Rocket Boy Squad (2021)

Light-hearted and low-stakes

This was a really wholesome and comforting drama — there never really felt like there was a huge conflict or overarching plot, it was just about several people in a little village town dealing with life and its issues. While I enjoy the light-heartedness of it all, I felt like it was hard to understand the point or the general direction of the drama — meaning that character development was a little sparse for most of the characters.

Speaking of which, I've never been a huge fan of ensemble dramas for the reason that I never care for everyone equally, and this drama was no different. I loved the badminton teams (both male and the female teams) and how they grew together throughout the episodes, both on and off the court. There was one character who had an arc as they joined the team after not getting along with them and he turned out to be my favorite character because the development was so strong and clear.

On the other hand, the subplots of everyone else who just lived in the village were not really interesting to me, especially because their interactions with the main teams felt peripheral.

Overall, I think this was a pretty fun drama to watch (slowly, a few episodes here and there) but it's not really a binge type of drama or something I felt very invested in.

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Dream, Skills, Hardwork, Friendship, Love and Encouragement

The story is about a group of kids who play badminton, their three coaches and their journey to achieve their dream.
The actor have been perfectly cast who play their part very well. There are characters that you will love throughout the drama, there are few who you will love gradually and there are few who will take you to a rollercoaster ride of likeness.
The kids here behave like kids who don't know how the actual world works, the make mistakes and learn from it. They form friendship and rivalry as well. Every main character has an story arc which shows their development creating good stories for side characters as well.
This drama gives us beautiful friendships, the love of parents for their kids, the passion the kids, parents and the coaches have, their dreams, hardwork, making mistakes and improving themselves.
It's hard to pick favourite as most of them are lovable people but if I had to pick one I would say Se Yoon, from her first interaction till last I have nothing but love for her. She is really hardworking, lovable, care for people around her, has morals, value people who care for her, she seems mature but she is still a teenager and she acts like one as well, even being the best she is not arrogant or overconfident, she has many funny and emotional moments as well, her relationship with her coach is filled with admiration, trust, respect and love, she is also a great support to her friends and is only person to whom Hae Kang has shown his weak side. The evolution of her relationship with Hae Kang is really delightful to watch, they had interactions when then were kids, when they grew up, their relationship went from not liking eachother to acknowledgement of talent they have to a beautiful friendship to an awkward yet cute romance.

Overall this is a great drama which teaches you many valueable lessons about life. The acting here is really good, all the main character you will love, the rivals are also good people. The portrayal of parents here is as someone who wants nothing but good for their kids.

Ratings:
As critic: 9.8
As casual viewer: 10

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Sweet and inviting

A great mix of good comedy, cuteness, puppylove (including puppies) some pretty important issues and a great message of friendship, sportsmanship and working with each others strengths so to reach a mutual goal.

The first episode showed really well how childhood poverty affect children as well as how many children purposely stay at home or hide charges for activities from their parents to protect them. thus showing the importance of making activities free of charge (or heavily subsidised) so that children can participate no matter their parents walet.

This drama has a wide range of great relations between, found family, neighbours, teammates, parents etc... all go through quite a bit of character development and are just some the sweetest bunch of characters on screen today. The puppy love is also sweet and innocent, abit heteronormative... but we are kind of used to that (they do insinuate the appearance of a gay couple, but only slightly). Anyway the way they interact did make me feel all fluffy inside and reminisce of childhood days... if I was to complain about someone then I did get annoyed with the dad once or twice but over all his daddy awkwardness made me reflect upon myself...

Another thing i loved about this drama was their guest cast including Kim Seul Gi (and allot of other familiar faces) as well as made references to BTS and Jung Hae In (my favorite actor) both by saying his name and one of the sweetest kids ever being named Yoon Hae In... The kids here as a whole are pretty awesome and put us parents to shame without mimicking the grown up world or acting to mature for that matter.

To be honest not being a big comedy fan myself, I ha this on the Ill see it when I get to it list... But having my friends here on MDL constantly write about it pushed me in to watching it as soon as it became available on Netflix in my region (we often get shows a week after they end airing). My friends deserve a thank you because this show rocked!

So for you who are not sure if you want to see it or not, just go for it! It is allot more than the average fight to achieve my dreams kind of drama and fun to watch for most...

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the rivalry was great

it was an amazing drama plot and acting was at best love it i really recommend it, i really wish they mak edramas like this about youth and growth in life . .

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Amazing Friendship, Exciting Badminton scenes but dragged down by Outsiders' side plot

“Racket Boys” is one of those dramas that is universally praised as amazing. To have an 8.8 MDL rating is no small feat. It has been on my PTW for a long time but I just couldn’t find the right mood to start watching it. Even now, it took me two tries to get into it. I blame this on a slow first episode and not a very fun start. But nonetheless, this is a great drama but with some areas I am not a fan of. Let’s start with what I don’t like first.

What I Have Mixed Feelings and Don’t Like:

1. Slow Start - As mentioned, it took me 2 tries to get into it. The introduction of Papa/Coach Yoon is not really that exciting. He does not seem like someone I want to root for but of course, I expect some type of character development later on. Nonetheless, the first 15-20 mins did not suck me in, but I persisted and binge-watched the rest with no problem.

2. Villagers/Adult Storylines - This ‘negative” is the main reason I am not rating “Racket Boys” 9.0+. I like the story of all the villagers interacting, caring and loving our young badminton players. But I fast forwarded all the scenes regarding the City hikers and the redevelopment. I don’t care for them, and they have nothing to do with my beloved players. In fact, those scenes happen during exciting badminton matches and cutting back-and-forth between villagers and matches annoy me big time. The drama could have given me more screen time for the players and for me to get to know their backgrounds/families more. I do like some of the villagers' storylines, especially with Grandma and her playroom and the mural.

3. The White Wolf - I don’t dislike the White Wolf storyline but am not sure how I feel about him being away from the boys in the latter episodes to wrap up the story of the other player. I knew we would eventually see this player on the screen since his name was mentioned so frequently throughout the drama. I just feel if we take away that side plot, it would not have made a difference.


What I Like:

1. Racket Boys - I love all the boys! They are the stars of the show and the reason why everyone loves the drama. They each have distinct personalities and complement each other so well. I love that the drama focuses on their friendships and how they support each other through disappointments, rivalries and successes. There’s no jealousy or childish arguments. They are a joy to watch! I enjoy the rivalries between teams and that nothing really malicious happens.

2. Yoon Hae Kang - Hae Kang is an interesting male lead and I enjoy watching his development. He appears cocky and arrogant, but deep down he is the sweetest kid with a kind and gentle soul. That becomes evident right from the start of his introduction to viewers. He works hard for the scholarship and never brings up how poor his family is. He is always so sweet to his younger sister and immediately shows his kindness when he first moves to the village and meets Grandma Ki. It’s lovely following his journey of being a lone wolf to be the best of friends with other players is heartwarming. Personally, I would like to see him pitch a few innings to show me what an amazing ace he was, but we never got the chance.

3. Badminton Play - If you are a fan of badminton, this is an excellent drama. There are so many badminton scenes and matches, and all look so good and realistic. In the first episode, I thought the badminton play was a little subpar compared to “Love all Play'' and “Nothing But You”. But these are middle schoolers and college or pro players. But after the initial episodes, the badminton play improves a lot. It shows the hard work all actors put into their training. I love all the badminton scenes. However, I can also see some viewers might find these scenes a little excessive.

4. Other Characters - Aside from the Racket Boys, I also enjoy watching the coaches' stories. I knew Coach Yoon had to improve after the first episode, and I am glad to be right. He has changed as a coach and it’s nice to see the hard work he put into coaching the kids. It's nice to see the opposite of Papa Yoon, his wife, Coach Ra. Their styles are so different, and their journey of growth as a coach is different. The two female players might have a smaller role, but they are in no way inferior to the boys. In fact, the drama shows us the top female player of the country in Han Se Yoon. Even the villagers are sweet and caring. Oftentimes we see villagers or country folks as boisterous and irritating and I am glad that none of them are annoying to me.

5. Guest Stars - Since the writer of “Racket Boys” is the same writer for “Prison Playbook”, it’s probably not that hard to invite PP actors to guest star in this drama. It’s lovely to see so many of them just showing up for a scene/episode here and there. Hey, if Lee Kyu Hyung is reprising his role in PP, I am very happy that he’s moving to the countryside 😉

Overall, this is an excellent drama about these young badminton players. It’s a story about friendship and growth first and foremost. I strongly recommend this if you are a sports or badminton fan, or a lover of such teen dramas.


Completed: 6/3/2023 - Review #314

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A Refreshing Youth Tale

In our sub-continent kdramas are tend to popular for it’s not-so complexed love stories which are quite swoon worthy to teenagers and probably that’s why the other genres which are also excelled by Korean writers are often suppressed among those rom-coms.In that list the new 2021 slice of life youth Korean drama “Racket boys” also placed. So, this kdrama enthusiast now gonna tell you why Racket boys is your next series that wipes out all your sad -life mental tears and filled your brain with feel-good steroids (and you don’t need to hide in blanket while watching it with the fear of ‘when hyped romance scene pop up!’ cause you can express freely all your binging emotions of the drama even by sitting in your couch with your siblings,friends,parents even with your grandpa.
This netflix drama follows the story of 4 boys who are aiming to achieve their dreams with racket in hands while living their daily beautiful life in a countryside of Korea. But the plot doesn’t justify the drama as it’s so much beyond the description.The male lead Yoon Hae Kang forced to move in far from the capital city as his father’s financial situation crushed and as a result he had to give up on playing his favorite baseball . After moving out he found the surroundings troublesome as well as the people live in the village .And here comes the whimsical part of the series where he embrace all of it slowly like the game of dominoes. Everytime he got attached with these incredible personalities around his new atmosphere you will scream as if you’re the one who’s standing and having sweet bickering with them in your very own house block with childishness hidden inside you.
In every episode of this drama the creator always tried to cleared up the incomprehension between relationships of two kinds of polar opposite. Sometimes it shows how both city peoples and village peoples can be kind while in the both places evil can also exists.
Reflection of our parent’s love towards us and how differently all of them says “I love you” to their child is another praise worthy script narration we’ve seen on this series.It makes our heart melts immediately and we took a moment from our life resembling our parents affection towards us and sends thanks telepathically to them (as we are too shy to tell them directly!).
Two majors part of Racket boys is Dreams & Friendship. This drama portrays the wonderful journey of reaching towards goals while showing their struggle, sacrifices, parental obligation and physical boundaries;yet with amazing friends and adults around them they’re continuously inspired to fly high to their ambitions.
Even all of the reasons aren’t enough for you to sit and binge the drama let me tell you apart from high class storytelling and great acting skills of all the actors out there you will encounter with brilliant eye candy cinematography ,countless humours ,empowering soundtracks and a lot of BTS references ! And as earlier if you are the fan of k-contents only because of rom-coms then let me convince you with one more line that it has multiple simple yet realistic love stories which will makes your heart flatters and your lungs will filled with butterflies !

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"It's Okay To Lose" - Yun Hae-Kang

I binge watched the "Racket Boys" yesterday. This is one of the best drama I've watched in a while. The show had it all. A great storyline and the actors played their roles wonderful. It was heartwarming, funny and had perfect amount of romance in a youth drama. The drama had beautiful match scenes and I was actually very intrested in them, even though I knew nothing about the sport. Every character, both the main ones and also the filler in the hometown had acted beautifully and it was focused on their lives too, not too much which was good. It was well produced and directed. I felt like I was apart of their family and I got really attached. I cried ( a lot ), laughed and watching it was wonderful.

I just loved how they showed the struggles that a person can have in life and how you can deal with them and that it's common to feel that way. Stress, anxiety, asocial, school and grades etc. That life isn't full of happiness and that every framily has their own struggles. Like the couple from the city, they had problems at their jobs and was having a hard time to have a child. The grandma and the daughter didn't seem to have so close relationship, but they still loved each other and the daughter couldn't show that. Hae-Kang's family was falling apart because the parents were working and so was he, so that was a problem. Se-yoon was dealing with stress and pressure from everyone because she was always good and was scared to do mistakes. Han-sol was overshadowed by Se-yoon and underrestimated of her talents.

I don't actually know how or why I started to watch this, even though it was yesterday. I was just bored and wanted to watch something, didn't know I would get stucked. This is a perfect drama for me and I like it, but others may have other kind of intrest and opinion. It was very refreshing from all that mystery, zombies, thriller, romance romance dramas I've watched these days. Don't look at the negative remarks and give it a try, if you won't love it, you won't hate it.

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Rocket Boys is an emotion....!!!

I really loved this drama. The way it showed the importance of friendship. The trust within friends. If their is anyone who love sports will really enjoy this drama to core. You will never regret watching this drama. If you are not sports lover definitely you'll start loving sports. Every sport is equally important and has it's own grace. Believe in yourself no matter what you do. Never compromise on your dream. Fight for your dream. The people who support you even in your worst are your true friends. The comic timing was also perfect. You'll enjoy the whole drama. I wish to see a season 2 for this drama. If anybody is feeling low I wish you watch this drama. Overall a very good drama. I would suggest everyone to watch this drama.

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Warning: Not a good review

I started this drama with high hopes and sure enough, the first few episodes looked promising. But, once all the characters were introduced, the rest of the episodes were repetitive. The line "I'm Yoon Hae-Kang" must have been repeated at least a 1000 times over the course of the drama. The characters were all one-dimensional, showed absolutely no growth and even the big mystery with the White Wolf - you really wonder why no-one wanted to talk about it. What was the mystery there? Let me not get started on the ML (Coach). Absolutely terrible acting, permanently constipated look. Ok, I get that the character is a bit selfish, non-confrontational etc, but, did he always have to look like he ate a bad bowl of jajangmyeon? Even the villagers showed exaggerated character traits - either unreasonably confrontational or complete doormats - all possessing hearts of gold, of course. Were there any normal people in this drama? Maybe Park Chan and Se-Yoon. Let me end there.

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Weak attempt for a sports-themed drama

It's an oversaturated manufactured cheap emotional bait that lacked the genuine human connection and necessary depth but rather opted out for easily digestible cliches. Most of the cast, especially the younger ones, were desperately overacting in an attempt to translate the youth energy to screen but it came off as fake most of the time. The actual sports scenes were average at best, it's themed around the sport but not the sport itself. Most scenes with a sweaty face, the sweat looked as fake as it can be. It's so damn laughable that some scenes the neck was sweaty but the face was perfectly dry! The cast didn't do a good job in showing the physical exhaustion of performing the sport whether it was while training or competing. Again, making the sports scenes even more fake. What's up with the drama trying so hard to pair every boy with a girl? Really unnecessary. This drama would have fared infinitely better as a standalone one-off movie. The drama really highlighted the "bad" in badminton. Going into this I had the slightest tiniest bits of hope to get something that can be remotely and ever so slightly similar to "Ping Pong the Animation" but I quickly realized within a few minutes it wouldn't be the case.

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Enjoyable but underwhelming watch

I watched this as a filler and when the mood took; I enjoyed it, but it didn't make me want to binge the entire programme over other series.
Nice cast, with lively acting from the younger members.
For me, the drama encompasses adults (in parents and staff) that have regrets, missed opportunities and haven't always done the right thing, but through a team that refuse to give up when they look beaten, come good.
There is some intrigue around one character too, which added some mystery in earlier episodes.
The son who initially thought badminton a lesser sport (with a surprise for his team mates), was a character I liked; he grew through the episodes and his rough, surly exterior, belied a caring character.
A pleasant watch and heart warming at times, it did also drag on occasion. I did find it unrealistic how the main family's children were often left to their own devices and initially I actually thought they didn't even have a mother! Slightly bizarre.
Whilst not one I'd watch again, I don't regret having done so, as the young cast really did carry this story.

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A must watch feel-good drama which more than just a sports drama

It was an accidental discovery of a hidden gem when I watched this drama because I saw the trailer and thought that the characters looks cute and the story seems fun. At first I thought it will be all about their journey as a badminton player however as I go along the drama, it actuallly gives you a little bit of everything. I love how the story doesn't just revolved on the players but also the community they belong to. It will make you laugh hard and cry at the same time. It's very light-hearted and refreshing for me.

I love the chemistry of the Racket Boys and I also loved the vibes of their village. The story took time to get to know more about the characters one by one which makes me feel like I belong with them. It's like a big family on this rural village working together towards happiness. The casts are really good, I have seen a lot of new faces on this drama and I can say that they performed well with the familiar faces. I cannot imagine someone else to do better than they did. The chemistry really worked well for the characters as well so a very big thumbs up for that. One of the things I want to commend on this series are the subtle life messages it teaches us like how losing is okay, feeling sad is okay and crying is okay.

Overall, this drama is a home run for me, the journey from episode 1 to 16 is not grand but I enjoyed every moment of it. I just wished In Sol had more screen time as I felt like, we never got to really know him fully and most of the times he wasn't playing. But still it's a great show. I recommend this for all ages. It's a feel-good series you can watch with your family.

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