Cheer Up (2022)

Promising start, but...

Cheer Up had the potential to be THE YOUTH DRAMA, with such wonderful characters, but the script was flawed. They extended the love triangle for unnecessary time, the SML kissed the female lead when she was drunk, the SML had more time with the female lead than the FML had with her, the female lead sometimes paid more attention to the SML than FML, and a momentary breakup of the couple, which was not necessary to have happened.

Is it one of the worst stories? No. But it's not one of the best either. I loved the characters, Theia, HaeWoo and the other couples, but I didn't love the script.

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A recommended Binge Watch if you're into cheese

Plot-wise the show was definitely lacking. But I have to give it up to the characters and case for making me finish the full 16 eps of the drama. The characters are sweet and the actors do a good job of immersing me in their stories. There was some huge potential lost but the drama never promised me more than it delivered. It felt like your old-school high teen drama and was perfect for it. I skipped through the ending a bit so I have to say I have no clue what happened to the villain and idc cause he was never the point I suggest if you read this review before watching you ignore that part too!

It was nice to see Bae In Hyuk in a happy cute role, looking forward to his future dramas. I need to watch more Han Ji Hyun too

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feeling down? this is a must watch! really refreshing

this is the kind of thing you will want to watch if you're having a hard moment or simply bored.

as a college student myself, watching kdramas placed in college makes me really excited! it actually gives me the feeling of "woah, i'm 19 and i should live this moment to the fullest". cheer up wasn't any different.

as someone who also enjoys cheerleading, i was already expecting to like this drama. i got so excited over their massive training and the performances. the outfits were mesmerizing and it all just gave me the feeling of wanting to be happy.

do heyi is the perfect female lead for this type of drama. she's cheerful and funny, never gave up and kept bringing happiness to others (me included). i just couldn't drop this even if i wanted to at some point (we'll get there) because i would miss her screaming + her cringe moments. she might be one of my favorite female leads oat! alongside with eun danoh from extraordinary you (my favorite drama ever) and tang xue from skate into love (witch is also a drama about overcoming difficulties mixed with sports).

the love triangle got me a little frustrated i'm ngl, but i liked how they worked things out at the end (even if i wasn't team jungwoo...) with sunoh still being friends with her and most important caring about jungwoo when he got stabbed. the scene where the two male leads talk over dinner a while after sunoh got rejected made me really satisfied. i feel like not a lot of dramas make this closure happen and i think is really important, specially for this plot. i also liked how everyone else became a couple and it wasn't out of the blue, like all of them already had something going on from the beginning and the chemistry was great.

finally, the only thing actually stopping me from rating this 10/10 is the attempted mystery. like yeah it was kinda thrilling in the first four episodes, but to keep it going on until ep 15? that was a lil too much.... they dragged until they couldn't. i would have enjoyed more if it was just a silly lil drama about silly lil cheerleaders! but as it is, i'm giving 8,5/10

the end actually made me tear up a bit. i liked the message and i felt really motivated after watching every episode, so that's a bonus.

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Completely falls off...

This kdrama started on a really good note and I was sure it was going to be at least like 8 out of 10. Well, about half way through I began to realize I was mistaken. The thing is that the premise shows a lot of promise. Characters are likable (except for Sunho because he deserves no rights) and it's enjoyable to just watch them do their little cheering thing. But the more you go on, more you realize that most sub-plot serve simply to waste your time. There are 2 filler episodes in there where nothing happens for an hour. Even the finale is kind of that way too. The main mystery seems super intriguing, but then gets revealed half way through and ends up being useless at the very end. Unfortunately I feel like my time was wasted watching this and I don't recommend it. It's not horrible by any means, but you can find way better sports kdramas out there.

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Good. Vibe

This drama was good to watch especially if you miss school / high school.
I wish Canada provides such hype activities or just activities in general in school.
I love the chemistry of the group. The hype. The motivational lessons for people who’s losing hope or at the edge of their lives.
It gives me lessons to stay strong and not give up.
Some part are giving me a what vibe…. And like their purposes. I don’t understand the antagonist… but it’s okay ahha.
I legit forced my self to finish the last two ep as I’m loosing motivation to finish it but I told my self… not to do it as I always do that LMAO.
The ending was good. Decent to end like that.
Of. Course I got emotional cuz ykow it’s the end.
But … in conclusion. I would prob just re watch some part that I want to watch. I love the Prophecy tho HAHA. That was a good one lol.
Anyways. Good to watch when you’re bored of other genre. Love the other love teams as well… hehehehwhwh.
12/15/22 00:22_’ am?

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Worst worst!!!!

I'm channeling all my energy into rooting for bae in hyuk as an hardcore fan of his I hope his career keeps progressing from here onward irrespective of this "drama", as for this show I knew from the get go it would be circled around angst and triangle stupidity but nonetheless I'm only waiting for it to end to know if I can endure it because following his work good or bad has it limits too. and Korean writers need to realize there fan base has progressed way beyond continents and giving us mediocre wrapped up in lazy wrapped up pretty is just not doing it....the troop is either sad ending, triangles,angst,or just bland/lazy storys. I pray they channel there creativity into something productive enough without damaging there fan base it can't be easy yes but still Fighting. I won't lie a lot of drama towards the year ending did not satisfy me at all the most disappointing is till (love in contract). Hopefully it gets better Amen

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THE DRAMA SAYS CHEER UP BUT THE STORY IS GONNA INFURIATE YOU...WELL ATLEAST IAM DEPRESSED

Okay so first episodes that's like 1-6 were watchable the cheerleading was on point and I did look forward to more but I have never in my life seen a second soo annoying I almost died trying to digest his character yah....I have had lots of thoughts about dropping this show wreck but hey you can always have hope but come the writer proved me wrong again I skipped alot to the point that this was 1 HR but I made sure to watch it in ten minutes I don't really want any one to fall victim of this nightmare of a drama thats why my review is gonna be as straight forward please if you value your time watch some thing better...just not this....my rating of this is 4/10 period iam not watching anything from this writer again and definitely not watching any cheer up ? title series.....

Cheer up...but this got me depressed ?

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Worst drama I've seen lately

A drama that failed because the hottest topic was "which male character should the female lead end up with"

"Cheer Up" had everything to be the best college drama of 2022, except a good script. The focus on the love triangle was tedious and unnecessary, while supporting characters had better stories than the main cast, they were barely explored. A wasted potential for a cast full of rising stars from hit dramas, I really waited a lot of this for being Han JiHyun's first lead role.

I liked it at the beginning, the cheerleader set up was their strongest point but it was put aside to center in the mystery that literally doesn't make sense, everything at the end is thrown into a bad joke. As for the main characters, they barely have development. Hae Yi is immature and takes bad decisions, the no solved Sun Ho's obsession for Hae Yi is the worst, it made the love triangle tedious and annoying, JungWoo has no personality nor an interesting background, like he is so plain... no one of them is memorable neither lovable. The main couple breaking up in the last episodes, writer reallydid the bare minimum.

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don't listen to the haters (even though they have a point)

Cheer Up is a drama that I am so glad I finished despite the negative reviews and the several setbacks. I initially dropped this mid first-episode but picked it up again out of boredom and as an attempt to get out of my kdrama-watching slump, and it was one of the best decisions I ever made.

STORY - 7.5/10

The main themes of Cheer Up are youth, romance and friendship. In those aspects, Cheer Up portrayed these concepts very well. Though the exposure we get to this story was not something that immediately caught my attention, the writing and the strong foundations of the relationships between characters, romantic, platonic and familial, how they developed and how the story progressed definitely kept my attention. The mystery aspect was interesting, and I liked how they tried to make it as unpredictable as possible – they would pin obvious suspects that would make us think certain characters were the culprit, when in fact all of them were wrong. There were plenty of twists and turns that, unlike a lot of other mystery plotlines in other romance dramas, felt like they were planned from the beginning, and I enjoyed how everything started to tie in together perfectly.

I enjoyed the main romance and how it developed. It felt so natural to me, in all of its mess and constant turns, in Haeyi’s constant confusion and Jungwoo’s reluctance. And I love, love the dialogue towards the end where Jungwoo tells Haeyi that she shouldn’t suffer alone. “Two is better than one.” It really defined the way I perceive their love for each other; the kind that perseveres, the kind that heals, and most importantly, the kind that holds your hand through even and especially the most difficult of days.

The friendship and the found family dynamic formed within Theia was something that also really stuck with me. I love found family dynamics – in fact, it’s a running theme in almost all my favourite media – and the one formed here definitely did not disappoint. I loved that they didn’t just focus on the romance and also placed importance on the friendships and comradery between the characters. It was extremely heartwarming as well as necessary for us, the viewers, to get a full scope of how much they’ve grown closer as a team.

I loved the ending. It was so beautifully done, and it definitely touched my heart. I loved the side couples, even though it funnily enough felt like a case of “pairing the spares”, I love that they at least built up enough chemistry to make me root for them. My favourite side couple had to be Minjae (who I felt was let off the hook too easily for what he did, but it is what it is) and Sunja. They were so cute, and I wish they had more screen time to fully delve into their development as a pairing. Also, am I the only one who caught the nicknames they gave each other? Sun and Min-min? They’re adorable.

Now, my main issue with the drama’s storyline is something everyone else has been complaining about. And that, you guessed it, is the love triangle. I don’t particularly care for love triangles anymore, but this one really took the cake. In fact, the love triangle was the very thing that made it difficult for me to continue, especially when Junho was at his worst. Let it be known that I did NOT like Junho, though he is definitely an interesting and complex character, just like the FL and ML, and has room to mature. He had no awareness of boundaries, even when Haeyi rejected him properly and indirectly countless times. Since the beginning, he was only chasing after her relentlessly because he couldn’t get over the fact that she was the only girl he couldn’t win over – then after the rejections, the fact that she lay out her baggage and the reasons she couldn’t like him back, he falls even more in love with her. It’s insane, and it ruined a drama I would’ve rated even higher if not for the frustrating dynamic he added onto the show.

Alongside this, there were a lot of plot holes in the mystery part of the story that I didn’t quite understand. A lot of things either didn’t add up or weren’t properly explained, when I wish they were. However, they weren’t bad enough to ultimately deter my experience watching this show further than it already had.

Overall, I feel like the strength of Cheer Up were its characters. Which makes sense, as once again, it ties in with the core themes of the show.

ACTING/CAST - 9/10

Han Jihyun and Bae Inhyuk absolutely pulled off their respective roles. The last I saw of Inhyuk was in My Roommate is a Gumiho, where he played a second male lead eerily similar (and just as annoying) as Sunho. However, I loved how he allowed a character like Jungwoo (who seldom allowed himself emotion) an ample amount of complexity to understand who he was as a person. In fact, I think if it weren’t for how well he played Jungwoo, he wouldn’t have become one of my favorite MLs in kdramas yet.

As for Han Jihyun, her acting was 100% my favorite out of all the other characters in the show, perhaps mainly because of her role as the protagonist. I love how diverse she can be in her facial expressions, and played the role of Haeyi perfectly.

I have nothing to say for the rest of the cast, as they all pulled it off perfectly. I hope Kim Hyunjin goes through the rite of passage and gets casted as a good ML just like Bae Inhyuk did, LOL. He acted very well.

MUSIC - 8/10

Most songs, mainly the cheer songs, are iconic and memorable, considering music is one of the integral aspects to what they do as a cheer squad. ‘Higher’ is still stuck in my head.

REWATCH VALUE - 6/10

I’m going to be honest, the love triangle focused episodes were already a struggle to get through. I felt like punching the screen because of how much the stupidity bothered me. Definitely wouldn’t want to go through that again, but I would love to relive the cute Jungwoo and Haeyi scenes again.

OVERALL - 8.5/10

A drama that was worth it all despite its imperfections. Definitely for people who’re looking for something to get invested in, both in a good and a bad way.

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Very jumbled and rambling plot line

This show has been on my list for a while, and since I have enjoyed Bae In Hyuk in other things, I figured I'd give it a try. For me, it was torture to get through, and I've never been so happy to finish something in my life. I usually like to give all the positive aspects of a show, regardless of whether I ultimately ended up liking it, but hmmm, can't think of any here.

1) I found the Fl extremely irritating. Her bouncing around and then suddenly pouting about something, pick a mood and stick with it. This might seem like a small thing, but every time she said 안녕하세요 to someone, her voice went up about four octaves and she used this baby, breathy voice that was SO irritating!
2) STRONG triangle. It went on entirely too long and SML kissing her without consent, just no.
3) Why did ML and FL like each other? Never really saw development, they just suddenly liked each other.
4) The mystery. Why? I didn't care for it, and it went on for so long that once I got to the end I didn't care anyway.
5) The one "dance" they did throughout the whole drama. Their rehearsals revolved about that one arm-swinging movement, over and over again.
6) And can we talk about the costuming?! Oh, my gosh, the costume designer should have been forced to wear one of their own designs as punishment. It was really hard to take any of the conversations seriously while they were wearing their cheer costumes, they were so ridiculous. In real life, you would not have anyone want to be on the cheer team unless they were getting paid to wear those costumes. I can't get over how bad they were.

While I may not say run away from this show, I would suggest turning and walking away quickly, and find something better to watch.

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I'm sorry I didn't like it (''´艸`) I'll explain what was distracting me the most first. Because I had no idea how cheering squads in Korea looked like, I was surprised by seeing their costumes, believe it or not, but they are dressed exactly like tamer in circus here, all those jackets and velvet and bling-bling. I know they're supposed to cheer, but I thought of our circus all the time.

There's nothing particularly bad about it actually, but to me it is a passable drama. And I also didn't like it making it into a love triangle, because it is obvious that someone will leave with a broken heart and don't feed me this bs that second male lead is for the audience to love.

The only good part is that Cheer Up managed to reconnect me with kdramas after I saw several cuts from it on YT. I watched several kdramas years ago, but I guess either I was unlucky in my choosing or melodramatic plots were the thing back then and I honestly couldn't watch those. But during this time I felt like I could give it a try and added few dramas in the list and Cheer Up was one of them. I will say my deep thanks to it for that, things changed and I was left amazed on how production grew, cinematography is insane and overall there are gems. Unfortunately, I can't say that Cheer Up is one of them.

I thought the beginning was pretty okay, the university like any other has their own legends and the cheering squad has those too. The intrigue is there after all. I was amazed to find how cheering squads dress and what they do... I mean it's cheering, okay, but I wonder if it's me, but seeing them doing almost the same thing made me wonder, if it's that hard (?_? ) You need stamina, but they felt like going for cheering olympics. I understand it's more about passion and ability to rile up the crowd, to have that presence on stage. I think I'm too far away from it as a foreigner to truly feel the charm of it, I understand the passion, but when you never went through same experience it's hard to relate, my life in uni was bleak too. I also had my main costumes distraction at all times.
The mains were also interesting, Do Hae Yi is so lively and striving, there is nothing bad about wanting to earn and when you have money you can do many things. Park Jung Woo is responsible and serious about the cheering squad, he truly wants it to work, despite the legends. Seemingly different people together start to strive for the same goal. Although Do Hae Yi joined the club for the money, but she came to care about it and it stopped being just a task or a contract. But I particularly don't like when they have the second male lead who also falls in love with FL, but we all know he won't get anything.
I wasn't even mad that both of Hae Yi and Jung Woo acted like children when they came together, very sugary couple. But the sudden twist at the ending I felt not needed. I'm not a fan when they add a sudden illness of the loved ones, like can't you do without it? I thought having a villain who wants the profecy to work is enough for the thrill.
And with the sporty campus love story and thrilling chase after the person behind the scenes I felt like the ending drowned me with so many couples and relationships :'D

My personal favorites were actually Hae Yi and Sun Ho moms. I don't know, they brought me joy, even if you knew that Sun Ho's mom drank not out of happy married life and Hae Yi's mom spent in poverty most of her life. But here they are and keep on going. Aye.

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wasted potential

Cheer up had so much potential, but is ruined by a non-sense love triangle and an awful plot.

When I watched Cheer up's first episodes, I feel in love with the characters and the mystery that envolves the theia squad, but when the episodes were passing by, it got terrible.

First the love triangle that they pushed until the last minute and it was one of the main reasons for reducing my evaluation. The SL was so freaking annoying. Even if the female lead rejected him loads of times, he continued to insist. HE KISSED HER WHEN SHE WAS DRUNK, THERE'S NOTHING WORSE THAN THAT. There were bunch of scenes that the FL looked more like a SL than the actual SL :(. I'm so happy that the SL is going to spend his whole life alone because i hate him sm. Plus, this actor is so good, I'm really looking foward to see a drama with him as the FL, because his acting is so amazing.

Second, the plot. It started so good, with the mystery of the three profecies, but then it got annoying as hell. That guy was actually total stalker obsessed with rules and so freaking annoying, hate him sm. They actually didn't explain if he was caught, but I believe yes, thanks to God. Plus, I actually missed a good plot twist, I wasn't even that interested in the story anymore.

But now the good things, because it wasn't THAT bad. The main couple had bunch of chemestry and all of their scenes made me blush hard. I cringed sometimes, but even that I loved about them, how they were so sweet with each other and happy with the little things, all that mattered was to be together.

My actually favorite part was the secondary couples, they were all so cute and had bunch of chemestry (especially minjae and sunja).

And the squad. I loved the family aspect of them and how they really cared for each other. I simply LOVE a found family trope.

But even with this AWESOME aspects, cheer up was brutally ruined by a terrible plot and an unnecessary love triangle. Inhyuk, please never work with SBS another time :(

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