Enemies to lovers is possibly my favorite trope of all time and I also love fake dating, so a combination of the two was right up my alley. I was not immediately sold on the show and it took me a couple of episodes to feel invested, but I ended up loving the leads and romance. I did feel like the reasons they hated each other at the beginning felt a little bit forced and didn’t resolve in a very satisfying way but I always appreciate the tension that enemies to lovers trope brings.

The show does have a pretty progressive and feminist lens, at least by kdrama standards. The male lead is fully aware of the female lead’s past and he stands by her completely. It did bother me that the show seemed to really harp on how he was drawn to her because “she’s not like other girls”, but it did bother me a little bit less because to her, he’s also not like other guys, so at least it went both ways.

I love when dramas don’t stick to the 16 episode model and allow themselves to be shorter, but the characters backstories were not as well-developed as I would have liked. It seemed pretty obvious that her issues with men stemmed from her dad’s treatment of her mom, but it was never really explored in detail. The male lead’s issues with women seemed to stem from his mother but they seemed so extreme and then just resolved immediately, with very little explanation about how his ex played into it.

I love when dramas show adult relationships in a complex and realistic way, which this show did really well. Once they get together, the main couple is very affectionate, they communicate well, they tease each other in a very sweet and good-natured way, and they very clearly support and trust one another. I would have liked to see more of them being happy in a relationship, but I do appreciate that this was a legit rom-com, with no wild unnecessary side plots. This was a super fast watch and it was overall a great time.