We Are All Trying Here (2026) 모두가 자신의 무가치함과 싸우고 있다
Directed by Cha Young-hoon and written by Park Hae-young, starring Koo Kyo-hwan as Hwang Dong-man, Go Youn-jung as Byeon Eun-ah, Oh Jung-se as Park Gyeong-se, Kang Mal-geum as Ko Hye-jin, Park Hae-joon as Hwang Jin-man, and Han Sun-hwa as Jang Mi-ran.
Watched 7 - 22 June 2026 — 12 episodes (NETFLIX)
*Didn't put this on my watchlist because of the lack of appeal of the male lead Koo Kyo-hwan for me. I do love the female lead Go Youn-jung a lot. Then I came across a review on a blog saying this drama is a rare gem, and I saw high ratings on MDL. I always thought this wasn't so well received. When I read this was being compared to My Mister and My Liberation Notes, some of my fave shows, I didn't hesitate to dive right in. It so happens that this show is also written by the same screenwriter who wrote My Mister and My Liberation Notes. Park Hae-young writes about loneliness, misfits, people making a connection and finding comfort with each other.
*First of all, I love the show's title, and it perfectly matches the content of this slice-of-life drama. The Korean title literally translates into: "Everyone is fighting their own worthlessness." I love the setting in the entertainment world, relating the journey of film director Hwang Dong-man, part of the filmclub The Eight, who hasn't made his debut yet despite being in the business for 20 years.
*Hwang Dong-man is not a likeable character at first. I also didn't like his looks and his voice. He's embarrassing and exhausting, and he dominates conversations and keeps belittling other people. And the way he eats food and stuffs himself, is not very pleasant to watch. It's really understandable why viewers don't like him and that's probably what the writer was going for. Yet, it is strange how Dong-man annoys me and endears me at the same time. He conveys his feelings of hurt well. I found my eyes moist a couple of times already during the first 2 episodes. Koo Kyo-hwan, whom I'd never seen before in a series, is well cast and gives a stellar performance. I cannot imagine any other actor in this role. He's a very unusual hero.
*I love Go Youn-jung as Byeon Eun-ah. Whereas Dong-man is loud and his insecurity is visible, Eun-ah hides her insecurity and unresolved trauma underneath. Only her nosebleeds and the emotion watch (the same Dong-man is wearing) are clear indications of how her character is feeling. I loved to see both of the leads' watches turn green when they were enjoying each other's company.
*I love the scenes with our OTP. Both struggling, they are not each other's saviours, but through mutual recognition of their problems, they support one another and their relationship develops. I didn't get a clear sense of romance, though, and also wasn't hoping for a romance (like I was with My Liberation Notes and My Mister). Though the show confirms the OTP's romantic relationship, it just didn't feel like one. The romance is very subtle and understated. I like the couple more as friends than lovers, and their strong bond is heartwarming.
*As the series progresses and Dong-man gets happier, he gets more likeable. I love how the writer doesn't make him a depressed person despite being a professional failure. Dong-man is not afraid of being a failure, but he is afraid that being a failure lowers his self-worth. So he keeps trying in his profession with a stubborn persistence.
*I love Dong-man's hopeful outlook on life, wanting to live a long one and die of old age. ("Success? Debuting? Screw all that. If I had just one wish in life, it would be to die of old age. I hope cats, trees, and all living things die of old age. Not from illness, not from agony. I hope everything dies of old age like leaves falling from a tree.") It's his brother Jin-man who tries to take his own life by hanging himself, twice saved by Dong-man (love Dong-man's love for his brother!).
*Still, Dong-man keeps being embarrassing now and then, even further down in the series. But he also gets more attractive at times. In the confrontation scene of Byeon Eun-ah and her mother (Bae Jong-ok as Oh Jeong-hee), when Dong-man finds out Eun-ah is Jeong-hee's daughter, he looks speechless and is almost handsome in that moment.
*We don't only see the struggles of our OTP and of Dong-man's brother Jin-man, but also of film director Park Gyeong-se, his wife Ko Hye-jin (love her no-nonsense attitude), and Jang Mi-ran, Oh Jeong-hee's stepdaughter. I love Shim Hee-seop as Lee Jun-hwan, another film director, who struggled less but stayed supportive of Dong-man.
*I love how realistic this show is. No martial art fights, but a normal fist fight where Dong-man gets his tooth knocked out. In subsequent scenes we see him tooth-gapped.
*The final episode was disappointing. There are hardly any scenes with our OTP, and little screen time is dedicated to Byeon Eun-ah. Fave scene in the final episode: when Eun-ah tells Mi-ran she is Oh Jeong-hee's biological daughter (after Mi-ran revealed to Eun-ah that Jeong-hee had said she found Eun-ah impressive). Eun-ah and Mi-ran had already formed a bond, and I love the ensuing sisterly hug of consolation. This scene made me cry. I also love the fact that it was Mi-ran who found Jin-man's long-lost daughter. Oh my ... if there was ever a missed opportunity for a love story, it would have been between Jin-man and Mi-ran. They didn't get many scenes together, and it was more from her side than his (his poems struck a cord with her emotionally and made her cry), but I saw a lot of potential there and loved them as a couple.
*I like Jin-man's poems. And the show has many quotable lines. I will name a few.
*Episode 1: "How can you tell if the world has ended or not? It comes down to the weather. As long as there are clouds in the sky, wind in the air, and leaves stirring in the breeze ... As long as weather exists, the world hasn’t ended." — Hwang Dong-man
*In episode 7, Byeon Eun-ah says to Hwang Dong-man: "You're a little embarrassing but very lovable."
*Ep. 10 (Jin-man throwing out books): "Everyone probably struggled to write these. But no one reads them and they just get thrown away. What's the point of all this? Everything disappears in the end anyway. So why are we living such hard lives as if we'll never disappear? As if we'll never disappear." — Hwang Dong-man
*Ep. 11, Dong-man to Eun-ah: "Do you think we were meant to be one person, but got split into two and came into the world? I would've liked you even if you were a man, or even if you were a tree. And if you were the wind, I would've been nuts about you."
*Love the OST!!!
*Overall, I thought it was a good show. The reason it's not up there with My Mister and My Liberation Notes, is the main character of Dong-man. He was a difficult character to fully embrace. If the show would have been written by someone else, I might have even put it on hold. But with Park Hae-young's name attached to this and already getting a bit emotional early on in the series, I held on and I'm glad I did.
*Now, I can imagine an entire spin-off show with Jin-man and Mi-ran's love story and a dive into their painful backgrounds. Can someone pick this up, pretty please?