My Roommate is a Gumiho is about a college student (Hyeri) who accidentally swallows a gumiho’s (Jang Ki Yong) magic bead just as the gumiho was very close to becoming human. To make matters worse, if a human swallows a gumiho’s bead, they will die in one year.
Jang Ki Yong plays Shin Woo Yeo who is a 999 year old gumiho. Just as he approaches the time that he can finally become human, his magic bead is accidentally swallowed by a college student. As he works to find a way to retrieve it, he wants to keep her close, so he asks her to move in with him.
Hyeri is Lee Dam. She is the college student that swallows Woo Yeo’s magic bead. As she becomes aware of the situation, she agrees to move in with Woo Yeo. Then unexpectedly, she starts developing feelings for him.
We then have Kang Han Na as Yang Hye Sun. She is an old friend of Woo Yeo that used to be a gumiho but has recently become human. Next, we have Bae In Hyuk as Gye Sun Woo who develops one-sided feelings for Dam.
I’ve been really looking forward to the fantasy romantic comedy My Roommate is a Gumiho since it’s one of my favorite genres. Luckily, overall, it was a very solid and enjoyable drama.
I liked that the fantasy element with the gumiho mythology that was nicely woven throughout the story. We get things going right away with Jang Ki Yong and Hyeri having to move in together because his magical bead is stuck inside of her. That gives us a lot of nice interactions between them early on. That’s a big reason why I like cohabitation dramas.
The drama is fairly light with plenty of humor. Hyeri is very fun with great facial expressions as she reacts to her crazy new situation. And Jang Ki Yong plays a nice opposite to her with his more reserved demeanor. He definitely has his funny moments too though.
I liked Woo Yeo and Dam as a couple. Their opposite natures complimented each other. They also had a solid love story with the progression from misunderstandings, to interest, to love. And then they have several big obstacles they have to overcome in order to be together.
There are some darker elements sprinkled throughout the story. This is to be expected since Dam’s life is at risk as is Woo Yeo’s chance at becoming human. He also has a bit of a sad and lonely past that haunts him.
We get a really fantastic supporting cast in this drama too. I greatly enjoyed Dam’s friends Soo Kyung (Park Kyung Hae) and Jae Jin (Kim Do Wan). Soo Kyung was particularly hilarious, and Jae Jin gives us a nice secondary romance to enjoy (SPOILER: His relationship with Hye Sun was very cute and fun! END OF SPOILER)
I didn’t really find My Roommate is a Gumiho gripping, but I enjoyed every episode. The drama had such a classic feel to it that was very pleasant and easy to watch. It’s perfect for those like me that like the fantasy romantic comedy genre and want a solid story with a nice romance.
My Rating: 7.5/10
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Kdrama Kisses 
Loved the cast and low key vibe of this series. They serious/reserved ML and bubbly personality of the FL worked really well, not to mention the quirkyness of the secondary couple. All round a good watch for me 🙂
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That was pretty much my experience too 🙂 Great cast. Both couples were interesting. Low key but still fun vibe which felt unique for a fantasy rom-com. Very charming series! I’m happy you really enjoyed it too, Kate 🙂
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Sounds quite the drama☺️
Thank you for the review.
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You’re welcome! Yes, it was a fun one 🙂
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I pretty enjoyed My Roommate is a Gumiho. 😍 Hyeri is one of the actresses I’ve been following since her Reply 1988. And she’s always great in her role. Lee Dam is a no exemption. She’s perfectly cast!
Jang Ki Yong’s Shim Woo Yeo is also very memorable. I can now see why many fans are dying for Jang Ki Yong. He’s such one great and HOT gumiho, I mean actor. 😂
Other casts are also great. Even Kang Ha Na’s comedic timing is quite fun.
I can see some vibes of Waikiki in the drama’s comedy. 😊
Despite the drama being soo tropy, I enjoyed its clicheness because of how good they executed it.
Overall Rating: 8.5/10
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It’s great you really enjoyed this one too! Yes, I too like Hyeri and thought she was great in this role. She’s very funny!
Jang Ki Yong did great too and complimented Hyeri well. And yes, wonderful supporting cast.
It wasn’t revolutionary, but the execution was fantastic which is what it really comes down to 🙂
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Very good show. I got really hooked on this one. A very good blend of fantasy, romance and the classic theme of 1 woman and two competing guys. Hyeri and Jang Ki Yong are excellent as the leads. Jang Ki Yong does a good job portraying someone who is cold and remote who transforms into a warm and caring individual. Supporting cast was good with shout outs for Kang Han Na as Yang Hye Sun. She did a very good job of portraying a woman changing from cold to one discovering romance. And I’m a big fan of Park Kyung-Hye. I love her facial expressions. She plays a friend of Lee Dam (female lead). The last two episodes are very intense and emotional, I was not sure of the outcome until it happened.
One minor negative is: The obvious product placement of Subway. We see characters eating at Subway in many Korean dramas.
Rating 8.5+
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Agree! It was a great drama with a wonderful combo of genres. I too loved the leads as well as the supporting cast. And yay to the Park Kyung Hae shoutout! I love her expressions too 🙂 Haha, yeah, those Subway product placements are very prominent. Definitely common in many dramas these days 😅
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I forgot to mention the one scene where the the leads are together with the background music playing and Jang Ki-yong swats into the air saying that the music was annoying. Unusual to see an actor break character like that. But he was right.
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Haha, yeah, that is unusual. I’ll have look up that scene and watch it again 🙂
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