The last time I watched a gay romance with a splash of swimming, it was ‘Here the Whole Time‘, a colourful, cute, sun-soaked Brazilian movie about two estranged neighbours falling in love. Korean short-form drama Dive into My Bad Rival is the polar opposite. Dark, twisted and gloomy, it follows top swimmer Kang Han (Lee Si-an) as he bullies the hell out of his human pacemaker, Yoon Ji-soo (Baek Si-hoon), a hardworking athlete constantly undermined by those around him.
Directed by Ahn So Hoe (Blue Complex, Secret of Male Students), Dive into My Bad Rival is a vertical drama spanning 51 episodes, each running less than two minutes. It follows the twisted relationship between two competitive swimmers, whose abusive master-lackey dynamic gradually transforms into a deeply codependent bond. Kang Han is the son of an influential former star athlete and consistently ranks first in races, while Yoon Ji-soo is a poor scholarship student with an ailing grandmother, desperately fighting his way towards the number-one spot.
Much of Dive into My Bad Rival is fairly straightforward, but its bite-sized vertical format robs the story of the depth needed to become something truly lasting and memorable. That’s despite stellar performances from lead actors Lee Si-an and Baek Si-hoon, both headlining a show for the first time. Lee Si-an, in particular, is striking as the hot-headed, violent and abusive Kang Han, someone who simply doesn’t know how to play nice and is himself a victim of an abusive, controlling father. Of course, that in no way excuses the horrid way he treats Yoon Ji-soo, although the latter gradually begins to crave the attention he receives from Kang Han, however cruel and mean-spirited it may be.
Baek Si-hoon delivers an equally strong performance as Ji-soo, a former swimming prodigy whose talent is repeatedly overshadowed by the internal politics of swimming clubs, where connections matter more than merit. Deprived of the support he deserves, Ji-soo is constantly fighting an uphill battle, and Baek convincingly captures the exhaustion and helplessness of someone who has been pushed around for far too long. There’s always someone trying to sabotage him, although things change when Kang Han forces him to become his pacemaker and starts fending off the other bullies. Ironically, Kang Han becomes both Ji-soo’s protector and his sole tormentor. And naturally, Kang Han’s father is none too pleased about his son’s newfound proximity to the other swimmer.
The lead actors share terrific onscreen chemistry, easily the strongest ingredient of Dive into My Bad Rival, even if not maximized. Despite being bitter rivals caught in a volatile love-hate relationship, the two secretly admire each other as athletes, each in awe of the other’s abilities, even if neither is willing to admit it. Being at the top of anything can be a lonely, isolating experience, and it’s what draws these two towards each other. Their shared understanding of the pressures of competitive swimming gradually develops into a symbiotic emotional bond, albeit one that brings them more trouble than comfort.
With a better budget and a more conventional format, Dive into My Bad Rival could have generated as much buzz as The Prosecutor’s Proposal or even Don’t Be Too Emotional, both released in the same year and featuring their own share of ‘red flag’ protagonists. Unfortunately, the show’s choppy pacing makes most episodes feel like previews for longer instalments that we never actually get to see. And speaking of production shortcomings, one of the strangest visual details is Ji-soo’s house, which looks so glaringly artificial that I wouldn’t be surprised if it were AI-generated. And the whole ‘sick grandmother’ bit was overtly trope-y.
There’s no shortage of interesting material in ‘Dive into My Bad Rival’. Corruption, match-fixing, doping, bullying within swimming clubs and the misuse of regulations all find their way into the narrative, alongside emotional and physical abuse on the domestic front. These are compelling themes brimming with dramatic potential, but the show’s limited runtime means they’re barely explored before the story rushes on to the next development. It’s frustrating because the ingredients for a far more layered and affecting drama are all there, just never given enough room to breathe. The lead actors really carry this one on their shoulders.
If you’re a fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope, have a soft spot for walking red flags and don’t mind the annoying vertical format, Dive into My Bad Rival is worth checking out.
Dive into My Bad Rival is on ShortTime and iQIYI.
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