THE SHORT VERDICT:

Some viewers think that this show is brilliant, with its spotlight on the Korean education system, and the effect that it has, on all the players, including students, parents, and teachers.

Other viewers feel that this show is boring and slow-moving, and not worth their drama hours.

Still other viewers think that this show had flickers of promise, but ultimately didn’t live up to that promise, because it was inconsistent in its thematic focus.

I’m in the third camp, just so you know. But really, the only way to know whether this one will end up working for you, is to give it a try.

My advice: You’ll likely know pretty early if you love this one. If you don’t love it right away, better to walk away early, than try to make it work. (Take it from someone who’s been there. 😅)

THE LONG VERDICT:

My friends, I tried with this show, I really did. I mean, look at me, getting all the way to the end, and writing a full review, even. 😅

Unfortunately, I never managed to quite get on the same page as this show.

While I know that there are a good number of drama fans who love this show, I am, unfortunately, not one of them, though not for lack of trying.

If it would hurt you to read a review that talks about how this show didn’t quite manage to work for me, then maybe stop reading now? I won’t be mad, I promise. 😘

OST ALBUM: FOR YOUR LISTENING PLEASURE

Here’s the OST, in case you’d like to listen to it while you read the review.

Music is a very subjective, individual sort of thing, and interestingly enough, I found myself not hating the title track, “Don’t Forget About Me,” even though it was heavily overused, and even though I wasn’t loving Show itself.

I know this song ended up driving some viewers up the wall with its excessive application, but I actually kinda liked it. Go figure, eh? 🤷🏻‍♀️

HOW I’M APPROACHING THIS REVIEW

First I’ll talk about how to manage your expectations going into this one, and what viewing lens would be most helpful.

After that, I talk about what I liked and liked less, covering both the more macro aspects of Show, as well as selected characters and relationships. I’ve opted not to do a separate section on characters and relationships, for this review.

Finally, I also spend some time talking about my thoughts on the penultimate episodes, as well as our finale episodes.

If you’re interested in my blow-by-blow reactions, &/or all the various Patreon members’ comments during the course of our watch, you might like to check out my episode notes on Patreon here.

MANAGING EXPECTATIONS / THE VIEWING LENS

Here are a few things that I think would be helpful to keep in mind, to maximize your enjoyment of your watch:

1. This show isn’t very romance-forward, despite its branding

The romance even takes a backseat, for some stretches of our story. Knowing to expect that, helps.

2. The workplace drama lens

It might be helpful to think of this as a workplace drama, because the happenings at the workplace tend to take centerstage, a good amount of the time.

3. It’s a slow burn

Whether you’re in this for the romance, or the spotlight on the Korean education system, it’s a slow burn on all sides, so being prepared to be patient, is helpful.

4. Show has a bit of a roving focus

What I mean is, instead of having one main focus throughout its run, our story seems to shift focus, at points. It’s not a frequent occurrence, but it is still a thing.

This threw me off, so perhaps it would help to adjust your expectations around this.

STUFF I LIKED

The workplace drama stuff

I did not sign up for a workplace drama, so I think it says quite a bit, that I actually found the workplace drama stuff pretty interesting.

I even got rather invested in it, at points.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E5-6. I was actually quite.. morbidly fascinated by the way Director Kim (Kim Jong Tae) was working to get rid of Hye Jin (Jung Ryeo Won), by giving her main class to Jun Ho  (Wi Ha Jun) and Cheong Mi (So Ju Yeon), so that she would end up leaving emptyhanded.

It made no sense to me at first, not gonna lie; I just couldn’t wrap my head around why a hagwon would want to do that to their star teacher.

It was only when Hye Jin explained it, that it finally made sense to me; that a star teacher is a double-edged sword.

I suppose, in a dog-eat-dog world, it only makes sense that a star teacher eventually seeks greener pastures, while taking as many students along as possible, while the hagwon itself tries to pre-empt it, by cutting off the star teacher first.

Ugh. That whole idea does leave a bad taste in my mouth, but when it’s framed in the highly competitive environment in which our characters exist, it does make a twisted sort of sense.

And, I do find it all quite morbidly fascinating.

[END SPOILER]

Jung Ryeo Won as Hye Jin

I have to admit that at first, I liked Hye Jin as a character, more in concept than in execution.

I found her opaque in general, her actions hard to understand, and her swings in tone rather jarring, like the extremes didn’t mesh organically into a single character.

However, Show does a decent job peeling pack the layers enough, that I managed to eventually feel connected to Hye Jin as a character, and want to root for her.

Here’s a look at those layers being peeled back, bit by bit.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E5-6. I feel bad for Hye Jin, because, based on her eventual outburst with Director Kim, she’d been more loyal than he was worth, and now, he’s stabbed her in the back by trying to cut her off – but is trying furiously to backpedal, because the whole situation with Heewon High has changed the entire playing field, practically overnight.

Suddenly, he needs Hye Jin, because she’s a big part of the reason the Heewon High students are coming, and also, with the influx of students, he can’t suddenly be short of excellent teachers.

Honestly, I don’t have any sympathy for him, because he’d calculated his shot and taken it, even if it had meant hurting the comradeship that he and Hye Jin had built from the very beginning.

He’d betrayed her, for his self-interest, and the only reason he’s even apologizing, is, again, out of self interest.

He has no interest in the comradeship that he speaks of, when trying to gain Hye Jin’s understanding and sympathy.

At the heart of it, he’s a calculating transactional businessman who only pretends to care about relationships.

That’s why I kind of cheered on the inside, when Hye Jin put decorum aside and told it like it is, all fury and spitfire, refusing to allow him to gaslight her or cut her off.

This was a defining moment for me, in that this was the moment that I felt most connected to Hye Jin, where I most felt like, YES, I am in her corner, and I want her to win against all these slimey calculating types who just want to make use of her.

I was also intrigued by the offer that Director Choi makes.

Clearly, the only reason Director Choi (Seo Jung Yeon) makes this offer, is because she feels legitimately threatened by Hye Jin.

She really believes that Hye Jin would cause her to lose many Heewon High students in the long term, and that’s why she’s making this radical and generous offer to Hye Jin – which stipulates that she must bring along a good number of her students with her too.

Honestly, I’m rather surprised and somewhat impressed that Hye Jin doesn’t take up the offer right away.

After all, at the point in time, Director Kim had already started to cut her off in a real way, and here is an opportunity for a position that promises more influence and financial gain, than what Director Kim’s taking away from her.

It would be a righteous slap in Director Kim’s face, at the very least.

But, that’s not Hye Jin’s chosen direction, at least for now, and I’m just impressed at the fact that she’s taking her time to think and assess the situation. I like that she has the restraint and wisdom not to jump into anything too quickly.

E7-8. These episodes, we finally get insight into what Hye Jin’s been feeling and thinking, and all of a sudden, she feels like a real person to me now, with real feelings and uncertainties, and insecurities, and all of this endears her to me, so much.

Thanks to this one key change, all of a sudden, Hye Jin has become my anchor for this show; I’m now interested in her life and her story, and I really like feeling this way.

Like I’d anticipated, from her tentative body language during the kiss at the end of episode 6, Hye Jin does try to tamp things down with Jun Ho, and make it such that the kiss never happened.

Because of the context that we’ve been given, that a romantic relationship between hagwon teachers is basis for a scandal, I can understand her desire to push Jun Ho away, and this also seems like a contributing factor to Hye Jin’s decision to take up Director Choi’s offer, and leave Daechi Chase.

On this point, I really like Hye Jin’s reason for choosing to stay at Daechi Chase, after all.

I find that I really like Si Woo (Cha Gang Yun), so I can understand Hye Jin’s decision to stay at Daechi Chase.

He’s so hardworking, and gets good results, has a good attitude, and is genuinely interested in learning.

Hye Jin’s decision to stay, as I see it, is partly because she can’t bear to disappoint him, after convincing him, through her lecture, to leave Choiseon and come to Daechi Chase, and partly because, as a teacher, the thought of teaching a student like Si Woo really does inspire her.

I do love that Hye Jin’s decision to stay is based on something so pure and intangible, rather than some very attractive perk to her contract.

In fact, she’s turning down some serious perks in the contract Director Choi had offered her, in order to stay – for this intangible reason.

This tells me so much about Hye Jin as a person, and about what’s truly important to her, and I have to say, on this point, I like what I see. 🥲

It made me really glad for her, that she got to hear Si Woo say that her lesson that he’d attended, is his favorite Korean lecture that he’s had, and that he’ll remember it for a long time.

Honestly, how precious is that? 🥲

I’m sitting over here, cheering her on in this decision, because I know for a fact that teaching Si Woo is going to bring her so much more satisfaction and contentment, than any contract that any hagwon would be able to offer her.

I also really like that she doesn’t give Director Kim a hard time for how he’d treated her, even though she absolutely could have gotten away with it.

Instead, she even tells Director Kim to give that new tablet to Cheong Mi, to encourage Cheong Mi, as a new teacher.

I thought that was very gracious of Hye Jin.

The other layer of reveal that I really appreciate, this set of episodes, is the conversation between Hye Jin and her friend So Young.

Finally, we get to hear Hye Jin’s real thoughts and feelings, about how she sees herself versus other people her age; about how it’s impossible not to like Jun Ho; about how hard life had been for her, when she’d had to work to pay off her family’s debt; about how she’d given Jun Ho special treatment all along; about how she’d felt left behind, by her peers; about how she’d felt that her life was a mess.

It really rounds her out as a character, for me.

It paints a vivid picture for me, of how Jun Ho had been her refuge in the midst of her storm, even when he hadn’t known it.

It also shows me that Hye Jin really is a teacher at heart; in her darkest times, she’d gained comfort from nurturing Jun Ho, not from receiving nurturing from someone else.

Just watching this scene, I can understand how hard it is for Hye Jin to admit that she likes Jun Ho and wants to date and be in a relationship.

Therefore, when she lets her guard down with Jun Ho later, I feel like I can appreciate what a big step of faith she’s taking – which also helps me to infer just how much she likes Jun Ho, to be willing to take that step, because it’s him.

I also really like that, pretty soon after they start dating, she tells Jun Ho a little more about what she’s like outside of the hagwon; that she’s slow and awkward and will likely mess up from time to time, and so to please be understanding.

I found this very endearing, honest and sweet. 🥰

E11-12. I do find that whole process of Hye Jin changing her mind to be played rather too simplistically.

I’m rationalizing that it’s easier, not because Jun Ho took her to the beach, or because she attended one good lecture by Mr. Pyo, or because Jun Ho showed her that video of the fox, but because this is how she truly feels on the inside, and these things just worked to add fuel to the fire that was already burning in her heart.

E11-12. I do think it’s pretty badass of Hye Jin to bring Director Choi to the restaurant, and tell both her and AD Woo, that they can do whatever they want with her materials, because it’s not important to her anymore.

I can see why some people would say that Hye Jin’s being reckless, but honestly, AD Woo’s already admitted to have made copies of the material, so the copy on the memory stick, isn’t the only copy there is.

Even if Hye Jin doesn’t give it back to them, they still have it.

And, Hye Jin’s already talked us through how it would be a long, difficult and expensive process, to take them to court for stealing from her.

And so, what she’s doing, is letting it go, the way Jun Ho let go of his first textbook, so that she can start afresh, to teach the way she really wants to.

It’s a difficult road ahead, which I’m sure we’ll explore in the upcoming episodes, but for now, it is a rather romantic notion, and since we’re finally getting the essence of the “romance” in Show’s title, I’m content for now.

[END SPOILER]

So Ju Yeon as Cheong Mi

I confess that I’d found Cheong Mi rather bemusing as a character, at first, to the point that I’d half expected her to occupy a rather antagonistic space in our story.

I was very pleasantly surprised when she turns out to be one of the most principled and therefore likable characters in this show.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E3-4. I find Cheong Mi to be acting out of line, and I’m not sure what to make of her.

I mean, it’s true that she’d naturally feel left out, since Hye Jin’s working so closely with Jun Ho, who’s joined the hagwon at the same time as her, but the way she’s behaving in response feels quite inappropriate to me.

Given that this is Korea, where juniors, and especially newbies, are expected to obediently maintain the status quo and not question their supervisors, Cheong Mi is acting quite entitled and petulant, isn’t she?

Adding on the context, where we were introduced to her as a pleasant, cheerful character who’s just grateful to get through the instructor exam, this feels out of place and hard to swallow.

Like, I find it hard to believe that someone who’s such a newbie, would dare to act in this manner, to her new Star Instructor supervisor. Like, how dare she?? 😅

Yes, it’s true that Hye Jin’s not being fair to her, but I find it hard to buy that a complete newbie like her would dare step out of line and act like her new boss owes her an apology.

E7-8. I like that Show is making Cheong Mi an ally to our OTP, instead of the potential adversary that it had looked like she was potentially going to be, for a while.

Right now, I find that I like her, because even though she has her suspicions about the vibe she’s getting between Jun Ho and Hye Jin, she is decisive in choosing to mind her own business.

I feel like a lot of people in her position wouldn’t be able to stop themselves from poking further in order to find out more, especially if they felt that they’d been sidelined because of the possible couple in question.

Instead, Cheong Mi not only makes it none of her business, she actually steps in to help Jun Ho, when Jun Ho shows up at the hagwon saying that Hye Jin is very sick and that he’ll take over her classes.

It’s thanks to Cheong Mi’s quick thinking and her generosity to spend her day teaching Hye Jin’s classes instead of letting Jun Ho do it, that stops the rumors that would have arisen, if Jun Ho had been the one to report Hye Jin’s absence, and the one to take over her classes.

[END SPOILER]

Cheong Mi and Sung Gyu [SPOILER]

At around Show’s mid-point, it starts to tease a potential loveline between Cheong Mi and Sung Gyu (Shin Joo Hyup), and I have to admit, I wasn’t sure that I would care about this potential pairing.

Ha. I’m pleased to eat my words, because in terms of lovelines, this turned out to be my favorite, during my watch (yes, over and above the official OTP).

I found this relationship very endearing and healthy, overall, and I actually wish that we could have had more scenes with this couple.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E11-12. I find myself really enjoying Cheong Mi’s little loveline with Sung Gyu.

I think it’s really cute how he’s so taken by her, and his little sideways confession at the cafeteria, where he hints heavily that he likes her, by mentioning that he likes this girl who’s 3 years older than he is, and that he’s poking her by buying her cafeteria food and all.

It’s all very low-key, but his bashful knowing look is excellent, and Cheong Mi definitely understands what he’s trying to say. 😁

I also kinda like how gently persistent Sung Gyu is; when Cheong Mi deflects, he keeps his good cheer, and just drops another hint, the next time the opportunity presents itself.

And then how about him getting stars in his own eyes, at his own hero moment, when he pulls Cheong Mi out of the way of an oncoming vehicle?

Tee hee. That was pretty funny.

I’m glad that Cheong Mi seems to like him well enough, that she agrees to go on more dates with him. 😁

[END SPOILER]

Kim Song Il as Mr. Pyo [SPOILER]

In what is turning out to be a pattern now, I’m also very pleasantly surprised to have Mr. Pyo in this section.

With the way he’s introduced in our story, I’d fully expected him to be one of the bad guys. Or, at least, one of the obstacles in Hye Jin’s journey.

I really do appreciate the way Show peels back the layers, so that we discover, bit by bit, that Mr. Pyo isn’t the obnoxious, terrible guy that we (well, I) had thought he was, at first.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E11-12. I did like the surprise, these episodes, that Mr. Pyo is actually one of the good guys.

Ok, I over-simplified.

Mr. Pyo had never actually been one of the bad guys, to be fair.

He’s just come across as a stick-in-the-mud, overly stubborn teacher who stuck to his guns for no good reason, after Hye Jin had pointed out to him that there were two possible answers in that particular exam question.

And then, when he’d gone to see Hye Jin previously, I hadn’t seen him as having bad intentions, necessarily, though it did seem that he was guilt-tripping Hye Jin at least a little bit.

Mainly though, it had seemed like he had wanted to tell her just the kind of impact that she’d had on him, stemming from her visit to the school.

So I guess Mr. Pyo’s tendency for honesty and principles shows up in a more heroic flavor, this week, when he refuses to take Director Choi’s recommendation to meet AD Woo (Kim Jung Young), and get all of Hye Jin’s teaching material, that she’s accumulated over the past 10 years.

That backbone of his, which had seemed unnecessarily steely earlier, now looks much more noble, as he tells Hye Jin about the fact that her materials had been stolen, and had been offered to him.

Additionally, it’s Mr. Pyo’s principles and beliefs about teaching, that get some of the spotlight, this week.

They’d always been there, as we know from how dedicated he’d been, towards teaching in the method that he believed was right, even though everyone around him felt that he was being unnecessarily stubborn in sticking only to curriculum from the textbook.

It’s just that this week, he’s reminded all over again, about the beauty of imparting knowledge, thanks to Ha Yul (Kim Na Yeon), the student who takes his recommendation to read a book every semester.

Ha Yul does for Mr. Pyo the same thing that Si Woo had done for Jun Ho; she shows her heart for learning, and thereby inspires Mr. Pyo to remember all over again, how fulfilling it is, to help students learn for learning’s own sake.

I do think that it’s a little neat and pat that Mr. Pyo has Ha Yul, and Jun Ho has Si Woo, and these students both ignite the passion for teaching in both teachers, but I appreciate the idea that it really only takes one person, to inspire another.

[END SPOILER]

Seo Jung Yeon as Director Choi

To be clear, Director Choi is here, not because I find her to be a likable character. I just wanted to give a shout-out to Seo Jung Yeon, who plays Director Choi.

First of all, she looks glorious with that silver ‘do, and I think she gives the character a great stiff-upper-lip regal sort of air.

On the other hand, I feel bad for Seo Jung Yeon, because the woman isn’t even 50 yet, and she’s been cast to play a 60-year-old!

That’s crazy, isn’t it??

I do wish that they would’ve cast someone closer to the character’s age, to play the role, because getting a 48-year-old actress to play a 60-year-old character is only reinforcing impossible beauty standards, isn’t it?

But anyway, I’ll get off my soapbox now.

I found Director Choi fun to watch, even if she was technically one of the not-good guys, and that’s all credit to the way Seo Jung Yeon plays her. 🤩

Special shout-out:

Jeon Seok Chan as So Young’s husband

I just wanted to give a quick shout-out to So Young’s husband, who runs the late-night restaurant where all our hagwon teachers hang out.

He’s such a kindhearted, good-natured, good egg. 🥲

He’s genial and mild-mannered, and he’s always quick to offer support whenever he sees that it’s needed.

We see this through many of our episodes, but I thought he was particularly compassionate in episode 15, where he sits sympathetically with Director Kim, even though he doesn’t have to.

I couldn’t help growing fond of him, even though he barely gets any screen time. 🥰

STUFF THAT WAS OK

The idea of the romance of teaching [BROAD SPOILERS]

It only really started to become clear to me in episode 12, that perhaps the “romance” in Show’s title, isn’t about the relationship between Hye Jin and Jun Ho at all.

Rather, it’s about the romance of teaching itself; teaching for the sake of growing another person, rather than for the sake of passing an exam.

It’s the same kind of romance that inspired the title “Dr. Romantic” – it’s the romance of sticking to pure principles and pouring our your time, energy and soul into the art of helping others, over and above any politicking in your environment.

In principle, I like this idea, but I still think it was a dicey choice for writer-nim to have made this an episode 12 reveal, in a 16-episode drama.

Mightn’t it have been more useful, to have revealed it to us earlier in the story, so that we’d have more time to get behind it?

I honestly would have preferred that Show made this clear earlier, to save me 11 episodes of wondering what the point of this story really was. 😅

That’s part of the reason this is in this section. The other part of the reason is because I don’t actually think Show sees this idea through to a strong end, which I’ll discuss later.

The thing between Hye Jin and Mr. Pyo [SPOILERS]

There is a key incident that occurs between Mr. Pyo and Hye Jin, pretty early on in our story, that I wanted to talk about, a little bit.

On the upside, I do think that it’s an incident that unfolds in an interesting way, because there is a good amount to unpack, and it does shed light on Hye Jin and Mr. Pyo, as characters.

On the not-so-upside, I do think that Show’s propensity for dense storytelling (more on that later) makes it less accessible than it could have been.

Here’s my attempt at breaking it down.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E9-10. This is what I make of the whole thing between Mr. Pyo and Hye Jin.

Even though Hye Jin had taken steps to act discreetly and with decorum with regards to The Incident – in the way of getting the students to approach him first, and then asking to speak privately with him, when she eventually went to the school – there is a part of her (the part which So Young (Hwang Eun Hoo) keenly points out that Hye Jin dislikes and tries to ignore) that recognized this as an opportunity to strengthen her reputation among the students and parents.

When So Young finally crystallizes Hye Jin’s warring sides in episode 10, I feel like I finally am able to see Hye Jin more clearly.

She likes to think of herself as someone with principles and ideals, and who does the right thing, but there is a part of her that is cunning and shrewd to play the power game, in order to get ahead, in the cut-throat world of the hagwon industry.

She doesn’t like that part of herself, and so she tries not to think about that side of herself, in her day to day work; she likes to think of herself as the passionate teacher who loves to teach, and who wants to do the right, moral thing.

I am guessing that when she finds herself doing the more cunning, shrewd things, that she prefers not to think about it, or she packs it away to a corner of her mind, as quickly as possible, so that she can forget about it as much as possible.

This is something about her, that only she, and those nearest and dearest to her, know about, which is why we hear it from So Young, and not someone else, in episode 10.

And so, from Hye Jin’s account, even though she’d done what she could, to be civil and discreet when approaching Mr. Pyo, there had been a part of her that knew that he would be put to a good amount of trouble because she’d gone to see him, and pretended not to know.

I feel that she pretended not to know, in order to ease her conscience; it was her way of feeling good about herself, as she lived her life.

And now, when she realizes the long-lasting, far-reaching impact that her visit has had on Mr. Pyo’s life, she’s wracked with guilt, and that’s why she goes to see Director Choi, in a desperate bid to change things, if at all possible.

I mean, she even asks if the Assistant Director position, which Mr. Pyo is taking, would still be available to her now; she’d be willing to quit her job and join Director Choi, if she could stop Mr. Pyo from joining the hagwon industry.

This also means that, in her opinion and experience, she feels that it would be very hard for Mr. Pyo to make it in the hagwon industry, and in her view, he’s basically jumping from the frying pan, into the fire.

On this point, though, I would agree with Director Choi, that this is all Hye Jin’s assumption and conjecture; that Hye Jin really might be underestimating Mr. Pyo’s abilities, and that’s why she’s getting all worried and upset.

Objectively speaking, this is Mr. Pyo’s decision to make, and as a full-grown independent adult, he has the right to decide to quit his job and start anew, at Choiseon.

Plus, we even hear the students say, in episode 10, that Mr. Pyo’s after-school classes had been pretty fun and interesting, so who’s to say that he wouldn’t blow away the hagwon students too?

Additionally, I think there’s an issue here with how Hye Jin sees teaching at a school as real teaching, while teaching at a hagwon is less noble.

As far as Jun Ho is concerned, Mr. Pyo is just choosing to change his location, not his profession or vocation, and Hye Jin sees it completely differently.

So yes, I do feel that Hye Jin will have some soul-searching to do on this front, because, even as she gives lectures that inspire the likes of Si Woo, she still, deep down, looks down on herself for not being a true teacher, which is sad.

Do I think that Mr. Pyo is trying to shift the blame to Hye Jin?

Well, yes and no.

I feel that he is, in a way, guilt-tripping Hye Jin over the fact that he quit his job because of her.

However, I do believe him, when he says that he had been haunted by their encounter, and that that had been the beginning of the end, for him.

If Hye Jin hadn’t decided to take things into her own hands, Mr. Pyo might have never gotten to the point where he felt that he couldn’t carry on teaching at the school.

Do I still think that it was a cheap shot on his part? Well, yes.

Because, all of us encounter setbacks and troubles in life, and sometimes, it can be due to someone else’s behavior.

But, that doesn’t make it right for us to blame that someone else, particularly if the action hadn’t been meant maliciously to begin with.

We can’t control what happens to us, but we can control how we respond to the situation, and Mr. Pyo could have – should have, in my opinion – chosen to stay away from Hye Jin. That would have been the classier thing to do.

[END SPOILER]

Ahn PD’s distinctive style

Coming into this show, I was actually low-key amused that this very much feels like an Ahn Pan Seok world.

I haven’t seen all of his works, but I’ve seen a good handful, namely: Secret Love Affair, Heard It Through The Grapevine, Something in the Rain, and One Spring Night.

Right away, I felt like there are elements in this show, that give it the feel of an Ahn Pan Seok project.

For one thing, there are a lot of regulars, in terms of actors making up this story world.

A lot of the supporting actors are ones that I’ve seen play supporting roles in the various other dramas that I’ve mentioned.

That in itself was a bit of fun, coz I couldn’t help but try to place as many of them as I could.

Since my most recent watch from Ahn Pan Seok was Heard It Through The Grapevine, I amused myself by placing a good number of  supporting actors as the various people staffing the main house, in Grapevine. Yes I am quite easily amused. 😁

For the record, it’s not like these actors work exclusively on Ahn Pan Seok projects; it’s just this particular combination of actors, going about their business in this type of story world, just has Ahn Pan Seok written all over it.

Speaking of type of story world, this is faintly reminiscent of the story world in Secret Love Affair, at least in spots.

What I mean is, in Secret Love Affair, our female lead was a very capable character working in a pretty toxic environment that was peopled mostly by snooty rich types, and it was her job of keep them satisfied, despite any problems that would pop up.

..And that’s exactly what we see our female lead do, in Show’s first few minutes.

The difference here, is that our female lead, Hye Jin, works as an instructor in a hagwon attended by the children of pretty snooty rich types, and it’s her job to keep the parents satisfied, and the students calm, despite any problems that might pop up.

You see where I’m getting that idea from, that there’s some similarities at play here?

Thankfully, this story world doesn’t appear to be completely inspired by Secret Love Affair, because by and large, the story world in Secret Love Affair was suffocating and insufferable, for our main characters.

Like I said, it feels like Show is inspired by a range of Ahn PD’s works, so I feel like we’re getting a mashup of various elements, and the toxic environment appears to be contained mostly with the two elements of ambitious parents, and disgruntled high school teacher.

If memory serves, Secret Love Affair, Something in the Rain and One Spring Night all had noona romances in the center, and this is similar in that regard, with Hye Jin being older than Jun Ho.

Additionally, with Hye Jin having been Jun Ho’s teacher for a season, it does kind of give some Secret Love Affair-adjacent vibes, because of the teacher-student dynamic.

A male lead who’d interacted with the female lead while he was a youngster, and then comes back as a fully grown man? We’ve got that here, and that’s similar to the setup in Something in the Rain.

Speaking of Something in the Rain, we even get a Red Umbrella Scene in this show, very reminiscent to the one in the poster of Something in the Rain, by the time we get to the end of episode 1.

And of course, we also have an English song scoring the proceedings, which was something we saw (well, heard) in Something in the Rain and One Spring Night, though not in Secret Love Affair or Heard It Through The Grapevine.

Thankfully for me, personally, the song lands as breezy and pleasant, rather than frustrating and annoying (Stand By Your Man, anyone? 😅)

..See what I mean, about being able to pick up the Ahn PD flavor of things, just by wandering around this story world for a bit? 😁

STUFF I DIDN’T LIKE SO MUCH

When Show is better in concept than in execution

I alluded to this earlier, that there were things in this show that were just better to me in concept than in execution.

I would even go so far as to say that a lot of what Show serves up, is better to me in concept, than it is in execution, for the reason that I found it difficult to really get into this story, and get to know these characters.

It’s all very subjective, of course (the interpretation of any form of art always is), so what didn’t work for me, could absolutely work for you, and vice versa.

For the sake of interest, allow me to just talk through some of it, from our early episodes.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E3-4. Generally, I think I like the idea of what Show is going for, but the execution is somehow landing a little hollow for me.

So what’s the idea?

Well, I think the idea is that Hye Jin is a woman who’s become jaded by all the years that she’s spent at the hagwon, having to survive and even thrive in the very competitive environment.

And along comes Jun Ho, who’s far from jaded, and who still remembers, vividly, how Hye Jin had been a passionate teacher, when she’d taught him.

Even though she’s now much more practical-minded and competition-conscious, and seems to have forgotten much of how she’d used to be, he still holds onto those ideals that he’d witnessed firsthand in her.

When it comes to teaching, which Jun Ho is now choosing as his new vocation, he instinctively adopts that heartfelt, love-for-learning approach that Hye Jin had once used on him.

It’s harsh that she forces his hand, and tells him to leave those ideals behind, if he wants to survive in this world that riddled with cut-throat standards and competition, and he complies, because he wants to respect her wishes, and recognizes that because she is now his supervisor, it is his job to carry out her instructions.

But, because of Jun Ho’s presence in her life, Hye Jin finds herself doing things differently.

First, she agrees to the partnership that she’d never imagined would be a thing, and puts time and effort into collaborating with Jun Ho.

And then, she finds herself loosening up, in spite of herself, and we see that in the way she falls into texting with Jun Ho that evening, late at night, complete with happy giggles.

In this moment, it feels like all the chains of her context have fallen away, and we’re getting a glimpse of her true self, where she’s unfettered by responsibility and duty.

But the context comes back, when morning comes, and she’s back to being her practical-minded, goal-oriented self, and she is sometimes quite brusque and even almost harsh with Jun Ho, while guiding him and working with him.

That is, until nobody shows up for the sample lecture except that one single student.

At first, Hye Jin defaults to the most practical decision, which is to cancel the lecture, since the number doesn’t justify the effort and time.

But it’s Jun Ho who insists on going ahead, and it’s this one-on-one tutoring time that Hye Jin has with this student, Si Woo, that brings back a spark to Hye Jin; she’s tasting the joy of teaching, all over again, and it’s a feeling that she’d thought she’d long left behind.

Her enjoyment and her joy is evident to see, and Jun Ho basks in the sight of the Hye Jin whom he remembers – now standing in front of him again, as her bright, luminous self, glowing as she soaks in the joy of imparting knowledge and perspective to Si Woo.

And, even though she still considers the lecture a bust because of the lack of participants, it looks like the universe is going to reward that pure desire to impart knowledge, because Si Woo enjoyed himself enough, that he tells his friends that he’s thinking of switching hagwons.

It’s a pretty romantic idea, yes? I mean, we’re not yet at the romance-romance of it all, in our story, but this bud of a notion, of having a pure desire to teach for the sake of learning instead of exams, is quite romantic, in this results-oriented story world.

As for the romance-romance of it all, this set of episodes, we are shown that Jun Ho had indeed nursed a crush on Hye Jin, back when she’d been his teacher, and he, her student.

It remains unclear whether he’s come back to her with romantic intentions, but either way, it’s a given that as Jun Ho and Hye Jin continue to work together, love will eventually blossom.

Overall, I honestly rather like this entire concept, in that, I feel like I’m selling it to myself as I’m writing this, and I’m actually happily buying what I’m selling, heh.

The problem for me, is that while I like the idea of this whole thing, the execution isn’t quite popping for me, as much as I’d like it to.

While Hye Jin does pop for me later in our story, like I talked about earlier, I’m sorry to say that Jun Ho as a character, and this OTP relationship, didn’t quite come alive for me in the same way.

[END SPOILER]

When Show is dense

This story was never meant to be of the easily slurpable variety, but I have to admit that I found a good amount of Show’s second half particularly dense.

This made the watch feel much more effortful than I would have preferred, and I sometimes felt quite exhausted just trying to engage with what Show was serving up.

This was not my favorite thing, by far.

For example, my personal response to episodes 9 and 10, is that I did find these episodes illuminating in terms of showing us who Hye Jin really is, but also, that these episodes were very dense.

I consider myself a person who enjoys slice-of-life, and I have to confess that I had to take breaks in the middle of each of these episodes, because I felt so.. tired, because it often felt like not a whole lot was happening, or that things were happening really slowly. 😅

I remember thinking to myself, “Is this what art films are supposed to be like?” coz I remember Secret Love Affair (also by Ahn PD) shared some of this type of energy, and I’d likened it to an art film, back when I’d first watched it.

If so, then I think my tolerance for art films has gone down, coz I found these episodes a bit exhausting, not gonna lie. 😅

That said, it did feel like I gained something, from sitting through the denser portions that I found hard to understand.

In my view, the reason some portions felt hard to understand, was because, while watching, it’s hard to see exactly where Show’s going with a particular arc or beat, and it can be tiring, to keep our attention focused on something that’s moving slowly, and often in dimly lit settings, without knowing what it is that we’re supposed to gain from it all.

When the writing is clunky

There were a couple of times when I felt that the writing was rather clunky, and not in line with the restrained, art film sort of vibe that Show was apparently going for.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E9-10. Honestly, I couldn’t help wondering why, if Jun Ho couldn’t bear to leave her alone on a day like this, he wouldn’t suggest going to her place instead of his.

After all, she would be more comfortable at her own place, and all her things are there too, right?

Which means that if anyone needed to make do and be uncomfortable, it would be him.

..That is, until Jun Ho’s mom comes knocking the next morning.

That was when I was like, Ahhhh. No wonder Show had to have Jun Ho bringing Hye Jin home, and not the other way around! 😏

I thought that was pretty clunky writing.

E11-12. It honestly felt like a weird late-stage sort of reveal, that Assistant Director Woo actually has a long-time grudge against Director Kim, and wants to take him down – and that’s the whole reason she’s trying to take Hye Jin down.

Even though we’ve seen that AD Woo doesn’t seem to like Hye Jin, this still feels a touch makjang to my eyes. Like, she’s been pretending to be on Director Kim’s side for the past 8 years, when he’d destroyed her life’s work when he’d bought over her academy.

And so, suddenly with this reveal, we’ve got a new antagonist in the mix, and it’s not my favorite thing, honestly.

[END SPOILER]

Wi Ha Jun as Jun Ho

It hurts me to say this, because Wi Ha Jun being a romantic male lead was one of the key reasons I’d even had this show on my radar, but.. I did not love him in this. 🙈

I think it’s partly the writing, and partly his delivery; I felt like I never connected with Jun Ho, as a character.

Given that he’s our male lead and is therefore a big part of our story, it’s actually really important, that I feel connected to him, or at the very least, feel like I can understand him.

Unfortunately, I found Jun Ho hard to read as a character, for pretty much the entirety of my watch.

I felt like all I had were bits and pieces of a character on paper, like a rough sketch; Jun Ho never filled out to become a real person in my eyes.

This is very regrettable, because if Jun Ho had managed to come alive and feel like a real person in my eyes, perhaps I would have some affection for him, to balance out the times that Show has him act in ways that I didn’t like.

Let’s just say that I got pretty upset with Jun Ho, at points. 😅

[SPOILER ALERT]

E1-2. I honestly find Jun Ho hard to read, as a general rule.

He smiles a lot and is friendly and amiable, and generally quite unruffled – and I feel like I don’t know what’s really going on, on the inside, for him.

At least as far as his goal is, in working at the hagwon, I feel that we have a reasonably clear picture; that Jun Ho feels that this is his fastest way to earn enough money to establish himself independently, in Gangnam, without having to depend on his parents.

His reason for going back to the hagwon from which he’d graduated, doesn’t appear to have anything to do with Hye Jin at all, and I’m relieved about that.

He does appear to be very decisive and savvy as well, because once he decides that he wants to join the competition, he goes all in, and even takes time to rehearse – and film himself rehearsing

I was pretty impressed by that, not gonna lie, coz I feel like many people don’t rehearse, or they don’t record themselves rehearsing, which is one of the best ways to improve, in my opinion.

The thing is, I just have this feeling that we’re not quite seeing through to the real him.

All I’m getting from him, is that he’s cheerful and ambitious, and not afraid to take a risk in order to get what he wants.

We get slight indications that he’s perplexed at how upset his parents are, like when he sighs after Dad leaves the restaurant, after a failed attempt to persuade Jun Ho to pursue his studies instead.

Other than that, though, all I’m getting is his cheerful front, like, after that quick sigh, he’s back to shrugging things off, and continuing to enjoy his barbecue dinner, even though Dad’s just walked out on their dinner date.

And that’s pretty much the reaction we see from him, when Hye Jin asks to see him at the coffee shop, and proceeds to warn him, in a pretty stern manner, of how hard life is going to be for him, going forward.

E5-6. I have to confess that, through these episodes, I do still struggle with how Wi Ha Jun is coming across, as Jun Ho.

I don’t know if it’s just me, but to my eyes, it feels like he’s holding back from the camera?

As in, it feels like he’s not quite allowing us full access to Jun Ho’s feelings, and I feel like there’s some kind of barrier between Jun Ho’s internal landscape, and me, as a viewer.

He feels oddly enigmatic to me, like I can’t read him, and I don’t know if this is on purpose, or if this is a personal quirk of Wi Ha Jun’s.

E7-8. I still find myself struggling to connect with Jun Ho, as a character.

I’m coming to the tentative and sad conclusion, that this could be on Wi Ha Jun.

The thing is, even when we kind of know what’s going on with Jun Ho, like the fact that he likes Hye Jin, and wants to date her, and that he enjoys teaching, and loves having Si Woo as a student, he’s still not popping for me onscreen, for some reason.

I’m wondering if Wi Ha Jun’s just less expressive, perhaps, in this melo sort of space, versus more action-thriller type spaces, like the character he played in Squid Game, or more mysterious-smoldery type spaces, like the character he played in Little Women.

E7-8. I’m starting to get a niggling feeling of discomfort, when it comes to Jun Ho, as a character.

I will admit that this is largely to do with my Drama PTSD from Something in the Rain, and I know I don’t usually compare dramas like this, and I also know that it’s not really fair to put my Drama PTSD from Something in the Rain on this show, because they are two completely different dramas, but.. they share Ahn Pan Seok as their PD, so.. my concern might be warranted?

[BROAD VAGUE SPOILERS FOR SOMETHING IN THE RAIN]

In Something in the Rain, I’d been completely smitten by Jung Hae In’s character, the younger male lead to Son Ye Jin’s noona, but that had eventually given way to dismay, because of the immaturity of Jung Hae In’s character.

Essentially, beyond the giddy romantic feels, his character behaved in problematic ways that I traced back to his immaturity, and this contributed a good chunk towards the problems between the OTP.

[END SPOILERS FOR SOMETHING IN THE RAIN]

For me, this is still an early-stage suspicion, and the niggling is fairly low-grade, but I can’t deny that my drama senses are tingling with some apprehension, whenever I see Jun Ho act in a way that emphasizes his youth.

For example, the way he keeps bulldozing his way towards Hye Jin, even after she’s made it clear that she wants to keep things professional between them, and the way he is quite flippant about the possibility of rumors forming about them; these two things make me feel apprehensive.

I don’t know if these things were meant to land as swoony and melty, but for me, it worries me that Jun Ho’s attitude is going to end up causing problems for this OTP.

Not to say that he isn’t nice to Hye Jin; he is.

Like when he persuades her to let him drive her home, because she’s tired; the way he gets her groceries because he’d heard from Cheong Mi that Hye Jin’s fridge is empty; the way he gets her to go to the clinic instead of pushing through her physical discomfort to teach.

And of course, he’s gentle and sweet, when it comes to his budding romance with Hye Jin, now that she’s showing her true feelings towards him.

But like Hye Jin says, he does have a tendency to bulldoze his way through things, and I can already see that he’s not being very careful about their relationship.

Cheong Mi managed to save him once, by volunteering to report Hye Jin’s absence in his place, but he’s not showing any caution otherwise.

I mean, he tells his friend Sung Gyu about dating Hye Jin, but doesn’t warn Sung Gyu to keep it a secret from his mother, Manager Kim, who works at Daechi Chase.

I feel very uncomfortable about this, and am already anticipating a fallout stemming from this oversight. 😬

E11-12. This week, I have to confess that I felt quite perplexed by Jun Ho’s behavior.

I think writer-nim is trying to make a point, that Jun Ho is very passionate about teaching, not for the purpose of exam grades, but for the purpose of empowering his students.

Even with that in mind, however, I find myself thinking that Jun Ho’s very belligerent and bulldozer-y a lot of the time, and, well, I don’t like that very much.

First, we see him get all impatient with his mom, when she talks to him about the introduction that his father would like to make for him, to support his dream of becoming a star instructor.

I thought that was sad for Mom, because she’s just trying to be a peacemaker, and trying to connect with her son, and it’s not even her idea that she’s sharing. She’s simply being a middleman for Dad.

And yet, she has to deal with Jun Ho’s frustration and impatience. I didn’t think well of him for that, honestly.

Also, on second watch, I realize that when Hye Jin first starts reminding Jun Ho that he needs to get his textbook printed, he very likely had already started thinking about deleting his textbook and starting over.

That’s probably what he meant when he said that Hye Jin probably wouldn’t be hanging out with him for a while; he probably knew that she would get really upset with him, for destroying all the work that he’d done thus far, to start over.

..Which just makes Jun Ho’s actions even more frustrating, really.

He could have talked things over with Hye Jin, and he should have, because she’s his team leader and therefore his supervisor, but he doesn’t.

Instead, he goes ahead and shreds the textbook, and deletes the original file, on his own, and then tries to convince Hye Jin that his way is the only way forward.

That’s so annoying, honestly.

Even though I prefer his approach to learning vs. Hye Jin’s exam-centric approach, I still want to smack him upside the head, for not handling this in a more mature, respectful manner.

The way he goes about it all, screams disrespect to Hye Jin as his team leader, and I don’t like that at all.

It really makes me wonder if he would have been so quick to do things his own way, if he weren’t actually dating his team leader, y’know? Like, is he being presumptuous because Hye Jin is his girlfriend?

I’ve seen some comments from other viewers who found their big argument really well-written and well-acted, and how it’s so great that neither of them feels the need to hold back, because they are secure in the knowledge that the other person can take whatever they say.

I don’t necessarily disagree, though I was flinching through it all, more than anything.

I just couldn’t get it out of my head how inappropriate it is, for Jun Ho to be in a shouting match with his supervisor, and not show her any deference or respect, in front of the rest of the staff, who all gather to watch.

In a situation like this, if there is an impasse  between a teacher and their supervisor, the supervisor gets the final say – and if the teacher disagrees strongly enough, they can vote with their feet, by leaving the job.

While I agree that it’s important to work out power imbalances in noona romances, particularly if one party has power and influence over the other, I also feel that the opposite is true; just because Hye Jin is Jun Ho’s girlfriend, doesn’t mean that he gets to disrespect her at work like this.

It just doesn’t sit right with me, even though I agree with the point he’s making.

And then to add insult to injury, Jun Ho won’t leave Hye Jin alone, even though Team Leader Lee tells him that Hye Jin has expressed that she’d like to be alone.

When he finds her with Mr. Pyo at their regular hangout, he gets all up in her business, even though she tells him to leave.

I hated that. AGAIN, with not respecting her wishes and her personal agency.

He practically forces Hye Jin to tell him what’s really going on with her meeting with Mr. Pyo, by being his bulldozer-y worst self, and I wanted to smack him so bad.

To make it even worse, he starts arguing with Hye Jin, right in front of Mr. Pyo.

Eep. I found this incredibly uncomfortable to watch, because I couldn’t stop thinking about how inappropriate this was, to argue in front of Mr. Pyo, who’s just trying to be helpful. 🙈😅

Of course, I do think Hye Jin deserves some blame here too, because when she asked Mr. Pyo to excuse them for a bit, I thought she was taking Jun Ho aside, to have a private conversation, not to have that conversation right in front of Mr. Pyo. 🤦🏻‍♀️

I thought that was a very weird move, and I think writer-nim did it that way, so that Mr. Pyo would be intrigued by what Jun Ho said, and ask to talk further with Jun Ho about it.

STILL, though. Surely it could have been done another way? Like, have Hye Jin take Jun Ho aside, but have them argue loud enough, that Mr. Pyo overhears anyway, and thus asks to talk with Jun Ho?

That’s not perfect either, but at least it’s less mortifying? 😅

ALSO. What is this with Jun Ho apologizing to Mr. Pyo for being rude, but then telling Hye Jin, in the very next scene, that he’s not going to apologize to her?

I mean, yes, he can stand by what he said, but surely he can apologize for being rude to her, too?

As you can tell, I am very annoyed by Jun Ho in general.

[END SPOILER]

Hye Jin and Jun Ho

Unfortunately for me, this OTP was better in concept than in execution.

This loveline never popped for me, nor gave me the feels that I would expect from a loveline’s more melty or squeeworthy moments.

Mostly, I found myself appreciating this loveline with my head, but not my heart.

Partly, it has to do with the fact that I personally failed to see any real chemistry between Jung Ryeo Won and Wi Ha Jun (again, a very subjective thing!), and partly, I think it’s the execution that just kind of fell flat, for me.

In this spoiler section, you can see me processing this OTP as best as I could. 😅

[SPOILER ALERT]

E5-6. We see that part of the reason Hye Jin has been reluctant to leave Daechi, is because she had felt that Jun Ho needed her.

I found Jun Ho’s reaction upon gaining his first student in Si Woo, quite interesting and unexpected.

I’d honestly been quite taken aback, when, after spending some time thinking on his own, he tells Hye Jin to go ahead and join Director Choi.

It’s only when he explains how he feels towards Si Woo as his teacher – that he would do anything for him – and how he then finally understands how Hye Jin must feel towards him, as his teacher, that it makes sense to me.

I like the fact that Jun Ho doesn’t want to hold Hye Jin back, and be her burden.

Even though he has personal reasons for wanting her to stay at Daechi, he’s sucking it up and telling her that she should do what she wants to do, and not be swayed by anything that he’s said.

I also like that it’s this conversation with Jun Ho that brings things more sharply into focus for Hye Jin, because up to this point, it appears that she hadn’t been cognizant of the fact that she’d enjoyed being needed by him.

And so, I do like that their conversations prompt reflection and realization, which then lead to more conversations about said realizations.

This feels healthy – at least, so far.

With this going on, it feels quite natural that as they talk more, Jun Ho’s feelings for her get closer to being laid bare.

Given that framing tidbit that Show gives us, that another hagwon had run into a lot of trouble, losing students and everything, because two of their teachers had dated, and that had led to rumors and loss of confidence, it’s not surprising to me that Hye Jin quickly tries to redefine their relationship.

I thought it was a neat little detail, where we see her renaming him in her phone contact list, from “My Pride” to the much more businesslike “Teacher Lee Jun Ho,” because that tells us everything about where she’s coming from, while being economically small in terms of narrative real estate.

And then, when Jun Ho starts hinting quite heavily about his feelings for her, which he hasn’t overtly expressed yet, she’s quick to cut short the conversation and leave the room.

Tellingly, her reason for this, is because rumors are the scariest things – and not because she doesn’t feel the same way about him.

While Director Kim being a drunken nuisance and falling into the water is a catalyst in giving us the eventual closing kiss in episode 6, I’d argue that even if Director Kim hadn’t acted the way he did, there would likely have been some other catalyst that would have prompted Jun Ho to act on his feelings.

After all, he really was already showing his feelings, even before he put words to them.

Also, even if Director Kim had been a nuisance, the only reason we end where we do, is because Hye Jin cares enough about Jun Ho, to fuss over him, and Jun Ho’s feelings are strong enough, that he’d act on them.

In that sense, I feel like an OTP confirmation was going to come one way or another, and Director Kim’s drunken antics just happened to nudge it along.

I do like the honesty in their conversation, where Jun Ho’s thoughtful enough to ask how Hye Jin felt about him coming along and making her world unpredictable, and if she wished to go back to how things had been, before he’d disrupted her world.

And, I like that Hye Jin’s honest enough to admit that she does not actually wish for that.

I also like the way Jun Ho frames his confession, as a first love that Hye Jin couldn’t have not known about, and that’s just continuing to grow, causing his heart to spill out.

It makes sense to me that Jun Ho would shoot his shot, in this moment, and take a chance by kissing Hye Jin, and I do like that he’s gentle and unhurried, making the kiss feel tentative enough that Hye Jin could have put her foot down and stopped it, if she’d felt uncomfortable.

E9-10. I’m still finding it hard to read Jun Ho, and I also am still finding his more immature actions and reactions more concerning (in the context of perhaps causing future problems) than endearing.

Like how he runs back home to feed Sung Gyu, before running back to Hye Jin’s apartment, so that they can continue with their plan for sexytimes.

I’m sorry, but if this was meant to be endearing, it was lost on me 😅; it landed a little juvenile for me, like this is the kind of stuff young people (read: not fully grown adults) might do, running around and trying to date in secret. 😅

Yes, it’s true that he did eventually tell Sung Gyu that he was off to see Hye Jin, but frankly, his initial plan had clearly been to get Sung Gyu passed-out drunk, so that he could sneak back to see Hye Jin, without getting caught by Sung Gyu.

I.. found it rather uncomfortable that Jun Ho had intended to get his friend drunk, in order to get him out of the wya, honestly. But, I’m relieved that that’s not how it works out, in the end.

I do appreciate that the OTP consummation is something that our lead couple doesn’t rush into, in the heat of the moment, for example.

In the time that passes while Jun Ho runs home to take care of things with Sung Gyu, there’s plenty of room for either of them (but mostly Hye Jin) to change their minds – but they don’t.

In this sense, the move to consummate their relationship feels deliberate and sober, rather than something that they impulsively get into – without thought to whether or not this is what they’d like to do, and whether or not they might end up regretting this decision.

The awkwardness of their first night is realistic, and I felt very sympathetic towards Hye Jin, when she basically loses both mood and confidence, because Jun Ho, out of habit, addresses her as “Teacher,” even though they are in the bedroom. 😅

I shook my head at the fact that Hye Jin had to spell it out for Jun Ho, that him addressing her as “Teacher” made her uncomfortable, and that it made her feel like she was doing something wrong to him.

On the one hand, I appreciate the candidness, but on the other hand, I am not encouraged by Jun Ho’s obtuseness. 😅

Still, I appreciate his willingness to take feedback and course-correct, and I also appreciate that he’s gentle and tender, as he holds her and tells her that he loves her. Aw. That’s sweet. 🥲

The giddiness from them taking their relationship to the next level, and therefore them wanting to kiss and touch each other all the time, coupled with the forbidden thrill of trying to keep their relationship under wraps, is pretty heady stuff.

..Though I confess that I was on tenterhooks, worrying that someone would walk in on one of their touchy-feely moments, and that all hell would then break loose. 😅

I did very much giggle though, at that moment when Jun Ho tells Hye Jin that Cheong Mi’s gone for a walk because she feels as if she’s developing bed sores on her butt, and then when Hye Jin asks about whether he needs a walk too, he cheekily tells her that his butt is fine – just as she’s seen for herself (Omo!🫢).

Hahaha. I was a little scandalized too, at Jun Ho’s freedom talking about his butt. 😁

E9-10. Again, we see Jun Ho’s immaturity show, in how oblivious he appears to be, towards Hye Jin’s state of heart and mind, when Hye Jin tells him, all shaken up, about her conversation with Mr. Pyo.

Instead of reading how she feels and responding to that, he’s all ready to declare war on Mr. Pyo – which, like So Young puts it, reflects exactly the side of herself that Hye Jin despises.

That’s why she tells Jun Ho that she can’t see him for the time being; not because she doesn’t love him anymore, but because she can’t bear to see that part of herself reflected in him.

Well, that and the fact that he doesn’t seem to understand in the slightest, why Hye Jin feels bad about Mr. Pyo’s announcement that he’s joining Choiseon.

Here’s where I express my appreciation for Cheong Mi, for being the mature voice of reason for us all, in these episodes.

I honestly couldn’t help agreeing more, when Cheong Mi remarks, while observing Jun Ho, that dating a younger man is really exhausting. 😅

Oh, how my fangirl heart has changed, on this point!

I used to think it was so romantic, that a younger man wouldn’t care about a woman’s age, and love her anyway.

But, increasingly, the immaturity that these younger suitors display, has been standing out to me more and more, as it has with Jun Ho, and it just feels like Cheong Mi’s putting my feelings into words for me here. 😅

I’m also glad for Cheong Mi, for telling Jun Ho what’s wrong with his response, in such a succinct, easy-to-understand manner, which essentially sets Jun Ho on the right track, for when he goes off to seek out Hye Jin.

I’m glad that Jun Ho apologizes to Hye Jin, and I’m also glad that Hye Jin opens up to Jun Ho, and lays out for him what she’s thinking and feeling, about this whole situation with Mr. Pyo.

I do feel like this was an overall good learning experience, for our newly-minted couple.

[END SPOILER]

SPOTLIGHT ON THE PENULTIMATE EPISODES [SPOILERS]

E13-14. My friends, I find that I’m in a weird place, with this drama.

I want to feel emotionally connected and invested, but no matter how hard I try, I find myself coming up empty.

I’d thought that I’d managed to connect with Hye Jin, at that point when she’d confessed her fears and feelings to bestie So Young, but somewhere along the way, I feel like I’ve lost that connection.

And so, even though I did find these two episodes more interesting than average, I find that my interest and engagement is more.. neutral and almost clinical.

That’s not my intention, and I wish it wasn’t this way, but it’s where I am, and I just felt that I should be upfront about it and let you know.

I realize that with this show, those who love it, love it viscerally and deeply, and then those who don’t love it, struggle to connect with it.

Instead of tapping out of my watch, however, I’ve decided that a clinical interest is still better than no interest at all, so I’m going to finish this one, and make the best of it.

I’m just sorry to those of you who love this one, because I can’t join you in that love, though not for lack of trying. 😅

These episodes are when everything hits the fan, and we really see everyone’s true colors, because it’s true what they say; it’s in times of trouble that you really see what someone is made of.

I think the person I’m most disappointed in and put off by, is Yoon Ji Seok, the team leader who’s been nursing a crush on Hye Jin.

I mean, wow, the way he turns on her, is nothing short of callous, isn’t it?

He’d never made his feelings clear to her, and now that he hears that she’s dating Jun Ho, he calls foul, and accuses her of toying with his feelings?

But, on what grounds, since he’d never made his feelings clear?

And then, in retaliation, he calls a meeting with all the other teachers, to accuse her of favoring Jun Ho with resources and opportunities, because of their clandestine relationship?

This is exactly the kind of man you never want to get involved with, because he’ll be nice to you when things are going well, but if you ever fall out and break up, he’ll turn on you and attack you with everything that he has.

I also don’t have a good opinion of AD Woo, because she’s so vindictive.

The way talks about it, it’s like Director Kim had snatched her hagwon from her without her consent, but that certainly can’t be true, since she’d had to sign papers for the sale to proceed, plus, she’d signed an employment contract as well, to be the AD of Daechi.

And now, she removes her agreement from the equation, and executes a revenge plan of devastating proportions, because she’d held a grudge all these years, because he’d “taken Victory from her.”

There’s no ownership here; she’s only interested in putting the blame on someone, and then taking revenge on that someone, and that’s just not cool.

I would be wary of going into business with her, because who knows whether she’ll turn on me in the future, when she’s decided that I’d forced her into this partnership..?

I feel kind of similar about Director Choi, in that she’s also someone to be very wary of, because when she’s decided that you’re no longer useful to her, she will be ruthless, in the way she turns on you, like the way she turns on Hye Jin, after failing to recruit her.

Maybe in that sense, Director Choi and AD Woo deserve each other..?

I can see Mr. Pyo having second thoughts already, because while Director Choi must have wooed him with a beautiful picture of his future at Choiseon, he’s learning very quickly that she expects him to do everything her way – or else.

Perhaps all our “good” teachers – those with a passion for actually helping students – could band together to create a new kind of hagwon?

On that note, I’ve been asking myself what kind of happy ending we could expect to see, and I have to say, I’m not sure, really.

The world in which hagwons operate is not going to change. And the parents who foot the hagwon fees are not likely to change either.

So even if our “good” teachers decide to start a new hagwon, would there be enough parents on board with their approach, to make it feasible? That’s a big question mark, I think.

On a related tangent, I have to say, I don’t think Hye Jin handled the switch of teaching method very well.

Not giving the parents any kind of heads-up, and just applying it right away with the students, even though she knows what kinds of attitudes and demands these parents have, was a big mistake – and one that I am surprised that someone with Hye Jin’s depth of hagwon experience would make, honestly.

It’s not surprising at all, that the parents would feel insecure and upset, and start withdrawing their children in droves.

It would have been smarter to explain the new approach to the parents, and demonstrate the usefulness of the new approach, while assuring the parents that this would be introduced without compromising the quality of the teaching.

Sure, that would have likely met with resistance too, but it would still have been better than what went down in these episodes, where the parents are discovering it on their own, by examining their kids’ textbooks and setting the rumor mill on fire.

That said, I do appreciate that Hye Jin’s doing her best to salvage the situation for Director Kim’s sake, because this is his hagwon, and she doesn’t want her mistakes to cost him his entire business.

It’s good that Hye Jin is upfront with Jun Ho that she’d like him to love her even more fiercely going forward, and on the upside, he does just that, by leaving her that note where everyone can see how lovey-dovey he continues to be, even in this crisis.

On the downside, I don’t really like that Hye Jin and Jun Ho are swearing love to each other – but then acting on their own, instead of facing the storm together.

To be fair, it’s not like they’re divided all the time, but it did strike me as a bit of unfortunate noble idiocy, when they each lied to the other person, while intending to face the teacher’s attack conference on their own.

I get that they want to protect each other, and that’s why they both did that, but it’s ultimately better for them to be honest with each other and work together, instead of trying to shoulder certain things on their own.

I do think it’s a good thing, though, that Jun Ho finally breaks down at the end of episode 14, and admits that he’s scared.

That does frame his behavior a little better for me, since I did feel a bit disappointed and perplexed, that he lost his cool like that, and almost came to blows with Myung Joon.

I mean, yes, Myung Joon is a jerk for saying something so nasty, but Jun Ho losing his cool like that did not help the situation in the least.

But, having him confess his fear now, makes me realize that this reaction was just as much one of fear, as it was of anger, and makes me feel more sympathetic.

It’s a good thing, I think, that Hye Jin comes upon Jun Ho crying in front of Director Kim.

Perhaps this is a level of honesty that could make their relationship stronger and better than they’d thought possible?

One of my personal highlights, these episodes, is Cheong Mi’s decision not to take advantage of the scandal for her own gain.

I thought Sung Gyu was nicely objective in parsing out the situation for her; what he says isn’t wrong – even if Cheong Mi doesn’t take advantage of the situation, others would, and no one would notice that she didn’t take a piece for herself.

This, even though his best friend Jun Ho is in the thick of the situation at hand.

I can say that he’s really putting his personal feelings aside, and thinking on Cheong Mi’s behalf, in giving his input on what he thinks she should do.

But Cheong Mi, good woman that she is, can’t bear to do it, and I love her for it.

And, I also like that she’s inspired by the love note that Hye Jin lets her read, and realizes that she rather likes the idea of having someone special – and proceeds to meet up with Sung Gyu, to tell him so.

I love that he gets so excited that he wants to officially confess his feelings right away, and it feels so healthy that Cheong Mi tells him upfront that she won’t have much time to go on dates, and he assures her that he’s just fine entertaining himself when she’s busy.

Aw. They make a very cute couple, and honestly, I feel like they’re going to be more than fine, because they’ve already come to an understanding, before starting their relationship. 🥲

As we head into the finale, I’m still not super sure what kind of ending we’re going to get, and if that ending will actually be a happy one (coz it would well be open-ended, yes?), but I’m ready to find out.

THOUGHTS ON THE ENDING [SPOILERS]

E15-16. Maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise that Show’s ending is a mixed bag for me, much like the rest of its run.

Yet, I’d somehow hoped for more, and better, so I found myself feeling quite perplexed during my watch of these episodes, and coming away feeling kind of.. hollow and dissatisfied.

To be fair, there are folks who are perfectly satisfied with Show’s ending, and I even understand their reasoning for why they are satisfied.

But I need to be true to my response to these episodes, and I am decidedly not in the satisfied camp. 😅

Mainly, it felt quite unbalanced to me, that Jun Ho went from stuffed up crybaby, to a man with A PLAN, in what feels like the blink of an eye.

It also felt unbalanced, that so much of that plan was resting on Jun Ho himself, with only very selective participation from Hye Jin, later on.

Additionally, the way The Big Conundrum was resolved felt quite.. simplistic?

I get the central idea here, that Jun Ho and Hye Jin poke holes in the trust between Director Choi and Woo Seung Hee, but their success felt a bit too easy, and the fact that these two women got into an all-out catfight, is rather unbelievable to me, as well.

I could believe that Woo Seung Hee would throw the first punch (well, slap), especially since she’s losing everything, but I find it out of character for Director Choi to basically throw all caution to the wind, and run out there, guns blazing, for a no-holds-barred showdown.

Of course, the fact that this showdown even happened, would likely create a scandal for Choiseon Korean all its own, which levels out the playing field a bit, for Daechi to get its footing back.

And, yes, I get that it makes narratives sense for Manager Kim to step in as the angel investor, since Show’s been teasing from early on, that she’s always wanted to start her own hagwon – meaning, that she has the funds for it.

That said, I thought it was decidedly odd, the way that was played.

I mean, I very much loved the scene where Cheong Mi tells Sung Gyu that he doesn’t need to feel like he has to have a car, in order to be with her, and that she doesn’t care about things like that, and only wants him to be true to his passion.

I can understand how this would touch Sung Gyu a great deal, and lead him to think about marriage sooner than later.

I can also understand that Sung Gyu would approach his mom for help, since he doesn’t have money of his own with which to get married.

And I can understand that Manager Kim would feel touched by the fact that Cheong Mi is so understanding, accepting and supportive of her son.

BUT. To then make her investment in Daechi, on the condition that Director Kim makes Cheong Mi its new star instructor feels.. weird. 😅

It’s honestly landing as rather bizarre to me, that Manager Kim would make that an overt condition for her investment, and then chuckle that it’s because she wants to give Cheong Mi to her son.

Uh. I would have much rather have had Manager Kim make that investment to save Daechi, while getting herself that Assistant Director position.

If Cheong Mi is as capable and talented as she says, then Cheong Mi doesn’t need to be made part of the deal, in order to succeed; she’d succeed anyway, with the star instructor position vacated.

It feels like a devaluation of Cheong Mi’s talent, honestly, to have Manager Kim back her like this, with her investment.

On another note, it felt like Show dropped the ball, a little bit, with Hye Jin deciding that she wanted to go back to school to do that law degree that she’d originally wanted to do.

I understand that from Hye Jin’s point of view, this could be a great way to start afresh.

It’s just.. Show had made such a.. well, show, of Jun Ho working to convince Hye Jin all over again, of the romance inherent in teaching, that this feels like a dropped thread, y’know?

Like, all of that drama and bluster, with that huge fallout, and in the end, Hye Jin gives up on teaching? It feels like quite an anticlimax, honestly.

I would have much preferred an ending where Manager Kim took up Sung Gyu’s request to create a new hagwon altogether, and folks like Hye Jin, Jun Ho and Mr. Pyo could start over together there, while embracing the romance of teaching.

That would have been a more thematically coherent ending, in my opinion.

However, Show does end on a sweet note, with Hye Jin watching Jun Ho rehearse for class, and therefore clearly still supporting his dream to be a teacher who imparts meaningful knowledge to his students.

And, we also get that cute role-play, where Jun Ho asks if there are any questions, and Hye Jin cheekily asks to hear about his first love.

..Which leads to Jun Ho semi-proposing, with those rings – so that the guys on campus will know that Hye Jin’s already taken.

It feels like a happy ending and a new beginning for them all at once, as the camera pans away from them, and we hear them continuing to talk.

Given how I have my beefs with Show’s chosen ending, and have been lukewarm about this OTP for just about our story’s entire run, being able to walk away on this sweet note is.. not bad at all.

THE FINAL VERDICT:

Thematically inconsistent and ultimately rather underwhelming. Better in concept than in execution.

FINAL GRADE: B

TRAILER:

MV:

PATREON UPDATE!

The next drama I’m covering on Patreon, in place of  The Midnight Romance in Hagwon, is Red Swan [Korea].

You can check out my episode 1-2 notes on Red Swan on Patreon here.

Here’s an overview of what I’m covering on Patreon right now (Tier benefits are cumulative)!

Foundation Tier (US$1): Entertainment Drop (Sundays) + the first set notes of all shows covered on Patreon (that’s 2 episodes for kdramas and 4 episodes for cdramas)

Early Access (US$5): +My Sweet Mobster [Korea]

Early Access Plus (US$10): +The Tale of Rose [China]

VIP (US$15): +Miss Night and Day [Korea]