Begin Again (2020)

Possibly the most frustrating drama I ever watched. It gets to a point where I hated every single adult character with the exception of two minor ones. The worst part is the addicting factor. The writing is terrible yet I finished because "it could get better". It didn't get better. This is frustrating to the very last minute, there isn't anything redeeming about.

The female lead is annoying to a point where I stopped feeling any empathy around her at all. A lot of people hate loud and excessive FLs and while that is a thing of taste (not mine, because I love screaming FLs, I even like most of Hwang Jung-eum characters), this is not the reason why the FL here is so annoying. Is mostly because the writing makes her unlikeable, the reasoning behind her every move is motivated by selfish reasons only. She is supposed to be this empowering and admirable woman but in fact she's a lying, unreasonable woman who is never hold responsible for her own mess.

Now, about the (various) male leads... This is tricky, because is more of a "the best of the worst" type of situation. The ML is probably the lesser evil from the three (there's a fourth one, but he's not exactly a candidate and if he were, he would be the best one easily). He is a bit creepy and annoying, but relatable at times and you can feel some empathy towards him considering he really does suffer a lot in this. The other two candidates, one is pure evil and the fact that he does terrible things in the name of "I SAW HER FIRST SO I SHOULD GET HER!!!" is villain-like and yet it's never portrayed as That Bad. The other one is not exactly evil, just a bit bland, and ironically the writers seem to have forgotten about him by the end.

The only joy I found in this came from the two kids and the bar owner and the mom. But that's like 7% of this mess. It's really not worth it.

If you're looking for romance, AVOID THIS ONE.
(It doesn't have even two whole episodes of that)

If you're looking for a strong lead character who is a single hard working mom, AVOID THIS ONE.
(She is really the worst)

If you're looking for a great story about the korean movie industry, AVOID THIS ONE.
(They forget about the movie by episode 6 or something and unfortunately this topic is never touched in any substantial form)

If you're looking for comedy, for the love of GOD, AVOID THIS ONE.
(I don't remember laughing at all in this, there isn't a single hint of comedy)

If you're looking for a frustrating show with frustracting people and poorly written characters and situations, THIS IS YOUR DRAMA.

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A total waste of time

This drama started out like something that will be entertaining, then they spent the next 12 episodes or so trying to answer the question of who the father is and the remaining 4 episodes was spent on total rubbish.

The FL in this drama is the most annoying fl I've ever seen in a kdrama. Very unrepentant and stubborn for no justifiable reason.

There was also no real reason why all the men love her except for the fact that they knew her in the past.

The ending is also the most unreasonable ending i have ever seen in a drama. No closure for the main characters, nothing.

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This is will read as a rant

It's going to be brutal.

Let's start with the toxic representation of an Independent Woman.

Without a doubt Noh Ah Jeong character is the worst depiction of feminism I've seen in a while. I can't even call her a Candy girl because it would be disrespectful to the title. Who runs off and has a baby without notifying the father in this day and age? No self respecting woman will do that and there are no circumstances that justify it. Cheating is not a reason!!!!.

So she goes off and has a baby on her own without telling the father then proceeds to lie to both her mother and daughter for 14 years for her own selfish pride. And when given the opportunity (many opportunities) to come clean and confess she continues to lie and allows her daughter to disrespect her father based on false information. How are we supposed to like this character and the fact that they attempted to portray her as a victim was an insult to single mothers everywhere. This character was toxic to everyone around her.

After making her with an awful personality and character, they continue to demean her by making her pathetic. After being a talented and rising star in cinematography in college, all that is thrown away and she has accomplished nothing after 14 years. Apparently becoming a single mother is such a great sin that one can never be successful in life unless the father of your child shows up to shine the spotlight on your talent. The disrespect she was shown was totally unnecessary. What was so wrong in depicting a professional working mother utilizing her talents to support her family successfully. She should have been a notable PD in her field with a some measure of success. That she was scraping by whilst her peers were successful in their own right peeved me to no end because clearly she was less than because she was a WOMAN.

Suffice it to say the writing was abysmal for this show and the Chinese mafia - just No!

On a positive note the acting was well done especially by Uhm Chae Young and So Ho Jun. The cast really tried hard to carry this sad excuse of a script but nothing could save this from being the tragedy that it was. Was not a fan and would not recommend.

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Was It Love , Or A Waste of Time?

As Korean romance dramas go, “ Was it Love?” certainly wasn’t one of the worst Korean dramas out there, with some intriguing themes tackled such as motherhood, parentage and abortion as well.

What is fair to say, however, is that “ Was it Love?” had so many opportunities throughout the drama to play upon its own cliches of the mysterious father, particularly through Noh Ae-jung ( Song Ji hyo)’s daughter, Ha-nee ( Uhm Chae-young )’s being allowed to bond with her potential fathers in equal manners such as ;
famous actor Ryu Jin ( Song Jong ho), financial head Koo Pa-do ( Kim Moon Joon) , P.E. teacher Oh Yeon-woo ( Koo Ja- Sung) and novelist Oh Dae- Oh ( Son Ho Jun) respectfully throughout the entirety of the show.

Although Song Ji hyo did captivate some of the elements of her character’s determination upon screen at times ( in addition to the scriptwriting ), her acting at times seemed a little wooden and thus didn’t help in making Ae-Jung’s personality seem often very lacklustre.

Of course that’s not to say that Ae- Jung was quintessentially a terrible character as there is no denying that Ae-Jung did seem to share genuine love and affection for both her daughter and her mother Choi Hyang-ja ( Kim Mi Kyung) throughout the drama . On the other hand, “ Was it Love?” ‘s biggest flaw soon became apparent by the scriptwriters’ decision to cram-in as much plot focus upon the aspects of Ae- Jung’s seemingly lingering “chemical” relationships with each of the respected male leads of the drama. Although it was undeniable that most of the actors were fairly brilliant in their respected roles, there were too many cliches which brought lacking emphasis upon characters such as Pa-do ( especially with the whole doppelgänger trope) and Yeon- woo as plot devices , rather than as individuals over the course of the drama.

As a romance drama there isn’t anything entirely wrong with this format, however, in making this decision, there was little actual focus upon Ae- Jung’s development as a character as well upon her familial bond with her daughter.

Although an undeniable driving factor of the series was the actual question of Ha- nee’s biological father and the miscommunication between daughter and mother adding to the final climax , it’s fair to say that the ending revelation could not help but severely highlight and question a lot of Ae-Jung’s decisions.

It’s natural to see what Ae-Jung was trying to do in shielding the truth from Ha- nee; she had raised her for nearly fourteen years a as a single parent and Ha- nee finding out the truth about her father would threaten their relationship a lot. On the other hand what did not seem particularly fair was that it hadn’t crossed Ae- Jung’s mind even when her mother mentioned Ha-nee’s interest in finding out more about her father, to at least sit down and give Ha- nee, the respect and liberty to ask about the matter . This was initially ( regardless of events ) quite a selfish act committed by Ae-Jung , both for Ha-nee as well as her father, who is later revealed to be oblivious to the fact that he even had a daughter in the first place.

This is also what bothered me a little but about Ha-nee’s sudden shift from intrigue and wonder over her father to suddenly acting hostile the minute she actually finds out who he is. Whilst I can understand Ha- nee acting this way to some extent when she learns of some of the events and hardships her mother was put through, it just didn’t add up to Ha-nee’s character by not having a moment of actual intrigue or an attempt to get to know him more affectionately, even once in the show ( without being forced of course). If the plot tropes and cliches weren’t bad enough, the cliche of Ha- nee’s ending is even stranger with little actual necessity or purpose apart from wanting to give viewers a “ happy ending”.

Overall “ Was it Love?” is a perfect example of a “ throwaway drama”; easy to binge- watch without a second thought, but certainly lacking within memorability, characters and plot development as a consequence of cliches and tropes adding little value to the actual drama. Whilst enjoyable with certain comical elements, the show was certainly a waste of time if you’re looking for something to actually invest in.

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Was It A Waste of Time? Yes.

Full disclosure: I actually really liked the first 8 episodes of this drama. I knew that it wasn’t the best thing out there and was fully aware of how dumb it was but still enjoyed it because of how entertaining it was.

Until episode 11. For some reason all the joy and amusement I felt for this drama went out the door. I watched it as it aired but ended up dropping it for three months because of how annoyed I was. What exactly was I annoyed about? The plot, the FL, and the ML, SML, and (third male lead?). It’s pretty bad when you are more invested in the plot of two fourteen year olds, a minor character who owns a bar, the fourth male lead, and the FL’s mother. If it wasn’t for them (and the 2.5 speed button) I would of never finished this. I typically try to find the good in EVERY drama I watch because I understand that everyone has different tastes but this was atrocious. However, I’m not blaming the cast. The cast was wonderful in their roles as was the cinematography but the script was messy. I found myself wanting to reach through the screen to slap the every character besides the kids, dog, bar owner, fourth male lead, and the FL’s mother.

I feel so bad for the cast because obviously they have good acting chops but the characters they played and the script they were given was not good.

Anyways, I would have gave this drama a lower rating but I did enjoy like four characters + the OST which has a really beautiful cover of ‘Dreams’ by The Cranberries. Would I recommend this to anyone? No. Would I recommend this to people who like to hate watch dramas? 100%. It’s the perfect drama to hate watch if you are in a bad mood and want to yell at idiotic characters.

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Not exciting enough

I was apprehensive when I read the synopsis and saw the trailer. The show feels overly dramatic and the storyline is 'meh' at best. The main character acts like the victim and pushes everyone away when she made a decision that led to her ending up where she is in life. She doesn't seem to take responsibility for making a choice without including the person directly involved and doesn't try to see things from his point of view. She comes off as self centered sometimes and her "woe is me" attitude gets boring fast. The other characters seem to be going through the motions and the whole thing feels flat. When I started watching this I found myself just fast forwarding through each episode to the last few scenes because the episodes just makes me roll my eyes too many times. It's 3 episodes away from ending and I'm still yet to be impressed. It looks like it's building up to a predictable ending as well.

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Immensely Enjoyable Though It Does Drag Out It's Main Mystery...

I first heard of this K-drama on Reddit and checked out its trailer, which didn't really interest me. However, the comments all praised the show. Just browsing on Netflix, I came across this title and decided to give it a shot in part due to its 8.7 rating on MDL and the fact that I was in the mood for a light-hearted rom-com. At first, I wasn't sure what to make of the K-drama. The lead actress' acting turned me off as she literally overacts way too much. Everything is so dramatic and over-the-top for her. However, I came to appreciate and enjoy her antics as it works in this story. By the end of the first episode, I was hooked! The story isn't anything profound or special, but it is fun, entertaining and engaging. I am completely invested in the story. The love interests, all possible fathers for Noh Ae Jung's daughter, helps propel the mystery of who is the biological father. By the end of the first episode, we believe that it's Oh Dan Oh, the write. However, by the end of the second episode, we are made to believe that it's Oh Yeon Woo, the teacher, who is SO CUTE by the way! I cannot wait for the next episodes!

On side note, K-drama is literally killing the game! I'm watching 11 currently-airing BL's and 2 K-dramas, yet the K-dramas are easily the best in terms of quality, story-telling, innovation and production. I look forward to watching and following future Netflix Original K-dramas! I'm sold! Netflix was so smart to partner with K-drama production companies!

As a viewer posted in the comments section, "altho the episodes feel super long by the end of each one i look at the preview and im like AHHHHHH i have to keep watching~" This describes my feelings for this show exactly or more specifically in Episodes 3 & 4. Yes, it was slow and it felt very long, but by the end, I was hooked and could not wait to watch the next episode. This show is really good with their cliffhangers, I give props for that. I love how information is withheld and we, the audience, are made to come up with our own theories and guesses on who the father could be...

Notes: I absolutely adore Oh Dan Oh! I love how fervent and strong his love for Ae Jung is. I love his confrontational banter with her. I love his child-like, jealous personality. He's my favourite of all the men, no doubt! Not a big fan of Oh Yeon Woo though he is quite beautiful, I must say. I truly hope that Oh Dan Oh and Ae Jung will reconcile their differences and choose to be together again... And I absolutely loved the banter between Dae Oh and Ha-nee! It's like a true father-daughter relationship! I truly hope that he's the father...And I want to know why Dae Oh and Ae Jung broke up 14 years ago! Was it because she was pregnant and she was scared that he wouldn't want it? DId their love burn up too quickly?

I've watched Episode 9 and though I'm still quite entertained. The series does unnecessarily drag out the mystery of who Han-ee's father is. It also drags out the reason why Ae Jung left Oh Dae Oh (which I truly hope will be revealed in the next episode). I'm guessing that maybe the reason why Ae Jung said that he either had to die or leave Oh Dae Oh back then could be due to her immense guilt for sleeping with Ryu Jin. Anyways, as other have also mentioned, we fall in love with Oh Dae Oh more and more each week while hating Ryu Jin and Oh Yeon Woo more and more each week. Ryu Jin for being a fake friend and Oh Yeon Woo for constantly, like constantly, pushing himself on Ae Jung even though she has clearly told him that his actions were making her uncomfortable. I continue to hold the torch for Oh Dae Oh! Hopefully, he is revealed to be Han-ee's father and wins back Ae Jung.

The story is messy and doesn't make much sense at times, but the series is so addicting. Everytime an episode ends, I need to watch the next one, especially when the episodes all end in cliffhangers.

In Episodes 10 and 11, though I do love Dae Oh and am really enjoying this drama, the idea that a mother and her daughter needs a man to help protect them is idiotic, absurd and dumb! On a similar note, the idea that a child needs a father and a mother to be happy and fulfilled is also old-fashioned and completely baseless as there are a ton of children out there with single parents or with same-sex parents who are thriving under the love and support of their parents.

Episodes 13 and 14 were quite messy, random and melodramatic where characters makes decisions that don't make any sense. That was quite selfish of Han-ee to deprive her mother of romantic love when she already knew that she was the reason why her mother dropped out of school. And why didn't Ae Jung tell Han-ee that her father didn't leave her but rather that she left him over a misunderstanding? What happened to telling her the truth? But of course, everything will be alright after Dae Oh risked his life to save Han-ee and Ae Jung from the gangsters, causing Ae Jung to reveal her feelings to him and allowing Han-ee to forgive him. I'm getting tired of this drama and just want it to end by this point.

The last episode was quite useless and unnecessary. The story didn't make any sense. All in all, this series is highly entertaining. I was addicted to the series that is until the last several episodes where the story's logic started to stretch thin and characters made decisions that didn't make any sense. I would still recommend this drama for anyone interested in some addicting fluff.

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Who is the father... or why did they break up...or The child actors are awesome!

"My dream is becoming Wonder Woman and not a Cinderella" - Noh Ae Jong

What i liked:
Child Actors!! especially Ha Nee!
Ha nee talking about marrying mom
Noh Ae Jong wishing to be wonder woman and not a cinderella
the family - sismance
Ha neee again
Ha neee 3
Ha nee 4
the gangster father
happy ending/ships for all characters

What I disliked:
Reverse Harem.
most adults.
the writer
plot


This drama is quite a lighthearted comedy about a family that starts to shake a bit after the mom has troubles as work and some potential fathers to her cute daughter start to appear. It does have this mystery of "who is the father" but to be honest the father is easily deduced by looking at the poster. There are two leads and others are just side characters.

I think this drama would have been a gem if done in Hospital Playlist style. Making it a family/sismance drama would have been perfect because noh ae jong's family was really nice! but the Reverse Harem, Father search and all was really unnecessary and not quite a good decision in my opinion. Though of course it all depends on a person and their preferences :)
One might think it's not in the favor of the woman to have many father candidates. And if that is a factor that is stopping you from watching this drama then don't worry! This is a slight spoiler but as many people are telling about this factor i wanted to tell that the female lead didn't have any relationship with other people other than the real father. And everything is mostly those other men's imagination/wishes.
After the father is recognized (which happens pretty soon for the viewers), comes the real big question of this drama! Why did they separate. lol What did the father do or what did the mother do. The big mystery is getting bigger and bigger only to have a very weak reveal. To be honest all the big revelations of recent 2020 dramas were really weak. That, i think, was the biggest thing that i didn't like. The reason could have been solved just by conversation but both refused to talk which led to a kid being raised without father.
At first it is kinda focused on the fact that the daughter Ha Nee doesn't have a father and that focus goes quite long. But i liked a lot that they also showed that Ha Nee was raised perfectly well by her mother and grandmother and was happy with them.

Talking about kids! They are the highlight of this drama! to be honest i started this drama for JI Hyo and i always feel bad for not liking her dramas... but then i continued it for the child actors! I'm in love with the girl who played Ha Nee! She was soooo sweet! she acted perfectly and i loved every second of her scenes! <3 :)

So the story is like 5 for me. it's okayish. 0.5 for Ji Hyo. and 2 for Ha Nee <3 :)

So you can try watching this drama and then decide if you like it or not. It wasn't THAT bad. but it wasn't great either for me at least :) but i still don't regret watching it because i loved the child actors :)

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Who picked the Lead Male role for this show??? Your Fired!

"Was it Love? "NO nor was it good , sensible, or even a drama! ..I think the writing of the storyline is severely flawed from the beginning. Had you had the obnoxious former lover wanting to be in her life because it meant he could secure the movie deal, attempting to make her believe his desire to be a husband and father vs. the slightly younger teacher with all the excellent qualities needed & desired by Noh Ae Jung, you would have had a wonderful hit on your hands. However, throwing in 4 guys, a missing father who is just horrible in this role, and all the personalities lost in the storyline....makes this one of my biggest disappointment for K-Dramas. What a waste of some good people and $!!
The Producer who ok'd the script...you are fired from any future projects :-)

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A drama that can turn your whole world upside down

Get ready to get mixed emotions. This is a light (at the start), fun (coz there’s comedy too), enjoying and intriguing drama to watch (bcs, well, you know 4 man in 1 woman’s life, but you will also CRY (because of the deeper part of the story), you will feel disappointed and frustrated because of the character’s’ questionable decisions.

I just love how each male lead has its own story about female lead and ended their feelings well with the FL. However, I just felt quite dissatisfied with ML & FL side.

Yes, it will intrigues you who the real father is; how these men are related to FL; plus why on earth they got separated for 14 f years.

At the beginning, it will excite you how the ML & FL will reconcile (and if ever they will, since there are still male leads in the story).

However, it will get you frustrated (like what I felt) along the story because both leads’ keeps suppressing their feelings, which, ugh, makes their daughter act more mature than them— yes, Ha Nee’s maturity is admirable —but not to the extent she keeps pushing her real father away, when the her dad is already making effort to make things right, which made me feel disheartened.

And when you though everything is already going well (because it’s already near ending) BUT nah, the writer will give you another reason to cry—because of frustration and disappointment!

The ending is not predictable as you’d ever thought would be. IT WILL TURN THE WHOLE STORY UPSIDE DOWN. For me, if you’re already cool with EP15, it can already be an ending bcs EP16, is just another plot twist of the story— which will, somehow, ruin the whole story — but don’t worry, it is Happy Ending. At least. But unsatisfying. Unacceptable because the ending has been compromised. Super.

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Why so much hate for this drama?!

I’m not sure why I watched this one, considering how awful so many of the reviews here make it seem. But I’m glad I did.

The relationships in this drama are more complex than the usual fare. Maybe that’s why so many viewers thought badly about them. This was a problem for Nevertheless, too.

So many reviews say the ending was awful, and… I’m not sure what drama they watched. In the last two episodes, I kept thinking, “Okay, the terrible ending is going to start here, right? Nope. Here, then? No… huh.”

I’m not going to post any spoilers but there’s a happy ending—well, there’s always that one second male lead who has to be lonely in the end (>cough< Baek In-ho, Yoon JiHoo >cough<), but otherwise, it was good.

This drama portrays what deep betrayal can do to a person (I also like Lovestruck in the City in this regard). The reviewers complaining that the decisions characters made were selfish or nonsensical must be lucky folks who have never been betrayed by a good friend or lover. It messes you up! It makes you distrust!

There *are* three very selfish characters, only one of which sees the error of their ways… but the leads are self-preserving, not self-serving. Many people made mistakes in 2003 in this film, but nearly all of them were trying to do the best they could with only part of the story. That happens, especially in many peoples 20s! If anything, I’d say the healing quality of this drama hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves.

Is it perfect? Nope. There’s an over the top action side story that felt unnecessary, and —& I don’t think this is a spoiler— how can having to poop become blackmail fodder? It wasn’t laugh out loud funny and what romance there was wasn’t heart fluttering—but it was complicated and the attempts at mending these relationships required leaps of faith that I thought were handled well. I loved it whenever the suitors had to work together & especially loved Ha-nee’s conversations with her various father candidates.

Standouts elements include the Cranberries cover, the daughter and halmoeni, the the depiction of a messy breakup and it’s fallout.

Things other reviewers were worried about, but I didn’t mind, include the lack of deep dive into the “movie industry,” the FL turning down help over and over—she didn’t ask to be rescued!— and Dae-o’s whining. Anyone who carries a burden for 14 years will take some time to shift their worldview.

Things that *did* drive me nuts: “Guido Orefice” (COME ON), the last time jump, the other teacher (that guy, seriously), one ruthless character who wasn’t ever punished, the release party for a major film looking more like a lame office birthday party, and there really should’ve been more kissing.

I’m not sure if I’d rewatch it, because there are so many in my rewatch pile already, but I wasn’t mad about watching it once.

Lire davantage

Mediocre at best?

As a fan of Song Ji-Hyo I was so underwhelmed by her written character in this drama. She herself is a independent woman who has a strong personality and stands by who she is, we've seen this all in the series Running Man. Knowing this made it easy to connect her to the role of a strong mother raising her child alone.

But watching this and seeing her acting as Noh Ae-jung made it feel so out of place, it was like she was forced to portray all the qualities she already has. This made it awkward to relate and want the best for the female lead and made Noh Ae-jung seemed insincere and very selfish, past episode 5 I started to dislike her character entirely.

Going onto the story, I didnt enjoy it at all (besides some of the side stories). I watched it to the end strictly because of SJH . The plot had so much potential and it didnt hit any of the marks for me, more like dipped the end of a finger in several different themes? Betrayal, love and romance, slice of life, school life, teen drama, and action? Sadly every single one failed. It feels like they tried to cram in as much as they could to make up for the lack the story seemed to have. I actually enjoyed the side "romance plots" more than the main one, and considering that they were "side stories" says a lot in itself. There was so much going on I think it was smothered.

This drama didnt hit any notes for me and sadly I wouldnt recommend this to anyone.

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