Business Proposal (2022)

Loved Loved this!!!

I have seen many clips of it on social media, but left it on my to watch list until a friend "forced" me to watch it. What a ride!!!!
I am not fond of comedy, but this was hilarious. The acting was natural and not over the top, there were no cringe moments. And the sound effects that came with it was brilliantly done.
At first I thought it would be your typical rich boy poor girl romance, I didn't expect to like it so much. This type of story has been done a million times, but it wasn't your typical melodramatic drama. There were no boring insignificant side stories that made the drama too long. Kdrama characters all have the same type of acting, but this was refreshing. They were actually relatable and natural. Even the quirky FML didn't put me off, because she wasn't over the top. I knew the grandfather would be the "bad guy" at some point, but even so I liked him so much. All the actors played their roles brilliantly. Even the character development wasn't slow and boring. This drama cut to the chase and didn't get dragged out. It was short and sweet. It's a must watch. A breath of fresh air

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Kim Sejeong & Seol In Ah excel in this rom-com

Business Proposal is light & well-paced kdrama.


What I liked:
1) Shin Ha Ri characterisation - She is smart, capable, beautiful, humourous and I love it! Ha Ri did't give in easily when pressure was on. Kudos to Kim Sejeong for bringing this role to life because it wouldn't have worked without her charms.
2) Jin Young Seo characterisation - Wow, it's rare to have 2 female leads that are brilliantly written. Young Seo is rich but not spoiled. She is smart and hard-working. Kudos to Seol In Ah for masterfully showcasing Young Seo's smart and vulnerability.
3) Romance - I prefer second lead romance to the main lead romance because Seol In Ah and Kim Min Gue has effortless chemistry that translated very well on screen. Prefer Sunghoon to Tae Moo
4) Friendship - I love that this theme was prevalent throughout the series, i) Ha Ri-Young Seo, ii) Taemoon-Sunghoon, iii) Ha Ri Minwoo, and iv) even Young Seo and her frenemy cousin.
5) Random Korean-English phrases - Gosh, I love them all!
6) Melomance scene - I love the song but wah the scene was heartbreaking. I really felt Ha Ri's pain.
7) Grandpa - I like love Tae Moo's grandpa. Great dynamics between him and Tae Moo and him and Sunghoon.
8) Health & fitness - As a person who started working out at gym after a health issue, I appreciate dramas that feature health & fitness scenes. Young Seo and Sunghoon at the gym. I love Sejeong's toned arms when she had her blind date with Tae Moo.

What I disliked:
1) I wish some Young Seo's PTSD were further explored so we could see more vulnerability from Young Seo and compassion from Sunghoon.
2) Tae Moo characterisation - Out of the four leading characters, he is the least interesting one. His character did not grow as much as the others and he seemed awkward when with Ha Ri. Maybe I am also tired of the cold, distant boss persona.

Favourite scene
When Sunghoon took off his glasses and kissed Young Seo. That was very hot and passionate!

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Hilarious!

I love rom coms especially when they're done right. This? While draggy at times in story wise, is still so good. I was hooked from the first episode. I'm a sucker for the "let's fool them into thinking you're the worst with me doing it" and then all hell breaks lose.

Want a pickme up? Watch this.
Want to laugh your head off? Watch this.
Want to also cry? Watch this.

Get your popcorn ready since it was what it was made for to watch two actors so like their characters that I forgot I was watching a show at some point and felt like another person in their life.

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Fun RomCom but Deviates from Webtoon Midway

To preface, I remember reading first few chapters of the webtoon, but not until recently I remember to binge the kdrama, and then decided to binge the webtoon right after. The start of this series is cringy and embarrassing as I remember it lol

I did thoroughly enjoy the kdrama and webtoon overall, but if you're a reader then kdrama probably could've been better.



♥ Story ♥
As this is based on a webtoon/webnovel of the same name, the kdrama deviates from the webtoon midway (I assume because this kdrama aired when the webtoon/novel was ongoing), so the second half was not that great with the lack of source material. The ending did feel predictable to me which isn't bad since I expected a happy ending and got what I hoped for ^^

However I felt the webtoon was more enjoyable in the second half in comparison to the kdrama (as it has 2 more couples - one with Hari's brother). You also get to see the main lead's cute kids in the webtoon *0* so I highly suggest reading the webtoon.

Taemoo's grandpa is tad more mean in the kdrama which I didn't enjoy that much, but kdrama did not include grandpa's love story either, so I feel in general there was not enough screentime for the side characters stories.
Or basically I think kdrama production could've waited to shoot & air this once the webnovel finished



♥ Cast ♥
The main actors & actresses did pretty well!
I absolutely love Seo Hye Won's acting in here; overdramatic yet funny. (I do feel bad for her since she plays a support character who doesn't win the heart of her love interest like in Alchemy of Souls but her character portrayal here is so different & made me laugh)

However I am more knocking this section down due to appearance styling.
♦ I wish the stylist gave Hari a wig like in the webtoon just so it makes more sense for the story on why grandpa couldn't tell the difference with Hari's appearance.
♦ Also I couldn't tell the male leads apart when they all had no glasses and didn't part their bangs (only could tell based on voices).



♥ Music ♥
Honestly didn't pay much attention to this so I guess it's good, but there wasn't anything that stood out to me from the OST


♥ Rewatch ♥
I'd probably only would rewatch snippets, but not a full rewatch due to the second-hand embarrassment I felt for Hari

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A good way to end a KDrama Funk

What better way to get back into watching KDramas than with A Business Proposal, which had me laughing out loud more than once and was the perfect length for anyone currently going through a KDrama funk like I was. It had two definite winners (in my opinion) with male leads, Ahn Hyo Seop and one of my personal favourites, Kim Min Gue (?Kyu ?Gyu) and honestly I was so happy to see him in my first drama back. But let’s not forget about our female leads who held their own as well, comedic genius Kim Se Jeong and the gorgeous Seol In Ah. What I loved the most was that these two characters were developed, and their friendship didn’t come across as forced for the screen which really helped this drama A LOT.

I 100% agree with Catherine’s review in that another godsend was that this hetero rom-com went just deep enough to stay lighthearted without falling into the convoluted early-mid 2000s ick traps, where deliberate ignorance and stupid misunderstandings were our main bae and instead, we were served a modernized supportive and educated friend and family network relevant to todays’ societal standards. Even the workplace teams seemed more like teams instead of frenemies.
For me there was no standout music track, but I can’t be mad because there was nothing to detract from the story or the characters.

While I probably wouldn’t watch A Business Proposal again, I stand by my opinion that it was funny and worth a watch if you want something short, sweet, and comedic; and I will remember it with fondness (and Kim Min Gue).

All in all, A Business Proposal is refreshing with its modernized clichés that hit right while still giving viewers that penultimate traditional love story ending. At 12 episodes, I didn't have to commit a great deal of time and attention to viewing either, which was a large part of its appeal to me personally and I do not regret spending my time watching it.

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Must Watch for office rom-com lovers

One of the must-watch. I enjoyed watching every bit of this show. The show would be a perfect choice for the office romance genre lovers. The show has a beautiful story and is well-directed. The cast members were cute and did justice to their respective characters, and the crew did a phenomenal job. The pacing and visual fx were fantastic. Adding other drama with similar scenarios and the Shin family and Kang Dang Go, like the drama, makes it even more enjoyable. I wish they would make a second season with the same cast.

Ahn Hyo Seop, Kim Se Jeong, Kim Min Gue, Seol In Ah and Lee Deok Hwa were perfect choices as Kang Tae Moo, Shin Ha Ri, Cha Sung Hoon, Jin Young Seo and Kang Da Goo, and I can't imagine anyone else playing their roles. The fact that Ha Ri and Young Seo's plan failed and took a U-turn, and both might end up with Tae Moo and Sung Hoon is crazy. The theme park and hiking scenes were a great addition to this series. I felt the ending was a bit rushed.

Kang Tae Mo-Shin Ha Ri/Shin Geum Hui
Though the relationship and name started was fake, the feeling was genuine. The interaction and chemistry between Ha Ri/Gerum Hui and Tae Moo are on-point and funny. Kim Se Jeong did a great job as Ha Ri, and the lengths she went to preserve her identity from Kang Tae Moo is hilarious. With each episode, Tae Moo and Ha Ri became closer and closer. Kang Tae Moo fell harder for Ha Ri than I expected him to. He was in full-on revenge mode after knowing Geum Hui was actually Ha Ri, but once Druken Ha Ri confessed the truth, he had a change of heart.
The fact that Shin Ha Ri was in dielema and finally came to her mind made this show more realistic. Tae Moo and Ha Ri were adorable throughout the show. Ha Ri was on fire the way she handled Min Woo and won the MVP title in dodgeball to go on a date with Tae Moo showing how she loves him. Ha Ri and Tae Moo were lovely together. The rain scene shows how much Ha Ri and Tae Moo's relationship has progressed. The final proposal scene was great.

Young Seo and Ha Ri have a unique bond. I love their friendship. They always make sure of each other's safety and care about each other.

Sung Hoon and Young Seo
The interaction between Sung Hoon and Young Seo was cute. Though Tae Moo was the first to think about proposing marriage to Ha Ri, Sung Hoon did before. Sung Hoon and Young Seo are always ahead of Tae Moo and Ha Ri.

Kang Da Go
I love his character. Though he liked Ha Ri as Geum Hui, he had doubts post-truth revelation. He wanted Ha Ri out of Tae Moo, thinking she was after his wealth. Eventually, Kang Da Go saw how much Ha Ri and Tae Moo care about each other and how stubborn they are. He loves soap operas like Shin's family members.

Kang Da Go, Sung Hoon and Tae Moo.
I love their bond. Da Go always wanted them to be happy with their loved ones. Sung Hoon and Tae Moo can't hide anything from each other and always have each other's back.

Shin Family
Han Mi Mo, Shin Joong Hae and Shin Ha Min are hilarious and lovely. Ha Ri and Ha Min are like their mother when they are angry. Shin Joong Hae is a very calm and loving father.

I didn't expect Yeo Eui Ju and Kye Bin to be in a relationship. Kim Hye Ji was hilarious, and her timing was perfect. Yeo Eui Ju, Kim Hye Ji and Kye Bin were great and supportive throughout Ha Ri.

Lee Min Woo needed to understand he lost his chance and let Ha Ri go and be content with his so-called girlfriend. Yoo Ra is jealous of Ha Ri. Yoo Ra tried to sabotage Ha Ri's life due to spite of her jealousy which caused massive havoc in Ha Ri's work life. At least they realised their mistakes.

Chairman Jin ended up ruining everything with Young Seo. He couldn't even understand and know about his daughter. But Young Seo got a family through Ha Ri, and the Shin family loves her as their own daughter.

The OSTs were excellent, and I loved listening to them.

Everyone got their happy ending.

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20% fun, 80% cliche

I think this is one of the most over-hyped dramas of 2022. It was fun at the beginning, I really enjoyed the cute scenes, the fast pace, the narration... but after ep 6, it became just another one of those cliche kdramas that I absolutely love to avoid. The humour died and so did the quality of narration.

I'm a little surprised that people love such cliche dramas even in 2022. I hated What's Wrong with Secretary Kim - it showed office relationships in a very bad light, had unnecessary childhood trauma tropes, the male lead was a jerk not charming and the poor FL was forced to stay and do a job that she didn't want to do. ABP is not this bad, but very much on the borderline of some of these misogynistic tropes.

The FL was cast perfectly and she easily steals the show. The second couple is adorable and I took to them far more than the first couple.

Overall, its a fun, easy watch but go in with the expectations of an 8.2 rated show rather than an 8.8 rated show!

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Adorable!

Everything in this Korean drama is just super duper cute, Especially Shin Hari (Kim Sejeong) and Jin Yeongseo (Seol In-A), a really good friendship duo. I love the flow of the story, not too cliche, not too awkward, and not too boring. It's a good thing that they only make 12 episodes for this series because it doesn't need to be long they already show and fit the story perfectly for a 12-episode-drama. They did great for a web novel because usually I find web novels that turned into a drama dry as dust.

Really recommendable, I rate this a 9/10. The story might not be far from the other office/business rom-com drama the only difference is the main leads have a great chemistry and the story is interesting and not draggy.

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Originally written on Nov 09, 2022

I knew I was going to enjoy Business Proposal as soon as the female leads began singing Into the New World, objectively the best Girls' Generation song, in the first episode.

Despite everything going against it, this is such a fun show. The entire thing is a rom-com cliché, but because of how it's executed, it's actually quite unique. Shin Ha-ri goes on a blind date in place of her friend, Jin Young-seo, because she's had enough of her father's treatment of her love life. Throughout the show, both girls begin to find true love in the most unexpected places, while their blind dates continue to haunt them. As I previously stated, it is nothing new, but it is presented in such a fun way, with funny jokes and clever editing that surprised me right up until the final episode. To illustrate, during a date in a certain episode, the bokeh in the background is heart-shaped. It’s a very subtle detail that some people won’t even notice, but it adds a lot to the vibe of the show.

While the love grows, the humor fades into the background, but that doesn't really matter because both male and female leads form a great cast of interesting characters with deeper backstories than one might expect at first. That's also why, for the first time, and I can't believe I'm saying this, I wished a K-Drama was longer. Because at only 12 hour-long episodes, I haven’t spent enough time with these characters yet to say goodbye to them. Kim Se-jeong, who plays Shin Ha-ri, has such big Chuu energy during many scenes… I just couldn’t get enough of her character.

Sadly, this also leads to a pretty rushed ending. The whole thing gets wrapped up in half an episode, and while we do get a beautiful final scene under some gorgeous cherry blossom trees, it’s only about a minute long. It’s such a shame. Some of the music is also pretty bad. The intro song, in particular, sounds like some royalty-free music you hear on a YouTube unboxing video.

Even though it isn't the best K-Drama I've ever seen, it is by far the funniest, and I highly recommend it. It's loaded with romance clichés and dating tropes, but if you can stomach that, you're in for a really fun ride.

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The title should actually be "Kim Sejeong for President"

I am kidding. Or am I? I am, let's be honest it was a good romantic comedy. I laughed and I was moved and I have already rewatched it. It's a show that leaves you with a warm feeling at heart. Those of you searching for a smooth, happy and relaxing series should definitely watch this. It's a safe bet. Now if you want to dig deeper into it and in more detail read on.

Story:
Could have been better in the sense that I did not like how it at times diverged from the main couple Kang Tae-moo and Shin Ha-ri, to the side couple, Cha Sung-hoon and Jin Young-seo. Pick a story, and tell it well. Also I feel like the main characters' best friends were annoying at times in their perceptions of the main couple's relationship. Get a life. Actually get a seperate series for them if you must. They had great chemistry but it was really unnecessary for the main plot. The right way to integrate a second couple in the main story is how it was done with Gye-bin and Yeo Eui-ju. That relationship was fun and played a significant role in making social activities in the series more enjoyable. It also added to the comedy aspect. On the other hand Shin Ha-ri and Jin Young-seo had a beautiful friendship, that we keep. Their moments were soooooo cute. And last but not least they should have added a few more episodes because the bridge between episode 11 and 12 is weak. We needed a few more cute happy romantic moments after the 1 year trip.

Acting/Cast:
In my opinion there was a slight casting imbalance between the two lead performers, Kim Se Jeong and Ahn Hyo-seop. Kim Se Jeong comes off as more experienced in acting. I felt at times that she "saved" the scenes with her charm. She is exceptionally versatile and floats smoothly from comedy, to romance and drama. There really isn't much to say. She did a great job in her role.

Ahn Hyo-seop was good but has a long way to go before becoming trully confident in his performance. He lacked a sense of fluidity, as if there were glitches in the rom-com Matrix, especially in intimate moments with his co-star. However he is extremely promising and I hope to see more of him in the future. He has a beautiful, kind and respectful presence/quality.

Exemplary Performances by: Kim Hyun-sook, Lim Ki-hong, Seo Hye-won.
Remember to always give credit were credit is due, especially when it comes to supporting actresses and actors. They bring any show together and build a wholesome atmosphere.

Music:

Nice music themes were added in funny moments but overall better songs should have been picked especially for the romantic scenes.

That's it people, over and out. <3

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Enjoyable Light Rom-Com

This drama have all the cliche done right, nothing are too cringy. Some is a little bit over done, but I guess it's for the comedy purpose. It's really well paced, the story flow is good, characters are fine. Very enjoyable to watch. Gives you a lot of smile. It's good entertainment. Some people complain about 12 episodes are too short. But imo 12 episodes is just right, maybe adding 1 more episode is okay. But definitely not the regular 16 episodes drama, it's gonna be too draggy. I don't understand all the hype though. I mean, it's good, but not that good. There're definitely so many better dramas than this.

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