

This series is such a treat and I would recommend anyone to see. There is violence in some of the scenes but keep watching - it's necessary to understand where the characters have come from and where they are going.
The script writing is unbelievably good and the stories and heartache through every episode are truly unique. Many of the topics would just not be touched on in the UK so it's a big well done from me.
And the huge cast is to be applauded for acting to such a high level through the series. From the smallest to the eldest. The storylines with Kim Hye Ja and Go Doo Shim were amazing and acted out with such sensitivity that I am lost for words.
Well done to all the crew, keep promoting this in the UK.

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A Song Jae-rim masterclass

No one should argue against "My Military Valentine".
It is a comedy with a quirky storyline, uneven progression and it seems like bits are missing at times. Despite that it is a pleasant romcom with actors and staff who tried hard to make it work.
If you look through the faults you see Song Jae-rim doing a masterclass in acting. You see him loving, hating, brutal and kind. Watching him smiling with the little girl with balloons is heart breaking. I do not speak for his family, friends and colleagues but it is better to show we care than to stay silent. Our daughter took her own life at 27yrs.
I urge you 100% to watch "My Military Valentine" even more now. Look fondly and shower the internet with ratings and reviews that are honest and realistic. Look after the actors and production team because they will continue to be in the firing line. No arguments.

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Yes this is real life

Eventually I thought the FL , Yoon Song Ah was written and directed as a very selfish and heartless person but it did seem that from her upbringing, she would turn into one of those grown-ups who create mayhem in their relationships, wherever they go. She was destructive of everything and everyone.
The male lead, Chae Hyun -soung was like a redeemer but no he chose to love this bomb waiting to go off and pretended he was brave and unaffected. And yes he was too forgiving, forgiving too many times, giving too much in return.
It sounds an unlikely storyline but how many of us know people like that? Anyone who thinks it's not the real world only has to visit an office where there are romances, scandals, fall outs. Many of us have been there. Perhaps we don't remember all those idiotic decisions we made years ago - moving jobs, falling in love with an idiot. Being an idiot ourselves.
Acting was uniformly very good especially Rowoon and Park So Yi (The Atypical Family). The script must have been difficult to play with more information about their upbringing coming out later. This was not a shouty drama, nor oceans of tears. Well done, writer, direction and cast and crew.
The ending was not a gushy explosion. Just well time did have to go by for people to heal and it was not a jackpot.
100% recommend to you to watch.

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Now, we are breaking up. Yes a lot of this.

This TV series is about loss and people not adjusting healthily to it. And poor communication within families and workplace.
I thought the script was ambitious and was weighed down too heavily with bitterness from mother in laws/ex GF etc. But dealing with a child's reaction to cancer was commendable.
All the actors were very good and I liked the direction that was given to the two lead roles. I presume they were trying to act as the offspring of their very selfish, loud and bullying parents.
This is not a bright and breezy watch and I found some episodes easier than others. But I would still recommend 90%.

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Trapped in a castle!

This series was made in 2016 and it is feeling its age but it is still extremely watchable. It is a parody. The script was ok but sometimes seemed hemmed in by the predetermined plot lines. The actors were very good and Lee Jung-Shin was very good as a musician (obviously)
My main criticism was the siting of the family home in a huge house in the middle of nowhere and the ridiculous flooring plan inside. Very weird but all the cast seemed to cope with it! Still very enjoyable but don't take too seriously.
For all those reasons I've tried to score it taking into account when it was made!

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Normal student life?

Well, emotionally, these look like normal students to me. I went to university many ions ago and life was pretty much sex, alcohol, lectures in that order. For a few with disordered behaviour it would take another ten years or so before they would be reliable enough to mate for life and have babies. Humans in their late teens are not grown sufficiently to produce the unselfish behaviour that is needed for romantic attachments whilst studying. For me, the webtoon and scriptwriters have judged this well. The cast are not toxic, they are simply acting.
Don't forget that the Covid pandemic was raging at this time and all the cast and team should be applauded for getting through a difficult production. Well done.

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Snowdrop

Snowdrop is a black comedy.
In this Korean TV series, the 1987 student struggles are the backdrop for the drama. It shows the dangers of slavishly following political dogma and the evil nature of some humans. It is not an easy watch. There is violence throughout.
The love story doesn't take over.
There is no clear division between traditionally good and bad sides. Spies are uncovered throughout the series and some characters swap sides readily. Others kill by informing, by making trouble or by bullying. Even the female captives turn on each other with the most trivial of reasons.
The cast is very good from top to bottom. They are mostly young and to be applauded. With great respect, it is nice to see so much of Kim Mi-soo on the screen.
I think the script is very good but I know that there has been criticism.
Be kind.

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