It’s been hard to find a “classic” rom-com these days. I mean, a proper quintessential one โ not one of those genre-blending series. That kind of story that is funny and sweet, driven by two people who happen to fall in love through incredibly clumsy means in a mundane setting that presents them with ordinary challenges. Not an “action-thriller-romantic-comedy” or a “fantasy-supernatural-romantic-comedy”. Just a “romantic comedy”. When did the blend of romance and humour lose its charm? How come a rom-com now requires something extra to be engaging?
Call me a purist, but Netflix’s Our Sticky Love isn’t a proper rom-com. It’s the latest addition to the “action-thriller-romantic-comedy” genre, with its mix of kisses and explosions, adorable makeshift dates and intense fighting scenes, yellow umbrellas and torture sequences.
Written by Mo Ji-hye and directed by Kim Jang-han, the 12 episodes of Our Sticky Love serve as unexpected evidence in this rom-com debate. This is a show in which the romantic comedy aspect is so well put together that it ends up endlessly more engaging than its action plotline.
Yes, Our Sticky Love is tangible proof that we don’t need the explosions or the fighting. It turns out that the sticky concept of love โ whether romantic or platonic โ sometimes is enough to make for a great story.
This review contains very mild spoilers! If you haven’t watched the show yet, why don’t you pin this article for later? Our spoiler-free pin is at the bottom!
Nice to Meet You, Eun-sae. I’m Your Boyfriend.
We first meet anti-corruption Prosecutor Go Eun-sae (Ha Young) lying unconscious on the cold concrete grounds of an abandoned warehouse (or parking lot? Well, you get the picture). Surrounded by what seem to be dozens of gangsters, Eun-sae is bleeding out with her hands and feet tied and her fate in the hands of Jang Tae-ha (Jung Hae-in).
Tae-ha not only is one of them, but he also seems to be the boss’s right-hand man. He calls the shots โ and the shot he is supposed to call next may end the life of our protagonist mere two minutes into this tale. However, when Tae-ha realises the woman dying in front of him is Eun-sae, his past flashes before his eyes. We see a smiling Eun-sae and a couple against the sunrise in the most romantic of settings. With the gangsters around him waiting for his order, Tae-ha seems to be entertaining an idea that is the exact opposite of what he’s expected to say.
We can probably guess his next line when the scene changes and we find Eun-sae in a hospital, alive and wellโฆish. Her attending doctor (an impeccable cameo by Choi Dae-hoon) explains that Eun-sae is suffering from dissociative amnesia, which is why she can’t remember who she is, where she lives, or what she does in life. Her identity is a mystery because she was found with her fingerprints burnt off and no ID among her belongings.
Just like most of us would do, Eun-sae panics. With no identity to speak of, she’ll be sent to a government facility โ and that’s one thing she wants to avoid at all costs. A ray of hope surges when her fellow inpatients tell her that her boyfriend has come to pick her up, but that hope goes down the drain when the so-called boyfriend turns out to be a shabby boxing coach who informs her that they live together in a tiny countryside village making taffy.
The “shabby boxing coach” in question is Tae-ha, without the fancy suit and the evil gang behind him. Eun-sae might not remember much, but she’s sure of one thing: She likes luxury and class. And, in her mind, her fancy lifestyle would never include shabby Tae-ha. Nonetheless, between being dragged to a government facility on her own and heading to the tatty countryside with a stranger, Eun-sae chooses the latter. She doesn’t fully buy his story, but she believes that this is her best shot at regaining her memory.
Our Sticky Love: More Affection, Less Action
Our Sticky Love weaves a conventional yet heartfelt narrative of romantic love, found family, and gangster intrigue whose most compelling facets are the emotional arc of its male protagonist, the reconstruction of its female protagonist’s identity, and the genuine interactions between its ensemble cast. Action sequences end up as background noise, almost colourless fluff, when compared to the vibrant, organic universe created by Taffy Village and its inhabitants.
There’s nothing particularly new or groundbreaking about Our Sticky Love. This script is indeed overflowing with clichรฉs, all painted in the classically warm, bright, and picturesque cinematography common to the rom-com genre (with the sporadic awkward VFX to top it off). Think of a romantic comedy trope, and you’ll likely find it here: amnesia, first love, sick family member, fake relationships, coincidences and misunderstandings galore. But each and every single one of these devices is given a clear purpose, being actively used to strengthen and develop characterisation and establish healthy and convincing dynamics.
Tae-ha isn’t simply an ex-gangster with a sudden change of heart or whose morals experience shocking upheaval thanks to the “magical power of romantic love”. He’s drawn as a person who has always been kind and gentle, and, in a desperate attempt to save his beloved grandmother, he falls into a life of crime that goes against everything he’s always believed in. Long before he reencountered Eun-sae, he had been trying to leave gang life behind and start afresh. Tae-ha’s protective and compassionate heart then motivates him to commit to a preposterous farce to save Eun-sae’s life.
As Tae-ha’s first love, Eun-sae becomes a symbol of the honest existence he craves, but that fate has mercilessly torn away from him. She’s a reminder of his most authentic self, one which he was forced to hide to survive. This connection ties them together despite Eun-sae’s amnesia, a device that not only serves as a narrative catalyst but also allows Eun-sae to rebuild her identity.
Our Sticky Love isn’t a story about regaining one’s memory as much as it is about recreating oneself. Just like Tae-ha, Eun-sae stifled her compassion in order to “make it in life”. She replaced her tenderness with unrestrained ambition, becoming a brilliant yet vain prosecutor who has all the luxury her childhood denied her but none of the human warmth she truly longs for. The script plays with similarity and contrast: Tae-ha puts on a faรงade of aggression and wickedness to hide a kind, humble nature that was fostered by a loving community. Meanwhile, Eun-sae has often found herself alone, holding on to a varnish of goodness and elegance that masked an arrogant and hurtful attitude.
Despite her amnesia, Eun-sae’s personality remains unchanged, binding together the person she once was, the one she currently is, and the one she hopes to become. Sharp-witted, confident, and inquisitive, Eun-sae never takes anything at face value, is keen to assert her independence, and always finds different means to achieve what she desires. Through the relationships she comes to nurture in Taffy Village, sheโs then encouraged to mould a new identity she’s proud to call her own.
The community of Taffy Village serves as the backbone of this narrative, bolstering both Tae-ha’s and Eun-sae’s arcs and characterisation. The villagers provide our protagonists with a heartwarming, welcoming, and supportive environment in which they can finally embrace who they really want to be. With a remarkable supporting cast that includes the exceptional talents of Kim Young-ok, Jeon Bae-soo, and Jang Hye-jin (to mention only a few), Our Sticky Love is an ensemble show โ without Taffy Village, it would be deprived of its soul. The sincere bonds they create keep the narrative moving forward even when its gangster-related storylines cause it to lull.
The romance between Tae-ha and Eun-sae unfolds organically, with Tae-ha setting respectful boundaries that stop their interactions from feeling exploitative (we’re talking about a person with amnesia here, after all). They get to know each other with every decision they make. Their attraction naturally becomes stronger through the care and acceptance they offer each other during their hardest, most solitary moments. Jung Hae-in shares warmth through his gaze and fortitude through his screen presence, while Ha Young delivers a Eun-sae full of allure and pride who can still be vulnerable and remorseful too.
Sometimes, It’s Too Late to Make Your Villain Relevant
There’s no denying that Our Sticky Love stretches its coincidences and contrivances (the grandma’s dementia or the dodgy psychiatrist are good examples) and underutilises some of its characters (markedly, Oh Kyung-hwa’s Park Hyo-jin). But its romantic-comedy storyline, with all its silly shenanigans, is imbued with such charm, such humanity, and such candour that it is difficult not to fall for it. The show’s greatest weakness is indeed its action-thriller facet, which exists in such jarring contrast to the narrative’s core aspects that it often feels awfully mechanical.
Heo Sung-tae has proven, time and time again, capable of delivering excellent villains, and his portrayal of gang leader Baek Sang-gil is as sharp as expected of an actor of his calibre. Even so, his character is given very shallow motivation throughout the series’ first 10 episodes, with what could’ve been the most complex layers of his characterisation explored superficially in the show’s last two instalments. Our Sticky Love makes its antagonist relevant way too late in the game, and you can’t help but wonder whether his wobbly plotline was meant to offer him a redemption arc that simply falls flat or to serve as a last-minute twist that doesn’t feel that surprising (or necessary) at all.
Should You Watch Our Sticky Love?
But that’s not enough to give the show a bitter aftertaste. The affectionate ties that guide Our Sticky Love give it a truly delightful and genuinely amusing quality, keeping us afloat even when its darker and more violent sequences break the sentimental spell we fall under.
Flawed, a tad messy, and requiring a good dose of innocent credulity, this isn’t a “quintessential” rom-com that will revolutionise the genre nor enchant every single one of its most ardent (or purist!) enthusiasts. However, if you let the magnetism of Taffy Village and the romantic idealism of Tae-ha and Eun-sae beguile you for a little while, Our Sticky Love works just like taffy: it’s sweet, sticky, a bit chewy… but strangely comforting.
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