This review may contain spoilers
Kim You-jung Deserved a Better Story
I watched Dear X because I’ve become a fan of Kim You-jung after My Demon and 20th Century Girl. She didn’t disappoint. In fact, this is probably the best I’ve seen her. She convincingly portrays a manipulative, narcissistic and genuinely unsettling character without ever softening her edges to make her more likeable. It’s a fearless performance.The drama itself is a different story.
The opening arc is excellent. I don’t usually enjoy school settings, but this was easily my favourite part of the series. The relationship with Jae-oh and the baseball storyline gave the drama emotional weight, and it reminded me at times of a lighter version of The Glory.
Unfortunately, it steadily loses momentum after that. Once the story shifts into Ah-jin’s acting career and her relationship with her actor boyfriend, I found myself much less invested. This became one of the rare K-dramas where I reached the end of an episode without immediately wanting to start the next one.
The finale was where the story really lost me. Character motivations that had felt consistent for most of the series suddenly became difficult to believe, and the tragic ending felt more interested in shocking the audience than earning its emotional payoff.
Despite all that, I’m still glad I watched it. Kim You-jung’s performance alone makes it worth seeing if you’re a fan of hers, even if I don’t think the writing ever reaches the same standard.
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A Beautiful Beginning That Lost the Tide
I watched Summer Strike after seeing a TikTok edit and wondering how I’d managed to miss it. The first episode immediately hooked me. I even started the second one instead of going to bed.The opening episodes are exactly what I hoped for. The small coastal town, the library, and the central idea of stepping away from a life that has become nothing more than surviving all felt wonderfully understated. It had all the ingredients of a memorable healing drama.
Unfortunately, it never quite maintained that momentum for me.
The series tackles a lot of heavy subjects, but they didn’t have the emotional impact I’d expected. I’m not entirely sure why, perhaps because there were so many dramatic storylines competing for attention that none of them had enough space to breathe.
My biggest disappointment was the setting. I wish the ocean had become more of a character. The town and library were charming, but the coast felt underused. Given the premise, I kept expecting the sea to play a larger role in the story’s atmosphere and the characters’ healing.
Even so, I’m glad I watched it. The first quarter of the drama is genuinely captivating, and although the rest didn’t quite live up to that promise for me, it still offered moments of warmth and reflection that made it worthwhile.
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