Directed by Cha Young-hoon

Starring Koo Kyo-hwan, Go Youn-jung, Oh Jung-se, Kang Mal-geum, Park Hae-joon, Bae Jong-ok, Han Seon-hwa, and Yeon Woon-gyeong

This Netflix k-drama gives a warm and empathetic hug to those who are trying to push past their own feelings of self-doubt and worthlessness. My Mister was the last time I’d watched a k-drama that went down this same solemn and slow-burn road, though I’d say that series gets even more somber with its material. We Are All Trying Here comes across just a little more lightly with its slice-of-life tone, but ultimately, it’s still wrestling with weighty subject matter in regard to the sadness and the emptiness that can drag us down and isolate us from those who love us and want to connect with us. The title of this show is fitting, considering we really are trying here to overcome the awful and depressing parts of our lives so that we can focus on reasons to keep on existing and find good humor in the wrinkles of life. Interestingly enough, the Korean title translates into English as Everyone Is Fighting Their Own Worthlessness, which delivers the k-drama’s message even more bluntly. I prefer the We Are All Trying Here version due to its relative subtlety, but in any case, both names are true to what this show is all about—and what it’s all about lands with the emotional capacity that it needs to keep me seated over the course of twelve episodes, which I’d been able to watch over several weeks thanks to the fact that I’d caught onto this early on during its airtime. I really do appreciate it when shows use weekly episode releases, since that gives their audiences the chance to process everything over time rather than having to gobble it all down within a condensed period. I have more time to link up with all of these interconnected relationships, with Dong-man and Eun-a obviously playing big roles in the center of this overarching narrative as they charm me into the microcosm of their heartfelt companionship.

Sure, it could be easy to look at Dong-man and brush him off as the type of immature prick who people wouldn’t be able to realistically tolerate for very long. While that may be true in some cases, I think it’s perfectly believable for people to keep him around due to various self-centered reasons, including the guilt they’d deal with over pushing his pitiful self away. He’s the kind of character where we’d see a different show stick him into a side role that portrays him much more one-dimensionally, and maybe he’d even turn into a straight-up antagonist, but that’s not what he gets in this particular k-drama. Nope, he’s one of its stars, and that gives him the space he needs to flourish as a human being in order for us to care about him, including when he’s trudging through his most unlikable moments. It helps that Eun-a sticks around to get to know him better, allowing us to see more complex and endearing sides of him that exist outside of his spite and jealousy. Eun-a is truly invested in bonding with him because she can see the question marks that he’s coping with in regard to his own perceived self-worth, and that hits close to home for her while she’s enduring the emotional trauma and exhaustion from her estranged relationship with her mother. It’s darkly humorous how this overload can cause her to suffer from nosebleeds, considering Go Youn-jung had played another character with similarly unusual medical concerns in a different 2026 Netflix k-drama, Can This Love Be Translated? That was… an odd show, yes, but I do have fondness for it. Go has certainly proved herself to be a riveting lead in both of these series, tackling their emotional and psychological complications in a touching fashion, even if the situation gets to a strange point that’s asking me to suspend my disbelief. What Koo Kyo-hwan does as Dong-man is praiseworthy, too, pinpointing the right way to depict this aspiring filmmaker in all of his envious, pathetic, sympathetic, and moving facets. When Go and Koo are together, the chemistry naturally bounces back and forth between them, making it easy for me to devour every minute of their shared screentime.

I do need to comment on the mood watches, though, because while they don’t jar me personally, I can see them being an out-of-place element for other viewers. At this point, it’s as if the show wants to step over the boundary into science-fiction, and I understand why the series is utilizing this narrative device in order to reinforce its thematic focus on becoming emotionally in-tune with ourselves so that we can walk down a healthier and more content road of life. And at the same time, it could pull other viewers away from this grounded plane of reality a tad too much. But hey, that’s merely one little note for a k-drama that’s turned into one of the more affecting picks I’ve seen. I do think the finale could have provided more of a satisfying punch with its closure, but still, I’ll give We Are All Trying Here my recommendation if something introspective and soul-searching is up your alley.

My final rating: 4 out of 5 stars