Reply Series
I like series that are set in the past and tell us how life was back then while also giving us a glimpse of events from those specific years. Reply (Hangul: 응답하라) does exactly that! I was introduced to this series when I was a watching a Bangtan Bomb where Kim Taehyung aka V mentioned the series and since it traces the early years of K-Pop i just had to watch it.
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| Image courtesy Soompi |
The first installment in the series is called ‘Reply 1997’. The story revolves around six protagonists - Shi Won, Yoon Jae, Yoo Jung, Joon Hee, Hak Chan and Sung Jae who are in their senior year of high school and are busy figuring out life after school. The main protagonist is Shi Won played by Jung Eun Ji from the popular K-Pop girl group APink. Shi Won has just one love in her life – H.O.T! She will go any lengths to be a core member of their fan club. She’ll skip school to stand in line for their album. She’ll run away from home just so she can have a glimpse of her idol. Shi Won has absolutely no clue about life after school because she is just too immersed in her love for her favourite boy band from S.M.Entertainment. She may not be the best of students but she can come up with steamy plotlines about her favorite idol’s personal life!
What makes this series popular is the fact that it introduces to all its audiences, both international and domestic, to the fact that ‘Fan Fictions’ have been in existence since the dawn of boy bands. One of the most loved themes of the series is the rivalry between White Angels and Yellow Kies. When Shi Won finds out that her best friend is no longer a White Angel but a fan of Sechs Kies all hell breaks loose. What makes all of this even more funny is the fact that Eun Ji Won who plays Hak Chan is actually a band member of Sechs Kies.
Sechs Kies and H.O.T were the first few bands to have such large members in their fandom. The fight scene between White angels and Yellow Kies is nothing but epic but the ultimate climax is when the victor is announced!
The series played a very important role in bringing to the fore the foundation of the Hallyu (Korean Wave) that has swept over the world in over two decades and is still going strong. Sung Dong Il and Lee Il Hwa who play Shi Won’s parents are portrayed as a couple that’s always bickering but there is a definite under current of love that we keep getting a glaring glimpse of throughout the series. Who would’ve thunk that they would be able to take and make their characters so popular amongst everybody who watched it!
Apart from the obvious KPop theme – other aspects of High School life are dealt with very delicately. This first installment has a mystery theme. The story begins in current day 2012 but takes us back to 1997. We learn how the characters met and their relationship with each other is established and we also see how their friendship has progressed from 1997 to 2012 but in the present day of the series Shi Won is pregnant and the audience is left guessing as to who her partner is at the end of each episode.
Hahahaha! I rooted for the right guy in this one. This was the easiest to guess.
My Rating: 4.3/5
Recommend: Yes!
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| Image courtesy Soompi |
The second installment in the series is called ‘Reply 1994’. This story is set 3 years prior to the first series and has a brand new cast except Sung Dong Il and Lee Il Hwa who return as the protagonist’s parents. Na Jung lives with her parents in Seoul who run a boarding house that takes in kids from the countryside as boarders. Sseu Re Ki (Trash), Chil Bong, Samcheonpo, Haitai, Gue Re Gue Re Bing Gue Re (Smiley Face) and Yoon Jin are the 6 boarders at the Shinchon Boarding house.
All of these are from the countryside including Na Jung except Chil Bong who was born and raised in Seoul. The initial episodes deal with the kids figuring out Seoul, the subway, the girls, the food menu, the night clubs and all things that they need to do to be a part of the ‘in’ crowd.
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| Chil Bong |
Chil Bong is a baseball player and is Bing Geu Re’s cousin. After visiting Bing Gue Re at the Boarding house Chil Bong becomes a permanent visitor because he loves the family like atmosphere that is shared in the house as opposed to the coldness he has grown up with.
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| Sseu Re Ki |
Sseu Re Ki is the son of a family friend who has been living with Na Jung’s family to pursue his academics in medicine and he is the oldest of the lot.
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| Yoon Jin |
Yoon Jin is a quiet and reserved girl who knows just one thing – Seo Taiji and Boys. Her love for the man goes to the point where she gets her boyfriend to ransack Seo Taiji’s empty house and bring her back his commode!
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| Haitai |
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| Samcheonpo |
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| Bing Gue Re |
Bing Gue Re the shy boy who wants to be a singer but is in medical college and can’t find his way about the academic life takes a break from school and works several part time jobs. He is a passive aggressive rebel who is trying find his own way.
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| Na Jung |
Last but not the least Na Jung who loves her Basketball oppa and can’t see beyond him but suddenly finds herself falling in love and has to go through the turmoil of confession – rejection and letting love find its way to her.
The series is again done so beautifully and talks of several events that effected South Korea - Pagers! Death of Kim Il Sung on 8thJuly, 1994 and the fear of an impending war, The collapse of Daewoo in 1999 and many such instances that gripped South Korea between 1994 to 2013.
Like the pervious series even this series has KPop playing a very important role in the series. We are introduced to so many good songs because of this show and its background music. I had completely forgotten about Deli Spice after having watched the Classic and thanks to this show they are back on my playlist!
This show teases us about who is married to Na Jung in the present day. All in all for a sequel this wasn’t bad at all and more importantly I was glad it wasn’t set in school again but was instead set in college giving us a glimpse in the life of a Yonsei student!
The guy I was rooting for didn’t get the girl. Sigh.
My Rating: 4/5
Recommendation: Yes! Of the three series this one definitely gives us a glimpse of events in South Korean history.
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| Image courtesy Soompi |
The third installment in the series is called ‘Reply 1988’. Sung Dong Il and Lee Il Hwa are back as parents and there are no cameo appearances from the cast of the previous two seasons except of course the obvious presence of Samcheonpo as Jung Hwan’s father.
The cast in this series was by far the best! From the parents to the kids everybody was SO good!
This season too like the previous two tells us the story of a group of friends. These friends live in the same neighborhood and are high school students. This series concentrated on the family more than the love story.
The kids on the block
The High Schoolers
The story revolves around these 5 characters and their respective siblings. It’s about a time where parents made their kids take a little something from their table to their neighbors. Back when there were no smart phones and gadgets to keep one occupied.
These 5 come up with such fun ways of keeping themselves entertained it is nothing short of nostalgia mixed with a longing for a world when things were much simpler.
What Sanskrit is to Indian kids; English is to Korean kids.
The only reason why this doesn’t get a perfect score is because the guy I was rooting for deserved to be with Duk Sun!
My Rating: 4.8/5
Recommend: You don’t need to know KPop to watch the series. It’s a fun, light hearted drama.
All three series are extremely heart-warming. They don’t disappoint even if the later installments are sequels. I can’t wait for another installment of this series.
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