Baby It's Cold Outside! Reviews of 3-K-dramas, Including “Secret Garden” (Where Hyun Bin's Character is Annoying AF)

Also reviewed: the gripping thriller "As You Stood By," and the law procedural "Beyond the Bar"

“시크릿 가든”
☆☆½ (out of ☆☆☆☆)

Gil Ra-im (played by Ha Ji-won)
Joo-won (played by Hyun Bin)
Oska (played by Yoon Sang-hyun)
Han Tae-sun (played by Lee Jong-suk)
↑Note: Korean names denote the surname followed by the given name.

There’s a lot going on in this K-drama, which originally aired on SBS in South Korea in the winter of 2010. To be honest, the beginning was slow and not particularly engaging, which is why it took me several months before I decided to give the second episode a chance. But “Secret Garden” is one of those dramas that gets better as it progresses — even if that progression sometimes moves at a snail’s pace.

Joo-won (Hyun Bin) is a pampered rich man who runs his family’s fancy department store — when he shows up at work, that is. Gil Ra-im (Ha Ji-won) is a hardworking stuntwoman, who was orphaned as a teenager. When the two meet, it’s a case of mistaken identity. He thinks she’s an actress who is having romantic problems with his cousin, Hallyu star Oska (Yoon Sang-hyun). It turns out that Ra-im does indeed have a crush on Oska, but it’s not something that goes beyond being a fangirl.

Because this is a romantic K-drama, you now know that the plot has been set up for a complicated romance and a strong case of second lead syndrome. (Oska not only remembers having met Ra-im before, but also her name!)

But … plot twist! There’s a third male lead syndrome — Ra-im’s boss, who quietly longs for her.

As handsome as Hyun Bin is, his early drama career included playing leading roles where the characters were unlikable for a good chunk of the series (“My Lovely Sam Soon” is another example). “Secret Garden” is no exception. Joo-won has no qualms talking down to Ra-Im because she’s poor, uneducated and has a career that he doesn’t view as ideal. But when he finds himself crushing on her, he blames her for bewitching him.

Hmmmm. But there is an element of bewitching, which I’ll talk about in the Spoiler Alert below.

Some of the plot points that I enjoyed were when the characters discussed class issues and the unfairness of being treated better just because one has money. As Joo-won points out, the rich view fairness as a ridiculous concept.

Because he’s petty and too immature to tell her that he likes her, Joo-won conjures up ways to remain in her life. When Ra-im is injured during a stunt, he insists on taking her to the hospital so that her injury is tended to. But he also demands that she repay him the $45 he paid for her emergency room treatment. Of course, it’s all a ruse so he can see her again.

If you’re reading this on a content-scraping plagiarism site (e.g. europesays(dot)com etc.), please know that they stole my copyrighted work. They have no legal right to present my writing as their own. —Jae-Ha Kim

But I almost couldn’t concentrate during this scene for two reasons. Most of us Americans can’t imagine a world where a visit to the E.R. without insurance costs so little. And also…that fugly sequined track suit, which he insisted was wonderful because it was expensive, made in Italy, and one of a kind.

Lee Jong-suk has a supporting role as a musical prodigy who has a love/hate relationship with Oska. His character is gay. It was a relief to see him treated as a wunderkind (because of his abilities as a songwriter and producer), rather than as a “freak” because of his sexual preference. It was nice to see his sexuality presented as a part of his life, rather than a cause for concern. Lee was barely 21 when he filmed this series and already showed signs of the star he would become.

There are some K-Drama tropes that don’t make any sense. For instance, Ra-im is a taekwondo expert who can fight off multiple men. But she struggles when a man grabs her wrist. Really?

But I loved the ending to this series. It’s not a spoiler to say that there is a general sense of happily ever after, with a strong dose of reality thrown in.

Airdates: Twenty hour-long episodes aired on SBS from November 13, 2010 to January 16, 2011. (I watched this on Viki.)

Spoiler Alert: When he was a teenager, Joo-won was trapped in an elevator during a fire. Ra-Im’s firefighter dad rescued him, sacrificing his own life for Joo-won’s. Understandably traumatized by the tragedy, Joo-won is paralyzed with fear around elevators and refuses to ride them. He also has blocked out memories from that time in his life. In an odd move, his family (including Oska) kept up a charade that Joo-Won’s memory loss was caused by an automobile accident.

As he was dying, Ra-im’s father seemed at peace, knowing that he had saved a life. But somehow, his death results in Joo-won and Ra-im being connected. After drinking liquor made by a mysterious woman they meet in the woods (because, really, that seems safe to drink, right?), the two end up switching bodies whenever it rains. They don’t return to their original bodies until it rains again.

Good thing they don’t live in Seattle, right?

Joo-won’s chaebol mother, Moon Boon-hong, (played with malice by the superb Park Joon-geum) rarely shows signs of humanity, but she almost tricks viewers into thinking she’s a nice person. When she realizes that the firefighter who rescued her son was Ra-im’s father, she begs Ra-im to leave her son, because the shared history between the couple will be too much for his mind to handle.

But then she quickly shows her true colors by turning spiteful and nasty again. It all boils down to the fact that she views Ra-im as beneath her. If the latter came from a “good” family and had money in her bank account, I’m sure she would’ve accepted her as her son’s partner.

The mother actually has the nerve to tell Ra-im that she owes nothing to her because she had already done enough for her family. I’m not even sure what she’s talking about. She didn’t buy Ra-im a house after her father’s death. She didn’t give her a stipend to help pay her bills. And she certainly didn’t give her money to attend college. What exactly did she do? Besides visiting the firefighter’s urn annually to pay respect to him, it appears she has done nothing else.

She forbids her son to be involved with Ra-im and says that if he refuses to listen to her, she will disown him and take away all his material goods.

The final episode shows Joo-won and Ra-im happily married, with three adorable children. They wait outside the gate to Boon-hong’s house. She is ecstatic to see her grandchildren, who she takes into her home for their visit. But she closes the gate on the adults. She has stayed true to her word. Rather than being bitter, Ra-im says that her mother-in-law looks healthy.

There are only so many things you can change in the world. Body switching was a breeze compared to dealing with Boon-hong, whose pride won’t let her acknowledge that she didn’t know what was best for her son. But ultimately, he figures out how to live his best life with a family of his own.

© 2026 JAE-HA KIM | All Rights Reserved

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“As You Stood By”

“당신이 죽였다”
☆☆☆ (out of ☆☆☆☆)
Jo Eun-su (played by Jeon So-nee)
Jo Hui-su (played by Lee Yoo-mi)
↑Note: Korean names denote the surname followed by the given name.

As You Stood By was included in my Teen Vogue round-up of the best K-dramas of 2025:

This K-drama examines domestic abuse and how people are reluctant to help victims — most often because they are afraid of how their actions could be detrimental to their own lives (which is also a subplot in Our Unwritten Seoul). While working at a high-end store, Eun-su (Jeon So-nee) notices that her VIP customer has severe scars all over her body but is too scared to report her abusive chaebol husband. As You Stood By asks the question: Is it ever OK to break the law if you’re trying to prevent someone from being harmed? It’s complicated, and the dark series doesn’t pretend otherwise. While some characters are more awful than others, the writer is careful not to excuse anyone’s actions, no matter how detrimental the reason. One of the most chilling moments in the series is when her best friend’s mother-in-law recognizes that her son is beating his wife, but doesn’t care. (Netflix)

The significance of names:

In Korea, first names can be generational markers.¹ Most given names are comprised of two characters. For families who choose to do this, all the siblings (and sometimes cousins on the paternal side) will share either the first or second part of their first names.

• Sharing the 1st part of a given name: Kim Seok-jin of BTS and his elder brother Kim Seok-joong, share generational first syllables.
• Sharing the 2nd part of a given name: Korean superstar Lee Hyo-ri and her sisters Lee Ae-ri and Lee Yu-ri share the second syllable of their first names.
• Unrelated given names: But other Korean parents choose not to do generational names. (e.g. BTS' Jung Ho-seok and his sister Jung Ji-woo.)

The names of the two female leads in As You Stood By give a clue to how close these two women are. Though not biologically related, they share the same last name. Additionally, their given names share the same second syllable: Jo Eun-su and Jo Hui-su. This allows viewers to figure out early on that these characters share a tight bond and will protect each other no matter what the consequences.

Airdates: Eight episodes (around one hour each) dropped on Netflix on November 7, 2025. Please read below for more details in the Spoiler Alert.

Spoiler Alert: In the first episode, the wealthy wife of a chaebol² family member kills herself after being abused by her husband. Without directly asking Eun-su for help, the wife’s eyes make a plea — report what you see so I can get help. Pressured by her boss, Eun-su remains quiet. Before she dies by suicide, the wife tells her, “I thought you would be different” — meaning that she had hoped Eun-su would help her, rather than allow her husband to take her back home.

Eun-su grew up with a father who abused her mother. Her best friend Hui-su is currently being abused by a sadistic husband. The two became best friends in high school, when Hui-su saved Eun-su from drowning herself.

In Episode 7, Hui-su’s mother-in-law sees a huge bandage on her forehead and is happy about it. Why? Because she knew all along that her son was beating Hui-su, but didn’t think it was worth intervening on her behalf. After all, Hui-su is merely a daughter-in-law, and not a daughter. Seeing the battered younger woman, all she could think about was that if the DiL is getting beaten up, then her son must be back home. The sight made her happy.

© 2026 JAE-HA KIM | All Rights Reserved

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“Beyond the Bar”

“에스콰이어: 변호사를 꿈꾸는 변호사들”
☆☆☆ (out of ☆☆☆☆)
Yoon Seok-hoon (played by Lee Jin-wook)
Kang Hyo-min (played by Jung Chae-yeon)
↑Note: Korean names denote the surname followed by the given name.

Beyond the Bar was also included in my Teen Vogue round-up of the best K-dramas of 2025:

Hyo-min (Jung Chae-yeon) is a recent law school graduate who is almost unbeatable in court. In this legal procedural, she is mentored by uber-attorney Seok-hoon (Lee Jin-wook), who longs for the family he never had with his ex-wife. The cases they take include a model suing her ex boyfriend for branding her body, and a housekeeper trying to prove that her wealthy boss abuses his daughter. One of Beyond the Bar’s most compelling episodes revolves around a developmentally disabled artist who is accused of plagiarizing a famous artist’s work. As for the will-they-or-won’t-they-get-together element of the series, it almost doesn’t matter. The K-drama does such a great job of creating complete characters who don’t need a partner to be whole, leaving viewers satisfied with either choice, because we’re confident they will all be OK. (Netflix)

More plot points in the Spoiler Alert below …

Airdates: Twelve 70-minute episodes aired on JTBC from August 2 through September 7, 2025. (I watched this on Netflix.)

Spoiler Alert: Hyo-min’s boyfriend broke up with her because her sister is deaf. He didn’t want to risk marrying a woman whose family has a genetic “flaw.” Her sister is being raised by her deaf aunt and uncle, which adds another layer of how disabilities are dealt with, and the guilt Hyo-min feels in being the “normal” child.

The cases that the lawyers tackle are compelling. A famous male artist sues a developmentally-handicapped young woman for plagiarizing his painting. The housekeeper of a wealthy man sues him for abusing his young daughter. A model sues her sadistic exboyfiriend for literally branding her body, which all but ends her career.

In each of these cases, Hyo-min figures out that the law firm’s clients are innocent. One of the best episodes centered on the plagiarizing lawsuit. She uncovers the younger painter’s trademark, which the elder artist had copied without knowing the context. The young artist had secretly placed her father’s likeness as an homage into all of her work. When the older artist copied her painting, he included her father’s likeness as well, not knowing its relevance.

© 2026 JAE-HA KIM | All Rights Reserved

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Photo courtesy: Tamanna Rumee via pexels

If you are considering upgrading to an annual paid subscription, I’m offering 20% off — from $60 to $48 — through the end of January.

Because so many people were having difficulty with the discount code I had previously shared, I lowered the paid subscription rate at the Subscribe Now button below.

© 2026 JAE-HA KIM | All Rights Reserved

Please note that as of February 1, 2026, the annual price plan will go back up to its regular $60. Thank you for bearing with me during all of this confusion!

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I’m thinking of hosting my next Zoom meet-up near the end of February. (This is a perk exclusively for paid subscribers.) For those who were at last month’s meet-up, are you ready to discuss Min Jin Lee’s first novel, Free Food For Millionaires?

If not, we can save that for a later meet-up (maybe in March or April?). We would still have plenty to discuss next month: the upcoming BTS album (and tour) Arirang, the K-drama Can This Love Be Translated?, and maybe even what I said that made ENHYPEN laugh so hard during our interview that one of them rolled out of view.

The latter reminded me a bit of this interaction:

(I DID NOT IMPLY THAT ANYONE WAS UGLY!)

Anyhow, let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

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1. Korean first names are usually two syllables. For generational given names, one of the two syllables will be the same for all the children on the paternal side. i.e. Siblings and first cousins will share either the first or second syllable on their first name. Please note that this is traditional naming, and not all Koreans (especially today) continue to do this.

2. Chaebol (재벌) refers to a family-controlled conglomerate, like Samsung or Korean Air.