After almost a decade since its broadcast date and watching the BIGBANG parody during my VIP years, I finally watched this classic drama starring Hyun Bin and Ha Ji Won.
!! Some spoilers within !!
Kim Joo Won (Hyun Bin), a CEO of a department store encounters stuntwoman Gil Ra Im (Ha Ji Won) and mistakes her as a famous actress while trying to fix a scandal involving his cousin Oska/Choi Woo Young (Yoon Sang Hyun). From this point on, there's plenty of bickering, teasing which makes it funny and awkward but when the main protagonists encounter the Secret Garden restaurant and Gil Ra Im takes a special bottle of liquor to give to her idol Oska/Choi Woo Young which Joo Won takes for himself, things take a turn when their souls switch bodies. Oh the shenanigans that pop up. If you thought it was just for two episodes before they go back to normal, think again. This soul swapping frenzy comes back a few times.
Indeed the summary reads like a cliche where the male lead is an arrogant Chaebol who always gets what he wants and is rather annoying who then meets the female lead who is the opposite in terms of class and wealth. However there's quite a few layers you peel away with the main characters and it just works so well as you go along and see the development in progress. The twist with the soul swapping makes this Cinderella story and Little Mermaid nod a delight to watch and brings a little fairytale magic into the plot.
Ha Ji Won and Hyun Bin's chemistry is just brilliant. The scenes they shared during the most tender, the most intense and the most heartbreaking had me losing my breath as I watched, gasping and crying a little. When the souls swapped the leading actors nailed each other's characters very well in mannerism.
Of course when the leading man has a very strict, wicked mother she's going to be hell for the heroine. Kim Joo Won's mother Moon Boon Hong obviously can't stand Gil Ra Im because she's poor/normal. It's always like this in these stories. Even with Crazy Rich Asians when Nick's mother would not accept Rachel because she's too American. I for sure would be out of the window if I was either of these heroines. When she initially cursed Gil Ra Im and her father before realising this was the firefigher who saved Joo Won 13 years ago from that elevator accident I wanted to shout at
Kim Sarang as Yoon Seul starts off as a bitch but cools off and knows when to back away when she can't get Joo Won to give Woo Young hell for their failed relationship back in the day. Her little stunt to pull away a would be match for Joo Won at the VVIP party made me realise she's actually smart and knows when to see a potential relationship between two people. You knew she was hurting from Oska while directing the MV in Jeju Island but she was hiding it quite a bit. Even Oska in all his ridiculously funny, womanizing ways can have some heart and own up to his mistakes from the past. I won't lie when I say I would kill for a fan to idol relationship like Ra Im has with her Oppa. The occasional one on one fan meetings she has is just pure luck.
Secretary Kim and his crush on Ra Im's roommate Ah Young is cute. They along with the guys at Action School bring out extra entertainment and humour to counter balance the angst. Ra Im may be an orphan and an only child but she is lucky to have plenty of brothers to back her up. I would be so grateful to have male colleagues/"friends" like that. Director Im Jong Soo is the caring big bro/boss of Ra Im who secretly likes Ra Im and Joo Won spotted it while in Ra Im's body. Hwang Jung Hwan rooting for Mr I Make Money So Well aka Joo Won and Ra Im was funny and it was even funnier when he realised Joo Won is older than him so stopped talking informally after that. Lee Jong Suk - for a small role he stood out to me as well. Han Tae Sun was meant to be artist to be groomed/trained by Oska but he was not having it and instead became Oska's producer for a while. Also fancies him which irks Yoon Seul. Sassy bitchiness ensues.
Watching this drama is possibly my third time seeing Ha Ji Won portraying a kick-arse woman who may be rather 'Tsundere' yet shows other sides to her character when she isn't kicking or punching anyone (or kicking Hyun Bin/Joo Won's shins bless him). No Gil Ra Im may not be as well-educated Joo Won but she knows when to show respect to peers. It is a reality check for many women who chance upon a suitor of the upper class world and that they would have to work damn hard to win the heart of the other half's family.
How Joo Won and Gil Ra Im came back together in episode 18 after the latter's accident while filming Dark Blood where they shared a dream which Ah Young had previously and then Gil Ra Im's father showed up to fix the magic...that was just fascinating. Even the red petals scattered on the floors of the hospital room and Joo Won's bed. That made me sit up and almost analyse the hell out of this. The nod to claustrophobia and memory loss after an accident is something to take note of. Joo Won reverting back to his 21 year old self and almost being pervy was funny and disturbing altogether. But it was a moment where Gil Ra Im could start her relationship with Joo Won again more confidently.
Must I say it has been a very long time since I finished a Kdrama and was satisfied with a large chunk of many details in the storyline and cast that it made me emotional? It's amazing how Ha Ji Won is older than Hyun Bin by just a few years but can show she's younger (sounds like me meeting younger favourites in the present). I love her short hair in Secret Garden and as someone who will never grow her hair that long due to various reasons it's refreshing to see heroines with shorter hair get some spotlight. This is my first time watching a Hyun Bin drama (yes I am slow, you may notice this) after watching him in the film Late Autumn with Tang Wei. He managed to pull my heartstrings as Joo Won but also tempt me to pull my hair out when he said some outrageous things which made me want to do a Tsundere gesture and throw a punch or kick him like how Gil Ra Im does.
Other bits and bobs
- If there was one thing I would have liked to see more of it would be the magic from the Secret Garden and Gil Ra Im's father
- The soundtrack is A+ for sure. Perfect for making me cry and clutch my heart when the feelings are too much to bear. Never realised Hyun Bin could sing so well too
- The cameos from OST ballad queen Baek Ji Young and popular actress Son Yejin (broke my heart in A Moment To Remember with Jung Woo Sung). The latter will soon meet Hyun Bin again in The Negotiaton and Crash Landing On You
- The random English from Manager Park and Yoon Seul. In fact I would like to applaud some of the cast for even trying to speak English. Lee Philip is Korean American and I didn't know about this while watching Secret Garden until I did research so his fluent English caught me off guard
- Oska/Woo Young's Japanese was cute and hilarious. Forced and cringeworthy but fitting for his scenes
- The cute text message notification on Ra Im's phone. Munja Wa Shong
- Spotting posters of album covers from Western artists who released new albums in 2009-2010 (Lady Gaga's Fame Monster and Adam Lambert's For Your Entertainment) and seeing posters of Hallyu idols for Lotte Duty Free
- Oska telling his fan to go fangirl other newer, younger idols like 2PM and BEAST so he can live his life and date freely