Review of Episode 1
The first episode of KBS’s latest rom-com, The Law Cafe just opened to strong ratings. The series stars Lee Seung Gi and Lee Se Young in lead roles. The Law Cafe is a blend of romance, comedy, law and melodrama. It is lighthearted but offers nothing new.
The Storyline
The story line is about two people, estranged lovers and best friends meeting after a really long time. Sound familiar? This is a very cliched plotline. The most recent and successful drama along these lines was Our Beloved Summer. Our Beloved Summer was much better in every way. It had a poetic quality or soul to it, which The Law Cafe lacks.
The protagonists here do not have bad blood unlike their counterparts in Our Beloved Summer. They do not hold a strong grudge against each other. Nor do they kick it off suddenly as if nothing had happened. They are fairly cordial for estranged lovers.
The setting and background is nice. The female lead who wants to start a cafe which also gives legal advice, lends the apartment of the male lead. But that’s about it. There is nothing innovative here. The humor falls flat in most places. The courtroom scenes are either funny or melodramatic but are rather shallow.
Characterization
The characterizations are too cliched. The protagonists, their best friends and other supporting characters are stereotypes we have seen before in many dramas. There is no defining quality for their characters which stand out. Here is where the comparison with Our Beloved Summer comes stronger. The protagonists there had defining qualities in their characterization which made them stand out.
The treatment of the plot and the narration also lacks innovation. The main characters have these monologues where they look into the camera and talk about each other as in a documentary or variety show. Our Beloved Summer also had a similar pattern but it made sense there, because the characters were actually shooting for a show. The narration was really organic there.
The saving grace of the drama has to be the actors. But even they lack choices because the characters are so underwritten and their actions are often repetitive. But still the actors have managed to bring in good chemistry which is the silver line for the series. Lee Seung Gi and Lee Se Young are good enough in their respective roles.
You can watch The Law Cafe on Rakuten Viki.
Read more on The Law Cafe herehttps://mydramalist.com/719533-love-according-to-law
Arya is a curious soul and nerd who loves books and cinema. You can read her articles on Medium. You can also follow her on Instagram where she talks about her favourite books and movies.