It’s hard for me to be objective with the review since I know the whole story as I have seen the Korean version. That said, I do believe this show executed it better.

At first I was not sold on the cast. I loved Namtan as Mind, but could not get into her acting as Mean. Luckily, I got on board in later episodes. I also felt like Krist is a bit too old to play a high schooler, but again, got used to him as I watched more episodes. They both did an amazing job in conveying all the emotions and bringing these characters to life. For sure I liked Kay and his portrayal of Gun more than Sungjae’s performance. Jan did a stunning job as Tida. I hated her quite a lot, but still felt slightly bad when things started going against her wishes.

I think the only problem I had with this version was that I did not care about the romance at all. I much rather watch the friendship blooming and skip any romance altogether. While the guys looked truly in love with Mind, I could not feel the same emotions from her. I saw she liked them and felt a lot of gratitude towards them, but the romantic feeling was not there for me.

The plot is for sure intriguing, but not exactly on the realistic side. Did it bother me? No. It was cohesive and exciting. I can imagine how nerve wracking it must be for someone who has not seen the Korean version. The anxiety that keeps one on the edge of the seat every time Mind almost gets caught. I almost wished I had never seen the Korean version to appreciate this one more.

The leading premise of the show is clearly - bullying is wrong. That said, I appreciate how many times the “kids/teenagers” made exactly the same mistakes, judged each other before even trying to find out the truth, called each other names and blamed each other without proof. It made the message more realistic. Many young people claim they would never partake in bullying, but they are… They just think their reasons for it are valid and the person deserves it. It’s not easy to change and it’s not easy to see faults in your own actions.

Overall, I would for sure recommend this over the Korean version. It's produced with less over the top style and is more grounded in reality. The characters are more likable too. The only thing that drove me mad were these long af bangs Mind/Mean had. Poor girl, my eyes hurt every time I looked at her.