[We have to acknowledge Sudden Shower being the best OST of 2024. That song carries soo much emotion. Every listen brings you back to the concert scene. What a soundtrack]

PLOT - The synopsis got me to watch. As much as I avoid shows that use time travel I was determined to see this play out. The set up was great: a young talented idol gives hope to a girl who seemingly has nothing to live for. She becomes a die-hard fan and attempts to attend his concert one night, to no avail–That same night he dies tragically after giving one of the most touching performances I've seen in a drama. After succumbing to despair, the FL is magically transported into the past and ends up back in high school with her beloved idol. She takes this strange situation as a chance to save him from the dreadful fate he'll suffer in the future. The pilot is one of the best in a while. It's Oshi No Ko pilot good. After that ofc I expected an uphill trajectory. Except none of these emotional story elements are addressed, and the show has no interest in finishing what it started. Instead the serious topics introduced were sidelined and character development along with the unanswered questions are brushed off to make way for a cop-out happily ever after. This was fine but real ones know it was a disservice to all the good LR had going for itself. The time travel aspect got more inconsistent the longer this played out. The show also had tone issues. Was this a melodrama or a rom-com? Thought there were better ways to balance the two.

CHARACTERS - I agree with the majority about the leads being well acted. BWS IS Ryu Sunjae. Tho she was grating at times, you could tell KHY immersed herself in this role. Even with all the great chemistry neither of them progress as people. Instead they end up being a lovey-dovey couple with all the fanservice stops. Dgmw they were cute asf but I couldn't help but feel the shallowness of the relationship. I believe it was a mistake for Sunjae to fall in love with Sol. His first arc was written so well and we lost that so he could become a simp. Once we went from platonic love to romantic, my investment collapsed. I would've been fine with SJ not surviving in the end. That seemed like the natural course of events and would've made this show truly impactful. Had that been the case I'd prob be writing a different review. The SL seemed pointless and only existed as plot device for unnecessary conflict. Sunjae's dad was cute but seeing more of him and SJ's relationship in depth would've been nice. In Hyuk served his purpose okay as comedic relief. This show def needed it with all the crying scenes.

The screenwriter here is the same one for True Beauty. These works mirror each other in the sense of setting up rootable characters and launching difficult subjects only to abandon everything for superficial romance that doesn't feel earned. What a missed oppurtunity to discuss depression and how it affects both regular people and celebrites. Where's the social commentary? Where is the payoff?

Overall LR ended up being a big ball of wasted potential. I'd be lying if I said parts of the show didn't still linger. The essence was good and I enjoyed the feels but it didn't live up to what was initially promised. This had the makings to be one of the best dramas of the year but ended up being just ok. Now back to those OSTs