Korean title: 신사와 아가씨

Origin and release year: South Korea (2021)

Starring: Lee Se Hee, Ji Hyun Woo, Park Ha Na, Yoon Jin Yi, Seo Woo Jin, Kang Eun Tak, Choi Myung Bin

Young Lady And Gentleman is a typical feel-good makjang drama that also has the ability to get your blood boiling.

For the most part it is cute but makjang themes such as lying, amnesia, faking of things, manipulation, and more, give it a tension-filled plot.

The plot has a number of twists and turns, making it a rollercoaster of a viewing experience. However, what makes the drama is the characters.

Each character is written and treated with deep detail to the point where they each have their unique idiosyncrasies.

Characters such as Park Dan Dan and her family respresent the middle class that sometimes struggles whilst the likes of Lee Young Gook live comfortably without worries as a conglomerate family with underlying tension caused by wealth. The latter also tends to be more willing (or able) to manipulate things to their liking.

These differences become painfully clear as the characters get involved in each others’ lives. The romantic lines were all cute to an extent.

However, I found the kind nature of some characters to be unrealistic. It seemed that if anyone questioned morality most of the characters were just willing to let their wants go, which is unlike human nature. Park Dan Dan was the most realistic because despite knowing something was considered wrong she still fought for it and struggled with her moral compass. Mi Rim was also quite strong-willed.

I hated Chief Jo. I have never had so much loathing for an onscreen character in my life. She is honestly despicable and her character was so narcissistic, disalluding herself to think that her actions were going to pay off.

I loved the children! They were extremely cute and a real highlight in the series.

Dan Dan’s family (biological and not) was just whatever. For the most part her parents were annoying because they just didn’t care about her feelings and invalidated her all the time. Granted they were trying to be moral people, but it baffled me that they cared so little about her actual emotions. They eventually saw the light but it took them forever to do so.

On the flip side, I also have to say that Dan Dan‘s immaturity was a bit too hectic for a large part of the drama. Especially for her age. She’s old enough to know better in a lot of situations.

I think the length of this drama was perfect. Around 50 one-hour episodes seems to be the perfect length to keep you engaged enough in a makjang without making it feel like it’ll never end.

However, if I had to criticize one more thing it would be the amnesia plot. Getting amnesia is not unusual in this kind of drama but it felt overcooked. Especially when Lee YoungGook returned to his normal self but then couldn’t remember his life as his 20-year-old self.

Granted, half of the drama that resulted from that plot line wouldn’t have been possible if it didn’t happen, but I kept wishing they would speed up the process.

Overall, this was a really solid drama that had you feeling all of the emotions that any good makjang should.

What did you think of Young Lady And Gentleman?