Detailed:
This story is all about grief and its many dimensions. When Yu-Ri is suddenly killed in a car accident leaving her husband and newborn baby behind they, her family and her friends struggle. Yu-Ri exists as a ghost, unwilling to move on to her next life until she sees that everyone is doing well. One day, suddenly, she becomes a real person again, and has 49 days back in the real world.
The story goes through a number of phases as more people discover she's alive again, you find out back stories about how each person dealt with their loss and the feelings and emotions that led up to it. No stone is left unturned, no matter how painful.
Performances from the cast are amazing, particularly the two leads but honestly nobody gets left behind in this one, and when you have someone like Kim Mi Kyung on board you already know you've got a strong cast.
It's not all sad moments, there are some moments of great hilarity like when the three ladies decide to even the scores with the busy body rumour spreading mums at the school, these kinds of moments are dotted around and are just the ticket between some tougher parts of the story.
When I say sad, I don't mean that it's all bad stuff either, it's uplifting in its way and tries to talk about how you deal with grief, it recognises that it's just all ok, however you handle it.
I found myself drawn to watch every episode as it aired but knew each one was going to leave me in a funk by the end because it's just that good.
I loved every moment of this drama, but if you're not in the mood for what this has to offer skip it and come back when you are.
Very much something you can rewatch too, if you need something to trigger (or cover...) the tears to help you get over something else, put this one on and binge it until you feel better. I found the plot generally predictable but not in any negative way, this one's about the journey, and that just makes it all the better for rewatching.
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Mother's Love Will Never Abandon You ♡ A Sad Show With A Bobbled Ending
This is a good drama, but it made me sad - and not a cathartic "sad," like a Chinese or Shakespearean tragedy that is somehow fulfilling. This show brings on an empty sadness.In the +, the characters are all complex and thus, they remain interesting. I loved the cameo of Seobinggo and Shin Soon-ae from Oh My Ghost, which I consider to be one of the best romcoms ever made. OMG & HBM share a director, Yoo Je-Won. He has 10 works credited to him, all of which are rated 7 or higher. That's outstanding. So far I've seen Tomorrow With You(7-VG but major logical problems and a couple of crashes with consistency) The King: Eternal Monarch(7.9 it's different, and it's not perfect, but it's mostly excellent) and Abyss(4.7 Poor - it's awful, which hurts my feelings because I love Park Bo-young), and Oh My Ghost(10 - it's superb). His most popular shows are Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha & Crash Course in Romance, which are ones I haven't gotten to, yet.
This drama addresses weighty topics (death, loss, regret, guilt) and does it well. Yu-ri shows thoughtfulness and grace… and MOXIE. The best moments are when the ladies get together, especially when they don their sunglasses-of-doom.
There are shortcomings - too many for it to be considered a top-tier production. Some things that happen are unexpected, but the final outcome comes speeding down the road and arrives just as foreshadowed. There is poor resolution. We are treated to some final moments peeking a few years down the line, but it’s too brief and way too ill-defined, and we don't witness much of any healing. Not all the drinks that are poured are imbibed, meaning that many of the characters seem like they would get more of a story arc, but they just evaporated instead. The rules of the "game" are not laid out. Even when the reason Yu-ri came back is confirmed, it doesn't change any of the problems. It is actually a weak plot point: If that method works, we shouldn't need funeral directors or cemeteries as no one would ever stay dead. As lovely as that would be, it doesn't play well in this show.
Their effort to analyze the mother/daughter cycle is respectable. It seems the show's diffuse focus redirects the audience from an exploratory surgery that would provide a deeper analysis of the truth, to: "Take an aspirin and get some rest. It will all blow by "
In summary, this is not a feel-good drama. Don't look for that. It did not help me process my own recent loss: Don't look for that either.
IMHO...
Suggested Age 12& up.
Directing 6.7
Acting 8
Romance 3
Thought provocation 6
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The drama successfully explore this question. It is a emotional roller coaster ride , so those who are looking for fluffy or suspense drama, this is not for them .
It is story about how lives people affect when some one we love leave us unexpectedly , it just not affect the people who are left behind to live but also affect the person who died as well. The drama ask very important question - Are we grateful to what is given to us and enjoying each and every moment ?Most importantly - Are we grateful to the person who brought and raised us in this world?
The story starts off with a lighter note but as we move towards the ending and revelations it grew deep and heavy. To be honest after the light opening , the middle portion is bit slow and frustrating . The characters seems to go nowhere and closed up like a bottle which can explode any time. Only Oh Eui Shik character provide some comical relief to this heavy and confusing theme. But towards the end all the loose ends are tied properly and one can see that all characters have grown throughout their journey. Overall it is a well developed story which leave its deep impression on the mind.
Cast - I really like the cast and for me it was perfect , I don't want to replace any of the cast. I highly appreciate Lee Kyu Hyung acting skills . His portrayed his character very well, we can understand the dilemma his character went through .On the other hand , this was my first drama with Kim Tae Hee who Portrays Cha Yu Ri, and I am really impressed by her. Overall the acting is really good.
Music - I like the over all music of the drama. Background Music at various scenes is apt and help to create the perfect atmosphere for various scenes.
Rewatch Value - I don't recommend to re-watch because its heavy theme dramas and I can't imagine going through it again and again.
Overall its enjoyable drama for those who are looking for some emotionally challenging stuff.
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On a side note though: Seo Woo is so cute!! I can't believe (s)he's a boy. Every time she smiled, my heart lit up and I awwed so much in this drama.
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Let us enjoy the today ALWAYS, as it is our "gift".
“Were you happy with you life?”
“Were other people happy because of me?”
And we will try to answer "yes" to these questions when the time comes. Yes?
YES! <3
I was very impacted by this story... The ending was happy, and at the same time it was not...
The performances, soundtrack and especially this story deserves much more than a score of 10.
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This review may contain spoilers
This drama really makes you cry like crazy HAHA In every episode you'll find yourself crying, if you're an emotional person like me. I really love the story, although it's a sad ending but it makes me think that a mother's love is very strong. She sacrificed her chance to live with her loved ones just so that her daughter could live peacefully without seeing any ghosts. So that's really heart-wrenching. This drama will make you reflect on your life and more. It has a lot of life lessons you can learn from it. For example, cherish your time with your loved ones because you don't know when you'll leave the world, etc. So that's why I gave a 9.5 for the story plot. Great flow, not too rushed. The rewatch value is 8 although I know it's a really good drama but if you don't wanna experience the pain of the drama again then you may consider not watching it as you'll be stuffing tissues in your nose for each episodes. But it's worth rewatching overall. Acting is great, they were really immersed in their scenes.Overall this drama is a classic. It's a must watch although it's gonna be very "heavy-hearted" for most viewers. I hope you find this useful :)
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‘Cherish life and don't take each day for granted’
I picked this up because I was in the mood for a Korean family drama and because of Kim Tae Hee. I hardly watched her dramas, but I know that she was the so-called number one beauty in South Korea, so I just wanted to see her.This drama was about Cha Yu Ri (Kim Tae Hee) while pregnant (her child was saved though), got hit by a car and died. She stayed on in the human world, watching her family and loved ones as a ghost (they couldn’t see, hear or feel her) and came back to life for 49 days after 5 years. If she managed to get back her original place that is, as wife of Cho Kang Hwa (Lee Kyu Hyung) and mother to her child, she could continue to live on, otherwise she would ‘die’ again and leave the world, but things were complicated because her husband remarried another woman, Oh Min Jung (Go Bo Gyul).
The good about this drama:
1. It reminded me of living a life without regrets. There were many meaningful sentences spoken in the drama and many a time, I was touched by them. The OST of the drama was also excellent in bringing out the emotions. If anything, this drama did remind me of living life happily, cherishing life and not taking each day for granted. And if there is something we want to do, we should do it now, because sometimes there is no tomorrow.
2. All the emotional scenes were convincingly done. The entire cast did well, especially Kim Tae Hee. I could literally feel her selfless love for her child. I believe this was because she just gave birth to her real daughter not long before she took on this role, so it should be quite natural for her.
The bad, though about this drama, were,
1. There were many other ghosts not related to Cha Yu Ri and her family in any way. Only snippets of their stories here and there throughout the drama, audience could not be vested into their stories, so they were more like fillers and distractions than anything else for the drama.
2. The female lead, Cha Yu Ri (Kim Tae Hee) coming back to life and having to leave after 49 days if she did not get her place back. I found this whole concept absurd and the scene where she came back to life, I found the entire scene bemusing. Her ranting, shouting, screaming at the top of her lungs on the street at the heavens up there and lo and behold, she suddenly became a human again, presumably having offended the gods up there or if we see it another way, presumably having touched heavens to turn her back to human again. I know fantasy dramas could be farfetched, but this was just ridiculous and absurd and didn't think it was that well done. Nevertheless, on hindsight, I guess the scriptwriter wanted to create this fantasy scenario out of a drama, whereby she came back to life and was able to say proper goodbyes to her family and loved ones before she ‘died’ again, which was of course something not possible in reality.
3. And then the reason why she came back to life was understood later. It was because her mother’s wish – which was to see her daughter once more. Her mother apparently wrote the wish on a piece of paper and the paper was hung with all others’ wishes in the temple. And after that she prayed every single day at the temple for this wish to come true. This was the illogical part to me. Just because of that, her daughter came back to life from dead?? Like, really?? Will this happen in real life?
4. There were lots of crying, saying sorry and thank you in the last few episodes. Really lots and lots of them. I had lost count of how many times ‘sorry’ was said in the last few episodes that they were no longer meaningful to me. And basically, Cha Yu Ri and many of the female characters were bawling their eyes out in the last 3-4 episodes. So much crying. Cha Yu Ri was saying sorry and thank you repeatedly in tears. By the last episode, I had enough. Such scenes, when shown repeatedly, lost their meaning when the reasons for the tears and apologies were the same over and over.
The ending was satisfying although not all ‘loose ends’ were tied properly. All in all, I would not use the sentence, ‘I enjoyed watching this drama’ because it was really heavy on the emotions in the last 5 episodes and only got heavier till the end of the drama, but I am not degrading this drama because it was meaningful and did remind me things about life which I had explained above.
And would I recommend this drama? Yes, if you are looking for a Korean family drama with many tearjerker-scenes and want to be reminded and be motivated to live more actively and meaningfully.
I know this is not something extraordinary, but it touched me when I was watching this scene. This was after her husband realized that Cha Yu Ri had been watching him for the past 5 years when she was a ghost. The conversation went like this:
Husband: “Weren’t you hurt when you saw me living a happy life without you? Were you okay with that?”
Cha Yu Ri: “It hurt. ….. A lot. …….Someone else was seeing the smile you used to make only at me. And someone else was holding the hand that only I used to hold. And someone else was in the place I was supposed to be at. It hurt.”
Husband: “I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”
Cha Yu Ri: “But it hurt millions of times more seeing you cry alone. …….You woke up alone, watched Seo-woo alone and ate alone in an empty house without me. …. And you cried alone. …..That hurt so much that I didn’t even get jealous of the other person. It broke my heart but strangely I felt so relieved.
Husband: “I should’ve endured all that. It was something I should’ve endured even if it was agonizing. “
Cha Yu Ri: “You felt enough pain, you had endured enough. …… I only wanted one thing back then. ……I wanted you to put me behind you and go on with your life.”
Some afterthoughts:
1. The young 6-year-old Seo-woo, the daughter of Cha Yu Ri, is actually a boy! I was really taken aback and thought there was some mistake when I found out about this because he really looked like a girl in the drama with his two ponytails and pink clothing, but kudos to him, his acting was good and if the director had intended him to act like a cute little girl in this drama, it had been convincingly portrayed.
2. I have always felt so, but I am writing this out for the first time…The Koreans are indeed a community of people with strong emotions.
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The first time I watched this, I adored it... But I found issues with it after a few years...
The first time I watched this show I found it to be beautiful. The meaning of it, which it is. The love a mother has for her child, sacrificial and enduring... There was other symbolism and meaning I found to be beautiful, and actually most likely had saved my life. The story of the woman who committed suicide, and the moment she had she wished she had not. She watched her mother suffer for years because of a selfish and implusive decision. I have read countless stories of suicide survivors who right before they almost died, had regreted their decison. This was the case for her, but instead she was not able to come back. All of the characters realized the sacredness of life in the end. Like how Yuri protected her child from death, the son watched his family die before his eyes, the little boy who searched for his mother contiously after death, the man whose life was taken by a hand he thought he could trust, and the one who had purpously ended her life... Their deaths are all different, accident, suicide, and murder. Their are three pivotal moments in our lives, our conception, our birth, and our death. Not only to us, but also to those whose cherish us. Yuri had found the meaning in all three events. The show stands for her child saying hello and goodbye, but also Yuri saying hello and goodbye to her mother. The two sentiments in the show, Petals Fall, But the Flower Endures, and that not everything will be okay in life. In our afterlife it is, but in our life suffering persits and unexplainable events occur. These are profound, but throughout the years I found qualms I had with the show. I only watched it once, and I will never rewatch it ever again. First, it told of a story that love does not last forever. I think it is easy to believe so, because in the end their is death, and sometimes we outlive the people whom we cherish. But I don't believe that because we cannot phsyically love them in this life, we can't love them as ghosts or the memories of them. I watched a story, a near death experience, of a woman who had learned through her experience that her son would die in the coming years. The day had eventually come, and his death she had a premonition of. Her closing statement was extremely beautiful of her testament of love for her son, that her love became stronger for him because she was not able to be with him in this life. But she had hope for the next. Even though I took that belief with me when I had watched this show, I knew that in reality some stories are different. The most upsetting part about it, was that Kang-Hwa did not speak of Yuri after her death, their daughter did not know who her biological mother was (not that the viewer knows of until the end). I believe that their wedding picture stays hidden from view, and Yuri's family has yet to come around. To me, I found this extremely depressing. Although I cannot blame any man who has lost his wife, I think Kang-Hwa should have spoke of Yuri. Told of his devotion and love for her. But that wasn't the case. He kept it hidden in a box years after her death. Maybe, maybe that was how strong his love for her was. I am not sure. There was other qualms I had with the show, but I can't remember all of them, because it has been three years since I watched this. In the end, I was barely able to watch it anymore. I just couldn't phsyically watch it anymore. When Yuri tells her daughter that they will meet in her next life, and the last moment, when Yuri says goodbye to herself and walks away and disappears from this world. At that moment, I just could not stomach it. To me, there wasn't hope in the end. I don't know why, that was just how I saw it. I couldn't watch a show like this again, every day I question if I really wanted to watch it or not. It made me depressed for weeks after I finished it. Besides these, my biggest problem wasn't these, but actually that they casted a little boy to play the part of a little girl. Their claim was that they couldn't find an actress for the part, and that he had no problem wearing female clothing. They got a lot of controversy over it, and I didn't like it either. They should have changed the character to be a boy, but instead they found a little boy to play a little girl. That I truly have problems with, and I won't rewatch the show because of this reason.Was this review helpful to you?
Emotional but has some funny elements
Very nice drama ,emotional and amazing acting specially the lead actor. He is so brilliantly did acting ,I was totally attached with the character . Somehow he has been started his life somehow he is starting to move on but his past came in front of his eyes and slowly slowly he came to know so much that he felt sorry a lot and secondly after getting g second chance and he came to know it just for 49 days that was deviated for him but again he is ready to face reality.It is sad as well as happy ending.
Too good drama . I like male lead actor friend also because of him there is some funny scene as well as mae lead also did some funny scene .
Balanced drama.
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STORY:
I feel like it had great potential where it could keep one guessing. However it fell short due to an inconsistent plot and pacing. I felt like they didn't have any script editor to look over nor did it feel like the same person wrote the entire thing. There were too many loopholes, too many unexplained things, things that got brushed under the carpet and were never acknowledged. I felt the point of the story was about the characters and not so much about the fantasy aspect of it. I feel like we shouldn't have spent too much time on unnecessary plotlines and some character interactions would have been good enough to drive the story. Nothing about Cha Yu Ri coming to life made sense nor the ways the ghosts and shamans acted. The ending was touching, because the characters were lovely but it was limited by the lackluster writing of the scriptwriter. Of course I was never promised a happy ending but only the probability of it. In the end it's bittersweet but stayed consistent with Yu Ri's wishes. I feel like during the flashbacks and the flashforward, we only see that life goes on no matter what. I would like to take a moment to criticize the screentime given to the flashbacks. It didn't serve much purpose for me and I found myself skipping through a few.
ACTING / CHARACTERS:
The actors were good and Seo Woo Jin is the most adorable kid ever. His smile made smile like a fool the entire time he ever appeared on screen. I wasn't too pleased with the male leads as it ended up being a female-centered drama. The gals were great together and I loved their friendship. Yu Ri's family also had great chemistry with each other. I like that it stayed on course with human interactions and never went towards unnecessary romantic plots.
WHAT WORKED BEST:
I would like to give a special mention to Yuri's mother and her despair were absolutely heartbreaking. Her father's way of grieving was also really touching. Somehow I didn't connect with Gang hwa from the flashbacks. It just seemed out of character for me and his character made the least sense in all aspects of his life. Yuri's back and forth was quite fun with the shaman (who again was amazing). Yuri's friend/sis-in-law was also one of the highlights. Of course, Min Jeong was also wonderful and once we get to know her character, it was wonderful. I felt like some actors gave it their best but the writing fell flat. The ghost family were annoying and funny at the same time. I couldn't give a crap about the other ghosts at all. I did however like the direction and editing. The filters they used to create a mood and ambience stayed consistent throughout which really helped in case of this drama. I might look up the video director / cinematographer.
WHAT SUCKED:
Inconsistencies, how characters acted and the fantasy aspect were a hot mess. It should have been revised and then approved for filming. I feel like the writer had no clue on how to do the world building and handle the ending. They just did whatever fit best and gave us a cop out ending.
THE ENDING:
Oh ma gosh. It was beautiful, heartbreaking and infuriating at the same time. Some things happened too easily and some didn't happen at all. I feel like I missed closures with few of the characters. At the same time how they acted made zero sense. The life lessons and all were something I had to look hard for but it still fares worse than say, '49 Days' in my books. At the least the closing line was thoughtful. But I didn't buy the flashforward. At ALL.
OVERALL:
It was a mixed ride for me. At times I wanted to quit this show. But somehow the ending had me so curious that I couldn't back out. I liked watching Kim Tae Hee in an age-appropriate role. She seems to have improved and still looks hella fine after having 2 kids!
Watch it, don't watch it. It's a sob story by the end but started cool and funny in the beginning. Take your pick according to what you wish to sign up for (includes al the mentioned). I really didn't want the way they ended, but hey - I wasn't surprised either.
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Waste of a good premise
There was so much potential here in the form of a dead mother who comes back to look after her family and friends, and the meaning she finds and helps to bring back to the lives of the living. However, the story just went nowhere and some of the characters who could have helped it along were either forgotten after their intro, or just spent the show wandering around without purpose.Kim Tae Hee as our main lead Cha Yu Ri does a great job portraying a grieving mom who gets the chance to return to the land of the living. She is energetic and lovely in this role. The cute little Seo Woo Jin who plays her daughter Seo Woo is just the most adorable little thing too. And Shin Dong Mi is brilliant as Yu Ri's best gal friend Hyun Jung, who supports her through it all. She was actually the best part of the show. Her support and longing for her friend was so palpable.
The show could have been fantastic had the side stories of the ghosts been fleshed out. A few of them ask Yu Ri to help them with unfinished business. These opportunities could have pushed the show to new levels. Instead, their stories are introduced and then promptly forgotten. I was also hoping the fun and spirited shaman played by Yoon Sa Bong would have a real part of the story as well. Unfortunately her potential was lost too. Furthermore, important living characters just kind of wander around. Yu Ri's husband played by Lee Kyu Hyung, doesn't do much to actually show his depression or thoughts. It's a missed opportunity. And his new wife played by the gorgeous Go Bo Gyeol also doesn't do much, but has some time to express herself later in the show.
With the mess of a story and frustrating lack of follow through, you'd think the show would have little impact on the viewer. Fortunately, it's still able to tug some heartstrings, mostly through monologues and flashbacks about Yu Ri's life and family so it's a decent cry if you're looking for one (if you can get over the other frustrations).
Unfortunately, this show just isn't worth the time.
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as a mom, as a daughter, as a sister, as a wife and as a friend. what will you do when your position is taken? how will the people react to that?
well, it didn't need 16eps, and they knew it that's why they added the side ghosts. and at the end of the day they served no purpose but to drag the eps.
sure they gave them a little sentimental value, but if they took them out, this could've been done in 4eps max.
I didn't have any problems with seo woo being played by a boy, but woojinie felt a little too mischievous and smart for a quite girl that was "behind" other kids. woojinie was too adorable and playful ;)
I think my favorite part was the unexpected sismance between Yu Ri, Min Jung and Hyun Jun. tbh if that didn't exist, my rating would've been lower.
also, they had a couple of sweet heartbreaking moments between the main dynamics, so that was nice as well
the ost was nice enough, and I never rewatch stuff ;)
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