The Next Secret-Office Romance. To Watch Or Not To Watch? “She Would Never Know” Review Episode 1-8

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The Next Secret-Office Romance. To Watch Or Not To Watch? “She Would Never Know” Review 

Another beautiful heart rendering drama has been released!!

Formerly titled “Sunbae Don’t put on that lipstick”.

The Korean drama “She would never know” has released it’s 12th episode. Having watched the drama’s first episode to it’s eighth, I think it’s only fitting that I review the Korean drama’s first half.

With the question being To watch or not to watch. Let’s dive into the drama, shall we?

Note: this is not a recap of the Korean drama, She would never know.

It’s a review. My apologies for any potential spoilers.

 

When I saw the teasers, still cuts and all that jazz Korean dramas do to hype up a premiere. They didn’t faze me. What did though, was the drama’s title. The previous and the current.
At first, During its early pre-premiere promotions, it was announced that “Sunbae Don’t put on that lipstick” was the drama’s name which made me wonder. Explain?

Though Korean dramas have a history of giving quite strange names to their projects, (see here). This one was just asking for questions. Why should she not put on the lipstick and why is it something to be so concerned about?
I discovered that the drama was set in a makeup and skincare cosmetics company, then the lipstick kinda made a bit of sense. The rest and why the lipstick should not be put on? Went over my head.

The name was later changed to a simple but more thought-provoking one.
“She would never know.”

Know what?

The title spelt mystery and a hint of mischievous trouble and it hadn’t even aired yet.

For some reason, after putting off this drama due to my prioritizing Mr Queen and True Beauty, I finally decided to watch it.

The reason could also be that Mr Queen and True Beauty had aired its final episodes so there was nothing left to prioritize. *Weeps*
Therefore going into “She would never know”, I didn’t have much of an expectation. I expected it to task me. I expected to be so bored with its novel plot and trivial everything that I start pushing it to the bottom of the “Korean drama I need to finish” list but crazily, the drama swept me off my feet and I found my self falling in love with the characters, the people playing the characters, the supporting characters, the set, everything.

Plot

 

The plot of “She would never know” genuinely has nothing special to it. When I first saw the movie synopsis. I wasn’t attracted. Though the drama had pretty promotional pictures, the synopsis didn’t do it justice.

~ “A younger man falls in love with his older colleague but she rejects him because she doesn’t like younger men.” ~

As far as I am concerned, they closed up the drama there. He likes her, she doesn’t like him. Case closed. For what reason should I watch? I have already been told that he likes her but gets rejected. I have nothing to see again.

Korean dramas need to up their synopsis game.

However, one thing the quite ‘meh’ plot summary didn’t mention was that the older colleague was in a two-year relationship, even dreaming of marriage to a man who was getting married in a month time and guess what?
She wasn’t the bride.

Characters

 

“She would never know” has a lot of memorable characters that have found a special place in my kdrama heart. For example, the leads’ nosy co-workers with distinct personalities of their own that make them different but yet, harmonize when looking for gossip.
While I would love to discuss all of them, I would only focus on the three main leads.

 

SF9’s Rowoon.

I am ashamed to say that I have never seen a drama or movie of SF9’s Rowoon. (Feel free to leave recommendations down in the comment section). Therefore “She would never know” is my first project of his.

SF9’s Rowoon played the role of Chae Hyun Seung. An intern at a makeup and skincare company who falls for his older colleague.
I can’t place my hand on it but there is something about Rowoon’s performance as Chae Hyun Seung that just makes you love the persona.

To start with the most crucial thing, facial expression.

As far as paying attention to details goes, he knocked it over. The little laughs at the right places, the twitch of a mouth, the trembling jaws. Those connotations that add to the story yet need no dialogue. They cement the personality of Chae Hyun Seung, making the character seem real. Humans give off such body language and I loved seeing them in my scripted scenes

 

Playing the role of a younger man who has a soft spot for his older colleague. I expected to see a bashful, cringe-worthy, and-he-trips-over-his-foot kind of person who blushes whenever his love interest shows up.

So I was surprised, pleasantly so, when I saw someone who could carry himself, with his own balanced backstory, life, family and values.

 

At the beginning of Yoon song ah and Hyun Seung interaction, we are swept away by the cute way Hyun Seung seems to only have eyes for Song Ah. Something about his tall build gazing lovingly at this woman makes you root for him.

The whole story takes a kinda sad, (toxic was too strong a word) turn for me when Song Ah discovers that her boyfriend of two years has been cheating on her and was a month away from his wedding to the other woman while still in a relationship with her.

Hyun Seung steps in by exposing the truth to Song Ah, offering her an initiative. Instead of sit and be humiliated, she can choose to take her revenge on him by “taking his (Hyun Seung) hands.” Together they would pretend to be dating getting back at the cheating rogue of a boyfriend.
One thing about this interaction I found uncomfortable was the way the character, Hyun Seung kept pushing her to join him on his “revenge plan”. I found it worthy of red flags when he went the extra mile of trying to pressure her into accepting his proposal.

Won Jin-Ah

 

Won Jin-A played the role of the female lead, Yoon Song Ah.

This female character captured my attention from the beginning of episode 1 as her facial expression, attire and mannerisms are so beautifully designed to tell you – without words- what kind of person she was. Yoon Song Ah is the guarded workaholic woman, who if left to her mechanisms would prefer only a few people next to her.

The early episodes of “She would never know” shows us Song Ah’s not-so-smooth relationship with her mother. We see her fight to free herself from the shackles of her mother and her childhood. Despite the frayed relationship, Song Ah still tends to her mother in her worst moments.
Yoon Song Ah’s moments with her mother is interesting to watch as I try to determine, how much is too much? When can we draw the line on family? It is a beautiful theory that has been in my mind and the two’s relationship lets me play with it.

Won Jin-A pulled an all-out with her delivery of Yoon song ah. Like I always say, Its not an easy thing to remember the details but I am impressed when they do.

In episode 2 where she burst into tears in Hyun Seung’s car. I noticed and loved, that it was noisy. There was this split moment when the empathetic viewers could see, sense – before she did it – that she was on the verge of bursting into tears just by her facial muscle movement.

One of the most intense scene that really demanded Won Jin-A showing Song Ah’s emotions was when she discovered the truth about her two-year-old relationship. That scene demanded that she’d be confused. Nobody really knows what to do when you find out that the man you were dreaming of getting married to is secretly getting married, but not to you.
We saw the confusion, the disbelief, rage, anger, humiliation and the breakdown that crowned it all. It was all done beautifully.

Lee Hyun Wook

Lee Hyun Wook played the character of cheating scumbag Lee Jae Shin.

This is one of those characters, (we have them) that I really want to push into the Han river.
His actions toward Song Ah makes you wonder if he is mad or just not thinking properly. How is it possible to be married and still expect her to remain in a relationship with you?

I hold this character as the most toxic. Even Yoon Song Ah remarked that if she hadn’t found out his secrets the way she did. She would have stayed by his side, even while he walked down the aisle with the other woman. She would have stayed, hoping that one day he would choose her… and he actually demanded it. He had the guts to ask that she doesn’t leave him, despite he was getting married to another woman in the next few weeks.

This character I wanted to beat up.

The drama doesn’t make hating the villains that easy, for as if trying to appeal to our empathetic side, it plays out the circumstances that make Lee Jae Shin what he was. His cheating, insecure, scared persona.
We are shown the humiliation he had to endure at the hands of everyone because of his father who is a fraudster. In a desperate attempt to escape that shackle of “the fraudster’s son”. He sold himself, literally to Lee Jae Woon (Lee Kyu Han), a privileged boy in his class.

Zoom back to the present, and Lee Jae Shin berates himself for his actions as he feels used and worthless yet can not fight it because of his father who makes things difficult for him with his shameful actions. So one side, he is a dog to his Lee Jae Woon and on the other, he has his father and his pride to contend with.

When you set all this on the table, you start wondering if he really should be beaten up. This drama does a good job of setting out the good, the bad, intertwining them together and making you judge.

We are also introduced to Chae Hyun Seung and his two sisters. The drama depicts the most beautiful chemistry between the three siblings. The sisters’ stories are played out which gives us more opportunities to start compounding more theories.
For example, What exactly is going on between the married sister’s husband and that chef? The tension is thick and while I have my theories (the two men had a devious past?). I promise to hold on and wait for the drama to explain it.

 

Dynamics

 

With more to be said, the dynamics in “She would never know” is an amazing one.

The drama connects each character in such a light, beautiful way that makes you want to see the viewpoint and trials of each one of them.

Even when there is conflict, (Yoon Song Ah berating Chae Hyun Seung) or sad, awkward situations ( Chae Hyun Seung decides to put a distance between himself and Yoon Song Ah). It is done smoothly.

I have never been so happily tensed or excitedly frustrated.

This Korean drama demands your emotions and holds on to them.

General thoughts

When it comes to character and the actors who play these characters. I like to differentiate them.

An actor could carry a character terribly, damaging all possibilities of the character cementing itself into the drama or script.
For the actors and actresses that starred in “She would never know” I give them a round of applause. From the little stares that a sensitive person like me attach everything to, down to the quick ‘reflex’ movement that points to upcoming actions. Every actor gave the best they could with their character, from being overly annoying to funny, stiff or diabolical.

Here comes the question though, to watch or not to watch?

A definite watch from me. If you like jovial workmates and lively gossips, frequent drinks, with lots of makeup to test. Then yes, this is a drama you should watch.

I give this drama a 9/10. Though it is yet unfinished, it has set such a spectacular play of the script. This is the kind of drama you can cuddle your single self up with snacks to coo at others’ cute and heartwarming relationship. A colourful romance drama with a bit of comedy to it. The perfect combination.

I am curious to see where the drama will be going in its next episodes. They are many questions to be answered.
What is going on between the chef and Hyun Seung’s sister’s husband?
What will happen to our sweet Hyun Seung and Song Ah?

Have you watched “She would never know”?

Tell me what you think of the drama and this review!

 

 

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