The Story
I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this show. Maybe it’s because it followed a pretty heavy show for me and I needed something a little lighter with some heart and character development. The Great Show is a family comedy drama about a down-on-his-luck politician who finds out he has a daughter he never knew about. She comes to him after her mother dies and leaves her alone to raise her three younger siblings. He decides to take them all in as a way to repair his tarnished reputation. Of course, being a family is never easy, whether you are related by blood or not. Through the ups and downs of living life together they start to become a real family.
The plot is slower paced, and relies on the characters to drive it. Though the general tone of the show is pretty light, they still manage to tackle some big issues, that give the show it’s substance. I enjoyed the way they allowed the relationships between the characters to develop naturally, instead of forcing the point too quickly. I’m not much of a crier, but I did find myself tearing up a couple times. This is a sweet show about the importance of family, no matter how untraditional that family may look, and the way that family can make you into a better person.
The Characters
The Great Show stars Song Seung-Heon (Player, Black) as Wi Dae-Han, the scheming and disgraced politician. He loses his run for assemblyman when his opponent finds out that Dae-Han’s father died alone while living in a study dorm while his son purposefully ignored him. Public opinion quickly swings against him and he is defeated. He steps out of the limelight and becomes a designated driver, barely scraping by, when suddenly an unknown daughter comes on the scene. He agrees to let her and her three younger siblings move in with him, hoping to restore his reputation and run again in the upcoming election. Initially he has some success, and he is elevated from being known as the “Nation’s Sinner” to the Nation’s Dad”, but then life happens. And we all know life is messy. Especially if you are trying to raise four children.
Dae-Han is not a perfect hero. His motives aren’t pure, and in the beginning, he only acts if it has an advantage to him. But one of the things I liked about this drama was watching him grow into a caring dad and a sincere person. Song Seung-Heon does a great job of bringing enough humor to the role, that even at his most selfish, you can’t help but like him. I felt myself rooting for him at every step of his journey to self improvement.
Dae-Han’s college crush is Jung S00-Hyun, played by Lee Sun Bin (Sketch, Criminal Minds). Just a note, that Lee Sun-Bin is 18 years younger than Song Seung-Heon in real life. Some people seemed to have a hard time letting go of that fact. It didn’t stand out that much to me. I didn’t even know until after I finished watching it, and read some comments.
But back to Jung Soo-Hyun. She had dropped out of college suddenly, after just going on her first date with Dae-Han, and told him not to contact her. Dae-Han never knew why, but we find out that while she was on her dream date with Dae-Hyun her sister ran an errand for her at the mall, and was killed in an accident. Soo-Hyun blamed herself, and not letting herself be happy with Dae-Han was part of the punishment. Soo-Hyun still sees and talks to her sister and at first we don’t know she is actually dead. When Soo-Hyun moves into Dae-Han’s neighborhood and runs into him at the public market, she is given a chance to heal her wound and possibly find happiness again.
Although it’s the kids who draw her into the circle of their family first, she is soon acting as the surrogate mom/sister and standing at Dae-Han’s side through everythintg that happens. She is loyal and caring and highlights all the areas where Dae-Han falls short, but she sees beyond the surface to the heart he has hidden inside. The way they quietly support and lean on each other is sweet.
Im Joo-Hwan (Different Dreams, Bride of the Water God) is Kang Joo-Ho, Dae-Han’s highschool rival and our second male lead. His rich and politically powerful father wants him to run against Dae-Han in the electiion. To make matters worse, Joo-Ho is interested in dating Soo-Hyun and isn’t at all shy about making it known. His character is a little dry and boring, but he is interested in politics because he really cares about the people, unlike his father. He is likeable, if not especially dateable. I haven’t watched Different Dreams, so maybe there is still hope, but it would be nice to see him do a drama where he actually gets the girl. 😂
The Kids
Dae-Han’s daughter is played by Noh Jung Eui (Kill It, Live Up To Your Name). Han Da-Jeong comes looking for Dae-Han out of desperation. Shortly after moving in, she finds out that she is pregnant and makes the brave choice to keep the baby and raise it with her boyfriend. She stays in school and puts up with being bullied and exhausted. Through it all, she fights to keep her siblings with her and as well adjusted as possible. I found her character to be admirable and mature.
Han Tak is the oldest male sibling. He and Da-Jeong do not share either of their parents, but they have been raised together and share a bond. Tak has some scars based on the fact that his father abandoned the family and that Dae-Han is Da-Jeong’s biological dad but not his. He acts out, as the rebellious teen, and makes some trouble for Dae-Han. Tak is finally won over when Dae-Han shows that he trusts and believes in him, and it’s a win for both of them.
Park Ye-Na and Kim Jun play the adorable twins. Yes, they are stereotyped, but these little actors handled their roles well. Park Ye-Na is the smart, precocious one. She is mature, for an eight year old, helps support the stability in their family dynamic. Kim Jun is the troublemaker. He is full of energy and tends to leave chaos behind wherever he goes. He is not willfully naughty, just accident prone, and he has a hard time reigning in his energy and enthusiasm.
The Ending
We all know there are no such thing as secrets in dramaland, so it shouldn’t be much of a surprise where this one ended up. There are three big secrets that built on each other through the course of the show.
1. Dae-Han finds out through a DNA test almost from the very beginning that Da-Jeong is not actually his daughter.
2. Dae-Han and Da-Jeong draw up a father/daughter contract that makes their relationship seem much more like a business proposal than a family connection.
3. Da-Jeong’s biological father is actually a criminal who sexually attacked her mother.
Dae-Han’s political opponents find out about these secrets and threaten to expose them to the public if he doesn’t drop out of the race. Given the choice between being a father and a politician, Dae-Han decides that nothing could be more damaging than for Da-Jeong to find out about her father. He calls a press conference to announce his resignation, but Da-Jeong finds out about it and shows up to beg him not to quit. They have a very touching moment in front of the cameras, and while the first two secrets are made public, the question of her real father remains a secret.
For the last few minutes, we have a six month time jump, to see where everything settled. In the end, Dae-Han lost the election and Joon Ho is in office. Dae-Han is working with the traditional market to make it more popular with the younger generation by developing a more modern and trendy style. Dae-Han is hinting heavily that he wants to marry Soo-Hyun. She is playing hard to get but we see her make a wish to join their family, so that seems like a done deal. The kids father has moved to Vietnam, for real this time, and left the kids with Dae-Han and Da-Jeong. And Da-Jeong has given birth to an adorable baby girl.
They do a nice job of wrapping up all the loose ends on this one, and we are left with the overarching theme that family is not born; it is grown through love and time together. Good on them for tackling some difficult topics and then letting love and family triumph over them all.
Should I Watch
This isn’t a high action kind of show. It also relies on some cute kid moments, which I heard that some found annoying. While there are subtle tones of romance, it definitely takes a back seat to the family story. If you need strong, romantic closure, you might be unhappy with this one. This isn’t a perfect drama, so that’s the negative. But if, like me, you don’t mind taking your time through a beautiful story that will make you laugh and cry and fall in love with it’s characters, please give this one a try. I think it will be worth your time. I give The Great Show an 8 out of 10 ramen.
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