Our Beloved Summer and 2 K-dramas in 2021 with unattractive color palettes

Aside from plot and acting, visuals also play an important role in the success of a film or TV show. Eye-catching and appealing color palettes can contribute to a more enjoyable watching experience. However, this year, some Korean dramas seem to fail to impress viewers with their color schemes. 

1. Our Beloved Summer

Our Beloved Summer is a youth rom-com starring Choi Woo Sik and Kim Dami that started to air recently on SBS. With refreshing vibes, bright and lively colors as seen on the posters, the drama received much expectations.

However, contrary to expectations, Our Beloved Summer turns out to have yellowish and somber colors, giving off nostalgic and old school vibes. This makes the audience feel like they are watching a drama set in the 90s.

This is perhaps the post-production crew’s intention to create a connection between the present and the past, but for those who look forward to refreshing, vivid footage of the main couple with the same colors as the posters, the drama’s actual color grading is somewhat a turnoff. 

2. Jirisan

Since Jirisan is set in the mountain range, it is understandable that the drama mainly uses cold and dark tones for its color palette. 

However, the fact that there are barely any bold or warm colors interwoven makes Jirisan give off too cold, gloomy and spiritless vibes. Moreover, the background lacking diversity and underwhelming chemistry between Jun Ji Hyun and Joo Ji Hoon also cause Jirisan to face mixed reviews. 

This year’s well-received mystery thriller series such as Voice 4 and Mouse are examples of how bright and warm colors are smartly incorporated in the main dark theme to create a visual balance, instead of overusing depressing colors like Jirisan.

3. Kingdom: Ashin Of The North

Another work of Jun Ji Hyun that disappoints netizens in terms of visuals is Kingdom: Ashin Of The North. This is a work about zombies and about a girl named Ashin, who is determined to reclaim justice for her tribe. So the film has a slightly gloomy color.

Above are the films that make netizens dissatisfied in terms of images and main colors. Hopefully, film creators will pay heed to and absorb public feedback in order to create greater works in the future.

But what annoyed netizens the most was the overuse of dark scenes. Even sometimes, viewers can’t see the animations in the work because it’s too dark. If the scenes were brightened up a bit, perhaps the viewer would have captured the details better.

Even so, many people still have praise for Jun Ji Hyun’s acting ability and expressive nuances in this work. It matches the color and atmosphere of the film very well. She fully portrays the character’s personality.