My Liberation Notes

Presentation

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Analysis

Synopsis

Yeom Mi Jeong, Yeom Gi Jeong and Yeom Chang Hee are three siblings. They are all lost in their lives and desperately try to give it some meaning. One day, a stranger arrives at their house. He is only known under the name of Mr. Gu.

My Opinion (No Spoiler)

Incredible drama! Though the pace is slow, the drama does an excellent job at describing people’s ordinary struggles in life. Screenwriter Park Hae Young, who also wrote My Mister, has the ability to convey so many emotions despite the short amount of dialogues in the drama. It all feels real to the point that we, as viewers, can identify with characters and relate to their problems.

Yet, the plot is not the only asset of My Liberation Notes. From the cinematography to actors’ performance, everything converges towards the depiction of daily life, human angst and feelings. Not to mention the poetic vibe that runs through every episode. Without realizing it, I found myself totally immersed in that universe, rooting for each relationship, hoping all characters would find peace and happiness.

While accompanying characters on their respective journey, you also get to ask yourself some existential and meaningful questions about life and love. All of that with tenderness, subtlety and warmth.

If you haven’t tuned in for that drama yet, what exactly are you waiting for?

Analysis (Spoiler Alert)

Characters: Although Yeom Mi Jeong (Kim Ji Won) and Mr. Gu (Son Suk Ku) represent the main couple, all characters are treated equally in the drama. Whether it’d Gi Jeong‘s (Lee El) love interest, or Chang Hee’s (Lee Min Ki) daily struggles, all siblings have a part to play in the global narrative. This allows for a variety of relatable situations to occur, as well as facilitates the identification with either one of the characters.

Yeom Mi Jeong: Yeom Mi Jeong is the most silent of the Yeom family. She is very introverted, never truly speaks her mind or emotions and lives like a robot. She goes to work, comes back, helps with house chores and in the field over the week-end. Then the cycle starts all over again.

Her personality resembles that of her father Yeom Je Ho (Cheon Ho Jin), in the sense that they aren’t ‘sharers’. They keep everything bottled up, especially their problems. When the drama starts, it is obvious that Mi Jeong is lost in her life. She puts up with it instead of enjoying it. Indeed, whether it’d be at work or in her relationships, nothing goes her way. For instance, her boss is a jerk, who doesn’t have an ounce of creativity in him (contrary to Mi Jeong). Yet, he always belittles her great work and makes her feel inferior. Still, Mi Jeong endures and says nothing. Same with her female co-workers, that I personally struggled calling ‘friends’. They seem to be rather welcoming and inclusive. They appear as if they want to help Mi Jeong be part of the group. Yet, they also exclude her from various activities such as a trip they organized behind Mi Jeong’s back. Their so-called friendship is thus just a facade, a way to make themselves feel better and considered by others.

Even in her relationships, Mi Jeong has been through a lot. She has been deceived, betrayed and hurt by several men before. The latest one is one of her sunbaes, who asked her for money and ran away with it and his ex-lover. Despite her efforts, Mi Jeong can’t get a hold of him. He refuses to pay back the large sum that was lent and instead blames it all on her, saying that she should be more attentive to his issues. That being said, Mi Jeong ends up contracting a huge loan to avoid filing for personal bankruptcy. She has millions of won to reimburse. Still, she remains passive. Mi Jeong seems to have lost her will to live, enduring one betrayal after another. She has no passion, no real desires, no dreams to fulfill. She gives the impression that she is shell trying to make the best out of her situation.

However, Mi Jeong is not a docile person. She may not seem like it, but she has a temper. She is also quite determined and resilient. Her stubbornness with holding on to a meaningless life, or with Mr. Gu, is actually her door to happiness. Upon meeting this stranger, who has joined her house, Mi Jeong starts to change little by little.

Mr. Gu: Mr. Gu happens to be as reserved, mysterious and introverted as Mi Jeong. Life has been tough for him as well. He is stuck and can’t move forward nor backward. His life doesn’t have a direction nor a meaning. His current state is something with which Mi Jeong can identify. She can relate to his spleen. Just like her, he is lost and needs something to hold on to.

We don’t know a lot about his situation at the beginning of the drama. There are some clues as to why he left Seoul and the broad story is given by the end. As a matter of fact, Mr. Gu is a well-respected member of a gang (like the right-arm). He was in a relationship with one of his ‘co-workers” sister. But she was quite unstable and committed suicide. After that, Mr. Gu needed to take a break from his life and ended up in the train leading him to Sanpo. He had no clear destination in mind when he left, but managed to find the Yeom finally, a job that he now appreciates and a different way of life. The fact that no one asks him about his past is a real asset. He hides from the rest of the world at the farm and walks down a dangerous path. As an alcoholic, he drowns his sorrows away. The reason why he drinks so much is explained at the end. Due to his job and the violence inflicted on others, he hears and sees the ghosts of his past. The only way to make them quiet is by drinking. He becomes numb and totally non-receptive.

Meant-to-be: Mi Jeong and Mr. Gu share a lot of similarities. First, their quiet and introverted personalities. Neither inquires further than required. Mi Jeong doesn’t bombard Mr. Gu with questions about his life, his past, the reason why he drinks so much, etc… They don’t judge each other, nor criticize their behaviors. They don’t try to give life advice or to control the other. In that sense, they experience a sort of freedom in their relationship, when the world around seems to imprison them.

Moreover, they are both stuck at a crossroad in their lives. They feel suffocated by life and don’t enjoy it at all. They are more like passive bystanders of what happens to them, rather than active changers.

Yet, their encounter gave me the impression that they were somehow meant-to-be. Indeed, when Mr. Gu flees and takes the train to an unknown destination, in which he falls asleep. A voice screaming ‘Wake up’ forces him to open his eyes and jump out of the train. He has arrived in Sanpo. The best part is that the voice was Mi Jeong’s, who was trying to wake her drunken brother up.

Then, Mr. Gu and Mi Jeong wait at the bus stop together. However, he is unable to see her face, as she is wearing a hood. Because of the snow, there is no bus, which forces Mr. Gu to wander around Sanpo. He spends some time doing that until one day he hears Mi Jeong’s voice again. She takes him out of his thoughts and bubble. He sees her face and then decides to join the Yeom farm as a worker.

So, even before Mi Jeong gets interested in Mr. Gu, they had actually met. Mr. Gu knew perfectly who she was and the power she had over him that day. Still, their romance only starts when Mi Jeong asks him to worship her. This simple order has two types of impact. First, it forces Mr. Gu to redirect his thoughts and energy towards something else than the past and alcohol. That is Mi Jeong’s way to reach out to him and try to get through him. Second, it is also Mi Jeong’s only way out of her stifling and oppressive existence. As everything takes her down in her life, she needs someone to hold her in high regards and to pull her up. What happens by doing so is that they end up helping each other. They find comfort and strength in the other. They open up without being invasive and find stability together. Mr. Gu offers Mi Jeong a way out of her meaningless life, and vice versa.

I really think that they make each other better. Mi Jeong is a positive presence for Mr. Gu and even after, a memory he longs for. She makes him want to go back to that happy period and move on from his past prison. As for Mi Jeong, she can finally confide in someone, trust him and find support.

Yeom Gi Jeong: Gi Jeong is the oldest sibling of the Yeom family. Contrary to her sister Mi Jeong, she is rather talkative. She speaks her mind, whether it’d be for criticizing people or asking relevant existential questions that we should all ask ourselves once in our lives. This of course puts her twice in a difficult and uncomfortable position.

The first time, she is in a bar with her friends and openly gets mad at her date for trying to go out with her, despite him already having a child. As she judges single father for trying to be in a new relationship, Cho Tae Hoon (Lee Ki Woo), his daughter Cho Yu Rim (Kang Joo Ha) and his sister Cho Gyeong Seon (Jung Soo Young) overhear her. This leads to an argument between the sister and Gi Jeong, as well as unnecessary pain inflicted to Tae Hoon and his daughter. Naturally, Gi Jeong feels bad and apologizes for not thinking before talking. This actually is one of Gi Jeong’s defect. She is sometimes prejudiced and gives her advice on things without properly assessing the situation. Yet, Gi Jeong is also a kind-hearted person and recognizes her mistakes fast, especially when she feels she has hurt others.

The second time, Gi Jeong is again at a bar with her friends and is criticizing women in their 50s this time. She wonders how they could live, knowing that she is 40 and feels as if time is passing by too fast. The table next to hers happens to be made up off women in their 50s, who wisely give her precious life lessons on how life at 50 is no different from when you turn 40. Once again, Gi Jeong admits her mistake and apologizes.

I thought that Gi Jeong was actually quite an interesting character. She can have a fiery temper with her siblings, but becomes shy, if not socially awkward in the presence of others. Nevertheless, she is also down-to-earth. Her issues and struggles are relatable because they are of daily life. For instance, she is desperate for a lover. She wishes to have someone she will love unconditionally and forever. So, she doesn’t quite understand the reasons why people can’t be loyal in a relationship.

Although Gi Jeong often looks out of place, she is quite sweet and charming. I couldn’t help but like her spiky remarks, her existential comments and her nice attitude. She is bubbly in her own way.

Relationship with Tae Hoon: If there is one thing Gi Jeong is not afraid of is to fight for love. She is willing to give her all to be happy. Moreover, once in a relationship, she doesn’t give up and goes all in to protect what she has built with her partner.

Though they had a bumpy start, Gi Jeong and Tae Hoon are soulmates. They are both socially awkward and struggle fitting in due to their respective circumstances. Tae Hoon was married before and has a daughter. Unfortunately, his wife died. Since then, he and mostly his sisters raised his daughter Yu Rim. He has never thought of remarriage and never even envisioned being with someone else. At least, not until his daughter is fully grown. But his encounter with Gi Jeong changes his plans. He used to be solitary and set back, always passive. Contrary to him, Gi Jeong is active and attacks. She is bold and full of confidence when it comes to giving a shot to something. Even if she knows if may not work, at least she tries and sees the result for herself.

These 2 first start by apologizing to each other constantly. Little by little, they form a connection that turns into affection and love. Gi Jeong knows that Tae Hoon needs time, especially because his daughter and sisters need it as well. But she is not pushy. She is patience embodied and doesn’t give him any ultimatum. Despite being disregarded and belittled by Gyeong Seon, she never complains. She doesn’t want to put Tae Hoon in a difficult position and have him choose between his family and her.

Tae Hoon’s daughter is not a walk in the park either. She mostly ignores Gi Jeong and rejects her as a potential step-mother. Yet, her cold and distant attitude are actually a facade. Many times in the drama, Yu Rim seems to have bonded with Gi Jeong and to care for her. She has accepted her as a member of her family, despite not saying anything. Finally, she tears up when she feels that her father and Gi Jeong may split. Fortunately, they clear the air, but Yu Rim’s reaction proved that Gi Jeong had found her way to her. One of the reasons may be the fact that they both have lost their mother and can thus identify with each other’s pain.

The least we can say is that both Tae Hoon and Gi Jeong have changed since the start of their relationship. Tae Hoon has learned to be braver and bolder. He stands up for Gi Jeong in front of a ruthless, and sometimes cruel, Gyeong Seon. Meanwhile, Gi Jeong has become wiser. She is very careful with the words she uses, as she has discovered that they can be sharper than knives and deeply hurt.

I loved that couple to be honest. They were both slowly opening up to each other, while confronting each hurdle as a team. Moreover, Tae Hoon is the last man Gi Jeong’s mother met. She told her daughter that he was a good choice right before dying. If that is not a sign!

Gi Jeong and her boss: Gi Jeong works at Ystat Research. There, she has to deal with her awful female colleagues and her Casanova boss Park Jin Woo (Kim Woo Hyung). Indeed, we rapidly understand that Gi Jeong is the underdog of the company when it comes to being courted and wooed by the boss.
The tradition is as follows: If the boss, Jin Woo, is interested in a female employee, he gives her lottery tickets. Upon realizing that she’s never once received a lottery ticket, despite working in that company for a while now, Gi Jeong takes matters into her own hands. She confronts her boss and asks him straight-away, while telling him that she knows he is not attracted to her.

This behavior leads to my favorite relationship of the drama! Gi Jeong and her boss rapidly become friends, who would exchange advice on how to court and how to seduce. Jin Woo becomes Gi Jeong’s love coach. He gives her tips on how to get closer to Tae Hoon, what men like and dislike. This friendship is really sane and it never once involved any mutual feelings between both characters.
However, the fact that they spend time together, go to dinner together and get along really well raises suspicious in the office. To the point that everyone, including Jin Woo’s newly found girlfriend, believe that they are sleeping together. That is preposterous!

In the end, Gi Jeong has as much influence on Jin Woo’s understanding of a relationship as he has on hers. Indeed, Gi Jeong, being her direct and straightforward self, gets mad at Jin Woo for accepting women playing hard-to-get. She doesn’t get why people can’t just be honest with themselves and say things when needed, instead of playing useless games like this one. This makes Jin Woo come to realization that he has lived his life wrong in that matter. Like Gi Jeong, he wishes to find true love, but he always gets involved in mind games with his partners, who see him as a womanizer. His reputation precedes him. He doesn’t want to be perceived and treated as such in his relationships. A crucial turning-point for Jin Woo that would not have been crossed without Gi Jeong’s help.

Yeom Chang Hee: Just like his siblings, Chang Hee is a lost soul. He doesn’t like his job, he is not happy in life, has tons of debt he needs to pay back and is basically choking. His life is made up of one struggle after the other, all of that wrapped in sheer bad luck.

All along, his goal is to make tons of money, to get a car and to achieve a certain social standard. But these are just fake dreams, as he believes that reaching these goals would somehow bring him happiness.
Whether it’d his girlfriend at the beginning, or his colleagues, none manages to understand him. He feels misunderstood and stuck. Even at work, he can’t quite climb the ladder. Promotions always go to people with connections, and Chang Hee has none.

His encounter with Mr. Gu helps him in some ways reach some of his goals. He finds in him the older brother he has never had and gets attached. Thanks to Mr. Gu, Chang Hee gets to drive an expensive car, only to realize that it doesn’t bring him happiness. He then works harder for a promotion he doesn’t get. There is a void in him he can’t seem to fill in. The real problem is that he has no purpose in life. Because of that, he doesn’t know how to navigate the world and what is expected of him.

Relationship with Hyun Ah: Ji Hyun Ah (Jeon Hye Jin) and Chang Hee have known each other forever. They both come from Sanpo and have grown up together. They are very good friends and there seems to be something between them right from the beginning. However, Hyun Ah is jumping from one relationship to another, while Chang Hee has just broken up with his girlfriend.

Although we don’t get to see much of her, Hyun Ah is a character in pain. She can’t find stability in her life, always self-destructing when she reaches a state of happiness. That’s why she destroys all her relationships.
At some point in the drama, Hyun Ah’s boyfriend gets sick and ends up at the hospital. She decides to care for him until the end. That’s when Chang Hee becomes aware of Hyun Ah’s affection for him. As directly said by the sick boyfriend, she talks about Chang Hee all the time. Over the weeks and months, Chang Hee and Hyun Ah’s boyfriend strike a friendship.
This new relationship, as well as the death of Chang Hee’s mother, actually pave the way for a new kind of life. Without realizing it, Chang Hee is little by little finding his purpose in life.

After that, he starts a relationship with Hyun Ah and promises her that he would be there when she is ready, no matter how long it takes. Once her journey is over, she will be able to reunite with Chang Hee for good.

The journey: To be honest, I think Chang Hee’s journey is the one that moved me the most! Although clues were there all along, it only made sense at the end.

If Chang Hee’s greatest challenge in his life was to give it a purpose, his prayers are answered in the last episode. Indeed, several times before he mentioned the fact that he was the one who said goodbye to his grandmother and grandfather before they died. Always alone in those moments, he held their hand as they drew their last breath.

Years later, he happens to end up in the same situation with his mother. At that point he had quit his corporate job, tired of not being recognized for his worth. He was unemployed and helping at the farm. When his mother died, he is the one who discovered her. She had gone to bed and never woke up.

Finally, he is the one holding the hand of Hyun Ah’s boyfriend at the hospital. After a year, his condition has worsened. As he is about to die, Chang Hee desperately tries to call Hyun Ah. Unfortunately, she doesn’t pick up the phone. That leaves him alone once again with a dying person.

These were naturally signs of what was coming next. But never would I have imagined that this was actually his purpose.
Indeed, at the end of the drama, Chang Hee goes to the university to follow a lecture on arts. He has become quite interested in that and has read quite a number of books on the subject. To perfect his knowledge, he thus decides to learn more directly from a professor. But he gets into the wrong room by mistake. Instead of getting a course on arts, he ends up in a class preparing to become a funeral director.

That’s when it all becomes clear as day! The reason why he had to assist to all these deaths, the reason why he couldn’t find meaning in his life yet. All along it was to prepare him for this.

I sincerely loved that moment. It was extraordinary to understand at the same time as the character what he was meant for.

The end: The ending of My Liberation Notes was simply beautiful! Not only did it give closure to us, but it also showed characters as they move on in their lives. It made so much sense, and I really felt as if, all along, clues had been left behind. They simply needed to be gathered to understand the real path to follow for the siblings, Mr. Gu and their friends.

Mi Jeong and Mr. Gu: When Mr. Gu feels as if his past life is catching up to him and putting his Sanpo family in danger, he decides to leave. He goes back to being a gangster, stuck in a world of money, violence, power and alcohol. Yet, he remains the same numb person, who doesn’t feel and doesn’t talk. On top of that, he is not interested in climbing up the ladder. He just does his job like a robot.

As for Mi Jeong, she discovers that her boss is having an affair with one of her colleagues. However, he saved the mistress under her name in the phone. She ends up being involved in that affair and is forced to quit her job. Although this is one more betrayal in her life, it actually enables Mi Jeong to start from scratch. But now she can do it more freely, having changed thanks to Mr. Gu’s influence.
She finds a new job at a card company, finding out that she is better at precision than creativity. It gives her the feeling that she is actually working, part of something and doing a meaningful task. She also gets along quite well with her colleagues. This gives the impression that she finally belongs.

After some time has passed (a year), Mr. Gu, whose name is Gu Ja Gyeong, decides to reach out to Mi Jeong again. He misses her and her presence. He calls her father, who gives him her number. The way they rekindle is smooth and natural, as if they had never split before.
The best part is their re-encounter on the bridge, where both look at each other with big smiles and happy faces. At that point, I realized how much they had changed. They were now talking so much and smiling all the time, almost making us forget how reserved and introverted they were at first.

Yet, the best part of the relationship in my opinion has to be the last scenes of the drama. Mr. Gu has decided to quit his life as a gangster for good. He is supposed to meet Mi Jeong, so he takes the elevator of his building. There, he sees a little girl smiling and counts seconds of happiness. Indeed, during one of their conversations, Mi Jeong confesses that she has lived her life angry at someone instead of living it for herself. To survive, she counts the seconds of happiness in her day. If they amount to five minutes, she considers it a good day. Mr. Gu does the same and thus starts counting.

That day, the little girl amounts for 7 seconds. After this encounter, he goes to the convenience store to buy his usual bottle of alcohol. However, he has a revelation at that moment. Luck is on his side, as the coin he drops doesn’t fall through the grid. He picks it up and leaves the bottle next to a homeless person. He is now ready to be with Mi Jeong and start anew.

As for Mi Jeong, earlier that day, she meets her past boyfriend (the one who left with her money) at the bank. He tells her he will pay her back a million won now and the rest afterwards. This is like a burden being lifting off of her shoulders. She can stop being angry at others and live for herself. For once in her life, she also feels lovable thanks to Mr. Gu.

Finally, both admit that there is a before and an after their encounter, proving that they really changed each other in a good way.

Atmosphere:

The cinematography, direction and acting performance: Of course the plot is one of the main reasons why My Liberation Notes is so good. However, I definitely need to mention all the other assets of the drama. The cinematography (like the game with reflections, as if we were deeply immersed in characters’ thoughts), the direction (cuts that show the beauty of the countryside, the darkness of the landscapes at night, as gloomy as characters’ meaningless lives sometimes) and the acting performance are to be applauded.

Lee El, Lee Min Ki, Kim Ji Won and Son Suk Ku realistically and beautifully portray their characters’ issues and feelings. They make them human and so relatable, showcasing various life struggles and asking relevant questions. Although dialogues are not very present in certain scenes, such as those with Mr. Gu and Mi Jeong, actors’ expressions, body language and silent performance says it all. Sometimes, you don’t need words to convey messages, you can use eyes, body gestures… and that is exactly what they do!

The setting: On top of that, there is a certain poetry and subtlety that are conveyed through the pace and the setting of the drama. The countryside is at the same time a healing place, where every characters’ journeys seem to converge at first (shelter for Mr. Gu, family place for the siblings) and an isolated place. It is far from the city, away from work connections or friends, dangerous at times (wild dogs for instance) and lost, where characters are forced to live. This two-sidedness of the settings gives place to characters bonding to survive and their taking some time to think, breathe and reset.

Subway as a bridge: As we talked about the setting and more precisely the countryside, it is also crucial to mention the importance of the subway in the drama. Sanpo is far away from Seoul. At the beginning, all the characters are lost and confused. They feel suffocated in the city, while longing for it. However, they still live at their parents’ house for family reasons. None of the siblings dares to move. The Yeom family is thus isolated, as much as sheltered, from the real world. On that matter, it seems like every time they go to Seoul, something bad happens. For example, Mi Jeong’s ex-boyfriend leaves with her money, Chang Hee breaks Mr. Gu’s car, Mr. Gu is in the mafia, Gi Jeong ends up having to deal with her bad dates.

Contrary to that, Sanpo creates connections and allows for bonds to form. The subway just act as a bridge between characters’ divided lives: their past and present in Sanpo, and their future in Seoul.

At the end of the drama, all the siblings and Mr. Gu move to Seoul. Indeed, their mother has just died and they don’t feel the need to stay at the family house anymore. It is time for them to move on with their lives and conquer new horizons, whether it’d be romantically (Mi Jeong/Gi Jeong/Mr. Gu) or professionally (Mi Jeong/Chang Hee/Mr. Gu). The plot that is supposed to unfold in Sanpo has come to an end, meaning that the bridge is no longer useful. It is time for Seoul stories to start.

By leaving, characters leave behind their grief, which is an important theme in the drama, and their past struggles. They start anew without their spleen following.

Finally, the subway is THE place where Mr. Gu and Mi Jeong meet for the first time. Not to mention as well, that the subway allows for characters to get some courage, while reading the sign saying that tomorrow will be a better day.

The Liberation Club: Now that we have talked about characters’ respective journey and the beautiful direction, there is one last element that needs to be dealt with.

The Liberation Club is the center point of the drama. It is literally the expression of characters’ feelings and anguish. It has various purposes:
First, it connects very distinct people of the same company together. Tae Hoon, Park Sang Min (Park Soo Young), So Hyang Gi (Lee Ji Hye) and Mi Jeong have nothing in common, except for their existential problems.

Second, the club allows them to share their life issues and thus, to use the club as a cathartic therapy. There are rules in this club: No happiness, no unhappiness, no judgement. That being said, it is a safe space, where you can freely express your deeper thoughts without the fear of being criticized or misunderstood.

Third, the club acts as a catalyst of the turning points in the story. By laying it all down on paper, Mi Jeong can work through her feelings and better act upon them, whether it’d be in her work, relationship or daily life. Tae Hoon can also use that occasion to make decisions and review his relationship with Gi Jeong. It is basically a diary that is supposed to help you take stock of your life.

Finally, it helps characters being liberated. Simple.