To set the ball rolling on this mix-match of themes, this drama is about an alien. That's right, an alien who crashed on earth and quite conveniently looks like a very attractive young man. Also, he has magic powers.
Yeah, super-speed, super-hearing, teleportation, time control - you name it, he's got it! The heroine of this strange tale is Cheon Song-Yi, the biggest model/actor of her time. She has a pretty face but a horrid personality so when it turns out that Do Min-Joon, the immortal alien, is her neighbor and teacher it only seems natural that the two will fall for each other after some episodes of fighting. But in this series, conflicted love interests are the least if the characters problems. After an eventful celebrity wedding, Cheon Song-Yi's rival dies and the press are quick to blame Cheon Song-Yi. Her career plummets and she starts to receive death threats from anti-fans and she has to rely on Do Min-Joon's alien powers to keep her safe. Meanwhile, police detectives are desperately trying to find out what happened to the deceased actor and arrest the serial killer who is targeting Cheon Song-Yi.
It's a bit all over the place, but in general I would say it's held together pretty well. Although I think it would be better sticking to one or two genres, I have to applaud them on their efforts. Personally I find the detective/murderer part of the plot the most exciting. The detectives are always one step behind the viewer but that doesn't make the story any less intriguing! It's probably because I've never seen this darker side in a Korean Drama before, there is a man torturing and killing people!! It's more hard core than anything I've ever seen! Oh, but don't misunderstand, it's not at all graphic or disturbing. Most the violence happens behind the scenes, which I suppose just makes it more ominous! More than anything else, I'm looking forward to the murderers actions being bought to the forefront of the plot.
On the other hand, the romance is dreadfully dull! Maybe it's just because compared to the life-threatening potential of serial killer romance shouldn't really be a priority. And yet, this is the part of the plot that the series focuses more on! I don't even want the two leading roles to love each other, I fully support their platonic relationship but they have nothing in common. As for the other characters in this romance, there's Lee Hui-Kyung Cheon Song-Yi's friend who is constantly pining over her because she's so attractive. Cheon Song-Yi, in her arrogance, is completely uninterested in all his advances. Not a push-pull relationship. Not even slightly romantic! The final character in this twisted romance is Yoo Se-Mi, another of Cheon Song-Yi's friends who fancy's Lee Hui Kyung. Her love line is slightly dramatic, her emotions are clearly turbulent and her unrequited love has friend-zoned her so bad that he doesn't even acknowledge her as a potential love interest. It's pretty painful to watch, but nothing compared to the emotional roller-coasters of most love stories.
I have a love-hate relationship with our protagonist, Do Min-Joon. For a start, he's played by Kim Soo-Hyun who is a very attractive individual. I love his cool personality and no-sillyness attitude. He treats Cheon Song-Yi like the silly little girl she is, despite her celebrity attitude. Also, his heroic actions are incredibly charming! Yet his infinite powers are annoying, because it lessens any kind of suspense. Since he's an alien, you can totally get away with some special alien power. But Do Min-Joon's invincibility means he completely overpowers any situation he's put in. Also, he's immortal and been living on earth a lot longer than any human could, so he's been through plenty of different identities. And yet, he's is the most rubbish liar ever! I don't know how he's managed to hide his identity all these years because he wouldn't be able to convince me! He make little attempts to hide his vast knowledge and unashamedly uses outdated language. It really annoys me! Minus the alien bit, he's a mighty fine creature. Unfortunately, species plays a big part in one's identity.
In summary, it feels that by increasing the number of styles covered reduced the quality of each. This could have been an emotional story about the complicated love lines between friends; or it could have been a curious tale about an alien spending his last moments on earth; or it could have been the exciting account of two detectives trying to solve the murder of a celebrity. It can not be all three! Alas, it tries to be, and although I like the strands that make up this plot (especially the murderer/detective plot), and in all honesty they fit together happily it doesn't work. There's not enough time to really get your teeth into one story line before you have to focus on a different one. I will continue to watch this drama, but mostly because I must find out whether the murder case is solved!
(Even the trailer seems like a romance!)
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