First Impressions: Greatest Love (2011)

Greatest Love
MBC
16 Episodes
May - June 2011

Plot
Gong HyoJin used to be part of an insanely popular girl group quartet called National Treasure Girls (think Fin.K.L, although the name of the fake group is derived from 80’s duo National Treasure Sisters and today’s premier girl group Girls Generation/SNSD). Unfortunately, National Treasure Girls broke up after one hit song at the height of popularity due to a scandal, for which Gong HyoJin took the blame. This feels very true to real life, as we all know, kpop can be a fickle and cruel biz, with the ability to build people up to amazing highs, then tear them down with unbearable levels of abuse. If cast as a villain, the public torment that could follow...is nothing less than being emotionally exiled.

Now, ten years later, Gong HyoJin has managed to survive, but she is a bottom tier celebrity who makes most of her income doing variety. And if you’ve ever seen a K-variety show, you know they love to create contrived celebrity characters, and Gong HyoJin is the one cast as the scratchy villainous personality. It is not unlike digging salt into an already infected wound and that is the point, to derive humor in humiliation. In real life, however, she’s a sweet and caring person who is trying to support her family. This drama is clearly intent on highlighting the sometimes unfair realities in their show business culture, and it is interesting, sad, and funny all at the same time.

Cha SeungWon, on the other hand, is an A-List star with a much loved reputation with the public. But behind the scenes, he is such a big arrogant jerk that even his manager barely tolerates him. When it becomes misconstrued by the public that Cha SeungWon, top actor, and Gong HyoJin, bottom feeder, are close friends in real life, the two find themselves strangely pulled into the other’s world.

To finish the primary cast, Yoon KyeSang (who knows a thing or two about being a 90’s idol in real life) plays a successful doctor who gets sucked into the contrivance called fame. And with refreshing depth for a second lead, Yoo InNa plays the other National Treasure Girls member involved in the past scandal, although she has managed to hang onto her status over the years. Ah, and of course, she hates Gong HyoJin.

First Impressions
Well, I wasn’t much excited about the premise of the drama, nor was I fawn-eyed about the cast sheet. And while I’m not out-of-my-seat loving it, my instincts tell me that this will end up being one of the better dramas of the year, one that will likely move along at a good speed and have good overall characterization.

Let’s see:

Gong HyoJin:
Solid. She’s a sympathetic actress, one who sometimes comes across as too sad puppy for my taste, but overall, she wears this character well.

Cha SeungWon:
Solid. Capable of funny, unique and entertaining delivery.

Yoon KyeSang:
Handsome! He seems to fit this role really well and I’m already afraid I may have second lead syndrome in this one at the early onset.

Yoo InNa:
YG’s rising actress, with good reason. There’s something sneaky foxy about her, but there is also a depth, a sense of intelligent warmth that shines through and reaches the viewer. I am finding that I really enjoy her character, sometimes even more than Gong’s because I see so much room for growth.

In a word: solid. It just feels like a solid drama. I expected nothing less from this production and acting team—yet another crafty and symbolic look at different worlds colliding.