Secret Garden 2011: A Korean Drama Review

As I wrote in my last post, that my obsession with Korean dramas has returned with full force. And there are many shows I am watching right now, but the one I have completed first is Secret Garden (2011), this was my 2nd attempt. And it was successful, for which I'm glad. Previously I had written that this drama irritated me, but now it was extremely enjoyable. 

An overview, for those who do not know (which is extremely unlikely). The show stars the beautiful and fantastic Ha Ji-Won (100 Days with Mr. Arrogant, Sector 7) and Hyun-Bin (My Name is Kim Sam Soon, Daddy-Long-Legs) in the lead, and these two are supported my an amazing cast of Yoon Sang-Hyun (Three Fathers One Mother, My Fair Lady), Kim Sa-Rang (Miss Korea 2001, King and I), Philip Lee (Faith), Lee Jong-Suk (School 2013, I Can Hear Your Voice) and Yoo In-Na (The Greatest Love, Queen In Hyun's Man). 

The story of this 2011 show, at first glance, seems very cliched. A rich man/ Chaebol falling for a poor woman. But it had a little fantasy in it too, with a body swapping story wrapped up in all the romance, and might I say it was well wrapped. But what made this show really different, wasn't the fantasy element, it was the characterisation.

This show I think can be seen as the start of the use of the faulty/scarred chaebol, which was later used in shows like "Protect the Boss" and a gutsy, butt-kicking heroine. Well not gutsy but definitely  butt- kicking as Gil Ra-Im (Ha Ji-Won) is a stunt woman. The second leads aren't really defined, the character of Im Jong-Suk (Philip Lee) definitely likes our heroine but he respects her as a colleague too and is really professional. Yoon Seul (Kim Sa-Rang) is a rich lady who pursues our hero Kim Joo Won (Hyun-Bin) but never hides the fact that she wants to marry him for her family business. Later she even admits that she pursues him to hurt his cousin Oska (Yoon Sang-Hyun), who has hurt her previously. And then there is Lee Jong Suk's character Han Tae Sun, who is openly gay and is into Oska. 

My favourite scene that I have to mention is when the heiress Yoon Seul, who has lived in the U.S, comes and meets the director of the Action School Im Jong Suk, who has just studied abroad and is NOT a Chaebol. She comes to him and to show her superiority she talks in English and he replies in the same language. The funny thing occurs when his English is more fluent and he has a better accent than her. This I believe is not how the real world works.