My Mister (2018)

"Let's really be happy" Park Dong Hoon

and therein lies the seeming simplicity of this drama, it's brilliantly executed and showcases the beauty and fragility of the human condition. This is a story about kindness, grace, love and finding the humanity in all people. The story is meticulously intentional and self aware, highlighting that for most people life is a constant balancing act between internal and external forces, and that our hearts don't move based on logic.

This is a story about a collection of broken people who are somehow not sad, but happy despite it all, soldiering on with the help of childhood friends, family and colleagues. This happiness doesn't apply to our male lead Park Dong Hoon however because he is someone labouring under the burden of his perpetual internal ennui which has become a part of his persona. So we journey with him to find happiness and contentment and it is his interactions with Lee Ji An which begin to thaw his heart and in return his kindness towards her helps her regain her humanity.

Dong Hoon's unconditional kindness to Ji An has a ripple effect which ends up positively affecting almost every character in the story. His elder brother Sang Hoon learns that being selfless is more rewarding than pandering to shallow ambitions and similarly, Kwang's perception of Ji An comes full circle.

My Mister is definitely not a romance story but it is a story about love, Dong Hoon and Ji An's love defies labels, it's not romantic or familial love, its much more than friendship, it's love in it's purest form where each recognises the other's essential humanity and responds to it. Their selfless consideration of each other is heartwarming and that's what makes this show so special.

The entire cast of this drama is excellent. I believe that this is IU's best performance of her career to date. Lee Sun Kyun's interpretation of Dong Hoon is contemplative, melancholy and ultimately triumphant in the pursuit of happiness and contentment, the smile on his face in the last scene of the drama is unforgettable.

The mood and world that this show creates is uniformly immersive and absorbing. The music, camera work, sounds, silence, and everything that makes up this story is well thought out and never misplaced. This is the first time I have actively looked for the score of a drama, you know those instrumental pieces that usually play in the background, yes those, I went and downloaded the entire score, it is that beautiful. The entire OST is a masterpiece and was used brilliantly.

There are very few dramas that I rewatch, and I usually wouldn't rewatch a drama of this genre, but My Mister defies this rule because as soon as I finished it I immediately wanted to rewatch it. I restrained myself and am now happily looking forward to the time when I can relish this show again.

The most deserved 10 out of 10.

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Okay so I've mixed feelings about this one. I'm going to be totally honest even though I really want to just tell you how extraordinary it is. It's realistic, let's begin with that. It's not a romance, though. Then what is it? I'd say it's life. That simple.

''My Mister'' would probably be tagged as slow-paced, but I think it's more than that. Even if it's true that its pace isn't the fastest, things happen when they're bound to happen. They are not forced and that's really appreciated.
When I first started watching this drama I have to say I didn't like it that much. I thought, ''what's so extraordinary about watching some people just living?'' and I just dropped it. Months later I just couldn't stop thinking about restarting it; those people lifes had stuck with me for a long time telling me to keep watching, to see what happens next, and I did. Best decision in my life.

This drama is harsh. It portraits reality in such a beautiful but heart-breaking way it may blow your mind. I cried when it ended because every character was a part of me by then. How would I fill that empty space now? I simply didn't. Not a single drama has made me feel this way about their characters since I've finished it, and I have to say I've watched quite many. The atmosphere, the cinematography which isn't that marvelous but definitely felt like it was, the acting, the OST, the personal scenes of every character... everything together makes this drama what it is: a masterpiece. I'd never been so happy to watch something 'till the end and I've never missed a show this much ever.

Every character has its importance. All three brothers have really different lifes but they compliment each other so well. They are the best definition of brothers I have ever seen: together 'till the end even if they're all facing different struggles, fixing one another silently while drinking at Jung Hee's bar after work. Their acting is extremely good, too. You can see their pain even in their brightest moments. Differently from other dramas you don't need a sad background song to feel the pain; their eyes alone are enough. About IU's acting, some may differ, but she owned the role from the 1st second. Unlike what it may seem, portraying Ji An's character, a cold yet warm character who is constanly hurting and enduring, is a really hard work. Ji An is silent so IU has to show her feelings without words, only with body language and her eyes, and you can feel it. Ahjussi will always be Lee Sun Kyun. He owned this role, too. I just can't visualize anyone else.

I have to go back to the thing I enjoyed the most and which I can't speak enough of: its realness. ''My Ahjussi'' teached me a lot. While I was watching I wasn't feeling my best, and unlike what many people say, a happy and funny drama just wasn't what I was needing. I needed THIS and I'm so glad I found it. In the end, this drama teached me that no matter how hard life is, there's always hope; that you have to endure (Ahjussi) and hold on to what you have (Ji An's grandma); that happiness isn't something permanent (Sang Hoon) and that no matter how happy some people lifes may seem, you can't simply judge by what you see (Ki Hoon with Yoo Ra).

I'd just like to say this drama will stick to you forever. No matter how many dramas you watch, you'll never forget ''My Ahjussi'' and its characters. I could continue writing about without end but I guess you should go and start watching it now. I may go and re-watch it, too :)

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Amazing, Amazing Amazing. What a story. So beautifully told and so meaningful. Finding one's heart, holding on to it and enduring are so critical to happiness. This story was about all of that. It was incredibly potent. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
The acting was spot on and the writing was seamless. What a beautiful piece of work. Congratulations and thank you to the creators of the story, the directors and the actors! Best combination and nothing left unanswered! Beautiful ending. Watching shows like this one gives one hope that there is good in this world. Ji An was scarred from a terrible childhood yet she, with the help of Manager Dong Hoon was able to rise above her terrible situation. I loved this one! Thank you, thank you!! Grateful!!!

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"MOST TOUCHING,REALIST AND PURIST DRAMA EVER"
finishing this I have literally no words that could explain how good this drama is, I can't find any flaws at all! and let me tell you that never happened.
the only flaw it has that it made it real hard to find a drama or a series to top this one. and let me tell you why it's that good.


1) Unique story:
I could easily say that this is the first drama where the story is written this deeply and detailed, blah blah it's about 3 brothers and a girl, but that's not even close to what this story is about, it has much more depth! it has a very believable characters and other than being very likable you really could relate to each character on the story they made the story about families, friends, relationships.. but it's much much deeper than your typical love stories that only scratches the surface of "real" relationships, this drama doesn't fu*k around with that, it shows authentic feelings and it shows you how do people around us could be thinking and feeling.
what I like most is that it focuses on really valuable relationships that are noble and just simply beautiful. I don't usually like dramas that makes me cry, even when I cried buckets on this one but it shows you the brutal world that we live in and how some people are struggling each with their problems, HOWEVER, it wasn't depressing by any meanings in fact it gives you new perspectives on life that really could change how you view things.

2) Hilarious comedy:
you might be surprised by this, sure there was some struggling moments you'll see, but man did it make me laugh so hard on some scenes!
specially the three brothers relationship is hysterical yet so real, each character of this drama has this unique personality that could end up saying the most hilarious thing ever, I liked how sarcastic and self deprecating the jokes are.

3) Relate-able characters:
if there's something good that this drama does it's hitting those "too real" moments on these character's and how they live, let me tell ya you'll find alot of that "too close to home" moments.. and it was the best thing how you could be attached to all those different personalities all at once.
and I find them to be all likable despite the "bad guys" obviously but they're all designed really well and will get you in love with some and wanting to stab some others.

4) Cast/Music/Cinematics:
the ost used here is just too beatiful and emotional, to the point where my eyes would bawl automatically the moment a song plays even when nothing happens yet lol..
and the cast is really spot on, they all fit their roles really well, IU's acting and sun kyun mann it's so good you almost forgot they're not real!! and all of them even the supporting characters have a really good acting skills.
the cinematic and everything technical was really well done in this drama everything is feting there is no cringy voice affect that some drama has, it's just perfect.


5) Good pace that will hook you up:
you might be familiar with the dramas that has comedy genre and will introduce you to the story with the best set up as you can imagine, it will be light-hearted and funny, it will be the best... up to the 4th episode ish? then they decide to make everything so forced and dramatic and then you would be like I didn't sign up for this shit. what is even this? right.
well, this drama doesn't do this shit, it will not fool you to like it, its starts with as much drama building the same tension that it has on the rest of the episodes, and there's even some very sweet episodes that would feel like rewards that you didn't expected!

6) It's not DEPRESSING! it's actually positive!
believe me I'm the last person to watch a depressing show and I'll easily drop a show any moment if it was remotely sad, so this drama while being very real and shows you the struggles and hardships alot of time, but in almost each situation they'll end it on a positive note, and it's not forced or fake or anything, in fact it will actually teach you lesson or two on life, also how to look and value things differently.

so YES YOU WILL CRY BUT BELIEVE ME IT'S WORTH IT!

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Short: An absolute masterpiece. The pacing, the story, the cast, the music, the direction, the writing. Without any need for cliffhanger tricks, the story and the cast compel you to move to the next episode each time. Absolutely brilliant.

Detail:
This is the second drama i've seen with IU, the first being Hotel Del Luna - and the second of her dramas that's gone right to the top of my "so glad I watched that" list. It also introduced me to Lee Sun Kyun who was an excellent actor in this, he has such a unique bass to his voice.

Whereas in Hotel Del Luna, IU is loud, proud and a bit of a brat, in this she's quiet. She probably doesn't say as many words throughout the whole drama as she does in the first episode of HDL but she doesn't need to, she proves beyond any doubt her acting skill through her actions and expressions, combined with the amazing story.

Ji Ahn (IU) is downtrodden, she's in the gutter, when you're the lowest you can possibly go you learn to distrust and dislike everyone around you. Everyone has let you down, discarded you and hurt you in the past so you learn to expect it from everyone else. She's in trouble with a Loan Shark who beats her up, and she has a no-good brother that she supports. Worst case scenario.

And yet... she soldiers on. If there was ever a story about a strong woman then this is it. She's lost the will to trust others, but no matter what life throws at her she just keeps pushing on. She hasn't lost the will to live.

Dong-Hoon seems to have it all, high flying in the corporate world all he wants to do is a good job, to put safety first in his role as a structural engineer. Corporate politics come knocking and the knives come out in his direction, suddenly he's being attacked from all fronts and then finds out even more devastating news that rocks him to his core.

This story is about these two completely different, but equally broken people who find and heal each other.

There are other characters such as the two brothers, I loved the relationship the three of them had together, they were good moments in the story.

There were a couple of side plots that just seemed extraneous for the most part, the actor and the monk - the actor I guess I kinda get as a motivation for one of the brothers but the monk was just out of left field and I don't think the story would have really differed if it wasn't there, so it was a bit odd.

The music in this drama is excellent, several really top quality tracks that were good to hear each and every time they came on and were on my mind even when not watching.

The general tone of this one is quite slow, it has a mix of high and low points, but overall I found that I wasn't wondering how it was going to end. For me that's always a high mark for a drama, if the journey is so good I just don't care how it ends that's a great thing and I put this one in that list.

Highly recommended.

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Understated and thoughtful

I enjoyed the way in which this drama brought me on an exploration of internal human struggles in a mature way. From office politics to abusive relationships to just hanging on through daily struggles, it handled these issues with a quiet, understated, and thoughtful approach.

Lee Sun Kyun plays his upright but anxious white collar character with depth, and IU plays the struggling young secretary in a way that resists manipulating our heartstrings just for the sake of easy sympathy. I appreciate the writing and directing to this end, making it more realistic and a true exploration of the characters for their own sakes, not for the audience's sake. Some would call the execution of this show boring because of the lack of overt emotional manipulation, but if you watch closely, you get absorbed into the quiet struggles of each character. So you need to be in the mood for the pace and details in order to enjoy it.

One thing I loved about the show was the element of the supporting characters who meet at the community bar to drink together. Their collective nostalgia and comradery is used as a blanket to support each other, and they warmly adopt IU's Lee Ji Ahn into their circle. Despite their hardships, they care for each other with unspoken kindness.

This was a slower paced, detailed, and satisfying show. There is rewatch value here in which you could do detailed character studies and notice the way in which the dialogue shows character growth and personal insights.

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Worth every single second of your time

I watched this drama last year, early 2019. At first I’ve only watched it only because IU was in it and I stumbled upon the OSTs of the drama but I was by the end of it, I didn’t know I would get this attached. This drama got me extremely hooked on the main character’s plot the whole series, though I have to admit I wasn’t that interested to the other character’s scenarios. I even had a point in the drama where I skipped some of the side character’s part because I found it a bit boring. However, I laughed, cried and smiled all throughout this drama. It made me feel different variants of emotions all throughout the series.

Now its 2020 and we’re in the middle of a pandemic which made me rewatch this drama again and it honestly feels like Im watching a whole different drama.

“You’re all decent people. May you hang in there until you find comfort for yourselves.”

This was the production team’s message at the very end of the drama but for some reason, even the statement made me cry. For months, ever since I first watched the drama, I’ve held on to this statement without knowing why. For some reason it brought tears to my eyes.

And after finishing the drama again today, it was the same. I cried when I read it. However, the thing that changed the most is that I finally understand, the reason why the statement made me cry. It was because it brought me comfort. For some reason, I cried throughout the most scenes that lead towards the ending but when the ending scene actually came up, it only made me genuinely smile. Without even knowing it.
The bright smiles of the two main characters was truly very fulfilling to see in the end especially when I saw the struggles and the frowns they almost seemed to wear all throughout the series. Their smiles was comforting.

This drama brought me such a huge comfort in coping with my own struggles. It helped me understand the people around me, I honestly never thought I’ll get this attached to a drama like this but it’s definitely worth every single second of watching it!

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After Just Between Lovers ended, I didn't think I would find another story that could hit me right in the feels like this drama did, at least not that fast. I wasn't even sure I wanted to because it takes some time to recover from such an emotional ride.
But then I started My Ajusshi, which portrayed - once again - messed up characters and unbearing pasts, though in a very different way.
What is truly wonderful about this drama is the realistic way everyone is described. The point isn't to simplify or beautify, but rather to show us raw emotions. People in their weakest moments to understand how they're inclined to react differently or where their strengths and weaknesses are coming from. There is a darkness lying deep in each character, being intensified by equally gloomy environments, and that's what I love about it. The conflictual thoughts and desperate actions. The will to help and protect facing the sense of self-preservation. This is partly what human nature is made of, and it's good to be reminded of that once in a while.
The most faithful representation of this idea in this drama would be Kwang Il. The duality in this character made him one of my favorite protagonists in this show - maybe even of all dramas combined. He truly was a captivating character, conflicted between his old memories and his current situation. The way he found to cope with this duality was wrong in so many levels, and made me wonder even more what he could have been.
As the story goes on, we learn more and more about the characters, pieces of information being given to us progressively until, getting deeper into the story, we finally grasp the whole picture.
This is why IU has done such a great job portraying Lee Ji An. We knew very little about her in the beginning and her repulsive actions could have made her really dislikable. But somehow she managed to pique our interest. And there was so much more to this character than her cold demeanor. Constantly trying to push people away, she conveyed such strong emotions while maintaining her blank face, I could never understand it. Whether it be an attempt to appear strong or to hide the feelings or thoughts tormenting her, we could almost always see past the surface and perceive the purpose of her actions.

All the characters influence each other at one point or another, and the relationships forming are so complex that it wouldn't be right to try and put a label on it. Lee Ji An and Park Dong Hoon have had a rough start, but their strength is that they understand the other and recognize the purpose in each of their actions.
In the end we're left to feel like we've grown along with the protagonists, and it is one of the main reasons why I would recommend this drama. Well, along with the beautiful OST and the unique characters depicted.
This drama is definitely worth it.

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