Summer Strike Review

Drama: Summer Strike (아무것도 하고싶지 않아)

Screenwriter and Director: Lee Yoon-jung

Cast:- Kim Seol-hyun, Yim Si-wan, Shin Eun-soo, a.mond, Park Ye-young, Kwak Min-gyoo, Kim Jun, Kim Hak-seon and others.

About the Show:-

After being mistreated at her workplace, experiencing a breakup and losing her mother, Lee Yeo-rum, a young woman decides to change her ways of living. She quits her job, leaves her house and sells all unwanted things and heads to a small seaside village named Angok. There in Angok, she rents a billiards hall (her roof for one year), meets a group of people who become her family and is determined to focus on herself. She resolves to have fun, not do anything and goes on a strike to make time for herself. What are Angok and people of the village ready to offer her?

(*This review may contain spoilers. If you have already watched the show, please continue reading. If you haven’t watched the show yet, you can still continue reading or you can come back to the review later.)

What I loved about the show and what I learnt while watching it?

1) The most beautiful aspect of this show is it's narration by Yeo-rum. Her voice is calming and her thoughts are transparent and honest. Her words have a soothing effect. You empathise with her. Her take on life, her take on the different experiences before healing and while healing are completely relatable.

2) The show deals with the concept of healing, doing what one pleases instead of living as per the societal norms, and falling in love with oneself and with the act of sometimes doing nothing.

3) 충분하다 (chungbunhada) -meaning to be enough. A word with dual emotions.

When you don't want to do anything, enough is just what you need.

But when there is a lot that you wish to do and achieve, enough is just not enough.

During your journey of life or while you are on the road to achieve your goals and dreams, if you are ready to invest time, to work hard, be conscious and to be alive to the entire process, then it is 'just enough'. 충분하다- chungbunhada.

Sometimes you don't have to figure out everything in life. Live and enjoy the present moment. 충분하다- chungbunhada.

4) It's okay. 괜찬아. Sometimes all you need is an "it's okay". 다 괜찮을 거야 – Everything is going to be okay.

Scenes that I really liked and lessons from the show:-

1) Episode 1:- The cherry blossoms petals at Yeo-rum's feet in the metro station. One side lies the sad and monotonous life and the other side are the cherry blossoms indicating the colour that is awaiting in her life. She is just unaware of the light that life could offer her because she is buried deep inside the darkness of her everyday life. She just needs to turn around.

2) The workplace harassment and gender discrimination: I am glad that they show Yeo-rum as a strong, brave and an independent woman. She is brave and courageous enough to expose the manager who bullies and mistreats her and and tries to push himself onto not just her but other girls in the office.

3) Yeo-rum feels suffocated the entire time she is in Seoul. She works hard at her job but somebody else is reaping the rewards. Her boyfriend is sick of her even when she tries her level best to make the relationship work. Her brother worries only about his family and doesn't care about Yeo Rum's living conditions. One day she decides to stop living according to the society and its rules. That is when she breathes a sigh of relief. Her healing begins when she finds herself transported to the other side, the calmer side, the countryside, to another world, to Angok. And the viewers can feel it too. The viewers empathise with her and with the help of the show, they get to experience her healing journey as well.

The contrast between Seoul and Angok and the way she lives in these places is evident. From the grey and the gloomy days to the calm, gentle, peaceful and free days.

4) The subtle incorporation of thriller/crime is admirable. It is not overpowering but is perfectly explained in Dae-bum's past. All the pieces, i.e, the reveal of the criminal, the witness witnessing the crime, the reasons for leaving the billiards building untouched and the criminal trying to hide his crimes blend seamlessly into the show. There is never a dull moment in the show. Be it the healing moments or the thrilling moments, the show delivered well.

5) People will always hold an opinion about you, they always have a piece of mind to give you, and they always know what is better for you than you know yourself. When people are good willed and give you suggestions for your life out of their love for you, it doesn't seem too bad. But when some people without knowing your story, without prior thinking, without analysing your situations decide to judge us and brainwash us into doing things their way, that's when it hurts the most. Yeo Rum has the opportunity to run away to be free but she can't seem to run away from people’s judgements. Hence, she decides to not let people's opinions affect her way of life.

6) When people look at you for all the greatness that you are, for all the things that you could be, for all the things that they want you to be but do not realise that 'that' version of you is not what you want to be. If only they realise that you want to be someone entirely different, someone that YOU want to become and not who they want you to be. Dae-bum is burdened by how people look at him. They look at him for the extraordinary that he could be. But he is content with being ordinary.

When the world, especially Ji-young is worrying about why Dae-bum, a genius, is wasting his time in Angok, not doing what he is supposed to do (that is be a genius), Yeo-rum is the only one who does not judge him, does not question him and does not burden him with her expectations of him. She just sees him for who he is, accepts him for who he is and just makes him happy by being by his side. That's what gives Dae-bum comfort.

7) The scene in episode 5 when Beom gets beaten up and shows up at Yeo-rum's house: Beom comes to Yeo-rum's house (the billiards building) at the late hours of the night with blood and injuries all over her face. Instead of asking Beom uncomfortable questions about her showing up at her place, Yeo-rum asks her not to get hurt again in the future and that she is glad that Beom came to her in the time of need.

8) Sometimes when you befriend someone, and are in their good books, you do not want them to see or know anything about your past (especially if you've had a terrible one). Wanting to hide the bitter side of your personal life feels like a task but you'd rather hide that life than be an open book. Beom is comfortable hiding her life from Yeo-rum but it is only a matter of time before Yeo-rum finds out about the hardships Beom is going through. But to Beom's relief, Yeo-rum never judges her or her past.

People who have had both happy and sad pasts could relate to Beom's life. She has happy moments during her childhood but the sad ones are too prominent and the happy moments seem like a blur. She can only cherish and reminisce those happy moments.

9) Dae-bum and Yeo-rum's runnings everyday in the morning together and them confusing the killer with their disguise in episode 11 are connected. That connection was demonstrated really well.

10) When you find the right companion, partner, friend or an acquaintance then all the unsaid words come rolling off your tongue. You want to continue talking to them even when the words are exhausted and you want to continue being with them even when you are apart. They bring out the best in you. And life has a fascinating way of introducing such people into our lives, at the right time and randomly without prior notice.

11) People rarely change. But if they do change for the better would forgive them?

If you are the one who has wronged someone, would you realise it someday, change yourself and ask for forgiveness? Would you be willing to take that opportunity to change and be better, to do better?

12) The beautiful part about a village or a town or the countryside is how tight knit the residents are. They grow up together, they know everything about each other, they stand by each other and help each other. They are willing to share, they are willing to help, and they are willing to listen. They have time for themselves and for you.

The Actors and the Director:-

Yim Si-wan and his acting has me bowled over. His face talks a lot. He doesn't need many words to express. That's a mark of an accomplished actor. His emotions be it grief, happiness, joy, care, kindness or love, are all flawless but my favourite is how he portrayed the look of longing for someone/aching for someone you love. He can emote with such precision. His eyes tear up naturally and at the perfect time. And every time he appears on screen, I can't help but smile.

Seol-hyun is glorious in her role. She carries the show on her shoulders. Her narration, her expressions, the delivery of dialogues is exemplary. Even when she has no dialogues and she has to emote with just her expressions, she stood out in every scene. She is a beautiful artist.

The Supporting Cast also delivers very well. The show has one of my favourite groups of characters. All the actors are fabulous. You will just fall in love with everyone, be it bom, jae-hoon, ji-young, sung-min, sung-min’s son joon, the grandmother (할머니), gyeoul the dog, everyone.

I love Ji-young and Sung-min too. They are imperfectly perfect human beings. They have their flaws. They are wrong, they are immature at times, but they have it in them to change. They change for themselves, change for each other and change for the people around them whom they love dearly. That's all that matters. Beom and Jae-hoon's friendship is also displayed beautifully.

Lee Yoon-jung, another talented woman directors. The fact that she both wrote and directed this beautiful drama is beyond comprehension for me. But I am extremely proud of the wonderful work that she has produced through Summer Strike. Give women an opportunity and they will show you everything they are capable of.

I love the fact that the director chose the concept of healing and learning for the show. She highlights the points of self-love, self-respect, kindness and healing.

The show talks about the importance of putting oneself first. It also talks about the importance of letting go and moving forward, fixing oneself, improving oneself and growing in this life to become a better version of yourself. It talks about how it is okay to take rest and work on yourself (and not do anything for a while) if that's what makes you happy. It talks about not giving into the opinions and thoughts of the society and the world and thinking solely about you and your life. It also talks about how the world is still filled with good and kindhearted people. There is love and help out there for people who need it.

Some beautiful quotes and sayings in the show by Yeo Rum (and other characters):-

1) If you go in the opposite side of everyone else, you may be able to find a quiet, peaceful path that isn't as crowded.

2) I lived my life in a daze. I held out with all my might. I always criticised myself more harshly than anybody else ever did.

3) I want to use my time for myself and myself only.

4) I fell into a slump because I always tried to love upto others' standards. I struggled because I felt that I was doing a terrible job when everyone else was thriving. Now, i am trying to get to know myself better and not worry about others.

5) In this world, you have to co-exist with people you like and dislike. It's just the way it is and there's nothing you can do about it.

6) However, as for those you dislike, you can just forget about them but people you like can make you sad because you like them.

7) The people who have made me really sad were always the ones who I loved very much.

8) The dept of sadness is always directly proportional to how much I like the person. Knowing that I am now afraid if liking someone. I don't want to be sad anymore.

9) I have no problem having fun on my own.

10) It's okay. It's okay to be bored. It's okay to be busy. Whatever happens, it's okay.

11) Life is like a bus ride. On the bus you're driving, your parents, friends and people you briefly crossed paths with are sitting as passengers. But eventually, they'll all get off the bus.

12) If someone wants to drift away, let them. If someone wants to hate you, just let them.

13) Whenever and wherever we meet again, I'll just be as fond of you as I am now. And when we meet again, I'll run to you with a big smile on my face and give you a hug.

14) I'm not a genius. I just accept it and start over. I'm just an average person. No, I may be slightly below average. But I am trying every day. That's all I can do.

15) I thought about the concept of happiness.

16) Happiness is the state of not lacking anything.

If you are looking for a drama full with the message of healing, comfort and learning life lessons, Summer Strike is just the right show for you.