[Drama 2023] Strangers Again/Can We Be Strangers?, 남이 될 수 있을까

[backstreetboysfan]

Here are the ratings for Episode 2! .

 

 

“Strangers Again” Rises Slightly For 2nd Episode As “The Interest Of Love” Holds Steady

 

ENA’s new drama “Strangers Again” enjoyed a modest rise in viewership for its second episode!

 

“Strangers Again” is a romance drama starring Kang Sora and Jang Seung Jo as two divorce lawyers who get married after 10 years of dating, only to wind up getting divorced themselves. When they meet again as colleagues after their divorce, sparks fly at every time.

 

On January 19, the second episode of “Strangers Again” scored an average nationwide rating of 1.1 percent, marking a slight increase from its premiere the night before.

 

https://www.soompi.com/article/1563752wpp/strangers-again-rises-slightly-for-2nd-episode-as-the-interest-of-love-holds-steady

[larus]

Strangers Again: Episodes 1-2

by missvictrix

Snappy yet sweet, raucous yet surprisingly thoughtful, Strangers Again lands a great premiere week. We meet our heroine, learn about her divorce, and not a moment later does her ex-husband show up at her office door.

Editor’s note: The drama formerly known as Can We Be Strangers has done a last minute switch of their official English title, which we’ll now use.
 
EPISODES 1-2 WEECAP

 

I know we’re only on Week 1, but I suspect this drama was perfectly cast. Kang So-ra shines as the talented, gorgeous, and successful attorney OH HA-RA who is secretly (or not so secretly) still a disaster after her husband cheated on her a few years back. Even in our first episodes, she strikes a great balance of fiery fury and genuine vulnerability.

Then, on the other side of the coin we have her ex-husband GU EUN-BUM (Jang Seung-jo), whom I would really love to hate in the role of unfaithful husband… but somehow can’t? He’s charming and puckish — hence our heroine’s dilemma. And the genius of this casting.

Also, by giving us only our heroine’s side of the story, there’s enough reasonable doubt to make us wonder what really caused this couple to divorce years ago — and the teasing out of their relationship in both the past and the present is where the meat of this story lies.

 

But first, we have to understand our heroine, the “goddess of litigation,” who’s living high on the hog — partly because she’s a brilliant attorney, partly because she gets a huge monthly alimony from her ex-husband. The drama paints the picture of this broken marriage for us over the course of the first episode, with enough hints of Ha-ra’s anger over adultery that it’s no surprise when it’s confirmed that that was what broke up her own marriage.

In a sharp contrast of circumstances, her ex-husband Eun-bum is down to his last 8000 won, desperately needs a job, and though we don’t see much into his circumstances yet, he definitely gives off the vibes of having been kicked in the pants by life. Or Ha-ra. Or perhaps both. She has no problem noting Eun-bum as “a penniless piece of RickRoll'D and live witness of karma” lol. Her fury takes it one step past normal and into the extreme, and that’s part of where the drama gets its personality from (more on that later).

The firm where Ha-ra works is run by CEO Seo (Jeon Bae-soo) and CEO Hong (Gil Hae-yeon), both brilliant in their roles already. CEO Hong is the wise and firm hand that keeps their meetings from devolving in daily fisticuffs, and CEO Seo is the one that sleeps through meetings and seemingly has the ability to see right through people. He’s close with Eun-bum, takes pity on him, and hires him to the firm (admittedly while drunk lol). He even tells Eun-bum that he’s still in love with Ha-ra — and interestingly, Eun-bum doesn’t even try to deny it. (This is the closest we see into Eun-bum in our premiere week, and I’m hoping the camera turns to his side of things more as the drama progresses.)

But back to Ha-ra and her “frenzy button.” She’s furious that her bosses would even think of taking on her cheating ex-husband, but she’s also in the middle of a very high-profile divorce case that seems to be an impossible win. Ha-ra’s case involves a famous actor (cameo by Park Yong-woo) who’s seeking to divorce his wife (cameo by Jung Yumi) whom he suspects of having an affair. He also wants their prenup to be honored… for which there is yet no legal precedent in Korea.

 

more https://www.dramabeans.com/2023/01/strangers-again-episodes-1-2/

 

 

[Sleepy Owl]

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[larus]

3 Things We Loved & 1 Thing We Hated About The Premiere Of “Strangers Again”

Features

Jan 24, 2023

by kaityv

 

If you’re looking for a great enemies-to-lovers romance that combines with the exes-to-lovers trope, look no further than “Strangers Again.” The story follows the story of two divorce lawyers, Oh Ha Ra (Kang Sora) and Goo Eun Beom (Jang Seung Jo), who were once married to each other after 10 years of dating but have recently divorced. Although they haven’t seen each other in a couple of years, Goo Eun Beom comes to work at the same law firm as Oh Ha Ra. Here are a few things we loved and one thing we hated about the first two episodes!

Warning: spoilers ahead!

LOVED: The chemistry between the leads

While any great K-drama needs chemistry between the leads to entice viewers, the tension that arises between characters in the enemies-to-lovers and exes-to-lovers tropes requires the leading pair to have a sizzling spark. Fortunately, Kang Sora and Jang Seung Jo deliver this to the audience. They have intense bickering scenes that are paramount for enemies-to-lovers, but they also have that great camaraderie in their characters that you need for exes-to-lovers. There isn’t just hate between them; there’s also a decade’s worth of friendship and familiarity between them as well. It’s enticing to watch and keeps you wanting more—how will Oh Ha Ra and Goo Eun Beom grow back together? Can Oh Ha Ra forgive Goo Eun Beom for turning his back on their marriage? Only time will tell.

 

 

LOVED: The strong female relationships

Little things are more enjoyable to watch than strong female relationships in K-dramas. When it comes to romance dramas, female characters can often be pitted against each other. Fortunately, “Strangers Again” gives us not one but two strong relationships between women within the first two episodes. Oh Ha Ra has amusing yet pivotal conversations with her co-worker and close friend Kang Bi Chwi (Jo Eun Ji) as well as a serious and meaningful talk with her boss Hong Yeo Rae (Gil Hae Yeon). Since their close friendships are already established, it will be interesting to see how they will react and support each other while the rest of the story unfolds.

 

LOVED: Oh Ha Ra putting herself out there

It’s no secret that there’s a stigma around divorced women, especially when it comes to them finding love again after they have ended their marriage. Although it started under shaky circumstances, the first two episodes introduce a new love interest for Oh Ha Ra. While she isn’t open to dating Min Jae Gyeom (Moo Jin Sung) right away since he’s affiliated with her ex-husband, she allows herself to open up to him. Their scenes are sweet, especially when he lets her know that he doesn’t care that she has been divorced. While it may not last, considering the drama is about her and Goo Eun Beom, it’s amazing to see her open her heart and allow herself to have some fun.

 

HATED: Oh Ha Ra not getting to shine as a “litigation goddess”

Going into the premiere episodes of “Strangers Again,” almost every description of the drama named Oh Ha Ra as a “litigation goddess.” And while she had a few scenes where she totally owned the courtroom, it was hard not to notice that many of the victorious scenes seemed to prop up Goo Eun Beom instead. For example, in the first divorce case of the show, Oh Ha Ra is struggling to frame her client’s extreme jealousy as something that didn’t cause the couple’s divorce. Instead of finding the loophole herself—like one would think since she is the “litigation goddess” of the show—Goo Eun Beom finds it for her instead. And in the second divorce case, she comments on how she could sue the opposing council for being inappropriate during their meetings, but again, Goo Eun Beom does it for her instead.

 

more https://www.soompi.com/article/1563894wpp/3-things-we-loved-1-thing-we-hated-about-the-premiere-of-strangers-again

[Latte_Anyday]

Why divorce LoL?! They weren't havin' an affair and yet.. hm strange LoL.

 

Eun Beom's friend sleeping with Ha Ra's bestie ahah.. the guy act like he's the woman in their relationship. How is it there are people that're as conservative as him still exists ahah?! 

 

The case of custody was messy and Ha Ra was so petty. Jumping to conclusions without talking it over with Eun Beom beforehand sigh. 

 

[backstreetboysfan]

StrangersAgain releases new OST "Forgive Me" by HwangChiyeul

 

 

[backstreetboysfan]

Here are the ratings for Episode 3! .

 

 

“The Interest Of Love” Achieves Its Highest Ratings Yet As “Poong, The Joseon Psychiatrist 2” Climbs Back Up

The ENA drama “Strangers Again” remained steady with an average viewership rating of 1.1 percent as it aired its third episode.

 

https://www.soompi.com/article/1564281wpp/the-interest-of-love-achieves-its-highest-ratings-yet-as-poong-the-joseon-psychiatrist-2-climbs-back-up

 

[backstreetboysfan]

Here are the ratings for Episode 4! .

 

 

“Strangers Again” And “The Interest Of Love” Rise To Their Highest Ratings Yet

 

Both ENA’s “Strangers Again” and JTBC’s “The Interest of Love” achieved their highest viewership ratings to date last night!

 

On January 26, “Strangers Again” scored an average nationwide rating of 1.4 percent for its fourth episode, marking an all-time high for the new romance drama.

 

https://www.soompi.com/article/1564434wpp/strangers-again-and-the-interest-of-love-rise-to-their-highest-ratings-yet

[larus]

Strangers Again: Episodes 3-4

by missvictrix

Not wasting any time at all, the cat is out of the bag and we find out the truth behind our heroine’s divorce. And just like that, all the emotions she was just learning to accept are turned on their head. It’s nothing as dramatic as we were expecting, and that’s why it hits as hard as it does.

 
EPISODES 3-4 WEECAP

 

I might have liked Week 2 even more than last week — despite staying zippy and fun, it manages to hit quite deep in moments. I’m impressed how deep they’re able to go, actually, and I think the production deserves a pat on the back. Taking what we learned of Ha-ra last week — fiery, brilliant, wounded — the story takes that foundation and shows us what happens when everything she thinks she knows changes.

We open up where we left off last week. Ha-ra is out with Jae-gyeom and spies Eun-bum with the woman he supposedly destroyed their marriage over: KI SEO-HEE (Park Jung-won). And because she’s Ha-ra, she confronts them right away, only to be left even more furious.

 

But because jokes about murdering Eun-bum for his betrayal aren’t enough, Ha-ra weasels her way into his next case, as he is representing Seo-hee as she sues for custody rights of her daughter. Ha-ra pulls some strings and thanks to her PD’s dongsaeng’s wife’s friend’s sunbae (or some combination of that — I loved this lol), in about five seconds she’s representing Seo-hee’s ex-husband. Much like last week, this take on lawyering is far-fetched and completely unprofessional, but we’ll just give them a dramaland hall pass, since the entanglement between these two couples reveals a ton of plot that wouldn’t have got out any other way. *Hall pass engaged*

During a court appearance, Ha-ra and Eun-bum are so riled up over the case that the poor presiding judge tells their clients, “Your attorneys are as passionate as if this is their own battle.” And then he has to eat his words because it’s soon revealed that’s exactly what it is.

Later, when the battle gets ugly, each team pulls out their hidden card: Eun-bum says that the reason Seo-hee left her family was because her husband assaulted her. Then, not to be outdone, Ha-ra plays the card they were all dreading: Seo-hee was an adulteress who abandoned her family of her own free will.

 

Here, Eun-bum can’t sit still. He’s so deeply involved in this case and getting Seo-hee’s daughter back to her, that in the middle of court, in a frantic mess, he admits that there was never an affair. He cooked the whole thing up and Seo-hee agree to go along with it because he simply “wanted a divorce.” Then he turns from the judge to Ha-ra and says: I’m sorry.

Wow! This is the last thing I had in mind for the reason behind their breakup, and it hit in a way I completely didn’t expect. Ha-ra runs after Eun-bum and Seo-hee, stilettos in hand, demanding an explanation, and when she finally gets it from Eun-bum, it’s a very affecting scene. Ha-ra (like all of us!) was busy thinking up all the crazy and dramatic reasons that he would have wanted to divorce her, but the answer isn’t terminal illness or anything else like it. The answer is simply that married life wasn’t for him. He wanted out, and then he found the only way to do it where he knew she would gladly agree to the divorce.

more

https://www.dramabeans.com/2023/01/strangers-again-episodes-3-4/

[Latte_Anyday]

Okay the reason for divorce was kinda .. lame. Like seriously Eun Beom LoL?! And the way he went off on Ha Ra on Da Wool was so ott. Ugh now I want Ha Ra to end with Jae Gyeom for real.

[larus]

Finally, ENA’s new drama “Strangers Again” debuted at No. 9 on this week’s drama list.

The top 10 dramas that generated the most buzz in the third week of January are as follows:

1. tvN “Crash Course in Romance”
2. JTBC “The Interest of Love”
3. JTBC “Agency”
4. SBS “Payback”
5. KBS2 “Three Bold Siblings”
6. tvN “Missing: The Other Side 2”
7. KBS2 “Vengeance of the Bride”
8. MBC “The Forbidden Marriage”
9. ENA “Strangers Again”
10. SBS “Trolley”

 

https://www.soompi.com/article/1564676wpp/crash-course-in-romance-dominates-most-buzzworthy-drama-and-actor-rankings-for-2nd-week

[Nomorelisa]

On 1/28/2023 at 5:51 AM, Latte_Anyday said:

Okay the reason for divorce was kinda .. lame. Like seriously Eun Beom LoL?! And the way he went off on Ha Ra on Da Wool was so ott. Ugh now I want Ha Ra to end with Jae Gyeom for real.

The most lamest excuse for getting divorced IMO.  We can conclude that he has fallen out of love hence introducing his friend to Ha Ra is his way of atoning.  If they do get together again I will have no reason to continue watching this drama for I think he is a a very shallow person if he has feelings for an ex but yet pushed her to another man.

[Latte_Anyday]

@Nomorelisa

Eh? I thought he did it to avoid payin' alimony LoL? But he doesn't have to now. Ha Ra told 'im to stop payin' so (shrugs) 

 

I just think he got married with false expectations. Expectations that she would concede or be subservient which she obviously is not ahah. They seemed more like roommates actually.

 

[Latte_Anyday]

I change my mind LoL. I still root for Ha Ra and Eun Beom together eheh. The drama needs to reveal the actual truth of their divorce, 'cause the reason given as I said was lame af LoL. I mean there's gotta be more to it..

    Jae Gyeom .. though nice abs is becoming a tad too idk clingy(?) Also he keeps kinda forcing Ha Ra to constantly meet up with his mom. 

    I think Ha Ra's father is havin' an affair or somethin'.. and Eun Beom is rich but why does he live like a pauper LoL?  His car seat keep reclining is hilarious.

 

[backstreetboysfan]

Here are the ratings for Episode 5! .

 

 

 

“The Interest Of Love” Soars To Its Highest Ratings Yet

 

Meanwhile, episode 5 of ENA’s “Strangers Again” achieved an average nationwide rating of 1.2 percent, seeing a small dip from its previous episode’s score of 1.4 percent.

 

https://www.soompi.com/article/1565080wpp/the-interest-of-love-soars-to-its-highest-ratings-yet

 

[Latte_Anyday]

Ugh Ha Ra's father isn't as "lovely" as she thinks and her mom is seeking a divorce. The mom has pleaded Eun Beom to keep it a secret but don't think that's helpful as mistress confronted the father. With a knife in purse..

    Marriage is not what it seems at least by the many divorce cases they handle on the show LoL. 

    

[backstreetboysfan]

Here are the ratings for Episode 6! .

 

 

 

“Strangers Again” Ratings Climb To New All-Time High As “The Interest Of Love” Heads Into Final Week

ENA’s “Strangers Again” rose to its highest viewership ratings yet last night!

 

On February 2, the romantic comedy earned an average nationwide rating of 1.5 percent for its sixth episode, marking a new personal record for the show.

 

https://www.soompi.com/article/1565211wpp/strangers-again-ratings-climb-to-new-all-time-high-as-the-interest-of-love-heads-into-final-week

[larus]

Strangers Again: Episodes 5-6

by missvictrix

Our divorced couple makes some decisions about the new romances that are blooming in their lives — but what might look like moving on is actually anything but. When our hero finds himself caught in his ex-father-in-law’s shocking secret, he’s torn between telling our heroine the truth, and protecting her with a lie.

 

EPISODES 5-6 WEECAP

 

We open with Ha-ra wet-haired in a towel, fresh out of the shower at Jae-gyeom’s house. He’s so completely flustered and smitten with her that it’s adorable. But it’s also sad, because with an opening scene like this (i.e., we miss all the action between them) it’s clear as day that poor Jae-gyeom ain’t endgame.

What happens instead is his mother (pitch perfect cameo by Jeon Soo-kyung) walks in — surprise I’m back from the States and in your living room — and Ha-ra is so shocked she drops her towel. It’s all very rom-com ridiculous (*cringe*), but it also leads into the next thematic phase of our drama.

Previously, the plot — supported by the legal cases — took a look at faithfulness in marriage, or the lack thereof. Now, our drama widens that lens to look at another aspect of marriage: what it’s like to be in-lawed to your spouse’s parents, and how much marriage can be affected by family.

 

We first see Ha-ra confronted with this. Even though she’s agreed to be an official couple with Jae-gyeom, she’s having a hard time with his mother. The woman merely wants to apologize for their super awkward first meeting and start over, but Ha-ra is used to her previous relationship with her in-laws. Which was basically none.

This, in turn, leads us to Eun-bum, of whom we are now seeing more of — and I’m pleased to announce he’s back in my good graces. He’s been on the outs with his mother for some time, and it seems to be weighing on him. Over a workplace kitchen chat, Ha-ra says how nice it was not to worry about in-laws when she was married to him. But that’s basically the only positive thing she’ll say about him… and yet their bickery, playful, comfortable relationship continues this week. (The drama is at its best when they’re in the same scene, so no complaints here.)

 

We first see Ha-ra confronted with this. Even though she’s agreed to be an official couple with Jae-gyeom, she’s having a hard time with his mother. The woman merely wants to apologize for their super awkward first meeting and start over, but Ha-ra is used to her previous relationship with her in-laws. Which was basically none.

This, in turn, leads us to Eun-bum, of whom we are now seeing more of — and I’m pleased to announce he’s back in my good graces. He’s been on the outs with his mother for some time, and it seems to be weighing on him. Over a workplace kitchen chat, Ha-ra says how nice it was not to worry about in-laws when she was married to him. But that’s basically the only positive thing she’ll say about him… and yet their bickery, playful, comfortable relationship continues this week. (The drama is at its best when they’re in the same scene, so no complaints here.)

 

more https://www.dramabeans.com/2023/02/strangers-again-episodes-5-6/

 

 

[Latte_Anyday]

Ha Ra's half sis is a brat. The father is shameless, fathering a child at his age. What a mess.

    Am glad that's the last we'll see of Jae Gyeom (fingers crossed) 'cause he irks me LoL. So clingy and controlling ugh. 

    And it looks like her bestie might be preggers. Do they seriously not use birth control LoL?! She doesn't look like the domestic homemaker type LoL. Don't think she'd give up her career to be a dutiful wife/ mom/ daughter-in-law which in S.K. is just another house helper if we're bein' honest here LoL.

    Ha Ra still has feelings for Eun Beom and I hope he does too.. he still cares for her a great deal. Sigh LoL.

    

[backstreetboysfan]

Here are the ratings for Episode 7! .

 

 

“The Interest Of Love” Ratings Climb To New All-Time High As “Poong, The Joseon Psychiatrist 2” Enjoys Boost Ahead Of Finale

Episode 7 of ENA’s “Strangers Again” earned an average nationwide rating of 1.4 percent, seeing a similar score as its previous episode’s rating of 1.5 percent.

 

https://www.soompi.com/article/1565962wpp/the-interest-of-love-ratings-climb-to-new-all-time-high-as-poong-the-joseon-psychiatrist-2-enjoys-boost-ahead-of-finale