Reply 1988

Maybe Too Overhyped?

I know this review may upset some people but it is what it is. Like I said in the title, maybe this was just too overhyped and I got my expectations up, I don't know.

Anyways, I love the story, and I love this idea of seeing this group of friends grow up together and see how they turn out. I get why they did it, but it was weird to see the flash forward version of two of the characters where we're clearly not supposed to know who he is, but it sort of doesn't make sense as none of them would look like completely different people at age 50. lol

I feel like they could've just not used future actors. Maybe done it in a written format so we see the perspective but not them? I don't know. Anyways, the older sister really, really irritated me in the beginning. I know I'm not alone in that, but still. lol

I'm also not sure how I feel about the outcomes. I sort of had the same issue with the female lead in this that I had with the female lead in Personal Taste, which is that they sort of wrote her as "quirky" and "not like other girls" but in some instances it's just her being kinda gross for no reason. I did really like the story and the actors though.

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A charming portrayal of family, friendships, love....80s at its best!!!

I think I found my favorite show of all time…This show is the definition of perfection…I mean seriously I have never ever seen anything so well written. Everything right from the 80s setting to the plot was so well done…especially the characters. It’s very rare to find such fleshed out 3 dimensional characters with such natural interactions that not once did I feel like something is forced for dramatic measures…it really seemed like I was watching a documentary of the characters of a real neighborhood. I will point out a few things that I absolutely adored in the show (I will keep it brief because if I try to tell the positives of this show, words will fall short) :
1. The Characters : Each and every character be it the main 5 or the other supporting characters are so beautifully developed that not one of them feels like the show could have done without them.. even minor characters like Deok sun’s friends to Ryu Dong’s father are a delight to watch..if it comes to rounding off my favorites though, I would have to say Deok sana is one of the most earnest characters I have seen…her personality is charismatic and she lights up every scene that she is in.you can’t help but fall in love with her.…I also liked the nuances in Taek’s character which was beautifully portrayed by Park Bo Gumm..But Jung Hwan was the character that touched my heart the most…I felt his longing and his pain of not being able to get what he so desperately wants …in the supporting character my absolute favorite has to be Deok Sanas’ dad!!! He was a gem and he raised the humor of the show to another level altogether. There were scenes where I roared with laughter..at the same time he was marvelous in the emotional scenes too..
2. The 80s Setting : the 80s neighborhood is the star of the show..the reason the show works the way it does is because the characters living so close to each other gives ample opportunities for unplanned interactions. Their lunch or dinner scenes where they are bickering (Deok Sana’s family) or the scenes with the ladies sitting in the courtyard and gossiping about everything were all so well crafted!! It really felt like the characters were from a different time altogether!! Moreover we got a glimpse of how life was in the bygone era…how friends spent their time, how it was to be in love that time..what was the trend in music, in lifestyle, fashion etc everything was beautifully depicted.
3. Sibling Relationships : Realistic portrayals of how actual siblings behave in real life…real siblings don’t go around getting emotional or saying dramatic dialogues..they fight and annoy each other (deok san and Bo-ra) but at the same time they also care deep inside!!
4. The Parents interactions with the Kids : Be it Taek’s fathers immense love for his son (that scene where he rips open a drawer), or the banter between deok sana and her mom & dad, the devotion of Sun Woo towards his mom or the playful banter of Ryu dong with his father, the worrisome love of Mi ran towards her two sons, every parent- child relation brought a unique flavor to the table and showed various forms of parental love.
5. The most important – Friendship : This was the most crucial aspect at the heart of this show. And I’m not talking just about the friendship between the 5 leads but also between the moms and the dads!! The bond between the 5 leads is the main reason that carries the show to another level altogether. I have never met a more caring group of friends off/on screen..sure they bicker and pull each other’s leg and abuse each other verbally but they are there for each other in their actions..the way the entire gang treats Taek like a precious little baby or Doek san being that one pampered/bullied girl in an all guys gang..Sun Woo being like the elder parent in the group..their friendship made me jealous..I wanted to be a part of that gang and hang out with them..also the friendships between the parents..their non stop complaints..their gossips etc everything was just precious..
6. Romance : Frankly as much as I enjoyed the love triangle and that it gave me major anxiety, it was only a partial reason of why I enjoyed the show..I’m not saying that the show would have still been the same without it..obviously the romance was a very important part of the show.. its just that it contributed by adding more depth to an already brilliant show!! The thing I liked the most was that the triangle never became toxic..2 best friends fell for the same girl and despite knowing that they never for a second ill-treated or misbehaved with the other..both were ready to sacrifice their love for the other coz their friendship meant so much more to them..a few scenes just stand out and are a testimony to this…the scene where Jung hwan goes down to tie Taeks shoelace despite taek being a potential love rival…the scene where he wishes on the shooting star that Taek turns out to be a jerk so he can easily hate him…Taek cancels his plan with deok san knowing Jung hwan likes her….the characters are so likeable that I was conflicted throughout the show as to whom I wanted her to end up with..whenever there was a possibility of her being with either I felt bad for the other..In the end she got together with one of them (which was hinted throughout the show in the subtle writing) and though I loved them together my heart broke for the other guy!! That confession scene which was then told as a joke but it actually wasn’t, was one of the most beautiful confessions I have seen..also the subsequent scene of that person regretting being hesitant and all the chances he lost!!!!Oh my heart is weak!!

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Takes you back to the beauty of youth

Such a good story. Really made you feel like you were a part of that neighborhood. I felt so sad at the end, almost like my own youth was slipping away. So well-written, so funny, so gripping. Such a nice, light show to watch. The actors were amazing, you really felt like they were true friends who had grown up together. The only reason I gave it 8/10 stars overall was because she ended up with Taek. They were cute, but I was so disappointed she didn’t get with Jung-hwan I almost stopped the show at ep 16. I’m glad I finished it, but they really missed the mark with that one. They had so much chemistry, I feel like this show would’ve been so much more loved if they had went with that love story instead.

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Wholesome Drama of Youth

Just give a try.
And Be patience and you won't regret.
I won't say much about this drama.

still cryin' :'))

Drama was focused on friendship, relations bet parents and child.
Showed how parents are try so hard for their children and their child also know that their parents are trying hard for them, they may not say but they understand their helpness.
I wish i also had such a group of friends but it's okay.
You will cry, you will laugh.
That's a life so just lead it, live it.
Every one has their own way of living. it's judt about a time you will live well too , just the way in this drama showed.

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Hits you right in the feels.

So i watched this a few months after it actually came out and i thought i had written a review for it but clearly i didn't. i'm currently watching it again (its like my 6th time watching it since it came out) and everytime it hits you right in the feels. You can relate with more or less everything that happens in it. We all wish we could go back to our childhoods, or see our parents when they were young again or see our friends that we grew up with. This drama makes you just want it all again. You're going to laugh, cry be angry with everything that goes on in this drama. This is the best of the REPLY series.
The acting is just bloody brilliant by every single one of the actors. The story line of course is perfect. The music...on point. I heard one of the soundtracks in a tik tok video recently and it just made me think of the drama and it just had its ways of making you think of your life in general if you know what i mean? Sorry i'm so passionate about this drama that i feel im not making any sense.
But anyways if you want to watch drama that you will not disappointed with at all then this is it. Just watch this.
you will fall in love with everything about it.

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Daebak!

10/10!!!! If you want to reminisce your childhood and want to learn about family, friendship, love and life it is the best Korean drama that you need. Now, im getting emotional again. See, i've been trying my best to move on from this drama. Im on the stage where i can only sigh every time i scrolled on reply 1988 on my fb newsfeed. So i believed im halfway through my moving on. Now guess what. Im back to base 1. Family. Friendship. Love. And their youth. So nostalgic. Want to go back to my time and live that same kind of black and white years yet so full of life, very colorful and carefree.

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When people call K-dramas cringe, I just smile. Maybe they saw the wrong ones.

Reply 1988 isn’t “cringe.” It’s real. It’s raw. It’s the kind of story that sneaks into your ribs, presses on hidden scars, and makes you feel seen, even when you don’t want to admit why.
It isn’t just Comedy. It isn’t just Drama, or Romance. It resonates with you, breaks your heart and heals it at the same time

Deok Sun, My heart weeps for her, overshadowed by her brilliant elder sister, the family’s pride, and ignored next to her pampered younger brother. She adjusted, sacrificed, and never asked for much. But when you keep adjusting, you start disappearing. You turn into wallpaper. Invisible.

The moment that broke me was her outburst. Years of swallowed pain came crashing out. She listed every unfairness she had endured, every moment her parents overlooked her, and she finally demanded to be seen. I cried. No, I bawled and after that I watched that scene many times and cried every time. Why does it resonate with me so much? I don't know, nor do I want to find out.
During her outburst, her parents start to feel guilty, but her elder sister, Bo ra sits there with a smug smile and spoiled demeanor. God, I hated her in that moment. Her indifference was suffocating. I wouldn’t forgive her, but I understood her later, maybe.

She wasn’t cruel—she was burdened. As the eldest, she had only one mission: study hard, succeed, and lift her family out of poverty. Tears and empathy weren’t luxuries she could afford. She was the family’s strongest pillar, and pillars don’t crumble. She never knew her sister’s pain, because she was never in her shoes, because she was carrying heavier footsteps, because her own shoes were itchy and uncomfortable.

And yet, she never cried. That part resonated with me too, because crying feels like weakness.

But years later, at her wedding, she finally broke. She saw her father’s shoes, so big, they were stuffed with tissue paper to fit. She had bought them, never even knowing his size. And in that moment, the distance she had carried inside, the walls she had built, collapsed. She wept. And I wept with her.

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I must be missing something

With all the glowing reviews for this show, I must be missing something. I am drawn to watching slower paced, slice of life, dramatic shows about deep relationships and character growth. You can see this through my other reviews. I prefer these types of shows over fast paced plot driven ones, and I don't mind a lack of romance.

So I'm confused as to why I dislike this show and cannot finish it. I enjoyed seeing the older gadgets, phones, clothing, and other props from the 80's (I am also a child of this this time), and on paper, the cast looks stellar. However, I found Lee Hye Ri's performance as Deok Sun to be quite cringey and uninteresting, and I simply didn't care about any of the other characters.

I may try again to watch it, but I'm just not sure why I can't get into it.

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