This show has a lot of weird tonal issues. I appreciate the subject matter, but the the writing seems to cheapen it. The main female character does stand out in that I don't think she's even written to be particularly likeable, whereas the male lead is one of the first I've genuinely loved in a drama. I was really surprised by how emotional the mother - daughter relationship here ended up making me. I don't believe I'm going to be rewatching this anytime soon, the more violent scenes & story-lines can be very hard to stomach and the tonal dissonance between the violence and the comedic timing of the show don't really do it for me. I'm glad I did watch it and I want more stories like this to be told. I liked that the romantic connection between the leads felt organic and heartfelt for the most part. I didn't enjoy how many of the accused abusers etc were actually shown in a sympathetic light.

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This show was immensely relatable on many levels for me, since I live in a similiar roommate system. I was very impressed with how the show handled serious issues like mental health & abuse. Starting on the first episode of the second season, I thought the show would turn out to be pure comedy, and it made a total 180 in the following episodes. The 5 roommates and their friends have distinct personalities and relationships with each other, and that's what makes it worth watching. The romance in this show is definitely boring to me compared to the friendships that are depicted so well. There are big mystery elements that surprised me as well, some of it was really well done and some of it seemed just dumb, but it kept you on the edge of your seat nonetheless. Most of the actresses did a fantastic job and I'm definitely keeping an eye on what they will move on to do next in their careers. You really get a good sense of the atmosphere of the Belle Epoque house and at least for me, finishing the season left a huge empty space in my daily life (which I'll try to fill up with other friendship dramas) and I keep thinking about the characters and sort of missing them and their adventures and wit. They really do have so much depth and remind me of my friends and family.

So the strengths are definitely the characterizations of the main cast and how much life there is to the group and the truthfulness of their life together.
Weaknesses are the execution of some of the mystery plot-lines & romance plot-lines.

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It was fun to watch a show with a more mature character cast and have the whole thing belong to them. This is something you should watch if you like shows like HBO's Big Little Lies. I expected the show to be mostly about revenge ( I mean..... what it says on the tin ) but it actually had a huge emphasis on motherhood. Most of the revenge stuff was actually very comedic, but some of the themes of the show are very serious. The way domestic abuse and child neglect are depicted were very realistic at times ( even if the portrayal of a neglectful/abusive mother mostly seems like a total parody ). I feel like the heart of the show can be condensed into one quote, "The more precious a thing you have in your hand, the stronger the fist you make." It's a story about women finding strength in their love for each other & their children, and building this new form of a family and wanting to make better lives for each other.

This is one of those shows I mainly kept watching for the characters rather than the plot in general. Hong Do Hee is such a realistic & joyful single mom and she sort of becomes the mom friend for the group as well, she's the poorest and has no political power so all her strength comes from years of surviving in tough conditions and I absolutely loved her. She's willing to do the dirty work with her own hands. She's the one I'd most like to have as my own mother. Lee Soo Gyum also became more and more likeable as the show went on and his motivations became clear and understandable. He was my favourite of the kids and although I don't watch any kind of high school drama etc. and I thought the school scenes would bore me to death, it was genuinely interesting to see how the lives of the kids mirrored the lives of their parents.

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