You know those dramas that sound really interesting and then you actually watch them and think, “This wasn’t even half as good as I thought it would be”? Well, we’ve got just the opposite in Oh My Ghostess. It sure fooled me. I enjoyed it so much more than I thought I would. It’s a giant romance mystery masquerading as a cute little romance comedy. I absolutely loved it!
Shin Soon-Ae is an outgoing young woman who was still a virgin when she died and is determined to resolve that “grudge” before her time is up and she has to either go to heaven or stay on earth and become an evil spirit. But in order to do that, she needs a body. Enter Na Bong-Sun, a cute but very introverted kitchen assistant at Sun Restaurant. Her grandmother is a shaman which may account for the fact that she has been able to see ghosts since she was a child. One day, while Bong-Sun is snoozing at a bus stop, Soon-Ae decides to possess her body and find a man who will sleep with her. She takes over Bong-Sun’s life and sets her sights on Bong-Sun’s boss, Chef Kang Sun-Woo. Everyone at work is shocked at the change in Bong-Sun – once shy and lethargic, now fun and full of energy. This “new” Bong-Sun captures Chef Kang’s attention as she does her best to seduce him and even openly begs him to sleep with her. One day, Bong-Sun gets sick and for some reason that forces Soon-Ae out, turning Bong-Sun back into the quiet girl she’s always been. That prompts Chef Kang to take her to a doctor who diagnoses her as having bipolar disorder. Chef Kang is convinced that’s what’s causing the drastic mood swings and manic/depressive episodes which makes him very understanding and patient with her. Once Bong-Sun is well, Soon-Ae approaches her with an offer she can’t refuse – “Allow me to possess your body once more and I’ll make sure Chef Kang falls in love with you.” Since Bong-Sun has had a secret crush on him for years she’s not about to miss that opportunity. It would mean Soon-Ae resolves her virginity grudge and gets to go to heaven, and Bong-Sun gets the guy she loves. Win/win situation.
See, on the surface it sounds like a cute romantic comedy, however, dig a little deeper and we find a mystery involving Chef Kang Sun-Woo’s family. And aren’t you wondering how an energetic young woman like Soon-Ae died? Well, Chef Kang’s sister is married to a nice police officer so maybe he can help answer some questions. Ohhhhh, it’s good!
Na Bong-Sun is a darling, little gal. Chef Kang refers to her as “pea sized” and says she has a “puppy” look about her. Her self-esteem has suffered since she was outcast as a kid. And the fact that she can see ghosts has certainly caused a large amount of stress in her short life, as well as a ton of lost sleep. But she has a heart of gold and has loved Chef Kang from afar for quite some time. She also enjoys cooking, posting recipes and writing about it on her blog.
Chef Kang Sun-Woo is a handsome, talented man and knows it, being about as arrogant as Bong-Sun is humble. He’s also a totally devoted big brother to his paraplegic younger sister. However, he has a strained relationship with his mother. He’s quite a famous chef and is respected by his staff, even though his arrogance and no-nonsense attitude makes them want to punch him.
Shin Soon-Ae is our simi-wild ghost. She is a happy person with a kind heart who dearly loves her father. She’s determined to overcome what’s been keeping her from wanting to go on to the next life and is surprised when she discovers that it’s not what she thought it was.
This drama is filled with good actors/actresses that bring to life wonderful, interesting characters that are easy to care about.
Park Bo-Young is the adorable Na Bong-Sun. She soared to fame when she played the teenage mom in Korea’s number one grossing film in 2008, Scandal Makers, receiving 12 out of the 13 awards she was nominated for. Amazing! And she really IS that good, folks. She’s just fantastic playing two totally opposite, personalities in Oh My Ghostess.
Jo Jung-Suk’s character is Chef Sun-Woo. He quit school before graduating due to family circumstances and began his career in musical theater. We get more than just a handsome face and talented acting from him in this Kdrama because Chef Kang plays the guitar and sings!
After seeing her in six different Kdramas, Kim Seul-Gie, who plays Shin Soon-Ae, was no stranger to me. She’s a regular cast member on the live comedy show Saturday Night Live Korea. I think she was perfect in this role as a wana-be seductress.
I just want to quickly mention Lim Ju-Hwan and his character, Choi Sung-Jae, Kang Sun-Woo’s police officer brother-in-law. Before they were married, Sun-Woo’s sister was the tragic victim of a hit and run accident and lost the ability to walk. The driver was never caught. But even though, after three years, Officer Choi’s given up, his partner hasn’t. Sung-Jae sweetly takes care of his loving wife and you hardly ever see him without a smile.
This was a very well written Kdrama. A lot of thought and imagination went into the script. I appreciated how the writers explained the after life. The idea is… if a person/ghost who passes away has some kind of regret, they are granted three years to resolve their “grudge”. If they are unable to do so, in the time allotted them, they loose their chance to go to heaven on their own and have to ask a shaman to forcibly send them on, which is painful. If they stay one day longer than the three years, they give up the right to go to heaven altogether, and are trapped on earth as an evil spirit for eternity. And it’s those evil spirits that possess people and turn them into criminals. Isn’t that a clever idea? And it works brilliantly with this plot.
The writers borrowed, almost exactly, its ending from another wonderful Kdrama. The fact that it wasn’t an original ending doesn’t take away from how wonderfully entertaining it is overall, though. I won’t tell you which Kdrama the ending resembles but I’ll give you a hint… it’s on my top 20 favorites list.
There’s several good kissing scenes to look forward to and the best thing about them is that they’re real kisses!
The wardrobe and make-up people did an excellent job turning regular actors into evil spirits. Yes, we do run into a few and they are a tiny bit scary. They reminded me of the dead people on The Master’s Sun which is another good Kdrama about a woman who can see ghosts. However, I enjoyed Oh My Ghostess a little more, mainly because I liked the characters better.
There was one character I didn’t like, though, the sous chef – he’s second in command at the restaurant. His personality was very irritating. I don’t know if that’s what the writers and director had in mind but I’m so glad I don’t have to deal with him at my place of employment.
Oh My Ghostess has a wonderful soundtrack! I think there were only about two songs that were sung in the whole show. Everything else was instrumental music… beautiful, beautiful instrumental music. I loved every single note! Each song was complementary to the scene it accompanied, not a bit overpowering. The soundtrack gets five gold stars from me!
There’s no scenery that makes you ooooooh and aaaaaaah but the everyday locations fit perfectly with the storyline and characters. The Sun Restaurant staff goes on one of those team building trips to a country style, overnight retreat which is a nice little bit of non-city scenery. (Is that just a Korean thing or do businesses in America do that?) They also show some street markets which, to me, are always charming. And the Sun Restaurant is a cozy place that is quite inviting. Watching them make all that yummy looking food made me want to make a reservation there for lunch!
Whatever you hear about Oh My Ghostess will be greatly under stated. Trust me, it’s absolutely wonderful, wonderful, wonderful and belongs on your “must see” list. I suggest you don’t put it off. See it soon!
Score: 9.5
The Good:
Entertaining plot
Fast paced storyline
Good writing
Wonderful characters
Super romance
Great acting
Superb music
Unsettling ghosts
Interesting twist on the afterlife
Wonderful kisses
The Bad:
There’s nothin’
Heart and Seoul 