Like Flowers In Sand Season 1 Review – Some flowers bloom later

Episode Guide

Episode 1 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 2 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 3 – | Review Score – 3/5
Episode 4 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 5 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 6 – | Review Score – 4/5
Episode 7 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 8 – | Review Score – 4/5
Episode 9 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 10 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 11 – | Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 12 – | Review Score – 4/5

Almost all of us have experienced setbacks at some point in our lives – rejection, confusion regarding our chosen path, mentally taxing ups and downs of life, second-guessing our life choices, and not to forget the many existential crises plaguing modern-day humans. What makes us keep going is our resilience to setbacks and obstacles, the ability to bounce back from failure because, as they say, what doesn’t kill us, only makes us stronger.

Like Flowers in Sand is one such k-drama that echoes that even flowers can bloom despite the aridity of sand if only there’s sheer grit and conviction of mind. 

Like Flowers in Sand is Netflix’s latest heartwarming drama along the lines of Welcome to Samdal-ri, Hometown Cha Cha Cha and more. It conveys the tale of Kim Baek-du, a former ssireum prodigy who lost his charm. He is 32 years old and has never won a single championship. Despite being cheerful and considerate, he is taken for granted by almost everybody in town – from his juniors, friends and townsfolk. Things change when an unknown woman visits the town who resembles Baek-du’s childhood friend Du-shik.

One of the highlights of the show is its beautiful cinematography. The entire show screams aesthetics. Every scene is a visual treat highlighting a warm and welcoming atmosphere. The set exhibits a pleasant colour palette – shades of blue thrown in with white in Mi-ran’s café, the blue of Yu-gyeong’s house’s door that contrasts and compliments the green from the flora around it to the warm browns of Baek-du’s house.

The port town becomes a symphony of visually enticing images. With such a coordinated aesthetic atmosphere, the show reinforces its themes of love, healing and nostalgia while boasting some of the most attractive scenes.

Simultaneously, some of the most satisfying scenes are the action sequences of Baek-du’s ssireum matches. With each shot, the anticipation builds – a tug here, a kick there and a surprising throw! The matches never seem choreographed and staged, which add to the thrill and excitement of every such scene.

Moreover, the aesthetics and cinematography complement the overall theme of growth and healing of the show. The characterisation of Baek-du is especially noteworthy, played by Jang Dong-yoon. Dong-yoon is able to manifest Baek-du’s cheerful and compassionate yet deeply frustrated persona marvellously. Although, rest of the characters are played by an exceptional cast, they unfortunately lack much of Baek-du’s character depth.

Like Flowers in Sand, being true to its title brings out wholesome stories of love, family and friendship. Baek-du and Yu-gyeong’s friendship is especially pleasing and bringing a satisfactory smile on one’s face. Moreover, the theme of “like flowers in sand” reverberates in each character’s story. Bake-du regains his self-confidence as he makes peace with the distinctiveness of ssireum style, leading him to victory, while Yu-gyeong and Mi-ran resolve a long-standing trauma, beginning their journey of healing, Jin-su and Baek-du re-establish their friendship.

However, simultaneously, the show loses its vision at times with multiple sub-plots leading to the narrative being either too simplistic or too predictable. There is a point in the middle of the show, where it focuses on either of the three subplots – romance, murder mystery and sports which makes the trajectory of the show a bit unclear.

The whodunnit story of a stale murder and the match-fixing arc turns out to be unnecessary rousing little impact with the weathered trope of a surprise culprit with weak motives. For instance, why would an unhinged, remorseless murderer let Mi-ran live? Hence, wherever intricacies are required to emphasise on the trajectory of the plot, the show skips them quite comfortably to focus on its core theme.

All in all, Like Flowers in Sand delivers exceptional cinematography, acting, and action sequences but falters in the execution of its plot at times. However, it successfully delivers its message of hope and healing amidst adversity leaving the audience with a feel-good, satisfying vibe, forging its identity as a pleasant and heartwarming watch.

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