Big (2012)

I don't know why people hate on this drama so much. Despite the series dragging on a little from episodes 10-14, the story was amazing. There was a lot of symbolism they used and the story had great cliffhangers. Many people write reviews saying the ending was confusing or was stupid; however, it's a very deep and meaningful ending. It takes true knowledge of literary aspects to appreciate it. Many dramas these days always have very shallow or cliche endings. Not this one though.

They chose a good set of actors for this drama. Some superb acting I've seen out of all the 59 dramas/movies I've watched. Gong Yoo definitely had a BIG part (hah, puns) in being a 30 year old man pretending to be around 18.

The music was also a good selection. Some big names such as Davichi, Beast, and Huh Gak are presented in this drama. The artists alone would tempt me to watch a drama.

If you enjoy symbolism and pieces that involve the slightest amount of thinking, then I recommend this drama to you. The ending is definitely worth it if you enjoy those aspects.

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This was a real let down to me. I thought the premise of the story was great, but the execution lacked…I don’t know…something. I was actually bored through most of this drama and would have quit watching it if it weren’t for Gong Yoo. I'm actually glad it is over.

It isn’t that Lee Min Jung can’t act; it is that she had to play one of the worst female leads that I have ever had the misfortune to watch. Da Ran is a pathetic character. I get that she would be confused in this situation and even cry and get upset at times, but it just went too far.
Gong Yoo played Yoon Jae/Gyung Joon to perfection. His character was written well and he played a child trapped in an adult body flawlessly. (I gave this a 10 in acting, because of him.)
BTW…if you are watching this to see Shin Won Ho, then don’t waste your time. He is barely in this drama.
I loved Beak Sung Hyun as Choong Sik. He was just adorable.
Suzy does a great job of playing obsessed Ma Ri although her character does go a little overboard at times.
The rest of the side stories and characters were lame.

The worst part of this drama is the ending. Not so much the way the story was written as the way it was directed. I felt like they should have shown the switch and Yoon Jae meeting Gyung Joon. They should have shown Gyung Joon with his parents. Then, since it was a “year later” they should have shown Gyung Joon as Won Ho with Da Ran. It was just boring!!!

Anyway, I won’t be watching it again. Unless you are a Gong Yoo fan, I don’t recommend that you watch it either.

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It is with deep regret that I write this review. The Hong Sister's are awesome at dramas, and when I found out about Big I could barely contain myself. The cast set up was fantastic - The chemistry between Gong Yoo & Lee Min Jung is too hot for words. The supporting cast was just as enticing. The acting was on point and that's not what I have an issue with. The problem is the sloppy writing here. The story started off great, I couldn't get enough of it. Then I was left dumbfounded, confused and excuse me, pissed off. It was too rushed. We didn't get any answers, we were left hanging. By the end, I was forcing myself to sit there. To the very last moment, I was looking for something to happen that could make up for all the flaws this drama had. Left, let down. I'd recommend something that shows just how awesome the Hong Sister's are: Greatest Love, You're Beautiful, My Girlfriend is a Gumiho, among others. Skip.

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I came into this show expecting quite a bit - given it was written by the Hong Sisters, and had a good cast with Gong Yoo and Lee MIn Jung (Suzy is just meh for me). But it turned out to be such a mess.

The drama starts off really slowly compared to other Hong Sisters' shows. The story plodded along really slowly in general. A lot of the storyline and character growth that occurs from episode 11 onwards could really have happened earlier. The story also subsequently deteriorates into typical Korean drama territory (aka noble idiots and being nasty on purpose to distance your loved ones from you - URGH cannot stand these overused storylines), which just makes me want to give the characters a slap in their faces for being so stupid. In any case, I really expected more from the Hong Sisters. It feels like they were tired of writing fresh dramas and just threw in stereotypical plot twists.

Gong Yoo really won me over with his portrayal of Kyung Joon's emotions - a young man trapped in a grown man's body, trying hard for Gil Da Ran to take him seriously. But towards the end, as the story deteriorated, so did my affection for him and his character.

Lee Min Jung - not much to say about her. I think she did the best with what was written for her.

Oh Suzy.. You are a pretty face, but so far in the shows I've seen her in before this (Dream High, Introduction to Architecture), her characters were pretty one-dimensional. So is this one. Unfortunately her facial expressions were still pretty 'wooden' (stiff) in this show and it doesn't help that her character is quite annoying too.

Poor Shin - he barely got any screen time after the body switch.

By the 14th episode I was so exasperated with the whole show that I was just happy to be watching scenes with Gil Choong Sik (Baek Sang Hyun's character). Throughout the show he was cute, sincere, a little stupid but very endearing. And the 15th episode was completely useless in terms of plot development.

As with the other reviewers, this is my reaction to the ending: HUHHHH?!!

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This drama had a great premise and was nearly perfect throughout. It was funny, romantic, and full of all those crazy emotions that come with having a heart. I was worried about how Gong Yoo was going to pull off acting like a 18 year old without it being over the top but I have to say he was fantastic and to me the highlight of the show. Then you get to the ending....and you go "Huh? What? Where are the answers to all the questions that have build up since the beginning?" Hong sister's you have butchered a potentially epic story. Maybe if there was 20 episodes instead of 16 the ending would have been better...we'll never know.

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Ok, so the good points: good acting, decent soundtrack, and some cute/touching moments.

Bad points: The plot was just too full of angst in the latter episodes and the ending was simply attrocious (Makes me mad just thinking about it and wanting to pull out my hair- well maybe not that far, but close)

Overall I thought the general concept of the drama was fine and the plot was good until about just over halfway through -then things got complicated and went way downhill from there. This drama had one of the most frustrating and irritating endings I've ever seen. There were plenty of laughs and cuteness in the beginnig episodes, and some in the later episodes but in lesser ammount. I will not likely be watching this again, as I didn't like the ending at all and it was just an ok drama overall. (Was a 7* drama until the latter episodes knocked it down to 5*'s) Acting was well done by all parties, and I think Mari was one of my favorite characters with her attitude and personality. So if you watch this drama be warned it's good until the ending which, as noted several times, frustrating.

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I'll be honest here, I had extremely high expectations for this drama. I thought the plot was interesting and really had a lot of potential, but like a lot of others have mentioned, it really didn't live up to its expectations. Don't get me wrong, I actually thought this drama was good. In fact despite the ending I still enjoyed watching it, and felt that it wasn't a complete waste of time, but there are SO many things the Hong Sisters could have done differently about the ending. I don't want to spoil this drama for those of you who haven't watched it, so I'll try to hold back on most of my opinions. For me, I was more confused than disappointed when I finished the last episode because honestly, I really had no idea what was happening. A lot of unanswered questions were left too, I mean a lot of things most viewers were waiting for during the last episode were never actually picked up or shown. They just kind of breezed through everything without giving much detail.

Now.. Would I watch this again? Most likely not, but I will admit the cast did an amazing job despite the disappointing ending. So overall, I really don't recommend this one. I mean, watch it if you want.. Cause I know I was waiting a long time to watch this and was super excited when I finally got to watch it, but if you're not good with bad endings I suggest you either not watch it, or drop it while the couple is still happy.

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I really liked this drama although it wasn't the best it was still touching and cute.
So I'll start with the good points: The acting was amazingly good, it was perfect, Lee Min Jung and Gong Yoo was a completely perfect couple! They all played their roles so well and I was crying in every scene they cried in :'( The character developments were really good too :)
I liked the way you would find out things slowly and not just all at once and getting to know the connections between all the characters.
Another amazing thing was the music, it fitted perfectly for every scene it played in, I loved it and once again.. I cried by the sorrowful music playing at the sad parts (gosh I think my eyes are completely dried out after all the crying.. oh and be aware, I'm a complete cry baby..) Aaah aaah! The drama is not all that sad! Its comedy after all! They always had a scene in every episode that made me laugh (well not every but most) and the beginning was hilarious ;)
Now for the bad points: Although the story was very interesting I think it was too long to keep it up for 16 episodes (well they could've made it more interesting and slower through the end..) I think it was all too rushed and a bit confusing.. :/ I think the only problem really with this drama is the script, if the scrip would've been a bit different it could all have turned into an outstanding drama!
Overall, the story was interesting but could've been scripted better, the misunderstandings, cast, music and the cute & touching parts were all good. Its not a bad drama but its not perfect either considering from all hundred other dramas I've watched I think this one is pretty decent ;)

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This drama is nothing special, even for a Gong Yoo fan. The plot is loopy. Scenes are sometimes funny, sometimes annoying, but repetitive for the most part.

The female leads are two extreme cliches- one half dumb, one scary stalker. There are many side characters intended to be funny, but not really funny. The main characters are more effective in humor,occasionally. There is the actor Shin Won Ho, whose role is very unlike what anyone would suppose- a shame really.

Gong Yoo tries his best to make the drama worthwhile, but he is a one man army most of the times. Lee Min Jung's character is too silly for her to make a difference.

But still, if you watch through all the dull episodes, the ending is decent enough actually. Compared to the slow process of making it to the end, the ending had more flair and fun. Don't look for logic, just enjoy the fun when it's there.

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