When the Phone Rings

A good story, but way too much drama

The plot is interesting, but the execution fell short. The beginning was extremely slow and dragged on so much that I almost gave up. And honestly, it’s just tragedy after tragedy from start to finish. OMG, nothing ever goes right for anyone.

That final scene though… When he was face to face with that guy while sitting in the car, I kept thinking: “Just hit the gas! Run him over!” But no, they dragged it out forever. On top of that, all the guilt he felt for something his father did, he travels across the world only to not be with her, then she goes looking for him, gets captured, almost dies… More tragedy. It was too much and made no sense at times.

The romance, which I expected to be the strong point, completely fell flat. The chemistry between the couple was weak and felt forced, and that really disappointed me because I value the romance in a story.

Now, I have to highlight one positive thing: the song “See The Light”. Absolutely stunning! That song deserved an award. It was by far the best part of the entire experience for me.

Overall, I gave it a 5/10. Great concept, but poor execution and way too much unnecessary suffering that frustrates more than it moves you.

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Would have been a good thriller…

I love Yoo Yeon Seok, but this drama was just not it. It started really promising with this great thriller/suspense vibe and at first I quite enjoyed it. Unfortunately after only an episode and a half, the whole drama suddenly turned to a Wattpad cheesy awkward romance with zero logic. The story was so random, so crazy and so unbelievably stupid that I felt second hand embarrassment watching. And mind you, I didn’t even know about the whole drama surrounding this show, because I am not really on the internet all the time (And honestly, I guess I missed the controversial part, because I skipped through lots of boring dialogues and scenes lol).
On the other hand, the acting was great. Both leads are amazingly talented and have been in the industry for a long time. They did their best giving life to these boring, stupid and one dimensional characters. I would love to see them working together again, because their chemistry was on fire in this drama. Honestly, this was the only good thing about this show.

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When the Phone rings: a show that progressively got more disappointing as it went on

The good:
The Casting & Plot Twist
Chae Soo Bin as Hee Joo was perfect and Yoo Yeon Seok as Baek Sa Eon was also a good choice. The first two episodes were amazing, it really had you interested instantly which can be difficult for a lot of shows. The plot twist with Baek Sa Eon not actually being Baek Sa Eon and that linking to the orphanage was a good twist. One other thing that I sort of understood and liked was how he started to care for her after she almost died. I especially liked the scene at the beginning when he sees her safe and we see him visibly relax.

The Bad
Buckle up — this is going to be a lot.
Their Relationship (or Lack Thereof)
This had the potential to be a great romance, but instead, it was rushed, messy, and absolutely ridiculous. Let’s break it down.
First off, why was Sa Eon so cold and distant toward Hee Joo for three whole years if he actually wanted the marriage? He planned the whole bride swap and then acted like it was some massive inconvenience to him. At first, I genuinely thought he wanted the older sister and got stuck with Hee Joo by accident. Turns out, he actually wanted to marry her — but his reasoning for being cold was ridiculous. He was “scared to let her in and care for her.” WHAT? WHY? We’re given no real explanation beyond that. Some people theorize it’s because of his childhood trauma, but that doesn’t really make sense to me. He was supposed to be Sa Eon until death — there was no replacing him after that. It’s not like they could swap him out again! Plus she didn’t have the money to leave even if she wanted to. So what exactly was stopping him from treating Hee Joo like a human being?
What exactly was preventing him from just… being with her? It’s like they wanted to write a brooding, conflicted male lead but forgot to give him an actual reason to brood or be conflicted. Real Baek Sa Eon would’ve come after her regardless, no hesitation.
Speaking of which, Hee Joo getting over those three awful years in, like, two minutes was absurd. She spent all that time hating her life, feeling invisible, only for him to show up a couple of times, and suddenly, she’s completely over it? The deep, unconditional love she had for him was never earned, and frankly, he didn’t deserve it. We should’ve seen him work for her forgiveness, fight for their relationship, and prove himself. Instead, we got… what? One camp retreat? That was it? Very disappointing to say the least..

The Jealousy…?
This ties into the relationship issue, so let’s address it. Sa Eon had absolutely no reason to be jealous of Sang Woo or the co-worker from the camp retreat. Just because they liked her doesn’t mean she liked them. It was obvious Hee Joo didn’t feel anything for Sang Woo, so his jealousy just felt forced. Sang Woo was just a good guy who learned sign language to be a supportive friend. The co-worker? Literally just being polite. And yet, Sa Eon was throwing around attitude like he owned her. It felt like he was mad that Hee Joo had any kind of chemistry (even non-romantic) with other men because he hadn’t built any chemistry with her — which was entirely his fault. Let’s not forget that regardless if she had chemistry or not with the others, she’s MARRIED to HIM! His whole vibe was giving, “I don’t want her, but I don’t want anyone else to have her either,” which was beyond annoying.

The Sign Language Fail
The show completely dropped the ball on this. This could’ve been such a sweet way to develop their relationship, but no. Despite supposedly liking her for years, Sa Eon never bothered to learn sign language? If they wanted to sell this whole “he loved her all along” narrative, why not have him secretly learn sign language? Imagine how much more powerful it would’ve been if, during that moment at the British Event (in the first or second episode) when she was angrily signing at him for calling her his weakness, he actually understood her. He could’ve understood her frustration and grown from it. For example, if she’s sick of him leaving dirty dishes in the sink, she could sign her annoyance. The next day, the sink would be spotless, leaving her both confused and touched. Think about it!!

Sang Woo Married… Who Now?
Sang Woo marrying Yu Ri was a surprise — and not in a good way. There was zero romantic chemistry between them at any point in the show. When they worked on the case together, they acted like two buddies solving a mystery, not two people falling in love. What made it worse (and kind of funny) was that Sang Woo was still obviously into Hee Joo, and Yu Ri had always had a crush on Sa Eon. The engagement announcement was so awkward, I thought it was a joke. At the end, when they’re all invited to Hee Joo and Sa Eon’s new home, Sang Woo looks visibly jealous when Hee Joo and Sa Eon share a cute moment. Then, when he and Yu Ri hold hands, he seems shy and not exactly thrilled. Man really settled for the next available option. Tough break.

The Family Dynamics…?
Hee Joo must have superhuman levels of forgiveness because her mother put her through years of emotional trauma, and it’s just… fine? No big deal? Her mom literally forced her into silence, yet we never get a proper reconciliation or even a moment where Hee Joo decides to cut her off. Her mom was manipulative and rude to her throughout the whole show, and we only saw her caring when she thought Hee Joo was dead.
Also, what was her relationship with her stepdad like? They interact maybe once the entire show, and that’s it. Whenever something happens to Hee Joo, he doesn’t seem to care or be worried at all. Meanwhile, the older sister’s return felt pointless. She revealed some information to Hee Joo, but that could’ve been discovered in other ways. Her messing with Sa Eon’s parents during the cooking thing was just random. She didn’t add much to the story after her initial revelations.

The Last Episode Was a Whole Different Show
The final episode went so off the rails, I had to double-check if I was still watching the same drama.
First, Sa Eon sells all his stuff and disappears after hearing “bad” news from real Sa Eon. Then Hee Joo finds out he’s in a war-torn country (that doesn’t exist). So naturally, she flies there alone and immediately heads straight to the most dangerous part, because why not? Predictably, she gets captured and then in the most ridiculous plot twist ever, she’s randomly rescued by a group of good guys — and who else but Baek Sa Eon just happens to be among them? What are the odds! The whiplash from this storyline was insane. The plot was so lost that by the end, the title of the show didn’t even make sense anymore. It’s ‘When the Phone Rings’ until about episode 6, and then it’s a complete mess.
And let’s not forget why Sa Eon left in the first place. He was punishing himself. It was his father's fault certain things happened. And what was Sa Eon doing during all of this? Fishing. In the woods. With some random old man. But somehow, he feels guilty? Make it make sense.

Small Things That Annoyed Me
Hee Joo and Yu Ri’s Friendship: I never felt like they were actually friends. They barely spoke the entire show. When Yu Ri finds out Hee Joo can talk, she’s upset she was never told — but they weren’t even that close.
The Wattpad Vibes: This show felt like it was written for 13-year-old girls. While that might work in a Wattpad story, it doesn’t translate well to a show meant for older teens and adults. The story would’ve been so much better if it had been adapted for a more mature audience.
Park Do-Jae’s Survival: Park Do-Jae (the friend) surviving after being beaten, drowned, and stabbed in the span of a few hours was insane. Is he immortal?
Hee Joo on the Phone: Hee Joo talking to Sa Eon on the “406” phone dragged on forever. When she fell off the cliff, she was clearly in pain and out of breath — on the phone — and still didn’t think he’d notice? It was so obvious, and the whole thing felt unnecessarily drawn out.
Hee Joo’s Sudden Speech: After years of being mute, Hee Joo starts speaking, and no one really cares? Everyone was shocked but moved on so quickly. There were no real questions or explanations — it was just accepted and forgotten. Huh?

Final Points:
At the end of the day, When the Phone Rings had so much potential but got lost in its own chaos. From rushed relationships to a finale that felt like a different show, it’s a K-drama that could’ve been great but ended up being… well, a mess. Still, it gave us plenty to talk about — and sometimes, that’s half the fun. Would I recommend it? Maybe, but only if you’re ready for a wild ride (and a few facepalms along the way)!

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The cast was good ,the story was perfect until the middle of series , incensario the vague excuse to leave ,the directors didn't use chapters 8-10 to explain the plot very well chapter 11 and 12 should have been the happiest , and could have explained well why the main character left that as a first point ,the second thing I didn't like the main character holding back when hugging the main character, it is known that in the novel he does the opposite and that the main character treats her mother well was like an insult to the Hong Hoo jee in the novel,as a 3 point i loved the kissing scenes and the story in general is very strong and somewhat emotional and the songs of say my name by Yoo Yeon seok amazing and also the song by Lim Yeon Numb really describe how the characters in the drama and the novel feel congratulations for the artists who made these songs, i hope and wish very much to see Yoo Yeon seok and Chae Soo Bin again in other projects together love them and missed them.

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Get divorced.

I was totally captivated with this for the first third when the plot centers on our main couple. The set up is really good, the tension prickly. I was still invested but was growing skeptical in the middle section, when the plot began to rely more heavily on dangling information and constantly changing the stakes. When it veered sharply into the political thriller elements in the last act without resolving anything previously established, I begin to get bored with it. It had strayed from it's emotional core to become consumed with dramatic reveals and sudden twists as part of a thematic conversation about money, power and family obligation.

Hong Hui Ju is an an extremely compelling situation and it's incredible to watch her navigate it when presented with a fortuitous opportunity to escape. I loved the idea of these layers of obligation, and the shifting of identity inherent in this situation. Chae Soo Bin is mostly called upon to make big, wet, sad eyes, which she does incredibly well.

Yoo Yeon Seok as Baek Sa Eon has a controlled intensity as Cool Professional Guy With A Tragic Past. He's sharp, clearly a man set on balancing the multitude of demands on his life while trying to outsmart the architects of it. He's also a generally bland hero the likes of which we have seen before.

When their exchanges begin, they're riveting. Desire, love, protection, secrets, lies, frustration, obligation, despair, desperation- it all mixes together gloriously as they both navigate their familial, professional and intimate restrictions. As they can finally communicate after years of polite, strained silence.

But, ultimately, it founders when you start to think about what you're watching. About what motivates what came before, and what is supposed to come after. They're reluctant to portray Hong Hui Ju as traumatized as she probably should be-or as anything more nuanced than the Korean Nice Girl Who Suffers. Chae Soo Bin 's performance lacks depth and maturity. Yoo Yeon Seok's lacks cohesion- as truths are revealed about Baek Sa Eon, his past behavior becomes increasingly difficult to understand. Nothing of his interior existence is ever really explored. The show never goes into the emotional trenches. They're so busy making 'shocking' revelations about who did what when that they forgot to create any kind of emotional foundation. It's honestly a great set up- why not explore it?

They're a strangely sexless couple as well. Part of this is the chemistry of Chae Soo Bin and Yoo Yeon Seok, which is pretty flat. The other part is an obvious shying away from admitting either of these people have sex drives, and that they might be sexually frustrated with their sterile, strained marriage. There's something faintly juvenile and off-putting about a show which faces corruption and child-murder head on, but demures in the face of adult sexuality.

Instead of exploring the conflict inherent to their specific and unique emotional situation show constantly creates artificial drama in the editing. Most of the show is edited at a brisk pace that kept me engaged, but the longer the show went on, the more they fell back on a trick I don't like; They show you a scene, then later show you that that wasn't actually how the scene went- not as a matter of a character's perception, but by omission of the initial edit. Sometimes it's to leave you on a cliffhanger, but sometimes it's just there to keep you in unnecessary 'suspense' a little longer. It's cheap and dumb.

The show does have a lot of criticism for Korean families and power. However, the messaging falls flat. Too often characters are painted with cartoonish strokes to justify the heightened soapy nonsense, but it is paired with attempts at honest pathos and gritty drama. The dual tones don't mesh.

The final episode is just off-putting. It is another method of creating completely fake and senseless drama when there's a plethora of actual stuff to deal with. It fully underscores that these two people have resolved nothing, don't understand each other and don't know how to communicate.

Is it bad? No. Just disappointing.

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I got completely sucked into this series; I watched each subsequent episode with real curiosity, wanting to uncover the truth. A lot was happening here—probably too much for some people—but I personally liked it. Plenty of secrets and dirty laundry on both families’ sides.

I’ll try to briefly go over everything, although for the first time I actually find it difficult to do so. Let’s start with the first main couple—Hong Hui Ju & Baek Sa Eon. Hong Hui Ju was definitely my favorite character. Her development throughout the series was very interesting. Through love, she gained self-confidence and the courage to finally fight for her true “self.” Overall, their relationship was amazing—despite many adversities, they were the most important people to each other and never doubted the meaning of their relationship once they understood their feelings. They fought for each other’s happiness, and therefore for their shared happiness as well. They didn’t push each other away when more brutal facts from their past came to light; instead, they supported one another. With the exception of the final detail that made him decide to leave to atone—but fortunately, she found him and put an end to that.

Now let’s move on to both families, where the situation was the most complicated. That complexity caused some storylines to remain underdeveloped. It’s hard to describe it coherently, because so many things are interconnected, but I’ll try.

It’s hard to even know where to start. In short, you could say that everyone was mentally ill, but I’ll begin with the real Paik Se-eon (the Hijacker). From childhood he had psychopathic tendencies, and instead of sending him to therapy, his family decided to cover up his murders and lock him in a room—then they tried to kill him, replacing him with the main protagonist. Sim Gyu Jin, the mother who later tried again to shield him from responsibility, led to his death, and she herself rotted in prison—even though she could have saved him by locking him up in prison or a psychiatric hospital. Baek Eui Yong—the father—cared only about his career, for which he was willing to do anything, even renounce his family, despite not being any better than them himself. Why was he free and not in prison? He knew about his son’s crimes and pretended that the kidnapped child was his. The same goes for the stepfather of the female lead, Hong Il Gyeong—he also knew about his son’s murder at the hands of that family and stayed silent about it until the very end. This whole matter was basically swept under the rug, and no one was held accountable.

Baek Jang Ho—his “grandfather,” who later suddenly turns out to be his biological father. WTF? Why was this dropped on us as casually as if they were talking about what they had for dinner yesterday? It wasn’t developed at all and came completely out of nowhere. Did he abandon him as a child? And then take him back, knowing he was his son? Who was his mother, then? And why did he grow up with Jung Sang Hun/Jung Jin Seok? So many questions and zero answers. It feels like this was thrown in just to force the main couple’s separation because of his guilt.

Outside of all that psychiatric mess, there was also the female lead’s mother, who wasn’t much better. Kim Yeon Hui forced her daughter, for a stupid reason, to pretend she couldn’t speak after the accident, and later forced her into marriage. She treated her horribly—and then what? Suddenly, after her disappearance, she realized her mistakes. The problem is that we never saw any sincere conversation between them, only a sweet scene of them sitting at the table in a warm family atmosphere. And then there’s the older half-sister—Hong In A—I had mixed feelings about her. At first I thought she was just pretending and would turn out to be manipulative. Later it turned out that wasn’t exactly the case, but I still couldn’t fully like her. She manipulated in a different way—she wanted to get closer to her sister by separating her from a relationship she believed was bad. She wanted her freedom, but at the same time couldn’t accept that her sister felt free with him and truly loved him. She had a big influence on his decision to leave.

In short, the only normal person in this whole family fucking mess—someone you could actually like and sympathize with—was the female lead’s biological father, Na Jin Cheol. The problem was that he was staying in a facility, so we didn’t get many scenes with him, and he didn’t remember much himself, so he couldn’t really help untangle the chaos.

In that chaos, there was one more person: Park Do Jae. I knew that handsome face had a second layer to it, so I wasn’t surprised he turned out to be a “traitor.” Still, I excuse him. He was seeking justice for his brother and redeemed himself once he learned that the main character wasn’t the one he wanted revenge on. I’m glad that in the end we were shown that they forgave each other and started working together again—although I don’t necessarily understand what exactly they’re doing now, lol.

The last storyline is the second couple: Na Yu Ri & Ji Sang U. At first, they both had feelings for members of the main couple, but they weren’t annoying about it. In the end, they got together, and I rooted for that throughout the entire series—but at the same time, I feel unsatisfied. This storyline was very shallow, considering they’re also main characters. On top of that, we were given signs along the way that they were starting to feel something for each other, but the final scene announcing that they’re together slightly changed my perception of them as a couple. I had the impression that Ji Sang U was still looking at Hong Hui Ju with a strange feeling, which makes me unsure about the sincerity of his feelings toward Na Yu Ri—but I prefer to convince myself that this look simply meant he was happy about his friend’s happiness.

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The Drama That Completely Surprised Me

I have to start by saying this: I was so, so, so shocked that I liked When the Phone Rings. Honestly, I went into it expecting something half-baked. I saw the title, saw that it was only 12 episodes, saw some of the chatter when it was airing, and I was very hesitant. I was almost bracing myself for disappointment.

But oh my word ,this drama really blew my socks off in so many ways.

If I had to describe it, I’d say it’s a mix of What's Wrong with Secretary Kim, Flower of Evil, Reborn Rich, and a bit of Perfect Marriage Revenge. If you liked certain elements from any of those dramas, you’ll probably find something entertaining in When the Phone Rings because it really has a little bit of everything.

What impressed me most was how well-balanced the show was. K-dramas often have a tendency to let one storyline completely swallow the others : the romance overtakes the thriller, the mystery disappears, or the melodrama becomes too much. But this drama kept everything in check. The thriller moved along nicely, the mystery stayed engaging, and the romance… wow.

I was genuinely shocked at how searingly romantic this drama turned out to be. The main couple might honestly be one of the best OTP pairings we’ve gotten in this new wave of mid 2020s K-dramas. Their chemistry was incredible. The drama really leaned into classic romantic tropes ,you know; love confessions, sweeping music, Namsan Tower moments, theme park dates ,all those elements we associate with classic K-dramas from the 2010 era. But it did it with a wink, almost like the show knew exactly what it was doing. I love when a drama is a little bit meta, and When the Phone Rings handled that beautifully.

The thriller and mystery elements kept things exciting too. Some plot developments were predictable, but that didn’t take away from the fun. There was also one villain reveal that genuinely surprised me. I didn’t see that coming at all.

The production also had moments that felt surprisingly cinematic, which added to the overall experience.

Now, to be fair, this isn’t a perfect drama. The political elements were definitely half-baked. The idea of a spokesperson doing some of the things that happen in the show is… let’s just say not very believable. But the drama never pretends to be politically realistic. This isn’t The West Wing. It’s just delivering the beats of a fun, entertaining K-drama and in that sense, it succeeds.

The male lead was one of the best I’ve seen in a while: virtuous, patient, understanding, and quietly self-sacrificing. The noble idiocy trope is there, but thankfully it never becomes unbearable. The female lead is the calm, grounding presence the story needed she is strong without being overly dramatic.

Even the villains were handled fairly well. They weren’t cartoonishly evil, and their motivations had some understandable layers, which I appreciated.

Ultimately, this drama isn’t trying to be profound or socially groundbreaking. It’s simply very good entertainment and sometimes that’s exactly what a K-drama should be.

For me, it sits somewhere between a 7 and an 8 out of 10 objectively. But because I emotionally connected with the characters, rooted for them, and genuinely looked forward to each episode, I’m giving it an 8.5.I had such a great time watching it.

And if you liked dramas like What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim, Flower of Evil, Reborn Rich, or Perfect Marriage Revenge, I highly recommend giving When the Phone Rings a chance.

It might surprise you too.

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Almost great

This drama started out SO strong. The fake marriage trope is common but this was such a thrilling twist on it with Hee-joo's voice being a secret and the kidnapper — I was on the edge of my seat for most of episodes.

I still enjoyed this overall, but in hindsight it leaves some more things to be desired. A lot of the side characters are underutilized, particularly Heejoo's sister I-na and the second ship, Yu-ri and Sang-woo. Yu-ri being a reporter ends up not really accounting to anything, and I-na's return also doesn't do much. Instead, the main leads are put through the ringer, with the female lead being put in danger over and over again. The tension is there but it does get repetitive.

I also really have to talk the last episode. It was just...bad. (And yes, I know it's in the novel, but I'm reviewing this based on drama only.) The last minute ghosting/separation is a trope that I've long-hated in kdramas, and this drama took it to another level by making this last arc just utterly random, in an active warzone in another country. It not only feels completely out of place, but there's just not enough time for all of this to happen, when I would've preferred that they just leave time for the characters to just talk to each other, and for more character relationships to be wrapped up. Hee-joo's relationship development with her mother is interesting but so rushed. Overall, the ending just doesn't quite hit; I find it hard to believe that the ML and his assistant would be able to get new government jobs after everything they've done and been in the public eye for. It wraps things up nicely but feels lazy.

Ultimately, this was still a pretty good watch, but the last episode hiccup is quite a big one.

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