49 Days' premise of a soul from a comatose / brain-dead person having 49 days to find 3 tears of pure love from friends (family excluded) to allow the return from the afterlife intrigued me from the start. The writing of this drama was excellent, every episode had surprises. The production of the drama was also top notch. The acting was the weakest aspect of the drama. The great story trumped some flat performances.
What I liked about the show a) standout character was the Scheduler played to emotional perfection by Jung Il-woo. He guides the soul through the process and has an intriguing story. The actor Jung Il-woo also was riveting as male lead in Flower Boy Ramen Shop (worth watching). b) male lead Han Kang played by Jo Hyun-jae was quietly loving and worked to support the soul's journey. For you Jane Austen fans, he was Mr. Darcy in this drama. c) writer So Hyun-kyung crafted 20 episodes of intrigue, interwoven characters with plenty of surprises along the way. He also wrote Shining Inheritance (2009 kdrama). I preferred 49 days to Shining Inheritance (good kdrama) which I watched strictly for this writer.
What I did not like about the show a) depressed heroine Song Yi Kyung played by Lee Yo-won was hard to gravitate to and like. Her story unfolds during the drama and you root for her in the end, but when the lead character is despondent, it sets a tone. When the soul inhabits her, interest picks up. b) lack of passion from most of the characters. Most of the cast seemed like they were acting in a fog and came across flat. Many of the actors were also in Shining Inheritance and not flat there, so I don't know what happened. Especially villain Kang Min Ho played as tightly wound by Bae Soo-bin. Bae Soo-bin was adorable as Park Jun-se in Shining Inheritance. Must be his hair was so cute in Shining Inheritance and so drab in 49 days. c) twist in the final episode seemed unnecessary but it didn't change my opinion of this fine drama. I'm OK with how the drama ended.
