K-Drama Reviews

안녕하세요!! A few months ago I've discovered my passion for Kdramas, so I'll be posting my opinions on this blog. I hope you wil enjoy it. I’m always open for new suggestions. Feel also free to text me and share your opinion with me. Previous Drama: It's Okay, That's Love, Choco Bank, Positive Physique Currently watching: Good Doctor, Nightmare Teacher Next on my list: Age of Youth, Fantastic, D-Day

[kdrama-review]

라디오 로맨스 / Radio Romance

Radio Romance is a 2018 South Korean romantic-comedy drama starring Kim So Hyun, Yoon Park, Yura and Yoon Doo Joon. 

Synopsis:

Song Geu Rim is a passionate radio program writer. Although being extremely into her job, she only works as a assistant writer, who doesn't get treated properly by her colleagues. One day she gets asked by Lee Kang to be the main writer for his program, but he only under one condition. She must convince the top star and actor Ji Soo Ho to be the DJ of their show.

My Opinion:

This drama was a simple and cute show, which I really needed after not having seen any Dramas in a while. The romance was cute and fluffy to watch. Although the age difference between Kim So Hyun and Yoon Doojoon is quite big in real life, it didn't feel to weird to watch them, as the acted pretty well.

Overall the whole cast was really good and portrayed their characters in a convincing well. I felt so much hatred for the antagonists in this drama. What I found a little disappointing was the fact that after a while the show began dragging a lot. It had a lot of potential to involve some exciting twists and turns and while I was always expecting something bad to take place soon, it didn't. So I had mixed feelings, when the drama ended.  The OST of this show was beautiful tho. I really really love the songs and I will keep listening to them.

In the end, I just wanna say that the child actor Nam Da Reum, who portrayed the younger version of Ji Soo Ho is going to make it big one day, I have noticed him in a few dramas now and he is so talented. Can’t wait for him to take a lead role in the future. 

Rating:

Overall: 7.5/10

Story: 7.5/10

Actor Performance: 10/10

Couple Chemistry: 8/10

Music: 8/10

[kdrama-review]

더 미라클 / The Miracle

The Miracle is a 2016 South Korean fantasy web drama starring Hong Yoon Hwa, Kin Na Hyun, Yang Hak Jin and Kim Dong Hyun. 

Synopsis:

Kwon Si Ah and Kwon Shi Yeon are fraternal twins and both have a completely different life.  Kwon Si Ah is a member of the popular girl group band called the Miracle Girls and lives the glamorous life of a celebrity. Shi Yeon on the other hand is almost  double the body size of her twin sister and gets bullied at school due to her appearance. One day, after Shi Yeon had visited a mysterious tarot card reader, she and her sister have suddenly switched bodies. 

My Opinion:

You guys might’ve already figured out, why I chose to watch this drama, if you’ve read my other reviews. I dig short dramas these days, since I don't have a lot of time to start something big.

This drama was really ridiculous at some points. The story is really nothing new and if was so full of clichés that it was almost painful. The romance was also really weird. It appeared to fast, was too shallow and full of clichés. Of course, its a short web drama, so they’re kinda forced to rush the whole story, but I have seen short web dramas, who have done a better job in the romance section. 

The acting was also so so. I think the twins were pretty decent, the other ones... not that impressive. 

But although I have a lot to criticize, I still kinda enjoyed this show. Why? To be honest, I don't really know. Maybe the drama, as a whole thing, without looking too much into the details, was funny to watch. It was simple and you didn't have to think too much about the story, which can be pretty relaxing after having studied for a few hours.

Rating:

Overall: 5/10

Story: 5/10

Actor Performance: 7/10

Couple Chemistry: 4/10

Music: 8/10

[kdrama-review]

헤어진 다음날 / One More Time

One More Time aka The Day After We Broke Up is a 2016 South Korean musical, youth and romantic drama starring L and Yoon So Hee.

Synopsis:

Yoon Tak is the leader of an indie band called One More Time, which he started with his childhood friends 10 years ago. They had their successful times, but life is getting tougher and their struggling financially. Eventually Yoon Tak decides to sign up with a label. One day an unforeseeable event occurs and he gets stuck in time in order to regain his girlfriend.

My Opinion:

One More Time is a short mini drama, which I enjoyed watching in between times, since I was really busy. Since it was so short, it was compressed to the most important parts, so you wouldn't feel bored while watching. Normally these short dramas are very lighthearted, but I found this drama quite tough and emotional and it had me in tears at some scenes. Definitely not what I had expected. It expressed the the important message that we should enjoy even the simplest moments in life and appreciate it, since we mostly only recognize these things, when we don't have them anymore. 

The acting was really good. The emotions shown by the actors was really genuine and convincing. And the chemistry of the leads was also really heart-warming. Sometimes a little cheesy, but since the drama was overall pretty tough, I didn't mind it at all. 

So, if you’re looking for something short, but good I can recommend this drama to you. It might be a little complicated to understand some point, but you’ll figure it out eventually.

Rating:

Overall: 8/10

Story: 8/10

Actor Performance: 9/10

Couple Chemistry: 8/10

Music: 9/10

[kdrama-review]

당신이 잠든 사이에 / While You Were Sleeping

While You Were Sleeping is a 2017 South Korean law, supernatural and romantic drama starring Lee Jong Suk and Bae Suzy. 

Synopsis:

Hong Joo is an unemployed journalist, who dreams about unfortunate events, which will happen in the immediate future. She then asks Jung Jae Chan for help, a prosecutor, whom she’s been admiring for a while. Despite being annoyed by Hong Joo, Jae Chan agrees to do everything in his power to prevent her tragic visions from becoming true. 

My Opinion:

So, I’ve finished the drama this week and I can tell you guys that I really enjoyed it. As some of you might know already, Lee Jong Suk is my favorite actor and so I was extremely hyped to watch this show. And as expected it was great. I read that there were quite a lot people, who didn't really enjoy this drama, but I was not one of them. 

First of all, the story was really interesting. It does not have one of those plots that you find in every drama and it mixes the fantasy aspect with the justice aspect really well. It did have a few plot holes, but it didn't bugged me, since the story didn't get messy at all. It also had me in tears towards the end, so this show can really play with your heart. Secondly, the main characters were all super lovely. I especially liked Woo Tak and I think he is probably my favorite character out of this drama. He is so kind, funny and super courageous. 

Lee Sang Yeon as Lee Yoo Beom, played the role of the antagonist in this show and he pulled it off really well. His facial expressions were so on point. I hated him so much 😂 

As for the romance in this drama, this was one of the disappointing aspects. In the last dramas of Lee Jong Suk I always thought he had really great chemistry with the female leads, but in this show I didn't feel the chemistry. I don't know, whose fault it was, but I had hoped for more. By saying this I don't mean to present Suzy as a bad actress. I figured out that there are quite a lot people, who don't like the way she acts, but I think she did really well in this drama. It was just that the romance sadly didn't feel convincing. They did have their funny moments, but not more. 

I really liked the soundtrack of this drama. I think they picked the songs for the scenes really well and it gave me goosebumps. My favorite song is probably It’s You by Henry. 

Rating: 

Overall: 8/10

Story: 8/10

Actor Performance: 9/10

Couple Chemistry: 6/10

Music: 10/10

[kdrama-review]

형 / My Annoying Brother

My Annoying Brother is a 2016 South Korean comedy, drama, life, sports and tragedy movie starring Do Kyung Soo, Jo Jung Suk and Park Shin Hye.

Synopsis:

Du Yeong is a skilled Judo athlete, who damages his optic nerves during a competition and loses his sight permanently. His older brother Du Shik is a shameless swindler, who takes advantage of his brother’s disability in order to get paroled from prison. Will those two brothers be able to reconnect after their lives have been drifting apart for years?

My Opinion:

When I decided to watch this movie, I expected a funny and light comedy, so I wasn't prepared at all. It turned out to be an intense tearjerker and I haven't cried this much in a while. 

The story was really interesting and attention grabbing and in addition, it progressed really fast, so their wasn't a single boring moment. The bromance was hilarious and made me laugh out loud so many times. 

The acting in this drama was amazing and extremely convincing. I’ve seen Jo Jung Suk already in a couple of other shows and he really pulls it off playing this kind of jerk character. He was indeed annoying in the very beginning, but I soon grew very fond of him. Furthermore, I was really impressed by Do Kyung Soo. I think he is also really talented in acting and I’ll be looking forward to see him in more dramas or movies. Both of them, as well as Park Shin Hye, did a great job in expressing their emotions. I wouldn't have cried as much as I did, if they wouldn't have been so convincing.

To sum up, I can definitely recommend this movie to you. It is worth every second and I’ll probably watch it again some day. 

Rating:

Overall: 9.5/10

Story: 9/10

Actor Performance: 10/10

Music 8/10

[kdrama-review]

무림학교 / Moorim School

Moorim School is a 2016 South Korean action, romance, school and fantasy drama starring Lee Hyun Woo, Hong Bin, Seo Ye Jin and Jung Eugene.

Synopsis:

Moorim School isn't just an ordinary school. It’s a school that has teachers and students from all over the world, with everyone having their own story. It teaches important virtues like honesty, faith, sacrifice and communication. The story mainly focuses on the idol Yoo Shi Woo, the heir to the largest Chinese corporation Wang Chi And, the hard working Sim Soon Dook and the headmasters daughter Hwang Sun Ah. 

My Opinion:

I do have mixed feelings about this drama. On the one hand, I really loved the mysterious atmosphere you were able to find in every single episode.The atmosphere kind of reminded me of Twilight, but in a more positive way. It also had some supernatural elements in it, which I found really interesting at first. Later it became a little confusing and I didn't quite understand the whole sense of it, but overall it was good. I also really liked the international cast. It was fun seeing all these different nationalities in a drama.  In addition, the whole cast did a really good job. I think the main characters were pretty strong. 

So, where do the mixed feeling come from? I think after a while this drama began dragging. There were no super shocking plot twists and after a while I asked myself, where this drama was trying to go. Maybe I didn't pay enough attentions, since I, at some point, stopped really focusing on the plot.  And although Sim Soon Dok and Yoon Shi Woo were lovable characters, I didn't  quite like their chemistry. Overall, the whole love story was a little messed up, saying this without any intended spoiler. Maybe this drama would have been better, with a little more convincing love story. It was mostly really cheesy as well, a little to cringe worthy for my taste. 

The bromance was waaaay more interesting than the romance and although being quite messed up as well, I kinda liked it. It was also really funny. 

But then I have to say that the ending was really good and fitted perfectly. Its also the reason, why I'm going to give this drama a higher rating than I originally had planned to. It made me smile the entire time and feel a little melancholic, although I haven't enjoyed this drama the whole time. 

What I also really liked was the music. It didn't always fit that well, but the OST was very memorable and nice to listen to. 

Rating:

Overall: 7.5/10

Story: 6/10

Actor Performance: 9.5/10

Couple Chemistry: 5/10

Music: 9/10

[kdrama-review]

초코뱅크 / Choco Bank

Choco Bank is a 2016 South Korean web drama starring Kai and Park Eun Bin.

Synopsis: 

Kim Eun Hang is a young man, who was named after the work “bank” in Korean, but although having such a special name, he still struggles to find a job after graduating from college and has been unemployed for 5 years. He then meets Ha Cho Co, a young energetic woman, who is preparing to open up her own chocolate and sweets shop. 

My Opinion:

The plot was really sweet and simple and progressed really quick, as you can expect from a short web drama, but all in all it was nothing special. The acting was pretty average and the plot doesn’t really require great acting skills. Moreover, it had some of those typical cliché moments, which I found a little awkward.

At first I had no idea, what to think of Kai, since his facial expression looked pretty much the same for most of the time. I think most people are watching this drama simply just to look at his gorgeous face hahaha.  But then this one short scene appeared, where you were able to see that he indeed has some potential. I wouldn’t mind seeing him in future bigger projects.

Rating:

Overall: 6/10

Story: 3/10

Actor Performance: 7/10

Couple Chemistry: 7/10

Music: 8/10

[kdrama-review]

수요일 오후3시30분 / Wednesday 3:30 pm

Wednesday 3:30 p.m. is a 2017 South Korean rom-com web drama starring Jin Ki Too, Hong Bin and Ahn Bo Hyun.

Synopsis:

Seon Eun Woo was dumped by her boyfriend Baek Seung Gyu, but isn't able to get over her feelings for him and wants him back desperately. In order to achieve her goal and make him jealous, she enters a fake relationship with her longtime childhood friend Yoon Jae Won and manipulates her social media sides. But what happens, if the fake feelings suddenly start to turn real?

My Opinion:

This was a really sweet and heartwarming drama, which I really enjoyed. The story was progressing constantly and since the episodes were only about 20 minutes long, I never found myself being bored throughout the show.  I found the acting really good from each cast member and especially the chemistry between the two main leads was super sweet and believable. They were indeed a very cute on screen couple. 

I especially found the music really remarkable in this show. The soundtrack fitted perfectly and for each scene the music was chosen accurately. Although we unsurprisingly had a couple of cliché scenes, they didn't really bother me in this case. 

Rating:

Overall: 8/10

Story: 8/10

Actor Performance: 8/10

Couple Chemistry: 9/10

Music: 10/10

[kdrama-review]

수상한 파트너 / Suspicious Partner

Suspicious Partner is 2017 South Korean law and rom-com drama starring Ji Chang Wook, Nam Ji Hyun, Choi Tae Joon and Nara. 

Synopsis:

Noh Ji Wook is a handsome, hard-headed and intelligent prosecutor, who strives hard to be successful, which is why he changes jobs to become a private attorney at a powerful law firm.  Eun Bong Hee is a confident but naive prosecutor trainee, who has been a taekwondo instructor before.  When a murder strikes, Bong Hee suddenly finds herself being a suspect, but it appears that the real killer has amnesia and is constantly coming after Bong Hee and Ji Wook.

My Opinion:

At first I really loved this drama. It was short, cute and funny and the characters were super sweet. I thought I would enjoy it until the very end, especially since it is a drama, with very short episodes, but I was wrong. The more episodes I watched, the more the plot was dragging and after a while I was just watching it, in order to finish it, but wasn't really interested anymore in how it would end. The plot got really repetitive as well and I started being annoyed by the characters,

Especially Eun Bong Hee is a super irritating and frustrating character, who seems to change her mind every 5 minutes and makes it really hard to want to follow the story.  Moreover, I didn’t really feel the chemistry between her and Ji Wook. They look good together, but thats it. No heart fluttering or cute chemistry.

The only really interesting character in this show was the antagonist. His character had so much depth and was super interesting. I even had some moments, were I felt sorry for him (only for a short time tho). The actor did a really great job. I was really impressed by the way he presented this character. 

Overall, this is really not a must watch show. I was really excited to see this, but wasn't as impressed as I hoped to be. If it would’ve been a lot shorter, I think I would’ve liked it more. 

Rating:

Overall: 7/10 Story: 6/10 Actor Performance: 9/10 Couple Chemistry: 5/10 Music: 8/10

[kdrama-review]

악몽선생 / Nightmare Teacher

Nightmare Teacher is a 2016 South Korean school, mystery, suspense and supernatural web drama starring Kim So Hyun, Lee Min Hyuk and Uhm Ki Joon.

Synopsis:

Kang Ye Rim is the pretty president of her class and a top student, who holds her position with responsibility. When the new teacher Han Bong Goo arrives, strange things keep happening to her classmates, however Ye Rim is the only one noticing it. Determined she tries to uncover the reason for these strange occurrences. 

My Opinion:

Considering the fact that this was a short web drama, I think it is one of the most intense and interesting I’ve ever seen. Every episodes was really intense and entertaining and I couldn't wait to find out the solution for this mystery. Unfortunately, the ending left me pretty confused. For some reason I was not able to understand it, so I was a little disappointed. But if I just ignore that fact, then I would say that I enjoyed watching this web drama. 

I originally watched this drama for Kim So Hyun and as expected, her acting was really great and I enjoyed it a lot. But overall everyone was really good. I also liked Uhm Ki Joon as Han Bong Goo. Although his facial expressions were pretty similar most of the time, he had this scary aura, which made him indeed a nightmare teacher. 

I might consider watching this show again and hopefully I will then be able to understand the ending.

Rating:

Overall: 8/10

Story: 8/10

Actor Performance: 9.5/10

Music: 8/10

[kdrama-review]

결혼계약 / Marriage Contract

Marriage Contract is a 2016 South Korean romantic, melodramatic drama starring Uee and Lee Seo Jin. 

Synopsis:

Kang Hye Soo is a single mom, whose husband died in an accident and who is now struggling to raise her little daughter, while trying to pay off her husband’s debts. On top of that, she gets diagnosed with a brain tumor.  Han Ji Hoon is the son of a chaebol, who seeks a contract marriage and is willing to pay any amount of money, in order to save his mother’s life, since she needs a liver transplant. This is when, Hye Soo agrees to marry Ji Hoon and donate a part of a liver in exchange for enough money to provide her daughter until she reaches adulthood. 

My Opinion:

This drama was just truly amazing. I binged-watched it so fast and was extremely sad, when it ended. 

The story might not sound super original. We have a poor girl and a rich spoiled chaebol, who dislike each other at first. But what made this drama so special and extraordinary, was the acting. I haven’t seen a such realistic acting in a while. Especially Uee, Lee Seo Jin and the child actress Shin Rin Ah were super convincing in their roles. The way they portrayed their emotions was so amazing and I found myself constantly sobbing, because the whole story was so sad and those characters had to suffer so much. At some point, it became really too much to handle. It’s a melodrama, so of course this much drama should be expected, but the more the story went on the less I was able to handle this sadness. But compared to some other dramas, this all happened in a realistic way. 

The two leads also had an amazing and absolutely convincing chemistry. It’s really been a while since my heart fluttered while watching a kdrama romance, but the chemistry of those two was on point. 

Overall, this is a drama I can totally recommend you. Even if you are not a fan of melodramas, I feel like this is a great drama that you shouldn't miss. 

Rating:

Overall: 9.5/10

Story: 9/10

Actor Performance: 10/10

Couple Chemistry: 10/10

Music: 10/10

[kdrama-review]

처음이라서 / Because It’s The First Time

Because It’s The First Time is a 2015 South Korean romantic drama starring Choi Min Ho, Park So Dam, Jung Eugene, Kim Min Jae, Lee Yi Kyung and Cho Hye Jung. 

Synopsis:

Yoon Tae Oh is 20-year-old freshman in college, who comes from a wealthy family and loves to hang out with his five friend Han Son Yi, Seo Ji An, Ryoo Se Hyun, Choi Hoon and Oh Ga Rin. Han Song Yi has been his friend since childhood and is, at the same time, his first love. Unfortunately, his friend Ji An has also developed feelings for Song Yi. Will this love triangle jeopardize the close circle of friends?

My Opinion:

The synopsis already indicates that this drama has actually nothing new and we will find a typical love triangle, that might frustrate us a lot. I decided to watch this show anyway, because it is short and I didn’t have a lot of time to start a longer drama. The love triangle was indeed frustrating, especially, because it was not just one. It felt like a love pentagon at least. I didn’t suffer from second lead syndrome, since I never really knew, which couple I should ship, but the indecisiveness made it indeed a little frustrating.

On the other hand, I still enjoyed this drama, since it was really light, it had a lot of sweet and funny moments and the friendship was realistic and fun to watch. In addition, the actors did a really good job and were pretty good in expressing their emotions. 

I still don't know, what to think about the ending.  I’ll just say that I expected something different, but it wasn't bad either. 

Rating:

Overall: 7/10

Story: 5/10

Actor Performance: 9/10

Couple Chemistry: 6/10

Music: 6/10

[kdrama-review]

디데이 / D-Day

D-Day is a 2015 South Korean medical and romantic drama starring Kim Young Kwang, Jung So Min and Ha Suk Jin. 

Synopsis:

Lee Hae Seong is a caring, passionate and kind-hearted surgeon, who puts the needs of his patients above everything. This causes a lot of conflicts between him and the hospital director Park Gun, who even sends him to a rundown hospital with no ER, when Hae Seong continuously disobeys his orders. He then meets Jung Ddol Mi, an orthopedic surgeon from Busan, who came to Seoul to transfer a patient. Soon after that a 6.5-magnitude earthquake strikes Seoul, which causes a huge chaos in Korea’s capital and kills a large amount of people. Hae Seong then teams up with Ddol Mi and other staff members from Mirae Hospital to treat people, but the medicine soon starts to run out. 

My Opinion:

Woooow, this was a really good medical drama, which made me extremely emotional and caused me to shed a lot of tears. Although the synopsis already sounded dramatic, this was something I wasn’t prepared for and even though this is a 20-episode-show, I didn't mind it at all, since the episodes went by so fast. Each episodes was really intense, so many exciting and dramatic things happened that I never felt bored. 

Moreover, I loved the diversity of the characters in this drama and how they realistically developed throughout the show. I especially liked that the writers showed us that even the strongest and most passionate characters can’t always keep up their strength, while facing such a catastrophe. It’s humane to break down at some point. You will really care and love the characters while watching this, but of course you will also find characters, you will hate a lot and who you desperately want to disappear. 

The romance in this drama was super cute. The couple had great chemistry, but the plot didn't really focus on a love story, which was actually totally fine, although I wouldn't have minded seeing more action between those two. 

Rating:

Overall: 9/10

Story: 10/10

Actor Performance: 10/10

Couple Chemistry: 9/10

Music: 9/10

[kdrama-review]

도전에 반하다 / Falling for Do Jeon

Falling for Do Jeon is 2015 South Korean romantic web drama starring EXO’s Xiumin and Kim So Eun. 

Synopsis:

Na Do Jeon is timid, but bright boy, who works part-time as a clown, since he genuinely enjoys to make people laugh. One day he meets Ban Ha Na, the president of the college hobby club “One Plus One”, who is trying to recruit new members and prevent the club from being shut down. As Do Jeon joins the club, the two get really close to each other. 

My Opinion:

I really started to enjoy web dramas and as I was searching for a new web drama to watch, I coincidentally discovered this one. This show has a really light and simple plot, as these are really common features of web dramas. What I especially liked, was the fact that this show wasn’t cheesy at all. I feel like, since web dramas are really short, they often tend to exaggerate the love story in an almost ridiculous way.  However, the romance in this drama was really cute to watch, but at the same time not too romantic. It developed a little to quick to be realistic, but I guess that is hard to avoid in a such a short time. 

The acting was pretty decent, but since none of the characters required excellent acting skills, I believe the actors potential wasn’t used and shown that much. I think in other shows they’d be able to do better.

Overall, this isn't a very spectacular and rather ordinary web drama, but I’d still recommend it to you, if you want to watch something light and cute and not too cheesy. 

Rating:

Overall: 7.5/10

Story: 5/10

Actor Performance: 8/10

Couple Chemistry: 7/10

Music: 8/10

[kdrama-review]

학교 2017 / School 2017

School 2017 is 2017 South Korean rom-com, mystery, romance, school and youth drama starring Kim Se Jung, Kim Jung Hyun and Jang Dong Yoon. 

Synopsis:

The plot follows a class of high school students, who try to overcome the stress of being ranked by their exam grades and who have to deal with the high-pressure and corrupt school system. Ra Eun Ho is a cheerful and kind girl, who dreams of becoming a webtoon artist and date the college guy she has a crush on. One day, she gets caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and gets accused of being the school troublemaker ‘X’, which puts her dream of going to university at risk, especially because her grade aren't really good either. Consequently, she attempts to find a catch this mysterious ‘Student X’ to prove her innocence.

My Opinion:

Sometimes I like school dramas, sometimes I don't. They are all pretty similar and since they almost always deal with the same problems, they get pretty predictable. Same was for this drama, however, I still liked it. I loved the character development in this drama, I loved the genuine friendship and the realistic, but super sweet love story. There was less drama than I’d originally expected.

It had a lot of funny moments as well, so I was able to laugh a lot. Especially Hyun Tae Woon is such a funny person. I swear, him dance to BTS Boy in Luv had me on the floor crying out of laughter.

https://media.giphy.com/media/jszu3o79qZ4U8/source.mp4. **

The acting was great as well. All the actors portrayed their characters in a realistic way and were able to transport the emotions really well. I didn't cry, but I have to admit I sometimes had some goosebumps, while watching this show.

Looking at the plot itself, however, this school drama wasn't special at all. Especially after X got revealed, it got a little boring, since there weren't a lot of super exciting things happening. It mostly dealt with the typical problems you see in school dramas and if you compare it with School 2015, I personally prefer School 2015.

If you are a fan of the School series, enjoy school dramas or if you are a fan of a sweet, light and hilarious romance, you should give this drama a try.

Rating:

Overall: 7.5/10

Story: 6/10

Actor Performance: 9.5/10

Couple Chemistry: 8/10

Music: 9/10

**(someone pls explain me, why Tumblr doesn't allow me to save this post, as gif... can only enter the link here)

[kdrama-review]

화랑 / Hwarang

Hwarang is a 2016 South Korean rom-com and historical drama starring Park Seo Joon, Go Ah Ra and Park Hyung Shik.

Synopsis:

Hwarang is a group of elite youth during the Kingdom of Silla, who are all talented and good looking knights and were formed to keep peace and protect the throne from the greedy nobles. However, among them is the future king, who was hidden from public from his mother, but can change the course of history. 

My Opinion:

Guys, I finally finished this drama 🙌🏼 It has been on my Watchlist ever since I finished Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, where I fell for Park Hyung Sik. However, I was really hesitant to watch this show and have pushed it away for a really long time, since I’m simply not a fan of historical dramas and I wasn't sure, whether I should really give this a try or not.  I haven’t had any expectations when I started it, so the disappointment in the end wasn't as big. This was simply not my cup of tea and I'm actually pretty proud of myself that I didn't drop it half way through. 

First of all, the story was hella confusing. In the beginning it wasn't that hard to understand, but after a while I just kept asking myself, where the writers were trying to go. There were almost no scenes that kept me excited. Most of the time it dealt with weird love triangles and since there were so many of them, I eventually lost track of them. What I can say is that the main characters absolutely had no chemistry with each other. Their love story was super weird and I lost interest in them pretty fast. 

I love Park Hyung Sik an Park Seo Joon, but I didn't like their characters in this drama... sadly.... Ah Ro was the weakest character among them, in my opinion. She always looked like as if she was suffering from pain or as if she was angry...constantly... Secondly, the story was super repetitive and dragging. 20 episodes were definitely too much and those flashbacks that kept on appearing really got on my nerves. 

Tbh, the only appealing and interesting part in this drama was the beautiful cast. Ban Ryu and Soo Yeon definitely stole the show from the main leads and I was always looking forward to their scenes, although there weren't many of them. My absolute favorite characters were Han Sung Rang and Soo Ho Rang.

They were so funny and sweet and the only ones, who were able to make me smile while watching this show.  Their was exactly one scene that made me actually cry, but that was pretty much it. 

This is a drama, I will definitely not watch again. Their were a few scenes that were entertaining, but I was pretty irritated and bored most of the time. 

I know, I was complaining a lot in this post, so I will share my favorite scene from this drama with you here: 

Rating:

Overall: 5/10

Story: 4/10

Actor Performance: 8/10

Couple Chemistry: 1/10

Music: 8/10

[kdrama-review]

응답하라 1997 / Reply 1997

Reply 1997 is a 2012 South Korean school, youth, friendship, rom-com drama starring Jung Eun Ji, Seo In Guk, Hoya, Shin So Yool, Eun Ji Won and Lee Shi Eon. 

Synopsis:

The story is set in the 1990s in Busan and tells the story of Shi Won, a female high school student, who is obsessed with the boyband H.O.T, and her 5 high school friends.The story moves back and forth between their past as 18-year-old high schoolers in 1997 and their present 33-year-olds at their high school reunion dinner in 2012. 

My Opinion:

Recently I had a lot of difficulties to watch a drama and pay full attention to it. I even often missed the most important parts and had to rewind in order to keep up with the story. Reply 1997 somehow managed to keep my attention from the beginning to the very end and there wasn't a single moment, where I felt bored. 

Why is that so? First of all, the length of the episodes were perfect. They were only about 45 minutes long, so compared to other dramas, it felt like the episodes were just flying by without dragging and made me binge-watch this show. Secondly, the story was very simple, which I enjoyed a lot. It Although there were no spectacular plot twists, it was not boring at all. It was very close to reality, which is something I like a lot. Consequently, it is easier to empathize with the characters. I didn't find the flashbacks annoying at all. Switching between the past and the present made the story actually even more interesting. 

The actors in this drama were all really great and managed to portray their characters in a realistic and convincing way. I loved the friendship in this drama a lot and I have to admit that these characters even made me cry sometimes.  Moreover, the romance was pretty good as well. It wasn't cheesy at all and as a result, I found the relationship between the two main characters super refreshing. I do like cheese a lot hahaha, but sometimes you just need to watch something more realistic. 

The only thing I found quite annoying was their Busan dialect hahahah. I still remember that time when every dialect just sounded completely the same to me and I wasn't able to distinguish whether someone was speaking a dialect or not. But now that I have watched a lot of Korean shows, I figured it out and at first it was extremely distracting. It really took me a while to get used to it. 

Overall, this was a super sweet and light drama with lovable characters and a lovable story line. 

Rating:

Overall: 8.5/10

Story: 8/10

Actor Performance: 10/10

Couple Chemistry: 9/10

Music: 8/10