Reply 1994 (2013)

Okay first off I'll admit I'm super late to this show (like 5 years too late) but when I saw it was on Netflix I thought why not! I had watched its predecessor Reply 1997 but I never realized how close in plot Reply 1994 would be to that show. Reply 1997 wasn't my favorite drama ever but it was a good watch (especially because of Seo In Guk) and I did finish it to the end. Honestly, I'm surprised I made it to the end of this show...
Reply 1994 has a cool and unique concept, as do all the Reply series. I love the vintage style of the series and enjoy seeing the years pass for each show so we get to see the characters adapt to new technology. However, the storyline felt dragged out and the 21 episodes were too long for me. The 1 1/2 hour episodes didn't help the problem... There were a lot of characters and I really enjoyed seeing everyone's story! But the love triangle, or whatever you want to call it, really turned me away from the show. I started to doubt my own thoughts and hate certain characters (not naming names but those show producers are very sneaky). The good parts about the show, though, were the family focus and certain characters that I really got attached to. I actually really liked the main girl even though she started out pretty weird haha :D I liked her quirky attitude and she was just a super unique character for this show. I loved seeing the chemistry between the boarding house parents and all the kids living there. It was truly a feel-good show that I would've enjoyed much more, had there not been such complicated love triangle situations. But that's the point of these Reply shows and it is a cool concept (kind of a mystery feel). So if you like that type of storyline, then go for it, try this show! But remember how long each episode is and stay dedicated to the show (even when it gets super annoying and stressful). It's all worth it in the end of Reply 1994!! (oh and I definitely recommend you watch 1997 first because there are funny parts in this show connected with 1997) Enjoy:)

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Love It!

This seems to be the least popular Reply series however this was my favourite lol. I think first and foremost its worth mentioning I watch this drama at least once every year. The comedy in all the Reply series's are gold so that goes without saying.

But I think in evaluating all the Reply series's this is the one that left me with the most realistic/relatable plot, and evoked many feelings out of me. The actors do a fabulous job and it feels to me like a slice of life drama that left me feeling very nostalgic. The love triangle and real and tangible issues that each character dealt with as they entered and graduated University were all things i've experienced or have seen my friends go through. I loved their friendship and I also enjoyed guessing who was going to end up being the husband ;) ... oh also I know there is mixed feelings about this, but I thought the main leads had great chemistry (that is usually one of my main requirements in any Drama that I like lol). If you watch the promotional stuff the actors did you can tell the two main leads had a really great relationship. The ML's character in the drama is intentionally a bit dense, so some of that chemistry might not translate on the screen as it does with the SML who is all in and very obvious about his feelings. But the way the ML falls for the girl and the way his feelings develop are a bit more nuanced matching his character but its very deep and true.

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I ended up binge watching this one Reply series too. On to 1988!....after doing some chores and work, that is. The only thing I wanted more of was a more complete happy ending for Chilbong. I don't feel like Chilbong had to end up with the MC since we knew who each of the MC's were gonna end up with (so he didn't have a chance), but I would have liked a more complete ending for him is all (the implication wasn't enough for me).
The only reason Reply 1994 has a lower rating than Reply 1997 for me, is because I simply preferred the story, chemistry, and characters in Reply 1997 more.

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Cozy

I have enjoyed a lot watching this drama even though some of the length episodes is really long. The last episode had 100 minutes!

First of all: the story. It is the same as in the other Reply dramas: students from various parts of South Korea join in a boarding house and the viewer also tries to figure who the female lead's husband is gonna be. Even though I think the drama was a bit dragged, the acting and the embarrassing situations made everything so entertaining! The chemistry between Sung Dong Il and Lee Il Hwa is unmatched! I was so surprised by Baro's acting. The ending made total sense.

The OST was so good! Sung Si Kyung's cover of the Seo Tai Ji's song was my favourite. I think it's the first time I see so many actors taking part in the OST!

My rewatch value isn't that big because some of the episodes were quite long but very funny! I still recommend it.

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SECOND LEAD SYNDROME!

I did not like this series personally because my ship failed but overall, the ship that did sail had a very preconceived plotline to it.
However, there was zero chemistry whatsoever (at least that's what I felt) between the FL and both the MLs involved in the triangle.
The actors were great. All the characters had well thought out storylines for them. Except, the main pairing in this drama failed to capture my interest till the end. The FL is very crass, to be honest, compared to the FL of Reply 1988. The second lead deserved better in my opinion. He was much more involved in satisfying the better interests of the FL. Whereas, the dude she ended up with actually was just there... since the beginning. That's it. (At least that's what I thought). The dude she ended up with never actually took a step to justify his feelings for the FL. Till the end, she had to be the one to approach him first or go to him, instead of him coming to her. Dude kind of even came off as a bit misogynistic in the last few episodes.
The pacing of this drama is actually quite slow compared to the other Reply series. The first few episodes did not really have a lot going on. So it felt a bit boring. The rest of the episodes, even thought they did show the plot developments of the side couples and extra characters, mostly focused on the love triangle involved, therefore making it seem a bit dragged towards the end.
Overall, if you have nothing else to watch, you can go ahead and watch this one! :)

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Loved it

Reminiscent of days gone by, my days gone by. This is definitely my era and youth. Love love loved it.
Storyline was terrific and I loved how the producers re-created the bygone era’s well, even down to the books and tapes.
Acting and Casting couldn’t have been better selected. I love Go Ah-Ra and her cohorts they were all terrific and did extremely well in their portrayal of the characters they played.
Music is reminiscent of each decade as they went through - well thought out.
Rewatch value - I may never rewatch it again but I definitely could and would if someone wants to sit with me.
OVerall - this brought back the memories of my very own 1990’s and 2000’s. The baggy pants of MC Hammer (western world) and the music - I so loved reliving it. This may have had the Korean details but still took me back to my time at that point. Thank you so much to the Director and Producers for bringing this to life. I do have to add that I love how you brought in the cast from 1997 too. That was just super cute. ?

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I LOVED IT this was incredibly hilarious I loved the main couple but I don’t think I’d would’ve kept watching if it wasn’t for Binggrae I felt like his character was most significant bc of the fact That he was a portrated as an anxious mysterious character bc he was struggling with his sexuality the whole show and all his friends are “ straight “ and he was still curious him being timid made it really hard for him but he tried his best hinting every now and then hinting to the viewers but It seemed like the director really wanted us to feel everything binggrae was feeling and I did just that I felt every moment of it ... my only complaint is that some scenes felt dragged on .

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I have very mixed feelings after finishing this. I definitely didn't enjoy this as much as Reply 1997—it wasn't until the cameos did I realize how much I missed Shi-Won and Yoon-Jae. Yet, the series still had the similar Reply vibe, which made me enjoy watching it still.

I didn't really have a preference for the love triangle, mainly because the writers seem to very visibly alternate which character (Trash or Chil-Bong) had more screentime. I found myself rooting for whoever was on screen. Except, when they were both on screen and were insulting each other, I found myself not really a fan of either one of them. The way the love triangle went, though, it definitely went on for longer than it had to because it felt like Na-Jung was indifferent to Chil-Bong from the start and never wavered. There were some scenes where I really liked Na-Jung's chemistry with Trash, but other times they acted just like brother and sister and I thought Chil-Bong would've been better as the husband. Trash also really hurt himself when there was this ten-episode build-up around why he wouldn't accept Na-Jung's feelings and all we got was the most cliche "we're like family" explanation. Just a note though that I did get spoiled for the ending and I already knew who was going to be the husband.

Now here is one HUGE thing that bothered me: the fact that they used Yoon-Jin's drunk secret-spilling habit to advance the plot not once, not twice, but THREE times. If it was just once, I would've been okay with it. The second time, it got repetitive. And the third time was really just annoying, especially since nobody bothered to stop her (even knowing her habit) and just let her go on and on.

The series definitely dragged on for longer than it had to by including scenes and dialogue that would be in everyday conversation, and some episodes that were one and a half hours long killed me. But the vibe I still enjoyed because it felt very slice-of-life. At the same time, however, the scenes were longer but I felt like they jumped around so much and there were some scenes I wanted that were never shown. What was Na-Jung's initial reaction to Chil-Bong's first confession?

I'm honestly a little disappointed with how Hai-Tai and Bingguere's stories went. I LOVED Hai-Tai's banter with Yoo-Jin and his friendship with Na-Jung and it lowkey hurt me that he didn't end up with any girls in the main squad. For Binggeure, even though I get that sexual confusion is a thing, after Joon-Hee's intense presence in Reply 1997 and all the similar hinting for Binggeure being gay/bi as well, then suddenly giving him a female love interest in one episode and having them end up married...it just felt a lot like queer-baiting to me.

SCP and Yoon-Jin's relationship also had to take a lot of time to grow on me, because I was shipping her with Hai-Tai, and SCP just looked like an old man. I'm glad that that was a running joke though, which made it better.

I was honestly not a fan of Na-Jung at the beginning, because I was really annoyed by her fangirling. And I don't inherently have something against a main lead in an unrequited love, but the fact that she made it so damn obvious and overreacted with so much angst...that pissed me off.

Also, since the characters in Reply 1997 were friends before the drama started whereas the characters in 1994 had to meet each other, the friendship aspect felt very lacking at the start.

I definitely think this one incorporated more nostalgia and references, and my favorite was that of the Sampoong department store collapse, because it was the first time you really saw the huge impact of an event on the characters.

There are a lot of plotholes in this, it seems. What was the purpose of Na-Jung's younger brother? He was never at the dinner table or in the living room with the others except for when it was beneficial for the plot, and it just makes me wonder if the parents just left him in the room by himself. And where did Na-Jung's basketball fangirling go? It went from being the central point of her personality and the plot to basically being non-existent, except for a little mention here and there.

Note: Although this show was truly laugh-out-loud funny at times, I felt like the goat noise was also overrused.

7/10 is still quite a high rating in my eyes, but the high rating is for the Reply nostalgia and the brilliant metaphors and voiceovers and life lessons. If I used my logic, I'd give this show a much lower rating, but because it managed to tug on my heartstrings, 7/10 it is.

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Reply 1994 is a mix of Reply 1997 and Reply 1988, and somehow it makes it work. The story centres around a girl, whose parents rent rooms for college students at Seoul. The viewers are asked to guess with whom the girl is going to end up with. In addition, we have the stories of the other college students and events that occur in the 1990's. For me, Reply 1994 was better than Reply 1988, though the main reason why I didn't like Reply 1988 was the length and in Reply 1994 the episodes got longer and longer but never reached the two hours (fortunately). I especially liked the episodes where the characters from Reply 1997 appeared and it was quite funny to watch. Moreover, Reply 1994 offers the family drama that Reply 1988 also has, but also the humour and the funny situations that Reply 1997 had. So, 5,5 out of 10, because it's a good drama, only way too long (it could have ended in 18th episode).

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