This review may contain spoilers
A drama you simply can't regret watching
This drama has such complex emotions intertwined without it becoming too convoluted it's a masterpiece.Its not what I would consider to be slow or fast, it is just right. The ML and FL both portray two people at different stages in life as well as from different backgrounds entirely and honestly the way that they are pulled together is so natural and done so flawlessly there's nothing to complain about there.
The antagonists of this drama will fully piss you off but also make you feel sorry for them at the same time which is why I love it even more. It shows each character in ways that you can understand them but also see them through the main leads perspectives. The plot is very real and raw. I know that there tends to be a lot of stigma around mental health so I really take this drama as one that is sort of awareness and a reminder that people are not always as they seem to be and to never fully judge someone or to criticize them because you don't know their story. Note: even if you do know them it's never right to judge someone :)
Now onto the main selling point...the romance. I have hardly ever seen such chemistry so well portrayed. It is very much an aching/burning desire kind of chemistry if you emerge yourself into the story. The ML and FL...chefs kiss. Both are very detailed actors. If you're into acting like I am and the technicalities I would say there's a lot to note in their performance that could help if they also seek to become better actors.
This is the only drama that I will ever rate 10/10....as of now
PLEASE watch
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This review may contain spoilers
Too slow , too depressed, though it has a good ending
The drama had some chance of becoming a new version of the wonderful shows My Mister and My Liberation Notes but never quite got there. I slogged through 10 ultra-slow episodes of some very very depressed people and kind of wished they'd just go ahead and kill themselves or, preferably, find a therapist to give them some effective antidepressant drugs. Things finally picked up in Episode 11, and there were some events that were of interest from then on but wow, it's not clear it was worth it. The heroine was a pretty unlikeable person, and I felt very sorry for her poor husband who just could not figure out how to help her. One plus of the shtory was that some of the people who initially seemed awful eventually were shown to have more redeeming features, and the heroine was better off at the end. It has many excellent actors but I can't honestly recommend it much. I'd rather tell people to go volunteer at a women's shelter or feed a colony of stray cats. Most of the people here were so preoccupied with themselves they needed a bit of a kick in the butt to look around at the world beyond their nose.Was this review helpful to you?
Not Good Enough
Korean Drama " Lost " is a moody melodrama about two people finding each other at their lowest.The drama is indeed moody and had its moments. I especially enjoyed the plot line of the father, which was sweet, emotional, and sad at the same time.
The main story, on the other hand, though it was intriguing at first, as it was interesting to get to find out what happened to the main couple in the past to led them to the situations they are currently in, it was a big let down. It turns out it was more about the vibes than about an actual story, as the plot was moving at a snail's pace and led to nothing.
The performances, though, were really good by the main leads especially, but the rest of the cast did a great job as well.
So, overall, two out of ten.
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Lost: The Quiet Collapse of a Drama That Could’ve Been Great
In a sea of K-dramas trying to outdo one another with grand gestures, heart-fluttering tropes, and tearjerking orchestral swells, "Lost" dares to whisper instead of scream. It’s not a drama that asks for your attention—it quietly waits for you to notice it, like a painting hanging in a dim hallway, revealing its details only to those who stop and stare long enough. And for the most part, the patience pays off. But sometimes, the hallway’s too dark."Lost" is a beautifully bleak tale of two people at the edge—of youth, of hope, of the invisible line that separates "existing" from "living." At forty, Lee Bu-jeong (played by Jeon Do-yeon) is adrift, her once-promising literary future buried under layers of emotional debris. Kang-jae (Ryu Jun-yeol), at twenty-seven, is technically still young, but already watching the clock run out on dreams that never had a real chance. The plot promises a slow descent into introspection, but what it delivers is closer to an emotional Rorschach test—you’ll either see something profound, or nothing at all.
Visually, the drama is nothing short of a masterpiece. Every frame is carefully composed like a photograph hung in an art gallery. Lighting becomes its own character, especially during the night scenes, which glow with such purposeful brightness they feel like metaphors for trying to find clarity in the dark. The stargazing scene is so breathtakingly framed, it nearly convinces you that you’re witnessing something holy. Unfortunately, the audio fails to match the visual splendor. Aside from the haunting use of Jeff Buckley’s "Hallelujah," the rest of the OSTs feel like an afterthought. Serviceable, yes, but utterly forgettable. It’s like wearing a designer suit and pairing it with gym socks.
The casting is equally ambitious. Ryu Jun-yeol and Jeon Do-yeon give individual performances that deserve standing ovations—when they’re apart. Together, they’re like oil and water that someone tried to mix with a spoon and gave up halfway. There’s no chemistry, no magnetism, no sense of inevitable collision that makes slow-burn romances worth the wait. But perhaps that was the point. Because here’s where the drama gets sneaky. Bu-jeong, for all her central placement in the story, feels like she was written to be disliked. She is a character-shaped void. Her depression is unexplained, her actions unjustified, her emotional infidelity irritating. And yet, what if that’s the point? What if Bu-jeong isn’t the protagonist, but the black hole around which the real stars revolve?
Because to talk about its emotional impact, we must talk about its emotional absence. Bu-jeong. Oh, Bu-jeong. She's the emotional equivalent of a black hole—every feeling thrown at her gets swallowed, never to be seen again. And it’s tempting to write her off as a poorly written character, an exhausting cipher who walks around like a permanent sigh. But if you look closer, there's a method in the melancholy. Her emotional unavailability isn’t a bug; it’s the feature. The writer didn’t want you to root for her. They wanted you to recoil. Her selfishness, her detachment, her emotional infidelity—they are framed deliberately, not as flaws to forgive, but as voids that highlight the light around her. She is not the flame; she is the darkness that makes other candles visible.
Enter Kang Min-jung (Son Na-eun) and Lee Sun-joo (Yoo Soo-bin). If Bu-jeong is a door permanently ajar to an empty room, these two are a window flung open to spring air. Their chemistry is instant and sparkling, like champagne fizzing over the brim. Son Na-eun’s ability to be mischievous without being cheap is remarkable, and Yoo Soo-bin plays the flustered golden retriever with such sincerity you want to pat his head and hand him a snack. Their scenes feel like little stolen moments from a completely different drama—one that decided not to punish its audience for wanting warmth. When their love finally blooms in a beautifully underplayed exchange about spending money together, it feels more intimate than any dramatic “I love you.” She wasn’t asking him to save her; she was asking if they could build something together. It was romantic in the way real love is romantic—quiet, mutual, and rooted in the mundane.
Kang Min-jung and Lee Sun-joo don’t just steal the show—they commit a full emotional heist. Their chemistry is electric in the most grounded way. She flirts with a glint in her eye that could topple empires, and he responds with the kind of wholesome panic that makes your heart squeeze. Their arc turns from casual banter to soul-wrenching vulnerability in such an organic flow that you forget you were watching a tragedy. Their final confession isn't even a confession—it's a proposal masked as a question: "Do you want to build a life together?" It doesn’t use the words "I love you," because it doesn’t need to. Every syllable between them already screamed it.
Oddly enough, the same can be said for Bu-jeong’s husband, Jin Jung-soo (Park Byung-eun), and his ex, Kyung Eun (Kim Hyo-jin). Their rekindled connection carries more emotional weight than the central pairing. The drama gives them a full backstory, moments of honesty, and a kiss that feels justified rather than scandalous. While Bu-jeong’s silence suffocates, Jung-soo and Kyung Eun’s pain is laid bare. You may not agree with their choices, but at least you understand them.
The irony is that in a drama built around Bu-jeong’s emotional descent, the heart of the story lies in the warmth of its side characters. Park Byung-eun’s portrayal of Bu-jeong’s husband, Jin Jung-soo, deserves its own quiet applause. He tries—really tries—to reach her across the chasm she’s dug between them. When he reconnects with his ex, it doesn’t feel like cheating; it feels like survival. Their kiss lands with context, history, and emotional symmetry. It’s a moment of two people reaching back for the versions of themselves that knew how to feel.
Which brings us to the elephant in the room: Bu-jeong. If her character wasn’t intended as a vessel of emotional void, then this is simply one of the worst-written leads in recent memory. For fifteen episodes, she sulks, avoids, and alienates. Her pain is shown, not explained. We’re told she’s suffering, but never given the tools to care. This isn’t emotional mystery; it’s emotional hostage-taking. By the time the curtain starts to lift on her backstory, it’s too late—we’ve moved on, emotionally adopted Kang Min-jung and Sun-joo, and stopped checking in on Bu-jeong altogether. We’re done unpacking her suitcase when we don’t even know what she’s running from.
Supporting characters orbit in and out of the narrative with varying degrees of success. Bu-jeong’s father (played with gentle charm by Park In-hwan) provides some of the most quietly touching moments. His relationship with his daughter and son-in-law hints at the love languages we forget: patience, shared silence, and small acts of grace. But aside from him, most supporting characters feel like background extras in a dream you’re only half-invested in. Unlike My Mister, where every character etched themselves into your memory, Lost lets most of its side cast fade into static.
The show’s slowburn structure isn’t inherently flawed. Many great dramas tread gently. But Lost mistakes withholding for depth. Pain without context isn’t profound—it’s just tiring. And while some viewers may appreciate the ambiguity, others will find themselves yelling at the screen, “Just tell us why you’re like this!” The drama leans so hard into the mystery of Bu-jeong’s suffering that it forgets to earn our empathy. It’s not that audiences can’t handle emotional weight—we just need to know what we’re carrying.
And yet, maybe it’s not a failure. It’s a contradiction. Because once you mentally sideline Bu-jeong’s character—treat her not as the protagonist but as the black backdrop to highlight the color—Lost becomes a vastly more rewarding watch. The narrative reorients itself, almost as if by accident, into something hopeful in its quiet subplots. Love, however tentative. Connection, however fragile. It’s a mosaic built from broken tiles, and sometimes, you just have to stop trying to fix it to see the beauty.
Ironically, what saves Lost from itself is everything around the central plot. The blooming love between Min-jung and Sun-joo. The quiet heartbreak of a husband who tried too long. The accidental beauty of side characters who briefly flicker to life. These moments paint the grayscale world of Lost with unexpected color. And in doing so, they unintentionally make Bu-jeong’s void even more frustrating.
Verdict:
Lost is a drama that dares to be disliked, dares to be uncomfortable, and somehow finds meaning in the emotional wreckage it leaves behind. It’s not for everyone. But for those willing to dig through its shadows, it offers small, hard-won glimmers of light—and sometimes, that’s enough. It starts as a quiet meditation on loneliness and disillusionment but ends up getting lost in its own fog. Depending on how you frame it, it could be either a genius piece of subversive writing or a case study in wasted potential. But one thing is clear: if you erase Bu-jeong’s storyline and focus solely on the supporting narratives, there’s a rich, emotionally rewarding drama hidden within. Take that however you will.
Final score: 5/10, generously buoyed by the delightfully warm story of Kang Min-jung and Lee Sun-joo, who deserve their own spin-off and all the sunshine that Bu-jeong refused to let in.
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Had potential
To sell the slow burn story atmosphere, a drama needs to be accompanied with a memorable and fitting soundtrack. There was a desperate need for an actual original soundtrack in this one instead of filling it with random and generic sorrowful OST which ruined almost any big moment. Despite having an abundance of free time, the drama failed to give the side characters a "character", they never felt that they mattered. The drama behaved like a movie but failed to fit it in a drama (long) format. More often than not, it stuck out a bit too much and ended up being annoying.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
I swear people will give anything that’s sad and flashy a high rating
I feel like I’m reading The Emperor’s New Clothes whenever I read glowing reviews for this drama. Oh, the director is a famous movie director who doesn’t typically make those silly dramas for the plebs! It must be good!Yes the leads are tremendous actors. But their characters and the story they’re in are crap.
I finally gave up after episode 7, when I realized the intrigue suggested early on wasn’t actually producing anything of interest. I never for one second thought anything would happen in that motel, but it was nothing to the point of providing no real development either.
And I know from reading recaps of later episodes that still 11 episodes in people weren’t clear on what exactly happened with the FL.
There were some comments on Dramabeans about episodes and they sum up issues with this drama perfectly. For example:
“ I don't mind slow pace but I don't like 10 minutes of decent moments between the leads and 50 minutes of random tedious secondary characters. If the plot is only about BJ and KJ becoming friends there is not much development, it's been 7 eps and they don't even really like each other.
What is the plot? Get two sad, mildly interesting people and have them become sort of friends while having a ton of boring filler characters annoy them?”
And also this:
“That leads to one more reason this drama has become questionable, after this week, the eps are seeming more like sadness porn than any intimate construction about a relationship between two troubled people. This is what ep 1 promised, but instead we get about 50 min per episode of repetitive boring secondary characters in random sad moments. We don't need more of the MIL being selfish, the husband trying to be nice but distant at the same time, the ex-girlfriend being sorry for herself, the girl that tags along showing interest in KJ and ignoring Just while Just basically ignores everything but her. Those are the same scenes being replayed over and over but not adding anything to the plot.”
The show was a meandering, pointless mess. It is certainly not on the level of My Mister, which truly is a masterpiece.
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I forced myself to watch almost 7 episodes, which greatly tested my will power
I regret to say that I dropped this in the middle of the 7th episode. I just couldn't stand it any more. The only reasons why I made it this far are that I love Jeon Do Yeon, who I consider Korea's greatest actress, I liked Ryu Joon Yeol in the few things I've seen him in, and I greatly admire Hur Jin Ho, who I think is one of Korea's greatest film directors. However, directing movies for an arthouse/festival audience decades ago and directing a TV drama (his first I believe) are two totally different things that require different skills. His early movies were very tasteful and restrained, included very little dialogue and verbiage, very little if any music, and were almost underacted. This drama was almost the opposite, in that it overwhelmed you with unnecessary voiceovers and dialogue, non-stop sappy music (I'm sorry, I'm not a Jeff Buckley fan - I greatly prefer his dad Tim, and the instrumental background music was even worse), and tons of crying and overacting. The only thing that this drama has in common with Hur's early movies that I loved are the very slow pace. So this makes me suspect that Hur either has changed as an artist or has tried to change his style to adapt to the different pressures of a TV drama. Also, I'm probably lacking in compassion and empathy, but I just can't stand being around people who mope all the time and feel sorry for themselves, either in real life or in fiction. Of course, I've been through lots of hardship myself, but I hate wallowing in my misery and crying for sympathy. I just try to fix my problems as quickly as I can move on and not dwell on the past. This is certainly not the first Kdrama I've seen that had too much trauma and characters stuck in depressive, self-destructive ruts for my taste and it won't be the last.Was this review helpful to you?
Too real humanity
When I began watching this, I have to admit I was shallow. The male lead is just gorgeous! The pace of the series was plodding. I checked " my drama list " for the reviews ratings and was shocked to find how high the ratings were on the series. Out of curiosity I persevered through the entire 16 episodes. I'm so glad I did!The series was true to its name "Lost ". The entire series had a prevailing sense of sadness and of unreconciled failure. But as the series progressed the complexity of human relations and the ambiguity of what might be right or what might be wrong drew you into the story. It reminded me of a Charles Dickens book. It's repeated silences portrayed depth of both the characters and the story. It was superb!
One of the quotes in the series was "Life without illusions is close to death.". Then, it destroyed the illusions. There was such a prolonged emphasis on reality verses illusions that depression seemed inevitable. But, somehow through the slowness of the development of the story and the development of the relationships , a sense of honesty and possibly hope was created. I think ultimately by the end of the 16th episode the following quote was more applicable:
"Your problem is how you are going to spend this one odd and precious life you have been issued. Whether you're going to spend it trying to look good and creating the illusion that you have power over people and circumstances, or whether you are going to taste it, enjoy it and find out the truth about who you are."
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A massive breath of fresh air
I am very glad I discovered lost in this period in my life, because there has, and probl'y never will be, a single kdrama that resonates more with me. From the plight of the leads, living life as if you're not living at all, to the moody atmosphere not completely devoid of life and love, yet struggling to maintain the facade of it all, just like the characters do.It's a drama very difficult to describe in any other words than "I get it". Because that is just how I feel. I get it. Completely. All of it.
The characters are all given so much depth and are written wonderfully. Everyone has their own insecurities, past mistakes, problems, no one is a perfect person.
I didn't quite catch on to everything the show has to offer, so I see myself rewatching this show as I age, and gleaming new perspectives from it.
That said, unless you simply resonate with this drama, I can see people finding it boring and monotonous, it's not a feel good get you down to lift you up healing drama. While the ending I would say is hopeful, it's bittersweet because it simply has to be. This drama marks the beginning of a healing journey, not its conclusion.
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My mister fans where you at? Not everyone's cup of tea
Hands down one of the best KDRAMAS of 2021. Up there with youth of may.This is very similar to my mister equally brilliant. The first episode had me in tears n I never cry. I shed not a single drop of tear while watching my mister so you can understand. But the first episode had me an emotional reck. The dialogue writing is Oscar worthy. That being said it is not everyone's cup of tea. This series is realistic n doesnot shy way from showing how hard life can be or is. So it leaves you feeling real depressed even more if you can relate to the characters emotional pain. So if you can really pick urself up after watching all 16 episode of it I will say WATCH IT ITS GOING TO BE A MASTERPIECE. but if you can't take the depressing feeling it leaves you with at the end of each episode I would say you rather not see it. I am gonna see it all the way through bcoz it would be a shame to skip such a masterpiece for the love of content. But NO REWATCHING... AT LEAST NOT FOR ME.
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This drama begins by showing a man who lives a life that he owns in his own way, even though he feel empty inside he doesn't want to show it out. Simultaneously, there is a woman who live completely in sorrow. Her job, her married life ,the feelings a father have for his sad child all makes her life feel stupid.
About the cinematography ,the cast is good especially Ryu Joon Yeol ,his new appearance is so awesome. The music is so relaxing and to mention the ost hallelujah song goes well with the situation. I felt this drama awesome and hoping to be the same in the upcoming episodes.
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Exceptional slice of life!
Loving this so far and cannot wait to see more! It starts slow and mellow and sinks into you like a bit of snow melting into the ground. Lovingly. I do not know how a series about two very sad people can be so soothing. I am glad they have met and life keeps nudging them toward each other. The enigmatic leads are people who life has hurt badly, they are tired of people and of the endless tomorrows. The series starts with the male lead learning about his friends suicide. They hold his funeral and say goodbye in their own way. There was such dignity and poignancy to the entire episode. The relationship between the female lead and her father has equal poignancy and dignity. Life has a way of making the smallest saddest thing so very beautiful and painful in their beauty. This series brings these small sad moments to us and helps us see their painful beauty.Was this review helpful to you?
