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College student Kim Min Jae is a transfer student majoring in music. He prefers to keep to himself and has no friends by choice. While working part-time at the college library, he meets Yoon Chan, a Taekwondo major who begins to practically stalk Min Jae, insisting they become friends. When Min Jae finally accepts Yoon Chan’s offer of friendship, it becomes obvious that they might want to be more than just friends.
Directed by Kang Woo, the Korean romantic drama “Blossom Campus” (Beulreosseom Kaempeoseu – 블러썸캠퍼스) stars Son Byeong Hoon and debut actor Choi Dong Ho as leads Kim Min Jae and Yoon Chan. With just six episodes to boot, the series is a simple romance and almost looks like a student project due to the evident lack of budget for extras in the episodes. Even though there are plenty of college scenes, the library, classrooms and every campus corner featured in the series is always completely deserted. It’s like the protagonists exist in their own world, devoid of anybody else, although that’s an interesting way to look at the story.
One would think that “Blossom Campus” has been directed by a newbie, but Kang Woo has directed has been in the industry for years. I’ve seen his 2017 movie “Long Time No See”, an action-romance which is solidly entertaining. If you like shows like “KinnPorsche”, you’d probably like “Long Time No See” too. In comparison, “Blossom Campus” is very vanilla, with an unnecessary third lead – Kim Yong Sol as Jung Woo Hyuk – who is also romantically interested in Kim Min Jae. The only other major character appearing in the series is a Professor (Jo Yoo Seok), who often counsels Kim Min Jae on his academic and personal matters, but their interactions border on being a wee-bit bizarre.
That said, Son Byeong Hoon and Choi Dong Ho make a great-looking visual couple, and a lot of their exchanges as Kim Min Jae and Yoon Chan are very cute in “Blossom Campus”. Despite the straightforward story, which is simply about two college students falling in love, Son Byeong Hoon displays a broad spectrum of emotions and poignantly shoulders the few emotionally charged scenes in the show. Choi Dong Ho’s character Yoon Chan on the other hand is completely one-dimensional, so there’s not much to do in the role, except to be cutesy and clingy, so he can win over his crush. The background music in the show pleasingly complements the soft-sweet romance blossoming between the leads throughout the episodes.
Surprisingly, the last episode ends on a weird cliffhanger, which makes the climax seem abrupt and jarring. At the same time, it ends on a note which promises a season two for “Blossom Campus”, so those who end up enjoying the show should have more to look forward too. If you don’t mind watching a series with good-looking leads and a wafer-thin plot, this series is a decent one-time watch and could’ve been a lot more endearing as a short film.
You can stream “Blossom Campus” on iQIYI & Gagaoolala.
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