Once Again (2022)

Loved this ...and hated this

I had no expectations going into this drama except "Oh great another 8 episode K-BL.". Usually these 8 episode stories feel rushed and incomplete. I did not get that feeling about this one. Would more episodes have been better? Maybe but just to get a fuller picture or it may have felt drawn out needlessly. There was enough in this series to give you the information you needed to fully understand the story without feeling rushed or confused.

The story was so bittersweet but I loved every minute of it even when I was balling my eyes out (which is also why I "hated" it). The chemistry of the two leads is charming and sweet. It couldn't end any other way than it does. If it did I think it would almost have been dissappointing.

I gave it an 8 for rewatch value only because it is one I'll have to set aside for a good while or be in the mood for tears to watch again.

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Fresh and Bold New Concept - Room For Improvement

My first impression of this new Korean series was beyond expectations. "Once again" is one of the first LGBTQIA+ series from south Korea that can keep a little bit up with the quality of higher-budget Korean dramas or at least it seems like it’s getting closer to the potential behind their skills. I mean, I wasn´t so sure in the first few minutes but the way this series is cut, the colouring of each scene, the screenwriting, the acting and the visuals - it kinda surprised me.

Story >> 8.5 >> 8.0
This kind of basement for any kind of relationship is stirring. In my eyes, this plot had so much potential to blow up and leave not only me with goosebumps. I also liked that the pathing of each episode and the way they portray the story and also how both main characters stay loyal to their personality. Just felt like it missed a bit of their actual romance but with that storyline It’s obviously hard to display their love to the fullest.

Acting/Cast >> 8.5 >> 8.0 >> 7.5
Moon Ji Young (Shin Jae Woo) caught me off-guard in the first episode, I didn´t expect his performance to be so intense so early on but in the end his performance became a little to monotonous. I have a similar impression of Lee Hyun Jun, (Kang Ji Hoon) and the best friend, I think they all presented a solid performance!

Music >> 7.5 >> 8.0
The music was fitting the series mood. Actually, I even find it quite soothing.

"Once Again" is one of the Korean LGBTQIA+ series I´d recommend watching when wanting to see this industry evolve step by step and therefore it doesn’t have to be perfect.

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Suspension of disbelief needed, and not because of the fantasy elements.

I’m usually one to say that we cannot excuse lackluster execution simply based on the short length of a show. Here though, I feel like that was truly the biggest issue, and no matter how they would try to approach the story, it would not improve much without additional minutes of runtime.

The story itself, the premise and idea behind it - great. It was truly a refreshing concept for a BL. Dealing with past trauma was the major theme in the show, but I feel like we get to that idea only by the end of the show. That’s when it hit me and the ending made a perfect scene in the context of the whole drama.

How about romance? It was decent. Lee Hyun Jun and Moon Ji Yong had a rather good and natural chemistry, but the way Shin Jae Woo was written made it hard for me to truly appreciate their scenes together. His antics and rather child-like demeanor makes more sense by the end of the show, but it still makes it hard for me to see them as more than just friends.

The thing about Shin Jae Woo’s character - he acted like his younger self. At times, I felt like his behavior as a child in the past, and now the grown up did not differ that much. Did it make his interaction with Ji Hoon cute and entertaining? Yes. Did it interfere with the romance for me? Also yes.

Then there was also the problem of realistic progression of the feelings. I kept asking myself “when, why and how did Ji Hoon fall for Jae Woo?”. They barely meet, Jae Woo was acting borderline creepy and weird around Ji Hoon. Does the guy just have a peculiar taste in men? Not to mention the strength of the feelings. My man, you barely met this guy. This is not a Shakespearean story to have people deeply in love on the first meeting.

That was one of the issues we usually have to deal with when watching short BLs. I kind of started to accept that, but it’s still worth pointing out with hopes of improvements in the future.

I have some thoughts about the ending, you can find them in a comment under spoiler below. Overall… I’m just not completely sure I understand the mechanics of it… It was also the part that made me question how far I am supposed to ignore logic and reality.

Acting wise, better than many K-BLs. Were these groundbreaking performances? No. They were believable though, and that’s all I need. Moon Ji Yong for sure did the best, especially in the last episode - one scene truly impressed me.

The OST - perfection. All songs worthy of being added to a playlist to listen outside of the show. “Time” was my favorite. The melody and the vocals were just amazing.

Overall, it was fun. I liked the characters and their interactions. I wish the show was longer so the pacing would feel more natural, and the relationship progression would not feel so abrupt.

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promising premise and beginning, disappointed with the execution

Overall: I enjoyed the unique premise but had major issues with the plot. Aired on GagaOOLala & Viki.

Content Warnings: violence/blood (in the first scene), murder, trauma, grief, attempted kidnapping, non con kiss (sleeping)

What I Liked
- the premise was unique and rarely seen in BL
- production value
- retelling of the first episode from a different perspective

Room For Improvement
- I wish that Jae Woo and Ji Woon's parents were friends and Jae Woo had just moved into the same city, because... it felt odd befriending a kid like that/having a 10 year old sleep over in a dorm room, it was a bit squicky to me and speaking of...
- Jae Woo was very childlike and stupid for a 25 year old, it made the relationship dynamic even more strange
- their total lack of communication about something suuuppppppeeeerrrr important, like come on
- nonsense things besides the initial premise, a 10 year old regularly walks around at night alone when there is violence in the area? money? ID? same outfit every day?
- why do they like each other, love at first sight? but it was initially an uncle/nephew like relationship, when/why did it change?
- the non con kiss and also this line "I'm going to do something I know you don't like" (and he kisses him, wth?)
- what in the sisyphean hell was that ending?

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Jae Woo's smille sends me over the moon

As the headline, Jae Woo won this drama with his smile. He offered his sweetest smile to Ji Hoon and us (audiences ) which is to me, one of the cutest and sweetest smiles in BL history. Moon Ji Yoong transformed into Jae Woo and successfully displays his feelings, pains and unstoppable love for Ji Hoon after holding them for 15 years.

I believe they can do better if they (the production and creative team) have all support (budget and time) for their need. As of now, this is good enough for this web series.

The ending, though, reminds me of the Korean drama series in the early 2000s; melodramatic and a need to separate the couple, which is unnecessary my opinion. I wish they could come up with a better solution so audiences feel more entertained and could sit with a smile, not a tear. Man, people already have bad things in real life, maybe a good and happy ending drama in the fiction world could bring joy to them and suffer less anxiety. A good closure is needed during this dark time, am I right?

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Yep this is indeed once again

This is the story of the boy who watched another man get killed in front of him in order to save his life and then kind of got stuck in that moment... So he traveled back in time to fix it... It is also the story of the overly nice guy who was happy to die to save a kid... This is also the story of the two men who got stuck in a box and could not for the life of them figure out how to think out of that box...

So basically this story makes very little sense... the people here seem to completely lack all ability to think about consequences or I do not know acknowledge that there is an outside world out there... But then again does time travel ever actually make sense?

So if you go in to this shutting off your brain you will find some mediocre acting, loveable characters and dead fish kisses... There are a lot of lovely interactions, some attempts at humour I think but it comes off more awkward than funny... But hey awkward can indeed be funny...

The drama is short so it is an easy binge, and the story does get points for being a ted different than most other time travel stories... Part of the ending is actually really good another part if it is just off...

More in the comments marked spoiler...

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The end will make it or break it for you

Another case of simple is best. Korean BL's are tragically short right now. But that doesn't mean they can't fully utilize every minute they have and make something great, even on a low budget.

This pulls you in from the start. It has natural acting, smooth transitions, good camerawork, and a moving story. The emotional build-up in particular is spectacular.

From the beginning, we know in our hearts how this story will end. The point of watching it unfold is to see the light that came before the dark.

The ending will either make or break the experience of watching this drama for a lot of people. For me, I found it fitting. It was real and sad, yes. But it was also hopeful. Jae Woo can't save Ji Hoon. But in another timeline another Jae Woo is going back to the same room to call Ji Hoon and will travel through time to meet him. In a way, they will always be together in this world.

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Sad Ending

This is a very good series. The male leads have a good chemistry and the series is well directed.
Jae Woo travels 15 years back in time, to try to save Ji Hoon. Ji Hoon saves 10 year old Jae Woo's life by sacrificing himself. Jae Woo is riddled with regrets. 15 years later he returns to the Dormitory that Ji Hoon had been living in, days before it is to be torn down. After being allowed to stay in Ji Hoon's old room for a little while he is transported back to the year 2007, where his 25 year old self meets Ji Hoon again. Slowly they develop feelings for each other. Unfortunately the fateful day of Ji Hoon's death arrives and having figured out that the 25 year old Jae Woo is actually the same person as the 10 year old boy he had saved weeks earlier from a kidnapper. Jin Hoon, despite Jae Woo's best efforts, decides not to change fate and again intervenes and saves 10 year old Jae Woo's life at the cost of his own!

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Surprisingly good

As someone who doesn't normally like sad endings, I, too, am shocked by my rating. But honestly, I think if it had ended any other way, if Ji Hoon had somehow survived... I don't think I would have liked it as much. Because I feel like most of us, having watched like the first two episodes, knew how it was going to end. We hoped it would be different, but we were able to predict it based on the tone of the show. And honestly, the predictability made me enjoy their sweet moments more, since I suspected what was coming. It's not the destination, it's the journey. (Though I will say, the very last bit confused me, but I'm choosing to just write it off lol)

The acting from both actors, but especially Moon Ji Yong (who played Jae Woo) was good. It wasn't amazing, but honestly they did really well, especially with the emotional scenes. It's hard to get that type of emotion out, and Ji Yong did it very well.

I loved the study dorm's manager, though I forgot her name. I really enjoy those characters who know more than they let on and help push the main characters. And the friend, Hyung Jin, was super sweet. I need a friend like him!

And lastly, I actually really enjoyed the premise. I do think it would have been better to have more episodes to flesh out the characters, give them more time to get to know each other, etc., but the team did really well with what they had. Time travel is hard to navigate through (no pun intended) and they did it pretty well.

I'm actually excited to see Korean BLs start to explore other topics and plots. Hopefully this will give us bigger and better shows!

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