Review Of Welcome To Samdal-ri

 

Disclaimer: This is not an actual review. I am neither a film/TV critic nor a journalist. The content of this review is mainly based on my view and opinion of this series. The word "review" is only used to categorize and grab the reader's attention.

Warning: May contain spoilers!

Overview

Welcome to Samdal-ri is a South Korean drama starring  Ji Chang-wook and Shin Hye-sun, written by Kwon Hye-jo and directed by.ChaYoung-hoon.

The plot revolves around a photographer Cho Sam-dal (Hye-sun), who after facing workplace bullying allegations returns to her hometown Samdal-ri, and meets her ex-boyfriend and childhood friend Cho Young-pil (Ji Chang-wook) again after eight years.

It’s a good rom-com focusing not only on the love story of the main characters but also depicting the beauty of childhood friendship, the grieve of losing a loved one, the highs and lows of success and career, the reality of the world and how it treats you when you are at your peak and when you are at your lowest. It has beautiful messages and life lessons. The drama makes you realize how there’s only one place in the whole world where you can feel comfortable, and safe and can unapologetically be you and that place is your home. Your family and your childhood friends who have seen you grow up, dream and achieve those dreams are the people who will stand with you through thick and thin and will support you when the whole world is against you.

Quote From K-Drama "Welcome To Samdal-ri"

What I Liked About Welcome To Samdal-ri 

My favorite part of the drama was when all the haenyeos of Samdal-ri and Namdal-ri faced each other and fought over a theme park. It was a good episode and I just couldn’t stop laughing the whole time.

Fight Scene Between Haenyeos of Samdal-ri & Namdal-ri

My second favourite scene was when Bang Eun-ju(Jo Yun-seo) came to Sam Dal-ri and the friends of Sam Dal stood up for her. The best was how Sam Dal’s mother stood up for her daughter. She confronted Bang Eun-ju and even gave confidence to Sam-dal to stand up for herself since she hadn’t done anything wrong. The second last episode was definitely the best episode where everyone in the town in one way or another helps Sam-dal in organizing her exhibition. They also showed that you cannot achieve anything alone. You need people to help you, support you, encourage you, and guide you on your journey towards your goals.

Welcome To Samdal-ri Episode 15: Everyone Helping Sam-dal In Her Exhibition

In one scene Gong Ji-chan (Kim Min-chul) is explaining to Ha-yul (Hae-dal’s daughter and Sam-dal’s niece) how dolphins adopt the method of co-parenting and in another scene, they have shown both Mi-ja discussing how they will always take care of each other’s child. I like how they drew this comparison or linked these two things.

Bu Mi-ja & Go-Mi-ja With Baby Young-pil & Sam-dal

Kyung-tae (Lee Jae-won) often brings up his losing contact with his best friend Sam-dal due to her breakup with Young-pil. I related to him in the sense that I faced a similar situation where due to a breakup of a couple in a friendship group, the other friends lost contact with one of them. I assume this often happens in friendship groups after a breakup. Kyung-tae bringing this point again and again showed that he cared about both of his friends and because of what happened with Young-pil and Sam-dal, shouldn’t have been the reason for Sam-dal to stop contacting him. Kyung-tae’s point also reflects how breaking up between a couple not only causes pain to the couple but also the people around them.

What I Didn’t Like About Welcome To Samdal-ri

Bang Eun-ju Confronted By Go Mi-ja

Apart from the obvious Bang Eun-ju’s character, there wasn’t anything that I didn’t like about this drama. It took me some time to understand Young-pil’s father’s character because I get that he was grieving and all but just because his pain was valid it still doesn’t define his behavior towards Sam-dal. It was great to see his son making him realize this and telling him they all were grieving in one way or another, but that doesn’t mean that they have to resent each other for it. It wasn’t anyone’s mistake, it was an unfortunate accident and instead of blaming each other, they should all help each other to bear with this pain. Well, the monologue helped along with a few other emotional encounters and he understood and things worked out well in the end.

Conclusion

Young-pil Helping Sam-dal With Her Competition

Overall, it’s a good story. The direction and overall setting of the drama are beautiful. It showcased life in a small town and childhood friendships perfectly.  It was shot on Jeju Island so of course we get to see beautiful views and beaches throughout the drama. If you are someone who enjoys childhood friends to lovers, stories about small towns and the relationships of people in those towns, a bit of family drama and wholesome comedy then this one is for you. I rate this drama 4/5 stars. You can watch this drama on Netflix.