> **A Total Cinderella Show** Devilish Joy was a whirlwind of a drama packed with cliche and corny scenes. It had an endearing and powerful start that slowly threw all logic aside as it plowed through its plot, finally settling down with quite the train wreck of a finale.

PLOT
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I think the story tried to be too many things with too many conflicting genre elements (comedy, tragedy, mystery, rivalries...). Amnesia is probably one of the most cliché drama plots already, but this one over-complicates the story with a cheesy but shocking first episode that reeled me in, but not enough substance in the plot to keep the story interesting for 16 episodes.

[spoiler] The writers can't explain how Ma-Sung is able to remember his secretary or Ha-IM whom he met after the accident and rely on him . To some extent you can expect him to remember them along with his interactions with Bbeum but still lot of plot holes in this Cinderella experiment.[/spoiler]

About halfway through, the extreme silliness and heartbreaking moments felt too repetitive to hold my attention. It was only my curiosity about how it would end that kept me watching. The story could have easily been told in 10 episodes or less so there's A LOT of filler. I would have given it a higher rating if it were shorter.
[spoiler]
I did think the ending was cute, so I am happy I didn't drop it, although I didn't appreciate some of the filler tropes in the final episodes.
[/spoiler]
CAST
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Choi Jin Hyuk as a second lead in so many dramas, I also dropped couple of his shows (Rugal and Tunnel) seeing him finally as a lead in a romantic comedy was SO satisfying. ( Emergency Couple!!) and he is more suited for these roles. His character was not the typical cold and arrogant jerk. Instead, Gong Ma Seung was a warm-hearted, generous, and romantic man, who not surprisingly captured the female lead's heart immediately in the first episode.He did not disappoint, and he was able to convey so much through his expressions and body language.

Song Ha Yoon! I had only seen her Fight My Way, and felt like she got shafted in that, she is pretty but her visual was emphasize by the great cinematography. Soon Ha Yoon was very believable as the unfortunate singer, who struggled against all sorts of challenges but managed to maintain her dignity. Her petite loveliness was a great match for Gong Ma Sung, and the chemistry between the two leads was palpable. This is a couple I can imagine as truly dating - their kisses (and there were many compared to other dramas) were so natural.

I don't think it was the casts' fault at all. The villains were extra villainy, rather one dimensional and there was no character development. They are just shown as evil people with no other motives aside from greed. I found their backstories rather lacking, and not certainly not enough to explain why they hated Ma Sung or Gi Bbeum so much to inflict such terrible pain on them.

I liked the whole supporting cast especially bromance with cousin, Joy's poetic alcoholic dad, Ma Sung's sarcastic assistant, and Jun Soo Kyung who was pretty epic in her 2-dimensional evil ajumma role. Rest of them are forgettable characters

The only thing that would annoy me was Kim Beom Soo's annoying chewing and his harassment on quite innocent lady [spoiler] Considering the reason she is suffering i would have thought he left her alone and boy did karma bite him hard in arse at the end . Although expecting that i couldn't watch the scense when he mistreats Gi Bbeum[/spoiler]


VERDICT
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It wasn't a "Memento" ripoff and didn't rely too heavily on "Groundhog's day" or "50 first dates" jokes. Still, this is a basic romcom complete with "meant to be" encounters, misunderstandings, and great chemistry. When it works it's really cute, even touching, but when it doesn't work it's super corny and at times too repetitive. If you're in the mood for a romance, with a small bit of mystery, this one is far from perfect, but I still enjoyed it much more than I didn't.

In a nutshell: this is a very well cast drama about how life can suck, so bad, and seem like it's just getting worse, but if you persevere, Choi Jin Hyuk will come and save you.

Overall, like the cheesy "Goodbye" song in the OST I couldn't help singing along to, I know this show is more of a guilty pleasure than a great drama. There was still enough about it that I liked to say you might like it too. Many romcom fans would probably be willing to sacrifice logic for a romance that makes them smile, and that's definitely what it takes to be a fan of "Devilish Joy".

P.S : coming back from watching two tragic shows and hence i was able to complete this and i still rate it less since its senseless despite the recovery it provided me as its lacking the comedic relieft too !!