I guess KBS is pretty determined to corner the market in time-travel dramas: The upcoming Friday-Saturday drama Go Back Spouses will follow an unhappily married couple, played by Jang Nara (One More Happy Ending) and Sohn Ho-joon (Blow Breeze), as they get sent back 18 years to their college days. They will get a second chance at adulthood and love, with the knowledge of the future to help guide them.
The teaser sets up the initial premise quite effectively. We get a brief glimpse of husband and wife in happier days, with the caption, “We used to like just looking at each other.” But the harsh realities life sends their way are too much for the couple to handle, and we see them leave the courts after finalizing their divorce. Jang Nara looks frazzled trying to raise their child, and the teaser says that her self-esteem has reached rock bottom.
But Sohn Ho-joon doesn’t have it much better, as a salesman for a pharmaceutical company with a horrible reputation. He’s seen bowing over and over to a doctor in a hospital, and pouring drinks at a karaoke bar for potential clients. His wife nags him offscreen, saying that she could earn more money by selling gum on the street. Ouch.
The teaser asks, “Would you reset 18 years of your life?” After getting their divorce, both Jang Nara and Sohn Ho-joon find themselves in the middle of an earthquake, which I assume is the catalyst to their time-travel. The divorced couple finds themselves back on their college campus in 1999, in their 20-year-old bodies. Lol, the fashions are cracking me up already, and I look forward to seeing both of them having some mindless, not-yet-adult fun with their friends, played by Heo Jung-min (Introverted Boss), Lee Yi-kyung (Mirror of the Witch), Han Bo-reum (Modern Farmer), and Jo Hye-jung (Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-ju).
It’ll be interesting to see how they also deal with romantic rivals, in the form of Jang Ki-yong (The Liar and His Lover) and Go Bo-kyul (Seven Day Queen). It’s pretty obvious what Sohn Ho-joon’s first reaction is, given that he shouts that if this is a dream, he doesn’t want to wake up ever. But I wonder if he’ll be as ecstatic to see his ex-but-not-yet wife getting hit on by the most popular student on campus.
While this time-travel premise isn’t exactly unique in dramaland, I like these actors enough that I’m hoping this show makes for a cute, breezy watch where a couple somehow finds a way to fall back in love in spite of knowing what’s in store for them. Also, how adorable is it that Sohn Ho-joon’s real-life buddy, DBSK’s Yunho (Records of a Night Watchman), made a quick cameo in the show?
KBS’s Go Back Spouses will premiere on October 13, following Strongest Deliveryman in the Friday-Saturday slot.
