[비즈한국] There is only one reason I started watching 'Siren'. The impeccable taste of actress Park Min-young in choosing projects. Working like an ox while filming dramas almost every year, Park Min-young has a quite impressive track record of success. The tvN Monday-Tuesday drama 'Siren' has also never missed the top spot in its time slot for every episode.
The protagonist is Han Seol-ah (Park Min-young), a beautiful and capable art auctioneer. For some reason, this woman is always in close proximity to death. Her parents died in a fire when she was young, leaving her the sole survivor, and all the men she has been involved with have also died. From her former fiancé, a restaurant businessman, to her previous lover, a doctor, and even the lover before him, a staff member of an international relief organization. What is even more suspicious is the fact that all of Han Seol-ah’s men had taken out large life insurance policies and designated her as the beneficiary. Coincidentally, they all canceled their insurance just before their deaths, so Han Seol-ah received no benefit, but the circumstances are highly suspicious.
Insurance investigator Cha Woo-seok (Wi Ha-jun), a former police officer, is the first to start suspecting Han Seol-ah. This is because Han Seol-ah's fellow auctioneer, Kim Yoon-ji (Lee Elijah), met a suspicious death shortly after calling Woo-seok to report that Han Seol-ah was a suspect in an insurance murder case. Haunted by the pain of losing his only younger sister to insurance fraud, Cha Woo-seok begins to relentlessly pursue Han Seol-ah. However, the deeper he digs, the stranger things get. Is Han Seol-ah really like a Siren from Greek mythology, a being that lures sailors to their deaths with a beautiful song? Or perhaps, is someone intentionally killing the men in Han Seol-ah’s life? That is how Cha Woo-seok begins to fall for Han Seol-ah.
From the beginning, the drama casts a suspicious eye on Han Seol-ah, who remains consistently expressionless, while simultaneously adding scenes that suggest she could also be a victim, and populating the plot with a series of suspicious characters to amplify the mystery. And in episode 7, after reaching the turning point, it revealed more of Han Seol-ah's innocence while taking a step forward in the romance between Han Seol-ah and Cha Woo-seok. The problem is that this drama, which strives to be a 'Romance-Thriller,' feels like it is missing the mark on both fronts.
Why do I think that? First of all, I don't feel emotionally connected to the protagonist, Han Seol-ah. Perhaps due to the unhappiness that began in her childhood, Han Seol-ah keeps her distance from everyone and sometimes pushes others away aggressively. Although she is a character who wears an emotional suit of armor and builds walls, there should have been some emotional buildup to help the viewers empathize with her, and I feel that process was lacking. Perhaps that is why the romance between Han Seol-ah and Cha Woo-seok feels so abrupt. A prime example is the ending of episode 4, where when Cha Woo-seok cornered her, Han Seol-ah attempted suicide on impulse, and Cha Woo-seok, while stopping her, shouted, "Han Seol-ah, I am curious about you."
In episode 7, as the entity tormenting Han Seol-ah and her backstory are revealed, the narrative shifts from depicting Han Seol-ah as a terrifyingly seductive siren to a woman who is just incredibly unlucky with men, which seems to diminish the thriller appeal this drama once held. As the police in the drama say, three coincidences are not just a one-time thing; they are suspicious. To be involved with the wrong men three times—was the show trying to tell a story about a 'tragic beauty' in 2026?
The drama keeps layering on provocative settings to create a fatal atmosphere, but at times it ruins the probability so much that even if I try to brush it off as 'it's just a drama,' the lack of logic is an issue. The incompetence of police in Korean dramas isn't new, but in 'Siren,' they are truly depressingly incompetent. It might be intended to make the male lead stand out, but the setting where insurance investigator Cha Woo-seok conducts undercover investigations that put detectives to shame is too detached from the genre, ruining the immersion (does he not get fired from his company?). Not to mention the somewhat one-dimensional dialogue.
Nevertheless, the reason I haven't dropped the show yet is that it at least provides eye candy with its flashy visuals. 'Siren' is a remake of the Japanese drama 'Ice World,' but unlike the original, by setting the protagonist's profession as an art auctioneer, her glamorous appearance, fashion, and the multi-million to multi-billion won artworks captivate the viewers' eyes. As it pursues a fatal 'Romance-Thriller,' the visuals, art, and music blend sensually to drive the atmosphere of the show.
In the second half, it seems Han Seol-ah’s long-prepared revenge will unfold, likely satisfying the dopamine cravings until the end. Aside from the IT company CEO Baek Joon-bum (Kim Jung-hyun), who has revealed his beastly claws, the story with Royal Auction Chairperson Kim Seon-ae (Kim Geum-soon), who seems deeply connected to Han Seol-ah’s misfortune, is set to be revealed. On top of that, Joo Hyun-soo (Park Ji-an), who drove Cha Woo-seok’s sister to death, appears to be returning, and friends who have stayed by Han Seol-ah’s side for a long time, Do Eun-hyuk (Han Joon-woo) and Hwang Sook-ji (Song Yi-woo), are still not cleared of suspicion, so there is room to watch a bit longer. I hope the remaining episodes will feature a narrative and emotions as intense as the atmosphere.
About the writer Jung Soo-jin?
She has worked at various magazines, covering movies, travel, and pop culture. She doesn't want to fall behind trends, but she has become an 'old-fashioned person' who predicts obvious clichés in the next scene while watching the latest dramas. She is trying to regain her lost edge while drifting through the vast OTT world, and her current wish is for an integrated OTT subscription plan.