Extraordinary Attorney Woo

 Extraordinary Attorney Woo

6.5/10

Extraordinary Attorney Woo

Genre:                                 Episodes: 16                                  Year: 2022

Romance

Comedy

Synopsis:

Woo Young Woo is a lawyer who has recently landed a job at a prestigious law firm. While she is incredibly intelligent, she has autism and struggles with her social skills. While working she faces discrimination and hardship, but is also able to use her unique skills and perspective when it comes to managing her cases. 

Cast:

Park Eun Bin (Woo Young Woo)

Kang Tae Oh (Lee Joon Ho)

Ha Yoon Kyung (Choi Soo Yeon)

Joo Jong Hyuk (Kwon Min Woo)

Kang Ki Young (Jung Myung Suk)

Jeon Bae Soo (Woo Hwang Ho)

Joo Hyun Young (Dong Geu Rami)

Jin Kyung (Tae Soo Mi)

General Thoughts:

I feel like I’m on the outs with this one. So, so, so, so, SO many people seem to love this show and I just…don’t. I was pulled into watching it as I saw a bunch of cute clips on Instagram and it made the show seem like a fun little romcom. Unfortunately for me all of those clips came from the same episode and a half, and that was about as much lovey dovey cuteness as we ever got.

I mean, it's really my own fault- I know I don't like law dramas

This show was a lot more law-y and work focused that I was really expecting it be. And honestly if there’s one thing that turns me off wanting to watch a drama it’s law. Lawyer, prosecutor, judge- these are all key-words that make me go ‘no thanks’ when reading a K-Drama synopsis. But the cute Instagram scenes. They lured me in. It’s not like it was all bad, I liked the show more than I disliked it and was quite on board for the first few episodes. But after a while all the episodes started to feel a bit the same and it just didn’t feel like the plot was going anywhere. I wasn’t getting the romcom vibes I was expecting and it left me feeling very unenthusiastic to watch the next episode. Of course I must commend the writers and the show as a whole for giving us such a unique heroine that is a part of a group of people who are not usually represented in a positive light in media.

I just wanted more cuteness guys, that's all

Having the main character be autistic was a bold choice, and one that I do think paid of well. Young Woo is a memorable character, and you can’t help but be happy thinking about all the people watching who have never seen a character like themselves on screen before.  I think they handled Young Woo’s autism in a tasteful and well balanced way- it didn’t entirely gloss over the challenges of autism or developmental delays, but it certainly didn’t demonise it either which is what we are all much more used to seeing in media. Unfortunately all the thought and consideration and development that went into Young Woo’s character didn’t make it into the other characters. There wasn’t a huge range of characters that were that integral to the story, and it was mainly just those that worked at Hanbada with Young Woo. Joon Ho had all the making of a sweet and charming leading man, and Kang Tae Oh certainly gave the character a lot of charisma and made him easy to like. But all we ever really learned about his character is that he’s a really nice guy. He’s just a good dude. Which is fine, but it doesn’t make the character super memorable, and meant Joon Ho never really had a sense of individuality- he was just kind of there being nice. And niceness alone isn’t really enough to make me route for a loveline. Similarly, Young Woo’s direct colleagues, Soo Yeon and Min Woo, weren’t developed much either.

Some more girl bonding moments wouldn't have gone astray either

Oh they tried to develop Min Woo but it was not done well at all. And like Joon Ho, Soo Yeon’s main quality was that she was, you guessed it, nice! Not that there’s anything wrong with having a drama full of nice people, I just need a bit more to really be able to fall in love with the characters. Everyone in this show (apart from Woo Young) just seemed to have been given one word personalities- Soo Yeon and Joon Ho were ‘nice’, Min Woo and Woo Young’s Mum were ‘ambitious’ and Geu Rami and Min Shik were ‘quirky’. The only character that seems to escape this vague characterisation was Myung Seok, and that’s really only because he had an entire plot line dedicated to his illness and resulting epiphany. But that let Kang Ki Young have more screen time so I am certainly not complaining- I think he’s a fabulous actor who is able to make side characters endearing and memorable, as is showcased here.

I will always have time for Kang Ki Young

As I mentioned before, the storyline of this show was really focused on the law firm and the cases that they were handling. It felt quite episodic with Woo Young’s team handling a new case each episode with each issue usually being introduced, explored and resolved within the hour. On the plus side this means that we have a revolving door of new characters to get to know and all the cases were examining different issues and ideas. There was also usually also a link between the case being worked on and Woo Young’s life- such as Woo Young contemplating her own ability to love and be loved after the case involving a mentally delayed woman and her ‘gigolo’ boyfriend. On the down side, it meant that all the episodes felt very samey. They all followed the same kind of formula, and there wasn’t really anything unexpected happening. With so many smaller issues being the sole focus of the show, it felt like it took away from the show as a whole- the pacing of the entire series felt very laboured and slow, and apart from the budding relationship between Woo Young and Joon Ho there wasn’t really an ongoing plotline. The final episode with the tension between Woo Young, her Mum and her half-brother was actually quite interesting and I kind of wish that there was some way that this plot point could have been an ongoing one throughout more of the episodes.

So much potential...

I felt like the potential jealousy (or lack thereof) of Tae Su Mi raising her son when she had abandoned Woo Young could have been a really interesting concept to explore, and I think I would have enjoyed watching the relationship develop between Woo Young and her half-brother. All in all, there were parts of ‘Attorney Woo’ that were quite good, but I just feel like there didn’t need to be 16 episodes of it. Honestly, I think the whole thing could have been super condensed down into a really fun movie of just over two hours. 

What Was Great:

Extraordinary Actor Park:

This was basically the Park Eun Bin show. Every character took a backseat to Young Woo, and likewise all other actors took a backseat to Park Eun Bin. She was phenomenal in this role. I think she approached the role of Young Woo with a seriousness and open-mindedness that really allowed the character to bloom into one that has undoubtably become one of the most well loved in 2022.

She was wonderful in every way

Of course a lot of credit must go to the writers for creating such a fabulous depiction of autism for Park Eun Bin to bring to life, but Park Eun Bin herself just really put the magical finishing touches on the character. Her mannerisms, movements, speech and even eye contact did a fabulous job at reflecting Young Woo's neurodiversity. I loved how Park Eun Bin was still able to show that Young Woo was thoughtful and considerate in her own way, even if the way she portrayed that and how she related to others was different to most people. It was obvious that Park Eun Bin approached the character with a sense of respect and fully embraced every aspect of Young Woo-the quirks and traits that made Young Woo unique and that were cues to her autism were realistic and consistent. Neither the writers nor Park Eun Bin would bring in a trait or a behaviour once before abandoning it just to wave a flag that said ‘autism’ in the face of the viewers- all Young Woo’s behaviours felt very well thought through and were evident from the first episode until the last. Throughout the whole show it just really felt like Park Eun Bin had  embodied the character of Young Woo, and she really did give an extraordinary performance in every episode.  

What Wasn’t:

Slow Development:

The pacing of this show was just really slow. Not necessarily the pacing of the episodes- the episodes themselves had a really good pace and balance. But the overall story. There wasn’t much overall story to begin with, and unfortunately there also just wasn’t a lot of character and relationship development to pad that out.

The whale obsession was fun though

Geu Rami and Min Shik are already established as Young Woo’s friends at the start of the show and they don’t really change that much throughout the drama’s duration. Similarly, Soo Yeon and Min Woo don’t really go through that much development either (until the last two episodes and then I hated the way that development went). So really what we are left with is the relationship between Young Woo and Joon Ho. It’s just. So slow.

He just...he looks like he hates this

And I know that a part of that is to represent just how much time and how careful Young Woo and Joon Ho have to be as they navigate this new territory, but I’m sure there was a better way to get that across than just throwing in a few doe eyed looks and forced skinship in a couple of episodes. I really wish the show had dedicated more time to the good parts of Young Woo and Joon Ho’s relationship. We saw their struggles with Joon Ho’s family not being accepting and with Joon Ho feeling unimportant due to Young Woo’s fixation on her cases, so I feel like there really needed to be some super cute and happy moments to balance that out. And there just wasn’t. We got a few cute scenes early on when they decided to date and that was pretty much it. From that point onwards we really never got to see them being happy together. We sure heard about it- they told other people and each other how much they liked each other and wanted to be together but I just didn’t see it. During young Woo’s date ideas, such as dolphin protests, Joon Ho looked bored and embarrassed. And touch was an important part of the relationship for Joon Ho, but anytime they kissed or held hands Young Woo looked massively uncomfortable and that left Joon Ho feeling bad. I wanted to see their relationship succeed and it felt like the writers really wanted to make their relationship succeed but they just weren’t exactly sure how.

I just wasn't buying what they were selling

The drama took so long to get Young Woo and Joon Ho to the point that they were dating that their breakup and reconciliation at the end felt completely rushed and I was left feeling unsatisfied with the conclusion. I didn’t feel like enough of the relationship was developed and explored and so by the end I felt like Joon Ho would always be sacrificing what he wanted and compromising for Young Woo, and Young Woo would always be left wondering why he was frustrated and upset. And I wanted more than that for them.

Lame Lawyer Kwon:

I’m going to level with you. I hate Min Woo. I just really do. He embodies absolutely everything that I dislike in a person and in a character. He’s arrogant, hypocritical, selfish, petulant and has a whacky inferiority complex while at the same time acting so darn superior to everyone around him.

100% *sshat

The fact that he could even look at Young Woo, see (and then ignore) the challenges she has faced, and still have the gall to say she receives special treatment was just so frustrating. And I get it. That was the point. His character was supposed to evoke these sorts of feeling in the viewers because Min Woo’s attitude is not rare. It’s all around us. But because we aren’t directly involved, it doesn’t have much impact on us. But it does have an impact seeing that attitude directed towards a character that we are given understanding and insight to, and that we have come to love and care for. Which fine. I get it. But then the drama tries to…give him…a redemption arc?

Excuse me, drama- what the f*ck is this? Hard pass.

Yes, what the f*ck is the correct response to that, and it is also the response I had when the drama starting trying that sh*t on. Min Woo is the closest thing we have to an ongoing antagonist in this show and we’re just supposed to forgive him? For all his backstabbing and rudeness and entitlement? No thanks. What made this all worse was having Geu Rami have a crush on him and Soo Yeon eventually start to fall for him. Like, maybe Geu Rami can have a pass because I can just go ahead and assume that maybe Young Woo never told her about Min Woo’s attempts to sabotage her at work. But Soo Yeon has no excuse. I really liked Soo Yeon as a character, so for her to be just lumped in with Min Woo was incredibly aggravating. Soo Yeon has been shown to be a good friend and colleague to Young Woo, and was often shown as defending her. She was highly critical of not only the way Min Woo acted toward Woo Young, but the way he perceived her. It was literally the way Min Woo’s brain worked that made Soo Yeon dislike him. But then he buys some flowers and opens her beer while in Jeju (which is just totally unbelievable based off of what we have seen of his character right up until that point) and then she just likes him. Yup. Just like that. Lame lame lame. And then magically because Soo Yeon likes him, Min Woo just stops being a d*ck. The man who has been shown to care about nothing but advancing his own career suddenly develops a conscience thanks to the power of friendship.  

Recommend?

No, I don’t think so. There were parts to this show that were really great, but overall I just really don’t think it’s that impressive. People who are interested in law dramas (ie. not me) would probably like this one though.

I'm sorry to say that I just didn't find this show that extraordinary

Sunbae, Don't Put On That Lipstick

 Sunbae, Don’t Put On That Lipstick

7/10

Sunbae, Don't Put On That Lipstick

Genre:                                   Episodes: 16                         Year: 2021

Romance

Comedy

Melodrama

Synopsis:

Yoon Song Ah works in marketing for a successful cosmetic company. Her junior, Chae Hyun Seung, has a one-sided crush on her, but she refuses to date anyone in the same company as it causes career issues.

Cast:

Won Jin Ah (Yoon Song Ah)

Ro Woon (Chae Hyun Seung)

Lee Hyun Wook (Lee Jae Shin)

Lee Joo Bin (Lee Hyo Joo)

Lee Gyu Han (Lee Jae Woon)

Wang Bit Na (Chae Ji Seung)

Ha Yoon Kyung (Chae Yeon Seung)

Park So Yi (Kang Ha Eun)

Choi Jung Won (Ryu Han Seo)

Lee Dong Ha (Kang Woo Hyun)

General Thoughts:

Well that was fun. I feel like in the last year every drama I watched that had a good romance was also really heavily melodramatic. And sometimes a girl just wants to watch a nice cute couple without having an unbearable amount of angst, you know? Not to say that ‘Sunbae’ didn’t have angst or melodrama, because it certainly did, it just came in small, manageable doses in-between all the cute main stuff.

Woo bring on the cuteness

Initially it took me a little while to warm up to Song Ah, and I guess I kind of only really ended up liking her because Hyung Seung did, but she was a bit difficult at the start. I think it’s always a tricky thing for a romance drama when it starts itself off with one of the main leads in a relationship with someone who is…not the hero of the show. While I did sympathise with Song Ah’s situation, because no one deserves to be led on and lied to, the way she reacted to Hyun Seung revealing the truth to her was a bit sh*t (but then he also told her in a way that was pretty sh*t too).

I kinda don't get why she was so popular with the lads

While it was understandable of Song Ah to not jump right from Jae Shin to Hyun Seung, the way she took all her anger and frustration out on Hyun Seung when it was Jae Shin who had cheated on her was pretty lame. Next to Song Ah, Hyun Seung was just this perfect little ball of charm and wonderfulness. I admit, he was potentially a little too perfect, but as this is a simple rom-com I’m pretty happy to let that slide. Hyung Seung was the perfect blend of responsible, goofy and romantic and it made him an easy character to root for. Even though Song Ah didn’t seem that exceptional, I wanted her to end up with Hyun Seung simply because he wanted her so badly. Once the drama got past its opening set up with Song Ah dumping Jae Shin and starting to date Hyun Seung, I think that’s where it really hit its stride. The story may have been pretty simple, but sometimes, when you’re in the right mood, it can be really nice just watching how a couple that are really into each other interact and deal with their day to day lives. Thinking back, I can’t actually remember a great deal of what the actual plot was. I know there wasn’t a lot going on and many of the plot points centred around Song Ah and Hyun Seung’s workplace. Which sounds like it should be super boring. But weirdly it wasn’t. The drama didn’t focus so heavily on their workplace that it became lifeless and boring, but instead filled the office space with fun and interesting characters.

I weirdly loved the work group

Watching Jae Shin’s inferiority complex about Hyun Seung was interesting to watch play out, and I loved seeing how Hyun Seung took everything in stride and really worked to turn every situation into something positive, or at least a learning experience. Song Ah started to shine as her own character in these scenes as well. So often in dramas we are told about a female character being a competent worker but never actually see them do anything competently (I’m looking at you ‘Was It Love’), so Song Ah did start to grow on me as the drama showed the she actually was quite good at her job.

Was anyone rooting for Jae Shin? I think not...

Having a romance in the workplace also did great favours for Song Ah, as she was able to look out for Hyun Seung and guide him with her experience, and of course with her ever growing affection. The show did a good job at balancing Song Ah in the workplace- while it was clear that she was always ready and willing to help him, she was also happy to let him take the lead and make mistakes on his own, and only step in when absolutely necessary. I also loved the way the main couple tried so hard to hide their office romance, but we were shown that everyone in the office already knew about them. The office scenes were surprisingly sweet and I enjoyed them more than I expected to. The only thing in the workplace I didn’t enjoy is Jae Shin. I know that we needed his character for conflict and so Song Ah’s character could develop and what not, but jeeeez what a complete and utter lameo. A man with a massive victim-complex if ever I saw one. Honestly, his situation wasn’t even that bad. Sure his parents were deadbeats, but he had a friend who really cared for him (and was super rich to boot) and a sweet girl who was completely in love with him. Yes, the way he was guilted into marrying Hyo Joo was not cool, but he never really even made an effort to get out of the situation properly before he blew-up and self-destructed. He thought the best way to deal with the situation (for two whole years!) was to date a girl he really loved on the side and just…hope she never noticed when he got married? He added a lot of plot and interest to the story that’s for sure, but there was just no way to make Jae Shin into a likeable character. Not that the show didn’t try.

Can we just forget him and move on?

In the last moments they made a last-ditch effort to have Jae Shin have nice clean forgiveness scenes with everyone, which fell super flat for me. This drama didn’t really have a ‘villain’ character, so as the most unlikable character on the show, Jae Shin sort of naturally fell into that role. Which is fine. Someone has to be the least liked character. But when Jae Woon forgave him after he trampled all over Jae Woon’s long friendship it really made me want to barf. At least Hyo Joo just had the good sense to tell him she was doing so freaking well in her life that seeing him didn’t even bother her.

Now I want more good romance 

Like, absolute yes- loved that scene so much. The acting for all the characters was pretty so-so all around. This drama didn’t require particularly difficult emotions from anyone, so it was a pretty breezy one for the actors. You could tell a lot of them were having a good time filming the show, but due to the limited emotions of the story, no one really stood out that much. Ro Woon is certainly a great up and coming actor, and he did a good job here in what I believe is his first leading role. He picked a great character to have as his first lead, and delivered all the swoony, heart-fluttery moments every good rom-com leading man needs. Similarly, Won Jin Ah wasn’t a stand out as the leading lady, but did a good enough job that she sold the character she was playing and all the emotions that went with it. I think she had to do a bit more of the emotional scenes than Ro Woon did, and I thought that she carried those well, and did well at transitioning Song Ah from being broken-hearted one episode to starting to realising she had some sort of feelings for Hyun Seung in the next. ‘Sunbae’ is a pretty show with a plot that centres more around the characters than events, and while it isn’t the greatest rom-com I’ve ever seen in my life, it was certainly a breath of fresh air in this current rom-com drought. 

What Was Great:

Side Stories:

Seeing as this was a story that was so driven by its characters, it’s just as well that this drama had so many of them. Some got more screen time than others, but ‘Sunbae’ was a show that was well populated with detailed, likeable characters. Hyun Seung’s family took up a lot of the spotlight, but they were fun to watch and I enjoyed the trajectory of both his sisters’ stories. Ji Seung was a fabulous character and I was surprised at just how much I loved seeing her romance with Hyun Seung’s boss blossom.

I weirdly love this

Their relationship was definitely one of the lighter, more comedic storylines of the show, and I just loved the dynamic between these two characters. They were both a little dorky in their own ways, and it was lovely to see Jae Woon's heart in his eyes and his bumbling, slightly strange attempts to woo the classy and elegant Ji Seung. But what was better was seeing how these weird bumbling methods worked! It was super cute and lovey to watch play out on screen. A cup for every saucer indeed. The middle sister, Yeon Seung, had a storyline that took a little longer to get going, and while not as entraining as Ji Seung’s romance, was still an interesting story to watch play out.

Sad but not surprising

Having seen a couple divorce due to the husband being closeted (in ‘My Unfamiliar Family’), I can’t say I found the reveal of Yeon Seung’s husband being gay to be quite as shocking and twisty as I think the writer was aiming for. While not having the intended shock value, I still think the emotions of this story played out really well. Yeo Seung had always been the most confident of the siblings, so exploring her vulnerabilities and feelings of exclusion, both in her marriage and with her siblings was impactful and quite sad. However, the most emotional part of this plot-line was surely seeing how the deterioration of her parents’ marriage impacted Ha Eun. Park So Yi was a charming little actress and brought so much to the show, and I actually think she had some of the most emotionally heavy scenes, and she handled them so perfectly. Outside of Hyun Seung's family we had another couple in Jae Shin and Hyo Joo. While I wouldn’t say I liked the romance/showmance between Jae Shin and Hyo Joo, it was interesting to watch it all play out. It added a lot of depth to Jae Shin’s character (even though I didn’t like him any more for it), and thought that this was a great way to flesh out not only Jae Shin as a character, but Jae Woon as well. Jae Woon had a soft spot for his little sister and was very caring towards her, so this also flowed through a bit to his romance with Ji Seung.

I live for this sibling friendship

At the start of the show it was hard to get a read on Jae Woon and what sort of person he was, so having him be such a great support for his sister as she was struggling helped to emphasise how he could end up being a reliable and trustworthy partner for Ji Seung in the future. It was interesting seeing how each of these three separate scenarios weaved through the lives of all our main characters and impacted them differently. 

What Wasn’t:

That Whole End Bit:

What are two things I hate in romance dramas? 1- time skips. I hate time skips in any drama. Rarely are they used effectively, and often they detract from the emotion, relationship and story that the show has been building up for its entire run. 2- forced separation. This usually occurs when one member of the couple are forced to go overseas for whatever reason. There are usually two main reasons for this. Work/school, and magical medical cures that exist outside of Korea. And this drama, well it had both.

Yeaaaaahhhhh

This show nearly completely lost me in its last couple of episodes simply for pulling in these two completely unnecessary plot devices and trying to magic tension out of nothing. This story didn’t need tension. It was character based and emotion driven. Because the drama had also managed to go for most of its run while avoiding cliches and typical K-Drama tropes, I was even more disappointed when the writers opted for these two cheap ways to create friction in their story. I thought we had happily avoided sending one of our characters overseas for work experience as Song Ah toyed with the idea early on in the show, and early on in her relationship. It was a big step for her to realise that she was happy, comfortable and confident with her life the way it was, and she didn’t actually need that added experience of working in a foreign country.

Hyun Seung > Europe, and you're a moron if you can't figure that out

 It felt like a bit of a developmental step back for Song Ah to suddenly change her mind and go to Europe when there was no real need. Personally, I feel a better progression for her would have been staying in Korea and working to fill the Manager role that Jae Shin vacated when he left. I kind of hate that stories always feel the need to push the characters for more, more, more. I feel that realising that the place in life you are in currently can be the best place for you is an important lesson to learn, and one that dramas (particularly K-Dramas) tend to overlook. You don’t always have to have the biggest house, highest paying job, most successful spouse. It felt like at the end of the show Song Ah was too focused on the future that she gave up on her present happiness. She was in a good spot in both her work and personal life and she gave that up for…for what exactly? And that’s kind of where the time skip comes in. As a viewer I feel like Song Ah had a terrible time in Europe because the only parts we saw were her being exhausted at work and pushing Hyung Seung away to do more work. She could have had the best three years of her life in Europe but I wouldn’t know it and I wouldn’t believe it because I didn’t see it play out on my screen. For a time skip to work well, the audience has to really be filled with confidence and be able to imagine on their own all the things that took place during the time they don’t see on screen. And that use didn’t happen here. The relationship we watched being developed for 14 episodes completely deteriorated in a weird distant place that we didn’t get to see.

This drama for real nearly threw away everything it had going for it

We are detached from the emotions the characters feel, and are left feeling a bit out of the loop on what events have taken place. We don’t get to see the good parts of moving to Europe that Song Ah must have seen (and experienced because she stayed there for three years), all we see is her throwing away a very precious relationship that she and Hyun Seung worked very hard to build. Which is frustrating to say the least. The writer did an okay job salvaging the relationship with Hyun Seung making Song Ah work hard to win him back, but by that point so much of the damage had been done and so many emotions in the story had been lost.

Recommend?

There has been a bit of a lack of quality rom-coms in K-Dramaland over the last year or so. While I wouldn’t say ‘Sunbae’ is heavy on the comedy, it did have a light-heartedness I haven’t had in a drama recently. If you’re looking for a nice, simple romance with a good story but low stakes, I would recommend this for you.

Song Ah's lipstick actually has less importance in this drama than the title would lead you to believe