9.5/10 is my rating. This is a 2024 South Korean romantic comedy series with 12, 60 minute episodes.  Other titles are “Spice Up Our Love” and “No Loss in Love.”

 

First, I provide a Unique Synopsis then review. 

 

Synopsis

 

Son Hae-young (Shin Min-A) was an only child but grew up with her parents continually taking in foster kids and, as such not paying a lot of attention to their only child.  In the balance of life, she felt like she was constantly having what should have been hers taken away by others that may have just been passing through.  That early experience, and the resentment she still bears as an adult, has shaped her so she wants equity in every interaction.  At work promotions and many other opportunities are restricted to those that are married.  This unfair policy reminds her of her childhood which she felt was completely unfair.  When a competition opens at work that is only available to married employees, Hae-young makes a decision which would allow her to participate.  A fake marriage she determines is the only way to gain all the benefits she can at work. 

 

Hae-young has been in an ongoing battle with convenience clerk Kim Ji-wook (Kim Young-dae) who has gained the reputation of being an angel for his kind nature and selfless volunteer work.  So, it is out of character for him to be mean or petty but Hae-young’s over the top antics, which he observes as she frequents his store, have made him her anti-fan.  He pettily deprives her of her favorite snack insuring there is limited, or no stock, and she does stuff like mess up his store shelves.   But Hae-young is desperate for a fake groom and her rival in her mind is the perfect candidate because he dresses bum sheik and their conflict ensures no feelings will develop.  Ji-wook originally refuses Hae-young’s outrageous offer until he realizes Hae-young will choose anybody, including this con man he knows, to fulfill her plan.  Even with their cold war Ji-wook cannot stand to see Hae-young get hurt so he agrees to her crazy plan, pretending he is in it for the compensation and assurance of a quick divorce.  But things start to change when Ji-wook cleans up to above average handsome.  As the two work in partnership on the fake marriage, they learn things about each other that change their opinion. Maybe Hae-young’s heart may not be as safe as she thought it was. 

 

Review



 This was a super heart warming romantic comedy which I waited eagerly every week to air. I like both of the actors a lot and have enjoyed many things they have been in so was excited to see them in this one and I wasn’t disappointed. They had great chemistry and their romance was very believable. It was really fun in the beginning when they had this bit of a rival going, it made it very interesting. She was really unique and you could tell it was gonna take a lot to win her over and convince her that there were more important things in life than keeping a tally. I would watch it if somebody had it on I might even seek it out to watch it again. I highly recommend it to anybody that likes romance or any of the actors.



Spoilers



It definitely takes you an emotional roller coaster as I felt for him every time she pushed him away emotionally. It was so clear she really liked him and was just getting in her own way. I wish we had more of reunion in the end. It was really just the very last few minutes. We actually saw more of the second couple together.



Her friend/sister was in some polyamarous relationship and I just think that’s odd. I’ve never known anybody other than swingers in that kind of relationship. I don’t know why they felt the need to include that and I didn’t really like it, but it wasn’t a big enough part of the story to ruin it for me. I liked her long time boyfriend and liked it when he wanted to be exclusive and was willing to accept the baby even if it wasn’t his. Their relationship actually wound up being pretty cute. I just didn’t think they needed that part where they each had another partner and that she wasn’t sure who the babies’ father was. Again just seemed completely unnecessary and actually a departure from why I usually like Korean shows where they’re much more wholesome typically. So I think that was a Prime effect rather than anything. Korean writers would’ve typically done.



I wanted to reconcile with her mom and understand more why she did what she did with the foster kids, but they never really took it there.



It was good that the brothers were starting to come together. I would’ve liked to see more of their relationship develop because they were both lonely in a way and needed each other. I also wanted to see him get to know his dad a little bit.



While it was cool that she started her own business and took the secretary with her. It would’ve been a step cooler if it had been highly successful and she wouldn’t have had to go back to her previous boss for a loan. I mean the interaction where he sort of tease them and then end up giving it to them anyway and called them. Traders was cute, but I still would’ve liked to have seen her being really successful on her own.

 

#NoGainNoLove  #SpiceUpOurLove  #NoLossInLove   #KimYoungDae   #ShinMinA