This review may contain spoilers
Resident Playbook: Nostalgic and Heavily Dependent on Former Series
I have a tendency to watch some of the most formative dramas during my exam season.
Last year, I had two weeks filled with exams, and to keep myself from getting stressed, I decided to start a little K Drama called My Liberation Notes. It had a few quotes I saw online, and some beautiful characters, so I thought what harm would it do to start the show and just watch an episode a day?
Five days, sixteen episodes, and three crucial exams later, I had finished the whole series, and my life forever changed. My Liberation Notes, and it's anthem of "Something Good Will happen today" continues to echo on my lockscreen and everything I o. Son Sukku and Kim Jiwon continue to live on in my heart.
Obviously, I didn't expect Resident Playbook to have the same effect. But somehow it did.
All the actors were enthralling, and absolutely played their part perfectly: the bored Yiyoung, the bright Jaeil, the stubborn Sabi, and the romantic that is Namkyung. All of the characters were lovely, and their actors were even better. The fact that this is Han Yeji's (Sabi's) acting debut is insane, and I hope to see her blossom in other dramas as well.
I also want to give a shoutout to the actor that is Kang Youseok. I thought he looked familiar in the show, but kind of brushed it off as he may have looked like a character from When Life Gives You Tangerines. Then after a bit of a deep dive, I realized that he was in WLGYT, but a few years before that he was on a little show called Light on Me, where he played the main character. I, of course, genuinely DIED when I found that out because, WHAT??!! HE WAS SHINWOO FROM LIGHT ON ME??!! CLUMSY, INTROVERTED SHINWOO??!! And I think that shows how good of an actor he is, so props to him.
I apologize that was a bit off topic with the rant, but ANYWAYS.
So yes, of course the acting was phenomenal as expected, but the story?? well....
I didn't love the story. I didn't really like Yiyoung's motivations at all. I know it was important to the development of the character, but it jsut felt a bit odd. Despite the actor's best efforts, all the characters felt a bit two-dimensional. I am going to be honest, I don't think there are any character's that I am going to necessarily remember or anything. I think this is going to just become a show I watched. And I think that's okay.
I think the one thign that kept me going through this show were the CAMEOS, which I was so excited for. I really liked how Junwan's cameo was so him: I absolutley loved it. And Andrea's cameo?? Guys, I sobbed my eyes out it wasn't even funny. The depiction of grief was so honest and real that my heart genuinely hurt. Ikjun and Songhwa's cameo was amazing of course, and seeing them on screen in the same manner as usual, but just a bit more intimate made me so happy. Lastly, the fact that I got to see Seokhyung and Chu Min Ha on the same screen again??!! Words cannot describe how ecstatic I was.
So ya, overall, I believe the cameos really did carry. However, there was something also special about the year that this show was set in.
2023 was genuinely one of the most interesting years of my life. I was going through the worst heartbreak, was living one of the best memories, and was battling my inner demons if you will every day. I thought I wasn't really going to make it out the same way I did. I was in such a hole all year, and was miserable to everyone around me all year. However, when 2024 was about to come, I swore to myself that I was going to make it the best year ever, and that I wasn't going to let everything from 2023 follow me into 2024.
And it didn't.
So there was a bit of a sentimental thing going on with the year that this was set, which is why I may have liked it as much as I did. And if you are maybe looking for a piece of home, and a piece of yourself, maybe you can find it in this drama.
Last year, I had two weeks filled with exams, and to keep myself from getting stressed, I decided to start a little K Drama called My Liberation Notes. It had a few quotes I saw online, and some beautiful characters, so I thought what harm would it do to start the show and just watch an episode a day?
Five days, sixteen episodes, and three crucial exams later, I had finished the whole series, and my life forever changed. My Liberation Notes, and it's anthem of "Something Good Will happen today" continues to echo on my lockscreen and everything I o. Son Sukku and Kim Jiwon continue to live on in my heart.
Obviously, I didn't expect Resident Playbook to have the same effect. But somehow it did.
All the actors were enthralling, and absolutely played their part perfectly: the bored Yiyoung, the bright Jaeil, the stubborn Sabi, and the romantic that is Namkyung. All of the characters were lovely, and their actors were even better. The fact that this is Han Yeji's (Sabi's) acting debut is insane, and I hope to see her blossom in other dramas as well.
I also want to give a shoutout to the actor that is Kang Youseok. I thought he looked familiar in the show, but kind of brushed it off as he may have looked like a character from When Life Gives You Tangerines. Then after a bit of a deep dive, I realized that he was in WLGYT, but a few years before that he was on a little show called Light on Me, where he played the main character. I, of course, genuinely DIED when I found that out because, WHAT??!! HE WAS SHINWOO FROM LIGHT ON ME??!! CLUMSY, INTROVERTED SHINWOO??!! And I think that shows how good of an actor he is, so props to him.
I apologize that was a bit off topic with the rant, but ANYWAYS.
So yes, of course the acting was phenomenal as expected, but the story?? well....
I didn't love the story. I didn't really like Yiyoung's motivations at all. I know it was important to the development of the character, but it jsut felt a bit odd. Despite the actor's best efforts, all the characters felt a bit two-dimensional. I am going to be honest, I don't think there are any character's that I am going to necessarily remember or anything. I think this is going to just become a show I watched. And I think that's okay.
I think the one thign that kept me going through this show were the CAMEOS, which I was so excited for. I really liked how Junwan's cameo was so him: I absolutley loved it. And Andrea's cameo?? Guys, I sobbed my eyes out it wasn't even funny. The depiction of grief was so honest and real that my heart genuinely hurt. Ikjun and Songhwa's cameo was amazing of course, and seeing them on screen in the same manner as usual, but just a bit more intimate made me so happy. Lastly, the fact that I got to see Seokhyung and Chu Min Ha on the same screen again??!! Words cannot describe how ecstatic I was.
So ya, overall, I believe the cameos really did carry. However, there was something also special about the year that this show was set in.
2023 was genuinely one of the most interesting years of my life. I was going through the worst heartbreak, was living one of the best memories, and was battling my inner demons if you will every day. I thought I wasn't really going to make it out the same way I did. I was in such a hole all year, and was miserable to everyone around me all year. However, when 2024 was about to come, I swore to myself that I was going to make it the best year ever, and that I wasn't going to let everything from 2023 follow me into 2024.
And it didn't.
So there was a bit of a sentimental thing going on with the year that this was set, which is why I may have liked it as much as I did. And if you are maybe looking for a piece of home, and a piece of yourself, maybe you can find it in this drama.
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