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Love is a Learned Behavior
When I first started watching this drama, I wondered why the title "Mine," pretty soon it became clear why; despite all its riches, nothing this family owns is truly their own, not even themselves. More than Mine's premise, what drew me to it was an article I read where the writer Baek Mi Kyung explained why she cast the two female leads in their respective roles. She said that “As a writer, the fact that I’m able to work with the unfailingly talented actresses Lee Bo Young and Kim Seo Hyung is an honor in and of itself." “Because they’re actresses who are powerful in terms of both their acting and their auras, I think the script was even more empowered after they were cast. Also, they’re so well-suited to their roles that they leave nothing to be desired in terms of matching up with their characters. I think of [their casting] as a blessing.” True to the last word.Many elements made this show, everything from the high-end production design, the set, the beautiful outfits and styles, and even the OST, sets the tempo and brings character to the drama, Kim Seo Hyung, though elevates Mine with her performance. She thoroughly embodies the layered character of Seo Hyun so brilliantly that without her, Mine wouldn't be as good as it has become. And the same goes for Ok Ja Yeon in the role of Kang Ja Kyung / Lee Hye Jin, who was thrilling to watch in The Uncanny Counter but even more so in this drama. I loved how this show depicted women - fearless, kind, compassionate, capable of giving and receiving love, but most importantly, admitting to one's mistakes. As they say, never underestimate the power of a kind woman; kindness is a choice that comes from incredible strength. There is nothing more thrilling than strong wounded women steadfastly facing their demons and winning, even if it's just the beginning of the fight.
Mine was a great drama to the end; kudos to the screenwriter, director, and actors for bringing this fantastic story to life. However, as sad as I was to see it come to an end as appreciative of the important message it left behind in that one can ever truly own anything if they don't own themselves first, and to love others, one must first love themself. And that just as love is a learned behavior, if one never learns how to receive it, they will never know how to give it back.
Mine could've been a multitude of stores, but I liked that rather than be a story about sexual minorities, it was a story about love and finding one's true self in themself. And what elevated it to the status of brilliant was the way the drama portrayed Jung Seo Hyun and Seo Hee Soo’s relationship not as sisters-in-law fueled by jealousy or hierarchy but as sisters who find themselves stuck in a world filled with hatred but learn through it all to care and protect each other to the end deeply. Brilliant drama! I enjoyed and relished all the actors who did a great job making me believe them each in their own way but Kim Seo Hyung the most.
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what was the plot again???
I was initially excited to watch this seeing as how it was in the top 10 of Netflix shows.The first few episodes were kind of interesting. Wonder if this is how rich people in Korea really live? Find it to be excessive. The location is nice though. Would be nice to live in such a compound.
The cast delivered in terms of performance. However, they cannot help it if the storyline is very poorly done. There were several things the story could have done without.
a. The bunker
b. The group of friends having bible study
c. Mother Emma. Didn't find her role very significant. Thought she would turn out to be the real mother of han Ji young.
d. Secret hobby of han ji young. Han Ji Young ended up ordering the death of one of the fighters. And this action was what led to his downfall. Very shallow storyline
I ended up forwarding it until the ending to see who killed him. Personally, not recommending it. A waste of the talent of the casts.
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I don't know how to feel about that one
I really liked this drama because it actually taught me a lot and got me interested in new things. The way it kind of hints the 체벌 (chaebol) lifestyle. It was interesting and it raised a lot of questions and curiosity. Do rich people actually commit the worst crimes and get away with it ? I mean of course but I'd think of tax fraud, theft, manipulation and threats on other individuals, not ACTUAL murder and violence you know?It also showed me a lot in terms of motherhood and fatherhood. Even if it's not your biological mother, if she raised you, loves you with her whole heart and protects at all costs, she is still your mother. It unveiled about thirst for power too, wanting everything to be yours can lead you to your worst days, even death.
The whole drama and the story made me think of telenovelas so much lmao. Like it was a family centered series, with secrets, mystery and stuff. It was really fun to watch. Each story of each main character was really touching in some way, they all had a history and an answer to why they were acting the way they did.
Han Soohyuk and Kim Yuyeon's story about her being a maid and the rich youngest son falling for her was unnecessary in my opinion and it was SO cliché and basic. Like girl, we've seen this story happen over and over again in rich families. It can't be happening everytime! And in my opinion it was so badly made, you're going to tell me that the fact they exchanged rooms made them fall in love??? That was so unrealistic like wtf lol. It was so unrealistic to me because the girl is poor, she has to make money at all costs, one of her parents is sick, she has to do anything to keep them alive and like she said it was her highest paying job. Okay, she got kicked out once, but taking the risk to be kicked out a second time??? UNREALISTIC. And she DID get kicked out a second time by his dad lmao. Anyways, i feel like their story was just a filler.
The end of the drama was okay, i liked it i guess. There's still some of the points that I'm confused about tho...
My rate : 7/10 ; It wasn't one of those series that got me excited ENOUGH. The time travels were getting confusing at some points. Like at a time we would be 14 days after the murder and then we would switch to 2 days before without a warning sometime ?
If you love telenovelas, family feud based series in the first place, i recommand it heavily. But to the general public, it's not good enough to be recommended. Like i won't bully you to watch it lol. Plus i didn't get attached to the characters, i just felt so bad for them.
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Breathtaking music, wardrobe and shots but story lacked emotional connection
Set, wardrobe, camera shots - breathtaking. Direction and screenplay - intriguing and full of suspense.But after 16 episodes, not much resonated…
Think the writers wanted us to think about finding true self and discovery, it didn’t quite come through via the central murder plot.
I loved the theme of strong women supporting each but the murder plot almost made them seem like distinct stories that should be told separately. Was it mystery? Was it a thriller? Was it heartfelt? I couldn’t decide at the end and therefore wouldn’t rewatch it as it’s strength was really suspense!
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The "SHE" Power
I've always been a fan of dramas with amazing female cast and if they're badass? Even better. This drama served that well.The drama is about two women Jung Seo Hyun and Seo Hee Soo who got married into a chaebol family; Hyowon family but try to break free amidst lies and deceit and strive to overcome whatever stands in their way to achieve what they truly desire.
They storyline is quite unique. Although dramas about powerful families and marriages are common, it is rare for daughters-in-law to rise against their husbands' family. Also, it is rare to see daughters-in-law team up together. Rich powerful women in most dramas like to abuse authority, take advantage of low class women, exhibit bad parenting, etc but this drama takes a different approach. This drama has mothers acting against injustice, overcoming the impossible and fighting to tackle prejudice. Above all, it projects how fearless a woman could be and the extent to which she can go to achieve what she has set her mind to.
The drama also questions the idea of true happiness in a life of glam, connections, privileges and wealth. The Hyowon family is an extremely powerful family,one could easily draw the conclusion that being married into such a family would be a dream come true. It is not as rosy as it seems as the couples in that family are not genuinely happy. What they put out is just a facade to uphold the family name. Things happening behind closed doors like not allowed to speak with the press, not allowed to wear certain colors to family gatherings, early separation between a mother and her child by sending the latter to a boarding school abroad etc. was a problem for the women married into the Hyowon family. Most powerful families have rules and regulations one needs to follow and this drama captured that.
Apart from the plot, the fashion game of the characters is top notch. They literally served the best elegant looks, especially the leading duo. Their taste in clothes and accessories dominate Evert scene. Luxury labels such as Bulgari, Chloe, Bottega Veneta, Dior, Prada, Hermes etc could pass for the sub theme of the drama. For a family that needed a golf cart to take them around the house, spending a few billions in clothes was no problem at all.
One admirable trait about the leads was their strength, determination and strong will to cut ties with a life of secrets and lies packaged with galamour. The zeal they had for fighting injustice and standing for what they believed in was remarkable and inspiring.
The drama ended on a good note as Jung Seo Hyun and Sao Hee Soo achieved what they truly wanted. It was rewarding and satisfying.
Hats off to the cast for bringing the characters to life with their acting acting. They portrayed diverse emotions really well.
For a drama that tells women to recognize themselves and what they truly deserve, live their best life and stay true to themselves even when they're dominated by men and the odds are against them, it's a solid nine out of ten for me. Nine because I had a little issues but I highly recommend this drama.
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I totally liked the ending, have no complaints because everything had a closure.
The show’s biggest CON: The maid-young master subplot which did not add much value to the plot as a whole. I think it was too ambitious and unrealistic for a subplot since it did not connect with me. Was it the acting or what? Was it love at first sight? Their scenes are cringey and cliche. Lack of build-up and connection. Not the type that you will root for. If I have my way, I’ll edit them out, or at least the maid (has to go, not even good at acting) and give the young master more time to flesh out his motherly love for Seo Hyun, not in the context of the maid.
Overall, just don’t mind the maid-young master love line and you will totally enjoy the show. I even enjoyed the fashion more than seeing their uninteresting love story.
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Fabulous Acting with in Underrated OST but I can't empathise with the
Alright, I'll preface this review by saying THIS OST IS SO UNDERRATED. It reminds me a lot of a stay-at-home mom, always working, always in the background and never noticed, but if she's gone the whole home falls apart. The songs weren't ground breaking or exceptionally memorable but they made every single scene they were in, there wasn't a note out of place and I'd love to pay homage to everyone that played a part in arranging the music.Acting: The Acting was absolutely phenomenal, it was really good, the role of Jung Seo Hyun was played amazingly but my favourite performance has to go to Han Jin Ho, Han Hi Yong and Mother Emma (Special Mention to the entire Han Family's tantrums and Lee Hye Jin). Mother Emma's commitment to her faith and the people she cared for, carefully contrasted by the mistakes she made truly made me rethink my own life, Han Jin Ho and Han Hi Yong made me feel so much pity, but they each took different roles towards growth because of one fundamental difference: Support. One changed and decided to grow and earn the support of his loved ones, the other chose to allow his past to define him.
HJH Vs HJY: The parallel between these two characters was absolutely phenomenal and really allowed us to learn that we are more that what we came from, I think this was my overall favourite part of the drama.
Also we have to give a huge round of applause to Han Soo Hyuk and Han Ha Joon's actors for being able to hold their own so well among such an intense and star studded cast, truly phenomenal work from them in every way.
Now, the bad parts.
Storyline: Truthfully, I expected this story to be somewhat of a "money isn't everything" or "rich people don't always win narrative" but it turned out to feel more like to opposite, after watching the entire drama, it really feels like it was the poor, the people at the bottom of the food chain, who cried and suffered the most, yes the Elites did cry a bit, but at the end of the day, we all know it's much more comfortable to cry in a mansion than in a one room, especially since from the elites crying they actually got what they asked for, but the poor gained nothing.
Seo Hi Soo: This drama also made it very difficult for me to empathise with Seo Hi Soo, she was very well acted but her character in and of itself lacked empathy towards anyone beyond her son was not a very endearing trait. Something about her energy screamed Selfishness when it involves anyone other than her son. It made it a bit difficult for me to empathise with her at certain points but in the end, I'm glad things went the way they did.
Jung Seo Hyun: Her storyline hit me so deeply, I could relate to her so deeply and her love for her family and commitment towards the company was completely unrivalled, she was the true definition of selfless and was a phenomenal mother in her own right. She held the serious parts of this show on her back and she did so with grace, poise and more kindness than many of the other elites of Hyowon.
Han Ji Yong: This actor was PHENOMENAL, every single side of Hi Yong that we needed to see was brought to us so earnestly that in all honesty, my heart broke for him. He showed us so much pain, fear, mistrust and everything in between, and watching him decline was a work of art, I would seriously support a spin-off series about Ji Yong's life as a child growing up, up until the beginning of Mine, he's such a complext character and to be able to see where the parallel with Jin Ho began would be *chef's kiss*. There's so much I could say, but I rather you see it for yourself.
Character Driven vs. Plot Driven: I think the reason many people didn't enjoy this drama is they expected more of a plot driven makjang with a shocker at the end of every episode. This drama is more character driven, with the growth of the characters leading the plot, rather than the plot leading the characters. This made it different from most Makjangs and made it something I could thoughrougly enjoy but also, an analytical watch rather than a relaxing/lazy watch like most other Makjangs.
(Also I really loved the time jumps as they kept me engaged and invested)
Faults: There are a lot of things I found quite unrealistic/ Disappointing, for instance the outcome of SooHyuk's storyline, Most of the Housekeeper's fates and the lack or closure in terms of certain character's endings. While I did personally love the time jumps, I can definitely understand how it could become difficult to keep up with. Also, the timeline of all this happening being about 1.5-2.5 months to me felt really unrealistic.
Overall: I did like this drama, the ending did drop the ball in terms of what I expected and it gave off a very "rich people get off scot-free" energy, which did disappoint me, but the story and the growth of all the characters like Hye Jin and Jin Ho was so beautiful and so at the end of the day, I'm very glad I watched it. The glitz, glamour and opulence set the scene for absolutely amazing visuals and camera work which was always on point and conveyed emotions in a way that dialogue and even music could not.
This was a good drama, but I just feel like there wasn't enough closure at the end, but the ending message didn't ring deeply to me as I just couldn't empathise with Hi Soo and her story towards the end. I still really loved watching this and it's clear everyone worked exceptionally hard on this project.
(Honourable Mention: Jin Ho and Jin Here's relationship with Jin Hee's husband was really the cutest bromance ever).
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Women Empowerment
Superb drama, from the beginning to the end. Powerful acting, dialogues and storyline. Lee Bo Young and Kim Seo Hyung gave a remarkable performance in their respective roles. They really embodied empowered women, whether in a male or female dominated environment. Very unpredictable, realistic and relevant story and how it unfolded each episode.I like how the writer relayed the struggle, choices and triumph of women in the story -- inlcluding the supporting roles. The myriad realities women of varying economic status go through were highlighted well. Even their facial expressions gave justice to the character being portrayed. Very heartfelt scenes.
I like the pacing of the plot, there was no episode hurried neither dragged. It was enough to connect from the previous episode and to look forward to the next. Eventhough the genre is drama, there were welcoming and interesting elements infused in the story that gave a different appeal to viewers (like me).
Well done to the entire team! Worth watching from it's pilot to the finale even though there are 2 episodes per week only.
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Good drama but...
This could have been a perfect drama if it weren't for some unnecessary characters, (the mother and the sister in the family), their two characters were so rude and noisy, that they really made it difficult to watch. The drama contained everything expected from a quality drama, a tense plot, touching stories about the abandonment of children and especially the story of the chaebol family who live in a cage of gold (not for nothing throughout the series, there is a beautiful peacock who lives in a cage, and even he chooses to escape). In fact, it is about three generations of the Chaebol family (and you can see the difference between the founding generations and the younger generation, a family where this time there are strong women, (powerful), with their own opinion and thinking, this is a drama of female empowerment, sexual identity, and the difficulty in disclosing sexual identity In a conservative society, and of course breaking the conventions of both the women and the younger generation.Throughout the series, a level of tension is maintained in the plot, although I would shorten it in several episodes.
I must mention the amazing collection of clothes.
As for the soundtrack, it didn't leave me any special memory.
I recommend the series to those who can tolerate and neutralize the vulgar and loud rudeness of the characters I mentioned.
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An Unimaginative Whodunit Which Ultimately Left Me Asking Who Cares?
Kim Seo Hyung (Jeong Seo Hyun) was the only likable character I could actually root for in 'Mine'. Otherwise, I had little to no empathy for the other cast of characters. She made the often sluggish 16 episode journey tolerable after I was tempted numerous times to tap out early on--more specifically during the miscarriage scene. I'm sure there are other equally impactful but less graphic ways to express a mother's pain and anguish of suddenly losing her child.And I know it's always a hard sell to get working-class viewers to care about the problems of the wealthy, powerful, and privileged. But this K-drama (like many of its predecessors) seemed to double down on its extravagance, affluence, and lavish living while physically and verbally abusing staff which felt gratuitous and pointless in a series that was 8 episodes too long.
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Glorious women indeed
Admittedly, I started watching this show for three reasons: strong female leads, Kim Seo Hyung, and a lesbian main character. I was not let down on any of those fronts.The women in this show are just *chef’s kiss*. Not only Kim Seo Hyung, but Lee Bo Young and Ok Ja Yeon did an excellent job as well. Their characters aren’t perfect, they have flaws, and that’s okay. They felt very real. Besides, women supporting women? We love to see it, truly. A lot of the interactions between them, especially in the later episodes, just made me so happy.
As for the lesbian character, well, I think Kim Seo Hyung portrait her wonderfully. I don’t want to speculate about whether she’s part of the LGBTQIA+ community in the slightest, regardless of whether she is or not, she did a good job. And honestly, at this point, I’ll take all the sapphic representation I can get. Especially when its a main character, and especially with an “older” character. I also liked that it wasn’t the main plot point of the show, and I especially liked that it wasn’t her sole defining character trait. It gives me hope we will see more LGBTQIA+ representation in the future, in a more “casual” way and not only in stories where it is the main plot (though of course I wouldn’t mind seeing more stories where LGBTQIA+ characters and their struggles are the main plot point either, we don’t have enough of those yet either). Honestly, this hit me real hard. I cried multiple times whenever her character was going through it. I cannot speak for the entire community, but personally, I approve of the way this storyline was handled and portait in the show. It was done respectfully, it felt real, it hit home, and it showed that Seo Hyun and Suzy’s love was real and valid.
As for the plot, well, I was prepared for nothing. I was genuinely prepared to sit through 16 hours worth of this kdrama just for Kim Seo Hyung and for the representation. But honestly, the plot wasn’t that bad? The whole subplot with the grand-son and the maid was quite... meh (I have no clue how they even fell in love to begin with, but whatever, their story was only a small part of the show anyway), but in general I didn’t mind the plot. I was actually very invested at times. No, it wasn’t mind blowing, but oh well, I’m just watching this for entertainment anyway, I didn’t really mind. This show definitely wasn’t plot-driven, and I’m not sure if it was going for that or not, but regardless I didn’t feel like i was watching 16 hours of nothingness either. It didn’t even feel all that dragged out, but maybe my mind is just clouded because I loved the characters so much. Or maybe it’s because I don’t watch makjang often, so I don’t have much to compare it with. I will say though, the final four or so episodes were edited in a very confusing way. I guess it was to make the whole mystery last longer and to keep people watching, but still.
Anyway, if you are a fan of any of the three female leads, I definitely recommend this. They did an outstanding job. The other actors did as well. If you just want to see some strong female leads, and with women supporting women, this show is worth a shot as well. And if you are like me and are looking for representation, or you want to support a show with a canon lesbian main character, please give this show a try. But do keep in mind, this kdrama is not only about that, its rather a subplot. Some episodes it isn’t mentioned at all, and sometimes it’s used against her. Still, it’s definitely there, and it doesn’t stop her. There is plenty of acceptance, both from others and herself. It’s not just queerbaiting, and it was, in my opinion, done respectfully. I can only applaud that. This review was a bit difficult to write for me, it was difficult to put into words exactly how I felt about Jung Seo Hyun as a character. This show impacted me a lot more than I was expecting. I think while writing this I realized just how glad I was to see this in a kdrama. I didn’t expect to be this overwhelmed to be honest. Idk, it’s late and I’m tired. I guess all I can say is thank you to the entire team for how they handled the storyline especially in regards to Jung Seo Hyun as a character, And thank you to Kim Seo Hyung for portraiting it so well too.
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