December Cosy Dramas

Summer Strike

Completed 12/12

This melodrama is such a gem, from the start there was something relatable and natural in watching Kim Seol Hyun's performance. Her character, Lee Yeo Reum is met with the sudden passing of her mother, and she makes a life altering decision to "on a strike" from her everyday city life in Seoul. Following her instinct, she retreats to a quiet seaside town and finds herself on a path of healing and self-discovery; along the way, she meets an ensemble of villager's that both challenge and champion her journey.

My favourite part was watching the growing friendship between Yeo Ruem and the Kim family - in particular with Kim Bom and her chosen kinship with Bom's grandmother, it was rough start for them but in time it was rewarding to see Kim Bom finally learn to trust and appreciate Yeo Ruem's sincerity.

The romance between Yeo Reum and Dae Beom is also portrayed in a way not too dissimilar to the characters, subtle and quiet, a gentle blossoming romance in the background; I found this slowness refreshing and highlighted the character's vulnerability and personal growth.

The ending is something I have mixed feelings about, the crime mystery felt slightly out of pace with the story and A LOT of direct exposition that quickly resolves the mystery in less than 2 episodes seemed messy in comparison to the majority well crafted slow slice of life drama. I honestly didn't think the drama needed this arc but it does give Dae Boem 's past some context and provides closure as he is forced to face his traumatic past. Overall it's a good slice of life drama with some "whodunnit" cosy murder mystery towards the end. The stand out performance was Kim Seol Hyun, she played the part so naturally as a quiet gentle hearted young women trying to find her footing in life again after loss.

Ms. Incognito

Completed 12/12

The show started off strong, we're introduced to Kim Yeong Ran who is at the end of her tether, emotionally drained and in financial dire straits from supporting her gambling addictive toxic mother; fortunately she lands a job as a bodyguard to the CEO of the Gasung Group. I immediately liked the contrast of the quirky cast of "rich elite" characters, defined by their extreme selfish wealth in contrast to the morally empathetic Kim Yeong Ran - unfortunately only a few episodes in, it was clear this wasn't going to be a tightly-written story.

There are also huge inconsistencies in tone and plot, it feels like they had different writers and directors for the first couple of episodes in comparison to the preceding episodes. One of my biggest gripes is the dialogue between the Ga Seon Yeong and her brother - it's terribly scripted, and as the antagonist, Ga Seon's villainous characterisation is too cartoonish and I didn't really understand why she was so ruthless try to steal her family's fortune. I thought the FL does an overall good job, and the support cast was good too (besides the bad acting from the chairman's children) - it was frustrating to see the efforts from the early episodes completely wasted on poor scripting and editing. I nearly dropped the show, but there was a lot of commitment and fast skipping in the latter half to get to the end.

Romantics Anonymous

Completed 8/8

A Sweet First Look: Romantics Anonymous

Can Romantics Anonymous save the sad state of 2025 rom-coms? I hope so.

By Episode 10nashi

This is a Japanese-South Korean remake of the French-Belgian 2010 movie "Romantics Anonymous" (Les Émotifs Anonymes), I found this to be a heartwarming and touching romance, a light-hearted love story with endearing characters that explore themes of mental health and anxiety disorder without being frivolous.

I tuned in for Han Hyo Joo and absolutely loved her character as the social awkard chocolatier, Lee Ha Na. She had great chemistry with Oguri Shun's character as the "misunderstood and seemingly cold" Fujiwara Sosuke. They had great chemistry, and often very sweet quiet moments together on screen that I adored. Their growth felt natural which is impressive for a limited show of only 8 episodes, a testament to the writing and performances from the cast.

I loved how each episode is themed around one of the seven unique chocolate flavors from Le Saveur's chocolate box collection, "Rainbow Palette" - each one exploring further growth in Ha Na and Fujiwara's personal journeys. The "Chocolate of Happiness" episode was the most touching story for me, the symbolism of using the good parts of spoiled cacao to transform into something good and valuable felt a poignant step in their character's growth to overcome their personal struggles. A beautiful romance about finding love despite of our fears and anxieties, which can often hold us back from making deep connections.