This review may contain spoilers
viva la vida! life is uncertain, might as well enjoy the ride :)
i expected a lighthearted, coming of age romance with a whimsical travel element, but boy was i wrong. it is much more than that, delving into darker themes such as childhood trauma and abuse, as well as systemic discrimination. these are not easy subjects to appeal to the general public, but i liked that twinkling watermelon was able to explore those themes while keeping the overall atmosphere light and sweet through a colorful lens with music and youth.
the show is centered around eun gyeol, a coda (we learn something new every day!), who struggles to balance his dreams with the weight of familial responsibility. he's given a magical opportunity to travel back in time and possibility change his (and his family’s) destiny. while watching this show, i felt emotional and nostalgic, wishing i could travel back in time to experience life (youth) with my parents, to understand them better and to protect them. now that i’m a bit older, my parents’ worries, concerns, and demands all sound more reasonable than they did at the time, and this drama perfectly captures that shift in perspective. at the same time, it never diminishes the pressure and emotional burden teenages carry, giving equal weight to both struggles.
the cast was very well-chosen and the actors portrayed their characters to be very loveable. it seems like choi hyunwook has aced roles like ha yichan (energetic, silly, and shy loverboy) and i always love seeing him on screen. shin eunsoo also portrayed cheong ah’s character flawlessly (esp after knowing her personality in real life). despite her disability and neglect, i loved how cheong ah’s character was strong and resilient. as many others have mentioned, i wish we were able to see how life was for yi chan after he lost his hearing and how he reconnected with cheong ah. it ending was clear as to what happened those years but it would’ve been sweet to see it happen.
many time travel dramas have explored the narrative of would our lives improve if we had the opportunity to change the past? and, if so, how? answer they often circle back to is that change is inevitable. we may try to wrest control over our fate, but life will always remain uncertain, so we might as well learn how to enjoy the ride. with that being said, i appreciated the ending. even though eun gyeol wasn’t able to change history for the better, he gained something just as meaningful -- the chance to truly witness what his parents went through, to see who they were before him. he comes to understand them not just as parents, but as individuals with their own dreams, fears, and lives.
the show is centered around eun gyeol, a coda (we learn something new every day!), who struggles to balance his dreams with the weight of familial responsibility. he's given a magical opportunity to travel back in time and possibility change his (and his family’s) destiny. while watching this show, i felt emotional and nostalgic, wishing i could travel back in time to experience life (youth) with my parents, to understand them better and to protect them. now that i’m a bit older, my parents’ worries, concerns, and demands all sound more reasonable than they did at the time, and this drama perfectly captures that shift in perspective. at the same time, it never diminishes the pressure and emotional burden teenages carry, giving equal weight to both struggles.
the cast was very well-chosen and the actors portrayed their characters to be very loveable. it seems like choi hyunwook has aced roles like ha yichan (energetic, silly, and shy loverboy) and i always love seeing him on screen. shin eunsoo also portrayed cheong ah’s character flawlessly (esp after knowing her personality in real life). despite her disability and neglect, i loved how cheong ah’s character was strong and resilient. as many others have mentioned, i wish we were able to see how life was for yi chan after he lost his hearing and how he reconnected with cheong ah. it ending was clear as to what happened those years but it would’ve been sweet to see it happen.
many time travel dramas have explored the narrative of would our lives improve if we had the opportunity to change the past? and, if so, how? answer they often circle back to is that change is inevitable. we may try to wrest control over our fate, but life will always remain uncertain, so we might as well learn how to enjoy the ride. with that being said, i appreciated the ending. even though eun gyeol wasn’t able to change history for the better, he gained something just as meaningful -- the chance to truly witness what his parents went through, to see who they were before him. he comes to understand them not just as parents, but as individuals with their own dreams, fears, and lives.
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