You Are My Spring (2021)

Once in a year healing warm pure romance Korean drama that we all wait for.

YES! YES! YES! You read it right. "You Are My Spring" comes under the category of slow-paced, pure romance dramas, that the Korean Drama Industry makes sure to present us with, every year at least once. And, it's not just warm, it contains plenty of healing factors which are necessary in a relationship because opening up to each other and growing up while tending to each other's wounds, is the most important thing.

As a drama, I feel, it has done a very amazing job in justifying the genre, giving off the warm romance vibes and making me cry a loads and healing my heart. Only disappointing thing about this drama is how miserably the writer failed while attempting to blend a secondary murder mystery storyline to such pure romance genre. But since the 2 storylines went seprate ways for most of the later parts, I am gonna ignore it while reviewing the drama. Although 2 different storylines with the least relevance is a major drawback for any story, I think it's fine in this case because, the thriller part is only 10-15% of the entire story, hence avoidable. This is definitely going to my top 10 romance drama list.

STORY & PLOT:
The drama majorly involves 2 people, Kang Da Jung (Seo Hyun Jin), a manager at a 5 star hotel and Joo Young Do (Kim Dong Wook), a reputed psychiatrist doing multiple jobs. They meet each other as neighbours in the Gugu Building after renting different floors (3rd and 2nd respectively). Shortly after it, both of them find themselves connected to a criminal who supposedly has had encounters with both the lead characters in a shelter home when all 3 were children.

Both Kang Da Jung and Joo Young Do have their own stories of traumatic childhood. Kang Da Jung, a witness of her alcoholic abusive father beating her mother every other night, has the scars from the past days when she had to live under a scary roof protecting her younger brother. It's been long she feld with her mother and brother silently over the night but she still has that knief stuck in her neck. Joo Young Do, the second child and a potential donor to his terminally ill older brother, was always made to feel responsible about his brother's well-being even as a kid. Upon the older's demise he was left out from his mother's love and later developed a bad heart for which he got transplanted.

Kang Da Jung, who inherits her mother's trait of picking up wrong men to date, has failed in relationship several times where as Joo Young Do, who got married to an actress to help her get better, still avoids dating in the fear of ruining someone's life bcs of his heart conditions. They keep bumping into each other after moving to the Gugu Building and also encounter each other at unusual places because of the murder case. Young Do as a psychiatrist can see through Da Jung and secretly wishes to help her out. Da Jung on the other hand finds Young Do interesting but recent events make her avoid bonding with strangers. So the drama is all about them becoming closer, helping each other to sort out their pasts, healing each other's scar and most importantly, falling in love with each other in the mean time.

The plot development of the primary story, i. e. the romance is very niceeeeee. I am soooo very happy with the story. The slow-paced, quite and gradual progression of the romance in an adult relationship is like once in hundred moment in Korean Drama World and we must realize, You are My Spring is one of them. Not just the lead couple, there are several several short yet detailed storylines for the side characters, be it about their dating life or families or work places. And I am happy those side storylines also have great relevance with the major storyline because all of the side characters revolve around each other as in live close or work together or are deeply bonded.

The primary plot of romance between the leads is accompanied by a secondary murder mystery plot where one of the main characters with connection only with the 2 protagonists is drawn. This part and this character is very unnecessary, I feel. This secondary plot could have been easily wrapped up within 6 or 7 episodes so that the story would have continued only with the romance part because all we saw about the thriller parts were hardly 10 mins per episode. Anyways, I am not gonna talk much about this part since it's totally essence less in the story.

CAST & ACTING:
I can't help but give the production 10 out of 10 because of this amazing cast. There are few unfamiliar faces here as well along with some moderately popular actors but all of them did a very good job at their respective roles assigned to them. Given that the characters are fairly drawn, all of them have succeeded in justifying whatever they were provided with and what could be more satisfying than that?

Seo Hyun Jin as Kang Da Jung is one of the most suitable choice as she has done similar files in "Another Miss Oh" and "Temperature of Love". Her expressions are always on point, no matter what the situation is, and I have always loved her acting. Seeing Kim Dong Wook in his post 2015 dramas has been a lil kinda feeling for me because of the way he's changed from a cute lil kid in Coffee Prince (2009) to a well grown adult now T T. He never fails to mesmerize with his cuteness and acting.

I have loved Yoon Park all along but here his character and the secondary plot provided to it are really unnecessary, so I am not gonna say much. Anyways, he looked extra handsome in this, I must admit. Nam Gyu Ri as Ahn Ga Young, a depressed actress, did justify her role. I have loved her dialogue delivery style and her character is lovable. Kim Ye Won as Park Eun Ha, Da Jung's friend and the owner of the ground floor coffee shop is straightforward and cares a lot for Da Jung. Ga Young, Eun Ha and Da Jung's trio friendship chemistry is worth falling for. The other trio was of Young Do and his 2 best friends, Seo Ha Neul (1st floor Vet), Chunk Seung Won (variety show PD). These guys were so cute together and loved the way they have been maintaining this long-term friendship.

Another character is Moon Mi Ran, Da Jung's mother played by one of my fav ahjumma Oh Hyun Kyung, which I loved so much. Whatever she went through in the past and how she overcame that plus raised her 2 kids and also how she's living her life in the drama, everything is very well portrayed.

Among others, Park Chul Do (Eun Ha's twin brother), Kang Tae Jung (Da Jung's younger brother), Oh Mi Kyung (Young Do's assistant), Park Ho (the asst. Detective), Heo Yu Kyung (Da Jung's colleague), Min Ah Ri (cafe part-timer), Ko Jin Bok (chief Detective), Patrick (Kpop idol and Ga Young's boyfriend) and Han Jin Ho (Ga Young's trainer) are some notable characters. Even with small screentimes, these characters bloomed very well in their own ways.

DIRECTION & SCREENWRITING:
Direction is very good as well. Given the story is extensively relevant to the past events of the 3 main characters, the production had a lot to do on their plate and I feel that's been well executed. The sound editing of first 5 or 6 episodes kind of gave off the feelings of this drama being a thriller genre. It was dark and intense enough to make the audience anxious about what might happen next.

The writer with less experience has done a good job in drawing the plotline of the entire drama which is possible when you are aware of numerous shades of relationships and the most important thing in the process of love. The intensive romance by the means of healing the other's heart is the best kind of romance which has been very beautifully written in the story. Also, it's quite rare for Kdramas to draw subtle yet meaningful storylines for the side or supporting characters but if you see, this drama delivers them very well. Not just one or two, all the slide storylines were cute and made me feel good.

The only DRAWBACK of this drama is the secondary thriller plot. I think to make the story extra interesting as well as to fill the quota of 16 episode drama trend, the writer added the character of Yoon Park as well as it's storyline. There's no definite second lead syndrome here anyways so that way, they should have limited the thriller part to first few episodes and tried to wrap that up asap. But they dragged it till the end which could have been i interesting if it were related to the lead couples to a great extent. It rather was a whole different story with the 2 lead having nothing to do with. Yoon Park was seen with the 2 leads separately only in few scenes and also the mystery part is given hardly 10 mins in each episode following the 4th. So in my opinion, this secondary plot could have been easily avoided even so the drama had to end with 14 episodes. May be the writer wanted to make it lile "When The Camellia Blooms" but it became a waste.

OSTs:
There are plenty of OSTs along with more than one versions of few tracks. "In Ruin" by Raiden is an slow yet intense track. "Because its You" by SURL is a beautiful softcore healing track that's been well used in the drama. "Still Wonder" by Ha Hyun Sang is a jolly song that makes your heart flutter.
"A Butterfly Flew Away" is a feel good song with beautiful lyrics sung by Kim Min Seok and gives off the oldschool Kdrama OST vibes. Another OST of the same vibes is "Dear My Spring" which is both healing and sad at the same time. Our dear Onew has sung this.

"Falling Flowers" by Yang Da Il is a heart-wrenching sad track that was used while showing the childhood stories of the 3 leads which made me cry every time I listened to it. In fact, the drama starts with this song. "Cliché" by Kwon Soon Kwan and "Me So Bad" by YOARI are 2 happy-go-lucky tracks. Notably, "Falling Flower" has a Da Jung Version sung by uri yepoo noona Seo Hyun Jin.

The instrumentals of the above mentioned OSTs plus the background scores are all well utilized. First few episodes were a bit confusing because they used thriller sound devices which later shifted to warm romance vibes.

DESCRIPTION:
Well, you might think I am overreacting by saying the same thing again and again but this drama is actually very good. It's totally my type of healing romance Kdrama, something that I always wait for. The way Da Jung and Young Do went from becoming strangers to acquaintance neighbours to friends to finally lovers is such a beautiful course events to witness throughout the journey. Their way of accompanying each other, extending hands to each other, listening to each other, trying their best to understand each other, tending to each other's wounds as well as healing every lil corner of each other's heart, are very warm and a wholesome feeling. They gave their 100% in building trust between them by means of hit & trial method. They did crazy things together in a snow evening. They believed each other during the times of odd. All these things are parts of a warm and healing love story which seemingly disinterests a huge no of audience but that's their fault of having no taste, ngl.

The relationship of a mother and daughter between Mi Ran and Da Jung are notable. They didn't only look like friends by looks, they actually lived their lives as friends. Da Jung relied a lot on her mother as a kid even when they were poor and had to go through domestic abuse. Now that she's a grown lady, her mother has become a companion in her life, giving shoulder to all her pains and celebrating on her even days. In fact, Kang Tae Jung is also close with her mother and sister and them as family grew stronger given they had a shared past of darkness which they have overcome and been living together.

Friendship is another device that's nicely utilized in the drama. Starting from the all guys trio of Young Do, Ha Neul and Seung Won that showed the essence of long term friendship, then Da Jung, Eun Ha and Ga Young, the all girl trio that showed how people befriend strangers at different stages and various situations.

Brother-sister relationship, idol/actor dating life, after effects of long-term dating and breakup, professional life in Police Station, Hotels and Hospitals, bonding between employee and employer, etc are some other notable relationships portrayed in the drama. And, as I have already mentioned, the arcs of all the side characters are very well done. That's what also wins points for this drama.

The thriller plot ended right before the finale so it was kinda relieved and I love the ending as well, just like a warm pure romance drama should end. I was actually afraid things between Da Jung, Young Do and Da Jung's mother will turn somewhat typical family drama in the last 2 episode but thankfully it didn't happen. The level to which my heart has been healed by this drama, by crying, laughing and smiling wide is unexplainable. I am very happy about that.

Last thing I would like to add is how some people are complaining that there is no chemistry between the leads at all. Let me tell you that, the kind of romance and chemistry we see in pure romance are all almost the same whereas this drama seem to have tried a different approach. In real, every other relationship is different, in fact the definition of love, dating and romance are different for different couples. Nobody needs to kiss, hug and be clingy all the times or even to keep saying cheesy stuffs to express love and prove chemistry. Morever, friendship between a couple should be the most important factor in a relationship so even if they act more like friends than couples, it's totally fine. Let's go beyond norms. Let's not set boundary for a beautiful thing like by forcing our own definition on others. Let's be open-minded and let people live their lives however they wish to.

CONCLUSION:
Overally this drama is a very nice. I already said I am not gonna judge or even think about the thriller secondary storyline but it anyways a part of the story that'll forever remain a demerit for the drama. Iwould have given 9.0/10 if it weren't for that particular thing but since it's already there I am going with 8.5/10.

I feel a lot of people, like literally a huge no of people are missing out by not watching this. I wonder why this ain't popular but again, thw answer is clear that it's not everyone's cup of tea. However, I wish more and more people start recognizing and appreciating such genre of warm pure romance, even so it's a gradual process.

I am definitely coming back to this drama again, whenever I feel like and I am the setting the rewatch value at 8/10. This drama truly is healing and warm. GO WATCH THIS PLEASE.

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But seriously, what did I just watch. I need the spark notes.

This drama is messy. "You Are My Spring" is a drama that tries to do too much. It's part thriller and part romance and although they try to link the two it never feels like one cohesive drama. The first few episodes got me hooked. I loved the suspense, the chemistry between the leads, and the cliffhanger episode endings. I didn't love the overload of internal monologues and "deep" dialogue, but I expected the story to pick up the pace and become more and more exciting as it progressed. I was wrong. I ended up becoming more bored and confused, and eventually annoyed. Maybe the dialogue feels different when you actually know Korean but instead of being moved and inspired by it, it felt forced and heavy-handed. I forced myself to finish hoping it would all make sense in the end.

It didn't.

Yoon Park gave the most interesting performance in this whole drama. I won't say much more than that but I will mention that this part of the story needed way more screentime. His part of the story falls under thriller and it honestly felt like they abandoned that part of the plot almost completely about halfway through in order to focus more on romance. The romance is pretty cute for the most part, at least in the beginning. I'm a fan of Seo Hyun Jin and her quirkiness, and Kang Da Jung is the kind of role I like to see her play. She is matched with Kim Dong Wook as awkward Joo Young Do a psychiatrist who analyzes everything at first glance. Their chemistry is ok, but their cute innocent banter got old quickly. Eventually, their romance becomes the main focus of the drama but don't confuse that with anything actually happening. It's still a lot of inner thoughts and metaphors. It was the equivalent of watching two people read their diaries aloud and hoping they will at least hug, or listening to two awkward teenagers recite repetitive poems, even though they are both grown.

The other characters had a cute friendship thing happening but most of them were not that interesting or fully developed. I loved Young Do's BFFs and thought they were great, and I loved Da Jung's mom, but the other characters were just a step above filler. I wish the other romances were either given more time or cut out completely. I wish Ji Seung Hyun wasn't gypped out of a potentially hilarious relationship just to make him pine away for someone far less interesting. Also, the celebrity scandal trope is so tired I cringed whenever that was the focus, although Nam Gyu Ri as self-centered Ahn Ga Young definitely grew on me. She reminded me a lot of a friend I have. lol.

So... would I watch this again? Maybe. I know that's surprising since I disliked it so much but It's driving me crazy that after 16 episodes I have no idea what this drama was supposed to be about. I keep wondering if I missed some major clues in the beginning. Maybe I dozed off during dialogue that actually had something to do with the plot. Maybe it will be less torturous during a second viewing because I wouldn't be waiting in vain for the story to become exciting again.

Overall, this drama was disappointing. Instead of an interesting psychological thriller or an against all odds love story, I feel like I was left with the start of a potentially good drama-filled in with "deep" conversations, metaphorical snow, too many flashbacks, and product placement overload, and characters talking for way too long to themselves. Any themes about forgiving the past, or finding the will to live and love were overshadowed by the sound of me yawning. Yes, curiosity about these character's stories kept me watching, but I had to get all the way to the end to finally admit to myself that I didn't even care about them anymore. I associate spring with growth but my feelings about "You Are My Spring" withered and died.

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You Are My Spring ; The Attempted Reimagining Of Love

Fusion genre dramas aren’t unheard of in K-dramas, but ‘ You Are My Spring’ certainly pulls out a new record with the amount of genres in tried to cram into the show. Does it work? On certain grounds ‘ You Are My Spring’ is partially poetic and partially natural speech at times . The dialogue infused by screenwriter Lee Min Na is a rare example in a K-drama for each individual character -feeling natural because it flows out of the mouths of these characters coherently .

Of course this drama wouldn’t be complete without its star-studded cast. Whilst admittedly there were few eyebrow raising moments of acting in parts of the show, our main cast did add their own dynamic charm to their onscreen personas. Actress Seo Hye Jin plays bubbly hotel manager Da Jung. A talented businesswoman and a person with a heart of gold, Da Jung had a rough upbringing and believes her love life has forever been tarnished by her mother. Da Jung immediately has a likeable charm for viewers even from her initial introduction -she isn’t the cliched “ ditsy and innocent ” female lead archetype, but still often finds herself at the crossroads during problematic moments in the drama. Similarly she’s career-orientated and a hard worker but is often fairly relaxed and kind-natured. However whilst it is understandable that whilst we do see her struggles flare up during “ necessary” moments for the storyline, this was often used as a carte blanche by the screenwriter to “ intensify drama” in order to keep the plot moving, or kindle “ potential chemistry” between the main characters rather than explore Da Jung’s sentience in more depth . There was so much potential to understand more about how Da Jung tried to cope with years of trauma in daily situations, her relationship (in more depth) with her mother, her past relationships as well as how this impacted Da Jung’s social experiences during childhood and growing up also.

On a more praiseworthy note and before commenting on the rest of the main cast, it is important to commend the cinematography and symbolism in this drama . Director Jung Ji Hyun tangoed a lot with screenwriter Min Na’s storyline points through subtle motifs and shifted lighting in order to explore the drama’s heavy-hitting moments in more detail. Da Jung’s morbid obsession since childhood with Edgar Allen Poe’s “ The Black Cat”acts as a perfect analogy for the mystery of the drama.

Yet back to our main cast it is impossible to forget Hye Jin’s fellow costar Kim Dong Wook who played main lead Yeong-Do. Kim Dong Wook added a refreshingly calm presence to our main lead. As his onscreen persona Yeong Do is very much written in the role as the “ nice guy” trope- he’s flawed and has his own emotional scars, but is amiable and possesses a good heart. A psychiatrist who significantly cares for all of his patients, it is fair to say that it was surprisingly heartwarming to see Yeong Do confront his patients or people who come to his clinic in different ways and through small, yet meaningful words and interactions. On a more nuanced note Yeong Do was very much in the same boat as Da Jung.A likeable and sweet character, but a lot of unexplored territory with his development beneath the service . Without giving any major spoilers, it’s fair to say that there was a lot of potential to explore regarding Yeong Do’s childhood. His complicated with his father was often dismissed or skipped over rarely giving opportunities to understand more about his childhood, the impact of his childhood on truly shaping the person he was during the events of the series and of course his exact reasons for becoming a psychiatrist in the first place. Whilst it is arguable a lot of his motives for becoming a psychiatrist were arguably sparked as a consequence of the dramatic events of his past , there was surprisingly little mention or reasoning even during heartfelt talks with Da Jung to back this up.


This naturally moves us onto the potential romantic relationship between Da Jung and Yeong Do . Whilst there are some undeniable qualms with the written relationship between their characters, it is undeniably that respected actors Hye Jin and Dong Wook really worked well together with their onscreen chemistry. They undeniably added vital life to their onscreen personas’ feelings for one another and watching this growth from blossoming acceptance to something more was quite heartwarming. However it is important to be forthright by explaining that this relationship was also the drama’s hamartia.

Refreshingly , it wasn’t necessarily a problem that this potential paring was “ toxic” or “ unhealthy” by either characters’ implicated actions. Both characters made flawed mistakes and misunderstandings within this relationship, yes. However both character were also able to accept and move on from their mistakes or fallbacks- Da Jung could learn to lean on Yeong Do rather than bottle up her emotions, whilst both Da Jung and Yeong Do learnt to give one another distance and time to heal after a particularly severe incident without relentlessly hounding the other. It was honestly a fairly overt relationship. On the other hand it is quickly apparent to see where viewers can grow lost within its labyrinthine plot- a romance story which suddenly turns to a murder mystery, and then back to a slow-burn love story with dominating screen time after the halfway is undeniably off putting for viewers expecting thrill and hype . Adding to this issue was of course the myriads of cliches and tropes which began popping up in the romantic side of the drama- so lacklustre and predictable from other aspects of the uncertainty of the thriller and mystery elements of drama, that sometimes the skip button could never look so appealing.

Of course it is important not to forget the talents of “ second main lead” Yoon Park who added a layer of depth and brilliance to his dual performance as Ian Chase/ Chul. The storyline surrounding the mysterious Ian Chase ( Yoon Park) and his uncanny resemblance to Chul ( also played by Park) was a major source of intrigue throughout the drama, and whilst this storyline certainly didn’t disappoint as later revelations came to light , there were moments which often fell flatline at times because the show was often being pulled apart in so many different directions. Nevertheless did this become more apparent just after the halfway point. Juggling between murder mystery and romance soon saw a higher dedication to the lacklustre slow-burn romance between the main leads- sweet and gradual, but so disconnected and predictable ( including tropes)from the other aspects of the drama that sometimes the skip button could never look so appealing.

Then there’s Ahn Ga Young( Nam Guy Ri). Admittedly there’s a lot more than meets the eye here with Ga Young and rather than sending her down the superficial route as the “ second female lead”, it was intriguing to see this character ‘s growth by her backstory and gradual wholesome friendship with Da Jung. However whilst Gyu Ri is a good actress , the tropes defining other aspects of her character resorted to her being reduced at times as nothing more than a quick plot device to heighten the stakes or comical foil. This was also case and point with our side couples-so cute and bubbly that they often won over the viewers’ attention from a dragging scene between Da Jung and Young Do, but lacking screen time did little to give these couples more limelight in the
second-half also. The ending was as expected-bittersweet in parts, sugary sweet in others but failing to wrap up some more nuanced storyline moments also.

The verdict for ‘ You Are My Spring’ is undeniably that it is dependent on what you want from this drama. At its forefront ‘ You Are My Spring’ delivers good performances by the cast, surprisingly well-written dialogues ,aesthetic cinematography in parts and tries hard to deliver a fusion genre production. Whilst the different genres do help to “ spice up” certain elements of the storyline early on, this idea soon falls flatline when other genres ( particularly the romance) begin to dominate major screen time for evidently more quintessential storyline moments. As a consequence the characters’ development and slow pacing in the storyline soon begins to struggle beneath the surface. The drama often becomes lost in its own labyrinthine complexity-trying its hardest to be an avant garde masterpiece , but often failing to reach the mark in the second-half. Enjoyable but admittedly flawed.

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Novel formula boosted by some flawless contributions

"You Are My Spring" attempts to combine a rather grim murder mystery with a lighter romantic drama and it in large succeeds, though it is more due to how well some of the foundational components are executed than due to the freshness of the concept.

First, the photography is stunning. The composition of the shots and the editing in this production are as good as any video since "Parasite". It's that good.

Second, the cast as an ensemble is without a weakness. From Seo Hyun Jin to the major supporting actors (Kim Ye Won, Kim Seo Kyung and Baek Hyun Joo are especially strong), to the brief appearances, there is not a single below the bar performance. But special commendation must go to Kim Dong Wook who simply astonishes as Joo Young Do. It is almost certainly the finest acting performance of 2021 and should be a case study in how to use subtlety and silence in creating a compelling character

And the writing is excellent as well. All of the main characters are complex and original and genuine. The dialogue is smart. There's very little of the standard cliches and when one big one appears, it's done so well that it can be forgiven. Particularly well done is the character of Ahn Ga Young played by Nam Gyu Ri. What at first appears to be a stock self-centered celebrity type is surprisingly comical and sympathetic and bright.

It's not without shortcomings. The dual storyline concept works well when the main duo are closely intertwined in the plot with Yoon Park and the police detectives. But as the romance drama coalesces, the crime drama dissipates and when it inevitably reappaers in the later episodes, it blends in awkwardly and the storyline gets incomplete closure so that a late blooming side couple can have a share of the spotlight. There's also a minor subplot that appears regularly before vanishing and leaving the involved cast members either relegated to props or eliminated altogether.

Any criticism of "You Are My Spring" for trying to do too much with two very differently toned storylines is legitimate. The show cannot keep the threads wound tightly together for the full sixteen episodes. However, the stretch of "You Are My Spring" from episode seven through thirteen is wonderful. This drama should be on any list of the finest productions of 2021 and most strongly recommended.

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jack of all trades, master of none

overall, this show is worth watching, even if on the side. i enjoyed it for the most part. it has an amazing cast, mature script, and a plot that is watchable enough. my favorite aspects of this show are the slow burn romance, the realistic conversations, the healing, it all felt very genuine. i didnt see it as too slow or boring initially, i somewhat enjoyed how they addressed coping with trauma and how they depicted the lives of 30-somethings. but this show does have its setbacks (which i dont think necessarily overpower the positive aspects of the show), which ill be discussing below.
GENRE
its genre, or lack of specified one, has to be the biggest issue. those that saw the romance/ drama tags were probably offput by the random scenes regarding murders and crime, and those that looked forward to the thriller and mystery tags were probably disappointed by how fleeting the scenes really were. this drama tried to be a jack of all trades, it took much on its plate and subsequently wasnt enough to satisfy anyone. if the director had chosen one genre to focus on, theres no doubt this wouldve been a fantastic drama. instead we are left with what feels like a mash up of two different shows entirely. in my opinion, this show wouldve worked best as a slice of life, considering the backstories of each character and how show chose to approach their growth.
INCONSISTENCY
this leads me to issues with consistency: the thriller/ mystery subplot took up a large portion of the beginning of the show, dwindled near the middle, and resurged near the end for the reveal. the show tried its best to blend scenes of opposing genres as best as they could, and i think they did a fairly good job- at least in the beginning- considering the challenges of shifting moods. but overall this show was a romance, with a subdued mystery shoved in to keep up with the current trends in kdramaland. they packed so much into one drama that it felt messy and inconsistent as each episode went on. there are other minor inconsistencies that i will mention at the end of this review.
TROPES
despite having a really mature feel within the issues of our characters and their relationships as well a genuine script, this show still managed to use EVERY cliche kdrama trope in existence. im talking childhood connections, unnecessary breakup, love triangles, lead with fatal illness, the stalker second lead, doppelganger/ twins, the shaman, forgotten first love, etc etc. they handled them okay, but it goes hand in hand with the overwhelming+ unnecessary amount of genres. this show had enough plot+ subplot to keep viewers entertained without relying on an over abundance of childish tropes. it cheapened the overall viewing experience, for me.
CHARACTERS
i liked the characters initially: the FL had a personality, and the ML wasnt a jerk. low standards, but its a refreshing change from many kdramas. their chemistry was alright, but i mostly liked how their relationship formed and how mature their conversations were. BUT i hate that midway and onward, most of the characters were only there to serve the FL/ML romantic arc. like gayoung was just there to make sure ML would rethink his stupid decisions even though character had so much depth and potential; she was depicted as mentally ill and s*icidal but it was only used in the beginning to serve shows purpose. similarly, cafe owner bff had family trauma and a past relationship issue which was only mentioned a few times, and we dont know anything about the brother at all. as for ian chase, they shouldve focused more on his internal struggle and ptsd, instead of turning his subplot into a murder mystery. the combined FL and ML friend groups during the camping trip were cute and i was hoping to see more intermingling and growth, but they only came together to discuss how to make FL and ML a couple. even the FLs storyline reverted to focusing on ML later in the show, even though she had unresolved trauma, a job, family dynamics, and so much more that couldve been built upon. MLs trauma wasnt unpacked at all, only briefly shown through flashbacks. all of these wouldve made great subplots for the drama, had it chosen to focus on slice of life instead of a mediocre romance and half baked mystery.

THE REVEAL
even after the reveal in ep 13, i was still confused. the scenes from 2003 were especially confusing. ian was the twin in the fake foster care, but why was chae jun the murderer? which twin forced the other? or was ian the murderer after all?? it just wasnt clear at all, no matter how many flashbacks and reveals they showed. by the end it was more clear, but it shouldnt have taken so long.

notice how all of shows problem come from doing too much and not enough all at once? if show had simply chosen one main genre to start with, this wouldve all been resolved.

here are some small details that bothered me:
1. the cinematography for the first episode was complex, and completely different from the rest of the show. i guess they were trying to make an impression but it made it hard to keep up, even though in retrospect the events that occurred were fairly simple.
2. i hated how the SML, chae jun, was even given a romance arc. he was creepy and stalker-esque since the beginning, following FL around from her place of work to her home even after she said no.
3. the actress for the FLs mom is only 15 years older than the actress for the FL. im not saying its impossible for her to play FLs mom, but she also LOOKS young, or at least too close in age to FL. it feels like they chose an "older" actress thats nicer to look at because she was getting so much screen time, and had a potential love story. in my opinion, they couldve easily hired someone visibly older to play FLs mom. attractive people arent the only ones that deserve to be portrayed on screen. think of iconic kdrama moms such as kim mikyung that couldve played this role well, despite not being "conventionally attractive".
4. FLs mom has a love interest thats mentioned many times in the beginning, and then disappears.
5.show kept shifting the villain between different characters, which is understandably part of the plot's progression but it makes it hard for viewers to have a deep hatred for the designated antagonist, as he shifted from the second male lead, to ian chase, to the woman who wanted her father dead, to the homeless guy etc and didnt give us enough time to just hate the villain.
6. ​i know that this is a kdrama so everything has to magically line up, but seriously? ian chase HAPPENS to stay at her hotel? the wedding in ep 13 HAPPENS to take place in her hotel?? is it the only hotel in seoul or what??

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A Bad Mashup of Genres

A mystery thriller and a romance drama in one? Definitely sounds interesting to me but this drama executed that mashup so poorly it felt like I was watching two completely different shows. The synopsis of this drama would make you think that the plot would revolve around the murder mystery but literally after the first two episodes, there's pretty much no more correlation between the lead couple's story and the murder mystery story. Not to mention they barely gave the latter a decent amount of screentime. Every episode is 80% Da Jeong and Young Do flirting, 10% the cops trying to solve the murder case, 5% Ian Chase's backstory, and 5% the side characters.

Now, the lead couple's relationship is actually heartwarming and their chemistry is off the charts. Their dialogues were nice and comforting although a good amount may have sounded better on paper. There were a lot of internal dialogues/monologues that were too poetic and philosophical that they felt a little forced. It's like the writer had a collection of poems lying at home and decided to use all of them at once. As for the romance plot, it was insanely slow and boring. Literally nothing was happening. They were talking, walking, eating, and driving - repeat that for 14 episodes. There was no solid conflict (the conflict that they had was completely pointless), no climax, nothing.

I’m especially disappointed in the murder mystery plot because I expected so much from it. The writing was so sloppy and it ended up being a useless addition to the story. The writers could have done away with it and it wouldn’t have any impact on the lead couple’s story at all. Ian Chase was the most interesting character for me and I really wish we saw more of him and his backstory.

If you're into slow-burn romance dramas without an exciting plot, I guess this might be worth giving a try. You can pretty much ignore the whole murder mystery plot and just enjoy watching the lead couple. If you came here for the thriller, give this a hard pass.

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So much potential just ruined

What do you get when you take a great story, great cast. some great lines and dump a bunch of slow mo never ending monologue with violins, piano, cringe and misinformation... 5 stars and some bored viewers.

This drama has so much potential, really the cast is great, it has the looks, the chemistry, the diversity (ish), no one overly annoying and most of all no one lacks talent. The story has everything I love in a drama, it had my head spinning the first few episodes with suspense making my head spin of all the theories, it tackles some of my absolute favorite issues, including child abuse, domestic violence, mental illness, suicide etc. It has some amazing friendships and relationships and even shows a person who lives with a recycled heart as a competent human being! Topped off with sweet, sweet romance, fluff and amazing side couples. This could easily have become a 10.

But then, it was just dragged out, and just turned in to a mess making me bored instead of spinning my head by the time we got to know the truth, I honestly could not have cared less.

At some point the main characters get to have conversations with their inner child, I am sorry but all respect to inner kids watching it on screen just makes me want to barf. And the monologs just never end... They try to be healing and non judgmental but end up just bad, cringey and boring. I think they try to tell us that the smallest things can make a difference but it just becomes to much... Again sad because some parts are actually good and worth hearing, just that it gets drowned out by the moralisation, and never ending slow motion talk (okay it was not sloe mo but it felt like it) and I do not have double speed when I watch Netflix on my lap top so I endured it... But If you do not mind this stuff, go on watch it because it is pretty good between the boring parts, and hey it also has some sweet animals in it.

Now to the misinformation about heart transplants, as a person living with a recycled heart this bugs the hell out of me, why you may ask well, I will not spoil this so Ill just say it is used in a very dehumanising way for the plot from several angels but also misinformation is bad for those who may need a heart and those who live with a recycled heart because it effects how we are perceived and can scare the s*** out of us and people around us.

While watching I wrote this:

Ok so as a heart transplantee I just have to say a few words, people who receive hearts have no time limit, we may have had before but not any more. As long as we go for regular check ups and take our meds we should be fine. We may need a kidney or liver later on but I think it is pretty rare, and my liver and kidneys are in great shape (I check them every year)!

We are not restricted from exercise at all, it may take a while for the heart rate to go up but other than that we (I) should probably exercise more.

We are more susceptible to infections (our meds lower our immunsystem), and skin cancer, some of us get anxiety, survivor's guilt and more often than not try to compensate for the loss of time due to previous illness by overworking and getting stress induced exhaustion...

But can otherwise live perfectly boring lives, do whatever we would have done without the experience of recycling hearts...

So now you get a lesson about recycling hearts, this of course goes for those with access to good health service, I also assume restrictions can very from place to place but for those wondering I take lots of meds, have a bunch of big scares (his is never visible) and need to avoid soft ice cream and milkshakes from a machine, unpasteurised dairy, raw fish or meat, grape fruit, ice from a machine, always wash vegetables well and cut off the ends of tomatoes, avoid raw juice if it is not freshly made and need to avoid ibuprofen . I am allowed to drink alcohol in moderation unlike him, and I think that is it...

So if you do chose to watch this you may want to bare this in mind...

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Nice but still disappointing

The story has two arcs of narration:

- One about two persons who have a difficult past and met to discover each other, heal each other and find Love. Around them are their friends who accompany them during their journey.

- One about a serial killer who had ties with both the ML and the FL in their past and they meet again as adults.

ROMANCE PART:

- I liked the two leads. They were endearing by the way you discover their hurtful past, their complicated present. These two do not start as lovers. But they slowly grow to know each other and create ties in a natural and way. They have a great chemistry, not only physically and in the way they look at each other but what they live and the words they say to each other or do not say to each other. It shows how much they are drawn to each other.

- The secondary romances. There are a few side romances developing. But they are overshadowed by the main couple. This is too bad because the secondary characters involved are cute and nice persons and I wished their romances were better presented. These were cute but kind of lackluster also.

THRILLER PART:

- The thriller starts with a huge surprise as the possible culprit is not one person but a pair of twins. The part is well introduced and has plenty of mystery to dig in but soon it becomes draggy and disconnected from the two leads. It is like a story next to the story. The ML and FL are not involved directly but they are supporting characters in the thriller. The interest depends on how much you like the two twins or not. And I liked none of them as for me their actions are not justified. Towards the end of the drama, it is very messy and includes plot holes. The final has loose ends, is too unrealistic and wrong on the aspect of Justice.

CHARACTERS:

- Kang Da Jung / Joo Young Do: extraordinary couple. Their healing story is adorable. Also, the actor and actress portraying the couple did an amazing job conveying so much emotions.

- Ahn Ga Young / Patrick: She looks annoying at first as she is a nutcase acting with total shamelessness but she is sincere towards the people she likes. The couple she forms with Patrick was a bit bland for my taste.

- Park Eun Ha : An interesting character with her sad family and sad love records. She finds a surprising love, a mature and funny one but too bad it is half told half showed.

- Moon Mi Ran: Da Jung's mother. A great mother who despite her past hardships and her scars did not forget to raise her children properly, to love people, protect them, be here for them. She even kept a nice looking appearance and a good sense of humor when she threw her "son in law" to be roasted by some aunties.

- Seo Ha Neul: A fun timid veterinarian who has an unrequited love when someone is in love with him. Love is sometime just under your nose.

- Chun Seung Wo: A PD and an annoying friend of Young Do. The guy from whom the best and the worse can happen.

- Park Chul Do: Eun Ha's twin brother who is pretty useless the last ep where he fails at hooking up with a girl also.

- Min Ah Ri : A cute fun employee of the café with her rough personality.

- Han Jin Ho : Ga young's trainer who bit someone and fell in love with him. Sadly the guy was veterinarian and a vegetarian.

- Choi Jung Min | Doctor Ian Chase : There were a few switches of identity so I barely managed to keep track of who is who. Overall for me, they both had a sad past and they found the worst way to deal with their past. One may be more responsible than the other but they are both accomplice and criminals. I liked none of them and they should both have had what they deserve as per the justice.

MUSIC:

The music was pretty good especially the soundtracks for the romantic part.

REWATCH VALUE:

The romances were cute with meaningful moments, nice lessons and funny moments but it is too unbalanced to be rewatched again and enjoyed.

OVERALL:

A part very good and another very messy and disappointing. I had some great moments watching this. I almost cried and immediately laughed at some points. Anyway, the huge mess of the thriller part really impairs the quality of the drama. If I could, I would suggest to watch this and skip all the thriller part meaning all th eparts with the twins and the cops. 7.5/10 in the end.

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Soft-pass on this drama

The drama started one way and then veered into a direction and then another and then picked up storylines in the middle then dropped them.

It was like random tangents. Why did they start the story about the dating show? Ha-nuel and the person had three AWKWARD interactions. Also the brother RANDOMLY pops in and out of the story. The end of the drama tries to wrap up all the loose ends but even that cannot be contained into an hour finale.

My favorite character was Ga-yeong because she had measurable growth through out. She was funny and warm even though she presented as annoying. She showed care for Da-jeong and her ex husband. I like her connection with each person. I liked her with PT.

The main leads spent a lot of time just being.

Also there was a random crime underlying story which was so pointless by the end. It was so far-fetched and not put together well. I would definitely believe if they changed writers mid-way. Every single character had a weird mood shift at the 4th episode but not grief, more like a weird personality change.

I can't even list all the random things that happened and never got addressed/finished. I am kind of annoyed I waited so long for all the episode to come online but maybe it would have been worse to watch week by week.

If like me, you cannot handle not getting any reasonable closure then do not watch. They spent top dollar on everything except the script.

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May seem slow at the start but keep watching , it will get better.

This drama is literally one of my favorite kdramas now. Aside from the thriller and mystery part which is still very confusing to me, I loved everything about this drama, the main leads, relationship between KDJ and JYD is just *chefs kiss*, all the other side couples are literally the cutest, relationship between Da-jeong and her mother is very emotional, trust me i cried my lungs out when her mother showed up in episode 12 oh my god. Eunha and Tae-Jeong 's couple was unexpected, but they are also cute.
I'll definitely rewatch this drama whenever I want to watch something light-hearted and cute.

The casting director did an AMAZING JOB casting such amazing actors.
Seo Hyun Jin is my favorite actor, i love how her acting seems so realistic and not acting, especially her crying scenes, trust me, I always cringe when i watch crying scenes in kdramas but when Seo Hyun Jin cries, i cry with her.
Kim Dong Wook has my heart, i love his soothing voice. I loved his drama Find me in your memory.
Ga-Yeong's role was literally made for Nam Gyuri, she did an amazing job portraying her.

I am so sad that this drama is coming to an end, now my mondays and tuesdays are going back to same old boring days. Excited for Seo Hyun Jin's upcoming drama with Hwang In Yeop.

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Praiseworthy -- 10 stars all around!

You Are My Spring is praiseworthy for the characters, dialogues, and much-needed awareness it brings up and addresses. It mainly does a stellar job highlighting the devastating long-term effect and consequences of abuse, child or spousal, neglect, alienation, and trauma after. Not only that, it handles other misguided societal taboos and their aftermaths, primarily dating, particularly if sick, divorced, older, a celebrity, or in any way different than the acceptable norm. But more, the message it sends -- to change the way society looks at things; one must be the change they wish to see. I was expressly broken for the effect abuse left on both Ian Chase and Choi Jeong Min (Park Moon acted both roles) but primarily Jeong Min. Ian Chase confessing to his revenge scheme and things he made his brother do heartwrenching to watch.

To see that not only did Ian and Jeong Min's parents fail to protect them, but so did the system. Every child needs and deserves unconditional love and protection provided by those who brought them into this world. What this drama highlights the most and presents so artistically is that parenting requires responsible and selfless choices. To love and protect children does not require money, as much as it requires parents to identify and heal their own trauma and pain. We see the healing unfold in Da Jang (Seo Hyun Jin), who as a child carried the burdens of her mother's miserable married life, same with Young Do (Kim Dong Wook), who believed he had to sacrifice himself to save his brother to please his mother those beliefs notwithstanding they were lucky enough to have a parent who protected and kept them safe, but Ian and Jeong Min did not have that. They weren't protected or safe, nor did they ever feel protected, safe, or loved. It's no wonder Ian pushed for the choices they did.

As much as I love Da Jang and Young, the side stories in this drama fill my heart even more, especially Ahn Ga Young (Nam Gyu Ri) and Patrick 9 Park Sang Nam), and the twins and mainly Eun Ha (Kim Ye Won). I adored her personality. She was strong-willed yet delicate at the same time in her pain. Parents unintentionally do many hurtful things to their children, and parental alienation is probably right up there with the worst of them. All the stories this series offered, everything from the laughs and cries and the sharing of despair, heartache, fear, and the ultimate healing and love, all were memorable moments. But none of the stories were as impactful as the unfitting story of Ian Chase and Jeong and how it unexpectedly tied into the heart of this gem of a drama. I love the emphasis You Are My Spring leaves with us in that human beings can not thrive alone and should look out for one another and that having a solid network of supportive family and friends helps enhance our mental well-being. It's that and the faith it places on the healing journey through the genuine relationships our characters form that help them confront, accept, embrace, and let go of their fears, guilts, pre-judgments, and pains.​

As the saying goes, no man is an island - everyone needs support and comfort in both times of joy and distress. A standing ovation to my favorite S.K. actress Seo Hyun Jin, Kim Dong Wook for his brilliance, Yoon Park for making me believe him in his dual roles, Nam Gyu Ri for making me fall in love with Ga Young as well as her drama The Princess Forever, and Park Sang Nam with Patrick. Of course, no lead actors are ever complete without a strong support cast that makes them shine, and we have that and more in Kim Ye Won, Han Min, Ji Seung Hyun for getting me invested in their stories and the fantastic cameos, particularly Kim Nam Hee. They say actors are only as good as a script they can sink their teeth into, and the story and dialogue in this drama is proof of that. Kudos to the screenwriter for scripting such magic and the director for making it come to life.

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Could have been one of the greatest Kdramas, but lost it all in it's journey

The first two episodes are perfect, there was balance between the thriller and romance part. But after that, the screen time for thriller barely last few minutes per episode which I am sure many were disappointed by it. Why you ask? The first two episodes gave a very mesmerizing experience to viewers in regards to thriller only to disappoint us with a thriller that doesn't seem part of this story anymore. In fact, the second male lead character became really captivating and gripping that most viewers look forward for his character, only to have barely anymore after that.

The second male lead although part of the drama, and the only character in the thriller part of this story, he got a very less screen time and his character rarely interacts with any other leads, slowly the thriller part became of it's own story and didn't fit with the romance plot. It's like watching two dramas in one and frustrated the hell out of me.

Over cliché of secondary characters aka Main male lead friends. One thing that pissed me off is how the secondary characters got more screen time compared to SML AND SFL. Their entire time is mostly in promoting an already established romance of the main leads which was really dragging and made me scream. If you have time for fillers, you might have used the time to wove a good thriller screen time. Most of all, I failed to see how they contributed to main plot. Except for the twin sister ex boyfriend trope, none other of their screen time actually contributed anything significant and yet they occupied half the screen time was to emphasize the romance which kind of became annoying.

The main leads love story was nice, although the breakup trope felt unnecessary since we all know they end up together anyway.

This drama main focus was childhood trauma and psychological traumas, although the main leads got their healing part shown to us properly, the writer failed when it came to second leads whose healing and trauma was never shown in depth. It was quite disappointing because second leads actually had more potential than main leads, yet the biasedness of writing had led to waste the potential of second leads.

if this drama had only told us it is romance and has only two main leads and never encouraged viewers on the thriller part by giving a great first two episodes of thriller, Most who were disappointed like me would have liked it.

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