'She Was Pretty' Offers An Empowering Message Through Hwang Jung Eum's Makeover
Korean drama heroines are often homely, poor young women who are waiting for a conglomerate heir prince, who will magically show up on their doorstep, before whisking them off for a full makeover.
The ninth episode of "She Was Pretty" broke the K-Drama mold, as Kim Hye Jin (Hwang Jung Eum) took the initiative to take several steps towards revitalizing her life, without waiting for a guy to lead her to a department store or personal shopper.
While this could have been a small point in the series, screenwriter Jo Sung Hee elevated the transition made by Hye Jin from plain Jane to fashion-forward working woman, into a pinnacle moment that is on-par with makeover scenes from dramas like "Boys Over Flowers" to "Master's Sun."
The episode opens with Hye Jin as she enters a pricey hair salon. She is almost dissuaded by sticker shock, after discovering that hair straightening and a professional dye job would cost a couple of hundred dollars. However, she decides to stick with the hairstylist, who reassures her that she will help to make her tangled mane manageable.
Hye Jin tackles her wardrobe, before participating in a makeup demonstration. While all of the steps inevitably cost money, she recognizes the future benefit of receiving more respect at her workplace, the prestigious fashion magazine, the Most.
When she returns to her position as a fledgling intern, she is poised and her co-workers are awestruck at her transformation from the hot mess of the office to a woman who has the potential to model in a fashion editorial.
While the actions taken by Hye Jin could be criticized as yet another attempt by Korean dramas to encourage irresponsible consumerism, the first scenes of the episode conclude with a strong message from the newly empowered woman.
Hye Jin informs her beloved co-worker, Kim Shin Hyuk (Super Junior's Choi Siwon) that she decided to make clear changes in her life, in order to achieve her dreams and immediate goals. She has the discussion with him after he convincingly and repeatedly reminds her that he liked her as Jackson, the girl with freckles and unruly hair.
As Korean society becomes more progressive in its recognition of women's rights, more K-Dramas provide empowering messages, encouraging the mostly female audience to embrace changes to improve their lives.
"She Was Pretty" provides a different perspective on beauty, while the tvN series, "Twenty Again," features a nuanced examination of a housewife who revitalizes her life, when she is mistakenly diagnosed with cancer.
In "Twenty Again," Choi Ji Woo portrays Ha No Ra, a 38-year-old woman who attempts to reconnect with her dreams of obtaining a college diploma and finding a career, if even those pursuits are the result of her divorce from a man who prevented her from establishing a professional life.
Both "She Was Pretty" and "Twenty Again" are must-see dramas for viewers who have grown tired of female leads who are plagued with a Cinderella complex or intrepid K-Drama fans whose favorite K-pop song is Miss A's, "I Don't Need a Man."
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Adrienne Stanley is a contributing editor at KDramaStars. She is also a contributing music writer at KpopStarz, MTV Iggy and other publications. When she is not listening to "We Like 2 Party," she can be found on Twitter. (@retrogirladdy).
