Doona!

I definitely don't agree with the critical reviews on here. Just because this series doesn't follow the usual format of traditional k-dramas, it doesn't automatically make this series bad. I actually like this series because of the fact that it tries to do something new. I really like the blend of romance and drama paired with this melancholic vibe. I was interested through out all the episodes, because it was so fresh.

This series also did a great job at casting. Bae Suzy is the perfect person for this role, her delivery was great in this. The story was also really interesting.

For me to have given this series a higher rating, I would have wanted to see more character development. I feel like some of the storylines were left open or unfinished. Some of the plotlines felt rushed or out of place as well. I wanted to know more about the characters and their reasons for doing what they did. Still, this was worth watching.

"Be careful when you're alone in a crowd. It's obvious."

"What do you mean? What's obvious?"

"Your loneliness."

Doona! Wasn't what I expected it to be, instead, it was much better. It was somber, mature, and it featured realistic dialogues.

"Your desperation to be loved, to try to compensate for never having it. You're afraid of losing people's interest."

I think Suzy did a good job portraying a female character as complex as Doona; a compulsive, miserable, and highly irresistible washed-up popstar desperate for love and attention driven by her abandonment issues.

"I wanna know what goes on in that mind of yours."

If you're looking for the usual fluffy Korean drama with feel good romance, skip this one. But if you want a more subtle and slow burn story with heartfelt confrontation scenes, go watch Doona.

Doona (Bae Suzy) is the front icon of an idol group, when she has a breakdown and drops out. She moves into a small rental complex where the other tenants are college students. Lee Won-joon (Yang Se-jong) also moves into the house.

Doona is a seeker, an insecure soul, self-destructive, unreliable and driven by impulse. Won-joon is cautious, controlled, and tied down. They are each other's opposites, but coincidences cause them to develop a fragile friendship and a mutual dependence on each other.

The plot is subordinate in this fine-tuned little gem where the actors get to excel in low-key portraits of two people who meet and become each other's lifeblood but also their greatest weakness, who challenge the other's self-image and shake up what they thought they knew about themselves, their life choices and their dreams.

Anyone looking for an easy-to-digest k-drama will be disappointed. It's low key, serious, slow and wistful. It is real and painful. The photography is fantastic, the soundtrack well chosen. The interaction is exquisite between Bae Suzy, who gives her (in my opinion) best performance, and the absolutely magnificent Yang Se-jong, who's performance goes straight to the heart.

This is the best I've seen this year. Possibly it could have benefited from a few more episodes, to deepen the characters' backstories somewhat, but that's just a small note in the margin. The ending is unexpected and can be interpreted in several ways, which is quite unusual in Korean series I've seen.

If you enjoyed My Liberation Notes, Our Blues and Nevertheless, this series is for you. I give it 9.5 out of 10 wistful hearts.

This is an artistic series, not a crowd pleaser. The characters are very well defined, however, the most impressive part is the psychology of the K-pop idol. The series tries to make everyone understand what the difficulties of being a k-pop (or k-drama actor/actress, whatsoever) star in plenty of cases really are. I loved the miniseries to bits. It fits perfectly to my idea of romanticism as well as the idea of realism. To be a star, in all languages and on all meridians doesn't mean necessarily happiness. It may; but it may not. I am from Canada, but I really appreciate k-dramas. However, watching the weddings of some k-stars (Jang Na-Ra, Kang So-Ra, for example) and the fact that the non-celebrity spouse's face is hidden, most of them cannot really have girlfriends/boyfriends while young and working in this business, made me think a lot about the traumatizing life of idols. The movie is nice, but also realistic, doesn't matter what the others say. Plenty of people will complain about the ending :)) There is no other real possible ending! I strongly recommend it! It's beautiful, romantic and realistic.

The series itself is good, with interesting characters and a great story line...but the male protagonist's decision making in the last episode killed me. I can't recommend this unless you like unfulfilled hopes and expectations.

I am seriously confused and disheartened by the ending and the male protagonist's choice to become a worker drone. I am giving it a 5/10 because it is interesting and well done, and the female leads (all three of them) do an amazing job.

Another reviewer remarked that the director and writers apparently wrote this for the elites, and not normal folks looking for an escape. I couldn't agree more.

Also, I just couldn't understand all the smoking, what was that all about? It was really overdone and really detracted from some of the scene enjoyment at times. It also seemed kind of pointless and really didn't advance the story.

Give this a shot if you like, but you WILL be left with the could've been, should've beens with this series.