Peak Loserism in Love + Coming of age drama!
After seeing so many tiktoks of the next loser in love I just had to start watching Spirit Fingers! I never actually read the manhwa (when I was still in my webtoon phase—IM NOT IN MY WEBTOON PHASE ANYMORE at least not for now) but always heard good things about it, and might actually end up starting it after this ends!Spirit Fingers tells the story of Song Uyeon, a student in high school who has played her entire life safe. She only has 2 close friends, does average in school, isn't known for being the prettiest or the most stylish, and spends majority of her life comparing herself to others. Growing up with a strict (lowkey verbally abusive) mom and 2 genius brothers (one older and one younger—oh man, middle child problems...) hasn't exactly boosted her self-esteem, and instead has been a great part of why she always thinks less of herself. She continues playing the role of a background character she thinks herself to be, that is, until one day she encounters a drawing club who asked her to model for them. They call themselves Spirit Fingers, an unusual group consisting of college students, middle aged adults, and eventually, Uyeon herself (and also very soon some loser named Gi Jeong). They meet every Sunday, choosing a theme to dress up in and sketch each other's costumes. And while it really does sound weird, it also becomes a place of comfort, as well as Uyeon's strength when it comes to facing problems in life. The more meetings she goes to, the greater her self confidence grows, and seeing a found family be formed is always one of the most heartwarming parts in these types of dramas. They all play a part in getting her to open up, to be brave when she should be, and to love herself more! This drama explores many different themes and relationships, such as friendships, romantic relationships, lifelong connections, as well as the harder to watch ones like divorced parents, bullying, and family strains. They might not be given a lot of time to explore each one further, and I'd describe them as small, but impactful.
Onto the romance !!!
Like I mentioned, Gi Jeong, another high school student who's also the little brother of one of the members becomes part of Spirit Fingers too. He's known for being popular, a model for a shopping mall, but he does very poorly in school. I love that he's a little dumb like that because why should these guys always be the entire package. He's terrible at spelling, grammar, says the wrong phrases, but he makes up for a lot of that with his endearing personality! While his encounters with Uyeon don't start off very pleasant, the 2 eventually hit it off and become close friends enveloped in an unfortunate one-sided love for Gi Jeong. He's the type of person that Uyeon envies the most, someone who seems to have it all, the looks, the attention, the style—unfortunately, not the academic brain—but he's confident in what he does and who he is. That's something that Uyeon has never gotten used it. He becomes a pillar of confidence for her whenever she runs into trouble. And let's not act like Uyeon doesn't have anything to offer. She's such a kind person and always a reliable friend, it's just sad to see her make so many self sacrifices for the people she loves at the expense of herself. However, she helps Gi Jeong grow into someone more mature, and more caring about the people in his life. You get to see their chaotic friendship turn into something more as their relationship grows deeper and they're genuinely so cute!! Honestly one of the top losers in love that I've watched so far. Also in case anyone else loves love, there are actually a lot of hinted romantic relationships in this drama and it seems like everyone's gonna be coupled up soon! Unrealistic, who cares, they're all so adorable and made for each other. I will say tho another prominent couple are the college students, Geu Rin (total girl crush btw), and Koo Seon Ho, who've been friends their entire lives. Another poor guy stuck in a one-sided crush!
The actor for Gi Jeong, Cho Jun Young, does an AMAZING job of portraying his character, literally one of the most animated people I've ever seen. He was absolutely perfect for portraying Gi Jeong and even without reading the webtoon I know he brought the character to life and did him justice. Really hope he gets an even bigger breakout role soon. Also always awesome seeing Park You Na—loved her since true beauty! She plays Geu Rin so well too, and them as siblings is exactly the chaos I want to see on screen. All the side characters were also great. I do want to comment on Bo Min and Park Ji Hu's acting though. Bo Min does have the image of the gentle and handsome college student down but acting comes off just a bit stiff at times. Park Ji Hu plays the awkward low self-esteem character decently, but I can definitely see room for improvement. It's awkward but a little wooden, and no I definitely don't believe it's because she's "supposed" to be awkward. I think I would have enjoyed her portrayal more if it seemed a bit more natural. Nonetheless, she's still a young actor and doing a great job.
Overall this is a really great coming of age drama and a good reminder to love ourselves a little more. Check it out if you're looking for something unique, fun, messy, heartwarming, and romantic!
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