Not unexpected at all; the ending was totally spelled out

1. Story

a. Characters
I hate everyone. They all had such awful personalities or were completely stupid. The mc himself was completely stupid. If you're that creeped out of the residents, move out. idc how inexpensive that place is. Safety>>. Plus, the place was going to be redeveloped in 6 mos anyway so he was bound to move out and his pay just isn't enough.

On the otherhand, I hated his girlfriend too. Not once did she listen to him or even entertained his worries. I get it she's stressed too, but she said he should learn to defend himself so people wouldn't step on him, but she's the exact same—she always just let her boss bully her. Aside from that she can just rant about her life to him too? What is the effing point of being in a relationship when you cannot even rely on each other. L girlfriend. I hated her more than her boss and the MC's nerdy co-worker and boss.

Speaking of which, I was just waiting for them to die. Too bad it was just the ceo. Well at least the nerd got what was coming to him. I'm not an advocate for violence but don't bully people if you cannot handle the consequences.

b. Plot
As I said it made no sense for him to stay. If you feel that unsafe that it was making you crazy, leave. It wasn't like he absolutely did not have money. I'd so go back home if I can't stay at Seoul. There's no point in trying to make a living if I'm dead. It's just so stupid.

And I'm just not convinced by the scarriness of the antagonists nor their capacity to drive him to insanity. They weren't scary nor really good at their jobs really. They're sloppy. We're just told through the narrative or through camera work how scary they are. Like he killed them all so easily at the end even when they were so cocky.

2. Acting
It was solid. They were believeable except for their scarriness and all.

3. Overall
Expected ending and tbh boring. They could have expanded it more, could have shown us how deadly, capable, brutal and without empathy the antagonists really are but no.

I don't get whose minds were being blown at the ending. Unless you're a five year-old who has never seen a movie then it was pretty much spelled out that he would go insane and murder someone at least. He wasn't going to go out sane in any situation. Idc how that's rare in kdrama. There were literally no other options with how they set it up so no it was not u expected, not mindblowing and certainly not a masterpiece. They could have done more with the promise and could have actually made it terrifying and actually made the viewers question morality and sanity of humans.

Leia Mais

A Gay Love Story Treated with Respect

Intro:
I'm so glad I gave this a try. I honestly didn't care for the premise, but when I saw the first half of the first episode, I got hooked. It's been many lists of dropped BL's till I was actually compelled to finish something.

Story:
The thing I like about it is it's story-centric. As much as I like cuteness and comedy, I'd love to see BL's treated with as much respect as straight love stories as realistically as they can. By that I mean that it feels natural how the MC's ended up liking each other and not feel forced like a lot of others. Also, they're treated as human beings with their own issues that isn't always connected to their sexuality.

I also liked that it did not lean too heavily on usual tropes like forced misunderstandings (e.g. overhearing a conversation). Although there are misunderstandings, it still fits into the character of Do Hoe who is deeply self-loathing. They weren't at a point where they trust each other so much then one misheard convo ruins everything just for drama. The actions they took, though not wise or rational, made sense for who they were as people. Though tbf only Do Hoe's background was actually delved into. Even Ju Yeong was barely scratched. Still how they acted didn't seem plot for plot's sake, at least as opposed to some other BL's.

I liked how they made use of the little run time they had with the show to focus on what was actually important to show us. In relation to time, I loved the bold move of 12 years time skip. Usually, it's usually 1-5 yrs. Even though they were young (19 yrs old) at the start, 12 years was still a big amount of time to be a part, to not move on. And they actually, somewhat, dove into Ju Yeong not moving on. Even I, who is highly empathetic and clingy, found 12 years to be quite long to still be hung up on someone you probably knew for a month to idk maybe 2 months. Do Hoe confronted him about that. Still weird why it wasn't given much of a justification. That's a part I will admit to be forced to an extent. It doesn't feel as forced as others I will say. Or maybe he felt sorry for him, I'm realizing right now that he knew that Do Hoe kept failing.

I really wasn't completely appalled by how Doe Hoe acted when things finally came to light. Sure I was annoyed with how he was and how Ju Yeong was still pursuing him (being treated poorly and all), but it actually made sense. He hated his past and he wanted to distance himself from it as much as he could, so even if his new lifestyle wasn't exactly who he was, he forced himself into it just to escape his pain. It made sense when you look at it in a storytelling way even it (as an outsider) it seemed silly or stupid.

Ultimately, I think the main point of the story was said outright: you can try again. The time skip really helps with this because when you think about it they could have done more in 12 yrs according to their high standards. Tbh, it really hits home and although I wish nobody can relate to this story of being unloved (by family), self-loathing and insecurities, and mistakes because it is a painful experience. Still, I wish people gain strength to try again despite the odds.

Also, to add to the main point, this story is an illustration of how abuse and neglect can have a carry-over effect on even someone as promising as Do Hoe. This effect lasting years.

Acting:
Simply superb. Idk why but Koreans tend to be such good actors. They really get into the character not matter how serious or absurd the story is and this time it's no different. One is a rookie and the other with fee experiences, yet they were able to convey a plethora of emotions excellently. Do Hoe's actor was able to convey the effect the 12 years had on him quite well as well as the effect of Ju Yeong coming to his life.

All the actors were cast quite well. They really fit their roles, even the supportiny characters. Do Hoe being timid yet cold, Ju Yeong being the doe-eyed golden retriever he is.

Music:
It was good. It fit the mood well.

Rewatch Value:
Not very high I'd say. While it is a good show, it can be very stressful. There were cute and wholesome moments but their in the very beginning (ep 2 and 3) and even then it was mixed in with all the stressful parts. Still, those parts are what I consider essential for telling a human story.

Leia Mais

Nothing different but good enough for what it is.

- Will review the drama as a whole (including S1)
- Will have some "social commentary" so if you're not into taking things too "deeply" this isn't for you.

This is my first review. I was compelled because of the main subject matter of this show: desperation leading to suicide.

Let's start at the opposite end.
1. Rewatch Value
It may be good to rewatch to see clues but personally the show is too heavy to rewatch so I gave it a passable 7.0.

2. Music
It was excellent especially the scenes with the main antagonist. It really made me feel like he was dangerous.

3. Acting/Cast
I liked the idea that we have the true protagonist (Seo In Guk) but he rarely shows when he is in the body of someone else. Most of his scenes were either flashback or with Death. In this way, it showcased the acting chops of the other actors (his reincarnations), who portrayed their parts excellently. Special props to Yoo In Soo. He played the pathetic bully to a tee. I love that he can play antagonistic (All of Us are Dead) and comedic (Good Bad Mother) roles very well. It really shows his range. Also, Kim Ji Hoon, who played the main antagonist. Roles like that really make me want to play villain roles even though I'm not an actor.

Mind you, even though Seo In Guk's scenes were mostly with Death, he was still able to portray his party extremely well. When he was laughing after being killed by Park Tae Woo, I really felt how good he was. I was having a slump with good-looking yet not very skilled actors recently, but he brought me back to believing in Korean's acting skills which I was impressed by when I started watching Kdramas. I used to be apprehensive because I thought they were all handsome/beautiful faces with no substance, but I was proven wrong before.

Now on to the main portion of this review.
4. Story.
I liked it for what it was. But it was nothing new. Plenty of stories like this have been told with that end in mind---for the protagonist to realized what he/she did/thought wrong and they are always wrong in them. Other tropes/gimmicks of this kind are 1. body switch stories wherein the two people in misunderstandings get to understand each other; 2. I wish I was never born stories wherein a spiritual being of some kind will help the MC realize that he/she was actually loved all along or that his/her life wasn't that bad. And while stories like this have good intent and have a place in media, it is overtold and lacks nuance. The end goals of these stories are "What about them," which is the case in this story. It shows, yet completely glosses over the pain and troubles that the MC goes through because "What about them."

In the case of this story, it (and major spoiler here though it wasn't really a big twist) was about his mother. What about her struggles and what about her love. The whole point of the story was Death, who I believe wasn't sadistic but only trying to teach him, was to make the MC realize that he was too caught up in his issues to see who could be hurt with his passing. In as much as I appreciate the value of that in storytelling and as it relates to real life, (because stories are made to relate to real life and say something about it no matter how fantasy-oriented the story is) it, just like other stories, have always been "But what about us," completely failing to fully recognize the plights that the MC experienced. Yes, it showed us his trauma and his messed up state of mind, yet it completely was disregarded that in favor of other people. By no means am I saying the emotions of the people we have relationships with don't matter, but ours should be as equally validated.

This, as I said, related to real life. Often times, those going through a tough time or those with mental health issues or trauma are told to just suck it up because what about other's feelings or because others had it worse. Their feelings are not validated and they are guilt-tripped. They are expected to be better without help just because "what bout them." I recognize the fact that the MC wasn't given a diagnosis or depression or whatever, but it was still shown that he wasn't in a healthy state of mind. What healthy person, who studied in a prestigious university, goes SEVEN YEARS without a full-time job? Yet he was still blamed for his final act of desperation (taking his own life). I have heard it many times in real life as well. "They were selfish, they never thought about how we would feel." My thoughts were aren't you selfish for failing to recognize the desperation your loved one must have felt to do what he/she did. I personally relate because I had an uncle who did the same. All that came out of my mother's mouth were that he was selfish and he didn't think about them. Not once did she say what could she have done to help him. These stories always fail to acknowledge that the MC's were truly desperate and feel like there's no way out. Not to justify what they did and not to say people will not get hurt, but to just understand and empathize without saying they were wrong or selfish.

These stories also often fail to acknowledge the shortcomings of those around the MC's and mostly center on the MC's shortcomings taking the form of "They were selfish." In this case, the mother and to an extent his girlfriend's failures weren't truly under the spotlight, only his. Actually, only the GF's was really shown on one scene when she told him couldn't he just try harder. It was as if he wasn't for all those years. Mind you, I don't consider neither the mother nor GF to blame nor to be awful people. It was just portrayed that they were such lovely people while diminishing the loveliness and thoughtfulness of the MC himself. Sure it was shown he was sweet in the form of the pen for his GF and the shoe for his mother, but it wasn't such a big highlight as their love and sacrifices for him was.

Going back to the mother, her failures were never shown. She was this overwhelmingly good force who only loved her son the best she could. And she did. But this not take away from the MC's own desperation. Sadly, Death could not care less about the MC's own feelings. If his mother truly was this paragon of motherhood, how was it that she allowed her son to get to such a low place? Again I am not tainting her. My point is just to keep both sides into perspective not to justify, not to side with, just to understand and empathize which these kinds of stories never really do. It is always how dare you! Your pain and desperation does not matter. You are selfish for not thinking about them when you are in such a low place. I wish their would be more stories that took a more "balanced" approach to these kinds of stories, not to blame but to seek to understand.

To add to this, I saw a comment saying these kinds of parent-centric storytelling are often based on culture. I agree. I am also an Asian in a parent centric country wherein even if the parent actually does you harm (unlike the MC's mother) you must still respect, love, and repay them for having you.

That was the end of the "social commentary" part. Now on to some loopholes or things I found weird.

a. Why did he live in his mother's body for 32 years to keep her alive? Didn't Death already say that when he goes into someone else's body, they were already dead. So isn't it pointless for him to say that because she was already dead by that point. Though I understand it, sort of, from the point of repentance. It was him punishing himself. If that was the only reason it seems slightly acceptable, I guess.

b. When did she die? Did she die 32 years after already and he was returned 32 years prior (because it was shown Death can return him to 7 years earlier) or did she die recently? I know it doesn't really matter but I wonder if his death lead to her dying soon as well.

c. His memories were inconsistent. With some characters he only knows little about them. Like he didn't even know his model reincarnation's brother. But in some cases, he knew everything when it was convenient. That to me was an odd choice. Like he suddenly knew what his other incarnation's were up to so he could capture the antagonist and he knew his mother's whole life too.

d. How did he not know his girlfriend's big brother? I think someone said they dated for 3 or 4 yrs? I didn't really care to read that part. Social media is so popular in South Korea and hello even if he didn't have one, didn't she show him a picture of her brother to him?

5. Overall Score: 8.0
I actually rated it a 9 in my own list because the story made me want to finish it as soon as possible, but I wanted to be more objective in this review because this story really isn't anything different. Regardless, I was having a slump finishing dramas recently but I actually didn't drop this one. I also liked the shifts in tone. It was very well done; it wasn't weird; it made sense. It goes from dramatic and depressing to thrilling and action packed to wholesome and lighthearted and back to dramatic. I also liked that the end he was reincarnated to his mother's body. In the end I was thinking hmm will his last be his own body so he can change things, since he was reincarnated into the man who killed himself, but when I thought about it, that was too easy. Still, it wasn't a major shock. I knew they wanted a "twist" of some sort. Everything was leading to it after all so there was only one other body he could end up other than his own. They tried to hide that by only making him incarnate into men's bodies. In addition, I thought that it was nice that they were trying to mislead us into thinking that he was being punished because he killed someone else when he feel from the roof. I liked how that was done. But I did realize how easy it was to see how absurd it was that he had a photo of himself when he jumped. They also tried to add to this the man whose daughter was killed in a hit and run to confuse us even more. Still, Death, itself, wasn't very vague when it was trying to tell him about his fault. It really was just about the people he left most especially his mother.

Overall, it's one of my favorite dramas. But I'll never rewatch it alone because it's too heave like Hi Bye Mama which coincidentally stars Kdrama's Mother too. Hopefully in the future there will be more nuanced stories of this kind.

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