It was totally not my cup of tea. Then again, I didn't really like 100% Perfect Girl either, so I guess I am to blame for choosing this series as well.
The plot. It was just too cheesy and predictable. Just another modern-day fairytale. If it were a movie or TV seres, it would be a Mexican soap opera. You could guess what would happen 2-4 volumes ahead of what you were reading. And...
prophecies? Really? I couldn't have thought of a more unoriginal way to twist the plot even if I wanted to. The same goes for all the shooting, bombing, kidnapping, etc.
The characters. That was what really pissed me off. They lacked both depht and consistency.
Yooi.
At first I liked her - she seemed strong-willed, independent and cheerful. Just likeable. The scene at the orphanage totally brought out her best traits and it looked promising. Then, somewhere along the way, she becomes this weak crybaby who only depends on others and waits for her prince charming to save her. She barely had any impact on the plot. Hooray for the heroine!
The main guy. He was the most superficial and inconsistent of them all. He seemed more like an idea than a real person. If he was really suffering and being torn apart on the inside, then why wasn't it shown in the manhwa? There was no middle part between his contradictions. Let's take it like this: if you're writing an essay, you need a proposition and an argument but between them has to be some sort of reasoning, intellectualization (pardon me if my wording is off, I'm not a native speaker). This is what his character lacked.
Lida, Ilya, Nao (the Bunny boy).
They were the most likeable to me in the whole story. I must say, when Lida (supposedly, the antagonist) told Ilya to protect Yooi, I started to expect a lot from this series since such a thing wasn't usual for the typical shoujo. I loved the relationships between these characters and the way it unfolded. I loved Ilya's devotion to Lida and symphaties for Yooi. I've also got to say, it didn't take me long to figure that Ilya would die later and Lida would only realize her love and start to regret after that. Still, it didn't bug me too much. I think that Lida, as a character, completely outweighs Yooi since she is multi-layered. If this story had been told from her perspective, it would have been so much better. And Nao was the sweetheart of the story. He was a cute relief from all that pointless drama. I think that the story between them was the only thing in this manhwa that had real meaning and not the corny love-conquers-all kind of message.
And now - the final blow of criticism. It seemed that this manhwa only followed some formula and feelings, as a way to develop a character, were completely ignored. Where were the moments of reflection, determination, regret, even plain suffering? Even romance was petty!
If the love between two characters was supposed to be so deep that it wouldn't fade even in a year after a bitter break-up, then it should have had more ground than simple attraction and an accidental kiss. What about compassion, uncertainty and trying to understand each other? What about blaming the other person and later forgiving them and finding peace (I'm talking about Yooi, her dad, mother, grandfather and probably everything else in this story)? And the most ridiculous: a friend and a person who you love die (both bodygourds),you shed a few tears and soon after it's totally okay? Where's the self-blaming and gradual healing? Not in this manhwa, apparently.
I give this a 4 because art, as soon as you get used to it, is fine and I managed to finish it, which means it was still readable. And at least the pace was okay too. Still, not recommended.
Wow, I wrote a lot.
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