El Romance de Medianoche en Hagwon (2024)

Otra Protagonista complicada

Me recordó bastante a "Bajo la lluvia", la chica mayor y el chico joven que se enamoran, aqui la diferencia es que ellos dos parecen de la misma edad, probablemente era intención del director ya que según en el drama se llevan como 5 años.
Sigue la misma secuencia de una mujer madura y exitosa pero complicada cuando se trata de su vida personal, incluso diría que incongruente porque para ser alguien exitosa en su carrera era bastante impulsiva, además de que al final prefirió huir.
Hubo escenas decentes de besos, aunque muy escasas para una relación adulta, el protagonista era el chico alegre y con buena energía que probablemente enamoraría a cualquiera. No obstante tenemos a otro personaje incongruente, que parece tener un plan para lograr por sus medios una vida exitosa y no depender de sus padres pero en todo el drama no vi ni una pizca de crecimiento profesional, lo único que hizo fue seguir a la protagonista y ser su novio.
Por su antecesor esperaba que la trama fuera lenta lo cual no me desánimo para continuarla, aqui el problema fueron los personajes de más, escenas inecesarias que no aportaban nada y te aburrían.
Y ya como último parte, el final, que probablemente alguien diga que fue feliz porque terminaron juntos, pero para mi se sintió como un desperdicio, como si después de tanto esfuerzo tiraran todo por la borda.

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Too close to RL or not close enough?

I think this drama will have a solid core of supporters but also its fair share of detractors.

I find myself in two minds about this show as well. Fundamentally, this series is uniquely Korean. Its main subject matter will be much more relatable to locals who has children who has lived through exam hell or spent half their youth in tutoring academies themselves. However, even then, there are those who would consider this not realistic enough and is nothing more than dramatisation.

I suppose from my perspective, this show is much more "real" than the usual romcom. Even those set in a tutoring ecosystem like Crash Course in Romance feels almost cartoon-y in comparison.

This is a double-edged sword. The day-to-day aspect is a bit dull. There is a lot of jockeying of positions and details about the Korean education system, especially the last years leading up to the all mighty CSAT. The fact that our leads teaches Korean literature makes it harder for non-Korean to form a connection. Any nuisance about a particular author or a piece of writing is mostly lost in translation.

This is not helped by a slow burn romance. There is a lot of push-pull in the beginning. The age difference and their original teacher/student status adds to the complication. While the ML is all in, the FL is very hesitant to accept his advances. While some scenes are touching and heart fluttering, the majority are mundane, and work related. This improves once they are a couple and there are more emphasis on them. Nevertheless, most episodes are dialogue heavy.

The acting of our leads definitely help to steady the ship and made it watchable. The ML is handsome in a manly way and the FL has good chemistry with him. Their portrayals are on point. The rest of the ensemble cast is a mixed bag. Most of the senior cast members did well. The grey witch’s role is a challenging one and SJY is a class act. However, some of the lesser support roles are one dimensional.

Don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed this show. This is not your typical idol drama full of beautiful people. This one will not grab you from the opening scene and hook you till the end. You have to be patient, invest your time and walk a mile in their shoes to appreciate their struggles. These are mostly normal people doing a challenging job. BTW, I’m glad that there are no murders or psycho stalker. I’m getting tired of that trope.

OST is fine and catchy. I doubt I’ll rewatch this drama anytime soon.

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