Rating: 1/5
(Disclaimer: The review is based on only the first two episodes of the K-drama.)
The script feels like a first draft, the male lead is irredeemably absurd and all the characters and actions they take are just inexplicable. Yup, that’s what ‘Spring of Youth’ feels like to me. At least for now. Romantic comedy is a genre powered by cliches. The meet-cute, the sassy best pals, the sparkling initial chemistry, followed by unfortunate misunderstandings, the reveal of a past connection, and sweet reconciliation: ticking them off is what gives the genre its cozy vibes. But ‘Spring of Youth’ is not that K-drama.
Here these comforting tropes are boldly thrown in the bin. Though the show falls into a familiar territory, the impact is a miss. It begins with a dispiriting catastrophe, a practice accident that leaves a young trainee blind. A complete corneal transplant is the only option to get his eyesight back and that’s where the flashback scene ends. Then we meet idol Sa Gye (Ha Yoo-joon), the leader of the K-pop supergroup ‘The Crown’, who has the brightest, most brilliant jewel-like eyes in the universe, a world-class star.
He dreams often, colourful and dynamic dreams, and each time he hears a melody and sees a child, moreover, he tends to wake up exactly at 5.45 am every day because of the mysterious vision. In the grand scheme of events, Sa Gye meets Kim Bom (Park Ji-hu), a talented songwriter who owns a locket consisting of the melody that has been tormenting Sa Gye for years.
Needless to say, they are connected somehow by a twisted fate, but before any reveal, another tragedy strikes Sa Gye. In a drunk bout, he hits the CEO of his agency (Jo Han-chul), all Sa Gye says is “I know what you did six years ago. I was there.” The video of the assault goes viral and Sa Gye is suspended to calm the public uproar. But the problem is far away from over because the CEO is hiding a dark past and it somehow is connected with Kim Bom’s mother, a fatal accident, and Sa Gye’s eyes.
Conveniently, Kim Bom and Sa Gye, end up living in the same house, with zero biological parents, leaving them free to conduct a halting courtship. Additionally, they also have a love triangle adversary Seo Tae-yang (Lee Seung-hyub), surprisingly, he isn’t the main obstacle to them achieving loving fulfillment. It’s a pretty fundamental problem, namely: everything Sa Gye says and does, actually everything anyone says and does.
High-school dramas like this generally tend to work but ‘Spring of Youth’ doesn’t have the confidence to form a network of people coexisting in a believable world. Instead, every supporting character exists purely to illustrate an aspect of Sa Gye and Kim Bom’s predicament – which they don’t do convincingly, because they’re not properly drawn characters, so the message they’re there to impart doesn’t land.
Lee Seung-hyub is wasted as a cartoonishly portrayed second lead, whose storyline is bleak than the writers can feasibly have intended. Unfortunately, though, that’s the norm for a script that is riddled with first-draft ideas. Nobody’s actions, motivations, or reactions make any sense. You end up doing a slow-motion hand jive as you watch, alternately pressing your fists to your chest in a cringe, then lifting your palms in an irate shrug: why are they doing that? Who would do that? How is that even possible? What’s this chain of coincidences?
At one point, Kim Bom tells Sa Gye, “Seriously, what kind of superstar are you? Dammit! You make me so sad.” Well, guess what Kim Bom, I feel you. This all feels like watching the execution of an ill-advised plan in a K-drama that plumbs new depths of embarrassment.
Final thoughts:
The resolution is, of course, daft, even more so because Sa Gye’s personality never extends beyond vaguely liking music and Kim Bom, and it’s never clear why they made Kim Bom’s character silly. It’s like all the mothers of coincidences in life were made for this story, but even if they do, it should at least make sense.
That’s not to say ‘Spring of Youth’ doesn’t have moments that play. I can’t call it bad outright but this isn’t good either. After watching two episodes, everything appears unwanted in the story. The K-drama was better as a wistful idea but as a product, it shouldn’t have been made.
Given the notorious ageism of the genre, it’s refreshing to see a new wave of romantic comedies with charming leads. But ‘Spring of Youth’ is a failed attempt and another well-cast yet criminally dull offering. The bland title does make for a useful reminder of the spring season associated with miracles. But with characterization this shallow, the drama is lightweight, as if it almost doesn’t exist.
After only two episodes, I’ve almost tapped out. However, I’ll give this one a benefit of the doubt by watching the third episode, releasing next week, to arrive at a conclusive decision of giving up on this one completely; which I already know I should.
