I'm not sure what made me watch this drama until the end since I hated it from the beginning. If you aren't sold by episode one, just know that the plot only gets more ridiculous. My issue was that I didn't like 95% of the characters, which makes it hard to like the show obviously, but there was just enough suspense and a main character that peaked my curiosity enough to make me want to keep watching, and that's Jo Yeo Jung as "Ms. Perfect" herself.
I think Jo Yeo Jung was perfect (pun intended lol) in the role. She was the perfect balance of sweet and sinister to make her an interesting character, so I kept watching to see what her story would be. The more her story was revealed the more cliché and uninterested I became. Then her crazy manic stare would pull me back in. I wish she was who the story focused on, but the real center of the drama was Go So Young as Shim Jae Bok. I did not like her character, and It was hard to sympathize with her the more the show went on. I think the point was to create a strong character who was no nonsense, but instead she came across as super critical, extra paranoid, and in a constant bad mood for 20 episodes. Reading the synopsis I see what the plot was going for, but I think it failed because the main character never changes. Because she was such a negative neurotic nancy, her one note paranoia throughout the show got old quick, and was frustrating to watch. It also made it hard to see her in any romantic situation, including the one they tried to force with Sung Joon. It the beginning they had a banter that was ok to watch, but it lead to zero romantic chemistry. You know it's bad when the romantic climax is hugging it out.
Jae Bok also has a crew of female friends who are THE most obnoxious and nosey bordeline frienemies. I guess they were there for comic relief, but I was just annoyed by their bitterness and catty behavior. Even the kid Che-ri came off as a brat. I wanted to skip all scenes involving them.
Most of the supporting cast is pretty terrible honestly... but I will at least give the two main kids a pass.
The most disappointing character was Jung Hee played by Yoon Sang Hyun. I've loved him in so many dramas, and this is the first time I can remember being annoyed by his role and his performance. He played an over the top version of a passive character and then suddenly switched completely in a way I found to be completely unrealistic. Bad writing meets bad acting was a continuous theme for me throughout the show.
The story tries to be a suspense comedy with a makjang plot, and it just didn't work for me. The characters were mostly one dimensional and unrealistic. Characters who should have been gone reappeared, and main characters appeared out of nowhere. The plot was so ridiculously random that it was if they were making up things as they went along. They did manage to create enough suspense to keep me wondering wtf was going on, but the reveals were always disappointing. The cheesy ending tried it's best to tie all loose ends, but I was just relieved that it was finally over. I guess it's obvious that a rewatch is out of the question, unless I just want to confirm how bad it was for a second time.
Overall I kinda wish Jo Yeo Jung had her own Ms. Perfect spinoff, with a better cast, writer, and director involved (this was directed by the director of Mary Stayed Out All Night - which I liked only half a point more). Instead this drama is far from perfect. It's also way too repetitive to be 20 episodes long. If makjang is your genre of choice, you may be more forgiving of this show's flaws than I was, but I couldn't recommend this drama to anyone otherwise.
You know things are bad when the only character you sympathize with and are rooting for is the villain.
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