49 Days

49 Days

6.5/10

49 Days

Genre:                                   Episodes: 20                         Year: 2011

Romance

Melodrama

Supernatural

Synopsis:

When a woman tries to commit suicide by jumping in front of a truck, there is a large accident on the road. The accident causes Shin Ji Hyun to enter a coma, though her spirit lives on outside her body. A Scheduler, a man who transports souls to the afterlife, gives Ji Hyun a chance to return to her body as she wasn’t supposed to die in the accident. Ji Hyun will live if she can find three people who will cry genuine tears of sadness over her. Ji Hyun is allowed to use Song Yi Kyung’s body, as she is the woman who attempted suicide and caused Ji Hyun’s unscheduled death.

Cast:

Lee Yo Won (Song Yi Kyung/ Shin Ji Hyun)

Nam Gyu Ri (Shin Ji Hyun)

Jo Hyun Jae (Han Kang)

Bae Soo Bin (Kang Min Ho)

Jung Il Woo (Scheduler)

Seo Ji Hye (Shin In Jung)

General Thoughts:

This is a drama that really shows how bad acting is much more bearable than bad writing. I was fully engaged in most of the plot for the entire 20 episodes, despite the less that satisfactory standard of acting coming from some (most) of our cast members.

This drama is the answer to Bad Acting vs. Bad Writing

The premise was an interesting one- and had a similar sort of take on death that ‘Goblin’ (which I just finished) had- that there are some deaths that can't be predicted. It was mapped out nicely that the reason Ji Hyun could use Yi Kyung’s body was because she was he one that caused Ji Hyun to die early by attempting to jump in from of traffic and commit suicide.

Who doesn't love a bit of ghost possession?

It was a nice way to connect our two female characters and quickly expose their characters and their differences- Ji Hyun happy, in love, and desperate for life, and Yi Kyung miserable, lonely, and wishing for death. It also introduced us to the best scene stealer I’ve ever seen. Jung Il Woo was fantastic as the Scheduler of Death and held a lot of my interest. A vast reason why I kept coming back to the series was for Il Woo’s steadily growing humanity (paired with his hilarious sarcasm), and the gradual reveal of the life he couldn’t remember. While I found it fairly obvious that he and Yi Kyung were connected, the show revealed it in a nice, natural way, and Jung Il Woo acted it to perfection. His emotions and expressions just seemed even more dynamic as he was acting next to a bunch of people who weren’t very good- but at least it made Jung Il Woo look awesome. On the other hand, I just couldn’t connect with Yi Kyung. I’m not sure what it is exactly, but I had no burning desire to see her happy (I was much more invested in Ji Hyun) and didn’t quite see her as a fully fleshed out human being.

The only thing I care about in this situation is the Scheduler

She was supposed to be a sad, melancholy character that caused our hearts to ache for her and her pitiful situation, but I found her a bit exasperating to be honest. Mostly because she didn’t try to do anything. She made no attempt to move on with her life, and that really gave me the sh*ts. Perhaps I would have been a little more invested had we seen just how alone and awful Yi Kyung had felt before she met Yi Kyung, but in flashbacks we were only shown how happy they were together.

What a cute lil meanie weeny

Then they broke up. So it kind of annoyed me that this girl was pinning her life away for some man who she suspected had been cheating on her before his death. I guess, perhaps if a decent actress had been given the role I would be feeling a whole different set of emotions. Despite the set-up of the 3 tears scenario, we actually spent more time dealing with the company take-over than anything else. It wasn’t too bad, in that it helped open Ji Hyun’s eyes to how oblivious and naive she had been before, but I seriously don’t think we needed to spend as much time on it as we did. Considering that we virtually had no information on the company or how Min Ho was going to bankrupt it, there wasn’t a lot of tension. I didn’t believe for one second that Min Ho would actually succeed in seizing control of the company, so a lot of the interest came from how Ji Hyun was using him to her advantage. I wish the show had been just a teensy bit clearer in what her objectives actually were, because it felt like she was just sort of hanging around Min Ho in the hopes that something would happen. I think it would have added an extra layer of interest if Ji Hyun actually went out of her way to seduce Min Ho while in Yi Kyung’s body in order to get the information she needed, rather than just having him fall for her all on his own. Ah well, it was still interesting enough.

The amount of wrist/arm grabbing in this drama is unbelievably high. Haven't you Koreans heard of holding hands?

Visually the drama didn’t have a lot going for it- there weren’t a heap of expressions going around and there were only about 3 or 4 locations- none all that exciting. Much of the visual enjoyment came from seeing what ridiculous wardrobe choices Jung Il Woo would make, and seeing how weirdly well he pulled them off. The soundtrack wasn’t bad exactly, but it did feel like just your typical melodrama soundtrack- a female ballad with orchestral music where all the songs sound kind of the same. The editing felt pretty ridiculous at times and very dated. There were four cases in the first episode alone where characters walked past each other and we saw the moment they passed each other three times- each shot in slower slo-mo than the last. It was unnecessary and not very subtle. There were odd editing choices throughout the series that really did nothing to enhance it, and just made the drama feel very old- older than 2011.

I only saw this moment from 5 different angles- are you sure it's important?

What Was Great:

Tears and Death:

What let me sit through 20 episodes of awkward editing and sloppy acting was the story. I was invested from the start, and really liked Ji Hyun despite her lack of worldly knowledge.

You dead sucka

The idea of needing genuine tears and that there were different types of tears was an interesting one, and I wish it had come into play a little bit more (it felt like a bit of a rush to have 2 of the 3 tears come in the final moments). All in all, Ji Hyun did seem fairly clueless on all things tear-related. The drama also expressed interesting views on death. Most K-Dramas tend to lean towards there being another world after death or reincarnation, but I liked that this series took a different approach. In ‘49 Days’ death was nothing but a separation and a final goodbye. It’s a sadder approach, but does add a dose of desperation to the story, as well as good reasoning for Ji Hyun’s intense desire to live. You know, beyond not wanting to be dead.

Characterisations:

There characters were all brilliant. Ji Hyun had a nice little path of development throughout the series. She starts as a pretty dim-witted girl who’s too easily trusting, but as each conflict arises Ji Hyun’s learns to face it with confidence and determination. By the end Ji Hyun’s optimistic outlook and love for those around her are seen as an asset not a weakness, as she possesses those characteristics not from just being sheltered and fortunate, but from actively choosing to trust and love those around her despite the risks.

You for you learning how to adult (sort of)

Her relationship with Kang was just too cute and came about in a nice, natural way. Kang was always hard-on-the-outside-squishy-in-the-middle, but it was nice to see him learn to express his feelings to Ji Hyun- her impending death being a major factor in loosening his lips. Ji Hyun also had a really interesting relationship with Yi Kyung.

Cheater, cheater, pumpkin eater

It was enjoyable how Yi Kyung started being able to see Ji Hyun, and how Ji Hyun’s affection for her started to change her life. Due to Ji Hyun caring about Yi Kyung’s wellbeing, Yi Kyung started caring as well. The two developed a nice little friendship that had great dynamics and perfectly showed how the two girls were helping each other live. Our two main villains were also endlessly fascinating. Their conflicting emotions and internal quarrels kept the main company takeover plot interesting, as it added a heap of context to what was going on. Min Ho taking over the company point blank is pretty boring, so it was interesting to see that In Jung was the one who set him up for it, even though she’s the one who gets cold feet. It was a lovely exploration of how love means different things to different people- Ji Hyun loved Min Ho who she’s never really known, In Jung loved Min Ho who she could never meet openly, and Min Ho apparently loved everyone in a weird twisted way. Though I will admit that neither Min Ho or In Jung had any decent reasoning to try and bankrupt the company. Their excuses for there actions were all super, super lame. 

What Wasn’t:

Almost All the Acting:

It was hard to sit through at times, really it was. I nearly ditched this series after Episode 1 because I honestly didn’t think that I could make it through 20 episodes of Nam Gyu Ri’s acting- but then the story snagged me and I kept on going.

Jung Il Woo's face says about as much as you need to know

On the bright side, at least it’s not that our heroine was terrible and seemed even more terrible because everyone else was good- the whole cast was pretty much on the same level. Except Jung Il Woo who was a total standout and acted the pants off everyone else. Bae Soo Bin and Seo Ji Hye were pretty okay- they were mostly mediocre but then had some scenes where they really nailed it and did some great acting.

Completely expressionless isn't the casting choice I'd make, but what would I know?

The rest…well, yeah. At first I didn’t think anything could be a cringe-worthy as Nam Gyu Ri’s acting, and I was actually quite looking forward to when it would be Lee Yo Won as our heroine. But as time went on, I actually found myself preferring Nam Gyu Ri. While her acting was really not that good, it was at least consistent, and I gradually got used to her performance as she settled into the character and didn’t try and do anything too over the top (most of her crying scenes were pretty unbelievable). But rather than getting used to Lee Yo Won’s performance, it actually started to annoy me more. I liked Nam Gyu Ri’s take on Ji Hyun better, and started to find myself wanting her to wake up just so I wouldn’t have to face Lee Yo Won acting her anymore- her idea of innocent brightness was just not as cute nor as convincing. Granted, she did have the challenge of acting two characters, but still. It seemed like Lee Yo Won really didn’t know how to distinguish Yi Kyung and Ji Hyun. While Ji Hyun was bubbly and emotional, Yi Kyung was just…nothing. And it’s not that she was written that way either. She was a character carrying deep guilt and sadness, but I didn’t really feel that from Lee Yo Won at all (see Park Bo Young for a highly successful performance in a similar situation).

There was alarmingly little talent to share between our two female leads

Yi Kyung just became a big blur who was super boring and super nothing-y unless she was being possessed. Jo Hyun Jae was okay as Han Kang- he didn’t have to do anything too taxing. I didn’t love him as much as might have if Kang was played by a man who could do killer I-love-you-but-I’m-holding-it-in face, but I liked him enough.

Basically the Whole End:

Yeah, so Ji Hyun dies. Not what I was wanting. I’m not against having the heroine die (I liked it in ‘Goblin’ and in ‘Mirror of the Witch’), but you have to give me some sort of heads up that it’s a possibility.

Congratulations, you're alive! For like 5 more days.

Narratively it did make sense, but on an emotional level it wasn’t what I was wanting- and if I have to convince myself that I’m okay with the ending, then really, I’m not okay with the ending and you’ve done something wrong. Like, the whole point of this series hasn’t just been about Ji Hyun learning things through experience and whatnot- it’s about her actually getting back alive in her own body. And being cute with Han Kang in her own body. Because really, the suckiest part about that whole ending is that Han Kang gets nothing. He never gets to properly love the girl, he never gets to hug her her in her own body or anything. What kind of ganky-ass romance is that? And I’m almost certain that Ji Hyun was supposed to get her original lifespan back- and I’m not sure that that’s how it played out. The cause of her death is a complication arising from her injuries of that very same accident. Like, what the hell? If she’s going to be brought back to life shouldn’t everything be healed? It’s like telling someone that they won’t die from being hit by a car and later specifying that they technically didn’t die from getting hit by a car, they died from blood loss or whatever. The worst part about Ji Hyun’s death is that it was absolutely unnecessary. All the emotions that we get from Ji Hyun’s death, and all the points the show is trying to make about living on once a loved one has died we’ve already seen in Yi Kyung and Scheduler’s relationship- we didn’t need to see that same scenario play out twice.

I don't think we really needed the two romances to have the exact same ending

Our main characters totally could have been happy, but the writers were just going for shock value. Ji Hyun’s death also impacted how happy I felt about the two girls being sisters. It could have been a cute extra tidbit at the end to find out that they’re actually related, but it all feels twisted after Ji Hyun’s death. Like, oops sorry one kid’s dead, but here have a consolation daughter. Come on show, you’re better than that. At least you should have been.

Re-watch?

Nope. 20 Episodes of that acting was quite enough, thank you.

49 days and three genuine tears later she's...still dead