Plus Nine Boys

Plus Nine Boys

7.5/10

Plus Nine Boys

Genre:                     Episodes: 14                           Year: 2014

Romance

Comedy

Synopsis:

A superstitious mother is sent into a panic when a fortune-teller informs her that the men in her family are about to enter into a cursed year- the year of nines. The men are Gu Kwang Soo (the woman’s younger brother), and her three sons: Kang Jin Gu, Kang Min Gu, and Kang Dong Gu. The boys are 39, 29, 19 and 9. Kwang Soo is in a dilemma after encountering his last girlfriend after 10 years, who disappeared without warning. Jin Gu is struggling with his feelings for a coworker that his best friend is currently chasing. Min Gu fights to get accepted into university for Judo while being distracted by a girl he believes is his ‘destiny’. Child star Dong Gu faces his first disappointment when he begins losing his acting roles to another child. 

Cast:

Kim Young Kwang (Kang Jin Gu)

Oh Jung Se (Gu Kwang Soo)

Yook Sung Jae (Kang Min Gu)

Choi Ro Woon (Kang Dong Gu)

Kyung Soo Jin (Ma Se Young)

Yoo Da In (Joo Da In)

Park Cho Rong (Han Soo Ah)

Lee Chae Mi (Jang Baek Ji)

Kim Hyun Joon (Park Jae Bum)

General Thoughts:

It’s a delightful, underrated little gem. By having four separate stories going at once, the writers can take their time telling each boys’ narrative with precision and care. The stories are never dragged out or made overly complicated in order to increase tension or interest, because there’s always something going on in one of the boys’ stories.

That casting is a solid 10/10

I appreciate that the whole idea of a ‘curse’ kind of fell away. It allowed the drama to break away from being a gimmicky rom-com and move towards being a simple, heartfelt story of love, loss and maturing. Which it totally was. Each boy highlights the rewards and challenges of different generations, and what complications arise when you are on the brink of entering a new decade. Dong Gu is our youngest, and such gets the least amount of screen time as his problems are…well…they’re super simple- but a big deal to him, which is adorable.

OMG Sungjae- let me love you forever

Our 9 year-old faces the issue of dealing with disappointment for the first time and eventually learns to feel and express his emotions. Sweet, simple, and mostly comedic relief- but his ending delivered the emotional impact it aimed for well. Next up is Min Gu. Who’s played by Sungjae. So, you know, SWOON. I really loved Min Gu’s arc- it captured the innocence and passion of teenagers so completely. Before the world ruins that innocence and passion with the harsh sting of reality. Min Gu was so confident with both his Judo and with Soo Ah, and his story was really all about how he had to learn to separate his dreams from reality. Soo Ah was nothing like the perfect angel he imagined her to be (thank God, because it was hilariously entertaining that she wasn’t). Pairing Min Gu with a Noona was a stroke of genius because it only further showed the differences between the maturity levels of a teenager and someone in their 20s. 19 and 21 may not seem like the biggest age gap in the world, but Min Gu and Soo Ah were worlds apart in their maturity. Soo Ah has already learned that the world is a harsher place than what you’re led to believe as a child, and that failure and disappointment are around every corner. Alternatively, Min Gu thinks he has the world in his hands- strong, confident and ready to take on any challenges. It was beautiful to see how Soo Ah’s final words to Min Gu gave him the determination to head towards his true goal again with all his effort, while in turn Min Gu’s love for Soo Ah gave her the confidence to try what she really wanted in life.

She's basically the best actress ever for not losing it laughing at all Sungjae's cheesy lines 

Ahhhh, this is really the first time that I’ve felt so completely satisfied at such an open ending in a drama, but it was wonderful. I loved that the two weren’t given tied up happy endings- because your life doesn’t finish at 19 or 21. The two had a brief encounter that changed them slightly before parting ways to grow into adults. Solid conclusion show. The oldest of the boys was Kwang Soo, and his was the story I least resonated least with. While I enjoyed watching story play out, and it was definitely entertaining- I couldn't really connect with Kwang Soo. I’m not sure if this is because his partner in the series was so annoying and incomprehensible, or because his story wasn’t a typical story that could happen to anyone that age (like the rest of the boys’ stories), or simply because I’m not even close to being on the brink of 40 and my poor brain can’t quite connect with his 39 year-old problems.

All alone again

Still, it was enjoyable to watch Kwang Soo struggle, fail, and finally succeed and start to enjoy his life- both at work and at home. And lastly- Jin Gu. He was the star of the show, and as such he got the most amount of screen-time and story development. I’ve never really loved Kim Young Kwang before- I’ve enjoyed his performances, but not gone crazy for him. But he absolutely slays it as Jin Gu.

100% pure adorableness

The real heart of the whole series basically came from his sad puppy-eyes at Se Young, or his stupidly happy puppy-eyes at Se Young when she wasn’t looking. As a viewer you’re with him 100% of the way- and really can’t help but root for his love with Se Young. They’re just so bloody adorable. It’s wonderful to see how smooth the playboy is with all other girls, but with Se Young he always seems to shove his foot in his mouth- never saying what he means, and her never believing him when he does. Their whole relationship is just so simple and real- most of their problems coming from themselves and how they perceive a situation rather than actual external forces (though Jae Bum probably counts as an external force), and they had just enough magic that it made for an addictive story. What the show managed to do so extremely well was express its feelings and heart through seemingly insignificant moments. There were no great declarations of love (except for maybe Min Gu, but that was sooooo cheesy. And also didn’t work.). Se Young wasn’t that moved when Jae Bum planned a huge event at a restaurant for her birthday, but she turned into a puddle when Jin Gu looked around all day for seaweed soup that tasted like her Mum’s. It was the simple, everyday things that expressed the sincerity of our men. Kwang Soo playing with Da In’s daughter, Jin Gu taking the bus with Se Young every day, Min Gu finally calling Soo Ah ‘Noona’.

Just look at that big ol' goofy grin

It gave the drama a real sense of authenticity and made the girls (and us viewers) completely fall for these boys. Also, the soundtrack was killer. Nothing adds to the mood of a series quite like a collection of beautiful songs that sound like they came right off the mix-tape from your first relationship. 

What Was Great:

All (well Most) of the Characters:

If you’ve watched the series you’ll know what I mean by most. If not, fear not- you’ll find out soon. Moving on. All the boys were delightful. You can’t not love them. Despite their faults and insecurities, they did their best to be sincere- and that’s really what won the hearts of the viewers. Despite struggling and failing, the boys kept going and learned from their mistakes. Similarly, the girls were presented as fully formed characters with their own hopes and fears, and really grew alongside the boys.

These two rocked it in more ways than you'll ever know

I love that the drama didn’t focus too heavily on the boys side of things, but was delightfully unbiased in the way it presented issues, letting us see the perspective of the women too. This meant that although the drama had conflict, and much of that came from disagreements and misunderstandings between the characters, it was hard to dislike them. You could dislike their actions or their choices- but you could never dislike the character themselves because it was so clear what led to them to act in that way. Not one character was unbelievably perfect. Everyone had a history, moments of immaturity and selfishness, and made poor decisions. But that’s also what made the characters so loveable- because they felt like real, flawed people who were making the best of their situations.

Okay, that's one of the cutest things ever

Use of the Kid:

I really enjoyed how the series utilised Da In’s daughter. She wasn’t just used as a plot device to throw conflict into the story (because OMG dating a single mum, how awful). It was nice to see how one of the reasons Da In wanted to stay with Kwang Soo was because of how much he loved and cared for her daughter. I found it especially adorable how when Da In chose to make her return it was the daughter Kwang Soo saw first, and Kwang Soo thought he was seeing things. Aw. 

The End:

Everyone’s stories may not have been tied up with a pretty bow, but they are all deeply satisfying. Dong Gu learns about emotions that help him with his acting, even if he doesn’t end up grabbing the lead role and leaving that other kid in his dust. Min Gu doesn’t get into uni and he doesn’t get the girl, but he does learn what he wants in his life and decides to go for it with full commitment- and the same could be said for Soo Ah. Jin Gu and Se Young fight and talk and communicate and make-up and totally earn the happy ending the show gives them. Which is just as well, because if they hadn’t got a happy ending there would be mobs of unhappy viewers and this would be the worst drama ever. But wisely it’s the happy ending the writers opt for.

There would have been hell to pay if Jin Gu didn't get his girl

Kwang Soo and Da In’s happy ending is less defined than Min Gu’s, but happy all the same. Kwang Soo’s Noona doesn’t magically come around to the idea of them dating, but she seems to recognise her brother’s happiness. Da In doesn’t magically want to head into commitment and marriage, but she also hasn’t vanished off into oblivion- so that’s a bonus.

What Wasn’t:

Da Inie:

Da In is the exception to everything I said in the above section about the characters. She made no sense. Her actions and choices were stupid and annoying, and us viewers didn’t even have enough understanding of her to let it slide.

Because you are. And not for the reasons you think. Idiot.

So in the end, she just ended up unlikeable. Maybe, maybe you can give her past disappearance an okay just because she was young, scared and unhappy. Maybe. But the second one? No chance. Da In choosing to go AWOL the second time around was the pinnacle of selfishness. Not only because she'd seen how much it destroyed Kwang Soo the first time around, but now she has her daughter involved. The show didn’t really touch on Da In’s daughter’s feelings all that much, but when Da In took off all I could think was ‘wow, not the best move for your daughter’. If it had been because she no longer cared for Kwang Soo, or Kwang Soo did something awful- fine. But Da In is just Noble Idiot-ing all over the place and effing with so many peoples’ lives. So she’s been dating this guy who her young daughter loves and spends a lot of time with, then suddenly vanishes with no explanation to her kid. Nope. You’re on the list. The list of worst characters ever.

Where’s the Bromance?:

For a drama with all these bros there is very little bromance. I’m not upset that the drama chose to focus on the lives of the boys individually, but sometimes it was easy to forget that the boys were related at all.

C'mon boys, where's all the love?

Honestly, a couple of cute scenes between the boys wouldn’t have hurt. Though I guess it is pretty true to life that the boys all seem to know what’s going on with each other without saying anything, while Mum/Noona who is always nagging and trying to get information has no clue.

Re-watch?

Very possibly. This drama is so sweet and endearing, and at 14 episodes it’s also not too long. This whole series is basically just a giant win.

Win, win, win, win, win