Agency

Go A-In (Lee Bo-Young) works at an advertising agency where she is promoted to director but there are reasons behind the promotion and the powers that be plan to sideline her after a year. The series looks at her struggles in the male dominated agency and the lengths she has to go to as a female to survive. The cast are superb and we have many other characters who's stories are also interesting and entertaining. I really enjoyed the plot and may well have given it a nine but various aspects of the story fell short for me. Some of the lesser side characters like her mother who abandoned her as a child are forgotten as soon as the story is resolved and also a competitor who's life is saved seemed shoehorned into the series. That being said it is still an entertaining ride in which you cheer for her success.

I really enjoyed this series. Wisdom related for business, PR and other topics. Recommending to friends. Great acting, directing and editing. Fun moments mixed into dramatic themes. I thought some of the "costumes" were not well fitted to lead actress yet overall very nice styling. Lovely production design and sets seemed appropriate to characters and storyline. Engaging characters and nice balance among leads and supporting actors. Good ethical and morale messages. I enjoy Korean drama series. Agency is my fifth, I think, so far. Seoul seems to be a beautiful city with profound and rich settings. Misty and K-2 are other fave series.

Having lived and worked in Korea for 9 years, this series reveals some of the deep and dark secrets within Korean chaebol. Misogyny, autocratic leadership, family intrigues, suppression of talented women in business all come into play. Superbly acted by Na Eun-son and Han Joon Woo, this is the story of two women from opposite ends of society who are pitted against each other in a world of competing unscrupulous men. Plot twists and cliff hangers abound and as viewers, we say, "just one more episode." One can empathize and indeed get emotionally involved with the cast members as the story unfolds.

Like with any K-Drama, or pretty much any drama from any source, you will need to set your nitpicking tendencies aside if you consider yourself an expert on the advertising business or corporate work environments. This is a *drama*, not a documentary. Once you have done that, here's what you get:

• A great performance by one of K-Drama's legends, three time Baeksang Best Actress nominee Lee Bo-young. Her Go Ah-in exudes power but, as is so often the case, it's couched in insecurity and fear. She shuts people out, including the mental health professional best friend who wants to help her most, and attempts to fill a void in her life with non-stop work and ladder climbing. She'd be celebrated if she were a man, she's, not surprisingly, denigrated because she's not. Lee Bo-young was perfectly cast and I can't see anyone else making this character work like she did.

• A cute romance that turns the classic 3rd gen male chaebol and his cute assistant dynamic on its head, wonderfully pulled off by Na-eun and Han Joon-woo. They're adorable together, the capable Young-woo, serving as secretary to Na-eun's sometimes bratty but caring, capable and formidable heir, Kang Ha-na, who's modern business sensibilities are ultimately recognized and appreciated most by the one person you might least expect.

• A couple of genre-defying 1st gen and 2nd gen chaebols played by veteran actors Jeon Gook-hwan and Song Young-chang who are given the chance to subvert the chaebol cliches and portray much more nuanced characters.

• A consistently cute and funny under the radar advertising creative with some not all that serious home issues who's love for Korean beef is matched only by her love for her family and her team.

• One of the best soundtracks you'll find.

Agency is what a drama should be. Fun, engaging, and entertaining. It has all the classic corporate backbiting, plenty of jerks in suits, and plenty of characters you'll care about and root for.

K-dramas show the same story, say revenge/ Will They Won't They Romance but in different settings like School, Office, Courts, Police Station etc.

The premise here is an advertisement agency and the protagonist is a single woman probably approaching her 40s. There is unlikely to be a romance as the main lead is a single woman and second lead is married woman. While the main heroine is serious and melancholy, second heroine is the cheerful one.

There are attempts at humour, but they are stale, seen many times on k dramas. So, the environment remains serious or heavy to be exact. Such premise can not be endured for long, it needs to be balanced with either comedy or romance or emotions.

The pilot is just okay but shows potential as the series goes on.

After watching the pilot, have to watch till 3rd episode before recommending it.