The Kdrama “One Day Off” aka “Park Ha-Kyung’s Travels” has wrapped up its run and after watching the 8 episodes, here is my review of the short drama.
Note: this will be a spoiler-free review of the said episodes in the title. This is a subjective review.
Lee Na-Young one of the biggest Korean actresses of all time, as well as one of the most popular. She is also known for taking extended hiatus periods in between projects while she focuses on her family. It’s been four years since her latest drama in 2019, and we’re here to talk about her newest K drama “One Day Off.”
For an actress who was known for being very picky with her projects, I was admittingly very excited to see what she had in stores. And I am pleased to say that I was pleasantly surprised by the project.
If you are walking in expecting this drama to be drastically different from what’s currently on TV, then you would have guessed right.
This drama is unlike the many other currently airing Korean dramas which are rather very heavy in terms of what topics they discuss. You could say that it is a slow-paced k-drama, but I don’t even think this term applies to it accurately. It is more of a collection of diary entries or short stories about a character who takes one day off whenever she’s fed up with her surroundings which I think is a very neat idea, and it’s something that I also do almost every weekend or whenever I feel down or I feel like I am trapped.
The drama touches on some interesting societal issues and it’s approached from a very sympathetic lens, which is something that I truly admired. It focuses more on being in harmony and at peace rather than getting a pretentious/ half-baked message across. The drama has a total of eight episodes. In terms of length, each episode is about 20 minutes which makes it on the shorter side. This is the type of K drama that would not have been made a couple of years ago, but I’m really glad that it was made because I found it calming and profound.
I think what episode you like the most will depend on your age and where you’re at in your life. There were some episodes that I felt were nice, while some others I felt could have been better, but I think the drama is highly interpretive, meaning, what I take away from an episode will differ from what others might think.
It definitely opens up a dialogue and conversation about various topics that affects many Koreans living today even though its set in the 1990s.
Overall, the message I took away was the following: take things easy, meditate, enjoy life, enjoy the simple things, and appreciate the mundane. This is something that needs to be said more often, something that many people need to be reminded of. While in retrospect, its not groundbreaking in any way, it was still conveyed beautifully.
This drama has something for everyone. It has an episode that focuses on kids, young adults, people in their 30s and 40s as well as elders. I definitely think there is something there for everyone. I also think this drama works well when its watched with somebody by your side or a couple of other people so you can share your ideas about what you think each episode meant.
I think this drama is a nice change of pace than most of whats currently on TV. Its calming, chill and something that encourages us to take a break and care for our mental well-being.
I can see why Lee Na Young felt drawn to this drama. I think without her participation, this drama would have definitely flown under the radar.
I also liked the production and attention to details, its subtle but so beautiful. I can tell the crew had lots of love poured into this production. It’s a project made with love and I think the older you are, the more likely it is that you’ll appreciate it.
If you’re feeling down or overwhelmed, I would highly recommend this drama.
So these are my thoughts about “One Day Off”, so what about you guys? did you like the episodes? let me know what you thought in the comment section below.
