Kim Eun Sook dramas and I have a love-hate relationship. I hate how they all seem to have the same conflicts about two-thirds of the way in and I hate how her dramas wind up repetitive near the end. But I do love her particular brand of humor and wit, not to mention the fact that all of her dramas have serious eye candy. So the reason I wanted to watch AGD pretty much boils down to the latter.
Story: To be completely honest, there is no story. The problem with making a drama about adults in the real world and not confining them to just a professional setting is that there is no conflict. The characters here were pretty much all between the ages of 30-40, and therefore didn't deal with the same emotional range that teenagers would have. And since AGD didn't confine the characters to just their careers or professional life, there wasn't much plot development. Pretty much all that happened in every episode is that the guys did something stupid, the audience laughs, they do something stupid again, we laugh and some random romantic development between one of the couples, and maybe a dash of family drama. That isn't to say "A Gentleman's Dignity" wasn't entertaining- because it was. This drama was uproariously funny and ridiculous when it wanted to be, and the bromance itself would have made the drama a success. The romantic pairings were about half-and-half for me, depending on how much I liked the personalities of the female counterparts (that fluctuated as the show went on), but more emphasis was placed on the bromance than the romance, so that wasn't a huge factor in my enjoyment of the show. The only romantic pairing I enjoyed all the way through the show was between the characters of Lee Jung Rok and Park Min Sook, who take the cake for best (or worst?) marriage ever. Min Sook was everything a girl wants to be when they grow older- whip-smart, rich and in control- and Jung Rok was a ridiculous pseudo-playboy who, for all his posturing, couldn't win over his wife. I liked the main couple in the beginning but grew to dislike them when all that happened by the end was stupid mind games and I didn't like the other two couples at any point.
Acting: Every single one of the actors in the F44 was perfect. They made their immature characters lovable no matter how stupid they acted. My issues came with their female counter-parts, who just couldn't act with the same intensity as the guys. Kim Ha Neul rubbed me the wrong way and I just couldn't find it in myself to like her. Yoon Se Ah's character was a total bitch and was completely off-putting, Yoon Jin-Yi's acting was more of the screechy and immature sort- complete with really high-pitched crying (which made me hate her as an actress for the longest time). The only actress here that I really truly loved was Kim Jung Nan, because she was just plain awesome. As far as the younger cast goes, Kim Woo Bin was flawless (as usual) and Jong Hyun acted like pretty much every other idol actor out there. Not bad, but needs to work on his emoting.
Music: Light and cute for the most part. Nothing amazing on my end.
Rewatch Value: Yes for the funnier scenes and the bromance. I loved the cold opens, and all the scenes where the guys were just messing around together, so I'll rewatch those. I wouldn't recommend watching the entire thing through, because the lack of plot becomes glaringly obvious the more you sit through it and eventually you'll just become disenchanted with the drama as a whole.
Overall: When "A Gentleman's Dignity" wanted to be, it was entertaining and humorous, with the type of humor that never really gets old. But at the end of the day, all it is comes down to a bunch of guys who won't stop acting like teenagers going around in a world where the consequences aren't as dire. As long as you don't overthink it. AGD is a charming drama and an easy watch.
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