Brief Summary:

Laughter in Waikiki revolves around 3 men—Kang Dong Gu (Kim Jung Hyun), Lee Joon Ki (Lee Yi Kyung) and Bong Du Shik (Song Seun Won)— who are struggling to make their dream of writing / directing/ acting [in] a movie come true while running an almost failing guesthouse named Waikiki. And as if the problems at hand wasn’t enough to make their life chaotic, they were surprised to wake up one morning and find a baby left by a customer under their care.

An organized mess; an adorable chaos coupled with love and heart-warming moments, Laughter Waikiki is a perfect drama for those who are looking for a chill weekend of binge watching. No head hurting plot twists, just love and laughter (and cuteness, courtesy of baby Sol). <3

I have no expectations with this drama, to be honest. I just gave it a try since most of the k-drama people around me kept on recommending LIW. I finally gave in and watched episode 1. And before I even know it, I was already binge watching the show even at work!!! (No kidding! This drama made me do it because I just couldn’t stop.)

This is also the first time I’ve watched the whole cast in a show, except for Lee Yi Kyung who has few supporting roles in different dramas I have watched before. Though, I really barely remembered him so there was no biases about him on my part (which is a very goooood thing because I don’t want to compare his role here to any other show). Butttttttt, after this drama, I found myself soooo in to him and Jung In Sun. For reference please see: https://www.soompi.com/2018/04/16/actors-lee-yi-kyung-jung-sun-reportedly-dating/

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD.

THE PLOT:

One thing I really like about this series is the simple plot. As per the premise these 3 men are out to make the dreams of their life come true–and that’s it. But what made this really stood out is the injection of comedy and reality in one that made the viewers like me laugh while realizing that what happens to them can happen in real life too–or well, most of them. There were incredulous scenes that are just made for laughs.

Moreover, along the way, the viewers also get to meet the four (including our baby Sol) women who have the their individual goals—to realize what their dreams are and work hard for it to come true.

Laughter aside, I love how they depicted the shenanigans and ruckus of different issues these characters has to face for their dreams–rejection, finding out your dream isn’t for you, rejection, taking a wrong turn,~~ rejection~~, (almost) giving up on life–and still finding the right passion and amount of courage to get out of there and chase your dream again. There were loopholes and (too) fast paced parts of the story, but I just it all slide simply because I just love the show for being chill and light. :P There is no denying that it definitely touched my heart by just simply being simple and light.

THE ROMANCE:

Love, aside from the goals of our characters is a very tangled aspect in the story. But again, all the struggles they have to go through for the love are too funny that I just have to it slide. The road to love isn’t all hard, I might say, for these people. It is hard, but full of laughter.

• Kang Seo Jin x Lee Jun Ki
  Probably, the ones who struggled the most for their love are these two–Kang Seo Jin (Ko Won Hee) and Lee Jun Ki (Lee Yi Kyung) all thanks to her brother Dong Gu that kept on making threats AKA “YOU WILL NO LONGER BE ALIVE” just to keep them apart. But this did not stop the lovers even and they over came Dong Gu, after a few episodes of pretensions and an almost drowning scenario (AHHHH, please do watch out for this on ep 15. IT IS WAYYYY TO FUNNY HAHAHAH)

• Min Soo Ah x Bong Du Shik
  With constant bickering and bossing each other around, Du Shik and Soo Ah’s (Lee Joo Woo) love story started blossoming in the latter part of the series. There was no definite ending for these two (which left a lot to imagination, an aftermath of the left over kilig feels) but you’ll enjoy watching how they’d develop themselves as an individuals first– Soo Ah, finding her dream and purpose; Du Shik, gaining confidence and standing up for himself–before they slowly find themselves caring for each other. (Ahhh, really I could imagine myself writing a love story like these two)

• Han Yoon Ah x Kang Dong Gu
  Main romance happens with these two but its a little slow at first. I do get why they both needed to establish the characters who both came from a major heart break, but I really find this side of the story a lacks that little “omphhh” factor. But nonetheless, though the kilig is served late in the series, it is still satisfying to watch them fall in love with each other after all the push and pull scenes. These characters deserve it.

MY FAVORITE CHARACTER:

My favorite character in the series would be Kang Seo Jin simply because I can relate to her. She’s been an aspiring journalist / reporter and as seen all throughout the series. She had experienced a lot of setbacks and rejections, but still, she pursued and succeeded her dream of becoming a reporter.

But it doesn’t mean that at some point, she didn’t thought about giving up. She almost did gave up and she gave herself an ultimatum–a one last shot for that dream. I guess, that’s what really made me admire her, she wanted to have her dreams, yet she also know when to give up. It takes a lot of courage to do so, especially if you been having doubts about yourself and your skills. It’s hard letting go of something you really want, but some point you need to recognize when to stop and find a better way.

BONUS!

I guess anyone would agree that Lee Yi Kyung indeed stood out in this drama. All those random derp expressions and body gags gave me breath stopping laughter in the course of watching the series. I really have to give it to Yi Kyung for portraying Jun Ki with enthusiasm and passion. Heck, he even shaved himself for real for the role!!!! I really couldn’t imagine anyone playing the role better than him. hihi! :P

YESSSSS! In fact, I’ve already recommended it to some of my friends and they have been telling me that it’s my fault that they couldn’t stop watching and laughing at the same time! hahaha! So there, if you’re not really convinced, I here’s a little photo of Sol to encourage you to watch the series :P

Original article published here: http://secretlifeofhoneyvilla.tumblr.com/post/173288334749/honey-x-drama-review-laughter-in-waikiki

Disclaimer: Gifs, posters and photos are not mine. Credits to respective owners. Screen grabs are from streaming via Viu. Thank you!