1A total fan service!
Before starting the review, I'll share my experience while watching "Lovely Runner." For the first time, I followed a show from Day 1 to the last episode. I used to wait eagerly for each new episode to be released and would watch it immediately—not just to avoid spoilers, but because the show had me giggling, kicking my feet, blushing, and feeling stressed all at the same time ><Let's start the review now?!
The story of the show “Lovely Runner” is centered on Im Sol, a hardcore fan who is heartbroken by the sudden death of her favorite idol, Sun Jae, as he tragically dies. As she is in the process of accepting his fate of death, Im Sol travels back in time to 2008 when Sun Jae is still a teenager. Not wanting to see her beloved one in his tragic ending, she attempts to alter his destiny.
Ryu Sun Jae?! WHERE do I start from, gosh?! HE is the need of the hour, for saving humanity and preserving human sanity HAHA. Byeon Woo Seok breathed life into Sun Jae like no other actor could. He was made for this role, setting a standard for male leads in the drama world. Sun Jae is such a refreshing character, brimming with expressions, energy, and excitement. From his giggles and blushes to his veins and vulnerability in love, I was in love with him 🤣And HE graduated from the University of Loserism with flying marks(◠‿◕)
Im Sol, the most adorable munchkin FL. Hye Yoon has captured my heart with her talent for portraying angst. Honestly, I did enjoyed her character. It made sense for her to hesitate, worry, and push away the ML to *some extent*. However, her decision-making lacked rationality. It's understandable that she often acted impulsively due to her circumstances, but when you are stuck in a never-ending cycle, it's important to take a step back and think logically, that's how I felt about it.
The chemistry between our leads was adorable, full of giggles and blushes, which might make you cringe (no, it is not! I'm just jealous because I haven't experienced this kind of love yet TT). They were a swoon-worthy couple that makes you want to experience a Wattpad romance irl, filled with countless little gestures, that gets you screaming externally/internally( ꈍᴗꈍ)
Tae Seong is now added to list of my favorite second male leads. He's non-problematic and full of fun. There was never a dull scene with him. I enjoyed his dynamic with Sol a lot. I wished they had given us more of his bromance with Sun Jae. I appreciate that the writer's made Tae Seong likable yet he never over powered the ML, and thus no SLS in this one.
Im Sol's Brother and her friend's story was veryyy random and off for most of the time, like it was too RANDOM to have a opinion about it. I felt like I'm watching a different show altogether, I skipped their scenes at times ngl. NO BRAINER in simple words.
Supporting characters were very nice as well, like no unreasonably bitch behaviour by either parents of the leads. I love how loving and supportive they were towards their kids and bickering is fine with me♡
OST's that you definitely need to check out!
• Sudden Shower by ECLIPSE
• Like a dream by MINNIE
• Spring Snow by 10 cm
All these OST's were so soothing to hear, I listen to them ON LOOP, no joke!
So where it went wrong for me:
•The time travel elements were frustrating to watch at times, with decisions feeling impromptu and unplanned.
•Use of misunderstanding as plot developments
•The female lead constantly pushing the male lead away, repeatedly, was tiring to watch after a point.
•The murder mystery plot was initially engaging but became frustrating due to its lack of motivation and random developments.
•The repetitive flashbacks, showing the same scenes over and over, were also annoying.
•Tae Seong not getting enough screen timeರ_ರ
This was a plot-driven drama that started off fast-paced with many rapid development happening in the initial episodes. However, by episodes 10-11, it slowed down. Comedic elements took over, and some scenes felt like fillers to many of the viewers. I didn't mind personally because the comedic timing in this drama was extremely on point but there were many flashbacks and repetitive scenes, so I ended up skipping scenes here and there.
Overall, Lovely Runner is a fluffy watch (can't say that, mystery plot can be frustrating and too stressful at times). But it offers plenty of giggles and a refreshing take on the romance genre. With great comedic timing and some interesting plot developments, bits of dumb writing but remains an entertaining watch rather than a flawless one.
If you're looking for a solid, no-loopholes story, intellectual time travel drama, this isn't it. The time travel aspect is far from perfect. But if you watch it as a romantic comedy, you'll be entertained.
Thank you for reading my review ^^
END
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Didn't live up to the set up AT ALL
[We have to acknowledge Sudden Shower being the best OST of 2024. That song carries soo much emotion]PLOT - The synopsis def caught my eye. As much as I typically avoid shows that use time travel but I wanted to see this play out. The set up was too good: a young talented idol gives hope to a girl who seemingly has nothing to live for. She becomes a die-hard fan and attempts to attend his concert one night, but to no avail–That same night he dies tragically after giving one of the most touching performances I've seen in a kdrama. Soon after the FL is magically transported into the past and ends up back in high school with her beloved idol. She uses this strange situation as a chance to save him from the dreadful fate she knows is coming in the future. The pilot is one of the best in a while. It's Oshi No Ko pilot good. After that I expected an uphill trajectory...except that didn't happen. None of the emotional story elements were addressed, and the show had no interest in finishing what it started. Instead the heavier topics were sidelined and character development went out the window to make way for a cop-out happily ever after. Real ones know it was a disservice to all the good this had going for itself. The time travel aspect got more inconsistent the longer this played out. The show also had tone issues at times.
CHARACTERS - I agree about the mains being well acted. BWS IS Ryu Sunjae. Tho she was grating at times, you could tell KHY immersed herself in this role. But even with all the great chemistry neither character progresses. They became devices for fan service and boy was that fan service pushed. Ofc they were cute asf but I couldn't help but feel the shallowness of the relationship. I believe it was a mistake for Sunjae to fall in love with Sol. His first arc was written so well and we lost that so he could become a simp. Once we went from platonic love to romantic, my investment collapsed. I would've been fine with SJ not surviving in the end. That seemed like the natural course of events and would've made this show truly impactful. Had that been the case I'd prob be writing a different review... The SL seemed pointless and only existed as plot device for unnecessary conflict. Seeing more of SJ's dad and his relationship with him would've been nice. In Hyuk served his purpose ok as comedic relief. This show def needed it with all the crying scenes.
The screenwriter here is the same one for True Beauty. Both works mirror each other in the sense of setting up rootable characters and launching difficult subjects only to abandon everything for superficial romance that doesn't feel earned. What a missed oppurtunity to discuss depression and how it affects both regular people and celebrites. Where's the social commentary? Where is the payoff?
In conclusion, this ended up being a big ball of wasted potential. I'd be lying if I said parts of the show didn't still linger. The essence was good and I enjoyed the feels but this didn't live up to what was promised. This had the makings to be one of the best dramas of the year but ended up being just ok. Now back to those OSTs
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i don't like this one
most of the actors are overacting all the time, too many filler, too many "coincidental" scenes between main characters (falling into each other,...). Additionally, there are many details that are given only once and are not repeated or developed or explained (the first time the male lead dies of depression - why is he depressed?, the scene where the female lead discovers thather mom hides her illness - has their relationship changed?, the female lead can escape the fate of being crippled but find it difficult to save the male lead?). In particular, what annoys me the most is the pair of supporting characters (the female lead's brother and best friend). They're too loud and don't really contribute to the main story line
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TOP NOTCH CHEMISTRY
Okay, let’s get one thing straight—this romance? INSANE. Like, Hye-yoon and Byeon Woo-seok ATE. Their chemistry?? Off. The. Charts. I was screaming at my screen every time they even LOOKED at each other. I swear, they could be standing five feet apart, and I’d still feel the tension.Tbh, I almost didn’t watch this because of Kim Hye-yoon (nothing against her, just wasn’t drawn in, watched Extraordinary You because of Rowoon too), but THANK GOD I did. Because this was romance gold. The way their moments felt so raw, so natural, so everything?? Nothing less the peak.
Now, onto the crime plot... meh. Most of the time, crime/mystery subplots in romance K-dramas don’t do it for me, and this one was no exception. But I will admit, the stalker gave me chills. Like, when he appeared infront of Sol or when he kidnapped Im Sol? Instant shivers. Creepy dude aside, though, the crime aspect wasn’t the selling point.
Now, here’s where my rant kicks in—FOUR TIMELINES. I love a good time-travel twist, but did we really need FOUR?! At some point, it started feeling repetitive. And don’t even get me started on the "power of love" suddenly making Sun-jae remember everything—like huh??? That was kinda weird, ngl. But whatever, I was too busy swooning over their romance to care.
Up until Episode 10 or 12? PEAK. Literally flawless. But after Ep 13... yeah, I checked out. Not even gonna lie, I don’t even remember what happened in Ep 14 or 15. Did they get together? Probably. Did I care? Not really, because the high point had already passed for me. I might have to rewatch those episodes just to fill in the gaps.
Now, let’s talk about the Twinkling Watermelon comparisons. I keep seeing people compare Lovely Runner to Twinkling Watermelon, and honestly, it makes NO sense. These two shows are completely different in their execution. Lovely Runner is a pure romance (and it ATE—like 12/10, no, 20/10 romance, not saying that TW was any less than this, I was OBSESSED w TW couples and still am), while Twinkling Watermelon is much more layered, focusing on three different families and developing each of them deeply. TW isn't just about romance—it’s about family dynamics, growth, and multiple perspectives. You can’t just throw them into the same box because they both have time travel. They’re not the same, period.
Final thoughts: Even with the timeline chaos, this drama DELIVERED on romance. Every single scene between Im Sol and Sunjae? Perfection. If you’re watching for romance, you’ll be FED.
Would I rewatch it? Maybe just the first 12 episodes and the last one. Would I recommend it? 100%. Just be prepared for some timeline exhaustion.
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My favorite
This has become my favorite, over 25/21 because of the happy ending. There was so much tugging at my heart strings that the happy ending made it all worth it.First of all, the lyrics and songs really made a difference for how the scenes brought out certain emotions that were hidden beneath subconscious for me. I lost a love partner years ago, and the lyrics from rain shower would have me in tears every single time. I would, really would, have gone back in time to protect him as well, in this lonely world. Our time together was a gift from heaven to me. 😭
I easily watched it for the second time after I watched another show in between. There were details I skipped over or wasn't paying attention to the first time I watched it.
The emoting of the ML is especially real. The female lead irritated me at times with what felt like a fake cute smile. She honestly does better without the high school bangs lol. No points taken off though, didn't affect the overall plot.
The last 2 episodes were so surprising. In fact the entire show is laid out with surprising scenes and story lines here and there. It was very entertaining and oftentimes hilarious.
This was a brilliant show and will be hard to top.
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"Memories don't disappear. They are smeared into your soul."
This drama fully entertained me. It has some very good looking actors, lots of laugh out loud moments, an interesting storyline and all of the characters have different quirks which makes it a very enjoyable watch.This was also the first time when the OST didn't bother me. Most of the time if an OST is repeated several times I just get bored and it soon starts to annoy me, but in this drama (even though I don't remember the name of the song) it made me happy every time I heard it.
The story itself was really good, although I feel like some moments need a little more work on them, like for example, when Im Sol went back in time and she could walk again, she only acknowledged it for an episode and moved on. I think that if a character truly spent over 5 years (and most likely more) in a wheelchair, they would need more time to readjust.
Also, I feel like this drama could have been a tad bit shorter. The time travelling kind of reset all of the progress that Im Sol made and it frustrated me at times, but the ending truly won me over and I couldn't care less anymore, they were happy and so was I.
Also, it is never explained how every time Im Sol went back in time, her grandmother hinted that she knew about it and didn't tell us further.
Besides a few characters that need a bit more development and a few story loop holes, it's an entertaining watch that finally got me out of my drama slump. If you want to watch it, go for it.
Side note: don't form your opinion based on a random persons review. Whether I liked it or hated it, you need to watch it for yourself and form your own opinion.
Happy watching!
Thanks for reading and have a good day.
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BEAUTIFUL, FLUFFY AND TRULY LOVELY DRAMA!!
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE!!! I just love how it was a simple drama that wasn't too complicated, and I love that they didn't waste time and focus on creating some backstory for the villain; he is just a bad guy who happens to be present. This is the first time in a while where a drama didn't lose me because I felt the storyline was getting weaker. The drama stayed true to what it was meant to be, a cheesy rom-com with all the cliches and I love when a rom-com is unapologetically exactly that. It was simply full of fluff and I don't remember any product placements being shoved in my face, which was nice. I'm glad everyone had a beautiful and fulfilling ending, and this is definitely a drama I would rewatch.Everyone worked so hard on this drama after having so many setbacks. I'm glad it got popular, and I really hope more dramas like this will be produced. It truly is nice to simply watch a lighthearted drama. I was giggling and grinning from episode one all the the way to the last episode, even when the last timeline began and Sunjae didn't remember Sol, his personality didn't change and the couple still managed to make me laugh. The music in the drama was also so beautifully done, spring snow in particular might just be one of my favourite OSTs of all time. Thank you to everyone who worked on this and thank you for letting me experience such a wonderful drama. <3
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PERFECT PLOT, PERFECT ACTORS, PERFECT OST, PERFECT COUPLE AND PERFECT EVERYTHING
I don't know how to explain everything I think about this kdrama because all i think are positive things, I can't find any holes, gaps or something bad in this drama. I feel that from the acting to the plot is phenomenal. How Wooseok and Hyeyoon express their characters is something wonderful, you can feel every emotion they act and it touches your heart and the chemistry they have with each other is chef's kiss. And the plot leaves you hanging on to it and you want to know more and more, the best thing i could do is to watch this kdrama on air as every week there were theories, edits, memes and comments that i liked to check. thank you staff, cast, writer, director, Wooseok and Hyeyoon for this wonderful work of art. Definitely my top 1 kdrama.Was this review helpful to you?
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Your mileage may vary...
This show is very polarizing in the sense that either you really love it or you really hate it. I think I fall squarely in the middle, especially now that some time has passed (it's been a couple of months since I finished it).I'd suggest to anyone thinking about watching this show not to get sucked into the hype. Watch it with an open mind and no expectations. That's what I did, as I pretty much ignored this while it was airing and even for a while afterwards; I personally don't enjoy stories that feature time travel, I'm not a huge fan of the concept (and honestly watching this drama further cemented why).
It was during a lull between dramas that I finally decided to pick this up, and I pretty much inhaled it over the course of two days. It was just the right amount of fluff I needed at the time, with comedic moments and great chemistry from the cast. The leads really make you believe in the romance, that there really could be a love so strong and so powerful that not even time (and a very persistent serial killer) can do anything to stop it.
But as enough time has passed that I can say that while I enjoyed the bingeing experience of this drama, it will not necessarily hold up for me as time goes on. For me, the greatest draw of Lovely Runner is the charisma of its leads. They embody their roles so well and also play off one other quite well. However, not even they can save a weak script and characterization.
To be honest, I'm getting less and less enamored with crushes/attraction being propped up as "abiding love at first sight." What really does Sunjae see in Sol, and vice versa? How much do they really know about each other? BWS pulls off the pining quite well with his "melo eyes", but what really was there to wait 15 whole years for? KHY is effervescent and bubbly as Sol, but how much does she know about Sunjae to fall for him beyond his being the idol she wanted so desperately to save? Why are they so willing to go so far for each other?
I learned that the webtoon that Lovely Runner is based on didn't have Sol's disability or the killer plotline, and I think that perhaps the show should have stuck to the premise of the original. Especially because the disability erasure left a bad taste in my mouth, and maintaining Sunjae's death as a suicide would have given the show more opportunity to delve into some heavier, more poignant themes and develop the characters a little more.
I didn't like that Sunjae's passion for swimming and the subsequent loss of his career were just waved aside because of this supposed great love for Sol, and I didn't fully understand his relentlessness in trying to save her, especially when she'd rejected him so many times.
And where does Sol's love for directing/filming come from? We don't see any hints of that when she goes back to the past (apart from the video she did for Taesung I guess?). I also would have loved her to spend more time with her family and BFF, especially her grandmother. There just wasn't much else to their characters apart from being squee and in love with each other.
The rest of the cast was sadly underutilized (and in some cases, overutilized *ahem ahem* Imgeum and Hyunjoo, just had to skip over some of their scenes). I understand that it's a romcom and not a family drama and so the main leads are the focus, but that doesn't mean that side characters need to be caricatures either.
And poor Taesung; the actor is so good and so charismatic; I wished we could have seen more of his journey to becoming a police officer. I don't usually get SLS but I wanted more for him than just being the 2ML.
I don't even want to go into the inconsistencies with the fantasy/sci-fi/time-travel elements or how unnecessary the serial killer plotline was. I can only pray that the trend of inserting murder mysteries into romcoms dies in 2024 and we can maybe go back to focusing on character development. That's the strength of romcoms; they don't need to be plot-heavy, it's about watching how the leads grow and how said growth is reflected in their relationship with each other.
Maybe this review isn't very coherent but these are just the thoughts I've been wrestling with since I finished this drama. I suppose I can understand why people like this a lot. I'd even recommend this for anyone looking for something light that doesn't require too much emotional investment.
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cansei :(
as viagens do tempo sem sentido, os flashbacks desnecessários, a falta de lógica e a construção rasa do vilão me cansaram e eu não consegui terminar :(mas no início eu realmente me diverti muito com a história do casal principal e adorei cada personagem.
acho que como comédia romântica ele cumpre razoavelmente o papel porque a protagonista passa pelas situações mais constrangedoras possíveis e as cenas do casal são ótimas.
acho uma pena sabe, tinha potencial. se as viagens no tempo tivessem uma lógica, se o vilão fosse bem construído eu acredito que seria uns 8,5/10
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Breath of fresh air that (also) took me out of the Kdrama slump
Was a bit of a shocker not finding any positive reviews until the very recent reviewers.Although yes while the plot is very overused and includes typical Korean drama cliches for time travelling, crazy stalkers, however isn't this what dramas are all about? A massive thing that differentiates this one is the fact that both leads are true to their feelings from the very beginning, very green flags all around which is difficult to find in mainstream shows. Did I find myself shouting at the female lead asking her to communicate better? Maybe. But without much flaws like these, the show was very enjoyable and quite literally made me watch Kdramas again after 4 year hiatus. Safe to say this is going into my favourites list, and better yet, I'm rewatching this again with friends and my partner!
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The Yellow Umbrella At Its BEST
Do you believe in The Yellow Umbrella? This must be THE ultimate YELLOW UMBRELLA drama, putting ones faith in the power of the yellow umbrella in dramaland to the ultimate testThe drama has some of the best parts of Twinkling Watermelon meets Some Day or One Day . All covered in a yellow umbrella. And while it does have a lot of the good parts of these two excellent dramas it does not fully reach the greatness of both.
I love the different timelines, the friendships and the grandmother. The female lead has a lot of fun lines, at times a really cool attitude and is fun to watch about 70% of the time however the remaining 30%offer a few to many moments of annoying/ second hand embarrassment for me to fully understand what our fantasy to perfect to be perfect male lead sees in her. As for the other male lead male leads are a blast to watch, they are sweet, have great interactions both among themselves and with the female lead and aside from a few moments of jealousy really seem to be to good to be true. Also the girl tries to run away from the male lead so many times that I am sure that is why the drama is called Lovely Runner, but it should have been lovely umbrella...
There are a lot of twists (some better than others), sweet fun moments between all of the characters, eye-candy for as far as the aye can see and I do believe they have a thing for men (the male lead) getting out of the shower, pool, rain showing the viewers his very well chiselled abs in most of the episodes. So if you are sensitive to abs you may want to look away or make sure you are in a safe environment while watching.
Besides the abs, the cinematography is gorgeous, the use of umbrellas breath taking and the plot was wrapped up a lttle bit to fast towards the end, and it may have a hole or two but is overall pretty decent. Kisses are top, top all in all definitely one of those dramas that I will rewatch scenes from now and then.
An easy binge that will-indeed cater to all your romance, umbrella and watery needs
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