Dali and Gamjatang (2021)

Very cute Romance. Meh... everything else.

Dali and the Cocky Prince is a classic opposites-attract RomCom that sucked me in from the start. It's also partially a mystery which both underwhelmed and bored me. This drama doesn't take long to jump into the romantic chemistry part which I loved, and the two leads are quirky in the best way (shout out to whoever styled both character's outfits), but unfortunately, too much of the drama revolves around a mediocre corruption plot that was so uninteresting and repetitive that I was tempted to skip a lot of those scenes, at least the non-comedic ones. The best parts of this drama are when it doesn't take itself seriously.

Park Gyu Young plays Kim Da Li, a rich but odd art expert. It's my first time seeing her as the main female lead, not a supporting lead with unrequited or unfulfilled love (It's Okay to Not Be Okay, The Devil Judge), and she played the role well. It was nice to hear her show off some English fluency and really great outfits, but I did have some issues with the way her character was written. I honestly wondered if Da Li might be slightly autistic at some points. I understand that the character was meant to be sheltered, eccentric, and naive but her extremes were just too intense at times. The innocent wide-eyed blank stare that I've seen Gyu Young do in other dramas didn't help. It made her seem less cute and more "undiagnosed" or "too heavily medicated" or just waaaay off. I liked Da Li but her naiveté and stubbornness also frustrated me A LOT! Speaking of extremes, she is matched with Kim Min Jae as Jin Moo Hak who is super confident, outspoken, and stylishly tacky (although I loved his suits too). Even though his character is meant to be obnoxious, his charm and smile are what stood out the most. Maybe I'm biased because he has my birthday (#teamscorpio), but he was by far my favorite character! He played right at the line of being unapologetically cocky where it was admirable instead of annoying. Together they were a great match, and even at their cheesiest (and it gets very cheesy). They were cute without being too childish and they are what kept me watching. That's a warning to anyone who doesn't like their odd banter from the start, complete with sound effects, arguments, awkward smiles and giggles... if that's the case then you should probably give up on this drama. These are the best parts in my opinion.

There are other good performances in this drama too. Moo Hak's family (especially his Dad), the nosey Museum staff, the nosey restaurant staff, a 2nd lead for each lead, a classic greedy businessman, and a creepy rich ex... most are pretty cliché but the characters are great. My favorite among the supporting cast was Hwang Bo Ra and Moo Hak's secretary. Yes, the roles she plays are often similar (even with short hair and a suit this time), but she is always hilarious. I thought she and Moo Hak made a great team. I do think Kwon Yool as Jang Tae Jin is worth mentioning as well. I think he did a good job too, but I just wish he was a little less dull. I still don't understand why Da Li ever liked him in the first place, or why he was so enamored by her. Maybe if his character was a little creepier, or more charming, I would have been less bored by the rest of that story. Not that I blame him completely. I just think that part of the story wasn't strong enough on its own. Other characters, like both 2nd leads, and Moo Hak's stepbrother could have had slightly stronger storylines to make them feel less like filler characters, but maybe less of them wasn't so bad. I'm glad they weren't used too much to distract from the main couple. I'm glad this drama avoided drawn-out love triangles... besides the main one, which was more a third wheel plot than a real triangle.

The non-romance part of the story is filled with the usual corruption and greed tropes and involves Da Li's dad's death leaving her with a mess of bills, responsibilities, and unanswered questions. When everything starts going wrong for Da Li, instead of actually caring, I was just waiting for Moo Hak to show up. There are no real big plot twists or surprises, just characters finally realizing what's obvious. It is all resolved pretty neatly by the end, which was nice, but the love story is still all I cared about.

Would I watch this again? Sure! Because what I enjoyed the most was the main couple's antics I can see myself rewatching them and just skipping or zoning out during the other parts, Maybe that's too harsh, since some of the other characters are entertaining too, but I think just focusing on the romance would be my only reason to rewatch this. It's also a light drama, which is perfect if you're in between dramas and if you're not in the mood for something too emotionally heavy or serious.

And the soundtrack is pretty good. I didn't fall in love with any of the songs but they fit the drama's mood perfectly. The "don't take it so hard" lyric always seemed to come in right at the perfect time. I also liked the whistled version of the Habanera from Carmen.

Overall, this is a surprisingly good romance drama for what it was, and I would definitely recommend it to light romcom fans. I loved that this felt like a classic romcom, but the leads didn't necessarily follow the predictable romance drama path, even if lots of popular romcom tropes were in full effect throughout. They could have explored classism a little more deeply but that probably would have made the story too serious. Although the premise is a high end spoiled art-world elite vs a low brow hard-working nouveau riche entrepreneur it's really about making a genuine connection unexpectedly and having someone who truly will be there to support you no matter what ( a ride-or-die if you will) who seems all wrong but compliments you perfectly. The take on the art world was a bonus, and also played up for comedy in a way I thought was hilarious, It seemed to be done as a comedic love letter to the art crowd. If this drama was a painting I wouldn't call it a masterpiece by any means but it is the kind of painting that makes me smile when I see it, and that was enough for me.

Oh, and if art isn't your thing, maybe pork is? There's plenty of pork appreciation too lol! I can appreciate both! Win-Win!

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