Pure Boxer (2023)

It was anticlimactic...

***DISCLAIMER: These are just my thoughts while watching the show. We don’t have to agree and I’m not here to argue with anyone.***

Tropes: sports romance, boxing, age gap, coming of age, grumpy/sunshine.

Idk... this was one of those dramas I started out of boredom. To be fair I felt like the entire drama was slow and the romance was subpar / lackluster. It only started getting interesting with the betting ring and when the men kept on kidnapping him and threatening him but they did not do enough to really develop that plot and make it compelling. Then with ML best friend dying... that just felt like a lazy way for the writer to give him some trauma so he'd turn over a new leaf and try to exit the rigged games he was participating in. I just felt depleted after all that and then to see FL lose the match at the end and not be able to end her career and retire on a high note sucked. The ending was not good, to put it nicely. I felt like that kiss high key came out of nowhere... I feel like it ended with more questions rather than answers. Like what exactly happened to the ML, why did the gun shot go off, why was ML bleeding, why did he disappear for months?

Usually I am one of those people who enjoys a reformed bad guy because he met a girl but this just completely missed the mark with me. Not to mention the FLs first relationship / bf just pissed me right off... he basically was using her so he wouldn't be unemployed then he turned around and became an agent? Spare me... if I was in sports I would not go to that man or trust him with anything.

I really wanted to rate this higher because I enjoyed Lee Sang Yeob's acting... I really feel like he put a lot of effort into his character and during his scenes you could feel the emotion dripping from the screen. It must have something to do with his really expressive eyes. Not to mention, he's good looking and has this floppy puppy dog thing about his mannerisms. His smirk / smile got me every-time and I really empathized with his character and wanted to see him win and get out of the mess he was in. But again, one man is not able to carry an entire show. I thought that the villain, Mr Kim Oh Bok (Park Ji Hwan) also did a good job of selling the role of the menacing ring leader of sorts and the FLs dad (Kim Hyung Mook) was also a scene stealer. I feel like this was Kim So Hye's debut in acting.. with that did she did ok for a first project but there are aspects of her acting that she can improve. Having said that, I'm sure she'll improve as she takes on more roles or receives more training.

Overall, I would not rewatch this drama and I'd say it is forgettable and I probably won't remember it much in the next couple of months. Nevertheless it was a good distraction and kind of kept me entertained when I had nothing else to watch.

I'd really rate this a 5.5/10 but I rounded it up to 6/10 because I did enjoy the acting and storyline to an extent... it's just that it could have been better executed and developed.

Would I recommend it to others? No, probably not. Unless you are a Sang Yeob fan and want to watch for his scenes, there's really no point. I'm not going to say anything else but if you don't trust my opinion then you should watch it and come to your own conclusions / judgments.

Leia Mais

When the mains deliver, but the setup is underwhelming…

I’m not gonna pretend like I started this drama with hopes of getting a high quality inspirational tale of overcoming your struggles, finding support in people around you, dealing with your trauma and fears, but I am glad the drama delivered in that area. Why did I start it though? For Lee Yang Seob’s face, and his face only. And here I also got what I asked for - damn he looks fine.

Here’s the thing, My Lovely Boxer is just a drama that completely lacks balance. It switches between a heartwarming slice of life focused on the character development and makjang mafia and I’m just confused why. The whole rigged bets set up was so underdeveloped, overdramatic and distracting, I’m here asking - was there really no better way to force Tae Young and Gwon Sook into working together? Every time the focus shifted towards Kim Oh Bok I wanted to scream “NO ONE CARES!”.

If only we’ve got more information about him, if they actually tried to develop the main villain into a complex and interesting character. But no, he was there as the most cliche and empty plot device and I’m not happy. And he is not the only bad character that sucked writing wise - same goes for Gwon Sook’s father. I am sorry, but his crimes were too severe for an off-screen character development. I’m not buying it. You cannot give a character off screen development and then act as if it’s all good, it’s not.

That said, I did enjoy most of the plots not related to the bets and the father in any meaningful way. The development of trust and support between Tae Young and Gwon Sook was amazing. Her dealing with her past and being strong enough to face it - great. Every friendship she makes - loved it. Wish we'd seen more Han Ah Reum, since for me she was one of the more relatable and interesting characters.

Acting truly varied depending on the actor. Both Lee Sang Yeob and Kim So Hye did an amazing job portraying the main characters. On the other hand, Kim Jin Woo did not impress me with his delivery. Random observation, but there were also two extra actors in the last episode playing members of the rigged bets ring, and let me tell you, that was some high level of wooden acting and robot delivery.

Production value was fine. There were some editing issues - hands positions not matching between cuts, but nothing too in your face. Pretty much a standard Korean drama quality.

Overall, it was a fine watch I don’t regret finishing, but you would also not catch me recommending it to others.

Leia Mais