A Fada do Levantamento de Peso, Kim Bok Joo (2016)

I don't have much expectations for this drama. At first, I just wanted to watch this mainly because of Lee Sung Kyung and Nam Joo Hyuk, whom I adored after watching Cheese in the Trap and Scarlet Heart Ryeo. I'm interested on how their pairing will work, and how will Sung Kyung carry the role of a weightlifter.

Well, everything worked just fine.

Story: It is a lighthearted drama about love, friendship, youth and a little bit of sports set in a university. I love that the female lead is not your usual damsel in distress character. She's strong, positive, funny, and stands for herself and her loved ones. I also love the friendship between her and her two best friends. The side romances and family stories added a little spice and sweetness to the drama. And of course, the leads' romance is our #relationshipgoals.

There are some dull moment yes, but it's so little you end up not noticing them.

Acting/Cast: This is my second favorite performance of Nam Joo Hyuk (next to his role as Baek Ah in Scarlet Heart Ryeo), who played as a free spirited swimmer Joon Jun Hyung. He is perfect for the part. Damn, where can we find this kind of man in real life? Tell me. Meanwhile, while I commend Lee Sung Kyung for giving most effort to play the role of a weightlifter, she seems to be lacking on "being" the weightlifter. But her awkward facial gestures and walk kind of grew on me.


I'm actually excited for Sun-Ok and Tae-Kwon's romance. But this has only got 16 episodes. (Poor Nan-Hee ???)


Overall:

I recommend it to those people who wanted a break from stressful melodramas or historical dramas. Also, for those people who are fans of youthful dramas.

Leia Mais

Aaaahhh... Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo... Where do I start?

To be perfectly honest, this drama's poster and title didn't appeal to me AT ALL. I mean, Weightlifting? I'm not into sports and I didn't think I'd enjoy a drama about weightlifting. But boy was I wrong. I was so wrong.

Thanks to a friend who kept on nagging me to watch this, I got to experience a drama that managed to pull on EVERY SINGLE ONE of my heartstrings and filled EVERY cell in my body with so much love, joy and positivity that is so overwhelming and still makes me want cry whenever I watch video clips of the drama--- days after finishing it.

This drama is incredibly beautiful in every sense of the word. It's too beautiful for words even.

And if you're reading this review because you need someone to convince you that it is worth your time, I suggest that you stop hesitating and just jump right in. Don't overthink. Just hit that play button and see for yourself why everyone is raving about it. Who knows? WFKBJ might just surprise you, grow on you and maybe even blow your mind.

Watch this drama with an open heart and an open mind. Don't expect anything. Just watch it and enjoy the ride. This is what happened to me and thank God I did it because WFKBJ inspired me so much that it changed the way I see the world and the way I live my life.

So go ahead and give it a shot. I have a feeling you'll LOVE it -- or perhaps even fall MADLY IN LOVE with it. ;)


P.S.
This is my first review. I don't write reviews because I'm lazy but I couldn't resist the urge to do so because this drama is too beautiful not to share. I hope this review would help convince you to watch and experience this masterpiece. :)

Leia Mais

A love relationship thats refreshingly healthy, sweet and without the usual kdrama tropes. I know quite a few ppl has express they didnt watch due to reservation on both male female leads. I urge you to give this a chance. Its so long since ive met a drama that give me all the warm fuzzies and remind me the best in a supportive relationship.

Male: Handsome, Proactive, Supportive, A tease, Tall, Sweet, A listener, Values family, A swimmer
Female: Strong, Tall, Pretty, Charming, Values family and friends, Vibrant attitude, straight shooter, Weightlifter

Story: Friends to couple, first love, college life, sports life, family and strong friendships

Bokjoo and Joon hyung seriously the sweetest couple in K history. It is very refreshing when a guy is proactive, means what he says and acts on it when he realises his feelings. What worked to make this drama awesome is the amazingly natural chemistry of our leads who are comfortable and playful on and off screen. Couple that with the writer whose previous works includes Oh my ghost, you know its a winner. The charm of this drama is that its not heavy but its not your usual fluff. It has winsome characters, and male female leads you come to love and a sweet journey watching this two support each other through the challenges they faced in school or at home and fall in love. The drama doesnt dwell too long on one issue and never draggy. It highlights the wonderful time in college with the first blooms of love and the amazing girlfriends we have.

Ive never more convinced of two people more suited for each other, as jeon joon hyung and kim bok joo complements each other. Long after this show ends i will always remember our bokjoo and joonhyung.

Watch and you will know what i mean. This underdog show captured my heart in surprise. It has so much heart warming scenes not just the romance but also father-daughter and mother-son relationship. Really a gem

Leia Mais

Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo has got to be one of the sweetest, most natural developing love story I've ever seen in a kdrama. It emulates real life to such an extent that you can't help but empathize with Bok Joo and maybe even put yourself in her shoes. The essence of her story happened to all of us at least once, even if the outcome may have been different.

All the characters were perfect for this drama and while the acting was not something absolutely extraordinary, the performances from the entire cast reeled you in and before long you start wishing everyone has their happy ending.
I especially appreciated that there were no negative characters in this drama. They were all perfectly human and you can understand the hidden reasoning behind each of their actions.

The humor is another thing I appreciated a lot. I can't remember the last time I burst out laughing, tears in my eyes, in the middle of the night while watching a show. Any show. While I am easily amused in real life, I've found that making REAL humor on television is one of the most difficult things to achieve. So I don't always laugh at supposed humorous moments in dramas / tv shows / movies because I don't find them that funny. But the humor in Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo is so natural, SO real life centered that you can't keep a straight face. I LOVED that about this drama!

Overall Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo is an excellent mood booster. Having watched it after finishing a very heavy drama it healed my heart completely. I fully recommend it to anyone looking for a love story that develops so natural you can't even tell when it happened (at least for one of the main characters). It's not the type of story I felt swoon-y over, but rather one that made me realize they would be together a LONG time if it happened in real life. That's how real, deep rooted it felt.

Leia Mais

It was actually amazing!!!

I am an avid romance anime and drama consumer and I didn't want to watch it in the beginning because I had heard that it is good. I haven't watched that much dramas so I didn't want my expectations to be too high for other dramas after this one. But I didn't have anything to watch so I just caved in and started watching it. I finished it in like 35 hours. It was everything I had ever wanted, but I am not gonna lie, when I rewatch it (because I will) I will be rewatching the last second half of the show aka the last 8 episodes. I just didn't like the whole thing with Jae Yi and Bok Joo. I get that it was very important, but it wasn't my favourite thing in the show. Also in my opinion the last episodes had a better flow and were just adorable.

Leia Mais

I hold this drama very dear to my heart because I’m also a weightlifter and feel a connection to Kim Bok Joo because of that. The couple in this drama is probably one of my most favorite couples ever because their dynamic is absolutely off the charts. This is that perfect slice of life drama that has a plot and does an amazing job of exploring its characters’ personalities. There was absolutely nothing problematic about this drama and I looked forward to watching it every single day. The angst was very minimal (essentially nonexistent), so that’s a huuuge plus for me because I have a really bad tendency to absorb all the characters’ emotions when I watch a drama. When something bad happens, I also end up having a really bad day. It just sucks for everyone. WFKBJ is like a sweet tablespoon of pure sugar: it’s super sweet, pure, and makes me want to watch it again and again for the wonderful ensemble of characters and its wholesome plot.

Leia Mais

This drama is so light and warm that all u will feel is butterflys everything was so good from the music to the acting to the visuals like it was just amazing i wish we had more episodes with joonhyung and bokjoo as a couple but it is what it is.Aside from that it was so cute i would always squeal at the interractionbs between the main couple and the friendship scenes were so nice to watch. I liked that even tho bokjoo was strong she still had her moments where she would get upset or break down, the realistic parts of the drama made me the happiest bcz its as if u can actually relate to the characters within the drama and carry their hardships with u. The storylines throughout the drama were all interesting and i wasnt bored when i watched them also the OST is just perfect the songs will make u just jump up and down in happiness well i know thats how i acted when listening to them ok bye....SWAG:)!

Leia Mais

You have TOTALLY got to watch this!

This show will make you laugh out loud and make you cry. The characters are wonderfully written and portrayed by the actors. The romance was just lovely - he liked her first (I love when that happens!) and their relationship developed from friendship. This was a realistic portrayal of a developing relationship. They talked to each other, spent time together, etc. His romantic gestures were in the way he took care of her. He is the kind of boyfriend every girl dreams of, just wonderful in every way. I also loved the stories of the friendships between Bok Joo and the fatties, between the male lead and his friend and the development of the relationships between the two groups. Even the obligatory evil ex-girlfriend was well fleshed-out and you really understood why she behaved the way she did.

I was impressed by Lee Sung Kyung as Kim Bok-Joo. She portrayed the character in a way that, even though she physically didn't change much from the beginning of the show to the end, as you watched her she became so much more attractive. That to me showed that our actions help determine how attractive we are. She was a stalwart friend and how she behaved with her friends, and ultimately Jung Joon, was always supportive and positive.

The biggest surprise for me in this show was Nam Joo Hyuk as Jung Joon. I have seen him in supporting roles in a couple of things and was questioning his ability to tackle a leading role. I needn't have worried. He brought such heart to the role of Jung Joon. At the beginning he seemed like he was very immature and heading toward being a bully toward Kim Bok-Joo. He was able to walk that razor-thin line between meanness and playfulness successfully. He was strong, but when he showed his sadness and vulnerability it just about gutted me!

Wonderful ending. And cameos by Ji Soo and Lee Jong Suk were a bonus.

Leia Mais