It took the characters in "The Time We Were Not In Love" a long time to realize they were right for each other. But by the August 16 finale, they not only realized their romantic destiny but were also married and starting a family.
A story about the finale of any other drama might have been prefaced with the words "spoiler alert," but few viewers were confused about where this story was going.
Oh Ha Na, played by Ha Ji Won, and Choi Won, played by Lee Jin Wook, had been best friends for 17 years. They were there for each other no matter what. Choi Won supported Oh Ha Na, his next-door neighbor throughout a succession of unhappy relationships. The worst was her relationship with pianist Cha Seo Hoo, played by Yoon Gyun Sang.
Choi Won supported her even when she was in a relationship that he knew was wrong for her and broke his heart. It took Oh Ha Na more than a dozen episodes to realize that there was no need to find, let alone date, Mr. Right since she had known him all along. Love did not need to hurt or be problematic if it happened with her best friend.
Once the couple decided they would be more than friends, things moved along quickly. They confessed their love and enjoyed each other's company. And in the final episode, Choi Won proposed. He asked his long-time friend to marry him on a plane.
"Be my playmate for the rest of your life," he asked. And of course she said yes.
They married, fought, and decided to start a family. She said that she wanted to give him a child that looked just like him. And he did not have to make many changes to be her man because he already lived next door and her parents loved him.
And then they lived happily ever after.
"The Time We Were Not In Love" was adapted from the Taiwanese drama "The Time I Loved You" but it never enjoyed the same ratings success as its Taiwanese counterpart. The highest ratings were 7.1 percent for the fourth and fifth episodes. After that the ratings fell, with the lowest reaching 4.7 percent for the 12th episode.
Despite its top-notch stars, the drama was criticized. Some viewers said that it took an unrealistic amount of time for the best friends to realize what they had in each other. Others said that Ha Ji Won and Lee Jin Wook had such obvious chemistry it was hard to believe that Yoon Gyun Sang provided any real competition.
At least it ended happily. What did you think about this drama? Too long? Just right?
