Note: This is a show where the ending is predictable and less important than the process. So spoilers won’t affect too much of your experience, or so I think.

Let it be clear that many people will not like this show, even though it is a good show imo. One major reason for dislikes is probably that the main story of this show is about an ostensibly unhealthy relationship. There is no deny of it, and the show is conscious of the fact that the central romantic story is deeply unhealthy. In fact, the multiple relationships depicted in the show all have clear problems that are so unlikeable that most causal K-drama reviewers (esp. in the West) cannot tolerate. But this is not a show that tries to justify unhealthy relationships or glorify problems in romantic relationships. Rather, it is a show that depicts how an unhealthy relationship can gradually become a healthy one, and it has done a good job of telling such a story. If you can bear through the discomfort that the show brings and carries it till the end, you may find catharsis in the end and in how mature the show surprisingly is.

I will not focus on specific plots, since all shows carry some plot holes that affect the story. All I will say is that the plot holes of this show do not affect too much of my enjoyment of it. Instead, it is the topic of this show that I want to highlight in this review. As I said earlier, it is a show about gradually turning an apparently unhealthy relationship into a healthy one. Let us pause for a moment and appreciate the courage for staging an unhealthy relationship in a TV show. The show does not shy away from the fact that main characters are college students who are carried away by their hormones and have no clue of how to be earnest, caring, and accommodating in a relationship. The relationships that are hence developed bear the poisonous fruits such as unnecessary mind-game, dramatic and moronic dialogues, ridiculous breakups, silly stubbornness, and avoidable damage that are characteristic of dating experience of college age. These easily identifiable problems also make this show difficult for audiences who cannot bear with these problems. If you have passed the college age or rather, the age where these problems finally becomes manageable, you may find the show reminiscent of past experience and appreciate the fact that these real problems are being depicted in their raw discomfort. This is one reason why I like the show.

Another reason for my enjoyment and appreciation of the show is how mature the characters are in dealing with all the problems they have. They show the rare awareness of problems, precious willingness and may I say, unconscious wisdom to give in, confess to each other, and repair their relations. One particular moment captures my attention. In the end, when the male protagonist asks the female protagonist whether she will regret dating again after all the drama they went through, she says affirmatively that yes, she will regret. But she is still willing to try. This complex attitude can easily drive the hygienic minds crazy, but truly is touching to me, for it signals the rare passion that still burns brightly after deep disappointment. Another touching point is the choice of the female protagonist. In the end, she chooses not the person who would be best for her, but the person who she loves the most. It is a choice that no one can comfortably affirm that it is absolutely right or wrong, but an undoubtedly human choice that often does not follow “reason” and “logic.” Such an ending, therefore, can again be highly uncomfortable to many audience. But I appreciate and enjoy the openness of such depiction in a TV show. If I may add a third point, let’s look at the ending again. It is not only a reunification of the main characters, but an attempt to try again. This is yet another reason why I think Western audience may have a hard time with this show: When, in the pop culture of U.S. for instance, do you ever hear the recommendation to “try again” when a relationship falls apart? The most you hear is to “move on,” “break up,” esp. when one of the partners shows clear problems. Yet in here we see something different, an willingness and attempt to forgive and restart. Much can be said about it, and I will only point out that neither choice is clearly right, but a conscious attempt of “let’s try again” is harder than the default choice of “giving up.” These points are why I think that beneath the surface of a college romance, the show is surprisingly mature, esp. in the growth of characters and its expression of human experience.

I hope I have conveyed why I genuinely enjoyed t he show and why perhaps you may as well. Thanks for reading.