True to Love (2023)

nevrotic love stories

some people might say this is a realistic love story, and every side story couple stages a love story at different stages, whatever... sorry but bloody breaks up are not on my schedule and have never been. being shabby, petty and harsh in your relationship is also not on my plan. of course this does exist, I know, I saw this around me, but this is bad. this is bad behavior, not realistic one. and I don't watch dramas for (shabby) realistic stories. I can watch them around me. I really didn't appreciate this drama and I wouldn't recommend.
if you want to be bored, annoyed and pissed, be my guest and go on. every character is petty and boring. I'd choose non of them as a friend or as a partner. so it's very difficult for me to just stand them for as long as 4 episodes. I am dropping.

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A clever series imbedded with interesting references

This series is utterly captivating, relatable and true to its theme! It’s all about love, including ups and downs, as well as the awkward and sometimes humiliating breakup arguments. You can see all that through four distinct couples at different relationship stages. It’s not just another rom-com, its written in a very smart way where it's full with references to books, people, shows and characters and that what make the show really enjoyable.
When you watch it, you find yourself giggling and cringing on behalf of the characters, where you smile and feel touched by the situations and scenes. The characters and their storylines are very relatable, as we all recognize that clingy friend who couldn’t get over her ex because they didn’t have a proper closure.
Everyone is the protagonist of their own love story. A lot of these protagonists think that they’re true to their love and they’re the ones who’s making all the sacrifices just because there is a lack of communication in their relationship. This series is a breath of fresh air, everything about it is lovable, and every scene holds a meaning and one can resonate with it.

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An unexpected gem

I found out about this series after watching a video on least popular K dramas this year. For some reason, this drama did not have very high ratings in Korea, even though there are popular actors in it. Whatever the reason, maybe something more popular opposite it, it still sounded interesting. So I took the chance and glad I did. It is a romcom with a twist, not following the typical storyline.

What I liked: the storyline was unique. Instead of the usual, meet cute, breaking up over trivia and reuniting, this followed the aftermath of a soul crushing breakup. The writing was a cut above a typical drama, realistic, at times heartbreaking, and other times amusing. I enjoyed the leads, both did a good job. The ending was positive, but not all tied up with a bow. We saw the growth of the various characters and the possibility for more growth. The pacing was also quite good; it didn’t drag out with unnecessary fillers.

What I didn’t like: I think there was at least one too many side stories. A workplace romance was just wrong, the chemistry wasn’t there, and it felt inappropriate. There was an extraordinary amount of drunkenness in this drama, more than usual, and was often used as a catalyst for people to overcome communication problems. Drinking appears often in K dramas, but this one seemed to go overboard. It’s one of the reasons I couldn’t give it a full 10.

My favorite type of entertainment is something that can distract you, and in the case of a romcom, make you feel good, but at the same time give you something to think about. This drama filled the bill for me.

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Wow!

This is exactly what the heart needs and wants.

The story flows perfectly. Everything is explained and everything is earned. It has a beautiful message, actually many.
The chemistry between all of the couple, whether it’s a breakup, falling in love, or maintaining love and friendship, is relatable and brilliantly done. The entire cast and crew must have really loved working with each other, because it was a pure pleasure to watch.

Not every moment is a happy one, but the moment that are meant to rip your heart out do.

This drama is worth every moment to watch and rewatch. Watch it once for the entertainment. Watch it again for the lessons.

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Realistic and fun!!

The story basically revolves around the love life of a dating coach and writer, yeon bo ra aka deborah...after having a rough breakup with her BF whom she wanted to get married to she met the ML lee su hyeok.
Bo Ra - she was the best character in the drama for me! the actress did a great job in portraying a realistic and complex character like bo ra...she wanted to have the perfect happy ending at first but through experience she matured and understood what really matters is what u believe in and if u want to do something just go for it...although in the first 3-4 episodes u might not like her for not following her own advice and begging for love...but later on she knew what she actually wanted n was confident all the way! n u have to agree most of her advises on relationship were logical and true...

Lee su hyeok - he was kind, generous and fun but he really didnt know how to express his feelings...i found him annoying at some points but overall he was nice and a good match for bo ra...he comforted her when she was down and was great as a friend...

Ju wan - he was FL's ex-bf and just one word for him - TRASH which he accepted himself too!

Yu-ri - she didnt have much role but still contributed to the story...she was neither a good person nor a bad one and got the ending she deserved !

yu jeong and jin woo - this couple portrayed the problems of married life so well! they were excellent friends to everyone around them and were cheerful and loving...

sang jin and his ex-wife and bang u ri - the ex-wife was a kind soul and an overbearing boss...loved her! sang jin was a great friend but i didnt like his way of dealing with relationships ...u-ri was the sweetest girl of all...she was innocent and loving but kind of unrealistic ..

bo mi and jin ho - a first i thought bo mi was a spoiled girl but she turned out to be soft hearted...they were a cute couple..

all the characters had their own flaws and plus points...this made the drama even more exciting !!!
overall - it was a perfect mix of life, career, relationships , friendships and love!!

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Because love is realistically anything but perfect.

Before I get lost with what elements of this series were absolutely my favorite let me say that, was this for the books? realistically I would say NO, but was it somewhat enjoyable, yes. Because let's face it in real life we don't run into the arms of the one we love, telling them we love them. We definitely don't want to text first, for the sake that I may seem too interested and We definitely delay the 'Iloveyou' s because by then we have given away our power and broken down our walls.
Now let me break it down here and there might be spoilers but

1.) Bora vs Deborah
This was an interesting take because all this was the same person, they were elements that split them apart, one hand a young vulnerable lady who has a strong desire to get married and start a family and on the other hand, a dating coach who just wants to prove her hypothesis about love to be correct, that the success story of love is marriage. This element about her was portrayed in such a beautiful way because this was her inner conflict, she wanted to be vulnerable and express her wishes but the side of her that always wanted to appear complete and in control would not allow it. This was also what caused the delay for her to start her new love too. This is a realistic approach to characters because in kdramas confessing your love is nothing, its expected and there is no hesitation. In real life humans are cowardly and tend to run away the moment they feel something towards someone, this hesitation was a realistic view on love in the real world, people are not single because they are ugly or lack personality but because we are scared to be ridiculed.



2.) Su hyoek's personality
For me he was quite complex to understand because of the character did a lot of back and Forths and to some extent it got tiring. This was also the reason why I had to wait till the end to see them together.

3.) The theme of love
The love in this film is far from perfect, and it has elements of reality in it.
The one thing I loved about it was the portrayal of being disappointed in love and one part is about Bora's break up.
It was not just a mere montage about being sad, but a visual representation of breaking down and someone had said that Bora's reaction to her cheating boyfriend was a bit farfetched and out of character, but I think it was well suited because she had built herself with this image of a successful love life and yes she was not in love with her boyfriend but she was in love with the idea of what they could be together and more so the happy ending she wanted to write. When her boyfriend decides to break up with her and tell her that she was suffocating him, that truly breaks her, her world comes crashing to her feet because she was in charge of the game, not him, if anyone would have been freely leaving it would be her. And suddenly all she knew about love was wrong and the confidence she had as a woman was gone too. Her crying to that extent made sense and this for the first time was not portrayed halfheartedly in this drama. This was the saddest part because unlike fictional characters they just get back up and make a comeback, but she had to really go through it all and found herself again.

Her friend's marriage, the one who is at the final and most celebrated stage of love, yet she questions if she truly enjoys being married and if marriage was necessary at all. Thinking about how her husband's demeanor has changed now that they got married all the while forgetting that she changed too. Her story shows that love change with time but that doesn't mean the love is not there, as you grow older love goes from big gestures of declaring one's love to simple things like covering your partner with a blanket after he fell asleep. Small things are love too.

CEO and his ex-wife
Those at the end of what was meant to be eternal love.
Love is about communication, and all they needed was to talk.
but I fell in love with Uri's character she was a breath of fresh air in this drama because everyone had complicated feelings towards love, but Her's was pure and straightforward she was definitely wonderful to see.


The FATED young couple. junho n bommi
Those at the very beginning of eternal love
One thing he said was he chose to believe it was fate otherwise I wouldn't have had the courage to pursue you. This was also another element, as wonderful as love might seem it scary and whether it be asking a friend to validate our feelings or wanting a sign, we all depend on external validation when it comes to getting courage to pursue love.


4.) LOVE IS ABOUT TIMING
Every couple displayed this. A missed chance is gone forever, and when you think it is too late, it's really too late.

In Closing I was not really rooting for the main couple because they were way too slow in realizing what love was, but I did stick around to see Uri and CEO. This was not particularly my cup of tea, but tea is great once in a while.

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What a little happy gem!

I’ve been longing for. Decent romcom for well, a long time! The last 12 months saw a number of good melodramas but not a single good romcom! Let’s face it, we need a room com more than anything when the world is going mad!

The story is light, yet gripping and with the right balance and speed - nothing was overworked and too stretched. They didn’t take the married couple or the office couple, nor the divorced couple too far and too cheesy.

The cast is so good and chemistry between the actors was very good for me offering the right punch of goofy and more serious elements. I’m really impressed by the male lead simply because I know the female lead from Gobling and other dramas and she is really good , but he is new on me as a strong lead. Watch your space, I recon he can deliver much more complex roles!
My only complain would be the role of the office admin - it was a bit too cliche and the character came across too childish to be believable for me.

The first film in a long time which will happily rewatch. More like this one, please!

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Gifted Acting, Finely Crafted Story, Best of 2023

I write my review below (after the “——“) and then decided I needed to add a bit:

I am truly mystified by some of the reviews of this show. I never want to say anything negative about people on the internet, but I just don’t get it. The negativity is amazing. Pointing out how the writers never spoke to women before, that it made all women look stupid??? Both the men and women were flawed - as are real people. Yeah, the characters could be annoying and frustrating, but have we not encountered these types of people in our lives? Have we not made dumb decisions that we look back on and can’t believe we did that? I sure have. This drama is no worse in that regard than countless other KDramas and CDramas which did not garner such reviews. This series just did a better job than almost off of the others with such flawed characters. :-(

————

When I read that this series was coming, I was truly excited. Touch Your Heart is my all time favorite KDrama. While everything about that show was great, it was Yoo In-Na's acting - her interpretation of her role - that was genius and made the show truly special. Could she pull it off again?

And I was not disappointed! Once again, she was the true driving force behind a series and elevated it to be as good as it possibly could be. She delivered a master class in acting, IMHO. Her ability to communicate emotions. The uniqueness of her expressions and the inflections of her voice... Amazing. Thanks to the those who cast her as Deborah!

I fee a bit like a broken record, because Kdrama acting is often so good, but I just have to say it. Everyone cast in this series was phenomenal.

Yoon In Na... Well, I've said it. She makes this story shine and we feel for her throughout the arc of the story.

Yoon Hun-Min as the male lead was so good. Dang, watching his character was so frustrating! So obviously he nailed the role and made it believable no matter how unbelievable it could have been.

Hwang Chan-Sung's role as the ex. I hated his guts! His acting sparked the feelings we were meant to feel.

Park So-Jin was sooo good in Sh**ting Stars.** And she was fantastic here. Her portrayal of a women in a listless marriage truly had our sympathy. She is just so darn good the I hope to see here as a lead in series to come. I’ll watch anything that features Ms. Park.

Let's hope we see so much more of Kim Ye-Ji. She is so cute and really did well in what I think is a difficult role - both strong and unsure of herself at the same time.

The story: Once again the Koreans' writing craft is so amazing. This was a tightly woven tapestry of multiple couple's evolving relationships. There was not a dull minute for my wife or I and we could not wait for each new episode. As the story was coming to an end I could not believe we had seen 13 episodes already and we were almost done. No feeling of, "This is starting to drag and I need to fast forward" in this series! I know we won't get it, but Season 2 please!

My one complaint is that at key points, the Male Lead did not communicate and it was just hard to believe. I am sure there are people who are, in a sense, broken like that. But he was given so many chances... Yeah, I know it can happen, I was pretty much that screwed up when I was young. But watching it drove me nuts! Then again, the story had me locked in so the writers obviously know what they are doing. :-)

If you want to read a good review of the story itself, check out ameerahcarol's review. So good it reads like a professional review.

Watch it!

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A series of it's own kind

Bora Deborah has been a great watch throughout...every episode was better then the prior episode. It's not a drama with some extremely heavy story line or complex characters rather it deal with complex emotions of our life. Drama doesn't has any out of tge blue story line..it was something which happen around us. As if we are the characters and a phase of our life has been shown...drama represented every stage of love..falling in love, struggling together, slowly opening to each other , having deep talks with only that special someone and at the end longing for a happy ending.
Main lead two pole apart personalities..their childhood was a very minor detail but it helped us to understand their characters and why they are like this ! Both of them don't want to end up like their parents.
Acc to me every actor did a great job. Yoo inna ruled the show ..her every expression was on point , she practically lived the character! Yoon hyun min gave his all in second half of the show and really delivered beautiful acting and he is also the one to br most benefited by this drama (his inland image and internationalfan base both have improved). Inshort it was a great casting choice! Although i would have loved to see joo sang wook and his ex wife story more.
And bomi was way too lucky..she didn't deserve anything which she has got in life ...🙂 only
character i seriously hated throughout the series.

Overall i liked the series.

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