This drama left me speechless with its effective, and beautifully written, plot. It’s always a treat when I finish a drama that I genuinely feel had the perfect amount of pacing and character development. Each character is flushed out and has a story of their own that adds to the overall plot. This drama excelled in its depiction of strong, powerful, and charismatic female characters, telling a story through the lens of women.

Most dramas, unfortunately, succumb to toxic female relationships, which is a shame; female relationships and friendships can be life-altering and empowering and Mine displayed that perfectly. To me, the epitome of a healthy female friendship is that of Hi-Soo and Seo-Hyun, both wives of Chaebol sons. The drama could’ve easily been written with a lazy woman rivalry, where the two sister-in-laws are jealous and resentful of each other, thankfully the plot delves below surface level and tells the story of sisterly love through these two characters. This is a friendship that goes beyond petty emotions and displays pure trust without any doubt. The trust that Hi-Soo and Seo-Hyun have in each other becomes the pillar of their relationship.

Each character is flushed out and given a brief history of their past. We have Seo-Hyun, who from the outside holds a facade of an emotionless businesswoman, however as the drama progresses we see that the mask she wears is to protect Hyowon Group, rather she is a multi-layered woman. For her whole life, she’s had to hide her sexuality; Seo-Hyun struggles with her past relationship, a painter whom she loved but broke up with to keep the Hyowon Group from controversy and societal backlash. As the show progresses she is able to let go and accept that her sexuality, as a lesbian woman, is not something she should fear, but that it is hers and part of who she is, it does not take away from the woman she is. She also uses her own struggle to reform the withered relationship, she has with her son, who she allows to have a love marriage, something he gave up and regretted, but is able to pursue at the end of the show. Her charisma is a main factor in her personality, because despite her struggles she takes care of many tasks that would normally be for the Chaebol men of the Hyowon Group. She not only deserved the position of CEO, by the end of the series, but she earned it. Without her, the plan to take down Ji-young would’ve never gone through, she is the backbone of the Hyowon group.


Hi-Soo displays countless times that you don’t have to be related by blood to have a deep-rooted love for a child. Whenever Hi-soo doubted her status as a mother, I wanted to reach into the screen and give her a hug, because she displayed powerful and operative forms of motherhood. Her love for Ha-Joon was real. One of the developments in the plot is exactly that--Hi-Soo accepts that she is a mother and that Ha-Joon is her son. Everything that Hi-soo did was calculated and put Ha-Joon at the center, to Hi-soo it didn’t matter if it caused her discomfort, as long as it brought relief to her son. I love to see dramas that depict motherhood in this light, it's a certain glee I get when I see a mother-son bond that is as strong as Hi-Soo’s and Ha-Joons, an unconditional love with no strings attached. A pure motherly love.

Many forms of motherly parenting are touched on in the drama, and the drama displays the efficiency of Hi-soo’s mothering. In the first episode, we even have a disagreement between Seo-Hyun and Hi-Soo about whether to send Ha-Joon abroad for school, Hi-soo is clear and determined that she will not send him because she knows the importance of having a motherly figure during these essential childhood years. We see the lack of mothering from Seo-Hyun for her stepson (but later on mends her relationship--lots of credit to her because I love her, but she too admits that she was distant in mothering Soo-Hyuk). We see how the grandpa didn’t acknowledge Ji-young as a son and treated him with no love or respect growing up, and of course, the mothering of Mi-Joo was an abusive one. The forms of mothering and how they directly affect a child are well-written and become a backdrop for each character’s personality. It displays how important a motherly bond is for a child when they are young. Hi-Soo’s knowledge of this importance makes her strive to raise Ha-Joon in the best manner. She is a fantastic mother and I’m glad she comes to this realization by the end of the drama.

Our final powerful woman in the drama is Hye-Jin, who is written with a redemption arc that made me love her by the end of the drama. Initially introduced as Kang Ja-Gyeong she disguises her identity and remains a tutor for Ha-Joon, her biological son. Throughout the drama, we see the juxtaposition of the status of ‘mother’ between Hye-Jin and Hi-Soo. Hye-Jin was forced to leave her son, after carrying him for nine months and raising him for 18 months, when he got sick. Without the means to cure him, she went to the Han family, where her baby was taken away from her and the family forged her death. Extenuating circumstances forced Hye-Jin to devise her plot, to retake Ha-Joon. Hi-Soo, who did not birth Ha-Joon but raised him for six years, begins to question the validity of her status as Ha-Joon’s mother.

The question of, who deserves to be called his mother is brought into play. As this question floats throughout the drama, the ultimate conclusion is that both Hye-Jin and Hi-soo are fit to be his mother, they are both valid in the forms of mothering they did. Both women are victims of Ji-Young, who deceives both of them. Hye-Jin’s motherhood status is not invalidated, because of her lack of raising, and Hi-soo’s is not either because of her lack of pregnancy. Ultimately Hi-soo is the one who raised Ha-Joon, but throughout the show, the development of Hye-Jin makes it clear that she too would do absolutely anything for Ha-Joon. What connects Hisoo and Hye-Jin is their motherhood, and their love for Ha-Joon, both characters are willing to sacrifice their entire lives for the betterment of Ha-joon.

Seo-Hyun, Hi-Soo, and Hye-Jin make the ultimate team, coming together to take down the man who deceived them all--Ji-young.

My favourite aspect of the show is the way the villain shifts throughout the drama. Initially, we are led to believe that Hye-Jin is the ultimate villain, however, as the plot progresses so does Ji-Young's sinister nature. This drama took itself from good to excellent with its shift to a bigger and more intense villain. The pacing for this shift, of villains, also makes it entertaining to watch as it unfolds; the audience is made to dislike Hye-Jin because, after all, she is the one that enters the house and causes a rift within Hi-soo’s family. I remember thinking that this character, Hye-Jin, is irredeemable with no way of empathizing with her, however when the villain shifts to Ji-Young and we find out that the actual victims are not Ji-Young and Hi-Soo, but rather Hi-soo and Hye-Jin the story becomes even more gripping. This is not to excuse Hye-Jin’s actions, in the beginning, but to demonstrate how well they developed her character, by making her remorseful and open with Hi-soo. When Hye-Jin shifts to side with Hi-soo, she later apologizes and repents for her actions. Another wonderful example of the show's ability to display intelligent women teaming up against a powerful male. Had Hye-Jin remained stubborn and adamant in her revenge, over the entire Han family, she would have ultimately failed, however, because she is a well-flushed-out and realistic character she puts her anger aside and taps into her empathy and intelligence to realize that her other option, and the best option for her son Ha-Joon, is to let go of her resentment for Hi-soo and to help protect her in order to protect her son. The shared love for Ha-Joon allowed Hi-Soo and Hye-Jin to come out stronger and clearer about their plans.

With Hye-Jin we are left with a feeling of understanding for her and as such we root for her in the end. Ji-Young too, despite being a villain, is flushed out in his motives. Had Ji-Young been evil for the sake of being evil, he would’ve been a boring character. The drama displays how the lack of a healthy childhood environment, due to his abusive mother and neglectful family, directly moulded the man he became. The drama does not justify his actions but rather seeks to understand how an individual can get to that extreme point. The hatred I had for him also made him a better villain, I truly wanted to see his demise and when he finally does fall, both metaphorically and literally, it feels satisfying and justified. In the end, although Ji-young truly thought he was doing the right thing, Ji-young was a selfish man who let his greed and trauma justify his evil actions. Once Ji-Young had accepted that he was abandoned by everyone and loved by no one, despite being previously loved by Hi-Soo, he succumbed to his own cruel narrative to ease his mind about the crimes he committed.

Each episode of this drama is intentional and adds to the overall plot, with many thrillers and mystery kdramas there is too much wasted time in between the episodes, and although Mine isn’t completely free from that, it does an overall good job at maintaining a suspenseful pace. This drama has become one of my ultimate favourite dramas, for its beautifully written female characters and intricate plot I will definitely rewatch this drama in the future, it was an excellent revenge drama.