[KOREAN TV DRAMA REVIEWS] 변호사들 (Lawyers)

CAST
김상경 (Kim Sang-Kyung) as Seo Jung-Ho, 김성수 (Kim Sung-Soo) as Yoon Seok-Gi/Alex Yoon, 정혜영 (Jung Hye-Young) as Kim Joo-Hee, 한고은 (Han Go-Eun) as Yang Ha-Young, 추상미 (Chu Sang-Mi) as Song Yi-Ryeong, 이휘재 (Lee Hwi-Jae) as Lee Jae-Seo, 정하나 (Jung Ha-Na) as Oh Yoo-Ri, 이동훈 (Lee Dong-Hoon) as Jang Gi-Soon, 김병기 (Kim Byung-Gi) as Go Young-Joong, 정정아 (Jung Jung-Ah) as Eun-Ae, 박그리나 (Park Geurina) as Min-Ji, 제롬 (Jerome Do Sung-Min) as Tommy, 박영지 (Park Young-Ji) as Hong In-Gi, 황보라 (Hwang Bo-Ra) as Shin Ji-Na, 최여진 (Choi Yeo-Jin) as Deborah Hong, 박남현 (Park Nam-Hyun) as Kwon Hyeok-Joong, 신소미 (Shin So-Mi) as Cha Hye-Soo, 임정은 (Im Jung-Eun) as Se-Hee, 명로진 (Myung Ro-Jin) as Ho-Shik, CAMEO: 이태곤 (Lee Tae-Gon)

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THE SHOW
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Ever since the days when Daily Dramas lasting decades ruled the roost, the biggest difference between Korean and Western TV Dramas (or in this case ‘series’) was their non-episodical nature. Even classics like 전원일기 (Lifetime in the Country) and 수사반장 (Inspector Chief), both lasting nearly 20 years, built their story over the years, sometimes ‘retiring’ characters, others welcoming them to the party, like the arrival of ‘Bok-Shil’ (Kim Ji-Young) towards the latter part of ‘Lifetime in the Country’. In a way, Korean Dramas back in the day—at least Daily and Weekend ones—resembled the structure of American soaps, rarely pausing between ‘seasons’, going from Spring to Summer, Fall, Winter… and back to Spring. Yet the arrival of Youth Sitcoms brought an air of change. Shows like 남자셋 여자셋 (Three Guys and Three Girls) and 논스톱 (Nonstop) in the late 90s did have seasons, and a very episodical nature, similar to American Sitcoms like Seinfeld or Friends. Used as a sort of ‘training farm’ for youngsters needing experience, producers could toss a lot of newcomers who needed to tune up their acting skills into this new format, with a very simple (often very cliched) script, played for laughs and with no major challenges for the actors. Although they weren’t the first examples of ‘Season’ Dramas, youth sitcoms brought this rather foreign concept into the industry, changing in some ways the mentality of Korean producers when it came to their shows’ structure.

Yet, for a variety of reasons, this ‘season’ mentality almost never applied to Miniseries and longer dramas. The usual 16 to 24 Episode Drama wouldn’t allow too much leeway for a second season, especially because most Trendy Dramas gravitated around the ‘completion’ of a character’s arc: good girl gets the rich boy, and the bad girl is left crying in the corner. What would you do in a second season, bring back the bad girl for more? After establishing for 16 long episodes why she ‘lost’ him in the first place? Historical Dramas were no different, as the trials and tribulations of the central character(s) had almost always a clear conclusion, after which delving further into his life would become useless. Did we really need to know what happens to Hur Joon after he reaches his goals? Or what became of Jang-Geum in 대장금 (Dae Jang Geum) after her skills land her in the Palace? Not really. Weekend and Daily Dramas developed in a different way, somewhat closer to the episodical Western style, but also within the Korean frame of mind. Instead of developing characters through different episodes with only the basic structure remaining similar, those shows moved the focus subtly from one character to the other over several episodes, so at least on the surface they ‘felt’ episodical.

With 2005 in the can, one of the biggest changes which seem on the horizon for Korean Dramas is the advent of ‘seasons’. MBC’s cult sitcom 안녕, 프란체스카 (Hello Francesca) was probably the best example of taking advantage of the format, and the station has shown through the finales of certain Dramas that they’re starting to open themselves to this new concept, at least for Korea. With the second season of the popular ‘Trendy Historical Drama’ 궁 (Princess Hours) already in the planning stages, another major candidate for a second serving seems to be Lee Tae-Gon’s 변호사들 (Lawyers). Although by no means a popular genre, Court Dramas always existed on Korean TV, or at least formed an important element of certain TV Dramas. Parts of classics like 모래시계 (The Sandglass) and 그들에 포옹 (Their Embrace) deal with the matter, and the profession itself is nothing new to TV Dramas either. Better yet, some shows, like SBS’ 로펌 (Law Firm) seem to try their hand at court drama tropes, to eventually revert to the usual formulae. On those terms, ‘Lawyers’ seems to be one of the shiniest examples: starting from the title, to the jargon used in the Drama, and even the small world created inside the law firm, this show presents the world of lawyers like no other Korean TV Drama has done since 1998’s 애드버킷 (Advocate). But then again, that’s just the outer skeleton of another melodrama, as PD Lee commented in an interview.

Part Court Drama, part thriller emerging (or you could even say escaping) from the syndrome of 삼각관계 (love triangle) melodramas, ‘Lawyers’ feels fresh exactly because its characters don’t necessarily live for, of, and because of love alone. The best thing this Drama does is creating a microcosmos within society, as the moment characters enter the law firm’s offices, they step into another world, with its own rules and dynamics. Seo Jung-Ho and Song Yi-Ryeong are the navigated veterans, workaholics for whom the office is a breathing space, their life, the beginning and end of their world. Jung-Ho is living a marriage waiting for failure, with an hypersensitive wife suffering from depression and panic attacks, and Yi-Ryeong is a career woman who prefers works and friends like Jung-Ho to burdensome marriages and all the consequences coming from that kind of life. On the other hand we have Alex Yoon, slick and smart import from the US, with a dark past and secrets to hide. Right in the middle of these two men stands Kim Joo-Hee, the ‘Candy’ of the situation, an innocent woman unable to feel any emotion anymore because of the pain of her past, some of which has a connection with Alex’s personal demons.

Now you’d certainly expect the usual love triangle histrionics: Joo-Hee falls for Jung-Ho, but can’t forget about her past, especially when Alex joins the party, and there you go. We’ve got dinner for three. But the biggest merit of ‘Lawyers’ is side stepping most of the love triangle shenanigans to focus on what counts, a kind of mutual feeling which establishes between the three while they start working together. And looking at people like Yi-Ryeong and Ha-Young is important, as the middle part of ‘Lawyers’ treats them almost as leading material, with their own motives and clear character traits. Ha-Young would have probably been one of the most interesting characters of the show, if it weren’t for Han Go-Eun’s awkward delivery, but we’ll get to that later. What’s important here is that we’re invited into a new world, governed by its own rules. In some ways, it feels like the HQ in Jang Jin’s 박수칠 때 떠나라 (Murder, Take One), and that’s not merely because they’re similarly structured. What feels so new about this show is that once we enter those offices, although there’s a love triangle structure ready to be exploited, it’s only hinted at. What we’re focusing on is the slush fund case involving a very powerful figure, how it ties to other cases the characters are (and were) directly involved with, and how those characters deal with that case’s development. There’s no silly situations where Joo-Hee confesses her love for one of the two, falls into his arms, and kisses him while the camera pans 360 degrees around him to the agonizing sound of some ridiculous pop ballad.

The fact every character has his own interpretation of reality within the law firm makes us more interested and willing to invest time with these people: Ha-Young just sees the law firm in materialistic terms, she uses it to advance in life; Jae-Seo uses it as a battlefield for recruiting potential dates, and Joo-Hee to forget about her past. Even though PD Lee’s initial description painted the show as a melodrama, what we’re dealing with is more of a ‘social slice of life’, with the whole power structure, from the secretary in the lobby to the big boss in the main room upstairs, with all their daily routines and way of approaching work. And this is certainly interesting, because it rarely had any space in TV Dramas of the past. We’re not given boring lectures about justice, with lawyers, trials, judges, jurors and sentences. No, it’s not about law, but the people who live and breathe inside that world. Of course the first few episodes, setting up the main storyline and introducing the characters, don’t deviate from the norm. Better yet, just like in 부활 (Rebirth) and 그린로즈 (Green Rose), they’re almost misleading because of the ordinary way with which they deal with the story. The first two episodes of ‘Lawyers’, with all that fatalism and Trendy Drama cliches on display, are almost brutal to watch, even more so than anything which started proceedings in ‘Green Rose’. But once we move inside the law firm, it all changes. Melodrama falls to the wayside and stays there for most of the show, whereas character development takes center stage. That’s all thanks to two major factors: PD Lee’s gift for mise en scene, and especially writer Jung Sung-Joo’s script.

It’s weird, because on the surface Jung’s past works wouldn’t make you expect something like this. After graduating from Ewha Women’s University, Jung entered a literary contest for the Donga Ilbo in 1979, which landed her a job on KBS Radio. Starting her career with the radio play 젊은이의 노래 (Songs of the Youth) in 1982, Jung also co-wrote various documentary and Dramas, until her solo debut on TV in 1990 with 우리들의 천국 (Our Paradise). The show, a youth drama which lasted four years, starred many familiar faces who would make a name for themselves in the years to come: a very young Han Suk-Gyu, who right after the completion of this show in 1994 would find stardom with the classic 서울의 달 (The Moon of Seoul); Choi Jin-Shil, who had a few minor roles in Historical Dramas and Jung Ji-Young’s masterpiece 남부군 (Partisans of South Korea) as her only previous highlights, but would go on to hit the jackpot with Lee Myung-Se’s 나의 사랑 나의 신부 (My Love, My Bride); and that was just the tip of the iceberg, as the ‘campus Drama’ featured plenty of other young actors right before stardom: Lee Seung-Yeon, Jeon Do-Yeon, Jang Dong-Gun, Yeom Jung-Ah, Yoo Ho-Jung, and many more. Although 1996’s 애인 (Lover) was quite popular, the first sign Jung was a writer to look out for came with 1997’s 신데렐라 (Cinderella). When every other Trendy Drama was going for the Prince Charming and Damsel in Distress approach, the show presented a slick and calculating femme fatale (Hwang Shin-Hye), who knew all too well why she was hanging around Mr. Charming. Of course the way the proceedings turn out in the second part fall back to tropes of the genre, but the level of realism within this show was rarely seen before in Trendy Dramas.

Yet, Jung’s masterpiece remains 1999’s 장미와 콩나물 (Roses & Beansprouts), not only one of my favorite Dramas of all time, but also one of the best Family Dramas of the 90s—you could argue it’s second only to 1998’s amazing 그대 그리고 나 (You and I). Son Chang-Min played an aspiring film director who marries his longtime fiancee Choi Jin-Shil, and instead of focusing on the usual class divide formulae, the show delves deeper than any other of the period into the various layers of social roles a man and a woman have to face with when they marry each other. With the hilarious elder couples played by greats like Kim Hye-Ja, Song Jae-Ho, Kim Sung-Gyum and Park Won-Sook, excellent supporting performances from Cha Seung-Won, Kim Gyu-Ri, Han Jae-Seok and Hur Joon-Ho, the show still sticks out like a rose as one of the most realistic (without getting down and dirty like ‘You and I’ into the facade of class divide, but nonetheless remaining extremely true to life) shows of the 90s, still maintaining that breezy atmosphere, that ‘magic’ only MBC could show back then. ‘Lawyers’ might move out of the Family Drama tropes, but within its boundaries you can find another type of ‘family’, only this time it’s not shaped by patriarchal rules, but merely the social sphere and the job market. That Jung puts more attention on the unique loyalty establishing between the characters instead of simplistic love triangles shows she hasn’t lost one bit of her talent.

Lee Tae-Gon might not have the pedigree of writer Jung, but he does have one masterpiece in his past, the 1998 mountain Drama 산 (山, Manaslu), with Gam Woo-Sung, Kim Ji-Soo and Jo Jae-Hyun. The show was one of the first to fully take advantage of overseas locations, shooting in Nepal and the Himalayas, a far cry from the silly and useless foreign escapades of today’s Trendy Dramas. Although his career has been a continuous up and down, last seen in the annoyingly uneven 12월의 열대야 (Tropical Nights in December), his partnership with writer Jung and ability to keep a very tight pacing for most of the show helps proceedings immensely. The camerawork, a little more varied than your usual TV Drama, the mise en scene, the strangely familiar yet exciting rhythm of the show’s second part. It’s all expertly orchestrated, and although it never reaches the heights of ‘Rebirth’, or even the intensity of ‘Green Rose’, we’re dealing with one of the best ‘thrillers’ of last year. So we have a good script (for the most part), good production values and a group of interesting characters. Yet the show had a hard time reaching the 10% ratings. What went wrong?

Of course quality can’t be measured with ratings, but a show of this quality having to deal with 8-9% week in and week out must have some kind of problem to deal with. The easier could be competition: although KBS’ putrid farce 그녀가 돌아왔다 (Ice Girl) did even worse, SBS disintegrated competition in the Monday/Tuesday slot with their excellent 패션 70s (Fashion Seventies), which reached over 30%, and ironically featured Lee Jae-Gyu as PD, who worked together as assistant in 2001’s 아줌마 (Ajumma), produced by Lee Tae-Gon and written by Jung Sung-Joo. But the same happened for ‘Rebirth’, until 내 이름은 김삼순 (My Lovely Sam-Soon) ended, and the void left by the show and its 50% ratings almost forced people to stop ignoring the rave reviews Eom Tae-Woong’s shocker was getting. Still, even though ‘Lawyers’ had a significant following online, it never really became a ‘Mania’ Drama the way Noh Hee-Kyung and In Jung-Ok’s shows do, let alone things like 다모 (Damo) and 미안하다, 사랑한다 (I’m Sorry, I Love You). Then what could possibly have gone wrong? In short, acting.

A quick look at the cast, and you’ll probably guess who does well. Kim Sang-Kyung and Chu Sang-Mi are simply wonderful here, and their moments together elevate the show a few notches. Chu and her touches of vitality add that strange charm and familiarity to Yi-Ryeong. She feels like someone you’ve known for decades, and her relationship with Jung-Ho and the way it’s handled never go for cheap romantic involvement and build a strong bond made of professional respect, friendship, and mutual understanding. With her mix of career-woman aplomb and girl-next-door sensibility, Chu does a fantastic job. Along with Lee Tae-Ran in 장밋빛 인생 (Life in Pink), hers is the most impressive female supporting performance of 2005—and if Kang Shin-Il weren’t so great in ‘Rebirth’ and Kim Gab-Soo so impressive in 해신 (Emperor of the Sea), I’d say best overall. And Kim, who after a rather shaky start has been on a roll ever since 2001’s 홍국영 (Hong Guk-Young) does an admirable job. Many characters like Jung-Ho end up feeling like holier-than-thou caricatures, but he makes it ring true. You perfectly understand his relationship with Joo-Hee, his love/hate dealings with Alex and even his wife, and despite a potentially annoying ‘Mr. Justice’ setup, his character arc feels extremely believable. Then who’s to blame?

The rest of the cast, or at least the large majority. Take off a few performances (Kim Byung-Gi’s assured job as the law firm’s Boss, Shin So-Mi as Jung-Ho’s wife, and another slick performance from Park Young-Ji), and the other feel like amateurs working next to professionals. I thought working with Noh Hee-Kyung in 꽃보다 아름다워 (More Beautiful Than Flower) would finally change Han Go-Eun for the better. After all, look at Kim Heung-Soo’s transformation as an actor before and after the show. But Han simply ruins the character, and her familiar problems with pronunciation aren’t the biggest problem. She simply doesn’t show the conflicting emotions of the character, who goes from being a silly ‘player’ to one of the most important pieces of the puzzle. And Jung Hye-Young, although she deserves praise for acting while pregnant (the reason why she looks much heavier towards the end of the show), reduces Joo-Hee to another Candy/Cinderella type with no emotions, even when they’re needed. Think of Song Hye-Gyo in 올인 (All In), and you’re not too far off. It’s also the small roles which end up hurting the show: Tommy, who could be a great little character, is completely ruined by Jerome’s putrid delivery. One moment he’s the cool Kor/Am hacker helping Alex, the other he sounds like Jo Seung-Woo in 말아톤 (Marathon), only he’s not autistic. I seriously was expecting that ‘Million Dollar Legs’ line to pop up sooner or later. I’ve seen bad acting and horrible crying scenes, but Mr. Jerome (who’s a decent MC, if you followed him on Arirang TV the past few months) makes Choi Ji-Woo look like Moon So-Ri. Agonizingly bad.

Another potential problem forcing this show never to leave second gear and reach the heights of ‘Rebirth’ (or even ‘Green Rose’) is that the main villain is nothing more than a cardboard character, the only major flaw of Jung’s script. If ‘Rebirth’ used his initial ‘baddie’ as a pawn of bigger fish, the main antagonist here is given the same kind of weight by the actor’s performance, but it still feels like every other villain from a million series in the past. And all the tension which should derive from his parts only hits the ball home half the time, as we’re way too familiar with this type of character. But despite its flaws, ‘Lawyers’ is a very good show, especially its second part, which is a little more ‘thriller’ and less legal drama. The fact we’re not given another lame excuse to develop a love triangle is one of the many things this show gets right, and Kim Sang-Kyung and Chu Sang-Mi, with Kim Sung-Soo coming a far second (good performance, but Kim is quite one-dimensional in his delivery, so it loses some of its impact. Save for his physicality, a bad case of miscasting, I’d say), are the major reasons to watch this show.

With its ‘shocking’ ending, which shows the rumours about a possible second season were probably something the production company was thinking from the first moment, ‘Lawyers’ concludes on a high note the crescendo it had built during its excellent second part. It’s a shame the performances of its cast are uneven, and that it didn’t end up exploding with intensity like similarly themed shows like ‘Rebirth’ and ‘Green Rose’. But if you need something different than the usual Trendy Drama, something well written, produced, and intriguing up to the end, this is a pretty good choice. And hopefully they’ll leave the love triangle at bay for season 2 too…

RATING: 7.5/10

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AVAILABILITY
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DVD - Korean Version (No Subtitles)
DVD - US Version (English Subtitles) REST OF THE WORLD
DVD - US Version (English Subtitles) NORTH AMERICA

The YesAsia Entertainment DVD is the only version with English Subtitles for now, so that might be your only option if you need them. Subs are quite good (with a few bits of cultural appropriation here and there, but nothing too bad), and of course video quality is on par with the Korean version, as they come from the same master. One thing I noticed is YAEnt changed a little the designs of their Covers, as this one is much more stylish than the 별은 내 가슴에 (Star in My Heart) one. You can see the outer cover in the first image on top. There’s 20 Minute previews (English Subtitles) of three Dramas: 2003’s 다모 (Damo) (which doesn’t look as good as in the Korean Director’s Cut, but it’s indeed letterboxed) and 불새 (Phoenix), along with last year’s 내 이름은 김삼순 (My Lovely Sam-Soon). Of course the Korean DVD is bound to have a few extras, but recently Bitwin has been a little lacking with their releases—just look at the travesty that is the upcoming 청연 (Blue Swallow) DVD. Film + a Music Video. That’s all—and as now KBS Media produces their own DVDs (although Bitwin still distributes some of those releases) and SBS had always its own DVD line (in partnership with SCM), MBC shows are getting the short end of the stick, with the exception of a few major shows—lately the ‘Sam-Soon’ boxset and the first two seasons of 안녕, 프란체스카 (Hello Francesca). This is a good release, and keeps the high standard I’ve seen from other YAEnt. works. Now if they released older Dramas with more frequency, like, say, 여명의 눈동자 (Eyes of Dawn)....

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PREVIOUS REVIEWS
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모래시계 (The Sandglass) - SBS 1995 - 10/10
부활 (Rebirth) - KBS 2005 - 9.5/10
다모 (Damo) - MBC 2003 - 9/10
꽃보다 아름다워 (More Beautiful Than Flowers) - KBS 2004 - 8.5/10
패션 70s (Fashion Seventies) - SBS 2005 - 8.5/10
내 이름은 김삼순 (My Lovely Sam-Soon) - MBC 2005 - 8/10
해신 (Emperor of The Sea) - KBS 2005 - 8/10
그린로즈 (Green Rose) - SBS 2005 - 8/10
미안하다 사랑한다 (I’m Sorry, I Love You) - KBS 2004 - 7.5/10
신입사원 (Super Rookie) - MBC 2005 - 7/10
하노이 신부 (The Bride From Hanoi) - SBS 2005 - 6.5/10
별은 내 가슴에 (Star in My Heart) - MBC 1997 - 6.5/10
엠 (M) - MBC 1994 - 6/10
이 죽일놈의 사랑 (A Love To Kill) - KBS 2005 - 4.5/10
러브홀릭 (Loveholic) - KBS 2005 - 3/10