THE SHORT VERDICT:

When Show is at its best, it’s easy, breezy, slurpy frothy fun, where I found it highly enjoyable to watch, even though it wasn’t doing anything spectacularly new.

Unfortunately, when Show isn’t at its best, it feels a lot more tired, like it’s just checking off boxes to get us to our requisite happy ending.

Your mileage may vary, of course, but either way, I think we’ll agree that Jung So Min and Choi Woo Sik as our OTP make up Show’s biggest bright spot.

Not bad, but could’ve been so much better.

THE LONG VERDICT:

I do think that how well you enjoy this show, really depends on how much you enjoy our leads, vs. how high your expectations are.

Me? I had strong expectations for this one based on the casting and premise, and those expectations only became stronger with Show early performance.

Unfortunately for me, Show did not quite live to my (admittedly high) expectations, and that prevented me from loving it all the way to the end.

But I think if you’re able to tweak your expectations, for the love of our leads, this might land a little better for you, than it did for me. 🥲

OST ALBUM: FOR YOUR LISTENING PLEASURE

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

Overall, I did enjoy the music in this show; it all struck me as being pretty breezy-pretty, very much like our drama world. I thought that the music was generally very pleasant and well-applied, in a way that amplified my watch experience.

I have to confess, though, that as much I was digging Show’s breezy vibe, particularly in its early-to-mid episodes, only Track 1, All I Want is You, sticks out in my mind as a song I associate with this show. 😅

I really like how light and easy this one goes down; it’s got a really enjoyable groove, I feel. 🥰

Here it is on its own as well, in case you’d prefer to listen to it on repeat instead. Just right-click on the video and select “Loop.”

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 stuff I liked on a more macro level, before I give the spotlight to selected characters and relationships, in a separate section. Finally, I spend some time talking about my thoughts on the penultimate and 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 some things that I think would be helpful to keep in mind, to maximize your enjoyment of your watch:

1. Show doesn’t do anything dramatically different

If you’ve watched dramas for a while, you’d likely recognize the tropes from a mile away, and be able to predict most plot points with a reasonable degree of accuracy.

That said, I do think there’s something to be said for a drama that feels comfortable and familiar, even on first viewing; it’s like eating a favorite dish. You enjoy it, even though you already are familiar with the flavors.

This show familiar in the way it tells its story, but that’s actually what I like about it.

If you’ve been around Dramaland for a good amount of time, and are specifically looking for something new and fresh to watch, then this might not work for you.

2. Show takes a little while to get settled

Show takes about 2 episodes to set up its premise and get going proper, with its story. I personally took about an episode or so, to finally feel like Show was settling into its story.

Being prepared to give Show a bit of time, helps.

3. Suspension of disbelief is required

Show often stretches the limits of coincidence and logic, in order to nudge its story along, so if you wanted to pick apart these logic stretches, you’d find a lot.

However, I think it’s just better and easier to be willing to suspend disbelief, in order to enjoy your watch.

On that note..

4. A manhwa lens might be useful

I think it’s very useful to just use a cartoon sort of lens when looking at Jerk Woo Ju (I’ve decided that I need to differentiate him from our ML somehow, since they literally share the same exact name 😅) and his family of snooty vipers.

Otherwise, their behavior is just too infuriating and exasperating.

With a cartoon lens on, though, it’s easier to shrug and keep right rolling along.

5. Show is less breezy in its second half

..And knowing that in advance, and being able to tweak your expectations around that, helps, I think.

STUFF I LIKED

When Show is slurpy-frothy

At its best, I found Show to be a frothy confection of rom-com sweetness that was so appealing, that I would find episodes floating by easily, even on occasions when I hadn’t quite been in the mood for drama when I’d pressed ‘play’ – Gasp! Who even am I, right? 😁

Show was breezy, it was charming, and it ticked all the boxes for almost everything I wanted, in a guilty-pleasure rom-com.

Sure, not everything made logical sense, but Show was fun, and that was more important than logic, in my books.

When our OTP is sharing the screen

I definitely enjoyed Show best when Jung So Min and Choi Woo Sik are sharing screen time.

It’s true that Show employs an inordinate amount of tropes and coincidences and other silly situations in order to get them to share that screen time, but I was basically game for just about anything, as long as said thing worked to bring our OTP a little closer to each other.

Here’s an example of when I willingly put up with secondhand mortification, for this exact reason.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E3-4. All of Me Ri’s good intentions of not getting caught by MD Baek (Bae Na Ra) quickly goes down the drain, when Mosquito-Gate happens, and she goes and fiddles with the light switches, desperately trying to “fix” the lights – which absolutely alerts MD Baek to the fact that there is, indeed, someone living in the house.

I mean, how could he miss the entire house flickering like a Christmas tree, yes? 😂

I did feel some secondhand mortification here, on Me Ri’s behalf, but thankfully, MD Baek’s not very aggressive about it, apart from making pointed remarks about how Me Ri’s husband doesn’t seem to have any of his things in the house. 🤭

I usually squirm a lot at secondhand embarrassment, but this is one occasion where I didn’t mind dealing with a bit of secondhand embarrassment, since this would only work to nudge our OTP closer and closer together. 😁

[END SPOILER]

When Show amuses me

As you likely know, if you’ve been around the blog for a while, k-humor and I don’t often get along, but Show managed to amuse me a fair bit, and there were even a couple of occasions when I laughed out loud.

This kind of occurrence is extremely rare, in the context of my personal drama journey, so here are said occasions, for posterity. 😁

[SPOILER ALERT]

E1-2. I actually got a good giggle from the way CEO Lee (Park Yeon Woo) loses the rigged winning entry out of his sleeve and panic-gropes through the pile of entries, during the lucky draw.

Tee hee hee. Park Yeon Woo does have pretty great reaction faces. (Also, I had to look him up, but he played John Jang, in Love is for Suckers – review here!)

E3-4. I think both our leads have great comic timing, but these episodes, I thought Jung So Min did especially well, with that whole horror-movie-esque exit from that kennel at the top of episode 3.

Pretty spot on, from what I can tell as someone who’s never watched The Ring, which I’m pretty sure is the movie they’re spoofing. 😂

[END SPOILER]

STUFF THAT WAS OK

How Show works with our premise

I love me a good contract marriage setup, so I was immediately intrigued by Show’s premise, that Me Ri wins a house in a lucky draw, and thereafter needs a fake husband in order to receive her prize.

I’d say that the way Show ended up handling this premise ended up being a bit of a mixed bag, for me.

Sometimes, I would be pleasantly surprised by how Show would take our story in a direction that I hadn’t been expecting, but then, at other times, I was genuinely disappointed that Show.. uh, took our story in a direction that I hadn’t been expecting. 😅

Let me explain.

[SPOILER ALERT]

Surprises I liked

Quite often, especially in our earlier episodes, Show would take our narrative in a sideways direction that would often get a chuckle out of me, partly for being so unexpected.

For example, in episode 3, with Woo Ju running into Aunt and Eung Su (Baek Ji Won and Go Geon Han) right when MD Baek’s there, I’d imagined that Woo Ju would have to acknowledge Me Ri as his wife in front of Aunt and Eung Su, thus nudging this contract marriage along.

However, that scene didn’t at all resolve like I’d imagined, and instead we have Me Ri crawling out of that dog house in the most iconic way ever. It’s so silly that it tickles my funny bone. 😁

Surprises I didn’t like so much

At first, I was pretty ok with Show not jumping straight into having our OTP live together in the prize townhouse, because I found it quite interesting and fresh, to see what other ways Show would come up with, to drive our story forward.

HOWEVER.

Show never actually has our OTP live together as part of their contract marriage, and since forced cohabitation and the related hijinks have a huge soft spot in my fangirl heart, I was honestly pretty disappointed about this.

Like, you had this cast, and this opportunity, and you didn’t use it?? Why?? 😫😫

[END SPOILER]

The corporate scheming [SPOILERS]

Honestly, I would’ve been perfectly happy to have Jerk Woo Ju be the main Bad Guy in our story world, but Show opts to also make Uncle (Kim Young Min) one too, and I’m not even that surprised, given that it’s Kim Young Min who’s playing Uncle.

I’d had a feeling that Show wouldn’t cast Kim Young Min and then just make him a simple side character, and with the glimmer of darker looks that Uncle’s been flashing from time to time, I wasn’t even surprised when Uncle put on a proper Evil Glare.

However, I have to admit that as we got deeper into our story, and as Uncle’s nefarious plans took up more and more of our screen time, I started to wish that we got less of Uncle and the corporate stuff.

STUFF I DIDN’T LIKE SO MUCH

When Show becomes less fun to watch

There’s no way around it; I have to confess that once we were squarely past the halfway point in our story, I felt that Show became distinctly less breezy-slurpy, and just overall less easy to watch. 😅

I tried to rationalize that a good amount of it had to do with the fact that no show could be breezy all the way through, and some heavier beats were necessary, to balance our story out.

However, I have to admit that by the time I got to the end of my watch, Show had lost most of its initial shine, for me.

SPOTLIGHT ON SELECTED CHARACTERS / RELATIONSHIPS

Jung So Min as Me Ri

I have a pre-existing affection for Jung So Min, and I really enjoyed her as our female lead, Me Ri.

Jung So Min imparts a great deal of personal charm to Me Ri, so much so that I couldn’t help but like Me Ri, pretty much right away.

And honestly, even when I felt like Show wasn’t at its best, all Jung So Min had to do was flash her signature warm smile, and I felt like I was enjoying my watch, just a little bit more.

One of my favorite things about Me Ri, is her strong underlying sense of self.

I’ll mention this again in other sections, but for now, here’s an early example of Me Ri demonstrating that sense of self, and winning me over right away. 🥲

[SPOILER ALERT]

E1-2. I like that in the opening scene, where the potential client starts making those oily, suggestive remarks at her, Me Ri doesn’t hesitate to call him out on it, and turn down the job.

I like even more, that when Me Ri realizes that Jerk Woo Ju (Seo Bum June) is cheating on her, she asks to meet him, shows him all the receipts that she’s found via her virtual investigative efforts, and then breaks it off with him.

Yes, it does take a bit of back-and-forth to get there, but I appreciate that Me Ri’s basically just doing her due diligence, by giving him a chance to explain.

And in the end, I do think that her conclusion – that even if she chose to marry him, they’d eventually get a divorce at some point – is extremely penetrating and wise.

I seriously admire Me Ri for having the clarity to see her future, and choose to call off the wedding in the present, even though that is not at all an easy thing to do, given that everyone in her world is already anticipating the wedding, and the apartment already leased, and with her mom’s savings, at that.

I think Me Ri’s clarity and determination is even more admirable, because it’s not like her heart isn’t breaking, as she takes this step.

Rather, she’s choosing her self-worth, even though it involves heartbreak, and this endears her to me, a great deal.

I really like that our female lead has such a strong sense of self-worth, and I hope that Show remembers to keep this intact and strong, through the rest of our story.

[END SPOILER]

Choi Woo Sik as Woo Ju

I’ve had a soft spot for Choi Woo Sik since 2021’s Our Beloved Summer (review here!), so I was already primed to like him as Woo Ju, in this story.

In my mind, he’s the quintessential beta male lead type, y’know? The softer, sweeter cousin of the traditional domineering alpha male lead, if you will.

And Woo Ju does turn out to be pretty much just that.

I hadn’t realized this so clearly while watching the show, but I think that my favorite thing about Woo Ju, is his core kindness.

He doesn’t need to know you, to be kind to you, and he’s consistently matter-of-fact about it, like it’s the most natural thing in the world. I liked that a lot. 🥲

Here are a couple of examples to show you what I mean.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E1-2. With the way we see Woo Ju flatly turn down that request for that lady’s son to swap seats with him, I’d worried for a minute that our male lead would be a jerk type, it was actually a pleasant relief, to realize that it was the lady’s son who had been the jerk, and Woo Ju had put on a snooty act, in order to protect the lady.

Aw. This made me like him already. 🥲

And for someone who turns out to be a bit of a chaebol prince (in a manner of speaking), he’s very pleasantly unpretentious and down-to-earth.

Just look at the way he goes on a simple fishing vacation upon returning to Korea, instead of choosing something flashier and more luxurious.

E3-4. I felt really bad for Me Ri’s mom (Yoon Bok In), that she’d go to all that trouble to make all that food for her in-laws, only to be met with the shock of finding out that Me Ri and Jerk Woo Ju have broken up, and the wedding’s most definitely off.

Poor Mom. I hated that she even falls to the ground, and that some of her lovingly prepared food gets spilled onto the road. Grrrr. Jerk Woo Ju’s family is as awful as he is.

I’m relieved that Woo Ju offers to run to Mom for Me Ri, and that he’s kind and comforting and just all-around helpful to Mom. 🥲

I love the way he listens to her, and says encouraging things (like how Me Ri is doing so well and liked by everyone), and makes sure to see her off in the most kind, loving and respectful manner.

Augh. So lovely, truly. 🥹

I feel like Woo Ju’s kindness really does help to wash away some of the awfulness of what Mom had encountered with Jerk Woo Ju’s mom and sister, and I do love that very much.

[END SPOILER]

Me Ri and Woo Ju

I thought that Choi Woo Sik and Jung So Min made a great pairing, honestly.

When we were in Show’s better half, we got a great mix of OTP comedy hijinks mixed with OTP sparky moments, and I was a very, very happy camper indeed.

To be brutally frank, I do feel that writer-nim didn’t quite know how to utilize this OTP for the best results.

I feel that if we’d spent more time delving into the relationship dynamics between them, instead of relying on external factors to keep nudging our story forward, this OTP would’ve been much more satisfying to watch, and overall, we would’ve had a much better show.

That said, I will agree with the camp that feels that this OTP remains Show’s saving grace, in its second half.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E1-2. There was a good chunk of secondhand embarrassment that went with how Cactus-gate went down, but at the same time, I couldn’t help but appreciate that Jung So Min’s comic timing is great, and she does manage to underscore the silly with a sense of raw pathos, which helps to ground things.

And, I also appreciate what a good egg Woo Ju shows himself to be, because he is undeniably super patient with Me Ri’s drunken antics, and then he even takes her to the hospital to get the cactus spines removed from her butt, and then waits for her and takes her home.

This, even though it literally takes all night, and it’s the next morning, by the time he’s dropping her off.

I feel like most people would’ve tapped out way before this point, and just walked away, so Woo Ju’s earned quite a nice number of brownie points with me.

E1-2. I appreciate that Show takes the time to create a situation where Woo Ju needs Me Ri’s help too, to balance things out.

It is certainly unbelievable that Woo Ju would take up Eung Su’s wager – that he’ll quit his job if he doesn’t manage to extend the copyright contract at the same rate – but my handy cartoon lens makes it pretty easy for me to just roll right along and accept it as Show’s way of giving Woo Ju a reason to accept Me Ri’s wild proposal.

I also appreciate that Me Ri attempts to solve this whole conundrum, by reaching out to Jerk Woo Ju and his family, all of whom want nothing to do with her (of course).

Again, this way, it gives us some kind of consolation that Me Ri’s not reaching for fraud as her first choice, y’know?

E3-4. It actually makes sense, that Woo Ju’s not moving in with Me Ri, and is, instead, telling her not to live at the house because he doesn’t want to run the risk of them getting caught.

I also appreciate that Me Ri does her best to keep her word, from looking for a jjimjilbang, to calling her only friend, before she ends up at that motel.

Yes, my brain wonders why there is only one jjimjilbang that Me Ri can consider in the entire city of Seoul, but I guess this is one of those things that we’re meant to just shrug and ignore – because writer-nim needs Me Ri to crash at the shadiest of motels, in order to eventually ignite Woo Ju’s concern, yes?

To Woo Ju’s credit, though, I think that he does show a fair amount of kindness, even before he sees the motel conditions.

Like when that staff member keeps trying to make Me Ri pay for the group outing expenses, I really like that Woo Ju steps in and takes care of the bill so naturally, while stating that it’s their group expense, and shouldn’t be paid by someone who’s from another company.

And then, when the same staff member tries to drag Me Ri along to the noraebang (also so that Me Ri would be conveniently there to shove the bill on), Woo Ju puts a stop to it by insisting on taking Me Ri home.

I just really like these little indications that Woo Ju’s looking out for Me Ri. 🥰

Afterwards, when Woo Ju starts to feel uneasy about the perceived shiftiness of the motel employee, you can see the concern rising in his eyes, and then, when he hears Me Ri yelp over the phone and thinks that she might have been attacked by said motel employee, he runnnns over there, and doesn’t think twice about punching the guy in the face.

Aw. Poor Motel Guy, who turns out to be not so shady after all. 😅

I think it says a lot, that when Woo Ju hears that Me Ri literally has nowhere else to go, he takes her to the prize townhouse, even though he still has concerns about them being caught.

The fact that he would prioritize Me Ri’s comfort and safety over his concerns about maybe having a criminal record, does endear him to me some more. 🥲

E3-4. Mosquito-Gate is the catalyst for the wedding photoshoot, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching Woo Ju and Me Ri cozy up for the camera and getting into character while doing so. 🤭

I did think that it was quite clichéd that Woo Ju would have that moment of wonder, when he first sees Me Ri in that wedding dress, and on first watch, I did chafe a little, that this came off as being rather.. superficial?

My brain was all, “What, will he mainly like her for her looks, then?”

BUT THEN. Show gives us that reveal, at the end of episode 4 (which again, I hadn’t been expecting), that Woo Ju at this point, has already realized that Me Ri is the little girl who’d given him that stuffed bear, which had turned out to be such a big lifeline for him.

AHHH! 🤩🤩

I know I’m getting ahead of myself in terms of episode events, but I just had to mention this now, because this context is putting a whole new lens on how I view all the events after this point, and I love it. 😁

It absolutely adds a layer of meaning to how Woo Ju is really going out of his way to help Me Ri, even going so far as to suggest wedding photos, because she’s no longer this woman whom he’s just met; she’s the person who’d given him a lifeline, in the darkest time of his life.

I do really enjoy the idea that his gratitude for her kindness, is threading through everything that he’s doing now, to help her.

Even though it’s completely tropey that they’d have to kiss in order to throw Se Jung off the scent, I really do appreciate the way Show leans into the minutiae of the moment, with Me Ri and Woo Ju taking turns to initiate a kiss, and also, surrendering to the kiss.

It effectively conveys that neither of them dislikes the idea of actually kissing the other person, yes? 😁

Speaking of skinship necessitated by external factors, of course there’s also how our OTP decides to put on their best lovey-dovey act, in order to satisfy MD Baek’s suspicious side-eyes.

I have to confess that I’d found their act quite awkward and therefore unconvincing, but that contextual layer that Show adds on later, that Woo Ju is already aware of Me Ri’s identity by this point, and is actually enjoying the excuse to treat her with affection, definitely adds some sparkle on hindsight. 😁

Of course, some moments don’t require that additional layer of context to qualify as highlights – like that moment when Woo Ju looks up at the wedding photo and smiles to himself, like he likes what he sees.

And how about that fact that he and Me Ri get along to well and chat so easily, that he literally forgets the time – and the fact that he’d promised to meet up with Jin Gyeong.

I especially like that moment when Me Ri sighs that she’s done with giving her all for love, and he responds by saying that she doesn’t have to be the one to change; that he’s sure that she’ll meet someone who won’t take her love for granted.

Aw. That is truly such an uplifting thing to say; I love it. 🥲

E3-4. I love it when Woo Ju’s kind, and he’s kind again, when he goes over to pass Me Ri the food that Mom had left for her, and notices that she’s teary and out of sorts.

I really like that he notices, first of all, and then, I like that he persists in expressing concern, even when Me Ri tries to brush it off. And then I like that he doesn’t impose his opinion on Me Ri, but makes a gentle suggestion, that perhaps Mom is ready to hear Me Ri’s side of the story now.

Aw. That’s very supportive without being invasive, I feel. 🥲

E5-6. I’m happy that our OTP gets a nice amount of time together, these episodes.

For example, there’s how Beaute Department Store engages Woo Ju’s company to produce their special anniversary gifts – which gives Me Ri’s company a chance to get involved, in designing the packaging.

And I do like that because they’re both a bit jumpy about being caught by MD Baek, Woo Ju requests that Me Ri call him 4 times a day – because that’s what real couples do, heh.

I’m sure Woo Ju’s not at all upset that he’ll get to hear from Me Ri on such a regular basis. 😁

I mean, I’m not super hot on the childhood connection trope myself, but I’m fine with it being used as a plot catalyst, because we only have 12 episodes to work with.

And, while I do think it’s kind of dorky-silly that Woo Ju’s so pleased that Me Ri praised the shape of his head as a kid, it is true that when you’re infatuated with someone, any little thing that they say just affects you extra.

I’d wondered why Woo Ju would hesitate to tell Me Ri who he really is, but we find out the reason, in his conversation with Jin Gyeong.

How tragic, that Me Ri’s father had died in an accident while on the way to the police station to give an additional witness statement. 😱 So bloodthirsty, writer-nim! 👀

And wow, what a burden Woo Ju’s carrying; he believes that he’d caused his parents’ deaths, on his birthday, no less, and now he also believes that he’d indirectly caused Me Ri’s father’s death too.

That’s so cruel, and it’s a wonder that Woo Ju’s turned out reasonably normal – aside from his regular nightmares. 😟

It also looks like Woo Ju’s prone to anxiety attacks, given that he almost has one, from having overheard the cruel things that his aunt had said, back at the temple.

I do think it says a lot, that an invitation from Me Ri to have a home-cooked meal would pull Woo Ju out of his funk, to even be able to forego the medication that he’d been about to take.

I know it’s utterly tropey, but I am a sucker for anything that indicates that one half of an OTP has a healing effect on the other half. 🥰

And then, again, it’s tropey that Me Ri would botch at least one dish in preparing dinner, but I like how they just laugh about it, and I like even more, that Woo Ju opens up and shares his painful secret with Me Ri; that he believes his parents had died because of him, and on his birthday, no less.

It’s so poignant to hear Woo Ju talk about how he’d chosen to eat lots of rice on his birthday, so that he’d get sleepy quickly and go to bed, so that the next day would arrive sooner.

You can tell that Me Ri’s quite affected by his truth, and is trying to cheer him up, by telling him that he chose well, and that it’s fine to forget one day in the entire year.

I don’t personally feel like it’s the most sympathetic thing to say, but I’m glad that Woo Ju clearly understands that she’s coming from a place of wanting to offer him moral support. 🥲

I was also a sucker for the scene on the rooftop, because, first, it’s so pretty, with the double rainbow and everything, and then, how sweet, that Woo Ju’s wish is that Me Ri’s wishes will come true, and finally, how about the fact that, after that tropiest of falls where Me Ri lands in his arms, Woo Ju’s literally leaning in to kiss Me Ri, and probably would have, if Me Ri hadn’t spotted Jerk Woo Ju downstairs, and gotten spooked.

Like, wait, Woo Ju’s at a point where he’s ready to kiss Me Ri??? Eee! 🤭🤭 My fangirl heart is quite thrilled about this.

But of course, we don’t actually get to delve into this just yet, with the way Jerk Woo Ju comes barging back into Me Ri’s world.

Even though Me Ri doesn’t want to bother Woo Ju with this information at first, I’m relieved that they do talk about it before long, because I think it’s very important that Woo Ju’s aware that Jerk Woo Ju is back, and is showing up in Me Ri’s life.

It feels like a big deal, that Woo Ju would tell Me Ri that he’ll help her, because Jerk Woo Ju hasn’t done anything, and shouldn’t benefit from the house that Me Ri had won all on her own.

The way Me Ri rushes forward to hug him does feel rather sudden to my eyes, but I think this is just writer-nim’s way of informing us of just how comfortable Me Ri feels with Woo Ju now, that she would instinctively hug him, even if it’s out of gratitude.

And I must say, Woo Ju definitely looks like he’s sinking happily into the sensation of being hugged by Me Ri. 🥰😁

It’s pretty cute how his boyfriend instincts all come out, when he’s at Me Ri’s house, and insists on helping her to fix stuff, so that she won’t have to call the maintenance office – which is how we get that quick but still hilarious scene where Woo Ju gets unexpectedly attacked by Me Ri’s shower. 🤭

Choi Woo Sik’s reaction faces are pretty great. 😁

E5-6. I do like the thing where Woo Ju sees Jerk with his arm around Me Ri, and gets uncomfortable and jealous enough to help Jerk to his hospital bed, so that Me Ri wouldn’t have to.

What thrills me most, is the fact that, when Woo Ju and Me Ri talk about things, and she asks him why he seems angry, he comes right out and says that he must like her, since he doesn’t like seeing her with another guy.

Ooh! Now this is a level of self-awareness and honesty that I hadn’t quite been expecting, coz, as you guys likely know, this isn’t typical at all, in a trope-filled rom-com. 😁

Now I’m verrry curious to see how Me Ri responds to this very unexpected, blurted-out confession, so you can be sure I’ll be tuning in next week! 😁

E7-8. We start episode 7 with Woo Ju’s matter-of-fact admission that he has feelings for Me Ri, and honestly, the scene is played very low-key, and I found it all quite cute and amusing, how their conversation evolves from turn to turn, until Woo Ju’s suddenly trying to prove that he’s reliable marriage material. 😁

I really appreciate the comic timing of our leads here, because the beats in this conversation are small, so it’s not big physical comedy or anything. Rather, the scene works because of their restrained and detailed deliveries of their lines, and I found it all very enjoyable and fun.

At the end of it, although I did deflate a little, when Woo Ju says to Me Ri to just take it that he never said anything, I very much appreciated that Woo Ju himself does not do so, and absolutely acts the part of an earnest suitor wanting to court his dream lady. 🥲

Also, even though Me Ri’s stunned stuttered reactions aren’t super encouraging, she does later send Woo Ju that message, saying that she won’t do anything that might cause him to be bothered again.

Elaine pointed out that the subtitles aren’t super helpful here, because the subs say that she won’t do anything to bother him again, which could easily be interpreted to mean that she’ll be distancing herself from Woo Ju, when really, the dialogue is more about her not making him worry (be bothered) in the future – which is why Woo Ju smiles in response.

It’s all very wholesome and cute, how Woo Ju goes about courting Me Ri, picking her up and telling her that she’s the first passenger of his new car, and bringing her flowers – and even showing her his old journals from long ago, to prove that he’d always had good saving habits. 😁

That impromptu sleepover is wholesome and cute too, with Woo Ju crashing on Me Ri’s couch, and them texting each other even though they’re in the same house – and then both looking so content, to be in the same house. 🥰

E7-8. I’m glad that once Woo Ju gets wind of the fact that Jin Gyeong’s (Shin Seul Ki) presumed to tell Me Ri to stay away from him, heads straight to Me Ri, and tells her that he likes her.

Ok, it’s not as straightforward as that, coz he needs to track her down first, and then they need to clear the air between them, about their connection as kids, plus there’s also the thing where Woo Ju feels guilty about indirectly causing Me Ri’s dad’s death.

On that point, I’m glad that Me Ri sets him straight in such a natural, genuine sort of way, telling him that neither she nor her mom blames him for Dad’s death, so he doesn’t need to feel sorry about it. 🥲

I will say, though, that Woo Ju leaning in to kiss Me Ri, right after telling her that he likes her, does feel rather sudden and awkward, to my eyes.

I feel like I’ve been spoiled by those dramas where the male lead actually ascertains that he has permission to kiss the female lead, before he does so; I felt like Woo Ju was rather abrupt in initiating this kiss. 😅

But, it is true that Me Ri doesn’t actually mind, so I guess it’s kind of fine, though I would have preferred some kind of indication that Woo Ju was proceeding with the assurance that Me Ri was ok with him kissing her.

I did like that piggyback moment, though, because he’s consciously trying to recreate for her, a special moment that she’d shared with Dad, when Dad had carried her on his shoulders, in the same spot.

I thought that was pretty sweet. 🥲

It’s also pretty wholesome how Mom’s taking to Woo Ju and going out of her way to be nice to him, like getting that special chicken, which is usually reserved for sons-in-law, to make that ginseng chicken soup for breakfast.

[END SPOILER]

Seo Bum June as Jerk Woo Ju

I feel like with Jerk Woo Ju, writer-nim truly set out to create the most whiney character possible.

It’s clear that Seo Bum June really leans into the character and is hamming it up for the camera for the entirety of our show – and yet, I couldn’t find it within me, to find any of it amusing. 😅

How I processed his actions, was basically that him being eye-rollingly infuriating, is all part of the process, and we need him in the picture, doing his annoying, infuriating thing, in order to nudge our OTP closer to each other.

I still loved to hate him, though. 😅

[SPOILER ALERT]

E5-6. I have to put it out there: Jerk Woo Ju sure has a lot of GALL, the way he tries to get back together with Me Ri like nothing ever happened, as if he hadn’t blatantly cheated on her with someone else, and then heartlessly dumped her and blocked her, even though he knew that Me Ri had lost her mother’s savings, due to the rental scam involving the apartment that he’d been living in.

The way he’s acting, it’s like he’d only made a tiny mistake in their relationship, and now Me Ri’s being unreasonable by not taking him back.

Huh. AS IF.

I’m glad that through these episodes, Me Ri remains clear on how awful Jerk Woo Ju had been to her, and that she has no desire to rekindle their relationship. Hmph. 😑

[END SPOILER]

Bae Na Ra as MD Baek

My biggest thought around MD Baek, is that Bae Na Ra seriously reminds me of a younger Joo Ji Hoon. Do you guys see the resemblance? 😁

[BROAD SPOILERS]

I did come to like MD Baek better later in our story, and a lot of it has to do with how Show positions him as a bit of an underdog, who’s suffered at CEO Lee’s hands for years, because CEO Lee basically treats him as a punching bag.

That alone gave him a bit of an underdog quality to my eyes, and I’m glad that MD Baek eventually arrives at a place of justice – in a manner of speaking.

[END BROAD SPOILERS]

Shin Seul Ki as Jin Gyeong

I have to confess that Jin Gyeong mostly rubbed me the wrong way, as a character.

I did come around to like her better, by our finale stretch, but for most of my watch, I didn’t like her very much, thanks to the things that she’s written to say and do.

Well, I think it’s partly the writing, and partly that I don’t find that Shin Seul Ki’s charm is sufficient to overcome the behavior which I find far from ideal.

Here are a couple of key examples of behavior from Jin Gyeong that I found myself objecting to.

[SPOILER ALERT]

E7-8. Honestly, I find myself now actively rooting against any potential loveline between her and MD Baek, because I just don’t like the way she imposes on MD Baek’s personal space.

The way she talks to him over that lunch feels invasive and presumptuous, with her asking him personal questions like why he’s so intimidated by his CEO.

This, when she really barely knows him, and when he clearly would prefer to avoid further personal contact with her.

As someone who values my personal space a great deal, I felt really bad for MD Baek, that he gets put upon by Jin Gyeong, over and over again, to the point that she gets so drunk that he has to take her home with him and put her up for the night.

Gah. That’s an introvert’s nightmare, I tell ya, and to my eyes, Jin Gyeong is not charming enough to make me not mind. 😅

Additionally, there’s the thing where she takes it upon herself to tell Me Ri to leave Woo Ju alone.

I thought it was extremely presumptuous of her to do this, and even more so, when she tells her who Woo Ju really is, because that’s not her secret to tell.

I’m relieved though, that she ‘fesses up to Woo Ju quickly, and I’m glad that Woo Ju heads straight to Me Ri, and tells her that he likes her.

Still not cool, though.

[END SPOILER]

MD Baek and Jin Gyeong

Show starts gearing up for a loveline between MD Baek and Jin Gyeong from pretty early in our story, and like I alluded to above, I was ambivalent towards this loveline, at best, for much of my watch.

It just felt like Show was forcing a loveline just for the sake of it, rather than that these two people were really suited to each other.

It was a tough sell for me, but I will concede that by Show’s finale episodes, I’d come around to this loveline more than I’d originally thought I would.

[SPOILER ALERT]

As for the infamous scene in E5-6 where MD Baek intervenes when he spies that guy perving on Jin Gyeong, I do agree with all of its detractors, that it was not appropriately handled by our writers, and that MD Baek shouldn’t have made it about Jin Gyeong covering herself up, and he shouldn’t have let the perv go.

But, I take Show’s point, that he went out of his way to help and protect Jin Gyeong, and that this counted towards their burgeoning connection.

[END SPOILER]

SPOTLIGHT ON THE PENULTIMATE EPISODES [SPOILERS]

E9-10. I have to confess that I currently have mixed feelings about this show, my friends.

I feel like the slurpy rom-com that I’d enjoyed in Show’s earlier episodes has now gone away, and now, to my eyes, it feels like Show is just going through the paces, to get us to our happy ending.

Not that I’m opposed to a happy ending, to be clear; it’s just that I find myself less engaged and invested in this story than I’d been at first, and I’m rather disappointed about that.

The main thing that bugs me, I think, is that Show isn’t really investing time or effort into exploring our OTP relationship.

Instead, it’s relying on external pressures in order to maintain a sense of narrative tension, and then conveniently forgetting to actually work on exploring and strengthening our OTP connection.

On the upside, Show seems to be moving through the angst reasonably quickly, in that I do think (or at least I hope) that the obstacles will all be dealt with and wrapped up early enough, that we’ll be able to get some proper focus on our happy ending.

First, let’s talk about Jerk Woo Ju, because we open episode 9 with him barging his way back into Me Ri’s life, after figuring out that they’re not officially divorced, and that Me Ri’s won that townhouse, in the Beauté Department Store raffle.

I must say that Seo Bum June does a good job of making Jerk Woo Ju really annoying, so much so that I want to reach into my screen and slap him upside the head, for being such an idiot.

It’s horrible that he would threaten Me Ri like that, and then be all presumptuous about starting over with her, after she confirms that she’s broken up with Woo Ju.

On that note, it’s really such an old trope, that she would break up with Woo Ju without telling him the real reason why; she even tries to make herself look like a materialistic person who’s backing out of her promise to confess everything to MD Baek.

Ideally, I would have liked her to be upfront and honest with Woo Ju, even if she was determined to break up with him, but oh well. I guess this show started off with lots of tropes, so I can’t exactly fault it for continuing to use lots of tropes, right? 😅

I’m glad that the breakup doesn’t last for long, and I did get a stab of satisfaction, that Woo Ju manages to turn the tables on Jerk, with that recording that proves that Jerk actually wants the fraud to continue, and has threatened to harm Me Ri, if she tries to come clean about it all.

And so – for now, anyway – it feels like the narrative tension surrounding our OTP is resolved, which, I believe, is why we get MD Baek overhearing Me Ri’s conversation with Gran, which indicates very clearly, that Me Ri isn’t married to Woo Ju.

On this point, I have to say, it’s really very convenient that Jin Gyeong overhears all the right conversations, in order to be able to save Woo Ju from MD Baek’s desire to reveal the truth and take away the townhouse from Me Ri – while subjecting Me Ri and Woo Ju from the consequences of their ruse.

Yet, I find that I don’t really mind, because I do rather like the idea of Jin Gyeong selflessly protecting Woo Ju, even though she’s basically blackmailing MD Baek in order to do so. 😅

I dunno; it feels like our characters are basically breaking the law a lot, in our story, and I’ve gotten used to it? 🙈😅

Up to this point, I hadn’t cared one way or another, whether there might be a loveline between Jin Gyeong and MD Baek, but in episode 10, we do get that conversation at the bar, which feels the most honest and friendly, so far.

There’s the way MD Baek asks Jin Gyeong why she would go so far for someone who doesn’t see her as a woman, and there’s also the way Jin Gyeong encourages him to step away from Beauté, saying that his debt to them has already been paid.

These are pretty personal topics, and for once, it feels like they’re communicating on a two-way street, with both sides being willing to participate in the conversation.

This is the first time I feel like there might be a little bit of positive foundation there, for a loveline. Maybe.

As for the arc involving Shady Uncle and his shady plan to take over Myungsoondang, I’d say that it escalated faster than I’d anticipated, and went further than I’d expected, but then also seems to be wrapping up faster and more easily than I’d expected too.

What I mean is, I hadn’t expected Shady Uncle to try to kill Gran, though I can’t exactly say why. I mean, he’s literally already killed Woo Ju’s parents, in his quest to claim the company for himself. I guess it’s because this show is mostly bright and cheerful, and I somehow thought that any killing would be kept in the past..? 😅

ANYWAY. Phew that Gran survives, though she’s still unconscious as I type this. I’m guessing though, that our bright and cheerful show will allow Gran to survive, and even make a solid recovery from this murder attempt.

Speaking of which, I rather like how straightforward it is, to entrap Jessica and arrest her for trying to kill Gran. Talk about being caught in the act. 😁

Good on Eung Su for baiting Shady Uncle with the fake news, that Gran’s regained consciousness, which then leads Shady Uncle to send Jessica to do the deed.

It’s not surprising – but somehow, still weirdly satisfying – to see that Shady Uncle has no loyalty towards Jessica whatsoever, and is ready to cut ties with her and let her take the fall for everything on her own.

I think I wanted Shady Uncle to prove what a calculative, heartless douchebag he really is, because this way, there’ll certainly be no redemption arc for him, yes?

And also, I find myself feeling some schadenfreude where Jessica is concerned, because she’s been so quietly gleeful all these years, thinking that she’s got Shady Uncle’s heart, while helping him to do all these criminal things.

Because Jessica’s invested some measure of sincere emotion and trust in this relationship, I’m not surprised that she would cave and promise to give Woo Ju all the information and evidence that he needs to take Shady Uncle down.

On that note, good job, Show, for actually giving Woo Ju a real reason for going to Shady Uncle and confronting him, saying that he’s going to expose everything.

Usually, characters do that just for dramatic effect, and I sit here shaking my head at how they’re just alerting the enemy for no good reason.

But not this time, muahaha. Woo Ju had a real reason for provoking Shady Uncle, coz it’s from this confrontation, that he gets that recording of Shady Uncle claiming that Jessica’s the one blackmailing him, and that he doesn’t even know if Henry is his son.

Unfortunately, Shady Uncle finds the evidence before Woo Ju gets to it, so we’re not quite out of the woods yet.

But I have 100% confidence that our good guys will triumph over Shady Uncle in the end, so my main ask of our finale episodes, is that we wrap this up satisfactorily, as well as put Jerk Woo Ju in some corner, never to disturb our OTP again – and then maybe dwell in some warm, fuzzy, tropey happy-ever-afters for everyone else. 🥰

Here’s hoping that Show will deliver!

THOUGHTS ON THE ENDING [SPOILERS]

E11-12. All in all, I’d say that this finale might not have blown me away, but it was reasonably enjoyable, and it left me reasonably satisfied.

I have to confess, though, that I didn’t have strong feelings for this finale.

I guess my affection for Show had petered out somewhat, over time, and by the time I got to the finale, I just.. wasn’t as invested as I’d been, in the beginning. 😅

Like I’d hoped, the whole thing with Shady Uncle gets wrapped up fairly quickly, leaving us time for other things.

I guess the good thing about Shady Uncle being behind so many bad things, is that justice for all of those things is achieved pretty much in one fell swoop, eh?

Yes, it is a little convenient that the statute of limitations is extended due to Shady Uncle spending some time overseas, but I’ll take it, because I’d rather he be punished for killing Woo Ju’s parents, than not.

On that note, I have to say, the emotions in our characters around his sentencing, landed as a bit shallow &/or hollow, to my eyes.

I do understand that this is a rom-com and most likely that’s why Show is opting to keep things light, but it did strike me as rather strange, that our characters are able to move on so quickly, after Shady Uncle’s decades-long betrayal comes to light and he’s brought to justice.

But fine. Y’know, I do realize that I am contradicting myself a bit here, on the one hand saying that I’d like Shady Uncle’s arc to be wrapped up quickly so we can move on, and then on the other hand saying that the emotions are too shallow – because we move on so quickly. 🙈

Sorry. I guess my inner drama fangirl just wants to have it all. 😅

Moving on.

It feels right, that Me Ri and Woo Ju would ‘fess up about the fake marriage and return the house, because of course Show would want our leads to have clear consciences, as they move into their happy-ever-after.

And then, I thought it was a pretty amusing situation, to see that CEO Lee would be desperate to transfer ownership of the house to Me Ri, because he doesn’t want to be caught for trying to bribe the Mayor.

Maybe this is why Me Ri gets away with fraud, since Beauté now actually wants to give her the house, even though she’s not accepting it?

Show doesn’t actually go into what happens to CEO Lee, but I’m not fussed about that, since we never really spent all that much time on him as a character anyway.

On a related note, I do feel satisfied with where we leave MD Baek and Jin Gyeong.

Given that MD Baek had engaged in shady dealings as part of his job, it makes sense to me that he’d be given the chance to pay for his crimes and start over, on a clean slate.

And I do like that Jin Gyeong’s part of MD Baek’s journey.

First, it’s her words about how he’s already repaid the favor that CEO Lee and his family have shown him, and that he should feel free to choose his own path now.

And then, when he makes up his mind to come clean to the authorities and pay the price for his actions, it’s Jin Gyeon whom he asks, to take care of his pet turtles – and that’s the thing that keeps their connection alive, during the year that he serves in prison.

All in all, I thought this was a reasonably realistic yet hopeful note on which to wrap up this arc.

As for Jerk Woo Ju, I still do feel like we spent too much screen time on him and his toxic mom and sister, but I do like that in the end, it’s kindness and grace that gets him to finally let go.

I honestly don’t know if I would have had the capacity to show him kindness the way Me Ri does, when she sits with him and tells him that she’s happy now, and would like him to be happy too.

As for the way Toxic Mom and Toxic Sis go to Chairman Gran and do their best to talk Me Ri down, I wish we hadn’t spent time on that, because it’s not like they really get comeuppance for trying to do Me Ri dirty.

All we get is that catfight between Me Ri’s mom and sis, with Toxic Mom and Toxic Sis, and I didn’t find that very funny nor satisfying, if I’m being brutally honest. 🙈😅

Afterwards, I thought it was rather forced, that Show would then have Me Ri and Woo Ju drift apart, so that Me Ri would misunderstand that Gran didn’t approve of her, when that isn’t the case at all.

I felt like Show was trying to toy with our feeling there, a little bit.

Of course it doesn’t work, though, because we all knew that we were going to get a happy ending for our OTP, yes?

It feels fitting, that we’d end our story at our OTP’s wedding, with everyone gathered together in one place, and smiling happy smiles.

It is admittedly very pleasant to see everyone interacting so warmly, and acting like one big happy family, and it is also very cozy, to see our once-fake married couple, become a real married couple after all.

Not a bad note on which to end, although I did have my quibbles with the journey.

THE FINAL VERDICT:

Reasonably sweet at its core, despite a muddied focus.

FINAL GRADE: B

TRAILER:

MV:

PATREON UPDATE!

The next drama I’m covering on Patreon, in place of Would You Marry Me? is Dear X [Korea].

You can check out my episode 1-2 notes on Dear X 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): +Love’s Ambition [China]

Early Access Plus (US$10): +Twelve Letters [China]

VIP (US$15): +Dear X [Korea]