Presentation
Korean Title: 어서와
Aired in: 2020 (12 episodes)
Channel: KBS2
Grade: 6/10
Actors: Shin Ye Eun and Kim Myung Soo (L)
For more…
Kim Myung Soo (L):
– Miss Hammurabi
– My Lovely Girl
– Royal Secret Agent
– One More Time
Shin Ye Eun:
– He is Psychometric
– More than Friends
– Yumi’s Cells 2
– Revenge of Others
Seo Ji Hoon:
– Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency
– Men are Men
– Mama Fairy and the Woodcutter
– Solomon’s Perjury
Analysis
Synopsis
Kim Sol Ah is a young woman, who considers herself more as a dog person. She is faithfully in love with her friend Lee Jae Sun, but the feelings are one-sided. One day, she happens to move in a new house and ends up sheltering a cat she names Hong Jo. Mysteriously though, Hong Jo can turn into a human being without Sol Ah knowing it. Hong Jo and Sol Ah end up living under the same roof and supporting each other.
My Opinion (No Spoilers)
This drama is an adaptation of a webtoon and I think the result is better as a webtoon, because we know it doesn’t need to be credible to read it. However, as a drama, it lacks credibility and a whole lot of realism. I thought at first that the plot was interesting, since a cat turns into a human being. The first episodes of the drama were funny and refreshing. But as I continued watching, it seemed weird to me to even envision a love story between a human being and a cat (friendship yes, relationship hell no!). Plus, the supporting characters, especially Lee Jae Sun (played by Seo Ji Hoon) annoyed me so much, he was constantly saying and doing one thing and then the exact opposite; always thinking about himself and his own feelings, never looking for the truth first. He was biased and thick-headed, which at some point became difficult to watch.
The character of Hong Jo (Kim Myung Soo), the human embodiment of the cat, was bland; but it is understandable, as it is a cat!
Sol Ah (Shin Ye Eun) was a sympathetic character and I liked seeing how she evolved from her one-sided crush to accepting to think about herself and what she wanted first. Even though, her choices in partners are totally insane, she was a pleasant character. Nonetheless, I couldn’t help but thinking at some point that she was freaking dumb! How can you not tell that your cat is the human being you live with? How can you not differentiate your actual step-brother from your cat?
The only enjoyable element from A to Z in the drama was the second relationship between the very shy and silent Eun Ji Eun (Yoon Ye Joo) and the very energetic (yet immature) Ko Doo Shik (Kang Hoon). Their romance was really cute and the actual reason why I kept watching the drama.
If you want to watch a drama, for which you don’t need to focus that much and that doesn’t give you headaches, go ahead, otherwise let it go!
Analysis (Spoiler Alert)
In terms of analysis, I don’t think I need to go into details to give you a glimpse of the characters’ personalities, as they are mainly stereotypical ones. Instead, I’d rather highlight the themes tackled by the drama.
What are the themes questioned?
As the drama happened to air during quarantine (due to COVID-19), I believe this drama was an excellent reminder to all pet owners to take care or their animals and not abandon them in the streets. Adopting a pet and the responsibilities that come with it, are not to be taken lightly. It is a decision that has to be well thought!
Therefore, the drama represented for me an incredible way of showing all the steps in the adoption of an animal: in the case of Sol Ah, at first she doesn’t want to take care of Hong Jo, but ends up totally in love with him. You follow her moments of stress (when he is sick) and confort, of joy and happiness also. She protects him until the end, since he has become a dear confident and a member of her family.
The message of the drama is simple: If you have a pet, love him the way he deserves!
There was also an underlying theme in the drama: that is the relationship between Jae Sun and his father; which in my opinion can be put in parallel with a pet owner and his pet (I know it sounds weird but let me explain!). Cats are very independent and the whole idea of the drama is based on the fact that they don’t necessarily need an owner (they choose their master). Moreover, they can easily be abandoned and change owners. The insecurities and the fear of being left alone are well portrayed by Hong Jo as a cat, but on the human side, Jae Sun embodies all of that. He has been abandoned at an early age by his parents, then adopted. His father and him have a difficult relationship and we discover by the end that his father was actually very hurt that his adoptive son never asks for anything and is so independent (just like a cat!). In the end, they are able to form a new relationship, while Jae Sun’s father is old and sick, but they spend his last moments happily. I thought that this relationship was actually the future relationship of Sol Ah and Hong Jo, as she would take care of her old cat (who grows old faster) and would want to make his last days as happy as possible.
Another theme surrounding the pet universe is the obsessive and abusive behavior some psychos (because that’s what they are!) have. This negative side is presented through the cat caregiver, who unfortunately puts them in a cage because he supposedly loves them. Once again, this is a big message for the viewers: animals are not supposed to live in a cage!
Other actual themes, more light-hearted, are studied such as working conditions and especially not being able to defend yourself at work, turning you into a slave in your boss’s eyes (cc Eun Ji Eun, luckily it ends well); first loves and how to deal with break ups and overcome the misunderstandings in a relationship; having parents who remarry… (kind of the usual ones I would say).
P.S: Did you know that Meow: he Secret Boy has broken a record (not a good one though) by becoming the lowest rated public channel drama with around 1% viewership?
P.S.2: If you closely look at the title in Korean, it creates the form of a cat!
Once Upon a Drama 