tvN’s new kid on the block for its Friday-Saturday slot aka Marriage Not Dating premiered this week and I’m totally in love with it. It was a delightful one hour I spent with it and thought of writing my thoughts even before watching episode 2. First thing first — I loved the title track — it’s so breezy and candid with everyone looking great and fresh. The drama already impressed me with its beginning. I watched the opening more than once, that is how much I adored it!

Let’s discuss some plot now. We meet Gong Ki Tae (Yeon Woo Jin), a plastic surgeon, who is reluctant to get married. He helps his friend Lee Hoon Dong (Huh Jung Min) to avoid his girlfriend Joo Jang Mi (Han Groo) in an urgent situation when she is about to ask him to get married. After that, Hoon Dong starts avoiding her and disappears in order to break up with her. She is very much in love and is quite naive, believing all the reasons for his sudden behaviour except that he might want to end their relationship. Finally, Ki Tae can’t take it anymore and tells her the truth. She is disheartened. On her way, she meets Ki Tae’s mom who thinks that she is his son’s GF and invites her home. Jang Mi thinks that she is Hoon Dong’s mom. She goes to his house but gets insulted by Hoon Dong’s mom. In her anger, she drinks a lot and goes to his restaurant and starts confronting him. He is a total jerk and calls the police. Meanwhile, we see that Ki Tae doesn’t live with his family but in a house under his mother’s name. She is sad that Jang Mi didn’t turn up for the dinner and decides to take matter in her hands (as she thinks her son is the real reason that they are not ready to get married). She presents a condition — bring Jang Mi home with him or else she’s sell the house where he lives. He rushes to the court where Jang Mi is about to be given punishment for stalking and misbehaving. He gives a testimony in her favour and the fine is reduced. At last, he tells her that it was his mom who invited her, much to her surprise.

Okay, Yeon Woo Jin! Where were you? He is simply all kinds of awesome here. I love his natural acting and charm and he has won me over completely. I like his character — a cool person who is not arrogant but just doesn’t want to get married (Am I using this word too often?). I like that he knows how to play tricks but mostly in a harmless way and feels guilty unconsciously that he helped his terrible friend. I found it interesting the way our hero helps a guy to break up with our heroine — something fresh instead of heroes seeing broken-hearted heroines. I found Jang Mi really cute and sweet as honey. She is a girl who gives 100 percent and more to her love and trusts him completely. I already love the chemistry and can’t wait for sparks to fly between the leads.

I loved to see so many of my favorite veteran actors assembled here — Kim Gab Soo, Kim Hae Sook and Kim Young Ok — they’ll provide depth and warmth in spades to this lovely show. I think we’ll have multiple pairings and I’m over the moon for this — this looks like a drama where negative characters will be minimum or hopefully zero. The pace of the show is fine.

In short, Marriage Not Dating is cute, fun and bubbly and surely a pleasant watch apt for this bright and colorful summer season.