It makes sense given the name of this site that I review 2020’s “Crash Landing On You” right out of the gate, even if it was not the first kdrama I watched.
Airing on Netflix in 2020, this romance stars Son Ye Jin as Yoon Se-Ri, an executive and heiress who inadvertently lands in North Korea after a paragliding incident that occurs along the contentious border between South and North Korea. Once there, a captain in the N. Korean military, Captain Ri Jung Hyuk (portrayed by Hyun Bin), finds her in the woods and instead of turning her in, hides her in his house and tries to figure out how to get her back over the border safely. However, the longer they stay in the same house, the more they become drawn to each other.
Writer Park Ji-eun excelled with this drama, having previously written two very popular kdramas, “The Legend of the Blue Sea” and “My Love From The Star.” She also wrote one of my favorite 2024 shows, “Queen of Tears.” The director, Lee Jeong-hyo, directed Park Seo Jun in 2014’s “A Witch’s Love” as well as 2019’s “Romance is a Bonus Book” starring Lee Na-young and Lee Jong-suk.
There are many things to love about this kdrama, and trust me when I say this is a beloved kdrama among viewers. The main storyline between Captain Ri and Se-Ri is so incredibly romantic (their chemistry seems so strong for good reason – the actors began a relationship shortly after filming wrapped and later got married). Add in lovable side characters such as Captain Ri’s direct reports who are there for comedic fun throughout the show and it’s hard not to be charmed by this program.
There are plenty of secondary storylines involving the North Korean village women, Captain Ri’s soldiers and their adventures in South Korea, and a South Korean man who is on the run and “escapes” to North Korea with plans to live a lavish, secluded life avoiding capture but falls in love instead. Not only that, but cameos in kdramas are popular and while the first time I didn’t realize it was a cameo, I now know that epilogue of episode 10 features a cameo by Kim Soo Hyun’s character from his 2013 movie “Secretly Greatly” (who also shows up in episode 15, too).
I remember the first time I watched this show I didn’t think Hyun Bin was that attractive during the first few episodes, but when he eventually wore a black turtleneck around episode 7-8 and later pushed his hair back in episode 11, I was sold. Hyun Bin is VERY easy on the eyes. While doing a recent rewatch I was impressed with the entire cast of “CLOY” which included a lot of very famous character actors (they were all strangers to me the first time I watched the show).
The other thing I noticed the second time around is that the story is a bit repetitive. Now that I’m 18+ months into watching kdramas, I’ve noticed that many of these 16-episode shows could benefit from being 12-14 episodes instead. Upon rewatch I feel as though ‘CLOY” might be one of those shows that could have been 14 episodes. Did I enjoy the show less the second time around? No way – especially now that I’m much more familiar with most of the actors and understand the many, many tropes involved in Korean storytelling.
The one false note throughout the series – and for me it’s a pretty big one – is the North Korean village where Captain Ri lives. It is portrayed as a charming village of folks enjoying a simple life, instead of a village of people living under a totalitarian dictatorship that forces them to live in abject poverty and fear of anything that will get them arrested. And I get it – South Korea shares a border and likely can’t afford to show any really negative stuff about their northern neighbors lest a particular dictator happens to see the show and doesn’t like how his country is portrayed. But the fact that the show attempted to show that North Korea can actually be pleasant for the population outside of the major cities – that just made me a bit mad, stellar cast notwithstanding.
But the best part of this show, hands down, is the romance between Captain Ri and Se-Ri. The leads’ chemistry is off the charts and so, so enjoyable to watch. The East Asian red string theory is strong in this show and as more and more episodes passed the more I loved watching these two characters fall in love. As the show continues, the viewer is left wondering how on earth the show will end considering how star-crossed our lovers are. I remember when I finished watching the finale I thought it was a great ending – happy, but bittersweet. I was left with a smile on my face but tears in my eyes. It was the perfect ending.
Anyone new to watching kdramas and looking for recommendations will invariably be told this is a must-watch, and I completely agree. Even with my second watch I couldn’t help but love the show. It’s in my all-time top 5 for a reason.
My rating: 4.5 out of 5.0 stars
Comment below and let me know what you thought of “Crash Landing on You”…
