Our Beloved Summer (2021-22) was a coming of age Korean drama story that captured my interest immediately because of its fun, creative screenplay which was based on a webtoon; it was like a best selling book that one can't put down and had to stay up all night reading! The screenplay writer Lee Na Eun did a very good job creating these characters.

The acting was first rate, especially by our two leads, the irrepressible, hard-working Choi Woo Sik (Melo Movie, Rooftop Prince, Who Are You?, Pride And Prejudice, and Oscar winning film Parasite) and relative newcomer Kim Da Mi (Itaewon Class). It was directed by Kim Yoon Jin who also directed the beautiful Tell Me That You Love Me Korean drama masterpiece. With this pedigree of creators it couldn't miss. About the only criticism of the drama I could come up with is that I thought some of the secondary characters were superfluous to the story. I really wanted to concentrate only on the main couple and their story, not secondary characters' lives. The lead couple had all the chemistry I felt I needed in this story! They were addictive to watch.

The Story:

We meet Choi Ung (Choi Woo Sik) and Kook Yeon Soo (Kim Da Mi) who had gone to high school together and fallen in love as they made an experimental film documentary together. They break up after the film is completed and promise each other never to meet again. Ten years later they break that promise when the documentary they filmed ten years earlier while in school together suddenly went viral online. They are forced to face the scrutiny of the media and public together and in doing so are thrown together again, with reluctant sparks flying between them once more.

This drama shows what love feels like. Instead of discussing practical issues like family conflicts, it tells a story about feelings, memories and dreams. Their older romance is revealed in many quiet, reflective ways that I found quite beautiful. While this reunion of a couple from youth is a tried and true formula from South Korea it is elucidated seamlessly and very creatively here.

Like I wrote before, there are other secondary characters but I found myself fast forwarding through their scenes. I simply wanted to watch Choi Ung and Yeon Soo fall in love again. Their scenes together were the delight of this drama. I do think it could have been told adequately in about ten to twelve episodes if it had been edited better to concentrate only on our main couple.

Give Our Beloved Summer a try on Netflix and see if you enjoy it as much as I did.

Sometimes a good, wholesome romance is hard to find. You'll find one here!

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