The most realistic KDrama I have EVER watched...
I love the realistic approach this drama takes to relationships and people's thought processes. I truly appreciate the webtoon writer's efforts to depict the feelings that come into play for every decision a character makes, and so accurately and realistically at that. I'm sure it must have taken a lot of analysis and an extremely high EQ. I did not read the webtoon but I do know the full story. Since the show is so well-made and seems to stay true to the original story-line, I have decided not to read the webtoon, but I am currently enjoying another work from the same author and I see the same qualities in this other webtoon as well (read Daily JoJo, it's just as good as Yumi's cells).OK, now off with the review we go:
STORY:
The story is literally the best and most realistic one among all the KDramas I have ever watched. It makes you relate to and agree with the FL so deep. Honestly, I didn't want to watch the drama at first because of the cells (I was like: Animation?! Really?!). But man am I happy not to miss out on this amazing piece of work, ESPECIALLY the cells. They might be animated characters, but they are what makes the story so realistic. They let you decipher every feeling and thought the characters have, and they do it in an adorable way. I don't want the review to contain any spoilers so I can't give you examples, but if you have ever dated before, you will find yourself relating to the characters and enjoying the cell village the most.
ACTING/CAST:
Honestly, nothing was outstanding about the human characters' acting. The roles were not that challenging. However, I still loved Woong and Yumi's chemistry. They reminded me of my bitter-sweet memories of me and my ex. What I truly enjoyed was the voice actors' performance. It's really hard to hook me up to animation characters, but the voices were well-casted and well-performed, especially the emotional cell. All in all, I enjoyed the acting enough, and I'd gladly forgive any acting/casting shortcomings for the sake of the story.
MUSIC:
I always say in my reviews (not that I have written many of them) that I have a pretty particular taste in music and my opinion doesn't really count in that department. While none of the OSTs made me go back and listen to them, I did find them well-aligned with the mood.
REWATCH VALUE:
I can say with confidence that I will go back to this drama multiple times in the future, especially when the 2nd season (and hopefully the third) come out. It definitely is worth the time.
OVERALL:
I give this drama an overall score of 10 because the story matters to me way more than the acting and the music. I loved it and enjoyed it to my heart's content. Hope you all enjoy it as well...
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Lots of cute animation screen time - you either love it or hate it.
Completed - 6/15/2022 - 8.25I hesitated to watch "Yumi's Cells" when this drama first aired in 2021, as I wasn't sure if I would like all the animation. After finished watching the drama, I can say that I found them cute, but they took up a lot of screen time. I do understand that this drama is called "Yumi's Cells" and not "Yumi", but still.....
I find the animation cute and I love all the cells. I like their different personalities and they bring a lot of laughter to this drama, e.g. Naughty cell, Housekeeping cell and Hunger cell. However, it took me a while to get used to the back-and-forth transitions and the large amount of screen time. The frequent transitions to the animation disrupts the flow of the story and slows down the pacing, especially in the last few episodes. I got a little bored when the plot is not moving along and we got stuck in the same situation.
The acting is great. It's a fun character for Kim Go Eun to play and she was able to display a variety of emotions as Yumi. Ahn Bo Hyun finally gets a main role where he gets the girl. I also like his portrayal of Gu Woong. The rest of the cast is fine. Park Jin Young has a small role in season 1 and I don't think I see him enough to say that he's done a great job. He's pretty to look at but Ahn Bo Hyun has a hot body! (LOL) Ruby is a controversial character for me. I find her SUPER annoying 90% of the time but when she was teaching Yumi how to do 'aegyo', that was hilarious. I wish to see her more in season 2 but in a less annoying fashion.
The romance between Yumi and Woong was really cute in the beginning. Their personalities match and they do silly and adorkable things. Woong cares about Yumi and shows his affections through actions instead of empty words. The birthday episode really did show his affections, thus, prompted Yumi to ask that question. However, pride and the lack of communication get in the way. The damage is already done when Woong priorities changed. As much as I like Woong in the beginning episodes, I am very annoyed with his repeated lack of communication. You can still communicate with someone you care about without hurting your pride.
Since season 2 is currently airing, most people already know by now who Yumi ends up or not end up with. I would be very disappointed if I didn't know season 2 is coming, because season 1 did not end with Yumi feeling empowered and strong. I wish for her to realize that she could be happy without being in a relationship. She does not need to work like a dog to fill her life, like after her previous breakup. As the manager of the bulletin board said, there is no male lead and we don't need one.
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This review may contain spoilers
Basic plot elevated by great execution
I started this for the cells and pretty much ended it for the cells.I have to say all the scenes where they focus on psychological aspects and what's going on inside Yumi's head with the cells were amazing to watch and not just because they were hella cute (obviously they 1000% were xD), but because you could clearly see how much thought and research the webtoon artist put into these scenes.
Average and mundane stuff that I am sure everyone goes through- feeling insecure,making and breaking resolutions, doing chores (or not doing them lol), getting crushes, reigniting a old hobby and countless other things- were presented in such a beautiful way... I'd be surprised if anyone didn't find them relatable.
Also Yumi and Woong's relationship felt really realistic. They were two characters with very real flaws dealing with very real problems that pop up in relationships like trust and communication issues. Personally for me this was both a plus and minus point because while on one hand I appreciated the realistic aspects, it also became boring really quickly. At one point I had basically stopped caring about their relationship altogether. But there were a lot of cute scenes sprinkled throughout to keep me engaged.
My major complaint against this was sometimes it felt all the live action scenes were written in the 90s, the internalised misogyny was so strong here. Maybe I am thinking too much because at the end it's just supposed to be a cute rom-com but I didn't like how Yumi's entire personality revolved around her love life and boys, or how they were constantly throwing the fact that 'girls and boys can't be just friends' in our face, or how Yumi's friend circle were pitying her when they thought she didn't have a boyfriend (like the idea of a girl being single and living her best live is so scandalous). There were quite a few of such scenes but these are the only ones I remember.
By the end they did give Yumi a bit of development with her focusing on her career and finally putting herself first on her priority list but it was too little too late imo.
As for s2 I feel like we might see more of Yumi's development and obviously the cells are always there so I will check it out.
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A unique premise, but otherwise all over the place
I want to start this review by saying that I did not know how there would be more seasons. I did not know the webtoon and how long it was. I thought this would be all there was.Yumi's Cells is a comedy/romance drama, so there needs to be some uncontrollable force asserting itself every episode to keep the plot going. However, unlike other series that use force majeure, the FL creates every single problem.
What I'm about to say might sound harsh, but I cannot believe that a 32-year-old behaves like this towards a partner. I'm not saying that she's wrong in all instances, but it's just how she decides to handle things. She's not in her twenties anymore - she even proclaims how they were stolen from her by her ex! Another woman getting too close to your partner should be treated calmly and with a discussion with your partner about personal boundaries, not by becoming controlling and causing the "rival" to quit her job. That is highly unprofessional and immature behavior. Again, Yumi is allowed to feel intimidated by this; many would, but acting like a child will only make herself look ridiculous.
Yumi and Wung are very different, and I think the series is much too focused on his faults than Yumi's. I know it will be biased because the only perspective we get is her own and her cells'. They both have some baggage to deal with, and they are not equipped to help the other. The drama tends to stand with Yumi as she's had a nasty breakup earlier as if that justifies everything a person does.
This drama seems so drawn out sometimes, but blink, and you'll miss some significant change in the plot. Some events seem so out of the blue this way, and even those you can predict happen in weird ways. The last three episodes gave me whiplash.
I don't want this to end on a negative note. So I will say that I love the cells and their commentary. Many people in the live comments thought they were annoying, but they made the show much more watchable for me. I would have loved it if the cells were the focus of the drama, and Yumi's life only showed up once in a while. But that would have been more of a cartoon, I guess.
I don't know if I will watch season 2. I'm just afraid that it will be a rinse and repeat plot until the end.
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Yumi: Journey of self love
Great marriage of animation and drama.Yumi's animated cells, every single one of them, we didnt know we need them until we saw them and love them so much. Lust cell cracks me up. Hunger cell is too cute. Interestingly my fav cell is rational cell. What makes it good is how relatable it is. Everyone has many sides to them. Similar with yumi, today fashion cell takes over and she makes a splurge. Or emotion cell takes over and she does a reactive reaction that she may regret. Even how the weather reflects yumi's feelings.
What makes it good is seeing the journey of the cells which infers yumi herself learns from experiences- every fall, every heartbreak. And seeing how the cells lobby for her happiness.. its really a journey of self love. Learning how to open up, how to take intiative, how to flirt/be coquetish, how to give, how to stand up for herself and ultimately how to let go.
Romantic interest wise comic readers knows Woong and Yumi's rollercoaster. He may not be perfect but both him and yumi shared alot, experienced new things together and were once very happy. Hes definitely in a few volumes of encyclopedia in yumi's central library and forever will be up on her wall of special moments. He helped unlocked alot of things in Yumi's heart. I was glad he entered Yumi's life.
Lastly I noticed Kim Go Eun seems much more carefree in her acting here. Both her and Ahn Bo Hyun were truly great in their roles and played off each other so well. There may not be that much of Woong in the sequel but I still hope to see him.
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A simple show about a young woman navigating life. And it is a most extraordinary show.
Simplicity is one of the most confounding and elusive qualities in any context. Take a stroll through a supermarket and try to count how many brands of bottled water are on the shelf. It’s just water. They are just putting it in a bottle. But there are countless variations of it. Spring water. Sparkling water. Distilled water. That’s just some of the kinds. A product as common as an apple can be green or red and within each of those colors are multiple varieties each with their own combination of sweetness, tartness, firmness and suitability for eating raw or baking or to be used for cider or sauce. Simple things that somehow complexity mushrooms out of seemingly without end.“Yumi’s Cells” is, on its surface, a simple show: a young single woman navigates her career and personal life. The narrative device of animated cells, each of which are responsible for a particular trait of her personality, is intermittently inserted to illuminate her inner mental and emotional processes and how they manifest in her behavior.
While the combination of animation and live action may be novel (at least in Korean dramas), that’s not at all what is remarkable about “Yumi’s Cells”. That is not to say that the animation is not terrifically entertaining. It may not be Pixar quality work, but the cells are mostly cleverly written. The dynamic between the primary logical cell and emotional cell helps keep a bit of a de facto organizational hierarchy. The cells add more than a dash of humor and some of it is in moments where a bit of lightness is decidedly welcome. Done poorly, these segments could have been dead space fillers. But they instead both advance the narrative and entertain simultaneously.
The quality of the animated scenes, however, is secondary to the live action. The production here is perhaps not award-winning, but it has a lovely OST. The photography is well done. The wardrobe, particularly with Ahn Bo Hyun’s Wung, has some standout contributions. But this is, on the surface, a simple show: a young woman navigates her career and personal life. Massive amounts of cgi and a thundering score would be woefully out of place.
As for the supporting cast, its purpose is mostly to provide scenery as Yumi and her inner cohorts navigate daily life. Lee Yoo Bi stands out a bit as Ruby. Park Jin Young is mostly in a half catatonic trance as Yu Ba Bi, but that may be by design. But this is not an ensemble show and the ups and downs of the minor characters are barely on the relevance spectrum here.
“Yumi’s Cells” has three things that shine and shine brightly. One is the editing of each episode and how it so cleverly advances the narrative. No shows, or at least very very few, proceed through time in a straight linear fashion. All feature some manner of flashbacks or time skips or possible futures. Here, although there are flashbacks, it is more that the action is revealed not in a linear sense, but in increasing magnitude of importance. But it is done in a way which does not require a viewer to have a degree in quantum physics to follow. They are simple stories, but revealed in a complex manner. The storytelling is absolutely masterful. Concealed things are revealed at the most opportune time. The pace of how the story progresses within each episode never lags. And although it is a simple show, there is an incredible amount of suspense and it is so cleverly and slowly ratcheted up to a climactic moment. It is a simple show and it simply executes brilliantly.
In addition to the narrative, Yumi and Wung are not just immensely adorable, but they are painfully realistic and relatable. These are not chaebol heirs or hero cops or exorcists or genius orphans. They have anxieties and are emotionally scarred and don’t say the important things that they should say and they don’t always understand each other and they say part of what they need to say but never say the most important part of it and they hurt each other and they hurt themselves and they have all these flaws and, despite all of these things, they still find a way to intimately connect as human beings. And they struggle as two people intimately connected. It is one of the most honest depictions of a relationship in any medium.
The centerpiece of all of this is Ahn Bo Hyun as Wung and Kim Go Eun as Yumi. For Ahn Bo Hyun, this is new ground, both in terms of the personality of the character he’s playing and the magnitude of the role. If there is a theme in his previous roles, it’s testosterone with a side dish of not exceptionally intelligent. Physically, he’s not transformed beyond the hair and a few whiskers. Frankly, his impressive physique is one of the few out of place elements here. Wung is eating, hanging out with Yumi, eating and hanging out with Yumi or coding for hours on end. That distraction aside, Ahn Bo Hyun is a delight as the very left-brained, somewhat awkward but massively good natured and warm Wung. He has range. He has talent. And this is a role that suits him. Quietly, especially towards the end of this run, his depiction of a character who is lost internally but desperately trying to keep it buried is painful and lovely to watch.
As a swirling ball of earnest, bright, vulnerable and determined, Kim Go Eun is magical. She’s had no shortage of starring roles on blockbuster shows. But unlike those roles, here she’s the straw that stirs the drink. Not only that, but as the show is so deeply focused on Yumi, it is her performance that the success of the show largely hinges on. As the show delves deeper into Yumi’s character, Kim Go Eun’s portrayal grows more layered and nuanced. She hits all the notes in the emotional spectrum. She displays both speaking and physical prowess as an actor. The performance may not have a singular spectacular moment, but it is so uniformly deftly accomplished.
Separate, these two leads are wonderful. Together, they are indescribably transcendent. And the show as a result is a marvel.
Overall, it is a show - a simple show of a young woman navigating her career and personal life - that has seamlessly integrated exceptional lead performances and superb storytelling into a captivating package.
Recommended for everyone without any reconsideration, reservation or regret, as “Yumi’s Cells” is the most outstanding drama of 2021.
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Now this is something new!
So what you can look for in this show is not just the leads living their life but also a totally new world of their cool cells.Talking about the story, for sure it's something new which you wouldn't have seen anywhere else (yes, some say that this show copied the concept from the movie Inside Out but to mention the original webtoon was written before the movie got released so you understand, right?). So in short you will love to see the awesome cells and their life. The story keeps you excited as in what will happen next? What more does the writer has to show us? And yes, the pace of the drama is perfect considering the crew remoulded the webtoon of 500 chapters (and less) into a 14 episodes drama. Yup! Season 2 is waiting up there for you.
Acting isn't something we can forget cause definitely Kim Go Eun and Ahn Bo Hyun gave their best and it turned out pretty well too. Their hard work is definitely reflected in their acting. Since Ku Woong is a guy who's a considerate type of person and someone who does not express much but has a lot of feelings inside, Ahn Bo Hyun indeed played his role in a very smooth way. Forced acting/ fakeness is nowhere to be seen in main leads' acting.
P.S. Well I don't want to rate it for re-watch value cause I just now finished the drama and proclaiming now whether I'll re-watch it or not isn't justice to the drama. I plan on waiting for at least a month or so, and then analysing whether I really want to re-watch it or not. I think that will be the true re-watch value of any show, not just this one ;)
So, I recommend you to start this drama mainly for 2 reasons;
Firstly, the story is something new and it gives fresh vibes so if you want something that can lower your burden then this show is for you.
And lastly, the OST is so good to listen that maybe some scenes were beautifully made mainly because of the BGM <333
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This review may contain spoilers
Yumi’s Cell is the first Korean drama to blend in animation into the drama in such a intrinsic way. You can seen that there is a lot of work behind it and these little animated figures do a lot for the story and make it stand out from other dramas. The story really come to life because of them.The drama manages to bridge the gap between rom-com and more slice-of-life drama in my opinion. To me it has this calm and gentle focus the characters’ everyday lives that never feels too dramatic or unnatural, aside from the animated characters that bring out the more cute and comedic side of the story.
the cells that bring the humor (and are often my favorite parts of each episode) while the other characters get to be much more down-to-earth. It still has some those characters that you often find in traditional rom-coms but it manages to undermine some of these tropes and make it refreshing to watch. You can really just sit back and relax while watching the episodes.
Some of the side characters do not feel as complex, which may because we do not get to see the cells of all of them work like Yumi or Gu Woong who are in the leads and perhaps the drama relays a little too much on those cell characters to understand the nuances of the characters. But when it does the drama does a good job of showing all the little twists and turns of communication that Yumi or Gu Woong encounter, whether you agree with them or not, because you see the thoughts behind them.
The cells are a key factor in this and often make you look at things from a different perspective. The story really seems to stand by it’s characters though and allows them to be unlikeable when needs be, and also gives us a good lgbt representative (although he does not appear as often as I would like him to do) as kdrams do not do that often.
The pacing a bit unconventional and the story focuses a lot on communication and misunderstanding when Yumi steps back into the dating world after many years of closing her heart and the mistakes that come with that as a result. And I thought it managed to bring that theme it pretty well to the forefront without dragging the plot or making it too dramatic. The story always seems rather mild and light in my opinion. There was a certain calm over the story no matter what happened.
I found Yumi’s Cell to be quite sweet, warm and funny drama to watch. It is missing a key element that I like in kdramas, which is that the story hasn’t ended yet because we are only at the end of season one. I personally really enjoy kdramas because we get a beginning, middle and a end in about 16 episode. It’s one of their charms. There is so many shows that drag the plot and the tension until most of everything you enjoyed about the series is no longer there. But I’m excited to see how Yumi’s Cells handle this multiple season format. The drama is sweet and stands out from other dramas and just hope the next series manages to keep them charming and not drag the story out.
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This! What a gem
Update:just finished the last 2 eps.
very happy with it, brought out all sorts of emotions and took me back to past memories.
loved how much Yumi’s cells always tried to do what’s best for her, always rooting for her, and it makes you realize how you should actually treat yourself :)
again, this show is so relatable.
it’s probably the most realistic take on relationships :)
I really enjoyed this. highly recommended.
can’t wait for season 2! ♡
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I’m very picky with kdramas. I’ve been watching them for a long time already and ive seen all sorts.
so i couldn’t believe there’s still one that would manage to surprise and fascinate me.
this is it. it’s so refreshing & relatable. so addicting.
it seems like such a simple slice-of-life story, nothing much going on, but the way they showed the inner workings of the mind through the cells’ interactions is actually deep & profound. it made me reflect a lot on my own experiences & thought process.
i wasn’t a fan of kim go-eun (didnt like her in goblin)
but here the acting/role is spot-on. music is perfect.
and the cells- they’re the life of the show! every character is done so well. they’re hilarious.
i know the story is based on a webtoon which i haven’t read. can’t compare, but i really like this. such a pleasant surprise. watch it.
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The actors and actress do it so well. Good story line. Just that the OST are average and too much filter. Sometimes the faces are too white due to filter. I like to see the beauty but I wish they do the other filters instead of making it too white.
I love the voice actors too. Especially the detective cell haha. He is just too cute and funny.
As for the story, I really like it even though romance is not my tea. The story is very realistic. Not everything will follow the wish. There are many things we can’t control. The series not necessarily have an happy ending if the plot is good.
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Hello gender conventions
This drama has a whole lot of stuff that where sweet, colorful and fluffy, a bunch of interesting characters, varied pace and shows quite a few interesting ways to handle awkward situations. To be honest I liked the characters more than their cells but the cells where a very interesting and important touch for this show.The cells are these adorable small Inside out meets smurfs combination that do a great job showing the complexity to a persons thoughts as well as what stress can do to ones mind. However they also did one h*** of a job showing how strong gender conventions as well as the man as norm are rooted in our society without making it to obvious. Either that or this was an attempt of showing a person who is non binary without telling us, since Yumis cells where both masculine and feminine while Woongs cells where all masculine or AI. It was lovely to see that Umie was allowed to have a naughty cell, but put up against the dinosaur in Woongs head, Yumies little slightly annoying naughty cell is way easyer to control. So again Men you should probably speak up and ask them to tame the beasts in next season. This reflects well on the conventions we meet in society so I can not complain about it too much but will say that it does not have to be that way...
All in all it was an okay watch, some parts where more predictable than others and they did make me feel for them...
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