Gae-in-eui chwi-hyang

I watched it again after many years, and though I love the leads, esp. SYJ, and the series has sweet moments, for me, it definitely has cringe-worthy scenes and others that simply do not hold up well.

At viewing, this drama is 15 years old so it IS dated. And while I don't mind the older fashioned hair, wardrobe, music, or cinematography it was the cartoonish representation of several characters that made it hard to watch. The lead female character in particular was written in a way that was beyond silly. Absolutely unbelievable and in no way likable or sympathetic to this viewer. Several other roles suffered the same unappealing characterization.

The story format of "My Fair Lady" has been redone in countless movies and dramas, yet the level of "woman as unrefined idiot" in this one is in no way ingratiating. I watched this to the end because I was sure the character transformation needed for this dramas success would be worthwhile. Sadly for me, it wasn't.

What saves this drama from the abyss of having a style "too old to watch" is Jin Ho (Lee Min Ho). His role is believable, complex, sympathetic and frustrating enough to be appealing.

End Comment: to each his own. While the complex story content and dialogue was high quality, the dated stereotyping of women was utterly unsatisfactory.

He listened to her and comforted her when she was sad. He took care of her when she was sick. He never cheated on her. He felt for her mother's loss. He was helpful to her in cleaning and cooking. He gave her strength to not dwell in the past but for a brighter future. He defended her and protected her when she fell into states of weakness. He supported her when she fell into financial troubles. He slept in a bed with her without even touching a finger of her in the beginning of their romance and waited for her consent.

Omg this drama was soooooooo good !! The story was amazing !! The way lee min ho was dressed.. omg I was in love !! Absolutely loved this drama !! I laughed aloooot !! Love love love it !!!

The reason I watched this drama is because of the leads. But it has one of the worst writing. The writers always used accidents to tell the story. It was really frustrating. A series of childish misunderstanding between the leads and second leads makes the story lot worse. Had the writers paid a bit more attention this could have been lot better drama. Whenever anyone was to reveal anything important there will always be an accidental happening or someone else listening to it, who is not supposed to be. For me it is one of the worse drama in terms of story telling. Also there was a scene in which the camera man's legs and camera and some other setups are clearly seen, meaning the editing was awful as well. Felt like they paid very little attention to the drama and rushed everything. But because of the leads, acting, good comedy scenes, okay story (although ruined by bad writing) I gave it 7/10. If you want to to have some laugh and don't mind the bad writing and common kdrama cliche then watch it.