Brimming with profound messages and relatable reflections, Summer Strike instills introspective lessons that deeply speak to weary souls and gives a consoling pat on the back.
Adapted from a webcomic, Summer Strike is a realistic drama that brings a reminder to prioritize oneself and celebrate the small joys in life.
Resonating and touching, the series incorporates a warm narrative and an intriguing case that all lead to forgiving and pursuing happiness.
- Main Leads: Kim Seolhyun | Im Si Wan
- Supporting Cast: Shin Eun Soo | Bang Jae Min | Park Ye Young | Kim Jun
- Romance / Healing Meter:
- Overall Rating:
- Re-watch Value:
- Dramas of Similar Vibe: When The Weather is Fine | Chocolate |
Lyris watches Summer Strike on ONE TV Asia
Episode Recaps: 01 & 02 | Mid-Series | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | Finale + Series Review
Summer Strike Finale Week Highlights
“My son didn’t kill Ms. Jung. I did.”
Confronting Moo Chul and Mr. Kwak, Dae Bum and Yeo Reum finally unearth the mystery behind Sun Ah and Ms. Jung’s death. Both have physical encounters, and the two people responsible have been sent to jail. Eventually, justice has been served and Geun Ho was released.
“I was wrong Dad.”
Regretting how he blamed his Dad for the death of his sister, Dae Bum apologizes to his estranged father. He goes home with his head down and breaks down inside his room.
“At first, having to wake up so early was stressful. But now, it’s my favorite part.”
“It’d be depressing if your day ended at dawn but it’s refreshing to start your day at dawn.”
“I work less to earn more time.”
Deciding to stay in Angok, she starts working again. To pay for her rent at Bom’s house, she delivers milk to the residents early in the morning. She returns to her usual routine — going to the library, reading, and running, but only at night because of her morning schedule. On the other hand, Dae Bum worked directly with Professor Holland remotely and has harmoniously established a working setup.
“It won’t be good anyway, so just do it?”
Determined to win the huge cash prize, Bom encourages Yeo Reum that they should join a webtoon contest. Hesitant at first, she eventually started writing her first draft after being motivated by Dae Bum and her furry friend Gyeoul.
Gaining inspiration from her situation, Yeo Reum wrote about accepting being an average person and working and trying every day.
“I thought about the concept of happiness.”
“According to the dictionary, happiness is a positive emotional state characterized by feelings such as contentment, joy, and life satisfaction. I think it’s too long. This is how I’d shorten it.”
“Happiness. The state of not lacking anything.”
As a token of appreciation and apology to Yeo Reum and Dae Bum, the parents of Geun Ho treat the two, including the other Angok residents to a rooftop barbeque party. Everyone is dancing, talking, and having a lot of fun. This made Yeo Reum realize the concept of happiness.
Summer Strike Quick Plot Recap
Summer Strike depicts the story of Yeoreum, who suffers from burnout from her work and a series of unfortunate circumstances in her relationships. Desiring to do nothing, she takes a strike against life and moves from the cityscapes of Seoul to a small beach village known as Angok.
In Angok, she meets librarian Daebum, who suffered a similar life as her, and they grow close through numerous incidents that bond them together. This pulls them closer, with Yeoreum finding her inner self through Daebum and healing her wounds of the past. However, not all is bright and well in Angok.
Summer Strike Series Highlights
Opens A Different Perspective On the Concept of Happiness
Limited with romantic scenes but abundant with introspective lessons on life and happiness, it brims with insightful lines often narrated by Kim Seolhyun.
Tackling on being contented even with the small things, the drama emphasized the importance of trivial things that were often ignored in our lives but should not be overlooked.
The main takeaway is to focus on gaining new experiences and not on accumulating material things. In today’s modern society, some people become too engrossed with their job that they had no time for more meaningful things.
The drama stresses on the significance of spending more time with loved ones before it is too late. And when that time came to Yeo Reum, she had no chance to prevent it but to only accept the reality that people will come and go and some relationships end.
Facing those problems all once has taken a toll on her physical, mental, and emotional health which leads to her burnout. Realizing that not taking an action will not end the misery, she knows she had to get out of the vicious cycle.
Mainly revolving around the life of Yeo Reum as she copes with grief, loss, and heartbreak, the plot also dives into her process of falling, standing up, learning, and growing, all leading to finding happiness.
The abundance of lessons on living a happy, peaceful, and simple life
Losing everything in her life all at once, she starts re-evaluating the things that are more valuable and worthy of her time and energy.
Despite the chaos, she begins spending more time with herself to find inner peace. Enjoying the little things in life, she embraces the slow living and learns to appreciate the beauty of simplicity. She spends more time with nature to improve her mental health and emotional well-being. The people in Angok, most especially Dae Bum, have hugely contributed to her recovery.
Wholesome Pairing
Even though there are a few heart-throbbing moments from our couple, their adorable chemistry is one of the best highlights of the series. Their banters from the initial episodes and the sweet moments in the latter parts add up to the beauty of the drama.
Yeo Reum’s cheery and clumsy personality and Dae Bum’s calm and caring nature complement each other. They are delightful to watch and their presence brings so much peace and comfort.
Albeit being both introverts, they somehow enjoy their quiet library rendezvous and mundane dates. Sitting next to each other or striding side by side, they still did their own thing but stayed connected in some way.
Sensitive to each other’s feelings and needs, Dae Bum goes all the way to help Yeo Reum and show how much he cares for her. He also verbally express what he truly feels and always offered his hands to her. Likewise, Yeo Reum learns to not hold back her feelings and is also willing to stand by him despite struggling with her problems.
Summer Strike Series Musings
Taking the modest route for its plot execution, Summer Strike moved in a moderate manner – similar to how our heroine works her way toward attaining emotional healing.
Evidently, achieving that is not an easy feat. From exploring an unfamiliar place, and embracing a solitary life, to changing her ways and conventions, Yeo Reum has gone through a lot before becoming a renewed person.
As such, the realistic representation of her problems may be commonplace or critical, and how she handled it, somehow made viewers relate to the struggles she faced.
Touching on modern topics like peer pressure, identity crisis, and burnout, Summer Strike offered present-day issues that have ideal solutions.
From a viewer’s perspective, I found myself wanting to have the same courage as Yeo Reum had when she packed her bag, ventured to a place she has never been to, and completely turned her life around.
Watching may urge you to travel or go somewhere far away. It also suggested that changing the environment and seeing things in a different light may be beneficial to bouncing back from a series of pain and heartbreak. And that was what she did.
Right off the bat, the drama stresses the importance of happiness and making time for yourself for what’s important.
Whether it may serve as a wake-up call or an inspiration, either way, it left lingering messages that need to be pondered upon.
Photos | Videos: ENA Channel
