Return to classics

After a fairly long time this was a light romcom that brings back the classic old Kdrama feel. The main draw is of course Uhm Tae-goo, a genius move casting him as the titular sweet mobster. The acting from all characters including the villains was just so good it smoothed over flaws here and there. I blame the bad old summary section spoiling the identity crisis for the live watch because initially the drama was building it up well till everyone pointed out it was already revealed in the summary given. This drama is based on a webnovel which also has a webtoon based on it which is incomplete and its fun sifting through both and comparing for strengths and weaknesses of the source and the drama(for eg: as kids they were 10 and 13 in the webtoon but 7 and 13 in the drama). Theres some biblical allusions which aren't too deep. Much of the plot followed an idea of subversion which sometimes worked much better but sometimes weakened the plot of the drama.

Uhm Tae-goo and Han Sun-hwa had more chemistry in Save Me 2 I feel- but that wasn't a romance drama. Their acting in My Sweet Mobster was genuine in a way it made the drama that much sweeter than it would have been with the usual lot and their relation comes out nice and strong. Of all their interactions the drunken playing in playground remains the best and highlights the duality of both. I love the FL's character in terms of her integrity and principles about children's content- it was one of the well done messages of this drama. She also has this strength and maturity you can tell she faced a lot of hardship in life and doesn't let anything make her compromise though it makes her more like a mother to the cast. She was also frank and clear about drawing lines and deserved more honest communication by people around her(which is why Deers and her bond is the strongest). The found family aspect steadily became stronger in the second half than the romance once the couple actually start dating and they grew too shy, with odd moments of immature possessiveness. The online comment war was hilarious however. The SML came across as annoying in his interactions with the FL ever since he said he was never rejected in his blind date of the past as it painted a poor picture of hidden ego and he kept acting two-faced. The character himself was written to be nice and had many things that make for good relations but something always felt jarring. The SML however was great when dealing with the bad gangsters though his thawing towards the main group was a tad marred because even that came only because of personal biases because it was connected to FL than in a properly objective manner.

I may have started this for Uhm Tae-goo but I fell head over heels for Yang Hyun-min: Jae-soo was the greatest. Ever. May nothing separate Jae-soo and Man-ho for eternity. Hong-ki won me over with his straightforwardness and he became my third favourite. The way they love and support each and every one of their found family was beautiful. I love Miho's actress and thus I easily moved past her and her beau's archaic trope to like the straightforwardness(Miho), and the impulsive couple they made. Her parents were hilarious. The found family made of the Deers getting their second chance is however where one of the biggest issues lie- the Deers needed far more plot dedicated to them than was. Their lesson shown in absurd song and dance sequence that was as cringe as Mini Eonni's videos but they could have used the idea of lessons to reveal more about each of the Deers themselves(like in the webtoon) which would have bolstered Eun-ha's choice of future kid's content as while their background was clear to her, it was only vaguely implied for the audience. The message part of this KDrama about not judging ex-cons was weakened by the superficial manner it was handled- oversimplification the likes of which I'd expect of small children's cartoons. The choice to erase the original ML's face scar and tattoos was a different type of choice I get but adds to that feeling of appearances nonetheless defining things. I know KDramas are pretty black and white and harsh about even petty crimes and this is one small step but to me its too puerile to make the point especially the way they overdid the reactions of children and 'normal citizens'(strawmanning much?). The lack of actual plot for Deers and the Cat gang members was a big part of this. Yena too needed more screentime- I liked her in the last few episodes but don't quite get her in the first half. Yena is a foil to Eun-ha the way Yang-hee is to Ji-hwan. But for both the 'bad' ones the logic behind their characters is weak and shallow.

On the thematic front Yang-hee is a proper villain. His ridiculousness fit the overall absurdity of this drama and at the same time his sinister expressions and pettiness underlined the dark gangster world. He alone showed wanton criminal tendencies beyond an aesthetic. A foil to Ji-hwan in every aspect from poor leadership to being the black yin to his white yang, an epitome of scrappy street crime that won't just disappear and fit in to be good for the sake of being inherently good. He however sucks at being a gangster unlike Ji-hwan who fits the life like a glove. The tragedy of their all their criminal loves is quite apparent in the police station scene in how the police look away from those brutal injuries and Ji-hwan for all he has achieved is also in a similar boat till a clean prosecutor vouches for him. But the others will always stay in a cycle where they themselves believe that once a criminal they'll always have to stay as one. It was surprisingly impossible to hate Yang-hee even when he almost kills people. The drug arc, with those kid's candies that are exactly like Yang-hee's duality, was dark but well done as a serious arc and the Taek guy was used well. But when the father comes in fulltime, the gangster part becomes aimless outside of Ji-hwan's father issues and undermines everything Ji-hwan had been established as being with backstories so far- into a bluff almost. The march of the goons was brilliant cinema but empty. All tiger moms and dragon dads are the same so its not very gangster at all(in webtoon he has Ji-hwan kidnapped at 13 and with Yang-hee trains him to be a gangster since that young age). Other significance of the dad's- to humanize and turn up Yang-hee's resentment to the max with his vacillating treatment. It pays off when he finally explodes. If he doesn't snap and strike, Ji-hwan can't show his father that its time to give up because his father would never let such issues go beyond a certain line(honestly it might have worked better if they did a temporary hatelliance like the two in Doctor Prisoner to get their lives out of the dad's web and fixed the dad's attitude with less bloodshed). Seo Tae-pyeong couldn't make up his mind if he wanted to be a bloody gangster whom his men feared getting punched around by(patterned kkangpae shirt) or the honorable mafia(hat+dark suit) who follows codes he isn't consistent about. He was a power broker according to his character page and we know he owns millions and a hotel he'll retire comfortably to when released from prison. The father being redeemed because of being blood 'father' was shallow because of how they initially framed the backstory as an extremely abusive father and the tragedy of Ji-hwan's mother being on the run from him for decades to give Ji-hwan a better life opportunites than ending up a gangster(again different from the webtoon).

Similarly for Yang-hee too, they didn't have much of an idea outside of Cain and Abel which doesn't work because Yang-hee isn't an adopted brother but a much older pretentious right-hand man so his monologue sounding like daddy issues makes very little sense. His character page calls him a petty cat burglar who was groomed into a gangster by the dad and they could have played this as him being a weak financial criminal instead of an inefficient low tier goon turned puppet leader with no bark nor claws? Didn't make sense why he was kept on as a second-in-command in name only after he tried to kill the same child ten years ago and has always been a volatile liability. Yang-hee was also if Im Chul-soo was playing Ahn Gi-seok again, more bumbling but evil and more of a okama type punchline, dressed like a royal cat granny with a villainous perm. His final look was aptly gangster and made him look like discount Giovanni(he already had a not-Persian) which would make a Pokemon knockoff theme with his not-Pikachu tattooed goon. The Cat Gang theme was nicely "over"done since the four actors end up very much resembling cats and their gang's everything revolving around cats was funny. Il-yeong's equivalent, the extremely efficient Kang-gil, while really intriguing was also left a blank slate and it was hard to tell his real feelings which keep getting contradicted by his contradictory actions and inactions. That is, aside from his relation with Yang-hee with whom he has whole conversations between shared glances alone(mainly over Ji-hwan) and represents a long cycle of boss-underboss abuse.

Overall, the romance and sweet interpersonal relations win in feeling genuine even when tropey and its one of the best found-families in Kdramas. The drama itself has a lighter vibe to it with so much heart, and is not too cliched but old-school nonetheless. One major thing to add is how creative the concept of the Hit Like and Subscribes were. I absolutely love the OST and background music. The song Beautiful Woman's music in Ep 1 playing for the Deers scene and then the ringtone... I really liked the opening song, Everything, Ring My Heart, The Way and See the Moon are so beautiful. Quite a few of the scenes had a good cinematic vibe and the slapstick comedy was mostly good. They should have kept the darker part of it much lighter and comical instead and characterization oriented. And added a more clear redemption for Kang-gil, all based on the scope of how far they wanted to actually take things with the characters, instead of trying their hand at mixing various darker genres just for the sake of trying them all out.

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Plastic surgery that isn't skin deep

The individual case arcs were great. From DV to acid attack the main cases featured some heavy topics. The supporting actors gave powerful performances. The regular cosmetic procedures depicted various circumstances, emotions or fit in the arc. Plastic surgery and even reconstructive surgery are often barely described than sketches or botched procedures so its something to see it graphic. Also some psychological states were interesting. Nurse Yang is so lovely😊...

I guess the weak part was dragging out the myth arc through too many last episodes with misdirects and unconvincing explanations. I remember reading news of production issues long time back and something caused the delay in release. Still... It could have been tighter with better suspense and few more variety of cases put in before the finale commenced. I understood the link the main arc tried to create with plastic surgery and the title "Face Me" but felt that message got diluted somewhere. Also the mom was...uhh... There were some holes too. Bit of backstories would have helped better. It was otherwise straightforward and dropped enough of the usual clues(shown playing second fiddle always from the beginning itself gave away the possibility of having a complex and a one-sided obsession gone wrong) making the main arc ending obvious but that same simplicity worked well in how natural some things were. The cooperation between doctor and police felt right even when they went off the books(the mom tho...). More coincidences and circumstances than the usual being forced to work together type thing. Seeing the patients in the finale brought the initial few cases back to mind and everyone getting closure took a turn for the better. I felt for Nam Hyo-ju, was glad to see her get a safe ending to move on. FL's brother reaches a healing phase in his life too.

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Jeongsuk-han Sales!!

This is one of those I consider a version of good adaptation of an original work. It did the storylines right and made things optimistic leaving a more warm, hopeful, feel-good vibe to take home. The acting was what carried the original 'Brief Encounters' and woori Kdrama has equally top-notch performances. Kim Sun-young especially brought me to tears. The child actors were all so adorable. The soulful music added to the melodrama tenfold. All the main cast got their moments to shine. Kim Won-hae is Kim Won-hae is perfect, especially when he gets to be a diva. For once it is satisfying that Im Chul-soo does not just his usual bumbling bit but also provides solid melodrama support. Kim Si-eun(I miss her since Lies Within) being young Bok-soon(Kang Ae-sim: Jeong-suk's mom) and kid Seong-su were so perfect as the past selves of their future counterparts! While a fairly faithful remake(covering almost all the major storylines with some revisions and omissions) of the ITV series 'Brief Encounters', they are separate enough while maintaining the essence and characters(with improvements on some sticky bits). Most of the characters lose their depth for tropes but it is dealt with well(Choi Jae-rim as Seong-su leaves so much unfinished business tho). Theres something of the couples and marriages kept intact which I'd have liked more of from the beginning than in the second half(viz Kim Won-hae's nag+sweetness). Loads of comedy- slapstick, some deadpan...

They've added a lot more to the enterprising sales spirit of the main four and not made the business out to be a cakewalk sales job that could be done offscreen in the backdrop of their life stories as it was in the UK with Ann Summers coming across as Tupperware. But there lies the difference due to the two countries they are set in:- in one, the scenario is that the business itself is legitimate and above reproach and that implicit detail is obvious within a episode or two as it is something that would be normal and easily acceptable in countries like UK and the issues for the saleswomen is thus more focused on their family issues/backlash and personal safety. While in the other- the business itself is what is primarily under fire and a big taboo, not so much the saleswomen(in one episode a former anti-sister says she bought items because Jeong-suk herself is someone who has a solid reputation since forever. Their social rep depends on much wider criteria). The saleswomen must thus defend the legitimacy of their sales while also battling many things at a personal level. Thats why I'm evaluating this more as a remake since they've stuck too close to the British drama's story arcs than explore their own angles deeply enough. Brief Encounters did leave me a bit confused with what they wanted to say with some side story choices they made(which might have been planned for more seasons) and the lack of details outside a vague/general women's lives and period drama set in 1980s England. This is something I've found with a few other British drama which left me scratching my head with so much happening in so little time albeit they are dense/compact (Marcella, Luther, etc). Here the situations and scope are defined okay, there are lots of things they brainstorm about on the sales front but it is all at a very basic level and become more and more as blackboard discussions and group meets(budget issues?) which is fine. The adult products market of 90s korea was very hard to find out about but what little I could dredge up on it seemed fairly dicey and involved arrests, protests, AV and somewhat black market dubiety with focus on men's products. Most being things to stay away from w.r.t. women's products and they should have avoided the similarity even if incidental. If this were set in 90s Japan, where women's adult product sales were starting to get traction, as a JDrama(I adore the angle some of them take) or they kept the Ann Summers model just the way as it was occuring abroad, it could have all gone very differently in this aspect. The rocky-road realism of never-ending issues goes well in that it is foreshadowed in a way. But it doesn't in that it comes too late to have the required impact. They had wind in their 'sales' to have launched safely into their best endings.

Theres several throwbacks to 1990s Korea and references to foreign movies peppered in which I adored. Especially the way some of it is utilized viz Seo Taiji and the Boys. Like with Golden Kamuy there are some anachronisms that I excuse for creativity mainly due to available material. This was also the first time since Golden Kamuy(manga) ended that I've had this much fun looking up pop references+day-to-day history. Nothing will ever top Cold Case in that in my heart though. I also felt some similarities to Casa Amor the movie somewhere- some scenes. And of course the ending is as if they went through Casa Amor the movie offscreen which they should have put in as small snippets/still-frames at least. The ending actually really reminds me of the finale to Waikiki and Samdal-ri somewhere... The way I've grown attached is similar to way I feel deeply attached to this jmovie Yurusarezaru-mono because I evaluated it as a remake of not just the original Unforgiven but also of Shumari and some other westerns and truth is no matter how it may have been objectively, it all just clicked in my head all at once.

The addition of the historical adoption scandal that has been in the limelight past few years since around 2021 or 22 onwards is an aside- a random red herring- so it didn't quite go down well even though they used the storyline for the ML and his relation with FL. One overall difference in story structure that isn't smooth is how instead of building up the stories slowly from the beginning so they feel connected and play out at an even pace, separate story arcs come up sequentially and are only tied in just before they are to emerge each time. And some plot choices required a bit too much of suspension of disbelief like a lot of Do-hyeon's. Cho Sun-ae's story was an interesting perspective but negated due to its timing and reducing her to a tropey psycho character. But say, if foreshadowed earlier... Or been linked to Young-bok's family life... And Young-bok- say if her life story was explored more(already the groundwork seemed there mainly due to the acting of the actors) and more of her daughters shown... Or if they had a different angle than the original's accident(I personally disliked that one thing in Brief Encounters deeply because it leads to a depressing ending and added nothing to the main plot unlike here)... Like, only the bits about the husband's shady past holding them down in the present and the freshly paroled friend hassling them and framing him 100%... It was their SoL melodrama that made their story shine rather than the odd crime plot from the original. Albeit, since they dealt with the conflict deftly and ended on a positive note I got a sense of catharsis for the British version just from this(someone give some catharsis for the poor In-tae from both series though...).

With many of the conversations dropping stories of daily life offhand, depictions, attitudes, etc I was reminded of certain moments of certain books(Mrs. Harris during the clam fishing women's scene, Embroideries, etc) and pondered over impressions including of what I recall of people I know. Those women's magazines at the hair salon were the biggest nostalgia bait to me- I was a bit like Dong-u. The strong point was indeed depicting women's stories. The small town setting especially really brought out the various cross sections in a single place. I have heard of situations similar to Jeong-suk's mother's but with bigamy occuring. How fickle the implementation of theoretical law is...the sense of justice so ephemeral. There were so many details in the bickerings and gossips and second-hand tales dropped in background conversations throught the kdrama... But mainly what struck me as an epiphany is how the idea of being open about sex is a paradox. It never clicked in my mind till now since I too have been compartmentalizing things as separate spheres in my life and not as one single topic. This is this, that is that and fiction goes in my private otaku bin...never shall the twain meet. Most women with close friends or kind of acquaintance groups, have always been overly free and open in talking sex lives/menopause /childbirth issues and "gossip" and swapping details on "suitable" foods and superstitions. Just like the Geumje women were doing long before Mrs Kim's marital aids came to town. I have vague memories and anecdotes of certain people of yore in my life(how someone can share in delight over r-rated movies, lecture on about how being prudish is bad and yet consider lipstick a sin because everyone says so?) And also how when I told my mom about being bewildered by certain colleague's lunchtime chat in my then new job, she tells me her colleagues too talk of their sex lives and issues openly between friends and even vague female acquaintances. The Geumje citizen's objection to this new business and product perception is a sort of prejudice. And coz it is outside their circles, in the open. While its just girltalk, sex is no such taboo. The butcher, the hardware store lady, Young-bok...all their pre-existing openness and gossipy nature are quite true to life. The stuck-up Heo Young-ja swaying things is this cornerstone in this somewhere. Young-ja is also shown as a foil to Jeong-suk's mother and their stories are sad with no easy answers. The chains to be liberated from are societal mores. Casa Amor was in 2015 and yet... Be it 1982-> 1992-> 2015 or 2024- be it the UK or Korea- its all universal and timeless. There is always a taboo, a prejudice, a backlash from some section no matter how much times change and laws change and beliefs cycle around and all. Even relationships, marriages, frustrations, compromises, gossip, reputation, slander, blame - constants.

Jeong-suk learning from the mistakes of those before her with similar predicaments and availing of that divorce option available to her, without being bound by society's judgement, by trusting her own judgement set things in motion. It was one of the most cathartic moments in a drama without a doubt. Instead of moping about the travails of being divorced or single mothers Jeong-suk and Ju-ri living their lives as they want- that felt real good. I was satisfied with how Geum-hui and Young-bok's stories went overall. I just wish we had more of Ju-ri. Loved her to bits. And silly Dae-geun! His actor is good at being diverse- I'm amazed seeing him in other dramas being a completely different character type at the same time. I also wish we could have seen Uhm Seo-yeon's story from the original, even if abridged, as it was quite a vital angle. It could bring up conflict on how she nixes any prospect of an arranged and unhappy marriage for show unlike what her mother has even with a job. She could even round out the contrast of those with the small town perspective with someone who left for the big city. Her Seoul connection could also have brought in the plot twist of the last arc with proper foreshadowing- like say if she went to get her item repaired and found there was no such store... This is the third major issue- how they play it too safe and simple with the plot. For example Seo-yeon and her mother have a comfortable relation which is apparent as do Young-bok and her eldest daughter and Jeong-suk with her mom within an episode of their issue being resolved. Even innocent Min-ho has no issues with Do-hyun being close to his mom. All in sharp contrast to the conflicts of parents and children in Brief Encounters. It makes for a warm and gentle nostalgia however evoking some snippets of relatable moments. In that vein, they could have changed far more of the storylines from the original than keeping some that were fairly unnecessary to be expanded over episodes and instead given the Geumje women more tales that theres an infinite history to chose from(the side characters were all so vibrant...). Or show how the women thaw and become regulars(considering the later product lineup also include some other items that would see more regular sales). But I kindof get paring some things down for what they wanted to focus on for the 12 episodes. The compatible relation shown between FL and ML was sweet. The FL for the most part is too much a Yamato Nadeshiko as is her meaningful name a Korean-equivalent pun for, but she gets to show a lot of steel and innate leadership/managerial skills. Her moments with her mother were the most emotional.

Maybe making it 16 epsiodes to explore more and un-rush some things would have been better though things were kept crisp with just 12 and the main plotlines all got tied up neat enough. Theres an epilogue for the guys that should be timed somewhere just before the 4 years later ribbon cutting. Do-hyeon had returned and become Geumje station's new police chief, Won-bong and Jong-sun get a quintessential romcom fall-and-catch moment(Jong-sun got a full-time job at the pharmacy 4 years ago) and Dae-geun's now a pro. The titledrop comes at the very end and reminds me of re-context type titledrops in certain manga. It ties things up with their story with their new business' punny name - Jeong-suk Han's Sales aka A Virtuous Business...

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Mellow Family Melodrama

Its a very mellow melodrama where nothing too drastic happens. Was watching some pretty dark series and I picked this to live watch weekly. Its hard to think of how to rate this because in a way its not something to compare to the usual ambitious KDramas as the concept has become. It was a nice weekly SoL TV show on netflix that was relaxing, had enough to keep me waiting for the next week. Almost each character by the end is in a better phase of their lives over the short time and it was really relaxing to watch.

The hidden star of the drama is undoubtedly CEO Nam(Jung Woong-in). Every scene with him is great. The Abeoji versus Abeonim scuffle was the best!

One issue I found particularly jarring is the occasional absurd leaps of logic that make it hard to suspend disbelief(the overall tone is grounded+humor, so somethings just don't...make sense?). Every single situation using bait and switch is a another issue storywise but sometimes it pleasantly surprises like the "boomer" boss's talk and the high heel scene. I also love how none of the regular tropes are ever used to give this show a punch because they'd have ruined the consistency(No unnecessary love triangles and no noble idiocy breakup- both of which are so common in kdramas its abnormal and weird I felt relieved simply because it didn't exist). Overall the drama stayed true to its family melodrama theme and a simple personal growth tale for all that didn't stray beyond its premise and resolved all main points. One of the other good points is making each of its main characters a complete individual even if flawed and not conforming to expectations everyone has(but not going overboard; relatable and not changing drastically from their core self) which makes the overall theme a deconstruction of the societal expectations of what families should be like and also of a person's "obligation/duty"(CEO Nam being the best example of someone who was beyond the concept of 'duty' as his family assumes him to be restricted to). Instead of any major messages highlighted or epiphany inducer however its all just, there. Mellow melodrama.

Issue no.3- most characters lack impact. None of the secondary characters(outside CEO Nam and dad's friend Oh Jae-geol) had any real presence. Aunty and dad's friend had a ton of chemistry and could have been given more stories as another middle aged couple navigating life. Jae-geol and landlord's daughter were shown to be separately each in the same hard times as the mom and dad had in the past but their stories were barely there otherwise(Jae-geol's still has some arc with his issues and moving forward) but the landlord and daughter's story resolution was anticlimactic. The younger brother was a non-entity as compared to the family's pet maknae Byeon Medal. His final proclamation about how nobody ever told him anything did resonate with me. However his character was poorly done overall. His character should have brought up situations earlier, issues that only came towards the end and even then barely- the topic of how nobody told him anything was a significant issue(in the beginning they have him say nobody 'asked' his opinion which doesn't point to his issues at all). And it upends the upset when the romanticization of the absent parent stops(he just sounded spoiled because his reaction was to how dad said no and his character wasn't clear at that time at all). Also personally, him and his sister needed to have a proper talk about the issue of college degree and expenses or at least clarify the situation for the audience.

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