K-drama Review: Record of Youth
Record of Youth is a charming coming of age story that looks at the darker sides of family, wealth and social position, and fame - all intertwined with a sweet love story.
English Title: Record of Youth (2020)
Writer: Ha Myung-hee
Director: Ahn Gil-ho
Length: 16 Episodes
Tropes: Coming of Age, Celebrity/Non-celebrity romance, love triangle, slow burn, Rags to Riches / Rise to Stardom, Family, friends to lovers
My Score: 4/5
Description: Make-up artiste An Jeong-ha (Park So-dam) meets her idol, model and aspiring actor Sa Hye-jun (Park Bo-gum) and they form an unlikely friendship. Both are struggling to overcome the disadvantages of their social position and, though they both have the odds stacked against them (and Sa Hye-jun's career is facing the ticking clock of his upcoming military enlistment), they're both determined to pursue their dreams.
If you enjoyed this show, then watch: Our Unwritten Seoul, Melo Movie, Doctors (by the same writer) and The Glory and Marry My Husband (same director)
The Netflix description of this drama never really grabbed me but I'm so glad I took a chance and watched it. This is a slower-paced drama, with a heavier focus on the characters' internal lives and struggles than on the events of the plot, and absolutely worth watching.
Record of Youth is a coming of age story that focuses on a group of 20-somethings establishing their careers and finding out who they really are. At the heart of the story are the two love interests, and the male lead's friends are also important characters, but for me this is Park Bo-gum's story. It's the internal struggles of his character, Sa Hye-jun, which form the backbone of the entire show.
The story has three sections: Sa Hye-jun as a struggling actor, then the struggling actor starts to make good and achieve success, and finally the fall-out of that success and the downsides of being a superstar (gossip, jealousy, the affect on privacy and relationships.)
Why did I love Record of Youth?
- It has a fantastic soundtrack (I Shazam-ed at least one song per episode!)
- As much as I enjoy the more frivolous rom-coms, I love K-dramas like this one that are deeper and don't shy away from hard issues.
- Park So-dam is sweet and quirky - and she's a really amazing actress who is worth watching in everything she does. (She was part of the cast of the Palme d'Or, SAG, and Academy Award-winning Parasite.)
- Park Bo-gum is the cute, green flag boy-next-door type (in almost every role he plays, it seems.) He's not heart-racingly sexy, like a Lee Min-ho or Hyun Bin, but he's endearing, and he plays the kind of man every woman would be lucky to take home!
- The characters and situations are all believable and relatable. There are villains, but for the most part they feel realistic and well-rounded rather than over-the-top mean (like the secondary male lead's mother.) The one possible exception is An Jeong-ha's salon bully.
- I love a good Bromance, but this drama goes a step further. We not only have a close friendship between the three male leads, but the dynamics between them are complex and nuanced, adding a level of depth and believability to the story.
- I enjoyed the heart-warming relationship between the male lead (ML) and his grandfather, and especially the sub-plot of the grandfather also chasing his dreams. I love the message that anyone can pursue their dreams, no matter their age.
- It was beautifully filmed, with a quality, artistic sensibility, and I liked the use of reflections and reflective surfaces to frame the characters.
- Finally, it has an interesting narrative structure / timeline, with the final scene of each episode repeated midway through next episode, but now with added build-up and context to deepen our understanding of these key moments.
For writers - a note on pacing:
I've given a lot of thought to why slower pacing works for me in some stories and not in others. Yes, personal preference could be a factor, since there are many viewers who love the shows that I don't. But whether you enjoy those shows and disagree with my opinions or not, it's worth taking a moment to think about what kind of pacing you enjoy most and why. Then, consider what kind of pacing you want your own stories to have. In principle, there is no right or wrong, as pacing is part of your voice, however it does become problematic when (a) it doesn't fit your story's genre and tone, and (b) the majority of your target readers/viewers grow bored and give you low ratings.
If you identify that your story is slow-paced (or your early beta readers identify it, as we're often too close to our own work to see it) then what can you look out for to know how to fix it?
First, ask yourself: What are the reader expectations for your genre? In a crime drama, action drama, mystery or thriller (even a psychological one), readers will expect faster pacing, sudden twists and unexpected plot developments, and a greater emphasis on action than on character development. Examples: When the Phone Rings, Crash Landing on You, and Vincenzo.
Slower, more introspective stories, where the focus is on character development rather than plot twists (like Record of Youth or Romance is a Bonus Book) can get away with slower pacing. However, every scene, even if it's slow-paced, still needs to move the story forward.
A major contributor to slow pacing that is annoying rather than organic is when the scenes or plot elements do not relate to the overall story or develop the story's internal or external conflicts. This is where I feel Hometown Cha Cha Cha went wrong, with its slow, saggy middle. And I kept fast-forwarding through the long, lingering shots of the couple walking in the rain in Something in the Rain, since those long scenes were not developing either plot or character. They felt indulgent. This is the equivalent of long descriptive passages in a novel. If your writing is receiving feedback that it's too slow, look for scenes in which there is little forward progress, or where there are lengthy descriptions, and cut those to improve the pacing.
Another note for writers - Intentionality:
I like how, despite often being written episodically, often while the show is already being filmed, most K-dramas feel intentional. Seeds are planted that don't develop until several episodes later, so that every plot twist feels planned, rather than as if the writer thought, "Oh shit, I've run out of conflict! What else can I throw at these characters to stir up drama?" As an editor, I often see beginner writers do this, and the fix is so simple - go back and plant seeds for these later plot developments early in the story. (On the flip side, don't forget to grow the seeds you planted earlier, which is another common newbie mistake!) Intentionally planting those seeds, then developing them later, instils confidence in the viewer or reader that they can trust the writer.
For example: In episode one of Record of Youth, we get a glimpse of the relationship between the male lead and his mentor, fashion designer Charlie Jun. This relationship appears almost insignificant at the time and even appears to be dropped, until a hint is placed around episode 8/9 that assures us this hasn't been forgotten, and suggests that it is in fact going to become a big deal later. (And it does!)
The same happens with the video showing workplace bullying. The viewer knows that the video exists, but we don't know how or when it will be used later. We can guess what's likely to come, which keeps us on tenterhooks - when is this little piece of backstabbing gossip going to flare up into something big? Once you've watched enough K-dramas, you know that yes, it absolutely will blow up - but how, and what consequences it will cause, are unknown, because we know these writers have a tendency to do the unexpected, to exceed our expectations and deliver on twists and emotional reactions we didn't see coming. That's the delight in watching these shows; we know the writers will deliver. We can sense it because we can sense that everything is intentional, not random.
In novel writing, this is why editing is so important. Often in our first discovery draft we're getting those sparks of genius that provide the twists, but it's in the edit phase that we go back and make those twists appear like we planned them from the very beginning, not that they occurred to us as we were two thirds through the draft. My tip: Go back and place hints and foreshadowing - but then try not to do the expected. How can you make these characters react differently than expected (but still consistent to who they are)? How can you create an "awww!" moment or a "what the hell?" moment out of the twist? (Whether it's "awww" or "what the hell" is often dependent on the genre you write and what emotions you want the reader to feel.)
Have you watched Record of Youth, and if so, what were your thoughts? If you haven't yet watched it, this scene from Episode 12 will give you a sense of what you can expect from the show:
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