Fated to Love You (2014)

This is a very enjoyable vibrant series , some very nice script , very moving heartfelt harrowing moments , some comedy / farce elements in it , generally beautifully set with great music . However I can't help thinking that Jang Hyuk was the wrong person to head this romantic drama , whatever his credentials are , he was a pain to listen to with this loud moronic idiotic laugh of his that went on for far too long , his untidy hair style ( much better style towards the end ) . I know the character was supposed to be outrageously eccentric but his performance was difficult to watch , compared to the handsome and smooth act of Choi Jin Hyuk as Daniel . Hard to understand how the lovely Jang Na Ra as Mi Young could fall for him and reject Daniel .I almost wished she would go back to France and make a clean break of it . But of course that would not have been right for her or him and things developed the right way in terms of character development and situations . I know love has nothing to do with physical appearance , but in a romance on screen I could have found a more suitable Geon to play the shining prince .

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Engaging melodrama - Jang Hyuk was such a babe!

Marriage of convenience is one of my favourite tropes. I have seen this kdrama in many lists so I decided to watch it. Oh boy, I was in for a ride!

What I liked:
1) Jang Hyuk - wow, Jang Hyuk was a babe! Handsome, quirky hairstyle, hot body (washboard abs), nice teeth and eccentric personality - I was hooked from the first time he appeared on screen. Brilliant actor, great at conveying different emotions of his character.
2) Lee Gun characterisation - The quirkiest male character I've watched in kdramas. His maniacal laughter, his unconventional approach to personal and professional matters.
3) Kim Miyoung characterisation - I usually get annoyed easily with doormat female leads but Jang Nara played Ms Nice Girl very well that I cried a few times. It's great that she grew as a person - I love that she had a successful career on her own and was very firm with her beliefs and principles.
4) Romance - Their romantic scenes at the start of th the relationship were so sweet. There were two intense scenes that I love so much: 1) the auction and 2) the press conference. Both Jang Hyuk and Jang Na Ra gave their all in these confession scenes. I also enjoyed scenes when Lee Gun desired Miyoung. Haha!
5) Supporting characters - These characters had depth: Manager Tak, Miyoung's mother, Lee Yong and even Jiyeon (Miyoung's friend and Yong's love interest). Manager Tak and Lee Yong's shenanigans were hilarious!
6) Daniel Pitt characterisation - He gave sensible advice even when he was a stranger to Miyoung. He is a great friend. I like that he's not just in this series as a love rival but Daniel has his own story to be undiscovered.

What I disliked:
1) Confidentiality - I hated when doctor shared Lee Gun's medical diagnosis with Kang Sera. She had no right to that information and her actions after that disclosure were unacceptable even though she had good intentions.
2) Lee Gun - Kang Sera interactions - It sucks that Lee Gun cheated on Kang Sera and I understand that he wanted to inform her personally but I think he cared too much for her feelings over his own feelings.
3) Spiked drinks - It was hilarious the first time but I don't understand why the culprits were not apprehended. Anyway I don't like that their drinks were spiked again.
4) Lee Gun's hairstyle - It's refreshing to see male lead with more than 2 hairstyles in a kdrama. I disliked the hairstyles in the last 3 episodes. That severe fringe made him old and less handsome.

Favourite scene
The press conference. I love that Miyoung was the courageous one and took charge!

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i hate it when people are asked what dramas they like and give suggestions like the heirs,boys over flowers etc...this is what maintsream dramas should be like! deffo amazing acting..osts..story..everything! you actually fall for the characters and understand them and what they went through! you get to love the characters that are there to be hated because you totally are going to get what they went through .try and give this a chance .don't drop it it gets real good at about ep 4 or smth its a must watch trust me i liked and enjoyed this much more than i ever did with the heirs although lee min ho to me is TOP but everything here was just too good to let 1 actor slide it by.    A MUST WATCH

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Firstly i dont think i will love this drama.. becoz of plot and pictures i postponed watchd it years... but after i start watch it i coudnt stop watch it till end.. The episodes started to run pretty long at about an hour but I'm not even sure when that started. (So I would say that means I wasn't bored at all)

I give story 9 marks. I love this story line itz interesting.. but some jokes are too mutch..

Acting is ok but gun's laught feel irritating for me.. snail is ok.. and daniel is my favorite.. oh man why is he soooo cute. His acting also perfect... i gave cast for 9.5 becz of daniel ❤️❤️

overall it is good drama tht must watch..

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This was a surprising gem of a drama. It's a one night stand/contract marriage set up with the ever lovely Jang Na Ra as Kim Mi Yeong, a woman who can't say no when people ask her to do things and ends up being treated like a 'post-it' i.e. disposable. She, through a variety of 'are you kidding me' circumstances ends up having a one night stand with Jang Hyuk's utterly demented, and yet somehow still charming despite clearly being demented (I mean, oy that laugh), Lee Gun. Of course, she ends up pregnant. The marriage doesn't end up being as straight-forward as one might fear, and the drama takes a three year jump in time about half way through, but the relationship between Gun and Mi Yeong is thoroughly satisfying, at least once everyone stops shoving their heads up their butts. Some of the hurdles get to be a little tedious towards the last handful of episodes, but it's still worth watching through to the end. There are some genuinely heart wrenching scenes in this drama, as well as a lot of laugh out loud funny moments. Choi Jin Hyuk as Daniel Pitt is one of my top second lead syndrome instigators. He's devastatingly charming and sweet and lovely in this show. And man, his voice could melt butter.

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a surprising cliché drama

I watched this because I love Jang Nara, but I was worried (dramas prior to 2014 make me worried) because it might be problematic and strange.
Although the plot is cliché, the acting between all four leads is good. Jang Nara and Jang Hyuk offer chemistry and are in their elements as their characters. The second leads do well on their own.
If I have to complain about something is the length - it could have easily been a 16-episode drama, or maybe even a 12-episode. But that was expected given the relatively simple plot and it being a 2014 drama, as the story goes on and on until everyone reaches a complete happy ending.
I did throw fits against Sera and Daniel, so I have to say I >>really<< didn't care about them in the end. But the central couple made everything worth it and it's definitely in my top 20 dramas.

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Re-watching the whole series

It was 4 years ago that I watched some eps and put it in hold but recently YouTube reccomended me a scene from this drama "the casino scene" and before I realize what was happening I was already watching th drama from the 1st episode and this time I finished the whle serie in 2 days
I didn't remember that Jang Hyk looked sooo good in every frame I was mesmerized by him. The story was classy type but I still loved it because the development, acting skills, cast made it awesome.
- I really had a hard time to choose between the to male leads because both of them had a really great characer but in th end I made my decision and choosed my favorite character
- The beggining was confiusing, embrassing, accidetal and they made many mistakes but still in the end everyoe got what they really wished.

When they got married the first time I was sooo confused because they didn't loved each other
but still had to be a couple and that thing iritated me
it was sad that they lost thei're first baby but in this way I had the chance
to see the real feelings of Kim Mi Young because before the death of the baby I thought she was living with Lee Gun just because she wants her baby to have a good in the future
but when she confessed her feeling to Lee Gun even after losing the baby I got that she really loves him and that part made me fell for her character too

The two characters I hated the most are Lee Gun's Grandmother and the Mother of Kim Mi Young because it's all thei're fault if they had o go thought all this. It was a beautiful story because it's a fictional drama but imagine this happening to your life... love one, marry someone else ....that would be the real start of hell

I spent my 20 hours for this beautiful drama just in the last 2 days and I already want to re-watch the whole series

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This is what happens when partners fail to communicate!

I cried a lot of happy tears when watching this drama. It's so interesting how this drama really got me emotional, but in a good way. This is the first drama that I've watched in which the female lead, male lead, and the antagonist male and female characters were not at fault for the tragedy that happened in the drama. Although, no one's actions were perfect, they were however, realistic based upon the situations that lead to such tragedy.

The male lead actor is so handsome, and I liked the way that he portrayed his character. However, his character is a tad bit toxic (btw, most humans are toxic, and most dramas have characters who are very toxic). Luckily, the male lead character is a little toxic and not a lot! The reason why he is toxic is because he is the MASTER OF SENDING MIXED SIGNALS. In 3 months, he told his wife 3 times that he wanted to be with her, and then he didn't. Granted, he had a justifiable reason to have mixed feelings, but what made him toxic was his communication style. Lying to his wife in order to save her from future hurt. While that may have seemed like an admirable thing to do, it only ended up hurting everyone in the process ... including the antagonist. If there was a song to describe the male lead character it would be 702's - Get it together [https://youtu.be/LdpQfyJFu9A]. LOL

The female lead, like the male actor is attractive (although they painted her to be decent looking and stupid) and she too had one toxic trait and it was justifying everyone's bad behavior. Being overly kind, sweet, and easy going may seem like a notable thing to do, but without holding people accountable for their actions, you will inevitably becoming a target of abuse (e.g. physical, mental, emotional, or verbal abuse). That is exactly what happens to the female lead, her husband was able to play with her emotions by telling her once per month that he wanted her, and then that he didn't want her. Out of all the dramas that I've watched in 2021, I resonate the most with her character. Although, I wasN'T as soft spoken as she is, I definitely justified everyone's bad behavior up until 2021. I didn't hold people accountable for their bad actions, especially the people closest to me. It eventually lead to people emotionally abusing me, because I had conditioned them to treat me as a punching bag, that will never hit back (metaphorically speaking).

The male antagonist is freaking amazing. Finally an antagonist who isn't toxic, forceful, or even arrogant. I am on episode 15, and I only have 5 more episodes remaining. From what I can tell, he isn't going to marry the female lead because she would be marrying him out of gratitude instead of out of love, and like female lead said, he deserves so much better than that.

Overall, this was a well written, well produced, well acted, romance comedy. I recommended watching it, and really thinking about the dilemma the male and female lead were in between episodes 1-13! The writer did a fantastic job, as the writing of this drama really allowed us to sympathize with each character, instead of hating some characters, and choosing sides.

Edited:
I am now watching episode 17, and at this point, it'll take a miracle for me to cheer for the female lead and male lead to get back together. There's no explaining, that can repair the emotional damage the male lead caused the female lead; not to the point where they fall in love again. I am hoping that in the remaining 3 episodes, it shows the female lead and male antagonist getting together and happy in bliss. I dropped this drama after watching the end of episode 17 because I do not want to see the female lead and male leading back together. His circumstances does not justify his poor communication. Episodes 17-20 sends the wrong message to women, and to men - that women will take anything, and that men should expect women to be there for them no matter what.... I'll pass! For goodness sakes, dramas will have people thinking that females love attractive toxic men, while hating the good guys who are caring and attractive.

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Not My Kind of Comedy

**This is just my opinion. I truly respect and appreciate all of the hard work that went into the making of this drama. Thank you.**

You Are My Destiny was one of the first Chinese dramas that I ever watched. When I saw that there was a Korean version, I was eager to watch it. Fated to Love You was aired 6 years earlier but was still remarkably good for the time. The actors were very good and the characters were well developed. I was especially impressed with Jang Na Ra as Kim Mi Young and Jang Hyuk as Lee Gun for their emotional scenes.

I was prepared for some goofy scenes at the beginning and regular comedy after that. I wasn't prepared for an extremely eccentric male leading character with a bizarre laugh that I don't even know how to describe. It was jarring and unpleasant and not at all funny. He kept it up through all 15 episodes that I watched. I think I only heard his nice, normal laugh once. He would do this offensive clap whenever and wherever. He behaved so outrageously and obnoxiously that it got to the point that I didn't care that he was actually nice and sensitive underneath it all. I just couldn't stand to watch him anymore. It was a shame that they wrote his character that way. Jang Hyuk is clearly a very talented actor. Both he and Jang Na Ra made me tear up with them when they cried.

The story itself was nowhere near as good as in You Are My Destiny. It didn't have the same kind of heart and seemed to be more focused on comedy. That's just my take though.

The soundtrack is very good. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for the stylist/wardrobe department. There is an appalling amount of gaudy outfits (they apparently had a fondness for orange/salmon).

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