Sparkling Watermelon (2023)

Viva la vida -- Long live life!

This Korean drama is at turns delightfully light and emotional. The music is superb. The actors are adorable. There are elements of coming-of-age, rom-com, and fantasy time travel. But, foremost, it embodies a celebration of life -- especially of aspects that are sweet and sparkly like the title, Twinkling Watermelon.

The emotional core involves the enduring dilemma faced by young people: whether to live a life that makes their heart beat or follow the lead of their parents. The main character Ha Eun-gyeol, a CODA (child of deaf adult) youth, grapples between following his passions and serving the needs of his family, when he is presented with an opportunity to change the trajectory of their lives by slipping back in time when his parents were his age. We're also presented with the question, would life really be better if the past changed to our liking?

As the story transpires, we see some of the joys and sparks of youth, its conflicts and uncertainties. It delves into teenage anxiety and mental health issues and the pressures from parents and society. The show also portrays beautiful friendships and loving, albeit sometimes misunderstood, family relationships. The deaf character portrayed by Shin Eun-soo is a gem. And Choi Hyun-wook is a master at capturing the spirit and zest of youth.

In a way, the show follows some of the winning formulae of other recent successes. As in the movie CODA, it peers into the lives of the deaf who face many challenges but lead meaningful lives. As in Someday or One Day, it makes you dream about rewriting the past, preventing accidents, and letting go of guilt and resentment. As in 2521 and the Reply series, it taps into 90s nostalgia, when times were simpler, when you had to run to a pay phone to answer urgent beeper messages and could drop by your friend's home anytime. So, in a way, it is not groundbreaking but a good story nonetheless.

If splitting hairs, the series is not without imperfections. Time travel presents logic problems. It's apparent from the proficiency of signing that the actors are not deaf themselves. And there is a reliance on common tropes to create obstacles for the characters. But I recommend you watch this for its emotional journey and uplifting message.

The main character's parents are deaf, but they are 'cheerful, healthy, and happy because they could communicate with their eyes, their hearts, and their hands.' We all have problems, but we can also grow, adapt, and have fun. The show promotes embracing music and loved ones: Seize the day, its joys and opportunities! ¡Viva la vida!

Leggi di Più

Good time-travel drama in a while but

The story, cast , music everything was perfect until last episode, the ending felt too rushed, that many important points that connect past to present were missed.
I wanted to know how Eun gyeol life changed in terms of wealth and family relations, did Yi Chan and Chung Ah meet again in US, what about the story that was present before Eun Gyeol time travelled and they didn't show anything about Eun Yu's & Se Gyeong story. I think a special episode where all the missed story should be aired to answer most of my questions.
Overall the drama was pretty good. Had many emotional scenes that had me in tears, osts are also pretty good. Do give it a watch. The idols have also acted well memorising the sign language.

Leggi di Più

love it!!?

I don't have any words left to describe how beautiful this drama is. Apart from the storyline, the production crew also made sure that the songs included in this drama were all amazing and meaningfully beautiful.
Hats off to the story writer and the fantastic production crew. Also, a big round of applause was given to the actors who portrayed their roles perfectly. While watching the drama, you can see and feel that the actors became one with their respective characters
I think that this was by far the best drama released in 2023!

I'll be waiting for season 2 desperately!
?I didn’t want it to finish; I wanted more. It's such a refreshing story. It's one of my favorite ones.

I'm just amazed by this perfect drama?

Leggi di Più

Loved it!

I decided to just check the show out, thinking that I would probably not watch it. Boy was I wrong. I was hooked in just the first half hour. The show is such a rollercoaster ride of emotions that I did not like waiting for episodes to come out. It was one of those shows I had to watch as soon a I knew a new episode was out.

The generally premise of the show seems so generic, time travel, but the execution is unique and heartwarming. So many in this genre are about going back to stop a murder. How many of those have we seen. But this one is different. At first there is no clear reason for the main character to have been sent back. He has to figure that one out himself. And I like how each thing he does seems to make things worse at first. I enjoyed the plot twists and added tension, as new goals were added. And I think the ending provided a very enjoyable solution.

I think all of the actors did a good job, but in my view, Choi Hyun Wook stole the show. Don't get me wrong, Ryeoun was very good too, but Choi Hyun Wook's energy and humor made me look forward to each of his scenes.

Give it a try! You will know very quickly if you are going to enjoy the show or not.

Leggi di Più

Amazing time travel drama

In summary, a time travel show with no loop holes.
The story is just perfect. There's no love triangle, villians were punished and a potrayal of kinship in this drama.

I loved everything about this show - from the storyline to execution to how they wrap up the story.
The pace was slow, I will recommend to watch 3 episodes to get hooked.

But towards the end, everything connects and it makes so much sense!
It is a masterpiece!!! Especially there's not much shows worth catching in 2023.
I rewatched episode 1 again right after the ending and this can be a loop.

Not to mention, the music choice is 100%. You need to watch it!

Leggi di Più

I loved a lot this one.

I started this show only knowing that Choi HyunWook was a part of the cast and thinking I wasn't going to like it. I loved it from the first episode and it became my favourite. Good plot, good cast and very good acting. It touched my heart a lot.
Sometimes it was a little bit confusing for me because I didn't understand the time changes but this wasn't a problem.
I have learn a lot of things about CODA's and all their difficults and feelings in life. It was so beautifull.
Other think I liked was the way they show how stressed the musicians are, I identified myself in many situations.

Leggi di Più

BEEN WAITING FOR A SHOW LIKE THIS!!

This was amazeballs! It was so fun to watch and was very entertaining!!! As someone who enjoys fantasy and supernatural elements, this was really great execution.

I used to loveee watching school kdramas so this was like perfect for me! Never a dull moment in any episodes.. love the main leads sooo much!! Decided to watch this cuz I found an edit of Choi hyun wook on tik tok HAHAHA

The main thing that piqued my interest was their MUSIC!!! As someone we just recently started learning guitar, this show motivated me a tons! Watch it!!! It’s got school, comedy, drama, action, fantasy elements to it too ahhaha literally a gem of a kdrama!!!

Leggi di Più

A breath of fresh air

where should i start??
twinkling watermelon was definitely one of the best kdramas of 2023, if not THE best. it was a breath of fresh air, unique in its own way, heartwarming and perfect from the beginning to the end.
twinkling watermelon broke me in so many ways and then healed me piece by piece, and that’s why it holds a special place in my heart.
there are many aspects that i loved about this drama but what needs to be mentioned the most is the way it dealt with such an important theme as deafness in such a delicate way.
i want to thank this amazing cast for bringing their characters to life and portraying them in such a beautiful way ?
definitely a 10/10 and it goes straight to my favorites! ❤️‍?

Leggi di Più

cute and a good different story

I didn't put too many expectations on this drama, as the first episode was just a backstory, something that usually happens in boring dramas, but that wasn't the case, even though at first it may seem like the story isn't progressing, you can be sure it won't be boring. , while watching up to eps 4 and 5 I wanted to put it down, but it's a much more interesting drama than I imagined, but there was one thing I missed were the old elements from the 90s, as the character takes place around 1995 I was expecting something like "20th century girl" or "twenty-five twenty-one" but that didn't ruin the drama, I really liked it.
The characters are charismatic and their personalities are very well constructed.

Leggi di Più

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎

With an enjoyable first half and a confusing second half, the main characters are well written. Acting is very good. Solid 8.5/10. ❤️ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎

Leggi di Più

Even our parents once had sparkling youth

Ever had argument with your parents? Ever had differnce of opinions with them regarding career ? Ever wanted to know how their youth was?

This drama picked a very beautiful concept and executed it flawlessly. This is a whole package .

This brought tears in my eyes, made me laugh when most unexpected and left me with mixed feelings.
I would say the ending was not very perfect and would have been beter had they explained it in more detail but overall i loved it.

The characters stole this show, especially Yi Chan is such an inspiration. The music was good and i felt the concept was similar to perfect stranger but what makes this different is the mix of all genres.
Overall this is worth a watch!

Leggi di Più