Crash and burn

I finished this series feeling that the MC's aren't going to have a happy life together, which made the time spent watching it a waste. The title should have been "A Lonely Love", because that's what I see in the FL's future.

The good:
I found the story, while the characters were still at school, to be cute and enjoyable. The secondary characters were also sweet and kept me engaged. To me, this story has a manga feel to it for the most of the series and it has the normal absurdities I enjoy in reading Slice Of Life manga.

The bad:
As a romance this story fell apart for me when the characters started facing real problems in the adult world. The problems are never addressed and the story ends without the couple realizing that the future of their relationship is in serious jeopardy. There are 24 episodes, so surely there was time to show the viewer that the couple is dealing with and found solutions to their problems.

In the original Chinese version the love the ML had as an adult for the FL came across much better and I believed they could make it work. In this remake it's difficult not to think the FL should have ended up with the secondary male. None of this is the fault of the actors - it's a crappy script.

Lastly, eventually the male lead became to youthful looking for his age. The same actors played the characters from age 14 to 30 and only the FL could really pull 30 off. The male lead looked 24 max and not enough was done to differentiate his character at different ages.

There was a lot to like about this story, but in the end it was disappointing. I don't want to spend hours of my life watching a show that ends with a couple with a dim future.

Will I re-watch it? No. Am I furious that I watched it? Also no.

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Disappointing as a romance

The ML is by far the best thing in this story. I adored him and I think he played his role very well, considering the script. I'm not mad I watched it just to see his cute face. The ML is however the only reason to watch this.

The FL is a workaholic who catches the eye of a sweet, kind and very pretty man. He immediately (for reasons we will never know) falls for her and tries to have a relationship with her. I don't know if he spent more than a few hours with her in their first 3 months together.

I was expecting character development and that the FL would learn to have more balance in her life. I did not get this. In fact, if I watched a show were a ML treats a FL the way this stories FL treats the ML I would have seen him as a user. The FL knows she is a bad girlfriend but is okay with this, so she clearly doesn't care for him.

I don't understand why the ML is so infatuated with the FL. She knowingly ignores him 99% of the time (I'm not even exaggerating) and when she sees him she gives him minimal amounts of affection. Maybe its the old "Treat 'em mean, keep 'em keen" adage. This is one of the few (if only) stories I've watched were I really hope they break up in the future.

So the MC's have a very depressing "relationship" and it doesn't get better. If I wanted to see crappy relationships I could just look around IRL.

The story ended on a heartbreaking note when he realizes he won't see her (again) for an undisclosed amount of time (again) and tells her to just call him when she wants to see him again - he will rush over when she remembers his existence (last 5 words added by me). Ugh, I lost some respect for him there.

If you love romance, skip this story. On the other hand maybe put the sound off and just look at the pretty ML for a few hours.

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A train wreck

I now know how it feels to hate watch something. This was just awful.

Watching Asian Dramas have taught me something of the different cultures and I know that this sort of relationship seems to be popular in Chinese dramas (and I assume Japanese manga), but for me it's depressing. The FL is obsessed with the ML, for no reason other than his looks and how smart he is, and the ML despises the FL for most of the story. The ML keeps on trampling on the FL and she just sticks to him like masochistic glue.

The worst is that after hurting, humiliating and demeaning the FL for 6 years, the ML decides he likes her when he thinks she has moved on. That is not a recipe for a loving marriage.

Other than the fact that the story and romance sucked, the actor portraying the ML always had a weird look on his face. His expressions had less depth than a Steven Seagal character.

I don't think anyone who's past their tweens should waste their time watching this. I only watched most of the episodes because I naively believed the ML would change his behavior towards the FL. No such luck. The ML was even sour on their wedding.

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What did I just watch?

This was weird, and not in a good way. It seems to be a depressing story about an adolescent girl deciding who to have sex with. Or something.

Apparently ALL the boys want her (or her body?) and she ... is stupid? The ML actually said something to the effect of "I didn't know. But I knew." At times it seemed that actors where acting out two different scenes at the same time while looking at each other. Irrelevant and strange scenes where just sprinkled around and every now and then we are shown raw camera footage of ...stuff.

If my review makes no sense its because this movie doesn't either.

I wasted 2 hours of my life watching this. I would try and develop a time machine just to stop myself from watching this mess. I truly don't think think has any redeeming qualities and I wish I never watched it.

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Delightful!

I don't really understand why this drama doesn't have a higher rating. It is very romantic, has lots of skinship, is easy to watch and the chemistry between the MC is perfect.

I don't often see a ML in a c-drama who so openly adores the FL. Although the FL took her time before falling for him, it didn't go to the extreme where I wanted to throw my PC against the wall.

I loved most of the supporting cast and if the 2FL didn't wear those ridiculous shorts I would have very little to complain about.

If you love romance and a happy ending, watch this!!

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Somewhat frustrating

First things first : If you love romance, I think this drama is worth your time. It was sweet and I liked both the ML and FL as well as the secondary love story. I think the chemistry between the characters were very believable and there was 5% more skinship than in most kdrama's. So, all in all this could have easily been a 10 for me.

Now for the rant.

1. The ML
I adored the ML in the first episode and never saw that version of him again. Was he a good romantic lead? Mostly. But I can't help but feel a little disappointed in what was lost.

The ML also made some very illogical decisions in spite of being a genius. His actions and decisions was often the opposite of what any normal person would do. It was frustrating and made no sense.

2. The story line
There were loose ends galore in this story. Ironically the least evil person in the story was punished and the truly evil people just walked away. We are expected to be okay with this? Having horrible people walk around freely and without facing the consequences of their crimes was a truly ridiculous decision made by the writers. Why?

It also feels like the writers wrote themselves into a corner and then decided "Screw it" and just jumped to the next scene without even giving the appearance of logic. You know soap operas end with someone being stabbed and then the next episode they miraculously weren't stabbed somehow? It was like that.

I don't watch kdramas thinking they will change my life and I don't expect (or want) perfect logic and realism. In this story it just seemed a bit worse than usual.

In conclusion, I don't feel cheated out of 16 hours of my life. I'm not mad that I watched it and I enjoyed it despite it's flaws. I did however enjoy the first three quarters of the first episode more than the 15.25 episodes that followed.

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If you don't love this, we can't be friends

I adored this story.

First, I'm not a fan of time travel or Joseon dramas and still this story stole my heart. I've watched many Kdramas that felt like they just tried to fill 16 episodes, but IMO there was no filler or time killers here. The story was engaging, the characters were very like-able and there was more than usual skinship (although sweet and innocent and not overdone in any way).

I literally LOL'ed quite a few times and even called my husband to come watch one funny scene with me. I am in love this series and it has firmly taken its place as one of my top 5 Kdramas of all time. I have also found a new favourite actor and I'm going to watch more of Kim Nam-gil in the future.

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Melancholy and the infinite sadness

This series was good enough that I watched the whole thing (although I did start skipping scenes after episode 10). It had a happy ending and there were some fun and funny moments. I also think the acting was really good.

However, the overall feeling of the whole series was really depressing.

The ML had a subdued, but interesting personality. The FL was just boring, demure and seemed depressed the whole series. Her choices puzzled me and yet she was as intriguing as a cup of sugar and just as bland. On paper they made sense as a couple, but the chemistry was seriously lacking.

All 3 female characters in the story were in depressing situations of their own making, yet it seemed that the implication was that their woes was a result of the year they were born in and the fact that they are female. As a woman who worked in a male dominated field, I personally have higher expectations from my fellow women than to just blame the patriarchy and or economy. When my great-grandparents went through the Great Depression they didn't bemoan their lives and how unfair it was that they didn't have what their parents had - they pulled up their socks and got to work and made the best of the situation.

My biggest pet peeve was however the character that went to work without a bra while wearing see-through shirts. I understand bra's can be really uncomfortable for some women, but she could wear a vest or a crop top. I would be uncomfortable if I worked with a man who wore see-through shirts. She flashed her nipples and yet couldn't understand her male co-workers attitude towards her?

So the story wanted to make a social commentary, but didn't. A society that devalues women can only happen if mothers don't teach their sons to respect women. It's not all on the shoulders of men.

Would I re-watch it? No. Would I recommend it to other people? Only if you like the drama in kdrama. This wasn't fun to watch (baring a few scenes) and dragged on for ever.

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How to keep others from wasting their time

I'm going to sound pretty harsh, but it would've saved me many, many, many hours watching this series if I saw a review that didn't beat around the bush.

5 reasons to avoid this series at all costs:
1.The story does a 180 halfway through. The story goes from a romcom to something unrecognizable after 10 episodes. There where things I liked and things I disliked in the first 10 episodes, then everything I liked was taken away at about episode 11. Why?

2. Mr. Hyde. One of the reasons I watched the show was for the male lead character. He was funny, sweet, protective and delightfully weird. Then he suddenly changed for no understandable reason (yes, you guessed it - at around episode 10). He became distant and uncaring and became someone the viewer can't recognize. To make things worse he never came back to the guy you liked so much.

3. The romantic relationships. The ML chased after the FL for months and then, when he finds out she likes him back, he snubs her. Why? No damn reason. He leaves her twice, once for a month and once for a year without any contact at all - once again for no reason. If your boyfriend goes overseas and doesn't say goodbye and doesn't have any contact with you for a full year without an excuse would you take him back? A year is a bloody long time to ignore someones calls and messages and to then just say "I was busy".

The secondary couple is a man who is so sweet and nice he is like a little puppy. He ends up with the FL's sister, who is the equivalent of Cruella Deville and the wicked step sisters in Cinderella rolled into one.

4. The FL is childish without ever really being charming. She is also that person who can get trampled on again and again and again and just comes back for more without ever needing the other person to truly show remorse. There is no groveling in this story and it is sorely needed.

5. The story is just plain weird and that weirdness never serves a purpose. It was disjointed and the pacing was way off. Halfway through the story was actually over, but there was still 10 hours to fill.

I really wish I didn't waste my time on this show and if I ever invent a time machine the first thing I'll do is go back and warn myself not to watch this train wreck in the first place.

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Know what to expect.

I loved this story, BUT its not for everyone.

I'm not an expert but I think this is based on shoujo/josei manga. The FL is innocent and pretty and the ML is successful, attractive and somewhat dominant. If you don't like these kind of characters, then this show isn't for you. If you're second or third wave feminist this show is probably not for you either.

Personally, I like these kind of stories. It's fantasy, without the fantasy, and it's OTT. Every male in the FL's vicinity falls head over heals for her and she is mostly unaware of her charms. The ML is the perfect boyfriend and is almost too pretty to be real.

If you like this kind of manga/anime. give it a shot. If not, give it a wide berth because it WILL irritate you.

100% re-watch value.

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The synopsis is a bit misleading

It doesn't really matter, but the synopsis given here and on Viki is a bit different from how the story actually progresses. I'm not sure who wrote the synopsis, but it's close enough not to be disappointing.

Anyhoo, this is a very short and sweet story. It has very little angst and I think no time was wasted. I think it deserves 10 stars because the writers did really well with the pacing and didn't try to force too much into the little time they had.

This is perfect for when you want to watch a simple story or a sweet romance but you don't have a lot of time. I'll definitely watch this again if I'm in a slump or just want to watch something fast.

My only real complaint is the weird way the MC's kiss, but it doesn't happen often, so it's okay.

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Something missing

This story was totally okay and I think anyone who likes romance k-dramas should give it a shot.

The two stars it lost was because of my personal preference when it comes to Romance. It took too long for the FL to make a choice and when the choice was made I didn't feel like she was overcome with love. I don't expect a HEA if the FL is 18, but at 29 she should know herself better. So although the show ended happily it didn't feel like a guaranteed HEA. There is also no time to enjoy them together as a couple, because as soon as her choice was made the story ended.

For some reason I also wasn't crazy about the FL. Since I can't put my finger on it I guess it doesn't really make sense to include it in my review, but maybe someone else felt the same way.

Both the ML's also did things that made me scratch my head and in the end, although I'm happy with her choice I don't totally understand the reason for it. I did however like the ML's a lot more than the FL.

TL;DR the romance itself was lukewarm, but the rest of the story wasn't bad. It doesn't have rewatch value for me, since I want romance, but I'm not mad I watched it this once.

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My favourite C-drama to date

Let me state from the outset that I'm all about romance when it comes to K/J/C-dramas and until now no one did romance better than K-dramas. (Hollywood lost the plot when it comes to romance years ago).

This drama blew most other out of the water as far as I'm concerned. Until now my (limited) experience with C-dramas was a seemingly uninterested ML who acts like the FL is somehow beneath him and who shows the minimal amount of affection. Finally however we have a ML who is openly affectionate and doesn't see the FL is a nuisance.

The ML cares about the FL's feelings. emotional well being, future and career in a very obvious way. The ML doesn't play games nor does he try to be cool in front of her or the public. I'm swooning.

A lot of C-dramas make FL's who are either total klutz's or who can do no wrong. In this story the FL is hardworking and smart, but she is in no way superhuman. She makes mistakes and grows as a character (just like the ML). The ML is a bit older and he has been a leader for a while, so it makes sense that he is a bit more mature etc. However none of them are caricatures.

The side characters were also like able if a bit one dimensional (ie a fatty who only cares about food and a gym rat who is dumb...). Although I skipped much of the actual matches I didn't skip episodes even though there are 31 of them. I didn't get bored halfway through and it kept my attention with various side stories until the end.

If you like romance and can sit through 31 episodes I would give the this a try.

Will 100% re-watch this in the future.

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Cute story

This was an enjoyable, cute story. There wasn't a character that I really disliked and the OST was also pretty good.

Would I recommend it? Weeeell.... I'm not mad that I watched it, but I have a lot of spare time. If I had limited time to watch dramas and I couldn't watch something else because I chose this story, then I'd maybe be unhappy.

41 episodes are way to much. There were way to many unnecessary repeated scenes and filler. Only Charles Dickens should be paid per word. It would have been much better if it was 20 episodes at most. I had very little interest in the history of Team Solo, but that's just me and therefore I don't even include this as filler. Of the 27 hours I probably fast forwarded 10 hours.

I personally also really disliked the clothes and hair style of the FL. This is obviously very subjective, but I kept wondering "what is she wearing, and why?" Her her was cut unevenly and her clothes made no sense. This would usually not bother me, but her clothes were really weird.

The actress also apparently has never kissed someone or seen someone being kissed. Her lips literally didn't change position from being in a normal relaxed state to kissing. Initially I thought it was to show her innocence (although the ML was also innocent, yet he could kiss), but this didn't get better. The ML could have kissed a wall or a door for all the reaction he got from her. It brought the romance of the story from 10 to 7.

It has very little re-watch value for me since I really enjoyed less than 40% of the story. If someone edits it down to 10 hours I would watch it again in a heartbeat. So try this if you love C-dramas, you have a lot of time to spare OR you really have nothing else to watch.

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Almost perfect

This is one of the most unique stories I have every watched. The balance of dark to light is perfect and didn't leave me depressed, even though it could have easily been the case. The two main male characters were absolutely perfect and made the story for me.

I would not classify this as a rom-com since it has very little actual romance. It's also not a comedy, in spite of it being funny a lot of the time. It is a great mixture of fantasy/comedy/drama/romance/philosophy. The OST is so good I've also already downloaded it on Spotify.

Like many stories of it's kind there are a few things that don't make perfect sense, or threads that weren't neatly (or at all) tied by the end of the story. Every story can't be Lord of The Rings. It did however have a satisfying end and I'm glad I watched it.

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