“Frankly Speaking” is a romantic-comedy K-drama series with 12 episodes added to Netflix in May 2024. On a scale of 1 to 10 stars for adorable cuteness, this Korean drama gets 100 stars. You start laughing from the very first episode and you don’t stop! There are lots of lighthearted comical moments and sweet characters who charm you.
♦ Will I Ever Be A Nightly News Anchor?
In “Frankly Speaking”, Song Ki-baek is not in the habit of speaking frankly. Song Ki-baek’s career goals are not unreasonable. Currently, he is the announcer for JBC News at Noon and does his job well. He just wants to be the anchor for the main news show and if he achieves this goal, he will be the first male news anchor of the nine o’clock news.
What has he done to accomplish his objective? For one thing, he lied about his background and led people to believe he came from a wealthy family and had connections. This way his fellow employees and his superiors will do their best to stay on his good side.
A wealthy family? NOT! He works hard and sends his family money, and in return, he hopes they will stay away from him and not let others know that they are his family. He maintains his facade by living in a posh apartment and driving an expensive car. The apartment and car belong to a friend who is away.
In other words, to accomplish his career objectives, he lies.
Things were going smoothly until a co-worker’s angry jealous husband showed up and caused a scene … while he was on air reporting the news. He screamed at Song Ki-baek, but called him by another man’s name, Kim Jeong-Heon. The husband is mistaken and accuses him of destroying his family. Kim Jeong-Heon is currently a star entertainer but he was Ki-baek’s high school classmate.
It did not matter that the angry husband called out the wrong name. Now Song Ki-baek is sort of famous. But is it a good thing or a bad thing? Song Ki-baek’s boss started assigning him to perform other jobs and lied saying he would allow him to audition for the nightly news anchor.
However, Song Ki-baek overheard a conversation where his co-workers were saying that the CEO collects the opinions of employees regarding the potential candidates for certain positions. So Song Ki-baek decides he will be extra nice to his fellow workers and that way they will speak highly of him and he will have a better chance of getting the news anchor position.
One of his co-workers asked Song Ki-baek to take his place and read poetry out loud on a variety show. On Woo-Joo is the head writer for a variety show and her show is about to be canceled. When she sees and hears Song Ki-baek reading poetry, she decides that he is exactly what her show needs to stay on air. She persuades him to appear on her show where he and other players compete playing dodgeball.
Song Ki-baek is very competitive and when he starts playing he aims for the K-pop ido star on the other team. The idol star is rude and mistreats all of the employees so Song Ki-baek wants to take him down a notch. CUT!! On Woo-Joo takes Song Ki-baek aside privately to explain to him that if he keeps hitting the K-pop star with the ball, her show will lose his influence and the advertisers.
The room they went into to speak privately had a warning sign but they ignored it. Song Ki-baek accidentally put his hand on electrical wires and received quite a shock! The shock wasn’t just physical, it was mental. After the shock, Song Ki-baek could not control the words that came out of his mouth, He spoke the truth. ONLY THE TRUTH!! When he returned to finish the dodgeball game, he said everything to the K-pop star that others wanted to say but didn’t because they wanted to keep their jobs. Alas, as a result, On Woo-Joo’s show was canceled.
What happened? Song Ki-baek used to be such a smooth liar. Now he only speaks frankly. He says what he means and he says it to everybody! No censoring. On Woo-Joo is worried about him and suggests that he see a doctor. Song Ki-baek did get a medical opinion. The electric shock affected a part of his brain and the medical diagnosis is that he displays symptoms similar to sporadic dementia.
On Woo-Joo thinks his “unfiltered language” might be terrific for an entertainment show. But being incapable of controlling the brutally honest words coming out of his mouth could derail Song Ki-baek’s career as a news anchor. If he can’t be cured, can a person who only speaks frankly ever become the first male anchor of the nightly news?
Main Characters:
- Song Ki-baek (played by Ko Kyoung-Pyo, “Seoul Vibe”, “Connect”)
- On Woo-Joo (played by Kang Han-Na, “Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo”)
- Kim Jeong-Heon (played by Joo Jong-Hyuk)
Viewership and Rating:
- IMDb: 7.1 out of 10 stars
- My Drama List: 8 out of 10 stars
- Dramabeans: 9 out of 10 stars
My personal rating is 8.5 out of 10 stars.
If you need a break from intensely dramatic Korean dramas (no brutal serial killers, no nasty aliens taking over your minds, etc.) and you just want to watch something lighthearted, funny, and adorably cute, then “Frankly Speaking” is the perfect K-drama series.
LINKS OF INTEREST:
- Frankly Speaking Episode 1 Review: A Unique K-Drama Lands on Netflix | The Feast of Legends (“entertaining and extremely funny.”)
- Love in Contract’s Go Kyung Pyo and Start-Up’s Kang Han Na’s new K-drama No Secret to have May premiere; Report | PINKVILLA: Korean
- New K-dramas coming to Netflix in May 2024: Super Rich in Korea to Frankly Speaking and more | Web Series | Hindustan Times
- K-Dramas To Watch In May 2024: From Frankly Speaking To Connection, New Shows On Netflix, Prime Video & More | India Times
TRAILERS/TEASERS:
Netflix K-Content. “Frankly Speaking | Official Clip | Netflix [ENG SUB].” YouTube Video. YouTube, April 30, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9IJv3fZGTw.
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I complicated our lives when I fall in ❤ with him
Mighty Fine
With love and light
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conjunction with free-space theory
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British Columbia Made
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