Oh! My Ladylord

Presentation

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Analysis

Synopsis

Han Bi Soo is a successful thriller drama screenwriter. Oh Joo In is a famous actress, who has only played in romantic comedies. She wants to be the main lead in Bi Soo’s next drama but he refuses. An unexpected twist forces them to live together in the same house.

My Opinion (No Spoiler)

Oh! My Ladylord has definitely left me quite of confused and with mixed feelings. To be frank, I don’t know whether I liked it or not. Some parts of the drama were quite refreshing and interested, which reminded me Jo Jin Kuk’s original writing he demonstrated in Lonely Enough to Love. Still, the rest of the drama was very often relying on stereotypical characters, old-fashioned behavior I hadn’t seen since the 2010s and a feeling of running in circles.

That’s why it is really hard for me to give my opinion. So I suggest you read the analysis part here before you decide, because some preparation is in order.

Analysis (Spoiler Alert)

For that review, I decided to separate the different elements between those I liked and those I disliked in order to give you a broad overview.

What I liked:

Nana’s character: Oh Joo In (Nana) is quite the atypical character. To be very honest, I have rarely seen a female lead holding on so much to her lover in a drama. She can be defined by these four qualities: patience, resilience, devotion, stubbornness. Indeed, she manages to trust Han Bi Soo (Lee Min Ki) fully, even when he pushes her away during the last episodes. His hurtful comments would have made anyone run away, but Oh Joo In is not just anyone! The love she bears to her loving roommate is immense and boundless. That’s the reason why, she doesn’t let him go until the very end.

Oh Joo In forges admiration and deserves recognition for her strong, kind and generous personality. Indeed, she takes care alone of her sick mother, she grieved after her father’s death without having the possibility to actually express her feelings entirely. She made a name for herself and became a renowned actress, she is sweet and agreeable with her staff and her CEO, she is a true and loyal friend to Jung Yu Jin (Kang Min Hyuk), accepts Bi Soo’s harsh criticisms regarding her career, agrees to living with Bi Soo while bearing his cold behavior and jerky attitude. As if all of these elements were not enough, she is not disheartened when her lover Bi Soo breaks up with her (several times) and rejects her completely. Instead of feeling downhearted and disheartened, she chooses faithfulness.

I guess her behavior and positive attitude have to be connected with all the events she had to go through in her life. It kind of forced her to reflect on something and take her time before making a decision. Yet, once the decision is made, she doesn’t go back and takes her responsibilities. I was really amazed to see how strong Oh Joo In was in the drama, as I had not had the occasion before to witness such a personality. For that reason only, the drama caught my attention and made me watch until the end.

The actual trios of friends: The two trios that form in the drama are both really interested and have in fact very distinct dynamics. Yet, they are quite endearing and heartwarming. The first one involves our three main leads: Yu Jin, Han Bi Soo and Oh Joo In. Though it may not seem like these three could end up friends, the plot gives us a clear idea in the last episode that they are a solid partnership.

Yu Jin is Joo In’s best friends. They have known each other for more than 10 years. While Oh Joo In was busy building her career, Yu Jin left for France. When the celebrity moves in with Han Bi Soo, Yu Jin unexpectedly comes back. He has been in love with Joo In for a very long time and has not been able to forget her abroad. Unfortunately, Joo In is already falling in love with the thriller screenwriter, turning Yu Jin into the unwanted rival. At first glimpse the scenario could’ve ended badly and the relationships exploded. However, Jo Jin Kuk provided viewers with a very fresh turn of events. Yu Jin decides to fake a love relationship with Joo In in order to protect her image, while she makes up her mind regarding whom she really wants to be with. At the end of the drama Joo In chooses Bi Soo. Yet, Yu Jin doesn’t turn into the “monstrous” jealous second lead. Instead, he keeps on protecting Joo In’s image. This proves that their friendship is very solid and that unrequited love doesn’t necessarily mean its end. Even Han Bi Soo and Yu Jin appreciate each other and funnily quarrel over Joo In’s heart. Though the result is clear, it was very pleasant to see this sympathetic trio tease each other.

The second trio is the epitome of long-lasting friendship. When the first trio showed up the birth of friendship, this one illustrates the end of it. Han Bi Soo’s mother Kang Hae Jin (Lee Whee Hyang), Oh Joo In’s mother Yoon Jung Hwa (Kim Ho Jung) and the vinyl shop owner Kim Chang Gyu (Kim Chang Wan) met decades ago. Life separated them and they went their own ways. Destiny, or should I say Han Bi Soo and Oh Joo In, brought them back together.

Thus they were able to reconnect, share memories from the past (introducing a nostalgic vibe, especially through the music) and say farewell before death. Indeed, Han Bi Soo’s mother is sick and only has a few months left to live. I really loved to see how tender and sweet the fleeting moments they spent together were. And those numerous scenes in the vinyl shop were so cute, I really fell in love with the atmosphere!

Han Bi Soo’s mother: If you thought Oh Joo In was extraordinary, then Han Bi Soo’s mother will probably touch you as well. Her wisdom and kindness are incomparable, as well as her undeniable love for her son. Even though she is about to die, she still manages to put her son’s happiness on top of her to-do list. At some point in the drama, she discovers that her husband had cheated on her and this was the reason why her son and husband stopped communicating. Anyone else would’ve felt bitter, angry or revengeful. Anyone but Hae Jin. She stays dignified during the last confrontation and doesn’t hold any resentment. She feels guilt for not having been aware of it sooner and letting her son suffer the consequences.

She is also an esteemed and respected doctor, who is considerate and has been through her lot. The only fact that she decided to wear black clothes in loving memory of Bi Soo’s biological father, is enough proof to demonstrate her devotion. For me, she was probably the best character of the drama. She always had nice words, good advice and embodied a strong shoulder to lean on. Her death saddened me as much as it saddened the fictive characters I think.

The final twist: This was a turn of event that I really didn’t see coming! At the beginning of the drama Han Bi Soo is hit by a truck. He is saved by a mysterious young man. We don’t know anything about that man apart from the fact that he has extended Bi Soo’s life for 49 days. He also encourages him to find love or at least to experience it once in his life. I really believed at first that he was an angel. Then the romance between Bi Soo and Joo In started, to the point that I had forgotten about the incident. At the end of the drama though, Bi Soo is irremediably confronted with his future vanishing. While he takes care of his mother’s things after her death, he finds a picture. Of course, the man on the picture is none other than his father, who is also the angel at the beginning. His father explains the circumstances to Bi Soo, saying that he was also hit by a truck and couldn’t spend the rest of his days with Hae Jin. He didn’t want her to go through the same situation again with her son’s death, so he gave Bi Soo more time. I wasn’t ready for that, but I loved the fact that even dead, Bi Soo’s father’s love for Hae Jin was real and he tried to protect her until the end.

The portrayal of several diseases: Bi Soo and Joo In don’t have a lot in common at first. Yet, one of their main similarities is the fact that they both take care of their sick mothers. Bi Soo learns later on the in the drama that his mother has pancreatic cancer. It is the final stage so she can’t be cured. As for Joo In, her mother suffers from Alzheimer’s, making her sometimes forget her own daughter or leading to some erratic behaviors during lucid moments.

Both diseases are actually subtly portrayed with a lot of tenderness. It that was not enough, they are most of the time associated with the nostalgia and remembrance of the past, as the older trio reunite. Compensated by the positive memories and nice moments the group live, the drama delivers an original glimpse into dealing with diseases as hard as these ones.

To that I would also add growing and grief as natural parts of the drama, and life of course.

The second leads’ romances: Joo In and Bi Soo’s relationship is tumultuous and ends on a tragic note (Bi Soo vanishes after 49 days). Despite that, second leads also get their share of romance, more fortunate this time. From episode 1, Bae Gwang Ja (Lee Hyun Jung), Oh Joo In’s manager and Jung Jae Hwan (Song Yoo Taek), Bi Soo’s assistant writer fall in love. There are no real problems in their relationship throughout the drama and their constant love for each other compensated Joo In and Bi Soo’s push-and-pull a lot. Plus, they are actually the main characters with the happy ending. They get married in Episode 16 and have a child together, while both advance in their respective careers as well.

It is the same for the Bi Soo and Joo In’s respective CEO. Everything seems to oppose them at first, yet their attraction is undeniable. Their clumsiness and cute scenes are enough to make you melt and their fulfilled happy ending bring incommensurable joy, especially when we know that the odds were not necessarily in their favor at first.

The original ending: This argument is quite related to the previous one. To be me, the ending is in fact original because those with a fulfilled romance are not the main leads but the second ones. On top of that, the last scenes with Joo In professing once again her love to Bi Soo and promising she won’t forget him is literally an ode to love. It portrays Joo In’s grief in a bright light. She lost her lover but she keeps their happy memories with her. Though the ending can sound sad like that, it is in fact quite poetic and unexpected. Generally, screenwriters find a way (as far-fetched as it may be) to bring the dead back to life. But not here! And it is absolutely understandable. In fact the reverse situation would’ve been weird and the message completely weakened

Nana’s acting: Athough this is not my favorite drama with Nana (I literally prefer Into the Ring), her acting performance was really good. Her sadness was really credible, so thumbs up. Moreover, it added a lot of deapth to the actual story, making it a bit more real.

What I disliked:

Bi Soo’s step-father: This character is terrible. Though he acts in a rational and calm way, he remains the most shameless father I have seen. Not only has he cheated on his wife, but he also terrorized Bi Soo to keep his mouth shut. Then he continues with his threats in order to become the next chairman of Hae Jin’s hospital. Of course, Hae Jin discovers everything and tells him that the hospital will belong to whomever deserves it, but she resents him for having been a bad father. After Bi Soo’s father’s death, Hae Jin still married a man and kept Bi Soo’s birth a secret to him. However, the poor man learns it in a very radical and cruel way because of his step-father, who almost blames him. What a terrible person!

Han Bi Soo’s behavior when he discovers he is going to die: I would say that the main reason as to why the drama left me with mixed feelings is because of that point. The rest of the content was so fresh that I was a bit disappointed to witness Bi Soo’s behavior straight out of a 2005 drama. Indeed, Bi Soo knows that he will vanish forever after 49 days. Because he doesn’t want to hurt Joo In, he decides to break up with her and one-sidedly destroy their relationship by pushing her away. However, he underestimated Joo In’s resilience, and in the end, he hurt her more with his harsh words than his death did. The worst in all that was that he continued with this stupid and stubborn attitude, even after she had found out about the vanishing. It was very hard to make him come back to his rational self and I was really angered by that. In my opinion, by doing so they lost a lot of time and energy, though their days were already counted.

Finally, this entire madness remembered me of the Taiwanese drama Why Why Love and definitely not in a good way. I really hope never to see such useless tricks and intrigue in future dramas.

Yu Jin pushing his way in with Joo In: The epitome of this behavior, once again straight out the 2000s in Dramaland, was the proposal. Clearly it didn’t make sense at all! Joo In had already chosen Bi Soo. Yes their relationship was going through some ups and downs but Joo In was not over him yet and the truth hadn’t seen the light either. Considering that this was a good moment, Yu Jin forced his way in, asking Joo In to marry him. I mean who would say “yes” in such circumstances: Joo In and Bi Soo had broken up two days ago (like almost!), Joo In was still hurt and processing the break up, why would she then get married to another guy. Even if that man is her best friend, loyal to her and head over heels for her, I really felt that the proposal came at a very bad time to say the least. The rest of the drama oscillated as well between the annoyed second lead trying to steal the lady and the respect of Joo In’s decisions, leading to the emergence of the lead trio’s friendship.

The stereotypical beginning: Like I said previously, some parts of the drama were unfortunately quite stereotypical and out-dated. Bi Soo’s behavior, Yu Jin’s attitude, even the beginning of the drama scared me a little. Indeed, it resembled a lot of other dramas, in which main characters end up sharing a house (Full House, The Man Living in Our House, Because this is my First Life…). I agree with the fact that the plot was introduced with a lot of laughter, but still not that original…

The lack of intrigue mid-drama: This feeling of stagnating mid-drama was partly due to Bi Soo’s inability to either go far away from Joo In or tell her the truth and stay with her. In the last few episodes, I really felt as if we were running in circles. Each episode was similar to the previous one: Bi Soo says: “I want to break up”, Joo In asks: “Why?”, he doesn’t give a clear answer, she holds on to him, he pushes her away, while saying he wants to break up and the cycle starts over and over again.

Bi Soo’s vanishing after 49 days: Yes, I talked about the ending as a positive factor in the drama. But I am not going to lie, it also belongs to this part. Indeed, after all the hindrances, all the struggles, all the bumps on the road, Bi Soo had finally decided to love Joo In completely and she had given her heart to him. So naturally I felt really bad to see that good intentions don’t always lead to happy endings.

P.S.: Am I the only one who had the impression that Nana was filming commercials throughout the entire drama (e.g. in the final scene)?