This review may contain spoilers
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.
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This review may contain spoilers
⚠️ WARNING: There would be a lot of comparisons between Reply 1997 and Reply 1988 ⚠️
I was so eager to watch Reply 1997 after finishing with Reply 1988. 1988 left me with a bit of heartache, and a bucket full of tears, so why don’t I try watching the ‘fluffy’ prequel that has so many good reviews? Sung Dong Il and Lee Il Hwa was the biggest reason why I decided to watch this drama, and I was satisfied with their acting. But yes, this drama is so much lighter than 1988.I would classify this as the cons, but I don’t really care that much about the love line watching this. I didn’t get that chemistry from the MLs and the FL. And I don’t really feel the chemistry in the friendship as well. I believe friendship is one of the main focus of the Reply series, and I know many K-dramas showed the perfectly unrealistic best friends, but deep down I loved them. Reply 1997 showed me a not-so-great kind of friendship. They showed me that even best friends don’t know their friends’ family members, and that best friends are really selfish sometimes. I know this is the realistic version of friendship, but the point of watching a K-drama sometimes is to see that perfect life the characters are living. As for the love line, they tried so hard to make us confused about the love triangle kinda thing. I’m a little uncomfortable with the age gap between the SML and the FL, and it seemed forced too. As I said before, I loved Sung Dong Il and Lee Il Hwa, but I don’t like how suggestive almost every scene with them became, and some other scenes of the ML and the FL too.
The acting was okay. I don’t really like Hoya and Ji Won’s acting at first, but as the drama goes on, they improved! I’m sorry I had a lot to say of this drama, but I really really don’t like Shi Won’s character. Compared to Sung Bora, or even Deok Sun, she’s definitely still the most annoying for me. She’s impolite, loud, selfish, and annoying, her character develops more later in the end, but still, I don’t like her character that much. There isn’t any character I really like from this series, but I guess it’s just that I’m picky hehe. What really differs this drama from 1988 is that they don’t focus on all of the characters in depth, and unlike 1988, they focused more on the love part instead of the friendship part.
For the music…… I really really loved All For You, the version sang by Eun Ji and In Guk! I was waiting for so long for the OST to come on, but it only came later in the last few episodes. I managed to sing along with some of the oldies K-Pop songs here too and I really loved it: Lovable by Kim Jong Kook, Hug by TVXQ, Couple by SECHSKIES (Oh gosh I love this song!!!), Good Person by Toy.
Finally, what I love about this drama…… is that every feelings are resolved, even the hidden feelings are resolved, and everyone was shown together again at the end! I loved that kind of happy ending! Everyone lived each of their own happily ever after! Overall, it was a nice watch, an 8/10! ⭐️
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The cast is great (specially with Busan accent, which I love), the music is awesome, too (it had a lot of songs from the 90's that I recognized. I specially almost cried when "Ode to my family" by The Cranberries played, and when "The Scientist" by Coldplay played too). In rewatch value.... I don't think I'll rewatch this again soon, but I'll probably rewatch my favorite parts.
But, the main thing about this drama, is the story. This storty isn't your typical romcom. It doesn't start at the beggining, or finishes it at the end. We get to see parts of their life as they grow old, and have like 7 flash backs in one, but I really felt like I was watching like the 10% of their real lives, not the whole thing. And that in itself, was genius. I didn't like some parts of the story, but then I realized it was because it resembled real life, and it real life things don't always go the way you want them to go.
I loved this drama not because it was a masterpiece or because I couldn't stop watching it. I loved it because it made me remember of when I was like that too. It made me remember my first love, my high school friends, how I felt when I was just like them. And that is the idea of the drama. Reply 1997 is like saying "answer me, 1997 me". Like remembering the person you were back when you were that age, and going through that. I think this is why this drama has gotten so much attention.
I'm not saying is a must watch, but I am saying that if you do watch it, you'll probably be thrown down memory lane, and will relate to the things the characters are going through. You're going to say "Oh, I had one of those bags, shoes, tamagotchis" or "I loved that song", or simply "Oh, I did that too". Maybe you'll like it and maybe you won't, it's your decision in the end. I know I almost didn't :)
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For the Story --> The sory is not very impressive and very simple ! But it's led well ! Most of the time, we laugh! But we pass by many feelings! I managed to be very touched! There are also many suspens!
For Casting/cast --> Ouah ! It's the key point of this drama ! EunJi and SeoInGuk are incredible and the others play very well !! It's especially Eunji who impressed me, because she cracks the screen!
For the Music --> The music isn't the key point ! That's true, the story is about fans ! But I can't say the music is omnipresent ! I just love "All for one" ... that's the only song i can remember ! ^__^
Finally, I loved this drama ! It brings some freshness, tenderness, and reassure all the fans! We are no every madmen!And I love The End ! ... No i must keep the suspens ! ^__^
A BIG 10/10 For me !
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It’s so original. There was never a boring moment to watch and so much to relate to. The way everything is reveled in this drama in a non-chronological order was a brilliant idea. The love stories were awesome. The songs brought back such fond memories. And the cast was fresh with great chemistry. Everything about this drama is just outstanding.
Plus, it was interesting to see things from our past brought back to life, like the Tomagotchi, the pager, old cellphones, cassettes, CDs, and CD players. It brought me back to the times when I first set my eyes on one, when I once owned one and or when I wished I owned one. Wow, those were the days.
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This drama felt a bit different from others that I have watched, and I consider myself pretty experienced when it comes to watching Asian dramas.
The story, sometimes moving fast sometimes slow but never being boring or too much, was absolutely perfect. It reflected the life, evolution and maturation of a group of teenagers. It's simply about everyday life in any ordinary persons life, and I think that is what makes this drama so perfect and different from others. It's always about a really rich bastard of a guy who falls for a righteous poor girl and then he makes her fall in love with her and they live happily ever after. This one though, pictures the life of people with not so extraordinary lives and it makes me feel... appreciated.
It was nice to see so many familiar faces meeting together in one epic drama. And it was so funny to see how Eun Ji Won (Sechs Kies) acted one part even though he figured as himself as well, hilarious at one point! Overall I think the actors did a good job, dialogues felt natural even though sometimes feelings (such as anger or excitement) were a little overacted.
Music from the 90's aren't exactly my favourites, even though they do wake up a whole lot of nostalgia, but the songs and the score still matched the scenes and the different moods of the drama.
I would like to rewatch it (as well as I would like to rewatch many others, but there are so many new dramas!!), but I think I'll wait a bit, because the normality in the dramam might lose its' charm and get boring after being watched too often or too close after each other.
Since I'm part of the big fandom of Kpop I appreciated that the main character was so much of a fangirl herself, and I could recognize myself very much in her. Though, I'm not as into my idols as she seemed to be... Maybe I just don't have as many chances to act as she does (since Kpop is having a late break through in Sweden!)
Also, I loved how the feelings of the characters were displayed to the viewers. It felt very natural, as well as their actions and reactions to the scenarios.
Thank you Korea for, yet, another awesome drama!
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This drama is lighthearted at all the right moments and still addicting. I was never bored. It's got all the right elements for the kind of drama it was-- I was actually really surprised. Family, friends, romance, comedy, and endearing teenager crap is hard to balance in a 16 episode time slot okay but, man, they did it.
The comedic timing is great, music doesn't make me cringe, the chemistry between all the actors is on point. Wow Reply 1997, you go girl.
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The first thing that won me over about Reply 1997 is its extremely high production value which translates to carefully detailed scenes, casting, music, and acting.
The story and cast so drew me in that by the middle of the series I was crying only because I felt like I was right there with the main characters and I was just getting so excited/nervous for them that I couldn't contain myself. The characters and situations really are relatable and believable; they are worth your time and they have a lighthearted yet passionate, dramatic yet fun story of their lives in the 90's to pull you in on.
I can't recommend Reply 1997 enough, any fan of k-dramas should make time to watch it :)
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