Youngest Son of a Conglomerate (2022)

Confusion of the highest order.

Come on the drama has politics, business, and friendly comedy overall the story is good. but the story has some confusing parts. In the first episode after the protagonist got shot, he woke up 40 years earlier as the grandson of soonyang's founder. so you would think it is a reincarnation story with time travel. but in the last episode, they make it seem as if the lead was shown the past of jin do jun to the protagonist while he was unconscious because he got shot in the first episode. but the problem is Jin Do Jun was aware of his past as the protagonist, also he was aware of the future events that were about to unfold in the world. most of his business strategies were successful because he knew the future. so it is not a memory, right? also the character looks alike yet none of his family members seems to care or even notice this particular detail. overall the business strategy and the twist are all good but I still don't understand what this story is actually about is it a reincarnation and time travel-based story or was it just a past event shown to another person in his dream? I guess this mystery will remain unsolved.

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The perfect revenge does exist

One of the best revenge dramas for me without a doubt.
All tags of the drama couldn't be more justified.
This is one of the dramas that made me always wanted to know what's coming next.
Normally I tend to skip a few seconds of dramas in which I know the dialogues will be the same old ones but in this one I dare not skip a single second.

I have to admit that the casting of this drama couldn't have been more characters.
Even though Song Joong Ki is the reason I put this on my watchlist and I guess not only me but many viewers, I have to admit that there couldn't have been a better performance than the one by Lee Sung Min.
Lee Sung Min truly deserves the Baeksang award for this. His experience and dedication were clearly seen in his character.
Song Joong Ki felt a good cast for his characters especially Jin Do Jun's cause I could feel the university boy in him.
To be honest I did like Shin Hyun Been's character and the way she played it well but I wouldn't have felt bad even if the romantic touch was removed. No doubt about it that those moments felt good in this plot of revenge and family drama where each one wants to drag down the other but even her character wouldn't have been written the story would not feel lacking is what I felt.
All the supporting characters for me were very good and some of the actors I've seen playing similar roles and they did not disappoint at all. One thing I hoped for was to see more of Park Ji Hyun's character. Even though she did not get much screen time she did a great job in playing her role.
I completely forgot to mention Tiffany and I have to say I was always a fan of hers and watching her in the drama was just perfect. I couldn't have possibly asked for more. She was just perfect in her role and I was just excited for her scenes to come.

It's been a long time so I don't remember everything exactly but if I were to talk about the drama itself then the plot and it's build up. No characters felt hiding their true nature during initial stages of the drama. The game of succession started from the get go. Jin Do Jun even as a kid seemed so cool. He was clearly a prodigy after Hyun Woo came as him. The show builds up pretty well without feeling dragged. Different business plans in the show and different plans of each of the Jin siblings to inherit the position from their father are quite interesting to see being unfolded. Even Sung Joon joined the drama and made things more interesting. Overall not giving away any specific spoilers I would say that all characters have done a great job, the production quality is great and the pacing is also quite good. I would definitely recommend it to those who wish to watch a revenge drama based on conglomerates, also having a fantasy side.

P.S. Feel free to tag me or message me if you want spoilers as I tend to avoid giving spoilers in my reviews.

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Wow... easily the best Korean drama I have watched to-date in a modern setting.

I have always a bias towards a period drama - falling for their beautiful costumes and ancient architecture. So when I started on this drama, I was kind of sceptical and it was more of a time filler while I waited for other period dramas with excellent rating to be release online. But wow.... I was carried away. It is intense, with all the elements which made it exciting and interesting.

As instructed by the third generation Vice-Chairman, Yoon Hyun Woo retrieved a slush funds kept overseas by the Jin family who controlled the Soonyang conglomerate. He was killed while on his way back. He woke up back in time in the body of the youngest of the founder's grandchildren, Jin Do Jun. He was able to capitalise on the memories of his previous life to become exceedingly rich investing and divesting at the right moment and won the attention of his grandfather who had been very cold toward his father, mother and their children as he disapproved of his father's marriage.

What I liked about this drama?

1. The story was very interesting - a mix of family rivalry, commercial competition, corporate takeover, collusion of money and politics, romance and rejection - all worked in for the perfect effect. And an excellent lesson in the post-World War history and economic development of Korea.

2. The cast was fantastic. Some of them acted multiple personalities in the drama. The lead actor, Song Joong Ki, of course did very well, first as the subservient Yoon Hyun Woo and then as the daring Jin Do Jun, which brought the story alive. The second lead, Lee Sung Min acting the grandfather was absolutely outstanding. He first acted the charismatic, domineering, ruthless business leader, then the feeble pitiful confused old man very convincingly. The support actress Kim Shin Rok was excellent too - acting the overbearing Jin daughter then a drunkard when she lost all her money.

3. It was very dramatic and there were hardly any dull moment and it was jammed packed with happenings. There was perhaps an episode when things seemed to get a bit dull as we witnessed Jin Do Jun succeeding in investing and divesting as he ride through the economic boom and bust - with more of the same happening. But that was quickly turned around and the pace of the drama resumed.

4. The ending was brilliant. I was wondering how the writer was going to deal with two of the same persons living in the same era and it was very nicely handled. There was the sadness of someone killed and someone living again. It was also brilliant how a revenge turned into a case of justice.

5. The music was very mysterious and dramatic to match the development of the drama.

What I did not like about the drama? Cannot recall any - definitely going to watch it a second time and come back to fill in, if any.

Further thoughts about the drama: The grandfather Jin Yang Cheol's insistence on primogeniture, the passing of inheritance to the eldest offspring definitely triggered the intense rivalry in the family. Parents have to be careful not to invoke feeling of jealousy among their children. If grandfather Jin had treated his children more fairly and encouraged a feeling of win-win and interdependence, there won't be such intense rivalry to the detriment of the family. Perhaps it was his sense of indebtedness to his eldest son who went to prison to save the business and his bringing up the eldest grandson which nurtured the closeness, that brought about this.

Thumbs up all round for this drama.

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Inconsistant et fade.

Si je n'ai pas aimé :

- J'adore Song Joong ki. Du moins, j'adorais. Comme quoi, un chouchou remontant à 2007 peut tomber lamentablement en quelques minutes dans son estime... Je ne sais pas à partir de quel moment, vous savez ce moment où vous vous dites "pourquoi mon coeur ne bat-il plus?". J'avais encore aimé "Vincenzo" mais pour être honnête moins pour lui que pour les autres personnages du drama (Ah l'agent du NIS). J'imagine que la magie n'opère plus. Son jeu est loin de la prise de risque et si peu de subtilité dans ses expressions faciales. Pire, en homme amoureux, on y croit de moins en moins (déjà dans "Vincenzo") et cela se confirme ici... Et puis l'avoir rajeuni de 20 ans afin de le pouvoir faire jouer un personnage de 20 ans, What The Heck!
Certes, il ne fait pas son âge, certes il reste joli garçon et blabla, mais ici, c'était too much, les couleurs de la peau n'étaient pas naturelles, trop lisses, trop roses, trop brillantes. Si vous avez vu "18 again" (un magnifique drama soit-dit en passant...), nous avons eu droit à 2 acteurs, un pour le personnage à 40 ans et un autre pour le personnage à 18 ans. Et cela fut parfait. Le challenge des deux acteurs avait été de nous faire croire qu'ils n'étaient au final qu'une seule et même personne. Pari tenu. Alors qu'ici...

- Un scénario intéressant mais qui perd très vite de sa crédibilité. Il est difficile de ne pas faire le rapprochement avec "Again my life". Pourtant si ce dernier brille par des protagonistes savoureux, drôle ou intriguant donnant ainsi une légèreté et un humour bon enfant à l'ensemble de la série, c'est loin d'être le cas de "reborn rich". En effet, tous les protagonistes, à peu de chose près, sont des pourritures pitoyables pour qui le spectateur est dans l'incapacité de ressentir autre chose que de l'ennui. Aucun de ces "méchants" ne resteront dans la mémoire. Le grand-père? J'aurai aimé avoir un peu d'estime ou d'empathie, un peu comme Woo Yong Soo dans "again my life", tout au plus un peu de curiosité qui très vite s'essouffle. La fratrie? Elle ne brille ni par son ingéniosité, ni par un charisme machiavélique ( Ah Kim Min Jung dans "Devil Judge" !!! Machiavélique, forte, intelligente et d'une séduction folle mêlant à une fragilité certaine, en voilà une antagoniste brillante!), une équipe de looser quoi.
Il y a beaucoup de chose qui ne paraisse ni logique, ni réel. Résultat, on se retrouve à bailler et à avoir du mal à suivre une intrigue pourtant prometteuse.

- Des protagonistes antipathiques dont l'intérêt est de seulement nous montrer la cruauté, la gourmandise de ce monde. En parlant de ce monde, le monde des affaires, on aurait aimé que le réalisateur nous le fasse "aimer", du moins de nous y intéresser. Que nenni. C'est rébarbatif, c'est long, c'est pénible et les milles et une magouilles nous lassent très vite. Je n'ai jamais été fan de drama traitant de ce sujet, un monde de requin où tout est bon pour se poignarder dans le dos, alors si tout est noir, sombre, où le pire côtoie le pitoyable, j'ai tendance à m'endormir. Les relations ne sont en aucun cas émotionnellement mises en valeur, comme la relation avec le grand-père ou les nouveaux parents, voire les anciens. Tout est traité avec nonchalance et parsème le drama ici et là sans consistance de leur apparition inutile. Résultat, le protagoniste ne nous parait pas sympathique, n'ayant pas de lien nous le rendant humain, plus proche de nous.

- La romance? Hahahaha, je ne dirai rien, cela fait très longtemps que mon coeur n'a pas battu devant un couple de Kdrama (peut-être "taxi driver 2" ...). Ici, cela rejoint le pire (déjà que Alchemy of Souls n'était pas loin d'être le pire). Achimie? zéro. Intensité? Zéro. Solidité du couple? Zéro.

- La bande son...impossible à m'en rappeler. Et c'est un détail auquel je prête pourtant attention....

Verdict : Après le dernier des soeurs Hong, Nam Goong Min (que j'aime toujours à la folie par contre) ou le dernier de Lee Seung Gi, une autre grande déception inattendue.... L'année 2022 s'est mal terminée et 2023 ne commence pas très fort.

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The series had so much potential yet had to fight through not to drop it

The things I enjoyed:
- The bond between Do-un and His Grandfather was so sweet and heartwarming.
- Some of the plots were so unexpected and I liked how those made the story evolve and sometimes how Do-jun put his aunt and uncle in their shoes.
- The lineup of the cast duh
- The Squad Miracle Investment top tier I love how they got each other's back and when they come up with plans.

The things I didn't enjoy that much:
- The Pacing; The first few episodes had a fast pacing and then the pacing got so slow.
- The Storyline; It's not that I hate It completely but the storyline was quite dry. Like from ep 9-15 It's like the same betrayals happened but in a different department and in the end, it was all a plan of Do-jun. Not that I got a problem but It got to a point where I just got bored. The rest of the storyline is not that bad. Not satisfied with the end at all, I got very confused when Do-jun died and then we're suddenly back to the present. Still mad at the author for not making Do-jun and Min-young a thing, like common he was going to propose. The ending was just not satisfying, it had me confused, mad and a little bit disappointed.
- Characters; Everyone in the Jin Family pissed me off. they had like no type of development and they just stayed the same dum relatives who always got deceived by Do-jun and betray each other. Like bring in some spice, nobody developed anything everyone was an MVP.

Overall:
I don't only wanna hate on the series and say it's horrible, just saying it wasn't my cup of tea and the things mentioned might not appeal to your experience. The series It actually good, the storyline is neutral and the characters are also. In my opinion, the series wasn't that special it was neutral, nothing to spectacular sum the storyline accurately the ending just dropped me without that I would've given the series 7 and up.

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Edge of my seat!

I didn't watch this when it was first released, but I heard a lot of hype around it, as it's one of the top-rated K-Dramas of all time. So, I was concerned it wouldn't live up to the hype, but it did not disappoint at all! I have never had a K-Drama genuinely surprise me with as many plot twists as it had. I was on the edge of my seat each episode and could hardly stop myself from binge-watching. It was so good. Although I've grown tired of the reincarnation and time travel tropes recently, this felt so fresh and unlike any other. It's probably Song Joong Ki's best, but Lee Sung Min as the grandpa stole the show. He delivered such an award-winning performance. Truly had me thinking he was an old man! He somehow made me feel sympathy for this man who hadn't been the best person either. It wasn't just the writes and actors that made this a great drama-- cinematography and OST were brilliant too. Nearly a perfect drama. I felt a little mixed about the ending. Compared to the rest of the show, it was almost anti-climactic. It was not terrible, though. Some might feel differently than I do.

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An Underwhelming Ending

The ending of this otherwise excellent drama was not worth the paper it's written on. All I can take away from the ending is Sung Joon screaming his head off...lol. Production ruined it by giving an alternative ending that, like cinderella's gleaming coach, turned to a pumpkin at the stroke of a writer's pen. It's Do Joon's revenge from the grave but poorly done.

This drama deserved a dramatic, unforgettable, ginormous ending. Open ending for this drama is a cop out and a very lazy way of telling the audience that the drama needs to end so the writer and production threw ideas on the wall to see what would stick. Boo!!!!!!! If it's the best production can do, they should have just followed the ending in the original story in the manwha.

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Definitely entertaining, but keep the magnifying glass outside

First off, Lee Sung Min gives a heck of a performance and a lasting impression as Jin Yang Cheol CEO. Song Joong Ki is as suave as ever. There are some good dynamics and relationships that can make you curious, happy, angry and so on. Chaebol makjang that kdramas excel at, with fast-paced business empire knots and tactics. Be prepared to plunge halfway into the world of stock exchange. If you're looking to just get some entertainment, this can definitely do the job and then some.

But if you put it under a magnifying glass, you might find some holes and ditches leaving you disappointed. So don't come to this, if you're looking for a super clever story that has the i's dotted and the t's crossed all wrapped in a pretty bow. This only has the bow.

There is some romance but nothing that'll make the butterflies jump out of the screen. There is some pain and trauma but it didn't leave me bawling. So these are not things you should expect to find here.

I was not looking for these thankfully, so I was quite entertained.

Leia Mais

Excellent, atypical revenge thriller

Song Joong-ki tends to choose his projects wisely, and Reborn Rich is no exception. The series was adapted from the webnovel Chaebol's Youngest Son and is a revenge thriller. What makes it unique is the time loops that involve the main character, which serves for dynamic storytelling.

The first episode begins with a loyal employee, Hyeon Woo, who was recently promoted to a Senior Finance Manager in his firm, Soonyang. Later on, however, on his way back from withdrawing the slush fund of Soonyang, he gets betrayed and is shot in the head.

He ends up living the life of a young Jin Do-jun, who is the youngest grandson of the Soonyang conglomerate, and with his historical knowledge eventually gains enough money for himself to compete with his grandfather.

Before I continue further, the hallmark of this series is the adversarial and complicated relationship between Do-jun and Chairman Jin Yang Cheol (excellently portrayed by Lee Sung-min). Do-jun starts off trying to one-up his grandfather in acquiring Soonyang shares, but eventually their relationship evolves into a begrudging respect, and ultimately, a filial love.
Chairman Jin is a complicated man who loves his business above all, which leads to his children competing to be the next chairperson of Soonyang. Despite many traps and obstacles, the viewer sees Do-jun slowly ascend through Soonyang ranks while also putting the other cutthroats in their place.

Part of what makes the series interesting is the excellent portrayal of an INTJ hero by Song Joong-ki. Armed with a knowledge of history, he uses events and trends to earn even more money so that he could stand to fight for Soonyang's succession. His ability to look into potentialities and transform them into entelechies is a joy to watch. To see Lee Sung-min and Song Joong-ki devour scenes is also a wonderful treat for K-drama viewers.

Executing a series which is a closed time loop is difficult. Many media often resolve this by a restart, which means that a day is experienced over and over again until something is unlocked. Reborn Rich provides a different alternative resolution, which is also quite satisfying.

Without going into spoilers, the writing of the series is tight. It flows like one long movie, because Do-jun has to deal with problems that come up every time he becomes successful. Despite the internecine bloodbath, however, the viewer can't help but root for Do-jun as he tries to right the sinking ship of Soonyang.

Until the ending, it is impressive how the series addressed the closed time loop. Not only is the complex dynamic between Jin Yang Cheol and Do-jun a treat, the friendship between Oh Se-hyun and Do-jun is also enjoyable. If there's a weakness in the series, it has to be the romance between Min-yeong and Do-jun, as that was often shafted to the side. However, the denouement made it so, with good reason. The series comes full circle, and the series ending is, while a bit underwhelming, quite satisfying.

This is definitely one of the best, if not the best series of 2022.

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LSM(grandpa) & SJK carry the whole show, FL's character is a joke, rushed ending.

A time-travel plot can be confusing and tends to have many loopholes. This drama just had too many of them which is disappointing. The story starts off with Yoon Hyun Woo, a loyal servant to the Soonyang Family, gets betrayed by them and "killed". His soul (?) ends up in the body of Jin Yang Cheol's grandson Jin Do Joon. He has knowledge of the future & this family and wants to get revenge on the Soonyang Family with it.

What I liked:
- The Grandpa and Jin Do Joon characters. How they were able to make you watch this drama if you had no clue about business, stocks/investment.
LSM nailed it with the acting for the grandpa. JYC is such a complex character. I always wondered why JYC's children turned that way when in the first episode he was mentioned in a good way. When he scolded Seong Joon on his 60th birthday party, he told him about how the employee's livelihood depended on them. I took that as the Grandpa being a good person. But later, through Do Joon we find out he is the typical conglomerate's chairman who thinks of his employees as dogs and disregard the lives of poor people. Then we are introduced to his past as a delivery man and understand how hard he worked to become the rich man he is. We also see the tough love he has for his children & grandchildren. Grandpas character was so well done that I couldn't fully hate him. At some times, I pitied his character. I could see why Do Joon's character was also stuck in between. He wanted to destroy Soonyang which is his Grandfather's everything but he also cared for the Grandfather too. The scene where he protects the Grandfather from the oil crisis and covers up the Grandfather when he peed in the elevator. That scene was touching (the expressions were on point!) Then Grandpa's video after death was also very touching.
I liked Do Joon's journey as well. He has motive for revenge, but he hasn't lost all his emotions. He cared for the Grandfather and his family (the way he got revenge on his aunt first because she humiliated his mother). Although he did some things that ruined the lives of poor people because of his revenge, he wasn't completely corrupt.


What I disliked:
- The slight romance forced on us & the FL's character. There was no chemistry at all. It's not convincing at all that they somehow fell in love with each other. They needed the relationship between Seo Min Young & Do Joon as the reason why she's called the Soonyang Grim Reaper. Her first investigation of Soonyang started because of Do Joon (when he was alive and wanted to use her). That was her character's entire purpose to exist. Her character was not developed at all.
- How some of the supporting characters felt the same as the FL's character. Why do they exist? What purpose do they serve?
Example: Ye Joon. She showed up in Episode 1 and then she wasn't seen till like the last 3 episodes? I was wondering the entire time where she was because she was a part of the Soonyang Family that Hyun Woo knew of. She does almost nothing but helps out her father a little and that's it.

What I neither liked/disliked & had mixed feelings:
- What was the point of revenge plot when it would become meaningless? Hyun Woo went to past and we were lead to believe it's for revenge. He was going to have his revenge since he had money and he wasn't poor. His goal to buy Soonyang was for revenge. In the end he died rich, and got his revenge when he was poor. So, his journey was to prove being rich won't solve your problems? If you're poor you can get revenge too?
- Disappearance of supporting characters. After grandma is found to be murderer, she has no role in the story. What happens after that we don't know. She gave up her shares & is a suspect for attempted murder and is never to be seen again. Her role was over & assume to have died of old age. Mr. Lee also disappears after stepping down as CEO & giving Do Joon his shares.



Where I was confused:
- I get some people survive bullets to the head, but fully functional and recover within a week? What part of his head was he shot in? The brain is so complicated each areas have different functions. Are we supposed to believe bullet just went through not damaging a single part of his brain and he is fully functional?
-The ending.
Hyun Woo said he didn't time travel or possess Do Joon. "My repentance for Do Joon." This is where the major hole in time travel is. Are we suppose to take what he said literally or not? In the previous episode he said,"the one who killed me was me." Here he says he basically accepts that he was that version of Do Joon.
In those 20 years, Hyun woo erased the incident about Do Joon's accident from his memories. When he went into Do Joon's body in the past he didn't remember a single thing about Do Joon and you wondered why. Later on, he remembers that Do Joon died. But it doesn't bother him when Do Joon dies or how he dies. He suddenly remembers how Do Joon dies on the day of the accident.
He cannot say he didn't time travel because he indeed changed the past from what he knew. His birth mom died from heart attack, but when he tried to save her and change the past, she died from suicide instead. The Do Joon of the past that was gifted in investing was Hyun Woo knowing the future and using that for his advantage. One day he remembered his past self almost falling asleep as a driver and went to the same spot. But he didn't see himself since it was another "time".
So why would you repent for yourself?
Also how the hell did Hyun Woo have a recording of that call when he was panicking? If Hyun woo kept the evidence of Do joon's accident with himself the entire time, how did he not REMEMBER that he were to die by his own hands.

Why did they use the same face for Hyun woo & Do joon. Initially, I thought perhaps face of Do Joon is different & we just see Hyun Woo's face cause he took over Do Joon's body. But in last episode, the alcoholic dementia guy Mr. Ha is only one who recognizes him & says he's Do Joon. Are we supposed to say,"it's a coincidence, he has delirium and thought it was him? "

Honorable mention:
- the truck of death.
It's funny how much it's used in kdramas that everytime I see a truck I always assume someone's gonna die. It's not even a surprise anymore.

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The best adult, mature, business drama I've sen in a while!

This year K-dramas surprise me, not many in real but Tomorrow ( hope there will be a 2 season), Business Proposal and now this one: Reborn Rich.
Reborn Rich until now (episode 9) never made me do forward! The story line is surprising well written, the dialogues are fantastic so good that you want to see what happen next to the ML but also to all of the other characters.

And acting, acting is simple extraordinary if we talk about the Do Jun actors. Even the kid is something!
If you are looking for a well written drama with a theme of revenge and business this is the one!
I'm sure that I will love it until the end and I'm gonna miss this drama when it reach the final

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