Tooth-rotting romcom with loveable leads

I really enjoyed watching this drama weekly and I'm so sad to see it go! I had a few issues with it, but overall, it was so refreshing and the bright spot of my Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Main Leads:
-This was my first time seeing the leads Taegoo and Sunhwa in anything, and I loved their performances.
-Starting with Jihwan, he was a very loveable ML. I like how he was willing to put in the work to improve whenever Eunha checked him on his behaviour. I loved his protective and caring attitude towards the other Deers and his employees overall. Taegoo has a very commanding presence and was definitely the highlight of the show for me. He was great at portraying the hardened ex-gangster and just as good as portraying the lovesick fool. I really liked his journey over the show of overcoming the guilt he harboured during his time as a mobster. His struggles were very understandable. The show was more enjoyable to watch knowing how introverted Taegoo is in real life lol. And ofc I love his voice too. He's definitely going to have a lot of new fans after the show lol.
-Sunhwa also did great and I really enjoyed Eunha as a character. She was kindhearted and headstrong. At first, I was annoyed that she didn't really seem to stick up for herself, but over time, she was more willing to voice her feelings and opinions, especially when it came to Jihwan. Though their relationship had its ups and downs, Eunha was always the voice of reason and wasn't afraid to check Jihwan on his behaviour. I just wish we could've seen more about Eunha's backstory and her life in the period after Hyunwoo/Jihwan left, like what she was doing after her parents divorced and what her life was like, how she met Miho, etc.
-Taegoo and Sunhwa had amazing chemistry that felt believable. Their scenes were very very very sweet, maybe a little TOO sweet lol I wish things got a bit spicier! I know that it's Jihwan's first relationship so I guess that's why, but I feel like the directing on their kiss scenes could've at least been better. Anyway, I always looked forward to seeing Eunha and Jihwan's relationship develop, I loved the angst they had, and despite some hiccups, I love how they were able to resolve their problems quickly and communicate with each other. I wish we could've seen them get married though :( I know this is their second project together, so hopefully they can do a third ??

Supporting Cast:
-Initially, I was annoyed by Hyunwoo (prosecutor) because of his strong prejudices against Jihwan, but the more I think about it, it really wasn't that bad because you can't tell me you wouldn't be apprehensive about an ex-gangster lol. I do think his whole philosophy of "people can't change" was definitely a negative point though, and I'm glad that he was able to change this way of thinking by the end of the show. By the way some comments talk about him, you would think he kicks babies on a daily basis ? he really wasn't that bad. He didn't actually do anything to break up the leads. Even after he confessed and she rejected him, he did have that moment of "I'm still going to pursure Eunha" (which annoyed me) but nothing really came of it and he eventually moved on. He was integral to the plot of taking down the Kitty Gang, and I think his presences was necessary to make Jihwan actually act on his desires. Overall, Hyunwoo was fine and people are doing too much by hating his guts
-I liked Ilyoung and Miho a lot. I was put off initially by the pregnancy plot but I think they had good chemistry and I liked them as a couple. One thing I will say though, it is crazy that they got married without even really dating each other haha. I guess that is something that happens in real life but hopefully not to me!
-Hongki and Jaesoo were my favourite Deers, especially Jaesoo. Jaesoo was literally the most hilarious and entertaining character in the drama and I cannot believe he made me cry more than once lol. He was great at the more emotional scenes towards the end
-The Kitty Gang was mostly funny to me. Yang Hee was the funniest of them all like I'm sorry but even in the scenes where he's doing horrible things and being threatening he was still funny to me ? Tae Pyung definitely had a threatening aura, and I can see why Jihwan was terrified by him.

Character Dynamics:
-Expanding more on Jihwan and Eunha, I haven't watched many Korean romcoms or kdramas in general, and I think that helped because I wasn't turned off by the childhood trope like many others I saw in the comments while the show was airing lol. I think it was interwoven into the plot well; it's there from ep 1 and isn't something that is thrown into the show in the last 2 eps. Both Jihwan and Eunha's childhoods had such a huge impact on their lives, it's easy to understand why they would still be holding onto it (or trying to bury it in Jihwan's case) for so long. I like that Eunha fell in love with Jihwan before she knew the truth, and it didn't feel over the top that she was still looking for him, as he was the only bright point in her life when she was a child. He's the one who inspired her to become a kids content creator in the first place. I did feel like they dragged out her finding out a biiiiiiiit too much but I can fully understand why Jihwan didn't want to tell her, as he was very ashamed of the person he used to be. Taegoo and Sunhwa really stuck the landing in the more emotional scenes of the drama, I loved the scene where Eunha finally realizes ?
-One of my favourite relationships was Jihwan and the Deers but more specifically Jihwan and Ilyoung and Jihwan and Jaesoo. I could really feel the love between Ilyoung and Jihwan, they had a very sweet older brother/younger brother dynamic. I also really loved Jaesoo and Jihwan, they were so funny together and when things got serious they made those more emotional moments feel believable.
-I also really loved Eunha's relationship with Donghui, she was basically an older sister to him and it was very sweet. And I loved the progression of Jaesoo and Eunha's relationship, from calling her a rat to "little mouse" (lovingly) lol.
-By the end of the show, all the Deers + Eunha really felt like a family and I loved that so much ? It's cute that Hongki, Jaesoo and Manho will continue to live with Eunhwan after they get married lol
-Eunha and Miho's relationship was also nice, I like how they went to each other for advice and they supported each other. But on that note, it kind of annoyed me how Miho basically didn't say anything to Eunha about her relationship with Ilyoung before he announced it to everyone. They seem to share everything else with each other so I thought it was weird that the writer chose to just have Miho not say anything
-I think Yena and Hongki had good chemistry but she annoyed me for the majority of the show lol. I think it's fine if Yena and Hongki and Hyunwoo and Officer Song didn't get together if both relationships have people (Yena and Hyunwoo) who still aren't over their crushes.

Plot/Story:
-I really liked the themes of redemption, loyalty, forgiveness, second chances and overcoming prejudices and overcoming guilt in the drama. I love that the drama was able to tackle more serious/heavy issues without losing the essence of the show. I know that some people hated how serious it got towards the end but I didn't mind it, these are ex criminals and gangsters we're dealing with so I expected this to some degree, and it was never anything soooo serious that made you think "wow is this the same show?"
-Somehow the show was filled with cliches while also defying expectations. At multiple points when we thought they would break up, they didn't and I was very happy about that!
-This show was genuinely hilarious and I found myself laughing every ep. Shoutout to Jaesoo who is the funniest one in the show lol. Jihwan is a close second ?
-There were definitely some lose ends towards the end, specifically when it comes to the Kitty Gang. I would've liked to see more about Kang Gil, how he got his scar and his relationship with Jihwan. I also think the writing for Tae Pyung could've been better. Last ep was definitely a bit rushed lol

Overall, it was a very refreshing show that I looked forward to watching every week! I'm very sad to see it go and will definitely be rewatching ?

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