Cha-cha-cha la Malul Mării (2021)

I cried, laughed, cried, and stayed calmed

This KDrama is what it is, a DRAMA! I absolutely loved the storyline. Had me going back n forth from one character to the other. The romance stories of the town's couples... omg, too hilarious. When you thought she was going after your husband... lmao. The ups and downs for me, I actually thought I was on a rollercoaster for real. Then you things change, you have a story that will blow you out of your mind, and do not know what to think. I felt the slap, the kick, and the head butt! OUCH! I feel that the whole town needed to be the main characters. The three elderly ladies, sweethearts, just sweethearts. I love them! There were small parts of martial arts and whoever that actor was... I mean wow. The two main leads were great and all of my emotions came out. Where was my umbrella? I applaud the one who wrote this. I applaud all of the actors and actresses. I love that town... now I want to go visit.

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I was really late to the game, and did not watch this drama when it first came out. And boy was I in the wrong to do so, because this show lit up my everyday, made me chuckle, made me swoon, made me cry...

First and foremost, I love the fact that this drama takes place in a seaside town rather than Seoul. The big cities are so exhaustive when a bigger more than half of Kdramas are based in that area. Coming from a small seaside town like this myself, the show really showcased what a place like that really is in terms of living, working, having a business - the good, the bad and the ugly. The story seemed natural, without overdoing any dramatic car crash scenes etc. Every character trauma, memory, story seemed real and relatable. Second, can we just address the fact that both the female and male leads have so much chemistry together? I had to rewind multiple times just to watch the scenes again. Shin Min Ah has always been one of my favourites, and I loved seeing her in action. The male lead really didn't disappoint as well!

If you enjoy slice of life and romance, this one is for you. Be careful watching as I'm guaranteed you'll have withdrawal symptoms afterwards - it's that good!

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Small town slice-of-life; watch to feel happy

A big-city dentist returns to her seaside hometown and sets up her own practice, at first clashing with and then falling for the local part-timer (and town leader) whose only goal is to remain a part-timer for life. Their worldviews, expectations, and future goals are different, but they manage to find ways to get along. And eventually start “getting along” more intimately. The entire community is fun and beautiful, and I love their interactions. There’s a semi-dark backstory, but this trauma is not the main theme. Also: #dimple #couple #goals. This show is joy and warmth all around—watch to feel happy.

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A Good Rom-Com Series!! Will surely make you fall in Love ❤

a good rom-com series to watch ! loved the chemistry between the female & male lead in this series. besides, the overall theme of the series was interesting & really good. moreover, the side characters were also given the appropriate time to show their acting skills n they were good too.... a little over the top i would say, because there are some elements that we don't see around us usually, like - the town helping n caring for you while leaving their work behind as if their works isnt important. but hey , besides that the series is definitely a good to series to watch n will definitely recommend it!!!

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Slice of Life gold

If you go into this expecting the best romance of the year, you're going to be disappointed. But if you are a big slice of life fan and love to laugh, cry, and everything in between, this show is for you.

I have felt the whole spectrum of emotions watching the stories unfold for our main characters and secondary characters. It comes out piece by piece keeping you hooked. I cried every other episode as I felt all the emotions of how life can come at you.

The female lead is self-centered, pretentious, and lacks empathy, which is why I had to knock this down 0.5 stars. What makes this show different is that the other characters know it too and treats her as such so it feels real. Some scenes of the main couple after they get together also feels a bit overacted so I didn't believe it, but the whole cast really shines under the director for the vulnerable moments.

Minus 0.5 more stars just because I hate love triangles, but this wasn't the most annoying so I sat through it and I'm glad I did. The last third of the show really pays off the set up from the first few, and I'm glad we get lots of heart warming bits at the end to bring it full circle.

Overall, I would totally recommend and watch again.

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Highly recommended!!

Absolutely brilliant, I really enjoyed watching it. The story was really cute, heartwarming, and funny, and yet also managed to be realistic and included a handful of important life lessons in the episodes too.

None of the characters were perfect, and they all had both good and bad traits shown throughout, as well as a great deal of character development, which I really appreciate, as these details contributed to the realistic nature of the drama, as well as bringing us closer to the story by being able to relate to the characters and their faults.

The story was never boring or slow, nor did it at any point seem rushed or overbearing, though I did feel that one or two things were overdramatised to push the plot, or seemed to come out of the blue, but that's just a very minor observation on my part.

One thing I felt was a bit off though, was the relationships; for one thing, they seemed to have moved very fast, particularly one couple, and though I'm not entirely sure what the timeline is or how long they were dating, I feel like his request of getting to know each other slowly was quite forgotten, and their relationship seemed to move relatively quickly. Of course, the series can only be so long, so they had to move quickly to become close before the end, but, especially with minor characters, that can be unnecessary, and it might've been better to leave it up to the watcher's interpretation of what happens next.

Overall, it was an extremely enjoyable, feel-good drama which I would definitely recommend watching. I, for one, will definitely be revisiting Gongjin in the future, and I hope you will too.

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Perfect Chemistry In This Touching Opposites Attract Series!

We've seen a lot of opposite atracts shows, series, and films, but not many of them are drawn up quite so wonderfully and heartfelt as this one. Much of the success of this series has to go to Mina Shin and Seon-Ho Kim with their incredible chemistry.

Dr. Yoon (Mina Shin) is a successful dentist who loves living the good life full of fancy clothes, expensive cars, and everything else that goes with high-end living. She makes no apologies for her lifestyle. Perhaps it's because she's really known nothing else.

Upon leaving her job, due to conflict with her boss, Yoon leaves for the small seaside town of Gongjin. The last place she felt happy as a child. There, she meets Chief Hong, a man who seems capable of doing literally everything! He works a slew of jobs, all for minimum wage. In short, he enjoys the simple life of service.

Of course, at first, these two opposites do not get on very well. Yoon finds herself stranded in the town on her first day without money or even able to get funds due to a power outage. She's soon at the mercy of Chief Hong, who ends up putting her to work pulling the guts out of squid with the local women. You can only imagine how well Yoon is able to adapt.

Without a job and a town without a dentist, Dr. Yoon decides to open up a dental clinic. The series is much about Yoon learning to appreciate a different lifestyle that is very different from anything she's ever experienced. This, of course, includes Yoon learning how to be a team player and adapt to the locals as well as the town itself. "Grandma" Gam-ri all but steals the show and our hearts.

As you can imagine, Yoon and Chief Hong soon become attracted to each other. However, Hong has a dark past that he soon finds is catching up with him. The question becomes: will his past destroy things with Dr. Yoon before they've even started?

Dr. Yoon represents those people who can only think about themselves. She comes off initially as fussy and conceited. However, the longer she spends in Gongjin, we see her begin to learn how to love and appreciate others. And Mina Shin has that million dollar smile and those golden dimples to brighten our days with!

Chief Hong is a man who is a complete opposite. He thinks mostly of others, even at the expense of himself. In short, he doesn't believe himself to be truly worthy. And he has no idea just how much he's loved and adored by the people of Gongjin.

Both are two sides of the same coin. Both have to learn how to adapt. You cannot love others without first loving yourself. And you cannot love others at the expense of yourself either.

Of course, as Chief Hong's secret is uncovered, only those who see him for who he is--by his constant example of a man with a good heart--we know that he was not responsible for what happened. Those unable to forgive him are simply cowards who decide that it's easier to play the role of the victim rather than take any responsibility. I was slightly disappointed in Dr. Yoon's reaction to him; that she didn't seem to know him nearly as well as those he's lived with in Gongjin. Everyone else tried to check up on him. She didn't. It's easy to be there for someone when things are good. It's challenging--and even more important--to be there for someone when things are difficult. Also, one should never put pressure on someone to reveal that which they are not ready to tell. Yoon was quite selfish in her demands. Fortunately, she wisely realizes her mistake and tells Chief Hong that he can tell her when he's ready.

We get a lot of laugh out loud moments as well as some truly touching ones that are sure to tug at your heart. Koreans are masters of incorporating both elements into their stories. The people of Gongjin will surely warm your heart and perhaps make you even wish that you lived in such a community!

All in all, this is a fantastic and delightful series! I loved and adored all sixteen episodes! And it's proof that you can have good and likeable characters still, in world that seems to want to bombard us with dark ones. This show was refreshing like a wonderful day at the beach, which only made me wanting even more!

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A few flaws but still refreshing

I knew I would like this drama since the beginning and they really captivated me. I mean, how can we not be captivated by such cute village? Gongjin village really made me wanna visit and live there. And the characters here are really charismatic too, with only a few ones that I found irritating. Let’s talk more about them and the drama’s story below.

First, Dusik is probably one of the best male characters of the year. I loved this man SO SO MUCH he was so real and a perfect mix of a cutie and a intelligent wise man. Hyejin on the other side was difficult to love at first because the way she treated Dusik was pretty annoying. But she got better in the half of the drama and I liked how she was there for Dusik when he really needed as he was there for her when she needed too. And althought I think she was annoying in some scenes, I still found her character relatable in many others. The couple omg…I DIED IN ALL THEIR SCENES!!! They had such a good chemistry, I loved them. As the other characters, I really liked them especially the grandma, Hyejin’s friend, the policemen, Sung Hyun, Chun Jae and his daughter. Actually the kids here was amazing I loved all of them. I need to talk more about Sung Hyun because it was such a lovely character. I liked how he respected Hyejin’s decision and made a friendship with Dusik. I hate love triangles in dramas so I really liked this. The only characters I found annoying was Nam Seok and Yeon Duk. At least Nam Seok got better later…which I can’t say the same about Yeon Duk because I still didn’t liked him even in the end.

Talking now about the story, it’s pretty simple actually but I was really addicted, maybe because it’s a refreshing environment with a lot of different characters. But I can’t lie, some things bothered me a little and I got the “it could have been better” feeling. Dusik’s past for example. For me, I had the feeling that everything happened too fast and it was resolved too fast too. And I don’t know if it was only me but Hwa Jeong and Yeon Duk getting back together too was so “?” for me I HATED! Maybe because I didn’t liked this character but it seemed too forced for me. Other thing that made me really angry was grandma death. I think the writers wanted Dusik to see death as a thing it’s not related to him but seriously he could have seen that without making the grandma die. For me it was such a needless move, and it was done in the last episode too which seemed a little forced as well.

Besides these flaws, I still liked this drama. Gongjin’s scenery, the cultural, the local food, the characters, everything in this drama it’s really refreshing and if you like dramas that are focused on people living their daily lifes I really recommend this. Hometown Cha Cha Cha it’s a refreshing and healing drama and for sure it’s going to be remembered .

PS: I loved the OST as well for sure It’s going be one of my favorites of the year.

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