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Twelve Nervous breakdowns & one multiverse later
I always find it so incredibly difficult to write reviews for shows I absolutely love. It's not just that I can't be objective (I'm never objective! I'm too emotional not to let it color my judgement), it's just I have no idea what to say! I don't know! I loved it! Go watch it!
But this show deserves a beautiful review, so I'm gonna try.
Rarely do I come across shows that I'm excited to watch before they start airing and then watch the show and actually love it! Usually, I either have anticipation for a show then end up disappointed in it or I accidentally come across a show and love it.
Twelve Letters stands out because I was ridiculously excited about it, waited for the countdown to the airing and everything, and when I watched it, I absolutely got sucked into the world within the story and loved it too. Twelve Letters isn't a typical fantasy show. It's not even a typical youth drama. Which is why it stands out because while it includes those genres and elements of those types of stories, in execution, they prioritise telling the story perfectly over upholding the genres' stereotypes.
This show actually reminded me of this story that I love very much and have reread maybe five times over the years. Both stories are about wounded teenagers who are failed by the incompetent or negligent adults in their lives, and with no one to turn to, end up saving each other. It just claws at your heartstrings. And while the show is heartwarming in showing how even the most broken and hopeless of people can find beauty and love and live little beautiful lives, it doesn't shy away from showing the raw underbelly of suffering at the hands of family and society. The camera stubbornly stands and zooms in on the violence and injustice and forces you, the audience, to stare at it too. To feel along with these characters, their anger, their helplessness, their grief. And it makes you feel helpless for not being able to help, to stop it, to fix it. I appreciate that the show doesn't just put on a beautiful warm filter over the ugliness of that life and pretends it's all okay because the power of love fixed it. I love that it doesn't just cutesy its way through young love. I love that it doesn't just preach at children to study and weather the hardships no matter what. It allows its characters the grace to be angry and petty. To neglect their studies because their world is unraveling all around them. To be violent when they are left with no choice.
There is a line in the very first letter in the show that I'm gonna rephrase: They lived as insignificant weeds by the side of the road, ignored and unimportant but it was the best time of their lives. The ugliness of reality is not lost on the characters but they still had it in them to seek the beauty of life in the small, safe place they made together. I love that the show found a good balance of displaying both the good and bad, like that. In addition to all that, the drama shows us how sometimes found families aren't enough; you really can't fight off a system that is rigged against you, and despite everything, you may lose. They show us this losing hand to its bitter end. But they're kind enough to take pity on us and give the characters a second chance, anyway. Therefore, this show has a unique quality of giving us both a sad and a happy ending, like a choose-your-own-adventure story. You can either go the realistic dark way, or you can hope that things could still change. I personally appreciate the happy ending option!
Acting: In addition to their beautiful storytelling, this show is incredibly well-acted. I can't believe I've slept on this cast for so long! They are so talented! How did I not know them? Anyway, perfect performances all across the board.
Production: This review is not complete without a total meltdown over the principal photography of this show, the perfect cinematography, the gorgeous golden filtering, the on-point makeup and costuming, the detailed set designs, and the beautiful music. Even the angles they captured in this show were so precise and intentional. It was so well-produced. It's like not a single hair is out of place. Every detail is agonised into perfection. The poor girl? She wears cheap and simple clothes that are bought without care or attention to charm. The rich spoiled brat? dressed in brand, gaudy outfits. The orphan who is raising himself with dignity? Simple and basic pieces that are always clean. And the houses! Each set shows the class and status of each character. From the Yu's simple worker apartment to teacher Ye's clearly intellectual, well-off apartment, to the gangster's den masquerading as a temple and the illegal gambling den, it was all so detailed and thoughtfully made. I also appreciate that the show has seasons and different weather!!!! The switch between the harsh snow and the blue skies not only added depth to the world of the show, but it also highlighted the emotional roller coaster we and the characters are on. Also, this show is just beautiful. It's so beautiful to look at! Furthermore, the high quality of production is accompanied by high-quality storytelling. So many times, the show is expensively made, but so what?! The plot is a hot mess. Not Twelve Letters though! They have it all.
Now the music was beautiful too, but sometimes I wished they would stop playing it so I could hear the conversations better. So it was good, but Cdramas still need to tone it down.
Rewatch: I feel like I might rewatch this. It's short and beautiful.
Negatives: So this wasn't totally perfect. I feel like they owe us another extra 30 minutes of footage at the very end, and so the editing, to me, leaves a bit to be desired. I don't even want fan service so much as I just wish we had gotten a final report of where every character ended up. The 12th letter wasn't enough to heal the wounds the show left on my heart! But I still gave it a 10/10 because I enjoyed this show way too much not to do that.
Overall: You're gonna suffer but you're gonna be happy about it! To me, this is one of those not-to-be-missed Cdramas of the year. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go watch all the shows from Light On series! lol
But this show deserves a beautiful review, so I'm gonna try.
Rarely do I come across shows that I'm excited to watch before they start airing and then watch the show and actually love it! Usually, I either have anticipation for a show then end up disappointed in it or I accidentally come across a show and love it.
Twelve Letters stands out because I was ridiculously excited about it, waited for the countdown to the airing and everything, and when I watched it, I absolutely got sucked into the world within the story and loved it too. Twelve Letters isn't a typical fantasy show. It's not even a typical youth drama. Which is why it stands out because while it includes those genres and elements of those types of stories, in execution, they prioritise telling the story perfectly over upholding the genres' stereotypes.
This show actually reminded me of this story that I love very much and have reread maybe five times over the years. Both stories are about wounded teenagers who are failed by the incompetent or negligent adults in their lives, and with no one to turn to, end up saving each other. It just claws at your heartstrings. And while the show is heartwarming in showing how even the most broken and hopeless of people can find beauty and love and live little beautiful lives, it doesn't shy away from showing the raw underbelly of suffering at the hands of family and society. The camera stubbornly stands and zooms in on the violence and injustice and forces you, the audience, to stare at it too. To feel along with these characters, their anger, their helplessness, their grief. And it makes you feel helpless for not being able to help, to stop it, to fix it. I appreciate that the show doesn't just put on a beautiful warm filter over the ugliness of that life and pretends it's all okay because the power of love fixed it. I love that it doesn't just cutesy its way through young love. I love that it doesn't just preach at children to study and weather the hardships no matter what. It allows its characters the grace to be angry and petty. To neglect their studies because their world is unraveling all around them. To be violent when they are left with no choice.
There is a line in the very first letter in the show that I'm gonna rephrase: They lived as insignificant weeds by the side of the road, ignored and unimportant but it was the best time of their lives. The ugliness of reality is not lost on the characters but they still had it in them to seek the beauty of life in the small, safe place they made together. I love that the show found a good balance of displaying both the good and bad, like that. In addition to all that, the drama shows us how sometimes found families aren't enough; you really can't fight off a system that is rigged against you, and despite everything, you may lose. They show us this losing hand to its bitter end. But they're kind enough to take pity on us and give the characters a second chance, anyway. Therefore, this show has a unique quality of giving us both a sad and a happy ending, like a choose-your-own-adventure story. You can either go the realistic dark way, or you can hope that things could still change. I personally appreciate the happy ending option!
Acting: In addition to their beautiful storytelling, this show is incredibly well-acted. I can't believe I've slept on this cast for so long! They are so talented! How did I not know them? Anyway, perfect performances all across the board.
Production: This review is not complete without a total meltdown over the principal photography of this show, the perfect cinematography, the gorgeous golden filtering, the on-point makeup and costuming, the detailed set designs, and the beautiful music. Even the angles they captured in this show were so precise and intentional. It was so well-produced. It's like not a single hair is out of place. Every detail is agonised into perfection. The poor girl? She wears cheap and simple clothes that are bought without care or attention to charm. The rich spoiled brat? dressed in brand, gaudy outfits. The orphan who is raising himself with dignity? Simple and basic pieces that are always clean. And the houses! Each set shows the class and status of each character. From the Yu's simple worker apartment to teacher Ye's clearly intellectual, well-off apartment, to the gangster's den masquerading as a temple and the illegal gambling den, it was all so detailed and thoughtfully made. I also appreciate that the show has seasons and different weather!!!! The switch between the harsh snow and the blue skies not only added depth to the world of the show, but it also highlighted the emotional roller coaster we and the characters are on. Also, this show is just beautiful. It's so beautiful to look at! Furthermore, the high quality of production is accompanied by high-quality storytelling. So many times, the show is expensively made, but so what?! The plot is a hot mess. Not Twelve Letters though! They have it all.
Now the music was beautiful too, but sometimes I wished they would stop playing it so I could hear the conversations better. So it was good, but Cdramas still need to tone it down.
Rewatch: I feel like I might rewatch this. It's short and beautiful.
Negatives: So this wasn't totally perfect. I feel like they owe us another extra 30 minutes of footage at the very end, and so the editing, to me, leaves a bit to be desired. I don't even want fan service so much as I just wish we had gotten a final report of where every character ended up. The 12th letter wasn't enough to heal the wounds the show left on my heart! But I still gave it a 10/10 because I enjoyed this show way too much not to do that.
Overall: You're gonna suffer but you're gonna be happy about it! To me, this is one of those not-to-be-missed Cdramas of the year. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go watch all the shows from Light On series! lol
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