It took me almost 5 first episodes to decide that I want to keep watching the drama, and that was after I made peace with the idea that Be Melodramatic (BM) carries different issues and have different approach compared to Because This Is My First Life (BTIMFL). Yup, my standard was initially BTIMFL.
I love BTIMFL. I love the pessimistic, cynical and realistic views towards marriage that the drama inserts. I love the scenes that made me laugh out loud, and the scenes that made me shed tears.
With BM, by far, it does have the realistic tone, like BTIMFL, free from realistically unreachable chaebols and royalty, with chill, marhaen lifestyle whose life heavily affected by the country's politics, economics and social values and expectations. But while BTIMFL talks heavily about marriage through its lead couple, as well as the topics of housing, society's treatments towards women and other social issues through their two side couples, BM talks about the social life of adults in their 30s, revolving mainly around their love life and career. While both dramas carry social issues, BTIMFL conveys it rather more... seriously compared to BM that is more relaxed. Perhaps that's why BM gave me a reduced intensity of laugh and cries compared to BTIMFL, but in a way, let's be honest, normal life sometimes isn't that intense and dramatic, I guess.
Overall, BM is lighthearted.
I think BTIMFL is closer to Fight For My Way, in terms that both have the same intensity for humor and tear-jerking scenes. However, FFMW talks more about the realistic struggles of marhaen achieving their dreams.
I think this is these three dramas are what they call as 'slice of life' genre. All showing the ordinary life of, well, marhaen. And I find myself liking these kind of dramas. I still love Goblin and all, you know, but these three dramas are more comforting and relatable.
In a way it reminds me of the song Being Alive, a part of Company musical by Stephen Sondheim. I had never watch Company, and I have only discovered Being Alive from the movie Marriage Story, but I love the tone and nuances that Being Alive brings; I love that it acknowledges the bitter part of being with someone, as the society always stresses only the sweet parts. These kind of visual consumptions, that reminds and relates strongly with me about life, reminds me of these Sondheim quotes I found on Wikipedia, "Broadway theatre has been for many years supported by upper-middle-class people with upper-middle-class problems. These people really want to escape that world when they go to the theatre, and then here we are with Company talking about how we're going to bring it right back in their face". I have always regarded tv artworks as a medium of escapism, and how ironic that these escapism mediums is now getting more confrontational. It also reminds me of the discussions of BM characters, where in the drama the characters are talking about a drama script they are planning to produce about life of people in 30s, and one of the character said that it's "depressing", and the other agreed but also added "comforting" and "relatable".
There's a certain level of comfort to know that your problems and issues is relatable to others and is acknowledged as depressing. If anything, acknowledgment is the first step towards fixing social issues.
I still haven't finish watching Be Melodramatic, so yup this is my rambles generally on slice of life genre.
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