I wanted to start something funny after the Uncanny Counter (I mean, it had humour, but it was more action than not), so I thought I'd try a new one that had popped up on Netflix called Hello, Me!
I'd also wanted to try it because the main female lead is Choi Gang-Hee, who I'd liked in Good Casting...I just didn't finish that show because the more episodes I watched, the more I wanted to whack the writers (completely incompetent spies! coincidences! bad guys so obvious!). Anyway, I'm glad I did. I'm actually 6 episodes in now, so nearly halfway through the 16. I just haven't blogged it. Been...busy? Tired? I dunno. I got my first COVID jab not long ago and it messed me up a bit (and still is).
ANYWAY. It's good! Gang-Hee plays Ban Ha-ni, a 37 year old perennial and abject failure. It's a far cry from how she was when she was the Queen of her high school, but things fell apart for her when she skipped school to go for an audition, got caught by her parents, and tried to sort of run...and caused an accident that killed her father. Since then, she's been a guilt-ridden wreck with no confidence--and a sister who barely tolerates her, a grandmother with dementia who blames her for the loss of her son, etc. etc. Life is not at all like her teenage self thought it was going to be.
Through reasons, the 17 year old version of herself shows up in the modern day. But this is the confident version of herself -- one who was literally in the middle of that stunt that got her father killed...but no knowledge of that happening. They connect and join forces by necessity, each one wanting to send the younger version back in time. The young Ha-ni can't understand how she turned into such a loser. The old one doesn't want to tell herself why -- she wants to spare her that pain as long as she can. Meanwhile, she's also trying to get her life together after being fired unjustly from her job.
Throw in two other blasts from the past -- the former bully turned movie star that was obsessed with her in high school (played with comic aplomb by Eum Moon-Suk) and a slightly younger (early 30s?) man who had once been saved by her teenage self from said bully and has always thought of her as Super(wo)man. He also happens to be the son of a CEO currently cut adrift for being a spendthrift. But he's not necessarily your normal superrich dude -- he is a bit of a cheeky ray of sunshine. He fairly quickly figures out that this woman that he keeps running into (the first time at jail!) is the girl who had once saved him, and at this point in the show, he's anxious to connect with her. Not really sure what his ulterior motive is--but he knows he wants to know her. Oh, and there's also her former minion/best friend from high school--they had broken apart after the accident that killed her father and now that former minion is her new boss.
There are a WHOLE host of coincidences that on paper would probably make me groan, but they're making it work. After all, this entire show is a sliding doors kind of thing...in a way. I honestly am not sure how they wrap it up. If young version goes back and everything changes...where does old version wind up? If she goes back and nothing changes...what was the point? There's a number of ways things could go.
Great casting with the two main actresses. The younger is Lee Re and they do a good job of making the same faces, doing the same actions. They are believable together. As a viewer, you don't love the younger character -- she's SO full of herself and not particularly kind, but she's learning. You're also sad for the older as you know why she's where she's at. She never got past what happened.
So, I have high hopes that they'll manage to make this a feel good story. I really want a happy ending for both of them.
Edit: Am up through episode 9 now. There's a lot of comic action going on, now that the two potential love interests have (kind of) stepped up. Still enjoying it, still curious as to how they'll wrap it up. I can see a couple of different things happening. Not super excited that they've introduced some chaebol-style drama with the aunt of CEO-son, but, at the same time, this show has enough of a lighthearted feel that there's no way I see it going completely dark (totally looking at you, Gong-Shim).
Edit: I finished it! It was good, though ultimately not great -- though that was on the world building side, not the acting side. Have the writer(s) EVER seen or read a Time Travel Story before? Anyway, basically, they manage to get young Ha-ni back (in remarkably easy fashion after all that DRAMA -- she has to WALK THROUGH A TUNNEL) and she's not able to save her dad (as the shaman had warned her she wouldn't). But, so far as the viewer can tell, there's no difference whatsoever in modern day Ha-ni. So...did younger version go back and, even with all her future knowledge, not change her life AT ALL? And still suffer from 2 years worth of depression and bad career choices? I mean, on the plus side, the resolution didn't negate any of the forward progress modern Ha-ni made. Nor did it disrupt her budding relationship with Yu-Hyeon (played by Kim Young-Kwang -- he was really just a ray of sunshine). So that part is good, but they should have at least had some reflection that SOMETHING changed for her younger version. OR they could have made it so that she went back and didn't remember anything from her time travel trip.
But, anyway. The characters were all great. The actors were all great. Am I glad I watched it? Yes. Would I watch it again? Hm, maybe some day. I am glad that it wrapped up the chaebol stuff with Yu-Hyeon quickly and painlessly (well, kinda painlessly, except for Greedy Aunt) so in that sense, it was WAY more satisfying than Beautiful Gong Shim. The story stayed focused on Ha-ni, as it should.
