Are you in the mood for a strong ensemble cast, a deeply layered plot, and actual laugh out loud moments? Me too! Come see if Good Casting is the drama you’re looking for.
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First, The Plot
From AsianWiki: “Baek Chan-Mi (Choi Gang-Hee) was a legendary black agent for the NIS, but, due to her excessive work, her subordinate died and she missed catching her intended target. Baek Chan-Mi was punished for that botched case and she now works in a cybersecurity team for the NIS. Baek Chan-Mi is then selected to go undercover on a case involving intellectual property theft at Korea’s largest company.”
Karie the Maknae: I am SO GLAD to have Choi Gang Hee on my screen again. (More on that in a minute.) I’ve been excited for this drama since I saw the first teaser. As a big fan of RED, I saw excellent potential in a drama about former NIS black ops agents coming together for a mission. What I wasn’t expecting, though, was a brilliantly twisty plot coming at me right from the gate. We’re thrown right into the action from the beginning, and the story is revealed in clever flashbacks and throwaway lines that do an excellent job of showing the relationships between our characters.
Kmuse: I was excited to see Choi Gang Hee again as well. Although, I will admit I only end up liking around half of her roles so her being in a show isn’t a sure thing for me.
The Characters
Good Casting is definitely an ensemble drama — we have our NIS agents, their handlers, and the executive team at Il Kwang Hitech.
First among the agents, Choi Kang Hee is Baek Chan Mi, a fiery bulldozer of an agent who has all the tact and patience of a bull in a china shop. She’s working with a young mother and a savvy negotiator who now sells insurance.
Lee Sang Yeob is Yun Sook Ho, the CEO of Il Kwang Hitech. He’s a figurehead — the company is really being run by someone else — and the NIS suspects someone at the company of selling technology secrets to foreign powers.
The chief villain is Michael Lee, who tends to make shady deals, then immediately kill whomever he has dealt with after the deal has been made.
Karie the Maknae: This ensemble already has great chemistry. The ladies were bonding by the end of episode 2, laughing at the expense of their team head. The whole team is already pulling together to help each other out, and there’s a great foundation there. Lee Sang Yeob’s character is probably being duped, and it will be interesting to see how the team helps him out as well.
Kmuse: I like the setup of the characters in theory. When it comes down to it I feel that they don’t gel as well as I had hoped. My favorite out of the ladies would have to be Insurance Mom. She is both competent and funny and doesn’t feel over the top to me. Also, the men show promise of being interesting. Although, they have not started all interacting yet so that might change with time.
First Impressions
Karie the Maknae: At only two episodes in, I’m already delighted. The story is strong, the acting is solid, and the humor and the angst feel genuine. I’ve loved Choi Gang Hee since Queen of Mystery, and I love seeing how different this character is. She’s fascinating to watch, and I can’t wait to see how this story plays out.
Kmuse: I really want to enjoy this show but I found Choi Gang Hee’s character way over the top anytime she got emotional. I also found her to be very bad at her job and self-absorbed to the detriment of her team. I’m just not sure I will be able to get past how she bulldozes through life while those around her have to pick up the pieces. This is a new writer and I think I’m just not clicking with the over the top writing style. I think this is a drama that you have to try because it hits people differently. As you can see we have two very different opinions.
What do you think, kdrama fans? Is Good Casting the drama you’re looking for? Drop down in the comments and let us know!
Until the next op, we remain —
Karie the Maknae and Kmuse
Dramas with a Side of Kimchi
