After watching Strong Woman Namsoon, I needed to see more of Wooseok because I loved his portrayal of his villainous character, Ryu Shi Oh. His character was so charming and his acting was the saving grace that saved the whole show for me. Naturally, I went through his filmography to see what other dramas there were but realized he was never THE male lead, but he had Lovely Runner (I think it was titled Run Away with Sunjae then). I say all that to say that this was my most ANTICIPATED drama of 2024. Needless to say, the expectations I had for this were through the roof!

Did it meet my standards? ABSOLUTELY!! It completely blew away all my expectations and surpassed them. It is the best time travel drama I have seen, top 3 K-Dramas & top 5 Asian dramas ever!! Let me break it down!

STORY:
Im Sol, an aspiring film director and a stan of her K-pop idol Ryu Sunjae, finds out he died and it was apparently via suicide. Through one of her personal memorabilia (Sunjae's watch she bought in an auction), she can travel back in time to attempt to change his fate and she has only a certain amount of times she can go back in time. As she is trying to save her favorite's life, she eventually learns she has to deal with an unlucky and tragic part of the original timeline that she did not know about before.

ACTING/CAST:
PHENOMENAL CASTING + ACTING!
First, I will talk about the leads. Wooseok as Sunjae is genius casting & I could not see anyone else playing him. I loved watching all the different sides of him: the comedic side, the emotional side & the serious side if he has to be. As for Kim Hye Yoon, we know what she brings to the table with her acting and she did not disappoint. I do feel as though her acting helps to elevate all of her co-stars & brings out the best in them & that is why these two are a match made in heaven. Wooseok is always looking to improve himself & she has the tools to do so. Their romance is one for the books & it took me through a rollercoaster ride emotionally, but it had its funny moments too that perfectly balance it out. I ADORE the way they looked at one another & the chemistry along with those kissing scenes were so top-tier. One of my favorite K-Drama couples!

Now for the supporting cast! A good supporting cast can take a drama to another level & make it feel like it is not dragging without seeing the main characters! For the most part, I appreciated them & they made for HILARIOUS moments!

First up are the MVPs of the drama: Song Geon Hee as Kim Tae Sung & our N.Flying leader Lee Seung Hyub as Baek In Hyuk. At first, I was not sure how to feel about Taesung because I am a ML type of gal & I have no room for 2MLs in my heart, but I am appreciative of how he stood by our FL side and is supportive of her relationship with our Sunjae! He is probably the best 2ML in K-Drama history because he helps the leads TREMENDOUSLY to achieve the lives they want! You have my thanks, Taesung! Now for Inhyuk, he was THE comedic relief outside of Sunjae and I love his friendship with SJ and the advice he has to continuously give him because SJ is so clueless.

Shoutout to Im Sol's grandma... you made everything possible & Sol's mom & Sunjae's dad added their charming humor. Although Im's best friend & brother had their funny moments. there were times I felt as though they were taking up screen time in almost every timeline, but thankfully they toned it down a bit in the last timeline.

MUSIC: Lovely Runner OST has been on repeat ever since all the part one songs came out. I get intense goosebumps when I start listening & remember all the scenes the song plays in. Since there are 15 songs, I will list my top 5: Sudden Shower, A Day, I Think I Did, Run Run & Star (HONORABLE MENTION: Spring Snow). But, ALL the songs are good!!!!!!!!! It puts you in such a good mood!

RE-WATCH VALUE: 10/10 I was re-watching every episode every week to prepare for the next episodes because the wait for the episodes was literal torture. I have not felt this obsessive about a K-Drama in a while. I love that I have another comfort K-drama to add to my list: DoTS, W: Two Worlds, WFKBJ, Shooting Stars & LoTBS

OVERALL: A wholesome drama that will fill you with overwhelming happiness & leave you feeling satisfied. This drama came to me in a time when I was not in the greatest of places so I do feel more emotionally attached to it than others. If you love romantic comedy with a dash of overcoming tragedy, this is for you. If you are not a romance fan, give it 2-4 episodes and if you do not like it by episode 4, then maybe it is not for & that is okay. Move on. You do not have to finish everything you start.

ANYWAYS, WATCH THIS DRAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It has a special place in my heart because of the beautiful love story between Sunjae + Sol. It was an emotional yet fun ride. I will never forget Soljae & the supporting cast because everyone played their part so perfectly!!! I loved that Wooseokie got the popularity he deserved with this drama! I am so happy for the success of this drama, especially for the leads who worked so hard over the years. I am looking forward to their next drama & the many re-watches I will be giving this drama!