Way Back Love

Presentation

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Overview

Synopsis

Jung Hee Wan is a 24-year old woman who doesn’t have the will to live. Kim Ram Woo was her first love. Though they had feelings for each other, they never confessed. One day, Ram Woo appears in front of Hee Wan as the Grim Reaper. Knowing that Hee Wan only has 1 week left to live, he decides to carry out her bucket list.

My Opinion (No Spoiler)

This drama is such a gem. First, it’s a small format (only 6 episodes of 45/50 minutes), so you have no excuse not to squeeze it into your calendar. The plot is built on 2 timelines (one in the past in high school) and one in the present, that are deeply connected. The female lead has radically changed and you slowly discover why and how she’s become so depressed and lifeless when she used to be so cheerful. You accompany her on a journey from her school days to now, but also on her healing journey. Grief and guilt are powerful hindrances in her life making them the main themes of the show. In the end, the drama aspires to insufflate strength and life in all of those who are hurting like Hee Wan. That’s a beautiful message that is poetically conveyed in the drama by the use of a bucket list. The relationship between both leads is so endearing, and yet heart-wrenching. But it’s one that’s worth having. The atmosphere of the drama is full of nostalgia, sometimes melancholy, but before all hope. To a certain extent, it even reminded of the drama Tomorrow that I absolutely loved. I can only recommend you watch Way Back Love because it’s really worth your time.

Analysis

• Characters
  Jung Hee Wan
  Kim Ram Woo
  The name switch, beginning of a romance
• The way back love
  The night that changed everything
  The bucket list
  Loving yourself
• Atmosphere

Characters: Though there are side characters as well in the drama, the show essentially focuses on the leads and their story. They seem to have nothing in common at first, but their relationship grows stronger by the day and will leave an everlasting impact on their future.

Jung Hee Wan: Jung Hee Wan (Kim Min Ha) is a university student when we first see her. She’s quite morose and taciturn, passive and shut from the rest of the world. She spends her days in the dark, doesn’t smile, and seems to be done with life. Her depressive state of mind raises a lot of questions as to why she’s like that. That’s even truer when we compare her with her younger self. As the drama is split between present and past, it’s easy to notice the differences between who Jung Wan used to be – cheerful, bubbly, bold and assertive and – and who she is now. The striking contrast makes you wonder what happened to her. What event turned her life upside down to the point that she has lost her will to live and is even thinking about ending herself? The whole point of the drama is to show how much grief and guilt can impact your life. Jung Hee Wan bears the weight of her first love’s death on her shoulders. Since his passing, she’s been unable to move on from her loss. To punish herself, she refused to live in the present. She shut herself from everyone else (family and friends), chose to live in isolation and remained stuck in the past. Hee Wan has a lot to unpack. She needs to forgive herself for what occurred and accept that she’s got the right to be happy. Her healing journey starts with the sudden appearance of her first love as the Grim Reaper. He’s the one who insufflates life back into her. In his presence, Hee Wan gets reminded of her good old days. She slowly finds her way back to her old self, while carrying the scars of the past.

Kim Ram Woo: Kim Ram Woo (Gong Myung) is Hee Wan’s exact opposite at school. He’s a model student who likes rules and order. He doesn’t like to stray away from the right path. He leads an ordinary, somewhat ‘boring’ existence for his age. His encounter with Hee Wan is going to turn his world upside down. She adds a spark of life to his existence. Her mischievous, petty and all-over-the-place behavior annoys Ram Woo at first, but he rapidly falls for these exact same personality traits. Thanks to Hee Wan, he learns how to live as a 19-year old, gets into trouble at times, and experiences a new range of emotions. Friendship, love, and everything that comes in-between. Kim Ram Woo is also quite empathetic and tends to put others first. That’s why, he becomes a Grim Reaper after his death. That’s a way for him to stay close to those he left behind, like his mother and Hee Wan. When he realizes that his first love is on the verge of collapse, he takes the bull by the horns. He can’t stand to let her waste her life like this, especially because of him. He also needs to be forgiven by her for leaving so soon and not being able to keep his promises. Kim Ram Woo is loyal to his friends, faithful to his words, benevolent and kind. These qualities made him a great friend, son and lover whilst alive, and an excellent Grim Reaper after his passing.

The name switch, beginning of a romance: The romance/tragedy starts with a name switch. At school, students decide to play a game for a day by using another classmate’s name. Hee Wan and Ram Woo are coincidentally – or not so much – paired up. What should have lasted for a day becomes a habit for everyone in the class, including the duo itself. Though Kim Ram Woo is first bothered by Hee Wan’s sudden intrusion in his life and her craziness, he slowly gets accustomed to her and learns to appreciate her. The name switch starts as a game, but rapidly develops into a symbol of their relationship in which they form one person. However, the name switch is also associated with the tragedy in the drama. It’s the beginning of the romance between the leads, as well as the root cause of Ram Woo’s death and Hee Wan’s guilt. Indeed, Jung Hee Wan feels as if she had stolen Ram Woo’s luck by taking his name away from him. That’s the reason why he died in an accident under her name, when she should’ve been the one dying. Obviously, this is not a valid argument and Ram Woo’s early death was just his fate, but Hee Wan is incapable of conceiving it as only an accident. She’s hurting so much that she convinces herself she had something to do with it. Interestingly, the name switch serves as a life saver at the end of the drama. Kim Ram Woo persuades Hee Wan to keep on living because she carries a part of Ram Woo inside. In a way, she’s also Kim Ram Woo – she used to be for months when in high school. Only through her can he continue to exist in this world though he’s not physically there. This name switch between leads is a crucial connection, bonding them in life and in death in the most beautiful way.

The way back love: The title of the drama could not have been more accurate to describe Hee Wan’s journey. Here, not only does she find her way back to her love, aka Ram Woo, but she also manages to get back to loving herself. In other words, she overcomes her grief and forgives herself.

The night that changed everything: On the day Hee Wan and Ram Woo finally confessed their feelings, tragedy struck. The leads and their friends attended an event and Hee Wan, then named Ram Woo, participated in a lottery to watch shooting stars at the observatory. As only a small portion of people were allowed to enter the location, so Hee Wan thought she’d never be picked. Still, she tried her luck. Shooting stars have been a common theme for the couple. Hence, Hee Wan’s desire to please Ram Woo with this gift. Unexpectedly, she won and gave her slot to Ram Woo. On the bridge leading to the observatory, they shared their mutual love for each other, then Ram Woo proposed her to come see the stars with him, but Hee Wan declined. That precise moment will forever remained engrained in the young woman’s memory. First, she was the one supposed to be at the observatory that night, but she switched places with Ram Woo. Second, she let her first love go alone and didn’t hold him back or accompany him, even though he asked her. Whilst Hee Wan reunited with her friends to watch the meteor shower outside, Ram Woo went to the observatory. A sudden explosion occurred and the young man lost his life at the hospital. Everything about this night left a scar in Hee Wan’s heart. The guilt of sending Ram Woo to the observatory, the anger for not going with him, the pain of not seeing him ever again and the chaos that unfolded that night are all elements of Hee Wan’s trauma. The wait at the hospital, the face of Ram Woo’s mother when she discovered that it was her son who had been hurt, the sound of sirens, all of that are a vivid nightmare for the female lead. Even the smallest detail – like sirens screaming from afar – is enough to trigger a panic attack. Although Hee Wan can’t change what happened that night, she has to learn how to live with these events. She needs to let go of her resentment and hatred towards herself if she wants to heal. That’s why Ram Woo’s comeback is essential in Hee Wan’s way back to love.

The bucket list: You don’t overcome such a trauma in just one day. It’s not because Ram Woo is back for a short period of time that Hee Wan will suddenly recover and get better. That’s why the concept of a bucket list is very clever. The items that Ram Woo has written down may seem insignificant but they are actually a way for Hee Wan to reconnect with her past. It’s a good occasion for her to start her healing journey, as well as the best way to say goodbye for Ram Woo. It’s also the opportunity to reconnect with former best friends who have the same trauma, to experience life the way she should’ve at university, to forgive herself, to lessen her guilt towards Ram Woo and his mother and to make her want to live. Moreover, the bucket list is also Ram Woo’s final chance to do whatever he’s ever wanted to do with his friends, family, lover. It’s his way to say goodbye before totally vanishing. He obviously knows it’s a risk because it goes against the rules but that’s the only way for him to make peace with his past. In the end, Ram Woo even pushes Hee Wan to write her own list and pursue her wishes, so that she has something to hold onto when he’s gone.

Loving yourself: As the title gives it away, Ram Woo’s main objective is to make sure Hee Wan finds her way back to herself. She hates herself for sending Ram Woo to his death and resents herself, even years after. Hence her desire to die. Indeed, at the end of the show you discover that Ram Woo is able to see Hee Wan because she’s supposed to commit suicide. She can’t live with herself anymore and has lost the will to continue. When he tells her the truth about his presence, he makes Hee Wan promise him that she would take care of herself. Even if Ram Woo disappears – as Grim Reapers only see those about to die or dead – she has to keep on living because living her life is also enabling Ram Woo to live vicariously through her. As they share the same names, loving herself equals loving him, enjoying her life means he can enjoy his. In her memories and her heart, Ram Woo will always be present. A part of him will keep on living within her. That’s why she needs to protect herself first. The final scenes and the design she creates for an exhibit prove this idea. In her work, she uses Ram Woo’s writing and a subtle play with lights to recreate a picture of the two of them together. Their picture is only visible in the dark as lights make it shine bright, but it’s a metaphor to show that though Ram Woo is not visible, he’s hiding deep down in her heart. He’s there though invisible.

Atmosphere: There are 2 parallel narratives in the drama that are equally interesting. They are also deeply intertwined as the one from the past explains the events of the present. In the past, you’ve got feelings of innocence, freedom, and hope for the future, whereas the present is all gloom and darkness for Hee Wan. But at the end she’s found light again, by wearing brighter clothes and smiling with her newly-found friend under the cherry blossoms. She’s thinking about her future as well which is a great sign that she doesn’t intent on killing herself anymore. I think that the parallel narratives between past and present did a beautiful job at shaping the narrative of the future, in which Hee Wan learns how to live – with her traumas of course – but she actually lives. Way Back Love is melodramatic and sad because it obviously talks about grief and death but it’s also poetic, beautiful and hopeful because life is worth so much more than that. Finally, I’ll have to admit that the drama also reminded me of another wonderful show named Tomorrow where Grim Reapers’ mission is to prevent people from committing suicide. To do so, they help them solve their issues before it’s too late.