This review may contain spoilers
Where Romance Goes to Die…and Gets (Cautiously) Resurrected (Tomorrow at Work)
Summary (synopsis was actually right this time!): Though there’s not much that stands out, this is probably one of the few dramas I have felt a sense of real vindication from, with the protagonistic characters actually speaking up against their abusive adversaries. Despite a short 12-episode run, it felt as if the filmmakers ran out of relevant material as the last episode was filled with unnecessary scenes that added little to no value to the overall story. Note that the rom was a bit lacking in progression and the com just faded with each episode to oblivion; I wish the com was just as robust as in the early episodes. Also, this show is not for swoon mongers, there’s a lot of relational analysis going on. 죄송해요 (sorry). I shared my amateuristic ideas for improvement below. 😂
Ads noticed: Kold beer, Trevi sparkling water, Binggrae/Blue Diamond/Bacchus-F/Cheongjungone snacks, x brand bananas?, Munhwa Bakery, Returnity beauty mask, Aurelia Vita supplements?, Icis water, unnamed fried food and soup restaurant? (I asked my Korean relative to translate and it didn’t seem like an actual restaurant), more supplements?…
Soundtrack: Standard poppy ballads with a few throwbacks highlighted in the show. The only songs that uniquely stood out to me were from Fifty Fifty or Hana.
Details: Prime’s synopsis on this series was spot-on: “Cha Ji-yoon is a 7th-year corporate worker who's tired of both work and dating. She crosses paths with Kang Si-woo, the cynical boss with a terrifying reputation. Unexpectedly, she regains spark in her life as she gets to know the kindness behind his stern words. Amid repeated commutes, accidents at work, and failed relationships, the two become each other's irreplaceable anchor.” There’s no surprising story elements thrown at the audience - it is most definitely a genuine romcom (not hidden murder mystery), which is helpful if you’re only in the mood for a romcom.
I normally skip the intro but the opening credits animation paired with song from Fifty Fifty on this drama was super gwiyeowo!! 🥰 You can tell there was more attention added to this production and not just folks rushing to finish another project. I also don’t recall normally seeing disclaimers in opening credits about child actors and animals being filmed safely with supervision… Is that not standard? 😅 It was interesting that they used Kawaii like elements, like with random close-up of office dolls in some episodes (which I kinda want to get now ^^).
I do feel that the female lead’s lack of willingness to fight for their relationship became her own self-fulfilling prophecy from “…marriage is where romance goes to die” when she was affected by both her parents and own previous relationship. Yes, she was messed over by her ex but they really dragged that point out with her having entitled expectations toward a man (who’s ALSO HER BOSS btw) that she just met. I would have preferred she kindly kept him at professional arms’ distance until she found some healing on her own. Also, why was she looking melancholy through almost the whole series?? They also could have thrown in a lot more comedic “coincidental” meetings to strengthen the leads’ romantic connection as well. That awkward and cringily sappy yet graceful fall-catch is probably one of the best I’ve seen! I mean, may I have this dance or what? 😍
Despite the usual tropes like the fall-catch between leads (romance teaser) or highly publicized scandal (climactic plot twist), along with a fizzling storyline, I felt pretty satisfied with this drama’s overall storyline and less than fairytale ending. They could have redistributed the screen time from the last episode toward moments of romantic misunderstanding in earlier episodes. Like maybe reveal his true (nice) personality later and have them start dating later. The ending wasn’t your typical happily ever after but it seemed appropriate given Cha Ji-Yoon’s fears. I wonder if the filmmakers were attempting to address Korean anti-family work culture and how it affects office workers’ personal life choices. Since there wasn’t much drama to this drama, which included a quickly axed love triangle, I have little to review other than it should be a hit for office romance lovers.
One thing I do have to express is that the few dramas I’ve seen Seo In-Guk in (Doom at Your Service, Café Minamdang, Boyfriend on Demand) feels like he’s playing the same calm character over and over. Like with very little expressions or emotions. I’m not sure if that’s on purpose but it’s getting a little old, in my opinion. Again, my watches of his stuff are limited (don’t kill me, people!).
Side Notes: Ep1: In her apartment: Baseball pitcher loses a game as she’s getting ghosted. Sheesh! That’s clever. 😂 And wow, that fire activated message revealing cake??? IS THAT FOR REAL??? 🤯 I want one!!!
In her daydream: The turtle swimming by as she treks through a thigh high flooded street, only to be whisked away by a mysterious gentleman… to work (of all places) and the look of despair on her face. Lol. I feel ya, sister! Love this show already! 😍
Him flying in to Seoul: That girl at the airport with a red drink, turning around suddenly, was a dumb scene. Who carries around drinks that carelessly, unless they were already inebriated. Ok, fine. You won that argument. Also, I wonder how many shirts did they sacrifice for that scene? 😂
At the office: Huh? Sticker over the phone camera? I’ve never seen that before…won’t that mess up the camera lens? What was the point of that detail? Company helicopter? Whaaaa? I doubt their deadlines are so intense that they’d allow a regular employee access to a helicopter. Is Saeum supposed to be big like Samsung? Also, how the heck does she have her boss’s number, who she barely met?
QUOTE of the episode: “Some say that marriage is where romance goes to die.” Wow 😂
The sticky note on the forehead. Lol. I’ve only ever seen that ONCE and it was on “Better Off Dead” so the filmmakers probably have watched it.
Ep3: Beach break-up scene: LAME; no one in real life would be staring that hard at someone crying; those folks just want camera time 😂
After work team gathering: Drunkee restaurant? Wow, office boozing scenes never fail in a K-drama. Lol
Ep4: QUOTE of the episode: "Hey, work, thank you for letting me drown out my sadness with pain." 😂
Baseball game Saturday demo: “(random fan) May I get your autograph? (Kang Si-Woo) I’m not a player." Wow, really, random fan, how do you not know who’s a player and who isn’t? You do WATCH the games right? In the stands: they're allowed to drink on the job? 😮
Club scene where Yun No-A confronts Lee Jae-In: lame but not worse than the one in Dynamite Kiss! At least these kids looked like they were actually dancing 😂
Ep6: Whaaa, how could those be the most “phenomenal” croissants you’ve ever had? The Costco ones look better! 😂
Ep7: 어째서죠 (how come)? She can't just tell him the truth about her ex forcing his way into the wedding performance?
Ep9: QUOTE of the episode: “Good... morning?” (from Kang Si-Woo’s friend’s advice: always start your conversation with a question) 🤣🤣🤣 I wish they stretched out these antics more and had more co-workers swooning loudly around her just to make it stick. Maybe added her daydreaming about him slow motion in his boyfriend outfit, and then asking later why he changed his look. That would be so awkward. 🤣 They dropped that part so fast that it seemed irrelevant and non-comedic. That was a wasted opportunity for drawing in the audience more.
After team demo practice and speak of ghosts: What’s with the Kawaii office animals?? 🤔
Ep10: Burgled?? Huh?? Now I know the translator speaks British English!
QUOTE of the episode: “It never once crossed my mind that marriage could be one of my housing options." 😂
And who is this random tall and pretty guy all the sudden hanging out with their task force team?? 😂
Galaxy XR? Is that a hidden ad for Samsung?
Ep11: Ummm, I know it’s for love and everything buuutt I think the smarter approach would’ve been to film Mr. Ko acting all crazy in the lobby and just tell him that Mr. Kang was helping her with a personal emergency because no one else was available. But you know, that’s too reasonable and boring. Lol. Another no-fail use of the scandal trope in K-dramas. (sigh) I do like that it turned out fine eventually and that most of her co-workers were nice people. :)
PEEVE of the episode: Video meeting with external investor: annoying; forcing non-native speakers to do English dialog...for no good reason. And then the cruelty of not translating that in the subtitles! Why is it that English never gets translated in Asian drama subtitles? 😩 Just because they’re speaking English doesn’t mean audiences automatically know what they’re saying. Ugh.
Ummm, from where the heck did that window behind his kitchen show up?? It can't be outside because he's facing the sliding door window to his balcony.. That better not be the window to the outer hallway. Creepy 😵
Ep12: Leads walking up the street from the beach: That was an unexpected twist but I like that the story didn’t have to succeed with both of them overcoming adversity in big corp but rather figuring out what they wanted to do in life. However, I didn’t get the new tech job setup that Kang Si-Woo had going. What was the point of that scene? That he completed his soul searching within 6 months and actually found what he wanted to do? And what’s with the Kawaii AI bot giving attitude to him in the meeting?
Ads noticed: Kold beer, Trevi sparkling water, Binggrae/Blue Diamond/Bacchus-F/Cheongjungone snacks, x brand bananas?, Munhwa Bakery, Returnity beauty mask, Aurelia Vita supplements?, Icis water, unnamed fried food and soup restaurant? (I asked my Korean relative to translate and it didn’t seem like an actual restaurant), more supplements?…
Soundtrack: Standard poppy ballads with a few throwbacks highlighted in the show. The only songs that uniquely stood out to me were from Fifty Fifty or Hana.
Details: Prime’s synopsis on this series was spot-on: “Cha Ji-yoon is a 7th-year corporate worker who's tired of both work and dating. She crosses paths with Kang Si-woo, the cynical boss with a terrifying reputation. Unexpectedly, she regains spark in her life as she gets to know the kindness behind his stern words. Amid repeated commutes, accidents at work, and failed relationships, the two become each other's irreplaceable anchor.” There’s no surprising story elements thrown at the audience - it is most definitely a genuine romcom (not hidden murder mystery), which is helpful if you’re only in the mood for a romcom.
I normally skip the intro but the opening credits animation paired with song from Fifty Fifty on this drama was super gwiyeowo!! 🥰 You can tell there was more attention added to this production and not just folks rushing to finish another project. I also don’t recall normally seeing disclaimers in opening credits about child actors and animals being filmed safely with supervision… Is that not standard? 😅 It was interesting that they used Kawaii like elements, like with random close-up of office dolls in some episodes (which I kinda want to get now ^^).
I do feel that the female lead’s lack of willingness to fight for their relationship became her own self-fulfilling prophecy from “…marriage is where romance goes to die” when she was affected by both her parents and own previous relationship. Yes, she was messed over by her ex but they really dragged that point out with her having entitled expectations toward a man (who’s ALSO HER BOSS btw) that she just met. I would have preferred she kindly kept him at professional arms’ distance until she found some healing on her own. Also, why was she looking melancholy through almost the whole series?? They also could have thrown in a lot more comedic “coincidental” meetings to strengthen the leads’ romantic connection as well. That awkward and cringily sappy yet graceful fall-catch is probably one of the best I’ve seen! I mean, may I have this dance or what? 😍
Despite the usual tropes like the fall-catch between leads (romance teaser) or highly publicized scandal (climactic plot twist), along with a fizzling storyline, I felt pretty satisfied with this drama’s overall storyline and less than fairytale ending. They could have redistributed the screen time from the last episode toward moments of romantic misunderstanding in earlier episodes. Like maybe reveal his true (nice) personality later and have them start dating later. The ending wasn’t your typical happily ever after but it seemed appropriate given Cha Ji-Yoon’s fears. I wonder if the filmmakers were attempting to address Korean anti-family work culture and how it affects office workers’ personal life choices. Since there wasn’t much drama to this drama, which included a quickly axed love triangle, I have little to review other than it should be a hit for office romance lovers.
One thing I do have to express is that the few dramas I’ve seen Seo In-Guk in (Doom at Your Service, Café Minamdang, Boyfriend on Demand) feels like he’s playing the same calm character over and over. Like with very little expressions or emotions. I’m not sure if that’s on purpose but it’s getting a little old, in my opinion. Again, my watches of his stuff are limited (don’t kill me, people!).
Side Notes: Ep1: In her apartment: Baseball pitcher loses a game as she’s getting ghosted. Sheesh! That’s clever. 😂 And wow, that fire activated message revealing cake??? IS THAT FOR REAL??? 🤯 I want one!!!
In her daydream: The turtle swimming by as she treks through a thigh high flooded street, only to be whisked away by a mysterious gentleman… to work (of all places) and the look of despair on her face. Lol. I feel ya, sister! Love this show already! 😍
Him flying in to Seoul: That girl at the airport with a red drink, turning around suddenly, was a dumb scene. Who carries around drinks that carelessly, unless they were already inebriated. Ok, fine. You won that argument. Also, I wonder how many shirts did they sacrifice for that scene? 😂
At the office: Huh? Sticker over the phone camera? I’ve never seen that before…won’t that mess up the camera lens? What was the point of that detail? Company helicopter? Whaaaa? I doubt their deadlines are so intense that they’d allow a regular employee access to a helicopter. Is Saeum supposed to be big like Samsung? Also, how the heck does she have her boss’s number, who she barely met?
QUOTE of the episode: “Some say that marriage is where romance goes to die.” Wow 😂
The sticky note on the forehead. Lol. I’ve only ever seen that ONCE and it was on “Better Off Dead” so the filmmakers probably have watched it.
Ep3: Beach break-up scene: LAME; no one in real life would be staring that hard at someone crying; those folks just want camera time 😂
After work team gathering: Drunkee restaurant? Wow, office boozing scenes never fail in a K-drama. Lol
Ep4: QUOTE of the episode: "Hey, work, thank you for letting me drown out my sadness with pain." 😂
Baseball game Saturday demo: “(random fan) May I get your autograph? (Kang Si-Woo) I’m not a player." Wow, really, random fan, how do you not know who’s a player and who isn’t? You do WATCH the games right? In the stands: they're allowed to drink on the job? 😮
Club scene where Yun No-A confronts Lee Jae-In: lame but not worse than the one in Dynamite Kiss! At least these kids looked like they were actually dancing 😂
Ep6: Whaaa, how could those be the most “phenomenal” croissants you’ve ever had? The Costco ones look better! 😂
Ep7: 어째서죠 (how come)? She can't just tell him the truth about her ex forcing his way into the wedding performance?
Ep9: QUOTE of the episode: “Good... morning?” (from Kang Si-Woo’s friend’s advice: always start your conversation with a question) 🤣🤣🤣 I wish they stretched out these antics more and had more co-workers swooning loudly around her just to make it stick. Maybe added her daydreaming about him slow motion in his boyfriend outfit, and then asking later why he changed his look. That would be so awkward. 🤣 They dropped that part so fast that it seemed irrelevant and non-comedic. That was a wasted opportunity for drawing in the audience more.
After team demo practice and speak of ghosts: What’s with the Kawaii office animals?? 🤔
Ep10: Burgled?? Huh?? Now I know the translator speaks British English!
QUOTE of the episode: “It never once crossed my mind that marriage could be one of my housing options." 😂
And who is this random tall and pretty guy all the sudden hanging out with their task force team?? 😂
Galaxy XR? Is that a hidden ad for Samsung?
Ep11: Ummm, I know it’s for love and everything buuutt I think the smarter approach would’ve been to film Mr. Ko acting all crazy in the lobby and just tell him that Mr. Kang was helping her with a personal emergency because no one else was available. But you know, that’s too reasonable and boring. Lol. Another no-fail use of the scandal trope in K-dramas. (sigh) I do like that it turned out fine eventually and that most of her co-workers were nice people. :)
PEEVE of the episode: Video meeting with external investor: annoying; forcing non-native speakers to do English dialog...for no good reason. And then the cruelty of not translating that in the subtitles! Why is it that English never gets translated in Asian drama subtitles? 😩 Just because they’re speaking English doesn’t mean audiences automatically know what they’re saying. Ugh.
Ummm, from where the heck did that window behind his kitchen show up?? It can't be outside because he's facing the sliding door window to his balcony.. That better not be the window to the outer hallway. Creepy 😵
Ep12: Leads walking up the street from the beach: That was an unexpected twist but I like that the story didn’t have to succeed with both of them overcoming adversity in big corp but rather figuring out what they wanted to do in life. However, I didn’t get the new tech job setup that Kang Si-Woo had going. What was the point of that scene? That he completed his soul searching within 6 months and actually found what he wanted to do? And what’s with the Kawaii AI bot giving attitude to him in the meeting?
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