tvN's 'My Daughter's Friend's Mother' stirred strong empathy through a joint parenting project between Jeon Seong-woo and Park Jin-joo.
On the Wednesday broadcast on the 8th, tvN's 'My Daughter's Friend's Mother' (directed by Kim Na-kyung / written by Shin Yoo-jung / planned by Studio Dragon / produced by Poongnyeon Jeonpasang) portrayed the growing pains of 'divorced working dad' Gijun (played by Jeon Seong-woo) and 'divorced working mom' Hee-jin (played by Park Jin-joo). In particular, the process of growing together from workplace enemies to parenting companions drew warm support and praise from viewers.
Gijun is a novice father who has been raising his daughter Sena (played by Park Ji-yoon) alone for four months after a sudden divorce. For Gijun, who had left all childcare to his wife for seven years, every moment of parenting was not easy, and the most difficult thing was understanding Sena's heart. Meanwhile, Gijun was blackmailed into asking for an invitation to classmate Jimin's (played by Yang Woo-hyuk) birthday party, and of all people, the mother of the friend Sena wanted to get close to was Hee-jin, a subordinate who had hurt him by telling him to quit her job. In the end, with the mindset of 'what wouldn't a parent do for their child,' Gijun mustered the courage to approach Hee-jin, but Hee-jin coldly rebuffed him, saying, Are you okay with having hurt my feelings? I'm sorry, but I am also someone else's precious and beloved daughter. My emotional wounds haven't healed, so I can't look after your daughter's feelings, too.
But when by chance her father Byeong-ju (played by Seo Hyun-chul) was injured, Hee-jin eventually entered into an unwanted cooperative relationship with Gijun, and Gijun volunteered to work at the cutlet restaurant and pick up Jimin after school, managing to get the birthday party invitation and struggling to help Sena and Jimin become closer. Although the joint parenting project was unintended, Gijun filled the void left by Jimin's father and Hee-jin filled the void left by Sena's mother, forming a deep trust and gradually opening their hearts. In particular, Gijun, who had been clumsy at reading his daughter Sena's heart, learned from Hee-jin about the difference between a dress and a frock, how to braid hair, and other aspects of parenting and living as a working dad, leading him to reflect on how harshly he had treated Hee-jin, a working mom, five years earlier.
Meanwhile, their joint parenting project was not easy. Sena misunderstood the growing closeness between Gijun and Hee-jin. When the misunderstanding deepened to the point that Sena said, Dad, I don't want to go to Jimin's birthday party. I hate Jimin now. Dad, stop playing with Jimin's mom. Will you cheat like Mom did? Mom cheated, so if Dad cheats too, what about me? Who will I live with? Gijun began putting distance between himself and Hee-jin. To make matters worse, Gijun secretly tried to help Hee-jin find a job again out of gratitude, but Hee-jin misunderstood it as pitying kindness, causing a rift between them.
Meanwhile, Gijun's return to work was moved up, and Sena, thinking she had been pushed to second place again, complained to Gijun, Why are you always gone? Mom stayed with me. Eventually, triggered by Sena's talk of her mother, Gijun hurt his daughter by saying, If you like your mother so much, go to her. You said it yourself. You said you dislike her because she cheated. So why do you keep saying you want to go to her? At the same time, he faced a vicious cycle at work with no one to rely on, making things harder both at his job and at home.
Just then, Hee-jin saved Sena from a near traffic accident, and Sena's remark, My dad likes the aunt more than me, revealed misunderstandings not only between Sena and Gijun but also between Sena and Jimin and between Gijun and Hee-jin. Later, when Gijun reacted angrily to Sena's running away from home, Hee-jin said, You need to try to understand a child's feelings instead of getting angry all the time. How is Sena supposed to understand her father's feelings? People don't know feelings unless they're told, so how would a child know? and mediated between them. Gijun also revealed his feelings to Hee-jin, saying, I never felt sorry for you. I thought you were admirable. Afterward, Hee-jin succeeded in finding reemployment, and the two became more mature parents and parenting companions who helped each other's growth.
In this way, 'My Daughter's Friend's Mother' presented a new option through its joint parenting project, showing that divorced working dads and divorced working moms can pursue both career and parenting rather than choosing one or the other, and it resonated with viewers. Jeon Seong-woo and Park Jin-joo brought the reality of divorced working dads and divorced working moms to life with sincere performances, perfectly embodying the characters Gijun and Hee-jin. In particular, the dad and mom moments that naturally emerged as they became one with their characters created peak synergy with child actors Park Ji-yoon and Yang Woo-hyuk.
Meanwhile, 'O'PEN' supports the entire process from content planning to production, programming and business matching, serving as a bridge that connects creators and the industry as CJ ENM's project to discover and nurture new creators. It was launched from CJ's management philosophy that corporations are guardians of young people's dreams. Since its launch in 2017, it has produced 257 writers and 103 composers, and 17 works have won 21 awards at major domestic and international film festivals, earning recognition for their quality. In particular, through the 'short drama curation' presented simultaneously by tvN and TVING, it continues to introduce works that deliver a satisfying experience in a single episode.
[Photo] tvN
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