When I tell you this show is life changing...I really mean it

The emotions I have evoked from Twinkling Watermelon are unexplainable; never in my life have I cried so much of sorrow and happiness from watching one show.
When I watched this, I felt as though I was really there, with them, laughing with them, crying with them, fighting for my dreams, living the magical youth, stumbling across life problems and eventually overcoming them...

This Kdrama truly is the definition of everything happens for a reason, and therefore we should never miss a second of our precious lives and value it with all our hearts.
However, us humans, we take things for granted, and we don't appreciate what we already have, which is significantly shown in this drama. Once we lose something so valuable to us, only then do we realise how much we should have treasured it. This show wants us to see that life is worth living, and even at your lowest point, you should never give up, whether it's because you lost a loved one, or you feel like no one loves you and you see no point in living, or maybe that you lost your hearing...never give up on your dreams!
As someone who struggles and doesn't always see the point in living life, this drama truly gave me hope.

What I loved about this drama, is the portrayal of the deaf and those who are unable to speak. Many people in society look down on them, but even with disabilities like these, they don't give up and move on, as they become stronger day by day. I also loved how the characters communicated between each other using sign language, it was so beautiful and I truly think that it's one of the most precious languages out there, as you speak through actions and not words. You pay attention to every little detail to understand the other person.
This drama places a huge emphasis that we should be grateful for what we have, like hearing, and even if we don't have it, life is still worth living.

STORY
It was well written and thought through, there wasn't a second when I paused and thought, this is getting boring and it feels like it's being dragged, no. This was definitely not the case. It was all connected from start to finish, which made it so entertaining to watch. The time travelling from 2023 to 1995 was so intriguing, as it gave Ha Eun Gyeol the opportunity to not only try to change the future, but to also meet his parents when they were young, make new fantastic friends and make unforgettable memories...
This show is based around a lot of factors: like music and passion and how Eun Gyeol helped his father (Yi Chan) to create a band. Additionally, falling in love for the first time and how truly beautiful and innocent it can be.
This drama presents how deaf people overcome their struggles. Additionally, this drama shows the relationships between the loved ones in families and how they support each other no matter what, it also targets the sensitive topic of domestic abuse and inequality, this is to spread the word and to show how people overcome it.
The story is just wonderful in every aspect, I really can't think of any flaws.

ACTING/ CAST
What can I say, the acting was absolutely outstanding. If you were to ask me who stood out the most, or who carried the show, I'll reply with: I can't choose, they all did. Everyone in the cast carried the show, It was absolutely amazing.

Ryeoun is such a talented actor I must say, this was the first project I have watched with him, so I didn't know what to expect, but oh my- he for sure delivered. Every emotion he portrayed as Eun-gyeol, I could feel through the screen. The way he cared for everyone so much, and was determined to save everyone from their problems and worries; will always grasp my heart with appreciation.

I will also never get over the most iconic duo and the beautiful bond between Eun-gyeol and his father, Yi Chan. Just tears. The father and son relationship is just so exquisitely presented.

And of course Choi Hyun-Wook, the God- given actor he is, who played Yi-Chan, was beyond words amazing. He supported his son back, was always ready to sacrifice himself for someone he deeply cared for. His realisation when we fell for Cheong-ah is the sweetest thing ever. He put the time and effort into learning sign language just for her. And when he hit rock bottom he didn't give up, he carried on fighting and believing in himself; he is the strongest character in this series.

Furthermore, our wonderful actress Shin Eun-soo who I'm also new to, was extraordinary. She had one of the hardest roles, she played Cheong-ah who is a deaf girl with family problems. Throughout the whole series she didn't speak and communicated through sign language which I think is hands down incredible and deserves an applaud!
She conveyed her feelings through emotions, through her eyes and actions, I was absolutely stunned, what an amazing performance!

Finally, Seol In-ah. Such an inspiring actress who played two roles, one of her mother when she was younger in 1995 (Se-kyung), and the other as her present self, Eun-Yu, in 2023. This should be praised, because she effortlessly portrayed two completely different roles, with opposite personalities tremendously.
Seol In-ah shows through her character how in the beginning she doesn't have the will to live and masks out her true self, filled with pain and regrets. Everyone sees only her bright side and her outgoing personality which many fall for, when in reality she is fighting internal problems and doesn't have such a bright personal life. However later, due to a life changing experience, where she meets many new friends, gains support from Eun-gyeol, and falls in love. Eun-Yu overcomes this and realises life is worth living.

In terms of the rest of the cast, they were all absolutely splendid in portraying their characters. Yi-Chan's grandmother was so adorable, and supportive, the band group in 1995 were so fun and always happy to help each other, Eun-gyeol's parents and his brother (Eun-ho) in the modern time were always there for him too.
All the actors in this show were absolutely incredible. Bravo!

MUSIC
The OST was beautiful. Especially because this drama was heavily based around music and band groups, the director and filming team had to seriously focus on the compositions. It contains 90's rock songs and modern pop, and the background music was also fabulous.

The ending was better than I expected. I heard it will be bitter-sweet which is partially true, because unfortunately what Eun-gyeol was so desperate to change, didn't work out, he wasn't able to accomplish it. However, everyone got their happy ending in the end, which I was so relieved to see. They all deserved it after all.

Throughout the whole series I cried every episode emotionally, which is surprising because this rarely happens, and I was so touched in every way. This show will forever have a special place in my heart, which I will never forget. This drama showed me that life is worth living, and if I'll ever feel at my lowest point, I'll remember Twinkling Watermelon, and reassure myself to stay strong and keep fighting, just like characters did.
And this is why for some people, this show may be life changing, it's full of life lessons and motivation to keep going.

So go and watch this show, maybe your perspective on life will also change...

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Many people compared Peninsula to Train to Busan, meanwhile although they're slightly linked, they're completely different plot wise and cast.
Train to Busan targets more of a psychological genre, and the relations between people, whilst Peninsula is more of an action packed movie.
If you're currently in that stage, wondering whether or not you should give this movie a try, do it, watch it. Trust me, you won't be disappointed! The amount of negative reviews also put me off from watching this movie, but I'm so glad I still gave it a chance nevertheless!
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Plus it has a more positive ending, compared with Train to Busan.
Either way, give it a go!

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