Drama Recap & Review: "Life is Beautiful"

Spoiler Warning: The editorial/review contains spoilers about the drama. Please do not read on if you do not wish to be spoiled.

A few days ago, I finished a wonderful Korean drama called "Life is Beautiful (인생은 아름다워)." The SBS drama broadcasted from March to September of 2010 as a Saturday-Sunday drama with the genre being family and comedy.

I came across the drama quite randomly as I browsed online for a new Korean drama to watch. When I asked my friends if they'd ever heard of or seen the drama, most of my avid Korean drama-watcher friends gave me blank stares and shook their heads. I decided to give it a try, even though the drama itself spanned 63 episodes. As I started watching the drama, I realized that the drama tells the story of an average family living their daily lives and dealing with problems that any family can very well face. The drama, written by famous screenwriter Kim Soohyun, portrays a reality without hidden motives, unknown affairs, unnecessary drama, or other unessential distractions.

"Life is Beautiful" illustrates various relationships between people. It starts off with an introduction to the large Yang family who runs a pension (resort or timeshare) on Jeju Island. The family consists of a father and mother, two sons, and two daughters. The father, Byungtae, chose to remarry after his first wife passed away, and the mother, Minjae, divorced her previous husband when she discovered he was already married to someone in his hometown. The oldest son, Taesub, is from Byungtae's previous marriage. Next in line is daughter Jihye, from Minjae's previous marriage. Jihye and her husband Lee Sooil have a daughter, Jina. Last are the younger daughter Chorong and youngest son Hosub, who were born of the second marriage. In addition to the immediate family, there are two uncles: the elder Byungjoon and the younger Byungkeol.

Minjae is a well-known chef who runs a cooking show with her assistant, Boo Yeonjoo. The first episode starts off with Minjae rushing through the cooking show in order to pick up her mother-in-law at the airport. In the end, she arrives at the airport about 10 minutes late only to get a call from the pension saying that her mother-in-law had already taken a taxi home. Her mother-in-law, very unhappy about the time she had to wait, insists that she waited 40 minutes, causing a great stir among the family as all fingers point to Minjae. In the first episode, we also are introduced to Taesub's friend and eventual lover Kyungsoo, as well as Taesub's current girlfriend Chaeyoung.

As the story moves forward, more situations occur within the family. Byungtae's father visits the pension, and, to the great displeasure of the grandma, states his wishes to live there. The family has no choice but to hide him in a room on the second floor of the main house. The grandma is blissfully unaware, as she lives in a smaller house adjacent to the main house. The cat is let out of the bag when the grandma sees the grandpa doing exercises on the balcony. Tensions eventually calm as the grandpa decides to move in with the grandma.

In my opinion, the grandma forgave the grandpa too easily. If I was her and my husband left me to raise the 3 children on my own, I would be pretty angry and upset. To say the least, I would never think about seeing him again, let alone move in together with him after he shows up suddenly after all these years.

We are then introduced to Taesub's homosexuality. He breaks up with his girlfriend Chaeyoung, since he has no feelings for her or for women in general. She asks him to reconsider, ignores his request, and visits his family. Minjae is happy when Chaeyoung tells her that the break-up was a "lie." Taesub becomes angry with Minjae for continuing to hope for their happiness as a couple. We are also hinted to Kyungsoo and Taesub's feelings for one another. The relationship develops further in episode 3, as we see the two eventually return to Kyungsoo's house. Kyungsoo tells Taesub that he knows how difficult it is to face society when one is homosexual. Kyungsoo tells Taesub to never repeat the same mistake he did by getting married, having children and then realizing the painfulness of living falsely. He insists that Taesub will have to make it clear to Chaeyoung, and that Kyungsoo himself will not wait too long, revealing to the audience his feelings for Taesub.

As their relationship develops, we are introduced to what is possibly their biggest obstacle, Kyungsoo's narrow-minded mother. She asks Kyungsoo to "become normal again" so he can reunite with his ex-wife and daughter. His persistent mother eventually finds out that her son is seeing Taesub. She tells Taesub to leave her son and threatens to reveal his sexuality to his family. Taesub, frightened, makes the painful decision to break up with Kyungsoo. Prior to the breakup, Kyungsoo had been taking photos for Taesub's mother's upcoming cookbook. The tension is obvious as Kyungsoo continues to help but Taesub remains in his room and does not come downstairs to see him as usual.

After the photography session, Kyungsoo goes upstairs and catches Taesub's attention by hugging him tightly and promising to wait until Taesub is ready, as they know that they both need each other. However, the sound of breaking glass shatters the silence. Chorong, who has come upstairs to give them some snacks, cries out upon witnessing the happenings. A fear-stricken Taesub rushes Kyungsoo out the door. Although Chorong promises Taesub she will not reveal her newfound knowledge, Taesub decides to come out to his family. He begins by telling his mother, who then spreads the word to all but the grandparents. Most of the family members voice that they have no problem with his sexual orientation. The younger uncle uses nasty language and openly criticizes Taesub, but he is eventually subdued by Byungjoon. The mother voices that, at the very least, Taesub should be loved and embraced at home. When Kyungsoo voices his desire to marry Taesub, they wear couple rings to express their love for one another. This of course does not sit well with Kyungsoo's mother, who once again wants to break them apart. When she visits Taesub's family, his parents argue their belief that the two have a right to decide their own futures. Kyungsoo's mother eventually gives up after his father finally acknowledges him for who he is.

Chaeyong is portrayed very nicely by actress, Yoo Min. She is very understanding and becomes a close friend of both Kyungsoo and Taesub despite of her breakup with Taesub. She is true to her word and does not speak of Taesub's sexuality to any member of his family. The actress that plays Kyungsoo's mom does so perfectly because her acting makes it so that the audience garners hatred for her character. She is the closest we have to a villain for the drama as she constantly begs of her son to return to a life of normalcy as she fails to comprehend why he would throw it all away just to love another man and live a life full of finger pointing and snickering.

Although Kyungsoo and Taesub's relationship is not the drama's only focus, it moved me the most because it showed the difficulties the two must face both within their own families as well as with the larger society. Another relationship that develops throughout the drama is that of Hosub and Yeonjoo. Hosub, frustrated by his mother constantly prodding him to go on blind dates, accidentally reveals his feelings for Yeonjoo, Minjae's assistant chef. Throughout the relationship, simple-minded Hosub makes all the moves on the more passive Yeonjoo. When Hosub's mother reveals his marriage, Chorong is shocked. She becomes very mean to Yeonjoo, announcing that she will be a mean sister-in-law. Eventually, Chorong and Yeonjoo get along. Some of the couple's memorable moments include Hosub asking Yeonjoo if he can kiss her, him getting Yeonjoo a new car, the two kissing while diving underwater, Yeonjoo taking care of Hosub after he got drunk on their wedding night, and Yeonjoo's embarrassing fart in bed, causing Hosub to break out in unstoppable laughter.

I think Hosub and Yeonjoo's relationship is quite funny in that Hosub is very shy around Yeonjoo. He is very simple-minded and doesn't quite know how to please her and constantly asks her. He is also very attention seeking and he complains to her that she should call him sometimes instead of always being the one to call her. However, when she does call him she does so while he's at work. In his moment of happiness of conversing with her on the phone, he leaves the customers who are there to learn diving on the shore as he himself rides the boat to the diving location. In addition, Hosub cannot quite seem to grasp the mood as reflected in a scene where Yeonjoo is crying sadly and he tells her to stop crying. Then all of a sudden, with what should be a natural kiss he instead asks her for permission to kiss her. To his question, Yeonjoo replies surprisingly, "Who asks for permission to kiss?"

Another relationship is that of Jihye and her husband Lee Seoil. The relationship becomes disastrous after Jihye catches her husband at a movie theater with his female co-worker. Enraged, she announces her desire to divorce him. She goes completely overboard, frequently reminding him of what he did and how he has lost her trust for quite some time after the incident. Meanwhile, Jihye is pregnant with their second child. Although she considers having an abortion, she eventually decides against it. Once the child is born, their relationship smooths out.

In addition, Byungjoon gets into a relationship with his CEO, Jo Ahra. Byungjoon, a prideful man, initially has no feelings for her. He only sees her a nuisance, as she calls him even on his days off. While he eventually yells at her, Byungjoon returns to serving Ahra's needs. Ahra is rather assertive and tells him she likes him. He eventually gives in, announcing his intention to marry her. All seems well until the two meet with the chairman for his approval. The chairman wounds Byungjoon's pride, saying he's probably only marrying for the wealth. This results in an upset Byungjoon's retraction of marriage. Eventually, everything is resolved, and the marriage proceeds as planned.

Chorong is caught in a relationship dilemma of her own. Dong Geun, the son of a wealthy family, hits on her. He drives nice cars, gives Chorong's family galbi, and buys Chorong whatever she wants. However, she tells her family that she has no feelings for him and only wants him around for his wealth. She goes so far as to fake her kisses by telling him to keep his eyes closed and touching his lips with her fingers. Dong Geun, oblivious, is extremely happy thinking he's kissed her. Eventually, Chorong grows tired of the charade. She tells him to think seriously, and he tells her the next day that he no longer has feelings for her. While he is initially quite calm, he is infuriated after Chorong reveals that they had never actually kissed. Once he drops her off and departs, reality hits and Chorong realizes she actually likes him. Her numerous calls and texts go unanswered, except one in which Dong Geun replies that her attempts are futile. This causes her to burst into tears and cry to her parents. Dong Geun shows up secretly at Hosub and Yeonjoo's wedding, to the delight of Chorong. The two eventually reconcile.

You may first get annoyed with Dong Geun's seemingly stalker-like status and obliviousness. However, his personality grows on you as he goes out of his way to please Chorong, giving her only his best. He may have you pulling out your hair as you sit there wondering how he can be so oblivious and not get it when Chorong in all seriousness tells him she doesn't like him, yet he continues to visit and give her gifts.

Byungkeol is originally portrayed as a lazy, unemployed man who simply hangs around at home. However, he eventually gets together with an older woman named Jo Namshik. While the drama does not particularly go into detail with their relationship, there is a slight hiccup in its development: Byungkeol is beaten up by a man who claims to be Namshik's fiance. When Namshik tells Byungkeol that the man is not her fiance, the relationship then proceeds.

The last relationship is not so much a love relationship as one between parents and children. We already see some of it in Minjae's relationship with her children and the grandparents' relationship with the uncles, father, and mother. However, as mentioned earlier, Jihye is not Byungtae's daughter. Minjae is contacted by her previous husband's sister, who says that Jihye's father, dying from terminal illness, would like to see her. Minjae decides against it, going in Jihye's stead without revealing any details to her daughter. When Jihye discovers what her mother has done, she is furious and storms out, followed by Taesub who consoles her. Eventually, the mother and daughter reconcile.

Although at times I get annoyed by the grandpa's ignorance and constant complaints, his character definitely makes the drama very lively, as he constantly gets into arguments and causes trouble for the grandma. I really enjoy seeing Jihye's "strong" personality and her husband's acquiescence to everything. Although he sometimes gets angry or explodes at the overwhelming pressure Jihye exerts on him, in the end he will still do what she wants and despite of all their disagreements, stays by her side when she gives birth to their second child.

If I were to choose a favorite character in the drama, it would have to be Kyungsoo. Lee Sangwoo, who acts in the role of Kyungsoo, does a superb job in showing all the emotions associated with loving someone else while struggling to deal with his mother and family. Kyungsoo's relationship with Taesub is also shown without any sugar-coating. Their relationship displays all the ups and downs, insecurities and true love for one another despite of being looked at negatively by society.

Although some may find it excessive, I really enjoyed how the ending of each episode always has someone falling. Of course, the falling is never done randomly and is always incorporated into the storyline: Byung Joon being frustrated with his CEO's assertiveness and trips while throwing things in the front yard, or a waitress accidentally falling while serving drinks in the restaurant. It creates great laughter, especially when the tone of the episode has been quite melancholy or full of sadness. It is something I always look forward to as the episode is coming to a close. I always think to myself, "I wonder who will fall this time and how?"

The drama is worth watching because it shows the relationships and character developments as the story moves forward. One can also see the beautiful scenery of Jeju Island throughout the drama. I would recommend if you need something new to watch, then give this drama a try. I did and am glad with my decision because it turned out to be a drama with a great storyline and wonderful acting. It has no doubt become one of my all-time favorite Korean dramas.

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