Almost stands the test of time

The only reason I watched this show was that it was leaving Netflix. And after I got used to the pace and 'look', I was interested for the most part. Some things were questionable. Looking at you, totally inappropriate 'romance' between Yoo PD and the adopted daughter. I never was and never will be interested in an incestuous relationship, so I skipped those scenes.

But the best part about this show is the characterisation.

* The ML is a presidential candidate and he truly was a hard person to pinpoint. Forever walking the fine line between 'using any means to achieve his goals' and 'the morality of the means used'. A truly grey character. Even Yoon PD couldn't pinpoint what kind of a person the ML was. He was charismatic and handsome and made some really great speeches, but it was hard to tell how much of it was true and how much of it was for show. I greatly enjoyed that. Anytime he did a good thing, he make sure to do it with as much show and pomp as possible, making it hard to judge if he was doing the good deeds because it was right or because he wants clout. But then again what is politics without clout?

* The FL was one ambitious lady. To the point that even the ML started to fear her. I loved her tenaciousness in making her husband a President. She had zero chill and I was here for it!

* Some other characters I liked were Candidate Ko and Shin for their morality and idealism. Camp manager Ki for using every trick under the sun to win. Reporter Hong for being a first-class opportunist and excelling (until the end that is). And advisor Choi, for forever believing that the ML was evil and plotting his demise even when people called him obsessive.

*But my fav will forever be Candidate Park Eul Seop. That guy has said his name so many times in this show, I don't think I'll ever forget. His completely improper (read: sexist) and tactless 'humour', horrible character + brutal honesty were frankly fun to watch. He was crazy and he sure knew it. I still can't believe his 'playboy...playboy' song made it through editing lol

* However, a lot of the other characters fell flat or were so wishy-washy it was as if the writer wrote them as they were needed each episode without ever giving them their own voice. Those included the PR head Oh, Speech/ policy maker Yoon, the stepdaughter, the First lady (she had the potential to be a great villain but ultimately fizzled), Candidate Han, Senior/ Advisor Lee (though at least he was consistent in his ambition and his acting was great), the current President, the sniper, and Yoo PD who is apparently one of MC.

The acting was over the top but I'm chalking that to the fact that this drama is from 2010. However, even the time cannot forgive the absolutely atrocious 'acting' by the son (played by Lee Sungmin). Yoo PD and the daughter were equally bad, to the point where I couldn't even bear to watch them on screen
The ost was meh and forgettable.

The writing was decent if sometimes draggy. Some things were repeated without any real purpose other than to fill the time, but we went along for the sake of the drama. Also, some of the things were just ignored and due to the sheer length of the drama, we kinda forget about them (the bio daughter's character disappeared midway lol). The 'real' villain being someone else. The villain's end etc. I'm still iffy about how the drama dipped itself slightly into the makjang territory near the end and then how conveniently everything was wrapped up.

Just hoping that Advisor Choi has found the snipper and messed up the ML's life (not too sure he deserved to win. Especially after all the things that unfolded in ep 19-20).

But an interesting watch nonetheless. I kinda wish that someone would remake this show. It has such great potential, especially in the current political climate, I think.

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Finding Love in unexpected places

I recently binged the hell out of this show, after craving something fun and light-hearted as I was recovering from a cold. I thought it would be a light fluffy romcom, but this show exceeded all my expectations. I’m writing this review because it hurts me personally to see so many negative reviews lol.

WARNING: Full Spoilers ahead.

Let us start with the Positives that exceed the negatives and have resulted in me giving the show such a high score (if it was only the couple I would give 10 stars):

1) The main leads: Both Bo Ra and Su Hyuk are realistically flawed and think that their ways of loving/ being in a relationship are the best. Hers is valuing how the relationship looks, ticking all the important milestone boxes (irrespective of her caring for them), and putting forth only her "best side". She, however, is someone who would do everything, no matter how much it hurts her pride if she loves the person. And would probably stay in a dying relationship where she isn't treated the best simply because she loves the other person so much.

Su Hyuk is more of a muted lover who believes actions take precedence over other love languages. He takes his gf and her love for granted, and will never inconvenience himself to say things he finds embarrassing or cringy even if his gf wants it. He almost thinks his gf is a mind reader and will know of his love even if he never says 'I love you'. His self-confidence in his opinions can sometimes make his gf doubt her own simply because he doesn't think them worthy. However, he believes in being honest and showing all sides of yourself in a relationship.

2) Realistic breakup: The time and the energy that takes to break up and move on, the indecisiveness, the awkwardness, the pathetic behaviour we engage in to get over it, the unhealthy and irresponsible life choices we make, the ugly emotional outbreaks, is very realistically shown. Bo Ra goes back and forth changing her mind, even trying to compromise on her fundamentals if she can be with the person she loves. Some might find that off-putting but I thought it was realistic because, in that heightened emotional state where you think you cannot function without that person, rationality is mostly out the window. The show manages to capture that vulnerability and sadness and add humour to it in a very tasteful way.

3) The romance that creeps up without warning: Our leads start as a working relationship; however, their connection and friendship evolve beyond that to the point where they essentially become each other's safe space. They are constantly interacting and talking and seeing every side of each other. Bo Ra finds she can be her true self (something which she avoided because of her lack of self-esteem) and Su Hyuk starts realising that as much as it is important to be in love, it is equally important to appropriately express such love. They appreciate each other, adore all their sides, and make reasonable compromises if needed. They are not afraid of speaking their minds and being honest. They become friends first and lovers later. They see all the ugly bits first and help each other grow.

4) Conflict and its resolution: Throughout the show, the leads constantly find their norm and views about things challenged. Bo Ra learns to love all of herself and be unashamed about wanting what she wants. Su Hyuk learns how his lack of action made him the 'bad guy'. He becomes more proactive in going for what he wants even if it is embarrassing or cringy to express it.
When Bo Ra realises Su Hyuk loves her, she does not compromise and settle for a vague undefined relationship. She declares her love for him even when she had initially promised herself to henceforth be the one who loves less (to hurt less in case of a breakup). She accepts that loving with her whole heart is who she is. In exchange, she wants a verbal confession and chooses on what terms she enters a romantic relationship.

Su Hyuk loves Bo Ra and wants the best for her and hence tries to take himself out of the picture (as much as he can lol) because, on paper, her ex-bf is what Bo Ra had wanted. His lack of confidence in this situation and his refusal to put himself forth to be cheesy and confess in words of his love becomes the couple's final conflict before they officially get together.
I liked that and thought it was fresh to see. Because in real life, people hesitate, people get embarrassed easily, they think their feelings are obvious (because to them they are). In real life, confessions of love aren't drama-like with passionate declarations of undying love. They are usually quieter and filled with small everyday actions of love. That is why we have so many memes going 'It's always hyd, and never *insert choice of romantic declaration*'.
Both small actions and grand declarations are important and this couple shows that.

5) The Humour: This show is super funny. If you easily experience second-hand embarrassment (as I do) I would suggest you go with a cautious mind, but Bo Ra was so realistically written and acted by the wonderful and talented Yoo In Na it was impossible to not root for, laugh at and with her. Yoon Hyun Min holds his own by being ever charismatic and charming as Su Hyuk and perfectly complementing Bo Ra's ridiculous side with his patient and understanding one. Some of the scenes were so hilarious I was rolling in laughter. E.g., peeing on the street, slow-motion walking, crying while sticking her head out of the bus window, headband as a neck brace, all her next morning recollections, the garbage breakup scene where Bo Ra and her ex were finally being honest, even the aegyo scenes at the very end were all laugh out loud and FUN to watch.



Things I did not like and made me deduct 1 point (wanted to deduct more, but that would be an injustice to the main couple):

1) The doomed marriage: The best friend (YJ) was in a "marriage" where her "husband" (Yang Jin Woo) was more of a roommate. His only positive was that he said he loved his wife (but even then, he did NOTHING to show that). I was expecting growth for this couple. The husband to grow the f up and pull his weight or YJ to open her eyes, realise her worth and divorce him. The show made a point of having YJ explain how the cringe "jokes" of husbands being trapped in marriages are disgusting, but it's never followed up. YJ is in a sexless, unromantic marriage that remains the same throughout the show. However, the worst part is that this relationship is somehow touted to be "love" and "marriage". This lack of growth frustrated me because it took screen time which could've been used to show more of our main couple.

2) The younger sister: Bo Mi is an entitled brat in the first 3 eps. I am a younger sister too and could NEVER dream of contacting my elder sister's ex bf who cheated on her to come console her. That was honestly a disgusting thing and a deep breach of trust. However, we see some growth in her in the next 2 eps and with her meeting her love interest (Yang Jin Ho), I was mildly interested. Alas, it's soon evident that these two are immature children pretending to be adults, Bo Mi especially. She has no sense of responsibility, lives (mooches) off Bo Ra, is rude, and blames Bo Ra for everything that goes wrong. Then the couple gets pregnant (while the guy is hiding/ camping in his employer Yang Jin Woo's basement because he doesn't have enough money to rent out a place) and it's okay because the couple love each other and apparently that is going to feed, clothe and shelter them and their baby. Again, frustrating to watch because it's silly and against EVERYTHING the show so far is trying to say.

3) The creepy age gap office romance: Uri (the f employee) is so immature it's ridiculous. She is probably 21-22, comes off as 17-20 and is in love with her boss (Sang Jin) who is in his 40s and is a divorcee. This is realistic as young women do have crushes on older men, and I was okay with the show having SJ rejecting her advances and Uri maturing from that. The vast experience and knowledge difference between them is palpable in their every interaction. It feels patronising at best, grooming at worst. However, they still end up together! The actors too have a 20-year age gap and they look like they could be father-daughter. Super unwatchable.

4) The ex-bf being brought back: Now I get why they did that, and I was totally on board with Bo Ra meeting him in ep 14 and him proposing to her. But the show lost me when we find that he is still cheating (not that I expected him to change), because the mistress shows up. Having the mistress arrive right after Bo Ra had rejected him, reduced the importance of it being Bo Ra's conviction that led to her finally saying a firm no and kicking him to the curb and instead made it seem that the situation was out of her hands because she HAD to reject him as he was still cheating.

Conclusion: Don't waste time reading my essay, instead use it to watch the show.

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