Tags
Age of Youth, Han Ye Ri, Ji Il Joo, Kdrama, Korean drama, Park Eun Bin, Park Hye Soo, Ryu Hwa Young, Shin Hyun Soo, Yoon Park
Age Of Youth is like a breath of fresh air in this world of tired tropes and clichés., with a solid heart, realistic characters and celebration of female friendship.
The story takes us in the lives of our five protagonists as we witness the everyday life, struggles, love, family, apprehensions, career, aim — through their own eyes as well as the others. I love that nothing is what it seems at first glance — gradually the layers are peeled off to understand our characters completely. And yet, just like life, a lot remains unanswered which perfectly enhances the closeness of this show to life, nothing is certain and only future can answer the questions.
The five main characters are drawn taking the stereotypical colours — the shy and naive girl, the tomboy, the sexy modern girl, the serious one and the typical college going girl. But each one is given a mixed shade to make them interesting, fresh and giving them depth.
I love the portrayal of relationships. There is the rare showcase of positive female relationship as we see the five girls enjoying together, laughing, teasing, arguing, helping each other or becoming a source of motivation for one another. There is a sense of mystery and enigma and darkness throughout, which balances the slice-of-life we get from the drama for the most part. We see the characters grow and learn, all the while maintaining their basic nature.
The male characters are also well-developed. And we can see various types of them here as well. I loved the two male leads who were so caring and sweet. The loveline between sunbae and Eun Jae was adorable! I loved individual tracks of all five ladies. There is not even one scene that bored me or a character that annoyed me. There are many life lessons that could be learned as well.
The acting is magnificent across the board. Everyone shines in their respective roles, making each character deep and natural. My favourite of the girls was Ryu Hwa Young — she gives a winning performance.
Age Of Youth is easily my favorite drama of 2016.
My Rating: 9 out of 10
The Drama Corner 
I liked this a lot too. One of my faves last year.
Yay! Considering I only watched 5 dramas last year, this one is my most favorite, with Signal coming on 2nd number.
I think this was my 2016 fave kdrama
Yayyy! Same here tlaylay 🙂
I haven’t seen this one, but I kind of had it in my peripheral as I watched the bigger dramas of the year. Sometimes I have to be picky because my time is limited. But you’ve inspired me to add it to my list! Thanks!
Devon
I can totally understand Devon! So little time and the list just keeps on getting long for dramas *sigh*
Do check it out when you have time… 🙂
Totally on my list! I’ve heard so many good things about this one, and now, here you are, praising this one too! I should really get around to watching it! 🙂
Hahahah…I hope so much praise doesn’t make you disappointed once you do start watching it 😉 😛
Can’t wait to hear your thoughts on it 🙂
I just finished the cdrama Ode to Joy about 5 women from different walk of life. I absolutely enjoyed it. This one sounds similar. I will definitely give it a go. I find myself enjoying stories about sisterhood and girl power with love lines thrown in.
I love those stories too! There is so much warmth and positivity when we see female friendships! And so rare in dramaland.
I will add Ode To Joy to my list 🙂