i just finished watching this beautiful piece of media and i am experiencing multiple emotions all at once. i don't think i have ever been deeply moved after watching a drama, let alone a kbl, in a while.

love in the big city is more than just a love story — it is a realistic depiction of life, love, friendship, grief and everything else in between.

as a queer person, i often consume any type of queer media as a way to learn more about queerness outside of the western lens. to see a portrayal of being queer in a way that is so raw and sincere in korea media was quite refreshing. considering how korea is very conservative, this series took a leap of faith and challenged the norm in south korean modern media. not only does it humanize queer people in a country in which they are seen as less than, it also touches upon the misogyny korean women face. the script was so beautifully written, i was intrigued to the extent where i wanted to read the novel this series was based on.

other than the story, the cinematography was breathtaking. the acting was flawless, it felt as if i was watching real people share genuine friendships. it felt as if i was witnessing two people actually fall in love.

i adore this show so deeply that i will be thinking about it for a long, long time.

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this show was such a rollercoaster, yet i had so much fun watching it. i started watching it as the description really caught my attention and had me interested as i enjoy shows about youth. the beginning is a bit slow, but i still felt compelled to complete it. it was a beautiful story — i related to miaomiao on a deeper level. she’s timid, doubts her own abilities, easily swayed by other people’s opinions on her life. it was as if i was watching a version of myself through the screen. i really appreciated how they wrote her character. i love the plot lines revolving how children are negatively persuaded to pursue something their parents want for them. as most of the characters had dreams to pursue art, some of their parent's opposed of it as art is perceived as a difficult career to pursue. yet both miaomiao, younian, and their friends show that with hard work and determination, you are able to succeed, even if your parents might not support your decisions. this show touched upon different hardships and trauma many kids undergo such as divorce, single parents, loneliness — these stories were written well and the characters overcame these at their own pace. i appreciated all of their character development.

i really enjoyed watching miaomiao and younian’s relationship developed. the ups and downs, the confusion, frustration — these are normal parts of relationships. the show didn’t portray love as a fairytale, but something you need to fight for, especially with honesty and vulnerability. however, some scenes were frustrating to watch and there were a few plot holes. at a certain point midway watching the show, i felt as if they were running in circles to lengthen episodes. there were a few aspects of younian’s character that could have been written better, but i think they resulted their relationship in a beautiful way and i was pleased with the ending. the youthful and innocent love made my heart warm and i was happy to see them find places in each other’s hearts.

although i did enjoy the show, the reason why i’m not thoroughly pleased was due to the harmful beauty standards that were unnecessarily implemented throughout the show, especially imposed upon xia and miao miao. in the beginning of the show, miao miao was tanned with curly hair and glasses. there are multiple scenes where her friends, family, and peers downgraded her beauty because of that. being tanned was scene as ugly, which is especially harmful for poc. at the end of the show, miao miao eventually had somewhat straight hair and light skin. i didn’t appreciate how ‘beauty’ was portrayed as fair-skinned, having straight hair, and being skinny. the plus sized friend, xia, was constantly teased and belittled to just being the fat girl in her friendships and society in general. her character lacked depth and was solely treated as a punching bag or a peacemaker in miao miao and younian’s relationship. the casual fatphobia and portrayal of fat people was uncomfortable and is extremely harmful for plus-sized women and men. the harmful beauty standards was the deal breaker and is the primary reason why i can’t bring myself to say this show my favorite.

overall, the show was enjoyable, but is hard to watch at times because of the unnecessary commentary. id say give it a try if you’re in for a heartwarming, youthful, exciting show. but beware of how the colorism and fatphobia in most episodes.

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