I love how we're getting a lot of Park Bo Young this year. Oppa loves her too and we're lucky that she picks projects that are aligned with our taste. This was definitely another good one for us.
Plot
Our Unwritten Seoul tells the story of twins Yoo Mi Ji and Yoo Mi Rae (both played by Park Bo Young). They look so alike that only a handful of people can tell them apart - Dad (Nam Yun Ho of 12.12: The Day), their neighbor and friend Ho Su (Park Jin Young of Reborn Rich), and Grandma (Cha Mi Kyung of Juror 8, When Life Gives You Tangerines, Love in Contract, Twenty-Five Twenty-One, Our Beloved Summer, Hospital Playlist, and Itaewon Class). Even their own Mom (Jang Young Nam of Seobok, Confidential Assignment, Love Next Door, Crash Course in Romance, and Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo) gets confused on who's who.
Mi Ji and Mi Rae used to be very close as kids. They even had a pact/trick of switching with each other when things got tough for the other - like when sickly Mi Rae needed a lot of medical tests or when not so studious Mi Ji needed to pass her school tests. However, they drifted apart as teens when aspiring runner Mi Ji injured herself during a race when she was distracted upon seeing her first love Ho Su hugging Mi Rae. Mi Ji became a recluse and refused to leave her room for years. The distance grew bigger as Mi Rae moved to Seoul for college and work, while Mi Ji remained in their hometown Duson Ri.
Fast forward to the present. Mi Rae is having a hard time at work and is on the verge of giving up on life altogether. Fortunately, Mi Ji gets to her on time. The twins revive their pact and agree to switch again. The story takes us through how the twins learn to understand and appreciate each other better now that they're living each other's lives. They become more aware of the other's struggles and we get a glimpse of the beautiful people surrounding them and helping them survive each day.
Park Bo Young
I just realized that while we're huge Park Bo Young fans, Oppa has only seen her once in Melo Movie and twice for me including Strong Girl Bong Soon. She deserves so much more love and attention from us, I think.
Park Bo Young did a splendid job playing both Mi Ji and Mi Rae and how she kept the two entirely different. She stuck to the nuances of both characters. Oppa would often comment that Mi Ji acted better than Mi Rae, a testament to how Park Bo Young made it easy for us to forget that she was playing two roles. I also have to give it to the show for making sure that Mi Rae and Mi Ji lived contrasting lives mainly exhibited through colors - bright clothing and hair for Mi Ji and dull ones for Mi Rae.
The switch was fun for me because of how different the twins were. It was hilarious to see Mi Ji acting unaffected at Mi Rae's workplace, while Mi Rae was annoyed with her strawberry farm boss Se Jin (Ryu Kyung Soo of Lovestruck in the City and Itaewon Class) for not giving her enough tasks. I'm sure the twins enjoyed the switch too because they learned about how others thought of them like Mom and Ho Su. But while everything was exciting, I was just glad that they switched back in time because of that biometric test ran by Mi Rae's suspicious superiors.
Park Bo Young as Yoo Mi Ji
Admittedly, it was easier to love Mi Ji with her vibrant personality. She lit up whatever room she went into. It also helped that she was very good in cultivating relationships with the people around her. How she was considerate of Ho Su after learning that he had one bad ear that she made sure to always stay beside his better ear so he can hear her better. Or how dedicated she was to Grandma, refusing to leave home because she wanted to take care of her. Even her friendship with Gyeong Gu (Moon Dong Hyeok of See You in My 19th Life, Start-Up, and SKY Castle) was admirable. She remained friends with him even after she learned that he asked her out in high school as part of a dare. But I also appreciated how Gyeong Gu was always there for Mi Ji - comforting her especially after that short break up with Ho Su and letting her know that he didn't want her to lock herself up again with no one to pull her out.
And the more amazing thing about Mi Ji was how she was always cheerful despite the struggles she had to go through. I can just imagine the pressure she felt when she had to stay home and set aside her dreams just so she can take care of Mom and Grandma, while Mi Rae worked in Seoul to provide for their family. It must have been very frustrating to be compared with achiever Mi Rae all the time.
The flashback on Mi Ji's career-ending injury was an eye opener for me on all the doors that have closed for her. The aftermath of that injury was heartbreaking. She locked herself up for three years, only to come out to see Grandma unconscious due to a stroke. Failure and losing what seemed to be her only ticket to success must have been so hard on her that she opted to stay in the background and do menial stuff like taking on numerous part time jobs (cleaning the school, farming, etc.).
That painful confrontation with Mom, when the latter realized that adult Mi Rae and Mi Ji switched again, was really much needed. They told each other what they lacked, wanted, and the silent ways they showed their love (like how Mi Ji chose to stay with Mom and that she worried about her too).
I'll talk more about Mi Ji's growth later but suffice is to say that her promise not to lock up herself again was huge, and that's thanks to the supportive people around her.
Park Bo Young as Yoo Mi Rae
It's easy to dismiss Mi Rae as the boring twin. She always seemed unhappy and unsatisfied with life. But you'll never really understand and appreciate her until you know her entire story.
It was sad that when she had nowhere to go, Mi Rae chose to head to the strawberry farm because that was the only real place for her and all the rest seemed made up and fake. Then you realize how traumatizing the whole whistleblowing and sexual harassment cases must have been for her. It must have hurt more because she gravitated towards a colleague who looked like Dad who ended up betraying her. I can just imagine how all these incidents must have damaged Mi Rae's self-esteem and confidence.
Fortunately, like Mi Ji, she had good people around her too. I loved how she found comfort and affirmation from unexpected people like Ho Su's mom (Kim Sun Young of Juror 8, Crash Course in Romance, The Silent Sea, Hospital Playlist, Crash Landing on You, Vagabond, At Eighteen, Romance is a Bonus Book, Prison Playbook, and Reply 1988) who told her she was kind and gentle.
Park Jin Young as Ho Su
Jin Young is a GOT7 member. And I'm often wary of KPop idols crossing over to acting. Another reason for me to worry was because Jin Young resembled Ok Taec Yeon (Vincenzo and Dream High), who I'm not so fond of. Fortunately for me, Jin Young was a better actor than most KPop guys. He deserves the role not just because he's popular.
I loved how Ho Su, despite grappling with numerous disabilities, remained sincere and earnest in dealing with other people. He did seem aloof in his younger years, but probably thanks to Mi Ji, he didn't seem to resent his situation that much. (Or at least he was good in hiding it.).
I loved Ho Su's relationship with the twins. How he was a good friend to both, even if he was closer to Mi Ji. He could tell them apart. And he knew adult Mi Rae was having a hard time at work but might have been too proud to tell her family that he took it upon himself to guilt trip Mi Ji into seeing his sister, telling Mi Ji that she was Mi Rae's comfort zone. And how timely everything was!
Ho Su is my kind of lawyer too. He plays fair - so fair that he even wants to make sure his opponents know the rules and their rights. He vows to do justice so I was so proud of him when he quit his job when it became obvious that his values were no longer aligned with his boss (Lim Chul Soo of Gyeongseong Creature, Vincenzo, Crash Landing on You, Mr. Sunshine, and Reply 1988).
Ho Su's family relations were complex as well, making life tougher for him considering his disabilities. Biological mom died. Dad remarried the Mom he grew up with. Dad died in an accident that Ho Su survived. And now Ho Su had to be raised by stepmom. All these things made Ho Su very vulnerable. He would appear strong but deep inside, he was scared of being left behind alone. That's why it was heartbreaking to hear him say that he was preparing for a time when Mom would get on the wrong bus again, referring to the time when he had an argument with Mom and Mom left and didn't come home that night allegedly because she took the wrong bus that he thought she abandoned him. I'm just glad that Ho Su has Mom because she's willing to go through so much for him.
It was sad to see Ho Su's hearing loss worsen. I wanted him to be honest and ask for help instead of shutting off people around him because he thought of himself as a burden. Fortunately, Mom and Mi Ji knew better.
Mi Ji and Ho Su
I loved Ho Su and Mi Ji because they were perfect for each other. It was a magical when Ho Su seemed to have recognized Mi Ji the first time they went to the Han River. Makes me wonder if he was just feigning ignorance the entire time.
And who can forget his accidental confession when he thought he was telling Mi Rae about his feelings for Mi Ji.
I loved how Ho Su chose that mountain hike in high school as the moment when he first fell in love with Mi Ji. That was so symbolic because all their lives, they've always helped pull each other up. Unfortunately, the timing always seemed off when it came to love.
The whole confusion about the twins' identities was hilarious. That smile Ho Su gave when he finally confirmed that it was Mi Ji pretending to be Mi Rae who was in front of him. Then their funny antics trying to pretend that they didn't know the whole "switching" story. It was so fulfilling when they finally admitted everything to each other. Ho Su's confession was so heartwarming when he said he kept on waiting for Mi Ji's heart to be lighter.
Yes, it might have been 10 years late, but I was thrilled that they finally got to do their planned Seoul tour. And how giddy Mi Ji was when Ho Su introduced her as his girlfriend. Only to be ruined by her lies about work. I get Mi Ji's insecurities and I'm glad that Ho Su said he didn't care about those things. But I also get Ho Su's issue with lying, especially after finding out how Mom has been hiding the truth about her not being Ho Su's biological mom. Fortunately, the issue didn't drag on.
Probably, my only complaint about this show was how towards the end, it opted to take the "let's break up/I'll push you away" route when something major happens like how Ho Su pushed Mi Ji away without telling her what's wrong when his hearing problem worsened. I hate how characters think they know exactly how the other party would react or feel. Good thing Mi Ji knew Ho Su well. It was just sad that she had some sort of deja vu moment as she recalled all the times she was ill and struggling that she also pushed people away, which prevented her from clinging on to Ho Su so much. Let's talk about their ending later.
Ryu Kyung Soo as Se Jin
Initially, I didn't quite get Se Jin's vibe. But he won me over with how he had such a sweet and soft spot for his grandpa. And I loved how he was persistent in breaking through Mi Rae especially because he was such a perfect fit for her and what she was going through at that point in her life. I loved that pep talk he gave her about not fearing the unknown because that was exactly what Mi Rae needed.
And while Mi Rae and Se Jin's love story was not as well-developed as Mi Ji's, it was evident that they were headed that way too. With how empty Se Jin felt when he realized Mi Rae returned to Seoul. And his out of the blue proposal to take her with him to the US as his intern. And how he went out of his way to help her expose the corruption in her office.
I'm not sure if Ryu Kyung Soo was better here or in Itaewon Class but I tend to prefer him in more subdued characters like this one.
Cha Mi Kyung as the Twins' Grandma
I loved Grandma because she knew the twins really well. And she was always their safe space - for adult Mi Rae when she went home after switching with Mi Ji and for teen Mi Ji after her injury, comforting her and assuring her that it's okay if she ends up a nobody and making her promise to endure things and keep living one day at a time.
And while it was often a cause of tension, I loved how Grandma loved her daughter quietly. That short but very sweet phone call when her daughter was sick was proof of that. More on them later.
Won Mi Kyung as Kim Ro Sa
Despite being overly mean to Mi Ji in the beginning, I knew Ms. Ro Sa had a good heart so I wanted Mi Ji to win her over. And how that relationship has deepened and evolved - to the point that Ms. Ro Sa even asked Mi Ji to be her son's guardian. Of course, Ms. Ro Sa had that special relationship with Ho Su too.
Ms. Ro Sa's story was probably one of the most painful in this drama. I'm talking about her relationship with the real Ro Sa (the Ms. Ro Sa we know is actually Sang Wol who had to take on her friend Ro Sa's identity when the latter died to avoid complications since Sang Wol was illiterate and had a criminal record). It was horrible how times were so bad back then that people like the real Ro Sa opted to endure being abused by her husband instead of reporting to the police, which led Ro Sa to killing her husband and Sang Wol taking the fall for the crime so Ro Sa won't be separated from her child.
And while Ms. Ro Sa's story might be the saddest, it was also the most beautiful one for me. I am in awe of Sang Wol and Ro Sa's special relationship. Were they best friends? Lovers? I don't know and I don't really care. I just know that their relationship was special and some relationships don't need labels to be beautiful.
I loved how Ho Su and Mi Ji stuck with Ms. Ro Sa until the end - helping her clear her name and retain everything she and Ro Sa worked hard for.
Execution
The show starts out quite dark and slow, especially with that attempted suicide story arc we get in the beginning. Things get lighter eventually but there will always be serious and heavy moments all throughout. The high school back stories were poignant and nostalgic and they really established how deep the connection was between Mi Ji and Ho Su.
One main focus of this show was work place drama. I liked how it highlighted the struggles that employees experience especially in prominent jobs. How there's so much pressure to get into big companies that once you get in, you can't help but work so hard to stay there leading to burnout and more serious conditions, that can even push others to commit suicide. And how people think that working at the city is all easy and glamorous, when in fact you have people like Ji Yun (Yoo Yu Jin) who are barely hanging on to their contractual posts.
It's worse when you get involved in controversial stuff like when you're tagged as a whistleblower like Mi Rae and Ms. Park (Park Ye Young of Resident Playbook, Summer Strike, and Hometown Cha Cha Cha) where bully colleagues can push you to oblivion. And the show giving us a sobering reminder that we are not our jobs, and that it's perfectly fine to walk away from work to find ourselves and what truly makes us happy.
On the part of lawyers, you have overzealous ones like Ho Su's former boss who's willing to do whatever it takes to protect their clients' interests, even if it involves underhanded tactics.
And of course, the difficult topic of sexual harassment. How people often take the side of the perpetrator especially if he's someone powerful and well-loved like Mr. Park and choose to blame the victims like Mi Rae. How friendship and good intentions are misinterpreted. And how perpetrators gaslight their victims to make the latter doubt themselves and their stories. And in the end, making it easy for the bad guys to get away with their crimes.
Then there's the K drama favorite office corruption. How people think of their positions as a green light to pursue their selfish interests. And how the lowly underlings who don't know any better are often used as scapegoats. Tsk.
I liked the show's focus on family relationships too. And different kinds of families at that. We have mixed and complicated families like Ho Su's. Ho Su's mom was embarrassed to reveal that she was not the biological mom probably to spare Ho Su from people talking behind their backs. But I loved how the twins' mom rebuked her, saying that it takes more than giving birth to a child to be a parent. Because all things considered, we can probably say Ho Su's mom was better than the twins'. Because Mi Ji's family, despite being together, was not really expressive. They held a lot of things in. Which probably led Mi Ji to lock up herself when she had that injury. Or why Mi Rae gravitated towards Mr. Park because she couldn't express how much she missed Dad.
I loved the special care and attention the show gave to looking after the elderly - Se jin and his grandpa, the twins and Grandma, Ho Su and Mi Ji with Ms. Ro Sa. The old ones are often added as accessories to some stories but I liked how the oldies are given sufficient spotlight here.
And of course, family is not determined by blood relations alone. There's Ho Su and his mom. Ho Su and Mi Ji with Ms. Ro Sa again. And the moms of Ho Su and the twins. These moms picked on each other all the time - humiliating each other in front of their friends and going as far as committing physical assault that sent them to the hospital and the police station. But I knew they cared for each other and they always got each other's backs. Like how Ho Su's mom visited and fed Grandma in the hospital because she knew the twins' mom didn't know how to express her love for her own mother.
I appreciated the show's straightforward treatment of various kinds of disabilities - hearing problem for Ho Su, physical disabilities for Ho Su and his former boss, and reading and literacy problems for Ms. Ro Sa. The drama showed us the sad picture - the struggles these people faced. But it also showed us hope - that you can rise above your disabilities given the right support group. You can be a lawyer or own and run a restaurant. Sky's the limit really.
One of the things I loved about this show was the ending. On the 9th episode (out of 10), I could already feel as if the show was ticking off a checklist. It felt so methodical the way this drama tied up all loose ends to close the show. And I loved its overarching message - how it's never too late for second chances (or even more in the case of Mi Ji's CSAT attempts), to find ourselves and do what we truly want to do with our lives.
I liked Ho Su's closure with his ex-boss and how Ho Su expressed that he still looked up to him and knew he'd still do right by him when he referred Mi Rae's sexual harassment case to his former boss. It just felt as if Ho Su was dying and saying his last goodbyes because it happened around the time his hearing problem was getting worse.
I also liked that much needed heavy confrontation between Ho Su and Mom. I liked how Mom assured him that he saved her too. He was not a burden because he gave her a reason to live. And how that conversation paved the way in breaking all the walls they've built around them. It was sweet of Mom to tell Ho Su that he was just like his Dad. And how Mom finally completed the sentence that Ho Su's dad was saying before he passed away in the accident. That love is about remaining on the same team until the end, even if you lose, and how you should stay together even if you lose a hundred times. And how that helped Ho Su find his way back to Mi Ji.
I loved the different kinds of closures Mi Rae got. At work, how she was able to leave with her head held high as the bad ones suffered the consequences of their actions. And while the corruption issue took a longer route and time, Mi Rae still got her revenge. And she rekindled that friendship with Ms. Park and validated the latter by telling her that although she resigned, she was with her in spirit and reminded Ms. Park that she should be kind to herself, which finally convinced Ms. Park to go out of her room and work again.
And while Mi Rae's relationship with Mom was not as complicated as the other child-mom relationships in the show, I liked how Mom affirmed Mi Rae by telling her that she was exactly what Mom prayed for.
And of course that brewing romance with Se Jin. I'm proud of Mi Rae for declining that offer to go to the US with Se Jin and choosing to take over the farm. That's just what she needed to help her find herself, with blogging on the side while persistently finding the perfect formula for the strawberries. It was cute of Se Jin to ask Mi Rae to send him anything while in the US, even spam mails. And that awkward hug when Mi Rae sent him off at the airport. And how Se Jin found Mi Rae in Seoul numerous times to disprove her claim that she's too generic and would be hard to find in a big and busy place like Seoul.
I also liked that Se Jin finally moved on from Grandpa. How he finally understood the wisdom behind his words that seeing things through the end means differently for different people because after all, we all have our own endings.
Although sad, I was happy with Grandma's ending. She was able to close the gap between her and the twins' mom. It was heartbreaking to know that she was an abused wife, which prevented her from really developing a close relationship with her daughter. I'm sure it's something that people with imperfect relationships with their moms can relate to.
I was happy that Grandma got to go home, spend her final moments with her family, and pass on peacefully with that symbolic dream of Mi Ji letting her go.
Ms. Ro Sa proved to be the bridge that would bring Ho Su and Mi Ji together. Ho Su trusted her with his health secrets. Mi Ji opened up to her about her traumas like her fear of sleeping with the door closed because she might not be able to go back out again like in the past. I loved Ms. Ro Sa's advice that she can just keep waiting outside Ho Su's door, eagerly anticipating the time when he's finally ready to go out again. And that she should just keep knocking at Ho Su's heart because that's what she's good at.
And yey for Ms. Ro Sa for bravely finding ways to overcome her dyslexia. And that cute motivation - to be able to read Ro Sa's poems.
And of course, the biggest development/evolution we have comes from Mi Ji. It started with that promise to Gyeong Gu that she would never lock up herself again. Then she finally mustered the courage to stay inside a room with the door closed. I liked that sentimental montage of videos of people waiting outside her door, patiently waiting for her to come out.
And her relationship with Ho Su who asked Mi Ji to be by his side. Yes, we only got to the point of the couple ring because of that aborted marriage proposal preempted by Mi Ji. But she's just so lucky to have someone like Ho Su who's very understanding and who lovingly gave way so she can finish her studies.
Mi Ji's relationship with Mom was somehow mended already in the end because of an earlier confrontation. But I still loved how Mom was there to assist Mi Ji when the latter signed her first lease and how they talked about the past and how she gave her blessings to the twins to do whatever they want, with Mom taking the lead by going back to painting.
It was cute how the twins' Mom accidentally discovered Mi Ji and Ho Su's relationship, after telling Ho Su's Mom that Mi Ji was not into dating. And how special Ho Su's confession to his Mom was about his relationship (a work place visit complete with cake and flowers). Ho Su's mom was being extra gracious towards Mi Ji. I just hope she was sincere.
And after all the suspense (not immediately accepting Ms. Ro Sa's and Mi Rae's offers to work part time), we finally find out what Mi Ji wants to do with her life - take the CSAT (passed after three tries) and go to college. Basically, conquering all her fears from the past. Psychology was perfect for her too because as Ho Su pointed out, she has empathy and she has a very caring personality. She'd make a great therapist too.
It was a nice touch to end the show with the twins packing up their stuff in preparation for the house remodeling. It was nostalgic to see them go over old photos. And it was symbolic to change the tile from Unwritten to Written, because while it has not been completely written yet, their stories have begun.
Oppa says...4.6.
Noona says...4.8.