#2022RoundUp: Day 29: Freestyle: Uploading my 2022 Year in Review on my fanwall

2022 Year in Review: Extending the comfort zone with watch buddies.

When the clock struck midnight on the first of January 2022, New Year’s Depression struck me. I had spent the latter half of 2021 in therapy while on a long sick leave from work, and I absolutely dreaded the idea of spending another full year feeling stuck in my own mind. There also wasn’t any comfort to be found on the K-drama horizon, which rubbed more salt into my mental wound. Collecting K-drama beans with the occasional completed oldie in between was no longer cutting it, so I had no choice but to step out and extend my comfort zone.

Twenty-Five Twenty-One was not on my radar, until some Beanies invited me to join them for the first episode. I accepted on a whim and ended up staying the full eight weeks. At the same time A Business Proposal checked all the boxes for a cozy solo watch. Again, Beanies swooped in during the first half to demand weekly reports on Samantha, Rachel and the Archaeopteryx, followed in the second half by another group watch invitation. Miraculously, I still had time left to keep up with a third Beanie watch group for Healer and Shining Inheritance as well.

Watching Shining Inheritance in turn brought The Law Café to my attention. Many were also anticipating and discussing the romcom, which made my solo watch feel like I was attending yet another livestream. Love in Contract did not gather much attention at the start. Maybe this show would win solo watch of the year? Yes, you guessed correctly, the second half evolved into the umpteenth non-solo watch.

This is an ode to all my Beanie watch buddies. Although I always watch K-dramas either by myself or with a good friend, I could not help but feel lonely at times. There were loved ones who had unconsciously retreated as soon as I confided in them about my mental health issues, causing seeds of doubt about myself to sprout up in the process. This contrasted a lot with the casual way of Beanies, who provided a safe space in the streaming room where anyone could choose to bare their souls or merely be present in all their glory.

Fortunately, it rarely got too serious with all the camaraderie, laughter and recommendations. There were final nudges for me to start that one classic I still had to watch, like Misaeng or I am not a Robot. On other occasions I found myself trying adaptations that opened doors to other sources of entertainment like anime, Thai and Chinese dramas. The best recommendations, however, were the nostalgia fueled ones. Mystic Pop-Up Bar was my first K-drama rewatch ever with my friend who had not seen this gem before. Last but not least, I also went back to British shows I had been missing out on for years in favor of K-dramas.

Judging by a K-drama perspective, 2022 has been a year of lows in my humble opinion. Thankfully, my personal K-drama slump year ended up being a blessing in disguise. It gave me a beautiful opportunity to reflect on my watching habits and how I could improve them. While I sadly cannot predict what K-dramaland 2023 will bring, I see no reason to worry. With all these new sources of entertainment I discovered, there will always be something interesting to watch and someone to watch with. The more, the merrier.