hana shin

Impossible to watch!!! I tried to watch it in 2024; this was made in 2013. I found myself shouting at the screen every episode I tortured myself through. The female lead was so enraging. Not only was she lame but had zero sense of self. She let people and especially boys pull her this way, that way, whichever way they felt like and she would easily go. One of the male characters, WooBin, is a grotesque looking and behaving character who should basically be behind bars. He is not only psychotic who displays other mental disorders, but he has the maturity level of a 5 year old with only a 2 digit I.Q. He not only violently assaults and bullies one student until he is forced to change schools, but he bullies the female lead as well. And do you know why? Cause he likes her. What!? The bizarre part of this extremely poorly written story is that the female lead, after having witnessed all of this, continues to engage with him. There is no fight from her. She at one point even has sympathy for him and jokes around with him. Ugh! The two boys obsess over her but NOT even sure as to why. According to the writer, cause she's poor. That's it, poor. This is why so many silly foreign girls fly all the way over to S. Korea looking to meet a Lee MinHo who will sweep her off her feet only to end up going on youtube and complaining how these Kdramas are fake and she wasted her money! BooHoo. Wait in line sister. There's already a very long line of drop dead gorgeous, highly educated, from rich family, kind and compassionate Korean girls waiting to find their Lee MinHo. Why would they go for a dropped out of nowhere foreign girl. Puleeze! It's almost an epidemic; you wouldn't believe how many foreign girls from all over the world do that these days. I realize the culture is different and the years have seen a change but puleeze! For rich people to pick on poor people is such a third world, ancient kind of behaviour! Mind you, this is all the while she is supposedly in love with MinHo's character. Oh, and to boot, money seems to sway her. It's almost as if she enjoys being caught in between a heartthrob and a monster looking psycho. I always wondered why there was so many incidences of date violence in S. Korea and now I see why. S. Koreans are heavily influenced by their entertainment industry. It is because of these types of dramas that make them think violence is a natural part of relationships. Gaslighting, physical, mental, emotional violence is constantly used in dramas but there is little or next to zero repercussions. The teachers do nothing and the police do not exist. Obviously this is not the reality in S. Korea which makes this drama one of the worst written piece of blah I've ever seen. The five star ratings are seriously worrisome as well. Raving over an unrealistic piece of garbage is annoying; no critical thinking whatsoever. Socially damaging. As long as Lee MinHo is starring, it'll get the usual Kdrama rave. Don't trust google reviews.

I heard a lot about this series when it first started--that it was a good watch. Then something about racism started floating around the internet but I didn't pay much attention; what racism could possibly be in a kdrama? Anyway, I recently finally got to watch it. What an extremely adorable little gem. It was an easy watch and all of the characters had me convinced and rooting for them. Although it was mostly about teens and their trials and tribulations with a background of badminton, each episode had a heartfelt and thoughtful message. It's a feel good drama for the entire family. Back to the "racism". I didn't see it; so much so for I got lost in the story and completely forgot about it til the end. So I did some research and became extremely suspicious at the extreme ratings. Apparently the "racism" in question is in ep. 5. Went back to look for it, but still didn't see it. During international sports matches, sometimes the opposition fans can become rude, Koreans are no exception to this. Accordingly, in this episode, the Korean coach makes the comment about a small group of fans being ill mannered. I don't get it. So what, they were. I mean, if he had said something like "those kinds of people" then maybe. All he said was, "those", referring to that particular group, and as he said, those fans were not well mannered. I feel extremely sorry for the actors who worked so hard and did an excellent job. I root for and support them all. So tired of this ridiculous cancel culture and the hyper sensitive herd. Watch it. As it was for me, it will be a really nice surprise.