My first court room based kdrama. Like the others I've seen before it, this one dealt with a lot of serious issues. Is it right to go after someone who wronged you and to what extent? Do people become monsters resulting from personal tragedies? Or do they become strong, get over past traumas and become successful? Murder and murderous characters- this one had a serious villain. Even compared to Signal, which dealt with serial killers and other sordid crimes, ICHYV had a major villain whose story lasted all 18 episodes- so you have an episode or two dealing with individual court room cases aside from an overall arc. This worked for me because I like watching episodic series and my anticipation just kept increasing from watching the main conflict get built up. Also, just like Healer which I've seen before this, ICHYV is refreshingly light hearted despite its serious themes. The interaction between the characters (and not just the main couple) is probably the most heartwarming I've seen. It was pure joy to watch the alternating rivalry and friendship between lawyers Jang Hye Sung (female lead) and Seo Do Yoon, which was based on opposing ideals related to matters of justice as well as a personal event that happened between them as school girls. It was fun to watch Park Soo Ha (male lead) and Cha Gwan Woo compete for Jang Hye Sung's affections, all the while developing a grudging respect for each other despite being rivals in love. Just was well- the side characters were great. The way respected lawyer Shin slowly learned to respect Jang Hye Sung in return despite coming of a bad start, the way Judge Kim behaved in the court room and in the elevator when caught between their bickering...it was a strange thing for me to cry during a tragic event in one episode, then later burst out laughing at some character's antic in the next. Strange, but not unpleasant :D There was also a supernatural twist here which explains the series title. The male lead can read minds. I expected this sort of thing to detract from the plot but it thankfully didn't. Instead, it enhanced the story -particularly the way the court cases were handled, as well as the character relationships- the ability was never a secret on guy's part, so it was interesting to watch how the couple worked with and around it. This is my first noona romance and so far, I really enjoyed it. Normally, I prefer pairings where the guy character is a bit older, or if they're the same age...but Park Soo Ha and Jang Hye Sung were adorable, and I love the connection they had with each other and how it helped them face the villain. Whether or not viewers will appreciate it, or see any chemistry between them- the one thing that can't be denied is that all the characters are so likeable that it doesn't matter if the romance works or not. Another point in this drama's favor is that the female characters are quite strong. They are far from perfect but their flaws make them endearing. I really admired Jang Hye Sung- who is probably now one of my favorite drama heroines. She started off as this grossly irresponsible, messy creature who only cared for money but she later develops into this amazing lawyer who actually cares for her clients and can deliver a most moving speech. Another character I surprisingly liked was Seo Do Yoon. I normally hate her type of character- the selfish type who tries to justify her behavior based on parental issues (in this case, daddy issues) but the way she was written made her actions believable. I don't think the things she did were right...but I could understand why she did them. Did I think she deserved to go unpunished, plot wise? No...but I rooted for her to atone for what she did and get better. In ways, she could even be seen as more interesting than Hye Sung but I won't do the comparison thing here as both ladies were amazing...and they worked great together as well as opposed to one other. If there's one thing I didn't like about ICHYV it's how I would have approached some of the court cases. I also didn't understand why the sentencing seemed relatively light for heavier crimes (only 10 years for murder??!) Although the lawyers managed to come up with interesting arguments and win when they needed to, I could think up of better ways to address the jury and argue certain things out. But I don't think we ought to expect the intricacies of a Hollywood court drama anyway- the cases here are relatively basic but I think it's because the focus (the focus here and in kdramas in general) has always been on the love story as well as character growth rather than the complexity of crime and the justice system.