STORY
I am not completely sure what exactly CIIT wanted to present. All in all, i think it wanted to depict young adult relationships of all kind: Friendship, siblings, family, frenemies, first loves, even stalking. Also i believe it sends a very important message about the people around us. We should always accept those who we call friends with their flaws, because those are what they make them unique and important to us, but we should not put up with those that surpass our proximity levels. Every person has its limits, its principals, its ideals and credentials, noone should overpass them, and if they do they don't deserve to be part of our lives, and they certainly don't deserve a free pass because it may happen that we love them. I am not sure if this is CIIT or me trying too hard to make sense of this show.
As far as the plot goes, i believe the writers had something amazing in mind in the beginning, but they lost it midway. Basically you will enter 'Seol's world' Seol is the main protagonist, and the viewers she her life in first person. We listen to her thoughts, we see her life before everyone else, we are Seol herself! The background of the drama is college life. Believe me when i say that everyone will relate to Seol when it comes to college activities, like courses, subjects, co-students who you hate but you have to put up with, team projects that you want to solo,but you are forced to cooperate, all nighters, everything felt familiar. The best thing this drama had (and the worst probably),is the male lead. His personality and his actions moved the show forward. I am sure every viewer spend quite a lot of time trying to figure out what he was doing and why. The drama is basically worth watching to watch his amazing disturbed personality unfold. At the same time we have the cutest love story happening, and probably the biggest second male lead syndrome that anyone has ever experienced lol.
Moving forward from the good stuff, the drama sadly had lots of faults, that forced me to drag it down to 7.5.
1. Weak backstory. We get glimpses of the backstory throughout the episodes, and they make it seem huge and over-dramatic. The backstory is fundemental to the plot since everything that happens basically happens because of this. Sadly, I got dissapointed, it felt childish and overall stupid i may say.
2. The show after a while felt like a constant back and forth. The drama did go around in circles, there is no denying that, we got 0 character development through the episodes, and what was super interesting in episode 3 isn't interesting anymore in episode 13...
Which leads me to 3: Rushed ending. Everything fall into place in episode 16 without having the background to do that.... Everyone decided to just grow up just like that. Face their selves and act adult-y and mature like it was super easy, but for 15 episodes... it wasn't... Another dissapointment!
Overall, this isn't a bad show, and you rom-com fans will love and devour every second of it, BUT, the drama gives you the idea that it will be something extraordinary in the beginning and it just never lives up to those expectations. It was good, for a rom-com but nowhere near what it could have been....
ACTING
Best part of the drama.
Kim Go Eun. A worthy leading actress. Her role felt very plain and simplistic to me, so she didn't have the space to show what she can do imo. But, she had to pull off a few dramatic moments in some episodes and she completely nailed them, thus showing that she is a worthy actress! Hope to see her more in the future!
Park Hae Jin. A difficult role, that he pulled off wonderfully. He was scary and disturbing, but simultaneously, he was cute and lovey-dovey when he needed to. A very well-rounded actor. Amazing and memorable performance overall. A true star
Seo Kang Joon. He held up to PHJ and that means something. His character was also rather simple, a good person with anger issues, but his performance was memorable and wonderful.
Lee Sung Kyung. She should be considered the 2nd female lead! To me, she was the TRUE STAR or the show, character and acting-wise! She gave a luscious and exquisite performance! Her character was actually a difficult one to pull off. She was over the top crazy, she was funny, she was super easy to hate, but at the same time she was emotional and heartbreaking towards the end. She rose above everyone else as the shining star of this show!
RECOMMEND/REWATCH
This is recommended to all the rom-com fans, you'll love it. I feel like i am a parent giving chocolate to his kids lol. As for melo fans, watch it, why not, but don't expect much. It seems extraordinary at the beginning, but don't set your expectations to high, you'll fall hard!
I can totally see how someone could rewatch it, i won't though.
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CITT is a pretty good drama. There are aspects that I like that deal with diverse relationships and personalities. I thought the way it is written and directed was well done. Although it has some of the typical story line, not all of the story is predictable. I like a lot of the characters, but it was hard for me to be emotionally invested in anyone except In Ha. Also, my problem is I didn't feel the chemistry between the female lead with either of the male leads. I didn't hate the ending like some people seemed to, but I wouldn't say it was the best I have ever seen. The acting is what kept me hooked. Park Hae Jin has a way of eliciting sympathy for his character, Yoo Jung. I thought he was totally misunderstood. The other actors are good also, but I think the stand out and steal the show actor is Lee Sung Kyung as In Ha. I love her and her character. Talking about someone who has some deep psychological scars. I never once felt sorry for her though. I felt like she was doing the best she could with the coping methods that she new. Yeah, she lied and schemed to be loved and to get all the things she wanted. I felt like Yoo Jung's father is the one that taught her to do that. He really is mostly to blame for his son and In Ha and In Ho's pain. Plus, if he had taught his son to talk about his problems and deal with things in a conventional manner, then Yoo Jung might be a different person. I hope that isn't to spoilerish.
The music is good.
I won't rewatch this.
If you like psychologically messed up characters, then this is the drama for you.
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I mean I watched it because I saw the cast, there was like Seo Kang-joon, Nam Joo-hyuk & Lee Sung-Kyung which were all really good actors and characters were really funny to watch how different they could be.
But I think I didn't really like how the story of the two main actors Kim Go-eun & Park Hae-joon ended up like, I don't know, I think it was a little confusing and I just didn't like how it ended. I finished watching the whole thing just to see how it would have ended up but, I don't think I liked it very much.
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The worst 2nd lead syndrome
Story was decent, so was the female lead and 2nd male lead. However, this is the worst kind of 2nd lead syndrome.. not only does the female lead have much better chemistry with the 2nd male lead, but the male lead she ends up with is a piece of trash, his past does not excuse his actions. Maybe because i skipped a lot of the scenes between the two leads, but I don't even remember when the male lead actually started liking the female lead... I only felt it in the final episode.Kim Goeun really carried this show with her amazing acting
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The actors (especially KGE & PHJ) were amazing and played their parts really well, even in the episodes I didn't really enjoy, I thought almost everyone did a good job, but LSK's character was crazy. I almost had to fast forward thru the scenes with her in them, they were painful. I guess she did a good job portratying a spoiled rotten vengeful crazy person, but still painful.
It all started sliding downhill and fell off my list in a hurry. Ep 10-14 were kind of a mess. There were moments of greatness, that kept me hanging on, but it was a struggle. Then they hit rock bottom with the ending. What kind of ending was that? Anyway, best I can give it is a 3 because the beginning was so good.
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Interesting enough though, this show kept me hooked from start to finish -- for the wrong reasons. I feel like the more I got into the show, the less I cared about the characters because I really just wanted to see justice, because let's face the cold truth here, everyone minus maybe 3 people, did Seol completely wrong and dirty.
The story was really interesting, there is no way I'll say it wasn't. While it was your typical drama, it did have it's uniqueness in it's own way. I also really loved everyone's acting in this show except Sung Kyung (In Ha) don't come at me, I love her acting....in other things but in this show I felt like she was extremely over dramatic and walked like a zombie half the time and when she stood she reminded me of a Monster High doll. Remember how they used to be bent weird like something was wrong with their spines? Lol That is what she reminded me of.
I hated probably 98% of the characters. I loved Seol and her 2 friends, --oh, and her brother. That's it. I wish more friendships where like that though. No matter what she went through they were always there for her... even the small bit when they were mad at each other. Lol Those kinds of friendships are so rare.
Everyone else can fuck off though. For me my most hated characters were probably In Ha, Stalker Boy, and lazy drunk bitch. I don't care enough to remember their names... and I say that with my whole chest. oh and add on that snobby little bitch she had class with. lol Ol crusty musty ass.
ANYWAY!!! back to the review.
Everything about this show was left open and I hate hate hate hate HATE open endings. This took it to a whole new level though. Because everything was left open. Characters were there then suddenly they weren't? People were with others and just nothing was explained? I get that this was adapted from a webtoon, but that doesn't mean you should leave out information. Lol Especially since these characters were there since episode one. By episode 10 you shouldn't be like "okay well.... we just don't need you anymore" that's not how that works. Lol I mean I'm glad to see them gone but because there was no information on how or where they went, It kinda stressed me out always looking for them because I expected them to come and fuck shit up some more. cuz you know.... fuck happiness? Lol
Speaking of happiness... what kind of damn ending was that? What kind of main character treatment was that? You do on and on about people are using her and she needs to put a stop to it -- then you proceed to use her in manipulative ways. and let's not forget any time she was attacked, somehow it was her fault and if it wasn't her fault they made it super clear they she shouldn't hold it against ol-pwoor-pwiddful-widdle *insert someone's name, there's a list to choose from at this point*. Like wow, okay - she ended up physically injured how many times but still, she should forgive them? All while saying she needs to stop putting up with people's bullshit.
Geez the more I go on about about this the more I want to take away stars. So I better stop here.
All in all, yes the acting was good, the story, while hole-y like swiss cheese, was good. i just wanted more justice. I wanted actual ending.
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First of all, I must confess that I was a little reserved about this drama after I got "sick" of all the Romance genre. But what made me give it a chance was cover photo and Seol's imagine. At first I thought she was cute and I liked her hair, but it turned out that she actually has a strong personality and a pure heart. I really admire her!
On the other hand,even though I have the second lead syndrome, and Baek In Ho got me all hyped and fangirling, everytime Yoo Jung appeared this got me to my senses. I was thinking:" What is wrong with this guy? What he truly wants from the people around him? Is he really sane or something?" But I found out in the end that I misjudged him somehow. He was always put in the corner by his father and was always trying to hide his genuine feelings even from himself just to look good in front of others and especially his father. Maybe the was right saying:"I'm not the strange one. They are." People always tend to want more when they already have what they want. That is the biggest flaw of a human beeing: greed.
In some way I found myself in Seol,always the forgiving person who tries to be kind to everyone but gets hurt and misunderstood, always trying to help and says "Yes,I will do it." even if I have make sacrifices to do it,somehow grudging of my older sister when my mother praised her too much. But, surprisingly I resemble Yoo Jung too. Not being able to show my feeling to other, hiding them away, locking everything inside me, being an avenger with indirect methods and hurting those who truly care about me,is quite odd.
My advice: Watch this drama! It's not a waste of time.It might have some disappointing issues,but it will give you some lesson about how life truly is. You don't know what's awaiting for you. You might find things about you or others that you didn't know.
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From the moment Seo Kang Joon entered the story i knew i was going to have second lead syndrom. AND BOY how I SUFFERED. Baek In Ho was the only character i loved with all my heart. Everyone else pissed me off lol. The main male lead was...ummm...unique? The writers romanized his behavior as if he was some misunderstood tsundere character. But you know,i kept watching because i truly wanted to see the ending and i wasn't really hating 100% the plot of the drama but...BUT when i got to THE FREAKING ENDING. I wanted to punch my laptop screen and to rip my wig off. I know the writers wanted to do something different from other dramas and i appreciate that but it was actual trash. I've felt the disappointment in all my 206 bones.
Overall,everyone has different opinions. I'm not saying it was a bad drama because it wasn't but it was definitely not my style. #BaekInHoDeservedBetter
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There is no consistence. Is basically a cold sociopath who's not affectionate to anyone and lacks empathy: that good old cliche of a handsome rich twisted cold guy, (but here he goes beyond cold, since he's bit scary). And for no reasonable reason, in a matter of 1 episode he falls for her. Yeah, that cold twisted guy, just like magic +plum+ falls for her.An ordinary weirdo nerd. And just like that she falls for him, and they're done. They lack character development, like a consistent history and there's no way for us to tell actually how they have fallen in love for each other. After that, they struggle for her to accept his twisted ways. That goes the majority of the series, constantly on repeat. The girl fighting for accepting his twisted ways of doing things.
The way I see it, the fact that the drama didn't took much time to develop their relationship, and just took it for granted how they loved each other even though they were too different and there was no reason for such in a such short time, we don't have much time to build an affection and actually root for them to be together, so meanwhile watching their struggles, I actually didn't care much about it, like whatever break up already, I don't care.
I like to use other dramas that I loved to compare, how the relationship of them was built in block by block, and how a relationship that wasn't meant to be, can become cute. Dramas like Because This is my first life, for instance, have a similar idea, with a very different approach. That's when I guess this drama failed. What makes a good romance, for me is how little by little the relationship of two different and almost impossible persons can develop. I think this was the author's idea as well, but wasn't successful, since there were near to nothing development. Is just unrealistic how could they fall for each other.
If you you like good written plots, and a good history, forget it. You won't find it here as well. This is not a twisted surprising plot, with a clear villain to take down, or unfair things to be repaired. The whole history evolves around the romance, I've already written about. Other things is just side things, the main thing in this drama is the romance. This isn't a bad thing. Depends on what you like and what you wanna watch. That goes bad only if the romance itself is not good enough.
Also, if you don't like having second lead syndrome, don't watch it. I'm serious. The high point of this drama is the second lead. Actually thanks to him I could finish it, but if you are a person that doesn't like suffer wanting the second lead to become the main and end up with the girl, just skip it. There's no way one wouldn't fall in love with that second lead haha. I take it as bad writing you know, since we should be shipping the main couple. I always think when I have second lead syndrome, that writers shouldn't give second lead too much of space, so we wouldn't develop much affection to them, because at the ending, if you like the second lead more than the main, you will only get disappointed . Essentially you won't like the drama.
But I gotta say, i liked this drama only for Beak In Ho. <3
What can I say about this drama. This drama started good, but at some point it lost it. There's no sense of continuity, as if the writer wrote episode by episode, and didn't care much about the story as a hole.
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A mixed bag
I’ll be honest, I almost dropped this drama so many times through my watch, but managed to keep my interest just enough for me to continue.This isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy this drama at all..I did, but I found it very frustrating frequently.
The main source of my frustration really came from Soel’s constant insistence to excuse Joeng’s toxic and very often manipulative behavior...often coming to the conclusion she has to attempt to understand him more etc.
Every time she’d find out about a situation he caused I’d think “okay, this’ll be the final straw..she’s gonna put her foot down” only to come to this conclusion.
I found myself being the most drawn to In-ho’s portion of the story... not just his relationship to Soel, but his entire journey from being a “delinquent” type starting over, to overcoming his fear of approaching the piano again...
I also found his conflicts much more engaging..dealing with his friendship and later love with Soel..his conflict with Jeong and In-ha (who is insufferable) his damaged hand and gang past.
I really believe he’s what kept me watching.
Definitely would’ve preferred a relationship with him and Soel, who I felt had much more chemistry.
This leads me to the ending which I really can’t say I’m fond of.
Soel and In-ho oddly kinda...dropped eachother? Him confessing really did completely ruin their friendship and it seemed like Soel..who seemed to value their relationship earlier, just didn’t seem to even care that he was leaving or keeping in contact...even the last mention of him seemed to make her uncomfortable...
A lot of the conflicts built up just seemed to dissipate at the end in an unsatisfying way..like suddenly the injured hand is no longer an issue..the gang is no longer an issue etc..it made this drama feel like it just suddenly...stopped? Not to even mention that she technically isn’t even with Jeong at the end (although it implies they’ll get back together)
Just a very messy ending all-around.
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However, after episode 9 or so, I watched this solely for Baek in Ho and his sister, Baek In Ha. I disliked Hong Seol, (and this is just my personal preference) but I cannot stand her being sweet, naive and innocent. The romance between Hong Seol and Yoo Jung had no chemistry, and I constantly felt like Yoo Jung was out of place, like he didn't belong in college because of his personality and the way he was portrayed. This might have been intentional because of his past and his original personality. He's a cold and strange character who only opens up to Hong Seol.
When the backstory of Yoo Jung was revealed, I was kind of disappointed. I had been expecting something great because of all the tension previous episodes had built up. It just made me dislike Yoo Jung and think of him as a guy with a lot of issues even more. The fact that Hong Seol never pushed him away and just proceeded to hug him after seeing him do something immoral really ticked me off. This couple didn't move me.
The acting was decent. Park Hae Jin pulled off his role perfectly, and I've never seen Kim Go Eun before, but even though I didn't like her character, she was played well. Seo Kang Joon captured my heart and Lee Sung Kyung portrayed Baek In Ha very well. At first, In Ha was annoying, but later on, I ended up liking her and In Ho more than Seol and Yoo Jung. In Ha was incredibly cute and childish and her character really added dynamic to the drama.
While there is a lot of controversy about the ending, I feel like it wasn't the worst thing that could have happened, and I was pretty satisfied with how everything turned out. I do have to say that it was a little rushed, as some more time could have been spent in showcasing Yoo Jung's father's role in Yoo Jung's life.
Music could have been better. I barely noticed anything except for the selection of piano pieces. The OSTs were so lowkey that it didn't really make an impact. If I heard an OST being played, I probably wouldn't be able to identify it as a CIIT OST because all the songs were just typically chill to me.
Decent drama overall, but Hong Seol and Yoo Jung just weren't my cup of tea.
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You should start this show and decide for yourself if you think it's worth your time
This is one of those shows that people either loved or hated, and I lean more toward the camp of not liking it.Let me start with the cast. I thought all the actors were excellent and I've enjoyed most of these actors in other shows previously. I think that Kim Go Eun as Seol might have been the weakest link (she seemed pretty one-dimensional) but that may have been more due to the writing than to her acting abilities.
I could barely label this a romance, partially because there was so much other stuff going on, and the fact that Kim Go Eun and Park Hae Jin seemed so uncomfortable with one another. Hae Jin's character, Yoo Jung, was completely unlikeable throughout the show, so I spent a lot of time wondering that Seol saw in him. Did she think she could change him? Did she want to go against everyone else's advice? Every person that came into Yoo Jung's orbit suffered in some way. So, as I watched Seol trying to have a relationship with this guy, "run away" was playing in my mind.
I felt that Seol would have been a better match with In Ho (played very well by Seo Kung Joon), so even though I knew this wasn't the direction the writers were going in, I was disappointed.
I adored Lee Sung Kyun in Weightlifting Fairy, Kim Bok-joo, and she played a completely different character here. She was wound a little too tight and you were never sure what she was going to do next.
Overall, I felt that the show was never able to fully realize its potential, because the writers didn't seem quite sure of what they were hoping to accomplish. Did they want to redeem You Jung? I know they were trying to portray accurate university life (though Park Hae Jin seemed entirely too old for this to be effective) and the foibles of the different characters, but I felt that the characters were SO odd that I couldn't warm up to them much.
And the ending? The obligatory time jump (three years!) and very vague and non-committal ending left me completely frustrated and dissatisfied.
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