Habaekui Shinboo

I saw a lot of bad news and reviews about this drama, so I never thought about watching it. Eventually I watched it and it's not that bad, actually it's pretty good drama. Even though I don't really like how So-ah sometimes behave, and the conflicts that they have just felt like being forced, overall I could enjoyed it. In fact, I want to rewatch it. Another thing, the plot is kinda slow, so I give eight for this drama.

Worth to watch, especially in this quarantine time!!! I love both main and second couples, they're cute and their chemistry is on point.

I saw some great reviews and some really bad reviews for this show and decided to give it a shot. I don't think it deserves a really poor rating, but a rather strong start to a rather cute story ultimately fell short. The acting was pretty good but not great, the special effects were fine but not amazing, and the story was cute but not powerful. Strong emotional moments failed to connect with me, and although I felt sorry for our characters, I never cried (and I am a BIG crier). Also the female characters in this show were just SO annoying that it actually made me cringe a few times. In particular the main girl is rather immature and has reactions varying from cute manga reactions to total stupidity (fainting at the sight of an ex). Her and her friend were also the FARTHEST things from actual psychiatrists that I had to actively pretend I didn't know anything about psychology to get through the series. What was frustrating about the lack of anything resembling actual doctors is that I have seen two other medical based K-Dramas that did a great job of portraying the medical field and the professionalism and care that would be required in a hospital setting. I get that our main girl has her own clinic and doesn't have the "rules" of a hospital, but come on, barely listening to an obviously disturbed paranoid schizophrenic and then screaming like a child when he proceeds to have a breakdown? (BTW This happens in the first 15 minutes so its not a spoiler). It was ridiculous and brought the whole show down in my opinion.

Let me start by saying that after excitedly recognizing the characters and art style from the Manhua (Bride of the Water God), I was horribly disappointed to discover that this story has nothing in common with it at all. So for readers of the Manhua, this is likely to be a let down.

HOWEVER, that being said, I still can't understand why this show has received such poor ratings. If you look past the title and treat the film as a stand alone product, it is actually pretty solid (as K-Dramas go). While the story lacks originality, the script itself is well written. The acting, though not Oscar worthy, is mostly believable (especially CEO Shin). The special effects are acceptable (some are even pretty cool). And the other technical aspects (such as cinematography and soundtrack) are all nicely polished.

That's not to say it was perfect. I struggled with So-ah's fainting (which was probably meant be slapstick but only translated as annoying), her clueless character early on in the show, and the disparity between her caring personality vs her standoffish behavior. I also never bought her role as a psychiatrist. On the other hand, I loved how she was humble enough to admit her faults, yet never let others put her down.

Some other nitpicks include Habaek's "smile twitch" (what was the purpose???), the rushed ending, and the fact that Habaek's backstory gave absolutely no explanation that the curse caused him to become a child during the day and revert to an adult at night (a major point in the Manhua). This made the 2-3 scenes with his "younger" self completely disorienting.

In addition, the plot also took some unnecessary turns toward the end (but what K-Drama doesn't suffer from those?), and the current subtitles on Netflix had several critical segments of conversation where the wording was out of context or failed to tie together the larger meaning/subtext of what was being said.

In summary, despite some minor problems, I thought this was a pretty decent film overall, with lots of romance. If you are a fan of manga and K-Drama with a splash (no pun intended) of fantasy, give it a try. Recommended!

ROMANCE RATING: 10/10. I thought the lead couple had good chemistry (though others may disagree), and they share the largest number of kiss scenes I have yet to see in a K-Drama (7+). Additionally, in comparison to the brief or static "pecks" used in many K-Dramas, these kisses didn't skimp on dynamics or duration. This flick also deserves a nod for its' plentiful amount of skin/fanservice, courtesy of Nam Joo Hyuk and Gong Myeong's gorgeous torsos.

I write this review in 2023, and my main reason of writing is to state that this series is way better than some reviews here suggest!

All in all, this is high quality entertainment, pure fun! And by fun, I mean it covers all ranges of emotions. Yes, funny as well, some times, but also very dramatic other times. In my humble opinion, K-dramas excel in acting in sad scenes, and here is no different.

Morover, both leads are very pleasing to the eye, and do an all-round masterful acting job. And not just the leads! The whole cast is very lovable in their respective roles. Hats off again to South Korea! 8/10.

A little bit disappointed, but overall it's still worth to watch if you're bored enough.

The opening was fine but the ending was like the crew got electric shocked, too much superfluous suspense plot made it nearly impossible not to skip.