A beautiful Korean series that reflects on growing up, parenting, love, crime, and power.

Childhood & Parenting

We all have been that child. Moments when we declared in our minds, “You are not a good mom”. Or “Why are they like this.”

And then, we became parents and realized to some extent why they were like that.

Sometimes we realize that was the best method and follow it to a T. Sometimes we find a better way of doing it and get out of the generational trauma cycles we have been through. And sometimes we just create other patterns that the future generations might repeat or change for the better. Because we learn through our mistakes.

The Good Bad Mother Series- A Walkthrough

In the series, we come across a mother who is single-handedly raising her son while running a pig farm. She insists her son studies very well. No friendships, no picnics, no games, no entertainment, and don’t eat too much because “a full stomach will make you sleepy”. The child achieves every honors while studying and successfully establishes himself as a prosecutor, who is cold-hearted and does not wish to talk to or see his mother.

Then he meets with an accident leading him to a childlike state with the growth of a 7-year-old. The mother sees this as a chance to build her relationship with her son once again and how it beautifully develops forms the rest of the story.

Breakthrough

In the series, young Kang Ho writes in his note of absence in the picnic form as “bad mom” because she never let him go for a picnic and instead asks him to study. Later we learn this was his mother’s fear of losing him.

Another instance when all the prizes he won for his artistic talents were burned, because he wasted his time where he could have been studying, but later we could see him mom patching up everything she tore and hiding it away.

She lived for taking revenge on the system that failed her. But she realizes that such a life is not worth living.

To enjoy the life you have is the best revenge in itself, she realizes.

The state of Kang ho after his accident makes others pity on them, but his mother, Jin Young-soo takes it as a blessing to undo the mistakes she made, to create beautiful memories.

The hard working and positive spirit Young-soo has , to get up after each setback and the way she tries to make the best of her life is commendable.

My Thoughts

The acting of Ra Mi-ran(mother) and Lee Do-hyun (son) were brilliant. As Ra Mi-ran transforms from a shy girl, to a happy wife, a grieving widow, strict mom, and the hopeful person, it was a heartfelt feeling of knowing the character personally.

Choi Kang Ho (played by Lee Do-hyun)- The studious teenager, serious lawyer, the child scared about getting himself and his friends in trouble, how??? There is so much innocence in his eyes and cuteness in the emotions he displayed.

The children Ye-jin and Seo-jin are adorable. The way they terrify him at first is hilarious. Their mother, Lee Mi-joo (played by Ahn Eun-jin) is someone who faced a lot of ordeals alone. Trying to move ahead after getting heartbroken, while not even knowing why and building up a profession from her passion, trying to build up a family so that her children are happy, and then realizing her children are happy to just have her in their life.

The supporting characters were brilliant as well. Bang Sam-sik was sincere in his love from start to end but ultimately finds his true love in the most unexpected place.

The 2 henchmen brought in a lot of comic relief and also made a crucial point in this series.

Be it the villagers’ characters, who are swayed easily in their innocence sometimes to the opposite side, but always end up doing the right things or the negative characters who demolish everything in their way, or the main characters who trod the line between right and wrong while believing in the ultimate result to be the correct one, there is a beauty in the way the series the good bad mother has been developed.

After all, aren’t we the same? Making decisions based on what we know, believing it to be the right way, sometimes enjoying and sometimes regretting them based on how things turn out.

Spoiler ahead…

Choi Kang ho, as we ultimately realises never hated his mom but was fighting a different battle. On asking why he joined law school, he says, he too wants to find the reason he joined the same. Why he had a childhood where he was only allowed to study, not eat his stomach full, not able to draw, and not able to admit his love for his friend.

Why his happy mother turned into a bitter version of herself, why she stopped doing things she loved, and how his dad was murdered.

………………………………………………………………………………………..Spoiler finished

As I have outed some spoilers, there is still more that unravels towards the end if you have accidentally read this but not watched the show.

Oy sumnidayo😍