I absolutely loved this drama. Off late I have been used to watching very lame and juvenile dramas such as my beloved summer. I usually love a sweet slice of life such as fight for my way or reply 1997 but since 2020 we get dramas where all the characters have Peter Pan syndrome. Characters who act like tantrummy toddlers and behave in such a non adult way. They throw tantrums and cry and break up. There is no real intimacy in short a story right of a Disney movie. This drama was such a refreshing genre breaker. Real life is often exactly like this. People sometimes get drawn to each other because they are physically attracted and then it graduates to something deeper. Most dramas show heroines like wooden dolls admirable characters but people with zero physical desire. The character portrayal of nabi was so on point. She was a passionate soul as was evidenced by her amazing talent as a sculptor but she was so conditioned by the social culture which tends to put labels on people as sl#t shame them. This drama was about her awakening and navigating through it all.
Also in the wake of Harvey Weinstein and Jeffry E, consent has become so important and no drama usually do that well however this angle was explored beautifully with no characters ever crossing boundaries. I feel that some of what women go through with their bodies and the physical pain that they feel at specific times was also such a healthy thing to show. I wish more Korean dramas did that. I have seen a few Chinese dramas show this such as put your head on my shoulder (I love that drama) and I always love it when these things are addressed.
The redemption arc of main lead was awesome since he did not have a linear path but he went back and forth, sometimes slipping on his path to being a better person till he could find his Center. I think that was beautifully done. He also received his comeuppance since he realised that lot of people actually did not like him and were hurt by his actions. I feel that both the hero and the heroine fit like two imperfect peas in a pod.
My only beef with this drama was that this drama showed clearly rich kids since no one seem to have any financial problems and that was unrealistic. How were they thinking of earning money and what were some of the avenues they wanted to do beyond college. I wish that was addressed since I think before love, what concerns a college person is how will they earn and make a living in this world. And I thought that this bit was very poorly done. There should have been some focus on this. It felt too easy peasy for people to earn money, like hey I will open a noodle shop and hey I will earn pots of money, hey I will make metal sculpture and I will earn pots of money that is so unrealistic and unreasonable