I love a happy ending, and “Cherry Blossoms After Winter” has as good an ending as any BL in the fantasy sector of the genre. Credit to the casting - Ok Jin Uk as Hae Bom and Kang Hui as Tae Sung, the two main leads, are a pleasure to watch and listen to, and their characterisations meld well with the mellow dramatic tone of the series where even the early conflicts with the high school bully threaten but don’t overwhelm the central love story.

In the now familiar fantasy BL world of privileged young men (for whom a university education constitutes no financial hardship of any kind) and whose friends are the most supportive in the world, the pathways to happiness are riddled with the bumps and misdirections of their own characters, not the world in which they live. Through gradual steps and confessions, doubts and then resolve, the young couple find reciprocated love and begin their life journey. Even the sudden last minute appearance of parental concern about how the wider world will treat the happy young couple is not a problem so much as an opportunity to showcase love as the ultimate decision-maker.

Feel-good stories such as CBAW look simple but require care to pull off. Credit to the production team; across the board, from Director Yoon Joon Ho, as much as in the wardrobe & makeup, the sets & lighting, camerawork & editing, this looked to me to be a team effort. It’s appropriate, in a metaphorical sense, that Tae Sung decides at the end that he is going to study to become a cake maker; the whole show has the pleasant feel of a cinematic confection.