A Business Proposal (2022)

Common storyline

Drama name is "business proposal"... But where is business??? I was really expecting some business issues?? But in whole drama the chizzy lovely dovly ... I am quite dissatisfied with the name of the drama...?
Common storyline... rich male lead poor female lead, facing trauma due to accident.. male lead good at everything... Clumsy female lead... There is nothing new...
All I love about this drama super casting and comedy part. The actors made it super. They nailed the drama. The comedy parts are really lovable. This make it worth to watch either I may rate this 2 star

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Almost, but not quite there

This was so close to being a perfect drama: the comedy was funny, the acting was good, and the story moved at a really good pace. The relationship between the leads may have begun as contrived, but the development was genuine with the chemistry being off the walls good. The same goes for the second couple too. Where things fell flat, however, is after episode 7. The conflict was annoying and made the story stagnate. The grandfather behaved too out of character, and I felt the focus on his disapproval of the relationship took away from more development from the two couples. I would have liked to have seen some weddings and a happy-ever-after, instead of watching several episodes of the Grandpa's meddling. Overall, it was a good drama, and the writers did manage to stick the landing despite their meandering near the third act.

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This is an easy to watch drama there’s not much of major plots and twists but not like the other dramas they are light and have simple plots but boring… BUT not with this drama this drama is on another level you’ll have so much FUN with every episode of it and make you interested of what’s going to happen next even without having the major plots.

There we’re two couples in this drama one main lead couple and another secondary couple.. both couples are really adorable, funny, cute and sweet to watch, though others were comparing them and saying negative things but as for me no one is above and no one is below all of them did a really good job… both male lead are looking so hot and handsome with there characters that makes you really envy their female leads hahaha…

As for the re-watch value I’m giving it as a perfect score cause I really enjoyed the whole drama, as a matter of fact I already downloaded this and going to watch it over and over.. I’m pretty sure that you are going to love and you’ll have fun with this drama, you will not regret giving your time on this.

As a closing statement, I would say that I’m so sad that this drama come to its end.. probably going to take a very long time before I could get over with this… another drama hangover hahaha..

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Started out ok but...

By the time I was on episode 7, I was barely tolerating this drama and was watching it just to finish it.

I've been an avid K-drama consumer since the early 2000s, so when I see so many comments about people saying this drama is all the "cliches done right", I couldn't disagree more. What irks me the most is that the FL spends over 50% of the drama lying (to the ML, to her parents, etc.) and is indecisive, and has low self-esteem (to the point where the feels like she needs to reject the ML because she's not "good enough"). I loved the actress in "Uncanny Counter" and I feel like she's more fitting for the strong FL roles, rather than this meek one.

The ML was ok - it's my first time watching Ahn Hyo Seop and I don't know any of his previous work to compare, but I thought his acting was on par with the character he was trying to portray. Granted, it's the chaebol role that we've seen millions of times before, but acting wise, it wasn't bad.

Let's talk about the chemistry (or lack thereof) between the leads. There was almost zero to little buildup for their relationship and the ML just all of a sudden decided he liked the FL (even though all she did in the beginning was pretend to be a person she wasn't). I didn't sense any chemistry between them at all, tbh. I'm just so confused how/why he ended up falling for her. If you love slow-burn romances, this is the furthest thing from it and it doesn't make much sense either, so don't keep your hopes high.

Overall, it is a lighthearted, and cute drama but far too unrealistic for me and borderline annoying at some points.

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Just ok

I think that one of the problems of this drama is that it didn't have much material or that said material wasn't well developed to make it worth your while. With this I'm trying to say is that they basically tried to recycle a lot of old kdramas clichés and trying to act like they were -modern- about it by picking fun at them while also using them themselves. Which isn't bad, but they just took them and dropped them unfinished, or pulled back and it was lackluster in the delivery instead of shocking or hilariously ridiculous, which was the point of those old kdramas. So the story felt like a mix of every middle class hardworking secretary/rich boss with a sad past that you've seen, crushed all together, and not as charming. They also based the male character's style and manerisms way too much in the male character of "What's wrong with secretary Kim?", so it felt at some points that it was trying to borrow from that kdrama and a tiny bit from "The secret life of my secretary".
The characters weren't charming or alluring, I got bored by them pretty quickly. The first two chapters were good enough to make me consider keep watching to see a light romcom drama, but there's so much you can do when the stakes aren't that high and you don't develop your characters. The acting wasn't good, tbh, I do like the male mc actor, but he's done a better job in other dramas. The female mc actress made me cringe at times by how bad the acting was, and the two second leads characters were way 2D to actually bother. I think a big part is because this drama kept putting things that could've lead to more interesting or profound aproaches, and just used them to move forward the story and acted like it didn't happen. Like the weird stalker, it could've been a good thing to focus on the female characters but was mostly used so the second lead couple would make up and the female mc was impressed by Tae Mo helping capture the creep.
The music was just ok, I think thet overused some of the lyrics so instead of making you feel more into a scene it was like, oh,this for the fifth time in the same episode...
I think this is a good drama if you want something fun and easy to watch without having to invest much of yourself on it. Like if you're having a tiring week and want to relax and watch something that'll distract you.

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A RomCom Lovers Dream Drama

A Business Proposal is a refreshing and binge-worthy kdrama that has the kdrama community in a CHOKEHOLD. And there’s good reason for that! It is such a comedic drama that almost reminds me of the older K-Dramas from 2016-2017. It really brings me back and reminds me of why I like K-Dramas so much! It is funny and light and just lifts my mood whenever I watched it. Lately, for some reason, many K-Dramas have had sad endings so this one is comedic relief from all those sad and angsty dramas.

Ahn Hyo Seop: Ahn Hyo Seop portrays Kang Tae Mu really well. He really fits the cold and workaholic character that has a softer side for his loved ones. It was frustrating though that it took him 4 episodes and seeing Ha Ri’s ID to figure out it was Ha Ri when he was literally looking at her picture a couple times on his big screen and ran into her and heard her voice a couple times as well. But I guess it is needed for the story, otherwise the plot would get cut short. Overall, really like his character because he isn’t the typical tyrannical jerk CEO. He has emotions and he shows it! And he’s not unjustly mean and cruel too. He even fired “Geum Hui” when he realized that what he was doing to Ha Ri wasn’t right anymore. Also, he realizes his feelings pretty early on and did something about it which I liked.
His character could seriously be the son of Young Joon and Mi So from What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim, especially when he pushes his hair back LOL.

Kim Se Jeong: Kim Se Jeong does a great job portraying Ha Ri! She is so funny and she really matched well with her character. Her expressions are on point and she is doing justice to Ha Ri’s character! I also love Ha Ri as a character! She is sweet and genuine, but didn’t let anyone step all over her (ex. in episode 5 when she stood up to Tae Mu over the ravioli).

Kim Min Gue: I like him in this drama and his aloof but kind character really fit him. Is definitely a drastic change from his crazy character Comrade Joo from Snowdrop LOL. His character is loyal and smart and he is so adorable in trying to stop his feelings for Jin Young! I also really like his straightforwardness.

Seol In Ha: I really love her in this drama! Her and Se Jeong were the perfect funny best friend duo! Her character’s pettiness over Sung Hoon’s boundaries is so funny and cute too! She is killing it with her character and I can’t imagine anyone else playing Jin Young LOL.

Lee Deok Hwa: He is the K-Drama grandfather that everyone could relate to LOL. He adds so much comedy to this drama! Especially when he is watching the Geum Hui drama with his mismatched pajamas and sheet masks yelling at the screen! So relatable LOL. Loved seeing such a supportive elder who isn’t an antagonist for the relationship of his grandchild.

Relationships:

Tae Mu and Ha Ri: The chemistry is great for this pairing! They are both comedic, but still have us crazy for their romance.

Sung Hoon and Jin Young: They are a golden second lead couple! A rich spoiled girl/serious guy is always a great trope and I love them so much! The chemistry was EVERYTHING! I just know everyone looked forward to this second lead couple!

Tae Mu and Sung Hoon: Love this duo! They are so serious, but oddly comedic and funny together!

Ha Ri and Jin Young: I freaking love their friendship! i missed seeing these kinds of friendships in K-Dramas where it’s all love, no jealousy! They were such a comedic duo who were perfect for the serious duo that Tae Mu and Sung Hoon are.

I was laughing the entire time while watching this K-Drama and yes, it’s cliche, but it is cliche done right! I would highly recommend it!!

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Too fun to be this short : (

"A Business Proposal" is a classic addictive RomCom. Yes, It's filled with tropes galore, but it's also self-aware, which I loved, including a drama within a drama that reminds the viewer to not take the cheesy plot too seriously. Nothing in this drama is original. As the title suggests, It's the cliché Rich Boss Poor Employee cliché complete with a contractual relationship that starts getting real. What feels different about this drama is that it doesn't waste a lot of time on repetitive obstacles, and most of the time is spent instead on the amazing chemistry between the leads.

It stars Kim Se Jeong as Shin Ha Ri. A quirky-klutzy but smart and hardworking employee who I loved! She's hilarious and ridiculous but still felt real and relatable and was thankfully not a passive doormat. This was my first time seeing her in a drama and I'm an instant fan. Seriously, she's so good that I will definitely watch whatever she is in next. I already started watching "The Uncanny Counter" to kill time waiting for the next episodes of this each week, and I love her in that too, but she's a perfect rom-com leading lady. She is matched with Ahn Hyo Seop as Kang Tae Moo, the typical cold and arrogant boss leading man. He plays that role really well and was a great straight man for Ha Ri's antics, but it was his vulnerability when he starts letting down his guard that really got me. I was immediately sucked into their rom-com banter. Even watching them just look at each other I could feel butterflies, and I am definitely adding them to my list of favorite Kdrama couples. Their story is everything I've already seen in a million KDramas before and I was still excited, that's how good they were together. I also liked how the love story escalated without wasting too much time (Tae Moo's favorite saying) but then again, I didn't realize there were only 12 episodes. I feel gypped. I wasn't ready to let this go!

Another great thing about this drama is that it almost felt like getting 2 romcoms for the price of one. Each lead had a BFF and they had their own cute love story with amazing chemistry. I also really loved the friendship between Young Seo and Ha Ri and between Sung Hoon and Ta Moo. Special shout out to Kim Min Gue's dimple who deserves its own credit for being a valuable part of the cast. There's a great underlying theme about the family you create beyond the one you're born into. I also liked that even the rich and privileged lead characters were given some depth and not just reduced to what you would normally expect from a typical sheltered heir/chaebol character.

The supporting cast was fun too. Some characters are extra over the top and borderline annoying (OMG Young Seo's cousin's voice was so excruciating), but the silliest moments still usually make me laugh. One of my favorite characters of all was Lee Deok Hwa as Ta Moo's drama-addicted matchmaking Grandpa. He looked like he was having fun too, playing a sillier spin on the kind of role he's played so many times before. The only characters who were a buzz kill were the Chef and his petty Girlfriend. They weren't bad, they were just... "meh". I'm glad their screen time was limited.

Would I watch this again? Definitely. I already rewatched many of the episodes while waiting for the next episode. There's something comforting about a lite drama like this that's so easy to binge and is still fun to watch even with such a basic plot. Next time I'm in the mood to watch attractive couples with great chemistry I'll queue this up! I will be tempted to fast forward to my favorite moments and skip the filler, but even the filler is pretty funny.

Overall, after being disappointed by so many recent dramas, and not being in the mood to watch something deep or gutwrenching, this drama exceeded all of my expectations. I watched knowing nothing about the webtoon, so I can't compare them. Is the plot logical? Absolutely not. Will that matter while watching? I doubt it. Sometimes it felt like I was watching "What's Wrong With Secretary Kim" Jr but take that as a compliment. There's a reason so many of these tropes are in so many dramas again and again, and "A Business Proposal" embraces that unapologetically, and with cute animation to help set that mood. I am genuinely going to miss this drama. I wasn't prepared for it to end but I'm so glad it ended with me still enjoying it and didn't drag on and become stale and disappointing. This drama stays consistently silly and sweet from beginning to end but also has heart and its own original flavor thanks to the cast. There's also mild food porn, so I wouldn't attempt to watch while hungry. I'm hoping to find another drama this cute, since real life has been too heavy lately to appreciate a heavy drama, and this was the perfect escapism.

This is 100% a guilty pleasure drama, but I feel no shame that I enjoyed every episode.

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WTF summarizes it!!!!

The first episodes were totally misleading. The set up was great and just perfect for a romcom that makes fun of its genre, which I found to be very refreshing not to mention hilarious. Every trope and cliché which we are used to was exaggerated and worked to perfection. But then midway, can´t tell exactly when, the drama started to take itself seriously and that was the beginning of its demise… like a domino… all the build up of situations and wonderful characters started to go to shit.

The imposed chemistry of the leads that was charming at first became quite uncomfortable to watch and root for it. The whole contract or blackmailing between leads, and the ML stalking and harassing the FL at work, kicking her out of the car at night in the middle of nowhere just because “apparently" he is too traumatized by the rain and yet he can still drive. WTF???? And on top that, when he sees her again back a the hotel he flaunts his money in order to win her heart. I find that behavior absolutely unacceptable. ML does all these horrible things in a non-fun, non-charming way to impress FL. Those actions cannot be considered sexy or attractive not for a girl like our FL or anyone really. Just a biggo NO. NO. NO.

Yes, ML is handsome. YES, he is rich, but he is also a bland entitled brat that no woman with self-respect would stay around someone like him. So that leads us to our master piece of a final episode with the WTF ending, which I find quite fitting for a messed up series like this one.

On that memorable final episode the writers gave us that "WONDERFUL" scene between the FL and her chef crush. Throughout the whole series she is in LOVE with this chef and in that final episode she bluntly tells him that she is STILL in love with him. Seriously? who thought that that would be a great resolutions for a rom-com where the leads are supposed to end up together in love? Weird? YEAH, you bet! Isn’t that by , at least, the last episode the FL supposed to be dead over hills in love with our main guy, even if he is a total red flag? Were the writers on drugs? Did I miss something? I must’ve because I really cannot make sense of it all.

And oooooh you know what´s even more wonderful? That final scene where our entitled brat proposes to our FL and she hesitates, not giving him a straight answer and then they walk off happily(???) side by side. Oooh how romantic. Just PERFECT!!!!! WTF did I just watch????? Yes, I have watched my fair share of stupid series, but this one, actually I don´t know what to do with it. It deserves to be in the same WTF genre as Forecasting Love and Weather.

Would I rewatch this series? Hell no, not in a million a years.

Would I recommend it to others? Yes, if you´re brain dead. If you want a fun rom com with a ridiculous plot as well, but great acting to watch, please do yourself a favor and turn to Lucky Romance.

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Barely resembles the webtoon on which it's supposedly based

Frankly, it's like watching badly written fanfiction in which the author does not understand the personality or motives of a central character. Taemu is the driving force in this webtoon - everyone is reacting to his decision that he's going to marry Ha-Ri come hell or high water. That's part of his tiger personality, the reason he's an effective CEO, he makes decisions quickly and sticks to them, no wavering. The humor comes when Ha-Ri is trying to run away from this crazy man who won't take 'no' for an answer even though she's falling for him. Part of what makes Taemu special is his single-minded determination to marry the woman he had a blind date with. Even when he finds out she's his employee and she was lying to him, he's still determined to marry her. At this point, the drama is just another 'contractual engagement/marriage' plot, which isn't at all unique. It's Taemu's obstinate pursuit of Ha-Ri which makes the webtoon fantastic as well as his flirtatious banter with her. You take away his marriage badgering, and you've taken away the guts of this webtoon.

Starting at episode 3, be prepared for the drama to diverge widely off the webtoon. Ha-Ri does not meet Grandpa while in her fake identity. Taemu/Cha never made a fake backstory for her or their romance either - because that would make Taemu a hypocrite. It's stated several times in the toon that he hates lying, but what is he doing right now to Grandpa? He's lying - that's out of character. It's true he hired her to play the role of girlfriend, but to him, she wasn't fake. It was merely a means to an end - he played along to get what he wanted. Same with the contractual dating that Ha-Ri later suggested. Drama Taemu is far too cold to Ha-Ri. Taemu warmed up to her very quickly in the webtoon, giving her charming smiles and bantering flirtatiously with her. He also preferred pursuing her to his work. I love in the toon where he tells Cha - 'if work is my first love, Ha-Ri's my last love.' He's always completely in control - just like a cat/tiger with a mouse/rabbit, and he never has to think about making their fake relationship real. It's always been real to him. He would never, ever snap at her like he does in this episode after her rain comment to Grandpa. The webtoon Taemu did not get flustered (surprised a times and overheated from a kiss maybe, but not flustered) nor would he ever wear a coat with zebra patterned lapels (Grandpa, yes, Taemu, no). To me, Taemu is right up there with Mr. Darcy - perfect in every way and not open to character tweaking by a director/screenwriter. To make matters worse, Young Seo and Cha's relationship is totally different from the webtoon - so boring I even fast forwarded through their scenes.

Just an aside. Taemu in the webtoon could be forgiven for not recognizing Ha-Ri in her pink wig. Taemu of the drama is apparently as blind as Lois Lane.

So much is being cut out, which doesn't need to be. Typical K-dramas run 16 episodes; this one is 12 so there was plenty of time to leave the toon as originally written instead of inventing things like how Taemu parents died. I guess webtoonTaemu was just too perfect so they had to invent this ridiculous rain phobia. No doubt he'll have to prove his love for Ha-Ri by running through the rain. It just feels like this was a hurriedly slapped together drama that I'm currently finding a BIG disappointment. It's hard for me to continue watching because they're butchering Taemu's character as well as the plot.

FINAL UPDATE - I don't know who this guy is masquerading as Kang Taemu, but he's not the character we all love and adore. Same goes for Secretary Cha (actually, he's even worse than Taemu). Heck, Min-Woo isn't even the squid we know even though they've given him a professional upgrade. Same goes for Young Seo's rival - she was not a Korean version of a Valley girl. They have totally gone off the cliff as far as following the original storyline. They've basically taken a romantic comedy template based on a contractual relationship, given the characters the names of those in the webtoon and thrown in a bunch of tropes that you find in the typical Chinese Rom-Com because I guess that's what the audience needs to make their hearts flutter or something. Did the Chinese produce this? We have MC falling on top of each other and accidentally kissing, we have imaginary umbrella scenes, we have Taemu suddenly afraid of the rain (did they get that from "She Was Pretty"?) and ML giving FL medication to put on her bruise (and him looking like an awkward schoolboy while doing so; if there's one thing Taemu never lacked it was confidence, Director/Writer!). I'm surprised it wasn't the old 'high heels rubbing a blister on the girl's foot so the guy applies a Band-Aid' trope, but we did manage to squeeze in the fireworks (another Chinese fav). And don't get me started with the MC's kisses. Taemu and Ha-Ri shared some pretty hot kisses in the toon; their Kdrama kisses are like watching siblings kiss. If the actor/actress didn't want to kiss in a believable way then get someone else to play the part. Their love scene was painful to watch as well - so awkward and forced. Really these two had very little chemistry.

FINAL, FINAL UPDATE: Episode 11 made me pull my hair out, and I'm now bald (just kidding). This is SO not in the webtoon. Grandpa is suddenly a baddie, when he was absolute sweetheart in the comic. They have SO missed the comedy that Grandpa provided as he worked to assist (not destroy) Taemu and Cha's romances. Taemu never pleaded with Grandpa to accept his choice. He was a tiger to Grandpa's lion, and he would have fought Grandpa tooth and nail for Ha-Ri, but Grandpa was faking his disapproval just to get a little revenge. I'm now convinced it was written and produced for the Chinese viewing audience because it has everything a typical C-drama has in it - accidental kisses while falling, umbrellas, fireworks, tyrannical parent trying to separate couple, and now a social media scandal caused by a vindictive female love rival (but not Taemu's, Min-Woo's) leading to this silly 'send Taemu back to the US' idea. Come on, Netflix, Korean Rom-Coms have progressed beyond this kind of stuff so I can only conclude this was based on a Chinese Rom-Com template. If you can't do a better job, just keep your hands off Korean drama, ok?

The webtoon was fresh and lively, had brilliant dialogue, memorable characters and was above all - FUNNY; the drama has none of that except for some tropey comedic moments. Apparently, someone decided that the webtoon 'as is' wasn't interesting enough to hold an audience (although there's tons of us out here who LOVE the webtoon and wanted to see it come to life) so they had to throw in a bunch of stuff that never happened. If I were the author of the webtoon, they couldn't pay me enough money to let them butcher my lead men and plot like this.

If you've never read the webtoon, then you'll probably be happy with it even though it's the same old cold CEO/Cinderella story that's been told numerous times in Asian drama. It's got all the cliches and tropes, most of which did not happen in the webtoon. Go read the webtoon, and you'll understand why I'm ranting. If you have read the webtoon and still want to continue on, I suggest you tell yourself that this is happening in a parallel universe to get yourself through it - that's what I've been doing anyway. I literally weep at what they did to Taemu's character. They've made him into a vindictive, petty, unsophisticated, romantically awkward, weak, easily flustered, hypocritical man-child, which is totally opposite of what he is in the comic.

Stars reduced to 4 because it's so wildly different than the webtoon on which it's based. I would drop it lower except for the fact that, if you didn't already know and love the comic, it's an average Rom-Com that hits all the cliché/trope buttons, making most viewers happy. Speaking of viewers, it's interesting that those reviewers who give a low rating are complaining about the storyline rather than how it's butchering the original webtoon. Same goes for those reviewers giving high marks.

My biggest fear is that viewers will think this drama is a true reflection of the webtoon - IT'S NOT IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM! I can't stress that enough, and it just burns me up that, for the most part, 'What's Wrong with Secretary Kim' followed the original webtoon, but my all time favorite comic gets butchered to the point of making it unrecognizable because it's being forced to follow a template rather than allowing it to be its wonderfully delightful and hilarious self.

I'm going to have to re-read the webtoon to cleanse my eyes from this dramaland hatchet job.

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The only drama where I wished had MORE episodes :):)

Yes it has all the usual cliches - accidental fall and kiss✔️, contract bf/gf then really falling in love✔️, pretending to be someone else on a blind date✔️, rich guy CEO normal girl from “poor” family✔️, crazy colleagues✔️... maybe the one cliche it didn’t have was the bitchy ex or the love rival?! BUT!! Even with all the cliches, this drama is SO SO GOOD!!

1) It has only 12 episodes, so the pace is really fast. This is the first drama that I wished was longer!!! 2) It’s super hilarious- slapstick comedy as well as witty humour. 3) The four main leads have such awesome chemistry and VISUALS!! They look so good! 4) The romance between both couples is so sweet and done just exactly right! 5) The side characters are NOT AT ALL boring! I’ve seen so many dramas where the supporting casts are so annoying or such a let down. These support casts are great and funny!!

It really really is an epic rom-com. The ratings nationwide in SKorea is the highest! It has only two episodes left so if you have been contemplating, start now!! Highly highly recommended :):):)

Update: the final episode was just too rushed. Was expecting more after all the hype and build up from the entire series. There should have been a few more to wrap it up nicely. :(

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