On paper, My Liberation Notes looks like another JTBC album that doesn’t work. After Green Mothers Club, Forecasting Love and Weather, and Thirty Nine, My Liberation Notes seemed like it would do the same thing and become boringly average. With a very simple premise, a slow pace, and a lot of other shows on at the same time on the weekend, it seemed like the odds were against this one.

Like when David fought Goliath, sometimes the most surprising things happen. So, that’s exactly what’s going on here. My Liberation Notes is a special series that walks a tightrope between slice-of-life and character drama. It is an amazing example of how to tell a simple story in an amazing way.

The story looks at both rural and urban life by comparing the lives of four different people. We get to know our different characters’ hopes and dreams through their long commutes and boring jobs, as well as how they deal with problems along the way.

Mi-Jeong, the youngest of three children, is the main character of this story. She is shy and often speaks her mind. She wants to leave her life as soon as possible. She’s lucky that her mysterious next-door neighbor, Mr. Gu, tells her that.

Gu has a strict routine of working, drinking, and staring at the horizon. Mi-Jeong is drawn to his mysterious behavior and starts to figure out why he acts this way. Mi-Jeong tells him to “worship” her, telling him that if he does, it will free both of them from their hard situations.

Two other stories are woven into this one. The first is about Chang-Hee, who is the middle child and wants to run away from home because he wants to be rich. He doesn’t really know what he wants to do with his life, and his parents don’t like how he just drifts around.

The last member of the family is loud. Gi-Jeong is the oldest of her siblings, and she wants to find love and leave her life behind. Because of this, she ends up with two different men over the course of the season.

Character vs. plot is a debate that has been going on for a long time. This is the perfect example of how a character is the most memorable part of a story. My Liberation Notes knows all of its characters and what’s going on in their lives. The story shows how frustrated Chang-Hee is with the world and at the same time sends the message that money can’t always buy happiness. I know that’s a cliche, but My Liberation Notes explores this idea without ever falling into that realm.

In the same way, Gi-story Jeong avoids romantic clichés like love triangles and misunderstandings. Instead, it shows a realistic example of a man and a woman figuring out their feelings as they go through life.

But Mr. Gu and Mi-Jeong are the real meat and potatoes of this story. They both have great chemistry and great lines of dialogue, which makes them perfect for each other. There are also some beautiful symbolic moments that add both style and weight to the show.

This symbolism is used in different storylines and is looked at in surprising and interesting ways. In one scene, Mi-father, Jeong’s Je-Ho, races along a dirt track to try to get ahead of a wealthy family walking down the road. It’s close at first, but then Je-Ho crashes the truck and they end up in the ditch. This story is a metaphor for the difference between the rich and the poor and how, no matter how hard you work, luck can change in an instant.

In another situation, each kid has a crazy dream. Chang-Hee ends up with a sports car, while Gi-Jeong is carried to bed by a huge robot. These “dreams” are pretty much what these people want out of life.

Even the last scene of the last episode, which I won’t give away here, shows Mr. Gu and his whole life up to this point in a vague way. It’s great stuff, and for a real nerd like me who likes to pick out small details and extrapolate them to learn more, it’s a testament to the show’s storytelling that it keeps doing that in new and interesting ways over the course of 16 episodes.

The acting is just as good, and each of these actors gets a chance to stand out. There are also some very heated disagreements and fights in this book, like when Chang-Hee yells at his father because he can’t accept him for who he is.

There are some beautiful camera shots here, and Mr. Gu lying down in a room full of empty soju bottles is one that stands out. I won’t give away all of these great hints, but let’s just say that they’re great.

In the end, My Liberation Notes is a K-drama that was written very well. Even though it starts out a little slow, once this one gets going, it’s like a train that can’t be stopped. Since JTBC has had a lot of flops this year, it’s even more surprising to find a drama like this that goes against the grain. This is a great show that all fans of Korean dramas have to watch.

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