Stream It Or Skip It: ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ on Netflix, A Seasonal K-Drama Romance Starring IU and Park Bo-Gum

Starring mega K-drama stars IU and Park Bo-Gum, this Netflix series was highly anticipated and boasts a large budget and international acclaim. Doled out in four batches of four episodes each, should you tune in to this latest South Korean series?

WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU TANGERINES: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: A group of elderly men and women are sitting in a park doing an organized activity to write down their inner thoughts in the form of poems. But one woman sits pensively and draws blue lines resembling waves in the ocean.

The Gist: In the 1950s, Ae-Sun and Gwan-Sik are neighbors who do little more than observe one another. Ae-Sun’s mother is brash but caring, a hardworking woman who barely makes ends meet. When she dies, Ae-Sun has to figure it out on her own—but Gwan-Sik, who has secretly always been by her side, begins to dote on her and take care of her as his own, though his grandmother is unhappy about this based on her lineage.

Photo: About Netflix

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Beginning as adults and flashing back to life as children, the lifelong love story gave me The Notebook vibes.

Our Take: If you’re a sucker for love stories that pan a lifetime, sifting through the small acts that make up our lives, then When Life Gives You Tangerines is for you. While the series starts out slow—the central romantic love story is only really introduced in the last third of the pilot—it’s well worth the wait, and the story that fills the prior two-thirds is rich with character building and other forms of love.

Most of the first hour is centered on the palpable love between Ae-Sun and her mother Jeon Gwang-rye, as we see the mother try to provide the best life she possibly can for her children. In one sequence, Ae-Sun wails about not being able to serve as President of her class as the teacher has ignored the votes and installed the general’s son in the position. Gwang-rye goes to the school to plead for her child’s happiness—and her rightfully won position—even slipping the teacher some money. It’s unlikely to change his mind, but her mother’s expression of love is through these acts of service, something that seems will stick with Ae-Sun throughout her life.

By the time we get to Ae-Sun and Gwan-Sik in adulthood, we get a good sense of who they are even in limited screen time. As the series unfolds over seasons and years of their lives, they are tested, prodded, poked, but they never waver. At least, not without each other by their sides.

Sex and Skin: This is a wholesome love story, without either sex or skin in the first hour.

Parting Shot: Time presses forward and shows Ae-Sun and Gwan-Sik by each other’s sides through the years. As Ae-Sun runs from Gwan-Sik’s grandmother in the market, there’s one final time jump for the episode that shows Gwan-Sik joining her, grabbing her hand as they run away together.

Sleeper Star: Kim Tae-yeon plays a young Ae-Sun and deftly portrays the highs and lows of her somewhat tortured childhood.

Most Pilot-y Line:: “I was destined to be a porter,” the mom says, watching her daughter sleep. “Everyone just wants to ride on my back. Except this kid, she keeps getting off my back and offering to carry my load.”

Our Call: STREAM IT. This slow-burning love story told over seasons of life is worth tuning in for.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Paste Magazine, Teen Vogue, Vulture and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.