True to Love

True to Love (Bo-ra! Deborah)

My Rating: 9.5/10

If you like good solid romances that start with two characters who don’t necessarily like each other but move from enemies to frenemies, to friends to lovers, this is a great pick. The Female Lead (Yeon Bo-ra) and Male Lead (Lee Soo-hyuk) have excellent chemistry that makes their slow-burn progression feel natural and satisfying.

It also hits the spot if you’re interested in break-up tropes, self-help type characters or dating counselors who have to face their own messy love lives. The show handles a lot of it with real levity and funny moments, which keeps things from getting too heavy. I would absolutely recommend True to Love, I’d watch it again, and it’s earned a permanent spot in my library of must-watch romances.

Spoilers

Watching the Female Lead (Yeon Bo-ra) belittle herself with her ex was cringe to the next level. The begging him to take her back and saying she would just ignore his cheating felt second-hand embarrassing. My daughter, my 30-something drama-watching buddy, especially had a hard time with those parts and it almost made her quit watching. Her personal style is that she doesn’t grovel on anything. I’m more the hopeless romantic who has made an idiot out of myself over some guys, so we had very different responses. It was a bit much though, even for me, given her background as a dating coach. Still, I know we often give the best advice to others that we never take ourselves, and that theme really landed for me.

The ex of the Male Lead (Lee Soo-hyuk) was just mean. Yes, he was a little emotionally distant, but that didn’t excuse her starting a relationship with someone else and saying every vile thing she could think of when she broke up with him. And given some of the things she said about Bo-ra, she just wasn’t a very nice person. I was actually glad she went through with her marriage and left because she felt toxic to me.

And man, some of Bo-ra’s friends. I’m like girl, you need to re-think who you befriend. The girl at the wedding where she was told to think of the champagne glass as a prop? Why would you even associate with someone so mean-spirited? Her really good friend/bestie (Lee Yoo-jeong) had her moments too. She sided with the Male Lead (Lee Soo-hyuk) one time and threw Bo-ra under the bus, which frustrated me.

Then that event Bo-ra hosted where she went off on her fans — peak cringe. I know people lose it like that, but letting it ruin your job? That was a lot.

I also wasn’t a fan of the age-gap romance between the CEO (Male Lead’s friend) and the young employee. The gap felt way too big for me — she seemed very young with this idealized, almost fairy-tale view of romance, while he was clearly in a much later stage of life with different priorities and perspectives. I just couldn’t picture the two of them together at all. It came off like the classic “wealthy older guy dating a much younger woman because he can,” even though the show tried to make it feel deeper and not about that. They didn’t seem to have much in common, which made the pairing feel forced and unconvincing to me.

A lot of other viewers seem to have felt the same way about these parts — the groveling scenes, the toxic ex dynamics, the age-gap romance subplot, and some of the frustrating friend moments. Many people noted how realistic (if painful) it was to watch a dating coach struggle so badly in her own love life, and quite a few mentioned the second-hand embarrassment during Bo-ra’s lowest points. It made the growth later feel more earned for me, even if those middle sections tested my patience a bit.Overall, the strengths of the central romance and the show’s honest look at relationships far outweighed the cringier moments for me. That’s why it still lands at a strong 9.5/10 in my book.

Overview

• Year Aired: 2023

• Number of Episodes: 14

• Average Runtime Per Episode: Approximately 60 minutes

• Genres: Romantic Comedy, Drama, Slice of Life

• Country of Origin: South Korea

• Alternate Titles: Bo-ra! Deborah, True to Love, I’m Serious About Dating

Synopsis

Bo-ra! Deborah follows a successful dating coach and bestselling relationship author whose carefully crafted views on love completely fall apart after her own relationship implodes in spectacular fashion. Known publicly by her glamorous pen name “Deborah,” Yeon Bo-ra has built a career teaching people how to date strategically and confidently — but privately, she discovers she may understand romance far less than she thought.

As her heartbreak becomes increasingly public and humiliating, Bo-ra unexpectedly crosses paths with Lee Soo-hyuk, a cynical publishing planner who dislikes shallow dating advice and has little faith in modern romance. Despite their completely opposite views on love, the two slowly become entangled in each other’s emotional messes while navigating failed relationships, lingering heartbreak, vulnerability, and the uncomfortable reality that love rarely follows anyone’s rules.

Major Character List

Yeon Bo-ra / Deborah (Yoo In-na)A famous dating coach, relationship influencer, and bestselling author known for confidently giving romance advice to others despite struggling with her own emotional vulnerabilities. After a devastating breakup, she begins reevaluating everything she thought she understood about love.

Lee Soo-hyuk (Yoon Hyun-min)A publishing planner who is skeptical about romance and openly critical of superficial dating advice. Though emotionally guarded and cynical, he gradually becomes an important emotional support for Bo-ra as the two develop a deeper connection.

Han Sang-jin (Joo Sang-wook)The charismatic CEO of the publishing company where Soo-hyuk works. He often provides humor and relationship commentary while navigating his own complicated personal life.

Lee Yoo-jung (Hwang Chan-sung)Soo-hyuk’s longtime friend and business associate. Charming but emotionally immature, his relationship struggles highlight many of the series’ themes about communication and commitment.

Yang Jin-ho (Lee Sang-woon)Bo-ra’s longtime boyfriend whose betrayal and emotional distance trigger the collapse of her carefully controlled life. His actions force Bo-ra to confront painful truths about both herself and her understanding of relationships.

Yeon Bo-mi (Kim Ye-ji)Bo-ra’s younger sister, who provides emotional grounding and support throughout Bo-ra’s personal crises while also representing a more straightforward and emotionally open approach to love.

Noh Ju-wan (2PM’s Chansung)Bo-ra’s publishing industry connection and friend who becomes involved in the emotional chaos surrounding her professional and personal life.

Park Mi-so (Park So-jin)A close friend figure who offers practical advice and emotional support while also providing additional perspectives on dating and relationships.