Protect the Boss Episode 2 Recap

This drama is off to a rollicking great start. She just wants a job. He just wants to putz around through life. Too bad her job solely consists of forcing him to stop putzing around and do something meaningful. Two episodes in and I love Protect the Boss to pieces. The characters are three-dimensional and well-constructed, the acting from the two leads is phenomenally on point with crackling chemistry, the supporting cast is capable and effortless, and story is very interesting.

I feel like there is a point to this drama, to watch the man-child Ji Heon transformed not by magical love but by support and assistance from Eun Seol, and to watch Eun Seol shed her delinquent past and make something of herself in the professional world by meeting challenges head on with Ji Heon. The broad humor is tempered with sincere emotional issues from all the characters, and I’m already feeling like I care about these people and what happens to them.

Episode 2 recap:

Ji Heon stares at Eun Seol, and then promptly says that her face leaves him in a bad mood. LOL. He asks for and is handed Eun Seol’s resume. He smirks and says that Eun Seol is a parachute (a fly by employee), right?

Just then Moo Won walks in and asks if Ji Heon has met his new secretary. Ji Heon wonders why such an unqualified person is the secretary for him, who holds multiple management positions at the DN Group? If she’s not a parachute, then she must be a spy sent by Moo Won.

Ji Heon says he’ll pick his own secretary from now on. Moo Won asks what he could possibly want to spy on Ji Heon for? Where he goofs off all day? What he eats? Ji Heon turns it around and says he goofs off on purpose just so Moo Won has nothing to spy on him for. Moo Won says Ji Heon ought to just keep this spy secretary by his side and continue to goof off all day long. Nothing wrong with keeping the status quo. The boys step closer and proceed to give each other the staredown. I almost started chanting “kiss, kiss, kiss” when at this scene. Heh.

Eun Seol interrupts that she may not have the credentials, but she’s no parachute or spy. Director Cha selected her for her passion and determination. She’s willing to work her hardest for Ji Heon, especially to show Moo Won who selected her that she can succeed. Ji Heon is not having any of it and tells her to leave.

That night, Eun Seol’s friend Myung Ran celebrates her first day on the job. Eun Seol remembers going to pray at all types of churches and temples begging to get a chance. But her first job was a loan shark with a sexual harasser pervert for a boss.

Now that she has a legitimate job, she won’t give up that easily. She decides to make a new wish – she looks skyward and wishes not to be fired, to maintain her job, and to win over Cha Ji Heon’s desire to get rid of her.

Ji Heon arrives at work and is startled to see Eun Seol. He proceeds to walk past her and ignore her, doing this repeatedly day after day. Finally Eun Seol walks up to his office and he opens the door on her. He allows her inside and asks if she really wants to give it a try. He agrees to try it out. Eun Seol bows in gratitude, but she bows only twice, and Ji Heon asks her bow a third time because bowing just twice is bad luck.

Ji Heon lays down the ground rules. He hates repeating himself, and all calls must be answered by the second ring. The room must be maintained at the proper temperature and he likes the room freshened with a light fresh scent. She needs to clean the air filters herself, clean the office herself, and if Ji Heon raises his palm up she has to immediately give him hand sanitzer.

Even the blinds have to be set at the right opening to let in the proper amount of sunlight. She needs to screen his calls and only allow the right people through. If he asks for a phone number she has to immediately remember it. Eun Seol’s arrival and departure at the office has to be at the same time as Ji Heon.

He says she has to dress professional as befits his secretary. He points to her bun head and tells her to immediately get rid of it because he hates that hairstyle. He drinks low-caffeine coffee, and his hot coffee must be hot and iced coffee must be cold. The last rule is that “boss-father-teacher-is-one” meaning she has to respect her boss as she does her father and teacher. Eun Seol happily recites this mantra back to Ji Heon.

He allows Eun Seol to go outside and quickly write down everything he just told her. But when she heads to her desk, he immediately calls her and asks if she’s done writing. He wants his lunch NOW. He gives her a very complicated lunch order.

We see Eun Seol rushing to and fro getting Ji Heon’s food. She spills it on the streets when traffic comes her way. Ji Heon takes his lunch and then flicks the carrots off the plate at Eun Seol, saying he hates carrots. He takes a drink of his iced coffee and spits it one, saying the drink isn’t even cold anymore. She has five minutes to buy him a new drink.

We see Eun Seol decking Ji Heon in the face and telling him to get his own drink. But of course that is just her imagination, and the real Eun Seol smiles and says she’ll do it right away. Ji Heon goes home and flops on the sofa, muttering about Eun Seol’s tenacity. Eun Seol goes home and collapses on the bed, exhausted but still trying to memorize phone numbers.

Myung Ran and Eun Seol go to a spa and Eun Seol bitches that one day she’ll kill Ji Heon. One day, one day. Eun Seol wonders why Ji Heon doesn’t do any work, but is an expert at torturing people. Apparently his nickname is the X-Man of the DN Group. She can’t believe there is a bastard as awful as Ji Heon.

Suddenly Eun Seol’s phone rings and she answers it, but her hands are wet so the phone falls into the tub. Eun Seol screams in shock. The next day Ji Heon berates Eun Seol for not answering the phone. What if something important happened at work? He forbids Eun Seol from going to the spa henceforth.

Eun Seol says she needs to go next month, but he says to stop arguing. When she doesn’t respond and he asks why, she says that he told her to stop arguing. Eun Seol reminds Ji Heon that he’s due to attend a meeting and Ji Heon heads out.

At the meeting, Ji Heon is doodling while Moo Won gives a presentation. They discuss employees being late to work and such. The Chairman asks Ji Heon what he thinks, and Ji Heon is not listening so he says that it’s a good idea. The Chairman yells at Ji Heon.

Moo Won follows Ji Heon out of the meeting and asks how things are going with No Eun Seol? Ji Heon quotes Slam Dunk and says that it’s better to resolve disputes rather than making more enemies. Moo Won and Ji Heon both walk away, but Ji Heon sees a tissue on the ground and has to turn back to pick it up.

Eun Seol is singing about how much she loves her job. She even loves her employee badge. She loves it all here. Suddenly she gets a call to go meet the Chairman. The Chairman is meeting with Moo Won and discussing how Ji Heon can’t be relied on to take over the company. The Chairman wishes Ji Heon were as capable of Moo Won, and mentions that Moo Won is primed to take over his own mother’s company, right? That was the company left to Moo Won by his deceased father, and it’s Moo Won’s duty to take it over.

Eun Seol sits with the Chairman and she’s so nervous she’s fidgety. He yells at her for being so nervous, and then proceeds to lay the responsibility at her feet for being a secretary that allows her boss to show up at work late every single day. He asks if she’s derelict in her duty and she has no choice but to agree.

The Chairman tells her to get her butt to his house tomorrow morning and make sure Ji Heon gets to work on time. Also make sure Ji Heon doesn’t leave the office other than on official matters. If she fails, he’ll toss her and her desk out on the street. She agrees to do it, but asks if she can use physical means to get him to work. The Chairman says go right ahead, what kind of strength can a girl have.

She asks for one month to succeed. It’s not something she can do in one day. If he asks her to do it in one day, he might as well just fire her now. The Chairman says that he’s been around the block and can tell, Eun Seol must’ve have been a delinquent in her school days. Eun Seol says everyone has a dark period they would love to erase. The Chairman laughs and says he feels this kinship with Eun Seol.

Eun Seol arrives at the Cha family mansion to wake up Ji Heon. She runs into grandma in the yard dressed like a gardener and asks where Ji Heon’s room is. Eun Seol wonders what it must be like to live in a place like this? Rather than envy it, Eun Seol says living in such luxury makes people weak and listless, with no desire to succeed. Grandma reluctantly agrees with Eun Seol.

Eun Seol tells grandma (who she thinks is a household help here) that she’s here to get Ji Heon to work on time. Grandma wonders if she can do it? Eun Seol pats herself and says she’s got what it takes. Eun Seol tells grandma that working keeps her healthy, and if Ji Heon tries to mistreat her, to ignore him and not let him upset her. She leaves grandma with a “hwaiting”, and grandma watches her leave and smiles that this girl is totally fearless.

Eun Seol knocks on Ji Heon’s door and doesn’t get a response. She slowly opens it and whispers that she’s coming in. She see Ji Heon still fast asleep on the bed and goes to wake him up. Calling his name doesn’t work. Ji Heon turns over in his sleep and Eun Seol has to avert her eyes because he’s wearing cartoon boxers. LOL, how apropos.

Ji Heon wakes up and then jumps on his bed in shock that Eun Seol is in his room. He suddenly remembers that he’s only wearing boxers and screams at Eun Seol, asking if she saw anything. He goes to take a shower and rages at Eun Seol, wondering who she really is?

Eun Seol looks around Ji Heon’s room and notices a card board cut out of a woman with a question mark on the face. She sees a single shoe and puts it on because it looks like her shoe. She then puts two and two together that Ji Heon was the guy she ran into in the room salon and she was the cause of the violence incident that roiled the Chairman and Ji Heon.

When Ji Heon comes out and asks Eun Seol if the shoe fit, she quickly says no, nope, it doesn’t fit, her feet are too big it would be living shoving a sausage into a casing. OMFG this is a hilarious way to subvert the very Cinderella story trope if ever there was one. She widens her toes to show Ji Heon her HUGE feet.

Ji Heon tells her not to touch the shoe which is important evidence. He wishes he could remember the chick, but all he remembers is her bun head. Ji Heon takes some darts and starts to throw it at the cardboard cut out. He vows to make that chick pay for damaging his mind and body, causing his reputation to be besmirched, making the company stocks plummet, and leading his dad to be angry at him. All of that he will get back from that chick tenfold. Every time he throws a dart at cardboard Eun Seol, the real Eun Seol flinches and makes the most hilariously painful expressions.

Eun Seol thinks that if the girl knew about the harm she had caused, she might be feeling totally bad. Perhaps he ought to forgive her just a bit? Or not! He can just find her and punish her. Ji Heon thinks it’s a great idea if Eun Seol can find that chick. He shoves the shoe in her arm and happily makes that her job to accomplish and he’ll make her a permanent employee if she succeeds. Eun Seol looks so stricken it’s adorable.

They walk to work and Ji Heon asks if Eun Seol isn’t pleased to have the offer to become a permanent employee? Eun Seol says she’s thrilled. Ji Heon warns her not to come to his house again, but she explains that the Chairman specifically told her to. But she’ll be careful and not see his underwear in the future. Ji Heon moves to silence her which is when the Chairman arrives.

They all get into the elevator and the Chairman berates Ji Heon for showing up at work at this late hour. Ji Heon says his dad is arriving at the same time, so what’s the big deal? The Chairman screams that he was doing community service all morning until now, and whose fault it that.

The Chairman starts to beat Ji Heon and his secretary quickly gets on the floor and gestures for Eun Seol to climb on his back and block the CCTV from recording this scene. God, this might never get old for me. Ji Heon warns that he’ll run away from home if his dad keeps doing this. He won’t put up with his dad allowing Eun Seol into the house to get him.

Finally Eun Seol can’t stand it anymore and she goes to shield Ji Heon. The Chairman tells her to move away but Eun Seol says it’s her job to protect the boss. The Chairman again tells her to move away and he goes to slap Ji Heon. But Eun Seol doesn’t move away so she gets slapped across the face. Everyone freezes in shock.

The Chairman offers Eun Seol some compensation for the incident, explaining that is was purely an accident. Instead of cash, Eun Seol asks for insurance, or perhaps allow this incident to be a marker that she can cash in should one day the Chairman be displeased with her performance. The Chairman laughs, liking her gumption.

Eun Seol looks at the envelope of money and the Chairman asks if she’s regretting turning it down. Eun Seol says since the Chairman wants to give her the money, she doesn’t want to say no. Walking out clutching the envelope in happiness, Eun Seol confesses to Ji Heon that she is always giving money for beating others and has never been on the other end. So this is what it feels like. She thinks it’s like winning the lottery.

Ji Heon tells her to go put some medicine on her face, but Eun Seol says it’s no big deal, some spit will be fine. Ji Heon sits in his office and remembers Eun Seol shielding him. He walks outside to see the other two secretaries ganging up on Eun Seol for not cleaning the office. Ji Heon thinks to himself that Eun Seol is HIS secretary, not those ladies. Hur, only be can be mean to her.

Ji Heon loudly calls out No Eun Seol and says that she is not allowed to leave her desk at ANY TIME unless it’s to do his bidding. She explains that she was just cleaning and Ji Heon tells her to get into his office and clean it now. He jumps between the desks of the other two secretaries and says that germs can come in at any time.

Eun Seol is cleaning while Ji Heon tries to manuveur her cleaning so that she can see the first aid kit. Eun Seol is oblivious to his intentions and he has to pointedly take the ointment out of the case and tell her that the medicine is for bruises. Eun Seol asks if he’s worried about her, and Ji Heon just twirls around in his chair and pretends to look up and ignore her.

Ji Heon sees that Eun Seol is just rubbing the medicine on in a cursory fashion and that upsets him. So he goes to put it on her. He’s dabbing it on her face when they realize their faces are in close proximity, which causes them to jump apart. Ji Heon puts on the ointment from far away, and afterwards Eun Seol immediately sanitizes his hand.

Ji Heon’s former secretary arrives at the office and calls Ji Heon, asking for a letter of recommendation and revealing that he found the bun head girl. Ji Heon loudly says you found her, and Eun Seol overhears this. He’s so happy and tells Eun Seol that the crazy bun head girl has been located. Eun Seol asks if she can use the bathroom right now because she has poopy air inside her. Ji Heon calls her crass but lets her go.

Eun Seol runs downstairs and sees the secretary in the lobby. She uses her hair scarf to cover her face and then intercepts the secretary by stealing his file. The secretary chases Eun Seol outside. Once alone, she grabs him in a headlock and warns him that he is to pretend that he has never saw the file and never read the resume of the bun girl in the file. She’ll get him his recommendation but he’s to leave right now. The secretary asks if perhaps she’s “bun head girl No Eun Seol”?

Eun Seol tells Ji Heon that he’s needed at a department store for promotional rounds. She’ll support him all the way. She says from now on she will be sincere, and he wonders if she hasn’t been sincere until now. But he agrees to go, and Eun Seol thinks to herself that she’ll do this as a way to do penance towards Ji Heon.

Ji Heon does a meet and greet at the department store and Eun Seol follows behind him to sanitize his hand afterwards. They are walking when suddenly Ji Heon looks around and doesn’t see Eun Seol anywhere. He tries to call her but she doesn’t answer. A group of parents with kids walk towards Ji Heon, and he starts to feel dizzy and disoriented.

He tries to remember to breath deeply, but he keeps calling out No Eun Seol until he falls down on his knees. Eun Seol, back with a bottle of water, holds Ji Heon and asks if he needs medical attention. He asks her to just let him rest on her for a moment. She holds him as he calms himself again.

When he’s fine again, he realizes that they are embracing each other and he quickly shoves Eun Seol away from him. He hurries away all the while muttering that they have to keep their distance in public.

Back at home, Ji Heon moves from sofa to chair to bed, all the while thinking back to Eun Seol hugging him. He tries to get these images to leave his mind and is totally frustrated when he can’t. Eun Seol is at home and searching the internet for medical conditions with symptoms that include panicking in public and having an episode. Ah heck, she’s so awesome and practical.

At work the next day, Eun Seol opens the top drawer in Ji Heon’s desk and spies bottles of pills. She doesn’t look carefully because Ji Heon arrives right then. He asks her why she got 1 Million Won worth of dining coupons when he asked for 1 Million Won worth of new bills (the two things sounds similar). Does she want him to eat until he explodes!

Moo Won walks into the office and Eun Seol smiles to see her favorite Cha family member. They go outside to have a cup of coffee. He asks how she’s doing and she confesses the recent dining coupon escapade. He laughs and says this is a honest mistake, and his secretary makes such mistakes at times as well.

She thanks him for always encouraging her and he thanks her for sticking with it longer than he expected. She asks Moo Won if Ji Heon is sick, but Moo Won in turn asks her if she knows anything about Ji Heon being sick. Eun Seol says yesterday….but doesn’t continue and just says it’s nothing.

Back in Moo Won’s office, his secretary delivers the report that she pulled Ji Heon’s medical files and the diagnoses is that he has severe anxiety attacks, and they haven’t been able to diagnose what the trigger is that sets ofj Ji Heon’s panic attacks. Moo Won thinks back to Ji Heon running out of the meeting and finally makes the connection.

At a management meeting, Moo Won suggests that an upcoming project be handled by Ji Heon as a way to demonstrate his leadership as the successor of the company. Ji Heon refuses and walks out of the meeting.

The Chairman follows him back to the office and demands that he does this project. The Chairman sincerely says that Ji Heon is the only one left. He’s the only one who can succeed the Chairman. Since losing Ji Heon’s older brother (OMO – was not expecting this), Ji Heon is all the Chairman has left.

The Chairman says he doesn’t expect Ji Heon to do better than others, he just wants Ji Heon to do as well as others. Ji Heon says his expectations are too high. The Chairman leaves and Eun Seol can see Ji Heon standing in his office in silence.

Ji Heon has the driver let Eun Seol off near the subway station. He tells her that he’s not planning to go to work in the next few days so she can take those days off. Ji Heon sits in his room and looks at the proposal for the project, which Moo Won handed to him with a word of advice that he does want to see Ji Heon succeed.

At a secretaries meeting, Eun Seol pipes up and says that she needs to go to her boss’s house. She enters Ji Heon’s room to see him sitting at the desk reading the project proposal. He starts marking it up and reading it out loud. Eun Seol hids outside his room with the door ajar listening to him work. She starts nodding off and Ji Heon notices his door is open.

He jerks the door open to find Eun Seol crouched there. She tells him that his oratory skills are dreadful – it’s hard to determine if he’s giving a speech or an ultimatum. She helps him practice his speech and he’s still very stiff. She makes him practice over and over again until he can give a rousing and lively speech. They are simply wonderful together.

Moo Won’s mom is preparing the venue for the event. Eun Seol watches as Ji Heon gets dressed for the event and wishes him the best of luck. He says that she sure talks a lot, but I know he secretly is getting used to it. She gives him a “hwaiting” hand gesture as they walk into the venue.

Ji Heon gets up on stage to give the speech, where his dad, grandma, and the management of the company are all present. He looks out into the audience and takes a deep breath before starting. As the new director of the DN Group Foundation……Ji Heon is talking when suddenly he looks up and sees Seo Na Yoon (Wang Ji Hye) walking into the room.

Ji Heon freezes and stammers that his speech will be concluded by his secretary. Ji Heon runs out of the room and the audience is totally disappointed in him. Eun Seol walks up to the podium and finishes the speech for Ji Heon. After the speech is concluded, Eun Seol runs out looking for Ji Heon but he’s nowhere to be found.

Grandma asks the Chairman to go look for Ji Heon. They can both hear other people murmuring about Ji Heon’s performance today in public. The Chairman gets angry and wants to go confront those people but his grandma restrains him.

Eun Seol walks into Ji Heon’s room to find him playing video games. He thinks it’s a shame that he couldn’t stick around and see Eun Seol make a fool of herself on stage. She sits down and asks to play video games with him. As they are playing, Ji Heon asks if she doesn’t have anything she wants to say? Didn’t she come here to comfort him?

Eun Seol wonders if he needs comfort? Ji Heon thinks that the two responses would be either comfort or ridicule. Eun Seol asks if he wants a particular one? Ji Heon says forget about it, and they resume video game playing. Eun Seol says Ji Heon can cry if he wants, she can’t tell him how to feel.

The Chairman barges into the room and disconnects the game box. He demands to know why Ji Heon did that! He is willing to hear his reason, but it has to be acceptable. Ji Heon says there is no reason, he just wanted to do it. The Chairman slaps Ji Heon across the face, asking his son to please give a reason. Beg him, or give an excuse, just say SOMETHING!

Ji Heon says he has nothing to say. The Chairman tells him to leave this house now and never come back. Eun Seol tells the Chairman that Ji Heon must have a reason that is understandable. She thinks she knows the reason, but without Ji Heon’s consent, she can’t reveal it to the Chairman. She asks the Chairman to please understand for the time being.

I love how much the Chairman genuinely loves and wants his son to succeed. And even when his son embarrasses him, his first instinct is to protect his son and stand up for his son. I wonder why Ji Heon can’t tell his dad about his anxiety disorder? And I wonder how his older brother died, and whether his current condition is somehow connected to that?

Moo Won has dinner with Na Yoon. He knows why she’s back and working at the company. She says that she’s going to fix everything so that she can return to Ji Heon’s side.

Ji Heon is walking down the street and Eun Seol trails him. He tries to shoo her away repeatedly but she keeps following him. Until one time he turns around to scream at her to leave but sees the street is empty behind him. He gets nervous and calls out No Eun Seol and looking for her. Which is when she pops out from behind a park bench and freaks him out.

Ji Heon is torn between wanting Eun Seol to scram or continue to follow him. When she moves to leave, he confesses that he left with neither phone nor money. He tells her that he can’t take the subway or the bus. She goes to take money out of her bank account for the taxi and realizes that she pretty much nothing left. They get into a taxi.

Eun Seol suggests going to a jjimjalbang but he says he doesn’t go to places filled with strangers. Eun Seol takes him back to Myung Ran’s apartment where she is sleeping on the floor. Ji Heon thanks Eun Seol for today…just a little.

Which is when he turns and sees a pair of shoes on the floor. Ji Heon’s eyes widen in recognition as Eun Seol jumps over the bed and dives for those shoes to conceal them. Ooops, too late, Eun Seol darling.

Thoughts of Mine:

What a fun episode, and so fast-paced with the plot development. More dramas need to take cues from PTB on how to develop characters and drive the plot forward at the same time, rather than letting the plot grind to a halt for some character exposition. I love how the OTP doesn’t fall into the “I hate you” routine that bickering couples are forced to play out in many dramas, but rather are simply butting heads and bumbling forward at the same time as boss-secretary. There are already many layers to their interactions adding color and flavor to each scene.

If episode 1 really made me love Eun Seol, episode 2 vaulted Ji Heon into a very compelling hero-to-be. His loserish ways are real (and not some sort of act waiting to be magically shed by the presence of Eun Seol) yet it’s not some end-of-the-world hang up. He’s not a jerk because he can be, he’s just someone who has no ambition due to a mental condition that is untreated and lots of father-son issues that remain unresolved.

I appreciate how Eun Seol is NOT some spirited, sassy, prone-to-lecture type of heroine. You know, the kind that tells off the hero for being a jerk and possesses a holier than thou mind set because she’s just too forthright and honest. She doesn’t judge Ji Heon, she simply needs him to change and become a contributing director at the company because her job hinges on him doing his.

I love how the cousins bicker and try to always have the last word with each other. It shows me that Moo Won is not some paragon of virtue and accomplishment, but can be petty and juvenile with his cousin. It also shows that Ji Heon is not some push over, understanding he might be unable to perform his professional job, but when it comes to verbal jousting he’s on top of the game.

I really like Ji Heon’s dad, the Chairman. There has been a lot of physical violence in this drama though done in a tongue-in-cheek way without any relevance to reality. But in this episode, the Chairman slapped Eun Seol, albeit accidentally, and it was nice to see everyone react in shock at the slap, and then deal with it by feeling contrite afterwards. Plus Eun Seol can take care of herself, and it was cute when she was so pleased to be on the receiving end of slap money.

I can’t fully describe what make PTB so engaging right off the bat, because it really is a combination of good storytelling, wonderful directing, a surprisingly moving OST that hits all the right emotional buttons, and an all-around excellent cast. Ji Sung is NAILING it as Ji Heon – so ridiculous and not afraid to show all of Ji Heon’s weaknesses. Choi Kang Hee’s the girl of a million faces so it seems, because Eun Seol just kills me with her animated expressions that never feel fake but instead feels so real.

I’m thrilled the story already makes so much sense. Eun Seol sincerely wants to protect Ji Heon the moment she realized that she was the inadvertent cause of his recent woes. But that pay-back-her-debt approach is quickly supplanted by her actually seeming to see the real person within his persona and wants to encourage him. I also love how quickly Ji Heon is interacting so comfortably with Eun Seol. They make such an endearing OTP it’s not even funny. I can’t wait to watch more. PTB rocks!


Comments

Protect the Boss Episode 2 Recap — 46 Comments

  1. yay for koala the fastest reviewer! 😀

    i cant wait for the english subs to come out! i m literally dying to watch this!

  2. I’m so glad that this drama had selling point and not just preety face flying in every scene.to be honest only jaejoong that preeety but this drama deliver good story,well cast that rarely happen in recent drama.thanks for recap because its hard to find it elsewhere.

  3. Initially I wasn’t too happy about PTB, because its premier meant that City Hunter ended (~sob!~), and because I wasn’t really digging the teasers, but after your recap of episode one, I was intrigued. I’m so glad I checked out episode two, because I love the dynamic between Ji-heon and Eun-seol. I love their characters, how they’re not stock characters and how they have legitimate fears and weaknesses but also strengths. I love how Eun-seol takes her charge to “protect the boss” so seriously and really throws herself into it – I don’t know that I would still be there, taking all his crap, if I were her. I lack patience, haha. But she has passion and determination, just like she said, and she’s not one to be easily cowed. And she’s sincere. I love that about her – she does take care of Ji-heon out of a sense of duty, but she’s quick to see beyond his carefully constructed facade of indifference and willful ineptitude to the problems that are really holding him back…and then she doesn’t judge him for them, but instead tries to help him cope with them and move past them.

    I was really impressed at how all the moments, comic and dramatic, resonated and rang true. Obviously, this is a drama, and therefore subject to some artistic license, but the story is cohesive and true to the characters and so has an air of reality that is missing in most dramas.

    So thanks for recapping this, unni! I look forward to following Ji-heon and Eun-seol on their journey with you. ^_^

  4. OMG Koala Unnie, you are rocking too:D
    ‘They make such an endearing OTP it’s not even funny. I can’t wait to watch more. PTB rocks!’ it’s done:D

    love her love him love father love this drama:D

    i cant agree more on the father character. and the big brother issue, wow i didnt expect that too. let the story unfold.

    but her character is amazing. i mean it is not like the other dramas where the rich parents find someone to fix their spoiled child but it’s like she needed a job and he needed someone to protect him and God give them all:D and by the hands of the antagonist, just lovely~~~~

    and the medication scene omg save me cuz i am dying of over-sweetness of that scene:D it shows that our rich and goofy boy doing all the stuff intentionally cuz he has some issues keeping unknown from outsiders:D and the one that would break the wall is NES:D

    and now the story will change in the opposite:D i expect some bullying but not much from NES when needed in the professional work of JH:D or she can literally protect her boss from others with her strength in the future:D

    and that elevator scene:) yeah unnie, that will never get old:D omg this drama is on the way to be a legend for me (hope i am not speaking too early)

    btw the ratings are around 14.5 according to soompi thread:D wow! PTB Fighting!!!

    p.s. did i mention that i am hating the 2nd female even since watching the trailer~~~

    • She is the most hated second lead/female EVER.
      She is the In-hee bot from Personal Taste AND the annoyingly insane wanna-be-bride in 1% of Anything. She has not being able to take NO-get-away-from-me down to a science…can’t wait to hate her.

    • I will never ever be able to hate Wang Ji Hye in any role after watching her breathtaking, luminous, inspiring performance as the female lead in Friends, Our Legend. She was simply magnificent. LOVE.

      But yes, her In Hee Bot in Personal Taste was the epitome of a truly hatable female second lead.

      • for me the most hateful 2nd lead ever was the one in “stars falling from the sky”….i literally wanted to punch her through the screen!

      • The most annoying female lead for me would be the girl from Delightful Girl Choon Hyang. Chae Rin or whatever… I thought I was going to break my laptop.
        Then of course would be fish-lips from Stars falling from the Sky..
        and then would be In Hee from PP, because trust me there were moments where I wanted to shove her heels into her mouth… and seeing as how I was irritated by the fact that she showed up while he was on stage gives me a strong feeling, that I might need a new laptop by the end of this show. Anyhow.. LOVING IT. Main Lead Chemistry and Story Line is AHHHMAAZZINNG! ..already!

  5. Oh oh oh btw isnt he like a little bit of Hwan tae kyung and a little bit of Jeremy from you’re beautiful:D i am dying of the cuteness of the scenes where NES wakes him up and he gets angry in a cute way in the shower:D LOL

  6. Love, love, love everything about this drama. It normally takes me three or four episodes for dramas to hook me, but I liked epsiode 1 a lot, and after episode 2 I had found my new obsession.
    Ji Heon and Eun Seol have such a great relationship and I like that they’ve developed it so early on. He already knows that she’ll try to stand up for him in front of his father, which definitely counts for a lot in his book. Can I hope that they’ll be roomies for more than just one night? That would be hysterical.
    Roll on next Wednesday!

  7. Ockoala, I wonder if you’ve seen Choi Kang Hee’s movie with Lee Sun Gyun, “Petty Romance”. I had a feeling she’d be as awesome, if not more so, in PTB as she was in that movie. So glad it looks like my hunch was right after all. Thanks for the recaps! Will definitely start tuning in.

  8. The first two episodes are out and im loving it. Finally a drama crack i’ve been waiting for after LTM (ahh the good ol’ days).

  9. Woot Woot!!
    I really like, I really like!! Woot Woot!
    Hahah im so happy that this doesnt bore me. Gotta say I dislike Moo Won’s character already. Yeah, I hear the boos, but I dont go for the mean characters. Unless its sexy mean. You get mah point. Anyways, im liking what I be seeing.

  10. Gawd, why must it that in k-drama, it’s always the conniving ex-gf who wants to ‘return to the male lead’s side’? For once, let it be an ex-bf!

  11. Very entertaining drama, hope the story would be maintained well to the end and glued the audience more…

    Thanx for the recap Koala! Yours is very helpful since there’s no Eng sub yet…/sobs

  12. Thank you Ms Koala for the recap.
    I’m totally onboard with this drama. I was really trying to be cautious in my approach but with ep 2 and all the NES/CJH interactions – I hooked. I’m so curious about all the back story with what’s causing all the anixety but I’m hoping that they treat the ex-gf/or whatever character WJH is playing with some sort of difference than kdramas usually do. I just love that the plot is light and it moves and all the characters have heart.

  13. Thanks for the recap crack.
    I love the way this show feels. The look, the music, even the tenor of the leads’ voices is low and rumbly.
    It feels like a mid 60’s romcom Hollywood film with Doris Day and somebody.
    I have never seen these leads before. They are so sure of who these characters are, and have completely committed to the extreme. I guess the director must be someone they trust. Their ability to make me laugh out loud (or tonight suppress my giggles so my family can sleep) one moment, and then the next hold my breath at their shared vulnerability. Seriously touching.

    The department store scene is where I found the heart of the show: One very lost and imperfect character panics, calling one person he feels will help. The person’s name he repeats to comfort himself matches him in imperfection, and without knowing how the heck she will succeed, she tries earnestly to help. (Bad sentence but you get what I mean.)

    I hope we get to see more of the meeting prep relationship before romance kicks in. I would love to see them hold out on “love” until the very end.
    It makes sense that this pair has a LOT of growing up to do first.
    It may drive me crazy yelling, “Just kiss him already!” but it keeps me interested in the Show to the end.

    I am so happy you are recapping this!

  14. Thank you for recapping this!!

    “I appreciate how Eun Seol is NOT some spirited, sassy, prone-to-lecture type of heroine. You know, the kind that tells off the hero for being a jerk and possesses a holier than thou mind set because she’s just too forthright and honest. “— that’s why I love Eun Seol and find her refreshing.

    I hope this drama can keep the funny and the energy going for the rest of the series, because I am loving it!

    There are very few dramas that make me seriously LOL and this has now become one of them, along with the Hong sisters dramas and My Country Calls. Myung-wol makes me chuckle and giggle a lot, but it hasn’t reached the level of funny that PTB is at.

    • forgot to add My Name is Kim Samsoon to the list. Ji Heon’s elevator beatings sort of remind me of the ones Sam-shik got from his mom!

  15. havent watch this, someone please tell me I wont hate jae’s role or else I rather not to watch him in this drama..oh oppa y do u have to b the 2nd lead guy..

  16. Thanks Koala for the recap. To be honest I am watching this drama coz of Jae joong. I like that he’s not the main lead in this drama. He’s going another direction from Mickey.

    Am I the only one not into Ji Heon’s hair coz I don’t like it.

    The series is going at a nice pace. I like it. Eun Seoul rocks!

  17. Hey thanks for the recap! I’ve watched both episodes without subs thus not understanding anything, so this really helps.

    To be honest, I thought this drama was going to flop. It’s a rom-com, the plot has been recycled far too many times, and the leads aren’t what you say whats ‘in’ right now. (I don’t mean that in a bad way).

    But I was wrong. This drama may go far. (Though the lack of publicity for it is making me nervous). The acting is top class, editing is not rushed, chemistry between the actors is superb, and most importantly it doesn’t look cheap. I particularly hate cheap comedies. The one thing that I have to complain about is the plot. Too unoriginal for me.

    I’ve never watched Jisung act before so this was a pleasant surprise. I mean the guy can act. And it’s so natural that I just can’t help but to get caught in his character. A childish guy for the lead, it’s a first right?

    I’m still not feeling Eun Seol. Maybe a few more episodes would make me warm up to her.

    The weird thing is I actually like the second girl. From the 3rd episode’s preview, I see that she’s not the typical meanie. Crying with mascara running down her cheeks, I seriously can’t hate her. This is quite refreshing actually.

    We still haven’t been properly introduced to Cha Mu Won yet. I can’t say if he dislikes Ji Heon. At one time he’s all “I’m better than you” towards Ji Heon, then the next he’s “I want you to succeed the company”. I don’t know if this confusion is caused by Jaejoong’s acting or if it’s just me. Hopefully the latter.

    • I feel the same way, I can’t figured out Cha Mu Won. Is a good guy or is he a bad guy? Is he rooting for Ji Sung’s character or does he want him out? I honestly can’t tell. I guess we’ll see.

    • I think he is a villain with a conscience. He is ambitious and would do anything to achieve his goals, but I believe he would balk at doing anything extreme or would feel bad if his actions would harm anyone. At least, that’s what I got from him 😛

  18. OCKoala! Thanks so much for recapping this. I hadn’t even planned to see this, but your enthusiastic review got me thinking that maybe I could check out at least the first episode. And BAMB! I love the second. I’m hooked.

  19. Thank you so much for the recaps!!! So far no one seems to be subbing it. so sad… Thanks again, as always your recaps make me laugh.

  20. i love the lead guy. i never seen his movies./dramas but at quick glance he looks like any other pretty boy actor in kdramas (sorry for all those who likes the pretty lookin men) but when u study his face – there is raw manliness!!! I can’t explain it – like there is some sort of intensity that will go Roarrrr, DON”T mess- I will protect what is mine kind of look when he is not making any comical expression. I think he goes under the classically handsome catogory, in the pure sense of wat makes a fine LOOKIN Man. We don’t get to see that kind of man often in not only korean dramas but also hk dramas, instead we see a trend of pretty, almost androgynous looking actors. i bet he would be very good in melodrama. off i go drooling now

  21. I really love Cha Muwon..The main reason why I’m watching PTB.
    Thank you for the recap of this drama ^___^
    I think after so long I’m enjoying watching a comedy drama without feeling annoying by any character. I like all of them, even the president Cha (Ji heon’s father) character is very charming, because he want his son to be succesful. .
    I can’t wait for the 3rd episode ^^

  22. !I have to say, that I loved the way Papa Chaimain is always in some way backing -up his son, despite the fact the he always make him disappointed. I found fascinating how the anger by Papa Chairman is portrayed, and how he always feels so helpless taking care of his son.

    I love how Ji Heon is presented, as a Chaebol son, despite of having everything, he have NO life. I mean, he cant touch people, he cant go to public places, he can enjoy anything. He is living inside of a bubble. And that is so sad, and heartbreaking!

    Eun Seol, is a hard working woman, who just want to leave everything bad about her past, behind her, and start a new life… Just giving the best of her, but sometimes past is a biatch and bite you in the tush, you know, as vengeance!

    Cousin-from-hell, is hot as hell, but he is going to give me such a beautiful headaches, I don’t wanna know about that! Love his hotness though!!

    The X who fall from the sky, she looks like a shark who just savor some blood! She is a biatch in the making! I’m preparing my knives already! Coz, THERE WILL BE BLOOD!!

    Mhahahahhahahahahahahahahah *evil laughter*

    BTW I’m loving this drama so much, I’m gluing my self to the pc again!! LOL

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