Estrela Cadente (2022)

Supporting characters are the real stars

The wittiness of the title is the first thing that got my attention. It can be derived as ‘shooting’ or ‘shitting,’ both showcasing the real-life personality of the stars. It’s a great thing to highlight the people working from behind the scenes since they’re mostly the ones who work the hardest to help their stars to shine bright in the industry.

A star-studded cast. When they released the artist who’ll be portraying the roles, I became even more engrossed. It's been a while since I saw some of my favorite actors and actresses in one show. All of the characters fill the whole story. There are no hateable roles and each of them has something interesting to offer. This is probably my favorite part of the drama, giving us a variety of supporting characters that can take over the main leads. The side characters are the real gem here.

Salute to Kang Yoo Sung for being the best manager who will do anything to help his artist to be successful. His willingness to sacrifice something under his control is amazingly done. Byun Jung Yeol on the other hand is the most hilarious manager in the story. The bond he made with Tae Sung was both comedic and firm. Reporter Ki Ppeum and her professional ethical values are the main reason why she stands out more than the others. It’s a pity that the Happy Virus Girl was only a guest character, she had the potential and her attitude entertained me.

Shooting Stars serve us with a cast of sizzling beautiful men. The kind of plot twist I craved is for the bromance to turn into boy love. From the two rookie actors Kang Shi Deok and Yoon Jae Hyun to the neighborhood romance of Mr. Do and Gong Tae Sung. I felt more butterflies from them than from the main couples. But I can’t also ignore the incredible chemistry built up by Jae Hyun and Yuna, they’re so lovely. Additionally, the funny way of Han Dae Soo on calling “Yuuuuu-Naaaaa” in the calm yet stressful intonation was consistently entertaining.

Focusing on the story, given the light vibes it gives us, I can’t help but feel extreme tiredness during the middle part of the show. The moment that the main couple finally became official, I mostly fast forward their scenes. It isn’t as loveable as it was before. Thankfully, the sham ahjumma who was a crazy rich antagonist and a maniac about making herself special saves the show. Her weirdness was really something that lit up my interest, it was a glimpse of a unique characterization of a villain. The death of Lee Yoon Woo brought tears to my eyes. The ending lacks closure between his brother and the previous manager/bar owner.

The thing I am most thankful about this show is from introducing me to Lee Seung Hyub. The moment his character Kang Shi Deok appeared, I fell in love. His sharp good-looking face, husky voice with a local accent, and the way he wore his tee when he was working in the gimbap restaurant were so fine and hot. Our underwear commercial model who steals the hearts of the netizens from his drunk cute habit, sexy muscles, and manly body. He is so adorable!

A joyful K-Drama that enlightens the public on how stressful the life of an employee working in the entertainment industry is. Yet, Oh Han Byul and the rest of Starforce agents prove that as long as you find joy in your workplace, you can continue working from it. Shooting Star is a fun and cute drama worthy to binge-watch.

Leia Mais

Shooting Stars--don't trust ratings. AT ALL

There's nothing too big to spoil nor is there any unexpected plot twists that make you go, "OH SHIT". Shooting stars has its premise: the love story between a pr team manager and a top actor. True to its premise, Shooting Stars aligns right with it from the first episode.

Which isn't the best choice, tbh. The first three episodes, don't really give you intrigue or any sort of interest piquing content. All we get is banter(not a spoiler)...which imo could've been even funnier if it was balanced with some mystery...or some sort of intrigue to the problems that our mcs will get into. And KYD's acting didn't help this drag either.

Following the humour, we finally delve into the plot that I was looking forward too. There's enough characters , just the right amount for you to catch up with. All of them have interesting storylines and I feel, pretty accurate. I, personally, loved the way they balanced the screen time and it made viewing quite enjoyable.

Pros of this drama? It gets better each episode. There's romance for all types. There's issues, but it doesn't drag for long. Its realistic, to a good extent. KYD's acting improves, the acting is done to the t for every role that every actor plays and i'm all here for it. The story is neat, predictable but not boring, and leaves you satisfied with a nice message. For the days you want to escape reality: Shooting Stars is your medicine.

Cons? As a writer, the lack of details bothered me. SO many opportunities to make the characters more nuanced. Storing pacing could've improved and the cheap shots of the first ep bothered me greatly. it was diff'cult to get into, but i don't regret continuing cause i was pleasantly surprised.

tldr: need a good romcom to get you off your stress? This one's actually good.

Leia Mais

cute little rom-com

Using my personal rating system of "loved," "liked," "meh," & "nah," this rates a "liked" but I'm unlikely to rewatch.

Things I liked:
This was a cute, funny drama. It was pretty harmless in that (once the leads got together), their relationship was good. I enjoyed the fact that the side characters, including our SML, all wound up with someone worthy (except for Kang Yoo Sung the Second, but he also seemed to get over his crush by the end...?). I thought this was an interesting storyline--and I wonder what it was like for the actors to play the people whose job it is to manage their lives. (Did they develop more empathy as a result? Was it an accurate portrayal? ) I enjoyed the fact that there were no true villains, just some deeply unhappy people that made mistakes. There was no heinously jealous, one-dimensional female antagonist.

Thinks I did not like:
I did not entirely understand the point of this drama. I guess it was "slice of life"? There was no real climax, no real conflict that was not cleared up within a short period of time, no theme or mystery carrying us through the show, the individual episodes fed into each other (versus each one being an individual 'adventure') yet at the same time did not seem to be taking us anywhere. I also do not like plots where the ML treats the FL like crap and then all of a sudden she forgives him and they get together. Granted, they did a slightly better job of this than usual where she gradually realizes that he's done all this stuff for her behind the scenes (and he's totally sweet to her once he does confess instead of remaining a total jerk like in other dramas)--and she even confronts him about how he used to treat her, but since his behavior went on for years, I find her ready forgiveness and falling for him to be a little rapid after years of bullying.

Random question: Does anyone know how Korean law works around free speech and freedom of the press? It seems that you can say whatever you want, but you'll be sued right away if any of it is false. Is there censorship? Or just a highly litigious system? Just curious. :)

Leia Mais

Frais et sympathique

Pour moi ce n'est pas LA comédie romantique de l'année, mais quand même, c'est un chouette drama.
Il est simple, rafraichissant, tout est dans l'évolution de tout les personnages et leurs relations, et c'est ce qui en fait son point fort je trouve.
Lee Sung Kyung n'est pas mon actrice préférée, et là encore, même si elle ne m'a pas déplu, elle ne m'a pas emballée. Par contre son alchimie avec Kim Young Dae est à noter : Ils matchent bien tous les deux.
Par ailleurs, les deux autres couples ont de la matière et sont tout autant touchant, j'ai vraiment aimé.
Enfin l'envers du décor de l'entreprise du divertissement est vraiment génial. On entraperçoit vraiment ce qu'il en est, et à quel point acteur, et célèbre qui plus est, peut être une prison. J'ai beaucoup aimé avoir été "ramené à la réalité" même si je le savais déjà.
Bref, un drama à découvrir, on passe un vrai bon moment.

Leia Mais

Unexpected heart for a drama about disillusionment

Shi**ing Stars... shows that a Kdrama CAN have it all...
A love triangle that isnt toxic.
Comedy that makes you laugh but never once veers into zany.
Multiple Bromances.
Supportive females without a catty one in the bunch.
Plot twist that surprises you but doesnt change the tone of the drama.
"Real" relationships that dont use false plot points such as white trucks of doom or crazy schemes to keep them together or force them apart.
A surprising amount of heart for a drama about being jaded with the kdrama industry.
If you havent given it a chance... (get past episode one) and you should love it.

Leia Mais

Good Light Romance drama

The story isn’t too unique but the chemistry between youngdae and sungkyung is amazing.

It portrays the celebrity lifestyle fantastically- even the many twist with no endings.

Side characters are built up great and there are characters who don’t have a definite ending but it also adds lot to their character - not everything has a beginning and end.

To be quite honest; the chemistry between youngdae and sungkyung became the main reason I enjoyed it and its extremely satisfying to see that last few episodes were just them enjoying their romance.

Leia Mais

What Africa are they talking about??

To preface this, I am Malawian and have been living here my whole life. Ive also visited and schooled in several different African countries.

When watching this drama, i admittedly laughed a little at the scenes 'in Africa'. But i didnt laugh because it was genuinely comedic, i laughed because they were borderline ignorant and, imo, rude. We have water in Africa. We have beautiful homes. We have CIVILISATION. We also have 54 freaking countries in Africa, it is a continent not a country. Yes there are poor countries here in need of help, but there are poor countries that need help in Asia too. The portrayal of Africa in this show is not only erroneous but uneducated and frankly quite supremist (that is, painting Korea as superior to the continent as a whole).

I loved the drama, but it couldve done without the ridiculous scenes.

Also, what the heck was up with the Lion King theme song? Now i know y'all are NOT fr.

Leia Mais

A beautiful story of beautiful and hardworking people

Honestly my expectations were really low from this drama but it turned out to be a really good one.

Story: Story is simple, nothing new. The teams promote and solve the problems of their actors. First half of the drama revolves around the managers and the main leads, second half involves the past of ML and the all the problems thrown at him. Last two episodes are really beautiful with all the good people getting rewarded for their hardwork.

Acting:
LSK: Is really knows her character well, she performed all her scenes greatly. Her chemistry with the ML is fantastic.
KYD: Played his role amazingly. He knows how to act as a star and be an immature behind the set. His emotional scenes were great to watch, he can get all your attention towards him.
Others: I m not seperately mentioning all the actors as there are too many. Actors playing the manager roles were really great, they had a really good dynamics with their actors playing actors. Other than these there were the side stories of others, who have to act as rookie, spoiled, confused, joyfull etc, which they did amazingly.

Characters:
FL: She is an amazing character who is kind of "hate" the ML but also cares about him dearly. She is a very intelligent person who gets the job done and know how to do it efficiently. She also supports her boyfriend and is there for him whenever he needs her even before they get together. Her dynamics with other people is hilarious and touching.
ML: A top star who is kind of childish yet a loving and caring person. Is has always cared for the FL and did things for her even without her knowing. Is gets jealous easily, wants the FL attention and does funny stuffs. He becomes a good boyfriend and a good friend/coworker to the people her works with.
Lawyer guy: Thought is would be a strict and annoying guy but her is actually really funny and good. His back and forth with the ML is fun to watch. He also has a good chemistry with the reporter lady.
ML' manager(KYS):A really sweet guy who is loved by everyone, he is trusted by everyone and he is really smart too. He really cares for his people especially the ML.
Ho Young: Cute, sweet and hardworking, she doesn't give up easily, deeply care for her stars. Her and KYS have a good relationship.
Others from the agency and Han Dae Soo: These are all good people, they are no antagonists, they are supportive and funny.

Likes: Great chemistry, great friendships and good romances. The ML is surrounded by good people who deeply and actually cares about him. The side story of YuNa and Jae Hyun is fun to watch. Then we have an actress who is a huge fan of the ML and she is really a good person. There is no good guy turing bad scenario. Last two episodes that showed the three couples and the funny moments with them. Everybody gets what they deserves at the end.

Dislike: They spent too much time on the story of someone wanting to destroy the ML, it could have been solved really quick but they kind of stretched it. Also they threw one after another bad guys towards the ML after the second half. Could have done better with the main couple after they got together. The mother returns and the dead friend story was also took way too much time.

Overall: It is a good light hearted romcom, which not just focuses on the romance and the main leads but to other characters and their story too. It has many funny, romantic, emotional moments. Acting and characters dynamics is great too.

Leia Mais