Scripted series · Netflix
When Life Gives You Tangerines
Dedicated to you. Still blooming, always dreaming.
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
IU
Oh Ae-sun / Yang Geum-myeong
16 eps
Park Bo-gum
Yang Gwan-sik
16 eps
Moon So-ri
Oh Ae-sun (middle-aged)
16 eps
Park Hae-joon
Yang Gwan-sik (middle-aged)
16 eps
Yoo Byeong-hun
Yang Sam-bo
7 eps
Lee Ji-hyeon
Bun-hui
3 eps
Jeon Bae-soo
Song Yeong-sam
2 eps
Jung Yi-seo
Song Bu-seon
2 eps
Kwon Oh-kyung
Reporter
2 eps
Choi Hye-seo
Yeom Sun-nam (child)
2 eps
Jang Soon-mi
Market customer
2 eps
Baek Su-ryeon
Jung Gong-rye
2 eps
Hwang Jae-yeol
Homeroom teacher
2 eps
Jeon Jin-oh
Ship captain
2 eps
Kang Mal-geum
Motel owner
2 eps
Kim Young-woong
Motel owner
2 eps
Lee Joon-gyu
Police officer
2 eps
Lee Jae-ha
Police officer
2 eps
Kang Jeong-woo
Lee Hye-ran's father
3 eps
Shin Mi-yeong
Jewelry store owner
2 eps
Uhm Ji-won
Na Min-ok
3 eps
Kim Ga-hee
Motel customer
2 eps
Lee Mi-do
Mi-suk
3 eps
Lee Gyu-hoe
Park Geum-myeong
4 eps
Moon You-kang
Bu Oh-seong
3 eps
Kim Su-an
Oh Jenny
2 eps
Kim Geum-soon
Mi-hyang
2 eps
Park Jae-yoon
Teacher
2 eps
Nam Mi-jung
Housekeeper
2 eps
Kim Seon-ho
Park Chung-seop
8 eps
Kim Hae-gon
Cannes Theater president
5 eps
Yoon Seo-yeon
Oh Ae-sun (teen)
4 eps
Moon Woo-jin
Yang Gwan-sik (teen)
4 eps
Seo Hye-won
Yang Gyeong-ok
4 eps
Sin Chae-rin
Yang Geum-myeong (young child)
6 eps
An Tae-rin
Yang Geum-myeong (child)
3 eps
Lee A-ra
Yang Geum-myeong (older child)
4 eps
Lee Chae-hyun
Yang Eun-myeong (child)
4 eps
Oh Jung-se
Yeom Byeong-cheol
3 eps
Choi Dae-hoon
Bu Sang-gil
13 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How When Life Gives You Tangerines actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
When Life Gives You Tangerines reads strongest on Character Depth, Bingeability and Emotional Weight.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
The story
What it's about
In Jeju, a spirited girl and a steadfast boy's island story blossoms into a lifelong tale of setbacks and triumphs — proving love endures across time.
The run
Seasons
1 season · 16 episodes.
Season 1 · Complete
Limited Series
202516 episodes
9.3IMDbThe drama follows the adventurous life and many trials of Ae-sun (IU), a poor girl wanting to become a poet who was born in Jeju in 1951, and Gwan-sik (Park Bo-gum), a young man who cherishes and loves her. The drama is narrated by their daughter, Yang Geum-myeong.
Best episode · S01E16 Here's to All You've Been Through
Where the series peaks
Best Episodes
The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.
S01E16
Here's to All You've Been Through
As the Yang family finally enjoys the fruits of their labor, sudden agony strikes — testing their resolve and the strength of their enduring love.
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E11
My Love by My Side
As Geum-myeong's engagement moves toward marriage, her heart fills with doubt — will her first love story find its happy ending like her mother's?
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E14
Spread Your Wings and Fly
Ae-sun and Gwan-sik grapple with Yang Eun-myeong's misfortune, sacrificing everything they can to help him. But Eun-myeong's self-confidence takes a hit.
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E06
Life Goes on and On
Just as Ae-sun and Gwan-sik taste the joys of their new life, a summer storm changes everything — testing their will to carry on.
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E08
The Moon Wanes, Yet the Young Heart Remains
When Geum-myeong receives a chance to study in Japan, dreams take flight. Now Ae-sun and Gwan-sik must make a tough decision.
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E15
A Spring Every Day
Between new business ventures and career changes, the family faces separate hurdles on their paths — drawing strength from their bond to press ahead.
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
Recently aired
Latest Episodes
S01E16
Here's to All You've Been Through
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E13
Such an Uneven Love
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E14
Spread Your Wings and Fly
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E15
A Spring Every Day
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E09
The Wind Goes Whoosh, My Heart Goes Boo-Hoo
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
S01E11
My Love by My Side
- Directed by Kim Won-suk
- Written by Lim Sang-choon
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- Jeon Soo-jungProducer
- Park Sang-hyunExecutive Producer
- Hong Su-hwanProducer
Writing
- Lim Sang-choonWriter
Direction
- Kim Won-sukDirector
Cinematography
- Choi Yun-manDirector of Photography
- Kim Dong-sooDirector of Photography
Music
- Park Seong-ilOriginal Music Composer
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- NetflixStreaming
- Netflix Standard with AdsStreaming
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Never stop watching
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