This weekend’s drama to marathon is another one of those dramas that’s really more of a drama 5K than an actual marathon; it’s short, hilarious and so full of adorable idols you may die from an overload of cuteness. Well, I did anyway.
Originally airing on Naver TV from April to May, 2015, EXO Next Door, was a huge success, garnering over 50 million views. The story follows a pretty standard idol-filled, web drama plot in which one very shy and awkward single girl finds herself unexpectedly surrounded by the dreamy members of an idol group. In this version of the story that awkward girl is Ji Yeon Hee (Moon Ga Young), a 23 year-old girl with zero dating experience and a tendency to turn beet red whenever she’s flustered. As one would imagine Yeon Hee finds herself flustered quite often when four members of EXO, looking to lay low for a while, move in to the house next door. As the story unfolds, Yeon Hee finds herself caught up in a world of gorgeous neighbors, childhood friends and an unexpected love triangle. Oh to be so lucky!
If you’re looking for a drama full of intricate plots, well-developed characters and deep emotions, EXO Next Door is NOT the drama you’re looking for. However, if you’ve just finished an intense emotional drama and you’re looking for a little something light and fluffy to lighten things up a bit, you may find this is exactly the drama you’re looking for. It certainly did the trick for me; though to be perfectly honest I’m not sure how those who aren’t fans of EXO will react to this drama. Being the fangirl that I am, I squeed and laughed and swooned my way through all 16 episodes of this drama and nearly fell off the couch every time the other members of EXO appeared on-screen… In short I had a blast watching EXO play themselves in this cheesy little drama but I am curious to know how others reacted. Has my love of EXO clouded my drama watching judgment? Do I only love the cheese and fluff because it’s being spoon-fed to me by an adorable bunch of idols? I suppose it’s possible but does that really matter?
EXO Next Door is just what a fluffy web drama should be; it’s full of slapstick humor, ridiculous situations, over-the-top fan-service and idols. Lots and lots of idols. *happy sigh* Okay, I guess that sigh means my fangirl side has completely clouded my judgment on this one but really, that’s probably for the best. There’s not a lot of depth in a web drama to begin with and even less when they’re created simply to highlight an idol group. It’s the nature of the genera, I suppose. How much depth can you really put into a 15 minute episode when most of that time is dedicated to fan-service? I offer After School: Lucky or Not and Dream Knight as evidence… Don’t get me wrong, I loved them both but really it was the chance to squee over biases on a regularly scheduled basis that made me love these dramas so much. The same could easily be said for EXO Next Door. I loved this drama but would I love it as much if it didn’t feature EXO? My guess is yes but that’s because I’m a sucker for cheesy comedy, over-the-top scenarios and sappy love stories. What can I say, I’m hopeless.
If you’re looking for a little something fun to brighten up a dreary day, you really can’t go wrong with EXO Next Door. It’s a cute little ball of fluff that will tickle your funny bone and make your inner fangirl happy. Even if you’re not an EXO-L you should still enjoy this one and if I’m wrong, well, you only wasted 4 hours of your life instead of 20. (Hey, it’s all about finding that silver lining.) Of course if you’ve already watched EXO in their fluffy web drama, I’d love to know what you thought of it. Did it have you squeeing like it had me or am I really just a hopeless fangirl? You know I always love hearing from you so be sure to let me know what you’re thinking by leaving me a comment below!