Lingerie Girls Generation

Cute throwback drama Lingerie Girls Generation just ended, and I feel it deserves a review. Literally no-one expected anything from it, what with it being led by a cast of rookie actors and only being eight episodes long. However, I'm impressed with the actors, and I think the show did well with the lack of time it had.

Set in 1979, the drama focuses primarily on Lee Jung-hee, who falls in love for the first time and ends up in an awkward love triangle. In addition, the show looks at her new friend Hae-joo, a sweet girl with a secret to hide, and Jung-hee's family.

The writing was pretty solid  - apart from lapses in judgement here and there, I found that the screen time was parted appropriate and usually the characters did things which made sense. Some of those nonsensical decisions could be credited to the fact that the characters are young and stupid, though.

  Okay, stupid may be the wrong word. Interestingly, I didn't like any of the characters at first - especially Jung-hee, who acted too childish for me to appreciate the fact that she's looked down on at home and treated like a pig at school. However, but the end of the show I don't think there was a single important character who hadn't shown development, and so I'm looking back on Lingerie Girls Generation now thinking that it was a great character study. These people feel like real people, with layers.

  Again, the capability of the actors was a pleasant surprise. I had no doubts for Seo Young-joo, since he proved a wonderful actor in Solomon's Perjury last year, but most of the others are quite new to acting. Bona wasn't much to yell about in The Best Hit, which is probably why she was sidelined by the final episode, but here she's much better. Her crying face was a little uncomfortable to look at, but she nailed the accent and everything else about her character. It's a shame Do-hee's role was so much smaller than it had looked on the posters, because she was awesome, as always.

  Honestly, though, the breakout performances here go to Lee Jong-hyun and Chae Seo-jin, who carried the melodramatic half of the story solely between them. Hae-joo and her gruff teddy-bear love interest Young-choon were my favourite part of the show - it was far less frustrating to watch them creep  towards each other than to watch the love-triangle flail in the other corner. I've seen Lee Jong-hyun in other things, like Orange Marmalade and My Only Love Song. Everyone was the most sceptical about his casting, since most of the actors were much younger, but I believe he slipped into his role effortlessly. He seems to shine best in melo, because he made poor sweet-hearted Young-choon someone you desperately wanted to have a happy ending. 

  I'm not sure if the show exploited the setting to the fullest, but it did do things most other drama don't. It captured the fashion statements of the time perfectly, touched on things like long-hair raids and curfews, and sported so many old hits in the soundtrack. I was surprised with the ugly portrayal of corporal punishment and male dominance, since they stuck out to much in an otherwise breezy little show. It could have been worse, though - we were promised a thriller sub-plot that thankfully never appeared. While I don't think I'll be watching it again, if you're bored, it's a nice short-story with a lot going on.