# Lovely Runner (2024)

> A devoted fan travels back to high school to protect the idol she loved, reshaping a romance split across time.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/148738

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 16
- Episode runtime: 70 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: romance, fantasy, drama
- Created by: Kim Bbang
- Network: tvN
- Cast: Byeon Woo-seok, Kim Hye-yoon, Song Geon-hee, Lee Seung-hyub, Jeong Young-joo, Seong Byeong-suk, Song Ji-ho, Seo Hye-won
- TMDB rating: 8.5/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt31324295/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: moderate
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: none
- Tone: sweet, giddy, wistful, melancholic, uplifting, cozy

## What critics say

Audiences broadly acclaim the lead chemistry, the sweet and emotional romance, and the soundtrack, while finding the time-slip plot convoluted at points.

## Synopsis

Lovely Runner (2024) is a South Korean fantasy romance series created by Kim Bbang for tvN. Byeon Woo-seok stars as Ryu Sun-jae, a celebrity idol, opposite Kim Hye-yoon as Im Sol, his devoted fan who finds herself transported back to their high school years. Im Sol's engine is simple and urgent: she wants to protect the young Ryu Sun-jae from the fate that ends his life, while every change she makes ripples outward and complicates the relationships around them. Supporting performers Song Geon-hee, Lee Seung-hyub and Jeong Young-joo fill out a cast of classmates, rivals and family members whose lives shift with each intervention. The series runs as a single continuous sixteen-episode story of about seventy minutes per episode, built on a sweet, fluttering kilig and a melancholic undercurrent. Its setting is a 2000s South Korean high school world of music, sport and youthful crushes, with the present-day idol industry shadowing the story. Its tone blends lighthearted, adorable comedy with emotional moments that hit hard, and its theme is the pain of lovers who miss each other across time. Fans of Your Name, About Time and Mr. Sunshine will find resonance in its blend of romance, destiny and longing.

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