Don’t let the title fool you

This is definitely not a typical Cinderella story. The synopsis (neither here nor on Viki) doesn’t really give it away either, but although there is romance and fate encounters and funny moments, there is also an originality to the story.

I liked Fumi Nikaido (FL) in “Eye love you”, and I think she is good here too.
Gordon Maeda (ML) seemed a bit too old for his role, even though I see he was only like 4 years older than his character when this was released. Other than that he acted well too.
Takanori Iwata (2nd ML) was kind of anonymous - I wished he could have had a bigger presence.
Matsui Rena did a brilliant job portraying Akira/Kikuno, which was a very interesting character adding a lot to the originality of this series.
Grandma and the “butler” added both warmth and humour, and some elderly wisdom.

The length was good; episodes were not too long, and it wasn’t dragged out over too many episodes.

What bugged me a little bit, and I see others too, was the ages. Not so much the 10 year age gap, but 17 and 27. It would have been better if it had been just a few years older, say 20 and 30. But then I guess the storyline with his games wouldn’t really have worked…?

So to sum it up:
Not a typical romance, but entertaining, and a nice little break from my usual C- and K-dramas.

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Entertaining

This was a good blend; a bit funny, a bit of romance, a tad bit of mystery/suspense, and good acting.

I ended up half-binging it, and it did kind of surprise me in a positive way.
The leading cast both did a great job, in my eyes. ML might seem a bit “over the top”, but that was suitable for the character.

Even though it’s not that long since I watched it, I forgot to write my review straight away, so sorry to say my memory is already deluted to write a detailed review.

Main point: Entertaining and easy to watch, good acting, and doesn’t shy away from showing a bit of the backside/behind the scenes of the showbiz industry.

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Interesting main theme

The main theme, mysophobia, is an interesting one, and even if it feels a bit exaggerated I feel it is important that his reason for it is explored.

The love storyline(s) are quite sweet.
Overall, however, I feel the script is a bit weak in some places, and leaves some loose threads.

It does tick off quite a lot of the typical boxes, like a trip, (some heavy product placements), an amusement park, love rivals, business competitors... not all are as extensive as others, though.

Some of the episodes had way too much flashbacks, so I ended up skipping through.

I would have liked to see more of his assistant's story; he was an interesting character. Could even be a spin-off!

ML and FL are ok; he had some moments where he was really strong, and both of them were mostly consistently portraying their characters in a decent way.

I watched this, and not the Korean version, first, as I did read some saying this was a better version. Not sure if I will watch "Clean with passion.." as well - maybe sometime down the line.

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Sweet and innocent about growing up

Very sweet story about growing up and loving someone.
The script is what I would call quite "mellow", as it does not contain many intrigues or big dramatic events, rather we participate in the characters' development and growth. It’s not super original, but it is kind of memorable, much thanks to the cast.

The cast does a good job, and the filmography is quite lovely. Some scenes might feel a bit unnecessary or dragged out, but not so much I skipped forward or felt annoying.
The group of friends works really well as a whole; the different characters complement and contrast each other.

I can see myself rewatching this show in the future, either with my daughter or if I'm in the need of something uncomplicated and sweet.

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Action with a western-vibe

This had a solid story, good cast and acting, cool music, and in general a quality production. The only thing I can put my finger on was that it was too dark at times, especially when watching on a small screen (mobile).

The story was well balanced; there was build-ups (suspense), intense fight scenes and action, and personal stories for some of the characters, seasoned with some light romance on top.
The story was a bit predictable, but not sure it would have been better if it hadn't been.

The whole vibe is a bit like a good old fashioned western, but it fits quite well.

It can't quite measure up to my two favourite historical Kdramas Mr Sunshine and My Dearest, but then again I feel it necessarily shouldn't be compared to those either. But both of those are amongst my highly recommended series that I also probably will rewatch one day.
Not sure I will watch this again, though.

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Slow paced, realistic story about life with a bit of love

First of all: I find the synopsis to be somewhat inaccurate /giving a kind of different expectation (the one on Viki too).

This isn’t the drama if you want passionate love, big tension between characters, overly dramatic events or lots of plot twists. It is rather the drama for those who like a more realistic portrayal of life and interactions between people. Don’t get me wrong, the story does contain elements to drive it forward and create some ebb and flow. It is just done in a way that is realistic and easier to imagine and recognise one self in. Love is a main theme throughout, but it is rather the paths of love, and the different stages of it, that is in focus. Without spoiling too much: Don’t expect lots of scenes with passion and PDA.

The story also touches upon some cultural and societal norms and issues, like (of course) the opposite age gap, careers, divorce, and sexism. It is done in a very natural way, and not “preachy” one way or the other, more like showing it from the characters’ point of view, so we the viewers get the different perspectives and might understand better.

The supporting characters of course have their own storylines, but they don’t get too dominating.

The casting is good in my opinion, and pretty much all the actors do a good job.

In some aspects, the vibe and mood is a bit similar to “The tale of Rose”.

I’m not sure I will watch this again, but I’m pretty sure this has left me with an impression strong enough for me to remember it also in a couple of months. So, it is a series I would recommend if you are looking for a “real life like drama”.

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Good, but dragged on a bit

This was an ok drama, but with the elaborate stories around supporting characters it did drag on a bit too much.
It was the main characters' story that was the most interesting, and even that felt a bit too repetitive/dragged out too much towards the end.
👩🏻 Main female character had an interesting development, but I felt she got too lifeless/sad.
👩🏼‍🦰 Her friend really annoyed me - so much so, that I skipped forward through several of her scenes.
👦🏻 Main male character was good; also with an interesting character growth.
👥️ As for the other supporting characters, I liked that the "villainious" wasn't purely bad.

I'm not sure if I missed some details or if there actually was some loose threads in the storyline.

All in all it was a quite good watch, but the mood felt a bit too sad/depressing towards the end, which might seem a bit contradictory to the story development.

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Original storyline

Stories based around alternative realities and timetravel can either be done well, or be very confusing. This is done quite well, and combined with a strong cast and good visual effects I would definitely say it is worth watching.

There were some instances when I found it confusing as to where they were, but that could also be because my attention was not fully on viewing (I was multitasking 🤹‍♀️).

It felt a bit dragged out at times, and the ending was not really surprising, even if the scriptwriters tried to trick us with some twist and turns in the events.

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Easy, unoriginal young-love story

A rather easy watch about young love. Not very original (typical Cdrama about high-school love developing as becoming adults); similarities with other series/known tropes.

Felt like the script lost quality towards the end; was a bit more lacking or took some shortcuts.

It is entertaining though, I especially thought the female main character added most originality /value in the first half (ca).

I did not like the "dream sequences"; I ended up skipping most of those, and also skipped some flashbacks.

Felt the chemistry was a bit lacking. Might be due to the "prim and proper" behaviour not giving them much room to act, resulting in what I thought was some rather "stiff" interactions.

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