U.S. newsweekly Time once again highlighted the special emotion evoked by the Netflix series When Life Gives You Tangerines, produced by Pan Entertainment.
The Netflix series When Life Gives You Tangerines proudly ranked No. 1 last December on the U.S. newsweekly Time's "The 10 Best K-Dramas of 2025," the world's largest, drawing attention.
Time praised When Life Gives You Tangerines as "one of the best Korean dramas of the year, and perhaps one of the best TV series," adding that "it uses elements of reality to unfold a beautiful and profound story."
It also noted the meaning of When Life Gives You Tangerines, saying, "Anyone can make the fantastic special. But how rare and precious is it to make the ordinary special without losing its complexity and texture?"
When Life Gives You Tangerines is the story of the adventure-filled lives of Aesun (IU), a "spirited rebel" born in Jeju, and Gwansik (Park Bo Gum), a "proud iron man," told through the four seasons. Tight scripting, delicate direction and passionate performances by the actors combined to win great love.
In particular, it drew attention after topping Netflix's global top 10 series (non-English) chart and remaining in the top 10 for eight weeks. In the first half of the year it recorded about 35 million views (the total watch time divided by the show's running time), captivating audiences worldwide.
The When Life Gives You Tangerines phenomenon was also proven at awards ceremonies. It swept awards as a work that achieved both box-office success and artistic merit, winning four awards at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards, three awards at the 4th Blue Dragon Series Awards, three awards at the 2025 International Streaming Festival's Global OTT Awards, six awards at the APAN Star Awards, two awards at the KCA Culture and Entertainment Awards, the grand prize for New Media Content, and the grand prize at the Daejeon Special Visual Film Festival.
Pan Entertainment is also being praised for proving competitiveness on global platforms beyond Korea through When Life Gives You Tangerines. [Photo] Provided by Pan Entertainment [OSEN]