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

I'm Not a Robot

I’m Not a Robot

8.5/10

I'm Not a Robot

Genre:                                                Episodes: 16                                           Year: 2018

Romance

Comedy

Synopsis:

Kim Min Gyu is the director of a finance company, but lives in seclusion after developing an allergy to human contact. Hong Baek Gyun is a developer of android robots, and his most recent AI, Aji 3, is based on his ex-girlfriend, Jo Ji Ah. Baek Gyun is in the process of selling Aji 3 to Min Gyu, when an accident causes the robot to break down. Baek Gyun offers to pay Ji Ah to pretend to be Aji 3 while the robot is being fixed.

Cast:

Chae Soo Bin (Jo Ji Ah/Aji 3)

Yoo Seung Ho (Kim Min Gyu)

Uhm Ki Joon (Hong Baek Gyun)

Park Se Wan (Pi)

Song Jae Ryong (Hoktal)

Kim Min Kyu (Ssanip)

Kang Ki Young (Hwang Yoo Cheol)

Hwang Seung Eon (Ye Ri El)

General Thoughts:

Well 2018 sure has started off strongly. After going through a year that had a bit of a drought of good romantic comedies, ‘I’m Not a Robot’ was like the long awaited rain. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come and not a start-with-a-bang-end-with-a-fizzle scenario.

This was the rom-com i needed in my life right now

The robot/human set-up is a new take on familiar trajectory, but it was handled so, so well. The path was pretty similar to a lot of typical rom-com stories- meeting-deception-falling in love-discovery of deception-fallout-make up. That being said, this drama had its own twist on that set-up that made everything seem much newer and more innovative than it actually was. 

Good Characters = Happy Audience

Rather than it seeming like this drama was treading the same path as a hundred others before it, it was more like this drama was coming along to show those hundred others how it should be done. Scenarios I usually find myself rolling my eyes at, such as the angsty patch in the middle, instead had me feeling invested and understanding. Because rather than using these situations to try and spur the plot along or fill out more episodes, ‘I’m Not a Robot’ used those moments to highlight character development and struggle that it had laid the groundwork for previously. What the show did so well is that it made its characters the main focal point- not the various occurrences in the plot. Yes, there were robot hijinks and a company backstory, but very clearly the main point was Ji Ah learning her self-worth and Min Gyu learning to trust others. The hows and whys were important too, but it was the way our characters responded to these situations that was the main draw. And of course the characters themselves.

The human allergy was constructed surprisingly well

Min Gyu was completely loveable, and quickly became a hero to root for in the very first episode. By opening with Min Gyu and not Ji Ah, the show allowed us to get a complete understanding of who he was, how is human allergy impacted his life, and ultimately how much he craved human contact. This was essential, as his first few interactions with Ji Ah didn’t exactly show him in the best light- he didn’t get out of his car to greet her, refused to pay her, and was basically a big ol’ jerk.

Yoo Seung Ho, please stay in rom-coms

But because we’d previously seen how terrified Min Gyu was of his allergy and how totally awkward he was (he threw a birthday party for his robo-vacuum), this scene became hilarious rather than being a reason to dislike the lead. Ji Ah wasn’t as whacky as our hero, but she was a refreshing and loveable heroine.

She may have the lowest IQ, but she has the most common sense

She did have a few Candy traits, but she was also innovative and stubborn, which gave her a sense of individuality. I loved that the show played her IQ for comedic effect as it was done in a sensitive way. No one was making fun of Ji Ah for being dumb, but the characters’ surprise (including coming from Ji Ah herself) when things worked out well for her were just hilarious. Such as her heart lamps being based on a complex hypotheses that took the scientists years to figure out, or her simple solutions to problems she couldn’t solve (such as breaking the box rather than finding the code to open it) that made Min Gyu think she was a extraordinary, futuristic robot. The side characters were all delightful, particularly those on the Santa Maria Robotics Team. Baek Gyun was a refreshing second lead, as it’s not often we get totally nerdy second leads actually being the ex-boyfriend of the heroine. They’re usually two completely different ballgames. But Baek Gyun had his own character arc of self discovery. I’m endlessly glad that the writer opted for Baek Gyun searching for the meaning behind his and Ji Ah’s break up, rather than simply having him compete with Min Gyu for her affections.

I always prefer when the second leads don't encroach on the happiness of the leads

There were certainly elements of regret and Beak Gyun wishing he could go back and be a better man to Ji Ah so that he could keep her, but his quiet, individual realisation that he and Ji Ah were now two different people made him and his arc so much more engaging and enjoyable. For a drama that had its heroine posing as an actual inanimate object for a large portion of its runtime, the male leads to an outstanding job at treating her like her own entity to be connected to and communicated with, but not fought over and won.

Teaching Min Gyu How to be Human Part 1

Hoktal and Ssanip were mostly there for comedic relief, and they were very funny, but they also had their more poignant moments. These came particularly when there were scenes of bonding between Min Gyu and the Santa Maria team. It’s Hoktal and Ssanip who are at the dinner Min Gyu throws, and it’s these two that chase after Min Gyu's car after he discovers Aji 3 was a human.

Scientists and love are always a fun time

Where the importance of these characters lie is that it shows Min Gyu opening up to a group of people, rather than only to Beak Gyun- which makes a world of difference for Min Gyu’s development. I was so happy to see that there were also a variety of female side characters- and they all had different, yet likeable personalities. How often does that happen? (For those of you who don’t know- not often). Pi was nerdy without being classically shy. She was bold and sure of herself, and was a great addition to the story. Her one-sided love and eventual love-line with Beak Gyun was super sweet and I always enjoyed watching the two interact, as Pi was often the greatest source of hard truths for Beak Gyun, as she was significantly more socially clued in than Baek Gyun. Sun Hye was used more for comedy alongside Hoktal and Ssanip, but in a similar way as Pi, she was the perfect person to deliver hard truths to Min Gyu. As someone who wasn’t a part of the Santa Maria Team, she was excluded from the complete betrayal Min Gyu felt when he discovered how the team had been deceiving him, and as such she was able to give him the facts of the situation without getting yelled at, scorned or ignored.

Learning to Forgive- also known as Teaching Min Gyu How to be Human Part 2

It was Sun Hye’s message that everyone would move on without Min Gyu if he didn’t choose to forgive that lead to the big reconciliation. Sun Hye’s character was carefully set up all series long with just the right amount of involvement so that she would be able to deliver this message- which I found to be an example of truly excellent writing.

Two thumbs up for a second female lead who isn't a basic b*tch

I was all primed to dislike the second female lead, Ri El, and I was so pleasantly surprised that she wasn’t at all how I thought she’d be. Rather than being the petty, shallow rich girl who comes to marry the hero, Ri El has a lot more depth. For one she has a conscience, which already depicts her differently from every other rich female character. Despite being the second female lead, I loved how separate her story was from Min Gyu’s, as it gave space for the main romance to grow and prevented us from getting annoyed by her character. Rather than watching her pine over the man she doesn’t get, we get to see Ri El begin to realise how her father is using her for his own agenda. Ri El doesn’t just sit meekly by, and goes out on her own to figure out how she can break away from her father and become her own person. Rounding out our support cast is Kang Ki Young as Min Gyu’s ex-friend. I’m so glad that Kang Ki Young is getting more meatier roles (he’s mostly had roles more like Hoktal and Ssnip before), as I’ve always found him a great actor. He’s an excellent comedic actor, but after seeing him as a kitten murderer in ‘While You Were Sleeping’, I’ve been excited to see him get more roles.

The company plot-line stayed where it belonged- in the background

He played Yoo Cheol with a great ambiguity. For a long time I was unsure if there was a simple misunderstanding between the men, or if Yoo Cheol actually seriously wronged Min Gyu. Yoo Cheol’s conflict was really interesting to watch, and provided some interest in the company plot-line. Like most company plot-lines, I didn’t actually care about what went on in the company,

I like you so much better in comedy than in melo

but Yoo Cheol’s actions in the company directly aligned with his relationship with Min Gyu. If Yoo Cheol supported his father he was abandoning Min Gyu for good, but his choice to walk away from his father and all his wrongdoings is what enabled him and Min Gyu to reconnect. With all great characters there of course needs to be great acting to back it up. Kang Ki Young wasn’t the only one that impressed me. I’ve sort of come to dislike Yoo Seung Ho a bit- not as a person, but as an actor. I don’t have any problem with his acting, which I find to be of a high quality, but then I started to realise that either his characters were annoying (Remember) or the drama was just bad (Ruler). I think that maybe because he’s so good at crying it gets overused a bit and his characters can sometimes be annoyingly weepy. But I like him so much more in rom-coms. He’s cute and funny and delightful, but also has the acting ability to back up the more emotional moments in the drama. I loved him as our hero, and he suited the role really well. Chae Soo Bin was just an absolute standout. Her last three dramas just fell of my to-watch list, but I’d heard good things about her.

She also kinda has the perfect face for playing an AI

Seeing her in action is so much better. She has a great flair for comedy and is a solid emotional actress- I was on board her rants and raves and all her heartbreak, and she made Ji Ah a beautifully relatable character. As well as making Ji Ah a wonderful heroine, I love Chae Soo Bin as Aji 3. There was great distinction in her facial expressions, her body movements and her voice, so it was always clear (to us) which character she was portraying.

Magic umbrella of magic

Also special shoutout to the Westerner who wasn’t the worst actor on the planet- what a nice change of pace from our usual white guys/gals. The directing and writing matched each other perfectly, and one thing that really stood out to me was the competence at which they told their story. The writer and director had faith that we were all smart little cookies and could follow along without feeling the need to overexplain anything, or rehash the same information again and again. This kept the story feeling fresh and the momentum racing. I also applaud the show for its minimal use of character flashbacks. Despite drawing parallels between the leads and why Ji Ah understood Min Gyu’s loneliness, the show didn't feel the need to actually show us a childhood version of Ji Ah being similarly solitary. Instead we heard this information as we needed it from characters in the present, which also allowed us to see Min Gyu’s response- which we wouldn't get in a flashback. I’ve never been a big fan of overusing flashbacks, and despite how easy it would have been to do that here, we don’t get an overload of them.

What Was Great:

Human Emotion:

I’m finding more and more that what gets me invested in dramas and causes me to really fall in love with them are the characters behind the story.

And I love these characters

A lot of the time it feels like we’re just going through the motions and using the same old formula when it comes to the rom-com storyboard. ‘I’m Not a Robot’ doesn’t do anything groundbreaking story-wise

Rather than using miscommunication as a plot device, this drama actively avoided it

(in fact it follows that old formula to a tee), but it’s the way the characters were written so humanely that made the drama so great. The characters feel like people- not just figments of some writer’s imagination. Often the problems presented could only be overcome through our characters’ development, and it worked because our characters acted like actual people and tried to learn from their mistakes and better themselves. And they communicated well- how much do I love that practically a whole episode was devoted to Ji Ah and Min Gyu sitting down and having an open, honest discussion about their feelings and how they wanted to proceed (hint- I loved it a lot). The writer knew exactly what scenes would be impactful and could draw the exact emotion she wanted out of the audience- a trait that a lot of rom-com writers seem to lack. 

Bearable Angst:

Usually I hate angst in rom-coms. There’s always a patch of it, usually just on the other side of halfway, and usually it’s ridiculously unbearable and completely avoidable. However, in this drama the angst made sense.

I get why they can't be together and I get why that sucks

Falling love with a robot is pretty angsty stuff. She’s not real, she’ll never be real, and the ‘person’ you’ve fallen in love with is just a machine with pre-coded responses (or so Min Gyu thought). Min Gyu’s choice to reset the robot in an attempt to overcome his feelings for her was believably sad.

It is inadvisable to fall in love with your pre-programmed companion

This was helped along by the fact that his complete isolation and lack of interaction with people from the outside world made it understandable how he could end up falling for a humanoid robot where most other people would be able to clearly draw a distinction between human and robot. The heartbreak from both the leads after the reset also made complete sense. There was no plausible way for the two to see each other again at that time. Min Gyu thought the robot he’d fallen in love with had been completely reset, and Ji Ah can’t reveal that she’s a human for fear that Min Gyu’s feelings of betrayal will trigger a fatal allergic reaction. Min Gyu’s actual feelings of betrayal are again understandable, as he’d been lied to by people he’d come to trust and love completely. There was no easy away around this particular angst- from the moment the drama synopsis first became available we knew we’d be headed for this particular territory. Because there’s just no way to come out of that sort of deception (as innocently as you may have gone into it) without hurting the one who was deceived.

This situation could not have been avoided

There was no moment when Ji Ah should have told Min Gyu and just didn’t, because from the moment she stood in as Aji 3, Min Gyu was always going to feel betrayed when he discovered the truth. The pièce de résistance was that the angst was just the right length. It wasn’t so short that it made the characters’ reconciliations unbelievable, and it wasn’t so long that I stopped caring.  

What Wasn’t:

Forgotten Plotline: 

I know it was pretty strongly hinted that Min Gyu’s groundskeeper was Madame X, but the whole Madame X thing just kinda got ignored a bit.

I don't even have a screenshot to go in this section- just shows how little airtime this plot-line got

I didn’t necessarily need a big Madame X reveal, but at least a little confirmation, or backstory or something would have been nice. As it was it just kinda felt like they ran out of time to include that particular plot-line.

Recommend?

I 100% recommend this for those that are lovers of a good rom-com. 

I adore all the parallels of this kiss