“Start-Up” Episode 2 Review And Recap- A Shockingly Childish Premise But Still Fun

Published Categorized as Kdrama Reviews
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“Start-Up” Episode 2 has aired a couple of hours ago and I am here to discuss my thoughts on it. Last night’s episode was lots of fun and today’s episode carries that same sentiment well, however, I was slightly disappointed by the premise which we’re about to discuss below.

So join me as we go through “Start-Up” Episode 2.

Note: this will be a spoiler review of the said episodes in the title. This is a subjective review.

Related: “Start-Up” Episode 1 Review And Recap- A Heartfelt Promising Premiere

Nam Joo Hyuk’s return

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I’ve spoken a lot about Nam Joo Hyuk in the past and about his choices as well. “The School Nurse Files” was a quirky fun drama with an interesting premise and I’ve been sensing that his choices in dramas have dramatically improved over the last couple of years.

Nam Joo Hyuk is by no means suitable to play every character there is but he knows it and he’s doing his best to improve and that is something I admire.

I wished to see him play a quirky geek and this character already has a special place in my heart. Nam Do San is kind, smart and sort of a goof. I loved loved that he isn’t playing the hotshot here but rather the underdog who’ll rise to the top. It’ll be very interesting to see his growth.

Nam Joo Hyuk has another drama coming up in 2020 I believe, he’s set to take on the 2nd or 3rd leading role in a drama called “Here.” He’s truly taking chances and working with the right people. I am so proud of him.

Is Kim Seon Ho’s character pretentious?

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We haven’t even begun yet but people are already split on Kim Seon Ho’s character, some think he’s a jerk, others think he’s kind. I am with the latter and not because I like the actor but because the character is good, the flashbacks shows that he’s rough around the edges having grown up without parents but the flashbacks also show his kind self.

He might’ve been selfish but he saw a chance and took it. I don’t think his attitude is bad at all, he’s slightly arrogant but rightfully so, it’s not like he’s going around kicking people and mistreating employees.

I feel like I am already torn between the two characters but we’re only two episodes in.

The disappointing connecting premise

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This is where some of you will hate me, but before you type your comment, hear me out.

I was honestly surprised by “Start-Up” Episode 2 and not in a good way. It has nothing to do with the actors, it’s about the script.

Screenwriter Park Hye Ryun has been writing for a very very long time but the kind of childish premise we saw in episode 2 tells a different story and I didn’t like it.

“Start-Up” was supposed to be about youth in their mid to late 20s showing growth and taking on life challenges, drifting the plot towards an innocent white lie that snowballs into something so unnecessarily dramatic isn’t good writing in my opinion, especially not from someone who’s been writing more than 15 years.

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Even if the grandma started the lie innocently to cheer Dal Mi up, if she begins to notice that Dal Mi is making shit up in her mind and actually refusing to get with possible boyfriends because of an imaginary person, that’s a problem.

Forget that; let’s say the grandma rolls with it, but the moment Dal Mi insists on seeing him should’ve been the moment she told her he ain’t real. This entire scenario isn’t the way real human beings deal with real problems, and I expect more mature content from such a script idea. I saw in the preview that they’re going to keep going with the lie and making more shit up, and that honestly annoyed me more than I expected. I seriously hope Dal Mi finds out by episode 3 so we move on from this chapter quickly.

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This idea of making up a character to carry a white lie isn’t really my cup of tea at this stage of watching kdramas, you can say I outgrew such ideas. This is closer to teenage type of romance dramas rather than a romance drama for the targeted demographic they’re aiming for.

I expected a more ‘realistic’ mature plot from Screenwriter Park Hye Ryun. I know she usually runs with stereotypes and clichés but I think I should’ve lowered my expectations even more. I wasn’t expecting to be blown away by the plot but I also wasn’t expecting such an outdated idea to be used. I wanted to see the two characters meet in an adult premise and for them to build a relationship naturally like actual real-life adults.

This doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy “Start-Up” episode 2 but that part irked me more than I expected. I still find the characters cute and the overall idea fun. Lets see how it goes.

So these are my thoughts on “Start-Up” episode 2. What about you guys? what did you think of it?

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By Jass K.

Hi, I am Jass k. I discuss some of the hottest currently airing kdramas on this site in form of reviews an/or recaps, join me in the discussion~

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