Destinado a Te Amar (2014)

the drama I've seen the most

The first time I saw it, it did not attract the attention at all, I decided to see it again a second time and I was super hooked with the whole story.

Each episode is wonderful, it is a drama where I cry a lot for certain situations.
The protagonist loved her attitude to the loss of her baby, paying homage to her and trying to improve herself was something nice for me, she could see that she did not have much confidence in what she could achieve and her empowerment was something too admirable.
Jang Na Ra is one of my favorite actresses since that drama, her acting fills me a lot
clichéd events despite seeing them over and over again still cause me feelings
The truth is a drama that I highly recommend, you definitely have to see it

Leia Mais

good actually

I watched both versions and I just need to watch the original version.
Although watching this version got me so exhausted and confused I guess ,I liked both main characters at the end but at the beginning it was so annoying to even watch it or watch the two characters .

The male lead was some how good person but bad person too,I got confused .
The female lead in the Chinese version she was like admitting she had a weak personality and that her coworkers were using here and making her work a lot ,
In this version it seems that the female character didn't have any problems with that which made me so confused , they only mentioned it once .

I didn't really like a lot of things , the drama could have been shortened 10-15 episode at maximum , there were a lot of unnecessary scenes ,beside some bad scenes that were supposed to be funny; offending an employee ,yelling at an employee 24 in front of people.
A weak female lead who is always so doubtful with a shaky personality , a girl who is not so careful with her look and wearing a glasses , normal drama stuff .

But I enjoyed the scenes between the couples , they were a good match actually the guy with creepy and awful laugh and a girl who is so much into her world , imaginary but a little bit cute.

One positive thing is from the starting point to the last episode the male character was actually very supportive for the female character,he was like encouraging her giving her advises ,happy for her , going with her to her family gathering ,having a good relationship with his mother in law , and of course trying to protect her .

And I quote '' it's not good for a person to be only nice ,don't get intimidated and always have dignity '' and was asking her like to be super glue girl , it's was pretty good sentences .

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I know watching a 2014 drama in 2020 is a bit challenging as the trend will be a bit outdated. This drama is just a watchable flick if you can compromise the cliches . Rich man poor girl is commonly used in kdrama platform and this drama isn't something new. Along with that a second lead can give the director a few more episodes to shoot . Jang Nara is okay but I hate the powerless poor portrayal of women in kdrama.
The only thing that kept me going was Jang Hyuk. Oh,man! What an actor. The character he portrayed was a bit awkward in every manner. From a comic person to a emotional one in just a matter of seconds... He pulled it off with ease in his own manner. He just didn't care about his status as a person and the let the actor take over. There we scenes in which most of the actors would give an awkward performance but he just made it so easy.
If it wasn't for Hyuk, would've dropped it midway.

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Ma come si fa a fare un drama così?

Va bene. Dopo anni di serie più o meno avvincenti mi capita questa qua, su ispirazione di una recensione in rete. Il poster mi ricordava vagamente un vecchio, amato, film surreale di Kaurismaki, Leningrad cowboys go America.
Senza troppe aspettative.
Tuttavia, di colpo, Fated ha spazzato via tutte le mie 'preferite' (Goblin a parte) e si è insediata al secondo posto della mia classifica, dove rimarrà un bel pezzo.
Ma come mai? È una delle serie più sgangherate che abbia visto: cliché e implausibilitá a pacchi. Il ceabol, la piccola impiegata bistrattata, le differenze sociali, il secondo attore così perfetto da non essere punto credibile, l'incidente 'quasi' fatale, una bevanda speciale che spinge i due che la bevono nel letto più vicino (non per dormire) e fa scordare al risveglio ogni cosa fatta nel frattempo..., e non dico altro per non cadere nello spoiler. Chi ha già visto un po' di drama coreani dovrebbe essere vaccinato in proposito.
Ma i primi 5 minuti del drama, quando viene introdotto il protagonista, mi hanno messo ko.
Non bello (beh, si fa per dire), con una risata orribile e ossessiva, un ciuffo assurdamente sproporzionato...ma chi è? Eppure, quelle due note della musichetta che lo accompagna mentre avanza sulla scena dello shampo, dicono davvero tutto di lui e mi fanno sghignazzare ogni volta che le ascolto (sono nella suoneria della sveglia, per un buon risveglio in allegria). In dieci minuti mi sono innamorata di Jang Hyuk, attore che non avevo mai visto prima e da allora...ho scoperto un vero e grande attore che straccia tutti i bellocci rifatti di oggi, con le sue doti di recitazione (spettacolare in My country, ad esempio) e con una carica sexy fuori dal comune. JH recita con la voce, senza voce, con i gesti, il corpo, gli sguardi. Per non esagerare con le mie ossessioni, aggiungo che anche la protagonista femminile recita in modo fantastico. L'evoluzione del suo personaggio è uno degli aspetti meglio riusciti dell'intero drama. La sintonia (la chimica, come dicono in gergo) di Jang Nara con JH è spettacolare ed è ciò che tiene in piedi tutta la baracca. Notevole anche la recitazione di alcuni personaggi di contorno. La mamma di lei (categoria: mamma coreana di basso ceto, burbera, ma amorevole) interpreta al meglio il cliché. Simpatica, perché inconsueta è la capo famiglia (qui una nonna) del ceabol: senza alcuna puzza sotto il naso ( e trattandosi di una famiglia di pescivendoli per la ipotetica 'nuora-nipote' Jang Nara, il fastidio, reale, ci starebbe). Pur di vedere sposato il nipote farebbe ponti d'oro a qualsiasi ragazza.
Il mio consiglio è di non farsi impressionare dal primo impatto con JH (ho letto diverse recensioni inorridite dalla sua risata compulsiva) ma di andare avanti. Con quella risata, alla quale ci si abitua, e alla fine la si ama, JH è in grado di esprimere qualsiasi emozione positiva o negativa, di gioia o di dolore: vedere per credere. Non ultimo, Lee Gun (JH) insieme a Oska (Yoon Sang Hyuk -Secret garden) sono gli unici due personaggi di drama di cui riesco a ricordare i nomi anche a distanza di tempo.
Insomma, siamo abbastanza lontani dal capolavoro, ma io mi sono divertita un sacco. Vi auguro altrettanto.
La colonna sonora ha pezzi molto belli come Morning canon e Destiny sonata, tra le altre, ma ho trovato notevoli anche alcuni pezzi di sottofondo ai vari sviluppi della storia e dei personaggi. Rarissimamente guardo un drama più di una volta, ma questo potrebbe essere uno dei casi.

Leia Mais

oldie but goodie

Overall:
From the synopsis, I was sure that I would hate this drama, especially when its also very old. Kdrama ages relatively quickly. Most stories are outdated after 3-5 years and the cinematography also ages. Particularly, having spent my teenage in the late 90s and early 00s, I had watched enough Cinderella-type dramas to know all the motifs of the genre like the back of my hand, which may have been appealing to a dreamy teenage girl me, but as I grew up, I also grew out of its annoying stupidity. I decided to watch it anyway, as I was in the mood for some feel good romcom after finishing my assignments and exams for the year and I had covid so i was off work as well. Plus I figured its a remake, why would they have remade something dumb, right? And I was surprised by how watchable it is, although I must admit the 2010s fashion and hairstyle are hideous looking from the 2022 perspective. Also like all K drama, make sure you turn your brain off at all the illogical coincidences, inconsistency and discontinuity and just have a good laugh at the cuteness of the central couple.

Plot:
Yes, the story has all the elements of the genre. You name it, rich chaebol ML, poor pushover FL, perfect yet hopelessly friend zone second ML, clingy conniving ex, interfering relatives, amnesia, noble idiocy, time skip etc. It's so cliche that I know how it starts and ends without having to watch it. But it is executed well enough to compel me to finish it albeit with skipping the most if not all of the second half. I finished it, which is an attestment on its own to its story telling. Full disclosure, I drop most shows i start, including similar stories like Secret Garden, What's wrong with secretary Kim, Dont dare to dream, Oh my ghost etc. Indeed, I almost dropped this show after the first few minutes because of the over-the-top (ott) advertisement scene and the ear grating laugh of the ML. If you can manage to pull off the first 10 minutes, you will enjoy the next 10 episodes. There are a lot of funny moments and true-to-the-genre drooling sweetness. I guess I kept on watching because I needed that dose of ott romantic prince charm to escape from the harsh reality of my nonexistent love life. Unfortunately, it all goes downhill pretty quickly after that once the amnesisa kicks in. I feel that the story can end at episode 12 when the amnesia is resolved. But it drags on with noble idiocy where the ML's stupidity is on full mode for another almost unbearable 5 epsisodes. While I agree that had I have some sort of heritable disease, getting married and reproducing would definitely and totally be out of my consideration. However its only applicable when there's no child on the way. In this case, the FL is already pregnant by accident from the very beginning. To me, speaking as a mother myself, it is extremely irresponsible and selfish to not inform her of the risk of an incurable disease to her unborn child. That should have saved us from the infuriating noble idicy and the FL could have whacked some sense into the ML way before episde 18. Luckily, the reunion scene is on fire and worth skipping to. I've watched it like a hundred times. The last few episodes are literally just scene filler with no plotline although not unbearably frustrating like episdoes 13-17. The only bonus point of the second half is that ML is given a haircut, and man, he IS super hot. In general, it is an old cliche drama but done well.

Characters/Acting:
Initially, I thought Jang Hyuk's face is a bit too old for this type of drama, especially with his ridiculous hairstyle. But he plays it out well. His character is down right crazy and does take some time to get used to, not the few odd eccentric traits that are usually seen in this type of character but full on mania. But unlike other similar characters of the same era, the ML is not the annoying type "boy mistreats girl because he likes her". In contrast, he never belittles the FL and gives her nothing but encouragement. Yes, they do do the push and pull thing typical of the genre, and he's two timing but it is justifiable by the circumstance that they meet and their chemistry is so good that Im willingly turning a blind eye. He is controlling like this type of character defines him to be but from a different angle, he is manly and decisive, yet also humble and down to earth, not absurdly arrogant and obnoxious like Hyun Bin's character in "Secret Garden" or Park Seo Joon's character in "What's wrong with secretary Kim". The biggest complaint from me for the ML is the noble idiocy and the lack of communication mentioned above. Overall, its a likeable character, though im not sure its because its written well or executed well by Jang Hyuk or both.
As for the FL, I dont think I ever liked a weak FL but Jang Nara's character makes me want to cheer on for her rather than punching the screen. She is just simply pure and kind to a fault but not portrayed as stupid. She carries a silent strength that makes her transformation believable (personality wise not career wise though). The first half of the show brings us a timid adorable girl while the end delivers a courageous and confident woman but keeping true to her core. Watching her growth in how she faces the press at the beginning and at the end is gratifying. Jang Nara brightens every scene she's in and her smiles warm my heart. I do secretly wish they had actually cut the noble idiocy short and extended their courtship to make her more visibly pregnant with more comical scenes along the pregnancy though. Anyway, another likeable, well written and/or well executed lead character. And together their chemistry is phenonmenal. All the passionate kiss scenes are heart melting, especially at the reunion scene, their gaze at each other really shows how much they long for each other.
With regards to the second ML and FL, they are just standard characters of the genre that leave no impression in me. The same goes for the supporting casts, with the exception of the FL's mother, the ML's grandma and surprisingly the second FL's mother, The scene where the FL's mother stands up for her daughter when everyone is pressuring the FL into marriage is one the deciding factors for me to keep on watching. She is protective and has her daughter's best interest in mind however, she's also very respectful and supportive when the FL says no. The grandma is probably the most welcoming chaebol family in K dramaland. Some of her lines are hilarious. And to my amazement, the second FL's adoptive mother 'also capture my attention with her no nonsense attitude despite appearing for only a few seconds. She is the most sensible character in the show. I'll forever remember her line "stop your self-pity and you will be happier that way."
All in all, a very likeable ensemble with no overly annoying characters.

Music:
I dont think I've ever come across any K dramas with bad music and this one is no exception.

Recommendation/Rewatch:
If you are a sucker for ott comical romance like me, then knock yourself out with the first 10 episodes but feel free to drop when the angst gets too tiresome after that.

Leia Mais

Great start and steep fall aka Muñeca Brava of 2014

Let's break some facts first and extra slight spoilers. No need to worry!

1. Nothing irritates me as much as Lee Gun's hairstyle in the first half of the series.
2. Pointlessly long journey to the happy end.
3. Episodes 14, 15, 16 and first half of ep. 17 are practically empty. No need to watch it. (I've done my nails during that time.)
4. Daniel is the only one likeable and straight thinking being.
5. The plot is extremely fabricated.
6. Miraculous outburst of emotions towards FL is unreasonable. Especially after 6 years of devoted waiting for Sera.
7. Sera is not a negative character.
8. Exaggerated emotions and overreacting regarding pregnancy.
9. Acting is actually really good.
10. You will laugh many times.

The story is the basic, the story makes 50% of the whole series/movie. And this drama was not something that makes me come back to it. I am actually surprised I've been able to finish it, despite the fact, I've had to skip some parts and that's something I've never done before at any drama.

Overall: Not great, but not bad either. So yeah, give it the chance to it.

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That's what you call a typical cliché drama, but made successfully

I was looking for a cliché older kdrama, with predictable nonsense plottwists, but lovable characters and a heartful story. Well, I got what I wanted.
We've got the rich ML, the humble nice and invisible FL, the time-skip (I'm kind of a sucker for time skips), the amnesia part, and the happy ending.

I remember watching the chinese version of this story a few years back and lowkey wishing I started with the korean one. It was a given that the korean one is going to better (I haven't seen the taiwanese one yet, but hopefully will soon). And of course, it is way better. The acting performance wasn't necessarily outstanding, but still really good. Without a doubt Jang Hyuk carried the show like the boss. Even though his hair was hideous the first half of the show (and even worse somewhere towards the middle, thank god they gave him another hairstyle...) he won my heart with the last half of the show... A very fine aged wine indeed. My favourite part about this whole show probably, was Mi Yeong's mom and her relationship with Geon and also her relationship with Mi Yeong. It was absolutely adorable and heartwarming. Jang NaRa got the best moms in her dramas, I swear.
All of the lovey dovey moment were so cute, innocent cliché and too sweet to be true. To be honest, the show got better the farther it went. The last half was such a delight, so satisfying and fun to watch. I mean we got Jang Hyuk in a good hairstyle, we got the "mother-son" moments, a strong-girl comeback, extremely fun and awkward moment, the little bromance between Mr. Tak, Yong and Geon. They even gave the ending a WHOLE ass episode. Didn't feel rushed at all, maybe even a bit too much, but it was nice to see everything wrap up nicely.

All in all, my little pink cliché romance heart is very content and I definitely don't regret watching this show!

Leia Mais

This is my favorite drama of all time. It has everything, it's happy, it's sad, it's frustrating and it makes you mad, but in the end it's all worth it. Jang Hyuk plays the eccentric male lead perfectly, he's childish, annoying, mean and then his character develops and you find him handsome, noble and sweet. He is one of my favorite actors and it helps that he is hot, hot, hot. Jan Na Ra is amazing as the female lead, some will think she is weak, that she lets the ML walk all over her, but what she does she does for love and the love of their unborn child. Yes, the story does contain the usual tropes like amnesia, the ex-girlfriend and a hereditary disease but it all adds to the drama and never gets boring. I didn't skip any of this amazing drama. In all honesty I re-watch this drama after a heavy drama and then decide what I am going to watch next. Do yourself a big favor and watch this drama.

Leia Mais

This is a very enjoyable vibrant series , some very nice script , very moving heartfelt harrowing moments , some comedy / farce elements in it , generally beautifully set with great music . However I can't help thinking that Jang Hyuk was the wrong person to head this romantic drama , whatever his credentials are , he was a pain to listen to with this loud moronic idiotic laugh of his that went on for far too long , his untidy hair style ( much better style towards the end ) . I know the character was supposed to be outrageously eccentric but his performance was difficult to watch , compared to the handsome and smooth act of Choi Jin Hyuk as Daniel . Hard to understand how the lovely Jang Na Ra as Mi Young could fall for him and reject Daniel .I almost wished she would go back to France and make a clean break of it . But of course that would not have been right for her or him and things developed the right way in terms of character development and situations . I know love has nothing to do with physical appearance , but in a romance on screen I could have found a more suitable Geon to play the shining prince .

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