I've never watched a drama so refreshing and yet heartwarming as this one. It has a little bit of everything and defies the norms of Korean drama standards, going above and beyond to give viewers a realistic and yet magical experience. The drama really teaches you to stop judging and see things from alternate perspectives. Whenever you think something is "as is", it's not and theres no other way to explain it apart from you watching this drama.
You won't regret it!
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Looking at the ratings made me feel like this drama is seriously underrated. Currently at episode 10, and I'm loving it to bits! Episode 1 started a bit slow, but it was crucial to understand the different personalities of the tourists. By the way, I loved the ahjummas! Wish they were part of the tourists also, which would have made it more interesting and funny to watch.
The supporting characters' relationships seemed cliche at first glance, but as they delve deeper into their background stories, it made me realise that this drama is all about "Don't judge a book by its cover" and the different kind of relationships between the tourists.
I found the pace to be good. I loved how they focused on each pair for each episode. I loved the back stories and the progress of relationships so much! I loved the male lead's character here. It was so unique. I'm glad he wasn't a typical CEO or this good looking handsome guy with a narcissistic personality. His character was hilarious and so were his interactions with people in France. There were so many misunderstandings about him from the very start which I found to be funny. I loved his character so much!
And for the elderly couple, at first I really despised the ahjussi. He kept yelling at everyone and complaining about everything. I felt really sad for his wife. But once I saw the backstory, I kind of understood why he behaved in that manner. I could also tell that he changed slowly throughout the course of this drama, though not to a drastic extent, which seemed realistic enough for me.
For the young couple, I thought they would have a happy "honeymoon" dating period in France. But man was I not expecting a deep relationship with misunderstandings and communication problems. Their relationship changed a lot throughout this drama as well.
And for the main couple... I loved the progress of their relationship. The misunderstandings between the two of them were hilarious. And man, Jung Yong Hwa's kisses have gotten A LOT BETTER. I hated the fish kisses in "The heartstrings".
There were so many unexpected twists which I really loved. Overall, it was an awesome drama to watch!
For those ONLY looking for romance, don't start this drama because the main focus is not the romance but the growth of the characters and their relationships. It was a really good refreshing drama for me.
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If your'e a fan of dramas with a great ensemble cast, this one is a must watch. There are no real leads, because each character's story feels important. Lee Yun Hee may be the leader of the tour, but she doesn't really feel any more important than the other characters. I guess "The Package" would be classified as more of a slice of life drama, but because France is such a romantic place, and the characters are literally "coupled off", it definitely feels very romantic (including some surprisingly passionate moments that can be rare in kdramaland). However, I don't just mean literal romance, but more exploring different types of love, and stages of love, and even self love. Part of the fun is getting to know about each relationship, so I won't say too much, only that things not always being as they seem is a major reoccurring theme.
The entire cast is excellent, but I did have my favorites, and not so favorites in the cast. First, I loved Jung Yong Hwa as Ma Roo, and the complete randomness of his character. It would have been so easy to make his character super annoying, but he's so charming that I had no choice but to like him. He's come a long way from his boyish charm in "You're Beautiful", and it was nice to see him as a more mature lead. I was less excited by Lee Yun Hee as So So, who's character did annoy me at times, but she definitely felt real and relatable. She also had to do double language duty, which I can't vouch for as far as accuracy, but if her french was really bad she faked it really well. The rest of the cast is endearing, and felt like real people as well, but the MVPs in my opinion were the older couple, who were frustrating, heartbreaking, and the absolute cutest. I've been on a group vacation once, with mostly strangers, and it definitely captured that dynamic well. The non vacation characters were a lot less developed, and except for So So's boss and brother, they weren't as memorable, but they were all well played.
The story telling is well done, and kept me interested the entire time. At the same time the stories are filled with clichés, some predictable and not so predictable twists, silly humor, and a lot of what felt like manipulating the audience's emotions. Like I said, this drama is big on misunderstandings, so they purposely present some moments in a way that will make you likely to misunderstand them. After a while the obvious misunderstandings were becoming fun, just because I loved watching the character's reactions. Another cool thing was how certain locations were incorporated in the story, so France wasn't just an arbitrary location, but a big part of each character's experience.
Would I watch this again? Definitely. When it was over I had the same feeling I usually have with a good vacation... Although I knew it was a good time for it to be over (12 episodes seemed like the perfect length), I also didn't want it to end, so it left me longing to return. Still, the ending was extremely satisfying, even with some major tropes in full effect, I loved it. It's also the perfect length to binge watch!
The soundtrack was great too, although I don't have any favorite songs, the music definitely added to the atmosphere of the show.
Overall, even with thoughtful themes of self discovery, and some moments that had me in serious tears, this was a mostly feel good drama that I needed. Expect to laugh, cry, and sigh deeply, and possibly want to book a trip to France. (I guess that Air France product placement was well spent). I wasn't sure what to expect when I started watching, but much like the characters signing up for this package vacation, I'm so glad that I decided to take the journey.
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The cast was well chosen, and as the story flowed, we got to see a glimpse into each tourist in the Package Vacation. They started the trip as strangers, and somehow became friends. The relationships between the couples on the trip are highlighted in different episodes, showing why they took the vacation and a bit about their lives back home in Korea. They have some good adventures and grow closer in their travels.
The music was pretty and appropriate for our French vacationers.
I wouldn't mind watching this again one day.
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Romance wasn't just the main focal point of this drama. The show had a lot to do with exploring the complexities of love and relationships. It also had a lot of amazing character progression and the way the stories of each character were portrayed was really well done. You'll know what I mean when you meet all the characters from the first episode, then you get to the last one. There was enough screen time for each and every supporting character, and I wouldn't even call these characters "supporting" characters as I felt like they were really lovable and well portrayed (in terms of acting and writing) to a point where they were all equally considered to be the main characters.
The setting and the music is REALLY what makes this drama special. The whole drama is set in the beautiful country of France, and they really do a good job with cinematography when filming the landscapes and have beautiful shots of the scenery in France! With the perfect music, it creates a beautiful atmosphere and ambiance. The main character also explains interesting background information for each monument/building/city which is a really interesting add to the drama.
All in all, this show really sets itself apart from other dramas. As you progress through every episode, you'll really feel like you were part of the "family" and there are really heartwarming and wholesome moments in the drama that would make you love each and every character in this drama!
TLDR: Simple FEEL GOOD story, lots of different relationships and fun characters. You'll find yourself just like the characters found themselves while exploring France together!
Overall, 9.0/10! Très bon!!
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dreamlovewrite
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Each character had it's place and time to grow and I really appreciated the effort to do so in such a short drama. The fact that we do have mains, but they didn't overshadow the other characters was another plus for me. I enjoyed seeing the intertwine of relationship -from forming, being destroyed, put back together- showcased between both the main characters love line, and the other members of the package tour.
This drama wasn't over the top in any way but tasteful and highly realistic... we have a couple on the brink of separation, an older couple faced with the possible loss of one partner, another that looks promiscuous from the outside, but is actually very organic and lovable, and a newly forming one out of tragic love behind them. All four couples compliment, guide, encourage, speak truths and appreciate each other by the end that I was overwhelmed by the family aspect of the travellers and their guide in the final episode.
Romantically, the natural succession of Yoon So So and San Ma Ru into dating whilst on this small vacation was highly appreciated by me, especially as there was no holding back on the skinship or physical needs like in most dramas. San Maru's childlike curiosity and yet masculine attributes to his personality easily made him my favourite character from the get go. He isn't afraid to approach situations, or accept his failures either. He teaches So So far more than she has experienced in the 7 years of being in France and I think by the end of the drama, it's apparent that France has a home value in her heart, but the people she was avoiding back in Korea are her true home. Again, I really liked how open minded So So was from the French culture, and how she didn't allow Maru's old school way of thinking to have room in the more progressive country that way. It was refreshing to find a female lead comfortable with that side of herself, and not balling her fists up and looking to have a nervous breakdown when a man merely breathes on her, haha.
My favourite character by the end was actually the one I found the most annoying in the beginning. Oh Gab Soo starts off as brash and very irritating, to me as a viewer, as well as the rest of the tour group. However, as his story with his wife unveils more of the history, his behaviour becomes more bearable. By the end, he had me sobbing into my blankets over his despair and heartache from keeping silent for so long about knowing of his wife's condition. It was beautifully portrayed and I still feel sad thinking about it a day after watching.
The representation of France within the drama from a historical and travel destination view was tastefully done. I appreciated the information shared to the travellers as if I were too there learning and exploring. I felt towards the end it did run a little out of steam from becoming repetitive - "here is a place, do this, now it's free time, meet up here" - but I understand also why that occurred. The drama isn't perfect,there were scenes that in my opinion could have been more explored, or omitted, but it was pleasant overall and left me intrigued to know how it would go as I progressed through each episode.
The Package offers a lot in its small 12 episodes, and I think more k-dramas of this length would benefit the industry. It gets a beautiful story across, delivers what is needed and wraps up with the ending of what will come next in a positive way.
10/10.
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One of the things that set this drama apart from others was how it taught life lessons through so many different types of relationships: A father and daughter, a boyfriend and his girlfriend, an old married couple, a brother and sister and a new found couple.
Each character has his own story and hidden feelings, that make the others don't understand and judge them. Thoug the drama they show slowy their feelings to each other and became a close family. Hearing and learning about the many perspectives from the characters will make you a part of this warm trip.
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I have to mention that the characters were so perfectly chosen,these people could be actually real,so relatable.
After finishing this drama i feel somehow happy and made me feel like a different person,a better person. It is impactful,really. Please give it a watch :)
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All the characters are enjoyable (not at first :p) and that is possible because throughout the espisodes, we learn about their personality and about their story! And also, the characters are well developed: we cry with them, we laugh with them, we change with them!
I'm sure I will rewatch it in the future (even though I've never rewatched a drama before)!
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Story; It's good, but in my opinion, I wish that they skipped some of the cliche moments between the main characters in the first episodes. Rather than being invested in the love-line of 'San Ma Roo and Yoon So So' I was watching for the supporting cast and their stories. I wanted to know why the old woman was so sad and what relationship the"young girl / old man" couple had. I felt that I could relate to the characters and that's the main reason why this drama is so good.
Acting/Cast; To be honest, the acting was not that great. But it wasn't bad either, I think that they could have chosen better actors for the main couple, but even Jung Yong Hwa and Lee Yun Hee had their moments.
Music; It was good, had some sad ballads that were great for the gloomy moments that are sprinkled through the story. As well as some happy tunes that also fitted in with the vacation setting.
Rewatch Value; I think that this is a drama that I would enjoy watching again because now I know that there is gold is hiding underneath the surface of this "simple" drama.
I liked it, not because of good acting, great special effects or chemistry between the main characters. I liked it because every character (even the main ones who I've been trash talking this whole time) had something that I could relate to. They all had their struggles and they were definitely not perfect, just like real people with real-life problems. In K-dramas, I often feel that they try to make their characters to loveable and perfect which ends up in me not relating to them.
BTW; I guess that people who doesn't care about the typical k-drama cliches will like this show even more than I did, because there's stuffed with romantic moments between the main characters.
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