See You in My 19th Life (2023)

Very unique and interesting! MUST WATCH!!

I started King The Land first… didn’t find it that great. I love Lee Jun Ho, but felt that the drama just didn’t bring out the best in his acting. Didn’t really find the humour all that funny either.

Then I started this drama, and boy was I blown away! It’s so unique and interesting!! A very refreshing perspective and fresh outlook. I loved the FL - her character is so fresh and unique. The storyline is very captivating, a little complicated and may not make sense at times- but that’s what happens when you have past lives/ reincarnation plots like these. (At least this made more sense than Lee Jun Ho jumping off the helicopter on to a steep cliff in his Hermes shoes and suit to save the girl he likes???? Does he think he’s spider-man? )

Ok enough reference to KTL. Watch this drama. It’s very good. :):):) Some ppl commenting that the ending wasnt great. I thought it was fine- an open ending sort of closure for all involved. Some loose ends with some of the side plots- like what happened with Mr Kang? I always thought that if Ban Jieum had her normal life back, he would be “released” from the spell and go back to his normal life as well?? Haha.. anyhow. These sort of plots cannot make perfect sense anyways.

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WHAT IF I REMEMBER ALL MY 19 LIFES???

If i were to describe this show in a few words its definitely gonna be- A BEAUTIFUL LOVE THAT HURTS or 50 SHADES OF LIFE.

This is the story of LIFE and DEATH. REINCARNATION and REBIRTH.
This is the story of 19 life's of a soul. A soul who has experienced it all 19 times and remembers each one of them, its both a curse and girl for it.
The soul has seen it all, BIRTH, HATE, LOVE, GREIF, LOSS, LONGING, HAPPINESS, SADNESS, MELANCHOLY AND DEATH.

This K-drama is simply beautiful, not just its cinematography and production but the STORY itself is simply BEAUTIFUL.
The theme of a romcom set in a melancholic vibes that makes you smile one second and then laugh the next. The premise of the drama is certainly a new take on fantasy. I smiled, I laughed, I cried. I did all this seeing this.

The characters are deep all with their own trauma but somehow all those trauma relate to a certain DEATH. The deep rooted pain and love is what i think make them all so relatable and complex.
When i started watching it i though the drama would be SLOWEST of slowburns but to my surprise the pacing of the romance part is perfect, Slow but you see the improvement. You see them fall over again. THE SOULMATE VIBES do the work here. Different body, different name but the same SOULMATE connection.

OVERALL, This drama is for all those that can see a hidden gem. This drama touches your very soul. I want to say so much but i wouldn't spoil it. Watching it is an experience that i wont like to take away from anyone.

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Untapped potential

I would like to preface this review by saying I was a webtoon reader of this story before it became a drama. Therefore, some of my thoughts may be a bit biased towards my feelings on the webtoon instead of viewing this show as a singular entity outside of the source material.

With that being said, I was a little disappointed with how this drama went.

First, some of the characters and relationships were underdeveloped compared to the webtoon. Yes, I am talking about Doyun as a character and his relationship with Chowon. Doyun was much more layered and given a proper backstory in the webtoon than then brief comments we got about it here. His relationship with Chowon had more depth as well and got a lot more page time than they did screen time.

The friendship between the four of them was also not as strong. They did a great job with some individual bonds but as a whole the writers missed the mark a bit on the found family the four of them had with one another.

With less time spent on the relationships between the characters, there was time spent on pretty meaningless ones. I still don’t know what the point of Ms. Jang and her son was. It literally held no one’s attention or interest. Much of the same can be said for Jiseok who was a much better character in the webtoon. I would’ve preferred they done away with his character entirely than transform him into whatever he was here.

Also, I definitely disliked the change up of Jieum’s first life. The whole point of Seoha & Jieum’s relationship is that they AREN’T fated to be together. That they chose one another in the present, in the now, not whatever the past held. Making them know one another in her first life kind of defeated the purpose of the whole webtoon in my opinion. I was also sad at the writers for doing away with Jieum’s original storyline for her first life. (Spoiler for the Webtoon) Her and Doyun always bickered like siblings so it was almost perfect that they were siblings in her first life. Again, point to the found family potential that didn’t hold as much weight here.

Now, that I have made my grievances clear, I do want to specify that despite all my ranting above there were still some great aspects to this drama.

The cast is the obvious standout. Genuinely do not think they could’ve found better people to play these characters. Maybe that’s part of the reason I’m more upset than I should be at the lacking areas of this show, bc the cast was so perfect. Shin Hye Sun was fantastic as she always is. No one else could’ve truly played Jieum and I stand by that. Ha Yoon Kyung was also a perfect Chowon. She captured her sensitivity but determination wonderfully. She truly became the epitome of a spring sunshine character (iykyk). I, like a lot of the webtoon fan base, was pretty apprehensive to Ahn Bo Hyun being casted as Seoha. Not for his lack of acting ability, but because his image drastically compared to that of Seoha’s. And yet, he was outstanding. I admire him so much for taking such a big shift from what he usually plays and taking on a softer role that he absolutely aced. Now I can picture no one else but him as Seoha. The same can be said of Ahn Dong Goo. I had only seen him in Our Beloved Summer previously and if you know his character there you know how different they are compared to Doyun. Again, he did a great job. This cast was such a great ensemble and I hope we get a few of them in other projects together one day.

The cinematography of this show was also stunning. The director really outdid themselves here. The OST was magical and really fit the vibe of the whole show. I will have ‘Juicy’ stuck in my head for the foreseeable future.

As much as I complained about the changes from the webtoon I didn’t like, there was one that was a very welcome addition. I loved Ae-gyeong and the relationship she had with Jieum. We get a bit of that in the webtoon but it’s not focused on as much so I really loved that they did here. I also did like the little role reversal at the end of this show. Really highlights how much Seoha & Jieum love each other.

Overall, despite my ranting I did enjoy this show. I don’t think there is a version of these characters that I wouldn’t fall in love with at the end of the day. Seoha, Jieum, Chowon, and Doyun have always meant a lot to me and that is something that will never change.

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ANOTHER MASTERPIECE

I didn't read the webtoon and immediately saw the drama but overall the story is quite interesting to me from the cinemagraphy which is so beautiful and refreshing to the eyes and the acting of the actresses and actors is very cool, so good.
I hope the ending is good and doesn't end sadly
Light drama not so heavy in the story
This drama deserves more hype because it is not a heavy drama and must understand the theory but can still be enjoyed.
And for the ost, I haven't listened to all of them but I like the ost that is sung by the artist named colde, her voice is good, I listen to it repeatedly for the song called star

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Lost chance

Great firsts episodes, with good pace, creative shots and enganging acting. The two leads have great charisma and the children actors are stellar especially the flamenco girl, she is super expressive and energizes every scene she is in.
Shame it all came downhill after this firsts impressions. Poor story progression, with excessive flashback scenes, that bring nothing to the characters development.
The storylines start to get submerge by a sentimental tone with repetitive themes. Seems like someone ordered the actors to act cute and childlike on every scene. Two much tone confusion, on the the last episodes, with caracteres fading away with poor resolution. Last 2 episodes fast forward ...

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Yawn, See You Never!!

Interesting beginning! When I was watching while it aired I couldn’t wait till the next episode. Then, around Episode 9 is where it started to fall off. Of course, the drama isn’t exactly going to follow every plot of the webtoons but, See You In My 19th Life added unnecessary drama to move the plot.

Examples:
— Aunt getting sick
— Ji-eum Bam having to erase all her memories from her past life

And much more. My problem which these plots were that, what’s to Ji-eum Bam without her past memories? It just makes her flat and bland. Other than that, it became very boring and dramatic after Episode 9 and the ending wasn’t very satisfying.

Do watch if you want, but avoid if you don’t like unnecessary and unexplained plots later on.

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See You My 19th Life; A Surprisingly Sweet Adaptation…

See You In My 19th Life is based on the eponymous Korean webcomic. When news arrived of the series receiving an adaptation, I must admit, like many readers, I was sceptical of the idea.Nevertheless, the series did offer some of the brilliant charm from the webcomic as well as offering a new take on the initial concept. However leaving out some key details did miss the mark a little, especially when it came to the execution of the series.


The drama is initially focused on nine year old, Ban Ji-eum (Park So-yi) who begins to remember her past lives. In particular, she can remember her past eighteenth life as Yoon Ju-won , the playmate and childhood friend of the wealthy heir Mun Seo-ha (Jung Hyeon-jun). When Ju-won died tragically, she was reborn as Ban Ji-eum, a girl surrounded by poverty and abuse.


Running away from home after her megalomaniacal father took away her money, Ji-eum meets restaurant owner Kim Ae-kyung (Cha Chung-hwa), and convinces her that she’s her reincarnated uncle Kim Jung-ho (Lee Jae-kyoon),as well as remembering her past incarnations .


Over the years, Ban Ji-eum takes time to cross paths with Seo-ha, the boy she promised to stay with in her past life. Now in her 20s, Ban Ji-eum ( Shin Hye-sun),has spent years trying to become a high-achieving individual in order to purposefully apply for Seo-ha’s company. However, fate has other plans. When Ji-Eun and Seo-ha cross paths, certain mysteries and deep wounds will soon emerge from the surface.


See You In My 19th Life was based on the webcomic of the same name by Lee Hey and was adapted to the small screen by director Lee Na Jung and writers Han Ah Reum and Choi Young Rim. The concept of the webcomic and the series is pretty straight forward: it is a fairly lighthearted romantic drama about boy meets girl with a fantasy twist. In typical Korean drama fashion, there are multiple surprise twists to try and keep viewers entertained, some of which lean heavily into the original work, others of which were taken into a completely different direction and leaving the series feel a little rushed in the twelve episode format.


The writers interestingly don’t really bother with the small details on the element of reincarnation for Ji-Eun. I suppose a lot of this came from the fact the premise is very straightforward about Ji-Eun possessing preternatural intelligence, skills and abilities from her past incarnations as second nature. While we do get to learn a little about her past lives, a lot of details were often absent or missed out for sake of the time frame, a shame for such a rich opportunity to explore how Seo-ha possesses so much knowledge.


The acting front was okay. Nothing particularly flawlessly outstanding, but Lee Bo-young delivered a good performance as Sang-a, the individual who help drive Seo-ha to coming back and running the hotel .


As characters, there’s a lot to unpack about the drama’s depiction. Ban Ji-Eum starts off fairly similar to her webcomic counterpart; calm, composed and collection, but the drama takes her personality in a different direction through being quite quick to fly off the handle at times. While I think it was refreshing to see Ji-Eum develop beyond just being composed and collected and have her own complex inner turmoils , it did sometimes take away from the witty charm of Ji Rum’s character and mystique. After all, Ji Eum is meant to be a tough nut to crack. Her ability to remain laidback and mysteriously charming while Seo-ha enacts as being naturally anxious and turmoil driven, allows the pairing to work. Without it, Ji Eum did not have quite the same screen time impression or character drive.


Adding to this ( and without major spoilers), there’s the issue of her reincarnations. We learn some of these past incarnations are very interesting individuals. However when addressing the biggest issue of her first incarnation ( something which was very pivotal to the webcomic), it is hard not to draw some obvious disparities between the two works. I don’t have a problem necessarily with the direction the drama took it in. After all, the series is only meant to be based on the concept, not a page for page adaptation. However, it is hard not to point out how in these late episodes, the way this past incarnation was handled and rushed did not truly give it justice for Ji-Eum’s character development and arc.


Then there’s Seo-ha. Compared to his webcomic counterpart, Seo-ha seems to play more active and dominant role in his potential romantic relationship with Ji-Eum. To some extent, this worked really well; Seo-ha is a traumatised and kindhearted individual, so it would stand to reason that he begins to connect with Ji-Eum over time. On the other hand, it is hard not to bring up the issue of how the drama tackled certain aspects of Seo-ha’s character development. Seo-ha’s mother and her circumstances, his childhood trauma and of course the ear issue, are all quickly played off at times for the romantic side, while only reappearing when it was necessary to add some drama and conflict.

Speaking of which, the issue over Seo-ha’s ear has remained a point of debate for fans and watchers alike. On one hand, I think it is a very positive step to see a Korean drama depicting a male lead with a hearing impairment even on the small screen, particularly in a positive light . However, I believe the director and writers could have easily have driven home more about the day to day issues for Seo-ha or its implications for his mental and physical well-being more than they did onscreen.


In addition to the main leads, there is also Yoon Cho Won ( Ha Yoon-Kyung), Ji Run’s sister from her past incarnation, and Ha Do-Yun ( Ahn Dong Goo). While the second leads get their screen time, it is a shame that the series cut off their subplots and potential character development in later episodes. As a result, their screen time and potential onscreen romance fell a little flat.


Perhaps one of the biggest issues of See You In My 19th Life came down to pacing. The early episodes seemed to struggle a lot with picking up a brisk pace. While it is understandable to have a slow first episode to explain the basics and establish the plot, the fact this went on for at least two or three episodes was a little concerning. After this point, the series did pick up slightly and was sable to be fairly entertaining. By the latter half , the series tried to speed run the major conflict of the webcomic. In all fairness having a twelve episode format is limiting to exploring a major plot in such a short space of time. However rather than accommodating the plot more succinctly or executing it a few episodes earlier on, the series rushes through major events ( such as the murder plot and important past life ) and seems to miss the initial purpose of some of the plot events to propel the romantic storyline. Instead, viewers are left with an odd imbalance between the romantic side of the series, and this odd thriller plot hole, leaving the themes and tone of the drama to feel a bit at odds with one another. The final episodes were a little rushed but did end on a bittersweet note.



The cinematography was fairly innovative in early episodes and did seem to pull every trick to make it eye-catching. Sadly this consistency was not the same in later episodes, but the series still possessed a fairly glossy and stylish tone. The OST was decent also with some good tracks such as “Here With Me” by Doyoung and “무음 (Silence)” by sunwoojunga.



See You In My 19th Life was a fairly standard and sweet romantic series. It was nothing particularly out of the box when considering the intriguing concept, but despite some notable issues over pacing and writing development, the drama was fairly engaging and remained a fun watch. Overall, a decent series for a binge watch.

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the. pools.

Haii, so i was really excited for this show when it was first announced as i never could get into the comics; the artstyle of the comics annoyed me as the main character was rather expressionless, but i had heard the story was great!
and then i watched this.
there are 12 episodes, and about 30% of that we are staring at pools. sometimes we're in the pools, sometimes we're staring at the pools from outside, but it's a lotta water for sure!
The amount of flashbacks that got reused and reused, most of the time the exact same thing or we got a small glimpse of the rest of the flashback which meant that we had to watch it again!
somehow, this show also feels empty. the hotel plot?? essentially nonexistent, which i did really hope to see, but it was sooo useless. at the end they dragged her back to the hotel and i agree with her; why??? she was mainly a talking coach if anything or their maid.
the fantasy/19th life aspect was also not used enough, and then when Minji came into the show... it was exhausting!!
i only recommend this show if you wanna watch some swooning, but then again you could also watch a compliation of those scenes, so perhaps go for that.
i'll be trying to read the comic again instead.

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Started great but second half made me wanna drop

WHY TO WATCH THIS VS WHY NOT TO

WHY TO WATCH:
+great second couple (their chem was great)
+good acting, casting (cast was picked well)
+new story line (remembering previous lives is new)
+visually pleasing (overall aesthetically pleasing)
+you should watch this at least once

WHY NOT TO:
-second half (the story line got lost)
-male lead is useless for most of the parts
-couldn't execute the story line as great as the manga

Not for people looking for:
comedy
thriller

but for people who are looking for:
great second couple
romance

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Falls so far behind the webtoon

As I always say… I am more a webtoon fan than a drama fan.

I commented on Hero class 1 saying the drama was better than the webtoon. Extremely good indeed.. But..Here it is not…

Idk about those who didn’t read it but as someone who devoured the webtoon and cried with the webtoon the drama falls so far behind. And if I can judge it this way is because they really tried to make it exactly like the webtoon without the sex and without the development of the lead male character and side characters.

I think there is a cast problem in a way with the lead characters… The female lead isn’t that cute she is more of a strong woman. I mean it literally and in terms of personality. Sin Hye Sun doesn’t convey well enough that strong character and will. The lead male is extremely fragile but to a point that you feel his fragility. Ahn Bo Hyun doesn’t convey it right. It is subjective maybe but I really am surprised from people who did read the webtoon and think otherwise. And I can’t agree with you if you say “this is the drama” well.. maybe you shouldn’t make it exactly like the webtoon then and have people not expecting the same thing..

But prolly people who didn’t read it liked this one a lot and I can understand them better.

I gave a really bad grade cause I think the grades are way too high objectively speaking.

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It's a big mess! A disappointment!

As a fan of the original webtoon, I'm so disappointed with this adaptation. It's totally messed up! A lot of changes just don't make any sense. It's just full of cliché, tropes and dumb plot holes. I just couldn't stand them.

I got so mad how they even changed Ji Eum's first life. I really love the sibling interactions between Ji Eum and Do Yun in the webtoon and I really hoped they at least kept their past together, it would be so much fun, but it didn't happen. :(

Eventhough I really adore Ahn Bo Hyun and Shin Hye Sun, they are not Seoha and Ji Eum in my mind and I didn't see any chemistry between them at all. It's not because of their acting. They are great actors and actresses, but they just don't fit the characters. Seoha and Ji Eum are much more badass in the webtoon. And also, Shin Hye Sun is 10 years older than Ji Eum, a 23-year-old woman. That makes even less suitable for the role.

I just finished the drama just for the cast only. They did a great job in a bad drama.

Now I'm worried for another webtoon adaptation from the same author: It's a good day to be a dog. I really want to see it with the live-action version, and I also love the cast. But I lost hope after finishing this series.

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