Pass or Play: Idol I & No Tail to Tell

Idol I

Romantic comedy, suspense, mystery
Watched ep 7/12
▶️ PLAY

The title is a clever pun combining the English word "Idol" and Korean word "dol-i" which is slang for a crazy person, this perfectly describes the early part of the show as the main character Do Ra-ik, is a K-pop star who is basically losing it from the immense pressures of fame. He becomes embroiled in a murder and his defense lawyer, Maeng Se-na played by Choi Soo-young is secretly a super fan of Do Ra-ik and his band, Gold Boys, must confront the shocking reality behind the idol she worships.

Kim Jae Yeong as K-pop idol Ra-ik starts off insufferable - arrogant, reckless and prickly but as the story progresses we discover he is fundamentally a warm person who deeply cares for those around him. He harbours a lot of hidden pain and trauma beneath his stage persona - Kim Jae Yeong did a great job at portraying not only Laik's loneliness but also his craving for simple ordinary happiness. For a rom-com dealing with more real life themes, I thought the story was good at balancing the cute romance with mental health themes.

Choi Soo-young just plays the cool type with a warm heart so well, I loved her character in If You Wish upon me (2022) and similarly here, I enjoyed watching her contrasting personalities as a long term fan girl and in her professional life as a cynical sharp lawyer. I also really like how this story dealt with the childhood connection, usually I find the trope a little cringe because it's typically used in a heavy handed way but it was nice to have some context to why Sen-na was motivated to prove Laik's innocence.

The murder mystery, though nothing complex, is pretty interesting way to bring couple closer together and reveal their vulnerabilities. More rom-com than thrilling legal drama, it's a fun and easy to watch so far which I'll be finishing soon.

No Tail to Tell

Romantic comedy, Fantasy
Watched ep 5/12
❌ PASS

As a fan of fantasy, I have liked a lot of Gumiho themed dramas so I was looking forward to seeing Kim Hye Yoon as Eun Ho, a MZ-style Gumiho who doesn't want to become human and instead focuses on living in luxury and comfort by granting wishes to the rich and powerful. This is my second time watching Kim Hye-Yoon since Lovely Runner, I definitely liked her role in the aforementioned show a lot more, the developing romance with her co-star Lomon is just not convincing, with their scenes together often feeling forced and a bit flat. Kim Hye Yoon is acting her socks off, and as much as I enjoy watching her play an arrogant, sassy and cynical Gumiho, her performance comes across a bit overdone and the lead chemistry so far is lackluster.

Story-wise, I liked Eun Ho's backstory and how it was set up - the unfolding plot seemed fine to start with, I did find it a little boring but the editing is atrocious and the pacing is jumping all over the place that it's making the story a bit confusing to follow. This is my first drama with Lomon, so I can't speak to his other acting works but as a first time watcher, his character as Kang Si Yeol is incredibly flat and boring - especially against Kim Hye Yoon's more comic exaggerated acting style, it really does feel a bit wooden. Overall, I would've dropped the show earlier around episode 3 but wanted to give it a couple more attempts to be certain, the show's loose story-line and overall performances wasn't for me.