True Beauty Review: Entertaining And Engaging. What More Do You Want From A Drama?

I personally believe that there is a time for every drama. I have noticed that light-hearted dramas are better enjoyed when I suffer from some stress in life. It helps me relax and temporarily forget troubles that bother me. I am better able to appreciate deep, thought-provoking dramas when I am relatively less stressed as it is easier to pay attention and understand the drama.

True Beauty is an extremely popular Korean rom-com that I decided to watch whenever I felt low. And my decision was right as this drama helped me get over my stress and have a good laugh. Its funny scenarios and sweet innocent romance were the perfect distractions for my anxious heart. However, despite how much I loved the show, I could not ignore the clear flaws in it.

So, I have decided that this review will be slightly different from my regular reviews. I will mention short scenes or aspects of the drama that I liked in the show and stuff that did not seem sufficiently justified.  

 

True Beauty (2020) (16 Episodes)

Im Joo Kyung (Moon Ga Young) suffers from a skin condition that causes patches of redness all over her face. Her different appearance makes her suffer from low self-esteem and she silently puts up with the bullying that she is subjected to in school. When her family faces a financial crunch, they decide to relocate to their old house, which means Im Joo Kyung transfers to a new school.

She decides to start life afresh and experiments with makeup to hide her skin condition. This works like magic for her as she starts looking flawless. In her new school, girls admire her and boys have a crush on her. She gets attention wherever she goes and enjoys her new life.

In her new school, she meets the high-school heartthrob, Lee Su Ho (Cha Eun Woo) who is a social recluse and hates interacting with anyone. But the more he learns about Joo Kyung the more he falls in love with her. However, neither of them recognize that they had met before and that they share a really old connection.

Meanwhile, one evening Joo Kyung bumps into the troublemaker, Han Seo Jun (Hwang In Yeop) who is escaping goons looking for him. In her haste to get away from him, she runs away with his helmet. To her astonishment, he is a student of her school and studies in her class. He recognizes her and pesters her to get back his helmet. Their frequent banter eventually makes Seo Jun develop feelings for her.    

Let’s have a look at all the funny and interesting parts that I loved about this drama and all the parts I failed to understand and see if ‘True Beauty’ is worth watching or not.

What I Liked About ‘True Beauty’?

(Contains minor spoilers)

• Im Joo Kyung is kidnapped by some boys and when Su Ho manages to find her, he flies across tables to hit the guy who kidnapped Joo Kyung. This scene gave me goosebumps. I hope Cha Eun Woo trains a little more in action because he will rock it as an action hero with that cute face of his.
• I loved to hear Seo Jun say ‘aani’ each time he vehemently denied something. His eyes go wide and eyebrows get raised, which makes him look awwdorable.
• Im Joo Kyung’s sister, Im Hee Kyung falls in love with Joo Kyung’s teacher, Han Jun Woo and woos him like a boss. The confidence with which she asks out Han Jun Woo is amazing. I am in awe of this strong, independent girl.
• At one point in the drama, Joo Kyung beats up her bullies. The scene is undoubtedly the best scene in the show. It feels oddly satisfying to see her finally vent out her anger and show them their real place.
• Su Ho and Seo Jun get in an accident together and share a hospital room where they help each other with regular activities. Seeing the two erstwhile besties bond in such a comedic manner is the highlight of this show.
• Lastly, Seo Jun dancing to ‘Okey Dokey’ in his boxer shorts is something you cannot miss. Love it when he plays it cool in front of Joo Kyung then secretly cringes in embarrassment.

Here have a look at the scene.

What I Didn’t Like About ‘True Beauty’?

• Su Ho is supposedly a ‘chaebol’ (belonging to a rich family), lives in a posh neighborhood but goes to a small, regular school, which mostly consists of kids from middle-class families. I don’t understand why Su Ho studies in a small school where he doesn’t like any of his classmates when he can easily go to any school of his choice.
• Joo Kyung’s family is supposed to be middle-class unable to afford college fees. But I don’t understand how Joo Kyung still manages to get expensive makeup and new jackets every episode.
• Seo Jun’s part-time profession is never clearly explained. One day he is found escaping a group of thugs, one day he is shown to be working as a model, and some days he suddenly works as a barista. I have no idea what the guy does exactly.
• When Su Ho and Seo Jun meet with an accident, Su Ho is shown to be flying mid-air while Seo Jun is simply chucked aside. How can the impact vary so vastly when they are hit by the same car, in the same position, and at the same time?
• I hate the fact that all the characters are interconnected in one way or another. For instance, Joo Kyung saves a girl from being bullied. That girl turns out to be Seo Jun’s younger sister and later Joo Kyung’s younger brother has a crush on her and pursues her persistently. Similarly, all the other characters are also interlinked. Is South Korea really that small?
• Each time the show makers had to show Joo Kyung ‘ugly’ they made her wear thick-framed glasses. And when she had to look pretty, she suddenly could see without glasses. Why do ‘ugly’ people always have to be bespectacled?

• Watching such a gorgeous cast made me feel ugly. Hahaha….just kidding (No I’m not) I would not recommend this drama to a regular teen suffering from body image issues because the drama is highly unrealistic. No doubt makeup helps cover minor skin imperfections. I love makeup and I am aware of its power. But it cannot transform a person into an angelic beauty the way it is shown in the drama. The casting director has taken an exceptionally gorgeous woman, ruined her face, presented her as an ugly duckling only to make her the one that turned into a swan. It is okay to watch and forget but it can influence young minds and that is a cause for concern.

• The last three episodes are painful to watch especially if you happen to root for Seo Jun throughout the drama. Episode 15 kind of focuses on Seo Jun and takes his storyline to a suitable (?) conclusion. I skimmed through the last three episodes because they hardly added to the story. 

 

Are you team Lee Su Ho or Han Seo Jun?

I am team Su Ho right from start to end. I am usually a second-lead lover (here is proof of my love for second-leads) but True Beauty is a rare exception. It’s not that I hate Seo Jun but I just prefer Su Ho over him mainly because he is not the quintessential ‘bad boy’. Here, Su Ho may be rude at first but he isn’t a bad boy. He is loving and caring. Seo Jun is also a nice guy but there is no reason to not like Su Ho either.  

 

 

The show has its highs and lows. It has its good and bad. Once again, I feel that the best way to enjoy this show is to watch it at the right time. When the time is right this drama, will appeal in all the right ways. 

I give ‘True Beauty’ 3.5 out of 5 rating. I’m not sure if True Beauty is a good drama or not. What I’m sure of is that it is highly entertaining. Let me warn you it is highly tropey (full of usual drama tropes) and cliched so watch it only for fun and nothing more.  

 

Image Courtesy: tvN

 

Also Read: