Lee Sung-kyoung and Chae Jong Hyeop star in In Your Radiant Season, which begins to fully unfold its emotional story and fateful connections.
MBC Friday-Saturday drama In Your Radiant Season (planned by Namgoong Seong-woo / screenplay by Jo Seong-hee / directed by Jeong Sang-hee, Kim Young-jae / produced by Pan Entertainment) has proven its artistic merit in just two episodes and drawn praise from viewers. The romance of mutual salvation between Song Ha-ran (Lee Sung-kyoung) and Sun Woo-chan (Chae Jong Hyeop), who meet again after 7 years, has kicked off in brilliant fashion.
Above all, the most attention-grabbing point is the return of writer Jo Seong-hee. Returning after 8 years through In Your Radiant Season, Jo Seong-hee raised curiosity in episode 1 by not revealing the relationship between Song Ha-ran and Sun Woo-chan, and in episode 2 revealed the details of the explosion seven years ago and the hidden connections between the two, increasing the narrative's density.
In the past, during his studies abroad Sun Woo-chan built up feelings by sharing daily life with Ha-ran via online messenger instead of Ha-ran's boyfriend Kang Hyuk-chan (Kwon Do Hyoung). Even at moments when he stood at the end of life, and when he was on the brink of life and death after the explosion, he thought of Ha-ran and opened his eyes again. He later chose a completely different life under the resolution "I will live without regret." As this past backstory was revealed, the truth of the confession "I love you, Kang Hyuk-chan," which had ended the first broadcast, was completed as a convincing twist rather than mere provocation.
This work is particularly notable for the reversed relationship setting between Song Ha-ran and Sun Woo-chan. Seven years ago it was Ha-ran who lifted Chan up. And seven years later, Chan vows to take Ha-ran out of winter like fate when they meet again. The mutual salvation romance, restarted across seven years, expands beyond simple thrills into a narrative of character change and growth. In addition, the characters of Nana family, Cafe Shim, and Nana Atelier are organically connected, rendering relationships three-dimensional.
Director Jeong Sang-hee's delicate direction acted as the final puzzle piece that brought the work's completeness to its peak. Memories of the accident seven years ago and the present intersect, and the metaphorical structure in which fragments of memories the two shared unfold with seasonal images instantly captured viewers' attention. In particular, in the scene where Sun Woo-chan, who lost hearing in his left ear due to the accident, puts on earphones and looks at a painting in the exhibition hall, the sound was engineered so viewers also hear only from one side, allowing viewers to feel the character's situation. From the twin-like placement of past and present screens, to the recreation of shared memories under a rainy sky, to the recollection sequence that played the Goldberg Variations aria. Each carefully crafted directing choice left space for viewers to mull over the scene's meaning and stimulated the desire for multiple viewings.
Here, Lee Sung-kyoung contrasted the lively past Ha-ran with the present Ha-ran who has sealed her emotions, convincingly portraying the character's passage of time, and Chae Jong Hyeop expressed the guilt and resolve behind his straightforward confession with restrained emotion. The reunion of Lee Mi-Sook and Kang Sukwoo hints at a twilight romance, while the narratives of Han Ji-hyun, Kwon Hyuk, and Oh Yeju add energy to the drama. Attention is focused on the still-unrevealed narrative of Sun Woo-chan, the three months the two will spend together, and whether Ha-ran will be able to welcome spring again as Chan hopes.
[photo] In Your Radiant Season capture
[OSEN]