At a Distance, Spring Is Green

Spring is hope and new beginning

At first, I really didn't like the drama. I didn't quite understand what the producers wanted to show, it was quite slow and there were constantly new characters and information that didn't change much in the storyline. It wasn't until episode 6 that the drama got me! Then, slowly, the sense of this series began to appear and the further I went, the more I liked it 😊

After some deep thinking, I must say that this is not an easy-peasy drama 😬 I mean, you can simply benchwatch it and move on but when you actually focus on the plot you notice the fineness and hear what problems in life people may face already at young age.

At Distance Spring Is Green consists of the stories of several students but mainly focuses on 3. Each of them has been deprived of a certain aspect of life and so far they have tried to live by ignoring this problem. Thanks to the school weave of events, they gettto know each other and decide to face the obstacles.

I am full of admiration how much emotion the actors have put into these characters. It was enough to look at them once and you can read from their faces what is going on in their hearts 💚 I cannot chose whom I like more because all 3 main characters were fantastic.

What more can I say about this drama? It is like spring, it warms you up 😍 At Distance (....) has unique vibe and even though it speaks about hard topics like poverty, aggression, trauma etc. it does it in a hopefull way. It doesn't make life seem gray and sad while fallowing the story. On the contrary, it shows that you can get out of even the most unpleasant situations in life and enjoy living.


💚💚💚💚 For more reviews please visit my blog my-asian-dramas.blogspot.com 💚💚💚💚

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Friendship is so beautiful here that anyone can love it

I don't even know why people rate it so low. One of the a few dramas I would watch again. The friendship in this drama is so nice I like how it describe 3 different lives of 3 people. I like interactions between Joon and Soo Hyun and how over time they became to understand to each other and become closer and finally became friends in the end. I understand why Soo Hyun didn'treally confessed his feeling to Young Ran because he still doesn't have time for relationship and other stuff except to take car of his family. Music was one of the best I heard in the 2021 kdramas (I must download it, is good to hear it anytime ). Overall I would say for me one of the best kdramas in 2021 I watched. Actors were amazing for me mostly actor that played Soo Hyun, he did everything so good and relatable to me and to reality how poor people struggle in real life. I will definitely watch another dramas with them and with Kwon Eun Bin she is so beautiful and nice. If there ever would be season 2 I would watch it with pasion.

PS: Never writed a review here but damn this kdrama was so amazing that I needed to write something beautiful about it.

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Left a surprisingly lasting impression

It's definitely not a 10, but for some reason, it stuck with me wayyyyyy longer than I thought it would.
I just absolutely love Park Ji Hoon! Whatever he plays just makes sense. Their chemistry was also endearing, but he has an absolutely special way of portraying trauma. As someone who also watched Weak Hero Class 1, I can just say he is fantastic at playing broken characters that somehow still keep it together - a somewhat stable broken person. Truly fascinating!
I wish a lot of people watch it and appreciate the beautiful acting talent of this actor who somehow made his way into my heart. I respect and admire him a lot!

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Touched me emotionally very much

I already saw this show at like social media but I wasn‘t that interested at first, but after seeing another youtube video, it started to catch me and I decided to give it a try and watched it. The story touched me very deeply and emotionally, I felt so bad for yeo jun and nam soo-hyeon. I didn‘t read the webtoon but I saw that some people pointed out the kind of undercover BL hints, but I already knew that it wasn‘t a BL story, also I like BL very much and this story could have fit perfectly, I don‘t mind it that much that this was a f/m lovestory. Yeo jun and So-bin were kinda cute together but the relationship or friendship between yeo jun and nam soo hyun catched me the most. It was just so beautiful and heart warming to see them together, opening up to each other despite their first struggles and opposite characters. I really liked the fact that they lived together at some point. Their past also hit me deeply emotionally, escpecially yeo jun‘s story and I couldn‘t understand his parents at all, like why were they so cruel to him, at least his brother turned out to be nice and I was glad that they could bury their hatred or that yeo jun could reconcile with his brother. I also liked Wang young-ran and thought that it would‘ve been good if she ended up with nam soo hyun but still it was alright like that. Overall, I really liked the trio of yeo jun, nam soo hyun and so bin, but also the girls trio with so bin, wang young ran and mi joo was heartwarming to see how they all supported each other.
But like I already said, yeo jun and nam soo hyun were the highlight for me and I really liked the show.

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magnificent

Magnificent from start to finish. Be forewarned there are a lot of domestic violence triggers, so that was difficult. On some level I empathized with each of the 3 main characters, having some minor shared experiences with each of them. That's never happened for me before so that was weird.

Considering this s the first Korean drama I've ever watched, I'm amazed at how much I loved it. But I loved it because of the themes, and because of Joon's story particularly. These types of themes that deal in mental health, when done well, are just brilliant regardless of the country creating the content. So I'm glad this was my first Korean drama. It probably won't be my last, but even if it is the only Kdrama I ever watch, I will always remember and love it.

Hard to believe I've rated 2 dramas 10 stars already this year. That's a miracle.

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l didn't hate it and might even rewatch it occasionally, skipping a few parts.

I've been curious about this one for some time now. It does touch on themes that are close to my heart. I love the youth and life genres. It supposedly had friendship as a main topic. And after seeing Park Ji Hoon's stellar acting in Weak Hero, I was on top of that curious to see him in other roles. Therefore after some thinking I was finally convinced to watch this show. I haven't read the webtoon nor am I planning to, so this review is solely based on the drama.

The premise, the themes, the main characters and the finale, as well as the acting, are what made me watch it until the end and not think that this was a total waste of time. There are some memorable and very emotional scenes. Other than that, I can't say it was spectacular. The plot is wonky, it relies a lot on plot conveniences, clichés, nothing is really subtle at all, the pacing is a bit weird, it's a bit boring sometimes (it's a slice-of-life, sure but still) and I can't say I was very entertained all along. I was tempted to skip ahead more than once (and I did end up skipping some seconds and minutes here and there, particularly episode 7 and onward). I also didn't like the OST. To be more precise, I do not like having a piece, or worse : a song with lyrics, in almost every scene. It's too overstimulating. I prefer minimalistic OSTs and silence. Here it seemed to me there was barely any silence ever.

So what is good ?

The overarching themes and lessons are.

Yeo Joon is one of the best things in this story in terms of psychological complexity. He's the kind of characters I love in general. He looks weak and fragile and he does cry easily for a guy but he's actually pretty tough. What he went through makes his behaviour understandable, that's a great point as it's not an easy thing to write. Ji Hoon's acting obviously brings a lot. But his character 'grows' too easily, too fast in my opinion. I was happy seeing him happy - but maybe it was too hopeful for me ? I prefer realism. He's endured so much and I think his character flaws needed to take more precedence than that, create more inner and outer conflicts. Also, the plot convenience of him having forgotten/mixed up his memories and suddenly remembering correctly and everything just resolved like this... I think it was disappointing, underwhelming and badly written. His backstory is what was most intriguing to me and this was very quickly dealt with.

Kim So Bin, as much as I love Kang Min Ah and think she did a beautiful job here with what she was given, is pretty much the typical lost, shy, kindhearted and cute damsel in emotional distress without much more to it. While she seemed to be so important in the beginning, and the romance took a lot of the available space for a few episodes, she then kind of blends into the background at some point and just becomes Joon's girlfriend with no life of her own. Her trauma, her mother, her story, her own interests and other non-romantic relationships do not really matter any longer. She does have some nice moments with her roommates but their bond primarily resolves around crying about their individual love pains and it just doesn't interest me that much. I admit I was hoping for some cool girls friendship when I saw she was going to live at a dorm with 2 other girls but got almost nothing. I do not dislike her character but she's simply too linear. Her only flaw is having some abandonment trauma and anxiety and being too nice, but that's not how good character flaws work. To add to that, I think the way her trauma was dealt with was also fairly unoriginal. And when she met with her mother and simply decided never to see her again and after some explaining this was over - it seemed lazy to be honest.

Nam Soo Hyun is the character that made me cry the most, seeing him struggle so hard to get by, and I think he was a very interesting and flawed guy with a great development. I actually like that he was the most reticent to change and I like the fact that, even though he had two potential love interests and he was apparently interested in one of the girls, he chose not to conclude with any of them as he was still too unconfident in himself until the end. I think it was realistic, interesting and relatively well done. People don't change just like that, as he said rightly. His slowly growing brotherhood with Joon was also very moving. I think it was pretty nicely done considering their unusual personalities and they do end up looking like close brothers, which was pleasant. Joon really looked like this annoying and clingy but cute little brother that just desperately needed the help and support Soo Hyun could provide, while Joon was his door to learning to be more laid-back and emotionally honest with himself and others.

However, I think the writer didn't rightly balance romance/friendship over the course of the story and the ending was a bit weird in this regard (their final group project was basically all about the MLs friendship even though the romance and romantic love in general was so important in like 60% of the show). The romance between So Bin and Joon, while cute and all that, didn't seem very logical to me the way it was done. I don't really understand why she suddenly was in love with Joon. He manipulated her and used her emotional fragility to make her rely on him. She shouldn't have just accepted that so easily. I'm also uncertain about the need for a romance altogether. It made sense that Joon would need both friendship and romance in his life to grow as he was desperate for any kind of love he could find but - and I'm really trying to see it without my preference for friendships bias - I think the romance aspect should have been a minor/side thing instead of trying to take the main spot only to be relegated to the backseat in the end. The friendship part of it all between the 3 should have been the foundation and the meat (and it does go back to this in the finale anyway), while the romance should have been something that would have slowly developed along the way to blossom towards the ending, less flamboyantly. So yeah, I'm not sure if I'm the best person to judge a romance but I'll just say I wasn't really convinced. I've seen better, less forced ones.

It's also too bad the secondary girls weren't much more as characters than love interests for Soo Hyun. Young Ran was probably the most well-developed of the two though and I loved her a lot. It's a shame Mi Joo just disappeared. Professor Park is another secondary character that I really liked, he was so funny with his obsession for his students to love him and eat with him and his pure joy whenever any of them would talk to him and ask for his help... Professor Song on the other hand was inconsistently written and dislikeable all along. I constantly wondered if I had missed something because I never understood why she acted the way she did.

And - a thing I REALLY appreciated, is the total absence of love triangle between the 3 leads. Very nice and refreshing.

I think this drama contains good ideas and is quite a fun watch. It does drag and has its flaws and is definitely not entirely to my tastes. But I'm very picky and have weird preferences. If you love romantic dramas, do not care too much about plot or writing quality, and also like friendship and coming of age stories in general, and don't mind themes of domestic and child abuse, there's no real reason you wouldn't enjoy this one.

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Tropes that fit perfectly to my taste, but not without flaws

This drama was perfectly my cup of tea that I feel I can sip on for years to come. The dialogue between the three central characters So Bin, Soo Hyun, and Jun was healing, heartfelt, and thoughtful. As the viewers navigate each character's story we are meant to understand the hardships of youth and the necessity of having love and support from others. Our three leads learn how to conquer their complexes and express their vulnerabilities to each other as they heal one another's wounds.

After reading other reviews, I understand the romance between So Bin and Jun was controversial; however, from the perspective of someone that went in with no previous knowledge of the webtoon, I found the romance to be enjoyable. Both characters learned how to grew together, its just a shame their growth (and chemistry) was nowhere near as grand as Jun and Soohyun's. I enjoyed that Jun found something of a family he always craved for with So Bin as a maternal presence and Soo Hyun as an older brother. Every scene with these three were irreplaceable and the quality of conversation between them is something rarely seen in dramas.



Now for the bad...

Personally, the most frustrating part about this drama were the side characters and their criminally underdeveloped plots. I understand the series was shorter than most (12 episodes rather than 16) and many plots fell to the wayside in order to highlight the OT3 (scenes which I wouldn't give up for anything); however, the writer should have understood this limitation from the beginning and should have removed some of these characters to allow others more time to flourish.

So Bin's roommate Mi Joo: Literally a paper thin character with virtually no past, no personality, and no character development. The majority of her scenes were cringe-y and hard to watch, and she just sort of vanishes by the end of the show.

Young Ran: who had an incredibly intriguing character but kind of appeared out of no where with no real flashbacks to help us understand her current and past relationship with Soo Hyun.

So Bin's childhood crush Chan Ki: For what this character was, he honestly had too much screentime. If they were going to keep him within the tormented "too late to see what they have till its gone" trope then what was the point of giving him a scene in every episode with zero character growth?

So Bin's mother: could have offered an intimate look into So Bin's past and current living state; however, her plot was entirely dropped after one meeting.

Research Team: Hye Jin, Jung Ho, and Chun Gook. Each character felt like they were used as plot devices to create tension within each episode with nearly no growth. I'm totally okay with this except the writers obviously wanted us to develop some sort of positive feelings toward them by the end with the sentimentality of the video project.

Professor Park: was such an integral part of the character development and story theme that it felt like such a waste to pair him with Professor Song who provided almost nothing to the plot. His character would have been much stronger if he had had more scenes with his students like the meal he shared with Soo Hyun.

Jun's brother Jun Wan: who's entire complex past of trauma, sacrifice, and hardships were summed up in one flashback.

Goo Hyeon: who could have provided further insight into Soo Hyun's family dynamic, but his appearances were also cut short after a couple meetings with Soo Hyun to provide tension between Soo Hyun and Jun.

If more attention had been paid to these side characters, it would have taken this show to the next level.

Overall, this is one for the books. I understand from an unbiased perspective this drama had many flaws, but I truly and thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it.

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Good Enough

Korean Drama "At A Distance, Spring is Green" is a college drama that separates itself from the rest by focusing on the friendship aspect, rather than the romance. That is not to say that there wasn't a love story. There was one indeed, but it wasn't the main prompt of the story and it was of less intensity and enjoyment, though it had its cute moments.

The friendship though was the star of the drama. It allowed the characters to grow, open up about their struggles and overcome them eventually. The characters had great chemistry to boot.

As for the family drama, it was well paced and had enough intensity to keep things interesting. The college life part was enjoyable too, and it didn't overshadow the main story or get tiring.

Finally, the performances were great from everyone in the cast and the cinematography had the right youthful vibes.

So, overall, 8 out of 10.

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More than a lost opportunity

I see so many people saying that they dropped this drama but I can't for the life of me see why? Sure, it's simple, but it's also unbelievably emotional and an easy watch.

I love that the romance isn't the main focus of the drama, but rather the friendship and dynamic between the ml's. A lot of people are disappointed that this isn't a bl, which I get because the two male leads had amazing chemistry, but that doesn't take away from the great dynamic that the ml's have platonically, and I don't think that people should just regard the drama only as a lost opportunity and a let down, thinking of what could have been and what was 'taken away from us', but rather as a story of growth, found family, and finding comfort in those you would least expect.

PARK JIHOON the actor that you are today, he really knows how to portray his characters perfectly. This was my first drama of his that I watched, and it's unbelievable that I can say that he's only gotten better since this (see whc1). He's become an actor that will make me keep up with whatever project he does next.

The main couple, although not very popular as I've long since found out, is cute, and I like their dynamic. AGAIN, I really don't agree with people taking their obsession with the ml's (romantic) relationship and using it to disregard this couple, even though I can see why people may not be thrilled with them, as I think that a lot more could have been done to make the viewers more attached to them and show us more of (particularly the fl's side) what they're thinking and feeling about each other.

Even without the ml's getting together, this drama is still really really great in my opinion and focuses on a LOT more than just that, so all those only talking about this subject and calling the drama a let down simply because of this, we CLEARLY didn't watch the same drama. This drama isn't necessarily revolutionary, but it is special.

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