I rarely give a 10 to dramas that ripped my heart to pieces however, Youth of May is an exemption to that. The season being reduced to 12 episodes was a smart move, I think, coz a little more than that can make way for other unnecessary storylines that would bore the viewers or perhaps put the trajectory of this drama into complete disaster.

What I love about this is how natural the leads seem to be with the characters they were playing. To those who aren't familiar with this aspect of Korean history, they might be shocked by this past. And taking cues from how the leads portray their characters given the era that they were in is truly exceptional.

The FL's character pulls you in and you would think that she was actually born in that era. I was amazed by the amount of maturity she gave to her character, and just so you know, this was the first time I knew about her, so I was amazed. The ML also held his own. Whenever I watch other dramas, I know an ML/FL overpowers his/her co-star when I look forward to more screentime with a particular lead regardless of their visuals, but for YoM, I have never felt that.

The story, since it was based on one of Korea's most brutal pasts, was a balance of real and make believe. The historical backdrop is very crucial to justify certain situations, and I personally believe that given that, it could actually happen in real life. There were times that felt like this is impossible to happen, but since the backdrop is the Gwangju Uprising, I have no qualms about any dire situation our leads may face. It's like anything is possible to happen. And it did not disappoint in building the story up until it's final moments. Perhaps, the director gave away some important clues in the first few minutes of it's pilot episode so that viewers at least may not be so surprised in the ending. On my end though, I was hopeful it was otherwise, but yeah, who am I to dictate what the writer wants to do, right?

So, what is not to love in this drama?

Nada. Nemo. Zero. Zilch. None.