Dali and the Cocky Prince indeed is a fresh romcom drama that we have had in while. Not like it's the only drama to have a normal romcom story this year, but it surely is the best of the kind and I shall explain why throughout. By normal romcom I meant,a romcom storyline with no supernatural or thriller elements, which has become common these days.

Kim Da Li (Park Gyu Young) is the daughter of Chungsung, the most prestigious family of South Korea, known for their contribution to art & culture. She works as a curator in a Dutch Gallery in Amsterdam. Jin Moo Hak (Kim Min Jae) is a director of Dan Dan F & B, a large gamjatang restaurant chain business company, who is uneducated yet has immense contribution in the success of his business. Dali comes back to Korea after his father's sudden demise to take over the gallery as it's director. But the gallery is already in debt and about to close down. Moo Hak and Dali with a previous encounter as good friends turn into debtor-creditor and end up working together.

The story mainly revolves around the gallery and the hurdles it face while organizing exhibits and maintaining it's dignity which also involves the developing chemistry between Dali & Moo Hak. Among other characters, there are Jang Tae Jin (Kwon Yul) as Dali's ex-fiancee and Korea's biggest family SEGI's Chairman, Joo Won Tak (Hwang Hee) as Dali's childhood friend, Kim Nak Chun (Jang Gwang), as Dali's late father and ex-director of ChungSung, Jin Baek Won (Ahn Kil Kang) as Moo Hak's father and Chairman of Dan Dan F&B, etc in major roles.

The seemingly uninteresting storyline doesn't really indicate the actual direction and mood of the story even if the genre tags say it's a romcom. The beginning of the story (first 2 eps) might not be that promising in order to decide whether to stay on this or not but I suggest you to give it a try till 4th or even 6th because after the introductory foundation of the drama, it actually becomes appealing. The ending is also well sorted. In fact, there was no point in the drama towards which felt slow or rushed and it wasn't messed up from any angle.

Honestly, the basic plotline is nothing new; its simple and typical with the classical romcom Kdramas. I loved the entire thing only for the fact that it's a normal romcom story and the chemistry between lead couples are worth remembering. Despite everything, the screenplay technique, dialogues, character development, romance progression and comedy has their own ways of representation for this drama which definitely intrests the audience. The amount of cliché elements are very less as well. It has that vibes of the old romcom stories. Adding to the main romance plot, there is another major plot involving both the leads, their families and the gallery and it goes on simultaneously and ends in the finale after all revelations are made.

Dali is talented girl with immense interest in art. She's strong yet softspoken, kind-hearted, rationale, reasonable and caring. On the contrary, Moo Hak is a rude, arrogant, outspoken guy who does talk loud all the time. He doesn't think before talking and tend to make many grammatical mistakes. All that matters to him is money, in fact he knows the real value of money. Despite all that, he's caring and considerate deep down his heart. I loved the fact how healthy Moo Hak as a male character is, no toxicity, no problem tease games and no ego. It indeed is a pleasurable thing to witness the two strangers with contrasting characters coming together to work and gradually falling in love. Not to forget, the chemistry buildup between them is sooo enticing, you'll wish more.

What I liked the most about the drama is how straightforward both Dali and Moo Hak are. Not only their personalities are crystal clear but their mindset towards their developing relationship is also firm and comprehensible. Their feelings plus expression are so transparent, you can't help but admire these two lovebirds and root for them real hard. At least they don't beat around the bush and made sure their is no confusion left. The actual romance starts in the 2nd half of the story (more like in the 2nd half of the 2nd half, haha) but what matters is the gradual buildup that was shown in a very beautiful way. Ofc, there was mutual interest and liking before that but it takes a while for the flower to bloom. Haven't really seen many such limpid chemistry development between lead couples in long while.

Both Moo Hak and Dali's outfits were aesthetically pleasing and the add-on of their visuals with those clothes, were chef's kiss, oof. Moo Hak initially was a thug-like guy and wore those floral print mosaic slim fit formals, plus his hairstyle; everything about him looked heavenly TT. Dali's sense of fashion and hair grooming styles with the bob cut short hair, my goodness, she looked gorgeous throughout. The stylist/costume designer deserves a bonus.

After the interval, I was worried a bit; even though everything was going fine I hoped the production value and writing quality won't drop low as it occurs in most of the new romcom dramas. But, thankfully, it worked out fine and till the end, they were able to put forth a reasonable and sorted outcome; such a decent story and good execution.

Lee Jung Sub PDnim surely is experienced and skilled, most of his dramas are both popular and good. The direction and management of the entire thing have been well executed. There ain't much to do with cinematography but the camera works of some instances were really nice and I loved the way they represented the gallery art museum. Screen editing is good as well, with several flashback scenes incorporated to showcase connections and revelations. OSTs and background scores are appropriately used and make the screenplay even more appealing.

Idk if it's weird but I loved the entire OST album for this drama; each and every single OST is so beautifully written. They're soothing, romantic and heart touching, they gave off suitably perfect moods throughout the drama. Imma mention all of them.

"Moon Crater" by Kim Yeji is my most fav of all. The harmony here gives me goosebumps, every time I listen to it. It's very very well composed.
"U Hoo Hoo" by KLANG is next in the list. This is sooo soothing and KLANG's vocals are always very heartfelt.
"GIFT" by CHAI has meaningful lyrics that we can all relate to, more or less.
"With You" by Ha Hyunsang is a comforting piece which well written and the vocalists high notes are gratifying.
"The Sweetest Love" by Ham Yonji is such a jolly track that can cheer you up. It has that charm to make your heart flutter uwu.
"That's Ordinary Love" by Seoho is gladdening romantic song and gives out the urge to love and be loved, truly.
"One Day It Will Be" is a duet by Ian Hug & Seoho, in which the harmony and synchronization makes it such fulfilling song, it is enough to melt your heart.

"Can't You Love Me" by Fromm and "Straight" by DINDIN are also good tracks, the former being a soulful soft song and the latter is a rap composition. "The Kiss" by Hodge is a short track with English retro vibes.

DALI & THE COCKY PRINCE, is definitely one of my favorite drama this year and undoubtedly the best classical romcom drama of the year 2021. The simplicity of the drama is what makes it beautiful and watch worthy. The simple yet, compelling chemistry buildup is worth looking forward to and deserves admiration. The overal plot, the acting, the aesthetics, the dialogues and the execution, everything are good and together make this drama a veryyy good watch. I came here not expecting much, for Min Jae, Gyu Young and Kwon Yul but didn't know I would actually like it to this point. Definitely coming back to this some times.