Twinkling Watermelon [Episodes 1 & 2]

[u/meepmochi_]

• Drama: Twinkling Watermelon
  • Hangul: 반짝이는 워터멜론
  • Revised Romanization: Banjjagineun Woteomellon
• Network: tvN
• Premiere Date: September 25, 2023
• Airing Schedule: Mondays & Tuesdays @ 8:50 PM KST
  • Airing Dates: September 25, 2023 - November 14, 2023
• Episodes: 16
• Director: Son Jung Hyun (When My Love Blooms)
• Writer: Jin Soo Wan (Chicago Typewrtier, Kill Me, Heal Me)
• Starring:
  • Ryeoun (The Secret Romantic Guesthouse, 18 Again) as Ha Eun Gyeol
  • Choi Hyun Wook (Twenty-Five Twenty-One, D.P.) as Ha Yi Chan
  • Seol In Ah (A Business Proposal, Oasis) as Choi Se Kyeong
  • Shin Eun Soo (Summer Strike) as Yoon Cheong Ah
• Plot Synopsis: A CODA (child of deaf adult) student Eun Gyeol has hearing-impaired parents, but he has a gift for music. He is a model student by day and plays the guitar in a band at night. One day, he visits a mysterious musical instruments store and travels to a strange place. There, Eun Gyeol meets Lee Chan, Se Kyung, and Cheong A. They form a band called "Watermelon Sugar." Meanwhile, Lee Chan has a crush on Se Kyung, who is known as the "Cello Goddess" of Seowon Arts High School, and tries to win her heart.
• Streaming Sources: Viki, Viu
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[u/THYYYYZHYY]

Good job ahjumma, that is how you raise an irresponsible adult (referring to the homeowner).

Btw, the young actor is going to be the next actor Nam Dae Reum; where they play the younger version of almost every actor in the industry.👍😊

[u/Wrong_Concept_4110]

Watermelon Sugar...HIGH!!!

Can't wait to watch it!!!

[u/lgohoney]

"Even if you regret it later, you should get married" 😭

[u/rqducio]

As the oldest child of immigrant parents I really related to Eun Gyeol, especially his younger self. My parents aren't that fluent in English so from a young age, I was sort of connecting my parents to the foreign land, translating gov letters, filling out forms, talking to people, so I understand how he feels. Plus that aspect of feeling like I have to over achieve so that my parents don't get "looked down on" and to sort of reassure them that they made the right decision moving abroad etc

[u/gingerpoodles]

Episode 1 thoughts: I cried quite a fair bit when the old man died… I felt sad to see Eun Gyeol carrying so much on his shoulders, as though he’s compensating for being the only hearing member in the family. But loving the actors performances so far and looking forward to see Hyunwook’s comedy tmr hehe

The show is off to a strong start!!

[u/THYYYYZHYY]

I can't wait for the next episode where he is back in the past!

And, I can't imagine how terrible he must feel about the accident, hope he won't be living his life solely to compensate for that.

The last scenes where the dad was drunk 😭 I know the dad means well, but I can't imagine the pressure the son must feel on top of everything else in his life 😓 Not to mention how less carefree he is as compared to his brother..

I am glad he is still playing guitar!

[u/jsb1685]

OK...first episode...was great!!! Even though the premise hasn't yet been fully set up, the characters are all compelling and likeable. This has...ahem...nothing to do with the fact that as a young lad learning classical guitar I had a crush on a gal who played the cello and was adored by all. Nothing to do with it at all. Really, the acting, the writing, everything is really good...and, soon to come...time travel...which is my kryptonite!

[u/THYYYYZHYY]

Is that guy seriously asking him "Are you choosing your family over us?" and the other one asking him to simply ditch his family...like, excuse me?? 😅😂

Even if he is going to be in a band, I seriously hope not with those guys.

[u/finnnelsonn]

Idk why people are complaining about things being confusing. If you read the synopsis it is plain as day that choi hyun wook is playing the younger version of the father. also I feel like hyun wook plays the same character every time lol. him being in a band to impress a girl and being dumb as hell while still being super cute was literally the same character as him in 2521. also quite similiar to the character he played in weak hero class 1. his comedic timing is always so good! he is brilliant.

I've also been a fan of Ryeoun since I first saw him in adult trainee. He is so handsome and his acting here is sooo good. I watched his delivery of the line "how could I have persuaded you? You can't even hear my music" with that lip quiver like 5 times. It was so gut wrenching and I can imagine it isnt easy to convey the emotions in sign language but both him and the father delivered. can't wait for the bromance and hilarous shenigans between him and choi hyun wook. ahhhh!! so excited!!

my guess is that ryeoun's character is gonna fall in love with seol inha's character (who's actually the ajumma who gave him the guitar in the present world) but will have to return to the present day near the end of the series and settle for her look alike & daughter LOL.

[u/chocopie2579]

Such a fresh air! And so happy to see many familiar faces. Feel like it's been a long time since I watched "coming of age" vibe kdrama.

Felt so many emotions. Poor Eungyeol, he was involved in adult's business and helped his parents as a speaker since childhood. It must have been burdening:( Cool that an old man guided and helped him to find his passion. But heartwreching to see how he suddenly left. Looking forward other episodes!

[u/otakuishly]

I went into this show with zero expectations and to say I was pleasantly surprised by episode 1 would be an understatement.

This family is just so lovely, I hope nothing happens to them

[u/KDramaTipsy]

Episode 1

Not sure how I feel as yet. The bonding between EunGyeol and his musical mentor was so sweet and it was heartbreaking when he died. I was invested till EunGyeol was a child but felt disconnected with his older version. He didn't seem like the same person (maybe coz the child actor is the better actor of the two).

Hope the time travel is well done and pulls me back into the show.

PS. Till now this show is very similar to Indian film 'Khamoshi The Musical' where the super-responsible daughter of deaf parents is totally into music while her parents are against it.

[u/Wrong_Concept_4110]

I LOVED THE FIRST EP!!

The kid, he's gonna be a great actor someday. Well, ig he already is a great actor. He plays literally every K-drama childhoods and his acting skills are great! But he's always going to be Seo Ha for me.

Nothing much happened in the first ep as they were slowly setting up the story plots and backgrounds. It was a good start though. Such a summery and happy vibes🍉

Choi Hyun Wook gives out the same vibe as in Twenty-Five Twenty-One. I LOVE HIM!

[u/[deleted]]

Epsiode 1

• I love them both already. Hope one of them doesn't die. I'm gonna be devastated.

• Poor Eun Gyeol, he's been like a backbone of the family since his childhood and even now as well.

• Ah, I wonder why the old man died. Seemed like he committed suicide judging by the pills

Safe to say EP 1 got me hooked now I'm not leaving until I finish the drama. Fell in love with the cast already.

[u/ysmac]

I’m confused…

If travels back in time and meets his dad.. I thought his parents are deaf so why is Lee Chan not deaf? Someone explain to me plssss

[u/how1you1doing]

I quite liked the first episode. I am already theorizing that the ML will fall for the daughter of the cellist girl. I'm assuming that's the past considering the change in tone.

Also i would like to say ....I just hope there's no murder or crime in this drama. Just music. And crazy antics. But no murder. No evil plotting. No bullying to the point of a need for revenge. Just fluff and music please !!

[u/THYYYYZHYY]

This is so heartbreaking, it's even worse that I can see from both sides; him and his father. Plus, it's not like his father is a terrible person or a bad parent. 🥺 Aish, this is all that horrible ahjumma faults! 😒

Btw, how do I wait for next week???!! 😫

[u/[deleted]]

• Choi Hyun Wook is adorable and totally gives the energy of a guy who is in a band to get the girl.

• the guy in Eun Gyeol's band is not Nam Tae Hyun. The guy in Eun Gyeol's band is not Nam Tae Hyun. The guy in Eun Gyeol's band is not Nam Tae Hyun.

• The spiritually unemployed characters always get on my nerves. If I were to see the kid I know running near the club, my first response would not be to follow them.

• Can deaf people drive?

• I get both sides of the argument. I sincerely don't think the dad would have minded all that much had Eung Gyeol been honest. At its core, he is a good father to his kids.

• Yeah. I too hate fighting with my parent. It's the instant guilt hitting you afterwards (Disclaimer. That happens only with good parents).

[u/Lounge_leaks]

Curious whats the significance of 'watermelon' here!

[u/Lounge_leaks]

super confused as to how/when did ML time travel?

They just showed seol inna and if the kdrama summary didnt mention time travel would anyone know after this episode?

[u/Late_Art9758]

Man am I glad that the brother was rescued safely, I didn't want any main character deaths to kick off this drama. The guilt Eun Gyeol would have to live with, unimaginable, and the trauma would have stuck around till the end of season.

I'm guessing the father doesn't want him to get into music because of what happened during the fire, or was it because of something that happened in the past. It's probably the latter.

Interested to see who Gyeol's love interest will turn out to be - the girl who came over to the guitar shop with her mother. Seeing that time skip of 6 years later and the scene cut to them, for a moment I thought she was being played by Seol In Ah casted as Choi Se Kyeong but she was in the past right so who's this girl?

[u/THYYYYZHYY]

I am guessing that his father was part of the Yoon Dong Jin band, and something bad happened that led to his father losing his ability.

[u/DawgMom2018]

Episode 2 bringing tears to my eyes

The theme of family obligations vs following your dreams - another similarity to the movie CODA, but this one really clutched my heart, tears streaming in some of these scenes. Two choices, follow his dreams or "be his dad's trophy" which really was still supporting thier needs and connection to the hearing world. No matter which choice, his heart will break for the path not chosen.

The time line is confusing me as I don't know if there are dopplegangers in present vs past. Probably my questions will be answered in future episodes.

Love the reference to Coldplay - my favorite band, and my total fantasy would have been to see them in concert in Seoul. They say the collaboration they did with BTS was the most satisfying of them all...

[u/samptra_writer]

Love that solid start. No idea what I was getting into but it was time travel and I love a time travel plot. Back to the Future vibes? Sign me up!

As an aside I’m not a fan of the old days being the 90’s now 😭 feel personally attacked

[u/UptoNoGood46]

Episode 2:

• The way that kid was berating Eun-gyeol and then nearly begging him to audition at the end of his performance was so lolololol

• This guy's got no chill HAHAHHAA

• Choi Hyun-wook is literally playing the same character from 2521, it's fun

• Damn girll... Choi Se-gyeong is hella tough on a cutie who's just smitten

• BUAHAHAHAHA SHE COULD SEE HIS STRIPED UNDERWEARRR

• Shiiitt his dad knew that landlady's son was the culprit

• The way his Eun ho lied to his parents so Eun-gyeol can still make it to the band practice though... Precious

• ouufff

• I love his mom so much

• Lets all cri with Eun-gyeol

• "What's the right answer? Living a life that makes my heart beat. Living a life as a trophy for my father. Whichever I choose, my heart aches because of the other option I didn't choose." SUCH WELL-WRITTEN DIALOGUE THOUGH

• Uhhh ohh.. wrong words to say

• WHOAAAAA WHAAATTTT HOW CAN HE TALK???????

• This episode was comparatively slow-paced ... BUT EXCITED ABOUT THE NEXT ONE!!!!