When Life Gives You Tangerines (2025)

OUTSTANDING DRAMA!!!!

The title of this drama befits this story. A wonderful love story of how perseverance, love, and strength got the family through in each generation. True reality is that families go through so much with loss of loved ones, financial issues, differences in personality in each generation, but at the end of the day it's how they come back due to the unconditional love they have for each other. Thanks to IU, and Park Bo Gum, Moon So Ri, Park Ha Joon, and all of the outstanding actors and actresses that made this drama possible, and able to convey each and every moment through the screen. I cried, laughed, smiled, all through this drama. Make sure you have tissue next to you! Best drama so far this year!!!!

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A healing rollercoaster of emotions <3

WLGYT took me on a breathtaking seven-decade journey, filled with a rollercoaster of emotions and unforgettable life lessons. It reminded me of the immense sacrifices our parents make for us, the importance of treating them with kindness, the power of finding joy amidst hardship, the courage it takes to rise after heartbreak, and the comforting truth that life always moves forward.

I found myself bawling my eyes out more than once, as I developed a deep emotional connection with the characters. Each one brought something unique to the story and warmed my heart in their own special way. This was truly a story I needed to see.

I haven’t written a review since 2020, but I felt compelled to share how much this masterpiece meant to me. At a time when I’ve been facing personal struggles, this show brought me unexpected comfort and healing. From the story to the music, the acting, the cinematography—every detail was beautifully executed. Watching it made me cry, yet it also felt like therapy—it reminded me of the importance of persevering through life.

Thank you to the WLGYT cast and team for creating such a touching and unforgettable experience <3

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A show that reminds you to give your parents a call

It's difficult to remember the last time I cried so much watching a movie or TV Show, but When Life Gives You Tangerines is in a league of its own.

The drama explores love, yes; and in the first few episodes you might assume it is ultimately the story of Ae-sun and Gwan-sik. In some ways that may be true - but the heart of the show is a different kind of love entirely.

There is a striking line around episode 5; “Parents dwell on what they couldn’t give, while children dwell on what they couldn’t get” . It is difficult to find a love more pure or unconditional than the love parents hold toward their children. In your successes and your failures they will always fight your corner, whether you deserve it or not, because they love you. That's all. If anyone else had treated Gwan-sik or Ae-sun as ungratefully as their children it would be absurd to suggest that they would be so selfless toward them regardless, but parents don't protect us because its rational. They do it because it's their duty. Because they love us.

Ae-sun's mother regretted that not even her daughter's paternal family thought she was worthy of the same food they ate; that she had to be vice president because her mother wasn't wealthy. Ae-sun regretted that she couldn't send her daughter to study abroad; that she wasn't suitable to marry someone born on the mainland even though she went to SNU. Geum-Myeong, too, though more subtly, felt inadequate; she regretted having the money but not the time to spend on her daughter. No matter how hard our parents try to give us what they can; there is always somewhere they'll fall short, and inevitably when we see other parents who give their children what we lack, we grow envious and resentful - not realising the sacrifice our families make to give us a life better than their own.

From Eun-myeong getting on a fishing boat and realising what his father had to go through, to Geum-Myeong's conversations with her father where she realised what her mother endured being a parent so young, and losing a child, we see the power of perspective. If they had known what their parents had given up to give them what they had; to give them something better; they wouldn't have dreamed of being so critical. But just as our parents will never admit how hard things are to us, they don't want us to feel burdened or indebted. They do it because they love us; they don't want repayment. That's why Gwan-sik never spent the money Geum-Myeong sent him; why Ae-Sun's mother was so frustrated that her daughter tried to take care of her rather than being taken care of.

For me, the pinnacle of these themes is conversation between Geum-Myeong and Gwan-sik in the hospital. The middle aged Gwan-sik with his daughter, now a mother, who looks identical to a young Ae-Sun. Geum-Myeong who was the bastion of Ae-Sun's shattered dreams; who despite having everything that her mother wanted as a child, and couldn't be given, Gwan-sik still felt guilty toward for not being able to provide more. And perhaps that's why Gwan-sik opens up to Geum-Myeong. Why he tells her how guilty he feels towards Ae-Sun. Through admitting it to Geum-myeong it's as if he can tell Ae-Sun without really telling her. What is more remarkable, is that Geum-Myeong as a parent herself can now understand better just how much her parents went through. How they weathered all of their storms, and how hard it must have been.

And how ironic it is at the end that although Gwan-sik gave Geum-Myeong everything he once wanted to give Ae-Sun; he still felt guilty that he couldn't give her more. That Ae-Sun felt that same guilt despite giving her daughter the freedom to live the dreams that were stolen from her.

But the irony pervades our whole society. Until we become parents ourselves - or grow up enough to truly understand the harsh realities of adulthood - we never truly appreciate just how much has been invested into us solely because we are loved unconditionally. We all owe a debt to our parents that we will never be able to repay, but it is also a debt that we aren't supposed to.

So next time you lament your portion in life and your parents' role in allocating it; first ask yourselves what had to happen to first put you there. The next time you feel like being ungrateful - remember what it is you have to be grateful for.

Call your parents.

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a women centred drama for the mothers and daughters – a story so heartbreaking yet so beautiful.

“when life gives you tangerines” starts from the journey of a mother, who once was a daughter, sure of her space in the world. the young and bold ae-sun, who was ready to have it all for herself and her mother saw her entire life taking a shift before her very eyes after she lost her mother.

the story starting from highlighting the struggle of women in patriarchal society that exists to snatch their every dream away from them takes a turn when ae-sun, in her own ways, decides to challenge those norms. her world, even though shattered after losing her mother shapes her daughter’s world.

this drama is about the unconditional love between a family, who despite losing everything, gained their everything. showcasing the portrayal of the sea as both the giver and the taker, it emphasizes on the harsh realities of life and nature no one can win against. the life ae-sun’s daughter grew up dreading was the same life ae-sun was willing to relive all over again as she managed to define her happiness in her own way. the ups and downs of their journey itself teaches a lesson– when one door is closed shut, another one is bound to be open. their life was all about searching for those new opened doors as the uncontrollable forces of life shut the previous ones for them. each member in the family struggling in their own way found their way out of the darkness in some way or the other, and the most dreadful season eventually passed each time it added up to their struggles.

the heartbreaking ending itself roots from the touch of reality; everything is bound to come to an end. what matters the most is that you lived a great life– in no one’s but your own perception. the four volumes, consisting of heartbreak in all forms– the loss of parents, dreams, a child, love, and the sacrifices made concludes with the reflection of love in all its purest forms that eventually make all the hardships seem worth it at the end.

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a drama i will hold close to my heart

i cried at every episode and could not stop
what a story, truly heart breaking
a story abt women and their hardships, true love, a mother's love, the father's love, the dreams and aspirations we all are made of them
to think that aesun's mother's love and determination for her child led to the betterment of two whole generations of people
don't get me started on aesun and gwansik's story, two people giving up their dreams to be together, how they grew up in their love for each other, how they broke toxic cycles to let their children grow. to the very end they were amazing
i even loved geum myeong's story. a eldest daughter's guilt, responsibility, love and the ultimate urge to be your own person. her having enough love for herself so that she could prevent herself from falling into the dangerous cycle that her mother tried so hard to keep her away from, i cried for hours over this.
this drama reminded me so much abt how we all are just humans trying to survive life, trying to not be a burden, trying to give our loved ones our best. i feel like crying every time i think about it.
truly great

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Best Family Drama Series Ever

For me, the series 'When Life Gives You Tangerines' is the best family saga I have ever watched, in KDrama or anywhere else.
It is my top rated drama series.

I laughed, smiled, felt outrage, cried, and had feelings of deep connection with the characters in the series.
As an International viewer who is 68 years old, with a grown family and grandchild, it made me think over my own life.

I can only read the English subtitles, I wish I could understand the Korean language to watch it.
I am trying to learn it. Slowly 😆 I am a very fast subtitle reader now. 😆
Thank you to the Subtitle teams. 🙏

Thank you, Republic of Korea, for this beautiful story that touched my heart and soul. ❤️
Sandra,
From Australia 🇦🇺

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Is this drama a pandemic creation of the writer? Our tangerines.

If there was a new Baeksang Arts Award category created this year for the Best Achievement in Acting for the whole cast, then ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ would be the first winner in my book. I was a skeptic going into viewing this drama, determined not to be easy prey, because of the high ratings all around that this drama was getting. ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ won me over the hard way. This drama earned it. Male Lead Park Bo Gum’s compelling acting as the quiet but powerful Yang Gwan-sik is so good that it freezes you in place. In the past, I have found IU’s acting performances to be immature. However, she showed up big time in every scene as the bold and daring Female Lead Oh Ae-sun. Let us make this harder. IU also plays her own grown daughter Yang Geum-myeong. She is the eldest child and only daughter of Ae-sun and Gwan-sik, who has the opposite personality. Other child actors played this role of Yang Geum-myeong as young children. Since ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ spans three generations, the audience experiences a total cast change as the decades are handled in flashbacks and flash-forwards. The chronological narrative of the story is interrupted, as multiple timelines are visited or revisited.

There are a lot of balls bouncing in each fully loaded episode, but writer Lim (Im) Sang-choon maintains a consistent and congruent flow of this masterful storyline. She remains in complete control of this epic story. Very few actors get the job done, staying in character, perceiving the flow of the overall storyline and understanding how each character must develop in a cohesive manor, without a great director at the helm. Writer Director Kim Won Suk pulls the best out of each actor.

I found this a bit of interesting history and irony. Lim (Im) Sang-choon is the writer of ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’. She took a rest from the Film and Drama Industry for an extended period during the COVID-19 Pandemic. This new drama was released six years later. Is this brilliant masterpiece of art the result of her sheltering in place?

‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ is a metaphor for experiencing sour setbacks. It is equivalent to the English saying "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade". This expresses a positive outlook one might take on when facing the travails of life. While I did not personally interview anyone, I know that the world was served up many lemons (or tangerines) in 2019, at the advent of COVID-19. Many resilient souls around the world found ways to make lemonade during this time period, or Sweet Tangerines (if you are from Korea). During this time, the writer Lim (Im) Sang Choon had all the time in the world to create a wonderful story, which starts in 1951 and spans three generations. The story is said to be inspired by an actual couple who lived on Jeju Island in South Korea.

Six Degrees of Separation

Writer Lim Sang-choon

Lim (Im) Sang-choon is the screenwriter for ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’. She won for Best Screenplay at the 56th Baeksang Arts Award for the drama When the Camellia Blooms 2019). Also, Lim (Im) Sang-choon was nominated at the 54th Baeksang Arts Awards for her screenplay for Fight My Way (2017). She writes under a pseudonym, keeping her personal information very private.

Few people claim even to have met Lim (Im) Sang-choon personally. Lim (Im) Sang-choon is shrouded in mystery. This helped peaked the curiosity of IU, when she get a phone call from Lim (Im) Sang-choon about joining the project. Actress IU and writer of ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ Lim (Im ) Sang Chop met secretly during this time and went over the script. IU was asked to play the main female lead in this drama. IU has revealed that she would forever cherish this meeting. Production for the Netflix project began in March 2023 and concluded February 2024. The World Health Organization declared to the world on May 5, 2023 that COVID-19 was no longer a world health emergency.

(Writer) Director Kim Won Suk

Writer/Director Kim Won Suk co-authored the Korean Drama ‘Descendants of the Sun’ (2016), which won Best Drama. He was nominated for Best Writer for this drama as well. Kim Won Suk also wrote The Queen’s Classroom (2013), Man to Man (2017) and wrote Payback (2023). As a Director, Kim Won Suk won a Baeksang as Best New Director for ‘Sungkyunkwan Scandal’ (2011) and Best Director for ‘Misaeng’ (2015). He was nominated for a Baeksang as a Director for ‘My Mister’ (2019) and for ‘Signal’ (2016). It was on the set of ‘My Mister’ (2019) the Writer/Director Kim Won Suk met actress IU, who appeared in the drama as the Female Lead. Between 2019-2025, Writer Director Kim Won Suk wrote the Korean Drama Payback (2023) and concluded the project ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’.

Actor Park Bo Gum

Park Bo Gum did put out Record of Youth in September 2020. After this production, even Park Bo Gum went silent in the Film and Drama Industry until the 2025 drama release of When Life Gives You Tangerines. Park Bo Gum’s chose to complete his Military service, serving from August 2020 to April 2022. After his release from the Military, Park Bo Gum told the public that he would take a rest from the Film and Drama Industry, which he did untilhe was offrered tge male lead in ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’.

In earlier years, Park Bo Gum and IU met during a commercial shoot for a noodle advertisement in 2012. In addition, Park Bo Gum briefly appeared in IU’s Drama The Producers. Their 13 year friendship helped add the organic feel to their performances in When Life Gives You Tangerines.

Actress IU (Lee Ji-eun)

Actress IU (Lee Ji-eun) also took a break from the Korean Drama world after 2019. However, IU did appear in The Movie Dream in 2023 and appeared Korean Variety shows. IU has had nine Baeksang Arts Awards nominations with two wins. These are Most Popular Actress for My Mister (2019) and Most Popular Actress for Broker (2023). Actress IU (Lee Ji-eun) is nominated this year for Best Actress in a TV drama. It would be her first win in this category is she is successful.

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A Tender Tale Told in Seasons

Sometimes a drama doesn’t just entertain you—it lingers. Like the scent of citrus on your hands after peeling a tangerine, When Life Gives You Tangerines stays with you long after the credits roll. It’s tender, nostalgic, and quietly devastating in the best way.

Set against the ever-changing yet timeless backdrop of Jeju Island, the drama follows the story of Ae-sun (IU) and Gwan-sik (Park Bo-gum), two people whose lives become intertwined from a young age through to adulthood. Structured in four seasonal acts—from their sun-drenched youth in the 1960s to the more muted hues of middle age and legacy—the series is a meditation on love, duty, and the little choices that end up shaping entire lives.


What stands out most in when life gives you Tangerines is how unafraid it is to take its time. It resists melodrama and big cliffhangers in favor of smaller, more intimate moments: a shared tangerine under the trees, a silent glance across a schoolyard, an old cassette tape full of promises. It's in these quiet scenes that the drama does its best work.

Lim Sang-choon's writing shines here—lyrical without being overwrought, emotional without leaning into clichés. And director Kim Won-seok knows exactly when to let the camera linger and when to pull back. The cinematography turns Jeju into a living memory: sun filtering through citrus groves, waves crashing against stubborn rocks, the rustle of old hanboks in the breeze.

Before IU and Park Bo-gum even take the stage, it’s the child actors who steal your heart.

Moon Woo-jin as young Gwan-sik is an absolute revelation. He plays the role with so much restraint and quiet intensity, capturing the gentle steadfastness that Park Bo-gum later expands on. You believe from the very first moment that this boy will grow into a man who loves deeply, silently, and for a lifetime. There’s one scene in particular—where young Gwan-sik, dirt under his nails, saves his lunch to share with Ae-sun—that might just be one of the most heart-wrenching and pure moments in the entire series.

Kim Soo-in, as young Ae-sun, is equally phenomenal. She plays Ae-sun with a spark—ambitious, defiant, and a little impulsive. There's a complexity to her performance that goes beyond her years. She makes you feel Ae-sun’s yearning, her frustration with her circumstances, and her dreams of becoming something more. The dynamic between the two young leads is so raw and believable that it sets the emotional tone for the rest of the series. Without them, the weight of the story wouldn’t land nearly as hard.

Truly, their performances are what make the transition to the adult actors feel earned, rather than jarring.

IU delivers a career-best performance as Ae-sun. She plays both Ae-sun and her daughter Geum-myeong with an emotional delicacy that’s hard to put into words. You feel every loss, every compromise, every spark of joy. There’s a weariness in her eyes that tells its own story.

Park Bo-gum, meanwhile, proves why he’s one of the most beloved actors of his generation. His Gwan-sik is a man of few words, but the way he holds space—for Ae-sun, for their shared memories, for his own quiet regrets—is deeply affecting. He doesn’t need grand gestures. He just is. It’s that quiet kind of love that K-dramas don’t always depict well, and here, it feels almost revolutionary.

When Life Gives You Tangerines isn’t for everyone—it’s a slow burn, steeped in nostalgia and weighted with quiet grief. But if you give it the time it deserves, it rewards you with a story that’s both deeply personal and beautifully universal.

It’s about growing up in the shadow of war and poverty, about the dreams we hold onto and the ones we leave behind. It’s about first love, sure—but more than that, it’s about enduring love. The kind that doesn’t always have a happy ending, but leaves you changed all the same.

And above all, it’s a love letter to Jeju, to the haenyeo who dive without fear, to the children who dream beyond their villages, and to the people who love in the quiet spaces of everyday life.

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A Hanky Love Story

I didn’t connect to this show initially, I gave up during Ep. 2. Because I’m a Bo Gum and IU fan, I went back and struggled through EPS.3 & 4. I went away for a few weeks, then decided to go back, because at the same time, I was watching “The Seasons: Cantabile of Park Bo Gum.” An excellent array of talented performers, most new to me, but I was enamored with Bo’s many talents. OK, I’ll go back to “When Life Gives You Tangerines.” Happy I did! That which I saw as silliness and annoying at first, became intricacies of the characters. The storlyline grew stronger, each character well-defined, and brilliantly executed by the actors! The older Leads display stellar performances. I was impressed by the dynamics of the director, his use of actors. Each couple has their own identified relationship and love, no matter how volatile, there is commitment. There is hope, comedy, and tears; scenes of reality that makes you want to punch someone or hug someone. The story moves through life and has pretty good pacing. The second half keeps building to hanky time. Turned out to be a pretty damn good show!

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A MUST WATCH!!!

I am watching asian dramas for more than 6 years now but i never wrote a single reivew or even rated a drama but WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU TANGERINES changed my entire viewoint on life watching this felt like i am watching my parents and everything they did for me in my 22 years of life it was like my entire childhood and all the struggles of my parents that i ignored or never understood flashing in front of my eyes i have seen my father rise from from nothing on his name to giving his children the best life he could, i have never saw him doing a single thing for him even once i cried so much watching gwan sik as he reminded me of all the scarifices my father made for me and the family. As we grow up we tend to forget all the things that our parents did for us just like gweng myeong and eun myeong but when they reliased that their father won't be here anymore they remembered all the things they once forgot. This is a reminder that we should always remeber that our parents scarificed their dreams to gives us a clear sky so that we can dream and achieve our dreams.

My heart just broke when gwan sik died i can never imagine my father leaving me behind so early i want him to live all his dreams and be happy even if won't be able to compensate the things that he scarificed for us, now i can never be the same again this drama changed me somehow seeing ae sun and gwan sik taggle all the problems in life just so they can give thier children everything was so hearbreaking they scarificed so much for their children and then also they blamed them fot not having enough money i get it that it is tough to not able to celebrate a grand birthday or have fancy things but we should understand that our parents have given more than they could provide for us scarificing thier needs and keeping ours first just like ae sun dropped her college dream for her child and gwan sik drowned himself in work to provide for them without even thinking about himself no matter how much pain he was in he never took a leave even when his youngest son died because he can't take more than 3 days. I cried so much thinking that, it reminded me that even when my father was sick even when her mother died or even when he got into accident and his hand broke he still went for his work. I bawled my eyes after finishing the last episode even writting this review is making me cry again but i still choose to do that, I don't care what other people think but in my opinion everyone should watch this drama once it made me respect my parents and makes me proud way more than i already did.

Gwan sik was a great husband and a kind person everyone respected him and ae sun as they were always kind to people that is the reason why even if eun myeong went to jail everyone was helping him beacuse his dad has always been their for people, when dong myeong died everyone in the village helped them by sending food to their house, when they were struggling their landlord put rice in her jar without them asking, our parents good deeds always comes to us as well this drama taught to always do good deeds even if it is not benefitting you in any way so that we can have a peaceful life without regrets.

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