Hyena ~ A Netflix Original Korean Drama Series

“Hyena” is a Netflix Original Korean Drama Series, released in 2020, with 16 episodes, and categorized as a Suspense, Legal Drama, and Romance. It stars two powerhouse actors ~ Kim Hye-soo and Ju Ji-hoon ~ and the relationship between the two characters is cutthroat, electrifying, and explosive!

♦ You’ve Never Seen a Love/Hate Relationship Like This

In “Hyena”, Jung Geum-ja is a lawyer who has had a hard-knock life. Nothing came easy to her but she made her way using her own law of the jungle. By contrast, Yoon Hee-jae was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Without even putting forth effort he was given a job as a lawyer at a prestigious law firm, Song & Kim.  He worked with a team of lawyers.  Jung Geum-ja ran her own law firm, was her own boss, and worked by herself.

The two lawyers are rivals. But they did not start out that way. She was a mysterious woman he met at a laundromat who read the same books he read. Can it get any more romantic than that?

To appreciate and understand the relationship between the two main characters, one must know a little something about hyenas.

• Hyenas are predators. They are one of the top predators in the African savannas. Some describe them as scavengers, But they are proficient hunters and they’re not picky eaters, which is probably why people like to say they scavenge.
• The best description for hyenas is “apex predators” i.e. animals at the top of the food chain that hunt but are not hunted. They will steal prey from other predators. WHY? Because they can!
• Even though they are not hunted, they meet their match when they come against lions, leopards, and crocodiles. They are formidable creatures in the animal kingdom.
• FUN FACT: Female hyenas have a pseudo-penis, an elongated clitoris that closely resembles the male’s genitalia in size and appearance. It’s not easy to distinguish between male and female hyenas at a glance.

Jung Geum-ja and Yoon Hee-jae could not be any more different when it comes to their backgrounds. But when it comes to providing legal services for their privileged wealthy clients, they both turn into hyenas. And they all always trying to steal each other’s prey.

Yoon Hee-jae was deceived by Jung Geum-ja and betrayed. If he wanted to he could have challenged her in court because to deceive and betray him, she broke the law. She seduced an attorney to gain access to evidence. With that evidence, she won the case for her client. Her seduction was against the law and she could have been disbarred. But Yoon Hee-jae had too much pride. If there was a case, then everyone would know that he had been duped! Instead, he made it his mission to become her rival.

It was the old “anything she can do, I can do better” competition and rivalry that had them at each other’s throats. Even though Yoon Hee-jae was angry with Jung Geum-ja on so many different levels, and was determined to “out-lawyer” her, he did not want to kill her. That’s why when he overheard one of her angry clients talking on the phone saying he planned to murder her and leave the country, he texted her with a warning: “Watch out for the jackass with a knife.”

Jung Geum-ja ran into the jackass in an alley. The jackass lost! It was a physical fight worthy of being recorded as one of the greatest fight matches of all time. She lived to fight another day. Correction: She lived to fight another day against Yoon Hee-jae. Yoon Hee-jae and Jung Geum-ja were participants in one of the most intense and extreme love/hate relationships of all time.

Main Characters:

• Jung Geum-ja (played by Kim Hye-soo, “Under the Queen’s Umbrella”)
• Yoon Hee-jae (played by Ju Ji-hoon, “Along With the Gods 1 and 2”)

Where to Watch

Viewership and Rating:

• IMDb: 7.6 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 8.2 out of 10 stars
• Dramabeans: 9.1 out of 10 stars
• Public reviews shared via Google: 4.6 out of 5 stars

My personal rating is 9 out of 10 stars.

• Kim Hye-soo is an actress who has never given a disappointing performance. The character she played had all of the characteristics of a hyena: intelligent, cunning, a skilled hunter, etc. But she could also sing and dance, When she did the Moonwalk, I was like “I love this lady!!” LOL.
• Ju Ji-hoon is an actor who never disappoints. At first glance, regarding the character he plays, you might think his life has no difficulties and he has that haughty air of the privileged. But people born with silver spoons sometimes have more difficulties than others. When people who come from an elite background, others feel everything is given to them on a silver platter. That may not be true, but they believe it and go out of their way not to make anything easy for you … just because.

Even though the two legal hyenas clash with each other in and out of the courtroom, you don’t want to choose sides. You can understand the love/hate relationship between the two main characters in “Hyena”, but at the same time, you can’t help but like both of them. This series is a must-watch for fans of legal dramas.

LINKS OF INTEREST:

• K-Drama Review: “HYENA” Presents Hot Shot Lawyers Of Sound Judgment and Strong Conviction | kdramadiary
• SBS Drama “Hyena” Concludes With An Impressive 14.6% Rating | Hello KPop
• ‘Hyena’ review: Highly watchable K-drama thanks to strong female lead | The Star
• ‘Hyena’ (2020) Proves Love Can Be A Legal Battlefield | Forbes

TRAILERS/TEASERS:

Yellowdreams Xx. “Hyena | Ruin My Life [Yoon Hee Jae & Jung Geum Ja] ⚡❤️️.” YouTube Video. YouTube, March 17, 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJvYMRNhmCw.‌