[비즈한국] The popularity of 'Undercover Miss Hong', which is racing toward its finale, is intense. Starting with a 3.5% viewership rating for the first episode, it reached 10.1% on the 12th episode aired on February 22nd, and ranked first in buzzworthiness across both TV drama and non-drama categories. 'Undercover Miss Hong' is a retro office comedy set in the late 1990s, where 30-something elite securities supervisor Hong Geum-bo (Park Shin-hye) goes undercover as an entry-level clerk at a brokerage firm where suspicious fund flows have been detected. Just at the end of last year, there was 'Taepung Trading' which dealt with a similar time period, and the undercover genre itself is a familiar concept. So, why is it so popular?
First of all, the tone, which balances potentially heavy subject matter with comedy to make it easy to enjoy, is charming. The story behind why Hong Geum-bo was kicked out of her first workplace, an accounting firm, and the story of Director Yoon Jae-beom (Kim Won-hae) who brought her to the Securities Supervisory Board are heavy. On the other hand, the setup of a 35-year-old woman who has seen it all infiltrating as a 20-year-old clerk is absurd. However, when these two combine, the backstory provides justification for the setup, and the exaggerated comedy serves as a lubricant, making it feel surprisingly natural. The skill of PD Park Sun-ho, who played with exaggerated comedy in 'Business Proposal', shines here.
It is also unique in how it summons the 90s, not just as an object of nostalgia, but by delivering a 'refreshing' kick to the era, which was a 'time of barbarism'. When elite securities supervisor Hong Geum-bo becomes Hong Jang-mi, a high school graduate clerk at Hanmin Securities, her personality as Hong Geum-bo is excluded, and only the title 'Miss Hong' remains. Things were like that back then. Female high school graduate clerks were treated as consumables who brewed coffee and ordered lunch. However, having already survived in a male-dominated society, Hong Geum-bo knows how to strike a vengeful blow when someone like General Manager Cha Joong-il (Im Chul-soo) spouts rudeness. How could this not be exhilarating?
Above all, the greatest resonance of 'Undercover Miss Hong' comes from solidarity. This drama is clearly about the exploits of Hong Geum-bo, but the beauty of the emotion comes from witnessing the growth process she achieves through solidarity. When she was a securities supervisor, Hong Geum-bo was an educated woman who graduated from Seoun University's economics department and a career woman who made financial criminals tremble, known as the 'Witch of Yeouido', but she had no colleagues. It might be due to the petty nature of colleagues who were jealous of the first female supervisor, but Hong Geum-bo herself likely did not offer much room for others.
However, once she becomes the 20-year-old Hong Jang-mi and enters the dormitory, Hong Geum-bo meets colleagues to stand with. Go Bok-hee (Ha Yoon-kyung), a secretary to the president of Hanmin Securities who fled domestic violence; Kang Nora (Choi Ji-soo), who joined as an entry-level clerk while hiding that she is the daughter of Chairman Kang Pil-beom (Lee Deok-hwa); and Kim Mi-sook (Kang Chae-young), a contract worker at a Hanmin Securities branch who is a single mother raising a young daughter. By building friendships with women living lives she had never experienced, Hong Geum-bo broadens her horizons. She finally learns that while principles are important, sometimes compassion is even more so.
The same goes for her solidarity with others like Albert Oh (Jo Han-gyul), the chairman's grandson who helps her, Manager Bang Jin-mok (Kim Do-hyun), who teamed up with President Kang Myung-hwi (Choi Won-young) for the sake of the firm, and Manager Lee Yong-ki (Jang Do-ha), who respected the high school graduate clerk Hong Jang-mi from the start. Although it initially appears to be a temporary alliance to achieve a goal, through her solidarity with them, Hong Geum-bo also realizes that the justice she pursues can conversely cause harm to others.
The drama's intent also declares that it is 'a story about empathy, hope, and solidarity that we must not forget.' Perhaps the popularity of 'Undercover Miss Hong' is a response from people fed up with the reality that screams 'every man for himself'? Just like how posts about 'witnessing humanity' on social media often receive passionate responses. The reason for summoning the 90s seems to be because it was a time of barbarism, but also a time when the sentiment remained of the whole nation coming together to collect gold during the IMF crisis.
Furthermore, the solid performance of the cast, including Park Shin-hye, who has always been a great actor but is acting like a fish in water, is one of the reasons to watch this drama. Park Shin-hye’s next-level acting spectrum, which covers comedy, drama, and women-centric friendships, cannot be praised enough. Ha Yoon-kyung, who was the 'Spring Sunshine' of 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo', also delivers a performance worthy of applause. She smoothly portrays a complex character who fled from domestic violence and became an embezzler stealing money, but never lost a shred of humanity, performing well alongside Park Shin-hye.
Male lead Go Kyung-pyo, as Shin Jung-woo, is a bit stiff, making his character less fun, but the 'middle-aged men' troupe fills that gap, providing plenty of humor, which is another joy of watching 'Undercover Miss Hong'. It would have been disappointing without Im Chul-soo, who plays a villainous role that is frustratingly cheeky but eventually gets refreshingly defeated by Hong Geum-bo, and Kim Won-hae, a supporter of Hong Geum-bo who devotes himself to laughs, including parodies of Hong Kong movies.
'Undercover Miss Hong' is currently in the middle of a counterattack by Hong Geum-bo's group, aiming to uncover the hidden slush funds of the Hanmin Securities family and return the company to the employees, with the finale scheduled for March 8th. If you haven't started the drama yet, now is a great time to start.
About the writer, Jung Soo-jin?
I have covered and written about film, travel, and popular culture while working for various magazines. I don't want to fall behind trends, but I've become an 'old person' who predicts the obvious clichés in the next scene while watching the latest dramas. I am trying to regain my lost sense while drifting in the vast OTT world, and my current wish is for a unified OTT subscription plan.