Youth of May (2021)

Right Person Wrong Time

The chemistry is hands down the best part of the drama and I think the show did a fantastic job of intertwining historical events with the personal story of two people who just happened to meet and fall in love with each other during that time. The first few episodes were more lighthearted and fun, and even as the story became heavier and life became more difficult, I felt like we still saw the soft moments between the two leads, the stolen moments of safety and comfort. It really felt like two people against the world.

Maybe my only gripe with this is the ending. I have no problem with the plot itself, but pace-wise it felt like a rushed and forced tragedy and the aftermath wasn't explained well either.

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A perfect cast i must say

LEE DO HYUN NEVER DISSAPOINTS ME . when i heard he is on this new drama cast , i was excited for this . waited for this also , i must say this was worth of wait . All the characters PLAYED THEIR ROLE SOO WELL. i dont know much about this gwangju uprising story but definitely i loved . they potrayed 80's days so perfectly . never got bored at all. GO MIN SI slayed her role . i loved her at sweet home as well as at this series .

i literally hated hee tae s fathers role . i dont what was he after but he ruined many lives .

you wouldnt regret watching this .

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Beautiful and bittersweet!

I decided to watch this after I found out that Go Min Si and Lee Do Hyun (who played as siblings in Sweet home,) were going to be the main leads as romantic love interests! I was pretty excited because I have always shipped them after watching Sweet Home and wanted to see them finally playing as a couple.

I don't know how to describe the type of drama this is but it did revolve quite a bit around a lot of protests, democracy, and corrupt governmental stuff that I did not understand and wasn't really my cup of tea. However, the plot itself and the chemistry between Do Hyun and Min Si made the story a lot more interesting and intriguing to watch.

The chemistry between Hee Tae (Do hyun) and Myung Hee (min si) was just spot on. It felt like they were star-crossed lovers of the typical rich man who falls for poor girl type and rich man gets forced into an arranged marriage with someone else. Personally, I felt the romance in this drama is not just the typical rich man/poor woman love story, it had some small twist in it where Myung Hee's best friend, Soo Ryun, get forced into an arranged marriage with the man Myung Hee loved. Hee Tae and Soo Ryun don't like each other but they couldn't get out of it. I feel like you don't see a lot of these type of scenarios in kdramas. I always see arranged marriages happen with just a random girl popping up midway through the drama or something like that, but never a best friend.

I love Hee Tae because of how straightforward and persistent he was in winning Myung Hee over. Myung Hee of course was trying to be distant because of the circumstances but Hee Tae really didn't care and was willing to just drop everything to be with her. I was really hoping they'd be end game and stay together after the whole war or protest thingy going on ends. Unfortunately, Myung Hee died trying to save her brother and went missing for years, which I feel is so messed up. Like why must you directors end her life in this way LOLOL. I mean I don't mind sad/bittersweet endings but I just don't think Myung Hee' being killed off was necessary. Like her dad just gave her his whole bank account for her to use, live on, and take care of her brother but that same day ends up dying too like wtf. LOLOL.

Anyway, despite the ending, the story in general and chemistry between the two made this drama worth watching and I'm still satisfied. I really hope to see another miracle happen where they end up in a drama again together and maybe this time with both being alive and have a happy ending LOL.

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Not worthy in all means

After watching complete drama I got one confusion that what the director wants to tell or show. It’s neither shown the Korean history nor the love story properly. The most satisfying thing is that it has only 12 episodes otherwise it would have wasted some more of my precious time. Throughout the drama the ML or FL or some other characters keep on making wrong decisions and keep on suffering for that. If you see those wrong decisions you will get confused either they are brainless or the one who is watching that.
My review might be different than maximum of others who wrote here but this is my true feeling after watching this drama.
This is the main problem with Korean dramas, they try to impose feeling in a very brutal way,(spoiler alert) I don’t know exactly why they did a bad ending for this drama even after they(ML FL) struggled so much for being together. Frankly speaking I thought in the same way that the FL doesn’t deserve the ML because of annoying annoying decisions, she never listened or prioritise the ML first, most of the times she made bad decisions and hurt the ML. Really I pity on ML, he always respects her decision and love her deeply but in the end he got nothing.

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When fantasy meets reality ((your blood will boil, and your heart will flutter too))

As (I had seen it for a true story like this) but in a different way, to be honest, I felt that they wouldn't stand a chance from the start even though they knew each other for a short time, their love lasted over many years.
This is a drama set in the '80s, during the turbulent student demonstrations, there is a nurse and a doctor there. Although there are some medical things, it is not a medical drama. It's like a romantic meeting on a blind date where the girl pretends to be her friend, and her only goal is to make sure that the man won't love her and won't want to meet her again, but events change................
*** characters****
Hwang Hee Tae: I think it's safe to say that he was madly in love with Myung Hee, he's funny but sad - he's perfect with all his flaws!
Myung Hee: I love her. She does her best to live honestly and her selflessness is very attractive. She is the kindest person who will risk himself to help a stranger. Although she lives a difficult life, she will never show her sadness in front of the people who take care of her, she is a very strong woman, which is why I respect her.
- Hwang Ji Nam (Hee Tae's father): annoying, hateful, cunning, ruthless, traitor, and if I could - I'd kill him myself
It represents blind evil, greed and hypocrisy, controlling his eldest son like a puppet, or leading him like a dog while ignoring the younger.
***** some quotes:
"In the face of the storm, the only thing we could do was hold each other's hands so we wouldn't lose each other."
"Give us the strength and the courage to swim safely throughout this life"
************************************************** ******************************************
This drama shares lessons about family and love. The circumstances that revolve around our family can really influence our choices in life but in the end, we still have the right to make the decision ourselves. Loving someone can be difficult and can change our lives forever but if the other person is worth the risk, why not?!!.
I concluded by saying:
"Death" does not always refer to the body, but to dreams that are not lived, and hopes that are shattered. Which makes you wonder what it means to live? Are the person who gave up their dreams somehow alive or are they dying with each passing day?

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Deeply moving

The acting from every cast member is top notch especially the leads in the first half of the series. The leads are so natural in their acting that it almost feels like a real couple in courtship. The thriftiness of some of the characters was poignant too. The story is tight , and by dramaland's standards, convincing. The Gwangju uprising is quite shocking, seeing how the military abuse the public is infuriating. But am quite sorely disappointed with the ending for the couple. I can understand that their relationship is a reflection of the pain of lives lost and military brutality during the Gwangju uprising. But couldn't the drama end on a brighter note? Rather than painting a pitch dark night, can't there be some twinkling stars to give the audience some emotional crutches to hold on to after they journeyed through the horror of the uprising, and insanity of the leads' growing up years? Nevertheless, its one of the best dramas in 2021 - made my 'heart flutter' and the leads’ chemistry is to die for!

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I can say Masterpiece

So glad that I watched it , I even sighned to my acc just to write a review on it ,,, tbh so thankful for how many years they made me cry , so glad I watched it not disappointed at all , I won't lie that I was wondering if it worth it at some point , I was thinking it became cold , wondering about the fation and the period they intruducing the acting and many thoughts , but no , thorgh all the ups and downs as you finish watching you'll know that the time you spent wasn't wasted ...
So glad I choose this drama to watch so satisfied so grateful for all the actors the production and all
Tbh other thing at middle of it , I wondered about the ost and listened to it on yt the calm one by Kim bum Soo and when I read the name of the singer I knew this drama will turn to end & I'm about to watch something big and my supesion wasn't wrong , :)
I'm not the kind who likes spoilers or spoil a thing so if you read this review I don't think you'll get spoiler lol although I put a spoiler alert ~ anyway I wrote this to inform u that this work deserve watching
And to express how I feel now so when comeback I'll remember this ~
I love the feelings it gave me and how much I cried really ...
And the actor sooooooo handsome I fell in love🥺🥺
And yeah ,, thank u for reading this , & again u have to watch it . :) ~

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Watch this if you're okay with tears and blues aftermath

The drama should win an Oscar for real! I just wanna kiss the writer-nim and the actors for this drama !

First of all, let's talk about the acting! The hero and heroine's acting deserve a standing ovation! Besides, this is the first drama of gominsi (heroine) as main lead. The melodrama prince and princess should be titled for both main lead. Their tears just makes me crying on my bed for days. And the antagonist, i just wanna choke him to death for real. Thanks covid for the fact I can't fly to south korea right now.

Next, the plot! The romance is revolving by a real historical situation where the riot and the evilness of the government are portrayed perfectly. The messages of the drama is strongly shown. The trauma, the tears, the lost of loved one and the life that goes on afterwards. The fact that lots of hwang hee tae out there, living their lives while barely stand on their feet. Kudos to writer!!

I'm crying again while writing this review. Feels like reminiscing the painful memories.

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It had potential but the direction and script failed

I had high expectations for this drama but they weren't met. I started watching because of Lee Dohyun but his acting was kinda average in this. I think the character didn't fit him. For me, Go Minsi's acting stole the show. I was so impressed by her. Overall, the story had a lot of potential but I think the drama was badly directed and the script was lacking. The drama deal with very serious situations and a lot of time I felt like it just couldn't live up to the seriousness of the situations; It felt superficial. I found it inconsistent, sometimes forcing comedy when it just didn't fit. It took a lot of me to finish it. Despite this, I was satisfied with the ending.

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“A Worthy Watch”

“Youth of May” is a compact 12-episode series which means that the storyline is not stretched nor interspersed with irrelevant, useless scenes. Each scenario and conversation are integral to the plot so they manage to keep the viewer’s interest and maintain their attention.

The effort to transport the audience to life in the 80s, most specifically during the turbulent month of May 1980 in Gwangju, is aptly seen and felt in the set design, props, styling and music.

I was continuously entertained with the delirious mix of drama, romance, suspense, comedy, action and history. Although it leaned more on the brutal side of humanity, the lead characters’ love for each other and towards others, made up for the emotionally heavy and gory scenes.

Moving and heartfelt, you will fall in love alongside Myung-hee and Hee-tae, despise and abhor Hwang Ki-nam, sympathize with Soo-ryeon, feel sorry for Hyun-cheol, root for Kyung-soo and empathize with Soo-chan. So many different emotions in a rollercoaster ride throughout 12 memorable and action-packed episodes.

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Value to watch on this Lockdown.

I started to watch this after I saw the spoiler in tiktok. So i guess i might have a try and watch it.

I guess i'm the only one who have problem with this drama 😅 when most of the viewer cry at the end of the episode but I'm more curious about what happen with the 2nd lead female and her brother? The 1st female lead mother and grandma after the uprising? And why didnt the director show a bit about them at the end of the episode. Well there is a bit sneak peak scene but that didnt help my curiosity😅 Well, I did enjoyed watch it but thanks to the fast forward button.

And Pd-nim, I know its a period drama but the soundtrack..🤏 boring. 🙂

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A good drama, could have been better.

I have Really mixed feelings about this drama.
On one hand, the drama was good, I really liked it but on the other hand, there were some ick-y things here and there. There was so much potential but the writer just didn't go down that route.....
The drama is kind of boring and draggy, cause I guess, it's slow paced, but I really liked how they showed how the lives were affected by the Gwanju uprising, how innocent people lost their lives to achieve the democracy South Korea has today, how scary death is, and how terrifying and traumatising the uprising would have been and how brave and courageous these fighters were to not give up even after being faced by these horrendous things and it's so inspiring to know that they did win in the end, after years of struggle. These all things make you really grateful and feel the responsibility of the privileges we normally take for granted.

The chemistry between the leads was amazing, I could really feel their love and it was heart wrenching to know how the female lead won't survive. This made their happy scenes 10x sadder for me and I'm not complaining, I like to know beforehand if it will be a sad ending.
The things I feel ick-y were like when both the leads were so devastated and that was how it was portrayed to us to, like it's the end of the world and they can never meet again and all that.... but.... the next episode, the second female lead so easily tells the male lead to go to the female lead and it was like, the viewers were made all that sad for....... nothing. Weird.

Then the climax, I feel like was really really rushed. Also, I really feel like the drama didn't do Myeong-Hee's character justice at all. She just died..... so easily. There was no drama, nothing. Like Are you kidding me? It's the fricking female lead!
They should have made it distressing, disturbing, upsetting, heart rendering, tragic, the kind where you sob and sob and can't stop sobbing. They should have made Hee-Tae be with her in final moments, with both of them crying and us viewers, bawling the heck out of our hearts. It was honestly really disappointing, how the drama failed to make me cry, I remained completely dry eyed, and especially cause I picked this drama for a good cry, but alas the drama completely failed at that.
But I guess, this was what made it sadder and more tragic too, the fact that he suffered so long trying to find her or at least her body and had no idea where she is or what happened to her. The fact that this may have happened to lovers or people in general, that so many of them must have lost their loved ones this way. Not knowing what happened to them or where they are is actually the saddest thing.
Then, we also didn't get to know about or what happened to Soo-Chan or Soo-Ryeon or Hwang Ki-Nam or the protesters or how did the uprising ended, etc. In short, the ending just felt Really rushed, incomplete and dissatisfying. I feel like they had to leave out parts to adjust it all in 12 episodes.

The cinematography was good, I really liked the whole old school, nostalgic vibe with a tinge of sadness all the time.
The OSTs were fine, okay-ish. They complemented the drama really well, with the same old school nostalgic sweet and sad vibe, but the problem is majority of them were really forgettable and mediocre, at least for me. "I regret" and "Winter of May" really stood out to me though, you could feel the pain through the lyrics.

This drama teaches you a lot of things about life, hardships, freedom, democracy, dictatorship and especially, how precious freedom is. This drama will stay with me for a long time cause of the stories it portrayed and the lessons it taught.
Over all, the drama was good, could have been better though.

P. S. Y'all listen to Bigger Than The Whole Sky by Taylor Swift! The lyrics fit the leads perfectly, it's like Taylor really, actually wrote it from Hee-Tae's perspective for Myeong-Hee!!

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