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Adventurecore with pine forest please and thank you
it’s after school and the cool breeze of the season drifts between your fingers. you’re supposed to go home after class, but instead your feet lead a better way. the forest calls. it is full of pines that reach up into the sky, and you smile up at them. your boots kick around pinecones and a stick you grabbed becomes your companion—whether it’s a wand, sword, or walking stick. the sun dips between the trees as you make your way home, eyes bright with the views of the forest.
master kdrama reclist
Series: Chicago Typewriter
Episodes: 16 (~1hr each)
Genres: Fantasy, Historical, Friendship, Romance, Comedy, Mystery, Angst
Spoilers in the Review: Mild ones, nothing that’ll ruin any surprises
Rank: 10/10
If You Like, You’ll Like: Goblin, Assassination (kmovie), Secret Window (Stephen King), 1930s period pieces, war movies, spies, anything with reincarnation/past lives
“The muses are ghosts, and sometimes they come uninvited.”
Main Characters.
Chicago Typewriter follows three, central characters in the current day and their past lives in Japan-occupied, 1930s Korea. First off, we have:
Han Se Ju. A famous novelist, and is known as “Korea’s Stephen King.” He writes thrillers and mysteries, and at the beginning of the drama he is suffering writer’s block. Kind of a shit, he is incredibly prickly and distrustful to everyone (aside from his manager and assistant), and is your basic creative genius/asshole at the beginning of the show (he Gets Better). Signature moment: Decides that the forest surrounding his ostentatious mansion needs more ambiance, and essentially hires deer to...idk? Prance?? outside his workroom window.
In his past life, he was:
Seo Hwi Young. A dime store/rag novelist who drinks, womanizes, and basically just lives in his best bud’s nightclub. He’s essentially the 1930s Korean equivalent of the Daily Mail, and while everyone else around him is invested in resisting the occupation, he’s a-ok with drinking some martinis and writing saucy newspaper columns.
Then we have
Jeon Seol. Who is my heart and my life. Known as “The Legend,” she’s pretty much done a little bit of everything, including Olympic training (national shooting champ!), veterinarian school, a stint at Subway (who has to have pretty impressive stock at TvN), and is currently working as an errand runner-- meaning she takes up whatever jobs people have for her. An avid reader, she’s a huge fan (BNF, if you will) of all of Han Se Ju’s work. And then she does the “Meet Your Heroes” thing and let’s say that fanship gets a little rocked…
In her past life, she was
Ryu Su Hyung. Rescued by the Joseon Youth Alliance as a young girl, Su Hyung has lived in Carpe Diem, the nightclub where most 1930s action takes place. She grows up to become a resistance fighter and a sniper (AW YEAH) and dresses like a boy to hide her identity (though she has mastered the DRAMATIC UNVEILING OF HAIR whenever the cap comes off). She has a cover identity called “Anastasia,” a lounge singer at Carpe Diem. #VersatileAF
Rounding out our main trio is
Yoo Jin Oh. A mysterious figure who is hired by Han Se Ju’s manager to ghostwrite once the author’s writer’s block doesn’t go away. He enters a couple eps behind the other main two. He’s a bit of a troll, who hates red beans, is incredible expressive, and is an intense dog lover (a fluffy dog in particular, named Gyun Woo).
In his past life, he was (tiny spoiler w/ the name):
Shin Yul. The son of an affluent/still influential Korean family, best friend to Seo Hwi Yung and Ryu Su Hyung, and the owner of Carpe Diem. He’s a high-ranking member of the resistance, and is shown to have a close mentorship relationship to Ryu Su Hyung. Despite his more serious role, he’s a goofy, fun-loving guy who likes to get drunk and dance, steal martinis from friends, and make grand proclamations The Club.
The Premise.
I don’t want to spoil things, because a lot of the fun with this show is the slow reveal, so this will be skimpier than other reviews.
Han Se Ju, to get out of his writer’s block, is inspired to start writing a new novel called Chicago Typewriter, though it might be more fair to say that the novel is using him to write it--the show often makes use of Stephen King’s quote: “The muses are ghosts, and sometimes they come uninvited.” As the novel progresses, Han Se Ju, Jeon Seol, and Yoo Jin Oh begin remembering their past lives as comrades and lovers in 1930s Korea. As more memories come to the surface, relationships in the present day are complicated by those from the past.
Review.
I loved the hell out of this drama. But let’s get the less-than-ideal stuff out of the way first (#ShortList):
-The Subway Strikes Back. Those of you who’ve seen Goblin probably already know what’s happening here. Product placement isn’t as terrible as it was in Goblin, but it’s still pretty noticeable and shoehorned in. I don’t think anyone I know who writes would think “YES! SUBWAY IS WHERE I WANT TO WRITE MY NOVEL!!!!” but here we are
-Slow Build. This is honestly a plus for me, but I can see how it might be a turn-off for other viewers. The show teases and takes its time for the first 5 episodes, with things really not rolling until around ep 6 or 7. HOWEVER. Stick with it!! Once it decides to move into the main plot, things start rolling and they don’t stop.
Let’s talk about the reasons to watch:
-The 1930s! The settings and costumes in the 1930s flashbacks are gorgeous. I’m not someone usually interested in this time period, but the backstory drew me in and was totally immersive. Everything is filmed beautifully #AESTHETICS
-FRIENDSHIP! All three of the characters have clear development in both their past and present lives, and you can see how they respond to the unveiling information and react to it. The story at its heart is about three people sticking by each other’s sides despite what’s happened or what will happen. They’re the best, I haven’t seen a friendship #bond like this since Being Human (US version).
-Themes! The show had two central themes imo, the importance of living in the moment, and learning from mistakes and moving past them. Not to get too spoilery, but the “villains” in this show are the ones who couldn’t rectify their actions to themselves / move past the bad.
-OST! THE MUSIC Y’ALL. This show, kind of like Star Wars, is elevated by its soundtrack and scores. SaltNPaper’s “Satellite Love” is my clear favorite, but for real the entire OST is excellent, indie mood music. Listen to a couple songs on YouTube here.
-ROMANCE! Hey, it’s pretty top-notch. I’m not going to spoil anything, but I absolutely loved both sides of the romance coin in this drama. Has the Essential Fanfic Trope: WE MUST MAKEOUT TO HIDE FROM ENEMIES (but wait there’s actual feelings here)
-Acting!!! Good god they’ll all make you want to cry. Go Kyung Pyo especially knocks it out of the park with Shin Yul/Yoo Jin Oh
-TROPES (in a good way)! Soulmates! Reincarnation! MUTUAL PINING!! This has all your favorite fanfic tropes.
Give it a shot (#2Soon)! This is one of my favorites for sure.
