Hi everyone!

Today, I thought I’d share my episode 1 notes on A Business Proposal, because I’m having such a good time with this one, together with with everyone else who’s following along on Patreon. I was wondering if you’d like to join us? 🤗

These are my episode 1 notes, exactly as they appear on Patreon, ie, without screenshots (I’m saving those for the actual review). I hope you all enjoy, and I hope you’ll consider joining us over on Patreon, for the rest of the discussions! ❤️

Episode notes:

E1. Ooh, fun. This first episode turned out to be a lot breezier and funner than I’d expected, honestly. I’d felt rather uninspired by the various teasers and trailers that Show had put out prior to its premiere, but whaddya know, I think I might actually like this one, after all!

First of all, yes, it’s tropey and predictable, but somehow, it works.

It kinda gives me Goong-esque vibes, in that Goong is also about a contract marriage, and there’s also a standoffish male lead character who sincerely thinks that he’s amazing and perfect, and a cheerful bright normal girl who ends up in a contract marriage with him.

More importantly, it’s the breezy execution, where I feel happily carried along by Show’s story,  and the hour feels quick and short, that reminds me of Goong.

This show somehow seems to work, tropes and all, and I’m happily shocked by this, because I really liked Goong – until it slumped in its last quarter – and I’d be really pleased if this show manages to serve up similar cracky feels.

To be clear, I’m not super loving Ahn Hyo Seop in this just yet, but so far, he’s doing decently as our male lead Tae Moo.

On paper, Tae Moo seems rather insufferable, being such a stick in the mud who’s got an inflated opinion of himself and how handsome / important / skilled / amazing he is.

However, the saving grace – so far, anyway – is that I detect mild glimmers of potential dork, underneath the coiffed chaebol prince veneer.

I feel like I’m going to like Tae Moo reasonably well, if he does actually show himself to be a bit of a dork, despite his repeated pronouncements that he’s just perfect.

And, even though we haven’t seen a whole lot of range in Ahn Hyo Seop’s delivery, that’s not an issue (yet?), since Tae Moo isn’t required to do much this episode, besides act unperturbed and businesslike, and look cool while he’s doing it.

Perhaps it’s because I don’t organically feel the “cool” factor about him; maybe that’s the thing that’s giving me glimmers of dork. 😅 I actually look forward to him showing a bit more of his dorky side, as the story progresses.

I’d thought Kim Se Jeong was pretty great in The Uncanny Counter, but I wasn’t sure how I would take to her here, since I’d also felt rather underwhelmed by her outing in School 2017. Now that I’ve watched this episode, I’m very happy to say that I am loving her in this.

I think the most important thing – for me, at least – is that I find Ha Ri charming and likable, as a character.

With comic, OTT portrayals, it often can go south for me, and register in my brain as try-hard and cringey. However, in Kim Se Jeong’s hands, so far, I am liking Ha Ri very well, and her OTT comic moments are actually amusing, and (sometimes) quite charming even, to my eyes.

That makes so many things work, from where I’m sitting, that I’m reasonably confident that I should enjoy this show, just because I find Ha Ri likable and I’m therefore interested to know what happens to her.

I am also very much enjoying Ha Ri’s friendship with bestie Young Seo. I really enjoyed Seol In Ah in Mr. Queen, and I’m happy to see her in a role where her bond with the female lead is something that her character can enjoy freely.

I liked seeing Ha Ri and Young Seo connect regularly over the phone, even though they live pretty different lives, and work in different places. I also like the fact that they make it a point to meet up and hang out together, which is nice.

The thing I like most, is how supportive we see Young Seo being, when Ha Ri tells her that she’s going to see her crush on her birthday.

The fact that Ha Ri automatically hears Young Seo in her head, when she sets eyes on Min Woo carrying that cake, tells me that these two are very close indeed, and very involved in each other’s lives.

In fact, with some stories that have similar premises, it’s not unusual for the best friend to be more of token character, there just to facilitate the switcheroo blind date that is the central plot line of our story. So far, though, I don’t feel that way about Young Seo.

So far, Young Seo feels like a character in her own right, who will have her own space in our story. And, I feel like Young Seo’s friendship with Ha Ri is going to be an important part of our story too.

Sure, I have no idea whether my predictions are right, but I like the fact that this is the sense that Show is giving me, so far.

It’s hilarious how far Young Seo and Ha Ri have gone, when dealing with the blind dates that Young Seo’s family sets up for her.

I know it’s all very silly and OTT, but somehow, it’s working for me, and I find myself giggling at the nonsensical lengths that these two go to, to protect Young Seo’s right to fall in love with her fated person.

Of course, it’s completely predictable that Grandpa Chairman (I am loving Lee Deok Hwa in this.

It’s a fun change from his royal role in The Red Sleeve) would set up a blind date for Tae Moo with Young Seo, and it’s predictable too, that Young Seo would default to getting Ha Ri to stand in for her.

But y’know, I realize that I don’t care that it’s predictable, as long as it’s enjoyable, and I’m enjoying this whole thing, of Tae Moo deciding to marry “Young Seo” who isn’t really Young Seo at all.

On a random tangent, I was surprised to see Choi Byung Chan on my screen so soon, after having recently seen him in The King’s Affection.

As I’ve established before, I don’t think he’s a great actor. However, so far, I think he’s doing relatively better here as Ha Ri’s outspoken little brother, than as Park Eun Bin’s smoldering bodyguard. 😅

So far, Kim Min Kyu is serving up a nice amount of cute and dorky, as Tae Moo’s assistant Sung Hoon, and I’m in-principle curious to see how Sung Hoon’s loveline with the real Young Seo pans out.

His dimple is adorable, and his innocent-serious bespectacled vibe is immediately quite endearing to me.

The meet-cute at the convenience store did feel rather contrived and cheesy, especially with the way Young Seo drew on her own skirt. But, I see that as more of a necessary inconvenience, than as a flaw, at this point.

If their connection works out to be as dorky and cute as Sung Hoon himself, I’m pretty happy to keep rolling with it.

Similarly, I’m thinking of that last scene, where Ha Ri accidentally gets into Tae Moo’s car, as a necessary plot device, to get them in the same space.

Of course it’s weird that Ha Ri would randomly get into a car while trying to evade Min Woo while dressed like that, but sure, with a manhwa lens on, it’s fine.

And this show is totally a manhwa-lens sort of deal – again, like Goong – and so far, I’m finding it a really fun and breezy experience. Which is essentially just what the doctor ordered, I think. 😉

*This show is being covered on the Early Access Plus Tier (US$10) Tier on Patreon*

To view episode 1 notes in Patreon, along with everyone’s comments, you can go here!

You can find my Patreon page here, where episodes 2 through 5 notes are already available.  Just look for the tag “A Business Proposal” or click here.

Episode 6 notes will be out on Friday, 8 April 2022! I hope you’ll consider joining us!

It’ll be a way to have fun, and support me at the same time? ❤️

PS: For more information on what the Patreon experience is like, you might like to check out my Patreon update post for April, which you can find here!