Rookie Historian really has it all: gorgeous costumes, sweeping romance, laugh-out-loud moments as well as cry-your-eyes-out ones, and - most importantly to me - complex female characters who actively engage with the plot and confront social issues that are just as relevant today as they were in the Late Joseon Era.

You may have your issues with Shin Sekyung, or you may have heard Cha Eunwoo is a bad actor, but neither of those things matter here. The former crafts the best performance of her career with a career so vibrant that it seems to have been designed for her, and the latter rises to the occasion and improves HIS craft as the story delves deeper into his character and explores his personal growth. I personally loved their chemistry and the pacing of their romance, and I find their resolution to be entirely fitting.

As for the rest of the cast? Top-notch acting and well-fleshed out characters all around. There are various arcs, both on the political and personal front, which bring a great deal of satisfaction without resorting to a bunch of extra beta ships that go nowhere. Park Kiwoong as the Crown Prince, Lee Jihoon as Officer Min, and the three other female historians played by Park Jihyun, Lee Yerim, and Jang Yubin are all noteworthy. The last group are especially great because we get to see a strong female friendship play out throughout the show, but Rim (Eunwoo) also gets his own set of friends who are equally adorable to watch.

There are times when the introduction of Catholicism can seem a bit heavy-handed, but overall the theme of a changing world and the impact of globalization is really well-executed and very unique compared to any saeguk (or even modern drama) I've seen. It's obvious the writer and her team did their research, and the story is engaging even if there are one or two over-indulgent episodes.

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I was hooked by the first half of this drama, and I loved the way appearances and bullying were explored through the eyes of both Ayumi and Zenko, plus Kaga was a total sweetheart who had me rooting for him the whole time.

But at some point, after episode 3 or so, it became more about the "science" of switching bodies and enacting a plan that would get them back to themselves. This pulled my focus away from the themes of the story and the character dynamics, especially when they reinserted Kohiro into the love triangle and tried to make his earlier actions more romantic.

So in the end, I would rate this story much higher in theory than in execution. I think that if you're invested in the romance you'll be disappointed, but at least you'll come away with some strong friendships and memorable characters.

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Precious Fluff with a Healthy Side of Substance

I originally wrote this review halfway through the drama, and I'm happy to confirm it did not disappoint me at all afterwards. So many kdramas become consumed by the male lead in the back half, or otherwise forgot to follow through on the female lead's story. But this wasn't the case at all here, because Gangnam Beauty was committed to Mi Rae's growth. The times that it strayed from her, it tended to follow the stories of the other women in the drama, most significantly antagonist Soo Ah's own perspective on beauty and self-esteem, but also Kyung Seok's mom and her attempts to reconnect with her children.

This drama hit all the right notes for me. I was really reluctant to watch it because often stories about makeovers or plastic surgery have very negative messages which suggest either that your life will be better when you are "prettier," or else they emphasize the fat shaming and fall into the very tropes they're trying to fight against. But Gangnam Beauty did an excellent job of questioning beauty standards and showcasing the hypocrisy of a society that only values women for their appearance. I think it's only real flaw in my book is that it had what appeared to be PPL for a diet pill in one episode, but the pill was used by Soo Ah and the protagonist Mi Rae later called her out for all the methods women use to be the "most beautiful" when all they end up doing is hurting themselves. So while I would rather they never have shown it, I'm glad they turned it around after.

Anway, onto the cast: I think Im Soo Hyang and Cha Eun Woo did very well as Mi Rae and Kyung Seok. Even if the latter is a little green as an actor, he believably conveyed the subtle shifts in Kyung Seok's "coldness" and watching him warm up and become open as the drama went on was a treat. But of course, it's Soo Hyang who carried the weight of the drama on her shoulders, and she made Mi Rae's paralyzing fears very relatable while still allowing her inner strength to shine through. The side characters were all well-cast in my book, and their personalities were realistic and charming or even more realistic and infuriating as needed. I loved that the show never became solely about the romance - although the soft and slow progression of said romance was perfect for both characters - but really incorporated university life and friendships throughout.

I read the webtoon because of this drama, so I'm biased in the show's favor, but I think it conveyed the message from the comic appropriately. Adding Hyun Jung as a best friend for Mi Rae was an excellent choice in my book because it helped us understand how Mi Rae made it this far and showed that you can have a support system and still feel alone on a larger scale. Plus it set Soo Ah apart as a woman who lives for competition (even though that's something that society is partially to blame for as well) in comparison to several other girls in the show who were genuine in their intentions even if they sometimes fall short. I also like how it called out certain kdrama tropes, allowing our gallant male lead to learn more about how to respect the female lead even though he already started off leagues ahead of most men.

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Jojo's Growth Above All Else

I'm seeing way too many 1 and 2-star reviews of the second season just because people are upset at the endgame, which is totally unfair. The second season allowed Jojo to find her own happiness and make the choice to love and to be open. Hye Young's patience and understanding was rewarded, and Yuk Jo provided the comfort and safe space Sunoh needed.

If I have a critique, it's actually that nothing came of the anti-love alarm movement and the app wasn't dismantled. But Jojo herself grew out of dependence on it and learned to trust her love without it, so that's good enough for me.

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Comfort Food

I know people like to call romance-oriented dramas "guilty pleasures," but I prefer to think of True Beauty as comfort food. It has all the familiar tropes of older kdramas, but it always knows how to put a fun new spin on them in order to keep viewers engaged and interested.

Lim Jugyeong is a wonderful female lead, brought to life perfectly by Moon Gayoung, and her growth over the course of 16 episodes is believable and rootable. Cha Eunwoo, aside from being eye candy, gives his all to Lee Suho and really makes you feel pain and his love for Jugyeong.

Hwang Inyeop and Park Yoona may be treated very differently by the narrative in their respective second lead positions, but they are delightful and help round out a perfect cast.

In fact, every major character is memorable and exciting, with some twist or extra infusion to make them stand out from the high school drama pack. There are also fun dream sequences, bliss-tastic OST choices, and plenty of "restaurant ending" scene moments to go around.

If you love romance and kdramas, you cannot go wrong with True Beauty - as long as you don't get too invested in picking a team and instead let Jugyeong's feelings guide yours.

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