Review by: Sabrina

Synopsis

“More Than Friends” (“Friends”) is the story of Kyung Woo Yeon (Shin Ye Eun) and Lee Soo (Ong Seung Wu), who evolve from friendship to romance, after more than a decade of ups and downs.  In high school, Woo Yeon develops a crush on Lee Soo, but the crush remains one-sided as Lee Soo struggles with his parents’ divorce.  Despite their differences, Woo Yeon feels that the two are becoming closer, and she and her closest friends, Han Jin Joo (Baek Soo Min) and Kim Young Hee (Ahn Eun Jin), feel that Lee Soo is going to confess.  Instead, Lee Soo tells her that he is going to study abroad.  Seeing him off at the airport, Woo Yeon confesses her feelings to Lee Soo, but he turns her down, saying that he wishes to remain friends.  Devastated, Woo Yeon spends the next decade of her life working a job that she dislikes and dating a string of men whom she never develops any feelings for.  Woo Yeon’s life finally begins to go right for her when the renowned Metaphor Books offers her the opportunity to work as calligrapher for a photobook they are producing about Seoul.  Woo Yeon readily accepts the offer, and to her dismay, learns that the professional photographer they have hired to work with her, is none other than Lee Soo.  Working together on the project, the two become closer, but not wishing to reopen old wounds, Woo Yeon does her best to keep her heart closed to Lee Soo.  Instead, she begins to date the CEO of Metaphor Publishing, On Joon Soo (Kim Dong Joon).  But despite his warm heart and compassion, Woo Yeon never develops any feelings stronger than friendship for Joon Soo.  After many trials and tribulations, Lee Soo and Woo Yeon finally learn to love one another honestly and wholeheartedly, regardless of the risk of a broken heart.     

Friends to Lovers

Despite the title, Woo Yeon and Lee Soo never have much of a friendship.  In fact, they realize that though they have known each other since their school days, they spend more time apart than together.  In high school, Woo Yeon keeps the peace and suffers alone, frequently the victim of the mean girls at school.  Woo Yeon’s silence angers Lee Soo, who tells her that she needs to love herself before others can love her.  After they graduate, Lee Soo goes abroad and Woo Yeon develops a reputation amongst their mutual friends as an “ex collector.”  She does not know how to love romantically, so she dates people with the hope of liking them.  She blames her inability to love on a curse she feels that Lee Soo placed on her when he rebuked her love so traumatically.  She only begins to take control of her own love life when she and Lee Soo meet unexpectedly on Jeju Island.  She kisses him at sunset, breaking the curse herself.  In her own way, this was the closure she needed, and she choose the terms, not him.  Unfortunately, she soon learns that, despite our best efforts, our hearts do not do as we wish.  She runs into Lee Soo again after returning to Seoul, and again, her heart yearns for him.

In work, Woo Yeon desires to become a professional calligrapher and writer, but society – represented by her mother – dictates she has a “real” job.  “Friends” takes a hard look at what success looks like.  Is success going to a good university and securing a stable job?  Woo Yeon argues that cutthroat society demands that one person do the work of two, which cuts the available jobs in half.  Society unfairly looks down on people who are working in a job that they love, if that job does not come with a significant income or accolades.  Therefore, a job that is outside the norm, may not eb deemed a success – especially in the field of liberal arts.  Woo Yeon’s desire to be a calligrapher is not valued by her mom or society, which makes her feel worthless.  Landing the job as calligrapher for a photobook validates all of her hard work, giving her studies in the field of liberal arts a quantifiable measure of success.  The original theme of the calligraphy photobook is “Living on even when pushed to the side,” a sentiment which is very personal to Woo Yeon, both in her romantic life and in her path to success.

Whereas Woo Yeon suffers in silence for the sake of others, Lee Soo openly rebukes others.  Lee Soo suffered emotionally when his parents argued and eventually divorced.  Though he understood what his parents were going through, understanding them did not heal his wounds, and he learned to keep those he cared for at arm’s length.  Because of this, he lacks empathy, which leads to his loneliness.  Because he did not witness a love with a happy ending growing up, he is scared to have a forever relationship, therefore he never starts a relationship.  His self-protective nature of stopping something before it starts, prevents him from realizing his feelings for Woo Yeon. 

After graduating high school, Lee Soo leaves Korea in order to study abroad.  He becomes a photographer, travelling the world alone.  His landscape photography is a commercial and critical success, but he does not find happiness.  He never photographs people, because he cannot understand their emotions.  That changes, however, when he is hired to work as the photographer alongside Woo Yeon on the calligraphy photobook.  As they travel together from location to location, he enjoys her company and slowly begins to realize his feelings for Woo Yeon extend beyond friendship.  One day, he photographs her, admitting to himself that he wants to remain by her side forever.  After alternating one-sided love, first on Woo Yeon’s side and then on Lee Soo’s, these two are finally able to be honest about their feelings and sacrifice whatever is necessary to be together.    

Missed Opportunity

One idea that circulates throughout “Friends” is the idea about missed opportunity.  Growing up, Lee Soo’s father tells him that he must keep those things he loves at a distance.  His father thinks that this will protect Lee Soo from being hurt, but it leads to a missed opportunity of sharing love with Woo Yeon.  Lee Soo realizes that his father’s advice is wrong.  You must keep those people that you love close.

When Lee Soo and Woo Yeon fail to connect at Namsan, Lee Soo insists that it was simply a missed opportunity that can be rectified.  But Woo Yeon, once again hurt by Lee Soo’s actions, rebukes him, saying that people like to blame the last opportunity they missed, when in fact, there are many opportunities that have been missed.  And missed opportunity becomes regret. 

Misunderstanding

Another idea that appears throughout “Friends” is that of misunderstanding.  Sometimes we misunderstand others, and sometimes we misunderstand ourselves.  Lee Soo and Woo Yeon have a tumultuous relationship because they are not honest to themselves about their own feelings.  When Woo Yeon confesses her feelings to Lee Soo during the first-half of “Friends,” he turns her down, insisting that he only has feelings of friendship for her.  The result is a one-sided love on Woo Yeon’s side, when in fact, Lee Soo is unaware of his feelings for Woo Yeon.  He misunderstands what his feelings indicate.  Later in the K-drama, Lee Soo comes to realize the truth of his feelings, and admits to Woo Yeon that he has loved her since their high school days.  For him, the beginning of his feelings and his awakening to the truth about them were not the same time.

Misunderstandings between people arise when we think we understand what a person is thinking or feeling, but are wrong.  Lee Soo admits his feelings to Woo Yeon after she begins dating another man, leading Woo Yeon to misunderstand Lee Soo’s seemingly “sudden” feelings as jealousy.  When Woo Yeon and Lee Soo do finally begin to date, Woo Yeon misunderstands Lee Soo’s true feelings, which makes her too insecure in the relationship to be honest.  Because of this, she ends their love when she begins to doubt his love.  Communication is the key to preventing misunderstanding for occurring or eradicating misunderstanding once it has occurred. 

Fate

The common Korean trope of fate is another idea that appears in “Friends.”  On Jun Soo is the CEO of Metaphor Books and a love interest for Woo Yeon.  He believes in fate, and that he and Woo Yeon are fated to be together.  He and Woo Yeon first meet when they run into each other – literally – on Jeju Island.  From the beginning, Jun Soo appreciates Woo Yeon’s calligraphy and writing skills, and makes her feel worthy.  He brings his appreciation for her work at a time when she really needs to hear it.  Jun Soo is also easy to talk to, and Woo Yeon admits to him that she must really love calligraphy and writing, because she suffers so much for them.  He warns her that the more you love something, the more difficult it is, which draws a parallel between Woo Yeon’s struggle to find success with her career with her struggles in her relationship with Lee Soo.  When a calligrapher from one of Metaphor Books’ publicity events breaks her wrist, Jun Soo suggests Calligrapher Woo Yeon, giving her her first break in the industry. 

We also learn that Woo Yeon has been unintentionally drunk calling Jun Soo for years!  Whenever Woo Yeon gets drunk, she shamelessly dials the number that she believes to be Lee Soo’s.  She then alternates between confessing her love and expressing her pain and anger and him rebuking her confession.  For years, Jun Soo receives these phone calls, and listens to them in silence, finding in the mysterious caller a kindred spirit.  For he himself, once loved a woman who did not return his affections.  When Jun Soo finally meets the mysterious caller, he is convinced that they are fated to be together. 

Worthiness

There are many couples in “Friends,” which, juxtaposed with the Lead Couple, demonstrate the idea of worthiness.  The two most important couples are Han Jin Joo and Jin Sang Hyeok (P.O) and Kim Young Hee and Shin Hyun Jae (Choi Chan Ho).  Jin Joo and San Hyeok are my favorite couple of the three.  Jin Joo is Woo Yeon’s best friend since high school.  She always sticks up for her, no matter what.  She comes from a wealthy family, but she is a hard worker.  She was top of her class in high school and graduated from Seoul National University – the best university in Korea, according to Times Higher Education – and works diligently as a prosecutor.  Her parents raised her to believe that she is worthy and that she deserves to be with someone that is successful, and therefore, worthy of Jin Joo.  For most of the K-drama, Jin Joo is single and desperately pursues love.  She finds her perfect match right in front of her eyes in her long-time friend, Sang Hyeok.  Sang Hyeok is a chef who owns his own restaurant.  He has loved Jin Joo for years, and despite his humble upbringing, is a perfect match for Jin Joo.  In contrast with Woo Yeon and Lee Soo, Jin Joo and San Hyeok are honest with one another, and despite being from two different worlds, complement each other well.  They begin the K-drama alone, but as the other couples of “Friends” break-up, Jin Joo and San Hyeok fall in love with plans to marry.

Young Hee and Hyun Jae, meanwhile, are a couple that has been together ever since their high school days ten years ago, but because of obstacles in Young Hee’s life, have never married.  Young Hee comes from a poor family.  She lost her father at a young age, leaving her to help her mother – who is sick and dying – to raise and support her younger brother.  Young Hee feels that sharing her burdens with another is pathetic and she never wants Hyun Jae to be put in that situation.  So, in spite of Hyun Jae’s desire to marry Young Hee, the couple has never married.  In her mind, she is not worthy.  But Hyun Jae is the wisest of all of the characters in “Friends,” and he patiently remains by Young Hee’s side, returning time and time again, even when she pushes him away.  Unlike the Lead Couple, Hyun Jae understands that couples tackle their problems together.  He loves Young Hee and her family.  Young Hee allows her life to pass her by while she is overwhelmed with her family’s poverty.  In reality, however, Young has a job, a home, and family who loves her.  And just as she refuses to leave her dying mother’s side out of love, Hyun Jae refuses to leave hers.  Even when his family insists that Young Hee is not worthy of him, Hyun Jae insists that he has become that man that is because of Young Hee’s love and support.  He tells his parents that he can live without seeing them, but without Young Hee, he will die.  It is Hyun Jae’s love and support at her mother’s passing that shows Young Hee that leaning on others does not make you pitiful; it is simply what loved ones do for one another.

Final verdict: SKIP  

Unfortunately, while “More Than Friends” discusses some important concepts and has more than a few endearing characters, it is ultimately a SKIP.  The storyline is overly and unnecessarily melodramatic, and the back and forth in the Lead Couple’s relationship is drawn out.  Every situation is made into an all-or-nothing situation.  One example of this is when Lee Soo is offered an opportunity in his career that requires him to travel abroad for two years.  Woo Yeon originally decides to go with him, but is then unable to go with him because she is offered a hand modeling job for a calligrapher in a Korean drama.  In this day and age, it seems absurd that she cannot do both – travel with Lee Soo and then fly back to Korea when needed for filming.  There are people in the United States who fly coast-to-coast every day for work, so the concept is not unimaginable, if they truly want to be together.  And realistically, how long would the shooting for the hand modeling take?  That type of acting is all shot with the second or third units on a film crew, and often in bursts over a short period of time.  Therefore, their time spent apart over a two-year span would be minimal.  Still, Woo Yeon decides to remain behind in Korea.  Long-distance relationships are notoriously difficult, which Woo Yeon and Lee Soo acknowledge, but they vow to remain together.  Unfortunately, the separation proves too difficult for Woo Yeon who gives up because she is afraid that she will start disliking Lee Soo.  After all of their struggles to end their misunderstandings and rectify their missed opportunities, Woo Yeon’s lack of maturity in this situation is disappointing.  All of the couples in “Friends” lack maturity, and often hurt one another unnecessarily, without learning from their mistakes.  And while all of the conflict is eventually resolved by the final episode, the silly and repetitive back-and-forth makes “More Than Friends” too melodramatic and too much of a slow burn for a romcom, landing it on our SKIP list. 

So there it is, our review of “More Than Friends.”  What did you think?!  Thank you for joining us on this journey. 

Have a favorite K-drama you think we should review, comment down below!!  We look forward to seeing you back again soon!

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