Directed by Kim Hyung Shik and written by So Hyun Kyung,(49 Days, Brilliant Legacy.) Twenty Again stars veteran actress Choi Ji Woo and recently found star, Lee Sang Yoon. This drama originally aired in 2015 but as you all know, I'm always late watching Korean drama. At least I got to see this one and lasted to the end. The reasons for me lasting till the end might not be what you think.
A girl at age nineteen gets pregnant and is forced to quit school. Now married and with a family of her own, She has always regretted not having the memories of college life. What a better time to go back to college than in her thirties when her family has lost all use for her. The chance to start a new experience has fallen in her lap, the only problem is her son and old love interest attend the same college as professor and student.
Twenty again opens with a great concept for a decent storyline. A middle women decides she wants to go to college and this completely goes against the norms of Korean society. Korean culture puts a timeline on each persons life. The roles you have to play by a certain time vary depending on your gender. If your a female, by a certain age you're expected to be in college then by another age you need to be married then having children. Many Koreans of a older generation feel this time like should be met but the younger generation of Koreans are constantly straying off this timeline and do what they damn well please. Such is the situation of the Heroine of this drama. She got married and pregnant young causing her to already be seen as odd. Things only get more odd when she shows up in a college classroom looking like a middle aged housewife who sits in the house and drinks tea all day. I was very drawn into this plot because its a new take on Korean drama. I'm the kind of guy that loves a story about perseverance and struggle. The first few episodes show the struggle of a person who is older than a lot of her classmates try to fit in and find her place. Korea has a very age centered culture where your age defines how people address you and speak to you. Students younger than a certain person would not feel comfortable ordering them around during group projects. A Korean's mind can't phantom this. Its just odd. Awkward clashes like theses were fun to watch for a few episodes but soon the drama switches gears and focuses more on her family and love life. I do wish that the writer could have found an even ground for the school life aspect and outside conflict to have been equal. This didn't happen though. Instead the concept of her going to college as an older women is washed over with a lover triangle between her, her husband, and her first love. The love triangle wasn't interesting enough after awhile to keep my interest. The drama tries to make it interesting but I've seen enough collar pulling and face to face glaring for a lifetime. Going to have to try harder than that. The story should have focused more on her struggle has an older women going to college. Some aspects of bullying being thrown in there would have been nice too.
Choi Ji Woo does good in this role as the main character. Her character is a women with a lot of background story. She might seem a little simple at first but you learn why in latter episodes. The flashback scenes help fill in a lot of questions the viewers have about her. I don't have much to say about the actors and actresses that played the young counterparts. They did their performances good enough to support the acting a Choi ji Woo and Lee Sang Yoon. They didn't really resemble their old selves though. The rest of the cast made the drama feel like a sitcom. They walk on screen then they leave and if your lucky you might see them again. Everyone's acting felt somewhat goofy to me after awhile except for a few moments. Choi and Yoon had a fun loving kind of chemistry between them that tired me out. They both were too old to play that childish game of pull and tug between them. Just admit that you like each other so this drama can end. I watched this drama more for the actors and Choi Ji Woo than the storyline once everything turned into a typical K drama. At least my heart felt warmth at the end when everything was resolved.
All the scenes were shot in Seoul. I enjoyed the looking at a Korean college from the outside looking in. You as a viewer could feel the pride Koreans take in their college lives. Also witnessing the different clubs and activities during the festival scenes was fun.
Twenty Again had a lot going for it but didn't finish strong for me. Great cast and story with no sense of real direction to keep the drama from crashing and burning. Things may have burned out but Choi ji Woo still remains a flawless actress.
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