Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo (2016)

It was going great, until episode 7!

The first 6 episodes are fantastic, but it becomes really toxic on episode 7. In episode 7, the female lead, father is verbally and physically abusive. No matter how angry we are with someone, physical abuse is not the solution unless we are defending ourselves from an attacker. Additionally, the female coach, punish the female lead (who btw, is a college sophomore) with a broom stick because she arrived late to exercise. Instead of disciplining a grown woman with abuse, why not just suspend her from the team? I dislike the fact that episode 7 normalize physical abuse.

I really really really enjoyed the first 6 episodes of this drama, up until episode 7, which is toxic (it sends the message that physical abuse is discipline and thus, it's okay). I will update my review once I finish watching the rest of the episode.

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I was honestly not anticipating this drama much but what an amazing surprise it has been! Even though there were some flaws in the earlier episodes, this drama has constantly gotten better and better and now at the 13th episode, I can't seem to stop smiling at the gorgeousness that is our main couple. It captures the essence of first love so beautifully and without using the numerous usual cliche tropes we see in k-dramas. Watching Bok Joo start to like Joon Hyung and both of them falling for each other more and more as their relationship advances is so reminiscent of similar experiences everyone has sometime or the other in their lives. To people who've fallen in love before, it is the best kind of nostalgic ride, letting us live those small, defining moments once more and marvel and grin at how once, we were exactly like our 2 leads. Moreover, to all those who are yet to experience love, it's a wishful dream for an experience like Bok Joo's and Joon Hyung's. And for everyone who once had love and now yearns for it, this drama is sure to make you ache even more for the giddy, passionate and unforgettable feeling of 'first love'.

I absolutely love Lee Sung Kyung and Nam Joo Hyuk in this drama! They've breathed life into their characters and made them their own, so much so that I can't imagine anyone else ever doing these 2 roles more justice than them.

Looking forward to the coming episodes! Hope the drama keeps on riding this momentum!

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I saw this title on so many lists I thought it had to be good. What a surprise, what a let down. I suggest you watch something else. If this was about weightlifting then why not hire an actress who looks like she has actual muscles! or even muscle tone!! This show was the epitome of why I quit watching kdramas a couple years ago, guess I should have paid more attention to the year it was released. The characters are all stock, interchangeable, boring characters. I thought the story was dumb, e.g: see MC winning a medal on tv then next scene; her struggling to carrying chairs to gymnastics hall & having a childish fight with a gymnast. Male handsome, lofty MC teases (bullies) female MC & flashes back to childhood falling out of a window & landing on female MC who is a fat ~eating~ young girl. The shame......... that anyone that doesnt look frail is portrayed poorly.

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It’s overhyped

I immediately started watching after seeing all the big hype about it and I was so excited but became quickly disappointed after properly seeing the reviews on this website and I’m happy I did because I decided to them read all the summaries and watch a few more episodes and I was quite annoyed and I don’t understand why people r so impressed by this drama when really it wasn’t great

Acting:
I love both actors and I’ll admit it wil be hard seeing them with others I loved their chemistry and they did well in portraying the script well

Plot:
Started off really well I liked it and found it really funny and was looking forward to seeing their romance unwind after finding out they went to school together but was quickly disappointed when she began to hv a crush on Jae Yi. Now I love the guy he is such a gentleman truly an amazing character but I just didn’t like the idea that this crush lasted for so many episodes and that he is the ml brother I find that so weird that u go between brothers I just don’t understand that idea. I generally thought it would be like other dramas where she would shortly find out he has a gf and then give up on him but this lasted for ages and really annoyed me as it took away from the potential of an extremely nice friendship the ml and fl could hv made in the mean time. There’s nothing wrong with her liking someone else but I find it took ages for her to get over him and the fact Jae Yi is the ml brother made it kinda annoying. Kim Bok Joo is amazing in her own way she’s a strong woman who fights for her dream I don’t like how she hid that from Jae Yi to make her seem like a more feminine person that took away my respect for her in a way as she before kept saying she has no interest in guys but the sec she meets Jae Yi she tails after him and acts completely different there was too much juxtaposition in her character which was not helping with the plot as well as the offer for her to go higher in weightlifting kept seeming further and less important due to Jae Yi and she wanting to impress him.
I hate how it’s like she didn’t care about her career at that point just wanted to impress him I don’t like this kind of plot at all it makes a woman seem like she will do anything for a man which this was directly hinting in the storyline.
The ml was a very intriguing character from the beginning clearly talented slightly cocky but knew that he must respect others. The storyline of him losing his mother was also very interesting and I liked that quite a bit he also made sure to set boundaries immediately when his ex showed up he refused to make others uncomfortable because of her and avoided her as he did not care much of her after the break up which I found admirable as majority of the dramas have it where the ex is like welcomed back and it’s as if nothing happened but here he clearly set a boundary and was vocal about anything he disliked so she would stop. Only thing I didn’t like about him ig is that he teased the fl a bit too much which isn’t really a big issue ig so it’s not a big deal.
Second lead characters were all awesome I liked them all very much.

Overall the plot was the issue had the scriptwriters made a more sensical approach this drama would be much more entertaining.
So here is what I would change. Firstly keep the story around the development of both main leads as friends to lovers and also their career. A side story could easily be the unravelling of the mystery about Joon Hyungs mother as well as Kim Bok Joos father as he was in hospital quite a bit and that would hv been enough for plot.
Had their needed to be a rival thing the appearance of the ex gf is fine as Joon Hyung clearly set boundaries and disliked her.
If a crush at the beginning was extremely necessary they should hv maybe chosen someone that isn’t Joon Hyungs older brother I’m not Korean so maybe this isn’t odd for Koreans but I think generally no one would fall in love with one guy and then after that’s over his younger brother that’s just odd to me and causes potential issues within the brothers.
Romance scenes r cute af so their rewatch value is good but the whole thing I wouldn’t rewatch again

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weightlifting fairy lifting my heart ❤️

the show is a rom-com masterpiece, a perfect blend of comedy, romance, motivation, drama ,ups and downs . the straight approach oriented plot no twists and tricks yet giving the best delight to its viewers. i am not going to discuss the outlines of the story as this is a popular one and you have access to its various versions of synopsis on the internet .. so let's straight dive into the things i felt made this show so amazing for me:

1) straight and to the point approach : in most cases when writers dont have much twist/tricks to elongate a story, it often comes out a boring plot full of cliches and over abused comedy punches, like a total lacklusture sort of drama . but that wasnt a case with this one ..even with the 'no bullshit' approach this drama was able to keep the viewers engage.

2)cast : very talented cast : some of them like lee sung kyung, nam joo hyuk are my absolute fav ..and the casting director deserve all the appreciation for casting actor who have some experience in that sport to play the sportsperson for example kyung soo jin playing role of song hi (gymnast) was a practicing gymnastic in real life as well ... kyung sung bulked up and did weight trainings play the weightlifter...this type of professionalism increase the value of the drama on whole different level.
plus there were few guest appearances.(byeon wosoek etc)

3)comedy : punches were refreshing nothing vulgar of the sorts ..and there were both verbal and physical comedy ... her walk alone was enough to make me forget biggest worry of my life ..she was just too good.

4)life lessons : this show demonstrated a lot of young people's shortcomings ad worries in present day life .. like carrier pressure, love life situations , family problems ... and the healthiest and very logical way to deal with them.


few things that i think missed the purpose for me

1)music : i dont know this might be my personal POV but the music including everything from background music to ost suck' .. i missed a compulsory rap that ost sports based motivational drama always have plus the romantic background songs had no male singer so it kinda feel strange not to have a background melody to convey the ML's feelings.

2) the part where they show FL and the ex GF playing sister/friends was too superficial ..she even helped her hide the boy in closet ..that part was so unnecessary and unrealistic at the same time ..i dont know why they even put it there ..


okay so that is it ... you should definitely check this one out
rewatch value : very high.( i am watched it 5 years ago and watching it again while writing the review)

XoXo

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Okay so this is one of my favorite shows of all time, to put it simply; I fricking loved it. It was and still is something that makes me feel a bit happier in my day to day life. Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo felt like a breath of fresh air between all this very serious and dramatic dramas that seems to dominate the K-dramaland nowadays.

Story; The 'Slice of Life' style of drama was a good choice for the characters that they made. It was an lighthearted and funny show that made me fall in love within a few minutes. It wasn't about true love or people who were destined for each other, it was about friendship and a cute and innocent kind of love and that is what distinguished it from other dramas.

Acting/Cast; Brilliant, simply brilliant. The actors and actresses were made for these roles and I don't think that I wish that they would have done anything differently. Even though the characters could be like stereotypical K-drama characters in some aspects, I felt that they were different and very loveable. The quirks of Bok Joo and her friends made my cheeks hurt from smiling, I usually don't think that K-Dramas are all that funny but this one really fitted my sense of humor.

The relationship between the main character felt so real and I loved that they didn't rush the characters into falling in love with each other right away.

Music; I don't really remember the OST of the series but I don't feel that it was something that I missed either, so it probably was fine.

Rewatch Value; I think that most people who watched it will rewatch it at some point, I have and probably will again. I miss the characters all too much for not seeing them again.

Overall; Loved it a lot as you can tell.

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Solo lei è importante

La storia mi ha ricordato il cdrama "To fly with you" sia perchè ambientato nel mondo dello sport sia perchè il fulcro di tutto è la protagonista e tutti gli altri sono comparse perchè al 99% molto poco approfonditi e che con la storia c'entrano poco o nulla. La vera pecca è proprio questa.
La protagonista è stata l'unica a piacermi al 100% con la sua storia, la sua crescita, la sua forza nel voler seguire la propria passione nonostante questo la porti lontano dallo stereotipo della donna come figura femminile. Credo sia una delle migliori interpretazioni dell'attrice. Il coprotagonista maschile invece è quello su cui sono più in dubbio. Ho avuto l'impressione che il suo ruolo all'interno del drama sia stato messo più volte da parte. Penso sia stato ben poco approfondito, soprattutto per quanto riguarda il suo sport e la passione che dovrebbe metterci. Per non dire come hanno arrangiato la parte del suo passato. Insomma, davvero non si poteva fare di meglio? Non so, l'ho trovato un po' scialbo come personaggio anche se nelle scene con la protagonista mi è piaciuto molto. L'attore l'ho amato in passato e adesso lo apprezzo ancora di più poichè vedo la sua crescita professionale, ha fatto un super salto per Start Up!
Per il resto, nonostante nasconda molti messaggi positivi, secondo me sono supportati da personaggi che poco si contraddistinguono e questo grava sul drama. Altra cosa che non mi ha entusiasmato, sono state le varie coppie che si sono "formate" e uso le virgolette perchè... Beh perchè non è che si siano proprio formate tutte.. Alcune sono capitate.
Nel complesso bocciato? No, ma poteva essere migliore!

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funny and well acted

I had a lot of fun watching this show. The story was nice, the script interesting as weightlifting is not sucha a popular sport dyscypline. Background knowledge on sports is sth I am curious about and it Goes for many other like soccer or baseball. the main plus is for the FL and ML very well chemistry and good acting. The comedy scenes were so good and they are the hardest to act well. I am jot suprised that both actors were to be set in new main cast roles in new dramas. Both deserved the investment in their talent to grow in new projects. Wish the can meeting on another show together.

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I don't even know how to start this review. I just finished watching the last episode (which took me 26 days because I didn't want it to end) and my heart hurts and is happy at the same time.
I actually watched two or three episodes of this drama right after it came out because a friend of mine really liked it. I was enjoying it but because I had to travel that Summer I stopped watching and never finished. Almost two years later I decided to watch it. And that was probably one of the smartest decisions of my life. I'm not hard to please when it comes to dramas because I haven't watched a hundred of them to be THAT critical but I can say, from the bottom of my heart, that Weightlifting Fairy Kim Boy Joo will forever stay at the top as one of my favorites, no matter how many I watch. It's so perfect that it's hard to write a fair review so I'll talk about each aspect individually. From now on there will be spoilers so please don't read the rest!! If you're wondering if you should watch it: YES! yes yes yes yes, please do.

Plot/Story- Even though it's not the most complex of the plots, I think this story is absolutely fascinating just as it is. Its simpleness shines throughout the whole series and the scenes make your heart skip multiple beats. Even though it's a very lighthearted story, there are some more deep and emotional moments, like Joonhyung's relationship with his mother (which made me cry so hard I couldn't fall asleep after that episode). Unlike many other dramas I've watched, none of the relationships feel forced here because they're perfectly constructed. The friendships warmed my heart and I almost died of laughter in every single episode. I also discovered new things about sport teams and teamwork and how everything happens inside the competition world which is pretty cool, in my opinion, especially because swimming is my favorite sport and I would love to join a swimming team. It was never boring and each episode made us want more. I don't know if I've ever given 10 whole stars to a plot before but WFKBJ totally deserves them (and more).

Characters/Cast/Acting- The characters are PHENOMENAL. So so so so good. Even the "villains" were likeable because you could truly feel for them. Everyone grew throughout the show which surprised me because there are only 16 episodes. The cast was perfect, they fit their roles so well that I wonder if it's not their real personality after all. Their chemistry... GOOSEBUMPS. The kissing scenes? Jesus Christ, I literally cried in every kissing scene, I just can't deal. This drama made me fall in love with Joohyuk (like everyone else on this planet) and my goal for 2019 is to watch all of his shows. Watch me follow the whole cast on Instagram and love them for the rest of my life.

Music- I loved loved loved the soundtrack, I think it fit perfectly.

Rewatch Value- I'll rewatch this show at least two times a year until I die. Yep, that is it. Life mission right there. But seriously, I'm 1000% sure I'll never get tired of it. I could watch ten other seasons like this one that it wouldn't get boring. I guess I just love watching sports dramas and animes. Does anyone have any recommendation??

Conclusion- As of January 2019 this is my favorite drama of all time and I think it will stay this way for a long long long time. This was also my first review of the year and I'm really proud of it haha I'm so happy with this drama, I have no words. Well, I do have ONE word.



...



SWAG

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Coming of age do melhor tipo que existe

Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo é um drama que, apesar de sua história simples, se mostra irresistivelmente cativante. A simplicidade é bela, e é exatamente essa característica que faz com que eu sempre retorne a ele como uma experiência reconfortante. A série não tenta ser algo grandioso ou complicado; em vez disso, aceita e assume seu lugar como uma história de coming of age que ressoa profundamente com o público.

Além do romance leve e das interações divertidas, o drama aborda temas importantes como insegurança, medo, bulimia e disforia. Esses tópicos são tratados com sensibilidade e autenticidade, o que enriquece a narrativa e permite que os espectadores se identifiquem com os desafios enfrentados pelos personagens.

Entretanto, uma das minhas principais críticas é a caracterização de Kim Bok Joo. Eu gostaria que a série tivesse sido mais corajosa nesse aspecto e que tivesse escalado uma atriz gorda de verdade ou, pelo menos, que a protagonista tivesse engordado para o papel. Isso teria adicionado uma camada extra de autenticidade e representatividade à história. Infelizmente, sabemos como a indústria coreana é em relação a esses temas, então isso pode ser pedir demais.

Em suma, Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo é um drama encantador que conquista pela sua simplicidade e relevância emocional. É uma jornada de autodescoberta que, mesmo com suas falhas, continua a ser um conforto e uma inspiração para muitos.

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