My Notes / Opinions
Genuinely did not expect this one to land the way it did. There were comments online about the FL’s acting being bad but that never crossed my mind once while watching. It fits the tone of the show and without those comments I probably would not have even clocked it. The cameos throughout are also worth mentioning, a lot of big names showing up across the run.
The first few episodes are normal enough, nothing special, but the show is more grounded and mature than the premise suggests. The ML is completely stone faced early on, one expression for multiple episodes straight, but it works within the context of what the show is doing. And the way it frames the ML’s situation, liking someone from a distance, creating small coincidences just to be near them, knowing they don’t feel the same, is honestly one of the more realistic portrayals of that feeling in a kdrama. I kinda felt it lol. Also, the ML actor is genuinely a legend for me, especially in something like The Smile Has Left Your Eyes, a drama of his I rewatched dozens of times by now.
Once the romance actually kicks in the drama fully delivers. One meh thing though, is that the show skips over the early dating stage almost entirely with a quick montage, which is usually the best part of these dramas for me, but it’s understandable since the drama only has 10 episodes. The only other frustration is with the FL in the last 2 episodes, but I’m not going to go into full detail about that. One thing I’ll say though, girl, just talk to the man… The final episode was, for me, the weakest episode of the series due to some choices made by the FL, but the ending does conclude nicely and happily. Overall this was a pleasant surprise. One of the better dramas out recently.