When Life Gives You Tangerines – A Heartfelt Slice of Life That Had Me in a Flood of Tears
I’m still emotionally recovering from this one. The ugly crying I did… THE SOBBING I DID… I can’t even. There was a flood in here.When Life Gives You Tangerines is not just a drama; it’s a deeply moving, painfully raw, and heartbreakingly real portrayal of life, love, and family.
This is NOT a fairy tale romance drama. There’s no sugarcoating, no magical happy endings that suddenly fix everything. Instead, it walks you through the highs and lows of life, the messy emotions, the regrets, and the love that exists even when it's unspoken. It shows how we hurt the people we love without meaning to and how we find our way back to them, often too late or in ways we never expected.
Yang Gwan Sik – The Man, The Myth, The Father We All Wish We Had
If there’s one character that completely took over my heart, it’s Yang Gwan Sik. A father, a husband, a man who carried his family with unwavering strength and quiet tenderness. EVERYONE would want a father like him. The way he loved, the way he silently endured, the way he put his family above all else—I just… I’m a mess. The way he would show his love in the smallest gestures, the way he was always there even when words failed—it broke me.
Parent-Child Relationships – Raw, Heartfelt, and Painfully Real
This drama understands something that most of us struggle with—our relationships with our parents. It’s not easy to argue with them and not feel regretful afterward. We don’t intentionally want to hurt them, but sometimes frustration builds up—frustration with ourselves, with our surroundings—and we say things we don’t mean. It doesn’t have to be something big, just a small slip of the tongue… sometimes we realize and feel sorry for it in that very moment, and other times, we realize it as we grow. This drama captures that feeling perfectly.
The way they showed their love for Geum Myeong melted my heart. They cherished her, cared for her in the tiniest ways, made sure she never lacked anything. But when it came to Eun Myeong… the contrast was clear. His mother, Ae Sun, saw herself in her daughter and wanted to shield her from the same struggles she faced. I understand her perspective—what parent wouldn’t want to ensure their child has a better life? But in doing so, it felt like Eun Myeong received less attention, often standing on the sidelines while Geum Myeong was at the center. It wasn’t outright neglect, but he still felt a little neglected, and it made me feel for him.
The Acting, The Cast, The Cinematography – PURE PERFECTION
The performances? Absolutely top-tier. Not a single weak link in this cast. The emotions felt so natural that I forgot I was watching a drama—I felt like I was peeking into real lives. The way the actors conveyed love, grief, regret, and unspoken emotions was just chef’s kiss perfection.
And let’s talk about the cinematography—STUNNING. The village, the sea —everything felt so alive, like a character of its own. The way the visuals complemented the emotions? Breathtaking. Every frame was soaked in nostalgia and warmth, yet tinged with an underlying melancholy.
Final Thoughts –
When Life Gives You Tangerines is not a light watch. It’s the kind of drama that lingers, the kind that makes you reflect on your own relationships, the kind that makes you want to call your parents just to say thank you or I’m sorry—or both.
It’s raw. It’s painful. It’s beautiful
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This review may contain spoilers
O BAND-AID ARRANCADO EM FORMA DE DRAMA
Assistir esse k-drama é como arrancar um bandaid de uma ferida;cada momento, desde o primeiro capitulo até o último você sente aquele bandaid sendo arrancado sem delicadeza. Cada momento, cada passagem de tempo, cada suspiro dos personagens é como se fosse o nosso. Se a Vida Te Der Tangerinas é sobre vida, sobre perdas, sobre amor, familia, amizade. Você chora e aprende com eles, você vê neles a sua própria vida passar. Um sentimento próximo foi quando eu ouvi o albúm DTMF do Bad Bunny, eu chorei porque lembrei da minha vó, da minha infância e me senti profundamente conectada com cada letra cantada. A vida deles não era perfeita, mas era cotidiana, era familiar e emocionante em cada segundo.Parte disso também se deve as atuações. Um elenco de ouro, com atores veteranos e também atores mirins, todos brilhantes em captar o que é o realismo profundo, cru e atravessador de gerações que é este drama!
Ninguém é perfeito, ninguém é completo, mas eu diria que um drama que nos faz chorar, refletir e querer abraçar nossos pais é sim perfeito.
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A must watch!
A masterpiece! I cried every episode and for a whole hour after and I'm still wrecked today. I just finished yesterday because I had topace myself with this one as well but once I sat down and completed it I was a mess. These characters really left me with a lot of
thoughts . The love they had for each other is something beautiful
to watch through the years.
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A Staggering Masterpiece
You know when you watch something and know you're just watching art? Watching something that speaks to so many different things simultaneously while also being gorgeous to look at? To witness some incredible acting performances that should be awarded awards from ACROSS the world? That's what When Life Gives You Tangerines is.Kim Wonsuk, the director and Im Sangchoon the writer, just came together for a masterpiece that I don't know can ever be duplicated. Not only the skill of going between timelines, forward and back and with a dozen characters, is masterful. It all felt smooth.
IU, Moon Sori, Park Bogum, and Park Haejoon just brought themselves to levels above. About life, about family, about love, about generational pain. It's all here.
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It might be boring if you watched a lot of kdrama
When Life Gives You Tangerines is a drama with a historical backdrop that introduces two generations, one from the 1970s and one from the 1990s. I’ll skip the summary and focus on the key points that I found important—things that will follow you throughout your viewing experience. There are both positive and negative aspects, so let’s talk about them!The cast is serious—you’ve seen it on the poster: Park Bo Gum and IU. Even the supporting cast is strong, featuring actors we often see on screen (perhaps too often, which can break immersion), such as Moon So Ri. The acting is good, very good. Park Bo Gum delivers deeply moving emotions—his performance reminded me of Ji Sung in The Devil Judge, where he conveys sorrow and pain without overdoing it. It’s an excellent contrast to IU’s rather average performance; in some scenes, she fails to truly break our hearts. For example, in the scene where she finds her son in a pitiful state after a long search, it was difficult to feel her pain in response to the event. I won’t dwell too much on the acting—it’s up to you to experience it for yourself. For me, a strong lead actor is enough to carry an entire series. Ji Sung and Park Jin Young are great examples of this.
Now, let’s talk about the plot, which I don’t find particularly impressive. More precisely, I think certain events are rather unnecessary. For example, the women on the island do nothing but complain, and Ae Sun’s mother constantly whines. The writer seems to want us to form an emotional attachment to her just because she is Ae Sun’s mother, but she quickly becomes irritating and tiresome. The mistreatment of Bu Sang Gil’s wife is somewhat touching but not deeply so, as he doesn’t seem to visit her often. At least, that’s what he says—his actions could tell a different story. Then there’s the feeling of uselessness and sadness surrounding Yang Gwan Sik, which wasn’t properly explored. Other dramas have delved into such emotions more effectively, even within a single hour, as seen in Move to Heaven. These are examples of moments that might touch your heart slightly, but if you have good emotional control, you won’t shed a tear—nothing is particularly surprising, and very few things are emphasized properly.
I can’t give the plot a high rating. For instance, if they had removed the scenes with the elderly, slightly deaf owners of the small house, and instead focused on Yang Gwan Sik’s difficult life, the drama could have been exceptional. We would have been fully immersed in Yang Gwan Sik’s heart, his pain, and his suffering.
The music isn’t great—it’s no Scarlet Heart Ryeo. I wouldn’t listen to any of the OSTs again. They fit the theme, but they lack charm. I also don’t think I would watch this drama a second time. Only Park Bo Gum’s scenes are truly interesting, and I believe he has more compelling dramas in his catalog.
I rate the drama 6.5/10.
Thanks for reading, friends, and enjoy your viewing!
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BE NICER TO YOUR PARENTS! mk: cried laughed regretted
UGHT what a story. so beautifully written. showing life is not in a straight line--time lines! little easter eggs... AWESOME CAST, IU ofc ate, the grandma/mother/daughter/granddaughter lineage and relationships. UGH. the standard the dad set .. so awesome. loved the romance! little realistic (ish... i need a relationship like that). breakups. dying. death. losing a child. getting over it. etc etc etc....THIS DRAMA MADE ME CRY SMMMM. watched with fam and made me cry even more. this was so emo. so real. SO LIFew. really gave me a new perspective: enjoy your youth, live everyday to the fullest, respect and udnerstand that your parents do everything for you, be nicer to them....
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A must watch drama
When Life Gives You Tangerine is one of the most beautiful and heartfelt Korean dramas I’ve ever watched. It doesn’t rely on dramatic twists or glamorous settings — instead, it simply tells the story of a humble, hardworking family, one that feels incredibly real. They're not rich, not perfect, just a normal family facing everyday struggles: paying bills, raising kids, dealing with misunderstandings, and trying to hold on to love while life keeps moving forward.What makes this drama truly special is how it captures the quiet sacrifices parents make for their children. As the kids grow up, we see them begin to understand the depth of what their parents did — all the dreams they set aside, the emotional burdens they carried silently, and the unconditional love that was always there, even if not always spoken out loud. It made me reflect on my own life and appreciate my family even more.
I cried during almost every episode, but the last two episodes absolutely broke me. They were emotional, raw, and so beautifully done — a perfect, bittersweet reminder that time is limited, and we often don’t realize how precious our moments together are until we’re saying goodbye.
When Life Gives You Tangerine is not just a drama. It’s a quiet reminder to cherish our families while we still have them near. A must-watch. 💔🍊
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A wonderful drama
Absolutely loved it.From the beginning you get expectations about what the story may be or how it's going to end with the way the first episode starts, I had been given some spoilers as well, but I assure you, there is nothing preparing you for what you'll experience.
It was beautifully written, the dialogues were to remember, some very poetic, others very reflective, but always sort of fitting, just like the interactions between the characters, everything felt so natural and real. IU did an amazing job playing two different characters and, aside from the background, the date and other elements indicating which version she was playing, you could tell from the differences in personality between the mother and the daughter and that speaks volumes of the kind of actress she is. The rest of the cast will not let you down either.
It made me feel happy, sad, nostalgic and hopeful. It shows you how much a life can go through and how precious every moment is. How life doesn't have to be flashy to be meaningful, and love can be cute and devoted, but also passionate or simply comfortable and it's equally rewarding no matter which is the case.
The pace of the series was really good, it honestly didn't disappoint in any way. The only reason I wouldn't watch it again would be I don't wanna cry because it does pull the strings of your heart a lot, and I don't usually cry. I would recommend this to anyone that appreciates a good story and is not afraid to drop a tear or two.
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My first time wanting to rewatch a drama
I thought long and hard about writing a review to reflect just how much this drama impacted me but I just decided I wanted to just make it simple. This is the most beautifully Written drama I have watched in a very long time if not ever. There were no villains in this, just the complexity of humanity and their stories.I decided to Rewatch it today because I didn’t put my full attention at the beginning and now it is an even more beautiful experience than the first time. I’m crying as I type, that’s how deeply this story impacted my heart.
The writers, the actors, the Director, the cinematographers, the crew… All absolutely phenomenal!
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A Promising Start That Fades Too Soon(for me)
Set in the 1960s on Jeju Island, this heartfelt drama follows Oh Ae-sun( played by IU), a bold and rebellious young woman who dreams of becoming a poet despite growing up in poverty. With no access to formal education, she refuses to let her circumstances define her, expressing herself through her love for literature.On the other hand, Yang Gwan-sik(played by park bo-gum) is a hardworking and reserved man who has always silently watched over Ae-sun. Though he doesn’t say much, his actions speak volumes, his unwavering devotion to her shapes the course of both their lives.
Reviewww~~~:
I have to say, I loved the beginning of this drama. The setting in the 1960s made it feel unique since I don’t usually watch K-dramas from that time period. The historical backdrop added an interesting layer, and the acting was incredibly realistic—IU and Park Bo-gum truly carried the emotions of the story.
But despite the strong start, I ended up dropping it. The romance followed the usual K-drama formula, and once the couple got together, there just weren’t enough exciting moments or new phases to keep me hooked. It started feeling like many other slow-burn romance dramas, and the lack of action made it drag for me.
Yes, it made me cry, and that’s thanks to the brilliant acting, especially from IU and Park Bo-gum. If it weren’t for them, I probably would’ve dropped it after the first episode (not saying other actors are bad! 🙏).
As for the OST, I honestly didn’t notice anything particularly memorable. No standout music or songs stuck with me after watching.
Final thoughts? If you’ve seen a lot of romance K-dramas, this one might feel overrated because it doesn’t bring anything new past the initial setup. It’s beautifully acted but lacks enough twists or action to keep it truly engaging.
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Watch this drama if you want to become a better person
This drama by itself, is poetry for the profound ordinary that is depicted in life and in Korean culture. From beginning to end, it was bittersweet, but it made life feel beautiful, even during its ugliest moments.The story was simple yet deeply layered: the love story between Oh Ae-Sun and Yang Gwan-Sik. Acting was superb. Raw, emotional, and realistic. Production and cinematography captures the beauty of life quite well. I really wish I was fluent in Korean, because it was clear the subtitles on Netflix didn’t fully capture the depth of the writing.
The pacing started out a bit slow, not in terms of when things happened, but in how much substance there was early on. However, it quickly found its rhythm and maintained a steady, meaningful pace for the rest of the episodes.
Honestly, I don't exactly know how to feel about this drama. On one hand, everything was perfect, on the other hand, it became hard to watch because of my inability to cope with the reality of adversity that often comes upon the best and kindest people in this world. The only nitpicky criticism is that due to all the time jumps, I lost my immersion trying to calculate the ages of the characters.
Art, at its core, is the artist’s way of showing the world through their eyes. After watching this drama, I began to see and appreciate my own life through the lens they offered. It changed the way I reflect on my experiences and the community around me, and opened my heart to allow me to love more freely and openly. As the story progresses, I could feel myself growing and maturing along with the characters.
Entertainment and media have the power to influence what we believe, so why not choose to watch a piece of art that inspires you to grow, reflect, and appreciate your own life with more depth and beauty?
If you are looking for a show that depicts healthy parenting, men with green flags and green forests, resilient women, emotional slow burns, and nuanced story writing, then you will love When Life Gives You Tangerines.
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WATCH IT PLEASE IT IS LIFE CHANGING
“Parents dwell on what they couldn’t give, while children dwell on what they couldn’t get” 🍊🍊🍊Where do I even start? This series is a MASTERPIECE. It is indeed ONE FOR THE BOOKS!!!! The dialogues, acting etc. is exceptional. I can’t even find a word to describe it, from episode 1-16 I find myself crying non stop. When I tell you that I have never been this swollen in my entire life from crying. Sooo many life lessons that has been tackled here, very very insightful. The love between Aesun and Gwan Sik was unbeatable, their love story can be called “LEGENDARY” by itself. One thing that I will always remember anout this series that has taugh me was to not take our parents for granted, always make time for them and be there for them until their last breath. Thank you for this series!!! 🧡🧡🧡🍊🍊🍊
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