"Hey, Yoon-jae. Do you still like me? Answer me right now. Are you in love with me?"
The passing of objects from character to character worked so well in this pair of episodes. The homework: Joon-hee does it for Yoon-jae, Yoon-jae would have done it twice for Shi-won, Dad does it for Shi-won in the end. The tickets: Yoo-jung to Hak-chan, revealing her crush on Yoon-jae, then giving them to Yoon-jae who can only think selfishly of Shi-won, and Hak-chan reusing the Next tickets to ask Yoo-jung out. The scarf: Yoon-jae giving it Shi-won, Shi-won thoughtlessly giving it to Joon-hee… all of it just tells us so much about the relationships, without needing to spell it out.
We know exactly who loves whom, and whose heart is getting ripped out in the process.
I tried to re-"catch" the feelings I was having from watching Crash Course in Romance.
So, I looked into my deep watchlist and ended up with two very thoroughly enjoyable k-dramas that are re-watchable for a picky watcher like me. This is going to be long so read below if interested about the k-dramas Our Beloved Summer and Reply 1988
our beloved summer
I'm a sucker for slice-of-life stories. while this story navigates through different timelines, it expertly toes the line between the past and the present thus presenting a full growth for each character in this simple yet relatable story. i love the script. i especially love the ost which i listen to every day even after finishing this drama a couple of months back.
our beloved summer, adapted from a webtoon, is the story of Choi Woong and Kook Yoon-seo who became viral after starring in a documentary about the contrast of the top and worst student in their highschool. that alone makes you curious. it's a catchy premise and the whole story manages keep the premise alive until the end.
the story is simple and you can guess where the story is headed. but what made me stay is the pacing and the writing. and it being true to what it set out to do-- to say that love can be found in different people in different times. but there are special moments where you find a different love in the same person at a different time.
i can confidently say that Choi Wooshik and Kim Da-mi are both actors to watch out for. they are not just made for the small screen. they each have such a presence that can't just be contained in a small screen. or maybe i just loved their chemistry so much. it's not even that kind of chemistry where it will grip your heart but it's the work that they put on both characters to make them as authentic as possible. i was drawn in on how they portrayed Woong and Yoon-seo. i was drawn on why they did what they did that led to their eventual *spoilers ahead* break-up and subsequent marriage.
watch this if you're not too heartbroken and you like a slow paced stories that fleshes out human emotions particularly of love-- to a romantic partner, to a mother, to a friend, and to found family.
i particularly loved the way they blindsided me about the reason why Woong was the was he was and why in a way he couldn't open himself up completely to Yoon-seo made me fall in love with the writing. with the sheer amount of content and stories readily available for us to consume, you become so desensitised that it's sometimes a welcomed gift when you don't get to predict what happens in a story.
that particular scene where they get back together and Woong says "...please keep loving me," is engraved in my heart.
--the only downside to this wonderful drama is a 1/4 of a love quadrangle that is too green to handle a wonderful script like this one. you'll know what I'm talking about when you watch it.
2. reply 1988
i don't know what got me drawn to the works of the tandem director Shin Wonho and writer Lee Woo-jung but i am so glad that i am. i started with hospital playlist after seeing so much memes about it and now i can't imagine my life without hosplay (i still watch the whole thing like every month).
but i'm not here to talk about hosplay but the third installment of the critically acclaimed "reply" series.
Reply 1988 is the highest rated in tv ratings among all the "reply" series. and i can totally understand that as this show captures all the tales and woes of each generation.
i can say that the number 1 appeal of the Shin-Lee series' is the nostalgia and the bravery it takes to tackle the simplest yet the most constant worries of a human.
for the 3rd "reply" installment, it goes back to 1988, before the year looked funny (as you will see on one of the episodes). there definitely is something true about that as that's when all the technology in the world started to become accessible.
this show crept up to me (much like Prison Playbook). this was my second attempt at watching it since the first time made me drop it for being too "scream-y" which to be honest, a lot of shows are anyway. but what made me stay were the moms and dads. only did the last few episodes made me notice the actual gang of young misfits.
i loved the way it tackled real-world, real-family problems without being preachy. i love the way the pacing is so slow and nostalgic. i love the way all the families interacted with each other and with the other families.
don't come watching this show for the love story (although i absolutely loved who the main girl character ended up with). come watch this show if you enjoy stories about family dynamics.
--the only thing i didn't like (and this is just totally me), is how the noona who seems to be levelheaded fell in love with an immature child. maybe i was too salty to understand how it all went down but it just wasn't for me.
There is nothing more dull and pathetic as my old belongings. But another word for 'dull' and 'pathethic' can be 'familiar' and 'comfortable'. My comfortable things that were created through the passage of time and only the people I am comfortable with can truly know me, embrace me, and console me. Sometimes, we don't want to see them because they are pathetic and dull. But those who can protect me are my people. People who I'm comfortable with, and who have been my people for a long time. This is why we cannot help loving them.
Time continues to pass. That's why time eventually creates farewells, and it always leaves people with regrets. If you love someone, you have to tell them now, before your fleeting days become filled with regrets. In some ways, the biggest gift that time leaves us with is the memories we have of loving others. That's why, before it's too late, you have to shove your embarrassment aside and confess your love to your loved ones.