1
Not-So-Dreamy Romance: Too Much Melodrama, Not Enough Character Growth
High school sweethearts reunite in their 30s and find life hasn’t gone as they’d planned. Their shared aspiration of working as a film director became an unexpected reality for one, a crushed dream for the other, and a broken promise that stands between them.
The premise is promising and creates some interesting tension between the characters, but the way the story unfolds feels like the series is trying to be too many things at once. Is it a coming-of-age story, romcom, melodrama, family drama? There are multiple elements and subplots at play, but instead of combining into a complex and compelling story, it’s sometimes confusing and disjointed. Two other couples and various family relationships thrown into the mix don’t help matters.
Perhaps the biggest miss is the leads’ lack of character growth between high school and their 30s. If the difficult and traumatic circumstances they experienced during their time apart didn’t change them, what’s the point? The characters, while realistic in the sense that they have both good points and flaws, stay stuck in the same behavior patterns throughout the whole series.
That’s not to say the cast doesn’t deliver decent performances with the script they've been given. Hwang In Youp’s male lead, Woo Soo Bin, is sweet, flirty, and determined to win back his first (and only) love. His patient persistence and the way both he and his mom find the courage to stand up to his abusive father are probably the highlights of the series.
Lee Hye Ri’s female lead, Ju Yi Jae, is also a vivid character, the type whose emotions are always cranked up to the highest level — whether her mood is sunny and enthusiastic or fierce and unapologetic. There’s never a dull moment with her, but her emotional ups and downs can be exhausting to watch.
While the series does have a happy ending, the melodramatic elements (including domestic abuse, a scandalous family secret, a serious medical diagnosis, and a last-minute, illogical breakup) sometimes felt jarring mixed in with the overall romcom vibe. There are some emotional moments that hit hard, but overall the writing comes across as messy. It’s a drama that had potential, but couldn’t decide what direction it wanted to take and suffered from trying to squeeze too much into 12 episodes.
The premise is promising and creates some interesting tension between the characters, but the way the story unfolds feels like the series is trying to be too many things at once. Is it a coming-of-age story, romcom, melodrama, family drama? There are multiple elements and subplots at play, but instead of combining into a complex and compelling story, it’s sometimes confusing and disjointed. Two other couples and various family relationships thrown into the mix don’t help matters.
Perhaps the biggest miss is the leads’ lack of character growth between high school and their 30s. If the difficult and traumatic circumstances they experienced during their time apart didn’t change them, what’s the point? The characters, while realistic in the sense that they have both good points and flaws, stay stuck in the same behavior patterns throughout the whole series.
That’s not to say the cast doesn’t deliver decent performances with the script they've been given. Hwang In Youp’s male lead, Woo Soo Bin, is sweet, flirty, and determined to win back his first (and only) love. His patient persistence and the way both he and his mom find the courage to stand up to his abusive father are probably the highlights of the series.
Lee Hye Ri’s female lead, Ju Yi Jae, is also a vivid character, the type whose emotions are always cranked up to the highest level — whether her mood is sunny and enthusiastic or fierce and unapologetic. There’s never a dull moment with her, but her emotional ups and downs can be exhausting to watch.
While the series does have a happy ending, the melodramatic elements (including domestic abuse, a scandalous family secret, a serious medical diagnosis, and a last-minute, illogical breakup) sometimes felt jarring mixed in with the overall romcom vibe. There are some emotional moments that hit hard, but overall the writing comes across as messy. It’s a drama that had potential, but couldn’t decide what direction it wanted to take and suffered from trying to squeeze too much into 12 episodes.
Was this review helpful to you?
