Come Here and Hug Me

Come Here and Hug Me

8/10

Come Here and Hug Me

Genre:                                               Episodes: 16                                     Year: 2018

Romance

Melodrama
Thriller

Synopsis:

Chae Do Jin and Han Jae Yi are both traumatised by a murder case that took place in their past. Jae Yi is the daughter of a murdered actress, and Do Jin is the son of the man that killed her.

Cast:

Jang Ki Yong (Chae Do Jin)

Jin Ki Joo (Han Jae Yi)

Heo Joon Ho (Yoon Hee Jae)

Nam Da Reum (Yoon Nam Woo)

Ryu Han Bi (Gil Nak Won)

Kim Kyung Nam (Yoon Hyun Moo)

Seo Jung Yeon (Chae Ok Hee)

Yoon Jong Hoon (Gil Moo Won)

Choi Ri (Chae So Jin)

Kim Seo Hyung (Park Hee Young)

General Thoughts:

This drama turned out much better than I was actually expecting it to be. I went in assuming that we’d have some good plot line, but kinda expected it to get bogged down in an unbelievable amount of angst. Because K-Drama writers love their angst, and this set-up is basically the perfect excuse for it. But we happily avoided excessive amounts.

An appropriate amount of angst

This writer is pretty new, with the only credit being a short drama special that I haven’t seen, and I must say she’s off to a pretty solid start. While there were some mechanisms in the plot that didn’t work as smoothly as maybe they should have, the writer absolutely nailed the characters. And if I could only pick one of the two, I’d pick great characters over a flawless plot any day.

Nothing says K-Drama like couple items

All the characters (except I’d argue maybe evil Dad) felt real and raw, and achingly human. Watching such authentic characters as they struggled through their different roadblocks and tried to find their places in the world was much more engaging and heart wrenching than any amount of angsty events could ever be. The story was driven by the characters, not just their situations, which made me much more invested in the outcome of the show. It also helped that these beautifully created characters had some serious talent to act them. I’ve seen Jin Ki Joo in some dramas before, but she’s never really made an impression on me. After her role here though, she’s definitely an actress that I’ll remember. She was excellent at portraying her character’s trauma, but never came across as a weak and useless person, which was a really important distinction to make, else Jae Yi could have ended up an annoying character rather than a likeable one. As I mentioned in my ‘The Boy Next Door’ review, I’ve really started to like Jang Ki Yong. I don’t find him the most handsome actor out there, but I fall for his acting every time.

They're both fabulous

Jang Ki Yong nailed every aspect of Do Jin’s character, and made him a believable and loveable hero. His innocent, childlike expressions really linked him back to his childhood self and enforced the idea that this was a continuation of the same character. But my favourite moments were definitely the scenes in which Do Jin snapped.

I love it when Do Jin went cray cray

For most of the series he’s holding back and keeping his emotions to himself, so I really loved those moments where Jang Ki Yong let out a bit of Do Jin’s crazy protectiveness. Not only was it interesting and exciting to watch, but it also played on that idea of whether or not Do Jin was similar to his father. In all honesty, we all knew he wasn’t, but during those wilder moments we could at least entertain the idea a little, and that was definitely down to Jang Ki Yong’s engaging and explosive portrayal of his character. While I enjoy Bae Suzy and Nam Joo Hyuk, after watching this drama I am so glad they they both turned it down and the roles went to less famous, but arguably more capable actors. The character that really stole my heart was Hyun Moo. I’m a massive fan of broken characters with mildly self-destructive tendencies who learn to love (see the crazy King in ‘7 Day Queen’). They’re just so interesting, and play with your emotions much more than lead characters tend to. Their fates also tend to be a bit more uncertain. Is Hyung going to kill someone? Is Hyung going to accept his family’s love? Is Hyung going to make it out of this drama alive? Nobody knows. And I love it.

Hyung needs a hug more than anyone

Kim Kyung Nam was perfectly cast. He was so good at showcasing his character’s desire for a sense of belonging and pairing it with an evasive and combative attitude. It was the perfect recipe for a marshmallow heart in steel casing that we would all want to find happiness. Kim Kyung Nam was so good at acting as the troubled and violent Hyung that my brain still has issues realising that this is the same guy who played the dorky, fan donsaeng in ‘Smart Prison Living’. Yes. It’s the same actor. Mind blown. His range is really incredible. 

The prison drama where he's not in prison                                    The romance drama where he is in prison 

The two younger actors were absolutely amazing. I love coming across promising young talent, and those two really blew me away. I remember adoring Nam Da Reum in ‘While You Were Sleeping’ and I’m glad to see that it wasn’t a one-off thing.

Can't wait for these kids to be leads for a whole drama

He has an unbelievable amount of credits, usually playing the younger versions of characters, so it’s no wonder that the boy has some serious acting chops. Ryu Han Bi has significantly less credits, but is no less amazing. I adored the both of them, and they had a really sweet chemistry that set the stage for the older actors and their romance. For the main villain, Heo Joon Ho was pretty good. He’s got an intimidating and authoritative presence, which really worked for his character here. When you consider that for most of the drama Hee Jae didn’t actually do anything except sit in jail and talk at people, he remained a present threat. Which I put down to Heo Joon Ho being so wonderfully creepy. I think the only actor that didn’t bring his A-Game was Yoon Jong Hoon. And that’s mostly because the way he looked at Jae Yi made me think there was some sort of fauxcest situation going on (like in ‘Kill Me, Heal Me’), only to find out it was a regular brotherly love and desire to protect. Like, wow man I read you completely wrong.The pacing of the show was done pretty well, with enough time spent with the childhood counterparts, but not too much. We got the right amount of angst without Do Jin or Jae Yi ever feeling too whiney or mopey, and the actual danger kicked into gear at just the right time.

Getting stabbed by your brother who secretly loves you must suck

The one thing I will say is that the timelines in this drama were a bit sloppy and confusing at times. The jump between the kids to the adults was obvious because, hello different actors, but sometimes the way a timeline unravelled within an episode was just weird. Like, we’d finish one episode with Do Jin and Jae Yi being happy and together, then the next episode would have Jae Yi kidnapped and Do Jin off to save her,

So snuggly, so cute

before immediately snapping back to Jae Yi safe in her apartment. Obviously I figured out pretty quickly that the first scene was a glimpse into the show’s future, but honestly I could have done without the brief moment of confusion. Especially when sticking that scene in the front of the episode adds absolutely nothing to the drama. While the show did leave itself with enough time to wrap up most of its lose ends, I will say that there were some aspects of the conclusion that could have gone better. I loved how Do Jin and Jae Yi ended up- essentially un-pausing their romance and continuing on where they left off after dealing with their trauma. Perfect, excellent, I love it. Their love story was emotional, whole, and complete. But what about Hyung? What about Dad? We assume that Hyung has made his choice to be a fluffy marshmallow indulging in Mum and So Jin's love for him, but I would have liked to see some confirmation that he wasn't straying while he was in prison. The drama felt the need to show us Hyung passing Dad in prison, but not Mum visiting him. What's with that? I know which scene I'd rather see. And yes, while Dad has been captured (again) and sent to prison (again), quite honestly nothing has really changed from the start. Do Jin and Jae Yi have gone through all their emotional baggage, but the situation is still kinda the same.

Please, can we just go right ahead and carry out that death sentence now?

Crazy murderer Dad is in prison on death row. It's pretty gruesome but I found myself wishing that the show would give some hint that Dad's death sentence was actually carried out. If he broke out once, what's to stop him doing it again? The love line was concluded beautifully, but I was left wanting more of a definitive end to Hee Jae.

What Was Great:

Classic Korean Feel:

While watching this show, I was reminded of all the things in K-Drama that make it so different from Western shows, and what makes K-Drama so uniquely Korean.

K-Drama Rule 1: All first loves must end in disaster

The wistful first love, slow and nostalgic pacing, and beautiful scenery (particularly snow and cherry blossoms) are all aspects of the show that felt unique to a culture that is not my own. This difference in feel is why I fell in love with Korean dramas in the first place- my first K-Drama (‘My Love from the Stars’) had so many of these moments, and I adored how completely K-Drama this show was. Recently I feel a lot of K-Dramas are trying to make themselves more marketable worldwide, and are even remaking a fair few American shows. I loved that ‘Come Here and Hug Me’ felt kind of old school, even as it was telling a new and modern story.

It's so pretty!

It’s not to say that the show felt old or dated, but its sentimentality and quietly introspective nature really reminded me of what makes K-Drama so different to everything else. The stunning scenery, lovely sad soundtrack, and intermittent voice overs just felt so beautifully Korean.

Characters:

All the characters in this story were interesting and engaging, and made the show easy to watch. I adored Do Jin and Jae Yi’s love story, but I particularly loved Do Jin’s family dynamics.

Mum loves all her kids, even the crazy ones

Mum was an image of pure love and kindness, truly caring for Do Jin and Hyun Moo as her own children (after her initial flight response of course). The scene of her at the police station convincing Nam Woo/Do Jin to come and live with her was done beautifully, and expressed both of their hearts perfectly. Hyun Moo's journey overall was just so fascinating. His desperate attempts to get his father's attention and approval were pitiful, and honestly a little frightening. This poor boy was willing to go to such extremes just for a bit of acknowledgement, and it’s not hard to imagine how much worse his life would have turned out if he hadn’t had Mum constantly nagging at him (in that endearing, loving way). Hyun Moo’s desire to protect Mum and So Jin from the shadows was heartbreakingly sweet, and I’m glad the show gave him opportunities to step up and protect each of them, showing that he truly did care for him. Honestly, without the threat of a psychotic murdering father, Hyun Moo might never have let his guard down around the two people who acknowledged and loved him more than anyone else.

I'm so glad they didn't kill off Hyung

The question of whether sons are the shadows of their fathers is not exactly a new idea in K-Dramaland, but it remained interesting nonetheless for both the boys. While Hyun Moo was trying to reach for similarities to tie him to his father, Do Jin was trying to push those similarities away. To be honest, I still kind of fail to see what made Do Jin so much more ‘similar’ to Hee Jae (even if only in Hee Jae’s eyes).

If you don't wanna be like Dad, maybe don't use a hammer

The show never really went as far as to address what Hee Jae actually saw in his youngest son, but the psychological influence Hee Jae’s belief had was interesting to watch. Do Jin was a layered and complex character that was so much more than a son trying to break away from his father. While he had to carry a tremendous guilt that he didn’t deserve, his innocent childhood love remained unshaken, and gave Do Jin a sweet and almost naive undertone. Jae Yi/Nak Won was less intriguing as the male characters, but was an interesting heroine all the same. She was charming, yet resilient, and her kindness never felt fictional the way that some K-Drama heroines’ innate goodness sometimes comes across. While throughout most of the series Jae Yi was being protected by Do Jin, I enjoyed that in the final conflict we got to see more of her backbone. She never came across as a useless or weak character, but I’m glad she was given a chance to stand up to Hee Jae and protect Do Jin on her own.

Great role reversal

All of the characters felt unique and interesting, right down to those that only appeared for a short amount of time. I found both of the reporters truly fascinating, particularly in their differing moral codes. Honestly, I was hoping that Hee Young was going to get a bit more backstory, as at the time of her death I was left wondering what the point of her character had been, but I enjoyed her inclusion in the story simply for the fact that she had the ability to rile Hee Jae up. Which no one else seemed capable of doing.

She seemed like she was going to be way more important than she actually was

What Wasn’t:

Get Out of Jail Free Card:

As Hee Jae was our main source of conflict, it was kind of obvious that he would at some point bust out of jail to actually shake things up. Because honestly, having our characters actually have to visit Hee Jae of their own volition just to listen to him spout profuse nonsense felt a bit…silly.

Not so scary while locked up

Like, why go and see him at all? I actually didn’t find Hee Jae to be a truly terrifying villain to be blunt (and I can’t quite put my finger on why- perhaps it was his love of monologuing the same three lines), but he definitely felt like more of a threat once he escaped from prison. My issue was with how his escape came about. What possible reason would you have for transporting a highly dangerous criminal with a known fanbase outside the prison to a new location. Because some reporter was suing him? Really? I’m not sure how the law works in Korea, but I feel pretty confident that Hee Jae would not have needed to attend that small trial. Or even if he did, haven't yu people heard of Skype? It was unnecessary to even move Hee Jae from prison, but then to have him easily take out two police officers and break out of hospital seemed kinda simple. Would you really only have two regular police officers guarding a mass murderer?

It's almost like the police wanted him to escape

And then once he had escaped it drove me insane that no one thought to check his old dog farm. You know, the place where he killed people and destroyed the evidence. Yeah, that might be a good place to start looking for him and his whacko groupies. 

Citizen protection seemed pretty low on police priority

But perhaps the thing that annoyed me most about the whole situation is that people that were highly likely to be targets were given pretty much no police protection. Because apparently the young girl he tried to kill before he got arrested needs no extra protection, because why would he want to kill her? And of course the woman he says he loves should only have the protection of one old detective. And it definitely makes the most sense to have all these people at different locations. Like come on people. You would have made your lives a whole lot easier if Mum, So Jin, Jae Yi, Hyun Moo, and Do Jin all stayed in the same place with a huge security squad. Probably would have been able to avoid Mum and Hyun Moo nearly getting murdered. Jae Yi also probably would not have gotten kidnapped. I’m aware that these things needed to happen for the development of the show, I just wish the show had been a little more subtle with the way it set things up is all. Rather than having everyone in danger cuz they’re too silly to stick together with highly trained security.

Recommend?

If you like the classic K-Drama wistful, nostalgic love stories this is a drama for you.

There were an adequate amount of hugs