Can't Lose You

Can’t Lose You is like a Cinderella Romance, Shoujo, Drama but with an interesting twist.

Most of us know about the story Cinderella; where a poor girl finds her prince charming and they live happily ever after however this isn’t a fairytale. This whirlwind romance is about a penniless girl (Yooi Kang), who originally only dreamed of being able to pay off her father’s debts. Then her life changes when she meets a guy (Gaon Gil), who mistakes her for a very well-known rich girl (Lida Yoo) that looks just like Yooi. Lida’s life is being threatened, so she gets Yooi to act as her double but the plan backfires when a twisted romance ensues. This story is no short of compelling and even though the pacing is kind of fast; the sudden developments and unexpected twist will keep you guessing as to what will happen next.

The characters involved in this twisted romance are portrayed so well. Yooi and Lida are like polar opposites with Yooi being a kind-hearted, empathetic individual that attracts the loving affection of others and Lida being a callous, strong-willed heiress who’s very possessive with her things. As for the protagonist Gaon, he initially seems like a cold, calculative guy but he changes quite a lot and he isn’t the only one who does. What makes them more interesting are how the other characters are affected by the fate they all carry.

This manga can be described as plain-looking. The artwork does nothing to stand out at all and the only thing that does stand out, in the typical character designs, are the character’s big lips. The scenery (buildings, objects, etc.) look geometric, but there are times when occasionally some detail is put into the scenery.

Overall Can’t Lose You is a great shoujo manhwa dealing with the providence, the destiny that intertwines people and the fate that one can never run from. The corporate Korean aspect is implemented well, into the story, giving the story more edge and drama. But to me what stood out was the great dialogue between characters, which was only limited by the lack of detail in their emotional expressions. At least this is good enough for any shoujo reader to pass the time, but enjoying it another question.

^_^

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"I don’t know if everything is destined from the beginning or if we make our own destinies with our choices …but maybe the answer to that isn’t so important. What’s important is that we’re alive."

This story was fascinatingly addictive.

Two people who stumbled into each others paths not knowing that they would forever be joined in a story so enchanting, that would change the course of both their lives. Now, I can be exaggerating since I sorta grounded myself from reading shoujo romances for a while, to the point that I was going through withdrawals before I picked this one up. Either way this manga was a page turner.

Lida Yoo is the girl who has everything and the enemies that comes with that package, someone wants to kill her for it. Yooi Kang, had to move from her home because she couldn’t afford it and finds herself changing schools and living situations. So when Yooi starts attending the same school as Lida only to find that they look like exactly alike, sorta, Lida doesn’t think it’s a coincidence more like perfect timing. Who better to use as bait for her killer than someone who looks like her? Clinging to the fact that Yooi has no money, Lida offers her a lot of money for her services, though she omits the real reasons behind it all.
After a bad day where she gets her first kiss stolen by a guy who is clearly upset with her, she is very confused and agrees. Two girls who are about to learn that life can clearly always be worse.

The story is not new, so many few stories are these days so I wasn't looking so much for originality but something that plays with the string of our hearts (sounds corny in my head too). A story in which the plots twist and turns is so well done you hold your breath and wait for it, the moment all the truths and lies come out into light and kick some characters in the gut as you watch how they handle it and eventually pick up their own pieces.
It’s a Cinderella style type of romance but it’s more. As the story starts unfolding it starts getting more..deep. Small hints about prophecies, destiny, and fate. Asking the question that some of us have been asking ourselves through time: Does destiny exist? Will it truly matter if I go left or right in the forked road? Can hitting a pigeon with my car make all of them hate me? Ok not that lost one but you get what I mean.
People are always saying, “Whatever will be, will be.” But is life really that simple? For Lida and Yooi it is not, and as they walk their own path they realize that every choice opens a brand new shiny door to a new consequence.

“A heart is like a double edge sword. The more you hate someone, the more you hate yourself."

If you’ve read Wann’s other works you start noticing a pattern in plot and also in characters. As an individual work it has strong characters, meaning, the nice ones make you feel all full and content, the others..not so much.
The characters were very well crafted individuals in this one. You have your villains who are vindictive s.o.b’s. The heroes who are sometimes the villains and their person is so well balanced in their role that you can’t help but go on that smooth ride with them even if you don’t necessarily agree. The loopholes the characters are subjected to are interesting though overly dramatic, sometimes too dramatic, taking away from the, "Sure, that can happen." delusional bubble I like to get in.

Lida is not a good person. I mean she has steel in liquid form running through her veins most days while Yooi, is her exact opposite. All the characters are different and interesting. They certainly all bring something new to this table, in a good or bad way.
The one thing that bothers me about the heroines is that they are so unrealistically nice. Sometimes it takes away from the story itself (not that it’s believable).

The art was very pretty. Sometimes great, but overall average to me. Each character was distinctively different. Though the bad guys all felt the same and the good ones most all felt the same too. It was as if there were only two types of personality, either black or white. Rarely was someone in the gray zone. Though that has little to do with the art, I always felt that a characters personality has to fit his image somehow so much that for the great characters that image becomes them, and if you change their art it won't be them anymore. That sort of thing.

At the end, closure. It was bittersweet but it was a nice story. I mean, I took a couple of days to review it just so that my review wouldn’t include, “OMG awesome!!

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Can't Lose You started out 'quite' original, I can't say completely original because it wasn't.

It was kind of interesting to find that two girls from the opposite ends of the wealth spectrum looked like each other and that, for the rich girl's safety, the poor girl becomes her double.

But then, from out of the blue, a super rich dude falls for the poor girl after a mistaken kiss.

No way. What kind of crap plot device is that? The story devolved into any other mediocre shoujo manga/manhwa.

To put the entire story simply:

Poor girl + Rich guy = Love

I know it's supposed to be fiction but come on!
Can't the author write about a more developed and a little more realistic plotline?
Gypsies and fortune tellers, rich guys and poor girls; please author SOMETHING less cliche!

Moving on, the art was puke-tastic.
It was like a movie with John Travolta; you had 12 characters with the same face.
You didn't know whether the character was a guy or girl, and it's in an awful, gooey, sugary-sweet kind of illustration style.
I mean, the eyes were as big as plates and the mouths looked like black holes ready to suck in some poor lost creature.

In summary, the story was cliche, definitely forgetable and not worth reading.

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First impression: This story is just okay. When I came across it, I was surprised to see that I already read it. So surprised that I started reading it again to see if I could recollect anything. Essentially, this story is so unremarkable that I did not remember reading it the first time.

(Story = 7 Good): That's not to say that the story (plot-wise) sucks or that it is horrible. It is just unmemorable and a passable activity to spend the afternoon. I'm surprised that this drama filled story didn't make hook me with it's tension or suspense.

Art (6 Fair): I'm not particularly fond of this artist's style. All the faces look exactly the same. The eyes and lips are too big. I don't think the art translated the mood of the story very well. This is just my personable picky-ness.

Characters (5 mediocre): I think my meh opinion of this story is the fault of the characters. I just really didn't care for their struggles. They didn't make me feel anything. It just didn't feel realistic. The romance didn't catch my heart. When a character's important person died, I didn't sympathize with them. If the story can't make me feel invested in it's characters then something isn't right. I just can't explain what it is.

Enjoyment (6 Fair): I mean I read the whole story again so something kept me going. I almost quit in the middle though.

Overall: 6

It felt dramatic and unrealistic. I couldn't suspend belief enough to totally enjoy the story.

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