Something in the Rain (2018)

Real, maybe too much so

TL/DR: Watch it for realism and a beautiful brew of romance with terrific acting as well as characters who could be real people around you. Don't watch it if looking for pace, twists, inspiration and a solid ending. This drama is clearly not for everyone, and not because of the noona aspect of the romance. Having the context of Asian family culture is essential.

Long version:
This is a slow-paced, beautiful drama that is possibly the most realistic one you will ever watch. The episodes are long and contain long sequences of characters doing regular things. This may irk many but by showing everything happening, the series makes everything that occurs very realistic. We see the entire process of love; increasing attraction, the reluctance in making a move and the passionate bonding between the leads. The forbidden nature of their love is ever present in the air but immaturely swept under the carpet in manner that would be more befitting of teenagers than leads in their 30s and latter 20s. Yet, it is utterly believable. The casting of the drama is so perfect: Son Ye Jin looks her real age and so the noona romance is very strongly obvious since the beginning and I was really wondering why he would fall for her, especially in episode 1. Once they become a couple, Jina's lovingly cute nature is brought forth. The chemistry that the couple have is fantastic, their hugs, their teasing, their kisses were spontaneous and not melodramatically planned. The sismance between Jina and her friend, Kyungsun was the best I have ever watched. Their chemistry was romance-grade but more resilient.
Realism: The characters could very well be flesh and blood characters, even the mother and the way events unfold are also so real. Real life has a catch; it usually is not inspiring. Jina starts standing up for herself and uncharacteristically becomes the spearhead of a campaign against sexual harassment in the office. How it occurs and what she does is the way a real person who is not an 'activist-kind' would act. The final result of the action is also what might have generally occurred. Joon Hee's deadbeat father feels guilt but doesn't show it and though attempting to help, contributes less than nothing, exactly as would be expected from someone of that nature. Jina's mother never understands her daughter and does not realize how selfish she really is, which makes us want to strangle her, but a person like her would really not change. Jina's father alternates between playing the strong one who supports his daughter, quite comically at times, and the passive one who just goes along with his wife. The realism of these and even the office workers really was touching.
Nevertheless, the realism is also the problem. The story is not inspiring in any way. Nothing ends in a satisfactory way. It is not as if characters become stupid and implode; they just act like it would happen in real life and real life is seldom satisfactory when resolving difficult situations. When the odds are stacked against a lead, they might be expected to win in a drama but the odds would win in real life. So, what transpires is that the fightback against circumstances is passionate but not fully committed. Jina struggles a lot but she makes up excuses to give in and compulsively lie to cover up, even to herself. It is just the way she is. A non-hero does not become truly heroic all of a sudden. Joon Hee was truly hard done by how things turned out and Jina's cowardice felt like a betrayal but isn't it true that most romances are fleeting and all the passion and promises are conveniently forgotten after a while? If we are looking for loyalty to true love, we would be disappointed with the characters but given how few believe in true love, a real Jina coming from that type of family would have acted exactly like that. One cannot suddenly abandon careers (and visa is not a non-issue).
The middle section of the drama was a deadlock that ended in disaster. The ending felt too rushed and was disappointing in the context of the rest of the drama even though it could be termed happy. There was no finish: we felt like we would see another loop. Maybe that was the intention but it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth as there was no breakthrough and no change of heart either. Pointless, as even long journeys in real life can be.
OST: There is no background score which furthers the feel of real life and the OST has some beautiful songs which unusually are all in English ( the 90s kind) but the same songs were overused and more original tracks would have been nice. The songs work better if the series is not marathoned as they do complement the romance. The romance is worth a rewatch.

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This is an under-rated drama that deserves much higher credit. Story is simple & common but actually unconventional; thoughtfully written with depth & lots of hidden messages while romance is mature but so sweet. If you don't know anything about Korean culture or the passive characteristics of Asian, this drama will seem silly & annoying, and will never understand the reasons behind choices & actions made. I'm most appreciative for the charming-intelligent heroine who's above Cinderella wannabes & drama queens with inferiority complex. FINALLY, a heroine that deserves to be loved and respected. Chemistry between the characters were amazing, especially the main, while supporting casts had scene-stealing presence. Hope to see more of clever/mature writing like this one; looking forward screenwriter Kim Eun future work.

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Something in the Rain is like the longest indie romance film I've ever watched. At first I loved it, it felt fresh - a little rough round the edges but it was okay. Then by episode 11 I couldn't watch a whole episode in a one sitting because it bored me too much. Especially with the soundtrack seemingly consisting of 3 songs for the most part... Very everyday scenes were dragged out too long, which although makes it more real and organic, there is only so much I can take. The acting itself was good and I can't fault them in particular. I feel like the story was made too dramatic (especially with inappropriate music for the scene) but that may have been due to the difference between my culture and Korean culture. Overall it was relaxing enough to watch before bed but would have been better as an hour and a half movie in my opinion.

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Producer Ahn Pan Seok is considered one of Korea's finest PDs for three main reasons: his shows are beautiful works of art defined as much by what he doesn't choose to show as much as by what he does; his use of music is poignant, artful and powerful; and he's a strong feminist, creating female victims of a sexist and misogynistic culture and then freeing them in ways that can be brutal but are no less cathartic.

So it seems strange to write a review about his latest work and say that, while it no less beautiful or artful or well-framed, it's use of music is ear-screechingly bad and its portrayal of women's lives depressing. In fact, this is the most depressing Korean drama I've seen since Misty told us a woman can only have success if she destroys men - and she won't be happy anyway when she does it.

Which is not to say that there is anything wrong with the writing, acting or cinematography of this show. It is, in fact, a warm and often-visually beautiful representation of the ordinary life of a very ordinary noona and her very ordinary romance with her friend's dongsaeng. But it is in the show's realism that it fails.

Jin-ah (Son Ye-jin) is the most everywoman portrayed on TV: told her job is to compromise, to keep the peace, to slide through without conflict. Basically raised to be this way and then simultaneously judged for being this way. Forced to be a participant, essentially, in her own mistreatment. In the end, Jin-ah will only be happy, and the people around her will only be happy, if she stops trying to make everyone happy. She's such an everywoman that I don't know why the writers and the PD told the story at all - unless it's to completely depress us as to the current state of feminism.

For those who want a fluffy, happy romance this is the wrong show, even if there's a lot of that in the first half. Love it seems can survive in a bubble but can't survive the real world, even if the two people in the romance are not doing anything wrong.

In the end, this show gets a seven because it was a very good piece of television despite the depressing overall theme. The one true flaw was the OST, which was so awful it had me muting the soundtrack throughout. If you told me a few weeks ago that I'd be muting the soundtrack in a PD Ahn drama, I wouldn't have believed you. But here I am. And if I have to hear 'Stand By Your Man' one more time, it will be one time too many.

Sometimes it is hard to be a woman. But only if you are brought up to embrace noble martyrdom as a woman's main role. It is ironic perhaps that the people who will truly hate this show are the ones who love shows that promote woman's noble martyrdom as a virtue to be rewarded - like Mischievous Kiss. And while there is a lesson in that for women, it's not a particularly uplifting one.

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The first half of this drama was utterly intoxicating. I even watched episodes raw (something I NEVER do) because I was having so many feelings. Jung Hae In and Son Ye Jin had some incredible chemistry here in the build up to and the beginning of their relationship. The cinematography was beautiful. The atmosphere was just right - realistic and raw. The hospital scene was so intimate that I felt like a voyeur. And then it went downhill steadily from around episode 10. With a melodrama tag, I wasn't expecting all sunshine and roses, but I also feel like the back half meandered too much without real feelings of resolution or growth. Issues were just swept away without showing or telling us how they were overcome. I feel like there was no real closure on anything - like the workplace harassment or the issue with Jin Ah's mother. I want to know that our couple has a stable future to look forward to and that they won't become mired in the same problems that plagued them before. The plot is overly simple, but dragged out for far too long. I think cutting it back to 10 or 12 episodes and eliminating useless scenes where the story isn't progressed or too much time is spent on an artistic shot would have helped a lot.

As actors, Jung Hae In and Son Ye Jin did an incredible job in their roles. I really loved Seo Joon Hee (JHI) - he was so smitten and protective. (And Jin Ah needed someone to save her from herself at times). Yoon Jin Ah (SYJ), however, was sometimes hard to like as a character. She did some incredibly stupid things that were frustrating for me to watch as a viewer. And I didn't like how she wasn't always truthful with Joon Hee. While the couple lacked good communication in general, Jin Ah had a bad habit of doing hurtful things and then being cutesy to Joon Hee in order to avoid his being (rightfully) upset with her. They didn't know how to resolve conflict. Jin Ah's mother is the WORST - she is hateful and unbendingly stubborn....to the very end. She was the only character that I outright hated, so the actress rocked her part! I also enjoyed Bo-Ra's character. She made a great friend to Jin Ah - possibly even better than Jin Ah's life long best friend Kyoung Sun (Joon Hee's sister). The other characters were serviceable. I honestly think I could have watched 16 straight hours of Joon Hee and Jin Ah just being in love and happy together...without all the angst of the outside pressures.

The music - I loved the cover of Save The Last Dance For Me...even if they were heavy handed with it in the beginning (and then it disappeared altogether later in the series). It really set the tone. This drama in the beginning had the feeling of old 80's romances. (That's not a bad thing to me as I grew up in that time and it made me all nostalgic.) However, I thought that the cover of Stand By Your Man, while a good song, was an odd choice and didn't exactly fit with the narrative that was being told to us. It was also played during really inappropriate moments where it really didn't belong. I thought that Rachel Yamagata's track was beautiful and fit well with the tone the show took later.

As far as rewatch value - I've pretty much already rewatched it just because I watched raw and then again with subs. However, if I was ever to rewatch this in the future, it would probably only be up until they exposed their relationship to others and then maybe the back half of the last episode. I don't think I could go through the painful parts again, but the lovely build up of their relationship, I could probably watch over and over again.

I gave the show an 8, just based on the first half of the drama which was a total 10 to me. I probably should have knocked off more for the second half, but I can't say that I didn't enjoy the show at all. I just wanted more from it in ways that we didn't get and less from it in ways we got too much of. If you are not a fan of 'slice of life' or melodramas or artsy scenes that don't do much for the story, I would suggest that you avoid this one because I promise you will be bored. Personally I wasn't bored as much as I was frustrated by the direction (or lack thereof) that the story took. Not enough to drop it, but enough to leave me feeling a little deflated in the end. It was sort of like eating a piece of cake that was beautiful and sweet for the first several bites, then turned bitter, and only the last bite had about a quarter of the sweetness that it had in the beginning. Not *quite* enough to remove the bitterness, but just enough to dull it a bit.

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The first 7 or so episodes were really special, out of this world good romance, beautiful cinematography,excellent acting performances by the main pair and annoying, but tolerable side characters. Unfortunately by the time we reached the last episode the writers ruined almost everything & also some really tedious & annoying sub-plots were used.
So in my opinion the best way to watch this is to watch the first 9 episodes & then jump straight to 16. ~~ That way you all will see something truly remarkable.

My disappointment in episodes 11 > 15 is comparable to what I felt watching Jealousy Incarnate, when they all lived in the same apartment...

Still I will remember this show for a long time to come, rewatching the first 9 episodes is something I will probably do, when the pain of what followed has become a faint memory. Objectively I should probably give this something like 4-5 stars, but the first half of the show is good to the point that it's insane, hence the 8 stars rating..


edit: It's been three years and finally I have decided to give this one another go. I followed my own advice, watched the first 9 episodes followed by the finale. My attempt to relive the magic has mostly failed. Probably it does not help that I've seen One Spring Night 3 times.. In my review I said "tolerable side characters", but I had an extremely hard time to tolerate them the second time around, especially the horrible horrible mom and the ex. I have some qualms about ML's sister as well, but I'm sure most of it is bias having seen the actress in EVERYTHING.

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The first part of the story is really good! the love story is well written and acted, but for the hole conflict part of the drama they leave all to her evil mother, which is not enough to maintain a good argument for more than 2 episodes, imagine having to drag it along for 7!!!
Apart from that, we have a strong confident woman that supposedly stand up for herself, that loves this young man, and instead of being there for him like he did when she needed him, she acts like a total BS and disregards his feelings towards a man that abandon him and his sister, she MAKES him do something he does not want to do, just like her mother is doing to her... (guess the apple doesn't fall to far from the tree)
And after everything he did for her, he asks her to go with him to the US and she not only disregards his feelings ones again and rents an apartment without even telling him, but while he is away he starts dating some guy just to please her mother... wow! I mean... WOW
AND! to put the cherry on top of this whole Jin Ah 100% egotistical story line, Joon Hee is the one having to take all the responsibility at the "nothing but a pathetic excuse of a grand finale" they tried to pull in the last 5 minutes of the show so they would end up together...

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In order to get to heaven, must go through hell first.

After reading several bad reviews, I was hesitant to watch this drama. However, I was glad to have watched this drama and left me feeling appreciative to the deep insight of the writer. It is really nice to watch a grown up drama.

I wish they had wrapped up the ending with more details of their future together. The last episode contained many minutes of flash backs that did not move the story forward. As expected, the our main couple ended together but the director could have given us some more answers about our primary couple.

I was sad to see their breakup but, in retrospect, it was really necessary for Jin Ah to find her self. In order to come to her own, she had to really let go of all bonds that were holding her back. She really had to learn to walk the path of her life on her own. Although, it is nice have allies but ultimately she is the author of her life. I really appreciate the writer's willingness to explore/risk it all to find the happiness.

After the breakup Jin Ah tried to live her life according to her mother/family outlook. But she was still miserable and no better off than before Joon Hee. She finally found her happiness when she risked it all. Our "young" lady has finally grown up.

This drama is not a typical ROM-COM. After watching the drama, I am still left with an ache in my heart as a reminder of our own lives. The lesson: In order to live happily with a significant other, I must be equal to him or her. It is not 50-50 but 100-100.

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Congratulations to this drama for getting my lowest score yet.

The MVP of this series was really Netflix for letting me watch at 1.5x speed and the ten second fast forward feature for which this low review would not exist in the universe.

It’s really a pity that the first eightish - nine episodes get completely squandered by the absolute Chernobyl disaster that is the second half of this show. The FL is a mid thirties almost forty year old human who possess ZERO communication skills. It’s really impressive how little communication skills one human woman can posses. I commend the writers for showing that forty year women can also have the same emotional maturity as a sixteen year old girl. Representation matters!

The other watchers of this show seemed to love the Male Lead for being the best boyfriend but if being a good boyfriend = being a complete doormat and running after your girlfriend whose idea of communication is crying, saying she’s sorry and promising never to do it again but then in the literal next scene doing it again *surprise pikachu face* and then whining about how she’s apologized. Her character reaches a point where it's not that she's unable to communicate, she willfully refuses and believes the best way to get ahead is to sit in misery and grind through but also to ask him to do the same. The way to progress forward is for them to simply be in abject misery together.

Let’s talk about the mother of the bride - the worst Asian mother portrayal I’ve seen on tv. If the FL wasn’t also such a doormat, she could have moved out before the season started and I wouldn’t have to watch this character for 12 hours. I have a new nemesis and it’s this Asian mother. She has NO redeemable qualities and yet the writers still put in a redemption scene in the last hour. I’ve never felt less moved by a mother-daughter scene in my entire life. It happens on the street and I was looking for truck-kan the entire time (why don’t you show up when I want you and only when I don’t???). I tried, I tried to look at this in an Asian centric culture mindset but alas I’m a lowly Asian-American and even with my knowledge of traditional Asian family roles, I cannot feel warmth/sympathy towards this mother.

The music: If an English lady crones “it’s hard to be a woman” at me one more time, I’ll end up in jail.

My final gripe: the plot. Writer-Nim. Come back here and explain to me wtf was the POINT of the last three episodes. Just really explain. There’s this whole plot about how she’s going to stick with it and make her big comeback and stand on her own - - for her to get another bf who doesn’t appreciate her, to learn zero communication skills and to STILL quit her job and become a waitress on juju island! Why did they even break up? They learn zero things from the breakup! Here I would like to compare my favorite end of drama breakup “Because this is my first life” where the breakup makes sense. It forces two characters who cannot communicate and have baggage to take the breakup as a reset and reevaluate their needs and goals before coming back together as a stronger and more cohesive couple. That does not happen in SITR. They still cannot communicate, or say full sentences or express emotion.

She just takes the time she could use to communicate to whine about how she’s kept herself miserable for three years to atone for making the best friend/boyfriend sad. Like my girl, no one, not ONE person asked for that. If you choose to live your life that way, that’s strictly a you problem. This whole romance exist on *vibes*. Which I mean I love a long walk in the rain and some coffee but my god.

Anyways there was great skinship in this show so cheers to the director for giving me legit butterflies in the handholding scene. I will look back at drama edits on tiktok of that one scene fondly.

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i don't know how i'm supposed to feel after finishing this drama. i'm just... blank.

it was so good at first that i had super high expectation for it. Son Ye Jin acting was incredible and Jung Hae In was so damn cute. their chemistry was awesome. it was so good it kinda felt like a guilty pleasure watching it. the way they shoot this drama is something i have never seen in korean dramas. beautiful, slow paced and somewhat retro scenes which focus on the characters' feeling made me hold my breath many times.

but the plot kept getting pointless and disappointing. the last 5 episodes were really gloomy. i truly hoped things could be different, beating the stereotype in most dramas and making me believe in love again lol. but unfortunately it got into some cliché trope. the characters couldn't really figure anything out episode after episode and that makes watching them such a pain. oh and the sudden ending. it's like the writer tried to settle everything down in some last minutes and tried to convince the audience that everything was fine. but hey i'm not fine. it's just so unsatisfying.

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This drama is NOT for everyone!!!

I have read so many bad reviews. If you hate and don't see the beauty of this drama then you are either immature, love cheesy and unrealistic love story or don't like slow dramas which its okay considering everyone has their opinion and preferences. Yes it has its flaws like every other drama. I cannot emphasis enough on how the drama is not for everyone, it is EXTREMELY slow paced and people complain about that. I believe that's how the story was intended to be, with the slow burn we get to see how the connection developed between the characters and it happened so naturally. The Irony is that you would expect the female lead to be mature considering her age but we all know who the real adult in their relationship was.

Jin ah's (FL) mother is a hated character, she did the most to break them apart. For me that made it more realistic because some parents are very traditional, closed minded and want what they think is best for their children, (thus they can go to any extent to see that happen as we also see in the show) I could personally relate to this. If you are looking for something that would uplift your mood then this is not it.

Although I think it would have been better if it had been a movie or a mini series than having 16 episodes, not a huge problem though. Also I enjoyed the ost at first but then it got very repetitive and some scenes really did not match the songs. Nevertheless the songs are very calming (has a little vintage vibe to it) I still play it. It's the first kdrama I have seen with all english ost.

A lot of people complain about the ending but what more could have seriously happened, happy endings are not always guaranteed. After the mother begged for forgiveness, One can say that Jin ah did not need her mothers approval any longer and she can finally be with the person she loves without getting judged. It hurts me that the drama is underrated, it deserves more attention but what can I say the underrated ones are sometimes the best ones. If you hate this drama then it was personally not your cup of tea not that anything was wrong with it. I totally recommend this If you are looking for a very serious, mature and reflecting story. If not please pass rather than coming to degrade a remarkable drama.

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