Reborn Rich

"I have three extra things in my heart... greed, suspicion and betrayal.”

Reborn Rich is a social satire of the upper class with a satisfying regression and makjang twist. It has quickly become one of the highest-rated dramas in South Korean cable history, alongside Sky Castle and The World of the Married.

PLOT & CHARACTERS:

Yoon Hyun Woon is a high school graduate who's forced to become the loyal dog that handles the dirty deeds for the Soonyang conglomerate to climb the corporate ladder. He's then murdered and reincarnated as the youngest grandson, Jin Do Joon, of the very same family that enslaved him. Rather than placating his newfound rich grandfather for a meager share of the inheritance, he holds the ambition of buying out Soonyang as revenge. What ensues is a thrilling and intense battle of wits as Doo Joon entraps his relatives by using their own insatiable greed and ulterior motives against them.

Through the ruthless succession conflicts, we not only see the degradation of society but also the salvaged shreds of humanity that are left. While Do Joon has to master the art of "greed, suspicion and betrayal" in his quest for vengeance, he still maintains a bottom line to protect the interests of those he cares about. He's not exactly the hero type, but he can get the job done in the most spectacular (and unconventional) way without resorting to illegal means. Each episode is filled with unexpected plot twists and crazy cliffhangers that keep you on the edge of your seat. It's interesting how there's no singular villain since every member of the Jin family is a culpable suspect.

However, my favourite part has to be Do Joon's relationship with his grandfather. Jin Yang Cheol is a complex character that's hard to love, or hate. He's a shrewd and cynical businessman who's built his empire upon draconian and often unethical practices. Yet he's hit with a dilemma, whether to pass his entire fortune to his oldest son's line or the one who resembles him and can make Soonyang grows the most. On the surface, Do Joon is his head-on rival. But at a much deeper level, Yang Cheol regards him as his favourite grandson, someone who genuinely cares about his welfare and business ideology.

CAST & PRODUCTION:

Behind every great show is a spectacular cast, and this is no different. Song Joong Ki is a surprising yet very fitting choice for the lead role. I love how he can quickly switch from the playful college student into the cut-throat gangster when he's about to 'negotiate' a deal. I guess it's a great balance between his character in Vincenzo and Descendants of the Sun. Plus, the turtleneck and baggy jeans definitely add to the Steve-Job entrepreneur vibe as well. I really like his chemistry with Shin Hyun Bin who plays the female lead. She certainly has a makeover from the sleep-deprived surgeon in Hospital Playlist into a feisty and stylish prosecutor.

Lee Sung Min is definitely a force to reckon with. As a veteran actor, he pulls off the mean and hard-to-please expression of Jin Yang Cheol extremely well. As the powerful head of the Soonyang Corporation and Jin family, he's supposed to be the most commanding presence in the room. It's not until the later episodes that we get to see glimpses of a softer and perhaps more vulnerable Jin Yang Cheol when he's with Do Joon, his favourite grandson. The rest of the Jin family is very well cast. They're each greedy, entitled and scandalous in their own way.

OVERALL:

While the plot and characters have been exaggerated for entertainment purposes, the drama still contains many real-life events that make it quite a nostalgic watch, especially for South Koreans. It's refreshing to see Do Joon walking us through the IMF Crisis, the South Korean team in the 2002 World Cup quarterfinals, Seo Taiji and Boys' disbandment, and the list goes on. There have also been suggestions that the drama also drew inspiration from the current political landscape in South Korea, with the omnipotent status of conglomerates and 'chaebols'.

Reborn Rich is a masterpiece in its own right. It's a perfect combination of fantasy, business, family and revenge themes that somehow has a duality to it. Dramatic and shocking yet still very humane.

FAVOURITE QUOTES:

“I guess I’m like you [his grandfather]. I have three extra things in [my heart]. They’re full of greed, suspicion, and betrayal.” Jin Do Joon

“When you bring up a servant, you mustn’t give him great housing and a full stomach... Because he’ll begin to think that he’s the master… Righteous management? To me, money is righteousness.” Jin Yang Cheol

“The day that he defies me, it won’t matter if he’s my family or not.” Jin Yang Cheol

“The two things a fighter has no use for are his appendix and compassion. Sympathy! You cannot afford to drag such useless emotions to war. It’ll only weigh you down. ” Jin Yang Cheol

“I know he wouldn’t hesitate to sell me if he could buy Soonyang. If he tramples all over me to go forward, there will be nothing he can’t do. Only then can he protect Soonyang.” Jin Yang Cheol

“Being born a servant was not my choice. But I could choose the owner to serve.” Jin Yang Cheol's secretary

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Complicated with good moments and plotholes

I wish I could say I was enthralled with this series like so many others but something kept me from falling in love with it. One of the main reasons was not being able to understand every single business/political element to the story and there is plenty of it which is what adds to the thrill. So if you cannot completely comprehend some of those "wins", it gives a very dull effect. Something the writers should have considered and tried to explain or simplify. You can still enjoy the show. Just not to the full effect.

Best moments:
1. There are many shocking moments and revelations that you can't anticipate and were enjoyable.
2. The fantasy element that adds a twist and is a major part of the story.
3. The relationship between Do Jun and his grandfather were truly some of the best moments.
4. The way Do Jun makes his way through the hurdles armed with the knowledge of his past life.
5. Seeing the Jin family fail and fight amongst themselves was amusing.

Not so great moments:
1. No one noticing that Yoon Hyun Woo and Jin Do Jun look EXACTLY alike.
2. Not being able to understand some of the "lingo" fully.
3. Do Jin ignoring his family after his real mother's death even when he could have.
4. The romance is practically non-existent and although I would not care otherwise, it feels like they built up a story for no reason.
5. The conclusion. Part of it does not make sense. You are rooting for a character and in the end, everything feels a bit bland and unsatisfactory.

Up until the 14th episode my rating was 8.5 for this show. I'm changing that now to a 7.5 based on the last episode. I am not likely to rewatch this show but it's a decent show. There are plenty of good reasons to watch it.

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You won’t be disappointed!

This was an excellent drama. It was both well written and executed. Let me explain why I say this.

The premise was intriguing: it was a revenge plot, but with a time travel supernatural twist. I’m already drawn to revenge dramas, and this new twist made it irresistible.

The pace was smooth. There seemed to be no draggy saggy middles or in betweens. It was very engaging, and kept you wanting more, like a book you can’t put down.

The story was enjoyable. There were funny parts, and yes, some unbelievable parts also; sometimes I did feel like the supporting characters were over the top, but it wasn’t enough to detract from the story. The chemistry between the grandfather and the main character was very nuanced: often charming, but guarded and adversarial at times. There were also compelling sad parts, that made you feel so sympathetic and indignant right along with the characters. The story was also cohesive and flowed nicely. It wasn’t predictable either, and made you think.

The characters were varied and interesting. I enjoyed getting to know each of the characters, and the writers delivered a satisfying “biography” for each of the main characters. This wasn’t a drama that suffered from too many main characters that are never fully developed and leave you in confusion.

The main characters were fully developed, and that is what makes a drama for me! I love characters that are fully fleshed out and three dimensional. I loved our main guy, in both his lives. His relationships were so rich. I loved how he interacted with the female lead, and I really enjoyed her character also! It wasn’t overly romantic, but had enough to give you something to root for. Mr. Oh was also a great character, he brought both adventure and gravity to the table. My favorite character, besides Song Joon Ki’s was Grandpa! He was intriguing, and incredibly nuanced.

The cast was top notch. Their acting was outstanding, and they worked so well together. So I guess this also means that the directing was great too!

Try this drama! You won’t be disappointed!

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At the end, the fantasy element disappeared.

[Spoilers ahead] The drama started off well with a compelling story and amazing acting from the actors. A hardworking servant (ML) who simply follows conglomerate family orders without questioning them.

In a turn of event, murder attempt was made against the ML who went to withdraw money from foreign account. that is when the fantasy kicked in and the same employee(ML) was born as the "Youngest Son of the Conglomerate".

In an attempt to take revenge for his death ML decided to take over("buy") the Sunyang Group and punish whoever tried to murder him.

The Story progressed well until the 15th episode. But in the Last episode everything changed. The Fantasy element vanished into thin air. ML wakes up as an same old, hardworking employee who blindly follows orders and decides to fight for justice.

A number of loopholes exist in the story.

1. The money was donated to the public before Do Jun died. Then why was the money still available for the ML to withdraw as an employee of Sonyoung?
2. Was ML just imagining being the youngest grandson of a conglomerate? So where is fantasy?
3. "Survivor of car accident" is more believable than "survivor of head shots and falling off cliffs to sea". (is that was the Fantasy? not sure 😊)

Pros:

+ Amazing cinematography and acting.
+ The drama reminds many of significant moments in history such as Korea's football victory, Y2K, the terrorist attack on the US, and the incident involving the IMF.
+ Except for the last episode, good story and execution.
+ Do Jun and His Grandfather Duo was Great.
+ Grandfather's acting was top notch and some scenes were emotional.

Cons
- The romance was not well suited to the storyline.
- FL was boring and sometimes annoying.
- The ending was not satisfactory.
- Title "Reborn Rich" didn't make any sense after completing drama.

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The best K drama of this genre ever seen

I mean what's not to like from casting to acting to the story it was so awesome I mean I seeing the main leads shows from decendents of the sun and he has knack of choosing so good scripts which are based on the personality of the character and can be perfect if a good actor is choosen I mean whenever the ML won something I also laughed evily with him I like these types where you have so much twist and turns that laugh in shock that how did it Changed like this 😂 in the most episodes i was laughing like that. But the ending was not satisfying as I expected I mean it did justice and solved all the mysteries there were but it's just cliche of me thinking as a typical k drama where the ML gets everything and his love 💕

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"Brilliant from start to almost finish."

Reborn Rich is one of the most addictive K-dramas I've watched, with brilliant storytelling, corporate politics, and an outstanding performance by Song Joong-ki.

The revenge plot kept me hooked from the very first episode.

Watching Do-jun use his future knowledge to outsmart the Soonyang family was incredibly satisfying.

The business battles, betrayals, and power struggles were intense and well-written.

The drama did an excellent job portraying greed, ambition, and family conflicts.

The acting across the cast was top-notch, especially Lee Sung-min as Chairman Jin Yang-cheol.

However, the final episodes felt rushed compared to the rest of the series.

The biggest disappointment was Do-jun's death and the sudden return to Yoon Hyun-woo's original life.

After all the buildup, the ending lacked the emotional payoff and revenge satisfaction many viewers expected.

Overall, Reborn Rich is a fantastic drama with a weak ending—9/10 for the journey, but the finale left me unsatisfied.

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Neither the privilege and luxury of being rich nor the self made thrill

Reborn rich is one of the best webtoon I've ever read. Even after casting Actor like SJ the screenwriting or the execution of the story was really bad.
Actually I watched the drama first and then I read the webtoon. The webtoon is really good if they could adapt well it could have been one of the best drama . Seriously the rating goes higher cause of production, ost , SJ and budget. Either way this not spectacular to get 8.5 rating, 7.5 is enough.......
1) making HW and JDJ look alike, it makes no sense why would they look alike and nobody noticed that.
2) Relationship between grandpa and Dojun . The drama made grandpa a angry+ greedy old man. while in webtoon he is Dojun's mentor , scheming and lovable +villainous.....who will grab every opportunity. He loved Dojun and supported Miracle investments to become top unlike the drama where he felt threat over Dojun .
In webtoon he loved Dojun from starting,before he revealed his talent. In drama grandpa wanted his dim wit eldest grandson to become heir of SY while in webtoon he wanted Dojun to become his heir ....he even helped him to stay in sheep's clothing in front of his uncle and aunties.
3) the business talk in drama is too messy to understand. I remember I skipped cause of boredom while in webtoon it is thrill and real fun .
4) romance is not present in both drama and webtoon but still FL character is better in webtoon. In webtoon the FL is from a influential judges family and one of the candidate his grandpa chooses as Dojun's partner.
5) the ending is the worst. Yeah I get the point people might say this is cliche, some thrill out of the plot . I would have understood if Dojun was a born heir of chaebol family lived happily without working and suddenly get back in his body like common Isekai truck Kun but
**The story is totally about Dojun making his own company, own investments and right before success his fruits of hard labour devoured by the villains who used him in his first life**
Does it make sense ???
Imagine a person worked hard and right before success he get back where he was . What's the meaning of the drama then ??
Who do you think of survival is best ?
1) a person headshot and was thrown into ocean or
2) a person for into a car accident?
If course he got some knowledge but would knowledge is enough for someone who worked his butt of to build a company??
Aish , I don't recommend this drama, ..............

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The series had so much potential yet had to fight through not to drop it

The things I enjoyed:
- The bond between Do-un and His Grandfather was so sweet and heartwarming.
- Some of the plots were so unexpected and I liked how those made the story evolve and sometimes how Do-jun put his aunt and uncle in their shoes.
- The lineup of the cast duh
- The Squad Miracle Investment top tier I love how they got each other's back and when they come up with plans.

The things I didn't enjoy that much:
- The Pacing; The first few episodes had a fast pacing and then the pacing got so slow.
- The Storyline; It's not that I hate It completely but the storyline was quite dry. Like from ep 9-15 It's like the same betrayals happened but in a different department and in the end, it was all a plan of Do-jun. Not that I got a problem but It got to a point where I just got bored. The rest of the storyline is not that bad. Not satisfied with the end at all, I got very confused when Do-jun died and then we're suddenly back to the present. Still mad at the author for not making Do-jun and Min-young a thing, like common he was going to propose. The ending was just not satisfying, it had me confused, mad and a little bit disappointed.
- Characters; Everyone in the Jin Family pissed me off. they had like no type of development and they just stayed the same dum relatives who always got deceived by Do-jun and betray each other. Like bring in some spice, nobody developed anything everyone was an MVP.

Overall:
I don't only wanna hate on the series and say it's horrible, just saying it wasn't my cup of tea and the things mentioned might not appeal to your experience. The series It actually good, the storyline is neutral and the characters are also. In my opinion, the series wasn't that special it was neutral, nothing to spectacular sum the storyline accurately the ending just dropped me without that I would've given the series 7 and up.

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What a surprise that was!

Will start with the story
Very gripping and new to me (and I’m a filmoman!) - and surprisingly, it felt fresh and new. I didn’t see the twist with the second car crash coming. The way the story came together in ep15 was brilliant.
Slightly cheesy romantic end, but they made it very quick and lasted the only 5mins at the end of ep16, so easily digestible.
Acting -absolutely fabulous! Tight, on point and beautiful delivered. I’d have loved to see more behind the scenes and enjoy the process!
I hope all of them are paid well - some supporting actors played the same charecters I’ve seen them play before , but as the back line was so busy, this didn’t spoil the joy of watching.
If there is something that annoyed me, was the SJK outfits - I mean who was in charge of these??
Apart from that, concentrating on their faces, and you will be taken for a great ride!

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Amazing drama with stellar performance let down by ending

Story: Story of a guy who works for a company is betrayed by his employer who then wakes up in the body of the youngest grandson of that's company's founder. There he starts his plan of revenge which is to take control of that company.

Acting: LSM: What an amazing actor is he. He was so perfect for the chairman's role, every scenes of his was a standout. He played a tough, distrust, cunning and a vulnerable guy so well.
SJK: Loved his acting so much, I think he definitely went beyond his peak acting for this. Such a good actor that he has good chemistry with a newbie actor(Tiffany).
SHB: Honestly I didn't enjoyed her acting at all, she was good for some time but most of her acting felt plain. I think the role was not suitable for her.
Other actors: All the other actors did an amazing acting, they were so good in displaying every emotion they were being told to show. Their cunning smile, villianious laugh, desperate cry, distraught everything they showed were perfect and on point.

Characters: JDJ/HW: He is smart and cunning as he knows the future but also knows what to do with that information, he is good at manipulation and would take a bait if it means it would destroy his enemy. His relationship with grandfather goes from him not getting acknowledge as a part of family by the grand father to him being his favourite grandson whom he can relate to most.
JYC: Founder and head of the family who loves his company and goes on saying that his company is his favourite child. Always being assertive and doesn't back down from his problem. Even without the future knowledge he is a very tough and unpredictable person.
JSJ: Eldest grandson who always put up a fake mask of smile, righteous and cool guy infront of other but he would do anything to make the company his.
HM: Wife of JSJ who is loyal to her husband only if he can secure the chairman position for him and would pass down to their so. She is extremely cunning and well connected who has given a good competition to DJ.
LPO: The grandmother who everyone thinks is a nice person is actually a women who would go to extreme length to make sure her real son/grandson succeed the company.
JHY: Only daughter of the chairman.Not so smart and gets greedy easily to the point that she ignores that she is harming herself.
JYK: Eldest son of the chairman who is a pushover and always desperate to show his father that he is a capable person.
JDK: Middle son and only among the three siblings who has some knowledge of business though he gets tricked. He is also desperate to get acknowledgement from his father as he thinks he is more deserving than his older brother.
CCJ: From prosecutor who was under the shadow of his wife(JHY) and her family to a law minister. He is not capable of making his own decisions, he does what has been told by whoever that will benefit him.
OSY: An investor and a loyal partner and a friend.
SMY: She is prosecutor who gets in relationship with JDJ and is also one who goes against his rich family. She doesn't gives up and is smart to know what actually is happening.

Likes: There are so many things to like, some are listed below:
• Amazing acting by the cast especially LSM and SJK
• The grand father-grand son duo was so amazing to watch.
• "Good guys" didn't always win, they faced some loss too which only made the story more interesting.
• How JDJ manipulative his whole family and plays them against eachother.
• Even though it was for one episode the child actor playing JDJ did an amazing job.
• Antagonists are cunning but also show some stupidity in the moment of heat.
• JDJ's relationship with his mother, father and brother is very wholesome, they are the few of the good guys by his side. A supporting and caring mother, a father who is willing to become a bad guy to help his son and a funny brother who is the heart of their small family.
• How the bad guys are taken down in every couple of episodes is very satisfying to watch.
• Music and OST is so beautiful, energetic and thrilling too
There are other things too that I have not mentioned.

Dislikes:•The ending episode, if felt a totally different episode from rest of others which is written by someone else.
• Ending doesn't make that much of a sense, is very unsatisfying and maked the episodes 2 to 15 unnecessary.
• FL and the actor: The character is very under utilised even for a one character centric drama. Also the acting felt off and not that good compared to other actors.
• Romance: As the FL and ML had little screentime together their romance felt off or maybe unnecessary.
• Role of the granddaughter is very minimal, as she is actually a smart person she could have been a good match against or even in favour of JDJ.

Overall: It's an amazing drama with high class acting and good twists and turns in the story which keeps the viewer engaged but the ending and the whole last episode could be huge let down.

Ratings: As a critic: 9(10-1 because of last episode).
As a casual viewer: 10.

PS: PJH and JHY(actor playing granddaughter) look really beautiful and hot and they are really talented too. Hope to see them in a first lead role.

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Episode 1 to 15 is rated 10/10 but Episode 16 is 1/10

This drama is great. Very exciting and compelling from episode 1 to 15 you will get hooked until the last episode that ruin everything. They should have made the Hyun Woo suffer the consequence in the end. That Do Joo, what a poor guy. He did nothing wrong but still die in the end, while Hyun Woo run free, without consequence. And why they are look alike, not explained properly.

I was planning to rewatch it after last episode but after watching the last episode, ahh nevermind. there are other upcoming and ongoing dramas that is good also. I just have to ask, why why why is the ending like that. I felt rob on my time and effort watching this. Well at least I had to commend the acting and music which are all great, 10/10 infact. And as I said its 10/10 from episode 1 to 15. I will never forget this drama because of the ending LOL

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