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Another Masterpiece From Writer Park Hae Young! Quiet, soft and painfully human...
DON'T HESITATE TO WATCH BECAUSE THIS DRAMA TRULY WORTH YOUR TIME!What makes this drama beautiful is how 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘦 it is. The emotions are never overdone, yet somehow they hit harder than loud melodramas. It reminds you that everyone is simply trying their best to survive life, love people and at the same time, heal quietly. Even the smallest moments feel meaningful.
Watching them feels less like escaping reality and more like being comforted by it The loneliness, regrets, dreams and the simple desire to keep going. No exaggerated drama, no overly perfect characters. Kinda soft reminder that healing isn't always loud or life-changing. Sometimes it's just having someone beside you who understands not only your silence but also when you're being talkative.
And the ending? Intriguing with solid 10/10. I love how the ending makes my chest ache a little while staring at the credit, realizing how deeply the each character touches my heart. The emotional payoff feels gentle instead of explosive and somehow that makes it hurt more.
Today, 25/5/2026, as this review was written, I can proudly announce that my personal podium of healing dramas from Writer Park Hae Young is finally complete. My Mister, My Liberation Notes and We Are All Trying Here will forever got a special place in my heart.. They don't just entertain but sit with you emotionally.
"Love isn't always grand... sometimes it is just staying, understanding and growing quietly beside someone."
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This review may contain spoilers
My mister-esqe
I headlined this as "My Mister-esque" because, honestly, I didn’t know how else to capture the specific feeling it evokes. It is undeniably deep. It pulls you in, making you feel sorrow, warmth, and happiness, keeping you constantly emotionally engaged with what unfolds on screen. At times, you even catch yourself wondering just how long a particular actor’s monologue is going to last—or exactly how much more food he can physically keep stuffing into his face. :)The supporting cast is fantastic. Oh Jung-se, playing the male lead's nemesis-turned-friend, does a phenomenal job—as he always does. He keeps you laughing, occasionally gets under your skin, and then suddenly makes you genuinely pity him. That is a notoriously difficult balance to strike, but he pulls it off effortlessly. The rest of the ensemble performs just as well, adding substantial weight to the overall narrative.
About eight episodes in, I discovered that this was penned by the same writer behind *My Mister* and *My Liberation Notes*. It finally made sense why that train signal scene felt so suspiciously familiar! Naturally, finding this out made me worry that we might not get a neatly tied, positive ending—even though this writer’s work is famously more about the journey than the destination. Still, I was really rooting for a happy resolution here, because the story built up a premise where the characters just needed to win *once*.
**Edit:** The final episode—or at least the last few minutes—felt noticeably rushed. The pacing and placement were a bit out of sync with the rest of the story's careful build-up. Despite that slightly clumsy landing, however, I thoroughly enjoyed the immense depth of acting from the entire cast.
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Makes you think
I liked this a lot at the start but I think it sort of fizzled out a bit.Some things that happen feel a little convenient, and there some other plot points that are set up but don't have the pay-off I expected. While I understand that this is more of a quiet and contemplative slow burn, the final episode left me feeling a bit unsatisfied.
With that being said, however, there were a lot of interesting themes introduced here — it addresses depression and envy in extremely creative ways, and I appreciate the drama even more for being brave enough to make its main character unlikable.
I think My Mister is still my top Park Hae Young drama by far, but anyone who enjoyed that and My Liberation Notes will like this one too.
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A Reflection of Life Itself
The cinematography is simply beautiful, but what truly makes this drama special is how human it feels. Every character carries their own insecurities, regrets, and dreams, making their journeys feel incredibly real and relatable. This isn't a story about perfect people finding perfect answers. it's about imperfect people trying their best to move forward despite life's uncertainties. Few dramas have made me reflect on myself as much as this one.By the end, it felt less like I was watching a drama and more like I was looking at a reflection of life itself.
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small review
this kdrama was so well written, I feel like I could understand every character and their decisions.Personally hwang-dong-man was THE ONE character who struck with me the most, to see him finally achieve his dream even after being criticized that much by his friends who only saw him as a guy denigrating other people’s film when he didn’t even debut, instead of asking him why he was acting this way.Or him having the constant pression of wondering if his brother was alright because of his multiple attempts, anyway I’m really bad at reviewing but I felt like I needed to write something about this kdrama that was litteraly my comfort show from the moment it started to the moment it ended🤍.Was this review helpful to you?
The real star of this drama is screenwriter Park Hae Young
What a wonderful, heartfelt drama. Park Hae Young has to be one of the best screenwriters currently working. She has a very distinctive style that gives the actors room to create/inhabit their characters through her thought-provoking dialogue. She weaves incredibly clever subplots through the story that make it so much richer. In her previous script for My Liberation Notes, you can see it starting to come together. With We Are All Trying Here she is in full control.That Dong-man's oafish, morose brother is also a celebrated poet feels incongruous, but his appearance throughout serves to shock us, elicit anguish for him, scare us, and rejoice with him. When a loan shark appears, the trope is turned completely on its head with a very clever twist. In anyone else's hands, a plot device like the "emotion watch" would be a cheap gimmick, but Writer Park uses it to help us connect with the depth of the two leads’ suffering and at one point uses it to wrench a cry of desperation out of them that is absolutely heart-breaking ("Help me...").
The cast is terrific. Koo Kyo Hwan is exasperatingly delightful as Hwang Dong-Man, and Go Youn Jung is heart wrenchingly soulful as Byeon Eun A. In one of the most touching (and controversial) scenes, Eun A loops her cardigan over Dong-Man as if to bring him into her womb to protect and nurture him. If that was in the script, it is pure genius. If it was something the actors ad-libbed, then kudos to Writer Park for creating the space for it.
Once again, Oh Jung Se is absolutely perfect as the antagonist Park Gyeong Se. (Is there a better character actor?) And Park Hae Joon's role as Dong-man's brother Hwang Jin-man is a delightful contrast to his recent role as IU's father in “When Life Gives You Tangerines”.
The cast was so good that I couldn't help but feel that the actors loved this work as much as the viewers did. This drama will be on everyone's “Best Of” list for 2026, and rightfully so. But let no one forget, the real star of this drama is screenwriter Park Hae Young.
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This review may contain spoilers
We Are All Trying Here has become my all-time favorite drama
I don’t know what movies are to others. For me, movies are survival itself. My days are a loop: I wake up in the afternoon, I eat, I watch a film, and then I work. In the past, I would spend the rest of the day translating films. Now, I study cinema history and watch related films to write scripts for my channel, or I edit videos. When I need to rest, I play music or watch other films; then, I go back to work.Evening comes. I go to the market and cook. I talk to my girlfriend. When she falls asleep, I watch a drama while eating. Then, I go back to work again. Time slips away—I eat, I watch, I work. In the morning, I talk to my girlfriend again, watch something else, and finally, I sleep. For 10 years, I have been living in this cycle—a routine that occupies about 29 days of every month.
Whenever my spirit sinks, it is usually films that provide the strength I need to keep living. K-dramas rarely give me that kind of profound, quiet strength, but We Are All Trying Here did. While Reply 1988 was my all-time favorite, We Are All Trying Here has now become my personal, all-time favorite.
I liked it from the very first episode, but I never expected the ending to be handled this perfectly. In episode 11, I was deeply impressed, but I didn't think they could wrap up every single character so beautifully in just one final episode. I was wrong. Every character stayed true to their purpose until the very end. The businessman remained a businessman; those between the artist and the entertainment world stayed right in that space; and the only true "artist" in the show stayed true to his convictions until the final moment.
Seeing this final part, I realized that Park Hae-young is not just a screenwriter—she is an artist who truly understands what it means to live. Even if Hwang Dong-man is the protagonist, the soul of this story lies with his brother, the poet Hwang Jin-man. She shaped this throughout every episode, and in the finale, it reached its true climax. The real climax of the story was found in the character who had the fewest scenes among the leads. One could say we felt the most poetic experience through a character who had stopped writing poems.
In the act of creating art, the hardest part is not telling people what you want to say, but knowing what not to say. Hwang Dong-man is a character who talks too much, but Hwang Jin-man is a character who never says anything unnecessary. In We Are All Trying Here, watching Hwang Dong-man feels like seeing myself, but watching Hwang Jin-man feels like seeing the person I want to become. It might be an impossible dream, but my life’s ambition is to become someone like him—someone who wants for nothing and who can live courageously in a corner of the world, defined entirely by his own meaning.
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Healing and emotional drama
For anyone who has struggled or is struggling to make their dreams come true, I suggest watching this drama. This demonstrates realistic portrayal of trying to find footing in the film industry filled with people with jealousy and resentment. There will be many tears but also hope and relief. Finding solace in someone else who is also struggling and being there for each other is the ultimate cure for depression. The touch on mental health theme can be heavy but it can also be healing.The acting of the staff was wonderful. They will be sweeping every award next year. Overall loved this drama and can’t recommend it enough.
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A drama where flawed adults confront the realities that shape them
This screenwriter clearly has a gift for crafting emotional stories centered on older, weathered characters played by veteran actors who carry decades of life in their faces. Her last three works feel like they come from the same mold, but honestly, if the mold keeps producing this level of depth, why change it. I loved My Mister, found Liberation Notes slower but still quietly brilliant.This drama starts rough. The main characters are imperfect, obnoxious, even embarrassing at times. They push you away before they pull you in. But as the story unfolds, their flaws become the very thing that makes them human. You start to understand them, then root for them, then feel protective of them. Their growth isn’t dramatic or flashy; it’s slow, painful, and shaped by the people around them. Watching them confront their inner demons and gradually become wiser feels earned. Hardship teaches lessons that comfort never will, and this drama understands that better than most.
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1Some stories leave you with thoughts. This one left me still searching for language.
I usually write reviews when I feel compelled to. Not because I have watched something good, but because I have encountered something that leaves a lasting imprint through a performance, a story, a visual language, or an emotional experience that continues to linger after the credits roll.This series captivated me, yet it has proven remarkably difficult to write about. Not because there is nothing to say, every time I try to define what exactly touched me, the words seem to flatten something that felt infinitely more complex.
First, thank you to the creators for giving us something original, willing to challenge its audience. In an industry increasingly reliant on recycling familiar concepts, proven formulas, and recognizable tropes, this series feels refreshing. And perhaps that is where my difficulty begins.
Is it a love story? Certainly. Yet calling it a love story feels insufficient, as though it reduces something much larger. Is it a journey of self-discovery, healing, and reflection? Also yes. Yet even that description feels strangely shallow. The emotional landscape of this series is vast and layered, so any attempt to summarize it risks diminishing it.
Perhaps the series itself provides the answer. At one point, the protagonists reflect on whether love can be displayed as a singular emotion, suggesting instead that it is a construct composed of emotions, experiences, perceptions, and contradictions. In many ways, the series functions similarly. It feels less like a story that communicates a message and more like a construct designed to evoke something profoundly personal.
The story is generally described as one of struggle, and the two protagonists appear to embody that struggle. Yet that never sat quite right with me. As the narrative unfolds, it becomes clear that everyone around them is struggling. What distinguishes Hwang Dong Man and Byeon Eun A is not the severity of their suffering, but their relationship to it. Paradoxically, this same vulnerability grants them a kind of freedom that many other characters never achieve.
Both seem less constrained by social expectations and less dependent on being accepted, validated, or understood by others. Their struggles run so deep that they manifest physically and therefore become impossible to hide, creating an emotional detachment that is often painful to witness. For that reason, I did not see them as tragic heroes. The series contains so much subtext that reducing its characters to conventional archetypes feels almost profane. Beneath every conversation lies another conversation. Beneath every conflict lies another wound. Perhaps that is why the moments that remain with me most strongly are not the dramatic plot points, but the quieter emotional expressions.
I have to commend the writers for the intoxicating language they gave Hwang Dong Man. His quiet monologues of love for Byeon Eun A are some of the most beautiful moments in the series. They are unconventional, almost nonsensical at times, yet deeply sincere. Through ordinary objects, fleeting observations, and seemingly insignificant details, he transforms everyday life into symbols of connection and affection.
Equally moving is Byeon Eun A's recognition of Dong Man's empathy and sincerity. She sees something precious in him that others overlook or dismiss. Her appreciation of his compassion feels less like romantic admiration and more like an acknowledgment of something fundamentally necessary in the world. Their relationship transcends conventional romance and becomes an exploration of transformative love itself, love as understanding, acceptance, and recognition.
And finally, a humble declaration of love for Koo Kyo Hwan's art. He achieves far more than simply portraying a character. He creates an entire emotional ecosystem, capturing the multifaceted universe of a deeply complex personality. As someone who tends to engage with performances through empathy, I found myself absorbed by every nuance of the character's emotional landscape. Every subtle shift, every contradiction, every unspoken emotion felt tangible. It is precisely here that words fail me most.
The closest comparison I can offer is that of a child staring into a snow globe that has just been shaken. At first, everything appears chaotic, beautiful fragments swirling in every direction. Yet the longer you watch, the more you realize that every piece belongs exactly where it is. The chaos possesses its own logic, its own significance, its own reason for existing.
That is how his performance felt to me.
In the end, these elements became so impactful that the storyline itself occasionally felt secondary. Not because the narrative lacks value, but because it succeeds in what I believe it ultimately sets out to do: provide a thread strong enough to carry an emotional experience. And what remains is a story filled with compassion, hope, longing, vulnerability, and the quiet reassurance that every person is fighting a battle against their own sense of inadequacy.
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Peak Everywhere, trust the overwhelming positive reviews
The acting is an absolute class, Koo Kyo-han delivered one of his best performance yet perhaps even THE best performance from his resume. Go Youn Joung, is an A-lister that continues to prove that she can play any role. And Park Have Jon, despite the focus being equally spread amongst the different characters HE was brilliant, overall it's just surrounded with acting that's highly commendable.The cinemography is a masterclass, no awkward closeups that I DESPISE, the lighting, the angle, the OST it's immaculate.
The plot is great, revolving around giving light to how they really are trying lol. Yet this is a melodrama that's comparable to the other mega hits (My Mister, Our Movie, Move to Heaven) it depicts the idealogy of being "lost", being left behind, perfectly.
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This review may contain spoilers
When I almost gave up on k-drama
When I almost gave up on watching k-drama this show brought me back. It was hard to get into, but I kept trying because of the reviews and Koo Kyo Hwan (who’s acting I enjoyed in DP) and by the end of the first episode I was hooked. I loved almost every scene and every character - even unlikable ones (one exception is FL ex - he is simply deplorable)… Everything worked beautifully together. Every scene was worth watching and meaningful. I also liked that romance was subtle yet heartwarming. Personal highlights: strong female characters Hye Jin and Eun A, Mi Ran and Eun A friendship, Dong Man a cat person! 😻🐈⬛🤜🤛😅I only wished we got more insight at Dong Man’s depressive episode during the shooting and it’s development and more realistic ending (all friends and smiles was almost too cheesy) but compared to the whole - these didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the show. Happy to see photos in the end - it seems to be rare nowadays. Superb storytelling, acting and direction 10/10 ❤️🌹🏆👏👏
p.s. What happened to Knock knock knock?!
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