First Impression: Oh! Master

Cheers to another romantic comedy that will brighten our gloomy days!

Drama Profile

Title: Oh! Master / Oh My Ladylord
Main Cast: Lee Min-ki, Nana, Kang Min-hyuk
Writer: Jo Jin-kuk (Fated To Love You)
PD: Hyun Sol-ip (You Drive Me Crazy), Oh Da-young
Timeslot: Wednesday and Thursday 21:20
Network: MBC
Episodes: 16
Genre: Romantic comedy

Plot Synopsis: A star thriller screenwriter, who doesn’t date, and a top romcom actress, who can’t date, live together due to unexpected circumstances.

Major Tropes: Enemies to lovers, Cohabitation

Grumpy’s First Impression:

Our girl Nana’s visual slayed in the first two episodes! I can’t stress enough how much enamored I am while watching her scenes. She shines even in the simplest of clothes. This drama also seems promising, so I might have to check how it will turn out! Not sure about the fantasy angle, though. I feel like the drama could have a strong premise even without the fantasy element. What do you think?

So far, the story seems to follow a foolproof recipe in the romantic comedy genre, and again, as long as it works, we have no qualms. The story starts with Han Bi-soo (Lee Min-ki), a star writer known for his crime thriller dramas, struggling with his latest project. He is currently stuck on Episode 3, and he sacked the original female lead during the script reading. The shooting is in deadlock, and they have to find a replacement for the actress. Well, I can’t blame him because he is a star writer who knows his characters deep enough to visualize if an actress fits the role or not. We also got a glimpse of Bi-soo’s problematic personality in the pilot week. He is extremely hard to please and bossy. He also has issues with his bowel movement (lol).

On the other hand, Oh Joo-in (Nana) is a Hallyu star known as Korea’s romantic comedy queen. She is in demand and is currently reviewing various casting offers from drama pitches. While her agency Peach Entertainment lets her choose her next work, they still persuade her to do another rom-com that’s a sure hit. But Oh Joo-in has a different goal in mind. She has her eyes on Han Bi-soo’s next project, and even though she has been rejected by the writer a couple of times, she’s determined to get the role.

We met the main couple as enemies with very different personalities. Of course, we all knew based on the promos that this would be a cohabitation drama, so it’s interesting how they injected some circumstances to force the main couple to live together. The show had a Full House-ish vibe, I must say. Scriptwriter-actor under one roof! Top celebrity buys the scriptwriter’s house without his knowledge (just like what they did in Full House but reverse characters). I loved Full House so much, so if this show has the same positive energy given by the quintessential romantic comedy that paved the way for cohabitation tropes to be mainstream, then I’m all in!

Going back to the story, I love how Nana’s character has its own layers. She’s raised by a single mom who suffers early dementia because of her father’s death. After suffering a devastating loss, she managed to buy back their childhood home (which is now owned and eventually sold by Bi-soo’s mom) through her earnings as a celebrity. I trust Nana’s acting skills will give justice to Oh Joo-in.

I have yet to get attached to Lee Min-ki’s character. All I know is that he harbors ill feelings towards his cheating father, and his mother is a bit possessive and controlling. So, we have yet to see the dynamics of his family in the next episodes. What fascinates me is that he can’t write anywhere else unless it’s his place. Every writer can relate to him somehow in terms of having your “own cave” while writing. I don’t have a reliable cavern where I can write anything at any given time. But I remember when dongsaeng @maknaeahjumma used to call the wee hours of the night her “golden time” when writing. I guess all writers have different strategies for productivity.

Exciting times ahead now that Joo-in has allowed Bi-soo to rent a room 24/7 for the duration of the project. I thought this would be similar to Lee Min-ki’s previous cohabitation project Because This is My First Life, but I think we’ll be seeing very different dynamics for Oh! Master. I can’t wait to see these actor-writer enemies evolve into a tenant-landlady relationship!

Grumpy Alley

🍑 Wow, Han Bi-soo is indeed a K-drama writer. The character sketch is on point!

🍑 I know this scene stirred controversy because of the 15+ rating, but the use of the emoji and the name of Nana’s agency is just purely coincidence, right?

🍑 Nana dressing up as Holly Golightly? Can’t help but think that this has significance to the story, too, because Holly fell in love with Paul, who’s a struggling writer!