Kkondae Intern

Presentation

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Analysis

Synopsis

​Ga Yeol Chan is a manager for a ramyeon company named Joonsu Food. He is the epitome of the perfect manager, but his peaceful existence is completely disturbed by the arrival of his three new interns. Worst, one of them is none other than his old boss, Lee Man Shik, he considers a kkondae. 

My Opinion (No Spoilers)

​I loved that drama! Perfect in any way! I watched the 12 episodes very fast and I am convinced I would’ve continued watching it, had there been 100 episodes. Plus, there is an incredible twist mid-drama, that I clearly was not expecting at all!

Note: A kkondae refers to a person who is old school, traditional and rigid. 

​Analysis (Spoiler Alert)

Characters: Ga Yeol Chan (Park Hae Jin) used to be an intern under Lee Man Shik (Kim Eung Soo). He was mistreated and had to deal alone with the suicide attempt of a restaurant owner, convinced his company stole his recipe. After that incident, Yeol Chan was forced to take the fall and fired shortly after. The few months he spent there really scarred him, since he thought about dying himself. Nevertheless, he stood back on his feet again and was hired by the second biggest ramyeon company Joonsu Food. He quickly climbed the ladder and rapidly became the marketing and sales manager. Meanwhile, he also promised himself, he would never be like his old manager. Therefore, he is kind, helpful, protective towards his employees and respectful. All his colleagues appreciate him and consider him to be the best manager ever. 

However, the situation changes drastically, when his two enemies, Namgoong Joon Su (Park Ki Woong) and Ahn Sang Jong (SonJong Hak) decide to hire rather atypical interns. First, you have the discreet and reserved one Joo Yoon Soo (Noh Jong Hyun), second the eccentric woman Lee Tae Ri (Han Ji Eun). Third, none other than his old boss, Lee Man Shik. At the beginning, the three of them appear to be somewhat incompetent and clumsy, creating more troubles for everyone. Therefore, Ga Yeol Chan’s personality radically changes. He goes from that perfect manager to that irrational, too emotional one. This new behavior turns everyone against him. 

​Ga Yeol Chan’s character was in my opinion very interesting and complex. Indeed, we get to see what he went through as an intern. Thus, we can only hope he will treat his interns better. Yet, we also really get to witness his immaturity. Even though he wants to be this cool manager, I couldn’t help but remarking that he was still this young intern, disguising his insecurities under his mask of perfection. Since he was very hurt and rejected in the past, he was afraid of being rejected once again by his own employees, pushing him to hide his true face. He was not really natural and was lying to himself in my opinion. 

Fortunately for him, the arrival of these three original people in his team enabled him to show his true colors, be honest and sincere with himself. This proved that you don’t need to be perfect to be liked, being yourself is already enough. 

Who is the real kkondae? Moreover, Ga Yeol Chan really went through an emotional growth and development for the better. The revelation behind the hiring process of the three interns is essential in order to understand Yeol Chan’s mentality. Indeed, throughout the drama, we are led to believe they were hired with interests, meaning that their incompetence turned them into efficient weapons against Ga Yeol Chan. Remember that Joonsu doesn’t appreciate Yeol Chan and tries his best during the drama to get rid of him (while failing all the time). Anyway, we discover in reality that the interns were actually taken for their capabilities. This blew up in Yeol Chan’s face, making him realize how prejudiced he actually was. At that point, the entire drama made me question who the real kkondae was between Yeol Chan and Man Shik. A little precision regarding that term: a kkondae in Korean is a person who is rigid, old school, with a lot of prejudice and not willing to change his point of view on certain topics. The beginning of the drama pointed at Man Shik as the Kkondae, but by the end, Yeol Chan became the real target. Lee Tae Ri confesses him she considers him as such, which forces Yeol Chan to become more flexible and tolerant. 

Because of that, I really believe that the drama made a great effort at depicting different kinds of people you think are kkondaes, when in fact others are more representative of that trend. 

Lee Man Shik was Yeol Chan’s opposite. I appreciated the fact that the drama was not dichotomous, separating the two characters in distinct sides. Instead, it created a sort of synergy – almost a father/son relationship at the end – between the two characters. Even if the beginning of the drama forces us to side with Yeol Chan, we progressively get to discover Man Shik’s personality. This discovery is really satisfactory, since he is not the cold and mean manager, we saw in the first episode. He actually has a soft side and strong side of ethics. Being a manager in his old company turned him into this bitter person, who thought could disrespect his colleagues. However, becoming an intern and starting from scratch opened him eyes on his past behavior. He repented and found passion in his new job. 

Lee Man Shik also grew up a lot and gained in maturity in this drama, to the point that I liked him so much. He was so funny but at the same time so sly, helping out in all kinds of situations. 

Yeol Chan and Man Shik’s duo: The drama wouldn’t have been the same, had this duo not been present. Their synergy is just incredible! They spend their time teasing and fighting each other, without even realizing how much they actually care for the other. Their relationship evolved little by little in the drama and they get more and more entangled. I actually had the impression to watch a comic duo of clowns! Their dynamic is by the way a pillar in the drama, allowing the comic humor to take over. The scenes on the deserted island, the sauna moment, the rescue from the gangsters: all of this moments gave a breath of fresh air to the drama!

It was in reality so funny, I couldn’t stop laughing sometimes!

Tae Ri and Yoon Soo: These two atypical interns are in my opinion excellent depictions of unique people left aside because of their originality. Indeed, Tae Ri and Yoon Soo seem quite clumsy at the beginning. The first one is totally eccentric, making weird product proposals; while the other one is super shy and struggles to get a job. Even though they make mistakes at first, I could clearly see their amazing evolution. Indeed, at the end of their 6-month period, they are asked to make presentations. They are just all amazing! Those who were outcasts at first broke out of their cocoons to become beautiful butterflies. What a satisfying feeling to see these two becoming excellent at what they do! Their passion and motivation is admirable! 

The working world: The main topic tackled for me in this drama is the working world and its overall processes. Indeed, Kkondae Intern allows a broad and deep depiction of different working states and conditions, shedding light on some issues. 

Being an intern: What I found extremely well thought in the drama is how they showed that you don’t need to fit in any case to be good at what you do. Indeed, Yoon Soo and Tae Ri were quite atypical during their interviews, they didn’t fit the usual mold and were prejudiced for that. Yet, they are so capable and full of ideas. Their journeys showed how important it is to not judge a book by its cover. You have to see the potential of the person and not take into account only the external criteria. Doing so would actually make you miss some gems such as these two. 

​Message to all managers: judge the person objectively for his/her capabilities and personalities, not for his/her appearance or fit in a pre-established mold. 

Contract worker: That part is embodied by Tak Jung Eun (Park Ah In). She has been working for four years in the company as a contract worker, but has never gained a permanent position. Being a contract worker in South Korea seems to be the open door to all kinds of prejudice and discrimination. She is a valuable asset for the company, but not recognized as such. She is kind of stuck in-between and is replaceable. This position is kind of difficult and the drama denounces the lack of humanism and respect there is towards contract workers. 

Old interns: What do you do when you are old and lose your job? That’s the question Kkondae Intern indirectly asks viewers. There are three old interns in the drama. Anastasia, the man of the security and Lee Man Shik. Even though they are considered as comical characters, they are living proof that being old doesn’t mean you are useless to a company. Indeed, your experience and knowledge remain incredible assets. The drama exposes that condition, demonstrating that many good things can come out of hiring older people. Even though it was done in a comical way, the drama still took a stand. 

Being a manager: Obviously, observing Yeol Chan’s struggles really made me wonder about the definition of a good manager, if one actually exists. What are the criteria? This question is recurrent in the drama. Even though there is no real answer, it still enabled me to ask myself what behavior I would be expecting to consider someone a good manager. 

Huge companies versus small ones: The suicide case at the beginning and later on the crisis regarding the contractor’s contaminated products are excellent examples of the predominance and power huge companies have over small ones. In the first case, the company indirectly stole the old man’s recipe; in the second one, they pulled out of the clients list, forcing the contractor to shut down. This kind of hold huge companies have on small ones has to be closely monitored in order to avoid any issue. 

Nepotism: A father passing down his company to his son kind of makes sense. Still, what do you do when the son is incompetent? Joon Su is the perfect representation of that problem. In my opinion, you can pass down your company only if your heir is capable enough to protect the business. He/She needs to learn from scratch and be supervised. It is kind of unrealistic and imprudent to give the reign to someone who can’t lead. 

Competition in and out: Competition for the chairman seat, competition for a permanent position between interns, competition between Yeol Chan and his rival as manager, competition between companies; the drama embodies a lot of them, in a pretty accurate way. 

​Failing business: What to say, Ga Yeol Chan’s failing business is the perfect epitome of optimistic mindset. Even if you fail, you can start anew. You have to accept sometimes to turn pages and if you do so there is always hope to do better. Dare to dream, be ambitious, that’s how you’ll become successful!

Office romance: There was a heartwarming vibe given in the drama through the office romance between Tak Jung Eun and Joo Yoon Soo and potentially Lee Tae Ri and Ga Yeol Chan. Even if they don’t end up together, who knows? 

Bonus: The MeToo Movement in the last episode!

P.S.: Did you see Choi Moo Sung’s cameo as Koo Ja Suk’s (Kim Sun Young) lover? Fancy seeing them again after Reply 1988!