My Mister is my favourite kdrama and when I heard that the same writer had written My Liberation Notes, I was SO EXCITED. Both of these shows are my favourite at this point.
Both these shows are similar in the themes they discuss but they differ slightly in one way, in my opinion.
My mister explores themes of loneliness, isolation and interpersonal relationships while also STICKING TO A PLOT. It says, here, I want you to care about these characters and their lives and their pain as a result of their narrative and the things that have happened to them so far.
You root for Ji-an because she endures. You root for Dong-hoon because he endures. Everyone in My Mister has gone through things that they can point to, and say, here it is. The thing that is causing my misery. Here are these characters stuck in their respective repetitive loops of pain and unending suffering. The characters in My Mister have character traits that make them interesting.
My Mister as a show, tries to be interesting. And succeeds. The plot and the characters and the writing compliments each other and we get a great show. We follow a narrative while also starting to empathise with the characters.
My Liberation Notes, on the other hand, doesn't give a fuck about being interesting. It's not here to serve plot, it's here to serve character. While not having the most interesting or intricate narrative, mln has so much character. It does not try to or pretend to be interesting in order to attract viewership. It's going to say what it needs to say without wearing an armor of plot.
In mln, the things that cause misery cannot be pointed to. They cannot be spoken of casually. With few words. They cannot be compounded into a few sentences.
How is Mr.Gu supposed to sum up the extent of his pain? Why he's in a house, so far from Seoul? How is Mijeong supposed to say why she doesn't want to join a club? How should she talk about how everything and everyone feels like work? How should Gijeong sum up why she's willing to love anyone at all before winter? How can Chanhee tell you why he's desperate for a car?How can they tell you all these things in a sentence?
I love how mln doesn't shy away from depicting monotony AS IT IS. Nothing about mln is embellished or improved or dressed up. It's why when Mijeong says to Mr Gu, "WORSHIP ME", it hits. You understand her. It makes sense.
Mijeong or her siblings or her parents or Mr Gu do not have inherently interesting "main character traits ".
They are all human in the most human way and they are trying to live and this is what makes them interesting.
I find so much comfort in mln because its realistic. Sometimes, there is no plot to hold up our lives. Sometimes, we can not go outside and point at the thing we want to be liberated from. Sometimes, you're quiet at the dinner table. There are no plot twists that can be used to make us interesting.
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