Overview of My Liberation Notes
‘My Liberation Notes’ is a South Korean television series directed by Kim Seok-yoon, starring Lee Min-ki, Kim Ji-won, Son Suk-ku, and Lee El. Set in the fictional Sanpo village in Gyeonggi-do province, ‘My Liberation Notes’ is a slow-burn story that tells the story of three siblings (Lee Min-ki, Kim Ji-won, and Lee El) and a drifter (Son Suk-ku). The three siblings are exhausted by the monotony of the mundane life and seek fulfilment and liberation from their quotidian lives. In the journey to liberation, there is a profound resolution to the character arcs of all three siblings.
Profile
- Drama: My Liberation Notes
- Directors: Kim Seok-yoon
- Writer: Park Hae-young
- Network: JTBC
- Episodes: 16
- Release date: 9 April 2022 –May 29, 2022
- Language: Korean
- Country: South Korea
Cast
Main
Kim Ji-won as Yeom Mi-jeong
The youngest of the three siblings. Mi-jeong works as a graphic designer for Joy Card Company. With a timid but bold and outspoken personality, Mi-jeong is the true image of a reliable youngest daughter keeping up with the expectations of an Asian household family. She spends her weekends helping her parents on their farm.
Having a reserved personality, she is reluctant to join any social clubs at her workspace but later becomes part of the Liberation Club, teaming up with people who share similar interests in the office. Despite being quiet with the people around her, Mi-jeong is never afraid to express her thoughts when they need to be said out loud.
Lee Min-ki as Yeom Chang-hee
The second of the three siblings works at the headquarters of a convenience store franchise, Alpha Retail. Living his life in Sanpo village and also helping his parents on their farm during the weekends, Chang-hee always wanted to move to Seoul in order to explore new possibilities, make a lot of cash, and live the life of his dreams.
He is exhausted by the long daily commutes and is angered at his girlfriend’s decision to break up with him for living too far from Seoul. Not having any solid goals in life, Chang-hee always gets into an argument with his father regarding his life perspectives. Although Chang-hee may seem too materialistic, he has always prioritised other people and their feelings.
Lee El as Yeom Ki-jeong
The eldest of the three siblings and an employee at a research company are desperate to fall in love with anyone. She is a bit loose-slipped and has an uncontrollable temper at home at times.However, Ki-jeong loves her siblings deeply, and the way she takes care of them is quite thoughtful. She loves without limitations and without expecting anything in return. Ki-jeong does not hold herself back in expressing how much she cherishes a person.
Son Suk-ku as Mr. Gu (Gu Ja-gyeong)
A mysterious guy, was hired by the siblings’ father to assist him around their farm and in their sink business. Little do they know about his identity and past life. He is a loner and talks the least. He is a drunkard who always stares in a certain direction, facing the mountains, while drinking all alone outside his house every single night.
The sense of normalcy he felt in following that routine was disrupted one night when Mi-jeong straight-up walked towards him and told him to worship her. While the Yeom family got more and more curious to know about Mr Gu’s life in the past, especially Chang-hee, Mi-jeong always clarified to him that she cares the least about his past and upcoming future as long as she is there with him.
Supporting
People around Yeom’s siblings
-
Chun Ho-jin as Yeom Je-ho
Father of the three siblings.
-
Lee Kyung-seong as Kwak Hye-suk
Mother of the three siblings.
-
Jeon Hye-jin as Ji Hyun-ah
A neighbourhood friend.
-
Han Sang-jo as Oh Doo-hwan
A neighbourhood friend.
-
Jo Min-kook as Seok Jeong-hoon
A neighbourhood friend.
People around Yeom Chang-hee
-
Yang Jun-myung as Lee Min-gyu
Yeom Chang-hee’s colleague.
-
Choi Bo-young as Jung Ah-reum
Yeom Chang-hee’s senior colleague.
-
Jeon Soo-jin as Lee Ye-rin
Yeom Chang-hee’s ex-girlfriend.
-
Oh Min-ae as Byeon Sang-mi
A convenience store owner.
People around Yeom Mi-jeong
-
Lee Ki-woo as Jo Tae-hoon
Yeom Mi-jeong’s co-worker.
-
Park Soo-young as Park Sang-min
Yeom Mi-jeong’s co-worker.
-
Lee Ji-hye as So Hyang-gi
Team Leader of Joy Support Center.
-
Kong Ye-ji as Han Su-jin
Yeom Mi-jeong’s colleague in the design department.
-
Lee Ho-young as Choi Jun-ho
The team leader of the design department.
Others
-
Jung Soo-young as Jo Kyung-sun
Jo Tae-hoon’s second sister.
-
Kim Ro-sa as Jo Hee-sun
Jo Tae-hoon’s eldest sister.
-
Kang Joo-ha as Jo Yu-rim
Jo Tae-hoon’s daughter.
-
Kim Woo-hyung as Park Jin-u
Director at Yeom Ki-jeong’s company.
-
Choi Min-chul as Mr Baek
-
Kim Min-song as Sam-sik
-
Lee Shin-seong as Hyeon-jin
-
Jung Won-jo as Hyuk-soo
Special Appearance
-
Jung Young-joo, a woman at the restaurant
Synopsis
Set in the fictional village of Sanpu, which is just outside Seoul, ‘My Liberation Notes’ tells the story of three siblings who seek liberation from the monotony and humdrum of their very own lives. Their days consist of long commutes and unfulfilling jobs, arguments at home, reconciliations, etc. The three work at their parent’s farm on their off days. They are desperate to seek new horizons. They are constantly in conflict between being caught up in the dullness of their village life and longing for a lively metropolis. On their way back home from Seoul, the world speeds past them and the lights fade. At home, they are again stuck in the monotony of a rural, sleepy village.
Yeom Ki-jeong (Lee El), the eldest, is nearing her forties and is desperate to fall in love, even with just any random guy, as the winter is nearing. Yeom Chang-hee (Lee Min-ki), the middle child, meanders through life with no particular dreams or goals. Yeom Mi-jeong (Kim Ji-won), the youngest, wants to be free from her draining, weary life and abandon the strange, lonely feeling she gets. Each one of them is deeply unhappy in their own way and must come to terms with their personalities and decisions and learn to make changes to add meaning to their lives.
The Yeom family circle consists of one more character, Mr. Gu, with an aloof and strange personality. The family’s lodger with an unclear identity works at their Sanpo Sinks business. He talks the least, drinks a lot and retreats back to the sanctity of his outhouse lodgings every night. One incident makes Mi-Jeong rush to Mr. Gu in hopes of getting help from him in concealing her secret that involves money from her parents.
One night, when Mi-jeong has had enough of it with her professional and personal downfall and consuming loneliness she goes straight to Mr. Gu’s house and makes a curious demand. She asks him to ‘worship her’ instead of just getting himself drunk and dizzying off, in hopes of liberating the both from each of their situations. As the plot progresses, we see their love blooming one petal at a time. However, after certain events, Mr Gu has to return to his former lifestyle, leaving Sanpo. Right after he leaves, the Yeom family undergoes a tragic incident that changes all of their lives.
Theme
Something that matters most in our lives is ‘what we feel’. We ponder over the aptness of a feeling and its felicity. It’s not necessary that we take merriment in every bit of convenience we experience. It’s not required that we feel devastated by a terrible incident. It’s important that we identify our feelings and consider them. It’s essential that we track its direction and navigation.
A slow-burn K-Drama, ‘My Liberation Notes’ presents a thought-provoking theme of ‘the importance of validating our feelings.’
A very commendable aspect we can see in the story is the formation of ‘The Liberation Club’ by Mi-jeong and her three colleagues. Established by a group of introverted people, the club principle goes like this, “I will not pretend to be happy. I will not pretend to be unhappy. I will be honest.” The liberational aspect of this motto is immense as it inspires us to be true to how we feel, without having to conceal our happiness or our excitement or sorrow. Convincing them to be true to themselves, they admit their feelings wholeheartedly and seek solutions to fill the gaps in their satisfaction arc. This is not just the case for Liberation Club members.
The three siblings essentially are people who validate their feelings and sound in expressing their desire for liberation. However, in the development of the character, we can clearly see them striving and seeking to involve themselves in something that fulfils their heart.
A pleasing instance we can see in the series justifying the theme is Mi-jeong’s bold move of expressing her desire to be worshipped by Mr. Gu in front of him. She clearly admits that love is not enough and she wants to be worshipped in order to feel whole. Meditating on that idea, a plain conclusion is that all of us want to be worshipped than just be loved. We crave to feel wholeness but are too unsure about intimating it. Here, Myeong-ji shows the guts to truly demand what she wants and she did validate her feelings.
Towards the end of the series, Chang-hee is successful in acquiring the ownership of a convenience store, clearing off his debts and earning the praise of his father. However, he learns his area of interest when he accidentally listens to a lecture about becoming a funeral director and takes it as a sign. Funerals could appear a bit gloomy all by himself, but Chang-hee was present during the last moments of many important people in his life. He validates his feeling of fate guiding him to something particular and embraces the path laid out before him.
Ki-jeong who was desperate to be in love with any random person at the start of the series identifies her perspective as taking a new turn towards the end. Tae-woon (Mi-jeong’s co-worker), a divorced man with a daughter might not be the ideal kind of person Ki-jeong would have dreamt of as a lover. However, she finds herself increasingly attached towards him and decides to stand by his side in difficult times. In material terms, the duo of Ki-jeong and Tae-woon might not appear rosy. Ki-jeong gives validity to her naive and passionate feelings and moves forward with her decision.
This slice-of-life drama offers many comfortable takeaways of life. We witness honest moments that say life is indeed tiring and ‘My Liberation Notes’ captures that feeling with much empathy. This is a drama that focuses on the journey and not the destination. Walking through a field of thought landmines, the resolving character arcs convey the message of the story. Life throws a curveball on each of them and there is a raw beauty in witnessing these imperfect characters navigate the messiness of life and find their own version of liberation.
Awards
- Korean Drama Awards (2022)
Excellence Award, Acto-Lee Ki-woo - Korean Broadcasting Writers Awards (2022)
Best Writer (Drama Category)- Park Hae-young - Baeksang Arts Awards(2023)
Best Screenplay- Park Hae-young
Interesting Facts about ‘My Liberation Notes’
- The K-Drama, ‘My Liberation Notes’ drew attention for its dialogues and monologues with deep metaphorical meanings, and realistic and relatable storyline.
- The series debuted at number nine on Netflix’s Global Top 10 for non-English television in the list issued for May 16–22, 2022, ascending to number five in the following week.
- During the broadcast, actor Gong Yoo on Instagram recommended his fans to watch ‘My Liberation Notes’ and after the series finished airing he left a review in his fan cafe, praising its direction, screenplay and performance of actors.
FAQs
- Who is the director of the K-Drama ‘My Liberation Notes’?
Kim Seok-yoon. - Who is the writer of the K-Drama ‘My Liberation Notes’?
Park Hae-young. - How many episodes are there in the K-Drama ‘My Liberation Notes’?
16 episodes. - What is the genre of the K-Drama ‘My Liberation Notes’?
Slice-of-life. - What is the Instagram ID of Son Seok-goo and Kim Ji-won?
sonsukku – Son Seok-goo and geewonii – Kim Ji-won.Â
