Episodes: 20 . Enjoyment Factor: 9/10 . Ease of Understanding: 8/10
I’m usually rather wary of Korean melodrama series. Cardboard cutout villains, misunderstandings galore and horrible cliches like mistreated children, memory loss and deadly diseases are a given in this genre. Nice Guy is no exception. However, the great acting by Song Joong-Ki and Moon Chae-Won, the great directing and soundtrack, as well as the swift story-writing made it a very enjoyable viewing experience.
The story is all about obsession, revenge, love and redemption. Although the usual cliches abounded, the writing was a little more thoughtful than is often the case. It often left me guessing who was scheming and who was sincere. Despite all the horrible things that happen, Nice Guy was rather heartwarming and the love story had some epic scenes and dialogues.
The dialogues are what I loved best in this drama. They are usually delivered in a measured pace and the leads all have a very clear enunciation. I think this may be dependent on the genre. If the acting wasn’t so great, it would seem artificial, but with such great performances it was somewhat like watching a play. The best thing about this is that it’s perfectly suited for study purposes. I was glad to notice that I understood complete dialogues. With this drama I never felt the need to read recaps. I didn’t miss any important information, although some of the conversations about Seo Eun-Ki’s company went over my head. Actually, this is the first time I watched a drama and was perfectly satisfied to watch without subtitles. It was more enjoyable without subtitles, because I was able to concentrate on the acting and delivery of every line of dialogue. I very much recommend this drama for Korean study.
Renatie Smartie 