Our Beloved Summer (2021)

Magic Number 7

Majority of the popular kdramas are a 7 for me. That's how I feel about OBS as well. It is good but not great and perfect. It is likable but not special and close to my heart.

It started great with a very compelling theme of documenting two high schoolers and an interesting screenplay going back and forth between past and present. The characters were flawed and relatable and so were their actions. I liked the comparisons of lifestyles of the two leads.

Oddly, I wonder what are the odds that all three leads have issues in the family. It was with a few unpredictable twists but I wasn't particularly thrilled to know about their family issues as I only came in for the documentary part. I was eager for glimpses of the final cut of their adulthood documentary but that didn't happen. Had they even spent like 15 mins showing that instead of all the family issues then I would have willing watched it. Guess, my expectations were different.

I expected a bit of comedy and a nice breezy romance with a slice-of-life setting. The initial comedy with a coworker and drunk scenes were hardly comical. I found this to be very minimal on comedy. Romance is more about feelings, talking, and bickering. But it was hardly breezy. There are many moments I felt "just open up and talk about what you are feeling or what went wrong". I didn't like how they got into a relationship without proactively discussing what went wrong. Yes, they were constantly pinning for each other, but getting back with an ex without resolving past issues is low-key problematic.

Character-wise, I can see what they were trying to portray: toppers don't necessarily become achievers and last rankers don't necessarily end up as mediocre. But I felt ML had more luck than most of all would have, to get rich and good parents and to have talent and to actually put that talent to succeed whereas FL was poor, had no parents, was hardworking, and got some job. I think this characterization felt forced and it more made me feel that ML was very lucky and despite his issues, I couldn't feel empathy for him. Also, there are these moments where ML gives up on something very easily whereas FL had been working very hard for a similar thing. For instances like these, I couldn't look past their jarringly different notions on life, money, and stuff. But of course, I'm looking into too much but on the superficial level, they are interesting characters. Likewise, FL opening up about her issues could have done better. She rarely got her cathartic "baring it all" moment of showing her vulnerable side in the relationship and if at all done, was hurried through. Ji Ung deserved so much more than the closure he was given. Rarely was anything shown about his mother's actual reason, and his occasional rudeness to Ung felt quite random.

The pacing felt good up to episodes 10 or 11 after which I was constantly skipping scenes and 2Xing. Similar to most of the kdramas losing their charm around 10 -12 episodes, OBS ran out of stuff to talk about. Maybe they could have added nice flirty scenes but their chemistry felt cute and okayish for me.

I really wanted to see CWS in a nice rom-com as a nice guy so that wish has come true. As for KDM, she felt reminiscent of her Itaewon Class character sometimes. I will be rooting for KSC henceforth. RJE's voice is really nice.

Would I rewatch the scenes during their school days? Likely. Would I rewatch adult life or romance scenes? Meh.

As for music, it was good and suited to the theme of the drama. But I won't bother about adding it to my playlist.

OBS feels intriguing as the Youthood but immemorable as time passes by.

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Those who have been through breakups understand this drama a bit better

I watched this drama while it aired. There was a hype going on, and i decided to join the gang.
This drama is about lovers who break up, despite loving each other for personal reasons.
The story is sad at times, but realistic.
Character development was the great point of this drama. We all carry a heavy baggage in our lives, and so did the leads. It's not like they couldn't move on. They actually did, but deep down when you love someone letting is go the hardest.
During the course of the series, i always told myself they will breakup again and it will be a sad ending. Who has ever seen a broken couple get back together, even better than their first encounter?? Well, this drama is all about that.
It's cliche, boring at times, but very romantic. You can feel with the leads and live with them for a while.
The soundtrack is just marvelous and carefully chosen.
Overall, a must-watch for diehard romance lovers!

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Warm, Mesmerizing love story worth watching ...

I'm already missing this beloved drama ,What a ride this show was..

A unique love story worth watching. Every broken love story deserves a second chance. Our Beloved summer is one of the warm, mesmerizing, calm, beautiful drama that you will watch. This show never disappoints you from beginning to end(except 9th and 10th episode with minor flaws), some scenes are so wonderfully written that it hits hard deep inside your emotions which are so relatable to our lives.

Amazing star cast a big kudos for Choi woo shik and kim da mi for beautifully portraying their warm emotions all along. Supporting cast is also good.
Drama is very well written and directed, but has minor errors in middle.
Ost's were THE BEST in this drama.

Lastly my favorite line "Everyone has unforgettable memories from a certain year of their life .They cherish those memories so much that it lasts a lifetime"

Give it a try ,this drama is worth watching..

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An overrated overhyped drama

This is fully waste of time, not even 30% worthy. Before starting to watch this drama I was little hesitant to start to watch this drama because of the ML, I have watched his few dramas, in most of the drama his character is same that is he is fully obsessed with the FL without self pride without bottom line and he won’t feel ashamed at all whatever may be the extent that the FL may hurt or embarrassed him but he couldn’t feel bad, ashamed or hurt at all. I think this is not love this is just a obsession.
The whole drama is total a waste drama, with so many loop holes because the main plot itself is a big blunder.
1. How can a best friend forces him(to ML) to cooperate for video broadcasting or interview with his ex-girlfriend even though he knew how much he suffered and wasted his life after she dumped him in a brutal way without any reason.
2. How can a person still have lingering feelings about someone even after getting dumped four to five times brutally and even after she treated him like a trash. That’s why I mentioned it as obsession not love, because when she was leading her life like nothing happened but the ML keeps on thinking about her.
3. Till 12th or 13th episode he keeps on showing his feelings yet she keeps on pushing him away badly. Literally she didn’t slapped him(you can think of to that extent). In the overall drama I think only once or twice she apologized him for her mistake but not first to say only after he apologized her for nothing (I felt like she did apologized out of pity). Of course it is portrayed in this drama like she is soo selfish, self centered and egoistic but according to me for everything there is a limit who on earth can compromise that much without a bottom line only because he likes her.
4. I felt like she is doing some charity by accepting his feelings each time after he begs her to reconcile. I really didn’t understand on what gut feeling can someone expect a stable relationship even after dumped four times by same person.
5. When ML parents saw FL again got acquainted with ML, they tell her that he was totally devastated when he was dumped and yet they offer to come home to have meals with them. As a normal human beings or parents they will definitely suggest to FL to not to disturb his life again when he had go through and overcome such devastating life.
6. In some scenes they have tried to portray the childishness in ML but I felt like he is mentally retard or having multiple personality disorder because all the time (till the middle of the drama) it is portrayed like he is not at all interested about her but in the same time he is very curious about her and sometimes jealous also.
7. Last but not least, after watching drama what I realized is the director has no idea what to do and what has done in the previous episodes he just directed according to what comes to his mind at that moment of time. You can say it is totally unplanned and unprofessional direction.

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An exceptional work of craftsmanship from script to casting to direction to acting

“Those who do cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” - Harvard philosophy professor George Santayana

Sometimes we hear these phrases, like the one above and others, and they sound wise at first glance so we accept them as wholly and universally true. But if there is a whole and universal truth, it is much more likely that there are no whole and universal truths (except for, paradoxically, this one). “Our Beloved Summer” is a show about repeating the past - Woong and Yeon Soo having different values and backgrounds but loving each other despite them. In their past, the differences overcame them and they could not stay together.

Ironically, it was impossible for Woong and Yeon Soo not to remember their past as it was filmed in a documentary which remained popular into their adulthood. Can their familiarity with the past help them not to repeat it? That’s not really the issue though, whether for them or anyone else. Knowing the past but not recognizing how to change the present and future is useless.

The show isn’t built around the soundtrack like an idol drama, nor does it feature innovative or elaborate production design or wardrobe. But the crew for these elements were terrific. V’s “Christmas Tree” was one of many outstanding songs featured. The wardrobe for Woong in particular was stellar. And the locations where this show was shot were tops.

Woong is almost a polar opposite, on the exterior, of a typical male lead. Outwardly, he’s lazy and a coward. In the hands of a less talented actor than Choi Woo Shik, Woong could have been a disaster of a character and sunk the show. But this performance is mesmerizing and further solidifies Choi Woo Shik’s status as one of the most talented actors of any age and hailing from anywhere. That Woong is talented as an artist is made clear from early on but it is his inner emotional strength, that he will shrug off his own troubles and stand beside and lift up someone else who is suffering is where Woong really shines as a character.

If there’s a trope that “Our Beloved Summer” fails to avoid, it’s that if the two main characters had simply communicated openly and honestly with each other, they could have avoided many of their troubles. Well, hard to avoid here since the foundation of the story is that they’re separated after a five year relationship. But the show misses when it spends almost its entire first half focusing on the narrative primarily from Woong’s perspective. Yeon Soo’s inner thoughts are only momentarily illuminated until after the midpoint. The result is that she’s portrayed as an unapologetic bad guy between the two and Woong is the innocent victim. While the reality is that she did break things off, there’s much more nuance to Yeon Soo but it’s not revealed for a long stretch.

Once “Our Beloved Summer” delves further into Yeon Soo’s character, however, she comes alive as a layered character, tragically unselfaware while driven and loyal and smart. As the show proceeds, particularly in the final few episodes, Kim Da Mi’s portrayal gets better and better. She deftly alternates between lighter humorous scenes and raw emotional displays. There are probably examples of a finer pair of performances by both male and female leads in a production, but none spring to mind immediately.

The two secondary leads, unfortunately, do not leave the same impression. Kim Sung Chul and Roh Jeong Nui are both fine actors and perform admirably. The characters they play, however, are lackluster. Kim Sung Chul’s Ji Woong is an emotionally stunted friend of the main characters that is effective only briefly as a prop to move the arc forward between Woong and Yeon Soo. His own storyline is far and away the least compelling portion of the production. Meanwhile, Roh Jeong Nui’s NJ is an atypical idol with a crush on Woong. She has a brief but unnecessary subplot of her own that primarily just whets a viewer’s appetite for a return to focusing on any other part of the show.

An additional note is that “Our Beloved Summer” has one of the finest supporting cast ensembles of any show. If there is an easy layup in drama casting, it is to always, whenever possible, include Park Jin Joo as the female lead’s quirky bff. She’s as marvelous as ever here. But there’s standout performances as well from Ahn Dong Goo as Woong’s manager, Seo Jung Yeon and Park Won Sang as Woong’s parents, Jo Bok Rae as a senior television producer, Jung Kang Hee as a neighborhood hardware store owner and the sublime Kwak Dong Yeon makes several guest appearances as a fellow/rival artist to Woong.

Kim Yoon Jin nails how to handle the key emotional scenes. He lets the actors take over. The soundtrack takes a pause. There’s no moving cameras. The best example is the scene at the end of episode 11 where Yeon Soo struggles to find the words she wants to say to Woong. Technically, it is as simply presented a scene as a viewer will find. But it is an emotional powerhouse of a scene. Narratively, the show only strengthens as it nears its end. It continues to deliver humor, warmth and tenderness until its final moments.

If “Our Beloved Summer” were to be summed up in a single word, it would be warmth. We can all use more of that and so it is most highly recommended.

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Not often you can experience a drama like this....!

Our Beloved Summer simply one of the best romantic melodrama released recently. At first 3 episodes i thought of little bored because of the documentry scenes and everything looks so boring. But after that i think from the 4th episode onwards it slowly getting more and more interesting. I found something particularly new from this drama, That was the beautiful character voice narration that happens almost all episodes.

An episode before ended with something curious or interesting and after that the starting of the next episode will be with a voice narration of a character, every time all the 4 main character has something to say. And it was so beautiful and very refreshing to hear and understand their part of story in the drama. For me personally i like the 2nd ung's character. His life and everything he went through was really touching to watch. Not often you can see that in a kdrama, the development of that character the relationship with his mother his friend and their parents everything was so heartwarming and interesting.

After that definitely kim da mi's side of story. Her mature decision making and powerful behaviour and handling of situation was one of the highlight of the drama, also the hidden emotions, and ofcourse you cannot miss our main hero ung. Brilliantly narrated everything about him. Also the 2nd heroine NJ. She has a small screen space but even though she also has so many reality to say.

Our beloved summer simply a must watch kdrama. Its not just a romantic drama. It has many things to discuss to you. The development of characters relationships and mature romance and beautiful intense moments that captures makes this a different drama. You must try this for sure. Don't stop after the first few episodes because there is so much things waiting for you after that. Enjoy watching..

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Summer comes back better sometimes

One thing I love about Korean shows is how they display the difference in the lives of those who are rich and those who are poor - the way money restricts our ambitions and controls our choices. I really liked how that was subliminally embedded within the show and explaining how that affected things. The relationship chemistry between the two lead actors was superb and the confusion was sincere and well-constructed. So many times I watch a show where it's very obvious that the two like each other but they're too blind to see it. But in this one, the confusion is born from a lack of communication and inability to read each other, which is established early on as a fault and flaw amongst both of them. Therefore, when they kept misreading each other, I liked that.

I'm quite done with Kdrama love triangles but this one wasn't too cliched and cheesy, so I can give it that. The side characters were rather well-written both in having their own motivations and how they interacted with the show's main characters.

I must talk about the music. There are a few shows which have grabbed me through their music: Hotel Del Luna, My Mister, It's Okay to Not be Okay, Because this is my First Life and now this. The OST in this is quite beautiful and I cannot emphasise this enough. I would recommend this show to everyone.

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The summer you will all love!

This new kdrama is getting noticed by everyone, and all the success it's having is well deserved! Who knows, maybe it will become one of the most popular series of 2022? I wish it will.

The story revolves around Choi Ung, a nationally renowned illustrator and Kook Yeon-soo, a public relations expert. Both are 29 years old, both are unhappy and both were madly in love with each other until 5 years ago... at least until they became just one another's ex. For this reason when they broke up they promised to never see each other again, but fate will not be on their side: in fact, during their last year of high school, they shot a documentary together and, after ten years, that documentary is gone viral, so much that fans ask for it to continue to see how the two protagonists are now. So the production house decides to please them. At first it will not be easy to convince Ung and Yeon to participate, but then things will start to take a different direction.

Reading the plot, you might think it's a simple love story, but I assure you that it's not! The feelings in this kdrama are transported from the screen to the viewer's heart, because they are feelings that we have all experienced at least once in our life: regret not having done something, fear of opening up to the other person. This was possible above all thanks to the skill of the two protagonists, played by Choi Woo-shik (yes, the one from “Parasite”) and Kim Da-mi (you can find her in “Itaewon Class”). They have crazy chemistry on screen, and they managed to make us poor viewers participate in their sentimental dramas too! In addition to this I feel I want to underline the beauty of the soundtrack, which made me shed many (too many) tears and the tenderness of some scenes that you absolutely must not miss, so run and see it, you will not regret it!

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A very heartwarming drama with amazing cast

I love everything about this drama.

The casting director did a very amazing job, Choi Woo Shik, Kim Da Mi an all the actors were able to potray all the characters perfectly.

The music director did a very great job as well, despite of the OST were sang by V, 10 cm and other well known singers, the ost itself really really gave you the mood..

Overall, it is a very recommended drama to be watched. Slow pace but not boring, the story is flowing nicely.. a very heartwarming and healing drama.. Kudos for everyone involved in the drama 😍😍🥰🥰❤❤❤

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Should’ve been shorter.

If you’re not going to give us character development and more depth to the plot, then keep the drama short. It was fun and entertaining at the start, but the conflict everything revolves around of is not really that great. I think it would have been better if it had like 12 episodes. I eventually stopped caring about the main leads because of how little they change, they slowly stopped being likable, they just kept doing the same mistakes, the drama reused the same memories to justify their love story. We get it, they’re gonna end up together no matter what, but give us at least real situations that they can learn something from. In the last episodes I just kept watching because I founded Ji Woong’s story interesting.
Visually speaking it was really beautiful, those visuals deserved a better story.

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fluffed romance with some twist

●FIRST IMPRESSION
How was I in my school days I wish I had some photographs of me. its so cool if you have some videos or photos of your school time. with friends. i just have all classmate pics which were given by school, and its enough for me to get nostalgic.

●STORY
The story shows the leads persnality clash since the school days as they are polar oppsite. FL is like running in a competition to exel in her future. ML is simple who lives in present without a worry enjoying the nature.
But the two meet again as the time has brought the two together once again.

●PLOT VIEW
This plot I have seen in many dramas about high school students who turn couples in their adulthood.not just in dramas but in real life too. But this story is diabetic sweet with so many heartwarming and humorous moments. Because its the leads are polar opposite bickering couple. But they create a magical chemistry which is worth watching. Leads set aside their differences and fall in love again understanding the life and its beauty.
It also shows how good grades topper student shows an instance of a good future. And art is seen as a low grade to people with no future. That really needs a change.
Since the start of series it has a pace and surprising events, which is engaging and always make one wait for the next episode. Well am beingeing this because its difficult to resist from watching the next episode

●ACTING/CAST
CWS is the guy next door, who is unattractive, lazy but is kind and enjoys life. He lives his passion and not in any competiotion. CWS as choi Ung is the perfect. I cant take anyone else for this role. The heatwarming epression he delivers is crazy rich with his innocent curvy smile and shy eyes.
KDM is a tough stubborn character. But she looks so beautiful with long hair since I last saw her in Itaewon class. The resilient and cold character suited her as she doesnt smile a lot and has a lot of vigor in her eyes.

●MUSIC
The OST’s are soulful. They enhances the mood of the scene and remains in the mind for a long time.

●REWATCH
Yes am definetely rewatching this. It just reminds me of my first love.

●APPRECIATION
The color palette of scene is so eye-pleasing
The lighting of the rooms, dim, dark has a feeling and mood.
The sketches of CWS is picked carefully and everyone is lovely to see.

●FAV SCENE
Well, there are many and it's difficult to choose one.
I would pick the brooming scene from episode 2

●QUOTES
I love things that don't change but people change or disappear over time

●AFTERTHOUGHT
A fluffy yet emotional love story.

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The drama gave me butterflies, making me want to love and be loved again.

I waited until the end of this drama before continuing to watch it, and boy was I not disappointed. I completed the drama in one day. The story and its characters completely absorbed me. However, it is not perfect, as the majority of people claim. The couple's relationship is highly poisonous. In their youth, the girl was extremely immature; the boy was content with what he had and lacked ambition for the future. Although they had valid reasons for their behavior, they never communicated effectively. As the story prgresses, character build up is shown. I'm pretty pleased with the ending, though it may appear a little rushed.

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