Quiet Sales (2024)

Jeongsuk-han Sales!!

This is one of those I consider a version of good adaptation of an original work. It did the storylines right and made things optimistic leaving a more warm, hopeful, feel-good vibe to take home. The acting was what carried the original 'Brief Encounters' and woori Kdrama has equally top-notch performances. Kim Sun-young especially brought me to tears. The child actors were all so adorable. The soulful music added to the melodrama tenfold. All the main cast got their moments to shine. Kim Won-hae is Kim Won-hae is perfect, especially when he gets to be a diva. For once it is satisfying that Im Chul-soo does not just his usual bumbling bit but also provides solid melodrama support. Kim Si-eun(I miss her since Lies Within) being young Bok-soon(Kang Ae-sim: Jeong-suk's mom) and kid Seong-su were so perfect as the past selves of their future counterparts! While a fairly faithful remake(covering almost all the major storylines with some revisions and omissions) of the ITV series 'Brief Encounters', they are separate enough while maintaining the essence and characters(with improvements on some sticky bits). Most of the characters lose their depth for tropes but it is dealt with well(Choi Jae-rim as Seong-su leaves so much unfinished business tho). Theres something of the couples and marriages kept intact which I'd have liked more of from the beginning than in the second half(viz Kim Won-hae's nag+sweetness). Some of the most intimate scenes are ironically platonic interactions between the couples in the last half...since the romantic scenes (except main leads ones) are usually comic. Loads of comedy- slapstick, some deadpan...

They've added a lot more to the enterprising sales spirit of the main four and not made the business out to be a cakewalk sales job that could be done offscreen in the backdrop of their life stories as it was in the UK with Ann Summers coming across as Tupperware. But there lies the difference due to the two countries they are set in:- in one, the scenario is that the business itself is legitimate and above reproach and that implicit detail is obvious within a episode or two as it is something that would be normal and easily acceptable in countries like UK and the issues for the saleswomen is thus more focused on their family issues/backlash and personal safety. While in the other- the business itself is what is primarily under fire and a big taboo, not so much the saleswomen(in one episode a former anti-sister says she bought items because Jeong-suk herself is someone who has a solid reputation since forever. Their social rep depends on much wider criteria). The saleswomen must thus defend the legitimacy of their sales while also battling many things at a personal level. Thats why I'm evaluating this more as a remake since they've stuck too close to the British drama's story arcs than explore their own angles deeply enough. Brief Encounters did leave me a bit confused with what they wanted to say with some side story choices they made(which might have been planned for more seasons) and the lack of details outside a vague/general women's lives and period drama set in 1980s England. This is something I've found with a few other British drama which left me scratching my head with so much happening in so little time albeit they are dense/compact (Marcella, Luther, etc). Here the situations and scope are defined okay, there are lots of things they brainstorm about on the sales front but it is all at a very basic level and become more and more as blackboard discussions and group meets(budget issues?) which is fine. The adult products market of 90s korea was very hard to find out about but what little I could dredge up on it seemed fairly dicey and involved arrests, protests, AV and somewhat black market dubiety with focus on men's products. Most being things to stay away from w.r.t. women's products and they should have avoided the similarity even if incidental. If this were set in 90s Japan, where women's adult product sales were starting to get traction, as a JDrama(I adore the angle some of them take) or they kept the Ann Summers model just the way as it was occuring abroad, it could have all gone very differently in this aspect. The rocky-road realism of never-ending issues goes well in that it is foreshadowed in a way. But it doesn't in that it comes too late to have the required impact. They had wind in their 'sales' to have launched safely into their best endings.

Theres several throwbacks to 1990s Korea and references to foreign movies peppered in which I adored. Especially the way some of it is utilized viz Seo Taiji and the Boys. Like with Golden Kamuy there are some anachronisms that I excuse for creativity mainly due to available material. This was also the first time since Golden Kamuy(manga) ended that I've had this much fun looking up pop references+day-to-day history. Nothing will ever top Cold Case in that in my heart though. I also felt some similarities to Casa Amor the movie somewhere- some scenes. And of course the ending is as if they went through Casa Amor the movie offscreen which they should have put in as small snippets/still-frames at least. The ending actually really reminds me of the finale to Waikiki and Samdal-ri somewhere... The way I've grown attached is similar to way I feel deeply attached to this jmovie Yurusarezaru-mono because I evaluated it as a remake of not just the original Unforgiven but also of Shumari and some other westerns and truth is no matter how it may have been objectively, it all just clicked in my head all at once.

The addition of the historical adoption scandal that has been in the limelight past few years since around 2021 or 22 onwards is an aside- a random red herring- so it didn't quite go down well even though they used the storyline for the ML and his relation with FL. One overall difference in story structure that isn't smooth is how instead of building up the stories slowly from the beginning so they feel connected and play out at an even pace, separate story arcs come up sequentially and are only tied in just before they are to emerge each time. And some plot choices required a bit too much of suspension of disbelief like a lot of Do-hyeon's. Cho Sun-ae's story was an interesting perspective but negated due to its timing and reducing her to a tropey psycho character. But say, if foreshadowed earlier... Or been linked to Young-bok's family life... And Young-bok- say if her life story was explored more(already the groundwork seemed there mainly due to the acting of the actors) and more of her daughters shown... Or if they had a different angle than the original's accident(I personally disliked that one thing in Brief Encounters deeply because it leads to a depressing ending and added nothing to the main plot unlike here)... Like, only the bits about the husband's shady past holding them down in the present and the freshly paroled friend hassling them and framing him 100%...The two actors brought out their characters feelings insanely- I could feel the weight of their daily lives, guilt and evasion, affection and camaraderie. It was their SoL melodrama that made their story shine rather than the odd crime plot from the original. Albeit, since they dealt with the conflict deftly and ended on a positive note I got a sense of catharsis for the British version just from this(someone give some catharsis for the poor In-tae from both series though...).

With many of the conversations dropping stories of daily life offhand, depictions, attitudes, etc I was reminded of certain moments of certain books(Mrs. Harris during the clam fishing women's scene, Embroideries, etc) and pondered over impressions including of what I recall of people I know. Those women's magazines at the hair salon were the biggest nostalgia bait to me- I was a bit like Dong-u. The strong point was indeed depicting women's stories. The small town setting especially really brought out the various cross sections in a single place. I have heard of situations similar to Jeong-suk's mother's but with bigamy occuring. How fickle the implementation of theoretical law is...the sense of justice so ephemeral. There were so many details in the bickerings and gossips and second-hand tales dropped in background conversations throught the kdrama... But mainly what struck me as an epiphany is how the idea of being open about sex is a paradox. It never clicked in my mind till now since I too have been compartmentalizing things as separate spheres in my life and not as one single topic. This is this, that is that and fiction goes in my private otaku bin...never shall the twain meet. Most women with close friends or kind of acquaintance groups, have always been overly free and open in talking sex lives/menopause /childbirth issues and "gossip" and swapping details on "suitable" foods and superstitions. Just like the Geumje women were doing long before Mrs Kim's marital aids came to town. I have vague memories and anecdotes of certain people of yore in my life(how someone can share in delight over r-rated movies, lecture on about how being prudish is bad and yet consider lipstick a sin because everyone says so?) And also how when I told my mom about being bewildered by certain colleague's lunchtime chat in my then new job, she tells me her colleagues too talk of their sex lives and issues openly between friends and even vague female acquaintances. The Geumje citizen's objection to this new business and product perception is a sort of prejudice. And coz it is outside their circles, in the open. While its just girltalk, sex is no such taboo. The butcher, the hardware store lady, Young-bok...all their pre-existing openness and gossipy nature are quite true to life. The stuck-up Heo Young-ja swaying things is this cornerstone in this somewhere. Young-ja is also shown as a foil to Jeong-suk's mother and their stories are sad with no easy answers. The chains to be liberated from are societal mores. Casa Amor was in 2015 and yet... Be it 1982-> 1992-> 2015 or 2024- be it the UK or Korea- its all universal and timeless. There is always a taboo, a prejudice, a backlash from some section no matter how much times change and laws change and beliefs cycle around and all. Even relationships, marriages, frustrations, compromises, gossip, reputation, slander, blame - constants.

Jeong-suk learning from the mistakes of those before her with similar predicaments and availing of that divorce option available to her, without being bound by society's judgement, by trusting her own judgement set things in motion. It was one of the most cathartic moments in a drama without a doubt. Instead of moping about the travails of being divorced or single mothers Jeong-suk and Ju-ri living their lives as they want- that felt real good. I was satisfied with how Geum-hui and Young-bok's stories went overall. I just wish we had more of Ju-ri. Loved her to bits. And silly Dae-geun! His actor is good at being diverse- I'm amazed seeing him in other dramas being a completely different character type at the same time. I also wish we could have seen Uhm Seo-yeon's story from the original, even if abridged, as it was quite a vital angle. It could bring up conflict on how she nixes any prospect of an arranged and unhappy marriage for show unlike what her mother has even with a job. She could even round out the contrast of those with the small town perspective with someone who left for the big city. Her Seoul connection could also have brought in the plot twist of the last arc with proper foreshadowing- like say if she went to get her item repaired and found there was no such store... This is the third major issue- how they play it too safe and simple with the plot. For example Seo-yeon and her mother have a comfortable relation which is apparent as do Young-bok and her eldest daughter and Jeong-suk with her mom within an episode of their issue being resolved. Even innocent Min-ho has no issues with Do-hyun being close to his mom. All in sharp contrast to the conflicts of parents and children in Brief Encounters. It makes for a warm and gentle nostalgia however evoking some snippets of relatable moments. In that vein, they could have changed far more of the storylines from the original than keeping some that were fairly unnecessary to be expanded over episodes and instead given the Geumje women more tales that theres an infinite history to chose from(the side characters were all so vibrant...). Or show how the women thaw and become regulars(considering the later product lineup also include some other items that would see more regular sales). But I kindof get paring some things down for what they wanted to focus on for the 12 episodes. The compatible relation shown between FL and ML was sweet. The FL for the most part is too much a Yamato Nadeshiko as is her meaningful name a Korean-equivalent pun for, but she gets to show a lot of steel and innate leadership/managerial skills. Her moments with her mother were the most emotional.

Maybe making it 16 epsiodes to explore more and un-rush some things would have been better though things were kept crisp with just 12 and the main plotlines all got tied up neat enough. Theres an epilogue for the guys that should be timed somewhere just before the 4 years later ribbon cutting. Do-hyeon had returned and become Geumje station's new police chief, Won-bong and Jong-sun get a quintessential romcom fall-and-catch moment(Jong-sun got a full-time job at the pharmacy 4 years ago) and Dae-geun's now a pro. The titledrop comes at the very end and reminds me of re-context type titledrops in certain manga. It ties things up with their story with their new business' punny name - Jeong-suk Han's Sales aka A Virtuous Business...

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