The reason why we fell in love with the Samdali people without any solution (‘Welcome to Samdali’)

[Enter Media = Jeong Deok-hyeon] ‘Today too, we are not greedy and are just holding on for as long as we can breathe. And whenever I feel out of breath here, I will find it there. Our stream, Samdali.’ JTBC’s Saturday-Sunday drama

<Welcome to Samdali> has ended. As viewers had already predicted, everything had a happy ending. With the help of the people of Samdali and the best friends of the Five Eagle Brothers, Jo Sam-dal was cleared of the false accusation, and Bang Eun-ju (Jo Yoon-seo), who had been falsely accused, became the protagonist of controversy when it was revealed that she had secretly received product sponsorship. Cho Sam-dal returned to his regular job, and Cho Yong-pil left for his dream mission to Switzerland thanks to her support. The two continued their love even at that distance.

Jo Jin-dal (Shin Dong-mi) was re-employed as a flight attendant and started dating Jeon Dae-yeong (Yang Kyung-won), who resigned from his position and became the CEO of the airline. Jo Hae-dal (Kang Mina) became a diver and started working with her mother and maintained a good relationship with Gong Ji-chan (Kim Min-cheol), Wang Gyeong-tae (Lee Jae-won) became a lover with Go Eun-bi (Kim A-young), and Sang-do (Kang Young-seok) lived in Seoul. Cha Eun-woo (Bae Myung-jin) opened a raw fish restaurant and became a webtoon writer.

It was a happy ending as expected, but what was impressive in the last episode was the part where Jo Sam-dal held an exhibition at Samdali, which was not possible due to the controversy over abuse of power. The exhibition that Cho Samdal originally planned to hold in Seoul was ‘People, My People’, a collection of photographs of celebrities he had taken so far. It was an exhibition filled with photos of people I got to know through hard work and considered “my people.” However, when the controversy broke out and everyone turned their backs on them, it was revealed that they were not truly “my people.”

So, the time Jo Sam-dal spends in Samdali after leaving the city that seems to be in the fierce waters for a while became like a restful time for the viewers to catch their breath again. The drama is filled with moments where she meets Cho Yong-pil again, falls in love with him, unravels the tangled threads from her parents’ generation, and mercilessly confirms the unwavering friendship of her friends and the warm affection of her hometown people.

In some ways, it seems like a simple narrative, but what gave me so much comfort and sympathy from

So, the time Jo Sam-dal spends in Samdali after leaving the city that seems to be in the fierce waters for a while became like a restful time for the viewers to catch their breath again. The drama is filled with moments where she meets Cho Yong-pil again, falls in love with him, unravels the tangled threads from her parents’ generation, and mercilessly confirms the unwavering friendship of her friends and the warm affection of her hometown people.

In some ways, it seems like a simple narrative, but the comfort and empathy that ‘Welcome to Samdali’ gave was that it was ‘my person’ who truly leans on and cares for us in the reality we face every day. This is probably because the thirst for the fields was that great. In the end, this drama was a drama that showed that we have the power to live our lives, just like the character ‘人’ written in the shape of people leaning on each other. The presence of Cho Yong-pil and Cho Samdal, as well as the people of Samdali, gave me breath and warmed my heart for several months.

Of course, Kim Tae-hee made a surprise cameo appearance in the last episode, showing that there were celebrities who tried to help Jo Sam-dal, making it clear that this issue is not a story about dividing regions and cities, but about what kind of people they should be. It was a drama that made you think about yourself at least once to see if you could be “my person” to someone while living in the city.

Columnist Jeong Deok-hyun thekian1@entermedia.co.kr

[Photo = JTBC]