I never Knew Dreams Can Be this Real??
The mystic and ecstatic elements are held in abeyance ingeniously devised by Screenwriter Ha Yoon Ah and Director Jun Chang Geun. I cannot comment fully on the similarities to the 2017 webtoon of the same name, but it appears the Screenwriter tempered wonderfully warm melodic moments with a keen sense of humor.It was Jun Chang Geun's first project since The Package (2017) that I flat-out enjoyed the beautiful scenery and famous landmarks in that show. Mystic Pop-Up Bar does not disappoint, but there will always be a select few people that will bash this show and nothing we can do about it. By this point, have we not seen all that we will see in the fantasy aspect, maybe not. Yes, we pine for originality in the script, but do the actors catalyze more visionary thinking in each other that this drama expertly displays.
The location of the outdoor drinking establishment lures individuals from all backgrounds that were the main focal point. The viewer invested by the average individuals' problems the Mystic Pop-Up Bar soothes the pain and suffering. The soft and upbeat music, along with the light clinking of glass, was soothing to my ears when drinking occurred, and the main leads entered the dream world. The Directing Style aided to the storytelling because we see a different side to what the director contributes to this Depleted Genre that I have trust will be in good hands for the future.
Acting:
Every character imparts much liveliness to the scenes. Hwang Jung Eum's tone and expression did not awake an old, unwelcome feeling that her other works sometimes did. I think Park Shi Eun's depiction of the younger Weol Joo was a significant reason why I overlooked the deficiency of her acting style. She has retained a certain mystique, which makes her such a compelling character.
Choi Won Young's heartening rendition of his character was something special as his dilated pupil and eyebrow expressions in a bunch of scenes caught my undivided attention. Also, he imparts strength and provides an air of talisman of protection. Yook Sung Jae timid, yet bubbly persona was too wily, unfailingly tactful, an adept with the touch of his hands. I especially cherished Jung Da Eun's role as a Security Guard, her metamorphosis of a resigned face to an alight face from the first episode to the last episode. YSJ and JDE are too adorable together.
I would have liked a little more character development from the villain. Still, writing this review, I reflected on the villain's role, and what they did was not bad considering tropes run rampant in every drama—a bittersweet story of the villain trapped by the flaws in his character.
Conclusion:
It had the right amount of episodes to enjoy every episode. If you have any doubts, I say watch the first two episodes and make your decision. I conclude I have a fondness for close contact with someone after viewing this show. The show elicits an aliveness we crave in this Coronoviris Pandemic once everything settles back to normalcy; Human Interaction and affection.
Final Rating: 8.75/10
Story: 8.57/10
Acting: 9.68/10
Rewatch: I will watch this again for sure. Four Thumbs Up.
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GREAT CONTENT TO GET INTO.
I honestly love this drama, short but worthwhile and warm at the same time. The drama centers around 3 individuals 2 who are dead and trying to atone for their sins in the living realm and one who struggles with a power that has brought him misfortune his whole life. The storyline I depicted when I first watched the teasers was more a thriller feel but it ended up being way much funnier than I expected. it is very balanced in terms of equality in each genre. There is a sufficient amount of plot twists to make it an interesting drama. it is also very humorous as to not make it feel gloomy, I think Hwang Jung Eum, Choi Won Young and Sung Jae did an amazing job in this. Their previous works are known to be quite humorous and well-acclaimed they elevated that feel into this drama and the romance was heartwarming, it had the whole past life kind of eternal love which is cliche to most but they managed to down tone trivial lines in that kind of genre and make it as realistic as possible.I commend the costume designers too, I loved the modernized hanboks that Wool Ju( Hwang Jung Eum) wore in this drama it really made her character stand out more and even to her character in the drama. it showed the angst she held in her heart over a very long time and although she did change her initial self and goals were all the same.
The cinematography was awesome, shout out to director of cinematography. the music was alright I would have loved a bit more scores in trenching moments but overall they did a good job. The performances were so nice with supporting roles like Jung Da Eun (Kang Yeo Rin) who played a re-incarnated spiritual tree and also Kang Bae's( Sung Jae) love interest.
I think Netflix in terms of k-dramas has a really good standard. Their originals have been good this year with extracurricular, the king; eternal monarch, and now mystic pop-up bar. if you're into the k-drama scene or if you're starting out this is a great drama to get into. WATCH IT.
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The story is a good one. For those that need romance there's not only a 500 year old longing, but a new budding romance with 2 very odd characters. For those that like supernatural, there's plenty. The ghost and demon effects were nicely done. There's even action and fight scenes for action addicts like myself.
Although the story is good, it wouldn't have been anything if it weren't for the outstanding cast. Choi Won Young never disappoints me. Sometimes what he's in does, but he never has. He was wonderful as Guibangjang. Hwang Jung Eum was very good, but I couldn't help staring at her lips. It appears she had injections. They were very unnatural. But she was playing a spirit so I guess whatever works. Yook Sung-jae rounds out our leads. I loved his scenes with Choi Won Young. I think he's a natural at bromances. He played Kang Bae with the right amount of charm, naivete, and hope. It made you root for KB from the very beginning.
The music was good I guess. I'm happy they didn't play the same sappy song in every episode like a music video. There were no flashbacks of scenes that were shown, thankfully! I really would love to see another season, but I don't think I'll re-watch MPUB again, at least not in the foreseeable future.
Overall, it was a really enjoyable show. Nothing truly deep and heavy. There are a lot of smiles to be had and perhaps some tears for some. I truly recommend it.
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Truly a gem
I had not intended to watch this drama until I saw the ratings and read the pleasant comments about the show and I'm so glad I went for it. This drama is so beautiful. The cast is great, the pace is apt, the storyline well executed and the emotional moments well-placed , even though the story itself was nothing new. Some parts of the plot were predictable, but nonetheless this was an enjoyable ride. All thanks to the cast.Hwang Jung Eum portraying a mature, feisty fantasy figure was different from her roles in previous dramas and definitely an interesting choice for a come back. Yoo Sung Jae was a perfect choice for the sweet innocent dorky Kang-Bae and it was also nice to see Choi won young in a charismatic, easy-going lead. Also, the whole fantasy, afterlife and dreamworld set up was authentic and genuine to that extent that believing in those things seems natural. If your up and looking for a simple, short, heart-warming show, this is it.
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one of the most underrated kdramas of the year
damn, I watched this show start to finish and ep. 1-11 were honestly the best thing ever, the plot was different, the characters had background, grudges, and DEVELOPMENT, the actors and actresses were awesome, every character had some part to play, I’m surprised how heavily underrated this series is tbh, AND THE TWISTS, UUUUUU BOI, like you will see them coming, but you’ll second guess yourself and say “no way, can’t be him, wait what, but it makes sense though if it is him ... arghhh ASKHAHNAHSNNS” just the twists this show had were so good and top notch and they didn’t screw over the plot, so I loved them. All in all, it was very refreshing to get 12 episodes that had promise and for most of the part executed the main plot well, that is ...UNTIL THE END.
not gonna lie, ep. 12 felt like a bunch of scenes cut together to try to fit the 60 min. time limit, someone I saw in the discussion feed put “it felt like someone else wrote the last episode,” which I agree with, it didn’t even feel nearly close to the flow ep. 1-11 had, but there was some development and it was a happy ending, I won’t say the end was anti-climatic because we got some fight scenes, we got info, some burning questions we had were answered (aka those “twists”), but the end could’ve been better imo, especially with the huge plot hole at the end, overall though this series deserves an 8+ rating for the storylines in each episode alone, very heartfelt and a couple tearjerkers, I definitely do not regret watching this one, and even though the end kind of nodded off, it’s worth the watch for 12 ep.
:)
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I will admit, the first episode I had trouble focusing even though it gives you insight on why Wol Joo is currently in her situation. It does get better the 2nd half of the 1st episode. The ending, though happy, I kinda wished it would've been handled better. It is predictable on who is who but that didn't stop me from enjoying this drama.Character/Actor/Actress wise: Some may hesitate on watching this because of actress HJE being in another comedy. I've seen her other romantic comedy dramas and yes, I was annoyed by how she was portraying her characters in those other dramas but in this one, she hit this role perfectly. It felt natural to me her comedy side and her vulnerable side. I love every moment and scene of her character.
Choi Won Young, wow. I've seen him as a villain in Doctor Prisoner but this role, he's just adorable and funny. That's what makes him a great actor but please don't do anymore villain roles. I like this nice side of him. lol.
Sung Jae, great acting being the passive & vulnerable character but I kinda wanted more from him. It's not the actor's fault. His character lines just didn't give this actor his full acting capabilities. I mean I got to see another side of his acting when his sacred tree spirit came out. That was awesome but short. I wanted to see more of that. But overall, great actor. I expect more roles for this guy when he comes back from military duties.
The younger cast of Crown Prince and Wol Joo, they were spot on as well. I saw more of them in this drama than I expected for being a young cast. I love how they got to be reunited in the proposal of Ep 11. That just melted my heart. I hope to see them more in other dramas.
Story: I love the plot from beginning to the end. Because of Wol Joo's goal was to handle 100,000 grudges, we got to see a different story in each episode that pertain to the hardships of one's life. There's always a special meaning in each episode. I kinda wished the main plot was handled a bit better though. What I mean is that instead of revealing everything in the last 2 episodes, it would've felt less rushed if pieces of the truth were revealed in each episode say after episode 6.
A few things that bother me about this drama. There is a plot hole that was never mention in this drama: why Wol Joo and Crown Prince looks older as a spirit but everybody else looks like how they were as a spirit when they were human. When they enter the after life as spirits, they were their younger selves. There's no mention why they age but everybody remain the same, like the spirits of the crown prince mom, the evil friend, the advisor of the crown prince (aka death), the cinnabar. Also, how did nobody know what the evil friend spirit was doing? You know, he was killing and absorbing other spirits, possessed his dad, the grim reaper. I mean there subtle hints that the grim reaper wasn't the same usual guy and yet nobody took those hints, not even the higher ups. It would've been nice to have at least 1 main character being suspicious about this. Last episode felt very rushed. Given that there were only 12 episodes total from the beginning, the progression of the plot stalled for too long. Too many things still happening for the last episode.
But overall, despite those small plot holes and issues and a rushed last episode, I stilled enjoy this drama. I think this is a first for me where I see a main lead character ends up with a support character. Interesting and yet their chemistry was on point. So many cute moments of them. Even Wol Joo and Chief. While they may not have spent the time together as Wol Joo knowing Chief was the Crown Prince, her lover, they still had many adorable & funny moments together. So I say romance definitely occurs in this drama even though it's not the main focus. You won't waste your time watching this one.
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The drama had the main plotline, with the mysterious pop up bar owner, whose story gradually is being revealed as the drama proceeds. Apart from that, the drama added some small cases that the crew of the bar had to solve, all of them quite emotional and touching. Those cases were just enough in number to keep things interesting and not to give a tiring background story that will be repeated over and over again, as many dramas do. They also blended comedy and drama pretty well, so that the tragic stories didn't become overbearing. The big twist in the end, about who's who, was brilliant and kept the anticipations high in those last episodes. The action scenes, moreover, were well choreographed and the CGIs were excellent. Finally, the performances were top-notch, as it was expected.
So, overall, nine out of ten.
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Fantasy no more
I was really looking forward to this drama, the premise was interesting, however, the cold, sad truth will hit you since the beginning.I chose it because I was curious how the rendition of the dream world would be, what types of stories would the scorn people have to settle and how will this be done.
I was sorely disappointed by the lack of fantasy in this drama.
The dream world was pedestrian, at best, the concerns and troubles to be settled were very weak, sometimes quite moronic, the comedy was trying too hard at inopportune times and the plot was quite thin.
It seemed to me like the script was very weak, almost like it was a trial for the real thing, with just bare bones represented.
At times, it seems like this was trying to replicate the beautiful world rendered in Hotel del Luna, but it was a cheap attempt, with no real story to support it.
The actors tried their best, but character development was absent, their stories were not properly explored and we were left with random actions that had no substance.
The ending, on top of being hasty, was contradictory to the dream world explored earlier in the show- the depths of the unconscious mind, that was supposed to be locked and not accessible, was wide open for the spirit, they just skipped through everything to get a dramatic moment that never delivered.
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A star-studded cast present an exceedingly average drama...
I wasn't particularly interested in watching this drama because the trailer didn't seem as interesting for a Fantasy drama as it should but since there wasn't really anything to watch and I couldn't go anywhere (lockdown due to covid-19), I decided to give this a chance. And you know what, this drama did disappoint me as much as I had thought it would.I'll be honest here, I might have gotten more emotionally invested in this drama than I should have, but in my defense this drama had a great cast. I had really liked Hwang Jung-eum in Kill me Heal me, Yook Sung-jae in Goblin and Choi Won Young in almost every drama he's been in.
Despite having the three of them at the center of the story, I felt like the side characters were the ones to actually watch.
Jung Da-eun as Kang Yeo-rin was pretty good. I loved every one of her fight sequences and the fact that she could rock a pant suit just as well as a dress.
Yook Sung-jae's Han Kang-bae was a depressing character. He had a tragic backstory and just as miserable daily life. His character was sad, bumbly and pretty unimpressive.
Hwang Jung-eum's character Wool-joo was loud. She seemed to only have 2 expressions- prickly sad (when she was reminiscing about old times) and prickly irritated (all the rest of the time).
Choi Won-young's character Gwibanjang was alright. He had his moments, like when he was fighting evil spirits or trying to give advice but his character was not used to it's full potential.
Park Si-eun and Song Geon-hee were the two actors to really watch. They played the younger versions of Wool joo and Gwibanjang respectively and were shown in the flashback clips. Their characters were good and so was their story. I would have loved it if instead of doing the whole pop-up bar thing in modern day the producers would have simply made a historical drama. Everytime a flashback was shown I was riveted and when it ended I was left wanting more.
The drama was alright and would have actually been good if the writers hadn't screwed up the finale. I don't know what's with this year but everywhere you look there are great dramas with disappointing final episodes (like extraordinary you, 2gether, my engineer, girlfriend etc). This drama's finale was so cringey with all the unconvincing affection towards each other, obvious set ups and the stretched out pointless goodbyes. Watching it made me disappointed and frustrated and wanting to break the screen (I'm over it now).
Anyway I would only recommend this drama if you are in desperate need to watch some ligh hearted asian drama and couldn't find a better one than this.
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Good premise, execution needs work
It has good premise but lacked what it needed to grab my attention. I didn't watch the drama with dying anticipation for the next episode. Maybe because it only has 12 episode, there too much information to cram in (500 years is a lot to cram into 12 episode) so the writer has to pick and choose what makes it. In the end, i didn't care much about their backstory, it wasn't developed enough for me to buy into it. This drama would have been much better as a seguek instead of flashback.All in all, this was a drama I watched to kill time and not one i will remember in 2 weeks.
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The interaction between our three leads, the relationship between Kang Bae and Yeo Rin.
I love that the drama had suspense but they weren't heavy on it and each episode had a different case except for the last two episodes.
Everyone played their part well and the humour in the drama is A1. I laughed a lot while watching this and i felt sad for them too. This is definitley one of my favourite dramas of 2020.
I just hate the fact that it is 12 episodes long. They could have made the last episode longer but i still got a satisfying ending. Kudos to the team that worked on this drama.
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