Disappointment of the Year

Queen of Tears was one of my most anticipated dramas ever since it was first announced. Crash Landing on You was my first introduction to Kdramas. When I found out that Park Ji Eun, the writer of CLOY, was working on another drama with Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won, I was really excited to say the least.

The drama seemed to have everything going for it: a top-notch cast, great cinematography, and impressive direction. The first half of the drama was very engaging when the focus was on the main leads' relationship.

Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won both killed it as Baek Hyun Woo and Hong Hae In. They both gave it their all to breathe life into their characters. I am particularly happy for Kim Ji Won as with Queen of Tears, she gets her first major hit drama as a lead. She has always been underrated even though she's been a leading actor for damn near a decade now. Of course Kim Soo Hyun was already a top actor but with QOT he has consolidated his position as the Number 1.

The OSTs for the drama are amazing. Each and every OST is so beautifully crafted. The cinematography and imagery of the drama was also breathtaking. The directors were at the top of their game with this one.

However, it breaks my heart to say this, but the writing was the weakest aspect of this drama. It seems like the writer didn't know what she wanted this drama to be. Is this a Rom Com, a thriller, a makjang? As we progress into the second half the drama becomes a hot mess of a various genres. The writer's fixation on the villain, Yoon Eun Seong who I have to say is one of the most pathetic villains in history, really ruins this drama.

The writer resorted to employing overused and outdated tropes to further the story. The narrative devolved into predictable plot twists and one-dimensional characters. With all these plot twists and focus on villains, it wasn't even fully explained why the villains did what they did. The Chairman's Mistress' motivation remained unknown. The writer was looking to get a shock reaction out of audiences with one plot twist after another, without thinking much about the narrative.

QOT is at its best when the focus is on the main leads' relationship. However with everything else going on in the story, we hardly get to spend any time on exploring their relationship. Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won's chemistry is out of this world but its sadly underutilized in this drama. In the end Queen of Tears fails to live up to the hype and potential, and ends up being a huge disappointment.

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A classic: Perhaps the greatest romance drama ever

If you read the plot synopsis you'd think there's nothing new or revolutionary about this plot. And you'd be right. "Time Slip" genre has been done to death in not just Korean Dramas but Asian Dramas in general. Just last year we had three Time Slip dramas, and those are just the ones I watched. The writer has written the story of Lovely Runner in such a beautiful way that these overused tropes feel so fresh. Each episode ends on such a high that all you think about is this drama, while waiting for the next one to come out, so much so that your life will be consumed by it (I really envy people who are going to binge watch this). The ending of Ep 2 is a particular favorite of mine, where the writer spins the narrative on its head and that is the moment where I knew I was in for something special. And there was no looking back after and there was not one episode until the end where I was not captivated by the storytelling. The writer has a unique take on "Time Slip" where the main female character Im Sol is able to travel back and forth between past and the present. The only catch is, she has limited tries and there are some rules she must not break while she is in the past. This raises the stakes of the story and also keeps the narrative interesting.

Im Sol and Ryu Sunjae are the heart and soul of this beautiful story. Kim Hye Yoon who plays Im Sol and Byeon Woo Seok who plays Ryu Sunjae give career defining performances. I have seen Kim Hye Yoon before in "Sky Castle" and "Extraordinary You", and I always thought she was a good actress, but with Lovely Runner she has become one of my favorite drama actresses. This is my first drama with Byeon Woo Seok and what an actor he is! He deserves all the praise that is coming his way for playing Sunjae. Im Sol and Ryu Sunjae are some of the best written main characters in kdrama history and Kim Hye Yoon and Byeon Woo Seok elevate those characters to a whole another level. The supporting characters were all great, especially the SML, Kim Tae Sung who is a breath of fresh air among second leads in kdramas. Never once does he force his feelings on Im Sol and was such a ray of sunshine throughout. I adored his bond with Sunjae and Sol.

Lovely Runner gives us a romance story for the ages spanning multiple decades. Im Sol challenging fate and destiny, failing multiple times along the way trying to save her love Ryu Sunjae. Their story will make you cry multiple times, but you'll also smile like crazy watching them being in love with each other. Unlike other romance dramas which run out of steam in Ep 10, this one just keeps getting better as it takes you through a roller coaster of emotions. And unlike most dramas the payoff at the end is so satisfying to watch. This is one of the rare dramas which gives you a very satisfying ending, an amazing payoff to Sol and Sunjae's love story.

Music is also an important part of the story with Sunjae headlining a famous band called "Eclipse". It is very well incorporated into the story and the songs are all top tier. Half of the songs are sung by Byeon Woo Seok himself, which is such a nice touch. No wonder these songs are so popular in Korea right now.

Dramas like Lovely Runner only come around once every few years. A drama that will captivate you through its storytelling and acting and production. This drama was not at the top of anyone's "Plan to Watch" list before it came out heck even the channel was expecting it to flop but through its sheer excellence it became the raging Hit that it is. Lovely Runner is a masterpiece and one of the best dramas I have ever seen. I am putting it in the same category as "Reply 1988" and "Twenty Five Twenty One" as my all time favorite dramas.

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