REVIEW: ‘Crash Course in Romance’ Is An Unbalanced Pursuit In Love

Crash Course in Romance is a Korean Drama (Kdrama) that focuses on two opposing forces. Think of it as an enemies-to-lovers setup, where you know inevitably the leading couple will get together in the end. Friction is all but guaranteed. As far as romance dramas go, Crash Course in Romance is disjointed. It spins way too many plates. About halfway through, there is a major shift that is impossible to dismiss. Thanks in part to the hardworking cast, Crash Course in Romance is salvageable. The journey to reach the end of the destination, though, is bloated and confusing for both our female lead and male leads despite their performances.

As a series, Crash Course in Romance lacks identity and motive when it comes to romance or friendship. The constant, unbalanced tonal shifts between romance, the non-subtle spotlight on the dangerous pressure cooker that is Korean education and success, and the murder mystery at hand are baffling. It’s a case of too many plots in the kitchen. Each of the plot points are trying to battle for supremacy, and, ultimately, it results in not knowing what was created in the end. Other series have handled this juggling act of genres and storylines before with more success. Crash Course in Romance, on the other hand, crash landed.

Would the series have done better if it had a shorter episode order? Maybe. The best evidence supporting this would be the handling of the final episodes. The early reveal of the murderer and the rapid wrap-up of that storyline towards the beginning of Episode 15 was a misstep for the writers. After curb-stomping the brakes on the story, the final episodes are a drag of an affair as we wait for the subsequent conclusion. It wouldn’t be as bad if the entirety of the series didn’t have so much going on plot-wise.

That’s not to say that the three major plot focal points in Crash Course in Romance aren’t important. On their own, each storyline works well. The romance development between actress Jeon Do-yeon’s Nam Haeng Seon and actor Jung Kyung-ho’s Choi Chi yeol feels natural, with the chemistry between the two radiating offscreen. With each new obstacle they face, they grow together and it’s difficult to not want this relationship to succeed. They’ve both sacrificed so much that they need the win.

The destructive pressure placed on kids to succeed in academia is also developed well, though it oftentimes takes focus from the romantic portion of the drama. From for-profit study centers to the infighting between the students at the school during exams, we see how the bulk of this pressure is reinforced, in particular here, by the competitive moms in society and how they push their children in the academies. It’s so interwoven in a student’s daily life that there is no escape, especially as they get closer to entering college. As a result, close attention is paid to students Nam Hae-yi (Roh Yoon-seo), Lee Seon-jae (Lee Chae-min), and Su-ah (Kang Na-Eon).

The murder mystery component is an extension of the more insidious nature of that societal pressure. The murderer is the perfect encapsulation of how this pressure gets taken to the extreme. From the abusive mother fixated on the end goal to the inevitable psychological break, viewers see how, when taken too far, this emphasis on educational success overall can do the opposite of its intentions. Instead of creating productive members of society, it can create monsters.

These three separate story fixtures honestly could have been split into three separate dramas, with each getting the proper focus deserved. Combined together in sixteen episodes, Crash Course in Romance ends up getting lost in what it wants to say. What keeps things from steering off course is how dynamic the cast is, with the leading couple sinking their claws into us and keeping us invested.

The entire season of Crash Course in Romance is now available on Netflix.