This is a great drama written by Noh Hee Kyung, who has written other top-tier dramas like Live and Dear My Friends. At 4 episodes, it tells a very simple story about a middle-aged woman who gets terminal cancer, and how that affects her and her family.

It's a heartbreaking story, and I guarantee you will cry, or at least have tears in your eyes while watching. You slowly see this kind and loving mother, who treats her family with such care, becoming sicker and sicker, and there's nothing anybody can do. This is not a comedic story by any means. It's dark and devastating, and you should definitely prepare yourself before watching. However, it's a very important drama to watch, and I would recommend anyone to watch it once, because it is so realistic, and shows something that can easily happen in real life. It presents many life lessons which are valuable to any human being.

The performances are all great, and I hope by the final episode, all the actors got their tear-ducts filled back up with water, lol. Won Mi Kyung, who plays the mother with cancer, gives a stunning performance which makes you care and feel so sorry for her. So does Yoo Dong Geun, who plays her husband, who is also deeply affected by the tragedy. You will empathise with all of these characters, and cry with them.

However, this drama is so depressing and sad, that I will probably never re-watch it again. Usually short dramas like this make me feel like that it could possibly go on further, but by episode 4 (the finale), I was worn out with emotion and glad that it was over. It's relentlessly sad, and I don't really want to experience it all over again, at least not for the distant future. But, it's still something I'm glad to have watched once, and it has made me think about my own mother and family even more.

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Misaeng (Incomplete Life) is a drama I would recommend to anyone, but especially to people who don't like Kdramas. Why? Because everything about Misaeng is different from 95% of other dramas, from the plot, the characters, and the music. First of all, it tells a very mature story and completely relatable and realistic. Most of it takes place in an office, and focuses on a newbie who tries to fit in and survive. "Survival" would be the word to describe this drama - it shows the harsh realities of the corporate world and how anyone can be gone at a moments notice, and how anything can happen, both good and bad.

There is hardly any romance to speak of. This is a rarity in the Kdrama world and many people will criticize Kdramas (and often rightly so) that there is too much romance, and that it is often stupid and cringe worthy. Not with Misaeng. You think at the start that there would be romance, but then you realise that the story doesn't focus on that at all. This drama to me, was all about subverting expectations. Melodramatic and over-the-top music? None of that. Corny acting? None of that. Predictable plot? Not at all. Every episode ends on a happy, or at least somewhat happy ending? Certainly not. This drama goes to some very, very dark places and that's why some people can't handle it. But if you want to watch something realistic, and not have everything end with "happily ever after", then this is for you.

On top of all that, the acting is first-class. I loved how most of the actors in this weren't extremely well-known, and they chose quality over popularity. The main actor Im Si-wan is great, and you will feel sympathy for him from the first episode. The supporting cast are also wonderful. But it is Lee Sung-min who truly is the best, and gives a world-class performance. I believe he is one of the finest Korean actors of all time.

Finally, when it comes to the plot, Misaeng is also original. The story is a mixture of over-arching story lines, as well as smaller stories contained in each episode. It is by no means an episodic series, but many episodes do contain self-contained plot lines as well as stories which are continued onto the next episode. This is what I love about Misaeng, because it balances both of these out. I usually dislike dramas which focus way too much on plot-lines and having crazy twists at the end of each episode, and not enough time is spent on character development and smaller plot-lines in the background. Misaeng has the perfect mixture. By the end of the 20 episodes, I guarantee you will feel attached to all the wonderful characters, and you'll be very sad. Not because it has a devastatingly depressing ending (it doesn't), but because you'll hate saying goodbye to all the characters, and wishing that the series was longer.

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Live is a fantastic drama, which is equally devastating and inspiring to watch. It's so refreshing to see a police drama where the majority of the police are depicted in a positive light, rather than a negative one which is becoming increasingly common in American dramas. Although Live does show things like police corruption, it also shows that most cops are good people who want to protect citizens and serve their country.

This is a very realistic drama (apart from some annoying censorship of blood/weapons etc.), and it doesn't hold back to show the brutal realities that the police have to face every day. Nothing is sugar-coated, and there's no cliched "happily ever after" at the end of every episode. A warning to anyone who wants to watch Live: people die in this drama - quite a few in fact, and in gruesome ways. If you don't want to watch that, then this isn't for you. While this drama does focus a little on police office politics, a lot of it takes place out on the streets, where the violence is shown in full.

Similarly with dramas like Misaeng, the storytelling of Live is one of my favorite aspects, as there are overarching plots and story arcs as well as episodic conflicts. The basic premise is that the show follows a couple of newbies who join the police force, and the challenges and obstacles they face. However, Live is so much more than that, and it focuses on many different characters, all of whom are interesting and fleshed-out. This is what truly makes Live a great drama - the interesting characters, the conflicts between them, and how they develop over the series. Interestingly enough, to me, the "main character" of the show wasn't Lee Kwang Soo's character or Jung Yoo Mi's character - but in fact Bae Sung Woo's character, who plays a lieutenant who has been demoted and is forced to work with the newbies. To me, his character goes through the most development, and he is fascinating to watch. However, he wouldn't be half as good as a character if it weren't for Bae Sung Woo's magnificent performance. His performance shows everything, from happiness to anger to sadness. All of the actors are top-notch, including the supporting characters.

What also makes this show a cut above the rest, is the subtle social commentary that is included, such as what the media of South Korea does, and their impact on the police, as well as the government's role with criminals, and how some criminals are above the law. These inequalities and injustices are also shown. This adds real depths to this drama, and how you can see a certain event happen from different points of view.

This drama is highly recommended and one of the best of 2018. The cinematography is also great. The soundtrack is solid, and the songs work well. If I had to make a small criticism with the music, it would be that occasionally I felt too many songs were played in each episode - however this is just a minor quibble. Also, if you're worried about not watching this drama because you don't have much knowledge about the police force, don't be. This drama is much more than just about the police. It's also a family drama, a slice of life, and also a bit of a romance (although the romance is not the main aspect, and is handled with subtlety). Please watch - you will not be disappointed. Also, seeing Lee Kwang Soo in a serious role is amazing.

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Short, simple and sweet drama

A wonderful little gem. It's only 3 episodes, and it's easy to think that this could've continued for 15 more episodes, but I'm glad how short and simple it was. Part of the problem with longer dramas is that there are often unnecessary and annoying scenes to just fill up time. Not with Page Turner, because it compacts the perfect amount of story in 3 hours, with a great beginning, middle, and very memorable and emotional end.

There's no romance to speak of (but plenty of cute scenes), but the characters are all well fleshed out, and well-written. In fact, I can think of much longer dramas which have way less character development found in Page Turner. Of course, there is a strong focus on music, specifically the piano, so the soundtrack is great. Anyone who is interested in music should watch this. The acting is on point from all 3 mains, and the side-characters. I researched the two male leads, and found out that they have barely had any main roles. This needs to be changed ASAP!

The only "negative" is that it is a very simple story, so anyone who wants something very complex and intense may not like this. But this is not a negative from my opinion - the only reason why I personally didn't' give this a 10 is because I only like to give 10s to longer and more complex shows. Also, there isn't a ton of rewatch value, because once you watch it once and enjoy it, that's probably it. However, there might as well be a 10 because there are hardly any flaws.

Finally, the lessons in this drama are so relatable, and I'm sure there are millions of people around the world who have gone through similar experiences - particularly children's relationships with their parents, and how parents can sometimes push their children too much. This is a great drama which teaches that you should do what you want to do, and the joys that can bring into your life. It also shows the wonderful aspects of friendship, and supporting each other. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to watch something short, simple, and very sweet.

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Good overall, but I expected more. The first few episodes are great, because the story is completely unpredictable, and the viewer is thrown into this crazy story with twists and turns. Unfortunately, once the novelty wears off, it started to feel repetitive and I just wanted the second-half to be over. Maou is very plot-driven, and the majority of the entertainment as a viewer comes from the plot-twists, fast-pace and excitement. However, as soon as that starts to wear off, there's not much left. This is why I much prefer character-driven dramas rather than plot-driven. A good example of a character-driven drama is Juhan Shuttai. Aside from the villain, the characters in Maou are dull and uninteresting, all with very boring motives. The villain is great, and the ending is very satisfying and poetic however, so it's definitely still worth a watch. The acting is good for the most part, however Toma Ikuta is nothing special, and is out-acted by his peers in almost every scene, particularly Satoshi Ohno who is great. I don't like the term "overrated" because everyone has different opinions and tastes. If you like action, plot-twists and thrills this is for you. If you prefer character dramas and more interactions between characters and how they grow as people, then you'll find this boring. In my opinion, the best action thrillers manage to combine the two perfectly. However, Maou only has the "action" and not enough "character". Once you've seen it once, you've seen it all, so it did not hold up very well on rewatch. Still, I recommend it to watch once.

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