Viva La Vida! ✨
This was my first time travel drama, and it surely did not disappoint!I thought it would be a simple story of a boy travelling back to the past to meet his parents with a bunch of crackhead moments, but this was a tearjerker. :')
Things I loved:
- I SOOOO LOVEEE both the female leads. Both have such strong characters !!!
- The chaotic relationship between Eun Gyeol and his father!
- The family dynamic between the bandmates!
The friendship that was made even if it started out as a chaos between them
- Episode 15!
- The OSTs! Chef's kiss! Shining was so good!
- RYEOUN! He got my heart tbh.
Even though he wasn't able to change the fact that his father lost his hearing, he absolutely changed how he viewed life from then on and got him to enjoy what he actually loved. He also helped his mother which was my favorite scene, by the way.
Everything about this drama was seriously worth the hype despite its minimal flaws.
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Kindred To A Time Called Us!
January 2024
07th/8th
I liked ALMOST everything about this drama except:
a: The casting of one of the main female leads despite the fact she has always been amazing in other drama series. Had always hoped to see her in a main role - just not as a high school student.
b: The music on the most part is okay - maybe just a few songs were better than okay. Really loved the bass and guitar battle! I was really hoping for music that stays with you for a long time after - nope!
c: Didn't appreciate Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven" song referred to as a "chick magnet" - like it is a "romantic love song" or something.
It could be that the translation was incorrect and hoping that is the case.
It isn't a love song in the sense that someone's heart is broken by someone else (romance) - it is a song about the loss of someone deeply loved (Clapton's son) and them being in heaven.
d: The son in 1995 (from 2023) should have spent more time with his mother rather than the girl from 2023 - there were times she really could have done with his intervention and he just wasn't there.
Even his "dad" more so than the 2023 teen female, but I do get that they were both there for a reason.
What I did LIKE:
a: Seeing what would happen and develop between the "mother and father " in 1995 more so than the 2023 teens.
b: The bromance and friendships.
c: The story with it being similar to "A Time Called Us" with the time travel and trying to change the past to save someone in the future or future for the better only "Twinkling Watermelon" wasn't as dark.
Highly recommended! A+
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One of the best coming-of-age stories I've ever watched.
This show was absolutely fabulous! It evoked emotions spanning the whole range from heartbreak to heartwarming, with plenty of laughs in the middle. All four main characters had compelling and intense emotional journeys, and it was so amazing to see four fantastic growth arcs in a single show.The acting was great, as was the plot and OST. Really, there was not a second wasted, and I thoroughly enjoyed the journey I was took on. I almost wish it would have kept on going.
Can't recommend enough!
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If Back to the Future Was Made in Korea...
I know Twinkling Watermelon is a highly rated K-drama. It's even branded as one of the best K-dramas ever made. But frankly, I think it's just above-average good. Probably one of the better ones out there but definitely not flawless or even close to being up there with the best, imho. It's still pretty good and worth the watch, though.First off, this is a Koreanized version of Back to the Future. Yes, yes, they are not completely the same. I'm not saying it's a Korean remake of this Hollywood classic nor do I think it's a copycat. But they did take the plot of the first Back to the Future film, tweaked it, mixed in some undeniable Korean flavors (gochujang and sesame oil and everything), and then added a social commentary about physical disabilities to make a family oriented drama that's moving and heartwarming with memorable characters and wonderful life lessons. Yes, I did like this drama to an extent. But it was more because of the characters. Despite its flaws, it was an entertaining watch.
Let's talk about the things I disliked first. If you've seen the Back to the Future films, you'd recognize the similarities, from the time travel aspect (the main character meeting his parents and getting them to date because he messed things up) to literally changing their lives for the better. There's also a Doc Brown character who takes him back to the past and becomes his mentor. Plus, he happens to be a talented guitarist like Marty McFly and also plays rock 'n roll music that sounds either like the 1950's-60's classic rock featured in BTTF or modern-day K-pop, which sucks because this was set in 1995 when alternative music ruled the airwaves. Sure, they did mention Kurt Cobain, made references to Nirvana, and showed posters of Bon Jovi and album covers of Radiohead's Pablo Honey. But they're no more than just cosmetic add-ons to remind people that the drama is set in the 90's. It doesn't really feel authentic, though. Apart from the pagers, cassette tapes, and vintage computers, it felt like any other K-drama set in the present. I thought maybe they just wrote a script and had to pick a timeline based on the ages of the main characters and their parents when they were teens. Nothing about the plot screamed original to me and I felt that little to no research was done about that era because none of the music they chose for this drama fit the setting. Not to mention they kept talking about Kurt Cobain as if he was still alive. He committed suicide in 1994 due to depression, and he was even rumored to have been murdered by his own wife. So for them to say that they want to be like Kurt who can get all the pretty girls was downright insensitive and ignorant. Also, by 1995, the bands that were making waves worldwide were Smashing Pumpkins and Pearl Jam. Kurt's death ended the grunge era and made way to alternative and post-grunge music. I know because I lived through this era. I'm the same age as the parents in this drama and I was a huge rock fan back in the day. So the musical aspect and overall atmosphere really disappointed me because the setting just felt like a studio instead of an actual place, and the vibe just didn't feel like the 90's at all. I also wished they had made Eun Gyeol more skilled at playing the guitar because for a supposed musical genius, his skills weren't very extraordinary. For someone who started playing the guitar at a young age and continued to improve over the years, he should've sounded way better.
Another thing I disliked is the way they handled the time travel. In theory, you can't alter your past by traveling through time and go back to a changed present, rather you'll end up creating an alternate timeline or a different dimension. But since they borrowed the concept from BTTF, the main character ends up changing the past and creating a new future for himself and his loved ones. I don't mind this as much. But they should've corrected what BTTF got wrong, which is making the parents remember Eun Gyeol and putting two and two together. After all, they spent a good amount of time with him, even had pictures of him lying around. They should've seen the resemblance between their son and the guy they used to know, and how they're so alike in personality. That's the part where I had to try hard to suspend my disbelief. Unlike Marty who only spent a few days with his parents, Eun Gyeol actually lived with them, bonded with them, and played a huge part in their lives. He formed a band with his own dad and his friends, and became his mom's savior. How could they have forgotten him? None of them even looked for him when he left? Not even one mention of the Eun Gyeol they knew as teens.
I also think the drama could've been shorter. There were far too many unnecessary scenes and music video-ish montages that are very typical of K-dramas. This is the biggest downside of implementing hour-long 16-episode dramas instead of just choosing the optimum length for a drama depending on the story content. I'm glad that other dramas are dropping this format and going for shorter episodes and run time, it makes the drama more compact and the pacing faster.
But those are the only ones I have complaints about, the rest I actually really enjoyed. The cast, for the most part, are excellent. They played their roles to a tee. Although I thought Choi Hyun Wook as Yi Chan was a bit too extra. I mean, I think he acted great in this but did he have to shout all the time? It was driving me nuts! lol My favorite was the ex-gang member bass player, though. I actually loved the side characters, they were so much fun! And the kid who played young Eun Gyeol really stood out to me. When he cried, I cried. Really good child actor! I hope to see him in future projects.
Even though the story closely resembles that of BTTF, I like that they put their own spin on it and made it obviously Korean. I also appreciate the fact that they pushed the social commentary about prejudism against people with disabilities. I don't think any K-drama has tackled that issue before, so I'm glad they made it an integral part of the plot. We need more social awareness for these kinds of topics. I wasn't too fond of the romance but that's just me. Romance is just not my thing. But I did find myself wanting to watch one episode after another. If I wasn't so busy with work that I only had time to watch a couple of episodes before bed time, I would've binged the whole thing. All in all, this was an enjoyable drama that left me feeling great after completing it. It's a great feel-good family oriented drama that can bring you to tears, but also make you laugh and take you back to a more carefree time.
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I wish everyone’s youth twinkles and shines!!
I loved everything about this drama be it cast, acting, storyline and music. The idea that we all want our youth to shine and be full if great memories is what made this drama very endearing. I then thought that my parents were also a kid once, who had their own dreams and desires, who wanted to enjoy their youth and fall in love with life. But the responsibility of growing up made most of their dreams to be locked up in their heart. Yi chan and Cheong ah had to sacrifice a-lot to keep their children safe and happy. On the other hand, both Eungyeol and Eun Ho were understanding and kind hearted children. I really loved how they portrayed all characters as positive even though life gave them so many tough events.Cast and acting: Hyun Wook is an exceptional actor. You can feel every emotion that he is trying to convey like sadness, happiness, love, denial and acceptance. All the other cast were also exceptional in delivering their dialogues and emotions. Moreover, the chemistry between each cast is so good. It made me attached to watermelon sugar. Also loved the relationship between 1995 Yi chan and Eun gyeol.
Story: Although time travel plot is nothing new in kdrama world, I would say the story is definitely unique. I had gotten some spoilers from SNS, so some plot twists were not jawdropping for me, but for those who haven’t seen any spoilers, I’m sure you will be shocked. I really liked the whole setting of the drama which was in 1995. To be able to see your parents youth where something major in their life happens would be so cool. I cried ugly tears while watching the last episode because I got really attached to every characters. To see how all the band mates were still together in 2023 and how it transitioned to their youth days made me weep so hard. I also thought about how my youth will go someday and all I’ll have is memories of it to reminisce.
I wouldn’t say that romance is the main theme of this drama, since it mainly revolves around Eun gyeol trying to fix his parents destiny, but nonetheless the love story of both leads is really adorable. I wish we got to see more in depth about Eun gyeol and Se gyeong’s relationship in 2023 and how things patched up between Yichan and Cheong ah after the accident.
So to all those who are debating whether to watch this drama or not, I strongly recommend you to give this drama a try. I love that this drama has all the elements like romance, slice of life, comedy, family love, friendship and brotherhood. You will really love this drama.
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You will binge watch it in a day #Guaranteed
It's one of those shows you cannot put down and it satisfies you completely by the end too.I would definitely be putting this in my top 5 list among my fav including cloy,hometown cha cha cha, 18 again etc.
Now the show is such a great and i mean by far the best genre blend without a single loophole or inconsistency in story.
Everything just finds balance from mystery to comedy , everything is consistent and the direction is next level.
Not your typical rom com kdrama but something uniquely intresting.
The show has not completely ignored logic if you are concerned since it involves time travel but the places where logic is near 0 or very low the show carries that part so beautifully (you just don't care) and anyone would be 100% stupid if they don't like this show for this reason. It is not meant for that, it is not a serious thriller based mystery with sci fi logic.
Ignore the music rating if your into that, i personally am not a huge music guy and it mostly runs on the bg of my brain but they werent bad i would say that.
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I was expecting a different ending-SPOILERS****
****SPOILERS AHEAD***Since the whole show deals with the value of family and understanding that your parents were also young once, I really didnt expect the ending to be so based on career "success". The main character ends up being famous but he doesnt even know how he got there, hasnt even lived through it, Also, his parents would be completely different people since their lives have been different so i wonder, wouldnt that be disappointing for the main character? how is that a happy ending? I wish they had focused more on whats important: love, family and not on materialistic stuff
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Viva La Vida!
Likes1. One of the most satisfying ending i've watched in recent years. I was crying and smiling in the last two episodes.
2. The strongest part of the drama is the close relationship between the father Yi Chan and son Eun Gyeol in whatever timeline they were in. Pre time slip, during time slip and post time slip.
3. High school love story of Han Yi Chan and Yoon Chung Ah was so cute.
4. The Watermelon Sugar band and the band mates. Plus the cameos as adult versions. And their songs.
5. Eun Gyeol and Chung Ah didnt have a lot of scenes because Eu Gyeol was always with Yichan or Eunyu but he did best thing to his mom, which is to get rid of the evil stepmom and let her be free to live her life.
Dislikes
1. I didnt like Seol Inah's character. I dont know if it was the actress or the character itself. But she kinda grew on me in the end. Im curious to find out what happened when she wentback to the present. Is her family still together? Did Segyeong become happier?
2. I think we needed an extended 15-20 mins to see what other changes happened to the present or maybe i just couldnt believe it was all over.
Rating: 9/10
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Long Live Life ─ with flaws, scars and healing
This was one of the dramas I actually didn't plan to watch until I saw the spoilers of the first episode on Twitter ─ and absolutely liked how the premise was about CODA. I also enjoy watching dramas of a child time travelling and meeting their teen parents so I didn't hesitate to give it a try and I am so glad that I did.Starting from the name, throughout the episodes they made a reference to Frida Kahlo's Sandías / Viva la Vida (Long Live Life). In Mexican folk culture, watermelon is commonly found in representations of the Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration ─ so at first, I thought the story might mostly focus on angsty side of life. However, it was just another connection with how Eungyeol's life changed thanks to music shop owner and how his death affected more than one life. So, it wasn't about sadness or fear of death but mostly about natural path and development. Thus, Sparkling/ Twinkling Watermelon is such a nostalgic name for this drama because it can be interpreted as: Radiant life/youth, sparkling performance, or a sparkling period of time in youth before they became adults. And I really like it when the name actually summarises the storyline.
When it comes to acting, everyone did a great job at portraying their characters. As for characters, I must admit, for me, mostly Ha Yichan and Yoon Cheongah stood out ─ as teens and adults. Their characters were beautifully written and acted. They weren't perfect but they were perfect with their flaws, scars and their healing processes.
The drama also showed beautiful dynamics ─ whether it was friendship or parental relationships.
At the end, just like any other time travel drama, there were unanswered questions, discrepancy and some "what if" scenarios. But overall, it was an enjoyable watch.
link to edits: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI-LyvxxdMxDG3OaZjOkQIQUXWkuLTosF&si=HlG3s3wpE07lYOTL
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Refreshing
Honestly one of the best series that I have seen where persons that have a different way of life is depicted. The family life that was shown is so accurate to the ones that persons with hearing limitations have to face. As someone that knows sign language but doesn't have to, it was nice to see a story that revolved around it. All the concerns that go with being in their situation was real and I appreciated having them in such an amazingly positive light.The story was new to me, having the hint of mystery and time travel and a sprinkle of romance...Sorta. The life conversations I couldn't follow because I don't know the signs used, but it was still beautiful to watch. I must say, for a person that supposed to be "super smart" Gyeol was pretty dumb too many times, but it was funny so I excused most of it. His passion and understanding were his driving force to help everyone he met, I mean he did have direct relation to them, but even if Ha Yi Chan was a stranger I would risk it all to help him also. He is honestly so amazing, his thirst for life and living it to the fullest because he wants to help his grandma. I wish he got the world, but he got the next best thing. He was kind and caring while being a fool, there was no reason to not love him. I literally cried when his tape got left in street because of you know what. Worst yet when he was standing on the roof of the hospital after his grandma visited him. I tell you there was no more heartbreaking scene than these moments. Yoon Cheong Ah was such an amazing example of resilience, strength and determination seeing her growth into having friends that she trust was sweet. Her teacher though, lets just say she needed more than a time out and I was sooooooo happy when all her maids got fired.
The ending honestly wasn't amazing but I loved how things turned out, it was slightly underwhelming but I still liked it.
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Viva La Vida! Viva La Music!
In short: This Kdrama worth the hype, and it's not overrated! It's almost perfect!Why it's not perfect? Because I think, they could've done more with the storyline in the present, and of course, in some cases the time-traveling plot is inconsistent, but honestly, I don't really care, because THIS ISN'T A SCI-FI, this is Kdrama about FAMILY!
I don't really know what should I say, I don't want to go into spoilers, so the only thing I can say is that, this show is well-written, every character is amazing, and so called "villains" are good too. I mean, not good people, just well-written and the actors did a fantastic job!
The show captures really well how hard it is to be a teen, or being a parent, or just being alive in general.
I was a bit disappointed that they didn't do much with Se Kyeong and Eun Yu, but I get it, the main focus was Eun Gyeol's family!
If I'm being honest, my favorite character was Cheongha, after all the bad things that happened to her, she never lost hope, never give up and raised her kids later. I liked her adult version, but I LOVED her young version even more! Shin Eun Soo is an incredible actress, and she's very likable as well.
Anyway, I don't want to mumble for long, if you didn't watch this Kdrama yet, watch it now!
Lastly: The OST is also amazing. For 16 hour, I was a teen again!
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MY NEW COMFORT KDRAMA
I was in a HUGE kdrama slump. i had no interest in watching any new releases especially ongoing dramas… i was even in my cdrama era for awhile but Twinkling Watermelon brought me out of my slump. I had like no expectations for this drama. I just kept seeing it on my TL and saw it was highly rated on Viki so i wanted to give it a chance. The first 2 episodes were really depressing and confusing for me so i kinda had to push through and i’m so glad i did because i instantly got hooked on episode 3 and i’ve been tuning in every week since episode 7 from then on. I love everything about this drama from the storyline, family, friendships, romance, music, comedy, angst, acting, etc. It’s everything i look for in a kdrama. ‘90s youth band dramas will always be my comfort. I know people refer to this as a time travel drama but i see it more as a youth drama. Anyways, we have 4 more episodes and i’m wishing for a happy ending because i can’t really predict the ending at all… I just know i’ll go back to this drama a lot and you’ll see my talking about it 3 years from now.Was this review helpful to you?
