This show infuriated me by the end. Snowdrop came in with a bunch of promise halted by waves of controversy — if you avoided this show because of that, congrats, nothing about it should tempt you to watch it after all.

To be honest, this show started with a bunch of potential. I loved the nostalgic vibes and shiny wide-eyed jaunt towards first love. Snowdrop started to lose momentum once they got into the hostage situation. It dragged on way too long. I understood the point it was trying to make about politics and corruption, but we got the point after just a couple episodes. Someone joked that they blew their whole production budget on the dorm, and honestly, that sounds like the most plausible answer (considering they had to pay an all-star cast too... but we'll get to that in a second). Moreover, the last couple episodes were tropey and infuriating beyond belief. I didn't care enough about the romance to feel anything for Youngro or Sooho; the show didn't do enough early on to make us cheer for them. And then before we knew it, we were being bombarded by noble idiocy and regular idiocy galore. So many situations toward the end could've EASILY been preventable. Trust these competent agents; don't insert yourself into situations unnecessarily (this is directed at BOTH of our leads).

Jisoo especially frustrated me. All of the actors were incredible EXCEPT for her. And I swear, I enjoy Blackpink music! But she was so clearly out-acted throughout the whole show. She was tolerable for a couple of episodes, but once the hostage situation kicked in, she was clearly out of her depth. She gasped so much throughout the rest of the drama that I'm surprised she didn't pass out from the hyperventilation. She was the most useless person in the whole drama — you could arguably consider her a "candy" (not in the classic kdrama definition of the trope, but by effectively serving as bait for the ANSP and Sooho). Worse than a candy girl though, I'd argue that she was a straight-up liability. She was unwilling to compromise or sacrifice anything for the greater good of others. This was exemplified in a situation at the end that involved saving a random side character and harming four other main characters in the process (even leading to the demise of the one she cared about the most!). She blindly ran into situations without a plan and without being equipped to do anything, thus putting other people at even greater risk as they sought to protect her and achieve whatever random agenda she cooked up. I hate that she faced no consequences for this behaviour either; it wasn't even acknowledged as problematic. Jisoo's acting was awful too — I always knew I was watching JISOO, not some character named Youngro. This character could've had so much nuance and depth: idealistic, innocent, and in love, sure, but she could've also been defiant, emboldened, and thoughtful. If her actions were clearly borne of some strategic thought, I would've sympathized with Youngro. Instead, she was stubborn without seemingly any rationale, which made all her actions seem rash and ultimately stupid.

Then let's talk about the romance: it was cute at first, but based on where the story went, it really should've been relegated to a side-plot that took up less air time. Leave it as "Not meant to be" and move on. We lost so much closure and momentum towards the end of the drama by unnecessarily focusing on the romance. Think of all the moments Sooho and Youngro spend gripping each other, asking the other to go, and staring into each others' eyes without any interruption. You know what they could've done in that time? THEY COULD'VE ESCAPED INTO SAFETY TOGETHER. Of course, the more realistic situation would've been if there were constant pressure and action instead, with no time to shoehorn their longing for one another. Because of those moments, especially towards the end, it made their entire tragic situation seem completely avoidable. I found myself shouting at the TV during each of these moments, yelling at them to just GO already instead of standing there (in the basement).

Aside from Jisoo and the romance, the other actors did a wonderful job. I never cared for the moms' machinations (although I suppose they added some levity) or the political squabbles (how silly they turned out to be, although perhaps that was the point?), and I felt too many people were overly motivated by love (Jang Hanna, Kang Cheong Ya, and Lim Sooho especially), but some of the acting was truly superb. To me, there were four standouts: Jung Hae-In excellently blew past his archetype as only playing the boy-next-door in noona dramas. Kim Hye Yoon (Bun Ok), you somehow make me sympathetic towards you while truly giving us the least to cheer for. My only qualm was your choice to help Youngro save Ms. Oh towards the end — how was that choice in any way aligned with Bun Ok's motivations to SAVE HER OWN HIDE above all else? Yoon Se Ah (Ms Pi), I CANNOT believe you are the same person that portrayed Noh Seung Hye in SKY Castle — un-freaking-BELIEVABLE how incredibly she embodied that role as the headmistress. I would seriously watch a movie based on Ms. Pi's life alone. Yoo In Na (Kang Cheong Ya), who knew you had this role in you? I honestly wished Sooho spared her a single glance (or even wound up escaping with her as a way to avoid putting Youngro in harm's way). The rest of the cast did their job too; shout-out to students like Jung Shin Hye (who I liked to think of as "Madonna" for her stylish 80s fashion) and Kim Mi Soo, may she rest in peace.

This drama got my blood pressure up from the suspense; very much shades of SKY Castle. Unfortunately, it didn't critique current issues or hit the zeitgeist the way SKY Castle did, and it also didn't have the cathartic payoff due to its lacklustre, romance-oriented finale. Save yourself the pain of finishing this one!