First Impressions: Angel’s Last Mission: Love

First Impressions: Angel
A woman whose lost all hope meets an Angel who aims to find her destined soulmate.

 
Kim Dan (Kim Myung-Soo) is an Angel with a temper, full of immature remarks regarding humans and their everyday lives. Undetected and invisible to most, he’s shocked to come across Lee Yeon-Seo (Shin Hye-Sun) who senses his presence. Once a successful ballerina, a fatal accident leaves her blind, crushing her dreams and love for ballet. Now an arrogant and rude heiress, Yeon-Seo internally mourns the loss of her parents and has grown cold hearted.
 
Through more loss and agony, she becomes distant and cynical, knowing all too well that people put up false pretences around her for the sake of money. Her negative perception of people and herself places Kim Dan in a bind, as he’s tasked to find her true love and forced to take on the form of a human as his final mission before ascending to heaven. 
 
First Impressions: Angel
First Impressions: Angel
I’m starting to think that this is the year for romantic fantasy dramas since we got a heaping of horror and crime last year. When I first came across this series, it seemed like a comic/manga come to life and it most certainly does convey that feeling, projecting a storyline you’d find in a serialized manga. A girl falling in love with an Angel doesn’t get tossed around a lot at the discussion table for dramas (I’m assuming) so it’s interesting to see how successful this has become as the show progresses. The most unconventional of K-dramas seem to really catch the attention of domestic audiences lately, so as surprising as it is to see this drama gain solid ratings, it’s also somehow slightly expected?
 
First Impressions: Angel
First Impressions: Angel
Shin Hye-Sun is really making a name for herself as a Queen of drama ratings, and her acting here impresses during the most emotional and intensifying moments. You can physically sense just how emotionally draining certain scenes are through your screen, and I have to praise her for everything she’s done with her character, Yeon-Seo. A ballerina, an heiress, a visually impaired woman, and a female lead who’ll fall in love with an Angel is a large package that’s difficult to deliver, but she manages to blend all aspects of Yeon-Seo to portray this self-deprecating individual who’s hurting, not only herself but others as well. 
 
First Impressions: Angel
First Impressions: Angel
The ‘rich heiress’ persona doesn’t escape Yeon-Seo and she uses it as leverage to inflict more hate onto herself but that’s something Dan refuses to let her get away with. As an Angel, he isn’t afraid of her threats and speaks his mind around her, refusing to back down when he knows Yeon-Seo has overstepped boundaries. I’m convinced that the Writers tailored Kim Dan to Kim Myung-Soo’s specific style of acting, since Dan has moments of verbal tangents as a result of his ill temperament which really suit Myung-Soo and seem natural onscreen. 
 
Someone also mentioned that the actor seems to pick projects where it’s the male’s perspective or narrative dominating the story in a more emotional and romantic sense, since we tend to get male perspectives as open as Kim Dan’s in action or thrillers. It’s like a reversal of narrative and personality, where the female is cold and the male is tenderhearted. And this is definitely a breath of fresh air as far as perspectives go, since Kim Dan isn’t brooding, socially inept, rich, or cynical (shocking, I know!) He isn’t lacking character wise, and it’s clear that he’s meant to help Yeon-Seo rediscover herself and to know what love is. Heck, he even becomes her personal Secretary incase anyone out there in dramaland forgot that male Secretaries do in fact, exist
 
First Impressions: Angel
First Impressions: Angel
As far as progression goes, the drama pans out quite nicely and builds on a steady momentum. It hasn’t slowed down or has fallen into any plot holes but I will admit to only becoming invested in the show once Lee Dong-Gun made his appearance. His character brings so much to the drama as a mysterious figure with ulterior motives, approaching Yeon-Seo in the hopes to see her star as a ballerina again.The man definitely knows how to convey intensifying melodramatic scenes with a certain allure, since his character is shrouded with an uneasy atmosphere as we try to guess if he’s good or bad. I will always appreciate Lee Dong-Gun’s acting because I know he’ll deliver on a scale I can never really fathom, making this more worthwhile. Moreover, the unexpected bromance between Lee Dong-Gun and Kim Myung-Soo is seriously becoming one of my favourite aspects!
 
First Impressions: Angel
First Impressions: Angel
When it comes to the chemistry however, I don’t place it as being ‘electric’ but the banter and childish bickering is a fun watch. It’s a sweet kind of love that’s based on emotional understanding as opposed to a lot of physicality. And that’s not to say the chemistry isn’t good here since the two leads are a good fit for each other and deliver just the right amount, considering their roles and how their characters are meant to develop. And it’s evident that Dan’s mission is a part of a much larger picture with destiny playing a major role here. So although he’s playing cupid, divinity is clearly pulling on red strings of fate.
 
First Impressions: Angel
First Impressions: Angel
I wouldn’t go as far as to say you’ll immediately fall in love with this series, since it took me several episodes to be interested, but it offers something different and new. It has a solid cast and ratings to back its claim as a series worth checking out, and if you love a sprinkle of supernatural with your romances then this could be the next K-drama for you. It combines darker melodramatic elements with lighter romantic tones, giving you various genres to form this unique series with a fresh new take on fantasy. 
 
First Impressions: Angel
First Impressions: Angel
Release Date: May 22, 2019 (Eng Sub available on Viki)
 
 
 
 

3 Comments

  1. Anonymous

    June 7, 2019 9:13 PM
  2. Superkiosk

    June 8, 2019 3:14 AM
  3. ruby

    June 19, 2019 3:22 PM

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