I thought it would be good to see a light-hearted feature! And Since
this would be my first time seeing Lee Dong-Wok and Bae Jong-Ok reunited in a
series after the reality show, “Roommate,” I couldn’t resist!
“Are you two stuck together like bubble gum?”
The Rundown
Behind
the name: Original title—풍선껌Boung.sun.kkum—literally,
bubblegum
Country: South Korea, 2015
Genre: Romantic Drama
Network: tvN
Director: Kim Byung-Soo
Cast: Lee Dong-Wook (as Park Ri-Hwan), Jung Ryeo-Won (as Kim Haeng-Ah), Lee Jong-Hyuk (as Kang Suk-Joon), Park Hee-Von (as Hong Yi-Seul), Bae Jong-Ok (as Park Sun-Young), Lee Seung-Joon (as Kwon Ji-Hoon), Kim Ri-Na (as
Noh Tae-Hee),
Compare to: Flower Boys Next Door, radio version & Emergency
Couple
Hate it or Love
it? Love it
Synopsis in a Sentence: Sibling-like friends since childhood
grow up to discover their love for one another, but can love stand its ground
with tragedy in the cards? And
even if it might, what kind of love would that be?
On Writing: The Plot
It’s a good story; fun, but not entirely
light-hearted, deep but not comepletley hearbreaking. It’s a story of love and
hope and family, and the plot does very wiell to relay that story. We get our experience
with these ideas right off the bat, as the series launches when a high schooler
calls into a radio station to announce her attempted suicide live on air!
After this dramatic start, it goes on with an exploration
into the real meaning of happiness, contentment, hope, love and of course,
family; for those who don’t have a biological family, for those whose families
are far away during the holidays, and for those who just have horrible
families! It juxtaposes these experiences to underscore what exactly family is
all about. I know; it sounds sappy, but it’s done very well! It’s not too
schmaltzy and it actually does a great job of finding a middle balance. A good
story!
(4/5)
On Acting: The Cast
So, I picked this one because Bae Jung-Ok’s and Lee
Dong-Wok were in it, and after seeing them on the TV series, Roommate, I had to
see them at work; and they didn’t disappoint!
Bae is elegant and sophisticated and a great actress!
Lee is the handsome lead, but still a good actor
Actress Jung Ryuh-Won is also fun to watch and
completely believable!
I wish I had the endemic steely aloofness of Kim
Ri-Na’s character, and she embodies it well!
A quick Shootout to actress, Kim
Jung-Nan who plays the delusional DJ
And while we’re at it,
another to the eccentric Park Jun-Keum to relays the eccentricity of her
character!
(4/5)
On Production: The Creativity
Production is
light and creative in the way that tvN does well! They’ve mastered the delivery
of their romance-infused real life dramas and production is an art!
(4.25/5)
On Resolution: The
Conclusion
The resolution is quite unique! For an almost-sappy,
almost melodramatic romantic drama this is a good, good conclusion, but I can’t
give it away. You’ll have to see it to the end to know what I mean!
Go on, it’s only 16 episodes!
(4.25/5)
The Verdict: A good,
light-hearted, not-so light-hearted watch exploring happiness, contentment,
hope and familial bonds!
Overall Score = 16.5/20
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