Note: I went into TTILY without knowing it was a remake of 'In Time With You', nor have I watched ITWY.
Now that I know this drama was a remake, I can see why it suffered from a sort of identity crisis in the beginning. In the first few episodes it was dramatic, exaggerated, and struggled for solid footing. Couple that with weird flashback scenes (that I did come to enjoy!) and I was thoroughly confused. It flipped-flopped from being over-dramatic to a seeming like a drama that had been on for a while. (This is most likely because at this point in the characters lives they've known each other for over 17 years.) Eventually it does gain its footing at the expense of (sadly) plot, where it once again goes off course.
Ha Ji Won is great actress, but her role as Oh Ha Na seemed a little forced at times (or maybe overacted is the better term?). It mainly stems from having to act overly cute and talk in that silly baby voice. It was great, however, to see a successful woman and have others recognize that. Not to mention most of her wardrobe was spectacular and she looked gorgeous. None of this negates that maybe this wasn't the best role of Ha Ji Won, but she worked with what she had.
Not much to say about Lee Jin Wook other than he really melted into the role of Choi Won and convinced me that he was a friend who had been in love with Oh Ha Na for a very long time. Only problem is that he started to go a little out of character toward the end (and I'll also throw in a mention to that terrible middle part hairstyle).
Chemistry wise, they definitely had it, but I felt Ha Ji Won was holding back at times. I especially liked their easygoing banter and their ability to understand one another, the actors really did a great job there and it was truly the force that held this drama together. Sadly, kiss scenes were a little stale on Ha Ji Won's side as she never moved her lips (though this particularly nothing new with kdramas), so no, this drama doesn't have steamy kisses, though it does have lots of them.
Unfortunately, this drama suffered when introducing Yoon Kyun Sang as Cha Seo Hoo. I felt like I was in limbo watching Oh Ha Na make relationship decisions. That whole side plot seemed unnecessary and just added extra episodes, filler episodes that is. I'll go ahead and say the drama was way too long and the ending was just for fan gratuity (yes, those last two were thick as sugar and I suffered through them).
Had this drama strictly been about the main couple and side characters it would have been so much better. I found myself questioning everything that was Cha Seo Hoo and watched it solely for the interactions between Oh Ha Na and Choi Won.
The Time We Were Not in Love is NOT a bad drama, it just tried to be a lot of things at once and got lost. Ha Ji Won and Lee Jin Wook really carried this drama on their backs with their chemistry and personal story, and that was enough to make me continue watching.
Was this review helpful to you?