See You in My 19th Life (2023)

Enjoyable But... I Wish They Gave Us More!

***Disclaimer: This is just my opinion. We don't have to agree and I'm not here to argue with anyone***

(This review is entirely based on the show, I did not read the webtoon and went into this completely blind)

I really loved this drama... I thought the story was interesting, the acting was phenomenal and the OSTs touched my heart. I wish I could rewatch it for the first time and be able to experience and feel all the things I did all over again.

The way this drama had me in a chokehold for weeks needs to be studied! I honestly don't know if this drama would've had the same effect on me had I just binge watched it in one go. From beginning to end you can see the care / effort the writers put into bringing this story to life on screen. I thought the cast was beautifully chosen as the actors captured the essence of their characters so well. The emotions through the drama were raw / real and it was almost palpable through the screen. I heard the webtoon and the drama are different and that writers changed some stuff but idk I think that's the whole point of an adaption it gives the writers creative license and room to explore what the original story didn't have / lacked. Ahn Bo Hyun and Shin Hye Sun were so amazing. I need to see Bo Hyun in more leading roles... perhaps a historical drama next.

Overall, this drama was enjoyable. My only problem with it was that it was too short (12 episodes) and the last couple episodes seemed rushed and like they were trying to tie everything together at the last minute. They could've used the middle episodes to develop the plot further or have Seo Ha find out that Ji Eum was Ju Won's reincarnation earlier as well as her memories from her 1st life and how to break the curse. I found the shaman guy (Min Ki) so annoying. Especially the fact that they let his identity remain a mystery until the last two episodes, it was very underwhelming. They made it seem like he was a lover but as it turns out he was the reason why Ji Eum was cursed to be reborn each time she died. I found the ending of her forgetting everyone while they lived on remembering her very strange / not well thought out but I'm glad everything all worked out in the end and the drama ended on a happy note. I was initially so scared that it would end badly but then again I'm a lover of angst and pain. Either way I think I would've loved this drama bc the storytelling, acting and sequence of events was so entertaining.

I definitely would rewatch this drama sometime in the future. I think the key to enjoying this drama is just to go in blindly without any preconceived notions from the webtoon or constantly comparing it to it. As a reader myself it's just a fact that no adaptation can ever really live up to what you imagined in your head.

With that said I give this drama an 8/10.

Thanks for reading & happy watching!

❤️

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I Better Watch This in All of My Future Lives

“I was reborn this time solely to meet you.” I think I was reborn this time solely to WATCH. THIS. because I have not been this enthralled by a drama in a long while.

I have been obsessed with the concept of sonder (even if its meaning has been obscured or redefined online) since its appearance on social media in late 2020. For those that don’t know, its “definition” is the following: the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own. In other words, everyone has a story (thanks dictionaryofobscuresorrows.com). This drama encapsulates sonder wonderfully.

The story follows Ban Ji Eum (aka Yoon Joo Won, and aka her other 17 personas). She is currently on her 19th life and she has dedicated it to finding one very important person from her 18th: Moon Seo Ha. Many things about this drama first stuck out to me: the incredible acting, the beautiful setting and visuals, and of course, the captivating plot. But interwinning all of these aspects is one core thing, the thing that makes this drama so special and gives me confidence that I will rate it somewhere in the 7.5-10 range even though I am only 2 episodes in: the depth of the characters.

“‘Character’s have depth?’ Okay…doesn’t every character with a backstory have depth?” is what you may be questioning me for. I suppose you can associate depth to the viewer's knowledge of a character’s history, but I see it differently. If I do not know the upbringing of a character, that’s fine; but if their actions give way for me to question what has shaped them to be who they are, that is depth to me. Why do they act distant? Why are they clingy? Why is this their love language? Depth, to me, is being able to attach attributes to a character, making sense of their past, which overall allows yourself to be immersed into the narrative and become invested in a character’s outcome. A poor example of character depth is from the drama Love in the Air. I was not attached to the plot or the couples for one second because the characters had absolutely no depth. Sky, possibly (a bit problematic). But the other 3?? Nothing. I had no clue what made these character’s act so…desiring, and that would have been an interesting conversation on today’s intimacy-obsessed young adults. And it got to a point where I just didn’t care to know anymore. But, this drama is different.

Ji Eum is resilient (“Pursue rather than wait,” being her motto). She is strong-headed, thick-skinned—the characteristics one would need to adopt to survive 18 lives. She is humorous thanks to her flamenco-dancing days. Introspective thanks to being the sole survivor of a Japanese invasion. And mature thanks to all of these life lessons combined. But she is more than this supernatural phenomena. She is caring, protective, a bit brazen, and these are some things that Seo Ha brings out in her.
But he is not only a means of characterizing Ji Eum. Seo Ha had to experience his mother passing away at a young age, only for a little while later, Ji Eum’s previous life to end in his arms. Surviving two deaths, and with no support from an aloof and abusive father, Seo Ha is deep because he is letting these events and people impact him, but lift him up rather than bury him. This is when I am reminded of a quote from the show, Shadow and Bone: “You are not who you are because of them, but in spite of them.” Depth, I tell you! And now that Ji Eum is back in his life, things are better. Just as Seo Ha brought out the child of a 100+ year old (Joo Won), Ji Eum is now bringing out the lost childhood of Seo Ha. Seo Ha’s character is not only interesting because of what happened to him, but because of how he is reacting to it and surviving in spite of it. This is when the script really shines: “You’re alive. Seo Ha, thank you for being alive” (ep 1).

And what’s better to compliment a script than fantastic acting. I am completely not joking, the acting of Park So Yi (young Ji Eum) is phenomenal. She is wonderful in her role and really takes on the “old soul in young body” dilemma. She is vibrant and full of hope when she sees Seo Ha is alive, but her tears reveal she is also struggling with the guilt of leaving him behind. Her line delivery is amazing—a mix of playful/childish and mature and wise. I cannot wait for her future main roles.

Back to the plot, in addition to the idea of reincarnation being troubling in itself thanks to trauma of past lives and loss of a will to live (why Ji Eum always said a prayer to forget her current life and for that to be her last until she met Seo Ha), this drama is so unique because Ji Eum is interacting with people from her 18th life, allowing her to see their grief of her last life’s death firsthand but from a distance: “In all the lives I’ve lived, I could only feel my own pain. But not this life. The people I’ve left behind…I’m witnessing their sadness for the first time” (ep 2).

Quick final note: I hate age gaps. I hate it with such a passion. Whether in a drama or irl, it icks me out. HOWEVER, it doesn’t bother me with this drama, and here’s why: Ji Eum is likely a couple hundred years old and she met Seo Ha when they were ~8. She died, and he continued living. They then met again when he was in high school and Ji Eum was 9. For me, although you can see it as weird because a 100+ year old fell in love with an 8-year-old (like a vampire lmao), or a high schooler fell in love with someone 9 years younger, in “reality” that 9 year old is 100+ years old, so the ages of falling in love cancel out and my brain is somehow fine. Nevertheless, I get it if this turns some viewers away.

Once again, I have overstayed my review-welcome and perhaps discussed a bit too much. Nevertheless, I will update my review when I see fit and I’ll leave you with these parting words: If I was granted to watch one last drama before this life of mine ends, right now, I would pick this one!!

Happy watching, lovelies <3

Edit: 8/12 episodes in. IT GETS EVEN BETTER. If my initial review did not convince you, please please please let this edit!
Edit 2: I finished, and wow. The acting got better, the story got sadder, the characters got more interesting, the plot, she THICKENED. Certainly recommend and I think it is one of the best kdramas that will come out of this year xx

Pinterest plug: https://www.pinterest.com/ed3nelle/drama-see-you-in-my-19th-life/

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