Happiness (2021)

Happiness is NOT what the Drama makes me feel!

Even though I rated this drama an 8, this is mainly because of the great acting. Boy can these people be scary as zombies....absolute terrors.

Let me start with the storyline...which is the major let down for me. I have no regard for any of these characters because even though they acted their socks off, writernim refused to tell their story properly. Hardly any back story...enough for me to care about what happens to them. I believe this was a disservice to what could have been a great drama.

There were a few plot holes and even updates that left me like: what? e.g. the cashier from the supermarket was already infected, why then did the creepy infected dude go after her when she went to get the guy's phone from outside? They allowed us to know that the infected know each other because their blood smells disgusting. bSo why?

Also, we already know that once you're infected you can't die unless you get shot in the brain...so why did they ML collapse as if he died? Now if the story told us he really died, I would've rated this show a 1 for breaking its own rules.

The acting was pretty phenomenal and I really enjoyed the OST.

Lire davantage

An unexpected delight

I almost didn’t watch Happiness. The horror genre is not my thing and I don’t enjoy being scared silly. However, the rating was so high, and I really liked Park Hyung Shik in Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, so I gave it a try.

Turns out that this is a fantastic show which just got better with each episode. If you are hesitating because like me, you don’t really like horror, as long as you can handle some gore and a few suspenseful moments, go for it. The main theme is the analysis of how people react when put into the extreme position of a lockdown. Do you help each other? Take advantage of each other? Steal from each other? Kill each other?

The show has so many unexpected twists and turns that it was highly entertaining throughout. I wish it had a few more episodes actually; the ending felt a bit short and left some open questions as to what happened to some of the characters. That’s really the only reason I didn’t rate it a 10.

All the actors did great, but the two main leads were just extraordinary and made Happiness truly special. Apart from everything else, this drama offers a great portrayal of a loving relationship. The main characters are both so supportive of each other, it is a joy to watch. Also, please let there be more shows with strong female leads like this. Many shows start out with a spunky girl who, after a few episodes, becomes weak and forgets she has a black belt in karate. Not in this case. Our heroine stays strong and committed and does kick butt until the last episode.

Lire davantage

A somewhat original take to the usual zom-dramas.

1. Originality: I would say this quite original in its concept, the stakes are raised by having them getting quarantined in their apartment complex with no real help in sight. This is similar to how Train to Busan raised the stakes, by getting the characters stuck in, well, a train. Like the movie, it also deals with human nature, prejudices and divides coming into play it apocalyptic situations, however unlike Train to Busan though it also branches out to the politics of creating a cure and the greyness at play within relief efforts. I also loved the concept of the "disease" happening in episodes, so the patient comes back to their "self" and have to accept and go through their guilt. I felt it was a great way to comment on the COVID epidemic too.

2. Setting: The setting while done well, felt too easy. Like, none of the characters tried making a run for it, even with zombies all around them?

3. Characterization: I do not always feel the need to agree with the main characters to like a fiction. That being said, there were quite a few moments where I felt the main characters could have solved miscommunications within the people with just more and clear communication. They were very rigid with having things go their ways, even when a patient was visibly a threat. I agree with humanising a patient but that shouldn't be done with clear threat to others. Also, I guess since it was a series instead of a movie, too many decisions felt naive, a little too many times.

4. Conflict and Plot: Again this critique comes from this being a show but almost all apart from a few handful characters were just frustrating to watch. I understand the politics, and I understand that every human is grey. But these people were way too dark of a shade for me to tolerate them.

5. 5. Emotional/intellectual payoff: I only have three things to say: a. guy falls first and harder, look! a loser in love b. best friends to spouses to lovers c. couples who are violent together, stay together! 100/10 i will be binging edits for the next several days they are my parents.

6. Theme: As covered in Originality, the overall theme of critiquing our humanity, or lack thereof, in wake of any crisis is very intriguing subject - I always love stories exploring it.

7. Treatment: Given my critiques, it does feel stretchy in the middle. It could have been a 8 or 10 eps drama and would have told us the exact same story.

You would think I hated this series, but honestly despite all my above complaints I still binged the series and was obsessed w the main couple -- so make of that what you would.

Lire davantage

Great Drama!

Titled "Happiness," this drama was anything but happy. It revolves around people turning into zombies following a post-COVID outbreak. The story takes place in an apartment building that is placed under quarantine after the residents become infected. As the days progress, the residents descend into madness, committing increasingly atrocious acts. The plot moves swiftly, and the actors' performances are outstanding; I found the villains utterly detestable.

Despite being misled—expecting a typical romantic drama due to the title—I thoroughly enjoyed watching it. Although there were only a few romantic moments between the main characters, I still found the drama very captivating.

Lire davantage

Good idea, awesome cast, weird execution

The characters:
I wanna start off by saying this is supposed to have a badass female lead, yet Yihyun is always saving her. Hes supposed to be more docile than Saebom, who is widely known as the hothead of the couple (and this is proven by things like his refusal to use a gun and the fear everyone has of her temperament), yet hes always upfront with his violence as a solution for every problem that arises. They talk about her temper and being afraid of what she could do to others but she literally doesnt even have the oppurtunity to show us that, it felt like a poor attempt at a strong independent FMC.
However the side characters made the show for me, i've never been so angry at a group of people before, they were all driven to insanity by their different vices and they showcased, brilliantly, human nature in a crisis situation.

The acting: INSANE. everyone in this ate their role up.

The message: the only thing left in this show was them literally showing us a IN BOLD LETTERS "sociopolitical anti-capitalistic critique of the world and human behaviour during the pandemic", and in the end they really didnt accomplish much with this.

The setting: the whole building layout made no sense, it felt empty and unnatural to me. the fact that there were only a handful of neighbours added to that strangeness, compared with the fact that we never get a good look at outside this apartement complex and how the world deals with the virus.

The plot: the big bad villian was awful, they could easily have defeated him earlier, it was unnecessary and annoying. The other residents succumbing to madness was a a much better plot that should have happened sooner, AND should have been the real threat.

Plotholes? : Soomin was also immune, but they dont explain why he could smell the different bloods and felt the urge to drink human blood but Saebom never did feel that and what was the actual cause of the production of those specific antibodies? beacause Saebom had an unspecified disease but Soomin had diabetes? they tell us about the 2 years she was in an hospital, even though that is hinted to be the reason she developed the antibodies.

The romance: barely there, dont watch this for the romance its a zombie drama, they are super cute tho.

The ending: lackluster. we had 0 resolution for most of the side charcters i was heavily attached to: the siblings, jungguk and his wife, seoyoon and her mom, the divorcees, han taeseok and his unborn child, etc etc etc

Lire davantage

Another take on zombie hype train. Was caused by narcotics, by a disease or by something else?

Loved this one. Another take on zombie hype train. Was caused by narcotics, by a disease or by something else?

Actors looks good and acts well, even the ML and FL had a good on screen chemistry. Visuals are really good too if not great. OSTs fine too.

I like the fact that although this is a paranormal fiction, the creators managed to showcase human nature really well. That humanity is capable of both cruelty and selflessness.

The show didn't revolved around just zombies, darkness and death. It was about the people living and surviving in a chaotic world, trying to find even a bit of happiness. So I think it has an apt title.

Lire davantage

Certainly not just another me-too zombie production

From a 2h zombie movie on a train in “Train to Busan”, expanded to a 12h drama at a sprawling high school campus in “All of Us are Dead”, I was wondering if there will still be novelty in another 12h zombie drama in “Happiness”, other than staying alive in a zombies-flooded apartment (vs a monster-flooded apartment in “Sweet Home”). I was proven wrong as I enjoyed “Happiness” as much as I enjoyed prior contemporary zombie productions.

Using zombies or mad person disease as the backdrop, the drama smartly weaved in current topic of inherent danger of fast tracked (and thus not as fully tested) medicines/vaccines developed to curb disease pandemic, together with humanity, social class, contract marriage and psychopath in an intense, action-packed drama.

The drama conveys that happiness is not mere material gains (such as possession of bitcoins, jewellery, being the apartment representative), but to be able to love and be loved (such as the two leads, the girl and her mom, the siblings), and such happiness is the motivation needed to stay sane and fight adversities, zombies and psychopath.

This is my first drama starring Han Hyo Joo and Park Hyung Sik and I really enjoyed their performance and their on-screen chemistry, and will be on the lookout for their future works, and perhaps also watch some of their past works.

Lire davantage

A better romance than a lot of romances!

Someone on MDL recommended this as a good romance. Wait! It doesn't have a romance tag, and it's a drama about zombies! I'm so glad this was recommended to me and that I watched t.

The two main characters are friends from high school and get married so they can get an apartment in a new apartment community. We saw the progression of their relationship in each episode and I loved watching it. You could see how and why they started liking each other and they always had each other's backs.

Park Hyun Sik as Yi Hyun - this actor is very gifted in the way that he shows his affection for FL's that he plays opposite of (Soundtrack #1 is another great example). He bulked up for this role and was excellent as the detective that always wanted to do things the right/legal way.
Han Hyo Joo as Sae Bom - Strong FL, she had a strong sense of justice and didn't take anyone's BS. Her relationship with the little girl was so sweet.

All of the actors did a great job, and there were so many actors that I have seen in other works. I have to say, this drama had a plethora of unlikeable characters. Just when you think they can't be any more self-serving or terrible, they surprise you and do something worse. This drama talked a lot about the class system, determining your value by what you had. Disasters bring out the best and the worst in people and boy, did it bring out their worst!

The music was very good, suspenseful when needed, and otherwise blending into the background. I also appreciated the graphics at the beginning of the episodes.

This drama wasn't about zombies as much as it was about "What would you do?" Though it made me a nervous wreck to watch it, I really enjoyed it.

Lire davantage

De Happiness só tem o nome

Demorei muito para dar uma chance para ele até porque esta temática de pandemias, quarentenas, pessoas infectadas que viram zumbis e comem gente já está mais do que batido no mundo das séries e dramas e estava longe de ser meu gênero preferido.
Mas como este drama marcou a volta de Park Hyung Shik após dispensa do serviço militar e haviam opiniões positivas e negativas, fiquei curiosa em ter minha própria visão e resolvi dar uma chance.
Já no primeiro episódio facilmente o enredo da série me prendeu e já se tornou atraente e foi me prendendo a cada episódio. Falando de “Happiness” que, por incrível que pareça, de feliz só teve o final mesmo. Happiness é sobre comportamento humano acerca de situações que causam incertezas, e poder e amor.
A história está focada em mostrar a batalha pela sobrevivência contra o que eles chamam de raiva humana no prédio de Hyun e Sae Bom interpretados por Park Hyung Shik e Han Hyo Joo. Aliás eles entregaram muito bem seus papéis na trama!
A premissa tem como objetivo uma abordagem focada nas ações e reações dos moradores, nos conflitos sociais e na ética de classes diante do cenário que se encontram. É o puro retrato do comportamento humano através de doenças infecciosas e isolamento social.
O nome Happiness é uma analogia bem irônica, já que o principal aspecto do drama é ver as pessoas buscando sobrevivência e proteção a qualquer custo, mesmo que isso prejudique o outro. É uma história de suspense e drama, que vale ser assistida

Lire davantage

Unconditional love must be nice

As someone who fell in love with kdramas because of the beauty factor (and I don't mean just the physical aspect), this wasn't an easy watch: while there are quite a few beautiful souls, this is mostly about human weakness and human failure under pressure, in difficult circumstances.

The main couple's love relationship reminded me of Flower of Evil. They are rock solid both for each other and in the face of a lot of troubled waters.

The story is not the most original one but the pace is well maintained through the series and there aren't any annoying plot holes.

The biggest pleasant surprise was the OST though. I don't think I picked so many songs for my spotify playlist from a single kdrama in quite a while.

I really enjoyed this drama and I think I will remember it with pleasure for a long time.

Lire davantage

Cliche Yet Not Cliche

I may be biased since Han Hyo Joo is one of my favourite Korean actresses and I'm a sucker for shows with great soundtracks/musicality. While I was initially hesitant to watch yet another zombie drama/movie ever since Train to Busan infected the Korean entertainment industry, this drama isn't actually about zombies. Surprise!
In this drama, the "zombification" personifies an individual's search for happiness. The more extrinsic one's road to happiness is, the more susceptible they are to the virus.
If you don't read too much into the symbolism though, this was a highly entertaining series to indulge in, simply for the impeccable chemistry between the two leads that built up throughout the series, the fantastic supporting cast and characters that added personality to what could've been "yet another zombie show", the anti-hero who made you question your own views on morality (although some parts of his character development confused me), the thrill and suspense that comes along with the genre, and of course the amazing soundtrack and bgm.
Overall, this drama certainly kept me intrigued from start to finish, and while some parts were predictable, it managed to present a fresh take on the "zombie" genre.

Lire davantage