EXO Next Door

EXO Next Door

6/10

EXO Next Door

Genre:                                 Episodes: 16                         Year: 2015

Romance

Comedy

Synopsis:

Ji Yeon Hee is a shy girl with zero dating experience. One day, four members of her favourite boy band EXO move in next door, looking for some time out of the public eye. 

Chanyeol (Chanyeol)

D.O (D.O)

Baekhyun (Baekhyun)

Sehun (Sehun)

Moon Ga Young (Ji Yeon Hee)

Jang Yoo Sang (Ji Kwang Soo)

General Thoughts:

Complete and utter fan-service, but if you didn’t know that already I’d be completely surprised. There’s enough story in the show that it’s not painful to watch, but let’s be real- we all know why you’re here.

This is what you came for

At first the story is quite cringe-inducing, and the second-hand embarrassment was through the roof. However, as I kept watching, I found I got more and more used to the tone of the drama, and found I could just relax and appreciate the gorgeousness on my screen. Let’s not kid ourselves- most of the boys aren’t great actors.

This show is full of warm and fuzzies

They’re acting as themselves and even then they sometimes had trouble- but the whole thing was just so darn cute that I didn’t really care. I wasn’t expecting brilliant acting or a dramatic storyline- I wanted EXO, and that’s what I got. It’s not to say that the boys were outrageously bad actors- the writers actually did a pretty good job matching each member with a role that complimented their acting ability. D.O being the most experienced actor (having previously been in ‘It’s Okay, That’s Love') had the role that required the biggest and most difficult emotional range. Chanyeol was the lead, but his character had a smaller range of emotions that he needed to express, so he could play the character believably without ever feeling too outdone by D.O. Sehun was there mainly for comedic effect, and his sweetly innocent face was enough to get by. Baekhyun was…wait, Baekhyun was in this drama? Seriously though, he didn’t do much, and I honestly think he got about as much screen time as the other EXO cameos. But what great cameos. While my bias was one of the members included as a main character, I appreciated that the show had little snippets of all of the EXO boys so that no fans were left out.

Kai, don't go!

I found Kai’s cameo particularly hilarious, and it actually made me wish that his character had been written in as one of the main members. I adored that he was well aware of the love-triangle and completely ready to stir things up.

What life without a bit of B.L?

Moon Ga Young was delightful as the heroine, and I appreciated that she put in some effort in making her character have a bit of depth. In the other idol web-dramas I’ve seen, the girls have kind of ben non-entities, likely because the whole point is the boys from the band. Instead, Yeon Hee felt like one of the main characters of the show, rather than simply being there because you can’t have a drama with just boys. Well, I mean you could. But it’s unlikely to happen. The episodes themselves just seemed to zip by, and never dragged out the minimal story. The drama used what it had to its advantage and never tried to be more than it was. There was enough plot in the story that it was worth watching over other EXO related media. While it’s fun to see the members interact in real life, there’s something uniquely fun about watching them act out a story. While the whole childhood-friend scenario was a little random, the fact that it fanned the flames in the love-triangle was wonderful. I guess I do wish that the love triangle had actually been concluded though.

Feels kinda like no one got the girl...or the girl got no one...

While it was clear that Chanyeol and Yeon Hee were having a ‘some’ relationship, I still kind of wanted a little confirmation, as opposed to EXO leaving and only coming back many months later. Many months of Chanyeol NOT CONTACTING Yeon Hee, I might add. 

What Was Great:

It’s EXO:

The boys are really funny and did a pretty good job. Their chemistry was adorable to watch, and I honestly could have watched a fair few more episodes of it.

You're all gorgeous

I preferred Chanyeol as the teasing friend rather than the grumpy idol, and I think he felt more comfortable acting that way too. The other boys were all hilarious, particularly Sehun and his friendship with Yeon Hee’s brother. Of course, I enjoyed my bias most. D.O was just plain delightful. I could fangirl for days about him, and I’ve taken more screenshots of D.O’s face than I could ever hope to fit into one review. Or one hundred. 

A Kyung Soo for every mood

What Wasn’t:

Poor Sad D.O:

I really enjoyed this little show and have very little to criticise about it. I did feel a bit bad that D.O was so sad for so much of the time though. Granted, it’s probably because he’s the only actor that could have pulled off those heartbreaking smiles and sad puppy expressions, so I think we all ended up with a pretty serious case of second-lead syndrome. I just wanted D.O to get the girl. But then seeing him sad about it was cute in its own way I guess.

Recommend?

For EXO fans or anyone with a fangirl heart- this show was made for you.

Universal stars indeed