Cunning Single Lady

Summary: Cunning Single Lady (aka Sly & Single Again) is a 2014 k-drama produced for MBC. This series follows the trials and tribulations of Na Ae Ra (Lee Min Jung), who marries Cha Jung Woo (Joo Sang Wook) in hopes of having a secure and quiet life as the housewife of a government employee. When he unexpectedly quits his job to start a tech company, the couple's marriage falls apart under the weight of financial and emotional strain and they ultimately divorce. Years later, the pair are reunited thanks to a twist of fate and a street cart brawl. Cha Jung Woo is now a successful CEO worth millions and Na Ae Ra is determined to make him pay for the burdens he placed on her all those years ago. But her plot to exact revenge on him doesn't go quite the way she plans...

- 1 1/2 hearts for a lukewarm ending & the weird Tijuana wedding

Keep your enemies close... and your ex-husbands closer.

Recommendation: The best way for me to describe this k-drama is fun. It doesn't take itself too seriously while still delivering some poignant moments that deal with real emotion. Na Ae Ra and Cha Jung Woo were perfectly cast and their interactions with one another are sickeningly cute - in a good way. I couldn't help but root for them and I looked forward to their scenes. My only complaint is that the series could have benefited from an extra episode to wrap-up everything. The final episode felt rushed and half finished with too many flashbacks. Overall, this is a great romantic comedy and will probably find its way on to my "Best of 2014" list. I encourage others to watch it.



Other Thoughts (And Possible Spoilers): There's so much to love about this series. It was one of the few shows that I looked forward to every week during its run. The comedy is lighthearted and fun and the serious moments are touching. The script isn't necessarily clever but it does capture the essence of falling in love and struggling to hold on to it.

Will they? Or, won't they?

Joo Sang Wook is as cute as a button as Cha Jung Woo. This role is in stark contrast to the stiff doctor he portrayed last year in Good Doctor and I barely recognized him as the same actor. Even as we watch him transform from engineering student, to government worker, to CEO, he always had a certain something about him that was endearing. He was a great choice for this role and his connection with Lee Min Jung as Na Ae Ra felt real. Even in the moments when they actively conspired against one another, it never felt evil or abusive, which was my one big issue with Emergency Couple.

Kook Yeo Jin (Kim Gyu Ri) was probably my least favorite character in the series. There was potential there for her to be interesting - she has a tragic history and a dysfunctional relationship with her father. But this actually made things problematic. She wasn't the focus of the drama and, consequently, the series never dealt with her issues adequately. So far as I could tell, she didn't evolve or learn anything by the time the credits rolled on the last episode. The actress in the role didn't particularly impress me and if not for Joo Sang Wook's presence, I might have fast forwarded through her scenes entirely.

Sidebar - Here's a big WTF to the wedding scenes in Tijuana. That's all I am going to say.

Lastly, the only thing I liked about the ending was the final scene showing us the very moment when Cha Jung Woo and Na Ae Ra first met. It was a perfect scene and when their hands touch for the first time, you just know something wonderful has sparked between them. It's the kind of moment that makes a person believe in love at first sight - even if its just the magic of television. If only they had given us more of that and less flashbacks. Cue sigh.

Note: I've been struggling to come up with an image that represents revenge. If anyone has any ideas, leave a comment! I'm open to suggestions. I'm also really behind on some of the reviews. Golden Rainbow, My Love From Another Star, and several others are in the pipeline.