Stove League

This drama hits all the right notes. Folks who trivialize saying 'this is Moneyball version of K-drama' are grossly downplaying the depth of this show. There is so much happening in each episode. The first episode instantly sets-up an intriguing plot and every episode unravels something interesting or tackles a deep rooted issue.

Although its set against a Sports (Baseball) backdrop it isn't simply a Sports story. Please don't turn away thinking its a Sports drama. Infact there is hardly any on-field action through its 16 episodes length. It focuses more on the management side of the team and the problems that pop-up after years of under-performance. Along the way you may even pick up few useful tips on topics such as negotiation, presentation skills and general management.

What I loved:

• Great storyline
• Fantastic acting (Namkoong Min is a Korean treasure, however he was aptly supported by Eun-bin Park and others)
• Good explanation of important Baseball stats (on Viki) and not dumping lot of numbers on our face (easy to follow for a novice like me)

It's a pity so few people have watched this drama. It deserves much more recognition and love.

Go Dreams!

P.S. There is no romance in this drama. Just so you know ;) It also won the Baeksang Arts Awards for Best Drama for the year 2020

A low cost drama that uses low budget material and low manpower. The low cost material like CEO using low cost cars still showed the same no make senses. They also keep showing the same faces which are bored to say low manpower. However the story plot are nice from episode 1 to 14 but episode 15 beginning to get low expectation and quite bored. Final episode 16 is a low standard conclusion which make no sense. Sadly the writer did not think of a better conclusion. But overall its a short 16 episodes drama so it quite exciting to pass time.

I didn't know what to expect , since I'm not really into baseball or Sports. But wow I was surprised. The series was really interesting and captivating. I couldn't wait for the next episode. The struggles and issues that needed to be resolved were very entertaining. I really like how the issues were overcome. Loved how everyone began to work together to get to a common goal.

The writing was really good. The characters were perfect. We got to see there ups and downs and although confronted with situations that seemed lost, they preserved.

This was a great series. Don't be dissuade by it being a sports series, because it is more than that.

This drama proves that winning a game doesn't all depend on just training hard but also been emotionally and psychological prepared is a factor. I really don't know much about baseball, but this drama really made me interested in at least knowing the rules of this game. The story tells how people especially are always fixed on the coaches and players when a team doesn't win a game ignoring the fact there could be some internal and management issues that doesn't motivate them to give their all. Yes, players should be blamed since they are the ones on the field but it wouldn't hurt to investigate the other factors causing their failure which every episode tries to address. Corruption, bribery, hiding of internal injuries and salary issues is what this drama tries to bring out. These issues are tackled so well with suspense that it makes someone who doesn't like sports to be glued to the drama. Overall, the drama is very fun and entertaining and also succeeds in getting its message across making it worthy to watch.

Tracking Min Namkoong's performances brought me to Stove League. As am NOT a baseball fan I put off watching it. Then when everything else looked mediocre I tuned in--and wow--the foundations of corruption of the people who never step up to bat--those who want a team to fail for their own purposes, greed, ethical corruption and just plan dirty dealing bring a lot of substance to this drama. Min is generally stone cold stoic throughout--but still manages to give off pressure cooker steam somehow--he's a truly great actor. I didn't expect this kind of role after One Dollar Lawyer. There's solid performances from the entire cast fleshing out individual personal stories which also make it worth watching. This is not a fluffy cotton candy baseball drama. Loving baseball is not necessary for enjoying the human drama. See how long it takes before you're throwing verbal abuse at the nasty humans on your screen of choice.