Mary Stayed Out All Night (2010)

When I think of this drama, the thing I remember most fondly is the music. Mary Stayed Out All Night has a KILLER soundtrack! This is truly the first drama I watched where:

A) I even noticed the music in a positive way, i.e., not thinking to myself, “I'm sick of hearing this song.”

B) Halfway through, went desperately searching for the entire O.S.T.

C) Found it and played it on repeat in my iPod for months.

The sweet and thoughtful “I Will Promise You” was the first song to grab hold of me. Jang Geun Suk’s gentle crooning over the playful, melodic acoustic guitar chords reminds me of waking up on a rainy Saturday morning. You know, the kind of morning where you get up slowly, make yourself a yummy breakfast and snuggle up in your favorite, most comfy pajamas for most of the day? Yeah, it totally took me there. And the upbeat and flirty “Hello Hello” is the song you play as you leave home on a bright and sunny morning, ready to seize the day and give it your best!

I found that all of the songs on the soundtrack took me to someplace, and they painted a vivid and wonderful background for the drama. Which is good, since the plotline for Mary tasks the characters with creating an O.S.T. for a fictional drama within the drama.

Now that I’ve waxed poetic about the music, I’ll move on the actual drama details. :)

This drama is like junk food. It’s the kind of drama you watch when you’re in the mood for something cute, but not necessarily ground-breaking or deep. It’s good when you want to watch some eye candy with brains and emotions; when you want to watch a youthful, fun drama with a decent plotline and fairly witty writing. You can’t walk into a drama like Mary with high expectations about character development, moral issues (but it is successful with regard to some of that), and dynamic plot twists and turns. You really just have to take it for what it is. Quirky and kind of cute.

The actors are very likeable in their roles and do a good job portraying their characters. Moon Geun Young is ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE in the character of Mary. It’s all I could do to resist putting her in my pocket. She and Jang Geun Suk have wonderful chemistry, despite the fact that they dress like homeless people. I chalked it up as being a part of their eccentric charm.

Geun Suk is a moody, stoic, slightly arrogant and detached rocker--a role he’s played before, I think--but he’s also pretty funny with good one-liners and shows growth as the drama progresses. Kim Jae Wook is the misunderstood and terribly awkward business man that also grows through the series. As I am someone who is commonly (and tragically) a lover of the secondary male lead over the primary, my heart went out to him.

The only warning and major dislike I have is that the parents in this drama drove me BANANAS. Their rationale for their actions was just absurd and outdated, frustrating me greatly. The thought of the parents alone have stopped me from re-watching this drama, unfortunately. If they weren’t so irrational, I’d rate this much higher for re-watch value.

The “re-watch” value for the music, however, is a 10, hands down!

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