Chief Kim

I haven’t written a review post in a L O N G time. How do I even start? Maybe I should go back and read some of my old reviews for inspiration.

Ok, so it’s been 5 years since my last review post. 5 years. That’s crazy. 

It’s seems that I had a little formula going. First I’d explain the plot, then I’d say what I thought, and then I’d say what I was going to watch next. For the Japanese dramas I used to find links between the actors and what else I’d seen them in, which actually I might reinstate, although I don’t know how much fun it’d be without the Gokusen factor. 

I realise that I’m procrastinating. 

Chief Kim is about Chief Kim...

Excellent start there. Let’s try that again.

Kim Sung-Ryeong is a dodgy accountant for dodgy people in somewhere that isn’t Seoul. His life ambition is to move to Denmark, and takes on dodgy jobs to eek out as much money from the monsters and criminals as he can. He is consistently arrested for fraud, but is so skilled at covering his tracks that he is always released with lack of evidence. One day, his secretary tells him about a job opening as chief of the accounting department at TQ group where they promise not to discriminate in regards to education and experience. Kim goes for the job with the plan of embezzling a huge sum of money to get him to Denmark, and newly appointed director Seo, an ex prosecutor, convinces the chairman to hire him to act as their puppet in various fraudulent activities. However, Chief Kim isn’t as easily controlled as that, and soon comes to realise the corruption within the management of the company. He grows closer to his colleagues and develops a conscience, eventually taking on Director Seo and the Chairman to protect the rights of his colleagues. 

I’m not going to lie, it look me a fair amount if time to get through this series. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but it didn’t grab me too much for the most part, although the last 4 or 5 episodes I could have watched one after the other. I found Namgoong Min’s Chief Kim to be a little too over the top, and Nam Sang Mi as Deputy Yoon a little bleh. I did have a soft spot for Director Seo though, even though he was the villain, but that was probably because I have a soft spot for 2pm’s Junho. I did find the absolute lack of romance really refreshing, especially when you thought they were going to go there, but then they didn’t. A particular favourite example was when Deputy Yoon complained of the cold, and Chief Kim looked like he was about to take off his jacket, but instead said that she should have worn something warmer like he did. Having said that, I would have totally approved of Deputy Yoon and Director Seo getting it on at the end. 

Namgoong Min was the lead in Beautiful Kong Shim, and I must say I preferred him in that, although the characters were actually quite similar. Obviously I already knew Junho from 2pm, but he was also the lead in the last drama I watched, Just Between Lovers, along with Kim Kang Hyun’s Clerk Lee. To be honest, I loved their friendship so much in Just Between Lovers that I was kind of disappointed with their lack of contact in this. I also recognised Accounting Director Choo as the investigator from   While You Were Sleeping, and the Chairman’s son was also someone suspicious in Suspicious Partner.

Would I recommend it? Sure, why not. It’s good fun.
Would I watch it again? Probably not. I really enjoyed seeing where this drama ended up, but I don’t know that I’d be overly bothered about goimg through it all again.

Next up is a tricky one. Technically it should probably be something like Replay 1988 or The Good Doctor, older dramas that have high ratings*, but I find myself tempted by Jang Geun Suk’s Switch, currently still airing, or rewatching Dots.
To be honest, Dots will probably win, because I want to see Onew. Seeing Song Joong Ki doesn’t hurt either.


* I’m trying to go by rating on Viki, which is hard when they don’t actually list the series in order. I’m on the 9.6’s now, except for Six Flying Dragons and Jewel in the Palace as they’re both 50 episodes long. There is also Bad Guys, which hasn’t appealed, but maybe I should give it a chance.

Ok that’s my first review in 5 years done. I don’t have a photo because blogger has made that difficult, but if you really want one you can just google ‘Chief Kim Junho’ and that should see you right.