Misaeng: Incomplete Life

There are countless K-dramas that set their story in an office. Whether it’s office romance or rivalry; workplace has its own appeal. But not all of them are worth checking out, even more so when it’s over the top workplace romance and unrealistic. I am personally a fan of realism, something that illustrates almost a realistic life in the day of a character that mimics our real life. I found this realism from Misaeng: Incomplete life that was released back in 2014 and directed by Kim Won-seok, who is known to also cast the same actor & actresses that he previously worked with^[1]. In this drama,he casts Park Hae Joon, though he’s playing a minor role in this workplace, he’s been working with Won-Seok three times. And the main spotlight of this drama is Im Si-Wan, playing a 26-something without a ‘real’ job experience and skill.

Im Si Wan takes up a role as Jang Geu-rae, a mid twenty somethings starting his life all over again. In his previous life, he was an aspiring GO professional who failed to play as a pro player. He ended up working as a gig worker and did everything he could to survive. Somehow, Geu-rae landed an opportunity to be an intern at a top trading company called One International. In this company, he faces difficulty as a salaryman especially with his background that is far less than his co-workers.

The resolution to many of his conflicts are through his boss, Oh Sang-shik (Lee Sung-min) a manager who is ambitious, workaholic yet cares of the well-being of his co-workers. In the office, Geu-rae is also close to three other interns and later become permanent employees, Ahn Young-yi (Kang So-ra), Jang Baek-gi (Kang Ha-neul ) , Han Seok-yool (Byun Yo-han ). They all from a camaraderie and through them, we are shown the struggle of becoming a ‘newbie’ at a company as well as dealing with the office politics.

One of the most intriguing parts of this film is also the setting that takes place in Jordan. It is also said to be the first K-drama that was filmed in this historical country ^[2]. A few of the scenes showed the ancient city of Petra and ended with a scene in front of Al-Khazneh. As impressive as the settings were, this drama and its actors also won many awards including the 51st Baeksang Awards where the director won as the best TV director.

Although, to be honest with you all, there were parts that were slow. Unlike the usual where I finish a k-drama in a day, it took me several days to watch its episodes. This drama is filled with workplace anecdotes, politics as well as Go (baduk) game references that might be far too boring at times. But somehow, I was hooked with the character humdrum office life. The main character feels quite relatable, a mid twenty something attempting to start life all over again and incorporated into the workplace. In the end, staying true to his quirks and though he has no formal experience, he becomes the most interesting salaryman at his company.

Beyond their small cubicle, each of the characters face their own struggle and eventually resolve it. It was the same with the manager who eventually recognizes his talent and that he simply needs to start his own business. Just from an outsider perspective, the work culture in South Korea is seemingly tough.Among many of the struggle includes working overtime, verbal abuse and even physical abuses that are shrugged under the rug. Being female in the male-dominated office was also an issue that was present in the film. There were subtly shown the differences between different generations in handling women at the workplace. Perhaps it's why this drama even from the trailer mentioned to be provoking within south korean society.

While I am no salaryman/woman, this film helps me look into life from the mini cubicle. I often wonder why people want to escape it and from this film, I can see why the dream of being free of 9-5 can be so appealing. To these people, some of them might not really have a life beyond their desk. To them, being in an office, receiving salary each month and incentives yearly are all they know. As unappealing workplace life k-drama might sound, I am recommending this one as it has an interesting plot and is quite realistic for a salaryman's life.