Completed
ethyria
221 people found this review helpful
Jul 12, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 3
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
Since I belong to the minority that hasn't seen Something in the Rain, I am going to review this show purely based on the story that it brought to me, regardless of what came before it.

Let's start with the story, One Spring Night tells a tale of two people who fell in love despite the whole world telling them not to. They tugged at my heartstrings with their beautiful, mischevious relationship that not only had to bear the weight of internal struggles but also had to face the societal pressures that came along with being Korean. It's as much a social drama as it is a romance story, so please go into it keeping that in mind. The cultural differences will make some decisions hard to understand but all of them make perfect sense, regardless. Jeong In and Ji Ho's slow burn romance coupled with extremely lovable side characters, realistic and fleshed out "antagonists" (though I'm not sure if I want to call them that because they weren't inherently evil, just handicapped by their circumstances, upbringing and morals). All in all, OSN offers what most dramas tend to lack these days: authenticity. It makes you feel like you're there with the characters and you grow fond of them. A beautiful, minimalist love story.

The acting is so extremely well done that I don't even feel like I'm watching Jung Hae In or Han Jimin (or any of the actors for that matter). Everyone, EVERYONE, did a brilliant job of internalizing the characters. From the minor characters to the major ones, all of them gave a very natural performance that made me think that the characters were people that could actually exist IRL. I would also like to applaud the writing and directing. There are plenty of scenes whose artistic value could be seen even through my inexperienced eyes. The drama is a treat to watch.

I also really, really loved the music. It fit really well with the setting of the scenes. Best of all, I feel like the OST wasn't used to manipulate the mood of the show which gave it an even more authentic feel. It complimented the scenes and wasn't distracting at all. They do have limited songs playing in the background but tbh I didn't mind that at all. I'll think of OSN when I listen to We Could Still Be Happy haha.

I want to add that another reason why this drama is so special is because of its exceptional secondary characters. All of them feel like you could be friends with them. They're flawed yet extremely raw and realistic. They aren't caricatures or used as a plot device to further our main couple's story but instead they power through struggles of their own. They're all very different from each other but equally endearing. This show deserves an award for creating characters like them.

Anyway, I really loved this drama and it has become one of my favourite dramas of all time!

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Jorsias
218 people found this review helpful
Jul 11, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 6
Overall 10
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Redemption

You can't talk about One Spring Night without mentioning Something in The Rain.

Because OSN is the result of what SITR could've been. It's about growth to both the drama and especially to the writer. One Spring Night is a take on modern Korea where the youth have to face the older generation, but not with guns or lawsuits, it's all about dialogue.

The first two episodes give the viewer an amazing introduction to the story, something most kdramas really fails to do, and the supporting cast is probably the best of the year. Every single person here has a story, no matter how much screentime they got. I dare to say that at least 3 or 4 supporting characters could easily have a drama to call their own, even if they just appear for a few minutes each episode. The music is soft and the editing makes the transitions between conflicts fit in nicely with the narrative.

Remember when I said this drama is about growth especially to the writer? Well, this drama is not perfect. It has its problems but that's what growth is. It's not a straight line to success. Don't come to this thinking all the missing points from SITR were fixed and that you won't get annoying sometimes. But the acting, damn, the acting.

I don't like to compare performances because I like to believe that actors can't only do so much if the script isn't good. But what an amazing performance by everyone.

One Spring Night is (once again) about growth, and I believe that the best score you can give to a drama is "I want to watch whatever this writer and director are doing next".

For the first time in a while, I feel bad that I can't see a drama on my 'currently watching' list anymore. There's no "I want to finish this quickly so I can watch another one" with One Spring Night. In a world where people consume so much media, not seeing a piece of content as a simple checklist is one of the best adjectives it can get. That's what happens with OSN.

Binge watch it, watch two episodes a week, whatever works for you. If possible, watch it on a Spring Night.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Sporadic Reviews
43 people found this review helpful
Jul 13, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
First and foremost, let me just get this out off the way; I am a sucker for romance and I have seen Something in the Rain (multiple times). This will be a lot to read, so kudos to those who get through it.

Many of you will know that SitR ties closely with One Spring Night, whether it be the casting, music or directing styles. This doesn't mean that OSN is simply a carbon copy. No, it's much more than that. This show is a picturesque amalgamation of modern romance, societal pressures and conservative values without the unnecessary plot devices employed by other Korean dramas. But that's just Ahn Pan-seok's (director) style, and it's why I am a huge fan.

Lets go through this methodically so I don't lose track of my objective here. OSN is a story of two people with their own complicated situations, falling madly in love despite the inevitable backlash that will result from the stigma imposed by their cultural values. This is also something that should be kept in mind. This is a story based within Korean culture and society so there may be huge differences in values to what you are used to. Nonetheless, there may be decisions and moments where the character's rationale is incomprehensible. I understand that, but try not to let it detract from your experience. All that aside, this is a drama that provides an important social commentary on modern day Korea's outdated values, something that Ahn Pan-seok (director) and Kim Eun (writer) have successfully conveyed in their earlier work, SitR. Akin to SitR, OSN provides a realistic take on the romance in question. While it is a gradual progression burdened by eventual complications, it is an authentic romance between two people that can't help but tug at your heartstrings and make you feel all giddy inside. There are one or two unresolved story points, but I feel that is largely appropriate and shouldn't be taken as a gripe. This is a realistic story and not everything can be resolved at once. The essence is that things have fallen in place and the rest will be resolved in due course.

Acting/Cast? Perfect. Jung Hae-In and Han Ji Min were both superb in their roles as the couple deeply in love despite their 'flaws'. Their chemistry was electrifying, similar to Jung Hae-In's performance with Son Ye-Jin in SitR. I truly do not believe that anyone else could pull of Han Ji Min's role as well as she could. That's not to say that the side characters weren't also quintessential to the story. Unlike many of the other dramas, the side characters in OSN are seamlessly natural in their performance and appropriately impactful on the main characters. They aren't caricatures or plot devices used to fuel the story, but rather, they have their own lives and accompanying struggles. Side note, it's a bit jarring seeing Kil Hae Yeon as an endearing and accepting mother in OSN, given that her character in SitR is quite the antithesis (and one of my most hated characters).

I feel like it's also appropriate now to talk about directing styles. As you can probably tell, I revere Ahn Pan-seok's modern-romance directing style. He has a way with capturing a scene that encompasses all the quiet nuances and raw emotional value in a colourful, minimalist fashion without any unnecessary distractions. These scenes convey a beautiful and somber melody that truly captivate viewers like myself. It's a style hard to perfect, and something that a lot of directors and producers should aim to achieve nowadays especially when grappling with romance.

The music in OSN was also flawless and appropriate to the story. It boasts the ensemble of Rachael Yamagata, who produced many of the OSTs in SitR, as well as a song from Oscar Dunbar and Carla Bruni. These songs aren't just great for their addictive repetitions on your phone, but they seamlessly blend into the settings of OSN. One song in particular, Spring Waltz by Carla Bruni. My lord, that song was perfect for OSN and an absolute delight to listen to. Even if you don't watch this drama, which I highly doubt by now given how much you must've read of this review by now, you should google that song and play it on repeat. These songs are limited, just like in SitR, but it shouldn't really be an issue.

Rewatch value is ambiguous. Personally, I'll be going through this again very soon (maybe in 2 or so days), but for others, it depends on your enjoyment for romance. I highly believe that this is a drama worth at least one rewatch. For the sceptics, give it a couple of weeks after you've finished the last episode to play it all again. I do concede, however, that I have seen SitR about 4 times by now, so there may be some slight bias but I know OSN will give it a run for its money.

Overall, OSN has ranked definitively in my favourite Korean dramas of all time. It's needless to say at this point in the review, but the casting choices, music and directing styles were all impeccable. OSN showcases a captivating love from one to another with endearing characters from varying social backgrounds. It's truly a romance that will keep you engaged in the show from all their ups and down. I will definitely miss seeing this on my 'Continue watching' list on Netflix, but all good things must come to an end. There is this faith between the main characters that persists throughout the show, and it's a faith I have for the romantic dramas to come from director Ahn Pan-seok and writer Kim Eun.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
MattPeddlesden
21 people found this review helpful
Feb 28, 2020
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 10
I loved this one so much! The chemistry between the two leads is amazing, and they're both fantastic even on their own. It's a relatively gentle pace throughout and just such a good story I was always looking forward to seeing them face their next challenge. There's lots of similarities you could draw between this and Something in the Rain - it's got a lot of the same cast even, same ML but different FL and other parental roles moved around a bit. Having literally watched Something in the Rain just before this it was a little surreal with husband and wife from one now in separate families in the other but... that's ok :)

Where Something in the Rain tried and failed, One Spring Night tries and scores a home run.

He is "flawed", he is a single dad of a son. She's got a boyfriend at the start and are starting to talk about Marriage, but she's not on the same page and frustrated with the relationship. This sets up the tone for a story with lots of factors working against the couple, whether it's the notion that she might be considered to have "cheated" on her boyfriend, or whether others will accept that she wants to get involved with a single dad and all the "baggage" that brings. Parents on both sides bring challenges but they're different, the ML's parents are over protective about things that might bring him the kind of sadness that left him a single dad and the FL's parents are traditional and "difficult".

I was absolutely delighted with the FL's mother in this, you can see her growing and evolving around the changing situation around her and reacting in a really great and supportive way - even if it takes her a bit to get there. The same actress played the absolutely nasty mother in Something in the Rain so this was a redemption from my perspective, as odd as that might sound :)

Initially I was confused about why the FL wasn't being more direct about breaking up with her boyfriend, and I must confess that I'm married to my first love (24 years now) so... i'm totally inexperienced in this kind of thing... but as the story progressed I grew to appreciate that it hadn't been a binary switch-off, it made the time that things properly change that much more valuable when it happened, and also meant that her previous relationship wasn't trivialised and thereby her attitude to relationships in general wasn't.

It did also somewhat talk to one of my other general meanderings - if someone cheats, betrays a partner, and goes to someone else... surely the new partner must always have in the back of their mind - that person has already demonstrated that they have the capacity to change, to betray and to move on, what worked in their favour today could happen again but against them. The ML's insecurities about this surface at an important point and it creates some tension but I thought it was dealt with well.

There are other arcs in this as well, I think that the general arc that follows her and her sisters around and the things happening to them is probably just as important as the main love story.

I struggle to find flaw with this, I was just so happy watching it all the way through, other than towards then end when I realised I was going to run out of show and this amazing couple were no longer going to be in my life, but, i'll probably get over that when I start my next drama :-P

Highly recommended, and as the flow is not really ruined by knowing what happens, it makes it all the more easy to re-watch again if you want 16 episodes of lovely warmth to keep you company on a cold weekend.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Moonbyulie
27 people found this review helpful
Jul 12, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 9.0
(long commentary yeehaw)

This drama is so tiring to watch, and that's the reason why I loved watching this drama. It made me tired not because of its literary elements, rather because of its resemblance to the reality that we have as humans. How bounded it's by realism and its relatability is how it's able to sell itself to the large population of viewers. This isn't a drama you should watch when you need an escape. Rather, this is a drama you should watch if you want to be slapped by reality.

Arguably, this drama is welcomed with mixed reactions because of our own moral dilemmas. Some are saying that this drama romanticizes cheating. However, I think that's not the case. In our reality where cheating is usually seen as black-and-white, we realize how there are different shades of gray that comes into it. While the act itself is bad, we can see more of its complexity, giving us more room to understand. However, that doesn't mean we are condoning the act. The themes that the drama has are cliche but the way it's presented made it so interesting.

The characters in the drama are complex WHICH I THINK IS ONE OF THE IMPORTANT FACETS AS TO WHY THIS DRAMA WAS ABLE TO PRESENT ITSELF MORE EFFECTIVELY. Almost every character in the drama has an interesting and complex characterization which enabled the story to tackle several issues we see in our reality. Despite being a drama, its effectivity can serve as a commentary on modern Korean society with how raw and fresh it feels.

This drama is the second drama that Kim Eun wrote. With the reminiscent style of writing and vibe, I can confidently say how this drama highlighted her growth with regards her craft. While Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food felt like a prototype, One Spring Night felt complete and more realized.

I can only have praises for the acting and the casts of the drama. Most of the cast present in this drama can also be found from Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food. With this drama, we can see their improved capabilities especially for the fresh faces like Jung Hae In. A year difference showed a lot of growth not only for the writer but for the actors as well. I honestly can't critique them negatively for the acting as I find it so compelling to the point that I really wanted to strangle Giseok and Sihoon because of how pathetic they are. ELECTRIC CHAIR!!!

I also have a lot of praises for the music this drama has. This elevated the emotions and the quality of the drama. It gave a nostalgic vibe with a spice of hopefulness and tranquility in every listen.

Overall I'm giving this drama a 9.5/10. It's not perfect in all honesty. However, the growth and charm the drama possess made it deserving of a high rating :>.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
minj99
18 people found this review helpful
Jul 11, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 8.5
Story 10
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 7.5
Viewers will be quick to compare this drama to “Something in the Rain”, which shares the same Director, Writer, and Male Lead, and they would be at no fault for doing so. Like SitR, One Spring Night utilizes a slow pace to portray the relationship between the main leads. However, the pacing and characters of OSN are superior to SitR because of their steadiness. I recommend this drama to all kdrama watchers and promise that you will also slowly and steadily fall in love with the leads episode by episode till the very end.

Story:
I will be honest and say the story outline is similar to SitR, focusing on a relationship that is heavily critiqued by the leads’ friends and family. I believe there are 2 key differentiators which are the strength of the supporting stories and the methodical pace of character development. The supporting cast gets a fair amount of development throughout the drama, and they, themselves, change instead of folding into 2D one directional characters. This actually adds to the “slowness” of the drama as precious time is diverted away from the main leads.

However, I do not find fault in the slow pace. I admit the 16 (32 halves) episode format changes the standard for pace, but I also believe that there is a range of acceptable pace in kdrama. I find bigger fault when the writer/director strays away from the slow pace to try to close certain plot points or make characters behave erratically, which OSN does not suffer from. If anything, OSN is not shy in leaving interactions with little explanation and limited expose/monologue.

This may make it harder for viewers to buy into the relationship between the main leads, but I thoroughly enjoyed the romance that resembled something out of real life rather than a kdrama. One lead doesn’t have to save the other or be connected via childhood past to develop feelings for one another. OSN is the closest example of a life-like relationship in a Korean drama; any more and it would be no fun as a drama (you know you’re trying to escape reality watching kdramas).

I applaud the director/screenwriter for running it back by producing such a comparable drama within one year. They improved on all areas of the plot from SitR and remained true to their style instead of bending to every criticism levied at SitR, which I still ranked at 7.5. I look forward to their next projects with a small longing for something more different.

Acting:
Let’s begin by looking at the Male Lead since, again, it's easy to compare to SitR. Jung Hae In’s acting is markedly improved from SitR. This may be due to his growth as an actor, the improved writing of OSN, the chemistry with the cast, more trust from the director, or some combination of all of the above. He displayed a wide range of thoughts and emotions throughout the drama, and I was especially impressed with his acting when facing the second Male Lead.

Similar compliments can be said for the Female Lead, Lee Jung In. And her chemistry with the male actor was amazing. The biggest evidence of this being how electric the dialogue between the 2 felt; Their conversations conveyed more chemistry than any of their skinship scenes. The acting of the 2 main leads really complimented the direction of the drama, which heavily focused on interactions rather than monologues.

The supporting cast also performed admirably. For example, seeing the FL’s mother in OSN can be quite a shock after watching SitR (or vice versa), but she still nailed both roles and truly deserved to be part of this cast. The FL’s sisters were also great and their acting really conveyed how their characters were shaped by their shared upbringing (and I have a soft spot for “sismance”).

Music:
Funnily enough, even a good chunk of the OST is sung by the artist who contributed to SitR, Rachael Yamagata. Although English in Korean media is improved, it does not compare to having a native English speaker. This should significantly improve the drama viewing experience for international viewers given that some subbers do not sub Korean lyrics.

The actual music works very well with the story and pace. I thought each of the songs in the OST carried tension, even the “happy” song. This tension is well utilized because the story does not have the outrageously tense moments of a thriller or typical melo, so the combination of the story and song was important in conveying conflict and emotional resolution.

Rewatch Value:
There is a high rewatch value for this drama given that it covers a multitude of nuanced issues. Even as a native Korean speaker, I plan to go back and rewatch the drama to better understand and enjoy the conversations and chemistries between all the characters.

The next episode previews were the worst part of this show, so I look forward to not having to deal with them now that it is fully aired.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Mia
12 people found this review helpful
Jul 18, 2020
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 9.5
Beautiful. Beautiful. Beautiful.
I pick up this drama after I dropped SITR, since I was starting to get interested in Jung Ha In. Even to this day I still find myself going back to watch clips of One Spring Night. I was so invented on each episode and fell for both leads, as they're so into their role that I feel like watching some real-life event in front of me.

One Spring Night tells the story of two people who fall in love at the wrong time. It was as if the whole world telling them not to. They had to bear their own internal struggles, and also the pressure from society that comes along. This is not your typical romantic story as it also touches some social subjects, especially in Korea's culture. Not to mention they both have their own insecurities to start their relationship. I'm not a fan of slow-burn romance, but somehow OSN managed to make me crave for more with how realistic the story portrayed and how lovable each of the characters is.

What can I say about the characters - I freaking adore them. Lee Jung In is one fierce girl. She knows what she wants, she knows where she stands and her happiness lies beneath her independence. Ji Ho is a down to earth single father living inside this conservative society bubble. He is a man who never put himself first and always deciding things wisely by considering the people around him. Combine both and you got this mature relationship that dialogues their way into knowing each other. I also love how the 3 sisters always have each other's back through thick and thin. Especially the youngest one!

Arguably there are some mixed opinions on how the whole picture acts as a romanticization of cheating. But honestly, I think feelings can't be seen as black and white, there are gray in between and sometimes the lines are a little bit blurry. I wouldn't blame Jung In though, there must be some reason why she can't make up her mind on going the marriage route - although she's been in a relationship for so long. When you can't see the person you're seeing now exist in your future, I think that's one flag of no good in pushing marriage into it.

The OSTs are good, they're not distracting and somehow just fit into every scene. There were not a lot of songs in this drama, but Rachael Yamagata's No Direction stuck in my head for a long time and whenever I listen to the song I feel like the whole scenes played before my eyes.

Anyway, One Spring Night successfully gets into my all-time favorite drama list, and I would still happily re-watching it over and over again.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Draken Sano Shipper
28 people found this review helpful
Jul 12, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 5
Overall 6.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 2.0
Started out so well, and then the main conflict gets resolved around the half way mark and the drama loses it way, and gets buried in cliché. The will they or won't they is the most integral part of any rebound romance story and if you take that conflict out, it's hard to sustain a story for the length of so many episodes. And you can hate me for it, Jung Hae In is GORGEOUS but he wasn't convincing at all when he was supposed to show sadness, like otherwise he was fine, but a lot of actors, are not great at everything but they are great at showing sadness which for a show like this and for kdrama in general was very much needed.

Maybe because of this and the lack of real conflict in the second half I ended up not buying their relationship AT ALL and both the characters seemed to feel unfinished and not well thought out. Acting wise though the rest of the cast was really doing well and you know there's something wrong with a drama when I was honestly siding with the ex lol seriously the two son in laws should have just hooked up they were so good together. Seriously, I really got involved in the other sisters story a lot more. And the sociopathic son in law from hell the actor was so good and all the actors who played the sisters same, I liked both the sisters! Especially the youngest, she was badass.

The problem with a story about cheating couples is if you don't have characters who are conflicted about their emotions and they show some emotion for the ex is what makes the character a worthy protagonist for a romance. If they say they have no feelings for someone they were with for four years not only do they sound self serving but you also are unable to believe they will be any different in the new relationship. Like you waited till you had a hot guy with a stable job to leave someone you claim you didn't have feelings for yet you were sleeping with them? And saying you'll get married, I mean the guy didn't even do anything besides 'not give her enough time' when he was in a business meeting! ! Is she going to resent the new guy when he cancels on her because he was working?

I mean I did not buy she was going to continue to be 'selfless' long term with the new guy it's just a matter of time.

Another thing that also became annoying was the fact that the perceived 'villain' in the story, the ex, was the not really evil and the stunts he pulled become so lame you're left watching a boring story because look the villain actually has to win at something to be a convincing villain! Lol here none of the 'villains' or the antagonists were actually scary and everything got resolved through a single conversation, lol literally, like that's why I was so bored.

That said I did enjoy it but mostly because Jung Hae In is GORGEOUS and I liked the cast, the ex even I felt bad for him.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Carli Sophie
17 people found this review helpful
Jul 12, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers
When I first read the plot I wasn’t interested in this drama at all. Per coincidence I watched the first episode and was instantly hooked. The atmosphere of the show was amazing. Calm, lovely and honest. The leads deal with their very own problems and lived their lives by the rules.

Lee Jung In, the female lead, knows what she wants. Her happiness grounds in staying independent. That’s one reason why she dates the selfish bank employee Gi Seok. But when he’s interested to tie the knot after four years different views crash. The characterization of this relationship is very honest and brutally cold told. The motivations of each collide with their happy relationship. When Ji Ho enters the stage Jung In experiences for the first time deep emotions that make no sense at all. Her inner fight is worth seeing and reflects realistic behavior at his best.

Ji Ho is a single father in a conservative society. His role symbolized the tolerance in korean society. It was interesting to see the moral standards of Koreans and how they deal with strange problems. The whole portray of this society was exciting to watch and made me fall in love even more with the characters.

The family members of both symbolizes different point of views and have to deal with problems of their own that aren’t less interesting. I loved everyone besides her dad. He was annoying from the start.

Seeing every episode made me happy. Each one was worth 10 points. I wasn't Ever invested in a drama like this one. I also give rarely 10 points but this drama clearly deserves it. I can just recommend it and will watch it again...soon. It’s a delight!

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
The Butterfly Flower Award1
8 people found this review helpful
Sep 11, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 4.0
I looked forward to watching this drama because I liked the actors, writer, and singer-song writer. Unfortunately, I wanted to like it more than I did.

Story-The Good
A lot of US shows I’ve watched have a 6 to 2 or 7 to 2 ratio of male to female characters unlike real life. Strong female relationships are often sorely lacking. The writer of OSN has about a 50/50 ratio of male to female characters. The FL has close relationships with her sisters and friends! And surprisingly the mothers aren’t harpies. I found this encouraging and refreshing. I will seek out future dramas by this writer.

The Bad
I have no problem with slow burn romances but someone forgot to turn the crockpot on for this one. As of episode 18 the story was still trying to find traction. I struggled to connect with the FL’s motivation, the ML’s and her ex’s.

The Ugly
The FL had the characteristics of MLs I dislike. She was domineering, selfish, and unsympathetic. Just when she seemed to have some character growth she would revert back. The one time the ML showed vulnerability she pulled back instead of reassuring him and later punished him in a humiliating way. I couldn’t figure out what he saw in her and why he fell so hard when he had been burned badly before. I wanted to feel caught up in their romance but it felt flat to me.

Acting
I was underwhelmed by Han Ji Min and I loved her in Hyde,Jekyll, and Me. And who took the light out of Jung Hae In’s smile and the salt out of his tears? The baddies seemed tired and toothless as if they couldn’t figure out why they were doing what they were doing. Overall the acting wasn’t terrible but I’ve seen several of these actors do a much better job.

OST
As always, I love Rachael Yamagata’s music. However, the music clips often didn’t match the mood of the scene.

Rewatch Value
Not likely. Or maybe one day I’ll try again when I’m in a different mood and it will speak to me. Sadly I don’t think that it will as much as I will want it to.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
cocovanne
17 people found this review helpful
Nov 6, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 5.0
Story 3.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
I had to wait a few months after this drama was completed to settle my feelings before I could write this.

As with many fans I associated One Spring Night with Something In The Rain although the premise was different the overall style, chemistry and vibe was the same, which was to be expected. Although irrelevant I did enjoy SITR even when asked to suspend belief, I did it amicably and was still able to become enraptured in the show. This however was not the case with One Spring Night.

As the first few episodes progressed I was captured with the story and the acting was compelling. I can view each character's selfishness and empathize with them and mildly hate or love them. But then as the story progressed the premise started falling apart. My ability to suspend belief was sorely tested. By the end I hated the show and not in a good way. Knowing that this show was to improve upon the short comings that plagued Something In the Rain, I was sorely disappointed. The director and screen writers had not learned their lesson in my opinion.

The fault lay not with the acting but with the script. Following the story I was entranced by the complicated relationship bonds between the cast and the ultimate build up which lead to a big fat nothing. And that in essence is what destroyed the entire show for me. Ki Seok is a man spurned and felt his life wasted and lost, finds himself adrift and alone which is to be expected. He then threatens and harasses which is also to be expected. The story is accelerated to this epic climax of sorts where Ki Seok would have been pushed to his limit and has no choice but to retaliate in some form but is then crushed under the weight of some forced drama between the romantic couple, which was weak at best, and then fizzled into a lazy ending which left me so unsatisfied that I wanted to scream. To me this is the worst crime possible because the drama smacked of no effort rather than poor execution. Another pet peeve was the supposed manly stance of Ji Ho who postures a lot but ultimately does nothing. In fact no one does anything in the end. The show just ends.

While I did not want a kidnapping scene repeat, I was still expecting Ki Seok to commit an act that was horribly embarrassing where he would then have to hide in shame, on top of the fact his girlfriend left him for another man. Or I would have settled for Ji Ho defending his maiden's honour in some form.

The dissatisfaction I felt for this show was immense and I could not understand how others enjoyed it so when I equate watching One Spring Night with eating a cupcake but all the frosting and cherry fell off the top.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Terry Tsurugi
31 people found this review helpful
Jul 26, 2019
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 3.0
Story 2.0
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 1.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers

Frustrating, repetitious, drawn out, illogical

This is the most frustrating kdrama I’ve ever finished. Granted, I haven’t finished many, and I should have dropped this one too. However, the first couple of episodes were pretty decent, and after I got invested in the characters, I felt compelled to see how it played out. What a mistake and a waste of 18 hrs of my life.

I don’t know what was worse, the music or the script. Both were relentlessly repetitive torture. The directing was bad too, unless stretching out a minimal plot to fill up the airtime is a skill.

Most of the acting was good though, except for a few key roles, like Ji-ho, who was wooden. But regardless of how good the actors were, the writer had them acting like total idiots. Jeong-in is supposed to be strong and decisive, but she was so frustratingly wishy washy, she brought all her troubles on herself. Why did she continue to lead Gi-seok on like some prick teaser, even accepting his engagement ring? And why is her human doormat of a sister Seo-in just letting her psycho husband and dad walk all over her while she keeps silent about her problems and insists on working it out herself just by talking with her psycho hubby every couple of episodes, even though it never ever gets anywhere? Isn’t she a glamorous celebrity who you’d think had some backbone and drive to get to her position? And why don’t Jeong-in and Ji-ho communicate better? They never tell each other when they’re meeting with Gi-seok or his dad or what happened.

Let me offer some advice to these characters. First, all 3 sisters need to tell their dad to shut the hell up and go fuck himself, since he’s clearly just a selfish clown who no one should take seriously. Then Seo-in needs to call the cops on her slimy hubby, maybe after paying some thugs to beat the shit out of him and sexually humiliate him. Of course, this is after flushing her fetus down the toilet just to see the reaction on her hubby’s face when she tells him that was his rape baby. (Why would she make it so much harder to divorce a monster by continuing to carry his baby to term?) And instead of resigning and refusing promotions, she should just ignore the gossips and stand proud as an abuse survivor who gives courage to others in her situation. And what the hell is the deal with Gi-seok’s dad? It seems like the show is trying to portray him as this shrewd, no-nonsense mastermind, but instead he just seems totally confused, not just to the audience but also to Gi-seok, Jeong-in, and her dad, who can’t figure him out because his behavior is so muddled. Ji-ho should just forget about his wishy washy adulteress who drives him crazy and just marry the person in the world who knows him and loves him best, his nuna at the pharmacy. If she’s too old for him, then that younger girl at the pharmacy would be fine too. As for Jeong-in, I have absolutely no idea what she’s thinking so I don’t know what’s best for her. Probably some guy totally different from anyone in the show. But I think Ji-ho is too damaged and priggish for a wish washy girl like Jeong-in for the long term.

Thank god for a few likeable and sane characters, like Jeong-in’s best friend and her younger sister and Ji-ho’s guy friends and pharmacy co-workers. Seriously, I wouldn’t mind watching a series all about Jeong-in’s co-worker friend, as long it had a different director, writer, and music staff. She would be a great catch for a sensible guy, like Ji-ho’s banker friend.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
One Spring Night (2019) poster

Details

Statistics

  • Score: 8.3 (scored by 23,771 users)
  • Ranked: #1069
  • Popularity: #206
  • Watchers: 50,263

Top Contributors

120 edits
51 edits
47 edits
45 edits

Popular Lists

Related lists from users
Short KDrama
2084 titles 431 loves 15
Noona Romance
508 titles 275 loves 16

Recently Watched By