You who are passionate about ‘My Boyfriend’, do you want a second life?

ize Yoon Jun-ho (columnist)

“A second life again?”Someone is scolded. But eventually we see it again.

Recurrence dramas depicting protagonists living their second lives have been pouring in like a flood in recent years. It was sparked by ‘The Youngest Son of a Chaebol Family’ and ‘Again My Life’, and recently, ‘The Standard of a Perfect Marriage’ and ‘Marry My Husband’ #39; Dramas with similar story frames are knocking on TV screens. It is in the same context that time slip, medical, and legal dramas were popular at one time. But why is the public interested in second life at this point?

This is coupled with a difficult social situation that makes it difficult to be satisfied with the current life. Life is always a series of choices. If you want to take one, you have to give up the other. But we don’t know what consequences that decision will have. So people think. “If only I had made a different choice at that time… “But this is a useless regret. There is no way to turn back time. So, at one time, a time slip drama quenched that thirst. Through an unexpected opportunity, you can go to a certain point in the past and meet yourself living in that era.

A relapse that lives a second life can be said to be its advanced form. Since I woke up as my past self with memories of the future, I don’t have to worry about what people around me think. Just act naturally and that’s it. It changes your life little by little. Of course, my life becomes richer.

Originally, the public liked stories like this. Let’s turn back the clock 20 years. MBC’s entertainment show ‘Sunday Sunday Night – TV Life Theater’, which aired from 1993 to 1994, enjoyed explosive popularity by depicting the story of a man living both lives. At the time, broadcaster Lee Hwi-jae played the main role and rose to stardom with the catchphrase, “Okay, I’ve decided!”

And now, 20 years later, the desire for another life and choice is being satisfied through regression dramas. Let’s look again at the story of ‘the youngest son of a chaebol family’. A man who lived as a servant of a wealthy family is murdered and is reborn as the family’s youngest son. Knowing the future, he asks his grandfather for land in Bundang in return for being accepted to Seoul National University’s law school. Avoid it ahead of the IMF, and appropriately utilize the myth of the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup semifinals and the 9/11 terrorist attacks. What will happen will happen anyway. The flow of the trend cannot be stopped. So, the goal is to pioneer my life appropriately within that. Showing such outstanding resourcefulness, he also gained the absolute trust of his grandfather, the founder of a conglomerate. And the ultimate goal is to find the culprit who took his life in the first life, that is, revenge. All viewers supported the revenge. Therefore, viewers were angry when they finally reached the conclusion that life in the second episode was nothing more than a dream. This is because it was a blow to the viewers who were enjoying vicarious satisfaction.

Another throwback, ‘Marry My Husband’, is handling the second episode’s life more cleverly, as if it was based on the actions of the ‘youngest son of a chaebol family’. As expected, it starts with revenge. The main character, Kang Ji-won (Park Min-young), learns about her husband’s affair with her best friend while she is fighting cancer. Kang Ji-won, who was sobbing after witnessing the scene, is eventually murdered and wakes up again as himself 10 years ago. She then tries to marry off her scumbag husband and her best friend who has deceived her all her life. So the title is ‘Marry My Husband’

‘Marry My Husband’ was difficult to see as a blockbuster or anticipated work. Not only was it scheduled as a Monday-Tuesday drama, which has recently been in a slump. Actress Park Min-young, who plays the main character, has been rumored for an unpleasant incident. However, with the fun of the drama, Park Min-young’s outstanding performance, and the ingenious setting, Marry My Husband quickly became the most notable drama as of 2024.

First of all, it is more realistic than ‘The youngest son of a chaebol family’ as it is set in an ordinary company. Therefore, the barrier to entry felt by viewers is low. The story of a chaebol family may seem a bit distant, but ‘Marry My Husband’ also has the characteristics of an office drama. Kang Ji-won usually disapproves of her and gives a blow to the manager and managing director who try to steal her performance. The scene where she takes revenge on those who bullied her during her school days is also a highlight. There are quite a few people who felt catharsis after seeing Kang Ji-won, who appeared at the reunion in a completely different appearance, confidently saying what he had to say and overpowering the group.

Another interesting point in ‘Marry My Husband’ is that it establishes that the second life may not be ‘my own.’ Another main character, Yoo Ji-hyuk, also wakes up after an unexpected car accident and lives his second life. Yoo Ji-hyuk, who originally admired Kang Ji-won, no longer hesitates or tolerates it. He actively protects Kang Ji-won. It is a reflection on his indecisiveness in not being able to put his thoughts into practice. Moreover, he is a second-generation chaebol. This is a typical Cinderella story. But it doesn’t matter. Because living a second life itself is a fantasy, viewers no longer judge this drama based on ‘realism’.

This setting leads to the ending of episode 6, which depicts two people realizing that they are living a second life. The situation of confessing that you like a song by the yet-to-be-released group BTS and then discovering the other person’s secret is tickling but thrilling.

The destination of these emotions is vicarious satisfaction. It is every human being’s wish to live life again. Make a lot of money by investing in high-quality stocks, avoid risks, and find out who the really good people around you are. Of course I can’t do it. So, I can only support the second life of the main character in the drama I support.