Love in Contract

Park Min Young is picking some stinkers lately… SMH. This was such a snooze.

I love Park Min Young and have enjoyed several of her dramas, but lately, she is really picking some stinkers. It started with Forecasting Love & Weather, and continues here.

The ML is such a snore, and I was not feeling the chemistry between the 2 leads. The second ML was better, but of course, she doesn’t choose him because he actually seems to have a pulse.

The story was a little rough, the “professional bride for hire” angle had potential, but the execution fell a little short. The family dynamics were a train wreck leaving carnage all over this show. The ML judge character’s office life was so cringy at times I had secondhand embarrassment.

Honestly, the best parts about this show are the gay roommate and the second male lead. I can’t count the number of times I fell asleep while watching this show, and in the end, I had to fast forward through 80% of the last 5 eps just to finish it.

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Clichés in Contract with a sweet scent of broken flowers

The opening scen of this dram draws us in a we hear the narrative of a girl who was raised to become a commodity to be sold by entering the contract of marriage . Dark and orange red lights accompany us to the view of Go Kyung Pyo stepping in to the shower while she steps out though the dark apartments door in to a light hallway... Giving us a feel of high end dark and a bit naughty... However viewers are then thrown int to the light bubbly sweetness which is basically Park Min Young. Giving us a story of love, geometry, corporate politics and human relationships viewed from a bunch of angles.

The budget for this drama seems to be pretty big, not only seen by the star studded amazing cast but also bu the amount of PPL to pay for it. As there is so much PPL in this that it is impossible to miss out on it, even though you may be shocked by the missing Subs from Subway and face masks you get cars, Kopiko and the ever folding Samsungs instead.

Go Kyung Pyos character is wonderfully portrayed, awkward, straight forward, introverted to the core, a sweet little puppy and as usual the king of back hugs, there is no doubt that this guy is good at his job making great use of his eyes and slow mo it is hard not to fall for this guy.... Especially when put next to a fluffy cat.. Kim Jae Young also delivered a memorable performance, with captivating flirty smiles, playfulness this guy is the warm bubbly, emotional, perfect contrast to the other guy. Having both the cat an girl between these two was a lot of fun to watch in this highly contracted and respectful (most of the time) love triangle. The addition of Lee Joo Bins character in to the love geometry was the cherry on top for this geometry lover (yes I admit it I love em).

The ex husband/roommate played by Kang Hyung Suk may not have added to the geometry but was amazingly casted, well preformed and made me wish for a spinn off (I rarely want spinn offs) where he gets to be the star of a rising star rom com of his own.

There where a few annoying side characters who got a bit more screen time than I would have wished for taking down the score a bit, however they are manageable and though they did make me reach for the mute button I did not feel the need to skip the scenes with them all together. There are a few decisions that seemed to be there only to prolong the plot without actually giving it any substance, most of the twists were highly predictable but I do not really mind predictability so it did not really bother me.

The umbrellas in this drama are top of the hill... Red warning umbrella was so well used I could not help but laugh at the sight of her. There are also a bunch of good poetic lines here and there, which come off as oddly funny when delivered by the cold male lead. " Broken flowers smell the sweetes" (or something like that) would have felt like a way to slick buttery line if not delivered with a stone cold face.

The story really is nothing new, had I seen this a year or two ago I would probably have rated it higher as it does indeed hava a bunch of cliches and stuff I love but since there is some meeh moments, a few draggy parts , highly mutable parts and other parts that could have been explored a bit more I realised that no matter how much I love the cast and found most of this drama enjoyable I could not ignore them completely and thus settled for 8,5.

So to sum it up, if you like the cast, enjoy geometry and do not mind a bunch of cliches go for it this is a good choice for you.
If you want something new and exiting and hate PPL pick something else.

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Hae Jin and Sang Eun story would have been intresting and might have saved the show

Okay!! I am not just saying this because of having the so called ''Second lead syndrome'' butt hell the story of the main leads was soo boring. The chemistry was Bleh!!!, the acting was Bleh!!, the story itself was Bleh!!.

I truly believe that the story of the second lead 'Hae Jin' and ' Sang Eun' could have been interesting. Since there was not much in the story of the series itself If they have explored the typical K-drama troupes between the second lead portraying a celebrity and Sang Eun as a disguised con contract bride (or whatever she was), with their constant bickering and past connections, exploring their difficult family history, becoming friends and having with some celebrity dating issues. This type of storyline could have been more interesting than what they gave us. I believe when there is not much to the story, things like this might have made the viewers engaged.

Also, I was really happy that they introduced the concept of LGBTQ+ in the series, but would have loved more if they explored the characters and their life more ....... not just keeping them as just a side character. At least, am happy that they didn't just make a queer person just a funny character, a villain, or just killed them .....like they usually do in mainstream K-drama.

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I don’t know how to define “chemistry”

I didn’t think the chemistry was lacking. If anything, tbh, the entire first half has SO much sexual tension I thought I was going to faint the first time they kissed. Only to realize they had like SEVEN more episodes to go now that both Sang Eun and JiHo had come into their feelings.

I foresaw a lot of noble idiocy and blubbering melodrama but instead tragically they started backtracking on the credibility and character set up the built for Sang Eun by making her bull shitty triangle with HaeJin take center stage. Honestly, it wouldn’t have been a bad story development had they not made Hae Jin into a brat and Sang Eun into a damsel who couldn’t set up proper boundaries, which all things considered is a regression for Sang Eun. I hated how Hae Jin AND her mother did not listen to her nor respect her choices, constantly trying to undermine her work and make sneak attacks at her self worth.

In the end, it was a typical romcom and their romance was no Gong Yoo x Yoon Eun Hye but honestly through the first half, Ji Ho’s introversion, his little puppy eyes, his pining and longing and his cute face made everything 500x hotter. ESPECIALLY because his social status is technically a position of immense power. It was hot, idc.

Maybe that’s just my type but I’m here for wish fulfilment and I ain’t ashamed to say it was fantastic.

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It should've ended sooner

This drama had so much potential. The first episodes were actually really interesting, and I genuinely thought I was going to love it. The concept was unique for a rom-com, and it got me invested pretty quickly.

Unfortunately, things started to lose momentum as the story went on. What began as a fun and promising drama eventually became repetitive and I found myself losing interest. The biggest issue for me was the pacing. It honestly felt like the story was stretched out much longer than it needed to be.

In my opinion, this drama could have easily been wrapped up in 12 episodes instead of 16. There were several moments that felt unnecessary and instead of excitement they just made the drama drag.

By the end, I was mostly watching just to finish it. Overall, It's a pretty mid k-drama and I personally expected much more

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Started off with a Bang, Ended in Disappointment

I had high hopes for this drama, I really did, for starters I am a fan of Park Min Young and her acting is as always, top tier.

Let me start with what went well:
-Acting. All 3 leads as well as the support characters were strong in their performances. Special shout out to Go Kyung Pyo (Jung Ji Ho), his physical comedy was hilarious, and you can really see his background at Saturday Night Live Korea shine through. He's a natural comedic actor.
-Premise. The story is unique and I liked the thought of an independent woman taking something as traditional as marriage and making a profitable business out of it. I am also a sucker for love triangles so the fact that you have 2 good looking guys that represent her past and present fighting for her attention....perfection to me.
-Queer representation. So this one I'm a little torn about because on one hand I loved the character of Gwang Nam, and his family struggles as well as discrimination he faces in society are real problems. But his sole purpose in this drama was to just be Sang Eun's bestie, which is fine, but I wanted more. **Potential Support Characters Spoilers** And I will never forgive them for not making Gwang Nam and Jung Kwan a thing, especially at the end. We were robbed a mini BL storyline. In my mind, they are end game.

Now here is what did not go so well:
-Plot. The first 8 episodes were solid, I was truly engaged and there was an air of mystery over some of the characters and it was fun to try and guess what would happen next. But then it all fell flat. Literally, fell flat. There wasn't a conflict after episode 8, they could've ended the series at like episode 10.
-The "Second Male Lead" curse. Now I know what you all are going to say, this is standard practice for a K-Drama. But this one really bothered me, don't get me wrong, Kim Jae Young did a great job portraying Kang Hae Jin, but the writers wrote his character like some weak lovesick puppy, or should I say kitten. Normally most second leads are persistent for their love, and get rejected closer to the end. Not this one, thats all I'm going to say before giving away a spoiler. His character could've been stronger.
-Jamie (the cat). What happened to her after episode 9? lol This one is a joke but the cat was such a recurring character to just be forgotten later is funny.
-Antagonists. They were cringe. Like literally cringe. All the way down to their laughs and "intense stares". Wow another group of corporate greedy men who are afraid their "a**hole" behavior will be revealed. Also, out of the 3, only 1 got "justice" and it wasn't even a bad punishment. Unoriginal and uninspiring honestly.
-Gwang Nam's Family. Ok, I'm back to talking about him because he is my favorite character but I could not STAND his family. I also was not a huge fan of how the show "fixed their homophobia". The potential of making Gwang Nam famous....thats it folks, Fame. As soon as the possibility of fame and money came into play they were ok with his queerness. Be so f***ing for real. So we are going to ignore how horrible they treated him the whole series. OK.

In conclusion, "Love in Contract" had its moments. It was cute at times, it was funny at times, it was heartbreaking at times. But if you are looking for something with substance, don't watch this. But if you're bored and like Park Min Young dramas then this is for you.

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Actually pretty good

I actually really enjoyed this drama and here's why:

1. I thought the character development was really nice. In the beginning, they didn't reveal too much about the characters, and as the show went on they slowly started to reveal more and more, especially for Jung Ji Ho and Yoo Mi Ho. In the first episode or so I was like "what is going on is this man going to kill her" like they really had me thinking that lol. Same applies for Yoo Mi Ho, she seemed like the villain in this story but by the end you see that she was trying her best (although she wasn't perfect obviously). Also with the FL and the ML, I know it's a little strange that she "fixed him", but the idea is that they grew as people together, which I think they executed well.

2. I liked the LGBTQ representation. They touched on topics of homophobia in the show, which is actually a real and present issue.

3. I thought that the chemistry between them was there, and I liked that they had already known each other for 5 years at least. A lot of times in Kdrama's they fall in love in like 3 months and I don't care if they have chemistry or whatever, you can't be obsessed with this person after only knowing them for a short time. I liked the FL's relationship with the second lead as well, and also HE'S SO HANDSOME both of the two main male leads are I just had to say that lol. The men in this show were green flags and I loved that, I'm tired of these toxic men not respecting women's boundaries.

4. I thought all the side characters were like-able and funny. They were all very relatable. I especially loved the senior manager and his wife, they were so cute and they supported Jung Ji Ho when no one else did.

This is not to say that there weren't issues with the show, because there definitely were, but for me it wasn't that serious of a show. I didn't have high expectations for it going in, and I just watched it because I wanted to see where it went. I thought it was an enjoyable show overall, just a cute and chill romcom.

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So many stories badly blended...

I love romances.
I even try to endure the absurd length of this show, the boring pace and shallow characters.
So… here I go…

STORY – the premise could lead to a great story… Lots of stories badly condensed in a show. Maybe some could be developed or not even included… Maybe there will be a time without movie actors or singers… Really try hard to like the idea of that couple or even imagining 5 years of silent dinner…
Most of the characters are envolved in a masochist relationship, fighting to see who suffers more to protect others…

ACTING
Choi Sang Eun (Park Min Young) – I like her shows. I think this one is one of the worst I saw from her, specially because of the story and her character…
Jung Ji Ho (Go Kyung Pyo) – lacking any social skills became a judge. His love for Sang-Eun is sweet, he even showed power and competence taking care of her…With him I learn that in Korea a broken arm leads to spending days in the Hospital…
His team was good entertainment…
Kim Jae Young (Kang Hae Jin) – of course, the actor. Very likable. A little naïve with his feelings and actions that put all in risk. His team was ok.
Lee Joo Bin (Jung Ji Eun) – a good alpinist, climbing the ladder of the rich and powerful… thought that her end would be different.
Jin Kyung (Yoo Mi Ho) – Badass woman. Mixed feelings about her. Deserves most of the interest in the drama for me. Could her story be more explored…

MUSIC – I do not follow much k-pop and that kind of music. Some are great, but in this show, I cannot remember any…

REWATCH VALUE – maybe one or two scenes, but I doubt. In every aspect in a show, I can recall better shows than this.

OVERALL – sometimes I had to watch in 1,5x because it was a little boring, especially the boomerang story in the second half. I enjoyed enough not to think that I completely wasted my time.

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One time watchable

I personally LOVE park min young... She's the reason why I'm watching this kdrama to the end in the first place. Casting is the only thing justified in this drama. Everything else is.... meh.
FL and ML shines throughout the episodes. One thing I loved in this is that communication between the people are not dramatic. Everyone speaks their mind to the other person. The method of conveying the thoughts of characters are straight forward, thus decreasing the unnecessary dramatic scenes. It is waay too rare to see in kdramas.
ML/FL, second leads and even supporting actors are way too good for the characters given.
Production quality is 🔥. That is not at all compromised here.
Story, OST, script, director, editing are all only mid.

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Not worth it

Started watching the drama because of a tiktok i saw abt the first scenes where she was eating with a client's have highschool friends and she said she studied in Cornell, thought it was funny and decided to start watching it.
The first half of the drama was amazing, absolutely love it, mostly the part where she gets hurt by that one motorcycle guy and Haejin saves her. But then as Jiho starts demonstrating his feeling for her it kept getting worse, personally i was hoping Sangeun would choose Haejin, they had way more chemistry and Jiho and her. Then when Sangeun and Haejin finally kissed i thought this was it and she would finally fall in love with him, but it only showed her that she wanted to be with jiho. Jiho and Sangeun had no chemistry at all, every scene with them was so underwhelming i almost wanted to skip every single one of them.
Now onto Sangeun's best friend, i appreciate the LGBTQ+ representation but i think it's the worst representation i've seen, we got the first scenes of him with a guy and then he just went telling everyone he was gay, until the ep i saw (10) he never really had a love story or something, besides they also showed how he fought with his family, but i don't think his story was deepen enough.
The story behind every character was very much null, they would tell you this and that but wouldn't be specific about it.
After all the drama gets very boring after the 8-9 episode, since you can just start predicting what's gonna happen.

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Good

It's nice, you can give it a try. Story is kinda new and interesting, you may feel bored at start but you will start liking with the flow! I am still confused with the ML but we'll get to know by the future episodes! As always pmy❤️ is great..............................................
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