Blueming (2022)

Je suis passée à côté

Au vu de la note globale donnée à la série, je crois que je suis un peu passée à côté. Je n'ai pas réussi à m'attacher aux personnages et c'est je crois bien le problème.

Il y a bien des côtés positifs à cette série.
Le sujet déjà : les complexes, les douleurs d'un jeune adulte traumatisé par l'attitude de la société et la différence de traitement entre les personnes considérées comme belles et celles considérées comme pas belles. Sa souffrance, son anxiété sont bien dépeintes et communiquées, et sont une vitrine, difficile par moments, pour ceux qui auraient eu à faire face à cette angoisse. On peut rajouter l'absence de représentation parentale positive et la solitude de l'enfant, puis de l'adulte, et la possible découverte d'une personne qui comprendra et comblera potentiellement le vide.
La cinématographie : c'est assez rare dans une série si courte mais il y a un essai réel de présenter un drama travaillé, de qualité. Le travail de photographie est à souligner. C'est plus particulièrement intéressant quand on sait que les personnages sont étudiants en cinéma.
Les acteurs : j'ai eu un peu de mal au départ mais leur jeu correspond bien à leur personnage et ils dépeignent bien la réserve, la méfiance et la douleur de leurs personnages. Leur complicité est difficile à appréhender par contre et j'ai du mal à savoir si le couple est peu chaleureux dans l'histoire elle-même ou si les acteurs ont du mal à représenter leur alchimie.

Un certain nombre de choses ne m'ont pas convaincue par contre.
Les personnages : comme j'ai déjà pu le dire, je n'ai pas réussi à m'y attacher. Les problématiques abordées me touchent pourtant mais il m'a finalement été difficile de ressentir de l'empathie pour les deux protagonistes, malgré leur histoire difficile. J'ai néanmoins beaucoup aimé le côté adulte de leur relation, vraiment appréciable.
Le montage : je ne sais pas bien si c'est le montage ou le scénario, mais le déroulement de l'histoire est par moment vraiment obscur et compliqué à suivre. J'avais décidé de revoir le drama car j'étais un peu frustrée des zones d'ombre du scénario et si certaines ont pu être levées, d'autres n'ont toujours pas de réponse. Peut-être tout s'éclaircira si je re-revois le drama ou si je lis le webtoon ?

En définitive, un drama intéressant, à voir, mais apparemment assez clivant pour avoir des réactions soit modérées, soit dithyrambiques.

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Re wow

J'avais envie de le revisionner aujourd'hui. Je l'ai davantage apprécier que la première fois. J'ai fait plus attention à la réalisation et la direction photo qu'à l'intrigue . Je pense que pour apprecier cet oeuvre ( tournée comme plusieurs courts métrages à mon sens ) il faut un mélange des deux. C'est pour moi un projet très aboutit qui a du demander beaucoup de temps pour être capable de dire autant avec si peu. Et j'aime qu'ils fassent confiance aux spectateurs. Assez intelligents pour comprendre ce qui nest pas dit ni montré. J'aime aussi que l'orientation sexuelle des personnages ne soit pas un enjeu. Car ce n'est pas le propos de la série mais quelqu'un d'autre pourrait le voir autrement ! Ce qui fait entre autre cette fiction si intéressante.

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Une simplicité d'une complexité époustouflante

Blueming est une série simple, et c'est ce qui en fait sa plus grande force.

Il ne faut pas ici comprendre le mot "simple" comme quelque chose de péjoratif, la simplicité de l'histoire nous donne énormément de vraisemblance et de réalité au récit et permet un focus plus important sur les personnages, leur vécu, leur psyché et leurs actions.

L’histoire :

Alors, la série est clairement un BL mais n'est pas tournée comme tel dans le sens où on ne retrouve pas les thèmes habituels d'acceptation de son homosexualité, de face à face houleux avec la famille ou les proches ou des difficultés qui affèrent au "quand dira-t-on". Les personnages principaux développent simplement une romance entre eux et ça ne soulève pas de commentaires. C'est ultra rafraichissant ! Attention ,je ne veux pas dire que je n'aime pas les productions qui mettent ces thèmes en exergue mais, ne pas parler du genre dans une relation, ça repose parfois, je dois l'avouer.

De ce fait le film ( je veux dire la série mais c'est vraiment tourné comme un film ), se pose d'autres questions qui sont nombreuses. Sur l'acceptation de soi, du physique que l'on a, de l'abandon de sa vie d'avant. Mais aussi, des différentes manières que l'on peut avoir d’élever ses enfants ( qui ne sont pas sans défaut, loin s'en faut ! ). La lutte des personnages peut paraître banale ou simple, encore une fois, mais c'est pour nous montrer que quelle que soit la douleur qu'on ressent à propos d'un sujet, cette souffrance nous est tout personnelle et n'est pas anodine. En ce sens, les dialogues sont très empathiques et la réalisation plus authentique.

Les personnages :

Nous n'avons pas ici affaire à des protagonistes parfaits, ils ont leurs blessures, leurs écorchures. Ils vous décriront leurs luttes quotidiennes, banales, simples mais criantes de vérité et qui vous toucheront en plein cœur.

L'alchimie entre notre couple principal est immédiate et parait si naturelle, qu'on ne se pose pas plus de question qu'eux quand leur rapprochement se fait. Ici, pas de grande déclaration, de gestes d'éclat, on reste encore et toujours dans le simple et l'authentique et c'est pourquoi ces scènes qui nous paraissent si familières raisonneront d'avantage en nous.

Les personnages secondaires ne sont pas en reste est sont très bien dépeints également. J'ai eu personnellement une petit préférence pour Do Ba Wu, un personnage tout en finesse, qui ne dit pas forcement grand chose, qui observe tout ce petit monde, qui sait. Quand il agit c'est rapide et efficace, quand il parle c'est incisif et direct, j'ai adoré.

La petite sœur de Cha Si Won, Cha Si Yeong, aussi est géniale dans son rôle à la fois drôle et parfois insouciant, une petite note de fraicheur quand l'atmosphère familiale de la famille Cha devient trop lourde.

La réalisation :

Il s'agit de l'histoire d'étudiants en arts cinématographiques et la réalisation a dû le prendre en compte à voir à quel point la cinématographie est magnifique ! On peut même voir des techniques de tournage expliquées en classe dans un des épisodes qui sont mises en pratique dans la série. La réalisation ajoute ça et là des touche artistiques à l'image en jouant avec la luminosité et les ombres afin de créer des perspectives atmosphériques, tel que l'effet "sfumato" que l'on peut reconnaitre.

Autant le rythme que la musique, rien ne semble précipité dans la réalisation. Bien que les épisodes soient courts, on a un développement total avec un début, un milieu avec même un conflit à régler et une fin. Les événements s'enchaînent sans heurts ni temps mort mais on sent qu'on a le temps de les déguster, de les analyser et chacun résonnent en nous par leur authenticité grâce à la simplicité apportée par la réalisation.

On retrouve tout à fait la patte de la réalisatrice / scénariste, Hwang Da Seul, qui l'avait déjà imprimé dans ses précédentes réalisations : To My Star et Where Your Eyes Linger. Elle gère toujours aussi bien ses acteurs, sa réalisation est vibrante d’émotions, son montage parfait et les OST sont toujours fort à propos et très bien choisis.

En définitive, ce n'est pas une série sans défauts, bien sûr ; je préfère lui voir l'apparence d'un film bien fait mais il serait dommage de ne pas la regarder car il est bien difficile de montrer simplement des choses avec autant de complexité sous-jacente.

Maintenant, à vous de vous faire votre avis.

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Un Coup de Coeur

Etant une grande fan de BL, j'en ai vu une grande partie.
Je n'avais pas encore été convaincue par les BL coréens depuis les massives déceptions qu'on été "Cherry Blossoms After Winter" et "Semantic Error".
Je suis donc allée plutôt septique sur "Blueming" en ne m'attendant à rien du tout sachant, qui plus est, la longueur de ce drama qui est très court même pour un BL.

Quelle ne fut pas ma surprise! J'ai réellement adoré mon visionnage. J'ai trouvé que la réalisation/production était plutôt brute/réelle, elle m'a beaucoup fait penser à celle de "I Told Sunset About You". J'ai trouvé qu'ils ont essayé de traiter des sujets qui nous touchent tous de manière subtile et bien faite.

Les personnages étaient attachants, la relation se développe de manière très naturelle. Rien de spectaculaire ou d'extraordinaire. Tout est pure et brut. C'était touchant.

Le jeu d'acteur était vraiment pas mal! En soi, j'ai vraiment aimé parce que ça change énormément du type de BL qu'on peut trouver en ce moment. C'était rafraichissant et les personnages ont vraiment su porter l'ensemble.

Je recommande vivement !

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Intimate, empathetic and observant slice-of-life story

The simplicity of "Blueming" really enabled the show to focus on more serious topics such as insecurities, loneliness, and self-doubts. It's simple, raw and the dialogues are written with such authenticity that it makes it really easy to relate to the characters. It was refreshing to see how mundane their struggles were, and I loved how this show "normalized" pain. Not only that, but it doesn't judge its characters for the feelings they have. Quite a few of us might have felt that our pain isn't worth mentioning and I like how it acknowledges that no matter what you're going through, your feelings are valid. I also appreciate how they didn't give us the usual perfect main leads, instead the characters and dialogues are written with such empathy that it made the story feel genuine.

The romance is quite uneventful and I think the story benefits greatly from it. There aren't any grand gestures or declarations, instead you can see them slowly opening up to each other. It's clear they found someone they can be vulnerable with and not fear being judged. I thought their bond and the growing trust was realistically portrayed, proving you don't need a full-length show to convincingly build up a relationship.

Fitting for a story about film students, the cinematography is beautiful. It utilizes lighting and shadows to create atmospheric shots that added an artistic feel to the show. Moreover, it was rather clever that they used filming techniques they talked about in class during one of the episodes. Both lead actors seemed pretty comfortable in their roles and managed to portray the awkwardness and growing attraction quite well. The performances were rather understated, which was fitting for the story. The little touches between them and their body language felt natural and intimate. Once again, the simplicity of it all made it feel realistic and authentic.

"Blueming" is a subtle and quiet depiction of everyday struggles that will tug on your heartstrings. Some dialogues felt so familiar, and I think that's why the story resonated with me. It's a story that lingers in your thoughts, and some conversations were so well-written I could write an essay about it. It may not be perfect in all aspects, but it manages to observantly tell a story of mundane struggles in an engaging and touching way.

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FULLY BLOOMED

I have to commend the show for showing us that short series doesnt have to feel rushed. With 11 episodes of about 12 minutes each, the series was beautifully developed and delivered with just the right pacing.

I loved that almost all scenes (and characters) felt important with minimal fillers, sprinkled with just the right amount of cuteness, sillyness, adult kissing (and lovemaking) and a few obligatory shirtless trap scenes.

It also doesnt hurt that we got two very good looking and capable leads. Im not sure if it was intentional but the awkward acting of Jo Kyuk Joon somehow worked for his mysterious emo character, and Kang Eun Bin is like a younger Kim Min Jae, and i mean it in a good way.

On the other side, the series reminded me of the anxieties i felt while watching all other beauty transformation series that tried to deal with leaving an old life behind and trying to live with a somewhat fake beautiful identity to get acceptance - only this time, we see it from a guy's point of view. Or are we?

Cha Si Won can be played by a male or female actor without needing to change any of the script. The series was trying to say love is love and it has no gender, by emitting (or ignoring) any mention of homosexuality. However that for me was the weakness of the show - because in reality, same sex relationship isnt all rainbows and butterflies, and it could have added another layer to the love story of SiWon and Da Un. There are so many BL series nowadays who prefer to take this route and to be frank, it acts as a double edge sword that can sometimes work but sometimes can undermine serious gender issues and over romanticize the idea of an unconditional love.

The fact that they showed the mother feeling scandalized by being portrayed as a bad mother and yet has no concern about having a kid being in a same sex relationship, may prove to be a little too unrealistic and unrepresentative of the situation on the ground.

To be honest, what we have here is a shortened watery version of My ID is Gangnam Beauty.

Would i reccommend? Yes, definitely.

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Family ties and romance...

This feels more like a movie than a series, as the pacing, music, story, cinematography, time well everything gave the vibe of a well made movie.

The story is good, unlike many web dramas it does not feel rushed in anyway it has a beginning a middle, some kind of conflict and of course an ending too... one of those that fit the feel there could be a sequel but if the sequel would add anything to the story seems questionable.

What I loved about this movie (series that I shall now name movie), was the way it was filmed, and though the side characters where not always necessary they did add some extra flavour and had 0 annoying tendencies... I would for instance love a GL about the sister and the ML friend... The sister is probably one of my favourite siblings in all of Dramaland...

The romance here is pretty good, having the boys see each other for who they really are, or at least one of them, a guy who is very caring and sweet... But what makes this movie really good is actually the story within the story, the film within the film about the a child's relationship to weight loss and how it with the combination badly handled divorce/separation can scar a child deeply. They also show different types of not so perfect, I would even say some pretty bad parenting and it is done well!

Level of... 1-10
Bingeabilaty: 10
Cute couple: 9
Drama: 7
Exitment:5
Entertainment: 9
Annoying elements: non
Cinematography: 9

So if you ask me this is definitely worth watching!

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“I had to be flawless not to be looked down on.”

One’s in love and one is clueless - probably my second favorite trope right after enemies to lovers. Both create many opportunities for funny scenes and interesting interactions with the proper amount of angst to spice things up without breaking my heart.

The plot is rather simple, giving a nice slice of life sentiment, tackling various issues young people might face, while also telling a compelling love story of two interesting characters with wildly different backgrounds, pasts, personalities and behaviors.

Cha Si Won was a deeply insecure boy who needed a lot of external validation. From the start we get a good glimpse into who he is - craving the attention, enjoying people praising his looks. He takes appropriate steps to make people look in his direction. He feels anxious when there is someone equally attractive as he is - feeling the need to work even harder to stay at the top of that social ladder.

On the other hand Hyeong Da Un seems to be born with good looks and does not need to work hard to get the attention Si Won wants so much. That said, from the start I could clearly sense loneliness and sadness about him. That emo vibes creeping in. We did not get to understand who he is from the start, but the writer dropped hints that his life might not be as sweet and perfect as Si Won assumed, for example when his smile dropped after hearing the door from his house opening. To quote Shrek - Da Un is like an onion and the writer was slowly peeling off the layers of his personality and struggles as the drama progressed, showing who he is as a character and making me cry the tears of pain in the process.

So how did their relationship start? Cha Si Won just had no idea how to act around Da Un. He wanted to make sure Da Un knows he is this confident guy, but it turned rather awkward, and the small lie he told to create that persona was exposed rather quickly and concluded with one simple “맛있게 먹고”.

At the same time Da Un tried to get close to Si Won, joking around and showing real interest in him - which was at first taken as teasing and a sign of him acting superior. Poor boy, to be this misunderstood by your crush, when he just wanted to spend time with him and get to know him better.

Si Won’s whole drunk monologue in episode 2 was a new level of 2nd hand embarrassment, and yet Da Un thought it was endearing and funny. Si Won was literally trashing him saying there was something fishy about him, and Da un was just smiling about it - he was already gone into the love land by that time.

Si Won’s insecurities led to misunderstandings, but thanks to the god of kdramas, these two boys were forced to work on different assignments together, which created many opportunities for Si Won to see how his initial judgment might have been just a misconception. And the sweet love story slowly developed.

The plot line that got me extremely interested was the contest and the aftermath of it. From the start Si Won was not confident in his writing and the script, not to mention the work was autobiographical which would mean being vulnerable about your past in front of many people.

He feared it’s not strong enough to be picked, so even though he was tempted by the opportunity, he alone wouldn't take it. After his sister did it for him, resulting in him winning the first place he felt conflicted. From the start he believed the rumors that he only won thanks to Da Un’s involvement, but at the end he decided to believe in Da Un’s denying it. His words of assurance that the scenario was good and worth the award gave Si Won the confidence to share it with the class…

…and then he found out it was all a lie - the fear of not being good enough became a reality. At that point though, his priority and what he cared about changed. He loved Da Un, he was more angry about him not being honest than the actual contest.

It’s also interesting from Da Un’s perfective. From the start he had an instinct of taking care of, helping and protecting Si Won. From serving him food on the night out with other students, taking him home when he was drunk, going after him after he ran away from the book cafe. His priority was making sure Si Won is fine. Hence when he found out Si Won submitted his work for the contest, he feared not winning would hurt his confidence even more - he wanted to protect him from that disappointment. His good intentions led to misguided actions and awful aftermath. He feared Si Won would be disappointed in himself after losing, but at the end he led to Si Won being disappointed in him.

Except for the personal internal issues the male leads have and their relationship, the drama does quite a good job at showing how bad parenting can hurt the child - be it putting too many expectations on them, or neglecting them assuming they will do well on their own. Both can create trauma and scars that are hard to heal and can carry to adulthood. Both leads struggled because of their family relations and it influenced how they behave now - one feeling the constant need to prove himself, and the other struggling with truly opening to others.

Presentation wise, I loved how Si Won’s family issues were often present in the background - we could hear his mother badmouth their father to Si Yeong, questioning if she likes her father, guilt tripping her into admitting she does not.

Another interesting side plot was Yun Jeong and how she had to deal with the sexist senior - from inconsiderate remarks about her looks to situations where she truly felt uncomfortable and even threatened.

It would be a crime not to mention Si Won’s sister Si Yeong and her adorable crush on Yun Jeong. The cuteness that the character radiated was just amazing.

The acting? Really good. Jo Hyuk Joon just broke my heart with his sad puppy emo eyes, and Kang Eun Bin made me want to die from embarrassment quite a few time with his perfectly delivered lines based on his misconceptions and misunderstandings of people and situations - he was so confident about all the things he was wrong about. At the same time he managed to deliver the more emotional scenes. The scene that impressed me the most was his argument with the mother and them crying in each other's arms - the pain was real.

Production quality for such a small show was great. I also liked the directing that emphasized the characters current situation. For example, how they showed Da Un sitting with his back to the camera when his family was mentioned. It gave an even stronger impression how lonely he is, how he is unable to show his pain to others and he deals with it alone. And then, to add by the end of the show a shot of his and Si Won’s back, sitting next to each other telling us, he is not alone anymore.

Another great example would be how in episode 5 during one of the classes the lecturer talks about the magic/golden hour in photography “This magic hour is called the time between dog and wolf. When seeing a man walking toward you at that time of a day, you’re not sure if it’s a dog by your side or the wolf of your enemy”. Then in episode 6, after Si Won asks Do Un if his parents had anything to do with him winning, we can see a shot of Do Un filmed in that “magic hour” which could be seen as foreshadowing his involvement in the contest behind Si Won’s back. And then later, the whole episode 10 was titled “The time between dog and wolf” when the truth came to light. I appreciated how some references were coming back in different forms and times to tell the story.

Was the production perfect? No. Some scenes were dubbed (if the characters were sitting or walking far away), but it was still clearly visible the sound did not match what the actors were saying. Sometimes some shots seemed blurred and the colors were not sharp enough compared to the previous scene, but honestly, all of these things I only noticed while rewatching the drama.

Surprisingly, this show gets better on the second viewing. Some lines just hit differently when you know the whole story and context. For example Si Won telling Da Un “you were born with everything at the tip of your hands and loved by your parents so much” in episode 2, which could not be further from the truth with how he grew up emotionally neglected, receiving close to no love and attention from his parents who were always busy with work.

Overall, not sure why this show feels so special to me, but it does. The second viewing made me love and appreciate it even more. I would recommend it to everyone, as it delivers nicely written characters that are easy to sympathize with and relate to, soft commentary on some personal issues we might face in our lives and a truly sweet romance with great chemistry that will make you feel lonely like never before.

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a subtle masterpiece

raw, intimate and delicate. it's tender and romantic and handles uglier topics in a genuine way. the music, cinematography and script were great. lovely use of light, colour and silence. the actors fit like puzzle pieces. more than plot it's driven by emotion which gives everything this subtle, quiet feel. perhaps to a fault for some viewers but i thought it captured the fragility of relationships really well. it's a drama to watch when everything surrounding you is loud, it feels like wearing warm earmuffs in the snow or sitting under the shade of a tree in summer. it didn't try to be more than it is yet it resonated with me and i feel like it would with some others too. in its simplicity i think it's one of my favourite dramas that builds and gives layers to each character, showing their flaws and strong points. i'll shut up now but i personally love this drama so much. hwang daseul has yet to disappoint.

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enjoyable romance series

Overall: it was enjoyable but a few things make it not a 10/10 for me

Content Warnings: fixation on being thin, past bullying

What I Liked
- that the leads had nice skinship not just 1 kiss right at the end
- they did have some good communication and conversations (until they didn't but at least there wasn't a long time gap)
- funny parts like how they were in the same group all of the time
- cute parts like holding hands
- I appreciate that they both apologized for mistakes made
- avoided the drunken kiss dub con scenario
- avoided dead fish lip press
- the hint of f/f romance
- production value

Room For Improvement
- I didn't get why either one fell for the other one, especially Daun for Siwon who was super prickly
- some choppy parts, how did Siwon get Daun's number? For the bookstore if Siwon had just given 1 line because I was so confused at what he was doing until he explained it all later.
- the last episode especially I was pretty confused about what was real/not real
- I don't understand why the male friend expressed a romantic interest in the female artist, they could have just omitted that part and focused on the GL part

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Amazing !!! Go watch it NOW !!!

I love this series so much !! It was more than incredible , and I honestly am going to re-watch it as soon as I finish writing this lol
The actors chemistry and acting was phenomenal , the cinematography was beyond words and just truly beautiful, the ost was really good I will totally go look those songs up again and again they are already stuck in my head , and the story itself was so moving - I love every single thing about this series!! You can tell it's Hwang Da Seul's work - what a queen ! directing one masterpiece after the other !! Is hoping for a season 2 too optimistic ?? I already miss them
I didn't read the original work yet but for me this was a 10000000/10 ! I am already on my way to show it to every single friend of mine !

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I was not expecting it to be so good!

Maybe because there wasn't much hype over this show, but I really wasn't expecting it to be so good. Not only was the plot incredibly realistic, but the writing really touched me. It showed these two imperfect humans who find someone who loves them despite, or maybe because of, all their flaws.

First, let me talk about the acting. It was incredible! Kang EunBin and Jo HyukJoon did such an incredible job - they portrayed so many complex emotions very well, and there wasn't a second where I didn't believe their reaction.

I already talked a little bit about the writing and the plot, but it was honestly so well done. I felt like it was so realistic and their flaws so real, that it made their story so much more interesting. I definitely relate a little bit to Cha SiWon, so maybe that's why the writing touched me, but the fact that this wasn't just a love story but also a journey of growth for both of the main characters was wonderful to watch. Props to the scriptwriter!

Lastly, let me talk about the cinematography! Everything was so beautifully filmed that I really felt like this was high budget. I have no idea if it was or not, but the scenes were all so carefully and wonderfully made.

I honestly cannot find a single negative thing to say about this, except maybe that the side characters' storylines were not 100% resolved, but that honestly didn't bug me at all, especially since we were mostly invested in the main characters.

I honestly had no expectations for this show, but it really just skyrocketed up to one of my favorite BLs of all time. Watch it!

(One thing I will say though, is that if you suffer from an ED, there are some parts that might be a bit triggering, so be careful).

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