I was first going to point you in the direction of the synopsis and go on about my feelings instead but the synopsis on here is pretty terrible and I probably wouldn’t have picked it up had it not been for the ML. Which, hey, what a great place to start. The ML in this show is the greenest green flag to ever flag. Or green. Or exist, whatever. You get the idea. He sits at the table with some of my favorite green flag MLs and I don’t give that title lightly. He is literal sunshine and made me smile like an idiot on several occasions. I can’t stress this enough. I just need you to know this before I go on about the synopsis and then my feelings. Okay, cool. Moving on (for now).

Love All Play is about a badminton team. It’s about the different plays on the team and their individual struggles individually and as members of a team, together. Obviously, our focus is on our FL and ML but we get insight into other members of the team occasionally and they are just as special in my heart honestly. Our FL is returning to badminton after leaving the Olympic team in disgrace. There’s a lot of question marks about what happened and why, but the main story is bribery and then she literally disappears off everyone’s radar. Our ML is kind of apathetic about badminton, despite being a great athlete and this being his livelihood. It seems more like a job than a passion, and his heart isn’t really into it. There’s a lot more to it than that, but I can’t really say without spoiling. Both the FL and ML get picked up by a commercial team and the rest is just … kind of magic to watch. She’s scared, holding back (both herself and just so so much else), very much hated by her ex-teammates and others in the profession, and is having a really hard time but she also loves the sport so much she can’t bear to be away anymore. The ML is really great and talented but there’s no spark in what he does and he almost doesn’t seem to care… about anything. Now pair them up together and they really bring out the best in each other. Both leads are really warm and loving in different ways and it was truly a joy to watch their romance unfold.

I will say, the romance isn’t as prominent as other romance kdramas because there is so much focus on other aspects of the show, character growth, and just plot. However, what we do get is so so beautiful. I also need you to know that there are a lot of heavy topics and issues that are addressed and dealt with in the show. It’s not all fun and games, despite it being centered around one. Sometimes it was a lot, especially with how much the FL had to deal with.

Despite all of that (or maybe because of it), I highly recommend this show. It’s criminally underrated. It is about growth, about facing your fears, about loving something (or finding something to love) so much that you can’t not do it, about not just sitting down and doing nothing or letting fear win, but also about knowing when and where to stop. It made me cry and smile like an idiot. It was so well written and had so many different lovable characters that I adored. The cast was phenomenal and I loved them all. One person in particular (outside of our two leads) really really grew to be a favorite despite me hating him initially, and that’s what I love about this show. It’s about pain and dealing with it and growing and doing better. It’s about A LOT OF THINGS aND I LOVED IT OKAY.

Also the ML really really made my heart hurt in the best way. He was so loving and adorable and warm and just … I need you all to watch and experience this love too.

That is all, thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.