Final thoughts on Into the Ring and Goo Se Ra
You know I love me a great romcom and "Into the Ring'' will sit very high on that list. OMG I absolutely loved it. Besides a great story, excellent cast, and the fact that it was hilarious, what made this drama really special was Nana's character Goo Se Ra. What an amazing character! Nana is obviously an amazing actress and this is my first drama with her in it. Goo Se Ra was super funny, quirky, and had a heart of gold! A few things I loved about her were her facial expressions and her laugh. Her laugh was addictive and whenever she got heated up or would turn mischievous her facial expressions were the star of the show. As you can tell I fell in love with Goo Se Ra lol! All the other characters were great as well, especially her love interest Gong Myung, they had some really cute interactions with each other as well as making me smile and laugh like crazy. A last point was that it had an excellent ending as well. I would definitely recommend this drama! I will so miss Goo Se Ra, one of my favorite female characters to date!Was this review helpful to you?
Cutest couple of 2020
Cuteness overload, ambition, political, friendship, unique camera angle that works perfectly fine are the few things that first come to my mind when I think of 'into the ring'.It's a hidden gem. It's simple and fun. The leads are adorkable, I mean they both are dorky and cute in their own way. Best casting. I loved all the characters. Especially the female lead, i adore her. This is my first time watching a drama about a young female lead with a political career. I want a political representative like her for my city.
Everyone who watched this drama is going to talk about the camera angle. It's different, most of the people loved it, I am one of those people. I don't want to say a lot and spoil the fun, but watch the drama, it's one of a kind.
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This review may contain spoilers
Why Gong-myung is the main character and why Memorials is an appropriate title
Nana was absolutely excellent in Memorials (Into the Ring). To a few people, she singlehandedly carried the show as its loud and over-the-top heroine. I think, however, that this is a mistaken perspective. Restraint does not coincide with inferiority, and I’d even argue that Gong-myung has a larger role than Se-ra.Why? The Korean title of this series is Chulsapyo, which is a transliteration of Chu Shi Biao. Chu Shi Biao is one of the letters sent by Zhuge Liang to his new emperor, Liu Shan, and it provided advice towards the proper way toward ruling a kingdom. It took the final episode for me to connect the dots, frankly, but Gong-myung is the Zhuge Liang of this series. That’s why Se-ra was quick in saying that she liked Kongming. From the very beginning of the series, Gong-myung has been a disciplined and fastidious civil servant. He got demoted from his role in Planning and Budget because he called out the reality that they no longer had any money to spend, and therefore had to be more conservative with spending.
Even though he was thrown into the service center, he does not mince words with people yet does his job to the best of his abilities. While others gave up from Se-ra’s pestering, he dealt with her complaints even when there was no one else in the office. It is from this anger that he had his petty revenge on Se-ra, who was again fired because she did not have any powerful backers.
Despite this, however, he wasn’t the one who fired her from the service center: in fact, it was his father who, even early on, was such a master manipulator: he removed Se-ra from her job and offered her work through his connections that he planned to use later on after she decided to run for office. Knowing that they no longer had a budget, he initially dissuaded Se-ra from pursuing politics. However, when he realized that while she initially pursued a position to be paid, she also wished for politics to effect positive change, he became steadfast in his support toward her. After all, power should be given to the person who wish to avoid its trappings.
When she gave up for Eun-sil and drank her sadness out, he was there to give her support and take her home. In fact, even though she gave up for a better candidate, she had his vote. He provided her with the relevant information regarding the municipal bonds, and even when she was being ostracized by her other peers in the assembly, he had quietly provided his support by looking over her ordinance and celebrated its completion even though her credit was stolen from her.
There’s a later episode where Se-ra talked with Bong Chu-san regarding how one person’s faith in you can make anything tolerable, and while Gong-myung wasn’t vocal about it, he had always silently supported Se-ra and called her out whenever she started to stray from the right path. By this time, Se-ra had quite obviously fallen for him. What makes their pair so dynamic is that Gong would have been ignored by most women because he doesn’t do obvious things, but Se-ra doesn’t: many people only see the charismatic, but fail to see that every productive leader has a master strategist behind him. And Se-ra sees this and appreciates it: “You can do this, Koo Se-ra.”
He is, however, unafraid to call her out when she’s blinded by frustration or money. In this manner, we slowly see the relevance of the Chu Shi Biao: Se-ra can be thrust by her emotions, but the cool support by Gong reins her in. There’s a pivotal scene in Episode 5 where, after she chose to work for her responsibilities instead of being driven by money that Gong rewards her for her ordinance. She confesses to him after this because she sees his value.
As someone who lives a relatively fastidious lifestyle, I can relate with being unappreciated. I’m considered as uptight and too disciplined, and I’m not very obvious. To be appreciated the way Se-ra appreciates Gong, however, is something I’d love to experience. This theme will recur over the course of the following episodes. When Se-ra’s being affected by her emotions, or by rejection after rejection, Gong’s quietly in the background and provides both intelligence and support. When Se-ra was doubting whether he had feelings for Hee-soo, he clarified despite his awkwardness. Later, when he saw her being harassed by a drunk, he stopped the drunk and brought her home, and even gave a most insightful observation: Se-ra, it’s okay to be over-the-top as long as you do the right thing. That’s you, after all. This scene was perfectly acted by Nana because Se-ra was so touched by his insight and kindness, she asks him “Want to go and get a shot to eat?”
After the opposing party broke their pledges to her in the following episodes, Gong was around to comfort her. She confesses a second time to Gong, and gets rejected, not because he didn’t like her, but because he wanted to be certain of his own feelings. Personalities like ours (INTJ/ISTJ) often take our time with relationships, because from the very beginning, we don’t want to waste our time on things we would see as failures anyway.
Later, Se-ra picks up his advice, almost naturally, even. “Something that only I can do,” first came from Gong, but becomes Se-ra’s battle cry even when she was being attacked from all sides. A wonderful trait of Se-ra could be seen repeated over many episodes was that she was willing to defer to expert authority, and this is a trait of true leaders. She knew when she was out of her depth and respected her lack of wisdom.
When she was voted Chairman, Gong was assertive in protecting her from the machinations of his father. His support then becomes even more obvious, even until the end: if he did not choose to come clean with his past and crucify himself in the process, Son Eun-sil likely wouldn’t have won the elections.
I’d like to point out, however, that Se-ra also had a huge positive influence in his life. It was most manifest in Episode 13. When he discovered that there were memorials (!) of his brother, he was distraught because it reminded him of his father’s treachery and his past. What she did (impulsively, as always) just to be with him was also noble and typical of her character. Sometimes, even the master strategist needs to be buoyed with love and kindness. However, Liu Bei wouldn’t have gone as far as he did without Zhuge Liang, and because of Zhuge Liang’s prudence and emotional stability, Liu Bei was a far better leader.
Many people have already shown that Se-ra and Gong have one of the healthiest relationships in K-drama. I agree with them. More importantly, however, Memorials is one of the most well-written series I’ve seen, which is no surprise since it won Best Screenplay in a contest. And yes, Gong-myung is actually the main character.
This is one of my absolute favorites. It ranks alongside My Mister. It is an absolute masterpiece.
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the right amount of everything
no doubt for this show's originality. it was really refreshing to watch something about politics and not in the way most k-dramas portray it (which is usually super dark) honestly thought i wouldnt even sit past 5 episodes but i just kept on watching and suddenly im on the last episode ? where did the time go..i've seen nana in kill it & that was super great btw which is how i found out abt this show and the poster alone looks interesting to me. i've never bothered to read the synopsis and honestly thought this show was about boxing or something LOL it was funny when i realized its about politics. this show had a consistent pace to the end which most dramas fail to have and its one of the reasons why i even managed to watch it till the end WITHOUT skipping scenes too !! probably the only entertaining drama about politics that isnt boring.
I don’t have much to say regarding this drama because it was genuinely a good one to me and I loved every bits and wits of it. Its definitely worth the watch and I would recommend this to people.
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Underrated Gem
I was sad to say goodbye to this drama…The gem of an underrated drama! From the stories, to characters, to the cast members and to the directing team.. the deserve an applaud.
Although romance is not the main focus of this story, Nana and Park Sung-hoon! The couple's chemistry is off the charts. We have this quirky, lovable and adorable couple who are true to themselves and each other. It was refreshing to see a couple loving each other like this. There was no typical drama plot of separation. Definitely one of my favorite OTP ever!
It's a political drama, but it's fun, whimsical, and interesting from the start!!!!!! This drama balanced the humor, the politics and the love story very well. A FL that left her mark on all of the characters throughout the episodes. She'll be the type to fight and fail again and again until she succeeds. she responded to her failures with much more grace and maturity and focused on finding another solution. Her growth was subtle and gratifying for me. What I liked about this show is how it showed characters evolving in less obvious ways. It was hilarious from the start and had so much heart!
I wanted to keep inhabiting their world for a little bit longer. I haven't felt this attached to a show and its characters in ages. Definitely a drama to watch!!
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Uplifting, beautiful and heart touching
If you truly want to watch something that will touch your heart and inspire you to never give up, this is it. Something about it was just truly perfect.Especially the first three episodes, they were truly awesome. Also, something about this drama reminded me of The Good Place, I don't know if it was the background music or the cinematography and content material, but it did.
Honestly, I like that the drama did not make Goo Se Ra into a magical character and that most of the policies she pushed for may or may not have passed through- but it still made me believe that we can truly do anything if we put our mind to it.
Seo Gong Myung was a truly wonderful character. The relationship between the two main leads is something I truly cherished.
I love the secondary characters, especially Ja Ryong. They were cute. And so was helmet-ahjumma.
Give it a try.
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This review may contain spoilers
Had huge potential, is only decent
First episode was mostly boring. But then the plot got going and I got into it. So this showed lots of promise as it was always entertaining.I generally dislike when the adult characters know each other from childhood, and sadly it is no different here. The weakest point of this drama.
The male lead had not much of an active role in the overall plot. Like maybe he could have helped in the shadows more.
The female lead reminds me a bit of Leslie Knope from Parks and Recreation. Lovely, bubbly, almost a caricature, but fun to watch and to root for because beneath the goofy surface there is a genuine character. Until… there isn't.
This series, in its quest to subvert expectations, forgot that when characters have no dreams, no aspirations, no motivations, we cease to root for them. It's a mortal sin committed by this series. I recognize that it was all in the name of good writing, but it doesn't make for a great story. And it sadly is what happens to the main character played by Nana. She has no motivation whatsoever by the end (the show just… forgot about the reason why she entered the race in the first place: to get $50 000), and it never gets resolved. And it never gets replaced. She has literally no reason to do anything by the end except prop up other characters.
The lead character doesn't get her cake, and doesn't eat it either. Reverse uno! Except it's a terrible one. She got in as a public servant only to get an easy $50k, but then as the series progresses, she keeps working for no money because she believes in the work she's doing, instead of caring only about money. But then, she… gives up and leaves public office. With no plan. She didn't get her money either.
Because of this, what we get is a garbage ending amounting to a bunch of nothing where any and all side characters get a better ending than the freaking main character of the show.
The wasted potential here is huge as this could have genuinely been awesome in the hands of someone who didn't just promptly forget about the main character's motivations halfway through, because the writing was genuinely good for most of the episodes.
Oh well. There goes nothing. What's funny though is that it was still a decent watch.
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Kdrama Parks and Rec with an Odd Couple Romance and Down to Earth Politics
Good Things:• The no holds barred heroine. She's an underdog in an unfair system - economically, socially, and politically - but she's been fighting back in her own way her whole life. And when she's suddenly in a position to effect change, she hits the ground running and doesn't care who's in the way.
• The P&R-esque plot. It showcases the best and worst of politics at the local level. The ensemble cast of representatives runs the gamut from legacy egoists, pragmatic do-gooders, ambitious social climbers, and semi-witless lackeys. They all have an agenda, and their conflicts with policy and each other drive the drama.
• The romance. ML and FL go from casual adversaries to long-lost friends and gradually progress to more; incredibly satisfying if you enjoy daily life romances that rely on small acts of service and support as well as the occasional grand gesture. There's also a great trope reversal where FL is the boss and ML the secretary.
• The sense of place as character. Between the home base fairy-lit manga cafe, the liminal spaces of bus stops, alleys, food stalls and overpasses, and FL's whimsical secret hideout that overlooks her domain the district FL lives in and represents has as much narrative presence as the leads.
* The witty verbal/visual humor. It has overtones of self-aware mockumentary style productions, but less meta.
Either/Or Things:
• The quirky cinematography. Love it or hate it, it's unique and unforgettable.
Bad Things:
* The narrow focus. It's all politics, all the time. There's romance and slice of life, but if political shenanigans aren't your preferred genre it'll be a slog through large portions of the drama.
* The temper tantrums. FL was a bit of a bully to ML when they were kids and the dynamic carries over into their adult lives in the earlier episodes. They get over it, but it's a bratty beginning to their relationship.
Interesting Things:
* It's screenwriter Moon Hyun Kyung's only Kdrama, though she's a published author of a guidebook on how to get involved in local level politics in South Korea.
Recommended if you like romcoms with meaningful plots, enjoyed the dilemmas and dynamics of Parks&Rec and prefer realistic, slow-burn romances.
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truly a hidden gem: a breath of fresh air
there is no better way to describe this drama than a "hidden gem." I had heard the name once or twice, but truly dismissed it until I had some free time and I wanted an "easy watch." I was so pleasantly surprised by this drama. the story and characters were lovely, I found myself crying nearly every episode, whether it be from a moment of melodrama or some of the many moments of pure hope and human connection that the story highlighted.however, what really stood out to me about this drama was the atmosphere. the producers knew exactly what "vibe" they were going for and fully committed in a way you see so rarely. it had a very unique, whimsical style to everything from the dialogue, to the cinematography. it was visually a delight to watch.
a narrative of finding your place in the world, and learning how to use your talents and passions to add value to the community around you...this drama was truly a breath of fresh air.
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Had a chance....
I liked the wide camera angle shots but this is where the long list of things I liked about the drama ends. The drama tried to juggle too many genres at once that each one ended up lacking in one regard or another. I didn't find the loud aggressive comedy to be appealing in this particular case. The romance being carried solely by a few kissing scenes didn't hold its own weight. That's just physical affection. The same can be said about gen-z playing politics.Was this review helpful to you?
gem of all kdramas!
if you are thinking of giving into the ring a try, DON'T HESITATE A SECOND! i was in awe the whole time watching it and still am once i finished it. i've watched numerous shows but into the ring is such a fresh air and outdid MANY k-dramas in all aspects. you've got wonderful leads with exemplary chemistry. i'm extremely picky with my romance but oh my god someone hand nana and sunghoon their flowers cuz they genuinely had me giggling up and down every time they just popped up on the screen!!!! as well as just as wonderful supporting characters who you will learn to adore or dislike (most probably the district representatives). you've got one of the most (if not the best) cinematography i've seen which just compliments the theme and quirkiness of this show. every shot in the show is so beautiful to the point where i had to take some screenshots to commemorate their artistry. super addictive soundtrack that i'm actively listening to since it was that good! this show was so well thought out, well produced and executed! not once did i feel any sense of boredom in any scene. it's very refreshing to see how the writers were able to blend in what are always expected to be heavy themes (politics) with light hearted slice of life, romance & comedy themes but executed them perfectly, leaving nothing overshadow or left behind. i truly believe this is one of the hidden gems of k-dramas and definitely deserves to be noticed but once you check it out, you'll be glad to be one of the people that have been blessed to watch it! ps. make sure to stick around to the end of every ep to enjoy itr's epilogues!!!Was this review helpful to you?
