K-Fantasy ‘A Time Called You’ Plays With Concepts Of Time And Identity

A year has passed since Jun-hee, played by Jeon Yeo-been, lost her fiance and she cannot stop thinking about him. Yeon-jun, played by Ahn Hyo-seop, died during a time when their relationship was rocky. They argued about her leaving to work in New York for a year. He wanted to go with her, since for him the most important thing was being together. She said it would be more efficient for her to go alone. We have forever to be together, she said. We have lots of time. But then they didn’t.

Viewers may not want to pull out the tissues just yet. The k-drama titled A Time Called You is a fantasy. Jun-hee may be tortured about past priorities, but as this story entwines the past with the present and the possibilities in between, she might have time to make other choices. Or at least accept the choices she made.

Time is pretty fluid in A Time Called You. It seems to slip back and forth between the present and past. However, it’s more complicated than that. What seem like memories in this storyline might actually be glimpses of an alternate reality. In one timeline characters that resemble younger versions of Jun-hee and Yeon-jun have other names, Min-ju and Si-heon. Jun-hee doesn’t remember anything that happened to these characters. Has she forgotten important memories of her own school days or do these timelines have nothing to do with each other?

Jeon and Ahn play both versions of these characters so things can get confusing for the characters and viewers alike. It gets really complicated when Jun-hee gets caught in the 1998 reality of her alternate character Min-ju. Jun-hee meets Si-heon, who looks exactly like Yeon-jun and immediately embraces him. Naturally he’s surprised. Although she woke up with Min-ju’s memories, she’s far more outspoken than the timid Min-ju and has plenty of useful adult insight into relationships, acting in ways that will likely change the future of this alternate timeline.

The plot twists in this drama are often so quirky and unexpected, it’s hard not to keep binging episodes, just to get subsequent clues. Fortunately, the Netflix
NFLX
drama only has 12 episodes, making it easier to binge. Acquring enough clues will be interesting. Or confusing. But at the very least least entertaining.

What keeps the drama buoyant is the great cast—Jeon, Ahn and Kang Hoon, who plays Yeon-jun’s devoted best friend in the alternate reality. Jeon infuses her character with so much energy, it’s easy to root for her in either incarnation. The actress is best known for her roles in the dramas Vincenzo, Be Melodramatic and Glitch, as well as the films Cobweb and Night In Paradise.

With this role Ahn only adds to his appeal as a romantic lead. He previously appeared in Business Proposal, two seasons of Doctor Romantic and Lovers of the Red Sky. Kang Hoon, whose role heightens the mystery in this fantasy, can be seen in Little Women, The Red Sleeve and You Are My Spring.

The cast also includes a special appearance by Rowoon who is currently starring in the Netflix k-drama Destined With You. A Time Called You is a remake of a Taiwanese drama series Someday or One Day.