Start-Up (2020)

Not as bad as they say

I think Start-Up doesn't deserve all the hate it gets.

The setting was really nice — I'm not familiar with the startup world at all, so it was interesting, especially given that a vocabulary is provided each episode.

The setup was amazing. Seeing how it evolved and what consequences it brought was amusing and engaging, honestly. I proceeded to the next episode right after, it got me so caught up in the story.

It is actually the first drama where I would be fine with the main character choosing either love interest. They both seem to fit her in the different ways. Seeing them actually compete was hilarious at times.

Family is an important aspect of Start-Up. It is also the part where I teared up the most. Some lessons were made, albeit clichey and obvious. Actually, every time grandma appeared on the screen made me cry.

The drama has its issues, too. Some moments were unnecessary dramatic. Some moments made me think "wtf am i watching right now". Some parts could've been a lot better.

But still, Start-Up made me laugh, and cry, and motivated, and confused between which LI to root for. It made me emotional. I don't expect a cinematic masterpiece out of the dramas. So I enjoyed it very much.

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A unique idea and a nearly perfect execution

Start Up started very well, with unique idea of innovation world with competition among the best. But the way it ended, especially the last 3 episodes, I would say it was nothing like expected.

The emotional connection between Mr Han and the grandma was beautifully portrayed, so was the friendship between the developers/friends of Samsan Tech. The only unexpected thing was the relationship between Jung Sa-Ha and Chul-San although I can understand why they ended up together in the show.

The episodes towards the end felt a bit fast paced, loosing the grip of the story, not much but to certain extent. Although I can't argue who should have ended with whom, and what ending could have been more satisfactory, but I still liked the show very much due to it's unique concept.

MY RATING : 8/10

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Great first and last episodes, with a wild ride in between.

I really liked Dal Mi & Do San so the ending was satisfactory for me. happy for them. Could be because I already knew who the endgame was, but the SLS didn't catch me thankfully lol. but HJP was a great character and that elevator scene where he checked out the size of his hands almost had me switch sides lol. they could have done better with his character, heck even introduced another strong love interest - would have been lovely to see that side of his. That said, his development and growth has been beautiful to see. I didn't really care with dalmi and him ended up together or anything - but his growth with grandma - from call only when you have no place to stay in the rain to call me anyday, anytime even when you are happy. Also finding that purpose in life to help orphan kids like were him was indeed beautiful to see.
The first episode was amazing and that bus scene is sure to stay in my mind for a long time. The writing could have been better from about ep10. too many sub plots introduced that should have been handled and tied up better. the writer also kind of lost her own characters at times. lots of great quotes tho. and last ep they tied up as well they could. loved love yeo jin goo's cameo!! love hjp & nds reconciling too. i love these characters.
And they honestly did InJae dirty. she was introduced as one of the leads but even SaHa got more screentime than her! lost potential.
All in all, do san caught my heart with his nerdy, cute & awkward antics and I want to check out 2521 for NJH now! & Hometown cha cha could be my next watch lol.

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AMAZING DRAMA!

i didn't know what i was getting myself into when i watched this drama. i didn't know any of the actors (a surprise right, not even nam joo hyuk), and i had no idea what the drama was going to be about.

story:
the story was really interesting, i like the way they incorporate sandbox into the drama. as for the love story, i've seen this storyline twice already so it wasn't super shocking or anything but still pretty interesting.

acting/cast:
UH ALL THE CAST ARE SO ATTRACTIVE (especially nam joo hyuk and kang han na imo) and the acting is great, i love how nam do san is clueless half the time it's so funny.

music:
i didn't really pay attention to the music because i'm not that interested in the music from k dramas, i only really pay attention to the music from wuxia c dramas lolol

rewatch value:
i'd watch this again lolol it was good, i binged it all in 2 ish days

overall:
recommend for anyone who likes romance + an emotional aspect! this also incorporates the difficulties for people who are poor/rich. the first episode and last episode made me literally cry my eyes out. even if you don't like romance, this drama is still really good. it hit on all different levels.

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A waste of time

I literally rushed it after ep 8 as I couldn't stand it anymore and I mostly finish what I start. The second male lead was good. And ost. That's it. Nothing else is likable about this drama.
It's not like I hate love triangles ( I wouldn't be able to watch most kdrama then) but I really hate it when it gets frustrating
Like choose one! Also I thought I would see their struggles and how they overcome it. But nope. I'm so disappointed. About the villains wait.... Were there villains?
They even tried to

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If only...

Start-Up is a great story about friends, family and about starting a new bussiness with all sorts of different problems which can come along with it. This could easily be a 10/10 review IF… there’s a big if. Despite the very likeable story and characters, the male lead just didn’t sit well with me (for many reasons). On the other hand, second male lead was made exceptionally well. I related to him in many ways and in emotional scenes I really symphatized with him (which is nice, but it’d be awesome if I felt this way about the main male lead since he’s the main one…).
Like I said this could be a 10/10 but unfortunately the writers chose to go with a different route than I wished, rooted and hoped for. I felt like the history shown between Jipyeong and Dalmi was thrown away too easily and it didn’t really make much sense to me.
Overall though Start-Up is a well-written story. I wouldn’t get discouraged by some reviews here and still give it a shot. I think this series deserves a chance despite its flaws.

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But I happened to understand it anyway

Happened to watch it because my dearest friend recommended it and we decided to watch it together (after 3 episodes). I might say the first 7 - 10 episodes were really interesting. As a person who has zero information about hackathon things, I feel this drama introduced it well and made me think about a lot of opportunities that actually we can take. But, I'm sorry I'm not really into the romance plot, it was just so-so.

The characters were vary and quite interesting, but seriously, I think Han Jipyeong's character could make you stress out (if you take care of the romance plot). But maybe I can understand a bit why he acted like that, he just wanted to avoid any uncomfortable feelings, I guess.

I seriously think I can consider this drama because of the hackathon slash entrepreneur things were really interesting.

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Just a watchable drama

The drama has a good and beautiful finale but again its not good enough to judge a drama completely so for me startup was a watchable drama experience overall. The great writer-director duo with an outstanding bunch of cast itself made big impact on viewers with high expectations, but not everyone may satisfied with some plot changes in the middle the drama. Ofcourse they started really well with a good balance in everything and also its kept going smoothly and exciting with a good screenplay in the first pace.

But they brought some boring plot changes in the middle which was not good though, even the screenplay is lacking in so many things which was totally worst and annoying.(may be i expected differently) I don't want to spoil that but if it's not that case and they don't forcefully using those changes, opinion may different for sure. And again the love traingle was totally annoying in some point. ( It would have been better if they come up with two couples instead 2 men fighting for a women ).

The performance as always good. But i want to point out two characters which i liked the most, one was that halmoni character and the other the 2nd lead han jipyoeng who done an absolutely brilliant performance. For an ongoing watcher i didn't felt too many dragging even though the episodes are lengthy with 80 minutes. (I don't know the case of a binge watching).

There are so many good factors which many would like and they managed with a good conclusion which was a good sign because even if someone felt not good in the middle may think differently in the last 2 episodes and also the climax scene was beautiful

I think this drama has a unique plot and all. But the making was not exactly the way the people's wish. You can give it a try. As i already mentioned some may feel down in some point, try it and figure it

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I watched this back during covid after needing a show to watch during the lockdown and come out of it with a big smile. This is a very warm drama with a good story that I'll admit got me a bit bored towards the backend of it but was still throughably enjoyable to watch.

I wasn't that big a fan of the love triangle but I do think that Dal Mi and Do San were the best option to be together because of how they could relate to one another and although she found a deep friendship with Ji Pyung it felt more of a platonic friendship between them. Dal Mi never really showed a love interest in him despite the reveal of he was who she was really talking to. Do San loved her from the beginning without even knowing a single thing about her other than the letters and did what he could with her best interests at mind even with some lies involved. He never had an intention of completely fooling her with who he really was but with everything getting caught up in another lie it was sometimes hard to tell the truth but through his actions toward Dal Mi and her grandmother his good intentions were easily seeable as good.

I wish we got to see a bit more at the end of the drama with how they built up their company they showed at the end to it's big success from small start-up office because we didn't see much really happen in that office and the self-driving company and even a bit of the wedding would of been fun but so and so.. Also, I really enjoyed Dal Mi's mom and grandmother's relationship after they got together again. They didn't show a whole lot of it but it was super nice.

This is a good drama to sit down and watch with good acting and great OST, bit disappointed how people didn't end up liking it too much because they didn't think Dal Mi ended with the right person. I think people got hit super hard with second-lead syndrome.

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Great representation of family, relationships, friendship and well, starting a business!

I've seen quite a few people bashing this drama but I personally really enjoyed it.
From the production all the way to the actors and storyline this drama is everything I have been searching for.
I personally am a sucker for office-style romantic comedies and I was looking for one where the FL is the CEO as opposed to the ML being the CEO and this drama was suggested to me multiple times. It took me some time to "get into the mood" for it, but once I did I got to enjoy three days' worth of laughter, tears and butterflies!

If you're anything like me - enjoy cheesy rom-coms, amazing friendship dynamics, character development, internal conflicts and learning something new, then I suggest giving Start-Up a go.
I really like dramas that have educational bits and bobs in them and similarly to Suspicious Partner, this drama had small explainers throughout on business, investing and start-up terminology which I found very educational. In addition, if you have no idea how start-ups work, then this looks like a fun introduction. Also, I really enjoyed how each episode had a start-up related theme, which also tied in with the whole storyline of the series (character development, relationships, what events may take place etc.).
I also wanted to give a separate shout-out to the director and production team. I managed to cry nearly in every episode including the first. I mean, I have never had such a strong emotional connection to a drama - crying on episode one. But I think the storyline was so greatly developed and the actors were able to portray that storyline so well that viewers could emotionally connect with them, feel what the characters felt and let their emotions go wild!

Honestly, this drama was a great journey and I would definitely watch it again :)

Okay, SPOILER-FREE review over, let's get into the good stuff!

This drama was my introduction to the wonderful Bae Su-zy who is considered to be Korea's Sweatheart and oh boy do I see why! She embraced her character so well and was able to portray an amazing Seo Dal-Mi and one I could relate to. A girl in her mid-20's who doesn't really know what she wants to do and is stuck fantasizing about a boy she wrote letters to 15 years ago who she never met turns into an astounding woman, who is strong, confident and inspirational. The amount of character development she alone goes through from doing things just to win in a battle against her sister to actually having a goal that is for the greater good and not for a petty vendetta.
I also really liked that this drama highlighted the fact that you do not need to have a university degree to succeed in life, however, if you do not, people will judge you and think you are "stupid" or "not worth it". Higher education is ridiculously expensive and not everyone can afford it - that's why start-ups and small businesses exist - to give people a chance to succeed.

Nam Joo-Hyuk portrayed a great ML. Nam Do-San was just perfect. I really enjoyed that for the first time in a long time we had a ML in a drama who was sincerely interested in the FL and did not try to hide it (unlike our second ML Mr. Han Ji-Pyeong). Yes, he was a little bit of a geek but his geekiness made him so innocent and pure that he brought me pure joy. You could see his actions were reflecting his good intentions and even though they might not have been the right path at times, he was such a pure soul I wanted to protect at all costs.
It became quite clear from the very beginning that Dal-Mi and Do-San would end up together at the end and honestly I did not mind that. I oftentimes hate love triangles, just because the second ML usually gets dumped, left behind all by themselves (which was sort of the case with this drama), but Ji-Pyeong annoyed me a little so I was a hardcore Dal-Mi x Do-San shipper.

Ji-Pyeong was portrayed by Kim Seon-Ho who I think did a great job of playing a lost and lovestruck man who doesn't really know what family means or how to express his emotions. By the choice of my words, it becomes quite clear that I was not the biggest Ji-Pyeong fan, but I can excuse a big part of his actions on the fact that he grew up in an orphanage and never knew what family meant.
I mean, this guy lived with Dal-Mi's grandmother for like a year, made a ton of money, left for Seoul and just disappeared? Who does that? Personally, it feels like pure disrespect to the person who took you in and I was very happy to see him integrate into Dal-Mi's family later on in the series (I was also really rooting for him to end up with Dal-Mi's older sister In-Jae just because it made more sense for him to end up with her - they were both older, ambitious, successful... and well, lonely - match made in heaven if you ask me! And I am really hoping they ended up together once the drama ended :))
Another thing that really bugged me about Ji-Pyeong was his lack of balls. Let me explain. Ji-Pyeong was way older than Dal-Mi and Do-San. While Do-San was in San Francisco for three years, Ji-Pyeong did not get the courage to just ask Dal-Mi out, I mean he made his feelings clear, she shot him down once, and he just sat back and watched her hoping Do-San will never return back to Korea. Again, who does that? This man had so many chances to just get the girl of his dreams and he lost them all. Then, when he saw that he was going to lose to Do-San when he came back from SF he decided to play it dirty by lying that he was dating Dal-Mi. God this man bugs me. He did call her telling her he regretted his actions straight away but Jesus I was ready to punch him at times.
Because of his actions though, we can see he is kind. And I am happy to see him finally let go by the end of the series. It's refreshing and shows growth and I am really hoping he finds his person later on.

Now, I wanted to give a special shout out to Seo In-Jae, Dal-Mi's older sister portrayed by Kang Han-na. Honestly, I first couldn't understand how a child could just so coldly turn their back on their own father, who only wanted the best for them. I mean she was a stone-cold **** and I hated her guts. Even after when Dal-Mi was let go from SamSang Tech when it was acquired by 2STO and you could see In-Jae felt bad for her sister she did not offer any help. Just advice which was delivered in such a harsh manner, maybe it would have been best to say nothing at all?
I have a lot of pride, so if I were in Dal-Mi's situation would I have been able to go for a job interview at my sister's company, who was hiring, knew I was in trouble and did not offer help? Probably not. But I guess this is what the drama tried to show us - that maybe sometimes it's best to step down that pride pedestal and choose your battles wisely. If Dal-Mi would have never joined In-Jae's company, they would have never made up. Granted In-Jae did go through quite a lot but I really wish we saw her character development earlier on in the drama and not just in the last few episodes.

I also wanted to mention the friendship dynamics represented in this drama because they were so good. I never had such a close group of friends like Do-San had and I would kill to have even half of what he has in the drama. Their friendship is so strong and you can see them supporting each other no matter what. Inside jokes and the way they act with one another were also so realistic, it seemed like the actors themselves had fun shooting their friendship scenes.

And of course family! The drama is big on family and children-parent relationships.
First, we have Dal-Mi's family which fell apart when she was in her early teens. She and her sister stopped talking pretty soon, her mum was not present and her father passed away early on so she was brought up by her grandmother. We can see how much admiration Dal-Mi has for her grandmother, how much she cherishes her and cares for her. We can see how her grandmother is trying to mend and bring their family back together by accepting back Dal-Mi's mother who left Dal-Mi's father in one of the worst ways possible. I think this drama did a great job at representing women as the head of the family, which is so important (even when it came to Do-San's family you could see his father "had the upper hand" but his mother controlled it).

Then, we have Ji-Pyeong, an orphan who doesn't know what family is but so desperately longs for it and loses it only to regain it again. I think his storyline was pretty great and contrasted with Dal-Mi's perfectly.

And finally, we have Do-San, an only child - the son, who made it his life's goal to please and make his father proud and kept failing. His failures built up this fear inside of him which stopped him from telling his parents the truth. I think the part where Do-San tells his father that they should no longer strive to be each others' pride was a key development in their relationship. I also really enjoyed all the parts where Do-San asked his parents for dating advice, which, if I am not mistaken, came only after the pride conversation he had with his dad.

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A Feel-Good Watch

I'm not an experienced K-Drama watcher by any means. But most of what I've seen are rom-coms so I had an idea of what to expect. Personally, I think I found this drama at the right time. Most of my enjoyment comes from how much I relate to the two leading characters (mid-twenties with hopes and dreams but feeling lost, stuck on what to do, etc). But there are other reasons as well.

First and foremost, the two main characters SDM and NDS. I like that they're awkward around each other, because I can imagine such interactions in real life. We can't expect everyone to be confident, smooth-talking and flirtatious. I think it's important to show that there are people who are not like that, and are able to make things work in their own way. SDM is more outgoing, and NDS is more introverted, but ultimately they are both very earnest, naïve, and have similar values. They balance and build each other up. Individually though, I think SDM had more spark, and had more potential to grow. She also had more to lose based on her past. As for NDS who had a thriving childhood, he was not as ambitious unless it was something he really cared about, so he didn't grow as much.

Now let me talk about HJP and CWD (who I'll affectionately call Granny, like I did while watching). This was my favourite relationship in the whole show and I wish we saw more of it. So wholesome. I get that one of the main genres is romance, but their relationship is so unique and beautiful that I just couldn't get enough of it. When an act of kindness cannot be repaid, of course you'd be grateful, yet anxious. HJP was on his toes the whole time to help Granny, but there are things that even his incredible resources couldn't solve. He appeared to be a lead but turned out to be more of a secondary character. Despite that, he was a character that made you want to cheer him on until the very end. He definitely stole the show, as many reviewers have said. I personally found him the most likeable.

My critique begins here.

I had mixed feelings on how the story started and how the characters were introduced. The promo poster shows four characters so I expected four leads, but in the show it's more centered around two leads, one secondary character, and the last one is barely there, mostly in her own story. This is the sister, WIJ, who I wish we could have seen more of, as she experienced many issues that were unique to her. Unfortunately, we mostly see her with her sister and not alone.

Another concern are the letters - which drove the start of the show - which are occasionally forgotten until they are brought up to fuel the love triangle (which by the way, was not very convincing). When they aren't mentioned, the characters continue on as if how they were brought together wasn't that important, as they're too focused on the future. It was a confusing back-and-forth. That's where the drama came from.

The character development could have been better, and the stakes could have been higher. Some major conflicts were resolved too quickly despite the suspense. They were missed opportunities for character development. Subplots involving minor characters could have been explored more and organized better. Some things were long forgotten and then came back, and other things happened way too suddenly to make any sense.

Overall, this was a satisfying watch. There was a good amount of comedy. My favourite parts were the bromance. As for the "drama" genre, there is definitely drama in this drama but it doesn't last very long. I'd say it's mostly a rom-com, making it a feel-good watch.

Last but not least: the sound track is wonderful, and is good for easy listening any time. The cinematography is great too: the way they play with colour, transitions, and composition keep your eyes on the screen.

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Spread Love, Not Hate

This is a very informative, inspiring, & heartwarming show. This show breaks stereotypes, breaks gender roles, & loves differentiation. It was my first time to watch a Kdrama where Nam Joo Hyuk & Kim Seon Ho are included in the cast but it’s very clear to me that the main male lead is Nam Joo hyuk. Dosan’s (Joohyuk) apperance in ep 1 is short but impactful. Episode 1 laid the foundation on what will be the main plot & who are the main characters. It’s clear as day that Dalmi(Bae Suzy) & Dosan(Joo hyuk) are the main characters where the main plot which is about “Start-Up” and its theme “Youth Coding Romance” revolve. The letters were plot devices to help Dosan & Dalmi meet. I cried buckets in episode 1 because of Dalmi & Injae’s father - Mr. Cheong Myeong. He’s the beginning of “Start-Up”. He’s the Sandbox! I really love the show & people around me also love it. A lot of people I know from the start-up company industry, IT or Computer Science/AI field even those from academe watched a Kdrama for the first time because of Start-Up. We watched it as what it is and we were unbothered by the “unnecessary noise”. By the way this show was highly recommended by one of the most respected marketing gurus in PH and a 2002 Ten Outstanding Young Persons (TOYP) of the World awardee - Josiah Go. You can google his review about Start-Up. Even founders of a start-up company like Platzi (a Guatemalan-Colombian educational platform) tweeted their amazement about the show.

It is a well-thought out & well-researched show. The team worked closely with Sparklabs South Korea (real-life Sandbox/start-up incubator). Thanks to the genius writer Park Hye Ryun, brilliant director Oh Choong Hwan and to the whole cast and crew for giving us a wonderful show during pandemic. Go watch it and be comforted, be informed, & be inspired. Let’s continue to spread love, not hate.

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