Review: Tomorrow With You (2017)

So Joon: "You miraculously lived on the same day I did. You die on the same day I die. What is this? You and I… what’s our connection?" Image via The Star Korea.

Yoo So Joon is a time traveler who amassed a fortune and a 200 billion won realtor company through his time traveling hijinks. He was living rather well on his own, that is, until he gets to witness his own death sometime in the distant future. Enter Song Ma Rin, a former child star and an aspiring photographer who dies at the same time that So Joon does, in the same place, and under the same circumstances.  Because of this connection, their fate gets intertwined. They enter into a marriage which brought forth not babies but a unique tale of love, life and death… and the importance of time in between.

Image via Tving.

Tomorrow With You is a beautiful and compelling drama that is more of a romance rather than the marketed mystery or suspense, not just because the latter two wasn’t its strongest aspect (well probably yes), but more so because the romance was so real and so on point in this drama I could go on and watch Ma Rin and So Joon be lovey dovey all day without complaint.

❀ RAVES ❀ »•» 

1) Le Je Hoon. Discovering new actors to like and follow is what makes my drama viewing experience a lot more worth it, probably because I get to watch dramas which I really wouldn’t ever lay eyes on had it not been for the actors. Le Je Hoon is an eye opener like that, more so because I liked how he portrayed So Joon so, so much. Yoo So Joon was a complex character to play: he was so full of burden and angst for knowing the future. He carries with him so much fear and pain because of that, yet he's also sweet and charming and very much in love at the same time. The complexities of So Joon’s character were beautifully portrayed by Le Je Hoon, something I absolutely love. From the body language down to the meaningful stares, I couldn’t help but get drawn to him and his character.

That breakdown So Joon had when he was reminded of their fatal accident on March 2019 while they were watching the news literally had me in tears. The burden of knowing the future and the fear accompanying it has taken too much of a toll to our dear So Joon he just couldn't hold it in any longer. Props to Le Je Hoon's stellarly moving portrayal of that scene. I swear this guy is seriously good at crying it always made me cry along with him, too. 

2) The chemistry. Lee Je Hoon and Shin Min Ah together was the ultimate heart of the show. I admit I first thought Je Hoon didn’t look that good with Min Ah and started Tomorrow With You with no expectations whatsoever, but boy was I glad to be proven wrong. I choked on my own words at the end of the show, realizing that up until this point, no actors paired well with Shin Min Ah than Lee Je Hoon. Yep, not even Lee Jun Ki (sorry, honey. I still love you though). The chemistry between these two is so electrifying it is very much evident even if they do not talk. Even the way they look at each other was intense beyond comprehension! No matter the lapses, it is indeed these two's pairing that made the show really work for me.

3) Character growth. Yoo So Joon started out as an uninterested guy who didn’t really care much about other people and what they say, but as soon as he got married to Song Ma Rin, everything about him changed. I love seeing him grow in love and grow as a person all throughout the show. The life that used to revolve around him became a life that now revolves to someone else, and that the death he used to fear for himself became a death that he now fears for his wife. Song Ma Rin was the same. She no longer was the washed up child star who gets dejected by every judgment she hears about her life as we’ve seen in previous episodes. She learned to have some spine, and found something to love and fight for in So Joon's being. It takes great courage to give away your life to someone easily like that, especially if that someone initially had no intention of getting involved in your life. Ma Rin was a keeper in that aspect. She stayed loyal even if everything was so, so hard, and stayed in love even if everything was already falling apart... and I seriously love her for that.

The pent up frustration So Joon had for waking up past his 'expiration date' only to find out that the wife he is dedicating his future to had died as intended was so poignant and raw that it hurt. He now lives in a future where Ma Rin is no longer alive, and cannot go back to the time where Ma Rin was still alive. I can feel So Joon's pain and loneliness in that, and the urgency of him wanting to go back in his very own time to cherish and protect what he can while he still can made me root for him even more. It was indeed a painful journey, so when he decided to give time traveling a try once more, when he finally got back to the place and time where he does belong, the reunion was satisfyingly rewarding. That very scene is a perfect embodiment of their growth: they were no longer living for themselves, they were living for each other.

4) The Friendship. So Joon found a great friend in Ki Doong, that one soul who always believed in him no matter how crazy his actions were and how unbelievable his stories might be. Ki Doong was a friend who stayed loyal to So Joon up until the end, no matter what year or timeline our time travelling buddy currently is. He was a confidante who kept So Joon's secrets, one who laughed with him during the fun times and cried with him during the bad. He was a friend not only to So Joon but also to Ma Rin, and it was beautiful to see how he genuinely cared and looked after our heroine especially during the times when she needed a friend the most.

❀ RANTS ❀ »•» 

1) Pacing. Because of the heavy focus between So Joon and Ma Rin, the fantastical concepts that never really got explored and the obviously dark undertones, there were times when the show got boring to an extent. I know a few who dropped Tomorrow With You indefinitely because of that, or because it no longer excites them and that its competitor (Strong Woman Do Bong Soon) was more fun to watch in one way or another.  Indeed it was a tad slow at times, especially during the first half of its run. Blame it to the show’s inability to balance the stakes and the mystery all too well with other elements of the drama or the very long conversations that take too much of screen time. Don’t get me wrong. I love the heavy focus on So Joon and Ma Rin, after all it was the show's greatest strength. I love all those dialogues and earnest conversations between them because those intimate conversations captured the real essence of the show. The depth of emotions evident in the way So Joon and Ma Rin look and talk to each other just felt... real. It felt raw, and definitely it felt right. It was just unnecessarily long at times.

2) Unanswered Questions. Up until the end, I still don’t very much understand how the time travelling rules work, or how the two men ended up being a time traveler per se. Sure we were shown a scene where both So Joon, Ma Rin and Do Shik were on the same train at Namyeong station during the time of the accident, but it never really answered how our boys were able to acquire their time travelling abilities. Also, it wasn't just the two of them who survived the accident. There's Ma Rin as well. Why is Ma Rin not able to time travel? And what about the connection of their deaths? I know they all survived the accident 10 years ago, but why would they all die at the same time and the same date 10 years after? Was it the Grim Reaper’s doing? Like, no matter what you do, he will try to Final Destination you? Lol that was a different drama, right?

3) Logic. At some points, logic also takes a beating in Tomorrow With You. There were several instances where I'm left scratching my head while making sense of what's happening in front of me.

After waking up from a coma, So Joon finds himself stuck in the year 2022. I am aware of the rule that he can only travel travel to a time where he is still alive, so basically the So Joon who was supposed to die in an accident on March 2019 pretty much survived, right? If that's the case, where is So Joon of 2022? He can't possibly be staying at the same place as past So Joon, otherwise he'd be risking both his life and his safety as per the time traveling rules. Ha. This is confusing. Do I even make sense?

Other times, I find myself pulling my hair in frustration or shouting at the screen while trying to understand why the characters behave in such a way, or why they ended up doing what they did when they could have done differently otherwise.

There was an instance when So Joon knew of the danger that Kim Yong Jin is to pull with his wife. However even with that knowledge, he decided to send Ma Rin home alone, in a taxi, so  she still ended up abducted. In another scenario, So Joon knew about the death of Se Young's father. He insisted to send the family in a trip overseas to prevent it, but never made sure that the Chairman did go to the airport, so he still ended up dead. And that final accident scene... Who in their right minds would hold a marriage certificate for God knows how long when it could have been kept inside a bag as soon as it got signed? Granted that Ma Rin was holding it because she was overly excited to finally get their marriage registered, who in their right mind would stand in traffic for God knows how long after picking up a marriage certificate that got blown away to the street? Good thing they didn't end up dead, but still...

❀ RULING ❀ »•» 

Despite the few setbacks, Tomorrow With You is a beautifully crafted drama with a remarkable approach to married life and lots and lots of heart to boot. Yes it was tiring and emotionally draining at times, but overall, it is an endearing tale of life and love and what comes after that is sure to fill you with so much warmth. It was quite a ride, and I am glad I traveled along.

TAGS: K-Drama, K-Drama Reviews, Le Je Hoon, Shin Min Ah, Tomorrow With You   Edit