Currently Watching: The Legend of the Witch

Currently Watching

The Legend of the Witch

The legendary Spanish poet Garcia Lorca said: ''To be born a woman, is the worst punishment.'' 

The Legend of the Witch is a realistic portrayal of those immortal words.

Fate; with all the secrets it reserves, connects four women in a complicated and heartbreaking web. They meet in the most unfortunate situation and they find themselves forcibly treading the same path. Unfairly treated by life and their Cain-like relatives, the four hapless (unfortunate) women find themselves in one prison cell. Having experienced misery first-hand, they identify with each other's pain, hold hands tightly, grit their teeth and file their way to survival. On the long foggy way, the apparitions of love, friendship, freedom and success try to force their way to their life. 

Moon Soo In (Han Ji Hye) is a poor, simple and innocent orphan. She marries the eldest son of Shinhwa group despite his family objections. After three years of marriage, her husband dies. Her father-in-law (veteran actor Park Geun Hyeong; a helluva mean father-in-law usually) decides to kick her out of his house after the funeral. He finds out that his son has left his wife all his shares in the company. He plots against her to smash her once and for all. Innocent and trusting Moon Soo In falls in the trap and finds herself serving a two-year sentence in prison.   

While being dragged by the continuous shocks in her young life, she doesn't notice that a breath of fresh air is lingering right by her side. (Irrelevant: I still can't get used to the melancholic Han Ji Hye. I miss the  Sweet 18 her!!)

The breath of fresh air is none but the hot financial genius Nam Woo Seok (Ha Suk Jin) who quits everything and takes baking on after his wife's death carrying out her dream. He's gentle, talented, honest and outspoken. He acts on impulse so he sometimes hurts others unintentionally. He's carrying so many scars he can't even remember some. He has an adorable daughter, Nam Byeol (Lee Han Seo), who brings the smile to the drama; an awesome child actress with the loveliest personality ever; blunt, more mature than her age, bright, quick and sweet.    

Shim Bok Nyeo (Go Doo Shim) has served in prison for thirty years for murder. She's the ''eomma'' of her cellmates. Judging by her actions and by what the man who's loved her for thirty years; Park Yi Moon (Park In Hwan) tells about her, she's innocent, kind and caring. She looks after her inmates like a mother, holding onto her grudge against the world and waiting, though faintly, to avenge herself on it. 

(Park Yi Moon is Nam Woo Seok's father-in-law. Now let me tell you in advance that I'm not going to stress the biological relationships much because they're so complicated and It'll only spoil the story and the recap. I've just to mention that the connection between the characters goes beyond ordinary.)  

The third inmate and my personal favorite until now is Son Pung Geum (Oh Hyun Kyung). Well, honestly, I started the drama because of her AND the plot. After High Kick Through The Roof I couldn’t possibly not love her. And here, she isn't disappointing. She's been charged for fraud and sentenced for two years. She's confident about her beauty, daring, funny, shrewd, ambitious, and can be spiteful. She's caring towards her dear people, but mean to those who get on her bad side. 

The fun part starts when she bumps into Tak Wol Han (Lee Jong Won). Thinking he's Shinhwa group's marketing director, she flirts with him. He flirts back believing she's rich. Between their greed and their real feelings develops the most attracting and funny couple's story in the drama. (well for me at least!)

The fourth cellmate and the youngest is Han Yeon Soo (Ha Yeon Soo). She's a CF model who falls in love with Shinhwa CEO's mistress' son Ma Do Jin (Do Sang Woo) and gets pregnant. Do Jin's mom (Jun In Hwa) does everything to get rid of the baby. Poor Yeon Soo, who takes care of her sick father, keeps fighting to defend her baby. In the process, an accident happens and she finds herself in jail for attempted murder. 

(Well, I don't know if it's because of the role or because she can't act, but I don't like her acting so far.)

The Ma family are only left. They are your typical greedy, pussy, arrogant, selfish and hateful type of chaebols. They fight among themselves more than they fight others. Still, somewhere you find a ray of humanity in each one of them.

The Legend of the Witch depicts the journey of falling and rising up again, of fate, injustice, pain, healing, crime and punishment, love, loyalty and the unknown. It traces all aspects of life drawing us into the very details of every character's life trying to make us ''walk in their skin''. The Legend of the Witch is the story of every one of us; the story of our life.