A Gentleman and A Young Lady(K DRAMA 2021-2022)

From Asian Wiki
Watch on NETFLIX

Created By
Kang Byung-taekMoon and Jun-ha
of the
KBS Drama Division

Written by
Kim Sa-kyung

Directed by
Shin Chang-seok

What is this all about?

The South Korean story about a young girl meeting her "first love", a Naval Officer, before reaching her teens(she was 12, but she claimed she was 13). "One Fine Day"

They part ways on a happy note, but they didn't exchange names,  see each about fifteen to sixteen years later without recognizing each other.

🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦

Each and everyone of us, though in different degrees, have our own prejudices and preferences, whether we admit it or not.

The world is unfair.  We judge people because of preconceived notions and the like, but when it comes to us being judged, we get wrecked.

❤💛💚🤍

This K-Drama, loosely based on The Sound of Music, Parasite (maybe even with BE CAREFUL WITH MY HEART), and others, is about some of those prejudices and preferences, among other things.

The main topic of this story is the wide age gap of the widower with three children, and the young live-in tutor.  The two first met when the young lady was a little girl, and the gentleman just finished his military "duty". He was her first love.

They would meet later on, two years after the gentleman's wife passes on.

Why was I interested in this K-Drama?

Among other reasons, my paternal grandmother and my paternal grandfather have(had) a wide age gap. My grandma was my grandpa's second wife, and if they did not get married, my father and his siblings...well, all of their descendants, including yours truly, wouldn't exist.  They got married in 1931, and sadly, in 1983, my grandma was the first one to go to "heaven".  My grandpa "followed" almost nine years later.

*****

My "review"...well, more of my "observations" rather than  a "critique":

I love the chemistry of the OTP.  Maybe, if I were the one doing the casting, I would have chosen different actors, but they grow on you. They are very believable. I love how they look at each other, and how the FL speaks her mind, and how strong she is.

"The heart remembers what the mind forgets."

I was so frustrated with the amnesia portion(s) of this story, but it offered twists that made it a tad different than the other amnesia stories.

Well, there were old elements, of course, but I love the scenes (spoiler) where Chairman Lee's heart (and body) knew that Park Dan Dan was the only woman for him.

I did not understand the actions of the twenty-two year-old Young Guk.  He was acting like a prepubescent young boy, and not as man in college or something, but what do I know? Anyways, the ML still delivered! 

Random Thoughts:

The actors chosen to play the Georg Von Trapp's...I mean Chairman Lee's children, are naturals.  There were many seemingly uncomfortable group hugs with the boys, but since they are very innocent, I should not make a big deal of those scenes.

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I like the acting of the WHOLE ensemble played by "familiar" actors who are in most K-Dramas I watch. Kudos! 👏👏👏👏👏

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My favorite side couple is SA GUN (Jo Sa Ra and Cha Gun), and I am hoping for a spin-off focusing on the two of them.  I believe there is more to their story...

Thought bubble: Where does CHA GUN buy his expensive looking clothes when he is supposed to be poor? 

Maybe he bought them in Vietnam. He did stay there for a long time.  

 The actor who plays Cha Gun, KANG EUN TAK,  is so handsome, and I admire how Cha Gun loves Jo Sa Ra.  Their scenes together made me sort of understand who Jo Sa Ra really is deep inside.

The best friend/lawyer/detective(I think he is loosely based on Perry Mason LOL) is also cool.  It's sometimes hard to fathom, unless in reality he is "Big Brother", how he could trace the whereabouts Park Dandan in a flash?Hmm, maybe her phone's locator/location was on?

*****

I read a lot of reviews that discouraged me, so I kind of shelved  my "desire" of watching this for a short while, but I love the premise and the preview so I gave myself the go signal. When I started watching, I was hooked.    I  shouldn't have let myself caught being swayed  by the opinion of others, so I won't "force' anyone to stream this or discourage people and say, "skip it". I will just share my thoughts. 

In our country when you reach 26, you can get married without permission or parental advice.

Park Dan Dan would probably be "labeled" a spinster here(well, maybe not anymore nowadays) at her age of 27, but she is treated like a child by her family, especially her dad(who was one of my SK actor crushes when he was much younger...he's still very handsome).  Minor spoiler: He will realize "something" later during his heart-to-heart talk with Chairman Lee.

*****

Chairman Lee lost his broken hearted mother when he was a sophomore in High School. 

Here, although still pretty young, eighteen-year-olds are sophomores (or Freshmen or Juniors) in COLLEGE, but apparently in SK, they are only in High School.

Se-jong is in Kindergarten, but here he would probably be in the second grade (or first grade), and when K to 12 "happened" here, some are even 3rd graders.

*****

Another thing that almost discouraged me was the number of episodes, but if I could enjoy the latest Philippine Drama, 2 GOOD 2 BE TRUE that has over a hundred episodes, I comvinced myself that I could endure 52 episodes.

So what did I think of the 52 episodes? 

IMHO, it would have been better if there were only 16 episodes, but I guess they wanted the veterans and other characters to have more exposure or something.

Fair Use from Wikipedia 

Cast From Wikipedia

Main

• Ji Hyun-woo as Lee Young-guk

41 years old, a widower, in grief due to the loss of his wife two years ago, whom he has three children with. He is corporate chairman of FT Group (incl. Fantom) and an attractive man in his early forties.

• Lee Se-hee as Park Dan-dan
  • Kim Min-seo as young Park Dan-dan

27 years old, bright and bold personality, a live-in tutor of Lee Young-guk's children, a confident 'handmaiden' who seeks her own happiness. (IMHO she resembled the actress who plays the role of the kids' mom)

• Kang Eun-tak as Cha Gun

The youngest son of Jin Dal-rae, maternal uncle of Dan-dan, Dae-beom and Mi-rim.

• Park Ha-na as Jo Sa-ra

36 years old, has managed Lee Young-guk's household for five years; she has a crush on him.

MY FAVORITE FILIPINO WIDE AGE GAP COUPLE: RICO BLANCO AND MARIS RACAL 

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