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Heart-breaking but also heart-warming
AHHHHHH!!! I had been putting off watching the Reply series for a long time because I was too scared of my sky-high expectations after hearing over and over again how good it was. In the end I loved it and wasn't disappointed, but I also didn't find myself with a massive drama hangover after it was finished. Disclaimer though: I was born in 1999, grew up in America, and didn't grow up with Korean culture at all, so the references and nostalgia was definitely not as strong for me.
Firstly, I love Shi Won and Yoon Jae to death. I'd been looking for a best friends to lovers drama, and this hit the nail on the head. I loved how different yet compatible they were, and it was super refreshing to have a loud-mouthed, not-afraid-to-stand-up-for-herself female main lead. They're so similar, and yet opposite in the biggest ways: like how he did nothing but think about his crush for years, whereas she found it so easy to confess hers, and when she did, he just stared at her because it's something he could never even think of doing. Honestly, his confession scene was amazing but it broke my heart and for that reason I'm probably never going to watch it again, because it just hurts that much. Overall, the two had an amazing relationship dynamic, and I love that it didn't change all that much after they got together.
The drama had a habit of jumping around, which is understandable considering the premise, but also really confusing for me at first, because I wasn't sure what order the scenes happened in. Because of this, I felt like I was missing pieces of the puzzle when I watched, and there were scenes that I wanted that I never got. For example, I wanted more domestic moments between ALL the friends—like Hak Chan and Sung Jae, who I felt lacked a lot in character development and purpose, especially when I thought Hak Chan was going to be a big character, considering he was THE NEW KID. I always wondered to what extent they knew about Yoon Jae's crush on Shi Won—if they knew at all, and I wanted to see their reactions when they found out they got together. Another thing I never got to see: Yoon Jae's reaction when he found out Shi Won kept the couple ring he gave her all these years.
Now to talk about the time skip. I usually HATE time skips, but I didn't hate this one. I just felt this confusing sort of unsatisfaction. Even after the time skip, I felt like the characters didn't have enough time to develop, because they acted too similar to the way they did six years ago. Luckily, the plot after the time skip didn't drop off like so many other dramas do, but I still feel as though nothing could compare to the school days. Going off of that, I missed the voiceovers and monologues a lot, but I'm glad they brought it back for the last episode. The last episode was also definitely more like a feel-good compilation, though I loved it still for all its adorable moments.
Joon-Hee was another one of my favorites, though he broke my heart over and over again. This drama did an amazing job with being able to make you feel all the feels and letting you know everything without ever saying a word. And Joon-Hee's silence always hurt the most, because it was more than just an unrequited love.
The family and friendships in this were really powerful. I loved how loud and argumentative Shi Won's family was, but when it came down to it and she was going off to college, it became clear how much they cared for each other. Tae Woong and Yoon Jae also had a lot of development in their brother relationship, and I loved that in the end, the episode about the love triangle (ep. 15) wasn't about which couple got together, but about the sacrifices that the brothers had made for each other. In the same episode, though—even though I knew the parallel plot with the parents and the dad's uncle was similar, the character was so new that it almost felt just convenient.
Some things I didn't like:
1. Yoo Jung. I'm sorry, I just found her super annoying and almost unnecessary at times. I liked the little sismance moments (like when she cut her hair in solidarity with Shi Won) but her relationship with Hak Chan made me want to tear my hair out.
2. The relationship between Shi Won and Tae Woong. I was honestly so surprised when he was revealed to be the other part of the love triangle. He never got screentime with Shi Won and they had zero chemistry; putting aside the age difference, add the fact that he dated her dead older sister (a topic which I thought was never sufficiently addressed) and the entire relationship creeped me out, especially when their maturity levels were just so obviously different. It was definitely less weird after the time skip when Shi Won was a grown adult, but when she had just graduated high school and he was giving her apartments and rings while she was crying over a washed t-shirt of her pop idol...I never saw them as anything other than siblings.
Firstly, I love Shi Won and Yoon Jae to death. I'd been looking for a best friends to lovers drama, and this hit the nail on the head. I loved how different yet compatible they were, and it was super refreshing to have a loud-mouthed, not-afraid-to-stand-up-for-herself female main lead. They're so similar, and yet opposite in the biggest ways: like how he did nothing but think about his crush for years, whereas she found it so easy to confess hers, and when she did, he just stared at her because it's something he could never even think of doing. Honestly, his confession scene was amazing but it broke my heart and for that reason I'm probably never going to watch it again, because it just hurts that much. Overall, the two had an amazing relationship dynamic, and I love that it didn't change all that much after they got together.
The drama had a habit of jumping around, which is understandable considering the premise, but also really confusing for me at first, because I wasn't sure what order the scenes happened in. Because of this, I felt like I was missing pieces of the puzzle when I watched, and there were scenes that I wanted that I never got. For example, I wanted more domestic moments between ALL the friends—like Hak Chan and Sung Jae, who I felt lacked a lot in character development and purpose, especially when I thought Hak Chan was going to be a big character, considering he was THE NEW KID. I always wondered to what extent they knew about Yoon Jae's crush on Shi Won—if they knew at all, and I wanted to see their reactions when they found out they got together. Another thing I never got to see: Yoon Jae's reaction when he found out Shi Won kept the couple ring he gave her all these years.
Now to talk about the time skip. I usually HATE time skips, but I didn't hate this one. I just felt this confusing sort of unsatisfaction. Even after the time skip, I felt like the characters didn't have enough time to develop, because they acted too similar to the way they did six years ago. Luckily, the plot after the time skip didn't drop off like so many other dramas do, but I still feel as though nothing could compare to the school days. Going off of that, I missed the voiceovers and monologues a lot, but I'm glad they brought it back for the last episode. The last episode was also definitely more like a feel-good compilation, though I loved it still for all its adorable moments.
Joon-Hee was another one of my favorites, though he broke my heart over and over again. This drama did an amazing job with being able to make you feel all the feels and letting you know everything without ever saying a word. And Joon-Hee's silence always hurt the most, because it was more than just an unrequited love.
The family and friendships in this were really powerful. I loved how loud and argumentative Shi Won's family was, but when it came down to it and she was going off to college, it became clear how much they cared for each other. Tae Woong and Yoon Jae also had a lot of development in their brother relationship, and I loved that in the end, the episode about the love triangle (ep. 15) wasn't about which couple got together, but about the sacrifices that the brothers had made for each other. In the same episode, though—even though I knew the parallel plot with the parents and the dad's uncle was similar, the character was so new that it almost felt just convenient.
Some things I didn't like:
1. Yoo Jung. I'm sorry, I just found her super annoying and almost unnecessary at times. I liked the little sismance moments (like when she cut her hair in solidarity with Shi Won) but her relationship with Hak Chan made me want to tear my hair out.
2. The relationship between Shi Won and Tae Woong. I was honestly so surprised when he was revealed to be the other part of the love triangle. He never got screentime with Shi Won and they had zero chemistry; putting aside the age difference, add the fact that he dated her dead older sister (a topic which I thought was never sufficiently addressed) and the entire relationship creeped me out, especially when their maturity levels were just so obviously different. It was definitely less weird after the time skip when Shi Won was a grown adult, but when she had just graduated high school and he was giving her apartments and rings while she was crying over a washed t-shirt of her pop idol...I never saw them as anything other than siblings.
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