Currently Watching: Angry Mom

Currently Watching

Angry Mom

I love it when I start a drama with no high expectations and it surprises me. The cast looked really good but I was worried about the plot. I thought it wouldn’t be realistic having a 38-year old woman acting a high schooler. But to my pleasant surprise; it’s working just fine. I finished episode six and I loved every single moment of it.

Our heroine Jo Gang Ja (Kim Hee Sun) is a young mother with a daughter in high school. She lives with her husband and mother in law and works all day in a restaurant. Her relationship with her daughter is not really smooth since the daughter; Oh Ah Ran (Kim Yoo Jung) shuts her mom out. Life goes on until Kang Ja finds out that her daughter is going through a hell of physical and emotional bullying at school. The daughter denies being bullied and refuses to say anything to her mom for some valid reasons from her perspective. Kang Ja loses her cool and tries all ways to solve the issue. She meets Ah Ran’s homeroom teacher, reports to the police and even tries to bring a suit. When she realises her efforts are all fruitless; she resorts to the last measure she could think of; enrolling in her daughter’s school. Once she’s in as Bang Wol, she takes ending violence in school and finding the perpetrators in her daughter’s case on as a life mission.

Now that was brilliant of her. No matter how unrealistic that might sound in real life; it might actually be the only way. As Bang Wol says to the idealistic teacher Park No Ha (Ji Hyun Woo), teachers would never be able to solve the problems between students. Students should manage it internally. I’m a teacher and I know that. No matter how your students love and trust you; for them you’re an adult and you’ll never understand or help so they won’t waste their hopes on you. And I know that their argument is powerful. No teacher can or is willing to take responsibility for a student’s life. So the teacher is stuck between their genuine desire to help and their realistic stand. Helping without interfering in every detail of students’ lives won’t work either. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t!

The Characters

Jo Kang Ja; The Iron Lady

Allow me to bow in respect to this woman. Though I might differ with her in many generalisations about mothers’ hearts and love, I admire her ‘’motherness’’ and sense of justice. Her daughter’s bullying triggered her plan, yes. But judging from what I saw so far, it doesn’t seem like she’d pass by any act of injustice and do nothing. She has that fire inside of always setting things right. I like how she talks back to everyone who says some nonsensical things; even to her mother in law whom she fears. I’m never with using fists to settle an issue; but watching her place some arrogant people in their places makes fists a bit more tolerable. She’s fearless, blunt and straightforward . At the same time, she’s understanding and caring. That tender look she casts at her daughter and the kids is so motherly. Her trust in people is great and she doesn’t suspect easily which is not a big help in this rotten world .

Kim Hee Sun is giving one of her best performances here. She was my first actress as I watched her in Sad Love Story –my first drama ever- so I have a special regard for her. But objectively speaking; this is one of the best I’ve watched by her. She’s totally immersed into the role. Maybe since she’s a mother in real life, she's able to connect with the character more. Her fighting scenes are so well-done she fits for a bully. If she keeps this pace, she’ll get at least nominated for an award by the end of this year.

Park No Ah; The Romanticist

If Park No Ah is making your blood boil put your hand in the air!

I know, right?! This kind of person should be executed! Is there really anyone who still holds all these principles dear and actually tries to bring them to life?! –me excepted-?! I mean, the world is a scary and dirty place. The strong wins. We live in a jungle. But he still believes in hope and dreams and peace and whatnot! He won’t wake up to reality until he gets a hard slap across the face –he might not; seeing that I haven’t yet-.

So this teacher was born and raised in a green house; if I were to use Bang Wol’s term. He was raised by a judge who believes in the goodness of people. Teacher Park accordingly believes that no kid was born violent, bad, liar, etc… but that their conditions and environments caused them to be thus and that means bringing them back to where they started is possible. I might agree to a certain extent with the first point. How and where you were raised does influence your growing up; to a degree. But as to the second, and though I still believe it, in my 3 years of teaching all my efforts proved  infertile. If the kid doesn’t want to change and doesn’t find the key and the motivation to by himself, they would never change no matter what you do and no matter how much faith they have in you. Not only as a teacher, as a person, if I don’t hit my epiphanies myself, no matter how hard others try, I would never waver. I’m still trying with my students and I still have some hope left, but deep down I know I’m doing it in vain. How about that teacher who was not even raised in similar circumstances and who had not faced what the students faced; how could he relate?!

I love Ji Hyun Woo; so much. And I’m so glad he’s here. I don’t want to snatch the allusions of the character he’s playing away because that would be so cruel. But I wonder how the sweet Hyun Woo acting the naïve No Ah would feel and react when he hits the belated epiphany that the world is a much crueler place than he had ever imagined.

Oh Ah Ran; Like Mother Like Daughter

Oh Ah Ran is finally coming back on track.

Ah Ran is a typical teenager rebelling against her mother and not believing in her love. She keeps shutting herself away. She’s bullied at school because she’s friends with a bullied girl. She stands by her friend and defends her.

After receiving a big shock; petrified, Ah Ran isolates herself mentally and emotionally. But after matters worsen to a huge extent, she cannot stand still anymore. Still terrified, she summons all the courage she could possibly gather and starts looking for the truth. Clever and strong, Ah Ran proves inheriting some really good merits.

Kim Yoo Jung is doing great as usual. This 16-year old girl is a bundle of talents and I want to see her doing more awesome works forever and ever.

Go Bok Dong; The Welcomed Surprise

 Ji Soo?! Who’s Ji Soo?! Where has he been  all this time?! Yay! Bring more of this kind of talents please! I’ll be calling the guy from now on TaeKi; because at one moment he looks like Big Bang’s Taeyang and at another like Song Joong Ki.

At any other time, I would have hated this character. I understand the pressure on him. I understand his desperate desire to help his only family member. And I understand the bad influence of money and  ‘’guardians’’ on a teenager but I simply cannot justify. But with Ji Soo acting Go Bok Dong and utterly wowing me; I’m finding myself sympathising with him and wishing for his redemption before it’s too late. Would Bang Wol’s sincerity go through to him and affect him more than the other devilish influences?

Do Jeong Woo; The Ruthless Villain

Though there are many villains in the drama; Do Jeong Woo is the most thick-skinned and the cruelest of all. He moves people as pawns and doesn’t flinch. When he does, it isn’t because of guilt or conscience, but simply of worry about his plans. No matter what kind of childhood he had, his actions are unjustifiable. That smirk and the evil sparks in his eyes give me the chills.

Kim Tae Hoon usually plays the bad guy but no matter how much I watch him playing it; I still feel the chills down my spine. And he’s insanely magnetic and I love him as much as I hate his roles. He’s brilliant!

I love the OSTs and I love that romance is not emphasised if at all brought up. The uniform is really cool; especially on Kim Hee Sun. Her black hoodie is adorable. There’s an awesome balance between comedy and seriousness here; neither is exaggerated. Even the comic characters have their dark sides.

Of course Go Su Hee playing Han Gong Ju would have been my favorite comic character here –how I love and admire this actress- if it wasn’t for Baro. The only thing I’m annoyed by is his small role. I’m a B1A4 fan; a BaNa, so of course I want more screen time for him. He’s doing well so far as the insecure nerd using his father’s connections. I’m eager for more though.

I know many of you guys are sick of bullying dramas; I am. But the sad truth is that it’s really that common and no matter how many solutions dramas or educationists present; the problem is seemingly increasing. Media is not helping at all; nor families.

If teachers are willing to help; the school might be corrupt. Corruption in schools is evident everywhere. Power, connections and money move everything. To make use of kids! What a rotten world!

Making use of kids is not only about the school in general but actually using individual students; like Bok Dong. Though I have witnessed all the other dark issues; I haven’t witnessed such a case. And I hope I never will.

Hiding the truth because of fear, society’s prejudice and judgment, internet as a dangerous tool that might literally kill people and the flaws in law are all tackled here; realistically but painfully.

No sugar coating here. the drama presents real life issues exactly as it is. It tries to offer solutions as well. will that help though?!

The questions that keeps urging me as I watch; what has happened to the innocence and purity of children? How low will people stoop to achieve their ends?!