Dear Cast and Crew of Prosecutor Princess,

Thank you for making such an awesome drama. I know that the time with InHye was kinda short, but I’m happy with it. I know that they have many years ahead of them to do all that it is we want them to do. I also loved the kiss on the forehead. First off – instead of pay back for the hit, he kisses her. He’ll never hurt her again. Secondly – it’s an affectionate way of saying “I love you” without using those awkward-stand-still-kisses or those mouth-sucking-kisses that you already filmed last week. Thirdly – it’s an action so in line with this cute couple.

Like aberdeen_angus said, the last few episodes were fast paced but quiet – thank you. A LOT of things were crammed into the final hour, but it didn’t feel rushed. We all knew what the outcome of the case would be, so why waste minutes in showing them working or figuring it out? Just cut to the chase. But speaking from a completely video-editing point of view, it was very clear you did everything quite to the last minute (since you were supposedly shooting until a few hours before it aired) because the cuts were abrupt and the sound transitions were not smooth. I usually wouldn’t like that, but it kind of adds some flavor in this one – especially since most of the transitions take place when switching between past and present. So I guess overall – I was ok with the editing.

Thank you for making Jenny Hye Ri’s informant in the second half. It made me giggle with the thought because it was less nefarious and full of common sense – and so much cheaper than hiring a private detective! While Jenny never really hated Hye Ri with a passion, I’m mildly surprised that she reached out to her. Jenny is the true objective observer in the drama for In Woo, just like how Yoon Ah is for Hye Ri. The two of them know what is in their best friend’s hearts respectively, and will do or say something to propel their best friend forward. Thank you for writing in such awesome friends to be the voice for us viewers.

Thank you for making such a satisfactory, well-paced drama. While it may have been over-the-top at times, I think it’s ‘heart’ stayed grounded. It was the excessive production design and styling of Hye Ri that made it look ridiculous. But we all know that looks are deceiving – come on, we had In Woo to help us with that! – and the story was solid. I never expected to have such a simple explanation for the mystery and crime, and it worked. On top of that – I never realized how fast the episodes went – no storyline was dragged out for longer than Hye Ri’s investigation of her father, and even then, that storyline moved quickly – it just managed to hold all our interest and our breaths for 6 EPISODES STRAIGHT. Brilliant. So thank you for your simplicity and your brilliance with timing.

And YET! Thank you for also making this drama more than just a “one-trick pony”, in the sense that you wrote a mystery AND a love triangle/square, and managed to keep our interest whenever one of those story lines waned. Instead of just showing the angst in love, you also made it believable because how else COULD Hye Ri and In Woo end up together with all that history? And instead of giving us a lame “cold, mysterious” lead male (whose issue would have been mommy issues, or heart-broken-by-a-first-love-issue), you made In Woo the perfect stalker who had a just cause, so we all REALLY wanted to know what was going on. And instead of giving us characters who were too noble to do anything (i.e. admit their feelings or keeping all their sufferings inside), you gave us characters who were outspoken and willing to say things when the time came, who were willing to take action to eventually get what they want.

And one last thing: YOU HAD ME GIDDY AT EVERY EPISODE, CRYING AT EVERY MELODRAMATIC MOMENT, AND LAUGHING AT EVERY JOKE!!!!! So thank you.

Love,

Kaedejun

aberdeen_angus’ comments:

First of all, I’m really thankful to javabeans for the space and to you for the support you gave us, the criticisms and the debates. All of that, added to the company of my partner in crime, kaedejun, enriched my watching experience and made me love this great drama even more (sob).

About the ending per se, I found it perfect. P-E-R-F-E-C-T [Shallow side note: Yay for no close-up kiss! Am I the only one who finds “kiss endings” awkward?]. Everyone reached a final, definitive peace of mind and sincere happiness (Jenny the fairy godmother was a great touch to the main love story); they grew, they forgave themselves, they moved on to a brighter future. As an added bonus, I believe that the leading couple will have the “happily ever after” they deserve, based on a personal analysis: In-woo wasn’t a bad guy, he was consumed by his tragedy and Hye-ri was the person who woke him up from his nightmare. After the initial hatred, he started to feel attracted by her singularities circa episode 3, and both his concerns and attentions for her were for real, even when he didn’t want to admit it at first. I’d dare to say that he enjoyed the flirting game a lot, because in those moments, he could forget about the crime and was free of his burdens. Through their childish relationship, his innocent and lovely pre-father-in-prison side came to life again and his good nature was awakened, thus triggering the game changing guilt in episode 9. Why would he leave her if she’s the reason why he’s breathing again? Why would she leave him if he’s the one who always cheered her up and was there for her? They’ll never break up. Love rocks.

In a general note, I’ll admit that we had a rough start, a pretty messy set up, a strange leading woman, two male leads who seemed perfect, and an incomplete story. It’s just a shame that the first two episodes didn’t fully sell this drama as the gem it would become. Why did I keep watching? Out of curiosity, I guess, and I’m so glad I did! After the first two episodes, the scenario changed, Hye-ri started being unique and amazing with her straightforwardness and particular common sense; and In-woo ruled as the torn, guilty but charming (anti) hero, while the plot kept on getting more and more complicated. But what drew my attention is how skillfully it handled and connected its three core issues: love, growth and forgiveness. The fact that everyone was kind hearted was crucial here: they scrambled through lots of difficult moments, but the trust and love they felt for each other helped them to learn more about life and eventually, redeem themselves in a natural and logical way.

Onto the script and writing, what was outstanding was that the characters were coherent (now that was refreshing) and when they changed their points of view towards the end, it was sustained by perfectly reasonable previous plot developments (even baker Ma Sang-tae was brilliant writing!). Also, no clingy second lead (I hate clingy second leads) or damsels in distress (our Hye-ri sure was strong!). It had its share of clichés (stop it with the wrist grabbing, for God’s sake!), but the lack of fate ridden events was awesome. In fact, I loved how the writer manipulated our so-used-to-destiny minds from the “coincidental” meet-cute onwards, making In-woo fake fate all the time – I’ll miss his oh-so-perfectly-planned timing! The drama grew gradually quality and story wise, giving us fast paced episodes, packed with clues and character development. I can’t pick a draggy, boring or too angsty episode, the “entertaining factor” was always there.

What can I say that hasn’t been said about the acting? I can’t love the characters more than I do, and that’s due to the actors’ and director’s wonderful job. Good acting + Good story = Unforgettable drama

Prosecutor Princess went against the “darker is more real” concept that’s so cool nowadays and succeeded. We got a bubbly but suspenseful series with no angst or crying overload. We could discuss about lots of deep topics, with a drama that had a fashionable, childish first lead who cared about shoes (!). Colorful doesn’t mean shallow, gritty doesn’t mean closer to reality. This extreme love-suspense-comedy mash-up was delightful to watch, making it my favorite drama for 2010’s first semester.

*waves white handkerchief in tears and boards the parting ship to new lands*

With love,