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[Funcurve Review] "Beautiful Gong Shim"

"Beautiful Gong Shim" is a refreshing romantic comedy that flew under my radar this summer where I had little reason to believe that it would stand out among the sea of rom-coms in Kdrama world. Much to my surprise, the drama was cute, quirky, and fun. It wasn't what I was expecting in a good way and I'm glad I watched it for the sake of having to review it. "Beautiful Gong Shim" has a simple story focusing on Gong Shim (Bang Minah), an average girl who's been neglected by her family in favor of her successful sister, and Ahn Dan-tae (Namkoong Min), a lawyer who handles cases for those in need for free. Our lead characters meet and their lives are changed forever. Although a bit long at times, "Beautiful Gong Shim" is a sweet, lighthearted, and thoughtful drama worth your time overall.

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"Much to my surprise, the drama was cute, quirky, and fun".
Episodes 1-4 Review

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The first few episodes of "Beautiful Gong Shim" have a good pace to them. They introduce all four lead characters in their natural habitat, so we get to see what they're really like very quickly. Gong Shim is an aspiring artist who is jobless at the moment, and Dan-tae ends up renting the rooftop apartment on top of her family's house. At first Gong Shim finds him weird and annoying, but soon enough they become friends.

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Gong Mi (Seo Hyo-rim), Gong Shim's favored sister, is presented nearly as an antagonist in the drama. But we soon see that she has her own challenges and worries, which humanizes her character a bit. She's the sole breadwinner for the her family and is under a lot of pressure because of it, on top of the stress from her demanding job as a lawyer. She isn't necessarily evil, just misguided.

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Finally, our second male lead is Seok Joon-soo (On Joo-wan), the grandson of a wealthy family. His grandmother and the CEO of Star Group lost her real blood-related grandson Joon-pyo 26 years ago and hasn't stopped searching for him since then. Joon-soo's father is an illegitimate child, coupled with his dad's insistence on giving up the search for Joon-pyo, makes Joon-soo's grandmother very harsh towards him. While it's sad she lost her grandchild, I think the rest of the family shouldn't be blamed for wanting to give up the search because it's been so long.

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Dan-tae and Joon-soo become friends when Dan-tae saves him from being attacked. Joon-soo also coincidentally meets Gong Shim a few times, starting the inevitable love triangle. Or, should we say love square, when you throw in Gong Mi, who's trying to date Joon-soo because of his position at Star Group. As such, "Beautiful Gong Shim" succinctly sets up the main premise and all relevant characters. I'm curious to see where the drama will go from here.

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Funcurve is a new kind of reviews site. Their reviews help readers visualize the ups and downs of a drama from start to finish with an impression graph. Read more Korean drama reviews at funcurve.com.

 

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