New Delhi:
In a world where streaming platforms churn out content at a dizzying pace, occasionally a series emerges that invites viewers to slow down, to savour each moment like the sweet-tart flesh of a perfectly ripened tangerine.
When Life Gives You Tangerines, Netflix’s chart-topping K-drama starring IU and Park Bo-Gum, is precisely this kind of rare treasure – a story that unfolds with the deliberate patience of seasons changing on Jeju Island, where much of this multigenerational saga takes place.
Set against the backdrop of South Korea’s rapid modernisation, When Life Gives You Tangerines chronicles the six-decade love story of Oh Ae-sun (IU) and Yang Gwan-sik (Park Bo-Gum), childhood companions whose relationship deepens into an enduring partnership that withstands poverty, loss and the relentless passage of time.
Beginning in the 1960s, Jeju Island, we meet young Ae-sun, a precocious and book-loving girl whose brilliant mind yearns for opportunities beyond what her circumstances allow. As her mother, a haenyeo (female diver), poignantly observes, “It’s better to be born a cow than a woman in Jeju” – a statement that frames the steep climb ahead for our protagonist.
IU (Lee Ji-eun) delivers a career-defining performance as the young adult Ae-sun, imbuing her character with fierce determination and vulnerability in equal measure. Her portrayal feels stripped of artifice – raw, unpolished and profoundly authentic.
Opposite her, Park Bo Gum’s Gwan-sik emerges as the quintessential green flag in a relationship, a man whose steadfast devotion manifests not through grand gestures but through consistent acts of care and sacrifice. He puts her shoes on, sells her cabbages at the market and stands as an unwavering presence through life’s harshest seasons.
Their chemistry transcends typical romantic tropes. Where other dramas might rely on declarations of love or dramatic confessions, When Life Gives You Tangerines finds its emotional resonance in the spaces between words – a lingering glance, a protective gesture, the quiet way Gwan-sik makes room for Ae-sun’s dreams even when circumstances conspire against them.
When their long-awaited first kiss finally arrives against a backdrop of golden canola fields, it carries the weight of years of unspoken longing.
Director Kim Won-seok (previously acclaimed for Signal and My Mister) demonstrates masterful restraint, allowing scenes to breathe and emotions to simmer. The cinematography captures Jeju Island’s rugged beauty with a painterly eye – from the bobbing helmets of haenyeo divers resembling constellations in the sea to the radiant glow of twilight conversations that change the course of lives.
Each frame feels meticulously composed, transforming even ordinary domestic moments into visual poetry.
The English title, “When Life Gives You Tangerines, cleverly adapts the familiar “when life gives you lemons” adage, substituting tangerines as a nod to Jeju’s famous crop (the island produces nearly all of South Korea’s tangerines).
This metaphor of making something sweet from life’s bitter circumstances runs throughout the narrative. However, the original Korean title, roughly translated as “you have worked hard” or “thank you for your hard work” in Jeju dialect, carries even deeper significance, acknowledging the labour – physical and emotional – that sustains relationships across decades.
As the narrative progresses, the series expands its focus to include the next generation, particularly Ae-sun and Gwan-sik’s daughter, Geum-myeong. Her journey provides a counterpoint to her parents’ lives, illustrating both how much has changed in Korean society and what remains immutable about human relationships.
The show thoughtfully subverts the “one true love” trope through her romantic path, suggesting that compatibility and mutual respect ultimately matter more than first love’s intoxicating rush.
While the pacing may challenge viewers accustomed to more plot-driven narratives, patience is rewarded with profound emotional payoffs. When Life Gives You Tangerines defies easy categorization – it’s not strictly a romance, a historical drama, or a family saga, but rather a meditation on time’s passage and love’s ability to endure through changing circumstances.
Moon So-ri and Park Hae-joon, who portray Ae-sun and Gwan-sik in their later years, seamlessly continue the emotional journey established by their younger counterparts. The transition between different actors playing the same characters across time periods feels organic rather than disruptive.
In its final moments, as an aged Ae-sun reflects on her life’s journey, the series delivers its most poignant truth: that aging changes only our outward appearance while our inner selves remain constant – still capable of joy, sorrow and profound connection. Like the tangerines that give the series its English name, When Life Gives You Tangerines offers an experience both sweet and tart, a reminder that life’s most meaningful moments often arrive without fanfare, nestled within the quiet rhythms of ordinary days.
For viewers seeking a K-drama experience beyond the high-concept premises of global hits like Squid Game or All of Us Are Dead, When Life Gives You Tangerines offers a more intimate but equally compelling alternative.
It’s a series that understands that everyday struggles often demand more courage than extraordinary circumstances, and that choosing to remain by someone’s side day after day constitutes its own kind of heroism.
