Nae Aidineun Gangnammiin

Never have I seen a more annoying and irritating Female Lead than In this Kdrama! First of all Im Soo Hyang was simply too old for the college Freshman's role and then all she could do was go around stiffly...make weird faces and speak weirdly when spoken to!!! Every other actor played their parts well except her🙄. Yes, her character went through lot of anguish and pain as a kid but now that she had got plastic surgery her character needed to develop in some positive way but I didn't see that growth all through the drama! And, how can a person in today's day and time be sooo clueless that when a guy is trying to be so nice and supportive to you that you don't understand his feelings for you... no matter how low a self esteem one may have?!

I kept giving up on the drama...would start watching something else but then am a big fan of Cha Eun Woo so kept going back for him and he is the only reason that I've given 6 stars to the drama otherwise in spite of being a great subject I found it lacking a lot😒. I REALLY wish they had chosen a younger and better actress than ISH....

It's funny how the lead actress and actor both look like human versions of cartoon characters. Their facial expressions too. She looks older than him.

The story is meaningful about the ways people judge others on their looks and feel about themselves. The relationship with the parents is quite touching. The sweet smiling but jealous friend is quite real. The obstacles take a long time to overcome. Maybe a few episodes too long.

Everytine Eunwoo appears on screen, I'm in awe. How can this human being be so handsome? Then there's the girl. I don't think badly of her but she was too old for a character of a college student. The plot was simple and the villain is convincing. Eunwoo's acting appear stoic but that's just acting. Ive seen him in other dramas. Chemistry between leads are not much but you will swoon for Eunwoo as a cute bf:)

A strong EIGHT stars if this is meant to be a satire, lampooning life in Korea.

• A scathing satire of alcohol consumption - A scathing satire of beauty infatuation - A scathing satire of predatory dating - A scathing satire of politics before family - A scathing satire of weight concerns - A scathing satire of...well...just about everything.

It works, because it is obviously poking fun at ridiculous behaviors and how easily common situations could end up vastly different (usually better, much much better) if the characters behaved in a rational manner. You'll laugh out loud at the ridiculousness of it all.

HOWEVER...

If this was NOT meant to be a satire, but a serious and believable romantic dramedy, it FAILS MISERABLY. The continued self-loathing and insecurities FAR beyond what even a mentally ill person would experience, if not meant to be satirical, is just grating to the nerves. Other reviewers give great reviews because of the "Heavy Message". But that's the problem. It is not realistic. It is artificially heavy in a cartoon-like sort of way, that again, ONLY works if this is meant to be a satire and not a believable underdog story.

Then, in typical KDrama fashion, the last two episodes come off like they were directed by someone entirely different. They are a collage of small short-attention-span set pieces that transition jarringly and never really mesh into a coherent flow. The last 30 minutes of episode 16 are the worst. This is typical of Korean shows and their infatuation with epilogues once the main threat has been resolved. But it is far more conspicuous here and so overly emotional in one direction or the other, that you don't have time to digest any of it.

Last gripe: The continued KDrama reliance on a stalker/creep (usually male) to deflect some of the blame from a wholly unlikeable female character, and to excuse some of her past behaviors. It doesn't matter that she ruins relationships and causes chaos in her wake, she has to be seen in a pitying light because of her backstory and the fact that she drew unwanted attention to herself. Well, I'd like to tell the writers: Everyone has a sob story in their past. It doesn't make present day behaviors anymore excusable. So, as usually, no accountability for damages caused.

8 stars as a Satire. 4 stars if not. So, an average of 6 stars.

This is deeper than what I had expected. If young people really bully and ostracize ugly peers as depicted in this drama, parents can't be faulted for encouraging beauty-challenged offsprings to undergo plastic surgery.

Aside from the life change the female lead experiences after being prettified, this drama shows that life is not a bed of roses for pretty people either. It also shows that when it comes to lasting relationships like love, inner beauty trumps external beauty.

Cha Eun Woo shines as "face genius" Do Kyung Seok whose not-so-perfect family life made him shun society. Im Soo-hyang's depiction of Kang Mi Rae is less impressive. Her short shorts and other provocative clothes are inconsistent with her sensible and self-effacing character. And what's with the cutesy, babyish way of talking? It's a good thing Cha Eun Woo has enough charisma to make up for the flaws of other cast members.