Just when the weather outside has turned frigid, we have a lovely drama to warm up our frosty hearts. Choi Woo Sik and Kim Da Mi team up to bring you this refreshing story about high school sweethearts who get a second chance at love. Okay, I promise I didn’t run off to join the marketing team at Hallmark. If you love Choi Woo Sik’s brand of quirkiness-meets-kind-hearted-love-interest, then you will thoroughly enjoy Our Beloved Summer.
Plot
Having my high school days recorded as a documentary and then pop up ten years later to become a viral sensation sounds like the beginning of a nightmare. Choi Woong (Choi Woo Sik) and Gook Yeon Soo (Kim Da Mi) are total opposites when it comes to studying, and that’s how they end up being filmed for a documentary. Top of the class helps the bottom and fighting ensues. Choi Woo Sik is the best at pulling off the lazy male lead who might not be the smartest guy around, but who has tons of heart and an adorable smile. He’s also good at convincing me that ten years later he’s an in-demand reclusive artist who just happens to be exactly the person Gook Yeon Soo must hire to land her latest account.
These two are the best kind of enemies to lovers because you can see through all their teasing and pain and know right away that even during the filming of their documentary they were crushing on each other. The show has a fun documentary tone to the entire thing and goes back and forth between their high school days and the present. It’s sad that Yeon Soo was so driven in school and yet is still beholden to the grind of a corporate job. I’m sure it’s hard for her when she finds out the boyfriend that never seemed to work very hard now has it easier than her.
Ensemble Cast
Woong grew up and become successful but he kept his high school friends close. One of them is his manager, and the other is a PD that works with the original director of their documentary series. Woong also has a beautiful celebrity that’s interested in his art and is nursing a blooming crush on him. Yeon Soo is a prickly girl who works at an advertising company with underlings and has a BFF played by Park Jin Joo. She is one of my favorite drama friends and always brings a lot of fun with her roles. Lee Joon Hyuk also did a fun cameo in the first two episodes and had me convinced he was the second lead until I looked his character up. He had some pretty great chemistry with Da Mi so I’m a bit sad he’s not sticking around. Just FYI — Kwak Dong Yeon is dropping by in episode 4 and I’m so excited to see him.
There is a nice buildup to how their worlds will soon collide again and how the people around them will become entangled. Through the old footage of the couple together and them telling about the years that came after, we get a feel for who these two are and also who they believe the other to be. They dated for five years and there is a lot of history and also a lot of misunderstandings on both parts. The show does a good job making me want to see them sort it all out and try again.
Summer Breeze and a Silky Voice
Like I said in the intro, this drama feels like a nice warm breeze among all the zombies, death games, and sageuks. The romance is fun and quirky and the filming style is laid-back and builds the story and characters at a nice pace. To round it out, the OST has me looking up all the songs. The Wooga Squad support has struck again and Taehyung contributed a beautiful song for the drama.
Should You Watch?
This show is nothing new in concept, but it has the perfect balance of interesting characters I need to learn more about and great acting from our OTP. They have a nice chemistry and I can’t wait to see it turn a bit more romantic. They’re petty and have a lot of hurt feelings and lack a lot in the communication department, but I feel like as the show’s second documentary is filmed, their relationship will unravel and they’ll finally learn how to love one another properly.
Braving the Winter With You,
Drama Geek
Dramas With a Side of Kimchi