The Road Home (2009)

This review may be a bit long....lol

I really enjoyed this drama, it seemed like something new happened every 10 episodes.
There were lots of real-life situations and problems, lots of struggles and obstacles along the road to understanding and acceptance.
The story was paced very well, and every episode was well written, the characters could either fill you with warmth & happiness or irritation and disbelief at what they say. Lots of emotion for every character, but overall it was very heartwarming and nice to watch, i'm glad I was finally able to see this drama.

Cast: Hyeonsu (Lee Sang Woo) - never disapoints me with any of his characters on dramas - every drama i have seen this actor in (even if i didn't favor the drama overall) his characters are always "my type" lol ^^
His character was loveable and un-bending - he was loyal and trust-worthy - I loved him <3
Suin (Jang Shin Young) - this was the first drama i had seen her in - she took some getting used to in the first few episodes but i gradually warmed up to her and ended up loving her early on - she had a horrible hairstyle in the first 19 episodes that really made the viewer focus in on her nose and lips but by episodes 20-22 her hairstyle changes and she looks really pretty ;) she was a pretty good actress - there were a few times i could tell she was "acting" but overall she was good. Her character was strong, sweet, brave and i liked her alot.
Juho (Choi Minhwan) - I believe he was my second if not tied with the first place actor in this drama - I always looked forward to his scenes - they were always cute and sweet - he was a really great brother and lover ;) Loved his scenes at school with Shinae.
Minsu (Shim Hyung Tak) - he makes you feel lots of things...(i believe he is the comedy part of this drama), i laughed so many times at the scenes of him and his wife lol - he was cute at times and i was in disbelief at times lol....
Jisu (Park Hyewon) & Hiro (Ryohei Otani) - you can tell they are inexperienced actors - but i still enjoyed every scene of them - they were good at acting at times and at times you could "see" the actor lol
Other characters: Hyeonsu's parents - i was mad most of the time at Hyeonsu's mom but she finally accepts things in the end... Hyeonsu's aunt - was a rude person who said whatever was on her mind - which really irritated me most of the time but she comes around towards the very end too and i couldn't hate her...Hyeongtae (a co-worker of Hyeonsu and Suin) he reminded me alot of yoon shi yoon's character on Flower Boy next Door...Sumi (Kim Yoo Ri) - she was a brat in the begining but she was also silly and cute :) ....the only characters i really hated were Chowon (ep.5-38) and Seongtae (Suin's ex.)

Music: I LOVED the theme song!!! <3 It makes me happy ^^ I just wish i knew who sings it and what it is called.... & there is a ballad song i know i know from another drama...(it plays in a few scenes and one is on ep.101 at the end.....

This drama made me feel like i should watch documentaries at some point lol (it was Hyeonsu's job)

Re-watch value: 7.5 - reason it's long - but i still really liked it so i may watch again.

Issues portrayed on this drama: Single Moms, Foreingers working, tangled family history, abuse, prejudices....

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Hmmm...

It had a good start but it stumbled and fell on its face so damn hard which is unfortunate. Two major things stuck out. it had the worst and lamest written antagonist I thought could be possible, specifically Sung Tae and Cho Won characters. What made it even worse are the incompetent actor and actress who played the roles, both can't act at all. Luckily there weren't around for the entire run but the left a stinky trail. The other thing that stuck out was the leads "love". The drama made a big mistake not justifying why their love is so great and worth fighting for. The lack of build up, backstory, depth, chemistry and romance between them, all of which made their case worse. I remain unconvinced of their efforts.

The drama had other problems as well. It seems the writer was clueless and had no clear direction on what to do with the side cast. For example Min Soo and his wife, the writer didn't know what to do with them at all. At the beginning they were set up as the married couple that would have marriage problems but they ended up just roaming around and being silly. The same thing can be said about the rest, they're just fillers and the focus remained on the leads. This is not good in a family focused drama since the objective is to actually include the family to have a proper familial vibes.

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