Heading into premiere week for ENA’s upcoming Like Flowers in Sand, in the newest teaser we tumble deeper into our story’s ssireum landscape, where a struggling Jang Dong-yoon (Daily Dose of Sunshine) is unexpectedly reunited with his childhood bestie Lee Joo-myung (Twenty Five Twenty One).
As the camera follows our hero into the arena, a spectator muses that Kim Baek-du (Jang Dong-yoon) looks familiar, soon realizing that he’s the praised ssireum prodigy from way back who used to be on TV. We then learn that Baek-du is the youngest son of a previous champion. But despite showing great talent for the sport, Baek-du’s win count has sadly remained at zero.
A dejected Baek-du thus declares that he’s retiring and his older brothers are amused to see Baek-du studying English for a civil service exam. But that’s not the only surprising news in town and the gossip mill is fired up because someone moved into the old empty house where Baek-du’s childhood friend Oh Doo-shik used to live.
Enter our tough heroine Oh Yoo-kyung (Lee Joo-myung) – the new ssireum team manager – who clearly knows a thing or two about wrestling, though she tries to play it down. Baek-du can tell right away that she’s Doo-shik, but the rest of the townsfolk are not convinced.
Personally, I’m not liking this thread of Doo-shik being a supposedly ugly child who anyone could recognize and can’t possibly be the pretty Yoo-kyung. Don’t disappoint me like this Lee Joo-seung (Black Knight). Yoo-kyung, on her part, neither confirms nor denies, only arguing the technicality that she never said to Baek-du that she’s Doo-shik.
Adding to the story’s mystery, we’re introduced to charming newcomer Yoon Jong-seok (Our Blooming Youth) and cafe owner Kim Bora (Finland Papa). The latter is suspicious of the former, asking if he’s the person who moved into the old Doo-shik house and why he’s not shocked to hear that a person died drowning in the neighborhood water reservoir.
We then return to more neighborhood gossip as one woman wonders what happened in the past with Doo-shik’s family and why everyone gets so upset whenever Doo-shik’s name is mentioned – everyone other than our hero, anyway.
In the meantime, Yoo-kyung is less than pleased to discover Baek-du’s retirement and gets a little carried away in her ~if~ I was Doo-shik scenario. Similarly, Dad Choi Moo-sung (Han River) worries about Baek-du’s decision, knowing how much time and effort Baek-du spent on the sand. But even with ssireum rival Lee Jae-joon (So Not Worth It) provoking him, Baek-du is too discouraged to bite.
Thankfully, Yoo-kyung tries a different tactic, encouraging Baek-du to live for himself and openly say when there’s something he does or doesn’t want to do. Also confessing that he’s needed by the team and by her, Yoo-kyung’s confidence moves our hero to return to the sandy ring. As the teaser closes, we read in the intermittent text screens that while Baek-du was stuck a young seedling for 20 years, he’s finally about to blossom just in time.
Directed by PD Kim Jin-woo (A Model Family, Suits) with Won Yoo-jung (The Lies Within) penning the scripts, ENA’s Like Flowers in Sand will be launching next week on December 20 and streaming on Netflix.
