Extraordinary Attorney Woo

Amazing Park Eun Bin + Pretty good portrayal of individuals with disabilities

Completed - 8/27/2022
Subjective Rating - 8.75 because I enjoyed the 2 special needs cases.
Objective Rating - 8.0-8.5

*Disclaimer* I have been working with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) for 20+ years. So my review might reflect some of my experience. However, I am NOT someone with a disability, and can’t speak for those with IDD or other professionals in the field. I am a drama watcher and will review “Extraordinary Attorney Woo” (EAW) as such, and not as a case study.

In order to fully enjoy this drama, one should bear in mind that this is not a documentary of Woo Young Woo, nor is this a law drama. This is a light hearted drama showcasing the uniqueness of Young Woo and her personal growth in life, career and love. When watching this, I would assume the creators want to shed light and educate on Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and to break some myths.

Having said that, I fully enjoy this drama. I was very hesitant to watch EAW as I worried the portrayal of someone with a disability is going to piss me off. I don’t want this drama to shed a negative light on someone with a disability, or paint a rosy picture either.

Portrayal of Woo Young Woo and Disabilities - I feel that the creators of this drama put all the common traits, quirks, and characteristics of someone with ASD into Young Woo. I personally believe if I meet an individual in real life with all these traits, this person might not be as cute and adorable as Young Woo. They would have a much tougher time in life, despite being a genius and graduating with high honors from a prestigious university. But as I said, this is not a documentary, so I will just go with the flow. There are two court cases about people with IDD and I am glad that the show mentioned the ‘Spectrum’ part of Autism Spectrum Disorder. The range is so wide that we can’t assume all individuals with ASD behave the same way. In fact, it doesn’t matter what your disability is, each individual is unique and special in their own way. We cannot assume someone with autism knows how to interact with another person with the same diagnosis, as evident in episode 3. In another court case, the focus is on romantic and sexual relationships between a young lady with mild intellectual disability and a man without a disability. It touched on some very important subjects - advocating for one’s rights to love and make decisions, understanding what love/sex mean, parent’s control and overprotectiveness, what the individual wants vs what their family wants, dignity of risks, stigma of being in a relationship (can someone with IDD be in a romantic relationship? yes they can!). These are all very realistic issues. Between EAW and the recently aired “Our Blues”, I am happy to see the portrayal of independent women with disabilities. They want to look pretty, want to have a boyfriend, and want to work to make a living, they want what everybody wants.

Park Eun Bin/Woo Young Woo (FL) - What more can we say about this amazing actress. She really deserves a Baeksang for her portrayal of Woo Young Woo. Another amazing drama after last year’s “The King’s Affection”. I am tired just watching her play this role and be in character mentally and physically for 16+ hours. Not only did Park Eun Bin give us an adorable Young Woo, but witnessing Young Woo’s growth, and Park Eun Bin’s acting in some very emotional but subtle scenes is an absolute joy. Young Woo gives us many comedic moments and you are never bored when she’s on the screen.

Kang Tae Oh/Lee Joon Ho (ML) - I am sure many of us fall in love with Joon Ho’s adoring eyes when he looks at Young Woo. This character is such a sweetheart and he loves and adores Young Woo for who she is. I almost placed him in my special Ideal Man list. However, I didn’t, because aside from being a romantic love interest, Lee Joon Ho is quite useless in this drama. He’s always on the sidelines or runs errands. There’s no character growth and nothing really happens to him. The romance is sweet and quite predictable. I just wish there’s more.

Supporting Cast - I enjoy the overall acting for the supporting cast. However, similar to my criticism of ML, this drama is very Young Woo-focused. Everyone else serves as a vehicle to help Young Woo grow in life and in her career. None of the side characters or stories are well developed. As much as I enjoy seeing powerful female lawyers, I still don’t understand why they’re rivalries. I do love the sismance though. Isn’t it nice to not have any catty, petty women but supportive female friendships? The secondary romance is somewhat bland. It should have started sooner. The way they fall for each other is not believable.

Court Cases - As mentioned this is not a law drama. The cases are short and episodic. I generally am not a fan of this format and find it repetitive. However, I didn’t feel it this way. The cases are not particularly interesting or exciting to me, aside from the 2 cases I mentioned above. Everything seems to resolve quite easily because Young Woo is a genius. I was never on the edge of my seat. This is probably the most light-hearted ‘law’ drama I’ve ever watched.

Overall, I strongly recommend this very binge-worthy drama. It’s light-hearted and fun. I hope the popularity of this drama does shatter the stigma and myths about Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Other Random Observations:
1. Lawyers should really lock their office doors when they go home.
2. Love the dolphin and whale hats - cute!!!!
3. Love the list of hilarious dates - picking up trash and protesting about dolphins.
4. First few episodes, the background music plays too much and tries to manipulate how viewers are feeling about certain scenes. This is not as noticeable in the latter part.

Read More

Wonderful but with Some Unanswered Questions

I watched this drama as it was running and looked forward to each new episode, always a good sign. There are a few minor flaws but overall, this is a wonderful show. The premise of an autistic attorney working in her first job and dealing with the challenges this brings was really interesting and unique. The portrayal by Park Eun Bin was fantastic. (Not necessarily realistic in the sense that yes, autistic people are exactly like that, but consistent and believable as a character.) All the actors deserved high praise, with a special shout-out to Kang Tae Oh, who portrayed the sweet male lead to perfection.

Apart from the acting, I also liked that the court cases were not your typical serial killer stuff but more mundane and a bit odd even. Some commenters thought they were boring, but I appreciated the uniqueness. Many legal dramas have courtroom scenes that stretch from here to eternity but this one kept them reasonably short and mixed them with scenes in the law office, out in the field doing research (watch out for the truck of doom!), or after work, at home, in the bar etc. There is some romance, and a very, very beautiful first kiss scene, but romance is not the main point, so even people who don’t care for that kind of stuff should be able to enjoy this show.

Now to the flaws, which became more obvious towards the end of the show. This drama obviously focuses on the title character, but forgets to answer some basic questions about the other characters, especially about the male lead. Where does he come from and how is he so wonderful? Why does one of the attorneys turn from total jerk to Mr. Nice Guy? Why did one of the characters not go to the military? (I kept waiting for some dramatic reveal the entire show!) A little more background information about the supporting characters would have been nice, because they are really interesting characters and I would have liked to know more about them.

One more thing: I thought that the last episode was a bit of a let-down, mostly from the romance point of view. Sure, not the main point of the show, but still. Definitely a missed opportunity. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed this drama and can definitely recommend it.

Read More

beautiful writing beautiful story

So far I've watched 13 episodes, hopefully it'll be as good till the end. Everywhere I see people praising this drama for it's the portrayal of autism, it's great, love it, but that's not what I like most about this drama. What I love most about it, what I think made this drama so good, is how each characters are complicated people, they're all has their good and bad side, all are gray like all of us. Something rare in dramaland. Each episodes share many problematic things in this world that we need to pay more attention to. Each episodes made us think more about social problem that often got shoved to the side. Each episodes made us contemplate more on how we should live our life, be a better person.

Read More

I don't really get the hype

I initially watched the drama when it began airing but eventually lost interest and stopped. However, after it started gaining attention, I decided to give it another try to see if the storyline would improve — unfortunately, it did not.

Park Eun-Bin delivered a commendable performance in her role. However, I found there to be a lack of chemistry between her and the male lead. Frankly, I believe the drama would have been more effective without a romantic subplot — or at the very least, the romance should not have been introduced so early in the series. Nonetheless, the production seemed intent on including those uncomfortable "mukbang" (kissing) scenes.

I found these scenes unsettling, as the male lead came across as a groomer, seemingly teaching the innocent female character things inappropriately.

By the twelfth episode, it felt as though the story was going nowhere, leaving me disappointed.

Read More

Decent series in a unique genre

Positives:
The FL's acting stands out as a strong point.
The cases are slightly different from typical legal dramas, offering some variety.
The visuals are appealing and well-executed.
A few cases, like Case 4 (Geurami's father's property), were particularly engaging and well-written.

Negatives:
The plot feels weak and lacks depth, with minimal character development.
The ML (Male Lead) is underutilized, and there’s no strong justification for his feelings toward the FL (Female Lead). Similarly, the FL’s reasons for liking the ML are unclear and unconvincing.
Characters undergo abrupt changes in their behavior, especially in the second half, which feels unrealistic and poorly executed.
While the cases start off interesting, they become repetitive and dull over time. Stretching a single case over two episodes often feels unnecessary and drags the pacing. Some cases could have been resolved with simple legal consultations, making the extended treatment feel excessive.

Overall Thoughts:
This is a decent series that’s worth watching once, especially if you’re looking for something light and easy to follow. However, it falls short of its potential due to weak storytelling and lack of character depth.

Approach this as a light, casual watch rather than a gripping legal drama.

IMP NOTE: The unnecessary subplots involving the mother, firm rivalries, and personal grudges (hinted at in short 1-minute scenes each episode) create false expectations, so it’s best to keep your expectations in check for a more enjoyable experience.

Read More

It took me some time to finnish this series, but it was worth it

This show was really interesting. It mainly deals with law and autism and as a person, who doesen't know much about either of those topics, I really enjoyd it and thought it was a really nice view into thoes worlds.

It is mostly episodic bacause every episode deals with a different case (sometimes they deal with one case in two episodes). Becase of that it was a little slow for me and took me some time to finnish. There are not that many cliffhangers so it doesn't really push you that much to watch next episode. But there were some storylines, which where dealth with throughout the whole show.

There are time when you are really worried for the characters, so that shows how well they are written and played. This was deffinitly the best casting there could have been for this show.

Read More

Started So Strong But Lost Its Way

I have an autistic nephew and let me assure you that Park Eun-Bin gives the performance of a lifetime. Imagine what it took to not only remember all those lines of legal jargon, but to deliver them so concisely and quickly. Woo Young-Woo was so brilliant, sweet, innocent, awkward, and endearing. You couldn't help but like her; however her romance with Lee Jun-Ho (Kang Tae Oh) was kind of blah. NOT because her character had autism and his didn't, but because I found their chemistry a bit lacking.

In Alchemy of Souls, Lee Jae-Wook and Jung So-Min were so hot they damn near melted the screen. Woo Young-Woo and Lee Jun-Ho were cute together, but I was never fully invested in them as a couple. I was rooting for her, not necessarily for them. Unfortunately, the drama fell off after episode 12. I do not understand why they shifted gears when her backstory was beginning to unfold. The drama ended on a high note, but they really dropped the ball by bailing on an intriguing storyline. The redirection of the plot in episodes 13-15 made absolutely no sense.

Read More

LOVING IT!

I am so loving this show. Both Park Eun Bin and Kang Tae Oh are superior in this movie. There are four of us in our family that are watching it starting from age 10 up to a 73 year old grandma. We anxiously await for every episode. Both actors have such great chemistry and Park Eun Bin should get an award for her performance. She is just adorable in this movie.
I love that it makes me laugh and definitely keeps us all entertained with the storylines. I have become so enamored with Korean dramas and movies. When I really enjoy one of them I watch them numerous times because I have to read the subtitles (I am an American) and I always see something new that I missed the first time. Keep it coming.

Read More

leaves you wanting more

I just completed watching the drama and really enjoyed it. I liked that story told the story of a female navigating life with autism. It was rather unique and informative.

The acting is what blew me away. The cast did an amazing job. The main lead did a good job in showcasing someone with autism. I heard she did proper research before the role. Although the second lead didn't have much going storyline wise I felt as if did a really good job expressing his emotions even with little to work with. All the other actors did a good job as well.

Plot wise it was great the first half but then towards the last 3-4 episodes it was uncessary fillers. I wished the explored the whole secret child story as well as the relationship with the male lead a bit more rather than working on Jeju case. They spent a long time on this secret child plot for it to not even be properly utlized.

Then there was the Attorney that spent 1-2 episodes hiding from a guy he thought was after him just to get a text that he was arrested like what was the point? Just to lead into him having cancer? The relationship with the mom, brother and even the male lead should have been explored more. Even the dynamics between both CEOs of the law firm and the dad could've been interesting.

Although there were quite a few lose ends I think it was as good show. I am glad there is a season two and hope they properly tie those loose ends. I am glad they are keeping all the cast but dispointed there wouldn't be another season for another two years. with that time frame I am a bid pessesmtic it would happen, the cast would be the same, or even the story would be as great.

Read More

Love their friendship...

First time I watch this drama is because the actress, well she did well in every drama she in and I just love Park Eun Bin antics and then I realise Kang Tae Oh, the cutest smile man alive (^__^) from Run On and Doom at your service as the ML here, it put my excitement become more roaring.

What i love from this drama:
1. Every cases that Young Woo and Hanbada Team solve. Not all have a good end but we learnt something new from every case.
2. The friendship between Young Woo - Du Geu Ra Mi and Young Woo - Su Yeon. They are really having a great chemistry as a best friend ever.
3. The Senior and Junior relationship, Jung Myeong Suk is an attentive and supporting mentor for Young Woo. I love how Young Woo rely on him in the last two episodes.
4. The WHALE AND DOLPHIN! I lovesssssss everytime the Whale or Dolphin come to Young Woo mind and show us how she feel. When she feel lonely or sad and the whales just come from behind with the saddest sound it crush my heart!
5. The relationship between Young Woo dad and Hanbada CEO and Tae Su Mi. Yes they are in the same university but i think Young Woo dad is a popular man in that time, regarding that he date Tae Su Mi and than I think Hanbada CEO maybe had crush on him during college time 🤣 and that makes Hanbada CEO don't like Tae Su Mi. I wish there more story about them in S2.
6. The Noona Dongsaeng relationship in the last episode. I love how Young Woo brother not looked and treat her as an autism person, but he comfortable to face the fact that he have a sister and he rely on her. I wish this part will have extra episode in S2, too. I really wish Young Woo and her brother eat gimbab together in Young Woo dad's store.
7. Last but not least, Young Woo and Jun Ho relationship!!!!!! I really like how they complete each other and being comfortable to each other. I like to see their relationship growing and become mature as they know officialy in a relationship. This also my hopes in S2.
.
.
.
And for Min Woo and Su Yeon, I not really agree if they become a couple, I prefer they stay as colleagues and solve case together. I wish Min Woo and Su Yeon meet their new partner in S2. I really like if Du Gu Ra Mi end up with her hairy boss. They show us a good chemistry and they're weird and cute in their own way.

Also, I wish Myeong Suk found his happines in S2. If they make a plot twist, I wish, Myeong Suk will make his own attorney office and recruit them as his team. Young Woo, Su Yeon, Min Woo and Jun Ho, they can be a great team in Myeong Suk Laywer office.


Overall, I will watch this drama again for sure, just to see Kang Tae Oh brightest smile 🥰

Read More

Warm and loving

This drama is from the perspective of Attorney Woo and her struggles to fit into society. We see her go through workplace issues, romance, and her own personal struggles. If you view this drama from her perspective then you will enjoy it because it’s meant to be slow and light.

Love the acting of PEB, she deserves many awards for this drama. KTO, his facial expressions are on point and show so much of his feelings. Both are very good actors.

All I can say is that if you don’t want a heavy drama then watch this. You won’t be disappointed. Looking forward to season 2.

Read More