This is another slightly different Dear kfangurl post, you guys.

After my last couple of interviews with VOGUE India (here and here!), Hasina Khatib (@thejoblessjourno on Instagram), who writes for VOGUE India, reached out to me again.

This time, she shared that VOGUE India’s been running a series that explores how fictional pairings would do, in the long run, and asked if I’d like to share my thoughts on the future of the OTP in What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim (my review here).

That sounded like fun, so I said yes, and you can check out the article, where she quotes me selectively, here!

At the same time, similar to the last interview, there was a lot that I said, that didn’t make it into the final article, so with Hasina’s permission, I’m sharing the actual interview questions and answers here with you guys.

The only difference is that I’ve added images to make this more reader-friendly. I hope you all enjoy! ❤️

What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim?

Would Kim Miso and Lee YoungJun have gone the distance?

Questions:

In your opinion, do you think that  Kim Miso and Lee YoungJun’s relationship would have gone the distance beyond the happily-ever-after shown onscreen?

I imagine that they would absolutely have a happy-ever-after together, with Young Jun still embracing the CEO flair and swag (and revelling in that aura!), while Mi So shrewdly guides him along, without him even realizing that she’s the one who’s really calling the shots, heh.

Would the fact that Lee YoungJun treated Kim MiSo harshly over the years despite knowing about their childhood connection cause conflict in their relationship later?

This was one the things that I personally found inorganic about the writing in this show. I found it hard to believe that Young Jun would have treated Mi So harshly, had he really known her identity, all this time.

I blame the writer switch-up that occurred at the episode 4 mark of the show.

Bearing in mind that the new writers went on to make Young Jun a lot less harsh and lot more dorky, I’d imagine that Young Jun would completely leave these harsh tendencies behind, even after the credits stop rolling. After all, he’s being written by new writers now, heh.

On the off chance that he gets harsh with Mi So in future disagreements, however, it’s not hard to imagine that she might bring up the past, in the heat of an argument.

After all, when a couple gets into an argument, it’s natural for old grievances to be brought up, in the heat of the moment.

Therefore, I think the answer to that is: possibly.

Kim MiSo initially planned on giving up her job to find herself, but ultimately decides to stay by his side once they start dating. Is there a chance that she would later regret not taking this time to discover herself? 

We all make decisions based on our beliefs in the moment, and in that moment, Mi So had a strong desire to continue to work as Young Jun’s secretary, because of her pride in her work.

If circumstances were to change, or if Mi So herself starts to grow bored with her work, it’s entirely possible that she might have a change of heart.

That said, I believe that Young Jun wouldn’t stop Mi So from quitting later on, to do something else that she loves, if that’s what she wants.

If there’s one thing that we learn from the show, it’s that Young Jun discovers just how much he can’t do without Mi So.

As we see from the show, this applies beyond the work situation. Even when Mi So has trained someone else to capably take over her duties, Young Jun still doesn’t want Mi So to quit.

I feel that this is more about him having Mi So in his life, rather than him being unable to do without Mi So at work.

Therefore, I’d like to think that if Mi So eventually decides that she’d like to do something else for work, that Young Jun would be happy to support it – as long as Mi So continues to be by his side, as part of his personal life.

In my head, Mi So might go off and do some amazing things in her new career, with Young Jun’s support – maybe become an advocate for orphans, perhaps? – while Young Jun mopes around at work, doing his best to get used to her absence, and then lighting up every time it comes time to get off work, because it means that he gets to be with Mi So again, heh.

Would the fact that Lee YoungJun and Kim Miso have worked as boss and secretary for a decade cause an imbalance in their relationship dynamic?

For instance, when faced with life’s challenges, YoungJun might automatically assume leadership and expect her to comply with his decisions?

In my head, I see Mi So as having the true, soft power in their relationship.

Young Jun might think that he’s the boss, but he basically needs Mi So, to tend to his blind spots, and be his eyes and ears, to see what he doesn’t see, and shrewdly and subtly bring it to his attention, in a way that makes him feel like he’s discovering all these new thoughts for himself.

Therefore, in my head, if Young Jun were to automatically assume leadership in a challenging situation, I feel like Mi So would still be wise to judge whether she ought to speak or act, to balance him out in some way.

In my imagination, Mi So has the amazing ability to gauge just what is needed, in order to bring balance to Young Jun, and the situations that he faces.

That’s very likely why Young Jun had felt like he couldn’t lose her in the first place, when she’d first broached wanting to quit, in the show, and I feel like she would continue to do the same, in their relationship. Coz that’s just how amazing Mi So is.

Do you feel like YoungJun might need MiSo more than she needs him? She was ready to quit and move on with her life at one point in time, after all…

I think one of the keys to the relationship between Young Jun and Mi So, is that they do not tend to bow to expectations or pressures from outside sources, when it comes to how they navigate their relationship.

For example, when the people around them indicate that they ought to change the way they address each other, once their relationship officially turns romantic, they try it for basically two seconds, before deciding that it’s too weird, and that they’ll figure it out in their own way, in their own time.

In a somewhat similar sort of fashion, I’d like to imagine that they aren’t too bothered by what other people might think, about Young Jun needing Mi So more than she needs him.

It’s just what works for their relationship, and as long as they’re happy with it, other opinions need not apply.

At the same time, while Young Jun might need Mi So more than she needs him, in a practical sense, when it comes to the emotional connection, I get the sense that they care for each other in equal measure, in their own ways.

Meaning, just because the practical workings of their relationship appears less than balanced, doesn’t necessarily mean that the relationship itself, suffers from imbalance.

That said, if I had to pick one thing that this couple might have to work through, I think it would be Young Jun’s impatience.

For example, I feel like he’d be very willing for Mi So to do something that she loves, but that he might really struggle, with just being on his own and doing his own thing, while waiting to spend time with her.

Young Jun might be a very successful, high-flying CEO, but at heart, he’s a bit of a needy marshmallow who needs his Mi So, heh.

On that note, I imagine that when they have kids, there might be times when Mi So would be busy with the kidlets, and Young Jun might be pouting in the corner, feeling jealous and neglected.

I imagine that Mi So would have to gently counsel him about how awesome a dad he is, when he’s spending time with the kids – thus expertly getting Young Jun to enthusiastically apply himself at parenting, without realizing that Wifey’s just shrewdly and wisely managed his impatience and jealousy, ha.

On the other hand, would their childhood connection mean that they would be able to understand each other in a way that no one else can?

I had very little personal interest in their childhood connection, in the show, and I’d like to think that while it provides a foundation of shared experience and therefore a sense of solidarity, it shouldn’t be something that defines their relationship, in later years.

I’d like to think that they both move on from that childhood trauma, while managing to retain that sense of connectedness and shared understanding, as a foundation for their relationship.

IN CLOSING

How fun, to be invited to be interviewed by VOGUE India for a third time, and on such a fun topic, too! 😍

As always, if you guys have other perspectives, thoughts or insights, please share them in the comments!

On a related tangent, if you didn’t already know, the blog first got mentioned (and linked!) in an article in VOGUE India last September, which you can check out here!

Smooches. ❤️

~kfangurl

POST-SCRIPT:

1. If you feel that I missed anything, or if you have your own insights that you’d like to share with the rest of us, do tell us about it in the comments!

2. Do you have a question of your own? Drop me a comment here or on the Dear kfangurl page, or send me an email!