[Confession] Go Back Couple!
Before anything else, I would like to define my drama reviewing:
First, I won't be posting episode recaps for dramas because i don't trust my character - I tend to get lazy when I have routines to accomplish and
Second, sometimes when I decide to watch a drama, I depend my continuance on the first episode. So if ever I am interested in a drama, I will watch the first episode and I will review it just to see how it goes. If I liked it, I'll have a continuation review after I finished the whole thing.
Kke, let's go! :D
I was struck with reading syndrome since the start of the year and couldn't touch any Kdrama on-board. But who would've thought that a cliche twist time traveling of Go Back Couple got me trying again? With Jang Nara in it, why the f not?? There’s always plenty of laughs to be had when we’re dealing with time travel, and we definitely get that in this drama, along with some pretty intense emotions that I wasn’t quite ready for. ehem.
Here is the synopsis of the drama:
Choi Ban-Do (Son Ho-Jun) and Ma Jin-Joo (Jang Na-Ra) are both 38-years-old and a married couple. Choi Ban-Do has been burdened with being the breadwinner and Ma Jin-Joo is a housewife with low self-esteem. Even though they loved each other when they married, they now hate each other. They both regret marrying at such a young age. The couple travel through time and find themselves as 20-year-old university students, when they met for the first time.
Time travel dramas have been hit-or-miss with me lately, so I’m trying to keep my expectations at a reasonable level. But it’s kind of hard to do that when the drama is this good. Jang Nara and Sohn Ho-joon are fantastic in these roles, both dramatically and comedically. Their characters were in such a bad place and it was hard not to feel for them and have my heart break along with theirs. At their core, they both seem like good people, so it’s tough to see them go through such hardship.
Failing to communicate as a couple is one of the biggest lessons that Go Back Couple gifted its followers. And justifying that this is a time-travel drama isn't enough - because it just isn't. Instead, this is more of a second-chance drama. The trip back to 18 years with the cast is a sweet nostalgia of what it feels to love the first time, and a bitter melancholia of the romance you painfully have to let go because it can’t work anymore. I found show’s key question intriguing and even rather thought-provoking: Would you make the same choices all over again, if you were given a second chance?
The thing that slaps me the most is the Mother's story. It makes me cry like a baby every time Jin Joo clings to her mom like a leech - and I can't blame her for that. The entire cast did a great job of balancing poignancy and fun for the full run of episodes. And while the show relied heavily on really only one emotional anchor, the love for a parent and the love of a parent, it was a heavy hitter that brought satisfying emotional resonance every week. While I’m sad to part with the show so soon, I have to admit that a shorter show made sure the story was focused, with little filler.
The closure to their story seemed a little too neat at times, and definitely rushed. But I still accept it all the same.
There are no big budgets here, and show isn’t even that elegantly written, to be honest. But the show packs so much heartfelt goodness in its compact 12-episode package, that I find myself eager to sing its praises – and forgive its faults. Given that these days, I’ve been quicker to drop shows than ever before, I hafta say that’s no small deal because a show that lays their heart on the table, that tends to grab me, and then stick with me, long after the credits have stopped rolling, has definitely a place in my heart.
If you are looking for a swift rom-com drama that highlights friendship, family relationship and recounting the good old days of being in love, then pick your favorite pillow and a marathon date to watch this gleeful cast.
My Rating:
Plot: 8.3/10
Acting: 9.0/10
Cinematography: 8.7/10
Characters: 9.5/10
Uniqueness: 7.0/10
OVERALL RATING: 8.5