My ID Is Gangnam Beauty

Finally one of my all time favorite drama is streaming on Netflix. My ID Is Gangnam Beauty, in my opinion is the best high school / college drama to come out of the Korean entertainment industry. We live in a world where people are more obsessed with the way we look than the kind of person we are, and often we let others opinion of us dictate how we feel about ourselves. My ID is Gangnam Beauty teaches us the importance of cherishing ourselves, because until we learn to love ourselves for who we really are, we can never be truly happy. What makes this drama so special is the many characters that bring this story to life.

A girl who was bullied all her life for looking ugly struggling to regain her self-esteem after a cosmetic surgery, a natural beauty with an insecurity that makes it impossible for her to deal with people liking anyone more than her, a rich-handsome guy from a broken home who does not know how to socialize, and a successful businesswoman who craves for the simpler things in life, these are just a few of the people that make up the world of Gangnam Beauty. Each one of them feels that the other has a much better life. Kang Mi-rae (Im Soo-hyang) is the girl who is bullied all her life for being ugly. The bullying is so bad that she even tries to commit suicide. It isn’t until she gets a cosmetic surgery just before starting college that her life takes a turn for the better. However getting used to the new face after having her self-esteem broken with years of bullying, and hiding the truth about her past is not at all easy. The only good things in her life are her parents who love and adore her, and her one best friend. She believes beautiful people like Hyun Soo-ah (Jo Woo-ri), Do Kyung-seok (Cha Eun-woo) and Na Hye-sung (Park Joo-mi) have the perfect life. What she doesn’t know is that being beautiful is not enough to be happy, and that everyone has their our own problems to deal with.

My ID is Gangnam Beauty is Im Soo-hyang’s show all the way and she owns it. I can’t help but be in awe of her for not only nailing every aspect of the character, but also for being brave enough to take up a role such as Kang Mi-rae. While we know cosmetic surgery is pretty common, especially among celebrities, not every one is willing to go on record to accept that fact, let alone do a full fledged role that puts them in the spotlight as someone who has gotten extensive work done. So hats off to Im Soo-hyang for making this drama possible by taking up this very challenging role. Equally impressive is Jo Woo-ri as Soo-ah. Bullying is such a sensitive topic around the world, especially in South Korea, so to accept a role that might make everyone hate you is not easy. Soo-ah is the best character in the drama besides Mi-rae and Woo-ri does an amazing job of bringing her to life. Another character that I really loved in the drama was Do Kyung-seok. From his thoughts and views, to the way he treats Kang Mi-rae and others around him, and his judgement of people, everything about him is perfect. Cha Eun-woo definitely surprised me with his portrayal of Do Kyung-seok. I believe this is his best drama till date.

The only complaint I have with this drama that is currently streaming on both Netflix and Viki is that Psy’s New Face song that Kang Mi-rae dances to in the first episode has been replaced. There was a reason the makers of the drama chose New Face for this particular scene. So, it was very disappointing to see the song being replaced, not to mention how out of place the steps felt with the replaced song. Check out the link below to see the dance the way it was meant to be.

Do not miss My Id is Gangnam Beauty that has been on Viki for a while and is now streaming on Netflix. It is a show that will shatter all your preconceived notions and prejudices in regards to beauty and image. It is a must watch, especially if you have a high-schooler who most likely will either go through some of the things that the students in this show face or will come across someone who will.

Vincenzo

“Smart people may rule the world, but stubborn and reckless people like me protect this world.”

If you are a fan of K-Drama, then chances are you have watched Descendants of the Sun, which means you already have a special place in your heart for Song Joong-ki, and I am no exception. Ever since I watched him in DOTS, I have been waiting for another show of SJK that would at least make me feel the way Captain Yoo Si-jin did, if not more. Now thanks to his portrayal of Vincenzo, that wait is finally over. Song Joong-ki as an ex-Italian mafia lawyer trying to adjust to his new life in Seoul is perfect.

When Vincenzo Cassano has a fallout with his mafia family, he flees to Seoul to recover a large amount of gold he helped to hide for a Chinese tycoon, before moving to a remote island to spend the rest of his life. However, removing the gold hidden in an old plaza that he owns is not as easy as he hoped it would be. To remove the gold, the plaza has to be vacated, something the residents are not willing to do. To make matters worse, a real estate company illegally takes ownership of the building and threatens to demolish it. Now it is up to Vincenzo to convince the residents of the plaza to move out, while making sure the building is not demolished until the gold is removed. His goal is to take care of everything as discreetly as possible, and disappearing before anyone even realizes who he really is. Sadly, nothing goes as planned and he finds himself getting more and more involved with the lives of his residents and their problems.

Song Joong-ki as Vincenzo in his tailored designer suits is a treat to watch. Not only is he very charming, but being the fine actor that he his, he lives and breaths his role as the ruthless consigliere turned caring Mr. Cassano. Besides Song Joong-ki what makes Vincenzo worth a watch is Jeon Yeo-been as Hong Cha-young and the amazing chemistry she shares with SJK. She is hilarious as a lawyer who would stoop to any level of bribing to win a case, and it only gets better when she quits her job and joins hands with Vincenzo. Her natural ability to act with abandon reminds me of Jun Ji-hyun, an actress who tops my list when it comes to comedy. Another actress who really surprised me in Vincenzo is Kim Yeo-jin as Choi Myung-hee, a ruthless lawyer who will stop at nothing to get what she wants. She is the epitome of evil. It is refreshing to see an actress essay such a role. Of course the drama is not limited to just these characters. Ok Taec-yeon as Jang Han-seok, Kwak Dong-yeon as Jang Han-seo, and all the residents of Geumga Plaza also make a lasting impression with their performances.

One of the things I loved very much about the drama are the little words of wisdom that pop up in the show from time to time. Of all these words, my absolute favorite is this story told by Monk Jeokha, when Vincenzo is torn between what is right and wrong, and is unable to decide what to do. “Among the four heavenly kings there’s a king named Vaisravana. It’s the scary face you see when you enter a temple. Vaisravana keeps yakshas and rakshasas in check, and protects Buddha’s ways and all humans. Since you have committed many sins, you won’t be able to become like Buddha no matter how hard you try. However, you can fight for the people alongside the yakshas and the rakshasas. You may not become like Buddha, but you will get compliments from him from time to time.” This story beautiful sums up Vincenzo’s place in this world.

So, if you are in the mood for a good entertaining crime drama, with some unforgettable characters and great performances, or if you just want to see Song Joong-ki looking extremely handsome in every frame, definitely check out Vincenzo on Netflix. Just be warned that since it is a crime drama there is a little bit of gore involved, but the show is more clever, funny and heart warming than violent.

True Beauty and My ID is Gangnam Beauty

True Beauty is a new Korean Drama that just started streaming on Viki. This drama starring Moon Ga-young, Cha Eun-woo, Hwang In-yeop and Park Yoo-na, is about a high school girl who is bullied all her life for looking ugly, and how she turns her life around when she discovers the power of makeup. Im Ju-kyung in one of three siblings. While her sister and brother inherit the good looking genes from their father’s family, Im ju-kyung ends up with her mother’s family genes (plain looking). Being the only plain looking one, she is bullied at home during family events, as well as at school. At one point she is even driven to the point of wanting to commit suicide. However when her family moves to a new place, she decides to turn her life around. With her parents disagreeing to pay for cosmetic surgery, she turns to the internet where she learns about the power of makeup. After investing a good amount of time and money, she finally figures out the perfect makeup technique that will transform her into a true beauty. On the first day of her new school, she realizes for the first time how different life is for someone who is pretty looking. Everyone is not only very nice to her, but they also want to be her friend.

This show reminded me of one of my favorite dramas, the 2018 Korean Drama My ID is Gangnam Beauty starring Im Soo-hyang, Cha Eun-woo, Jo Woo-ri and Kwak Dong-yeon. Gangnam Beauty is about Kang Mi-rae, who is also bullied all her life for being ugly, so much so that she also tries to commit suicide. Unable to bear her daughter’s misery, Mi-rae’s mother pays for her to undergo cosmetic surgery, so she can be more confident and have a better life, once she starts college. While Mi-rae was just hoping to be average looking, her surgery transforms her into a beauty catching the attention of everyone in college. The fact that it is obvious that she had work done on her face (and hence the name Gangnam Beauty), makes her very self-conscious. Also having been bullied all her life for looking ugly, Mi-rae has a very hard time adjusting to her new face, as well as the attention she gets for looking pretty.

Of course this is not all that is similar in the stories. The most common factor in both the series is Cha Eun-woo. His Lee Su-ho in True Beauty seems very similar to Do Kyung-seok in My ID is Gangnam Beauty. In both the dramas he is the silent, good-looking guy who does not care about looks. He is very good in his studies but is an introvert who keeps to himself. Both the characters have famous fathers that they do not get along with, and do not want others to find out. Another similarity that these characters have is that they both have a history with their female leads and like them before their transformation. Do Kyung-seok is one of my favorite Kdrama male lead. From his thoughts and views, to the way he treats Kang Mi-rae and others around him, and his judgement of people, everything about him is perfect. Seeing how Lee Su-ho is very similar to Kyung-seok, I am really interested to see how this character evolves.

While there maybe quite a lot of similarities in the two shows, True Beauty is only two episodes old and it will be wrong to judge the show based on just two episodes. I will definitely continue watching it because I really enjoyed the first two episodes and I want to see how the story unfolds and the characters evolve. Do check out the show, if not anything, you will get to see a cute light-hearted High School drama. True Beauty is available for online streaming on Viki.

In the mean time if you haven’t watched My Id is Gangnam Beauty, definitely check it out. It is also available for online streaming on Viki. This show does a great job of dealing with all the issues that trouble our youth as well as address all the prejudices most of us hold in regards to physical appearances. A must watch for any high-schooler.