Ugly Alert - A Wonderful Family Drama that I Wish More People Could Watch

**SPOILERS--Limited**

Stars:

Im Joo Hwan as Gong Joon SooKang So Ra as Na Do HeeChoi Tae Joon as Gong Hyeon SeokKang Byul as Gong Jin JooSeol Hyun as Gong Na RiKim Young Hoon as Han SeoShin So Yool as Shin Joo YeongHyun Woo as Kang Cheol Soo

Synopsis

People, who have different lives, become a family because of their parents. They sometimes look down on other family members and jealous of other family members. Through all of this, they get to understand each other and cure their wounds. A man, in particular, goes through infinite sacrifices.~mydramalist

A drama that shows the meaning of family and how everyone within that frame understand and heal each other although sometimes they can be jealous and ignore each other.

My Thoughts:

I started watching this simply because of Im Joo Hwan. After seeing him in What's Up, I was really hoping that when he returned from military service that he would again return to drama as the lead. His portrayal of Joon Soo has been phenomenal.

Briefly, Joon Soo's father married the mother of Hyeon Seok and Jin Joo when he was 12 years old. After the tragic death of both parents, Joon Soo decides that he must take care of his siblings to include their new baby sister, Na Ri born shortly before the mother died.

Joon Soo takes it upon himself to quit school and work to support his family even though the step sister and brother resent him (yeah, he is 13!).

Some of the scenes between Joon Soo and Na Ri are so precious, his love of his family is so pure, he is the the sole source of support for the next 7 years.

After an unfortunately accident which Joon Soo takes responsibility for, he ends up going to prison for 12 years. As you can expect, this devastates the family but the details I will not go in to because it is the crux of the story.

After his release from prison, his story and relationship with Do Hee begins; a chance meeting whereby she learns of one of his amazing talents. 

As a result of this meeting, Joon Soo goes to work for Do Hee in her little merchandising store in one of the local market places in Seoul. 

Again, she continues to learn his many talents; especially his ability to interact with the female customers (as long as they don't touch him, a story line humorously portrayed).

Unknown to Joon Soo is the fact that Do Hee is the grand-daughter to the owner of the BY Group; a large merchandising conglomerate who specializes in clothing and designs AND who is being pursued by not one but two men: BY Group's legal advisor, Han Seo, a seriously cold and calculating man who definitely does not know how to woe a woman AND Joon Soo's step brother Hyeon Seok. Luckily, so far, the possible romance between them is pretty much an impossibility  Do Hee knows who she wants and it ain't them!

I love Do Hee's character. She is definitely not a shrinking violet! She is one of those strong, female characters that we rarely get to see in Korean dramas! Not her father or grandfather dominate her! I'd be surprised if they can force her hand. Even if its marriage or business!

Joo Yeong is definitely our typical, rich and spoiled princess! As Do Hee's cousin, she fancies herself in love with Hyeon Seok. I still love her character and she is funny in how she will do just about anything to get Hyeon Seok's attention; even though she knows he has an interest in Do Hee, she has been reassured by her that the interest is NOT reciprocated.

Na Ri is the typical, spoiled little sister. You really can't fault her too much as being the youngest, she has been spoiled by all.

Cheol Soo, best friend of Hyeon Seok, has been a surprising treat! His absolute love and devotion to Jin Joo, who is trying to avoid it at cost, is definitely making their relationship an interesting side romance in this story. He loves her and she hides her love for him for two reasons: his status and his age (yes, he is younger than her). Their story is now beginning to be developed and the future episodes will definitely bring their conflict to the forefront.

The chemistry between Im Joo Hwan and Kang So Ra is off the charts! Their play at love (his mostly avoidance) is fun to watch. Needless to say, she does not know his past yet (I'm at episode 40) but I imagine when this comes to the forefront, it will be the major conflict to their relationship. I am really curious as to how the writer is going to handle this. This subject matter is rarely featured in dramas; I think My Name is InSoo and Padam Padam are the only times I've seen this but if you ever get to see this, there is a difference: Joon Soo isINNOCENT!

SO, where am I watching this gem? Currently, the only place with some sort of subs is DarkSmurfSub Website. The subbing is mediocre for most of the episodes but any episodes that have been 100% subbed and validated are decent. I amSO happy to have found this! As I had predicted, it is turning out to be as good as I had hoped!! Now, if I could just find Sweet Springs, my drama happiness would be complete!

Posted by: Belinda Taylor