My Mister (2018)

I don't know how to react to this drama. Surely, the cast is great. The acting is also superb. The story is very unique...but sometimes too unique.
I don't like how unclear the ML feelings for FL, if there's any. Like I know he's just too decent and kind, but sometimes his actions lead me to believe he indeed fell for the FL. Other side characters also affirm to my thoughts but he never did put blatant actions to pursue her... and that ending too. It's fine if they didn't went to that romantic sides too but at least be clear.
It's nice to watch it but I won't probably rewatch it. It's just too painful that my soul is still feeling the pain.

Read More

I was always wondering how this drama could have the highest rating here since it is a melo and not many love this genre, yet somehow this drama managed to win the hearts of many. How? I've put this drama on-hold for many months and finally decided to give it a try yesterday. As like my previous two times of trying to watch it, I was ready to drop it within the first ten minutes. The drama seemed too dull, depressing and the cinematography also gave me that stressful feeling. But I forced myself to continue as I loved the actors of the leads.

I've watched the main lead before in coffee prince and 'My wife is having an affair this week' and the female lead was an amazing actress despite her young age of just 25. She has received many criticisms for being an idol actress but her acting is far superior than many veterans I've seen. She managed to deliver her lines and portray the characters in her previous dramas: "The best lee soon shin", "The producers" and the best of them all: "Scarlet heart". She always managed to capture my attention regardless of whether she was the female lead or not. I was a bit hesitant when I heard she was playing a depressing, mature and witty role this time as I was so used to her cheerful characters in the above mentioned dramas, but she really proved herself to be a versatile actress in this drama, one I'm really looking forward to seeing in future dramas :)

Anyways, once i got to the middle of the episode, I was totally glued to my screen and unable to divert my attention elsewhere. The cinematography, the A-list actors, the story, the characters, everything made me fall in love with this drama. And before I knew it, i had already reached the end of the episode and was once again awestruck by IU's acting and found myself clicking the next episode, and the next, and the next, till I had already reached the end. The ending was also perfect for me.

The chemistry between the leads was also surprisingly good. I thought it would be difficult to show romance since ML is already married and FL is too young but man, their actions, expressions and their eyes when they look at each other were enough to tell me how they feel for each other. No words were needed. Now, this is what I call amazing acting skills!

A must watch for all K-drama lovers, regardless of whether you like this type of drama or not. Just watch at least until episode 2. If it still doesn't catch your interest, then just move on to another drama.

Read More

My 15 favourite scenes of My Mister *SPOILERS*

Hi everyone,

Rather than writing a review of this show, I thought I will list 15 of my favourite scenes. It was VERY hard to narrow it down, and also very hard to order it. My number 1 is clear favourite, then 2-6 are also about my next favourites although order changes based on the day. The rest is very loosely ordered. I have also cheated little bit to sneak more than 15 lol.

I wish I could speak Korean, because I am sure this drama would have been even better.

Before I start the countdown, I would like to state my strong desire to stand in the middle of the biggest public square in Seoul and bow to the creative team (especially the writer) 10 times and say "gamsahamnida"

15. Various scenes of Ji-An listening on her own and silently reacting. Probably the pick is when she hears him breaking down and start to cry.

14. Buy me new slippers. Great speech concluded by a great line. I think most of us saw this line coming, but it was still very satsfying to hear. And, I don't want even to get into what slippers really mean.

13. Karoke scene. Boy! aren't those two songs AMAZING! and Oh Na-Ra and LSK killed it with their voices. Afterwards I went hunting for them on YouTube. "In A Faraway Place" is just awsome!

12. Ji-An: Call me. Oh! & Yoo-Ra speech about AI.

11. Ji-An breaking down in tears in E9 when she hears Dong-Hoon standing up fo her. Finally! someone knowing her darkest secret, and still standing by her.

10. First smile. We had to wait for it fo very long time, but that little smile between them warmed my heart so much.

09. Older brother apologising to Yoon-hee. I know he cries and apologise all the time, but this one REALLY hit me hard, and my tears were rolling with him. I think he really felt partly responsible, and was in his way trying to "fix" the problem. He wanted them to stay together.

08. Ji-An worrying about Dong-hoon (snow and bridge scenes). I believe the snow scene was one of the pivotal and turning points in the series. Ji-An could no longer pretend indifference. She clearly cared about him, and was worried about him

07. Walking home at night. That was such a BEAUTIFUL scene culminating in another turning point. Ji-An for the first time sincerly bowing and saying "Thank you"

06. The Finale. This was one of the best final scenes ever. I know some people didn't like the ambiguity of it, but I actually think it was a genius finale. IMO it managed to satisfy both camps. Those who were looking for romantic relationship and those who were not.

...Ok..now we got to the super-emotional scenes.

05. Phone call in E14 between Ji-An & Dong-hoon. Man! that scene is heartwrenching. I lost it when she told him "you have been kind to me more than 4 times". Everyting about this scene is amazing. The writer is a genius, but so is the director and cinematography. And of course the actors. LSK in this scene said more with his body language, breathing, sighing, and unspoken words than by what he actually said loudly.

04. I really wanted you to be happy & hospital: The emotional climax of the series. Damn! just thinking about the scene in the shed bring tears to my eyes.

03. Yoon-Hee apology & confrontation. As someone still relatively new to K-drama I didn't know Lee Ji-ah. Not anymore. I was very impressed by her acting. Yoon-hee is a really interesting character. While I do think her affair is wrong, we have to admit that Dong-hoon is not a great husband despite being a wnderfull and amazing human being. What I am most critical about her is her willingness to go along with the original sacking plot. Adultery is bad, but there are mitagating circumstances, but ruining Dong-hoon reputation is unexcusable. But, I was glad she got a redemption arc.

The scene between them though was heartbreaking, and SO well acted!. And when you add Ji-An silent reaction and her tears at the hospital, it is for me one of the most memorable scenes.

02. Ji-An replaying "You are nice" again and again. I don't see this mentioned very often, but for me it is amazing. Here she is hearing for the first time in her life someone (beside close ones) telling her something positive about herself. Even people who lead a very nice and comfortable life long for such things, so we can imagine how much more this meant to her. Such a simple silent scene, but it wrecked me.

01. "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida" "Jalmottaessupmida"

Ji-An breaking down in the middle of the street. When I was watching this for the first time I had to stop the episode because I was properly crying. I have watched this scene countless times now, and I still get emotional. This is basically all her remorse and guilt coming out.

Read More

My Mister was the most realistic and moving drama I've ever watched. There's no glamour, the characters are all sad in their own way, the mood is subdued, the colors are dark, the music melancholy, it's slow, and nothing much happens. Yet, My Mister turns all of these things in to positives, into strengths. If you are not someone who can handle slow dramas with no action then this is not the show for you. However, if you are the type of person who desperately wants to feel with your whole soul the very essence of what it is to live then this drama is perfect.

Though each character is pitiable in their turn they all have human faults and strengths. Each is relatable not because you can see yourself in them but because you can recognize their humanity. It was incredibly slow at first and difficult to commit to for that reason. It is also not a drama to be binge watched. Instead My Mister should be taken slowly so that it can seep into your skin and down to your heart. But if you can get passed that it is worth every minute of your time. You may ask what is so captivating about two brothers running a cleaning business, a poor girl harassed by debtors, a cheating wife, or a middle aged salaryman and I would answer that it is their humanity. This drama so perfectly captures the human condition that it at times frightened me with its understanding. I cried so many times over this drama. It moved me in a way only the best novels have ever done before.

Don't let your misconceptions about the age gap blind you. This is not a romance. It is simply about people. People struggling to live and being forced to keep going no matter how much it hurts. And it was beautiful.

Read More

"You're Nice".

There was something profoundly heartfelt about My Mister. This is a drama - a true drama - about pitiful people for pitiful people. Our main characters are essentially losers, outcasts, jokes amongst their peers. However we learn vital lessons through their actions, we hear healing stories as well as heartbreaking ones.

Park Dong Hoon is the man everyone wants to be while also being the man no one wants to be. No one is more genuine and honest than Dong Hoo, but that affects his life in a huge way. No set of brothers are so close to each other that when one is sad, they are all upset by proxy and feel guilt at any form of happiness. That bond is unbreakable. And thus, this affects his home life with his wife feeling isolated, lonely and, herself, an outcast. Of course, this leads to her being unfaithful with one of the few people Dong Hoon dislikes. But My Mister is so much more than a story about infidelity. It's about the hardships of life. Nothing is more evident than his relationship with a subordinate, Lee Ji-Ah. A broken person who is stuck in a life of debt, pain and frustration. Lee Ji-Ah spy's on Dong Hoon because of the affair under the orders of CEO Do Jun-Yeong, who is sleeping with Kang Yui-hi, Dong Hee’s wife however she develops love for Dong Hee in the process and begins to help him in this struggle. Is My Mister about romance? No, but there is a clear returned love between the two characters, as shown through dialogue and visual storytelling in Dong Hee’s case. But again, there is a maturity to the relationships as well. My Mister is so multi-layered in that regard. Outside of our main story of lust and politics, there is the comonardary with the brothers and the neighbours friends of Dong Hee. And the subsequent stories that are splintered off and are given just as much meaning and purpose to the story as Dong Hee’s climb to the top. There were so many characters, so many plots that were quite frankly perfectly executed and mapped out flawlessly.

Every episode felt like a movie in itself. There was a long run time with each episode which was risky because it can feel long winded. However the lengthy time run only made me feel more immersed in the story. It made me feel a part of everything. When it was sad, I felt it. When it was happy, I was happy. My Mister played with your emotions. And that was thanks to the immaculate performances from each character. IU and Lee Sun Kyun especially. Kim Young Min as Jun-Yeong as well. It's difficult to pick out certain people because this was truly a team effort.

My Mister was very sentimental, sad and euphoric at the same time.

Read More

the feelings conveyed in this drama deeply touched my heart. we all have different experiences but we share similar feelings of and understand too well the emotions of human suffering, pain, loneliness.. this was a very comforting drama. i loved many scenes but one scene that comes to mind at the moment is the ending...when the waters calm and the storm clears. i also hope to reach that place where the sea sleeps.

love, empathy, vulnerability, resilience..

FL is an outstanding character; her resiliency is inspiring. i really appreciate ML's presence and the comfort he brought. their relationship remains very dear to my heart. i loved the way it developed and changed and grew. and tho the relationship wasn't necessarily a romantic kind of love, i personally accepted the hint of romance at the end.

also, i grew to...not love..but feel a bit affectionately towards the character that collected her debt (I'm bad with names lol). if only the adults around younger FL and him were kinder and more understanding, things could've been different. none of his actions were excusable and I'm not trying to romanticize his character but i feel sad that a lot of this could've been prevented. I'm glad the writers gave his heart some peace at the end.

thanks to the old cleaning guy and the grandma.....thanks for showing FL kindness and love. thanks to ML's friend who owns the bar, and thanks to the support system surrounding ML (tho i didn't quite like the whole aggressive masculine thing going on with the men..lol sigh)

i said i wouldn't write a lot but here i am lolll anyway,,, thank you to IU and Lee SunKyun for bringing their characters to life. their performance with the story gave me some comfort and kept me company. tbh I'm left speechless bc I'm so touched haha

*i would've given this drama 10 stars if not for the glorification of the drinking culture and i also didn't appreciate several aspects of the family/gender dynamics depicted. usually i can overlook these things but they hit closer to home so i couldn’t bear to give it the remaining 0.5 oops

**also, while I'm at it, here's a few things from the top of my head that i want to mention (these aren't reflected in my rating bc i can overlook all this in dramaland lol). i wish we were given more backstory to FL's "best friend". i wanted to like him more, i really did, but i couldn't bc i didn't know enough about him. i also wanted the writers to show more empathy towards ML's wife. i don't justify her cheating on him but i do empathize with the pain and loneliness she felt. honestly i skipped some of the scenes with the monk friend and i skipped most of the scenes with the celebrity friend and the ex-assistant director brother.

Read More

Everything is the End of the World (until it isn't)

I had absolutely no expectations for My Mister. I went in pretty blind, just wanting another 'healing' show after finishing Hospital Playlist 2. The binge-watcher in me usually tends to struggle with slow burns, especially ones which deal with heavy topics. But, oh my god, did My Mister turn out to be the sweetest surprise of my life.

This show is perfect. There are no two ways about it. I'm not a very confrontational person, but I'm going to say it: if you disagree, you weren't paying attention. The writing is perfect. The acting is perfect. The OST, the cinematography, the pacing, the ending, the relationship between the main two. Everything adds something to the plot, to the characters; no second of screen time is wasted.

Watching this drama reminded me of the closing lines of one of my favourite poems, Night Walk by Franz Wright. It goes: "Walking home for a moment / you almost believe you could start again. / And an intense love rushes to your heart, / and hope. It's unendurable, unendurable."

You know that feeling when you're so happy, or in love, or whatever positive emotion you can imagine, that your heart literally hurts? Like it's momentarily caving under the sheer weight of the beauty of the moment? That's what this show feels like to me. I can imagine Ji Ahn and Dong Hoon walking home in the dark, with their coats and scarves and Ji Ahn's poor frost-bitten ankles, side by side, each thinking of these lines. It's unendurable. Unendurable.

Life is so goddamn unendurable sometimes, isn't it? It's painful and unfair; sometimes it's like the odds are completely stacked against you. Oh well, that's life, deal with it, right? But that's not true. Because sometimes life can show us these beautiful moments, these moments of love and hope that warm your heart so much it may feel like its on fire, that make you think, okay. Maybe there's a light at the end of this tunnel, somewhere. Maybe I can stop lamenting my unendurable life and start counting my unendurably beautiful moments and maybe, just maybe, life will turn out beautiful. And it does. It does for Dong Hoon. It does for Ji Ahn. And it will for you, too.

Thank you, My Mister, for showing us how painful and beautiful life can be, and how to endure it either way.

Read More

I've come across this drama many times, and for some reason, I always put it off. Maybe I needed a good enough reason/review to watch it? Maybe I needed to be strapped down to a chair and held against my will just for the first episode, and then after, be given the choice to cotinine voluntarily? Who knows. But I did watch it. Willingly, if I may add. So here's what I'll say to you, WATCH IT ! To put it blankly, it's a weird one. A drama that will have your head FIGURATIVELY spinning with so many questions, comments (cough, cough), and emotions, but in the best non-nauseating way! All of the characters will leave an imprint in your existence, whether you forget it is up to you, but the two main characters will probably leave the most impactful influence. It's been two days since and I still think about Ji An and Dong Hoon and the other fabulous characters we were gracious enough to meet. If you want a quality drama that will leave you with a better understanding/sympathy for humanity and existence, give this one a try.

Read More

Wholesome. Comforting. Heartbreaking.

This drama will forever hold a very special place in my heart. Some will argue that it's slow paced, but I believe that's what the drama needed. The range of emotions portrayed in this will take you places.. The heart-breaking back stories and the hardships that are so real and rawly portrayed was beautiful to me.
I never thought I'd enjoy watching a bunch of ajjussi's living a very mundane life after failing to meet society's expectations, but to my surprise it was so heartwarming, cozy and... comforting?
The dialogues were so well written, the soundtrack was perfect (I'll probably always feel a pang in my heart whenever I listen to it) and the acting!! You just see what the characters are going through without them having to say anything, and you feel it deep deep down.
I loved this drama so much. I just finished it and so my thoughts are all over the place (as you can see from how disorganized this review is) and I've never bothered to write a review before because everyone else pretty sums up how I feel about every other drama I love. This one is no exception either, but I really wanted to leave a review here because this drama... well I don't know if it took something from me or added more to me.. I just love it.
It's been so long since a drama made me cry and cheer so hard for the characters. And just how relatable their feelings were is beyond me.
I don't care if I'm the only one in the world who loves it or feels this way about it. All I care for is that such a drama exists.

I didn't give the rewatch value a 10 only because some things are so precious when you watch them for the first time that a second watch won't be as awesome (I wish it would be though)

Read More

It's a story of emotions and real life story

I would say the story is a bit overrated because when I first watch the first few episodes I don't know what I'm even watching or expecting but as I watch further, I realized why so many people loved it. The story consists of real emotions that you can easily relate to and emotions that people don't usually talk about.

I love how IU's versatility was once again proven in this series. The complexity of her character brought out more of her talents as well as the male lead. I really feel like everyone performed well and it can be shown on the chemistry and the way they deliver the right emotions.

I'm glad that I decided to finish this series though I started confused, I got to love how it turned out. I really recommend this as it has a lot of meaningful life lessons. Fighting!

Read More

"Just hang in there."

This series tells the story of a midlife crisis: career challenges (career stagnation, office politics, threats of being fired), finding another love; all of which stem from the background of each character. The series also talks about how the "good" character faces problems in his life.

Each character of the character has many layers of past stories, which are patiently peeled off in each curve of the scene. Many stories are told not in straightforward dialogue, but through pictures, the expressions of the characters.

The two main characters of this drama: Park Dong-hoon and Lee Ji-an - who have a boss-subordinate relationship in an office - are the people who are pressed by their various problems. The situation forces them to be in opposing positions. But Dong-hoon is attracted to Ji-an's "kindness" and vice versa. At the end of the day, these two people were strengthening each other, supporting each other in a unique way - and I found it beautiful.

I was attracted by the character Dong-hoon, a building construction engineer who is honest in his work and life principles, not talk too much, but his words have deep meaning. He is trapped in dirty office politics, and he who is considered the weakest politically is the figure who is most easily sacrificed.

The warmth of Dong-hoon's closest community relationships: his mother and two brothers (who also have their own problems), and his fellow villagers help strengthen Dong-hoon (and ultimately Ji-an). The scene of Ji-an's grandmother's mourning ceremony in the last episode was touching.

This is not a romantic romance series even though it tells a lot about love. This is also not a dark series even though it tells a lot about the tough challenges of life.

"Even if you're having hardships in life, just hang in there. It's no big deal".

Hugye!

Read More

You haven't really watched a KDrama until you watch this.

I've seen the high score of this drama and I was really sceptical. I don't like real dramas, but this...IS GOOD!!!
The story, the acting, the directing and the music and everything else....oh my... it's is like you are part of that story. And the end was as it should be. Everything is so natural that it makes you fill like is your story/life too.
You need a few boxes of tissues...but you'll be OK.
I watched quite a few KDramas and I always hated that they brought the story to an end in the last 3 minutes, but this one it leaves you building the end and what is to come the way you want it. It gives you a "path" but that path can split into more, leaving you crying and smiling, thinking "That's the way it should be".
Watch it and you will not be sorry.

Read More