Overview of Diary of a Prosecutor

‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ is a 2019 South Korean television series directed by Lee Tae-gon, starring Lee Sun-kyun, Jung Ryeo-won, Lee Sung-jae, Kim Kwang-kyu, Lee Sang-hee and Jeon Sung-woo. The series is based on the novel ‘Geomsanaejeon’ by Kim Woong.

‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ tells the stories of overworked prosecutors’ daily lives in the fictional city of Jinyeong, South Korea. Conflicting the ideas of glam and exposure in a prosecutor’s life, the drama partakes the pragmatic personalities of prosecutors and how they deal with their struggles and cases.

The 16-episode series aired on JTBC’s Mondays and Tuesdays at 21:30 (KST) time slot from 16 December 2019 to 11 February 2020.

Profile

• Drama: ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’
• Director: Lee Tae-gon
• Writers: Lee Hyun, Seo Ja-yeon
• Network: JTBC
• Episodes: 16
• Release date: 16 December 16 2019 – 11 February 2020
• Language: Korean
• Country: South Korea

Cast

Main

• Lee Sun-kyun as Lee Sun-woong
  Prosecutor Lee Sun-Woong works in the Criminal Investigation Team 2 at the District Prosecutor’s Office Jinyeong Branch. Serving as a prosecutor for 10 years, Sun-woong has a considerate heart which always comes into play while performing his duties, however, he is regarded as the kind of guy who isn’t afraid to rock the boat when he feels he is right. He comes from a well-to-do family and was acquainted with Myung-joo back at university.

• Jung Ryeo-won as Cha Myung-joo
  Prosecutor Cha Myung-joo graduated from the Judicial Research and Training Institute at the top of her class, the same school (and year) as Lee Sun-woong. She was a successful prosecutor in Seoul for 11 years until being forced to relocate to Jinyeong and work at the District Prosecutors’ Office until she can return to the capital. She was Sun-woong’s junior at university, but she began her legal career a year before him. She avoids wasting time on cases, making her appear careless in the perspective of some of her coworkers.

• Lee Sung-jae as Jo Min-ho
  Chief of Jinyoung District Prosecutor’s Office’s Criminal Investigation Team 2 and he has been a prosecutor for 18 years. He does an excellent job of balancing his authority as Chief while maintaining genuine friendships with all of the prosecutors on his team. He enjoys biking and strives to keep young both internally and externally. He has a child and is divorced from a ballerina whose father is a government official.

• Kim Kwang-kyu as Hong Jong-hak
  Prosecutor Hang Jong-hak has 14 years of experience as a prosecutor. After winning the second-place lottery reward once, he has been obsessed with purchasing lottery tickets, despite spending more money on them than he won.

• Lee Sang-hee as Oh Yoon-jin
  A working mother with four years of experience as a prosecutor. Prosecutor Oh Yoon-jin (Lee Sang-hee) was a violent crimes detective before leading a hectic life as the mother of twin babies.

• Jeon Sung-woo as Kim Jung-woo.
  The Criminal Investigation Team 2’s youngest prosecutor. Soon after arriving in Jinyeong, Myung-joo replaces Sun-woong as his mentor. Although he enjoys dating, his busy schedule keeps him from doing so. He has no true passion for his career, but he chose to become a prosecutor because the profession is well-regarded by others. He enjoys updating his social media accounts and is an ardent gamer.

Supporting

• Baek Hyun-joo as Jang Man-ok
  An investigator with 30 years of experience and usually works closely with Sun-woong.

• Ahn Chang-hwan as Lee Jeong-hwan
  An 8-year-experienced investigator assigned to Myung-joo’s office.

• Ahn Eun-jin as Seong Mi-ran
  An assistant with 3 years of experience. A very quiet person who only speaks when necessary.

• Jung Jae-sung as Kim In-joo
  A prosecutor with 24 years of experience. He is the head of the Jinyeong Branch of the Jangwon Prosecutor’s Office.

• Kim Yong-hee as Chief Nam
  A prosecutor with 18 years of experience. Chief Nam entered the prosecution the same year as Min-ho.

• Shin Cheol-jin as Ryu-jin
• Park Sung-yeon as Kang Young-hee
• Cha Soon-bae as Choi Tae-joong, a lawyer.
• Kwak Ja-young as Lee Soon-chul, a shaman.
• Son Kyung-won as Kim Young-chun, an industrial worker.

Synopsis

Set in Jinyoung (a fictional place, Seoul) ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ tells the story of a group of legal professionals, their everyday struggles, challenges and reality. The story is told through the eyes (and voice) of Prosecutor Lee Sun-woong of Criminal Investigation Team 2 at the District Prosecutor’s Office Jinyeong Branch.

Lee Sung Woo is a fearless, hardworking lawyer who handles cases with ease. While in his tenth year as a prosecutor, a year and a half ago he was assigned to Jinyeong District where he is “currently spending his [my] most cheerful days” because Jinyeong is his hometown. He describes himself as an expert in “beseeching for investigation.”

A closer look at the daily activities of the office can be found in “Diary of a Prosecutor.” A large portion of the prosecution’s job is issuing summonses, and the other portion involves negotiating with numerous suspects, victims, witnesses, and documents that, if stacked together, would be taller than the prosecutor himself. There is an unofficial competition between Criminal Investigation Team 1 and Team 2 at the Jinyeong branch.

The Chief of the latter Prosecutor Min-ho frequently compares them with Team 1, and Team 2 is consistently found wanting. One significant distinction is that they have a great deal of more unsolved cases than Team 1. Additionally, they rank second in the number of incidents in which the victim filed a formal complaint, the number of autopsies required, and the proportion of senior employees.

One day, least expected Sun-woong’s junior from college (Judicial Research and Training Institute), Cha Myung-joo gets transferred to the same office leading to interesting events. Cha Myung-joo is an elite prosecutor, who was rising on the ladder of success at the Central Seoul District Prosecutor’s Office before being assigned to the District Public Prosecutor’s Office in Jinyeong.

Graduating at the top of her class, Myung-joo has been a prosecutor at all the District Prosecutor’s Offices (North, South, East, West, and Central), becoming the sort of prosecutor seen on television for the past 11 years. She has been transferred to Jinyeong as a ramification of the after-effect of one of her cases, and she is determined to serve her sentence quietly in the countryside and return to Seoul as soon as possible.

Myung-joo meets a number of dedicated and overworked prosecutors in Jinyeong who work towards their aspirations by settling cases. Sun-woong frequently disagrees with Myung-joo soon after she becomes his colleague. However, Myung-joo develops a new perspective on the role of law, order, and justice after coming to know about Sun-woong’s ideas and observing the daily lives of the overworked prosecutors and how they handle the case.

Loaded with comedy, pathos, and heartfelt moments, the drama depicts the actual and raw life of lawyers, taking a distinctive step forward from other dramas that glorify this profession. The series focuses on the prosecutors’ pragmatic attitudes while ignoring notions of a glamorous life and heroic resolution to crimes. Their daily lives are filled with challenges and obstacles. The drama depicts how they battle their inner demons, strive to better themselves every day, fight against all odds, and strive to bring justice in the greatest way possible with each passing day.

The strong character bonds are a highly commended ingredient of the series. Their friendship is put to the test multiple times, but they remain unwavering, willing to lend a helping hand to each other in times of need. By allowing the character to progress personally, the drama demonstrates character development. Every one of them develops into a better person, which benefits both their personal and professional lives.

Theme

Life is a great teacher. When we go all blank, life takes us to certain points where the mirrors of reality would reflect the truth. We might arrive at conclusions that we are right or else we would take a completely different perspective on life. ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ presents a truthful theme of ‘ naive realities of life surrounding everyone’ in a beautiful and heartwarming way. An ambitious prosecutor, when transferred to a small local office in the countryside, witnessed a life without less glam. As she experiences the daily routines of these overworked prosecutors and sees how they handle their cases, she gets a different perspective on the role of law, order, and justice.

‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ demonstrates that legal practitioners, like any other human being, face life’s challenges and tribulations. The Jinyeong Branch, located at the southernmost tip of Korea, is known as the prosecutors’ exile. Perhaps a lawyer with strong goals wouldn’t want to wind up there. There, we observe greater grit, generosity, and pragmatism.

Every day, Prosecutor Lee Sun-woong of Criminal Investigation Team 2 lives his life without any desire or aim. Seon-woong narrates,’ Prosecutors are nothing special, they’re mostly just stuck in their little offices buried under paperwork or fighting with victims, witnesses and suspects.’ He understands that their branch isn’t every prosecutor’s ideal, but even Jinyeong needs prosecutors. Regardless of how unappealing their work may be, everyone performs their duties diligently.

Never been one of the elites, Seon-woong is content with working in the unglamorous Criminal Division, where cases tend to be humdrum. They frequently handle summonses, and Seon-woong has no issue bursting out in satoori (regional dialect) and making friends with the locals, much to Jung-woo’s disgust. In accordance with the captions, we can even see that Seon-woong is an “expert in begging.”

One of the most appealing aspects of this series is that nothing is presented as ideal. K-dramas are famed for having prim and proper lead characters that do everything precisely and properly and establish a standard that a real person cannot meet. Ignoring these steps and the high ideals that most K-Dramas establish, ‘Diary of a Prosecutor tends to look towards the ground realities of life. This worldly and realistic drama smashes all stereotypes built towards prosecutors and legal personnel while meticulously wrapping cultural and sociopolitical events in time.

‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ breaks the rule that the main characters should always conclude on a positive note. It demonstrates how everything may appear to be in order, yet reality may hold something different. The series is neither mysterious nor surprising, nor is it action-packed. However, those who recognise the beauty of growth will capture the essence of the show.

Awards

No records found.

Interesting Facts about Diary of a Prosecutor

1. The K-Drama ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ is also known as ‘War of Prosecutors’.
2. Screenwriter Park Yeon-seon and director Lee Tae-gon of the K-Drama ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ have previously worked together on the television series Hello, My Twenties! (2016) and its sequel Hello, My Twenties! 2 (2017).
3. The scenes of the K-Drama ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’ taking place in the fictional city of Jinyoung were filmed in Tongyeong, in South Gyeongsang Province, where more than 150 members of the cast and crew resided during the five months of filming.

FAQs

1. Who is the director of the K-Drama ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’?
   Lee Tae-gon.
2. How many episodes are there in the K-Drama ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’?
   16 episodes.
3. What is the literal title of the K-Drama ‘Diary of a Prosecutor’?
   ‘War of Prosecutors’.
4. What is the Instagram ID of Jung Ryeo-won?
   
   @yoanaloves is the Instagram ID of Jung Ryeo-won.