Actor Lee Sung-kyoung and Chae Jong Hyeop completed perfect chemistry from the first episode, instantly capturing the living room audience.
In episodes 1 and 2 of the MBC Friday-Saturday drama In Your Radiant Season (planned by Namgung Seong-woo, written by Jo Seong-hee, directed by Jeong Sang-hee and Kim Young-jae), which aired on the 20th and 21st, Lee Sung-kyoung and Chae Jong Hyeop played Song Ha-ran, who imprisoned herself in "winter" after consecutively losing her parents and her boyfriend, and Seon Woo-chan, who survived twice at the edge of life and lives every day like summer vacation, creating a "radiant chemistry" amid stark contrasts.
First, Lee Sung-kyoung drew attention as Song Ha-ran, the chief designer of "Nana Atelier," run by her grandmother Kim Na-na (played by Lee Mi-Sook), with diverse styling and delicate emotional acting. In just episode 1 she wore as many as 15 outfits, visually convincing the character's identity, and intricately portrayed the wounds of a character who experienced her parents' accidental death 13 years ago and later her boyfriend's death.
Lee Sung-kyoung condensed seven years of Song Ha-ran by moving through the fear of possibly losing another loved one, defensive mechanisms toward others, obsession with family, and the coolness of her present self that is 180 degrees different from her once lively and lovable past with a graceful emotional line. With empty eyes and lowered tones alone, she separated past and present, leaving a strong impression as if watching a different person.
Chae Jong Hyeop also completed another axis through the character Seon Woo-chan. A former engineering student, he always appears with a black hood pulled up, embodying the shadow of a young man who has lost the will to live. He begins replying to Song Ha-ran's messages on behalf of his roommate Kang Hyuk-chan (played by Kwon Do Hyoung), and his life, having twice escaped death because of her, begins to change. In this process Chae Jong Hyeop gradually added warmth to his dry gaze and steadily built feelings for Song Ha-ran, who grabbed him from the brink of death.
In particular, the setting in which he became more sensitive to sound after losing hearing in one ear due to the accident realistically revealed Seon Woo-chan's trauma, and the complex look he gives Song Ha-ran when they meet again at the Jamsu Bridge fully conveyed the weight of the time he carries. His resolution, after long deliberation, to pull Ha-ran out of winter into spring proved to be more than simple affection but a life-changing choice, amplifying its sincerity. "Don't think about the past or the future; let's just have fun until I come back. Just until next spring when I return, let's be excited like we're on a spring picnic," and "Can I just start being a lot nicer to you now?" Seon Woo-chan's confession foreshadowed a new turning point in their relationship.
The meeting of Ha-ran, condensed by wounds, and Chan, who regained his life, completed the "radiant chemistry" amid stark contrast. Now that the two seasons that stood at opposite ends have met again, attention is focused on how their emotions will vary.
[Photo] MBC broadcast capture of In Your Radiant Season
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