“B**ch! and Rich” – The Difference Between Real and Fake

“B**ch! and Rich” is a 2023 Korean drama TV series, with 10 episodes, categorized as Murder Mystery, Revenge, Romance, High School or Youth; and streaming on iQYI.

SUMMARY: A poor girl is a witness to a murder where a rich girl is the prime suspect and they both go to the same school. It’s kind of hard to avoid each other. The poor girl is already lying and pretending to be rich. Her justification is that it’s better that way. Will she also lie about what she witnessed? Would it be better to lie and cover up a crime?

♦ The Fake Rich B**ch!

“B**ch! and Rich”, is about the horrible life of a student at Cheongdam International High School. In this prestigious school, the rich kids are nothing but violent bullies and the poor kids must suffer through high school being tormented by them. But Kim Hye-In has a trick up her sleeve. She’s a poor kid who pretends to be rich. HOW?

When she first entered the school she enrolled to get a sponsorship. That’s what poor kids do. However, she took a part-time job tutoring a rich middle-schooler who spends a lot of time in front of the mirror, taking photos and uploading them to her social media accounts.

One day, when the young girl had not yet arrived home and Kim Hye-In was waiting for her, she decided to take a photo of herself and upload it. In the photo, she was dressed in her school uniform but posing with a very expensive purse. It was a limited edition accessory. The handbag was a result of a collaboration between an artist and a designer and was very expensive. The purse was certainly not an accessory that a poor kid could afford. When she arrived at school, the poor kids pulled her aside and asked her why she was pretending to be poor. WHY? WHAT? (O.o)

Then Kim Hye-In checked the comments on her social media and saw that some were positive, some were envious, but all indicated that she surely must be a rich girl to afford that purse. That’s when the light bulb went off inside her head. Kim Hye-In decided it was better to be rich than to be poor and since they already think she’s rich, might as well lead them on. If she wants to survive high school, it’s better for her that way. But is it really better for her? Oh whatever! It’s justified!

♦ The Real Rich B**ch!

At Cheongdam International High School, Baek Je-Na, comes from an affluent family and her parents have a lot of influence at the school. This means she can do anything wrong and not have to suffer the consequences of her actions. She is called into the school office to be questioned about a bullying incident. The rich kids were bullying the poor kids and somebody reported the matter.

Was Baek Je-Na worried that she might be punished? Not in the least. Several kids admitted that they were the ones responsible. Even though the school official had proof, that did not matter.  Other students willingly took the blame for her. There would be no investigation and the incident would be considered resolved.

Believe it or not, bullying is a matter that should be dealt with via a civil remedy or a criminal penalty. Also, bullying could lead to a worse crime like … murder. In Baek Je-Na’s case, the murder of a high school girl occurred and she is the prime suspect. Kim Hye-In witnessed the murder. She is the sole witness and the only one who can reveal the truth. But will she? Just like it’s OK to pretend to be a rich girl, will she justify telling lies and covering up a crime because … it’s better for her that way?

Main Characters:

• Kim Hye-In (played by Lee Eun-Saem)
• Baek Je-Na (played by Yeri)

Where to Watch

Viewership and Rating:

• IMDb: 6.6 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 7.5 out of 10 stars
• iQIYI viewers rated this series 9.5 out of 19 stars
• Letterboxd: 3.1 out of 5 stars
• Serializd: 3.2 out of 5 stars

My personal rating is 8.5 out of 10 stars.

When you were introduced to the character who played the villain, you immediately hate her! She’s one of those rich people who think they’re the queen and everybody else is a servant or even a slave. You hate her guts and keep hoping she will get her comeuppance!

Then you’re introduced to the poor girl and at first, you want to like her. But then she starts making bad choices and decisions. You watch as she slowly descends into a dark abyss. You wonder if she will be able to get out of that dark hole.

Then these two girls begin to match wits with each other. On the one hand, you want to sympathize with the poor girl and you hope she comes to her senses and realizes that spending your life pretending and lying about who you are is much worse than being poor. As for the rich girl, you have no sympathy or empathy for her. So if she finally gets her just desserts you’re like: “Yes! Take that, you ratty little creep!’

Frankly speaking, I’m glad this series was only 10 episodes. The K-drama trope of the poor kid is WRONG because he or she wasn’t born into a wealthy family is kind of tiresome. I mean … in the real world, are there people who actually think that because they were born into a wealthy family, they’re RIGHT?? Surely everyone knows that riches and wealth are never guaranteed. In an instant, you can go from wealth to poverty. “History is full of riches-to-rags stories …”

LINKS OF INTEREST:

B**c!h X Rich Season 1 Review – Interesting K-drama with a frustrating ending | The Review Geek

10 TV Shows Like ‘B**ch! X Rich’ | The ReviewGeek Recommends

Similar K-Dramas Reviewed by PopGeeks:

• Revenge of Others
• Weak Hero Class 1
• The Glory

TRAILER/TEASER:

Viu Indonesia. “B**ch! X Rich | Teaser | Lee Eun Saem, Yeri, Lee Jong Hyuk.” YouTube Video. YouTube, May 9, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFgKEjqvQXU.‌