K-Drama Review: ‘My Liberation Notes’ - “A Relatable Series That Offers a Deep View on Life and Answers the Several Unanswered Questions about Life”

Source: Mydramalist

The best part about my liberation notes is that it takes their own time to show the story of the character and their journey. It is slow-paced and often there are scenes wherein the characters just walk through landscapes without talking to one another. There are no dialogues at all but extended conscious monologues.

Introduction

Series’ name - My Liberation Notes

Directors’ name - Kims-Seok-Yoon

Genre - Slice of Life

Language - Korean

Synopsis - Spoiler Alert!

My liberation notes tell the story of three siblings who are frustrated with their monotonous life. Yeom Ki-Jeong is the eldest of the three siblings and works in a research company, Yeom Chang-hee is the second child and is an employee at the headquarters of a convenience store franchise.

Yeom Mi-Jeong is the youngest daughter and is a contract employee in the design department of a credit card company. All three siblings work in Seoul but live very far away. They help their father at the farm, go to their respective jobs and come home late at night. All of them are tired and frustrated. This drama realistically portrays the societal pressure on the youth.

Yeom Mi-Jeong is an introvert, she is unable to open up about her feelings to anyone until Mr Gu. Mr Gu is the stranger who works at the sink factory of the Yeom family and whose past is unknown to them. Yeom Mi-Jeong tired of living her life the same way over and over again once gets the courage and starts talking to him. 

Yeom Mi-Jeong asks Mr Gu to worship her and make her feel whole as she felt like she was moving through a lie without any sense of direction or purpose. She wants to liberate herself and along with two other employees of the company who are also of a timid and introverted nature starts a new club called ‘The Liberation Club’. In this club, they talk about their life experiences and seek a sense of fulfilment and liberation.

About the Director

Kim Yoon-Seok (born January 21, 1967) is a South Korean actor, film director, and screenwriter. Kim began his career in theatre and it subsequently led him to be cast in minor roles in films and television dramas. His breakout role came as the villain in the gambling film Tazza: The High Rollers (2006).In 2019, Kim made his directorial debut with Another Child, a family drama film.

Personal Verdict

My Liberation notes are one of the best series that I had the chance to watch. Although it's quite slow-paced, the talks that the characters had with themselves and the dialogue between two people were all worth the wait.

Yeom Mi-Jeong is the character I could relate to, she is not the one to open up about her feelings or discuss them. She hates troubling her parents and siblings and does not talk to them about the problems she is going through instead she pretends to be someone she is not and goes on through her life until she finds someone she could trust and relies on him for support.

Similarly, the other two siblings have their own set of problems. Yeom Ki-Jeong realizes that all along she rebuked those who used to confess their feelings for her and now she feels as if she did the wrong thing and that is why she will end up being alone whereas Chang-hee is so tired of the fact that his father does not share his ambition of moving to Seoul that he ends up quitting his job. The character of all three siblings is quite relatable and will keep you hooked until the end.

Quotes

1. “Five minutes a day. If you have five minutes of peace, it’s bearable. When I open my eyes in the morning and remember it’s Saturday, that makes me happy for ten seconds. Fill up five minutes a day like that. That’s how I survive.”

2. “Do you still live the hard way, trudging on step by step? Let’s go together. Step by step, trudging on.”

3. “The words sit on the tip of your tongue, wanting to come out. But when you swallow them back down, that’s when you know you’re an adult.”

4. “Take it easy, no one’s after you. I only feel alive when I exhaust myself completely. If I have any energy left, I feel heavy.”

5. “Nothing has gone my way, and I haven’t achieved anything, but I’ve done my best at least.”

Bottom Line :

This series will help you reflect on your life’s choices and therefore according to me is surely worth watching at least once.

My ratings for this series are 5on 5.

You may watch this series on Netflix.

Written by - Aayushi Kumari Singh