This story tells us about pure love, friendship and family and obviously about an unconditional love between a mother and daughter. It tells us about acceptance, regret, sacrifice and the heartache of losing someone you love. It will make us realize and reflect on what we consider the most important in life, that is our family and friends. And that we should live each day with no regrets coz we will never know what tomorrow will bring.
With the flow of the story itself, the momentum was always there, from the beginning to the end. There are dramas that only the first half is interesting and loses touch in the middle part, but in here, there was never a dull moment, maybe because each characters has their own funny side well blended with a witty script on hand. And also, aside from the main storyline, there were bits and pieces of other ghosts with own stories to tell. Each having different kinds of problems when they were still alive and how they resolved it.
As always, kim tae hee is an A+ actress. I cried whenever she cried and i smiled whenever she smiled. Also, with a very strong acting prowess is Lee Kyu Hyung. He successfully portrayed his part well. I also cried whenever he cried and i can clearly feel the pain and sorrow in his eyes in some episodes. I actually cried bucket of tears in the whole drama. By the way, Lee Kyu Hyung was also good in Doctor John.
Plus, the scenery in the drama is to die for... it was a spring season so most of the background especially the last few episodes, were amazingly beautiful. With beautiful and talented actress as kim tae hee and beautiful spring background, what can possibly go wrong?
Oh by the way, inspite my very good review of the drama, you may be wondering why i did not give it a perfect 10 but only 9.5? The other .5 is for the ending. Eventhough it was a beautiful ending, you know how each viewers has their own preference of how they want it to end. Mine might not be the same as the scriptwriter, nevertheless, i still think that this drama deserves a standing ovation.
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Touching show where the acting is the highlight
I love shows by Lee Kyu Hyung. I don't get is why this actor is so talented but has only acted mostly in guest or support roles. He's such a versatile actor - character actor, romantic lead, crime and mystery, comic, tragedy, etc. He's not idol material but he still cuts a dashing figure. He definitely deserves a show where he's the main lead, and this show hasn't failed to disappoint.I also love Go Bo Gyeol who is a way under-rated actress. She come across as fragile and looks very young but she is anything but. She too has been relegated to support roles as villain or the jealous girlfriend but she is capable of so much depth, as this step mom role shows. The conflicting emotions she feels as a step mom who wants to do right by everyone can't be easy but she pulls it off.
In terms of plot, the entire series was good. Many episodes made me cry as it reminds us to cherish those we love as we never know when and if we'll see them again. However, the last 2 to 3 episodes just dragged things out. This is another case of bulking up episodes to make it to 16. I'm so glad cable TV came along and Korean drama series were cut down to between 8 to 12. That would have been a good outcome here. Hence my rating dropped from 8.5 to 8.
In short - definitely give this a watch if you like the actors or if you want a meaningful show about family.
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It's an okay watch but I wish they made better choices
I didn't know what it was going to be about before watching it so I was hooked after the 1st ep when they revealed what the plot was going to be. There were a lot of unexpected twists but some of them were unnecessary.Some of the ghosts also pissed me off. You'd think that you'd only be allowed to stay if you had unfinished business but some of their reasons were so petty to me.
Some parts felt flat. Some characters felt flat. And some decisions didn't make sense but it was an okay watch.
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This review may contain spoilers
Simple family drama
quite surprised to hear my favorite song hoefully sky -jung eunjiA warm hearted family genre story, quite simple with pretty good acting
not too boring as they ended the episode with a tense scene
the story is simple, but the story at the back sometimes seems not in line with the beginning,,, when they are said seo woo can see yuri earlier than when yuri realized it, but at the beginning of the story does not seem like that,,,
sometimes the story is a bit absurd because it could be like their child is forgotten ,,when they have a problem, and must go somewhere, and suddenly the child is already at home, and it's also strange if Yuri can apply as a kitchen assistant with a glass arts graduate background but uses someone else's name,,,
every episode has a section telling the story with flashbacks but it seems like until the end the story is still hollow and incomplete,,, like what year Minjeong and Gang Hwa got married? I thought it would be explained but there was no further explanation
Really like the scene of Yuri, Minjeong, and Hyeon Jeon, unfortunately not too many, and was impressed to the end that Hyeon Jeom was not familiar with Minjeong2
the ending and goodbye are not too good in my opinion, the time seems too sudden, like it hasn't been 21 days ,,,, if you say sad ending is actually not, because the one who has to be together is still together,,
It would be better if they were honest from the start for her friends ,husband and for minjeong
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A Touching Story That Loses Its Way
There are some dramas you know will be a tearjerker from the very beginning, and Hi Bye, Mama! lives up to that expectation completely. The show’s emotional foundation is its greatest strength: a truly heartbreaking narrative centered on a loving wife who dies and the family she leaves behind. We're given a beautiful glimpse into her and her husband's life together, making his grief and her spiritual return all the more poignant. Each episode is a testament to the pain of loss and the power of love that transcends even death.A standout element of the story is the gentle and empathetic portrayal of the new wife. Instead of being a source of conflict, she is a genuinely kind character, making it impossible for the audience to dislike her. This moral complexity elevates the drama beyond a typical love triangle, focusing instead on the shared love for the same person and, ultimately, a child.
However, the show's greatest strength is also its biggest weakness. While the main story is captivating, the pacing is significantly disrupted by what feels like unnecessary side plots involving other ghosts. These stories, while sometimes charming, add little to the main narrative and often feel like filler. They were so boring that I found myself fast-forwarding through them just to get back to the main characters.
In the end, I had to drop the drama midway through. A 16-episode run is already a long commitment, and when half of that time is filled with irrelevant side characters, it becomes a shame. It's a testament to how good the main story is that it kept me going as long as it did. Ultimately, the beautiful core of the drama is diluted by the filler, preventing it from being the perfect show it could have been. It's a missed opportunity, but the moments of pure, heartbreaking emotion make it an experience worth at least a partial journey.
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Okay
Oh look it's Kim Tae Hee that every other drama keep referencing her as the beauty standard which to this day I don't understand why they keep drawing parallels to her specifically. Anyway, when it comes to inevitable death in drama I mostly prefer stories that take the terminal illness route over the "49 days" scam. Terminal illness stories can bring more raw emotions meanwhile 49-days stories lack in that regard, mainly because their death is an unchangeable fact regardless if the people associated with them moved on/still in pain/still mourning/still have regrets or not.It's still a "decent" drama, just like most of the other sad ones. They always work because we're silly little humans who like to sympathize. It's a lighter and more casual drama compared to others like it. Which is why there was less investment than usual in the characters and less focus on the characters that matter in general. This is clearly shown by how they attempted to prolong the drama, one example being the female lead started helping/observing other ghosts/spirits. Was that really needed? The lack of directional focus is its biggest problem. The concept of 49-days is a bit loose here, the concept itself seems to vague to the characters until it was told to them blatantly which is weird because isn't it part of Korean culture/tradition in funerals? Overall, not that good not that bad, just okay.
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The ending, I should say is a really beautiful and realistic one. It never promises a happy go lucky ending since the beginning. It stays true and honest. A fantasy with a realistic take, how amazing and rare.
All of the casts’ are amazing and they have such an amazing chemistry!
What makes me rate this 1point short of the full star, is that we have different values on the concept of death. So at some moments, it felt overly romanticized.
Beautiful OST! The back sound was not really exceptional aside the OST, but it was befitting. Also, some scenes was so beautiful.
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Masterful ...
What a lovely drama. I was not at all familiar with the FL or the ML, but I did recognize so many secondary characters. Yet, it was the actors who were new to me and who were the Main Leads who just blew me away in this drama. I just can't get over how unbelievably good they were.This drama had me crying every episode. The reviews I've read suggest I'm not alone in this. The longing and emotional intensity was so real, so evocative that it demanded that level of engagement.
(This is me nitpicking, but I really wish the FL had chosen the fact that her daughter loved her step mother immensely as the reason why she couldn't continue living as Seo-Woo's mom. I appreciate the whole "she'll keep seeing ghosts" angle, but it pales in comparison to how much her daughter had grown to love her stepmother and how much she would have suffered if Yu-ri had chose to be selfish and stay. MINOR POINT though)
So glad I watched this. It was so nice to watch a drama without a physical antagonist force (other than the exorcist I suppose). Not an evil force to be found. Lovely.
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I knew from the very first time this drama would be a tearful-kind of drama, so I kept on avoiding watching this drama so I wouldn’t cry (since I’m such a crybaby ^^) But since my mom couldn’t stop nagging about the drama, so I watched it together with her. AND YES, I CRIED MY EYES OUT :’(I was able to hold in my tears on the first ten episodes, but couldn’t as soon as everybody knew Yu-ri was going to leave them again ㅠㅠ I’m bawling... This drama truly is inspiring and motivating, this drama taught me a lot of things: one, to never be selfish; two, to always cherish moments with your loved ones because you don’t know when would be the last time you see them; three, to always be grateful in life.
Their acting was spot on! The writers also did well, as well as the production team. Kudos to this wonderful and heartwarming drama. I’ll just pretend I didn’t see the negative feedbacks on this drama, because this drama was truly the most heartwarming, most inspiring, and most beautiful I’ve seen ❤️
9.5/10!⭐️
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Brilliant series
Such a super good series with super excellent acting skills, they delivered all their emotions to me and made me feel every single tear drop came down their eyes , they were true in portraying the feeling of loss .Such a super good series with super excellent acting skills, they delivered all their emotions to me and made me feel every single tear drop came down their eyes , they were true in portraying the feeling of loss .
Such a super good series with super excellent acting skills, they delivered all their emotions to me and made me feel every single tear drop came down their eyes , they were true in portraying the feeling of loss .
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First of all, the story is just so touching and heartbreaking at the same time. I didn't expect to cry so much while watcjing it but there I was, crying at every episode. After a couple episodes, I learned my lesson and brought tissues with me because I just knew I was going to cry a river at some point.
Although the story was really good ad the plot was a great idea, I found myself losing interest in the last couple episodes, I have a feeling they could of maybe made it into a 12 episodes instead of 16.
Every character just gives off different vibes, and they're all so important. Min Jung ... Her character is so gloomy and grey, I felt a lot of pity for her. Also I just found out the child was played by a little boy ? Impressive !
I'm going to be honest, I didn't really pay attention to the music, sure sometimes it set the mood but it's honestly not the most important thing I want to review haha
As for the rewatch value, I personally DO NOT want to rewatch it, the heartbreak I felt while watching it was enough one time, two times is going to legitimately kill me.
Do not forget, this is my opinion, and mine only, you cannot judge me for it and please do not attack me !
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Tears will be involved
I do not know if I'm in a part of my cycle that is making me emotional but actual tears started rolling down my cheeks from the halfway point of the drama (I'm not a crier while watching the drama btw)From the very begining you know that this will not end with happiness. The story made me constantly think of the people I love and the thought of what would happen to us in this situation is really what got me.
I have to commend the actors especially to the ones who playes yuri, gwang ha, and minjeong. They really carried the show and made me root for each of them.
A major theme of the show is clearly motherhood and I really liked that it was Yuri's mother's wish that brought her back.
That being said there was a lot that I had to skip, the side stories drag a little bit and there's an overabundance of side characters that you really don't care for.
All in all I'm glad I watched it.
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