Yumi's Cells (2021)

A simple show about a young woman navigating life. And it is a most extraordinary show.

Simplicity is one of the most confounding and elusive qualities in any context. Take a stroll through a supermarket and try to count how many brands of bottled water are on the shelf. It’s just water. They are just putting it in a bottle. But there are countless variations of it. Spring water. Sparkling water. Distilled water. That’s just some of the kinds. A product as common as an apple can be green or red and within each of those colors are multiple varieties each with their own combination of sweetness, tartness, firmness and suitability for eating raw or baking or to be used for cider or sauce. Simple things that somehow complexity mushrooms out of seemingly without end.

“Yumi’s Cells” is, on its surface, a simple show: a young single woman navigates her career and personal life. The narrative device of animated cells, each of which are responsible for a particular trait of her personality, is intermittently inserted to illuminate her inner mental and emotional processes and how they manifest in her behavior.

While the combination of animation and live action may be novel (at least in Korean dramas), that’s not at all what is remarkable about “Yumi’s Cells”. That is not to say that the animation is not terrifically entertaining. It may not be Pixar quality work, but the cells are mostly cleverly written. The dynamic between the primary logical cell and emotional cell helps keep a bit of a de facto organizational hierarchy. The cells add more than a dash of humor and some of it is in moments where a bit of lightness is decidedly welcome. Done poorly, these segments could have been dead space fillers. But they instead both advance the narrative and entertain simultaneously.

The quality of the animated scenes, however, is secondary to the live action. The production here is perhaps not award-winning, but it has a lovely OST. The photography is well done. The wardrobe, particularly with Ahn Bo Hyun’s Wung, has some standout contributions. But this is, on the surface, a simple show: a young woman navigates her career and personal life. Massive amounts of cgi and a thundering score would be woefully out of place.

As for the supporting cast, its purpose is mostly to provide scenery as Yumi and her inner cohorts navigate daily life. Lee Yoo Bi stands out a bit as Ruby. Park Jin Young is mostly in a half catatonic trance as Yu Ba Bi, but that may be by design. But this is not an ensemble show and the ups and downs of the minor characters are barely on the relevance spectrum here.

“Yumi’s Cells” has three things that shine and shine brightly. One is the editing of each episode and how it so cleverly advances the narrative. No shows, or at least very very few, proceed through time in a straight linear fashion. All feature some manner of flashbacks or time skips or possible futures. Here, although there are flashbacks, it is more that the action is revealed not in a linear sense, but in increasing magnitude of importance. But it is done in a way which does not require a viewer to have a degree in quantum physics to follow. They are simple stories, but revealed in a complex manner. The storytelling is absolutely masterful. Concealed things are revealed at the most opportune time. The pace of how the story progresses within each episode never lags. And although it is a simple show, there is an incredible amount of suspense and it is so cleverly and slowly ratcheted up to a climactic moment. It is a simple show and it simply executes brilliantly.

In addition to the narrative, Yumi and Wung are not just immensely adorable, but they are painfully realistic and relatable. These are not chaebol heirs or hero cops or exorcists or genius orphans. They have anxieties and are emotionally scarred and don’t say the important things that they should say and they don’t always understand each other and they say part of what they need to say but never say the most important part of it and they hurt each other and they hurt themselves and they have all these flaws and, despite all of these things, they still find a way to intimately connect as human beings. And they struggle as two people intimately connected. It is one of the most honest depictions of a relationship in any medium.

The centerpiece of all of this is Ahn Bo Hyun as Wung and Kim Go Eun as Yumi. For Ahn Bo Hyun, this is new ground, both in terms of the personality of the character he’s playing and the magnitude of the role. If there is a theme in his previous roles, it’s testosterone with a side dish of not exceptionally intelligent. Physically, he’s not transformed beyond the hair and a few whiskers. Frankly, his impressive physique is one of the few out of place elements here. Wung is eating, hanging out with Yumi, eating and hanging out with Yumi or coding for hours on end. That distraction aside, Ahn Bo Hyun is a delight as the very left-brained, somewhat awkward but massively good natured and warm Wung. He has range. He has talent. And this is a role that suits him. Quietly, especially towards the end of this run, his depiction of a character who is lost internally but desperately trying to keep it buried is painful and lovely to watch.

As a swirling ball of earnest, bright, vulnerable and determined, Kim Go Eun is magical. She’s had no shortage of starring roles on blockbuster shows. But unlike those roles, here she’s the straw that stirs the drink. Not only that, but as the show is so deeply focused on Yumi, it is her performance that the success of the show largely hinges on. As the show delves deeper into Yumi’s character, Kim Go Eun’s portrayal grows more layered and nuanced. She hits all the notes in the emotional spectrum. She displays both speaking and physical prowess as an actor. The performance may not have a singular spectacular moment, but it is so uniformly deftly accomplished.

Separate, these two leads are wonderful. Together, they are indescribably transcendent. And the show as a result is a marvel.

Overall, it is a show - a simple show of a young woman navigating her career and personal life - that has seamlessly integrated exceptional lead performances and superb storytelling into a captivating package.

Recommended for everyone without any reconsideration, reservation or regret, as “Yumi’s Cells” is the most outstanding drama of 2021.

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Now this is something new!

So what you can look for in this show is not just the leads living their life but also a totally new world of their cool cells.

Talking about the story, for sure it's something new which you wouldn't have seen anywhere else (yes, some say that this show copied the concept from the movie Inside Out but to mention the original webtoon was written before the movie got released so you understand, right?). So in short you will love to see the awesome cells and their life. The story keeps you excited as in what will happen next? What more does the writer has to show us? And yes, the pace of the drama is perfect considering the crew remoulded the webtoon of 500 chapters (and less) into a 14 episodes drama. Yup! Season 2 is waiting up there for you.

Acting isn't something we can forget cause definitely Kim Go Eun and Ahn Bo Hyun gave their best and it turned out pretty well too. Their hard work is definitely reflected in their acting. Since Ku Woong is a guy who's a considerate type of person and someone who does not express much but has a lot of feelings inside, Ahn Bo Hyun indeed played his role in a very smooth way. Forced acting/ fakeness is nowhere to be seen in main leads' acting.

P.S. Well I don't want to rate it for re-watch value cause I just now finished the drama and proclaiming now whether I'll re-watch it or not isn't justice to the drama. I plan on waiting for at least a month or so, and then analysing whether I really want to re-watch it or not. I think that will be the true re-watch value of any show, not just this one ;)

So, I recommend you to start this drama mainly for 2 reasons;
Firstly, the story is something new and it gives fresh vibes so if you want something that can lower your burden then this show is for you.
And lastly, the OST is so good to listen that maybe some scenes were beautifully made mainly because of the BGM <333

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Cool Concept, Cool Cells

This drama gives us a front seat on the inside battle that transpires in all of us every time we are facing the important moments in our lives. I often laugh silently when the cells are on screen coz their dialogues are SOOOO RELATABLE!! They represent all the monologues I have had inside my head. To animate the inner struggles we all experience as humans is a brilliant idea. Kudos to the writers for coming up with such witty and fun cell characters. I especially love Hungry and Lust cells with no underpants, lol.

The love story and the human characters are very realistic as well. Yumi's Cell is not another love story in Kdrama land. You should give it a try.

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A SHOW ABOUT EMOTIONAL BAGGAGE

I think this show should've been re-written for a younger audience and the actors should've been younger age group. I'm going to keep my review short as I am still debating on whether or not to drop this show.

The "cells" are cute but I'm wondering if they're beginning to outgrow their usefulness on the show. I do love the actors but I'll say this more about the writing direction and storyline. It's getting kind of tired seeing the FL have continuous trust issues. I feel like this show is dragging on and on about the FL's trust issues. They rushed through the development of the relationship I think... it was basically they fell for each other, (which was sweet and romantic), and suddenly fast forward on showing the numerous dates they were having and now it seems the relationship to me is lacking common sense. There isn't any real honesty or they skirt around it. The relationship is lacking some kind of depth and true growth and some serious and open-minded talks to work through their issues.

You have ML who is clearly devoted to the FL yet she continues to drag along her emotional baggage from the past and all the hurt and trust issues she had with it. It's getting kind of repetitive and boring and that's also why I feel like the "cells" are outgrowing their usefulness and "cuteness".

So far I'm watching this just to pass the time but I feel like it's being wasted. I think that women in these times, (and at that age), are more able to adapt to heartache with strong survival instincts and that your ex is just that... your ex. The past. No terrible ex deserves even a crumb of your thoughts nor should you have to compete or "prove" your worth to them. Move on already and throw out the old baggage and start with brand new luggage.

We need more kdramas about women who don't let emotional baggage weigh them down but rather use it as a tool and stepping stone to learn and grow stronger from the heartache and uplift themselves. That just my opinion.

Update: I've dropped this show after watching E12. I feel like the writing has become sloppy just to make use of the "cells" and give them some air time. It's kinda getting boring watching the two leads constantly staring off into space just to show us constantly the inner thoughts of the "cells" working. As for the relationship between the FL and ML, is like they're always taking three steps backward for every one step forward. Why would the FL even think about bringing up marriage to a boyfriend who is feeling some financial troubles? To me, that's just a poorly written storyline. It also seems like they're trying to add an unnecessary love triangle and introducing us to new but annoying characters. That's enough for me.

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Yumi: Journey of self love

Great marriage of animation and drama.

Yumi's animated cells, every single one of them, we didnt know we need them until we saw them and love them so much. Lust cell cracks me up. Hunger cell is too cute. Interestingly my fav cell is rational cell. What makes it good is how relatable it is. Everyone has many sides to them. Similar with yumi, today fashion cell takes over and she makes a splurge. Or emotion cell takes over and she does a reactive reaction that she may regret. Even how the weather reflects yumi's feelings.

What makes it good is seeing the journey of the cells which infers yumi herself learns from experiences- every fall, every heartbreak. And seeing how the cells lobby for her happiness.. its really a journey of self love. Learning how to open up, how to take intiative, how to flirt/be coquetish, how to give, how to stand up for herself and ultimately how to let go.

Romantic interest wise comic readers knows Woong and Yumi's rollercoaster. He may not be perfect but both him and yumi shared alot, experienced new things together and were once very happy. Hes definitely in a few volumes of encyclopedia in yumi's central library and forever will be up on her wall of special moments. He helped unlocked alot of things in Yumi's heart. I was glad he entered Yumi's life.

Lastly I noticed Kim Go Eun seems much more carefree in her acting here. Both her and Ahn Bo Hyun were truly great in their roles and played off each other so well. There may not be that much of Woong in the sequel but I still hope to see him.

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This! What a gem

Update:
just finished the last 2 eps.
very happy with it, brought out all sorts of emotions and took me back to past memories.
loved how much Yumi’s cells always tried to do what’s best for her, always rooting for her, and it makes you realize how you should actually treat yourself :)
again, this show is so relatable.
it’s probably the most realistic take on relationships :)

I really enjoyed this. highly recommended.
can’t wait for season 2! ♡
__________

I’m very picky with kdramas. I’ve been watching them for a long time already and ive seen all sorts.

so i couldn’t believe there’s still one that would manage to surprise and fascinate me.
this is it. it’s so refreshing & relatable. so addicting.

it seems like such a simple slice-of-life story, nothing much going on, but the way they showed the inner workings of the mind through the cells’ interactions is actually deep & profound. it made me reflect a lot on my own experiences & thought process.

i wasn’t a fan of kim go-eun (didnt like her in goblin)
but here the acting/role is spot-on. music is perfect.
and the cells- they’re the life of the show! every character is done so well. they’re hilarious.

i know the story is based on a webtoon which i haven’t read. can’t compare, but i really like this. such a pleasant surprise. watch it.

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The cute cartoons in her head cant make me like Yumi

I will.keep this relatively short and not focus on the cells because their humour and cuteness just distract from what is a really depressing drama. Yumi is annoying insecure wants the perfect man (they dont exist not even for your cute cells) and as soon as she gets to a point of difficulty in relationship breaks up for selfish and unrealistic reasons. She is annoying. The fact she goes to serial relationship intruder guy in S2 just makes her more unlikeable. The fact she still spends emotion and time on guy1 when in flown blown relationship with guy2 in S2 makes her ...yes even more unlikeable. The fact she breaks up with guy2 mainly because of another woman's interest in him while she has been trotting off to see guy1 througout their relationship makes her again yes...even more unlikeable.
The fact she has to then go to young good looking third guy with no thought for the 2 broken hearts in her wake yes you guessed it makes her even more unlikeable.

People say its not about the romance its all about her and her growth. Well it is totally about the romances through which we clearly see yes it clearly is all about her at least in her mind. As for growth ? All i saw was history repeating itself

Finally why do so many people give this kind of unhappy bad behaviour a pass by assuming it is realistic. None of it is realistic thats why we like dramas, so dramas like this where selfish behaviour is dressed up as realistic slice of life are just a waste IMO. This show turns out to be a pointless story of a woman getting into and ending relationships with nice guys who really like her. Unless you like cartoons and the psychology of a flighty selfish insincere woman who thinks shes always right then there is no real point to it. Sorry it just crystallised that way in my head the more it went on the more the cute funny cartoons couldnt distract from her flawed behaviour. One season would have been more than enough to get the message.

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Breath in..... breath out.... calm.... calm.... calm......
NOT CALM!!! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ENDING!??! I NEED SEASON 2, RIGHT NOW!!!

I without a doubt loved this show.... which is crazy to me because I never planned to watch it. Mostly because the whole concept screamed "Inside Out" to me and I'm not really hip to the whole coattail thing, but I gotta admit, they did a amazing job with this and I'm obsessed with all the cells! Hunger cell is my purly my reason for living. Lol

I remember seeing a post (that I really wish I could remember what it was about) and it made me more curious about the show than anything and I thought "eh why not" so -- I looked it up and only intended to watch a few minutes of it just to see what the hype was about.... It quickly turned into a binge watch black hole. Lol I mean, when your opening scene has a shirtless Minho, who in their right minds can turn that down? LOL!!!
But in all realness, I get it now. This show -- I have no words. Least none that cover how mind blowing awesome it was.

If you saw any of my updates, you know for a fact, I want to fight Woong and Sae Yi should maybe meet her match of the white truck of doom. I SAID WHAT I SAID!!! These two drove me up the wall with madness every time I saw them.
Yumi really didn't deserve everything Woong put her through. And gosh damn they needed to learn communication. Why is it so damn HARD to open your mouth and be like "hey we need to talk about some stuff"? or just be honest. Sheesh.
Let's just say this, the second he said "I can't lie" -- you knew, we all knew, that was a damn lie and a red flag straight from hell. It was like a ominus bell of doom the moment he said that. Not saying Yumi was perfect, but she really did try. Even when she kept getting sus over Sae Yi, Yumi really self sabotaged a lot around that time but I'm glad in the end, she talked to him about it. But I'm more pissed that he defended Sae Yi literally till the last moment. I get friendship is strong and everything but come on... you know damn well what she is doing and how she feels. It's insulting to Yumi to play the way he did. "I was handling it" pshhhh my ass!!!

I still have mixed feelings because when Yumi and Woong were happy together and had those great moments, I would forget how much I hated him.... of course, it would quickly get squished when he would pull some shit again. It was like a yo-yo constantly. back and forth and every now and then a trick would have you spinning around, then back to back and forth. Lol

I really hope next season we get to see more of Minho and Jin Young's characters. Which I feel like we will see more Jin Young, but not sure about Minho. Kinda want to see where his love life will be going. Lol Though can we all agree it's a little weird Minho's character and Yumi's ex kinda had the same character name (Ugi/U-gi) lol
I would even love to see where Ruby will be headed in the story... mind you, I couldn't stand her at all through most of the show but close to the end she grew on me a bit. Not sure why. Either way, if she is in season 2, I hope she grows up a little.

I think I have blabbed incoherently enough X_X what I'm trying to fully say is, if you're curious about this show, WATCH IT NOW!! Trust me, the cute cells are totally worth it and are what made this show what it was (for me). Can't NOT love hunger and lust cell. lol -- I seriously want to see other character cells in season 2. (that sounds weird to say hahaha)

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I like how authentic and vibrant Yumi's cells are, only the story is a bit lackluster

Yumi develops a crush one day, long after being dumped by her boyfriend. This awakens her love cell, which sends her to literally run after him. Our story continues as we see Yumi's cells embracing her new love with the ups and downs of her emotions.

I like the creativity of Yumi Cells for these personified cells with such diverse emotions and that they are given a real city. They even got a legal justice system and my favorite is the endorphins band stage! So epic! The fun color tone also adds to that youthful kind of bubblegum fun feeling.

At first, not all the cell moments land because they ruined the emotional momentum of the real-life scenes. But as the show went on the pacing and the balance between characters and the cells really smooths out. I’m having fun with Wung cells' teamwork and his algorithms towards unexpected situations, they were so random yet unique 🐻 #IYKYK

No doubt acting is excellent, but I’m not so happy about the romance arc: it’s too youthful; with strong egos, naive, miscommunications, which is not a bad thing IF they resolve it. The two supporting girls who were jealous of Yumi are very annoying like nasty mosquitoes… and their roles suit best as a spice to develop our lead's growth, but they weren't really use this potential.

The ending is proper but feels very incomplete. I don't think they're given enough closure, besides getting to know Yumi and the people around her, and their flaws.

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Basic plot elevated by great execution

I started this for the cells and pretty much ended it for the cells.

I have to say all the scenes where they focus on psychological aspects and what's going on inside Yumi's head with the cells were amazing to watch and not just because they were hella cute (obviously they 1000% were xD), but because you could clearly see how much thought and research the webtoon artist put into these scenes.
Average and mundane stuff that I am sure everyone goes through- feeling insecure,making and breaking resolutions, doing chores (or not doing them lol), getting crushes, reigniting a old hobby and countless other things- were presented in such a beautiful way... I'd be surprised if anyone didn't find them relatable.

Also Yumi and Woong's relationship felt really realistic. They were two characters with very real flaws dealing with very real problems that pop up in relationships like trust and communication issues. Personally for me this was both a plus and minus point because while on one hand I appreciated the realistic aspects, it also became boring really quickly. At one point I had basically stopped caring about their relationship altogether. But there were a lot of cute scenes sprinkled throughout to keep me engaged.

My major complaint against this was sometimes it felt all the live action scenes were written in the 90s, the internalised misogyny was so strong here. Maybe I am thinking too much because at the end it's just supposed to be a cute rom-com but I didn't like how Yumi's entire personality revolved around her love life and boys, or how they were constantly throwing the fact that 'girls and boys can't be just friends' in our face, or how Yumi's friend circle were pitying her when they thought she didn't have a boyfriend (like the idea of a girl being single and living her best live is so scandalous). There were quite a few of such scenes but these are the only ones I remember.

By the end they did give Yumi a bit of development with her focusing on her career and finally putting herself first on her priority list but it was too little too late imo.

As for s2 I feel like we might see more of Yumi's development and obviously the cells are always there so I will check it out.

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Hello gender conventions

This drama has a whole lot of stuff that where sweet, colorful and fluffy, a bunch of interesting characters, varied pace and shows quite a few interesting ways to handle awkward situations. To be honest I liked the characters more than their cells but the cells where a very interesting and important touch for this show.

The cells are these adorable small Inside out meets smurfs combination that do a great job showing the complexity to a persons thoughts as well as what stress can do to ones mind. However they also did one h*** of a job showing how strong gender conventions as well as the man as norm are rooted in our society without making it to obvious. Either that or this was an attempt of showing a person who is non binary without telling us, since Yumis cells where both masculine and feminine while Woongs cells where all masculine or AI. It was lovely to see that Umie was allowed to have a naughty cell, but put up against the dinosaur in Woongs head, Yumies little slightly annoying naughty cell is way easyer to control. So again Men you should probably speak up and ask them to tame the beasts in next season. This reflects well on the conventions we meet in society so I can not complain about it too much but will say that it does not have to be that way...

All in all it was an okay watch, some parts where more predictable than others and they did make me feel for them...

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What killed the cat? Pride. And the wrong kind.

THIS SHOW SHUFFLED ALL MY CELLS.
As a 32 year old woman who hasn't dated in over four years, and as someone who closed all of her heart and emotions, this shook me up and woke my senses. Don't mind me showing off my card too early.
Yummy, a complex cell, got her DNA and RNA all tangled up. Knowing who she is, she just keeps forgetting what she wants and disregarding what she needs. Sounds familiar? I see Yummy in every person that passes trough my life these days. I see her in me, as well.
I'd like to switch my focus to more important topic, Woong. Goofy, down to earth, wanna do what makes me tick kinda guy, is all about himself while everything is all about her.
Writers tried to do something there, but not sure if they quite pulled it off.
No origin story to describe and justify him as a character, but we got deeper (origin) story from Ba Bi, and connected more with his core than with Woong.
Even tho we do see (somewhat) character growth in Woong (but do we?), he just seems to be unable to pull in the other foot to her. Always with one foot out, he keeps making her (and himself) doubt the point of them, finding purpose in their relationship or stabilize happiness and feelings.
From this point of view, he does seem a better fit with Seo Sae Yi, than with Yummy.
This kind of people tend to give you themselves only up until their point of comfort, never ever actually giving in. And I suppose the final pull up, grow up and/or giving in is reserved for season two, hence, the ultimately vast pride getting in our way in season one.

But, I suppose this may come as a true human nature, "please do come close to me so you melt my heart, but never close enough to make it burn of pure desire".

In the end, we see them dating for a year, one moth and four days, but never actually said I LOVE YOU to (themselves) each other.

May force be with you in second season, Yummy.

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