A drama for grown-ups
Not a typical drama. So many will not like it as it will not be adjusted with their test. It has the "My Mister" drama vibe but with very slow pacing. It was my first Kim Ji Won drama. And I just love the character. As a slice of drama it shows the real vulnerable site very clearly. Even the Yeom Mi Jeong character is realistic. How she does not ride in the Royace to go to office not because of the lack of interest but for the traffic. It portraits the real human nature.The background score is decent. Even in the action scene it was being normal melody not to become any thriller drama like the other romantic drama.
The camera angle was awesome. I just can't hold myself to take screenshot of moat of the static scene.
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This review may contain spoilers
Struggles we all live with
STORY:This drama is interesting as it intersects the wholly real parts of everyday living with some of the less believable areas. I'm to assume this is to keep view entertainment for a fairly slow moving drama in terms of the amount that is happening. The FL is a very sweet and quiet girl and has two siblings one brother and a sister. We find that over time as the show progresses this isn't her character, she was born in a difficult period of her families life. She didn't know the love her siblings had she shut herself down, and it's hard to not look at her softly. She desperately seeks companionship in GU and we see a quiet and understanding develop between them. I found this part of the story to take the narrative elsewhere I found having GU lead this very outlandish life to take away from the show at times, but I also found it to be fun and yeah it is silly and there are charms to unrealistic plot events. I do wish it was a bit more restrained in that aspect. I found the plots of both siblings to be very well done and frankly I though they were done better than the FL and GU, they were more grounded and relatable, both struggling in their own ways that you could see them as a person you've known.
CHARACTERS:
FL:
It was very nice seeing her grow into herself, taking up more space with the confidence she has
BIG SIS:
The funniest character and most relatable, I love the way she expresses herself
BIG BRO:
Similar to big sis, he's super relatable, i think a bit less funny and his humorous manner is so catchy
GU:
I found his character to be interesting in it I wish it was done with more subtlety but I thoroughly enjoyed his time with the FL it was very touching.
MY FEELINGS:
Really amazing show, that show how life is lived and how we come into our own selves and learn to pursue love, our own personalities and to move into your own being rather than what pain has made you become.
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Slice of life with no easy answers to life's questions
This slice-of-life style drama feels very real. The three siblings approaching middle-age, disenchanted with their careers and love lives, feel stuck in their small town and want to break free, so "liberation" is a personal goal for each of them. Bittersweet in many ways, with hints of happiness throughout, even in the tiniest doses. I enjoyed the brother's story-line the most, his highly-strung philosophical rants about life and love are truly insightful. Learning to accept one's fate and realizing that there is a good reason, or at least an important reason, for you to be where you are right now struck a chord with me.My complaints involve the story structure, but I think that was the main idea of the entire drama - that life can happen in bursts, and not necessarily with any reason to back it up. Great acting and a mostly quiet tone throughout.
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"My Liberation Notes" -- Love as Mutual Worship
"My Liberation Notes" (2022), in essence, is a story about the difficult and thankless task of finding purpose and warmth in a world that resists those things. This task forces one to confront the gap between the life one has and the life one wishes they had. While navigating that difficult mental gap, this person will come to terms with numerous disappointments and triumphs, acquainting themselves with their strengths and their weaknesses in turn. The way one reacts to these outcomes and revelations gives their endeavor distinctive texture. The hard work of living is invested as much in navigating these feelings as it does in navigating the chasm between themselves and their aspirations.Over the course of the show's 16 episodes, we see three siblings take on this task and change as individuals. These three are the Yeom siblings: Mi-jeong, Chang-hee, and Gi-jeong, all adults who live in their parent's home. They live lives that seem to meander as they travel from their home in fictional town Sanpo to Seoul to work jobs that are often taxing on their psyches. In the show, they liken their humble home to the "white" of the egg relative to the "yolk" that is Seoul, embodying through this metaphor how tangential their roots are to the locus of South Korean business and busyness that is Seoul. This show illustrates how these characters' lives are treated as peripheral to the larger ecosystem of Seoul, and thus the heart of Korean enterprise.
The show gets its title from the "Liberation Club" that Mi-jeong starts with two of her work colleagues, including Tae-hun, who will be important to Gi-jeong going forward. In establishing the club, the show also establishes the desire all these characters have to escape the monotony and aimlessness that seems to permeate their lives. It's always about the job, the commute, but never about themselves. The "Liberation Club" is as much an opportunity to reflect as it is a place to rebel against the emptiness of this culture. For the show, it serves as a recurring structural anchor that gives Mi-jeong a way to express her interiority without resorting to voiceover, and a communal forum through which the drama explores the idea of "liberation" itself, crucially without ever defining it.
The endeavor of these siblings is presented with realism and restraint, not unlike one of Ozu's later films like Tokyo Story (1953). As in Ozu, this series often depicts quieter moments in these characters' lives and deals just as much in what is said as in what is withheld. Where many Korean dramas tend toward overt expressiveness, the dialogue-heavy realism of this drama eschews that for something more akin to walking into an ordinary moment of these people's lives. This restraint allows the details of these people's lives to accumulate into a complete picture of the mundanity of their existence, and it is the drama's greatest ask of the viewer.
In the first six episodes this ask feels like a liability. The early episodes lack narrative inertia and feel more like a procession of conversations without a clear destination than any kind of story progression. Writer Park Hae-young takes her time showing each character's status quo: Mi-jeong's introversion and desire for liberation from her difficult contract work situation, Gi-jeong's dismissive attitude toward potential suitors, Chang-hee's contempt for his work at the supermarket, and Mr. Gu's crippling drinking habit. The drama is slowly accumulating details that will pay off in bigger narrative developments from episode 10 onward, though this only becomes legible in retrospect.
An illustrative example of the way the show builds context involves Tae-hun, a divorced dad scorned by Gi-jeong in the show's first episode. Gi-jeong, who is single and going on 40, talks disparagingly about divorced dads and regards them as damaged goods, in Tae-hun's presence, the man she will fall desperately in love with. Her desire for Tae-hun grows as the show continues, moving her past her former dismissiveness to something approaching genuine openness and even a growing desire to be accepted by Tae-hun's daughter and sister. This character development would not be as rich had the writer not taken her time to establish the depth of Gi-jeong's judgmental nature early.
If the early episodes establish the desperation of each character's situation, then the relationship between Mi-jeong and the man referred to as Gu is the key to the drama's architecture. Part of what makes this relationship so unique from what I've seen in Korean drama is the gentle way it unfurls and the way it resists the tropes of the romance genre. There's no meet-cute, he's an employee of her father. There's no declaration of love, just Mi-jeong begging him to "worship" her, something Gu appears to do reluctantly at first.
In fact, Ms. Park's greatest invention in this drama may be the framing of romantic love as an act of mutual worship. Worship requires devotion and attentiveness that the ambivalent and sometimes hostile world around them rarely allows. The grace Gu and Mi-jeong learn to show for each other as the series continues becomes a sanctuary and a source of liberation from the monotony and loneliness that surrounds them.
For someone as introverted as Mi-jeong in particular, this gives her the liberty to express sides of herself that wouldn't be accepted as readily in her work or family life. She becomes more talkative, which turns out to be a mixed blessing. At its worst, her newfound chattering grosses out Gu as she rambles at length about gruesome images of animal violence and dismemberment. At its best, she becomes a valuable contributor to the Liberation Club she founded. Her talkativeness also leads to a latent confidence and assertiveness that was absent before she began her "worship" of Gu.
For Gu, a gangster who hides in the country to avoid the recrimination of his former associates, the relationship provides a reservoir of warmth that complements the peaceful life he leads working for her father in Sanpo. His conversations with Mi-jeong bring out a warmer and more playful side to him not afforded elsewhere in his life, and their relationship provides something akin to liberation.
The three siblings are each navigating the same fundamental condition through different temperaments and circumstances.
Take Chang-hee, for instance. Much of the show is about his desire to obtain material wealth and the luxuries that come with it. However, as the series progresses, that desire dissipates as he comes to terms with his true gift: his empathy. This revelation is hard won. Before it comes, he struggles in vain to earn a promotion from his subordinate role at a grocery store chain to a more managerial role that would provide him the wealth he desires. He only seems to come to this realization in moments when he is required to care for others after their loved ones have passed.
Gi-jeong transforms from a dismissive, judgmental, and resentful person to accept that the man who would love her the most is the divorced dad Tae-hun, whom she scorned in the show's first episode. She walked through life with a strict set of requirements for her perfect "Prince Charming," but was routinely disappointed when no one met those lofty standards. Once she starts falling for Tae-hun, she becomes almost comically obsessed with courting him. In one of the show's most memorable scenes, she asks Tae-hun if he wants to pursue a relationship with her, only to get rejected and then get hit by a moped, which is revealed to be a tactic she concocted to gain his sympathy. She went from not wanting to even talk to a man like Tae-hun to becoming so desperate for his affection that she will take a moped injury for even a morsel of it. It's desperate, and a little off-putting, but it is a notable transformation.
The arc of the Yeom parents is present as well, though more static compared to the main cast. Before his wife's death, Je-ho would scold Chang-hee for wasting money and not being accomplished enough. After she dies and Chang-hee stays to care for him, Je-ho's perspective changes. I wished for a scene in which he would demonstrate more direct expression of his reverence for his deceased wife's support. Then again, the fact that it remains understated actually fits the show's architecture. It is, in the end, a drama that trusts implication over declaration.
This quality of implication over declaration is a consistent virtue of Park Hae-young's writing. This is the second drama I've seen from her, the first being My Mister (2018). Despite how universally beloved My Mister is, and how often it is preferred to My Liberation Notes, I felt that subplot bloat set in as its cast became increasingly massive and there was a need to fill considerably more air time per episode. The standard episode of My Mister ranged between 70 to 90 minutes, while My Liberation Notes tended toward 60 to 65 minutes (the 80-minute finale is the main exception). The climactic episodes of My Mister felt somewhat diffuse because the central plot with Park Dong-hoon and Lee Ji-an had to coexist with numerous subplots of varying quality. There is little such bloat in My Liberation Notes, which builds toward something poignant precisely because there is less to distract from the main storyline.
Seeing the way this show pulls together makes me wonder how I would feel returning to My Mister now. The major reframe would be in how I look at the subplots. Instead of experiencing them as an albatross around the neck of the central plot, I'd be more eager to assess them on their own merits, knowing that Park writes in ways that accumulate meaning rather than generate narrative momentum. For now, My Liberation Notes registers as the stronger work, and the tighter construction is the primary reason.
Despite the somewhat depressing reality of modern-day South Korea that this show presents, it is often quite warm. Dinner tables become stages for philosophical exchange rather than conflict, and there is a friendly rapport among the characters that allows for an honest flow of ideas. While some conversations drift toward confrontation, as in the arguments between Chang-hee and Je-ho or between Gi-jeong and Tae-hun's sister, they tend more often toward the philosophical than the argumentative.
The show earns its warmth through honestly presenting the realities of these lives without allowing them to tip into conflict or despair. A lot of the warmth in Korean dramas can feel manufactured because writers engineer it through proven likability mechanics designed to please an audience. Park is bold enough to believe that presenting characters as genuine human beings struggling with life's challenges can be warm without conceding to market pressure. It is understood that the Yeom family and the various people they allow into their lives wish well for each other, which makes even the most vicious arguments among them come from a place of love.
With that said, 16 episodes is a liability for a drama whose storytelling prizes concision. Some viewers will be alienated before the payoffs arrive, and there are stretches in the middle where the accumulation of reflective conversation outpaces what the drama has yet earned. Twelve to thirteen episodes would be ideal for a drama as restrained and realistic as this one, and the absence of a propulsive plot will test the patience of viewers accustomed to more conventional narrative momentum. For those willing to observe character behavior without that pressure, the final four episodes justify the commitment.
Overall, My Liberation Notes provides a warm, lived-in account of the struggle to live with purpose in modern-day South Korea. This is essentially what might have happened if Yasujiro Ozu could travel forward in time and make a television series about modern life. Episode 14, the highlight of the series for me, felt much like the ending of Tokyo Story (1953). The viewer who should avoid it is one who needs clear conflict and narrative momentum to stay engaged. This is notably light on both.
I would recommend it to viewers who appreciate character-focused, philosophically oriented television that rewards patience and dedication, the kinds of traits that seem to be part of the "worship" Mi-jeong talked about early in the series. Fittingly, the show is for those who can worship.
Favorite Episodes:
1. Episode 14
2. Episode 15
3. Episode 13
Favorite Character: Yeom Mi-jeong
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This review may contain spoilers
A Quiet, Lingering Reflection
When I started My Liberation Notes, my first thought was, Why is everyone so depressed? But as the episodes unfolded, I began to see the depth in their struggles. Their perspective on life wasn’t just gloomy it had layers of meaning that felt so real and human. By the end, I found myself understanding and even connecting with their quiet search for happiness and freedom.Lee Min Ki really stood out for me. His performance as Chang-hee was so natural and heartfelt that it pulled me in completely. He brought such life to his character that I couldn’t help but root for him.
As much as I loved the show, the ending left me feeling a little incomplete. Like many K-dramas, it felt rushed, but maybe that’s the charm it leaves you thinking about it long after it’s over. I just wish there had been a bit more romance. It had so much potential, and a deeper exploration of that could’ve made it even more special.
This drama is not for everyone. Its slow pace and introspective tone might not appeal to everyone’s taste, but if it finds the right audience, it hits deep.
My Liberation Notes isn’t a typical drama. It’s slow, reflective, and lingers with you. It makes you pause and think about life in ways you might not have before, and for that, I really appreciated it.
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Quietly Inspiring
This is a warm, quietly inspiring, deeply sad, and incredibly precise in what it sets out to do. Like a good drama -it knows its brief and hits it again and again with nuance, restraint, and emotional intelligence. For me, it stands as one of the strongest slice-of-life dramas out there, and easily one of the genre’s best.The writing is beautiful, the direction is assured, and the pacing is just right: never rushed and never indulgent. Every character feels thoughtfully constructed, but a special mention has to go to Chang-hee, the brother. While everyone shines in their own way, his character was the most endearingly complex and emotionally enduring for me. There’s something so painfully human about him, so layered, so quietly resonant, that his arc stayed with me long after the credits rolled.
I also loved the delicate balance the drama strikes: a touch of romance, a hint of whimsy, but always grounded in the rawness of the human experience. Nothing feels forced or overly sentimental. It’s subtle and deeply felt. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind a rewatch ; I feel like this is the kind of drama that only grows more poignant with time.
Now, why isn’t this a 9 or a 10 for me? One thing. The insertion of a particular character who was the sister's best friend’s boyfriend felt soooo unnecessary and a bit like overkill. His presence seemed to exist mainly to force growth in a character who was already progressing beautifully on their own. That arc didn’t need the push, and the detour felt like filler more than enrichment.
Still, those are minor qualms in an otherwise beautifully made drama. I’m not typically a slice-of-life person, but My Liberation Notes completely won me over. Add in a gorgeous soundtrack, and you’ve got something truly special.
This could be very much worth your time.
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My Liberation Notes: Had high potential but failed to deliver
I enjoyed the first half of this series very much, but the second half was below par. I liked the three siblings characters, but it was obvious that both Yeom Mi-jeong and Mr. Goo were depressed, and I did not enjoy the story line of his alcoholism which made the show depressing at times. None of the three romances turned out well for the three siblings in my opinion. The dialogue was good, but the plot was very disappointing. I did not like the last episode at all, and I felt sorry for the three siblings who struggled so much from the beginning to the end of this series. I rate it a 6.Was this review helpful to you?
slice of life story
Story was so real, acting too.. but i missed the lead actors actually worshipping one another.. it just remained in FLs words..Brilliant cast brilliant acting brilliant story. the whole idea of worshipping instead of loving was so unique .. i kept looking forward to ways they would worship each other.. to me the mother of FL to some extent worshipped, father worshipped his work but worshipping in a relationship requires so much maturity.. you dont find fault, you dont feel you are compromising..
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An amazingly executed slice of life drama
Kim Ji-won always coming at it with the amazing choices of roles, I will forgive her for the content drought that she gives us annually due to her always choosing the best roles.I was initially was not interested in this show, even with Kim Ji-won as the leading lady. However, for some reason that I don't entirely remember, I decided to watch it - I think it was for the relationship between Lee Ki Woo and Lee El's characters. Anyways, the story is so raw and organic for anyone questioning the meaning of their routine day-to-day lives. I have never watched a slice of life drama that tackles the subject so well. I'm sure everyone can find themselves or any worries they have in their lives throughout the drama and find some solace or resolution. It really brings about introspection in the viewer. I love how real the characters are and the elements of comedy incorporated into the drama.
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Too much alcohol in too many scenes
Could not watch anymore because it worships alcoholism and alcoholics.Shows like this sends a very dangerous message for kids.
Watched this after My Mister. That show is also nonstop alcohol and again worships alcoholism. But that show had better story.
I could understand drinking after work but shows like these take it to another level and both this and My Mister seems to say alcoholism is normal and it's no big deal.
Super dangerous show for young people to watch.
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Stream it.
I’m glad I listened to myself. This drama drew me in and I have no regrets in choosing to watch “My Liberation notes”.The recurring theme of the drama is love. Simple love. The love that any person craves or has craved at one point in their life. I am no different and hence found myself relating to the characters of this drama in more ways than one. The drama is about a group of people from different walks of life trying to find love but most importantly trying to learn how to love their lives.
Liberation: to break free.
Although the theme remains simple, the story is complex and the characters carry depth and each and every relationship, be it family, lovers, friends, or colleagues, have very realistically set. To put it simply, after each episode I think each person will have a different view of the characters.
Even though the drama is very heavy, there is (IMO) the perfect balance of humor. I’m especially in love with Lee Min Ki and how he has managed to play his character so well without taking away any of his depth. The story also offers a certain amount of suspense into who Mr. Gu actually is and I can’t wait to see it play out.
Hearts will be broken but more will be healed. Of that, I am sure.
Watching this drama is like watching myself mirrored back to me. I used to constantly voice out to my friends that if the world ended right then and there, I would die with no regrets. Hearing these again warmed my heart a little. “Ah I’m not alone”, I thought. It made me feel a little less lonely.
The cast consists of seasoned actors that no doubt will deliver till the very end. I cannot find a single thing that has put me off in this drama.
I especially loved the end of episode 3 with the music, it gave me literal goosebumps.
Summer is coming, and I think this is the one you want to be watching during those sweaty afternoons when you want to be swept away into something that will comfort you.
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As slice-of-life as it gets!
From all the kdramas I have watched My Liberation Notes is the first drama that for me was undoubtedly a 10/10 rating. The writing of this drama is so masterful that I am in awe. It’s so well-woven that the storylines connect to one another so smoothly and the drama flows just so gently. I loved every single character and every storyline, which is something that has never happened to me with another drama before. It was wonderful to see the characters developing and eventually finding themselves.The drama is slow, and nothing much happens, just like life, which is why I feel that this is the ultimate slice-of-life drama. We get to peek into the mundane lives of these three siblings living in Sanpo and traveling to Seoul every day, and the lives of people around them. It can get sad, happy or even cruel just like life. But this drama comforted me and made me feel better without being preachy or over-the-top. It reminds you that it’s okay to live life your own way as long as you are at peace with yourself. It portrays these realistic relationships that can’t fit into frames set up by the society. The characters go on this journey where they figure out what they want and whether or not they want to live by the conventions forced upon them. I loved how realistic the relationships in the drama were because in life nothing is black and white, and being in love doesn’t magically make everything go smoothly in life.
The conversations and dialogues in the drama were so witty and so relatable for me on a personal level. As someone who is depressed and has felt like I don’t fit in with the rest of the world, seeing such emotions put into words, I felt understood, I felt that maybe there are other people out there who feel the same way too.
Overall, My Liberation Notes is a feel-good, comforting slice-of-life drama that helps you slow down and catch your breath. There aren’t many mind blowing twists or complicated plot lines, but it manages to keep you captivated with it’s honesty, mundanity and refreshing wholesomeness.
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