K-drama Review: Crash Landing on You
Show: Crash Landing on You (2019)
Writer: Park Ji-eun
Director: Lee Jeong-hyo
Length: 16 Episodes
Tropes: Fated Mates / Destined to be together, Enemies to Lovers, Opposites Attract, Forbidden Love
My Score: 5/5
I call this TV show my gateway drug, since it led to my addiction to K-dramas, as you can read in this previous post. So many people recommended this show to me that, when it appeared as a Netflix suggestion, it seemed the right one to start with - and I also recommend it to you, if you haven't yet started your K-drama journey. (And let's face it, if you've already discovered K-dramas, you've most likely already seen this one.) Crash Landing on You is a wonderful introduction into the world of K-dramas - though it is a tough act to follow!
It's been more than a year and a half since I first watched Crash Landing on You, so my memory of my first impressions was a little vague when I initially sat down to write this blog post. I decided to re-watch it to refresh on my original thoughts, and it was even better the second time around as, knowing the story and having a little more K-drama experience under my belt, I was able to pick up nuances I missed on my first viewing.
What makes Crash Landing on You so special? It has something for everyone: lots of romance, drama, suspense, action, and comedy. It's a show you can watch with your significant other, even if they prefer car chases and shoot-outs to romantic gestures - and I defy anyone to walk away without a tear in their eye!
The two main leads have undeniable chemistry from the moment they first meet on screen. They slowly build from enemies to reluctant allies to lovers, with enough tender scenes sprinkled throughout to warm any romance lover's heart. The moment he ties up her hair, when she gets lost in a market and he comes looking for her, their first kiss in the rain, falling asleep together as they watch the first snowfall...
Since my first viewing, I've learned that K-drama creators are masters of emotional manipulation - and the writer and director of CLOY are among the best. This show has an excellent balance between tear-jerking drama, heart-racing action and comedy scenes for light relief. After you've reached for the fifth tissue in the box and your heart has been wrung out, the story suddenly switches to a B-plot with comic secondary characters, sweeping you up into a whole other story. Then, just as you've forgotten that your heart was ever ripped out, the comedy ends and you're back into the build-up to more heart-ripping drama. It gave me the emotional release I so badly needed that first time I watched it.
After watching CLOY, I went to Google to find out how accurately the show depicted life in both North and South Korea, which took me down a rather fascinating rabbit-hole. The creators had to walk a fine tightrope between accuracy and avoiding breaking any censorship codes or triggering any political animosity. Personally, I think they did it brilliantly. The story felt authentic without casting judgments or making political commentary. Life on both sides of the divide is shown as having both ups and downs, and the villains are villainous because of their own personal choices, not because of their political leanings.
Which brings me to one of the other things I enjoyed about this show - the characters. Even the most minor B-plot characters feel real. Sure, they may be comic relief, but they always feel like real, complex people, never like cardboard cut-outs. And there are a lot of secondary characters, from Yun Se-ri's assistant in Seoul, to the North Korean villagers, to Kim Soo-hyun's cameo as a North Korean spy in Seoul, all of whom have their own stories. As a writer, that ability to make every character feel well-rounded and believable is a skill I both envy and admire.
Finally, this show has high production value and clearly had a big budget. After years of working in film production, I really appreciate shows where the filmmakers make an effort - not just throwing money at big, impressive stunts and special effects, but the kind of effort where attention is paid to every detail. Bigger is not always better. It takes time and experience to ensure that every prop, every piece of wardrobe, every line in the script, has been crafted and chosen with care, and that time and experience costs money. This is one of those shows where every scene and shot feels crafted and intentional - and the stunts and special effects can rival any major Hollywood production, too.
A warning for my romance writer/reader friends: CLOY has a bitter-sweet ending. Under the circumstances, it was the perfect solution to a near-impossible situation, and there was no other way the show could have ended believably, but it's not the typical Happy Ever After we expect in our romances. I have to admit that it googling the actors after the final episode and looking at the lead couple's real life wedding pictures gave me the full romance-worthy HEA I needed. If you need that same kind of closure, click here.
If you've watched Crash Landing on You, what were your thoughts? What did you like/not like about it? And if you haven't yet watched it, check out the trailer below to see if it's something you might want to give a try.
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