Netflix viewers left 'hardcore sobbing' by acclaimed drama with perfect 100% Rotten Tomatoes score - weeping 'how am I supposed to move on?!'
Netflix viewers have been left 'hardcore sobbing' by an acclaimed drama with a perfect 100 per cent Rotten Tomatoes score, weeping 'how am I supposed to move on?!'
When Life Gives You Tangerines was released on the streaming platform on March 7 - and the Korean TV series has maintained its impeccable approval rating ever since.
Starting in 1951, on South Korea 's stunning Jeju Island, it follows a poor young woman named Oh Ae-sun, played by K-pop singer IU, who refuses to give up on her dreams of becoming a poet.
Along with her love interest Yang Gwan-sik, played by Korean singer, actor and musician Park Bo-gum, the slice-of-life drama tracks the couple's daily trials and tribulations over the years.
The 16-part show has racked up an astonishing 32.9million views, despite not being as heavily marketed as other Netflix-made content, adored for its grounded profundity and quiet, thoughtful power.
Fans have taken to X to express their appreciation, with the central romance proving as heartbreaking as it is beautiful.
Starting in 1951, on South Korea's stunning Jeju Island, it follows a poor young woman named Oh Ae-sun (pictured), played by K-pop singer IU, who refuses to give up on her dreams of becoming a poet
One said: 'Just finished watching When Life Gives You Tangerines and I'm staring at my laptop screen crying. How am I supposed to move on from this show?'
Another added: 'I just finished When Life Gives You Tangerines, I've been hardcore sobbing for the last hour.'
Someone else weighed in: 'Wow, y'all were not playing around saying When Life Gives You Tangerines is sad.
'I put it on as something light to watch as I eat and now I'm crying into my food.'
One person only got quarter of the way through when the tears already started flowing: 'Bruh, why is When Life Gives You Tangerines so sad, like wtf? I'm crying so badly and I'm only at episode four.'
Another user warned: 'Do not watch When Life Gives You Tangerines if you don't want to be a sobbing mess five times per episode.'
The meaning behind the show's unique title reflects its emotional rollercoaster nature.
A tangerine has traditionally represented luck in Korean culture, with being given one said to bring the recipient good fortune.
A tangerine has traditionally represented luck in Korean culture, with being given one said to bring the recipient good fortune
The show has, amazingly, got a 100 per cent score on Rotten Tomatoes (pictured)
This older symbolism has been brought together with the phrase 'when life gives you lemons' to create a title for the show about making the best of a bad situation.
Lead actress IU, mostly known at home as a popstar, has said it is about using the sourest tangerines life throws at you to make a beautiful tea.
She has also previously said she worked really hard with her co-star to bring the central relationship to life.
IU told Time earlier this year she felt 'at ease' from day one and a year spent working with Bo-gum just solidified their friendship - now in their thirties, the pair have known each other since they were teens, when they appeared in an advert together.
She said: 'Bo-gum is someone who's just a really great person.'
They worked particularly, she said, on the scenes earlier in the show's timeline: 'We wanted to bring out that really pure and lovable side when you meet the characters as teenagers and while, at the same time, not making it feel forced...
'We went through a lot of different discussions and also we did many different versions of the takes.'
Their efforts clearly paid off, with film review site Roger Ebert praising the leads' subtle, understated approached and natural chemistry.
Fans have taken to X to express their appreciation (pictured), with the central romance proving as heartbreaking as it is beautiful
IU said earlier this year she felt 'at ease' from day one and a year spent working with Bo-gum just solidified their friendship
The reviewer said the series eloquently conveys 'four seasons of love', as the central relationship blossoms 'little by little, with acts of care, loyalty and fierce protection'.
The show's strong sense of place has also proven a key draw, with its showcasing the haenyeo divers of the Jeju Island setting, women who earn their living by diving to harvest mollusks, seaweed and other aquatic life.
It reportedly had a budget of around $40million, making it one of the most expensive series ever made in the K-drama genre.
Fans' raving about the Korean show, starring K-pop star IU, comes after another icon of the musical genre revealed the cruel training young idols are forced to undergo - revealing that she was made to take photos of her food before she could eat.
Danielle June Marsh, of global supergroup NJZ, which was previously known as NewJeans, has laid bare the struggles of growing up in the industry.
Bullying, abuse and exploitation are said to be commonplace, with youngsters subjected to gruelling training regimes and daily weigh-ins, and pressured into both plastic surgery and contracts that control their every move.
The young star, who is now 19 but was only 15 when she joined the label Hybe - also behind internationally renowned BTS - took to Instagram live earlier this year to reflect on the strict routines she and other bandmates had to follow.
'You're constantly being watched over when you're in the practice room so you didn't have much freedom at all,' she explained in the clip, which has been shared on YouTube.
The young star (pictured with her group NJZ in 2023), who is now 19 but was only 15 when she joined the label Hybe, took to Instagram live earlier this year to reflect on the strict routines she and other bandmates had to follow
'I also actually remember this is kind of weird, I remember having to take pictures of what I ate before I was actually able to consume it and I had to send the pictures to our manager and she would have to check it.'
Danielle added there lots of 'little things' which added to the pressures - and trainees often feel like they can't push back.
'The reason that we had to follow all these rules - this is how I felt... is otherwise we felt like we weren't gonna be able to debut,' she continued.
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