Little Tomatillo

Since when does heart-fluttering tension mean being surprised by a father figure? That is a very weird stretch.

The director literally said it's "like how women fall for men who resemble their fathers"

Falling for someone and having your heart flutter is universally used for romantic tension, not for basic family drama.

And if it's so annoying for you when "hordes of people" come here asking the same normal questions after seeing the poster, you can always just scroll past.

Besides. I don’t know if you have read the spoiler. But that is the elephant in the room.

Also, for everyone screaming about the tags, someone on this page already shared the spoiler from the original novel. I looked it up online and indeed. The ML and the daughter actually end up getting married after the souls swap back. So the marketing and the director are teasing this tension for a reason. The romance could be the endgame of the story. Or in a season 2😉

Arguing about grabbing his tie or his collar. 😀
Grabbing someone by the collar to pull them that close is even more intense. It is a classic romance promo and not just an action for being annoyed. If it was just about annoyance, the network wouldn't have put a question mark behind 'Family(?)' on the poster.

And, I am not pushing a romance narrative! I started watching this drama blind, with just the soul-swap synopsis and that poster. So of course I was surprised when it turned out the guy has the soul of her father. That is exactly why I came to the comments section in the first place, to see if I misunderstood something.

But it’s crazy how intense some of you are getting, acting like regular viewers are stupid if they don't study every single tag, interview, and production note before pressing play. Most people just watch a show for fun based on first impressions. Like the synopsis and that poster.

I really don't get why you are trying so hard to deny it anyway. The director openly admitted they are pushing for that heart-fluttering tension because he resembles her dad. It’s not the viewers' fault for thinking what the marketing and the creators themselves have created. The point is that the marketing material and the director’s own words are contradicting those tags.

And that comment about "if the leads were ugly" has nothing to do with the actors being attractive. It is about standard industry marketing. If a network designs an intimate poster with a close-up pose and puts a question mark behind 'Family(?)', they are selling that dynamic to the viewers.

I am going to watch the show anyway, and for me, it doesn't depend on if there is a romance in it or not.

I wanted to write something but that is a spoiler. I will do that under this comment.

Saying there is nothing romantic about the poster just because they aren't looking at each other lovingly is missing the point.

There are plenty of dramas with the enemies-to-lovers or office romance trope where the leads don't look sweet at all in the beginning. Instead, they stand close and look intense straight at the camera while challenging each other.

A woman grabbing a man's tie is the exact visual example for that kind of tension.

Plus, someone else here on the page just shared a quote from the director, who literally stated in an interview that the daughter's heart will 'flutter' for him because he resembles her dad. When the marketing intentionally uses these romance tropes and the director openly admits they want that heart-fluttering chemistry, it’s definitely not just in our heads. They are actively selling that tension.

Thank you for finding that quote!

You are completely right, and that explanation from the director is honestly interesting and telling that they aimed for that.

It seems there are some die-hard K-drama fans here who expect everyone to cross-check every single tag, interview, and production note before watching a show. But most regular viewers don't do that. We just look at the first impression from the promo material, read a quick synopsis about the soul-swapping, or tune in because we like the actors.

When a network literally puts a question mark behind 'Family(?)' on the poster and the director openly admits they want the daughter's heart to "flutter" because he resembles her dad, they are intentionally selling that tension for hype. So people claiming we are just nitpicking are missing the point. The creators are literally promoting it this way.

None of those shows change the fact that this poster looks like an office romance. There is a huge difference between a poster for a dark thriller like Queen Mantis, and a workplace photo where a woman is intimately pulling a man closer by his tie.

Even if networks do couple style shots for other shows, Reborn Rookie literally put a question mark behind 'Family(?)' on the poster for a reason.

And, the director said in an interview that the daughter's heart will "flutter" for him because he resembles her dad. When the marketing uses romance tropes and the director openly admits they are pushing for that tension, you can't blame viewers for expecting what they try to sell with that poster.

EDIT

I Just looked up that The Mantis poster, and compared it to Reborn Rookie. The poster for The Mantis is just dark and heavy. The guy is lying down looking depressed, and the woman is staring away with a cold and blank expression. There is no eye contact, no tension, and she definitely isn't grabbing him by his tie to pull him in. It looks what it is, a grim story about a (serial killer) mum and her son.

The Reborn Rookie layout is completely different. You have two people standing close, looking straight at the camera, with the female lead grabbing his tie and pulling him in.

That says office romance promo. To say these two posters are doing the same thing is just blind. One is selling a dark family drama, and the other is intentionally using rom-com tropes to create hype.

I haven't seen Queen Mantis, but comparing a dark thriller about a serial killer mother and her cop son to an office setting makes no sense.

Where and why does a mother pull her son in by his tie for a playful, intense office shot? The styling, the pose, and the layout of this Reborn Rookie Poster are the blueprint for a office romance promo.

Plus, the network literally put a question mark behind the word 'Family(?)' right on the poster. Combine that with the director’s own interview stating that the daughter's heart will '"flutter" for him because he resembles her dad, and it’s just a fact that they are intentionally selling that weird tension for hype. No one is nitpicking here, Kathryn is right.

EDIT

I Just looked up that The Mantis poster, and compared it to Reborn Rookie. The poster for The Mantis is just dark and heavy. The guy is lying down looking depressed, and the woman is staring away with a cold and blank expression. There is no eye contact, no tension, and she definitely isn't grabbing him by his tie to pull him in. It looks what it is, a grim story about a (serial killer) mum and her son.

The Reborn Rookie layout is completely different. You have two people standing close, looking straight at the camera, with the female lead grabbing his tie and pulling him in.

That says office romance promo. To say these two posters are doing the same thing is just blind. One is selling a dark family drama, and the other is intentionally using rom-com tropes to create hype.

If you zoom in on the poster, she is definitely gripping his tie/collar area and pulling him in. Combined with how close they stand, that is the textbook visual cliché for an office romance promo.

Also, knowing there is a body swap doesn't mean there is no romance. K-dramas use soul swapping in romantic comedies all the time (like Secret Garden or Mr. Queen).

Even the Korean text on the poster itself creates that confusion. If you translate it, it literally says "Family(?)-like teamwork." The network intentionally put a question mark right after the word "family" to tease the viewers with that visual tie pulling.

Another comment here just shared a quote from the director, who literally stated that the daughter's heart will "flutter" for him because he resembles her father. If the network puts a question mark behind "family" on the poster and the director openly says he aimed for that kind of "heart-fluttering" tension, it’s definitely not a "no-brainer" for viewers going in blind, like me.

But I’m glad we can agree that it’s very easy to misunderstand based on first impressions!

Apparently, some viewers here don't think that if we come across a poster with signals that does point to romance, we immediately have to cross check all tags here, because the poster could give the wrong impression. 😂

It seems that the network was promoting like it does to sell to overseas markets that like romance. The poster sure did that trick. https://www.reddit.com/r/dramasect/comments/1t6524g/poster_for_the_upcoming_drama_reborn_rookie/?share_id=ofa9DRf0dRpsZSJbooHs3&utm_content=1&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1

A woman pulling a man closer by his tie and them looking intense is the textbook trope for an office romance promo. It doesn't communicate a father-daughter body swap.

https://www.reddit.com/r/dramasect/comments/1t6524g/poster_for_the_upcoming_drama_reborn_rookie/?share_id=ofa9DRf0dRpsZSJbooHs3&utm_content=1&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1

That poster sure doesn't help.

The irony of you talking about tissue paper thin skin when you literally ran to edit your comment after getting a polite reply is hilarious. Talk about projection.

Even in your first and original comment before, you aggressively claimed the poster didn't imply this, only to immediately contradict yourself in the next sentence by admitting the network was promoting like it does to sell to overseas markets that like romance.

So you literally admitted yourself that the marketing was faking a romance vibe to trick viewers.

Whether it was cropped or not,see for yourself,
https://www.reddit.com/r/dramasect/comments/1t6524g/poster_for_the_upcoming_drama_reborn_rookie/?share_id=ofa9DRf0dRpsZSJbooHs3&utm_content=1&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1

, a woman pulling a man closer by his tie is the textbook trope for an office romance promo. It doesn't communicate a father daughter body swap.

You realized your logic made no sense, had no actual counter argument and now try to hide behind emojis and chuldish insults. Enjoy your internet rage.

@LucyL
I was looking for that answer because the poster genuinely gave me that impression.
https://www.reddit.com/r/dramasect/s/1jozMIIWeY

Going into the drama blind, all I knew was that it involved an older man and a younger man swapping souls. I didn't know anything else about the story.
Then I saw the poster. The female lead is holding the male lead's tie, they're standing very close together, and both of them are looking straight at the camera with intense expressions. The entire composition puts the focus on the two of them as a pair.

That's a very common office-romance or enemies-to-lovers promo. If someone showed me that poster without any plot summary, my first thought would be "office romance," not "father-daughter relationship complicated by a body swap."

So when I realized the young man has the soul of her father, I wondered if I had misunderstood something and came to this comment section.

I don't follow interviews, production news, or statements from directors, writers, or cast members before watching a K drama. I simply watch the show and form expectations based on the promotional material that is presented to viewers.

Also, saying "the poster didn't imply this, YOU perceived it that way" feels hostile. I was looking for that answer because the poster genuinely gave me that impression. I didn't know anything else about the story. Viewers can only interpret what is actually shown to them, and this poster uses a pose of the both that says enemies-to-lovers.

I was looking for this answer. Because the poster implied this. So I was like, no way because he is in another body but in reality he is her father.
Or, she is not blood related because the daughter of the second wife and another man. Still weird.

https://www.reddit.com/r/boyslove/s/46ZE2PIJlh

Please, follow them on their social media for support. And try to watch this show if you can. Thank you.

This show is getting better and better.

His dancing is awesome, but also a good actor.

I agree. We are so used to see well of Thai students, that this puts everything in perspective.

I was finally able to finish this show today. During airing I had enough after episode 7. But yes. Asami finally told him about his feelings to be in a movie where he basically will play his father. And than Shirasaki lashed out. I still don't know why and also why Asami will eventually play in that movie that os based on his fathers book.

That is the timing of the show they played in. That aired at 1.00 at night.

I forgot to mention something important. I will ad that.