Lee Doona: The Girl Downstairs
When Lee Doona, an ex-celebrity starts living downstairs of the shared house where Won-joon has just arrived as well, things start taking a twist of turns but in a romantic way. Will the things work out for the two?
Adaptation of the webtoon ‘The Girl Downstairs’ by Min Songa, ‘Doona’ stars Bae Suzy and Yang Se-jong as Lee Doo-na and Lee Won-jun who cross paths at a co-ed shared house in Seoul. While Won-joon has moved from his hometown to attend college in the capital city, Doo-na has made that place her hideout after quitting her K-pop idol career.
In terms of adaptation:
I had already read the webtoon before its drama adaptation announcement was made, so I was quite excited when the news came out.
I liked how the makers were able to cover a good story in the 9 episode run. They have also cut off many parts of the story and have changed a few characters from head to bottom for the show. But seeing those parts didn’t make me feel like I was missing out on something although, I’d miss some characters like Won-joon’s childhood friend who was a die-hard fan of Doona. His character was comical and fun to read in the webtoon. He is introduced at the beginning of the show but that was it.
Choi I-ra’s character by Park Se-wan was given a whole new identity for the show and I enjoyed it! In contrast to her webtoon personality of a shy and quiet girl who loves drinking and has a crush on Won-Joon, the show personality of I-ra is of an outgoing crazy personality who is a childhood friend of Won-joon and has been living in Brazil until now.
Instead of following Won-Joon around in the show she was given a different endgame who too wasn’t a character existing in the webtoon: Koo Jung-Hoon played by Kim Do-wan. He was another character element that I enjoyed watching.
Cinematography and Art:
While watching the show I was left in awe of its cinematography, every frame looked picture-perfect and so did the characters. The colors and use of patterns define the personalities of the characters.
As mentioned art consisted of the location's look, the decor of the rooms, and small details kept in the frame. Since the majority of the shoot was done in closed spaces it gave the art directors a place to give a better character depth to those places (Won-joon & Doona’s room, cafe, shared house, etc) to convey more story.
I liked the use of wall paint and wallpaper in Doon and Joon’s rooms (respectively). Doona’s room had a darkish grey pallet whereas Joon’s room had a line/checked patterned wallpaper in yellow shade. This helped in describing their state of mind.
Costume:
Costumes also were a big part of their (the characters) personalities. Doona always wears simple but fitting clothes that also touch the line of sexiness but more subtly and mysteriously. Making her presence more alluring whenever she appears on screen.
Whereas I-ra who is a carefree and chilled personality is donned wearing loose clothes with bright colors & funky accessories complimenting her loud and ‘always thinks from the heart' characteristics!
And neat and simple clothes for Won-Joon in classic solid colors of black, white, and blue (but more on the darker shades than bright). An average college student who wants to build a career has few part-time jobs and wishes to live a normal life.
My Take:
As shared earlier, I did miss some characters, character arcs, and situations from the webtoon here. Nine episodes did feel short, to sum up the story for me, so if you will be watching it after the webtoon, be prepared for these changes.
The drama tops in terms of cinematography, costumes, art, and cast but somewhere fell behind in terms of story and build-up it felt quite bland. Something felt missing for me in the scenes, it lacked depth in terms of story. The part of flashback montages was very gripping but had no conclusion for it in the end. It felt unfinished and bland. This was what made me lose my interest in the show while watching.
P.S.: I liked how they went with the original ending as the webtoon, a realistic ending.
P.S.: Lee Doona from the webtoon is much more mesmerizing than the show one. I mean, I have a huge crush on the Webtoon Doona! ;)
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