Drama Review: My Lovely Girl (2014)

Korean Title: 내겐 너무 사랑스러운 그녀
English Title(s): My Lovely Girl, Too Lovely Girl For Me, She’s So Lovable
Rating: 6/10
Main Cast:
Rain as Lee Hyun Wook
Krystal as Yoon Se Na
INFINITE’s L as Shi Woo
Cha Ye Ryun as Shin Hae Yoon

The Plot:
Lee Hyun Wook dated Yoon Se Na’s older sister for years but because an accident, her sister died and Hyun Wook was devastated. He closed himself from outside world, but his world changes after he meets Se Na, bright, cheerful and talented girl wanting to be a songwriter. Hyun Wook is sympathetic towards Se Na, wants to help her to reach her potential but instead they fall in love with each other.

Review:
“Waiting this drama to turn into something good is a waste of time. Likewise, watching the whole drama is actually wasting 16 hours of my life.”

You know the feel when we have to wait for someone or something for hours just to see them not turn up as expected. That’s exactly my feeling watching “My Lovely Girl” or “Too Lovely Girl For Me” or She’s So Lovable” whichever your translation comes up with. I have certain expectations when watching a drama, I want to be entertained. If it’s romcom I want the drama to be as funny as possible. If it’s sageuk I want it to be as gripping and intriguing as possible. If it’s melodrama I want it to makes me care and weep along with the cast. But this drama doesn’t even have that, instead I wonder and wait for episode after episode if/when the drama actually going somewhere. Instead, the drama goes nowhere. We get exactly the same as we get in the first episode, with slight changes. The drama that billed as romantic comedy, ended up as weak melodrama that neither make you cry nor make you feel something for the character(s). Btw it's Rain-centric review, so don't be mad if the majority is Rain pictures.

Our hero, Lee Hyun Wook (played by Rain/Jung Ji Hoon) is actually really weaksauce. He seems straightforward and honest with his feelings, but actually he’s not. He doesn’t dare to challenge the norm or question the convention. He’s a man scarred with past accident and feels guilty all along, but he never speaks the truth or confronts others until the very end. He’s so emotionally bottled up and only opens to few friends, even to Se Na he still hides his secret. His problem with his step-mother, father, and friends who against his relationship with either Se Na or So Eun (Se Na’s sister) are magically resolved in the end with no reason or explanation. I love Rain and all, he’s my first Korean crush from “Full House” era, but here I don’t see cute Rain or intense Rain, but wishy-washy Rain. Probably the only consolations to his character are his interaction with his dog, Dalbong and his great management as ANA President. As President, he has good management skills and really pays attention to each and every single talent under the agency. He also helps and develops Se Na into famous songwriter as her daddy long-legs.

While on the other hand, we have usual Candy heroine, Yoon Se Na (played by F(x) Krystal) with no backbone and almost no character development. She’s poor, homeless, had many part-time jobs and has no family nor friend, except Joo Hong, before she met Hyun Wook. She’s really like the epitome of Candy heroine. Before the drama starts, Koala’s Playground stated that she might be like Cha Eun Sang (Heirs) but played by Krystal. I got excited by the imagination, mainly because I think at least Krystal will do something more than weepy heroine. Se Na doesn’t cry at every episode, but she doesn’t show other emotion too, so I feel really empty toward her character. It’s as if universe sucks her soul and leaves us with empty shell of a woman named Se Na. At first Se Na is fun, bright, cheerful girl but also dare to speak up for herself. But later down the episodes she’s more and more scared to show her emotions and the viewers get what might be the most anemic character of the year. No life, no passion, and just zoom through the drama.

So what will happen when a weaksauce scarred hero meets a Candy heroine? As lifeless an OTP as you get. I maybe the only one that had positive thinking that their pairing maybe works at first when I hear the drama casting announcement and the poster and stills were released. I thought they would be cute together regardless of the 12 years age gap because Rain looks younger than his age and Krystal looks slightly older than 19 years old. However, the drama started rolling and I can’t even feel the chemistry. They give off comfortable chemistry but I would lie if I say they have some sort of chemistry the OTP should have. They don’t have intensity and the characters they play is like the polar opposite of each other. They have better chemistry when they act out cute scenes, but in sad or melodramatic scenes, they can’t pull off the longing, the look of love or the painful love the characters supposed to have. It doesn’t help when the skinships are limited to holding hands (which cute), hugs (lifeless) and lip-press chaste kisses. When they hug, more often than not, Se Na is just standing there and not hugs Hyun Wook back. I never see hugs less passionate than in this drama.

Unsurprisingly Hyun Wook and Se Na have better chemistry with the second leads. Hyun Wook is better with Hae Yoon while Se Na is better with Shi Woo. I’m okay if Se Na ends up with Hyun Wook but I’m more than happy if she’s with Shi Woo. I might be an unidentified Myung Soo-Krystal (Myungstal) shipper because I ship them together more than the main OTP and believe in their natural, cute chemistry. L and Krystal have a very cute and sometimes intense (mostly from L) chemistry. His stare to Se Na feels like something that can shoot through the heart. But because the drama decides to do otherwise and shoves the main couple from the get-go even though I don’t see something more than usual dating I feel like the drama should do more to convince the viewers how and why the OTP should be together. How they would find happiness at each other, more than sharing stories or work because they work in the same industry. At the end, I even want Chan Young would come and rescue his girlfriend, Lee Bo Na (Chan Young-Bo Na (Kang Min Hyuk-Krystal), couple in Heirs), from the ahjussi here.

The drama plagued with many problems but the main problem here is acting. I believe Krystal can act, but I also believe she’s not ready yet to be a proper leading lady. Her limited acting range is exposed here against Rain, who seems the only actor in the drama who bother to act. Krystal should still be on supporting role territory but I believe this drama will gives her valuable lesson and hope she will turn out to be a better actress in her next drama. L is also still lacking as Shi Woo. But the worst miscasting is actually Hoya whom I believe has more acting talent than L. He only lasts for 5 eps before fades into background and never comes up again in the drama. The second one is boring plot that will make you sleep in no time. The first 10 episodes is actually quite decent, not great but watchable. Episode 11 till episode 16 is totally forgettable. I have no idea how and why the writer turns up this decent drama into snorefest, but it’s really disappointing. I’m more disappointed to learn that the writer here also wrote “Scent of A Woman”, one of the best melodrama I’ve ever seen. By the end of the drama I realize many people also give up on this drama, because no matter plot is cooked by the writer it feels like the drama is dragged to the finish.

Perhaps, I shouldn’t criticize the drama this harsh so I will try to list something positives too. First, I love that the drama uses entertainment agency as the backdrop because it feels different and gives me insight to idols world. I don’t know how much it’s true but the idols world seems realistic and one that I read in Kpop news. It’s good drama for any Kpop lovers to gain more knowledge on how the agency manages idol group breaks up, the ratings, training, chart, debut, album, and dating rumors. ANA Entertainment is filled by talented and professional staffs, not a bunch of idiots waiting for their doom.

Second, all the characters stay true to their characters, the drama almost has no villain because the main drive is not the villains but the plot, it’s plot-driven drama, however weak the plot is. The second leads are nice, no one is bitchy villainous second lead and even Hae Yoon and Jae Young are redeemed in the end. Hyun Wook and Se Na also stay as nice person, no one gets lobotomy in the end and no one dies. Dalbong, the dog also must be one of the cutest and smartest dogs in dramaland. I love the interaction between Dalbong, Hyun Wook, and Se Na and wished the drama would show us more scenes of them together. Because who wouldn't love a Golden Retriever? Third, the drama has breezy charm and easy to watch. It’s really easy to follow the plot without having to draw relationship chart. For once, no main leads has mental or terminal illness, no fauxcest, no big revenge involving conspirators. It’s just simple day-to-day drama, fitting for teenagers or Kpop enthusiasts.

The drama is best watched if you’re Rain, Krystal, or L diehard fans. Because if not, you’ll probably give up before the halfway because lack of interesting plot points.

Plus:
-Eye candy! Rain, L, Alex, Hoya are all good-looking.
-Insight to entertainment/Kpop world
-Plot-driven story with no crazy villains.

Minus:
-Lack of quality acting
-Boring plot
-Lifeless OTP

Life lessons:
1. Don’t give up on your dreams and work hard. Who knows you will meet rich handsome chaebol ready to make your dream comes true?
2. Rain should give us new drama/project soon to delete this drama from our memory.

Pictures credit&copyrights: SBS