Light on Me (2021)

The characters make this drama

This is a pretty basic HS love triangle drama, but the production and characters are just so well done, and there are so many little details that build stories around each one. Taekyung is possibly neurodivergent but gentle and compassionate. Daon is truly kind but hurts people when he doesn't advocate for himself. Shinwoo is cranky but devoted to his friends. Namgoong solves problems in the group using his sense of humor. Sohee doesn't know how to get what she wants.

In the end they all gain from each other. It's just an excellent character driven story, performed by a cast who truly get the characters. Bonus, they are all adorable.

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Really hoping for 2nd Seasonnn!~~

Light on Me is indeed one of my favorite! This drama is not like the other dramas, it is light and simply showing hints and details of being a BL drama, and I really like it. Am I the only one who always wanting more on every episode? It feels like 27-30 minutes is not enough for me! I want moreee~~

I'm just little disappointed for the progress between Taegyung and Shinwoo. It's just like, they are the main characters! I anticipated more light romantic scenes between the two, like some surprises that could make me scream in such excitement! I think that is what this drama is lacking. Some scenes don't feel like very special and heart-warming. But overall, the flow of the story really caught my heart. I love the way the actors do their roles. The relationship between Da-on and Taegyung is also in another level. I also love the chemistry of this two for the first series of episodes.

And I am a little sad because it's now finally ended. I'm hoping for another season!!! Taegyung × Shinwoo 사랑해!

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A classic.

I've not been watching dramas for long, but I've been reading manga and manwhas since I was 13 year-old so I am kind of accustomed to these kind of tropes: a really cute unrequited love ends with the characters falling apart and then the one that confessed realizes that somebody else was waiting for them all along. It's pretty basic, this cannot be denied, but this story was so well executed that the series CANNOT get less than a 10 from me. (TENS TENS TENS ACROSS THE BOARD!)

The acting was superb. Yooseok and Saeon took their roles so seriously that when I saw the BTS and his stories on ig I was shook when I saw them acting normal. Yoo's bright and joyful, meanwhile Shinwoo is quiet and reserved but extremely caring. Seo's cute and smiley, while Taekyung is soft-spoken but direct. I loved the way they conveyed emotions the best, especially in the last episode when: 1) Shinwoo grabs Taekyung and asks him to leave; I could see Shinwoo's desperate hope to be loved back expressed by that bit of sadness in his almost watery eyes, I noticed his mouth slightly open as if he wanted to say something more but could not bear to do so. Taekyung stare was so sweet and comprehensive that it made me feel like he was reciprocating MY feelings. I got so emotional that I couldn't get my eyes off the screen; 2) the kiss; it was so sweet and tense! Both the fact that it was Taekyung and Shinwoo's first kiss and first relationship was expressed perfectly in that little bit of awkwardness that Yooseok and Saeon have shown in every paralinguistic and extralinguistic feature of the scene. The way they were looking at each other, the sweetness and softness of the hands movements, the fact that they were both a little bit scared of touching each other, but still wanted to feel their warmth... I felt like I was invading their privacy! It was so innocent and cute that I started crying without realizing it.

The others were amazing too. Chayi... what can I say? He was so good that my heart kept fluttering whenever he was on. He's as handsome as one can be and he portrayed a Daon that I thinks I'll have a crush on forever. I loved his character development the most (as someone who has the same exact problem!) and the fact that even in the more tense scenes he was still calm and collected. At the beginning, when Daon was still too kid to everyone, you could easily read the frustration in his eyes.
Chanyi, if you read this, give me a call and I'll cook something special for you! I'm Italian, but I can cook a pretty decent kimchi fried rice ;)

Woojin and Seohyun were the cutest, seriously! Seohyun is so pretty that she could be wearing a garbage bag and still look good in it. Woojin has the warmest smile and eyes, I just can't help smiling along whenever he's on screen. As for their performances, I think they were the most relaxed and natural on screen (maybe because their personality is similar to their characters'? I don't know). I really enjoyed their spontaneity. I even loved the fact that they didn't end up together!At the beginning I got the feeling that Namgoong had a crush on Sohee. That could easily be the case, but I liked the decision of not getting them together. It proves that they really love each other, but that a boy and a girl CAN be JUST friends. Most of the time when a guy is kind to a girl there's this expectation that they'll end up together, but that is a bit... stupid. Can't two people just be nice to each other because they care about the other person's feeling?

As for the teacher, mister Seo Haet Bit... the title of sunshine reflects his personality perfectly. He's the most soft-spoken and naive of them all and he sure is kind-hearted and cares about his students a lot. Kihyun was really suited for this role because his face is always kind and reassuring. He was kind of the "deus ex machina" character that helped everything setting in motion.

Overall, I loved how simple and clean this series was and I will definitely watch it again and recommend it to everyone I know. I found myself waiting and waiting for the next episode and now that it has ended I'm torn between wanting a second season and wanting it to end like this. A little more kissy-kissy time between Taekyung and Shinwoo would make me reaaaallly happy, as it would knowing who the he11 Lee Taesung is (!!!!!!!!), but sequels are not always the best... We'll see.

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Perfection

Writing about and portraying a love triangle without disappointing the viewer is such a hard thing to do, almost impossible really, but the writers and cast of Light on me did such a great job.
I instantly fell in love with Tae-Kyung and Shin Woo’s chemistry. The enemies to lovers initial vibes made my heart flutter right away & I was a little scared that Tae-Kyung wouldn’t realize how infatuated Shin Woo was with him since the start.
Did you guys notice how Tae-Kyung said Shin Woo was his first love on the final voice over? I think he realized that he did not love Da On in a romantic way, he loved him as a friend and because Tae-Kyung didn’t have any before him, the lines got blurred.
Light on me is such an innocent and adorable story from the start to the end. The last episode is perfect! Can’t wait to watch it again.

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Cute and awkward

This is a really sweet drama about making friends and finding oneself while making a whole lot of mistakes with a pretty interesting love triangle keeping us wondering yet without to much anxiety (for me).

This drama is really sweet, not only plot wise but the whole set is color coded till it almost becomes absurdly obvious but sweet from the books in the library to the walls and umbrellas and even flowers all match in some way or another and I loved it!

The drama deals with internalised homophobia, admitting ones own feelings, jealousy, leaving your comfort zone as well as opens up the discussion about true kindness and bravery. All done with humour and cuteness, did I mention the drama is really sweet.

The main lead is just the most awkward sweety that keeps on handing out sweet sweet moments. The gun outside the triangle is the king of support as well as well fitted one liners, and the other two leads are each others complete opposites giving us both out beloved icicle and cup of hot chocolate moments mixing several beloved tropes in to this sweet, sweet drama.... okay I am going to stop writing sweet but if you are looking for something sweet, this is definitely worth watching.

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Actual communication & character growth!

Content Warnings: bullying, maybe that super bizarre meet cute, 
(minor spoilers)

I watched the first 5 episodes but since I'm not a fan of love triangles (rectangles? pentagons?) or slow burn romances, I decided to wait until it was finished and binge the rest if reviews were good. And I'm so glad that I watched the rest (albeit on 1.5 speed).

What I Liked
- hold onto your hats because...characters actually communicate with each other, whaaaaa???? Not perfectly, but there is a bunch of effort and it's so nice to see characters looking for clarification and communication. 
- characters actually apologize for mistakes they made and try to learn/grow from them
- attention to detail with the production/production value. I can tell thought was put into things (such as a character is mentioned to have red ears and his ears are actually red).
- Shi Woon is the best boy, I liked many characters but Shi Woon is a goofball who isn't stupid, more of this please
- the parallel with the cat
- finally a supportive and kind teacher who isn't flirting or hooking up with a student
- some great lines including "steal what, Tae Kyung is not mine just like Da On isn't yours"

Room For Improvement
- that absolutely awful meet cute with the you know what and referring to his butt, no way. The writers must have thought this was funny but it was totally not funny and awful to watch. 
- I know it's based on a game but I wish they would have made the names more unique from each other, because I kept getting confused about which person was being talked about
- It can be slooooooowwww, like those 2 minute lingering glances after a catch and fall, talking slowly, walking slowly
- once again we have the female character who make a terrible decision but at least this one has character growth
- the 2 kisses, especially the 2nd. I give them 1 shocked kiss but when 1 person doesn't move their lips/pucker and the other is making an effort, it looks so awkward. I blame the director/lack of workshopping. Looking at the BTS, neither actor had done an on screen kiss. The actors should have been given some direction/information in a smaller group setting before going to film it.
- the last episode left many things unanswered and felt rushed but perhaps there will be a season 2

Speaking of, I'm looking forward to a season 2 or a spinoff (but don't make me get rid of one of the things on my What I Liked list).

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WHOLESOME

This show was sooo good. Honestly I wasn’t expecting much. I thought it would be some normal teenage love triangle with a lot of fights and dramas among the leads but it was much more than that. Okay so why I called it wholesome? Cause of their friendship. This group of friends is literally everything you need in your life.
Reminded me of my College days and how after graduating all of us started having totally different lives in different places yet we all are so in love with each other. Maybe we don't meet everyday but at least we know that we have each other and we could do anything for each other. The last episode had me crying and it wasn't even sad. But damn I miss hanging out with my friends.
The actors were well chosen. No overacting. Everything was perfect. I did had some second hand embarrassment at some points but that's totally on my anxiety. Other than that it was not cringe at all. All the actors had real good chemistry.
Also I was team Shin-Woo so yaayy I won. But honestly I would not hav been sad even if it was Da-On. Also can I say how mature the drama was? Da-On and Shin-Woo liked the same person and not once they fought over it. Infact they were thoughtful enough to let the other try. Their friendship is so underrated please.

Da-On really was out there being the politest best boy and I loved his character development. He never complained about his situation but eyes said it all. Precious baby. Protect him at every cost. The actor did a great job must admit.

Shin-Woo baby 😭 he literally has the cutest smile. And his red ears omg. Also he's the prettiest shy baby. I loved him sm.
Tae-Kyung really doesn’t need much words. He's not the typical introvert character. Rather he's honest with his his emotions and also he's innocent. He's dimple is so pretty. Also can we take a moment and talk about HOW TAE-KYUNG SPEAKS IN 0.5 SPEED? lol That was so fun to watch. He said every word separately instead of speaking in sentences. Our honest baby boy 😂
Now lets talk about NAMGOONG. Holy fuck what was this character. He's my comfort character in the show. Yes. We all need a Namgoong in our lives. He's such a sweetheart 🥺
My only problem with this is they never gave proper ending to Da-On and Namgoong. We deserved something for them too.
The background music were great too. I loved every track they played.
I loved the series soooo much and I want to watch more of them. I didn’t want it to end so soon.
I'm definitely gonna watch it again.
If you read this. Please watch the show. This is your sign

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Satisfying BL with Loads of Cute

Even though they have been quite short, I have really been enjoying all of the BL dramas coming out of SK lately. The production on most of these has been pretty great and I have appreciated the production companies that have decided to dip their toes into this genre. I was super excited when Light on Me was announced as a full length drama. From the first episode I was drawn in by the adorable characters and their sometimes silly antics. I read an article, perhaps Teen Vogue, that said something about this BL being a traditional kdrama, but in the form of a BL and I couldn't agree more. From the aesthetics to the OST (thanks to A.C.E. for providing such a great theme song for this drama!), I felt like I was watching a typical Korean high school romance drama just with boys. It was sweet, a bit angsty and a little bit silly, while quietly addressing the stigma around homosexuality that still exists in SK. I loved the characters: Namgung being just the best, most supportive friend, Mr Seo - the teacher we all wish we had, Shin Woo with his ability to love quietly and sacrificially, Da On's complexity and Tae Gyeong's cute dorkiness and straight forwardness. This drama had such a satifying ending and I am only disappointed in that it is already over.

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ROLLERCOASTER OF EMOTIONS

This drama was honestly the perfect drama I could ask for. The cast played their respective character's amazingly and it's definitely worth a try. Why is this a roller coaster of emotions you ask? Some moments make you ship Taegkyung and Da-on and other moments make you ship Taegkyung and Shinwoo. The perfect love triangle. This show has so many plot twists, especially in the last episode, but all these plot twists are for the good ending, and were executed well. There are so moments which make you super curious and some make you melt in to the floor. I'm sure if y'all watched color rush, you'd like this. Though this show has a more realistic approach. And the character development of the villian, So-hee, is also very good.
Please give it a try!

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A new Level for Korean BLs

The first full-length BL-Drama from Korea brings a fresh breeze in this genre, even with old tropes like the love triangle and a high school setting. The main reason for this novelty is the multiple characters, which are all taken seriously by the creators. All of them have their flaws, but also their good sides, and are not a bunch full of cliches.

But also the story is a welcoming change to the typical BL, cause you never know what happens next and the tension is always high.
Light on me hasn’t the emotional impact like other BLs, but instead, all the feelings are shown in a calm, unobtrusive way. It also didn’t avoid uncomfortable themes like bullying or homophobia, which I really appreciate.

But the story wouldn’t be that good if the cast weren’t that great. Especially Kang yoo who plays Shin-Woo is an outstanding talent, who can literally speak with his eyes and gave me goosebumps just with expressions.

So Light on me is a highlight of the BL-Year 2021 and paves maybe the way for other outstanding BLs from Korea

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cute CUTE CUTE CUTEEE

We've come a long way from Korean BLs that were 11 minutes long.

That being said, I cannot be more than happier with this mini-series. Although only an average of 20 minutes long, each episode is a joy to watch. Though Korea isn't as forthcoming with BLs when compared to countries like Thailand and Taiwan, they are sure as hell making an effort, and we all know SK dishes out superior production and plots.

I know this drama isn't over yet but I cannot stress how cute and wholesome I find this drama
The plot isn't overreaching and is quite simple which works quite well. You can clearly see the effort the directors and actors are putting into the series and they are nailing it.

*And I'm calling it yall I'm team shinwoo all the way. ISTG if he doesn't end up with taekyung I won't throw hands lmao. I* just want him to be happy.*

That being said I will come back to edit this review. Right now I can't say much without spoiling a lot of plot points. All I can say right now is if you're looking for a good kdrama with the cutest most adorable characters that have satisfying character development and a satisfying yet lighthearted plot then this drama is right up your alley.

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This Korean BL drama maybe became too sugary sweet at the very end but I still liked it very much because it was funny, the characters were interesting and the story well-developed - and overall? It simply put a big smile on my face. I wanted to pinch everyone's cheeks, they were so cute!

The funny thing? My favorite character in this drama was actually the not-gay one: Namgoong. He was the friend everyone wishes to have: incredibly funny, very loyal and always having his friends' back. And his regular fisticuffs with Lee Sohee, the sole female character, were just awesome!

I'm honestly loving this Kdrama trend of well written BL series with good production values and actually talented actors. Korea is truly starting to give Thailand a run for its money when it comes to BL stuff. If Thailand wants to keep ahead, it needs to up the ante - and not just by making their dramas explicit but actually writing them well!

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