K-Drama Recommendation: “Love in Sadness”

Love in Sadness is a drama that peeked my interest when I first saw its trailer in ABS-CBN. I was very curious about this drama especially with its interesting story line about married life.

Love in Sadness K-Drama Review

Who would’ve thought that this drama tackles a very sensitive topic and it made me got hooked in this drama. Without further ado, I’ll be sharing with you five reasons on why you should watch it!

1. The Plot.

Yoon Ma Ri (initially played by Park Ha Na and later on by Park Han Byul) is married to Kang In Wook (Portrayed by Ryu Soo Young). Their marriage is slowly falling apart as Ma Ri tries to leave her husband for being too possessive of her.

Ma Ri unexpectedly listened to a radio show where a renowned plastic surgeon, Seo Jung Won (portrayed by Ji Hyun Woo) frequently visits. She started to gain some hope thinking that she can leave her husband if she changes her face.

One day, Ma Ri decides to visit Jung Won and asks his helps to change her face, but Jung Won rejects. However, the moment they meet again, Ma Ri opens up that her husband is hurting her and shows her bruises.

Jung Won then helps Ma Ri by using his dead wife, Ha Kyung’s face. Now, with a new face, Ma Ri tries her best to live a new life. Though, it is cut short as she accidentally meets her husband, In Wook once again.

2. This is not your typical chaebol K-Drama.

This might be a spoiler alert, but this drama is not that will give you the kilig vibes. Love in Sadness is a melodrama that focuses on In Wook who is madly in love with Ma Ri.

Towards the succeeding episodes, Ma Ri wanted to break free from her controlling husband and want to have a life of her own. Unfortunately, with a powerful husband, Ma Ri has limited choices to leave as she is also scared of what her husband can do.

I’ve been watching several romantic-comedy dramas with a rich guy-ordinary girl set up so watching this drama is something new in my perspective. I loved how the drama used flowers and paintings to symbolize Ma Ri’s call for help.

3. The actors portrayed their roles very well!

I wanted to give my huge appreciation to Ryu Soo Young for his amazing portrayal as a dominant abusive husband. You would’ve probably scared by him every time he longs for Ma Ri. Park Ha Na and Park Han Byul simultaneously did a great job with Ma Ri. Ji Hyun Woo as Seo Jung Won and Wang Bit Na as Joo Hae Ra makes it a perfect combination with their great acting skills.

I would be lying if I deny Soo Young’s strong visual, I sometimes forget to be mad at him due to his good visual. (Haha ang poging baliw minsan.)

4. Money can’t buy you everything even your happiness.

Despite a drama revolving about wealth and power, it can clearly show how it can’t give you everything. Kang In Wook is clearly depicted as someone who’s extremely rich, but he can’t even treat his wife properly. Even though he has the money and resources, the fact that his wife wants to escape from him makes him a pitiful character.

On the other hand, Jung Won is a charitable character. Jung Won wanted to help people live a nice life, that’s why he took the initiative to help Ma Ri. Though Jung Won is not as rich as In Wook, his character is warm and open completely opposite of In Wook’s.

5. It tackled a very sensitive topic – domestic violence.

Honestly speaking, this would be the first time I encountered a K-drama with this type of story line. Upon watching, I came to realize that this drama is not as welcoming or suitable like the ones we are used to. This drama enlightened me how it feels to be in the shoes of Ma Ri.

I even got to help myself and research more about abusive husbands. The drama can not only play with your feels, but can educate you too. Love in Sadness gives us an overview about the numerous and silent cases of domestic violence all over the world.

Overall Thoughts

Basing on my personal opinion, Love In Sadness is a drama not suitable for everyone. It can trigger someone’s emotions and feel bad for Ma Ri. However, this drama is a challenge for anyone who’s looking for an interesting and different drama.

The story line itself revealed unexpected twists and turns that got me hooked and finished the 40 episodes in just a short period of time. I also consider the ending an open-ending one. It got me confused at first but l was able to have my own understanding of it — everyone deserves a chance to live a happy life.

You can watch it on Viu.

All photos were sourced via Google Images.