I started reading Lee Hey’s webcomic “See You in My Nineteenth Life” the day the first five episodes were released on WEBTOON and I fell in love with it the same day. The comic is a classic reincarnation story done perfectly. The romance and banter are kick-your-feet-worthy, the side characters and fleshed-out and lovable, and the plot itself is complex and interesting. It’s obvious I immediately missed the story when the final episode was released and I anxiously awaited the new K-drama adaptation Netflix was putting out in June.

The drama had the same premise as the comic. A person who can remember her past life is born into a comfortable eighteenth life as a little girl named Yun Juwon with a wealthy and loving family. Through their mothers, she and Mun Seoha meet. He’s a spoiled young heir who feels like a burden to his sick mother and a nuisance to his stoic father. While Juwon was obviously quite the “old soul,” life had become more and more mundane with each reincarnation. Seoha helps Juwon feel like a real kid while Juwon vows to stick by Seoha when his mother dies. She promises to go to an amusement park with him for his birthday, but tragedy strikes during a hit-and-run and Juwon dies in the crash. She’s reincarnated almost immediately and promises that she’ll find him again in her nineteenth life as Ban Jieum. This life, however, is decidedly less comfortable as she’s born into poverty and is forced to use the experiences and talents from her past lives to get out of her conditions and find him. Her work pays off and they meet again as adults—but now she has to get close to him as a stranger.

With the WEBTOON being so close to my heart, I was initially hesitant when viewing the drama. Here’s my opinion through some key criteria:

Accuracy to source material ⭐⭐
The overall premise is clearly similar, however, the drama made minor and major changes to the original plot to make the characters more interconnected and the lore of the world more complex. While I was initially open to the changes, some felt unnecessary and less effective for the plot and characters than the original version.

The change I most enjoyed is the in-depth exploration of Jieum’s past lives. While they were touched on in the drama, I wasn’t completely satisfied with how little they went into something that was a huge part of Jieum’s identity. The drama satisfied the hole I recognized in the WEBTOON.

Casting and Acting ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
With the WEBTOON characters having so much personality, it would be hard for any actors to meet the same expectations. Somehow though, they delivered. The leads, Shin Hye-sun and Ahn Bo Hyun portrayed one of the most natural and memorable relationship progressions I’ve seen in a drama. Every side character felt genuine, even if I didn’t find some character changes necessary. It was still interesting to see the changes and unexpected characters have more screen time than I would have predicted.

The actors for young Juwon and Seoha also played their roles ridiculously well, going beneath the surface archetypes and showing the true complexities of the characters despite their young ages and the actors of Jieum’s past lives brought personality to new roles that didn’t exist in the same form in the WEBTOON.

Production value ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
So, this drama is beautiful. From the graphics and editing to the costumes and set design, it’s all gorgeous. The title introduction itself is worth a watch.

Ending ⭐⭐
The ending is my least favorite change. I don’t think complicating it was necessary and it left plot holes that just made the lore of the world feel less understandable. You might enjoy it if you haven’t read the WEBTOON; I understand the sentiment of it but I’m one for clean endings and I wasn’t expecting the switch.

Overall, “See You in My Nineteenth Life” the drama is definitely worth your time, it’s not hard to get into even if you haven’t read the WEBTOON or aren’t used to K-dramas! Most of all though, read the WEBTOON! It’s free, it’s beautiful, Lee Hey is a master of romance with world-building elements and you won’t be disappointed.

On this blog, members of the Carmel High School chapter of the Quill and Scroll International Honorary Society for High School Journalists (and the occasional guest writer) produce curations of all facets of popular culture, from TV shows to music to novels to technology. We hope our readers always leave with something new to muse over. Click here to read more from the MUSE Summer Series.