Retour à Samdal-ri (2023)

Good Enough

Korean Drama '' Welcome to Samdalri '' is a drama about family and going back to one's roots in order to heal and reset.

The drama has a nice mood, with the setting being a countryside-seaside village and the small community vibes aided the story greatly.

Also, the side characters were all interesting, especially the sisters, and their stories were funny, emotional, and original. Also, the family drama was really sweet and sad at the same time.

On the other hand, the main characters were not written well. The female lead was annoying, and the male lead was just a nice guy, without any other trade. Which is a pitty, as both actors are strong and always give enjoyable performances. Also, their romance was boring and predictable.

So, overall, six out of ten.

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looking for a comfort show? you got it!

this show might be your cup pf tea if you enjoy:
- nostalgia
- deep analysis of platonic & romantic relationships
- tons of emotions
- amazing cinematography that makes you feel at home
- lovable cast

a story about finding your roots after living away from home for so long; we all know how busy our lives have become these days and this show portrays that perfectly, it also shows that even though it is great to be achieving your dreams and going your way to achieve success, someday you will need a break from your busy life.

a story about close friends, a great family bond, missing your childhood memories and home. this show shows that there are people around you who always wish for your best and want the best for you. you may feel left out, alone and invisible but there’s always going to be someone who is silently praying for your health and happiness. whether it be your family, or your childhood friends you keep no contact with anymore.

the reflection and healing in this show is something, the way you experience the characters’ healing process along with them, experiencing all different types of emotions. everyone is going through something different but the makers really did an amazing job by giving everyone more than enough spotlight so you can seriously see and understand them as a whole.

this is definitely comfort show worthy, it made me cry so many times because of the emotions i felt seeing the characters and their stories. the actors did an amazing job as well portraying their characters. well done!

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The drama beautifully explores family, community, and the healing power of love.

This K-drama shared into the themes of family, sisterhood, career, community and most especially true love throughout its 16 episodes.

I was initially drawn in by the central conflict, and hoping it will be resolved soon but along the few episodes, I found Sam Dal's journey toward inner peace with her family, particularly her soulmate Yong Pil.

In mirroring real life, it beautifully portrays how adversity can pave the way for profound connections, healing, and a peaceful resolution. love the storyline, moving performances, and commendable work from the entire team, it stands as one of the best K-dramas.

I had to cry so hard for the last two episodes, pure talent of the screenwriter and the entire production crew. Bravo!

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Anfangs meh, Der Rest supi :)

Die ersten 4 Folgen oder so, haben mich manchmal echt wütend gemacht und haben mir auch einfach nicht gefallen.
Es wurde einfach so vieles getan, was ich nicht tun würde, Sam-Dal hat sich so komisch verhalten und es hat mir einfach weh getan.

Aber, ab dem Punkt, an dem sie sich mit ihren alten Freunden wieder verstanden hat, hat es mir gefallen.
Die neben Geschichten von ihren Schwestern fand ich auch sehr interessant. Vor allem von Hae-Dal. Die Story mit dem Delphin Mann und ihrer Tochter fand ich super und hätte gerne mehr davon gesehen.

Auch das Ende, warum Hat Yongpil nicht einfach die Bilder geholt, warum musste Samdal auch dabei sein?
Und Yongpils Vater, hat mich einfach ein wenig wütend gemacht, wie ein Mensch so sein kann. Aber süß, wie er seine Meinung geändert hat und jetzt auch mit den Eltern von Samdal wieder zusammen ist.

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Worth Getting Past The First Few Episodes

I really felt like the story picked up much more around halfway through, and it has been the most enjoyable ride ever since. Incredible acting and just a great comfort watch in general. all the characters are so cute, I don’t feel the need to skip through anything. It was hard for me to like the female lead in the beginning but once the story starting picking up pace, and we got to see her motivations and empathetic character come forward more it was a lot easier to enjoy the FL story and plight more. All of the characters are adorable in this show, and it was very cathartic with a wholesome & happy ending.

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sheer joy

It was such a nice drama, i loved it.
Refreshing, satisfying and so lovely
made me laugh so much and some time it made me cry
every actors were amazing
Shin hye sun and ji chang wook is my all time favorite actors so i have a special love for this drama.
As a person who watched most of the completed k dramas out there i am really amused by recent dramas.
There was a time i thought i want be able to find nice dramas anymore but dramas i watched recently were all amazing.
I am such a simp for feel good dramas
anyone who want to have a peaceful and refreshing time amidst this tiresome life ,i assure you that this series will be a great choice.
And the ost guyzzzz it was the bestt....
the song brings a nostalgic and happy feel to the whole drama that fills our heart with sheer bliss. This drama introduced me to this great song which is going to be one of my all time favorite korean song.

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100% biased but I'm in love

I had somewhat mixed feelings going into this drama. I’m a pretty big fan of both Shin Hye-sun and Ji Chang-wook, so I was on board for them, but as a general rule I don’t love second chance romances, so I wasn’t super keen on that aspect of it.

I’m beyond glad that I gave it a change though, it 100% won me over, and quick too. It’s been a good long while since I’ve scored a show this high, I’m madly in love with it.

Okay first off, the freaking cast. This was an absolutely phenomenal cast, Shin Hye-sun as Sam-dal and Ji Chang-wook as Yong-pil were perfect. I don’t know how they managed to bring so much emotion into each of these roles, it was perfect, zero notes. And the chemistry between them was definitely there from their first interactions on screen. As previously stated, I’m not a huge fan of second chance romances, but this one had me rooting for them to get back together pretty much from the beginning.

Every other character was well cast too, from Sam-dal’s sisters to her parents, the haenyeos, to the friend group. Even the characters that didn’t get very much screen time brought something to the show and I was rooting for every single one of them.

The filming locations were stunning, and I found myself falling in love with the little town of Samdal-ri and the whacky cast of characters that live there. I got excited every time I started a new episode and heard the intro play since I knew I was in for something good.
Sam-dal’s journey was so beautifully done. Watching her character go from her lowest emotional state and building up from that was amazing, it got to me. Seeing her reconnect with her friends, her family, her ex and herself was just AHHH. I want to say something articulate here but I don’t even know how, It was just amazing.

Yong-pils character, Oh my gosh. I love this man. I would die for this man. He’s one of the greenest green flags to ever green flag, Ever. Enough said.

The romance developed pretty slow, but the progression is steady, and it always gave me just enough to keep me wanting more from them. And because the build up was slow, it made those little moments that much better. I love them together so much I don’t have the words for it.

Welcome to Samdal-ri had me pretty darn emotional in every episode, and the flashbacks, the freaking flashbacks. They wrecked me, in the best way possible. I don’t cry when I watch shows, but this one got me close.

The music was perfect for the show, I don’t have too many notes about it, but it served it’s purpose well, and I liked it enough to add most of the OST to my playlist. So yeah.

I dunno may, maybe it was just the right story at the right time for me, but I loved it so much. This was definitely one of the most, if not the most healing dramas I’ve ever watching, it’s probably my number one comfort drama right now, it’s got the perfect amount of funny and feels to get me through the day.

I could probably gush about it for the rest of the day, but I’m running out of intelligent words, so bye.

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A healing bittersweet story about leaving home to chase your dreams.

I just finished watching this drama and on my personal experience, this has been such a journey, I watched a lot of tiktoks about it but never got the chance until now. As the headline says its a story with a healing message of learning to come back home when there is the need, leaving for your dreams might not be easy but coming back its not easier either.
I loved the cast, it was awesome watching actors that were closer to the ages of them, for me with such a beautiful story the ost could be so much prettier.
Definitely a rewatch or watch if you want to have a sense of healing.

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These 2 friends who have grown as a brother and sister, they like each other but, she goes to Seoul while he stay at Jeju island. After 8 years she come back to the home family with her 2 sisters and niece and they meet again. Theirs feelings are the same that in the past but also another mate love her.
Great acting of Ji Chang Wook with his fast speech, his smile and the deep voice.
Many things are great: the cast, some gestures (for example the niece that take the shirt of her grandmother), I love when he call her mom "omma", the fact of a multi parenting (two mother each), the relationship of these 3 sisters, the boy friendship like power rangers, when these fishing's women (Haenyeo) drive their quads, the "adult" niece, the kindness of the new couple of dolphin boy and the little sister,...
I informed me about the activity of these "Haenyeo" and I learnt is so precious in Jeju that since 2016 become a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

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Well paced heartwarming romantic series with small town, friends to lovers and revenge elements

9/10 is my rating. This is a 2023/2024 South Korean romantic comedy with 16, 70 minute episodes.

First I provide a unique synopsis then review.

Synopsis

Cho Yong-pil (Ji Chang-wook) and Cho Sam-dal (Shin Hye-sun) were childhood friends who grew up in a small community on Jeju Island. The adults termed them soul mates as they were born minutes apart on the same day. And their life follows the trajectory of that destined fate as close friends as children then a young couple later on. An incident drives them apart and lead both to separately pursue their dreams. Yong-pil remains on the island as a weather forecaster to fulfill his dream of providing accurate forecasts so that others will not die from weather events as his mother did. While brilliant in his field, he is a thorn in the side of the other forecasters as he is very vociferous in his demands for perfection in forecasting. Many of the youth from the Island are eager to escape that limited geography and make their mark in big city Seoul. Sam-dal also wants to escape the small town and is determined to thrive in Seoul. After much hardship, Samdal finally becomes a highly successful fashion photographer known under the professional name Cho Eun-hye. At the peak of her career, she is in the circles with all the top celebrities as a highly demanded artistic and entertainment photographer. A series of events causes Cho Eun hye’s professional and personal life to completely come apart. Samdal decides to take a pause on her career and leave the city that now felt like it turned on her. Her hometown has always been her safe haven filled with all the people she was once very close to. When Samdal and Yongpil find themselves back in the same circles, they discover their feelings for each other never died. With two very different dreams is there a way for them to be together without sacrificing their own life goals? Can Samdal prove her innocence and re-establish her career?

Review

This is a really good romantic drama with friends to lovers, coming of age and even revenge elements. People who grew up in an island culture or in a small town will relate to a lot of the content. It is an overall feel good romance served up with slices of small town life. The small insights into Haenyeo (female diver) culture is a bonus.

Spoilers

Yong pil’s dad Cho Sang-tae (Yu Oh seong), was so emotionally and physically abusive to others I seriously disliked the character. It was satisfying, in the last few episodes, when the rest let loose in him. Look she wasn’t just your wife she was my best friend, my mother etc. You are not the only one grieving. I wish someone had said your wife would have hated this. He was obsessed with her leading up to them being together and was obsessed with her after she died. Blaming her best friend when his wife as an adult who chose to go was misplaced anger. He was such a cruel selfish person, I was glad he came around for the other characters but I did not feel there was any redemption for him.

The assistant who falsely accused her was eventually revealed as a liar. That was great to get to see some justice served. A little bit more about her and the fall out of her misdeeds would have been better as so much of Samdal’s story centered around her assistant’s lies.

I loved the story with her older sister and ex husband who so clearly still loved each other but had been driven apart by his horrible family. I would have liked to see them get remarried.

The chemistry between Shin Hye sun and Ji Chang wook was surprising. I just never pictured them together as they typically choose very different scripts. But they are both such great actors it was completely believable. I became a fan Of Ji Chang wook from his action shows but this sweet boy next door role worked perfectly too which just shows his diversity.



#WelcometoSandalRi

#JiChangwook

#ShinHyeSun

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SENSATIONAL STORY AND PHENOMENAL ACTING

I could go on and on about this drama, and I will. But for now, all I want to say is that THIS IS MY COMFORT DRAMA. Yong Pil and Sam Dal's chemistry was so outstanding. Shin Hye Sun and Ji Chang work are two of the most impressive and versatile actors I have ever known, and they did justice to Yong-Dal relationship dynamic.

Both Yong Pil and Sam Dal's character individually are just as impressive as the couple. Yong Pil is such a green flag, I love how Sam Dal could always count on Yong Pil and how he never left her alone. This is true love right here.

As for Sam Dal, she's truly iconic. A woman who possessed great talents, worked hard to make her dreams come true and yet she had to find herself in order to heal her heart. She is unstoppable.

I also loved the slight contrast between their characters that, in my opinion, made them understand each other better. Their personalities fit together so perfectly, they truly redefined soulmatism.

The story is comforting and uplifting. It's all about healing and finding yourself. It's about being able to spread your wings and flying high, knowing that there are people who have your back and they will always catch you when you fall. This drama truly taught me so many things.

I could go on and on, but I need everybody to watch it!!

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