Did I enjoy One More Happy Ending? “Abso-freaking-lutely!” – Mi-Mo
Yippee! We finally have 2016’s very first romantic comedy Kdrama. There have been lots labeled “romantic comedy” but this one is truly worthy of being in the comedy genre. Those are rare, folks. Now we get to add One More Happy Ending to the funny pile right next to Secret Garden, Fated to Love You, The Greatest Love, and Protect the Boss.
The plot is as simple as it comes… It’s a love story. Well, it isn’t just a love story. There are several love stories for us to follow and like its title suggests, each has a happy ending. It’s about a bunch of different people who just want to find happiness in love. Four female friends, who were once part of a popular girls singing group called Angel, and two male friends, who have been best buddies since college, (all of which are decent, kind, good people) take on life and its host of surprises as they meet, fall in love, and try to keep their relationships from falling apart.
Song Soo-Hyuk is a handsome photographer/reporter for a magazine that digs up news on celebrities’ private lives. He is a single father with a wonderful 13 year old son. He spent a good chunk of time living with his family in America, and although they’re still there, he came back to Korea to raise his son. He has had a crush on Mi-Mo since grade school but a tragedy in his life keeps him from openly admitting his feelings for her.
Business woman Han Mi-Mo runs a dating/matchmaking agency designed to find suitable partners for people who have been married before. She, herself, knows the pain of a marriage gone bad. After a divorce that left her heartbroken she met a chef and fell in love only to be told, in two lines of a text message, they were through. And to make matters worse, the girl he left her for is the old Angel member that was so mean to her many years before.
Go Dong-Mi is a darling elementary school teacher now, and was once the quiet member of Angel. She’s still single and desperate for love, romance, and marriage to come her way. Her heart is broken when she finds out the guy she’s been dating is actually a jerk. When she decides to give love another try, she meets, and ends up falling for, a guy 9 years her junior.
Once an Angel member, Hong Ae-Ran is now involved in an online shopping network. As for her love life, she considers calling off her soon-to-be wedding because of cold feet but decides to go through with it anyway. Her wedding is crashed by several women her groom has been carrying on with right up to the week before their wedding day! She separates from her husband that very night and moves in with Go Dong-Mi.
Working at the matchmaking agency with Mi-Mo is former Angel member Baek Da-Jung. She has been married for 12 years to a handsome, kind, and wealthy man but married life has been anything but bliss. They tried for many years to have a baby and even though they finally were able to have a son, the stress of it all ended up causing a great deal of conflict in their marriage. Da-Jung emotionally and physically distanced herself from her husband until he decided a divorce was the answer to their problems. But Da-Jung can’t agree to ending her marriage.
Goo Hae-Joon is a neurosurgeon at a hospital where his ex-wife, also a doctor, practices gynecology. Working at the same hospital, it’s a good thing they still have a friendly/civil relationship. She’s entertaining the idea of getting back together with him but his mind is on someone new. Hae-Joon met Song Soo-Hyuk in college and they have been best friends ever since – Hae-Joon helping his single-father buddy raise his son. While in college, the Angels group was very popular and while at a concert, Hae-Joon fell in love with Mi-Mo at first sight.
The first time I saw Jung Kyung-Ho (Song Soo-Hyuk) he was playing the male lead in the Kdrama Falling in Love With Soon-Jung. The character he played went from being a calculating, vindictive, business man out to ruin his uncle, to a sweet, selfless, repentant person. The fact that he could play both sides of his character so well is a testament to his abilities as an amazing actor. This time around he shows us he knows comedy. None of it seems set up, just real facial expressions and actions to a certain situation. In other words, his “funny” is genuine and it earned him a place on my favorite actors list. Go, Kyung-Ho!
Already on my favorite actresses list is darling Jang Na-Ra. I’m always thrilled to see her name attached to a new drama. She is just perfect in cutesy roles, including this recent one as Mi-Mo, so I was happily surprised at how well she portrayed a tough as nails detective in the Kdrama I Remember You (which rated a perfect 10 in my review.) I wonder how well she could play an evil character.
As far as love stories go, One More Happy Ending is, in my opinion, just as well written as the I Need Romance trilogy and Discovery of Romance. This is the first thing Heo Sung-Hee has written and I desperately hope it won’t be the last. I’m very happy to have a new talented screnewriter on the Kdrama scene and look forward to many more wonderful shows to come.
One goof that really stands out is a snow storm that is so big roads are closed and yet, the next morning they’re not only clear but there’s no sign of it piled up anywhere. Yep, Mr. director, I did notice.
Kdrama has a thing going with Kim So-Yeon and Jung Kyung-Ho. This is the third thing I’ve seen that they’ve been in together. They were the lovers in Falling in Love With Soon-Jung, a broadcasting duo on a entertainment-type TV show in the webdrama High End Crush, and now, although they didn’t actually appear in the same scene, and hers is just a cameo appearance, they are both in One More Happy Ending. Hummmmm… I’ll be looking forward to see what comes next.
The soundtrack is very enjoyable. Although Kyuhyun (from Super Junior) didn’t sing in his webdrama acting debut, he does lend his golden vocal cords to One More Happy Ending with the song Where’s My Heart. The group Angels sing Always For You, which is the ringtone on Mi-Mo’s phone and quite a catchy little song. The song If is quite pretty and one that is played throughout the show.
The drama’s scenery is quite nice on the eyes. Everyone lives in pretty apartments and works in very nice places which are located in posh neighborhoods. I guess everybody in the show has money. Oh, and there’s a funny scene at a lovely beach. I’m smiling now, just thinking about it.
This Kdrama is everything you could want in a romantic comedy. I enjoyed every single episode, every single story, and every single character. Do I recommend you make time to see One More Happy Ending? “Abso-freaking-lutely!” – Soo-Hyuk
Score: 9.5
The Good:
Simple love stories
Great ending
Real comedy
Fantastic acting, especially Jung Kyun-Ho
Jang Na-Ra and Jung Kyung-Ho’s chemistry (actors)
Mi-Mo and Soo-Hyuk’s chemistry (characters)
Lovable characters you care about
Enjoyable soundtrack
Best of the best scenery/backdrops
The Bad:
No snow the day after a major snow storm
Heart and Seoul 