I’m going to start this write-up by saying that never before has a kdrama gripped me to the point where I would wake up each Saturday and Sunday with ONLY one thought on my mind: what is going to happen in the next episode. And yet for part of 2023 while “My Dearest” was airing, this is what occurred every weekend. As such, be prepared for me to not say a single bad thing about this show in this post. It is because I consider this show to be perfect. In every way. The writing, the acting, the direction, the cinematography, the OST, the costumes – all of it is divine and this show deserved every single award it won.
It is a show that, for me, began with little fanfare. I was not familiar at the time with either the lead actor, Namkoong Min, or lead actress, Ahn Eun Jin. I had never heard of writer, Hwang Jin-young, who had only previously done two projects, “The Rebel” in 2017 and “The King’s Daughter” in 2013. Even the director, Kim Sung-Young, had only previously directed a handful of projects. So to say this was a show with only modest amount of hype is not wrong.
Set during the 1600s around the Qing Dynasty invasion of Joseon, this historical drama, which the writer later confirmed was loosely based around Margaret Mitchell’s 1936 novel, “Gone with the Wind,” tells the story of Lee Jang-Hyun (Namkoong Min), a seemingly well-connected man who arrives into the village of Neunggun-ri to start doing business. He at first appears to be vain and vapid, but in fact he is a man with secrets. He meets the town’s most sought-after woman, Yoo Gil-Chae (Ahn Eun-Jin) who exudes extreme confidence and flirtatiousness with all the eligible bachelors in town even though she not-so-secretly longs for her friend’s fiancé. However, when Joseon is invaded by the Barbarians, the marriage-wary Jang-Hyun and self-indulgent Gil-Chae must each figure out a way to survive the war that separates them.
From the first weekend “My Dearest” aired I was hooked. I had not yet heard at that time that the screenwriter was inspired by “GwtW” but immediately figured that out for myself. Knowing that Gil-Chae was Scarlett to her friend Eun-Ae’s Melanie, and Jang-Hyun was dashing Rhett Butler to Yeon-Joon’s weak-willed Ashley helped me get a quick lay of the land despite my horror of how this story might play out (those who have read the book or seen the movie know “GwtW” is NOT a happy ending).
I remember people commenting that they did not like the female lead character Gil-Chae and thought her selfish, arrogant and childish. The answer to that is a resounding YES, SHE IS. That’s why this show is remarkable. Showrunners gave us a female lead character that we alternated between hating and rooting for in the first half dozen episodes. She had moments of incredible sacrifice with her friends and family during the war and then couldn’t help but show her immaturity when reunited with Jang-Hyun. She was complex, hard to pin down, and completely real in that regard. But then, as Gil-Chae’s gut-wrenching story continued to unfold, one couldn’t help but come to admire her resilience, her resolve, her grit and determination. Ahn Eun-Jin was sublime in her portrayal of Gil-Chae.
As for Namkoong Min, it only took a handful of episodes for me to declare that he had better win all the acting awards or else. He so perfectly encapsulated the witty rapscallion Jang-Hyun, the fiercely loyal Jang-Hyun, the innately cunning Jang-Hyun, and finally, the supremely romantic Jang-Hyun. Jang-Hyun was a man with a pitiable history, who would literally do anything for those he loved. He went to war not to save the King, but to save a man the woman he cared for thought she loved. Not only that, but Jang-Hyun sacrificed his own happiness so that he could imagine Gil-Chae’s possible happiness with someone else. He was patient, forgiving, and steadfast with Gil-Chae. Namkoong Min nailed this role and it was a pure joy to watch his character unfold each episode.
Some historical kdramas get boring when they dip heavily into the politics of their story, but the case of “My Dearest,” every episode (21 in total) was important, had value and made an impact. The King sends his elder son to be the prisoner of his enemies to temporarily keep the peace, and then struggles to figure out if his son is still loyal when he returns, or if he is now his enemy. It was heartbreaking to watch the son make decisions from afar hoping to make his father proud, only to be doubted when they are reunited. Meanwhile, the Joseon residents battle time and time again against their oppressors (the Manchurians, the Barbarians, the decisions of their own King) and yet figure out ways to keep their humanity and each other intact.
One of Jang-Hyun’s traveling companions, Ryang Eum (heartbreakingly portrayed by newcomer Kim Yoon Woo) is all at once devoted to his elder and bitterly jealous that his elder’s attention has been taken away. In many ways, the main problems between Gil-Chae and Jang-Hyun are not their own stubbornness, but rather Ryang Eum’s actions which had much deeper unintended consequences than he ever imagined.
But through it all (this story takes place over the course of years), the red thread of fated love found its way even as Gil-Chae and Jang-Hyun spend very little on-screen time together during the middle episodes of the series. Gil-Chae’s maturity grows with each increasing hardship (and trust me, Gil-Chae encounters hardship), as she navigates the only path she can see to survive in a world that considers “used” women to be disposable. At one point she believes Jang-Hyun to be dead and yet still yearns for him while making (and sometimes doubting) important decisions for her future. Jang-Hyun leaves Gil-Chae thinking he is leaving her to a better life only to find out two years later that it didn’t happen – his devastated reaction upon seeing her brought tears to my eyes (just one time of the many).
“My Dearest” is merciless as it propels itself forward, introducing hurdle after hurdle for our two leads to overcome. Will they survive? Will they find each other again? One must watch to find out. And along the way, we as viewers are treated to stunning cinematography, a fantastic OST (many of the songs are still on heavy rotation on my Spotify playlist even though the show ended a year ago), an incredible cast (including all of the secondary players in this rich tapestry of a story) and one of the most epically romantic stories ever told.
My rating: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars
Comment below and let me know what you thought of “My Dearest”!
P.S. For anyone new to kdramas I highly recommend just about anything Namkoong Min is in – he elevates any project but a few of my favorites include “Hot Stove League,” “The Veil,” “Good Manager” and “Beautiful Gong Shim.”
