Miss in Kiss (2016)

Story: This is a story that's been with me for a long time. I started with the anime, and have then watched the other drama remakes over time, so it will be hard for me not to compare in this review.
It's not a unique story to say the obvious. It's very cliche, but it's a guilty pleasure of mine to re-watch different versions of this cute story. I've watched the Korean and Japanese version, but I have to say, I think out of all the remakes, I like this one the most. I felt that the other versions lacked something that this one had, and that's individuality. While the others felt like just another cliche, Miss In Kiss acknowledged that it was a story that's been done before and added it's own tune. The vibe this drama gave off was very cute and light hearted; it was easy to watch, especially with the short episodes. No sub plots were dragged out and the pacing this drama had felt right. I actually don't think there's anything I dislike about this drama other than the fact that I thought a few scenes and reactions could have been done a bit differently.

Acting/Cast: I felt that the characters in this version was the most believable. Zhi Shu didn't act like a cold emotionless psychopath like the other versions portrayed him to be, and I was glad to actually see him smile and cry whenever he needed to. He was much more human and realistic while still keeping the stereotype of an intellectual yet cold guy, I really enjoyed Lee Dino's take on this character. I loved Yue Qin in this as well, she wasn't as obsessed like in the Japanese version. She was just a normal girl who had a crush on a guy, but just couldn't let go. She was a very cute character.
Yue Qin and Zhi Shu's relationship was well developed, in no way did I feel their progress was rushed or could have been done better. I liked Ah Jin and Zi Yu in this version the most as well, they had much more character and I didn't feel that they were just getting in the way of the two leads.

Music: The OST was very cute and matched the vibe of the drama perfectly. I usually don't focus too much on the music in a show unless it really stands out, I found the soundtrack quite catchy and original.

Re-watch Value: If I'm ever in the mood for a light hearted and fluffy story, I might consider watching certain episodes than the whole thing, but I wouldn't mind watching the whole thing again either.

Overall: I feel that this drama did a great job in making it's own version of the story. It didn't feel like just another re-make, it felt original and stood out from the rest. I look forward to a possible season 2.

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I think a lot of the negative reviews on Miss in Kiss are unwarranted.

This is not ISWAK 2.0. ISWAK was my favorite adaptation of the manga/anime, but this is a great adaptation! I love the casting. Esther Wu is absolutely adorable, and Dino Lee plays a GREAT Zhi Shu. I literally fell in love with each of the characters in this adaptation. I also like the special twists they added to this story - the Old Lunar Tree and the significance behind Yue Qin's name. Yes, Yue Qin's character is pretty ridiculous...but that goes for the character in ALL of the adaptations - the character of Kotoko is just like that. I really enjoyed how we really got to see Zhi Shu's feelings develop for Yue Qin, and I feel like we were able to get into his head a bit more compared to other adaptations.

I would recommend this to anyone who has an open mind and to anyone who isn't going to criticize this for not being ISWAK 2.0. Whether or not you compare this to other adaptations, this is overall a wonderful drama. Great production, great cast.

I prefer the second part of the story compared to the first, so I AM DYING for a second season. Fingers are definitely crossed.

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