May It Please the Court (2022) 변론을 시작하겠습니다
Directed by Kang Min-goo, starring Jung Ryeo-won as Noh Chak-hee, Lee Kyu-hyung as Jwa Si-baek, Jung Jin-young as Jang Gi-do, Kim Hye-eun as Oh Ha-ran, and Kim Sang-ho as Shin Chi-sik.
Watched 24 February - 5 March 2026 — 12 episodes (KISSKH)
(Spoiler ahead!)
*I was looking for a drama where Lee Kyu-hyung plays the lead because I like him (seen him in Doctor John, Prison Playbook, Stranger, and Life). There aren't many titles to choose from, since he plays mainly supporting roles. (Hi Bye, Mama! is another drama with a leading role for him; might check that one out too.) I chose this series for its legal theme and the serial murder case, expecting some thrills. Even though I initially wasn't very enthusiastic about the female lead, Jung Ryeo-won as Noh Chak-hee (never seen her before), I slowly warmed up to her and really liked her.
*I thought the character arc for Noh Chak-hee was done really well. Love her transformation! In the beginning, she's an ace attorney at a prestigous law firm, with her moral compass not exactly pointing in the right direction. Later on, working as a public defender with clients who are less fortunate in life, you see how Chak-hee slowly is affected emotionally by the defendants she works for. She also tries to make amends for the mistakes she made as a big shot lawyer. (Incidentally, I didn't like Chak-hee's wardrobe in the earlier episodes but her dress sense improved considerably.)
*The show strikes a nice balance between being gritty and suspenseful and being light and funny. Noh Chak-hee and Jwa Si-baek have great chemistry. Love their bickering and natural interplay.
*There is a big bright spotlight put on Si-baek, making him look suspicious, but it just would have been too obvious. I had also read snippets of some MDL reviews, without spoilers, where reviewers talk lovingly about the main couple, so I was sure Si-baek wasn't the killer.
*Lee Kyu-hyung can play ambiguous characters well so it would have been totally believable if he had been the culprit. If you rule out Si-baek as the killer, it's predictable who the real culprit is.
*The plotline with Si-baek's brother (Kim Sang-ho as Shin Chi-sik) — who turns out to be his brother-in-law — and the amnesiac employee of Mokgol Dumplings is mysterious and a bit eerie, and you know they are involved somehow with the bigger case. Both actors are very good.
*I love the actress Kim Hye-eun! Here she plays Oh Ha-ran, Jang Gi-do's wife. I liked her eventual connection with Chak-hee and their joint endeavour to bring Gi-do down. (By the way, she plays with Kim Sang-ho in D-Day. I loved their interactions in that show, as the Chief of ER and the Chief of the Fire Department respectively.)
*The male cop Jung Jae-geun is so dumb and obnoxious. Even though the female detective (Lee Sang-hee as Yoo Gyeong-jin) was a bit annoying and not very likeable, she had a good set of brains, and fortunately she put the dumb cop in his place on multiple occasions.
*The mysterious serial killer case doesn't get unraveled until the last episodes. At episode 11, I was still grasping at straws and wasn't any wiser. I had already anticipated that it wasn't going to end satisfactorily. But it all comes together in the last two episodes and gives a satisfying conclusion. Still, some questions stay unanswered, like how did Si-baek end up with the dead boy's identity.
*Chak-hee had vowed to put Si-baek on death row, thinking he was the serial killer. It was understandable that she suspected him (because of his behaviour and confession), but I can imagine him being hurt over the fact that she didn't have doubts about his false confession. On the other hand, Si-baek made Chak-hee fall into pieces. She was really devastated by the thought of him being the culprit.
*There is no overt romance between Si-baek and Chak-hee but there's a slight romantic vibe and hints of Chak-hee and Si-baek being a couple, with talks of marriage and granny trying to hook them up all the time. I wouldn't have minded a full-blown romance.
*All in all, the show was thoroughly enjoyable and I'll definitely check out Witch's Court, another legal drama with the same lead actress Jung Ryeo-won (my younger sister likes this series!).
(Screenshot taken by me.)