Hometown Cha Cha Cha (2021)

Quick Take: Home Town Cha Cha Cha (2021), starring Kim Seon-ho and Shin Min-ah.  10/10.  16 episodes of 60 min. each.

Synopsis:   Dentist Yoon Hye-jin loses her job in Seoul and decides to open a dental clinic in the small seaside village of Gongjin.  She soon encounters jack-of-all-trades Hong Du-sik, known as Chief Hong.  He is the go-to handyman for the entire village for electrical, carpentry, and plumbing; he also helps out as a barista in the coffee shop, makes soap, and sells real estate.   Hye-jin is drawn to him, but then a suitor from her past appears.

Review:  City girl dentist has to adjust to life in a small town, where everyone takes an active interest in her life and loves.  The two leads are perfect, and the villagers are memorable in their own right.  They include the feisty grandmother and her two best buds, the town gossip, the divorced couple and their son, the coffee shop owner who can’t stop talking about (and singing!) his one hit record from decades ago, plus Hye-jin’s assistant’s pursuit of the cute but clueless police officer.  Three mysteries propel the story along, all of them resolved before the satisfactory ending.   This feel-good drama was a hit in Korea and internationally.

Recommended.

Rewatchable - 5, Compelling - 5, Plot/ Story/Writing - 10,  Acting/Casting - 10, Production - 10,  Bonus - 10.  Bonus points for creating a world of goodness, kindness, and happiness.  We would all like to live in Gongjin!

Notes:

Kim Seon-ho

got his start in theater. He gained widespread popularity in television dramas including Good Manager (2017), Strongest Deliveryman (2017), 100 Days my Prince (2018), and Start-up (2020).

Shin Min-ah

began her career as a model and has been acting since 2001. She is best known for My Girlfriend is Nine-Tailed Fox (2010), Arang and the Magistrate (2012), Oh My Venus (2016), and Our Blues (2022).

Ji Song-hyun

studied acting at the Korea National University of Arts. He has been acting in films since 2014 and in dramas since 2017, including The Nokdu Flower ((2019) and Youth of May (2020).