Top Star U-Back is a 12-episode 2018 rom-com TvN drama with Kim Ji-suk and Jeon So-min in the leading roles.
Ordinarily, I have not have watched much dramas in the pre-Covid days because dramas tend to take up too much time and effort.
In the days of restricted movement, a 12-episode rom-com shot on location on Daemo island can be a balm and a window to the outside world. Of course it doesn't hurt that the director was not shy about having Kim Ji-suk flash his pectorals and abdominal muscles, mostly in the initial episodes. Daemo island was also impossibly sunny and gorgeous in the drama.
As a rom-com, Top Star U-Back could be rather silly, playing up for laughs the quirks and accents of islanders who somehow managed to survive without internet and appear to be stuck in the 80s in their mannerisms, outlook to life and how they treat each other and outsiders to the island. On the other hand, the drama also offers a glimpse into the world of korean entertainment, where teenagers spend long hours training to be idols and get moped by fans and reporters on their every moves such that they are unable to lead ordinary lives.
The characters in Top Star U-Back were rather caricature, and many backstories were not flashed out adequately. I get it that the main characters would have more details on their backstories. However without adequate backstories, the behavior of the characters become rather odd.
Nam Jo was portrayed to be rather a bum at the start of the drama, thus it was quite a surprise that he was willing to travel to the island with his assistant to be a wedding singer for his assistant's parents' belated wedding. And also to drive Jeon So-min's character all the way back to Seoul to help bring her and Kim Ji-suk's character together. This part of Nam Jo's personality never quite presented itself in the earlier episodes, so it felt a little out-of-place.
Even with only 12 episodes, the scripting could have been way way tighter. There seems to be a rush to tie up all the loose ends only at episode 11, with far too much time spent on Jeon So-min's character trying to force herself to forget Kim Ji-suk's character. It was quite unnecessary for so many smooching scenes between the two leads in the last 2 episodes. I think most viewers would have been convinced by episode 9 that the two leads are in love with each other. I get that the two lead characters were very much in love with each other, but all the smooching descended into duh-ness after a while, as if the production team had slotted in all the smooching scenes just to extend the screen time.
I am also quite baffled by the fantasy bit, that of the hourglass with blue power that sat in Kim Ji-suk's character's bathroom that magically disappeared and the captain on whose boat Kim Ji-suk's character first arrived on the island. This hourglass appeared to Madol too.
The FINALE was rather lacking. There was a comparison scene with the 1st episode, yet somehow, it felt that something was missing.
Jung Eun-pyo's portrayal of his character was delightful every time he appeared on screen, wished he had more screentime. The actresses portraying ajummas on the island were great too, in fact I thought their performance was more believable compared to Jeon So-min's.
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