Review Rubric of Sorts

Hello!  I'm starting to get back into watching dramas, now that I have more time, so I thought I'd post a little review rubric of sorts.  This is basically what I'm looking for when I watch a drama, to consider it a good drama (or anime or movie, but I'll just refer to them all as "drama" to make it shorter).

1. A well-written storyline.
I have no problem with remakes of past dramas or the same basic story being told, because let's face it...most of the dramas are like that.  Most of them end with the main male character and main female character getting through all the obstacles and ending up together.  Most.  As long as the storyline and dialogue is well-written and there are some twists involved, it's all good.  Even better if I don't see it coming.

2. Well developed main characters and good side characters.
This is a pretty big one.  Obviously, the characters are what make the story happen.  They should be well developed and have personality, as well as some flaws.  No one wants to watch some perfect person get everything she wants.  I know I don't, unless it's Disney and we're dealing with princesses and prince charmings and glass slippers and fairy tales.  It's a major turn off from a drama, for me.  Characters should be pretty realistic, but I don't mind if they're a little goofier than normal with anime-type expressions and such.  As long as it's not overused.

3. Good acting.
I think this is another big one, as the actors are the ones who bring the character to life.  Bad acting can totally ruin a drama, even if it sounds like it has a good storyline. 

These first 3 points are definitely major ones.  They are deal breakers, when it comes to my rating scale.  But the last one is also key.

4. Good ending.
Finally, a drama must have a good ending.  It doesn't have to be a happy ending, but it must be plausible (unless it's of the fantasy/science fiction genre).  I would love it if it tied up all the loose ends.  Or, if the creators wanted to leave it open to a sequel, if it was done in a realistic manner with a good cliff hanger.  I don't know how else to describe what I'm looking for in an ending...but I can give an example of a recent ending that I was a bit disappointed in: Shining Inheritence.  Actually, I was a bit disappointed in the drama overall.  It didn't live up to the hype, for me, but that's another story that you can read about in my review!

Which leads me to some of advice: take all recommendations with a grain of salt UNLESS you know you definitely have the same tastes in dramas/movies/anime as the person who is recommending.

And yeah, those are the 4 main things I look at when I review.  I also take into account other things from time to time, but these 4 are the deciding factors on whether I'll recommend or not.

Also, as I mentioned before, I will be reviewing one or two episodes at a time from now on, since I hardly have time to watch a drama straight through anymore.  This will let me remember the main points of each episode and what I thought of the episode.  Then, when I've watched all episodes, I'll go through and write a review of the whole drama, referring to my episode posts and following this rubric.

Look for my next review on...You're Beautiful! :)