When Life Gives You Tangerines

❤️

This drama is 1 year old! From the day it was released, I was told so many times to watch this. I watch K drama to escape reality and watch some unrealistic romcom/comedy/thrilling kdrama. I never thought of watching an life changing kdrama till this.
After watching this I understood so many points of life actually. It may not be same for every people. This made me realise what is love genuinely, how it feels to love someone and to be loved by someone unconditionally.
This drama surely holds a special place in my heart. I never knew I can cry like this while watching out Kdrama!! if Gwan-sik didn't die at last I think I would have given it 10/10. I don't know it just makes me really sad that when it was his time to enjoy the life he was struggling about right that moment he left this world. I swear this was the scene i cried my heart out.
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Final say...life can be really tough but you have to live your own life, find the sunshine and be happy🌷

note: Also the editing should have been more better😭. The way it shifted to one time to another, that was quite confusing. I get it why ppl are mad about the editing and story telling stylee:3

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Mesmerizing Blend of Love, Dreams, and Family Struggles!

This drama is a touching story about a young couple facing love, hardship, and family struggles at a time when girls were not given many opportunities. Set in the remote beauty of Jeju Island, it beautifully captures the innocence and pain of growing up.

The story is well-written, with excellent pacing that keeps you engaged. The cast does a fantastic job bringing the emotions to life, making you feel every moment of joy and sadness. This drama is both heartwarming and heartbreaking, leaving a lasting impression on its viewers.

Read More: https://www.dramadaze.com/when-life-gives-you-tangerines-review/

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Annoying!

This review is against the majority of reviews - but here is how I found the drama.
I attempted twice to watch the drama given its extremely high ratings. But get could'nt get beyond ep 1 when I first started watching it and beyond ep 3 in my 2nd attempt.
The characters are extremely annoying and harsh in their speech esp. the female lead. She completely disregards everyone around her. The male lead is another annoying character who will keep tailing the female lead even though she keeps shouting at him all the time ever since they were kids. Like does this guy has even a pinch of self-respect or what! Their actions are completely childish and it is not entertaining also!

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the Materpiece of all historical Romance dramas....!

**Acting and story are on an another Level!!
**Timeline From child to goldenhood !!
**japanese time included with old korean language!!

**When Life Gives You Tangerines is a heartwarming, feel-good story that blends humor, resilience, and personal growth. With vibrant characters and an uplifting plot, it's a refreshing read full of optimism.**

**Don't think about anything just watch it it includes everything that needed in a rom-com Drama.**

**i loved the episodes i watched specially iu and Bogum bond,this is more than what i expected
and gone Above my imagination.........

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Perfection!

So much anticipation for this, and been waiting like forever (since knowing of it from 2023) and finally!
Of course it's IU and Park Bogum so no doubt that it'll be a hit! The caliber they both have in the industry! Theyre so excellent in delivering the right emotions! All casts actually are so great! The little/younger versions Aesoon and Gwansik were so amazing! With the excellent storyline, they've made a 101% masterpiece! Perfection, no question!

The plot has made an overall impression; it is excellent in telling the story of life, love, dreams, and all of the problems that can be conquered with love, trust, and belief. We fail, but then we learn to be strong and endure. The endless love and support that the main characters have with each other are the most iconic, so lovely and heartwarming .

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When Life Gives You Tangerines – And Gives You a Lump in Your Throat Too

I went into this drama thinking it would be light. Maybe poetic, maybe bittersweet. I didn’t expect it to leave me staring at the wall after every episode, feeling everything and nothing at once.

It’s not just a love story. It’s a life story.
About choices. About timing. About how much one person can quietly carry just to keep another safe, even if it means giving up their own dreams.

IU as Ae-sun? I still can’t get over how effortlessly she embodied this wild, bright girl who just wanted to be seen beyond her circumstances. And Park Bo-gum as Gwan-sik… my god. That man doesn’t need dialogues. His eyes alone told entire chapters. His loyalty, his patience, the way he stayed when she asked him to leave... crushed me in the softest way possible.

The storytelling is slow. But the kind that makes you lean in. Like flipping through an old diary, reading between the lines, watching seasons change. There’s grief, but not the dramatic kind. It's the quiet kind. The kind that lives in your chest and catches you off guard when you're folding laundry or cutting fruit.

And Jeju. Oh, Jeju. The island isn’t just a backdrop—it breathes with the story. The sea, the tangerine orchards, the women divers… every piece of it felt alive. Like it remembered everything the characters tried to forget.

If you're looking for a light K-drama with fluff and giggles—this isn't it.

But if you're in a place where you're okay feeling deeply—where you want to be reminded that love isn’t always loud, that sacrifice doesn’t always come with applause, and that some people carry love across decades like it’s a quiet promise—this one’s for you.

🧡
I didn’t cry at this show. I cried with it.
9.5/10 – because my heart still aches a little in the best way.

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a remarkable, sensational work of art

i don’t have the right words to describe how much of a masterpiece this drama is. the acting is beyond phenomenal. IU killed her roles as both the mother and the daughter. it really felt like two different people. the storytelling is so unique. the cinematography feels like a hug to the heart. there are so many life lessons to be had. so many words of upliftment, hope, and healing. the drama encourages one to look for the beauty to be found in our everyday lives. i’m now looking at my own life and life itself through a different lens. feminism is a big theme here and it’s especially touching considering how patriarchal the society the main couple grew up in was. i had seen clips of this drama before watching it and knew it was going to be beautiful, but i got so much more than i expected.

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Multi-dimensional story and themes that tugs your interest one way or another.

Acting is top-notch. If you say read between the lines, the characters conveyed them without the need to suffocate the screen and the viewers.

Music used suits every scenes and episodes, and were utilized to further tell the stories, convey emotions, depicts the timeline, and at same time, promoting Korea's culture and traditions.

With all the details of this drama and intricacies, it is safe to say that the drama is such a high rewatch value. It can entertain people from all walks of life, without sacrificing the capacity to educate and leave something to each viewer.


4 episodes in and this drama already narrated and satisfying stories of -
life's uncertainties,
a person's hopes and dreams,
a child's longing
a mother's unconditional love,
friendships and camaraderies,
importance of teachers in development of youth,
injustice,
unfair distribution of wealth,
corruption,
poverty and its consequences in life,
harmful traditions and beliefs,
discrimination of the poor and women in society,
society's inflexible hierarchy and structure,
abuse of power,
power of love to endure, hope, and create happiness,
unconditional love between husband and wife,
generational trauma and pain,
sacrifices with its joy, pain, positive and negative consequences,
vicious cycle of toxic relationship, abuse, and manipulation,
undue influence,
struggles of women in society,
unfair trade,
repetitive cycle of life,
failures and sucesses that come in small things, losses and gains
value of money in life vs. love in living
a father's burden and unconditional sacrifices.
superficial happiness creating an empty life.

Pure love - which may be cliche and almost unrealistic in so many ways, seeing the realities of life.. but to convey it effectively, and almost as if you can touch it, gives hope to humanity.

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You'll need a lot of tissues for this one

It's a tale of love and resilience, of the finer nuances in a mother-daughter relationship, of generational trauma, of the cycle of poverty and of a woman borne into a patriarchal society- all set on the picturesque island of Jeju, during the 1950s and 60s. The entire cast did a phenomenal job and every character's presence felt memorable.

It might be partly because of my own personal experiences and maybe even my mental state, but I felt my emotions build up right from the start of the first episode, when I wasn't even 5 minutes into it. Some elements of the drama made me reflect on my own life and different instances I had experienced or observed- probably why the story hit me that hard, and sometimes even felt a bit familiar.

The first 4 episodes- volume 1- have been a beautiful experience. It took me a while to articulate my words into a brief review because of everything it made me feel. I hope more people give this compelling masterpiece a chance.

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