"people you briefly crossed paths with are sitting as passengers"

there are both bad and good things to this kdrama as there are for most. firstly, I really liked the premise and the plot (though, as you go on with the drama it feels like there's not an actual plot, not that that's a bad thing ig). the whole escaping life and finding the beauty in it when it becomes complacent, it started off very strong.. I could relate with how she felt at the start because I'm very close with my mum, and I liked that they added that because you don't just switch up your life completely without any large event happening. at least I don't think so.

the only character that I actually liked though was dae bom, jae hoon and at times yeo reum. starting off, Yeo reum is this nice character who gets walked over and pushed around. I think she's very realistic, but there was a great lack of character development for her which was disappointing, especially since there was so much potential. with the death of the grandmother, she allows herself to be blamed again, and although she was grieving and it was difficult, it felt like there was no point to the 10 episodes in which we saw her going through life and somewhat changing her habits. with dae bom, I genuinely liked his character, genuine, sweet, and kind. he helps other people all the time without looking miserable and although ji young criticises the way he chooses to live his life, not in Seoul where he could be famous for his abilities but rather in angok living a quiet life, he is still content and just a kind character. but with his trauma, it felt like there was also no development. of course trauma does not just go away and is a long term thing, but it was just suppressed. I also hoped to see how they would address it and deal with it, but that also didn't happen. there was still more potential for the characters, but we got to ep 10 out of 12 and it's not seen. heo jae hoon is the sweetest character who deserves much better. he still has his flaws, but not huge character flaws. he chases after bom but I understand, he's seen as childish from the start and his personality is established, and he's also a teenager so it didn't feel frustrating, but it felt realistic. the rest of the characters can just be unbearable. ji young is so entitled and thinks she can control others in her life. she constantly criticises others' lives just because she is unhappy in her own. the landlord's son in downright mean and nasty to Yeo reom in the first few episodes then after a few he does a complete 180 and "oh he's just a bit immature and he doesn't know how to go about it". no, he's a grown man and even has a son. that excuse just doesn't work. the love trope with ji young also just felt unnecessary, but it wasn't too bad. but I disliked how she could mistreat people in her life but they would still be close to her. I hated how bom treated jae hoon. so apathetic to his feelings and I know she was supposed to be a positive character but how can I believe that when so is so uncaring even though she knows how much he cares about her, and he was there for her as her only friend at times. there are so many characters I could go on and on about, because they are written so badly and difficult to sympathise with.

another issue I have with this drama is the murder plot in episode 10. it's typical kdrama content but felt so unnecessary. the same thing was also done in hometown cha cha cha, with gam ri's death but it felt different. in hometown, it was a drama about the beauty of life and it was a feel-good, small town drama which was in some ways similar to this one, although I much prefer hometown. in that drama, it was not to add drama or make a suspenseful plot, but rather to show that there can be grief in life but it is still beautiful and worth living, and there can still be happy endings. and that death does not always have to be sad as she lived a long and happy life with the ones she loved and to value your loved ones, like her son wished he did. with this drama, I can't say the same as I didn't get any of those aspects with the grandmother's death. im confused as to why they decided to introduce a new plot 2 episodes before the end, and I doubt that they can adequately finish it without it feeling rushed or incomplete, my hopes honestly aren't high.

another issue, bom being STABBED?? that was insane to me. it was wild. it was brushed over after about half an episode and she was miraculously better with little recovery time, but that is a common thing in kdramas. I can't say much on how the people around her thought that she should forgive her father and Yeo reum saying that he's still nonetheless her dad. it just felt a bit cold to me, as they didn't even try and sympathise with her and they would have no idea how she's feeling. however, addiction is an issue and I'm glad they dealt with it properly, with him going to rehab and later trying to fix things with his children. but that shit was crazy to me.

I did, however, like the monologue in ep 10, although it did seem at times like it was trying to overly victimise Yeo reum (even if she was the victim) and it did erase any development over the episodes when she said "I never should've come here." it wasn't too surprising as she did say it previously but I thought that dae bom squashed her doubts about that. I understand to an extent though as it's natural in that situation to blame yourself, but it's not a good way to deal with it. I also understand her deciding to leave. I liked the analogy of the bus and her bringing in her mother again, who was obviously very important to her.

other aspects of the drama, the cinematography was good but nothing special. I liked the ost and it was probably my favourite aspect of the kdrama tbh. the music fit the situations and scenes and it fit the vibe of the episodes, cute, healing, small town scenery (excluding ep 9 & 10) my favourite actor of course was dae bom's actor. I also watched 2 other of his kdramas where his character was similar to dae beom, the wholesome green flag and he nailed it every time.

sorry for the long review but I think I covered everything here. overall this is an average drama but disappointing because of its potential. I also heard good things about the webtoon which makes it even more disappointing. despite it all though, it was fun to watch at times. I like the episode where they went on a trip and the talk that Yeo reum and dae bom had.

hopefully the last 2 episodes can somewhat redeem it!!

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