3
Zogitt
Australia
This review may contain spoilers
Not impossible but they need to try harder
The FL has a breakout role in the film Burning. I jumped at the chance to see her in a proper drama series.
The initial set up of her character was encouraging. Her character is hard working, resourceful and has a laser focus on her career. She might be down on her luck, but she has a backbone of steel. The potential for growth is writ large. So much so that I can overlook the tropey contract marriage/cohabitation plot if she is allowed to play to her strengths. Unfortunately, it is where the engine kinda stalled.
To wit, once the show simple premise is lay out for us, the FL's role actually diminished. She has flashes of brilliance but soon her role is overshadowed by the male lead aka Moon Sang-min. For half the series, she is the "meek" fiancée of the 2ML. At one stage, her character was forced to go into hiding and lay low. Not exactly the ideal setting for scene stealing performances.
To be fair, I don't have a problem with the acting of Moon. He is handsome and charismatic as ever. The show is pretty much his starrer. Our leads do have good chemistry and their on/off romance is what sustained my interest. However, the paper-thin plot needs more to make it work. So far, it is not much more than a cavalcade of tired tropes.
Alas, that memo didn't land on the right desk. Most characters are straight out of central casting. Side plots are tropey and boring. Antagonists are more meddling than evil. It is all so samey and predictable. Even the writer-nim recognised this. There are multiple references to "trashy drama” plots in dialogues. Self awareness . . I get it! Ha ha . . indeed.
Even when we are served a sugar hit just after the 3/4 mark. It was immediately followed by the ubiquitous breakup with not 1, not 2 but 3 lots of Noble Idiocy. Predictably, that send our leads straight to purgatory but served little other purpose.
This is further confirmed in the last EP when after a mandatory 1-year time skip, our leads threw themselves at each other within hours of a chance meeting. What is the point of the breakup? This leads to 15 mins of decent fan service and HEA endings for all concerned whether they are good, bad or just silly.
I am not saying the show is bad. It is quite watchable and entertaining at times but the wasted potentials just irks me.
The initial set up of her character was encouraging. Her character is hard working, resourceful and has a laser focus on her career. She might be down on her luck, but she has a backbone of steel. The potential for growth is writ large. So much so that I can overlook the tropey contract marriage/cohabitation plot if she is allowed to play to her strengths. Unfortunately, it is where the engine kinda stalled.
To wit, once the show simple premise is lay out for us, the FL's role actually diminished. She has flashes of brilliance but soon her role is overshadowed by the male lead aka Moon Sang-min. For half the series, she is the "meek" fiancée of the 2ML. At one stage, her character was forced to go into hiding and lay low. Not exactly the ideal setting for scene stealing performances.
To be fair, I don't have a problem with the acting of Moon. He is handsome and charismatic as ever. The show is pretty much his starrer. Our leads do have good chemistry and their on/off romance is what sustained my interest. However, the paper-thin plot needs more to make it work. So far, it is not much more than a cavalcade of tired tropes.
Alas, that memo didn't land on the right desk. Most characters are straight out of central casting. Side plots are tropey and boring. Antagonists are more meddling than evil. It is all so samey and predictable. Even the writer-nim recognised this. There are multiple references to "trashy drama” plots in dialogues. Self awareness . . I get it! Ha ha . . indeed.
Even when we are served a sugar hit just after the 3/4 mark. It was immediately followed by the ubiquitous breakup with not 1, not 2 but 3 lots of Noble Idiocy. Predictably, that send our leads straight to purgatory but served little other purpose.
This is further confirmed in the last EP when after a mandatory 1-year time skip, our leads threw themselves at each other within hours of a chance meeting. What is the point of the breakup? This leads to 15 mins of decent fan service and HEA endings for all concerned whether they are good, bad or just silly.
I am not saying the show is bad. It is quite watchable and entertaining at times but the wasted potentials just irks me.
Was this review helpful to you?
