The Wonderfools Review (Spoilers Ahead): Wonder or Fools?

⭐ Rating: 5.5/10

🎭 Genre: Supernatural / Mystery / Comedy

⏳ Episodes: 8

✅ What Worked: Campy fun vibe, warm-hearted moments, funny scenes, great opening/theme

❌ What Didnt: Slow start, predictable mystery, confusing plot points

👀 Worth Watching? Yes, if you enjoy quirky supernatural k-dramas with 90s small-town vibes

Ok there is a lot to unpack here. I just finished Wonderfools and I basically kept notes of random moments, things I liked and didn’t like, and thoughts throughout watching this drama. This review is for people who already watched this! Beware, because basically the entire show will be spoiled here.

This is me writing literally 30 minutes after finishing the show. I liked it, and I didn’t. In general, I enjoy the “figuring out what’s going on in the little town” type deal, especially when it’s set in the 90s and ESPECIALLY when it has to deal with the supernatural and ESPECIALLY when it’s a k-drama, so we’ve got all the good ingredients, right?

Unfortunately, it disappoints.

The mystery is not that mysterious with the kids in the factory. The only interesting part is what powers the mains got. The whole reveal with the incredible heart was also extremely easy to predict early on.

Wonderfools, Netflix

Now, when I first started watching episode 1, I thought I wouldn’t be able to continue because of the girl’s annoying voice and character. It was really abrasive, the way she kept screaming around town, not to mention trying to steal money from her grandmother. You kinda want a character you can root for, and initially she just wasn’t that for me. Though, I grew to really like her eventually. She has a lot of warmth and individuality.

I rooted for the grandmother more honestly, especially when she said the word “newfangled.”

That might be my favorite word in the English dictionary!

Newfangled. Don’t know why.

Anyway, back to it.

The first episode took me like 3 days to finish. I am not even kidding. I kept falling asleep or wanting to play a video game. I could barely keep my attention on it, but something in me still wanted to continue watching because it was so early on.

By the way, as you know, Cha Eun-woo is in this and I am pretty sure there is a moment with the flickering lights that references True Beauty? Not sure if anybody else caught that.

It was weird seeing him in this drama. He feels more suited to lighter-hearted shows, like he was truly a star in True Beauty. One of my favorite K-dramas by the way. Watching him smoke a cigarette here or wear a suit with those big glasses felt like watching a kid play with car keys in the front seat of a Range Rover. I kept thinking, what the heck is going on here?

Wonderfools, Netflix

Back to it.

I think what annoys me most in K-dramas is when actors play out scenes excessively with all the dramatics, screaming, crying, etc. and I felt that was a running theme here. Though toward the middle, I really started to enjoy the mains, so I honestly stopped minding it as much.

There were a lot of funny moments here. I absolutely loved in episode 4 when the scarred villain tries to use gravity to crush sweet Ro-bin and he thinks they are playing a game. It was hysterical. Also the closet moment when she thinks she traveled back in time and it turns out to really be a historical TV show. I thought that was really neat.

I also loved the theme of this drama. It’s really campy and fun, and it does feel a bit like the 90s with the phones and computers, though I think they could have made more of an effort to make the environment feel even more like that time period. I absolutely loved the theme song and opening sequence. It was really fun. Did anybody notice the episode 6 opening going gray? I wonder what that was about. Chae dying?

Also, I don’t really get the plot with the heart transplant. I mean, they don’t even know if it’s going to be successful again, especially on an old man? So I thought that was pretty poor villain planning there.

There were a few other annoying things in the show too, like Chae drinking coffee and within two seconds her heart starts racing like crazy. What? Also, only the villains getting hurt and aging badly, but not Woon-jung? I never fully understood what the deal with her powers even was either. She could only go to a certain point and then immediately come back?

Also, her grandmother funding the experiments? They never really explained why she did that. Was it to help Chae? Is Chae even actually her granddaughter or just a random kid from the factory that they placed the heart into?

Maybe others understood it better than I did.

Final question: they showed that evil scientist guy healing during the last moments of the finale, but this is an 8-episode mini series? So they kept it open for all the villains to come back, but realistically this is probably only getting one season. I honestly feel like this drama could have benefited from the usual 16 episodes instead.

Before giving my final thoughts and rating, I want to give a shoutout to Choi Yoon-ji. She played her character amazingly, giving her both warmth and strength. I absolutely rooted for her after seeing her give the kids something beautiful to hold on to. The fish were lovely.

Wonderfools, Netflix

🔥 Why You Should Watch

• Campy and fun vibe

• Great acting all around

• Superhero/mystery mix

• Genuinely hilarious moments

• Short 8-episode watch

👎 What Might Not Work For Everyone

• Frustrating characters at times

• Heavy on dramatics/screaming

• Mystery is pretty predictable

• Some plot points feel unexplained

• Ending feels rushed

  
  

❤️ Final Verdict

While I eventually enjoyed this drama, I felt it could have been given more. It takes some time before you really get invested, or at least that was the case for me. Still, it was warm-hearted and had a lot of charm to it. If you enjoy supernatural shows with heart, humor, and a campy small-town mystery vibe, this may be for you.

Acting: 5/5

Storyline: 2.5/5

Cinematography: 3/5  

Overall Entertainment Value: 3.5/5

 I rate it 5.5/10 stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐