K-drama Review: Love to Hate You

This light-hearted Rom-Com, featuring a famous movie actor and a feisty, feminist attorney as the love interests, is one of my go-to rewatches whenever I want a feel-good mood uplift.

English Title: Love to Hate You (2023)

Writer: Choi Soo-young

Director: Kim Jung-Kwon

Length: 10 Episodes

Tropes: Fake Relationship, Enemies to Lovers, Opposites Attract, Office/Workplace Romance, Celebrity Hero

My Score: 4/5

Description: Aggressive attorney Yeo Mi-ran (Kim Ok-vin) doesn't trust men, and only enters a fake dating arrangement with her entertainment law firm's biggest client, famous romantic lead actor Nam Kang-ho (Teo Yoo), to prove that he's as untrustworthy as every other man she's dated. Nam Kang-ho has an equally big distrust of women - so, naturally, these two are a perfect fit for each other.

If you enjoyed this show, then watch: Shooting Stars, Touch Your Heart, ID: Gangnam Beauty (same writer)

This is one of my favourite shows, and I often re-watch my favourite scenes, especially when I want a quick pick-me-up. I'm a sucker for stories set in the movie business (thanks to my own past history), and I love actor heroes and seeing the behind-the-scenes on film shoots - this show has both. There are also some great action scenes worked into this otherwise straightforward Rom-Com - but the emphasis is most definitely on romance rather than action in this K-drama.

The story can be viewed as a kind of Pride and Prejudice in that the heroine is prejudiced against the hero (in fact, prejudiced against men in general - and for good reason) and she wounds the hero's pride, which kicks off their enemies-to-lovers story, making them the most unlikely couple to enter a fake dating arrangement.

Why do I recommend this show?

• At only ten episodes it doesn't require a huge time commitment. (And it's available on Netflix with a dubbed English soundtrack if you want to watch a K-drama with dyslexic family members who don't read subtitles!)
• I love the main characters, and there is some gorgeous eye candy. The male lead (ML) is played by the yummy German/Korean actor Teo Yoo who has an impressive background working in multiple countries and languages - and I love his crinkly, smiling eyes. (You can also check out Teo Yoo in Celine Song's Oscar- and Golden Globe-nominated movie, Past Lives.)
• The secondary male lead (actor Kim Ji-hoon) is equally attractive - he has the most beautiful long hair!
• The female lead (FL), played by Kim Ok-bin, is a feisty, feminist heroine who is not only a modern career woman but also a kickass martial artist. Strong female characters are pretty common in K-dramas, but this one is even more impressive than most and really makes my feminist heart sing.
• Of the four lead characters, the only one who didn't appeal to me is the FL's best friend / roommate who came across a bit like a Regency "simpering miss" at times. But I like the strong, supportive female friendship between the two women, and love the healthy, supportive friendship between the two male leads even more!
• This may be the only Kdrama where you get to see a romantic kiss between the two male leads. (You'll need to watch the show to get the context.) We also get a rare steamy scene between the hero and heroine.

On the down-side (and the reason this show only gets 4 stars from me, rather than 5):

• There are a few silly moments, with over-the-top sound effects and animated visuals, but fortunately they're limited to a couple of episodes. Overall the show feels realistic and relatable, even making the famous, superstar actors relatable.
• The ML's emotional conflict felt over-done, with his past history with women giving him a rather disproportionate reaction to being with women, which stretched my credulity a little, however that's only a minor detraction in an otherwise fun, easy-to-watch show. Love to Hate You won't tug at your heart strings or leave you feeling emotionally broken, but it will give you all the feel-good emotions of a heartwarming Rom-Com.

What should writers be looking for in this show? Not a lot. The pacing is good, and the unfolding of the romantic relationship is good, but there are other shows that better demonstrate those aspects of storytelling. The characters' emotional wounds and conflicts aren't very deep in Love to Hate You, though they are perfect for a low-angst Rom-Com. My suggestion is just to sit back and enjoy this K-drama, rather than studying it for writing craft. After all, we all deserve some time off once in a while - and this show certainly offers fun, light-hearted escapism.

Have you watched Love to Hate You? What were your thoughts? If you haven't yet watched it, check out this trailer: