At Least It's an Ending

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I loved the previous seasons. This has been my crack drama - even this season. This review and rating will reflect this season only and not the drama as a whole.

Acting/Cast: One of the major aspects of this drama that had made it so great in the past was its amazing cast. The two leads, the two other leads, and all the side characters had been phenomenal. The acting of the two main leads were undoubtedly top-notch. Watching them as their families are slaughtered and as they're dragged away into slavery was heart-wrenching, but captivating as I rooted for Eun Seom and Tan Ya, on the edge of my seat, to find a way to save everyone. Without their amazing performances (Kim Ji Won 김지원 & Song Joong Ki 송중기), this drama could have easily flopped before it even really began. When I heard that both of these lead actors were being replaced, although the story was already established, I was afraid that it wouldn't be the same without them. Then, when I saw the actors that were taking their places, my heart sank. The female lead was being replaced by one of the worst lead actresses in Korean dramas (actually...she may be the worst in my opinion) and the male lead was being replaced by an actor I've only seen one other time (Moon Lovers). But, I knew just the change in the female lead could single-handedly ruin this season (having seen Shin Se Kyeong (신세경) in many dramas and never liking her performances but continuing to watch her dramas anyway). On top of that, one of my favorite characters was also being replaced - Nun Byeol. Way to kick me while I'm down. At least Yang Cha made it back. That being said, the change in the leads wasn't quite as bad as I thought it was going to be, but that's not saying much since my expectations were basically at nothing. Lee Joon Gi (이준기) was decent as Saya, not as convincing as Eun Seom, but overall he was alright. As for Shin Se Kyeong (신세경) - it wasn't her worst performance; I could tell she gave a little bit of effort, but not enough to warrant too many close up shots of her facial expressions. A comparison could be made between how her scenes were shot versus how Ta Gon's scenes were shot. However, the casting, to my surprise, was not the biggest problem this season… 4.5/10

Writing: While watching, I felt as though the writers were trying to write out the characters whose actors had been replaced because they knew their performances would not nearly be up to par. So, they made Ta Gon and Tae Al Ha the leads this season. Saya’s character in particular changed a lot from the previous seasons. He used to have this alluring, mysterious aura about him. He had been in isolation for most of his life with the intelligence of an Igutu, giving him this innocent vibe which also felt very dangerous at the same time. Sadly, in this season, Saya didn’t feel like a threat at all. He no longer seemed cunning and conniving (which is where he needed to excel in order to compensate for his lack of physical strength and skill). I even thought that he seemed pathetic, which is such a disservice to a once uniquely captivating character. The same thing with Nun Byeol – the previous season had built her up as an amazing swordsman Neanthal sleeper cell badass, but then her actress was changed so the writers said “nevermind” and basically wrote her into a nothing burger. Yang Cha (another favorite of mine) previously had this unique and interesting relationship with Tan Ya - being her protector and the only one who really knows her, as well as the only person he can genuinely communicate with. Unfortunately, this season, the writers immediately threw away this engaging dynamic. In return, they gave him more of a storyline, but it felt cheap or cheesy... They should have just left him alone and let him stay a badass. Overall, the writing had a completely different vibe from previous seasons. It wasn’t dark at all and not as serious. It was even “comical” at times (or at least tried to be), which just felt strange and out-of-place. I would say that the writing started off decently and then worsened as the drama progressed, becoming more predictable and boring. It felt lazy and rushed as if they just wanted to give the audience some sort of conclusion to the story. 2.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Not only did the writing have a completely different vibe from previous seasons, but the directing did as well. And just as the writing was, the direction, the special effects, and overall cinematography felt cheap and cheesy. Instead of a dark, gritty, and intense atmosphere, it now had a bright and light-hearted feel. The special effects were so terrible that the only explanation is that the budget for the season must have been drastically reduced. Right away, there’s a scene where Eun Seom jumps into the air and freezes to shoot an arrow. There’s another action scene toward the end that does this same corny freezing in the air technique. They are also apparently unable to fill in crowds with green screens or CGI. There were multiple shots that were laughable, especially in context with the dialogue – characters talking as if there are a multitude of people and then the camara angle showing a crowd of around 50 people at best. The music is definitely one of the stronger aspects this season. 3.5/10

Entertainment Value: Despite all of the disappointment, I still really enjoyed this season. It still had that crack drama vibe for me. Maybe it's because I'm so attached to the characters and invested in their world. I hate how this drama gets me rooting for child murderers. It did in the previous seasons and I still found myself rooting for them this season. I think even the characters in the drama forget that Ta Gon and his people are all child murderers. But, I think that's a testament to how well the character and world building was done from the beginning until now. 8.5/10

Overall, I gave this season a 5 out of 10 stars. It probably deserves an even lower rating objectively speaking, but I still really enjoyed this season. (In order, I had given the previous 3 seasons or parts a 6.5, a 9, and an 8.5.) Although inadequate in many ways, at least this season was able to provide some closure to this epic tale.

A special thanks to the Momo tribe.

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No New Tricks For This Pony

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

Being suspenseful doesn't mean it's good...
Full disclosure: I'm not a fan of the 1st season. I had given it a 4/10.

Acting/Cast: A more recognizable cast this time around. One of my favorite actors is in this season, Yim Si Wan (임시완). I ended up liking his character the most. Actually, I like this season's cast of characters a lot. It's a shame that the the character building was as weak as it was... Everything felt so forced, inauthentic, and rushed. However, the acting is good for the most part (although the writing did hurt it). I would say the main character, played by Lee Jung Jae (이정재), stood out to me as feeling inauthentic with his acting. I liked him in the 1st season though, when he was just an average joe. Now he's trying to be Batman or something. 6/10

Writing: This is the area that really ruins this series for me...and even more so this season. Things happen that just don't make sense logically and psychologically. A huge issue I had with the 1st season is the stupid ass voting system. What are the odds that it would be split 50/50? Can someone do the math on that? Ok...now image those odds happening two more times. It's so dumb. Speaking of dumb, the lead is an idiot. Basically, this season is watching a bunch of people doing every single thing wrong. It's very frustrating. How does the main character get tricked the same exact way? He, of all people, should be the one who should know better. Long story short, this season is a rehashing of the 1st, but done even worse. The shock value of the games is gone, the emotional impact of characters dying is gone, the secondary police officer storyline feels useless, and this season ends abruptly with a cliffhanger. If I would have known that this season wasn't complete, I wouldn't have watched. I would have waited for season 3 (or season 2 part 2). By the way, 3% and The Hunger Games did this plot better. 3% is also a Netflix drama with a similar plot and suspiciously similar scenes and characters. I liked 3% a lot, especially the 1st season, and I can't help but feel like Squid Game is just a poorly executed Korean version. 1/10

Direction/SFX/Music: One thing this drama does right is the cinematography, the SFX, and the iconography (that of which has made Squid Game very marketable). It's nice visually, it's eye-catching, and it makes you want to keep watching. This season had a different vibe from the 1st, however. The 1st season had more of a sense of dread, eeriness, and hopelessness while this season is more...fun? The best way I can describe it, is that it feels like that frozen in bullet time bar scene from the movie The Other Guys. I don't know how to feel about that. 5.5/10

Entertainment Value: So stressful, so frustrating, and then it gets the the point where I'm rolling my eyes at the repetitively bad writing. I can't look away, though. So, I'll give it that. I want to see where they take this story. Also, I'm so glad the VIPs weren't in this season. That was another thing that ruined season 1 for me. The VIPs were terrible...the acting, the dialogue writing...just cringey as hell. I hope they will continue to refrain from torturing me with that mess in season 3 as well. 2/10

Overall, I gave season 2 of Squid Game a 3.5/10. Worse than season 1 in every way except for the more recognizable cast maybe. It is also unfinished, so I wouldn't recommend watching this until season 3 is released. And because it's unfinished, it's harder for me to judge it. 3.5 makes sense for now though, since I had given season 1 a 4 and this season is definitely worse.

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Accidentally Developed An Obsession

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I was excited for this one. Lee Dong Wook (이동욱) is one of my favorite Korean actors because of his ability to play all kinds of characters. I loved his role as a villain in Strangers From Hell. In A Shop For Killers, he's playing a darker role too, although not exactly a villain.

Acting/Cast: I love the cast and their acting. I think Ji An, the main character, has become one of my all time favorite K-drama characters. Min Hye is badass, too. I also like Brother, Pasin, and of course Jin Man. The only casting I didn't like was Ji An's childhood friend. I'm glad he didn't have much screen time. 9/10

Writing: I love the plot and the characters. I like the way that the story unfolded using the "잘 들어 정지안" (Listen well, Jeong Ji An) pattern. It gave the drama a certain kind of charm. I normally hate flashbacks, but these flashbacks were done in a way that felt artistic -at least the Ji An flashbacks did. There was a portion of the drama that had long flashbacks that I felt were unnecessary. They were scenes that the audience had already experienced, but more detail was being added in. I didn't need the extra detail. I liked the mysterious vibe that the scenes originally had. It was as though we were in the same boat with Ji An not knowing what the hell was going on and we were uncovering the mystery with her. But, because of these 'retracing our steps' scenes, I felt like I was watching the same scenes twice and I got bored. 8/10

Direction/SFX/Music: The best thing about the drama... This is how I accidentally developed an obsession. The camera work, the production value, the weapons, the choreography, the MUSIC - it's all so good. It was a bit reminiscent of John Wick (and John Wick is one of the greatest things to exist in the world of artful cinematography). I finally got all the songs I wanted from this drama on my mp3 player. I haven't been this into a soundtrack since...maybe Strangers From Hell? Well, the Doona! soundtrack was pretty good, too. By the way, the music played during the gas mask scene is called Minhye Action. I was looking for that one for a while. 10/10

Entertainment Value: This obsession really snuck up on me. I didn't think I was enjoying it that much. It was because of those repeated scenes that I mentioned earlier. I just wanted to get back to the action with everyone at the house. Don't keep me holding my breath. After the drama ended, I couldn't get it out of my head. I liked it more and more as time passed. This is the same thing that happened to me years back with Strong Woman Do Bong Soon. I gave it a 6 or a 7 upon finishing the drama, but I missed it so much once it was gone that I ended up putting that drama in my top 10 and increasing its score to 9.5. Anyway, I'm not usually one for sequels, but this drama needs one. I actually think that not having a second season will hurt this drama in the long run (unless the second season is terrible of course...Sweet Home...Strong Girl...send help. 8/10

Overall, I ended up increasing this drama's score from a 7.5 to a 9/10.
See, this is why I don't write reviews immediately after completing a drama. I have to give it some time to sink in so I can sort out my feelings.

By the way, I made 3 YouTube Shorts related to this drama - one features Ji An, one features Jin Man, and one features Min Hye. The titles are "Ji An | A Shop For Killers | Little Girl Gone", "Jin Man | A Shop For Killers | YUNGBLUD", "Min Hye | A Shop For Killers | Black Betty" and my channel name is The Enablers (@theenablers3846).

murthehelp

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Different Than Expected, Entertaining, Light

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I was in the mood to watch some marital drama. I was hoping for abusive husbands. I just like depressing shit.

Acting/Cast: A decent cast with decent acting. Actually, I'm only familiar with three of the actors. The ones that I'm not familiar with did a great job. I would say that Lee Sang Yeob (이상엽 - the male lead who is a teacher), Park Ha Sun (박하선 - the female lead), Choi Byung Mo (최병모 - the husband of the second female lead), and Shim Hye Yun (심혜연 - the little girl) were the actors that stood out to me the most. The two leads in particular, had really good chemistry together. 7.5/10

Writing: Contrary to the drama's title, this drama isn't very risqué...at all. This is either a good or bad depending on the reason for watching. This drama was less about the cheating and more about the psychology behind the reasons for ending up in an affair, losing themselves, and trying to find freedom. I liked the use of the birds and the bird cage as symbols throughout the drama. Right when I saw birds in cages I knew what was going on. I had some issues with the writing, however. I don't like how horrible they made the female lead's husband seem in the beginning. I would have been fine with it if they had kept him horrible, but he becomes a nice, normal person very quickly. They kind of did the same thing with the second female lead's husband, but at least he was horrible for a longer period of time. Also, the male lead's story bothered me a bit. I think he has the least justification for cheating. He could have easily left his "wife". So, it just made him look really bad. Another issue I had was with the second female lead's affair. I didn't understand how they fell in love. It was left ambiguous from what I could gather. Also, the second female lead seemed to change pretty drastically because she fell in love with this guy, but I don't understand why. She's a morally gray character (maybe even more of a villain) who proudly and regularly cheats and encourages the female lead (and even manipulates her) to cheat on her husband as well. Suddenly, it's like she becomes a hero and I guess we're supposed to just forgive her. Despite all of these issues, I think I enjoyed this drama as much as I did because of the dialogue writing and the pacing. The ending is also good. 4/10

Direction/SFX/Music: The SFX and the music is fine; nothing special. The direction, however, was very well done. I liked the vibe of the drama, the pacing, the shots. It had a nice feel to it that made it easy to watch. 5.5/10

Entertainment Value: I binged this drama. I would say that none of the relationships in this drama are enviable or desirable in any capacity, but it was still entertaining to watch. I was scared for the women because in the beginning there's a house fire that was started due to an affair. I was rooting for them to find freedom without any bloodshed because none of the characters really deserve that. They all just seem like relatively normal people that found themselves in depressing situations. Another reason I found this drama so entertaining was because of the focus on the psychology of the characters. I was interested to see how each of the spouses would react once they found out about the affairs. 7/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 6/10. A 6 or higher is in my recommended zone. I was really surprised I liked this as much as I did. No abusive husbands though. I would compare this drama to My Liberation Notes (which I had also rated a 6/10). Although, this drama isn't as dialogue heavy, which was nice. If you like life dramas and aren't looking for something too adult, then you might like this.

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Surprisingly Cute and Wholesome

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I picked this drama up while waiting for more episodes of The Judge From Hell to air. They’re pretty similar in style and both involve supernatural concepts such as demons. Actually, Kim Ah Young (김아영) who plays Gremory in The Judge From Hell is also in this drama. I usually try to avoid watching similar dramas simultaneously so that I won’t get confused...woops...

Acting/Cast: I had my doubts, especially in the very beginning, but they all did great. They created charming and memorable characters. The leads were both well done and likable. They also had chemistry together. The male lead’s strong, quirky personality remained consistent throughout the entire drama. I’m highly impressed. Usually, when you have a lead with an over-the-top personality, they fizzle out half-way through and become very basic. I think the cast and the acting was by far the best thing about this drama. I have to give a shout out to Ye Ji Won (예지원) as well; she did a great job. She only had a small role in this drama, but I really liked her character. 10/10

Writing: The acting and the characters really made this drama because the plot is pretty ridiculous. But, I can say that this plot still makes more sense than The Judge From Hell. The character development in My Heavenly Idol was well done. This drama really is like a family healing drama except it’s a k-pop idol group healing drama. It’s actually pretty sweet and wholesome. It’s funny as well. It pokes fun at the whole k-pop idol industry without being too offensive for fans. This drama also doesn’t drag; there’s always something crazy going on from beginning to end. Speaking of the end...it was well done. Fantasy dramas can be really hit or miss with endings and I think they pulled it off nicely. The lowest score will be in the writing category, but it's only because of the craziness of the plot. I think the character writing was very well done. 3.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: The music isn’t my style. I prefer The Judge From Hell’s soundtrack much more than this one. The special effects are well done. The pacing is good. 5.5/10

Entertainment Value: Entertaining from beginning to end. I watched this at the same time as The Judge From Hell and I found this drama to be much more entertaining. Some may find this drama too cutesy or too crazy or even too religious/sacrilegious, but for me, it worked. 7/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 6/10. A 6 or higher is in my recommended zone. I was so surprised at how much I liked this drama. Great characters and never a dull moment.

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A Waste of Time...Not Cute

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

It was only 10 episodes, so why not? I tend to be draw to sci-fi k-dramas, but I usually don’t end up liking them very much.

Acting/Cast: Not terrible. I did like the three main girls. I didn’t have a problem with them or their acting. The male lead on the other hand…so boring and unlikeable. Also, the doctor love interest is super boring. The male lead’s firefighter friend is really the only male character that has some personality. 4/10

Writing: I don’t know what is happening with this story/character writing. It doesn’t make any sense. All the male characters are terrible, but it’s okay?? No character growth. No consequences for bad behavior. And even though I didn’t have a problem with three female friends as characters, they really weren’t much better than the men regarding maturity or morality. The male lead pissed me off the most as a character. He’s very self-righteous and wimpy…and that doesn’t really make sense for a firefighter. The way his story line played out was just so lame…Actually, I’m reminded of how I felt watching the second half of Marry My Husband. The drama became super cheesy and dumb. What they did with the ex boyfriend also pissed me off. He was committing crimes against the female lead -- really bad crimes…disgusting crimes…and what? We’re supposed to just laugh it off? Well, that’s what the writers did. The conflicts that persist throughout the drama are all lame. You can’t have storylines with bad people doing horrible, repulsive things, but then the main conflict is that the female lead is bad because she looked at some loser’s DMs. WHO CARES. My FBI guy does that shit in his sleep. 1/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Nothing special. Very basic. I can’t say that this drama has anything special or charming about it. The pacing is messed up. The Noble Idiocy happens too late and too random and is resolved so fast that I don’t even know how it happened. Noble Idiocy is a bad trope anyway. 1.5/10

Entertainment Value: The first half of the drama was interesting to me. The evil ex / stalker plot quickly drew me in. Everything fell apart in the second half of the drama. It’s as though the writers weren’t sure what they wanted to say with this drama. It’s just all over the place. Toxic characters are basically redeemed or brushed over for no reason. It left such a bad taste in my mouth. As entertained as I was in the first half, by the end of the drama I was left rolling my eyes. Apparently, people thought this drama was funny and that’s where a lot of its charm comes from. I don’t remember laughing once. Actually, it has very serious subject matter (stalking, sexual harassment, extreme dating violence, death, trauma, infidelity, infertility), so I didn’t find anything funny about it. 1/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 2/10. I wish I didn’t waste my time watching it. Some of the actors were decent and the first half was entertaining enough, but that’s about it.

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A Fun Ride With A Likeable Cast

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I normally don't like heist plots , but I love hostage plots. I finally decided to give this one a shot. By the way, I haven't seen the original, so I can't compare them. Also, I'm reviewing both parts of this drama as a whole.

Acting/Cast: Overall, I love the casting choices. Park Hae Soo (박해수), who plays Berlin, is an especially strong actor. I've seen him previously as the lead role in Prison Playbook and I loved him in that, so I knew he'd kill this role, too. Right when Berlin was introduced, I knew he'd be my favorite character; he has such a powerful presence about him. The rest of the crew was great, as well. Even the team members that didn't get as much screen time really grew on me. I'd say the only character I really had an issue with was the main female hostage, Yun Mi Seon played by Lee Joo Bin (이주빈). She has this "deer in headlights" look the entire time. Her character was pretty badass technically, but I don't think the actress conveyed that very well. 9/10

Writing: The plot was engaging. I liked the way that they laid the story out so that the audience wouldn't be sure as to what was really going on until it was revealed. I'd say the narration was unnecessary though. Maybe that's just me - I tend to dislike narration. The first half of the drama had red herrings that I think worked very well for the story and made it more exciting. However, in the second half of the drama, the red herrings came to be expected. In consequence, they lost their effectiveness in garnering strong emotions from the audience. Again, the hostage Yun Mi Seon played by Lee Joo Bin (이주빈) nagged at me in this category, too. Her character was strange - it just didn't make sense to me how she was so hung up on gross ass Peter Pettigrew and then she quickly screws another guy she just met. In my opinion, sex scenes never help a drama (and by sex scene, I mean the full-bodied, lingering sex scenes) and that's what happened in this drama. It came across as trashy, not romantic, and it just made me dislike her character even more. Actually, her entire plotline was annoying to me. There's one more sex scene in this drama, but it's not quite as risqué (although I still think it goes on for a little too long). The ending was good - I just wish there was a bit more closure for some of the characters. Throughout the drama, there were some scenes and dialogue that felt a bit cheesy, but whatever, I had fun. That being said, I couldn't help but compare this drama to Snowdrop. There are plot points that are eerily similar. However, Snowdrop has a much more dark and serious tone. I will say that overall, Snowdrop is the stronger drama out of the two and it was able to leave a lasting impression on me as opposed to Money Heist: Korea. 7/10

Direction/SFX/Music: I love the music, the costumes, the mask designs. The drama looks well-produced - good special effects, good camera work. The 'director of the mint' hostage...they did him so dirty with the camera angles. It was hilarious. I will bring up the cheese factor again in this category: There were some really cheesy and unrealistic scenes. I'm particularly referring to the scenes with a lot of gunfire and nobody is getting shot. Then, there was one scene where someone was shot, but instead of dragging the person away from the firefight, they just stayed there and cried. It caused a bit of disconnect for me because it was so contrary to how someone would actually react in a situation like that. 7.5/10

Entertainment Value: Binge worthy for sure. I stopped watching my other dramas so I could binge this one. To be fair though, the other dramas that I was watching aren't an exciting genre like this one. In any case, with this drama, I was dialed in the entire time and I did have a smile on my face a lot while watching. I definitely had fun. However, like I said previously, I would have liked less of an open ending for some of the characters. 9/10

Overall, I gave this drama an 8/10 mainly due to some cheesiness, my issue with the sex scenes, and my issues with the Yun Mi Seon character in general.

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Primarily A Healing Drama

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

When viewed strictly as a "healing drama", it's pretty good. It's all about dealing with grief and guilt and learning to accept the bad things that happen in life, to forgive, and to love yourself again. I think it gets this message across well. If you expect a romance, it's disappointing. This drama really isn't about that and it takes a major back seat to the main goal of the drama. This is a bad thing and a good thing - bad because I wanted a cute romance with 김영광 (Kim Yeong Kwang) and good because the two leads really didn't have enough chemistry for a romantic relationship.

Acting/Cast: I watched this solely because 김영광 (Kim Yeong Kwang) is one of my favorite actors and this is another drama that shows the reason for that. His acting and his character carried the drama. He did so well in his portrayal of a cute, innocent, carefree, goofy young adult that his good acting only made the poor acting of other cast members more noticeable. Most notably, the female lead's acting was...stiff and strange. I'm not sure if it's the actress (since I've only ever seen her in Mystery Queen, which I really liked) or a directing choice. But, whatever the reason is, her "acting style" became increasingly annoying as the drama went on. I'll just give a quick example of what I mean: Someone will tell her something emotionally heavy (like a confession/apology) and she'll stare at them the whole time they tell her. Then, immediately after they've finished speaking, she quickly says something like "that's ok I forgive you/not your fault/etc." while still staring at them without any change in facial expression. It's as though she's just waiting to read her lines. But also, the lines don't even feel very natural as to how someone would actually respond. I also don't feel as though the female and male leads had much chemistry. Especially, when you compare the male lead's chemistry with his dad, his minion, and even with the lunch ladies. I even think the female lead's younger self displayed better chemistry with the second male lead. 4/10

Writing: Like I mentioned above, some of the dialogue from the female lead specifically, didn't feel authentic. The writers may have been going for a super feel-good story where everyone has super awesome communication skills and can understand each other as if they can read each other's minds, but it's not realistic. And really, I think that taking out the realism--using the characters to model healthy behaviors for the viewers--ultimately takes away from the healing message of the drama. It won't feel like something that's obtainable to the viewers because none of us are nearly that perfect in real life. By the end, I started getting bored...I felt like I was watching an episode of Full House or Barney or an after school special. Regarding the fantasy aspect of the plot, it remains a mystery - there is no lore, no rules, that can help us make sense out of the situation. That's ok, the story isn't really about that either, it's about the healing. But, I wish we could have just made peace with that right away instead of being given the run-around in the beginning, thinking we can figure out what's going on. The focus should have only been on her younger self's purpose for showing up in the future instead of wasting time on how she can go back. 3.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Like I said before, I don't know if some of these issues are directing choices or bad acting. I want to blame the direction. Music was nothing special. Regarding SFX, no issues stood out. OH YEAH...this bothered me...So there's this scene in the beginning where the female lead is outside in the sun, in nature, around wild flowers taking photos and she has her hair in a long, single braid over her shoulder. She also had these freckles that go well with her look. I'm sitting here literally thinking about how beautiful her hair looks. And then, later on, she's basically told she's ugly...so she gets a makeover, cuts all that pretty hair off, and replaces it with a short, flat, predictable hairstyle and covers her freckles with concealer. I was so annoyed. Actually, now that I think about, that's when my interest in this drama started declining. It's like that was a metaphor that signaled that they were removing the personality out of the drama. 3/10

Entertainment Value: It was a rough start, but the male lead single-handedly kept me from dropping this drama in the beginning. The younger self character and her relationship with the female lead grew on me and helped me keep interest in the drama. In the end, surprisingly it was Anthony (the second male lead) and his story that kept me interested in finishing the drama. So I guess, the baton was handed off a few times during this race. Ideally, everyone should be running together and crossing the finish line at the same time, but at least I was able to make it to the end. I was pretty bored through those last few episodes though. 3/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 3.5/10 mainly due to the weird acting/dialogue in the second half of the drama, the lack of chemistry between the leads, and the lack of interest I had toward the end. However, I think it had a really good message as a healing drama.

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Thank You For the Scary Villains

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

It was a suspenseful story that had me hooked until the end. Although, after it was over, it didn't stick with me like other dramas I've really enjoyed. I've spent some time thinking about why that is before writing this review.

Acting/Cast: This category is going to be where my biggest issue with the drama lies. I held off watching this drama because I really dislike the actor that plays the male lead. He seems very stiff and emotionless in everything I've seen him in. I even dropped Hotel Del Luna because of him. Let's just say, after watching this drama, I still feel the same way. However, there were times in this drama where he showed a little bit of emotional range that surprised me, but that's not saying much. The female lead actress is fine, but when comparing her character with other female leads in dramas that I fell in love with, I realize she is lacking the charm that those characters have. It kept me from really connecting with her. Similarly, with the male lead, I didn't even care to try to connect with him. I think that if just the male lead was switched out, this could really have been a top tier drama. It's a shame... That being said, the rest of the cast was great. I think the highlight of the drama is Shin Jae Hwi who plays Lee Jin Geun (the stalker). I smiled every time I saw him on screen. He played an unhinged psycho so well. It's been a while since I've seen such a good villain. 6/10

Writing: Very well done, suspenseful mystery that kept me guessing. Satisfying ending as well. While watching, I did get vibes here and there of Kill Me, Heal Me -- definitely a top tier drama -- which is why I say that Link had the potential. But, in regards to the writing, my only gripe in this area would be the Noble Idiocy...which became even more annoying when they kept going back and forth with it. Oh, and now that I think about it...there were multiple times where the female lead thought, for some reason, that it was perfectly ok to walk alone at night in dark alleys when there's a stalker on the loose. That didn't make sense to me, especially since the female lead has trauma after being attacked in the recent past. 8/10

Direction/SFX/Music: My only complaint here would be a particularly severe case of "frozen-in-time staring contest". The OST is decent, too. 8/10

Entertainment Value: Once the characters were established and the main mystery with the refrigerator started playing out, I was hooked. 9.5/10

Overall, I gave this drama an 8/10 mainly due to my issue with the casting.

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Enjoy the Downward Spiral

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

After reading the synopsis, I was hesitant to watch this drama because I didn't want to see minors in sexual situations and engaged in very serious criminal activity. I was worried it may glamorize these kinds of lifestyles. Once I finally decided to give it a try, I almost dropped the drama after the 1st episode. It just didn't grab my attention and I felt the male lead's character and his motivations were boring and typical. Eventually, I gave it another shot and watched episode 2 and from then on, I was hooked.

Acting/Cast: I think this is my 1st time seeing most of these actors... at least in major roles (except for 남윤수 Nam Yoon Su). They all did a great job. Watching the male lead's personality unfold, stood out to me the most. I also liked watching the interactions between the female lead and her mother. 9.5/10

Writing: This category can be broken into 2 parts - character writing/dialogue and story writing. I feel that the character development was the strongest aspect of this drama. The psychological genre is my favorite when it comes to Korean dramas because of their ability to write compelling characters that grow or change in realistic ways during the course of their experiences. This drama is great example of that, especially in regards to the male lead's character. Unfortunately, with how great the character writing is, I felt the actual story writing was lacking in comparison. There were storylines that I was really interested in learning more about (mainly more about the female lead's mom and that industry and about Mr. Lee's background), but they were left unexplored. The ending was also done in a way that seems as though they were setting it up for a 2nd season, which would make sense as to why some major details of the story felt unfinished. Regardless, I'm typically not a fan of endings like that. It feels incomplete and I'm left wanting more. If they're not doing a 2nd season, then 10 episodes weren't enough to really flesh out this story. On a positive note, the things that I was worried about before even beginning the drama, turned out not to be an issue. However, I could see some potential for criminal activity/prostitution being glamorized (for instance, prostitution didn't seem like a big deal until it was an underage girl doing it.) But every time the characters started to seem "cool" or too much like protagonists, something horrible would happen that would put everyone back where they belong. That reminds me, It was difficult watching a drama with no real protagonist. I felt bad rooting for anyone. I would just feel resigned and I would say "well...that's what you get for engaging in criminal activity." I'm not going to feel bad rooting for Mr. Lee though. 7/10

Direction/SFX/Music: The production was great; it felt very high quality. There were some clever dream sequence scenes that I really enjoyed. They didn't feel like your typical dream sequence. I usually can't stand them. The music really added to these strange scenes, as well. I don't care about music so much, but I do take notice when it heightens the experience for me (or worsens it). I think the OST played a huge part in giving this drama a very captivating vibe. 8/10

Entertainment Value: After I got past that 1st episode, it was a crazy ride. It was like watching a train wreck (but in a good way?) So much anxiety...very unpredictable. A fun but scary, stress-inducing ride. I don't want to say anything more about it because I don't want to give anything away. 8/10

It was difficult to give a final rating for this drama - it's either an 8/10 or an 8.5/10. I chose 8 more for personal preferences, which I don't want to expand on because it may be a bit of a spoiler.

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A Lot of Writing Issues but Still Watchable

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

Detective dramas are one of my least favorite genres to watch. They tend to be formulaic and, therefore, boring, but every once in a while, I’ll give one a shot. I decided to watch this one because I was in a drama slump at the time, so I was picking up various dramas from different genres to try out.

Acting/Cast: The male lead was clearly the most interesting character. There was really no other reason to continue watching this drama other than maybe for the slow burn romance between the two leads. If you’re not a fan of Ahn Bo Hyun (안보현) as an actor or if his character is this drama isn’t appealing to you, then you probably will not like this drama at all. The cast is good and the acting is good…it’s just that the male lead takes up way too much of the focus; everyone else just feel like side characters. The team members did have decent chemistry though. 6/10

Writing: It was formulaic in the first…6 episodes maybe. There were also weird cases involving hypnosis and ghosts…So this drama isn’t the most realistic (which is strange for a detective drama). I almost dropped it, but I saw comments saying that the drama gets better as it goes. That turned out to be accurate; this drama does get better each episode. The case involving the female lead and her father’s backstory was the point when it really became interesting for me. Once that plot point was wrapped up, however, I felt like the drama lost some steam. The male lead’s plotline just wasn’t as interesting to me. It was too predictable. Also, the dark and mysterious plot surrounding the male lead from the beginning turned out to be overly dramatic nonsense. The writing (especially for a detective genre) isn’t very intelligent. It didn’t feel as though a team of smart detectives were solving crimes together -- it was more like technology doing it for them and the male lead using his fame, money, and connections. So…not much brain power going on (actually, the male lead made the detectives seem like a joke. How did they ever solve cases without him?). I did like the lightness of this drama, however. I could watch 15 minutes here or an hour there whenever I felt like seeing the team again. However, it became a little too dark in the end, which was a bit off-putting. It was also weird how certain characters treated the male lead like he’s a ticking time bomb because he has childhood trauma. They should be the ones to know that simply having childhood trauma doesn’t necessarily make someone evil (especially when the male lead is repeatedly shown to be a good person). 1.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama felt well produced, although cheesy at times. It had good, choreographed fight scenes, which is always a plus in my book. It has a unique OST, too, which adds to the charm of the drama. The music has a cartoony or comic book detective feel. 6/10

Entertainment Value: Like I said earlier, I almost dropped this drama after episode 6. The rich, famous influencer solving cases gimmick just wasn’t quite compelling enough for me. Maybe, it’s because the drama was a bit too ridiculous in the first half. Maybe, it’s because solving the cases didn’t feel like a team effort. However, it did get better and characters began to grow on me a little bit. It took me a long time to finish this drama because I would just watch a little here and there while waiting for more episodes of other dramas to air. 3/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 4/10. For me, a score anywhere from 4 to 5.5 means that I wouldn’t recommend this drama, but it is still good enough for a one-time watch (meaning, I don’t feel like I wasted my time watching it). It seems like they’re planning for a second season. Would I watch it? Probably. Would I expect it to be good? No…but it does have potential to be better than the first season.

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Not Perfect But Super Cute and Super Fun

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I really like Kim Hye Yoon (김혜윤). She stars in the drama Extraordinary You (which is in my top 10) so I was excited to watch another drama with her as the female lead. I was also interested in seeing Byeon Woo Seok (변우석) as a male lead. I had only seen him a bit in Strong Girl Nam Soon before I ended up dropping it. I heard he was the only good thing about that drama.

Acting/Cast: I really love the three leads. They’re perfect and they have great chemistry together. This was such a funny drama. I was smiling and laughing throughout each episode. Byeon Woo Seok (변우석) in particular -- his comedy was on point. The biggest issue I had with this drama, however, lies in this category: I hated the female lead’s brother and best friend with a passion. They were so irritating that I literally wanted to deck them both in the face…repeatedly (which was a wish that was partially granted). Their acting was so incredibly obnoxious (and their characters in general) to a point that I didn’t even think was humanly possible. The annoying side characters in My Demon paled in comparison to these two. Even the handicap brother in The Third Charm is likeable when compared with these two and even the obnoxious political figures in Snowdrop can’t hold a candle to these two. It was so bad, in my experience, that they are the sole reason as to why this drama didn’t make it into my top 10. A drama hasn’t earned a place in my top 10 since Extraordinary You. I thought this drama would be the one to break the curse. I’m so disappointed… I don’t know who in their right mind told those two actors to act like that (I did notice that Seo Hye Won [서혜원] is actually just playing her annoying character from Nevertheless,…ugh). 7/10

Writing: I really enjoyed the plot. It kept me guessing, kept me on the edge of my seat, and gave me a lot of good laughs. It’s actually a pretty emotional story, too. I think they did a good job balancing the darker aspects of the plot with the lighter, comedic aspects. Although I worried for the main characters, at no point did I feel like the situation was hopeless, which was nice. However, there is a pretty big plot hole that I think could have been easily prevented. It has to do with the time-freezing ability she gains but never uses. She doesn’t use it to escape the villain. She doesn’t even use it to prove that she’s from the future. My solution for this would be for her to not even have that ability in the first place. Whenever she tells someone something about the future, instead of having time freeze, the person should hear it and react to it, but then after their reaction, time should reverse back to the moment right before she told them. I think this method could have resulted in some funny interactions, as well. I think the two obnoxious side characters’ stories weren’t entertaining at all or important to the drama and should have just been cut out completely. I will say that the resolution to the main conflict at the end was a bit underwhelming. However, the ending in general is pretty good. I love how the grandma character was utilized throughout the drama, too; It was really sweet. 8/10

Direction/SFX/Music: The pacing, the production value, and the OST are well done. The music fits the vibe of the drama. No complaints here. 10/10

Entertainment Value: This drama was so fun and cute and funny the whole way through. It’s not easy for a drama to genuinely make me laugh, but this one succeeded. I loved watching the three leads interact with each other and I liked their sweet, innocent vibes. This one had crack drama vibes for me. I watched this as it was airing and I was excited for Mondays because of it. 10/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 9/10. It would have been a 9.5 if it weren’t for those two side characters. There is so much nostalgia with this drama, similar to how I felt watching Extraordinary You. These dramas feel like a callback to the classics (without the toxicity). I would definitely recommend this drama if you're in the mood to watch a fun comedy with green flag male leads.

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