What's Wrong with Secretary Kim (2018)

Bad storyline

First off, the actors did a great job and played their roles really well, especially Mr. Lee's friend: Yoo Shik. The story didn't develop as well as I thought it would. It was abrupt and I didn't get this whole thing revolving the brothers, and why the parent's kept them in the dark about the kidnapping. The reason was a bit silly and wasn't impactful. They should've just left the brother out, and made this about the main girl finding the guy that she got kidnapped with. And this could've just been a sweet romance drama without the extra nonsense.

They took all these difference genres and smacked them all together. I felt myself skipping parts of the drama especially towards the end as it seemed very rushed and forced. I just couldn't get into this drama as I wasn't emotionally immersed in it.

The music was nice, none of the songs really stood out to me.

I don't think I'll ever rewatch this drama. There wasn't anything that made me feel connected to it.

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THE SHOW IS GREAT, BUT SO PLAIN?!

The show revolves around the Vice Chairman and Kim Mi So, and how they've been lovers from the start and how they become husband and wife. But it's just so plain.
It's like a boss/employee relationship. Nothing special much to be honest. The show started strong with the couple and on how Kim Mi So thought The Vice Chairman's brother was her oppa and Lee Young Joon denying his feelings for Kim Mi So and more.
The last few episodes were pretty boring, as I feel it was fast paced. Episode 11 is when Kim Mi So finds out the Vice Chairman was her Oppa and not his brother. After that, theirs no plot. I mean if you wanna count his brother finding the truth about the kidnapping thing and the co-workers finding out about Kim Mi So and Vice Chairman then sure. But it was a bore episodes 14-15, maybe even Episode 13. It was just the Main Couple being lovely together. I mean if you love them THAT much then waste your time watching those Episodes but I feel like after Kim Mi So found out about her real Oppa, theirs no plot after that expect for the side couples which I somewhat barely care about. The way people say that this is the best kdrama romance, I might have to disagree with that. This show isn't really anything mind-blowing. As some characters, or most aren't even that relateable. I also feel like the whole kidnapping thing shouldn't have been their in the first place. After Episode 11, it wasn't even plot anymore. It was just a fill in, the drama is still light/soft though.
The re watch value, I would say low. As I said, it's plain so there's not really any moments you'll like to re watch besides the main couple.
The series isn't original but it is alright to watch. It was light to be honest and the music was good to! There's a lot of funny moments in the show that I loved. It's plain but if you're into a light, comedy, romance drama with a bit of a tragic past and a good ending. Watch this!

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This is a pallet cleanser drama, plain and simple. The main couple is adorable from the first episode, and the cute only increases. Even the way they approached the mystery was easy to watch. I never really wondered what happened, I just waited for the main characters to learn what happened and then explain to me why they made those choices. That was a nice change of pace from true mysteries that can become frustrating over time. And as far as the romance goes, this is some of the best I've seen. Unless something changes in the last 2 episodes, the main couple never breaks up, and that was beyond refreshing. As other reviewers have mentioned, there are some heavy duty kissing scenes in this drama, and they are very realistic. Normally you can tell the actor positions his body and hands in a certain way to keep even the bed scenes on the chaste side, but this actor just went for it. Lol Nothing was graphic, but I'd keep the younger teens and kids away from episode 14. Still, I appreciate how natural and affectionate the couple were with each other not only when they kissed, but when they held hands, hugged, or simply flirted. It all felt natural. There are also two very cute side romances that I thoroughly enjoyed. Either romance could have been the lead in their own drama, and they added to the overall feel-good theme of this drama. If you need to laugh, swoon, and smile like an idiot, watch this show right now, please.

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A great watch if you don't mind the overbearing narcissism

While an extremely entertaining office drama, the biggest problem I had with this was the problematic narcissist main male lead – Lee Young – Joon. It was rather difficult (and slightly worrying) to understand how the female lead – Kim Mi-so could fall in love with him. Sure he goes through some character developments but honestly he’s such as ass at the start and it barely minimizes throughout the rest of the series. It’s only made tolerable by the fact that Kim Mi-so seems to be the only one able to put him in his place. However, it is not without its charm. If you’re willing to overlook the narcissism, there is plenty of heart and warmth in the story. There are plenty of swoomworthy moments – and despite my best intentions, I too did swoon (maybe it was just because its PSJ?). It is truly heart-warming to see the cold and rude boss become a more caring person (even if the recipient to this is only Mi-so herself) and once the plot twists come, it unravels some intense character development. The subplot presents an interesting and admittedly darker plot twist than you’d expect. It was a good twist but I felt like in some cases they used this to explain away his problematic behaviour.

The cast and performance:
Park Seo-joon and Park Min - young deliver stunning performances and while I might not have loved his character, you can’t hate on Park Seo-joon. His performance is masterful as we undoubtedly feel all kinds of things towards Lee Young-joon. Park Min-young again shows way she is a fan favourite. Her performance is wonderful and we have to credit her for being able to spend much of the series running in killer high heels!

Despite some of my reservations about the characterisation, the soundtrack does not disappoint. There are some wonderful ballads on here.

Final thoughts
Overall, a good show with some delightfully humorous moments and equally heartfelt moments.
For a seemingly innocent office drama- there is a lot of heart to be found within the story. As I understand it, this drama is a must see for those who enjoy the ‘office -romance’ trope. I can agree with to some extent, however, I’d say if you want something entirely wholesome and sweet with the ‘office/workplace romance’ without all the red flags go watch Business Proposal.

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Cute, feel-good drama for when you want to turn your brain off

I just binged this in less than a week. I have been busy with work, and all I have done after work is binge this show. I wanted to pace myself, but I found myself staying up late to watch one more episode. I don't think the story was that unique or superb, but the acting was amazing and I really enjoyed something light-hearted and funny after a stressful day & my ever persistent SAD.*

Storyline:
- I've read some reviews that appreciated the whole kidnapping subplot, and they make some good points, so I dislike it less, but I still would've preferred if it was not written in the story. I would have preferred if the plot stayed in the direction of a narcissistic CEO who slowly learns how to appreciate and value someone who had always supported him-- and fleshing out the difference between his need for control vs fear of losing someone he slowly realizes he has come to like. However, the kidnapping plot just kind of reverses the entire image of the ML and makes him into a misunderstood man who is actually sweetest and most perfect person for the FL (+ an occasional narcissism as a character quirk). It just detracted from the current relationship they built over 9 years of working together-- by playing it out as they were promised to be together since age 5. I will say that the kidnapping plot did make it more believable that ML has been single all this time & would hire the most unqualified applicant for the job.
- Another gripe I had was that towards the end, it seemed like the FL was getting cold feet. But upon second thought, it mostly seems like FL has only been responding to the affection, and only engaging/reciprocating retroactively after the ML has made a move and expressed disappointment in the non-response. I will say that I like how the FL's response to the ML's narcissism, as it makes it feel like she is the only one who can do that/finds it endearing.
- There were also a lot of cringe scenes (cue all the slow scenes of them falling onto each other), but there were also genuinely warm moments as the ML grew and learned how to love someone else. I felt like the ML progressed as a person, improving on his expressiveness, his thoughtfulness, and his ability to put others before him. It made his character super cute and likeable-- enough to overlook the continued self-absorption. The one thing I didn't like was how this character development only extended to the FL. He was still a jerk to his "best friend," which was kind of a let down. The FL also tried to reciprocate, but it was just tiring to see her do so only after something happened (ML is upset, FL doesn't know why --> FL also hears similar situation from her friends/co-workers and realizes how she had been hurtful --> makes it up). It was nice the first couple of times, because it shows them compromising/forgiving/overcoming rough patches in the relationship, but it was weird that that was always the directionality of the relationship. It gives off the feeling that he likes her way more.
- It was nice to see FL stand her ground and really take her time to figure who she was as a person, but she didn't really challenge herself to continue to grow (it would have been nice to at least see her try to do something else or pick up a new hobby). I like that she came to the conclusion of being proud of her secretarial work and chose to continue to stay in the company because of her passion for her work. It was refreshing to see that "finding yourself" doesn't mean making a 180 change, but rather finally sitting down to think about who you are and what makes you happy.
- The love stories of the sub-characters were light and fun. They weren't super fleshed out, but that's expected given the smaller screen time allotted to them.

Cast: PSJ got better and better as the series went on. I really came to like his character because of how well he was able to express the ML through his amazing facial expressions and timing. He did a really good job of delivering some of the narcissistic lines in a way that made it seem like sometimes the ML would say those things just to tease FL or had some level of self-awareness of the cringiness. I also really like PMY, but her character fell flat towards the end. It felt like she didn't do much besides smile, and even that looked forced. I think this was mainly because the camera work for PMY just tried too hard to stress her smile. PMY is already gorgeous, but blurring out the background and drawing out the scene every time she smiles just made it feel too forced. The other characters were more trope-y, but their respective actors & actresses shined when it was their time.

Pacing: Overall was pretty good! Once they became a couple, it seemed like each episode was them encountering a new rough patch that resolves by the end of the episode. I found it to be enjoyable and it felt like less time was wasted on miscommunication and misunderstanding.

Soundtrack: very heartwarming, I feel like they made the scenes more memorable and emotional for me!

Rewatch value: I usually don't like to rewatch anything, so this is no exception. I think it was a great series to help me out of a slump and was something I looked forward to after a long day. It's a cute little love story with an amazing cast, and you can always fast-forward through the cringe parts, as I think it is worth seeing the heartwarming romantic confessions (I think a lot of the ML's lines were done pretty well-- not too cheesy, but poetic enough to make your heart swell a little) and scenes.

*I do feel a little down now that I don't have something to look forward to after work now, but I also did put off some work I should have done, so I will be busy catching up anyways. I will also feel down because I want experience a fraction of the endearment ML shows to FL and get to pretend that money is just a concept-- but that is a personal issue to no fault of the series haha.

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Lighthearted funny stressless romcom

Life is too short for stressful drama. Why spend all that time watching and be stressed? Don’t our lives already provide enough of that?

Summary of the series:
- Light hearted rom/com; series had great flow, no stress watching it
- cute romance
- simpatico characters
- like a little bit of mystery mixed in there with the brothers and kidnapping
- no villains really, no long struggles, calamity or miscommunications to cause more drama and stress
- they try to add more drama 2nd to the last episode hence I gave it a lower rating. Should have extending the ending to let the viewers enjoy they happiness more/ more gratifying.
- its a good story about different types of love/couples getting together


very fun joyful, stressless series: recommended to watch for sure

If you are looking for gratuitous stress/drama, frequent miscommunications, insipid side stories, then this is not for you.

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Overall, I really the cute factor in the drama and I think that the leads really helped the audience remain interested in the story. It was not a fully developed story like some of the other dramas I have watched; however, I don't think that the audience really missed that factor.
I enjoyed Park Seo-Joon, playing Mr. Lee and I think that Park Min-Young was the right fit for Secretary Kim. Their chemistry was excellent which was carried throughout the drama until the very last episode. I do think that the last episode should have been further developed in terms of the story line, meaning that I was expecting more of a wow factor to close the drama.

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Go and watch this show, it's really worth it!

I was honestly scared to watch this show. Many people were saying how good it is and I didn't want to have too big expectations. I love Park Minyoung's acting and i definitely wasn't surprised how good she was in this show. I was really invested into the story line and was hoping for every pair to get together at the end.
Only thing that made me mad/sad or perhaps not happy was the fact that Yooshik get together with his ex-wife, man deserves better.
(i have to write at least 500 words so lets make it longer i guess)
I want to say, if you're not sure about watching it, just give it a try. Worst thing that can happen it's that you won't like it, but we should try everything. One drama won't kill you.

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If you definitely see this drama you fall in love with Park min young and Park seo joon

Park min young and Park seo joon acting and romance and comedy i can tell this drama is rewatch value is 100% . Story also good and supporting roles and comedy also super and park min young is amazing her angry cute is super i never see someone who is extremely cute she is very cute when she angry





































I really like this drama













Park min young and Park seo joon performence amazing

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light and enjoyable

There was nothing profound about this show and that is exactly why I liked it.

I went into this expecting it to be a light-hearted rom-com and I wanted something that I could mindlessly enjoy and have a few laughs without having to have any deep mental investment. That's exactly what I got.

Nonetheless. it had at times some nice backstory development and altho 1 dimensional, the characters were enjoyable. I especially like the 2 lead actors, as I watched a few of their other shows and they were enjoyable in a diff way here. There were some redundant things,like, much of the MC's brother's role was useless to the show and would've made no difference to the story if he was removed altogether (not the fault of the actor).

I think if people expect too much from this show they will be disappointed, but if they want something light to enjoy then they will get it with extra.

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Not Horrible but this plot has been done better

Honestly I was not impressed by this drama. Having previously watched Business Proposal, I felt that BP was very similar to Secretary Kim but better done. The Male Lead is a good actor but his character was rather dull. The chemistry between the male and female lead was OK but nothing worth mentioning. I felt the chemistry between the side characters was better, and the storyline also better than the main storyline. The ending, like a lot of K-Dramas, felt overly long and had me wishing it would end. It wasn't a horrible show but there are so many better ones that I don't know if I'd recommend this one.

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