Sin Embargo (2021)

the drastic change in storyline.

to be very honest, they just spoiled the ending of the drama. talking about the characters- PARK JAE EON, YU NA BI AND YANG DO HYEOK HERE. na bi is the most confused female lead in any kdrama ive ever seen. she would've chosen to stay single and pursue her future in paris, if i was in place of na bi i would've chosen my carrier instead of being in a toxic relationship with a jerk with whom i know living will be hell, neither will i choose my childhood best friend and make his life miserable as the likenesses will be one sided!? the ending of the drama instigates young teenagers to be in a toxic relationship even when u know the person with whom u are is a jerk. she doesnt care as the ending line says- "i know this will cause pain, but im okay with it" WHAT AN IDIOT NA BI IS. girl get a life! i just feel bad for my potato boy :") i rated this drama so low because the ending was not just appropriate according to me (different people have different opinion) otherwise, the casting of this drama was perfect, i was happy and satisfied about every other lead, the ost is catchy as well!! gonna miss this drama every Saturday :") signing off. ***AGAIN, I AM JUST ATTACKING THE CHARACTERS AND NOT THE ACTORS*** ps- i ship han so hee and song kang alot, i mean who doesnt?? NEED ANOTHER DRAMA WITH THEM BEING LEAD!!

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great visuals but repetitive

This is the kind of drama where you know it is going to end badly but you find yourself watching anyway. I have no idea where this story is going to go because I didn't read the webtoon but I have an idea and it's not good.
This drama definitely has a few appeals: visually appealing leads, beautiful cinematography, and the romanticism of a toxic relationship. And sure we've seen college dramas, but this one centers around art majors. That's an interesting and unique touch to this show that I like a lot. But despite these things, the show still feels a bit bland. It kinda feels like the same thing happens every episode but in different ways and I'm kinda tired of it. Nabi puts her foot down, calls Jae-eon out on his bs, puts him in his place, and ghosts him, then he'll come crawling back and do something swoon-worthy and Nabi will let him off the hook again and again and again. I get that's kinda the whole point with this drama but my god did it get repetitive fast.

Song Kang has really surprised me by how many shows he's been in lately, not to mention how diverse his roles are. I hear he might be enlisting soon so he's probably trying to establish himself before serving, and I think he has already. His acting still needs improvement on the emotional side. Or maybe I'm just saying all this because the only thing I've seen him in besides this is Love Alarm. We know he can play the handsome, likable guy but I wanna see more depth from him as an actor. Han So Hee is okay here. Her performance is alright but I really expected more from her after her performance in TWOTM. She was very good there even tho her role was kinda minor so I was expecting a lot from her first lead role. Sadly I was disappointed. I like her character's background but it's frustrating watching her make the same mistakes with Jae-eon in every episode. At least she looks incredibly good with the ML, ri

Now unto Yang Do Hyuck a.k.a. potato boy. He is so gosh darn cute. He's so kind and sweet and humble-the opposite of Jae-eon. You prob already know which team I'm on(lol) but if Nabi ends up with Jae-eon and not him I will be so mad. How can you say no to his puppy eyes?

- I'm back after a month of seeing the finale and I gotta say in really disappointed in the ending.
(CAUTION: SPOILER ALERT)
So unrealistic yet unrealistic at the same time. Maybe I played myself but I had a small glimmer of hope that Nabi would choose neither of the MLs and perhaps take the self-improvement route. That to me was the more ideal and healthy ending. It's clear guy #1 wasn't good for Nabi AT ALL and I find it hard to believe that he really changed for her, but at the same time Potato Boy wasn't a good choice either. Yes he is the boyfriend that Nabi deserves but not the one she needs atm. She really needs to stop dating altogether and develop some sense of self worth, make get therapy for her previous traumatic relationship, and then seek someone who will truly value her for who she is and not what someone can get out of her. But instead we got her openly admitting to the second lead that she knows Jae-eon is bad for her and constantly hurts her, but she cant control her feelings for him so she ultimately choose him. I'm gonna be honest, I understand her logic as a girl with no self esteem or worth, but that did not make me any less livid. The last ending scene was the icing on the cake for me. Its just not possible for Jae-eon to do a complete 180 with his behavior because he "loves" Nabi. When he refused the girls advances and numbers, I thought the only reason he did that was because Nabi was around, bit given his track record, I guarantee if Nabi wasn't there he def would've entertained those girls. And that's the gripe I have with the writing the last episode. Jae-eon's "change" towards his relationship with Nabi was horribly done and felt insincere because it wasn't earned. I'm sorry but once a fuc boi always a fuc boi. Guys like Jae-eon don't change, especially for nice naive girls like Nabi. I already wasn't going to rate the drama so high but ep. 16 made me drop my rating even more.

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I shouldn't love this, NEVERTHELESS...

Whew, I am most likely going to be in the minority on this one, but I LOVED THIS SHOW FROM START TO FINISH. It was well-paced, cozy, and suspenseful. This is peak romance.

I think a lot of the webtoon readers are upset because they came in expecting one thing and got something different. They were expecting certain subversions of tropes and two dimensional characters instead of ones that are morally grey. To be honest, Song Kang's Jae-On is NOT a complete fboi—he's a poor communicator above all. He was haunted by a bad reputation and neglectful upbringing; Nabi became suspicious of him before he really gave her reason to. He feebly attempted to go back to his old ways when she ran away and continuously pushed him away, and it didn't successfully distract him. I don't want to excuse all his behaviour though; he pushes boundaries and the whole Seola dynamic was sketchy. He never truly said no to Seola, even though it was clear EVEN TO HER that Jae-On's attention was no longer hers to hold captive. This is a story of setting people free to let them make their own decisions, and Seola's decision to set Jae-On free allowed him to finally set his own butterflies free. If there's one thing I didn't like, it was how the Seola storyline got tied up without ever clearing up the ambiguity of their relationship. Somehow, I can't even hate her though — she clearly stood up for herself when she realized it wasn't working for her. As for Nabi, she is frustrating with her mixed signals, and yet her behaviour is so clearly expected of a young person who's suffered with abusive relationships and astonishingly low self-esteem. She's too afraid to define the relationship early in fear of losing it, but lashes out when she doesn't receive the validation she so desperately needs. Throw in the confusion of another hardcore suitor in Potato Boy, and I understand how she was so confused.

I think that's the best part of this series: I loved allllll the characters. Normally, some side characters (or worse, the main characters) get on my nerves or I simply don't care about them. In this case, I was gripped by the suspense of the will-they-won't-they between Nabi and Jae-On, I was invested in Potato Boy's success, and I LIVED for Bitna/Gyu Hyun, the sunbaes, and ESPECIALLY Sol/Jiwan. Can we talk about how refreshing and progressive this drama felt?!

This show is best if you don't spoil the ending for yourself. Knowing that there's the "expected kdrama path" vs. the "subversive webtoon path" brings so much suspense to the last few episodes as long as you don't know which direction the story will go. So if you're reading this review to decide whether to watch the show, please do not read the next paragraph. :)

Ultimately, I was satisfied with the ending. I am sure this opinion is controversial. The only other ending I would've been happy with is if Nabi went off to Paris alone and thriving, and WHO IS TO SAY THAT WON'T HAPPEN STILL? But I would not have been happy with the webtoon ending because the chemistry and timing was all wrong between Nabi and Potato Boy. He pushed her because he liked her so much, and she accepted his affection for a while because she was so vulnerable. You can argue that chemistry isn't everything; that having a good, dependable relationship is better than a passionate one. But they are so young, and it's so not fair to him. Potato Boy doesn't deserve to be with someone who pines over someone else. And between Nabi and Jae-On, the best part to me is that they finally COMMUNICATED. They made their choices without any disillusions. Nabi doesn't expect things to last forever between them, but she owes it to herself to see things through — perhaps to get him out of her system, or perhaps to give him a chance to surprise her. I truly believe the drama version of Jae-On has done enough to deserve that chance. As the side characters underscored in their closing scene, what's the point of a relationship if you don't love the other more? The truly romantic point of view is that both sides should feel lucky. They are too young to settle — arguably, we should all come to the same conclusion in our lives.

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EAT WHAT YOU WANT, DO WHAT YOU WANT AND LIKE THE PERSON YOU LIKE, THAT'S ALL YOU HAVE TO DO .

I understand why most people are pissed at the ending. For some it's wrong for her to dump potato guy, For others Jae eon is a big no no and they (ML AND FL) would for sure suffer later on. BUT here's my point :
In last episode Professor said this to Nabi : EAT WHAT YOU WANT, DO WHAT YOU WANT AND LIKE THE PERSON YOU LIKE, THAT'S ALL YOU HAVE TO DO . For me this pretty much sums up all of Nabi's feelings. She wanted to be with Jae Eon knowing she might regret ( as she herself said in finale) because she chooses to be with him in the moment and not leave any regret.

Look man, Its simple if u want it to be . Everybody wants to be happy . She found her happiness in Jae Eon ; temporarily or permanent. That's the only way to find out.

Besides, it would have been very unfair to potato guy if Nabi had accepted him knowing she is obviously still in love with Jae Eon.
This drama served its purpose for me that is Yes I enjoyed it a lot.

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Pointless, toxic...and.. sex? "Friends with benefits"

The story of a romance between a man who is annoyed with relationships but likes to flirt and a woman who wants to date but does not believe in love.
This show is just so toxic and after the third episode I was so done with it, but somehow I ended up watching it.
If we talk about the monotonous story line, this show gets the award. Just so boring and honestly you can easily skip so many parts in one episode.

1. The main male character is portrayed as someone who is hot, charming, good looking "bad boy". Plus there is some sort of pain or emotional abuse witch they made it seem so cool, but in reality, there isn't anything cool with that. And everyone seems to forget that he is actually very manipulative person, who besides fucking every good looking girl, there isn't much to him.
Every girl seems to forget about his "real face" once they look at him and have sex with him...
2.The main female character. Now with this is what you call someone who makes mistakes, seems to understand that what she has done is not good, but then she does it again and again. NABI is a character who doesn't understand her own feelings at first place, she isn't innocent or naive , she knows what she is doing and does it everytime. I just dislike her character so much. No point of talking more about her... such a weak personality omg

To be very honest this show is a waste of time and romanticizes cheating , not communicating in a relationship and meaningless sex.
The only one thing I liked about the show is how they are promoting lgbtq+ community by including a lesbian love story.

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glorifies toxic relationships, not a realistic portrayal at all.

I've never written a review before but oh god this show - please don't go watching it for the main leads, the entire storyline around them is pretty disappointing. honestly its funny how this show has portrayed a wlw relationship so well compared to any drama i've ever watched and soljiwan are literally the only reason why sat through all 10 episodes. i think its high time that kdrama writers realise that its okay for the FL to not end up with the ML, actual relationships don't work this way and even if they do there needs to be good communication; none of which was in the show. the main characters have zero growth. the show had so much potential. what waste of a good cast.

(forgive me for any mistakes i just feel super cheated by this ending rn)

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It's a Toxic relationship, Nevertheless

This drama sets the example of what not to do in a relationship. If you like toxic relationship, bad choices and merry go round situations then this drama is for you.

In This review I will be only focusing on the two main leads, Nabi and Jae eon.

First, let me just point something out.
Two broken people cannot be together and if they do the relationship will always be/remain rocky. They need therapy, they need to fix themselves first. As along as they don't seek professional help I'm against them being a couple. There's nothing wrong with being single. Be single happy and free rather than be in fear if your partner truly loves you for you and not just lust.

NABI- I believe she is a very sweet girl but has poor choice and makes poor choices when it comes to her love life. From her first toxic relationship, I would salute her for getting away from that relationship bearing in mind it was her first boyfriend and relationship. Although it her some time,still bravo to her.

Now, although she got out of that she jumped right in to another without processing her breakup. To me, if i were in that situation and I went to an art gallery and saw my figure with my name being exibeted I might have had a nervous breakdown and definitely would not be interested in getting into any relationship that quickly. I would say that Jae eon showed up at perfect timing And uttered sweet lyrics to her. Some would say love at first sight, nope i disagree, it was sexual attraction at first sight.

As you will see throughout the drama they both were very sexually compatible. Sexual compatibility doesn't depict love in a relationship. She wanted more in the relationship but her partner was unwilling to commit. She also did not know him as a person, his likes and dislikes and when she ask questions he basically shuts her up by using sex & physical contact.

She want's to claim him as hers, give him the pronoun boyfriend and be happy with him. She went away and wanted out of the relationship, he followed her and yet he still was not being candid with her. Why? I still don't know but somehow he magically changed and wants to be in a real relationship? People change... yes but not that easily. I mean if that's the kind of relationship she wants good for her.

JAE EON- He is a good person, however, he has underlying trauma and issues that needs to be addressed and looked after. His reasons for not wanting to commit to a relationship is quite difficult to understand. He uses sex as a means of coping that's why when perdinal questions are been asked to him he uses physical contact to guard his pain. I believe he could be freed from his toxic tendencies if the writer explored more on the mental issues he has.

Nevertheless, two broken people in a relationship what happiness could they give each other. Nabi is still not heal from her bad breakup and Jae eon has some underlying issues/trauma that's yet to be known. Until they work on themselves individually they shouldn't be in any relationship.

The drama on a whole was not to my liking and as stated at the beginning what it entails no so much my cup of tea. Nevertheless i completed it but won't re watch.

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Sorry but this is just not worth watch

Waste of my time? I was enjoying it from ep 2 to ep 8 but then the problem start?

Ep1 I just don’t understand the story everything was just messy OMG watching this and try to understand this was harder than doing Math exam?

Ep2-Ep8 was okay for me there some love scenes of the 2 main actors some quarrel between them and there the perfect second start to appear and get along so well with the Na-bi. He I love with Na-Bi and doing lots of good thing to her but u all know girl never fall for a good boy and it go same to Na-Bi. Rather then Chose potato she chose to stay with Jae On. Then there come a girl that have some special relationship with Jae On. After a long talk with that girl Na-Bi disappeared that make Jae On so worry and start looking for her (it too late bro). Then the messy plot start again. I dot. Understand why that team are going to field trip and have to rest at the Do Hyuk house that Na-Bi happen to be at Do hyuk house then she met him again Jae On. But if u just don’t think about that messy plot the scene is good because there come a moment everyone alway looking for. Jae On start to get jealous of Na-Bi being with Do Hyuk. He trying to get near her but she just trying to stay away. Then here come the kiss scene that I make me really pissed of bcz I just can’t understand Na-Bi at all?. Then there a scene again after Jae On kiss Na-Bi Do Hyuk is asking Na-Bi to be with him(can say that to be his first love). Then he got rejected. Theremore but just want to stop the ep here then skip to the ending??

Ep10 final ep my worst nightmare ever? if u hope that the ending will the same as webtoon then just drop now if not then that the happy ending for u. My opinion Do Hyuk was lots better then Jae On but she chose Jae On then I change my Rate and decide to right this review?. I’m so mad that I alway waiting for Sat every week for this drama? waste my time?

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Glorified toxicity

Many viewers have written about how this drama endorses toxic, abusive, manipulative relationships. I agree with them, and the main reasons why are because of the way in which the relationship is portrayed, and the audience for which this show is intended.

Film and television is an art form and with it, comes freedom of expression and the ability to capture the worst aspects of humanity. I enjoy my fair share of messed-up characters and stories, something for which Korean cinema is well-known, especially when you consider its long history of great films like Lady Vengeance, Oldboy, Thirst, and more recently, Parasite. These works of art portray terrible aspects of human nature, but do so with the intent to make us understand what is wrong in the world. In the case of Nevertheless, some viewers are trying to defend this work on the premise that it's just a portrayal of harm that the creators should have the freedom to show. Furthermore, they argue there have been many instances of MLs that hurt their partners and still end up with them in happy relationships, and yet viewers let these examples slide.

To counter the artistic license argument, I offer that in most cases including classic K-cinema, harmful relationships are clearly portrayed as negative. The creators do not excuse dangerous behaviour. It is clear from the history of the format and the 40+ years of high quality productions, that a strong moral stance lies at heart of kdramas. Furthermore, the intended audience for kdramas like Nevertheless is youngish females. Many modern dramas take a stance on abusive relationships in light of what we know and understand about their harmful outcomes and the impact of systemic portrayals of unhealthy relationships. I know that as an insecure teen/20-something, I would have absolutely been swept away by a manipulator with charisma who could make me second guess myself and confuse it with excitement and sexual tension, like the FL in this show. Making it seem like the ML suddenly changes with teary eyes when he has just physically hurt the FL the night before, without even an acknowledgement of it, is inexcusable. Seeing no growth as the couple smiles their way into the final scene sends the absolute wrong message, even with the addition of a couple subtle pieces of dialogue and actions that tell us there is still something amiss. At the end of the day, they look like two beautiful people on a postcard in a happy ending with an overlay of romantic, catchy music.

Finally, there are many kdramas that excuse abusive relationships and MLs behaving badly. Some people let this slide, and in kdramas harmful tropes are still pervasive, but this does not make it right. Especially with the rise of Me Too, anti-racism, LGBTQII, and other movements, we must take a stand now. Since the creators of Nevertheless chose to take a progressive stance on other aspects of society by exploring a non-fairytale sex-based relationship and a lesbian couple, there is no excuse for them not to take the same progressive stance on the relationship of the main characters.

On a technical note, as an art piece, I enjoyed the cinematography and production values which were skillful and gave an intimate feel (no pun intended). I thought the music was very well chosen. The subtle and confused dialogue created the feeling of tension and gave us a glimpse of the layers beneath. And unlike some viewers, I liked the acting and performances of the entire cast.

However, the message is all wrong. I hope the creators realize they have endorsed something we should all be fighting against.

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A sophisticated take of what love is - watch without judgement to enjoy!

A lot of the frustration from viewers about this story lies perhaps in their wish to admire characters from the get go and/or expectations of growth. I found it beautifully poetic in its portrayal of the faults of people. People do not live their whole lives watching themselves on screen. They do many things in the moment, with the wisdom (or lack thereof) they possess then. This story breaks down the little moments of rapture and anguish of young lives navigating young love clumsily. More mature (not age! but those with life experiences) audiences will appreciate it and be more understanding (& less judgemental) of Na-bi and Jae-On’s push and pull. One more episode left - will life serve these two (& us) great lessons for (self) love with a side of heartbreak nevertheless?

PS. en pointe music direction. Every track was beautiful in its own right but paired with the scenes… breathtaking.

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It went down hill after the first couple episodes

I didn’t like the ending mostly .
This drama became quite tiring after the first couple episodes in my opinion. The FL really annoyed me, she knew and saw multiple times that the ML was clearly toxic asf and said she would stay away MULTIPLE TIMES but always folded at the sight of him. It was so cliche, the women always becomes weak at the knees of the “bad guy”. The side love interest was so much better, was clearly a lot better of a guy he truly liked her, but you know that’s how these dramas always end up. The nice guy somehow loses. Dumb decision on her part tbh. She lost.

Other than the main characters, this drama did include some great side characters who I enjoyed getting to know! I was especially really happy to lesbian representation in it, which is not often shown in k-dramas, so that was nice.

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Currently questioning my existence :')

Why screenwriter, just why. Genuinely regret the time I wasted on this drama and I curse my friend who recommended this to me.

The main leads are so unlikeable. Both Jae Eon and Nabi are so freaking annoying throughout the entire drama. She knew exactly what type of guy JE was and continued to fall and become SP with him. She gets hurt by him and is surprised and then continues to like him. Miss girl really has no self respect, she got hurt by her ex-boyfriend because he cheated on her but then even after being told Jae Eon had a girlfriend, still kissed him back. Yolo I guess.

And then we have Jae Eon whos on that F-boy shi. The "I got so many hoes " type of guy. I personally think he's immature for being in college and having this kind of mindset. I thought maybe we could've understood him better with a backstory but no we get nothing.

Side characters were great. Really liked the LGBTQ+ representation. I'm really sad Sol and Jih-wa didnt get much screen time and honestly I dont think Jih-wa liked Sol in the drama, it just seems to me she doesnt want to lose a friend and we never even got a confirmation.

Last episode was terrible the ending doesent even make sence. Nabi is really clueless her character wouldve been so much better with even a little development. I was hoping they would part ways with how toxic their relationship was but nope they decide to go out instead.

Overall bad but the acting was so good to make me hate the characters so much so I guess thats something. The music was nice too.

Oh and I'll never forgive this drama for making me hate seeing Song Kang's face :D

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