See You At Work Tomorrow

Presentation

For more…

Overview

Synopsis

Kang Si Woo appears to be a perfect guy, but is seen as a prickly person due to his cold personality. As a department manager, he oversees Cha Ji Yoon. She’s good enough at her job, but experiences a slump in her daily life. One day, her existence is swayed by her supervisor.

My Opinion (No Spoiler)

This office drama captivated me right from the start. I think the chemistry between the leads is what grabbed my attention, but then the development of their relationship kept me interested. There’s no drama, no love triangle, no crazy plot twists that come between these two. The core of the plot relies on their own insecurities and doubts that they learn to overcome for the sake of the other. Seo In Guk’s character is such a green flag who manages to reassure the female lead like no other. Everyone – including secondary characters – have a good evolution. You can clearly see the difference between who they were at the beginning and who they turn into whether it’d be on a personal or professional level. I’ll admit though that some episodes in the middle were less good than the rest, but that is fine. I also absolutely loved the whole Home AI concept. It was so well developed. If you’re looking for a good office romance, then this one’s for you.

Analysis

• Characters
  Kang Si Woo
  Cha Ji Yoon
  Yoon No Ah
  Lee Jae In
• The romance
• Home AI
• A good boss

Characters: To me, this drama is character-centric and has at heart to show us ordinary people who go through ordinary struggles but grow and change with time, efforts and relationships.

Kang Si Woo: Kang Si Woo (Seo In Guk) is nicknamed ‘Three-No-Man‘ at work. It stands for no smile, no people, no sorry. This is a pretty accurate depiction of the male lead. He’s cold, distant, and quite rigid. He’s seen as a terrifying boss by employees and an arrogant leader by other managers. He’s often compared to a robot who doesn’t smile, doesn’t care about people, follows a strict routine and lives a boring life with no surprises. On a personal level, he’s divorced – though no one knows that, and his ex-wife also works at Saeum. Kang Si Woo goes through a radical change when he meets Cha Ji Yoon (Park Ji Hyun). He finds himself smiling at her for no reason. She makes him feel emotions like no one before, makes him go against his typical behavior like holding onto her instead of letting her go or apologizing to others. Her presence transforms him from a robot into an actual human being. Though Ji Yoon reveals his true personality to everyone, the signs were already there. If you scratch the surface and actually get to know him, Si Woo proves to be an amazing boss, beloved by his employees but also a green flag. He was only missing a purpose in life and Cha Ji Yoon brought him new aspirations.

Cha Ji Yoon: Cha Ji Yoon is a beloved employee at Saeum who received the nickname of ‘Clock In/Clock Out Fairy’ because she always arrives and leaves on the dot. The reason behind is however quite tragic. After years in the company, she’s lost her passion. She works like a machine despite her great potential. She’s a good mentor and colleague, always full of ideas. But no one cares to listen, so she gave up on work altogether. It all changes when Kang Si Woo comes back from the US as a new boss. He sees her value very early on and chases after her to make her join his team. She accepts and transform professionally. He helps her get her fire back. On a personal level, Ji Yoon has gone through a tough previous relationship with Cho Ga Eul (Choi Kyung Hoon). He is a free-spirited musician, but his constant absence took a toll on their relationship. After years of dating, she decided to break up and stop the emotional damage. Nevertheless, she’s left with insecurities that she projects onto Si Woo such as the fear of being lonely or of being hurt again. But she gets reassurance, patience and comfort from her current boyfriend, proving her that she’s got no reason to feel insecure.

Yoon No Ah: Yoon No Ah (Kang Mi Na) has no perspective at work. She’s lost and lacks confidence due to her boss’ belittlement and harassment. She’s also been in a year-long relationship with Kim Goo Won for whom she sacrificed a lot. But he ends up cheating on her and leaving. She’s devastated by the betrayal. Her self-confidence and self-esteem hit rock bottom until her encounter with Lee Jae In (Won Gyu Bin). He’s younger than her, but so carefree, self-confident and assertive. He’s also empathetic, sweet and comforting. That’s exactly the kind of person No Ah needed by her side to get better. He heals her wounds and gives her the strength to rely on herself. At the end, No Ah has career aspirations for the first time. So, she applies for a program in Senegal for 2 years while strongly protecting her relationship with Jae In.

Lee Jae In: Lee Jae In is an inspiring young man. He has a lot of jobs (French TA, DJ…) and looks totally unbothered by life. I think this behavior is the result of his previous relationship in which he learned how to let go. His girlfriend didn’t love him anymore, so he saw no point in holding onto her. Though it makes sense, I think Jae In also never felt the kind of love he has with No Ah. He’s convinced that if she goes away, distance will tear them apart but No Ah reassures him. She loves him and won’t let go of him. So he takes a leap of faith and fights for his relationship. And the result is amazing.

The romance: I loved the romances in this show because they were realistically portrayed. The drama proved that you don’t need to have insane twists or emotional outbursts to bring people together or tear them apart. Relationships require time, efforts, compromise, communication and that’s exactly what drives both romances. Whenever Ji Yoon feels insecure, Si Woo patiently hears her out and waits for her. Reversely, when Si Woo is more guarded and doesn’t talk, Ji Yoon breaks the wall and reaches out. Each partner gives something to the other. Cha Ji Yoon brings laughter and joy to Si Woo’s existence, while he brings her stability and certainty which she lacked in her previous relationship. Lee Jae In gives courage and strength to No Ah, who showers him with love and affection. Not to mention that the chemistry between these two pairs was just the best.

Home AI: I absolutely adored the concept of Home AI that runs through the entire show. Characters work for a home appliances company and they really managed to design so many interesting in-house furniture that I was dying to buy myself. It felt so real and I think it added so much depth to the story. Cha Ji Yoon is shown as a brilliant woman with many ideas and it was genius to show us the actual result of these ideas disguised as projects in the company.

A good boss: Kang Si Woo is by far the best boss one can dream of. Though he doesn’t show it right away, he’s supportive, protective, encouraging, and there’s not a single of his team members who doesn’t love him. To me, he’s the epitome of how a great boss should act. He’s inspirational, drives the team, gives direction but also participates in the collective effort. He’s not just giving orders and delegating tasks which is rare. He also knows how to fight with upper management to put the spotlight on his team members and to back them up when they make mistakes. He may be cold and strict, but that’s just a surface. Proof of his competence is that his team is devastated at the end when he announces that he’s resigning. Everyone tries to convince him to stay or wants to follow him.