This review may contain spoilers
A Second Chance at First Love
As usual, Kim So-Hyun delivers with amazing acting and an eye for a good script. “Serendipity’s Embrace” is the wholesome romance we needed this summer.
Pros:
• A solid cast. Our leads were amazing, first of all. KSH is one of my all time favorite Korean actors/actresses, and I fell in love with our male lead in “Unlock My Boss”. The rest of the ensemble cast was great too. I loved love loved the best friend and how selfless she was, and the rest of the cast stole my heart too.
• Slice of life at its best. If you follow my reviews (which I know a lot of you do and thank you for that ❤️), you may know I’m not a fan of “slice of life” dramas. There’s only been two within the genre that ever got me, “Hometown Cha Cha Cha” (KDrama) and “Hidden Love” (CDrama). But this one has all the best elements of the slice of life. The beauty of young love, friendship, and healing comes through splendidly in the day to day lives of each character.
• Adorable romance. These two are so lovably awkward with each other. It’s adorable. Their quirky relationship is so cute, and it develops and matures beautifully.
Cons:
• Crazy Mother-in-Law trope. I thought K-Dramas were outgrowing this one. Good grief. The toxic mom showing up in the last three episodes really annoyed me. And worse, how did we not get to see them finally beat her in the end? The whole ending is very much “in a few months to a year, we can finally overcome her meddling” instead of the mom either getting what she deserved or growing as a person. This drama was gonna be a ten but this really irked me.
• Chemistry. I found this just a bit lacking even though they were cute. It didn't have umph I was hoping to see out of the leads.
• JUSTICE FOR SANG PIL. Okay, this one may be silly, but the guy best friend deserved so much better than these writers gave him. 1. He looks back onhis life unhappy that he has dedicated it to work but does not change at the end. 2. He laments not having love, and he never gets it! Even at the end of the show, you get the feeling that he is in an unrequited love situation with the second FL. 3. He would have been a much better fit for said girl. But anywayyyy....
All that said, Kim So-Hyun never disappoints, and this is no exception.
Pros:
• A solid cast. Our leads were amazing, first of all. KSH is one of my all time favorite Korean actors/actresses, and I fell in love with our male lead in “Unlock My Boss”. The rest of the ensemble cast was great too. I loved love loved the best friend and how selfless she was, and the rest of the cast stole my heart too.
• Slice of life at its best. If you follow my reviews (which I know a lot of you do and thank you for that ❤️), you may know I’m not a fan of “slice of life” dramas. There’s only been two within the genre that ever got me, “Hometown Cha Cha Cha” (KDrama) and “Hidden Love” (CDrama). But this one has all the best elements of the slice of life. The beauty of young love, friendship, and healing comes through splendidly in the day to day lives of each character.
• Adorable romance. These two are so lovably awkward with each other. It’s adorable. Their quirky relationship is so cute, and it develops and matures beautifully.
Cons:
• Crazy Mother-in-Law trope. I thought K-Dramas were outgrowing this one. Good grief. The toxic mom showing up in the last three episodes really annoyed me. And worse, how did we not get to see them finally beat her in the end? The whole ending is very much “in a few months to a year, we can finally overcome her meddling” instead of the mom either getting what she deserved or growing as a person. This drama was gonna be a ten but this really irked me.
• Chemistry. I found this just a bit lacking even though they were cute. It didn't have umph I was hoping to see out of the leads.
• JUSTICE FOR SANG PIL. Okay, this one may be silly, but the guy best friend deserved so much better than these writers gave him. 1. He looks back onhis life unhappy that he has dedicated it to work but does not change at the end. 2. He laments not having love, and he never gets it! Even at the end of the show, you get the feeling that he is in an unrequited love situation with the second FL. 3. He would have been a much better fit for said girl. But anywayyyy....
All that said, Kim So-Hyun never disappoints, and this is no exception.
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