When Cinderella at 2AM was good it was exceptionally insightful and, even, calming. There were characters--mainly Yoon-seo, but also a few others--who wouldn't panic at the sight of a problem and would confront their daily trials and tribulations with the equanimity of someone who thrives on balance rather than the high that is DRAMA. Every time a character behaved like an adult, it was like the audience was able release just that much more tension and breathe.

Just as one example, in this last episode, even as our female leads decided to get tropily drunk and complain about their partners, they, at the same time, spent their time also realizing how their own behaviors may have played a part in their current woes. For their partners' part, it so happens, the drama had the men satisfyingly realize their own contribution these woes at the very same time.

In terms of spicy plot points, our artist Lee Seong-min was a bit of a wild card, starting out a bit like the Joker sending oddly personal texts to a stranger, but then settling into the role of mirror, guide, and confidante to both Yoon-seo and Ju-won (Is a more apt description than Fairy Godfather??). He spoke with crystal clarity to Yeon-seo last week helping her see her own inherent value, and this week he tells it straight to Ju-won: "Your plan to fight this out or abandon your family of origin? That's what a guy like ME does. Someone with nothing to protect. You. Go talk to your mom."

Even Yoon-seo and Ju-won's fight in the restaurant courtyard seemed real and honest, but somehow not forced or overblown. "But you know more about champagne!" or "I was so sad and lonely, I went out and bought a plant!" (This last line of Ju-won's was one of the few punchlines of the whole drama that really landed for me.)

And yet, there were scenes upon scenes in this drama that also simply fell flat, all the way through to the last episode--I'd even put out there that the wedding was one of them. Not the shots of the audience, those were priceless. But seeing those two perform that rigidly stupid ceremony seemed, somehow, besides the point. As I note above, the comedy in particular was also never all that funny, but those scenes did serve as eye-rolling respite from the incredible person-to-person interactions that just punched you in the gut or had me dissolved into unrepentant tears.

Like @daebakgrits, I keep wondering if I'd recommend this drama to others given my not-insignificant reservations about its dramatic inconsistency. I would, but I certainly would not call it a "rom-com." It's not a romance and it's not a comedy.

When it is on its game, Cinderella at 2AM is more about how difficult honest, authentic commitment is as you live through those hours between sweeping the prince off his feet and then deciding to live the rest of your life alongside him--that is, how one finds the courage to...

Thank you for the recap, @DaebakGrits! I loved the premise of the show, although what caught my attention more are the bonds between Yoon-seo and Ji-seok plus Joo-won and Shi-won. It's not common to see chaebol brothers getting along so well.

I think I jumped a little more than ff'd, so I didn't quite earn the bean. @daebakgrits and @seon-ha had more elegant responses of why this was compelling and also boring, but it was an odd combination of both.
I think the ML will be great in ten years. He's just such a puppy right now.

What is left for this week? Last week, our swirling stopped. The two leads decided to come together into a committed relationship, which was the point of this Cinderella drama: an exploration of the emotional struggle that happens between infatuation and commitment. So, the next step is the final boss: Big Momma.

Soon-ju's first step is to fire her soon-to-be daughter-in-law. Because if you aren't useful, she is going to get rid of you. This contrasts with Yoon-seo's approach after she is offered to head the scholarship program. Let's think about the pros and cons and how I can be of service to my future family even if the presentation is insulting and possibly harmful to my brother.

Why do I point this out? Because Soon-ju's approach to relationships is transactional and based on mutual interests only, but Yoon-seo's approach is based on the premise of a lasting relationship. So, while she might get a better job somewhere else, she is committed to her relationships and needs to figure out what is best for all involved, brother, fiancé, and even mother-in-law.

This transactional approach is further highlighted by Seon-ju being dumped by her husband for no longer being useful and by Joo-won's anger at the insult to his fiancee. If you are able to just walk away from a relationship, it is easy to just burn down everything and never see that person again. When Yoon-seo encourages Joo-won to comfort his mother, Seon-ju realizes the weaknesses of her modus operandi. And, after a heart-to-heart with Jang-hee, Joo-won also realizes that the burning bridges policy is also not effective because he needs to protect his fiancé. Ultimately, both realize the importance of relationships and decide to change their ways to prioritize their relationships in their decision-making in the future.

So then, filler. The wedding planning/relationship struggles were considerably weaker than the rest of the show. Showing the couple struggling through time management and priority setting was significantly less emotional than the rest of the show, so it was a little bit of a let down. Buying a plant was funny. The wedding anniversary was funny. I also like how Si-won's marriage is also ironically a "new" relationship and sets up a frame for this drama about new relationships and commitment.

I don't regret watching this drama. I felt Business Proposal vibes from beginning to end and I really like the story and the dramatic parts of the show. I felt the writing was inconsistent. Some parts were really moving and well-written. Other parts lacked heart and the humor didn't always hit for me. I think I will fondly remember the journey of personal discovery that Yoon-seo experienced, but would not watch this again. Many dramas are about self-love vs shame. Peeling back the layers to get to this point was a nice approach to this theme.

I dont like the actress, so..

This was a nice drama that was easy to relax while watching. It wasn't spectacular, but there were hardly any scenes that made me upset (almost all of them involved the insufferable work colleague). However, I will also have forgotten it quickly.

One of the highlights was the relationship between the two brothers. I was never afraid that in order to construct conflict, the two would suddenly compete and scheme against each other.
And I didn't find it entirely implausible how the two brothers improved their relationship with their mum during the trip together, making her a little more open and human. This was the best scene of the last episode.

@DaebakGrits thank you for your company over these last weeks and your insightful thoughts all things C@2am! I totally agree with your final summation of show and find myself feeling a bit disappointed overall, show had great potential but ultimately failed to deliver on it's original premise. Not the hidden gem I was hope for...

PS would absolutely sign up for Jeju Cinderella Makes Good!

I think the idea was good. It wasn't what I expected. I have imagine the FL will live her best life with the money she got at least. But our FL was a very pragmatic, realistic woman who prefers to save... I liked her backstory and her relationship with her brother. The love story looked strong so it was sad to see her realizing she didn't fight for it and she loved him more she thought.

The 2 brothers were adorable, it was quite surprising with their environment they weren't completely bitter. I liked their relationship, how they cared and support each other.

The office's parts were not the best because of the 2 colleagues who were unbearable the most of the time.

I think there were so miscasting mistakes. Moon Sang-min looked way too young for this role as a CEO and for the relationship. Surprisly, Shin Hyun-bin's lack of charisma didn't bother so much because of the other actors. Yoon Park and Sojin were cute together, I wished they had more scenes. The actor who played the brother was looking too old for this role 😅

The drama did not have enough actual plot for me. I know that's a bit like complaining that strawberries do not have enough chocolate flavour; If I want chocolate, I should go eat chocolate and not mess around with strawberries. But sometimes I just eat what is in front of me and petulantly complain :)
The only actual problem I had with the drama was the excessive drinking as a way of dealing with problems or sadness. While this is a systemic problem with Korean dramas and culture, with a drama showing DV and negligence due to parental misuse of alcohol, it really struck a wrong note. Surely after her history our heroine had more sense?
I enjoyed seeing the ML again, I think his acting can get better, but he did a reasonable job. I thought 2FL was great.

As @attiton says, when it was good it was really good. So it's a shame that there were too many times when it was bad and boring (I was about to drop it after the second episode, but fortunately 3 and 4 were another story).

It could have been a very good drama about relationships and commitment when the couple comes from very different economic backgrounds and social status. This could have been told in eight episodes, just leaving out the bad parts.

The secondary couple was interesting too, and at least the comedy worked.

So bad points: too many drunken sequences, uneven pace and script and the insufferable coworkers.

Good points: all the original songs, the script when it was good.

I can't disagree with anyone's critique of MSM. But thinking of the fairytale Prince Charming archetype discussed by Beanies last week, I think he served what the script asked him to be: handsome, adoring, and not much else. So to be fair, some of that flatness is on the writing as well. Let's hope not only does he get better with age and experience, but the writer as well. 

Overall, I don't have much to add beyond the consensus here. To borrow from another Beanie's analogy (not an original bone in my body today), this show was a roller coaster of the good and the bad. Except, perhaps, this was more like a kiddie ride for me. The highs weren't terribly high, nor the lows terribly low. A solid B drama, as mild and modest as its Cinderella. 

In my opinion there were a number of minor things that could have easily been remedied that would have made it a lot better—it paid too much attention to the over the top "comic" office workers, and I didn’t find drunk competitions between the ML and his rival in the love triangle amusing. In fact, I personally didn’t find the love triangle artist likeable at all. His one contribution to moving the plot forward was to call the ML; his “advice” to the ML about his mother was dumb and ultimately less effective than the brothers just expressing their affection to her, and he remained a guy who would always be trying to make moves on the FL—not a friend that I would want to see in the future. I would have liked instead to see more of the mother's story and marriage, which led her to oppose her sons' romantic choices. It would have made her last episode thaw more believable. As it is, she was slightly less cartoonish than most obstructionist kdrama Moms, but really only at the end.

But to get to the strength, which was enough for me to feel this worthwhile, without a doubt it was the way the FL lead was written and acted. I have to disagree with @daebakgrits, that it would have been better to not have the initial payoff, because that set the terms for her character, always thinking of the practical thing, and being smartly realistic about it, worrying about the potential problems while at the same time not really being able to deny her that she loved the ML. At times I found her reactions and thought process quite moving. Also, the ML was supportive, but definitely not perfect, so that character was effective as well.— although I would say, and this is the second rom com I’ve seen with him as ML, his acting does leave a little bit to be desired. I would say that he could be a little sexier, but lately kdrama rom-coms favor less mature, boyish cuteness in their MLs, so I guess to fit in he just has just has to get a little bit better about portraying cuteness.

Two other things: I actually liked the bickering over the wedding planning and its happy resolution. I’ve notice no one on DB ever likes any wrap up that includes a wedding—every time its shown people call it meaningless filler. I guess I’m just more of a romantic when it comes to marriage than anyone else here.

But finally, I just want to mention that this is one of 3 shows that ran concurrently that had strong and complex female leads, the other being Good Partner and No Gain, No Love. They all reminded me in various ways of women who I’ve been friends with and admired in real life, so I appreciate seeing that on the screen, and that’s what will stay with me about this modest and pleasant production.

Just, Blah! Like the Curate's egg, Good in Places. Another drop-dead-gorgeous hero insanely in love with a rather unlovable heroine.

I did really enjoy the wild flights of fancy imaginary interludes. They are a Kdrama structural trope in themselves, and are always good fun. ML with the rose managed to look simultaneously sexy and cheesy. ( Has there been a treasure hunt for them?)
Of course the way they framed the interludes ( over emotional office colleague) did not work at all. Just the thought of having to work with someone like that in the office gave me fingernails-on-blackboard vibes, there is no way I would be promoting him!

Some random thoughts as CINDERELLA AT 2AM wrapped up:
1. Great music. Credit to the folks responsible for the OST;
2. Moon Sang-min looked fantastic is suits. Credit to his wardrobe person. Lee Joon-hyuk (1984) watch your back on the suit department;
3. From what I remember reading Shin Hyun-been’s character was younger than her in real life and Moon Sang-min’s character was older than him in real life. I don’t think the age difference really mattered. Yes (as discussed previously) CA2AM was more of a ‘her’ drama (in regards to character development) than a ‘his’ drama but I think both leads handled their parts very well. As I mentioned before you can’t blame Prince Charming if even the Grimm Brothers didn’t write Prince Charming a back story;
4. Insane amount of alcohol consumed Not good;
5. I am generally an easy marker so I would give Moon Sang-min more credit than some here for his acting. Let’s exclude the comedic and drinking scenes. They were fairly terrible. When he (and SHB) were given beautiful dialogue I think they both delivered. Certainly MSM can hang his hat on the scene in the conference room where Joon-won defended himself to Yoon-seo;
6. I also would have liked to have seen more of what happened in Mom’s marriage. I had cast in my mind Choi Min-soo as Dad arriving on the scene; and
7. Yoon Park and Sojin were terrific. It is unfortunate that many will never see this comedic performance by Yoon Park. His Shi-won is now my favorite YP role. I hope he does more comedic roles.

I think that I share Deabakgrit's analysis of what did not work with the main story even as I generally enjoyed this show. I actually bought into our secondary romance more than the main one, because it seemed more logical and natural.

I just hate to quit a show, so I changed my mind and finished it since I was really looking forward to it. I FF a bit through a lot of the office drama and drinking. Just couldn't get into the coworkers at all. And as cute as MSM is, I just didn't feel his character. We really don't know much about him at all. It seemed he changed himself (he called it opening up to new ideas) to be like her - food choices, movies, etc. I know he liked the opera but that's about all. I just wanted him to be more human. And the female lead just didn't work for me at all. Such a cold, self centered person. The age difference didn't bother me at all, but there was just no emotion and no spark between them even in the kissing scene. It felt so flat to me. I LOVED the brother and sister in law and their relationship. Just swooned at, "Lets share a bedroom at our 100 days," "Why not now?!!!" Loved them both so much. Kudos to Yoon Park and Park So Jin!! So, all in all a disappointment to me, but I will continue to root for Moo Sang Min and continued growth in future dramas.