When Time Stops (2018– ) User Reviews

It has potential!

[ladysept-sf · 5/10 · 23 June 2019]

The plot has promising potential. I just find it rushed at the ending and a bit repetitive.. I love the "star crossed lover" thingy going on but I didn't appreciate how it developed. I don't get it at all! Spoiler alert: But I love the father-son arc. I like the relationship and also the goodbye... so sad! Also, they already have a family like closeness as neighbor, why it also have to vanish together with the memory?

KHJ is back.

[lmerana · 6/10 · 17 October 2019]

When time stops is a descent kdrama. The only thing is KHJ is not really good in crying. It looks like he is constipated whenever he tried to cry. His other Kdramas are my favorites and the roles really suited him. This Kdrama had a great potential because of the magic, but it was not emphasized well. The story also needs improvement.

Good Enough

[PennyReviews · 6/10 · 2 December 2018]

When Time Stopped is a fantasy drama that handled the fantasy element well. The first part of the drama was nice, kind of slice of life, with a low lever fantasy element. It was focused on the leading lady and her struggles. The second part was focused on the guy, the secret society of grim reapers and the mysteries of the past. However, that part was boring, as the male lead was boring overall, with no actual personality. The ending at least was decent and didn't stick to the cliche romantic endings. The performances, moreover, were okay, though the male lead could have been better. So, six out of ten.

Lacking credible romance

[leahcubed · 6/10 · 27 January 2020]

This rates high on most sites and with time travel, romance, mystery and suspense would seem to be a good combination but it just didn't work for me. The male lead Joon-Woo played by Kim Hyung-Joong moves into the basement of a building where everyone sort of knows everyone and everyone's business. The landlady, Sun-A (An Ji-Hyun) is working herself to death to keep up with the interest to loan sharks from loans her deceased father took out on the building. She is desperately trying to keep the building in memory of her father. They sort of went from being indifferent to each other to being in a romance - I guess - although I really wasn't seeing the connection between the two. There were others in the movie who also had special abilities but they did not spend much time on those stories which was a bit disappointing. There were also grim reapers whose job it was to remove those with special powers before they caused damage by using their powers in the world. It had a lot of interesting elements that could have made for an interesting and exciting story but none of it held together very well for me. I was even bored in some parts and might have quit watching all together if it would have had more than 12 episodes.

Really rough

[Park_Min · 1/10 · 1 May 2023]

Straight up unserviceable junk!! Disjointed low-budget shallow story that had no redeeming qualities. There aren't many time-stops dramas but this is definitely the worst to adapt the concept. The drama took the concept of time-stop and ran it into the ground. The memes of time-stops in JAV hold more weight than this embarrassment. The worst power-fantasy junk anime is still better than this. The inexperienced cast only brought it down even further. It's not like they had a lot to work with but still couldn't sense any talent in their souls. You can blame one part of the production over another but in reality everyone involved was to be blamed here.

Not your typical drama, surprising!

[turbulentbeauty · 8/10 · 8 April 2019]

I knew this had a fantasy element but expected the romance aspect to still be fairly typical where the leading lady was "Cinderella" being swept away by the "Prince." Instead, the show focused on the complexities of each character that shows no one is all good or bad. There was an overall story that was mysterious with grim reapers, and then more human mini stories about each tenant at the apartment complex. I was touched by some of the subject matters and found them to be really modern and surprising compared to the more fairytale-esque worlds of other dramas. I would have liked another episode or two to wrap up the ending with more time. However, I could also see the current ending as a seque into another season, which would make me happy. This show isn't perfect but I appreciated that it was so unique. I also disagree with the other reviewer - there was complex acting on the part of the male and female lead. At times some characters act stoic, and it's part of the story as is revealed. Then at other times you see the same characters be more open.

There was so much more potential for this kdrama.

[cassiereroni-707-285443 · 4/10 · 7 April 2020]

Now that I've watched the whole thing I'll come right out and say this. That female lead was, in no way, right for this part. I know she has had other parts where she has done very well. But this was not one of them. Her attempts to come off as innocent and understanding were suffocatingly submissive, sickeningly sweet and so unnatural that I think it really damaged the production as a whole and was probably to blame for a portion of the low ratings (a dismal.5). The probability of a sequel...only in your dreams with that rating.

There were some scenes that slowed the progression of the story and made it uninteresting and just dragged it along. The character development was a bit slow, and in some areas, lacking. But the story development was even worse. They didn't utilize the potential of this drama and, instead, seem to lose interest in the drama themselves and just wanted to get it over with as soon as possible (probably because of the low ratings which was their fault to begin with).

While Kim Hyun Joong's acting was very good the story itself hurt him in the long run. And to those that said Kim Hyun Joong's character had no personality, well, the reason for that was because he had no memories and he was a former grim reaper. None of the grim reapers had any kind of personality. If this drama had been a bit longer and it had been written better to begin with, we might have seen his personality develop. This really was not the vehicle he needed after coming off that scandal. But it may have been one of the only parts offered to him because of it.

In the end, even with all the problems this drama had it wasn't the worst I've ever seen. For me, it was worth it even if it was only to see Kim Hyun Joong again. But I'm also sad because the ratings were so bad he has decided not to act anytime in the foreseeable future and instead concentrate solely on his music. While his music is great, in and of itself, I miss seeing him because his concerts have only once came to the US and I am limited to only his short, few and far between, 30 minute or less YouTube sessions.

I did watch this when it first came out so it's the second time around for me. But to be honest, it was so forgettable I felt I should watch it again to be sure I was correct and didn't miss something. Yes, I was correct and no, I didn't miss anything.

Heart-Warming Fantasy Drama

[dawnbradman-32507 · 10/10 · 4 December 2020]

I watched this series because it marked the return to our tv screens, of the extremely talented artist Kim Hyun Joong after his Military Service.

I did not know what to expect at first, but found this fantasy/drama to be a beautiful story of love and heartbreak between two people destined to be together but, have strong forces, always trying to keep them apart. The cast worked well together and were well suited to their character roles.

I'm not going into the storyline here, as I don't want to spoil your enjoyment of discovering the plot line. I really enjoyed this series and would really like to have seen a second series, exploring the main characters in more detail. I do recommend you watch this series, you will not be disappointed.

KimJHp

[brendamas · 10/10 · 29 September 2019]

Rated this ten stars because KJH is in it although the story was a little weak for his comeback the chemistry between him and his leading lady was good but wished his wardrobe had been better they dressed him very dated should have chosen a more outstanding drama they are brilliant this year in fact since 2016 watching reruns they were so good -will be watching out for his next project because he is Super talented not just a pretty face 💙💚😅