The new romantic comedy drama <To A Dream You,>, which recently began airing on the ENA channel, drew massive attention from the public even before its broadcast due to the casting news of lead actress Hyeri. It is an undeniable fact that in any genre of drama, the role and weight of the main protagonist who leads the core of the play have the most decisive impact on its box-office success. In reality, many viewers often decide whether to watch a show for the first time based solely on who their preferred lead actor is, rather than the synopsis, director, or writers. For this work as well, whether Hyeri, as the title role who must firmly anchor the narrative and drive the story forward, can showcase a new face and charm to the public will be the most crucial barometer determining the ultimate success or failure of the drama.
Actress Hyeri has been actively continuing her acting career by securing lead roles in multiple works following her unrivaled, passionate performance in the drama <Reply 1988>, which sparked a nationwide retro syndrome in the past. The most powerful weapon and charm she has imprinted on the public is her lovely image, full of positive and bright energy, which she has also shown without filter on various variety shows. Although it is true that she has constantly challenged herself in works of various genres since her debut and made unremitting efforts to broaden her acting spectrum, the public's mind is still deeply ingrained with a specific, signature cheerful and energetic fixed image that springs to mind as a conditioned reflex the moment they hear the three syllables of the name 'Hyeri'.
Interestingly, despite the substantial filmography Hyeri has built up, the proportion of orthodox romance genres she has tackled has not been as high as the public might perceive. When quietly recalling her acting style, her familiar and cute dialect acting that sticks to the ears comes to mind, and even her childlike whining, complaining, or bouncy behaviors are often portrayed in a very endearing and lovely manner. There are still many instances in numerous works where she relies on and digests characters based on that exact image the public expects the most and feels most comfortable with. The fact that she is once again playing her signature bright, energetic, "Candy-like" character in <To A Dream You,> acts as a double-edged sword that could severely polarize audiences according to their distinct tastes.
Therefore, the most important key to the success of this drama relies on how pleasantly the viewers will favor and welcome this familiar and friendly character showcased once again by Hyeri. If the public has begun to feel a sense of déjà vu or fatigue toward her fixed image, which is now being consumed somewhat repetitively, the momentum for the drama's viewership ratings is bound to noticeably decline. Of course, it is still true that the positive power held by a character with an irreplaceable bright image, which only Hyeri can bring to life so deliciously, remains valid. However, even if it is a friendly appearance that is always welcomed on variety shows and does not necessarily need to change, from the perspective of an actor who must prove new transformations and acting depth in every work, she must face the harsh reality that the solidification of such an image cannot solely be beneficial.
The drama <To A Dream You,> is a work that unfolds by crossing a fairly long timeline, from the fresh high school days of the male and female leads to the present, where they have grown into adults. A point to note here is that when Hyeri wears a school uniform and plays a high school student, she still suits the role perfectly without any sense of incongruity. This is a tremendous advantage as an actor, but at the same time, it harbors the risk of turning into a fatal flaw as the narrative progresses. This is because, even though she has reached the age of 32, it can be interpreted to mean that she still lacks the deep aura of a mature adult. In fact, in this work as well, her acting during the high school days is so natural without feeling out of place that it creates a bizarre sense of disconnect, making her appearance later as an adult who has tasted the bitterness of society feel slightly young and immature.
Along with Hyeri, another pillar leading the play in this work is actor Hwang In-youp, who plays the male lead, Woo Soo-bin. Despite possessing an attractive face and stable acting skills, Hwang In-youp has surprisingly not had many experiences stepping up as the main male lead driving the entire play in orthodox romance genres. In his previous works, he mostly acted as a sub-lead who harbored an unrequited love while silently watching over the female lead from behind, evoking deep sympathy from the viewers. However, in this work, he proudly secures the main lead position, multi-dimensionally portraying a pure-hearted character who is somewhat supremely devoted and blindly looks at only one woman. In particular, his poignant portrayal of an innocent man who holds onto fresh memories from his school days and never forgets his first love even after becoming an adult gives deep persuasiveness to the drama's romance narrative.
Woo Soo-bin, the character played by Hwang In-youp, originally appears as a promising and exemplary transfer student who was scheduled to take an elite course and enter medical school. Living a strictly controlled life according to his parents' wishes, he fatefully meets Joo Yi-jae (played by Hyeri), a bold high school girl who harbors a firm dream of becoming a film director and has absolutely no interest in academics. The two, who were living in entirely different worlds, get to work on a project to shoot a short film together at school by chance. Through this special and heart-pounding experience, Woo Soo-bin abandons the comfortable path of medical school and begins to dream an overwhelming dream of becoming a film director, his own new goal. However, unlike the romance of their brilliant student days, the present-day adult Joo Yi-jae has been reduced to the bitter situation of a livelihood-driven reporter working at a broadcasting station, having miserably folded her long-time dream of being a film director against the harsh wall of reality.
The destinies of the two, who had crossed paths while revolving in different orbits, face a new phase when Woo Soo-bin later becomes a globally revered master film director and splendidly appears before Joo Yi-jae's eyes again. In interviews or at official events for works he directed that achieved great success, Woo Soo-bin always publicly mentions the unforgettable first love who became his cinematic inspiration, indirectly revealing his unwavering, steadfast feelings for her. Conversely, however, deep within Joo Yi-jae's heart, a deep wound and resentment seem firmly coiled around the fact that Woo Soo-bin had simply left her in the past without any explanation or promise. Amidst these parallel lines of tense emotions, Woo Soo-bin proudly stands before Joo Yi-jae holding the very screenplay they had pinky-sworn to definitely direct together in the future during their student days.
However, Joo Yi-jae coldly pushes away the romantic yet unconventional collaboration proposal cautiously offered by Woo Soo-bin, dismissing it as just nonsensical, immature talk in the face of her dry and miserable reality of living paycheck to paycheck. Above all, perhaps because the magnitude of the disappointment and resentment toward Woo Soo-bin layered deep within her is so immense, she takes a defensive attitude, fundamentally trying to block even the slightest attempt to dig up old memories and get closer to him again. Looking solely at the overall atmosphere of episodes 1 and 2, which just began airing, no malicious villains or provocative conflict structures that aggressively heighten the tension of the play particularly stand out. True to the inherent fresh colors of the orthodox romantic comedy genre, it provides a comfortable sense of stability, as if the story is unfolding somewhat calmly and warmly, centering on the characters' small emotional lines and banter.
Generally, due to the nature of the romantic comedy genre, it is by no means easy to create a massive "wind-up" in viewership ratings from the very beginning with intense stimuli or shocking developments, and <To A Dream You,> also seems likely to follow such genre limitations for the time being. Looking at the actual viewership indicators, it started quietly at 2.7% for the first episode and recorded 2.8% for the second, showing only a very marginal upward trend numerically so far. In terms of public buzz, it has failed to elicit an explosive response compared to the loud expectations prior to the broadcast. Consequently, it is cautiously predicted that it will remain a so-called niche, feel-good drama enjoyed only by a specific target audience who favors Hyeri's bouncy, lovely charm and a gentle first-love narrative. Structured with a relatively short and bold breath of 12 episodes and a fast pace, this work is well worth watching calmly until the end with curiosity as to how it will resolve the tangled, long-standing misunderstandings and reconnect the severed ties between Woo Soo-bin and Joo Yi-jae in a touching and cheerful way.
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