Wrapping Up: You From Another Star

WAAAHHHH. You From Another Star finally came to a close. I'm just glad it ended on a happy note with hope for our OTP's future together.

From the onset, I was worried about how they were going to close a story like this one. Let's be honest, kdramas are not the best at explaining away mechanics of alternate universes or finding ways around fate in a believable and satisfying way (i.e. Rooftop Prince). So while You From Another Star left much to be desired in terms of explaining how Do Min-joon was able to travel back or if he got sick after that awesome kiss, I'm happy they had at least given us emotional closure, if not scientific or mythological closure.

This drama sure took us for a ride, in the most enjoyable way possible. The writing found the perfect balance of sweet, heart wrenching, and hilarious which resulted in well-rounded episodes. I truly appreciated how a lot of the heavier episodes were undercut by adorable and hilarious scenes that made dilemmas easier to bear. A lot of times, in kdramas, the latter third of a series would suddenly veer into melo territory because that's when all the conflicts are laid out on the table (or worse, they were given an extension they couldn't handle). I'm glad this drama was able to steer clear of this hurdle to serve us what it initially promised.

Somehow, I'm always pleasantly surprised by the dramas that sound wonky on paper but end up doing really well in execution. Just like I Hear Your Voice (courtroom drama/noona romance/supernatural powers) and Master's Sun (rom-com/horror/supernatural powers), two of my favorite dramas of 2013, You From Another Star (alien romance/noona romance/comedy/timeskip drama) sounds just as insane on paper, but squishing together three or four different genres apparently make for an amazing narrative. Ha.

As awesome as the story was, that does not take away from the fact that this drama had awesome leads. I've loved Kim Soo-hyun from the first time I saw him cry on Dream High. He is one of the best criers in kdramaland, seriously. Whenever I see him tearing up on screen, it feels like someone's digging into my chest to retrieve my heart. He is also fantastic with visual comedy, as is apparent in his last film Secretly Greatly (or Covertly Grandly, whichever title you want to call it). Both of these skills were put to great use in this drama.

 On the other hand, I did not have expectations of Jeon Ji-hyun because, to be honest, I haven't seen her in anything aside from My Sassy Girl which was over a decade ago. All I knew was that she was pretty awesome and awesomely pretty in that film. And in You From Another Star, she's proved that she is indeed both those things. I don't think the character of Cheon Song-yi would've worked quite as well with a lesser actress. It would've been too easy to play her wrong and to make her come off as irritating rather than endearing.

A happy surprise, as well, comes in the form of model-actor Ahn Jae-hyun, whose only previous credential is possibly a huge bunch of music videos. One in particular that I know him from is K.Will's "Please Don't" which he starred in alongside Seo In-guk. I have no idea what they're feeding these models nowadays, but a lot of today's up-and-coming young actors are off of Seoul's runways and fashion spreads. In the same vein as Lee Jong-suk, Sung Joon, and Kim Woo-bin, I can see Ahn Jae-hyun going the distance with his acting career. He was utterly adorable and believable in his hyung-worshiping (and E.T. fanboy) role that it took me awhile to digest the fact that he is actually older than Kim Soo-hyun.

So it's with a happy sigh that I leave this drama behind (or not quite behind, I think I will be re-watching the last two episodes all weekend long). As a last note, you know what would've made the finale even more awesome than it already was? To have been able to witness the reunions between Do Min-joon and Lawyer Jang and Yoon-jae. Can you imagine how sweet and adorable those events would've been?