The Secret Life of My Secretary (2019) User Reviews

Heartwarming

[ottemis · 8/10 · 5 September 2019]

Note: Story involves physical disease.

Much like 'her private life', this one was sweet and heartwarming. Light on drama. Chemistry between leads very strong. Secondary leads also very cute and it was refreshing they weren't in a typical love triangle, rather than just having their own love story. Excellent character portrayal from Kim Jae-Kyung as Veronica Park. Looking forward to see her star in a drama in the future.

Wonderful Love Story + Crazy Chemistry

[fake_moviestar · 8/10 · 16 June 2020]

This was a winner for me! First off, the plot summary makes this show sound corny and boring, and that couldn't be further from how this show ended up being. The use of face-blindness was a very interesting and different twist to the pretty common office-romance type of show. The story was interesting and cute and the episodes were timed very well so there were no slow/boring episodes. The comedy was fantastic as well, with some truly funny moments that made me laugh out loud. The soundtrack was fitting but definitely did not stand out. The acting was fantastic, especially from our main couple. Veronica Park was an obnoxious/annoying character that eventually grew on me though, and the sub-plot with Dae-Joo definitely kept me guessing until the very end. Did I mention the leads had some amazing chemistry?? I did feel like Min Ik's backstory wasn't fully explained, but it didn't detract too much from my enjoyment. Overall this was a wonderful rom-com that I found incredibly enjoyable.

Okayish first watch.

[jaseemp · 7/10 · 31 August 2020]

I loved the leads in this drama. Especially the Female lead. The secondary FL was bit annoying at times. It was sweet and beautiful love story between a hardworking secretary and a that so called cool boss.

SPOILER ALERT, SPOILER ALERT!!! I really loved the the first few episodes. The lead Male and female looked great together in those episodes. But they beat around the bush until the 14th episode. Their actual relationship as couple was only shown in the last two episodes. So for that reason I couldn't agree with the comments saying they have a good chemistry throughout the show. I loved them very much in the last two episodes. but for me that was not enough. Anyway this is a good watch. Filled with warmth ,romance and comedy . watch it guys.

Good enough

[PennyReviews · 7/10 · 26 June 2019]

The secret life of my secretary was out about the same time as when her private life had finished.

The drama had an odd start and an even wierder plot description. And it almost looked like they couldn't pull it off, but they did. The whole drama, after episodes one and two at least, was really cute. The office drama was interesting, although towards the ending, it was boring. The couple, however, was cute. And the chemistry of the two leads was incredible and it helped the drama a lot. They had many cute moments and the love story was really good and intence.

Finally, the performances were good by everyone in the cast. But, the drama didn't have anything special to offer other than the love story. So, seven out of ten.

i loved it

[paryanazari · 10/10 · 6 April 2020]

At first i thought it would be another cheesy cliche but as it went forward i felt its a whole new story with New characters and sweet moments actually after watching so mush k dramas i feel every thing is repetetive, but this one changed my mind also, when you watch a rom com usually some things doesnt make sense and things are somehow exaggerated but in this serie i can tell the story line was reasonable i wasnt bored while watching i really felt all the love and supportiveness in the characters beside their pains lead actor and actress were very lovable and sweet the characters garments were so proper for each character by the way i loved all do min ik suits. at the end it has all i want from a rom-com

I dislike the lead actress

[chariz_pearl · 6/10 · 23 June 2020]

I really dont like the character of the lead female (the secretary). Everytime she comes on( especially on the last half of the episodes) I feel like fast forwarding it. I love the main lead character ( Do Min Ik) and i LOVE the second couple so much they should be the main character.

I really liked this!

[chilligrrl · 9/10 · 16 February 2020]

I was a bit dubious at the start, but it developed into an interesting and sweet storyline, with plenty of laugh out loud and total cringe-may-the-floor-open-up-under-me moments. The actors all were great, the plot moved along well (but more could have been done with the protest), and even OTT Veronica wasn't terribly annoying but was balanced out well with the rest of the cast. It's not a family drama, an office drama or a love triangle, just a good storyline with a satisfying ending. The mothers were all abusive though, verbally and physically which annoyed me. No one should put up with that behaviour.

Old school kdrama, quirky and entertaining enough

[hanalisss · 6/10 · 13 August 2023]

Offers a mix of romance and office intrigue. While it may not break new ground, the series provides a decent dose of entertainment for viewers seeking a lighthearted watch.

The drama benefits from the chemistry between its lead actors, Kim Young-kwang and Jin Ki-joo, who infuse their characters' interactions with charm and warmth. Their evolving relationship adds a layer of sweetness to the storyline.

The office setting and the secretarial premise offer a familiar backdrop that many viewers can relate to. The humorous moments that arise from the characters' interactions at work provide a light and amusing touch to the narrative.

While The Secret Life of My Secretary may not stand out as a groundbreaking drama, it manages to deliver a straightforward and pleasant viewing experience. It strikes a balance between romance and comedy, making it a suitable choice for those seeking a drama that doesn't require too much investment but still offers some enjoyable moments.

Original and clever

[phd_travel · 9/10 · 6 February 2023]

What an original and cleverly written romance story. The topic of face blindness is cleverly woven into a romance between a secretary and her boss.

The cast is well chosen and attractive. Jin Ki Joo does a great job and looks quite different when dressed up nicely. Kim Young Kwang looks the part and has a goofy charm which suits the character of the boss with face blindness. The supporting characters are likeable for a change especially the awesome Veronica Park played by Kim Jae Kyung.

One of the best points is there isn't a love triangle here except with herself as the third party. There aren't frustrating parts or dull repetitive moments.

Liked this story more than Secretary Kim.

Despite being extremely cringy in some episodes, both leads were literally adorable😍

[Irishchatter · 7/10 · 8 October 2020]

So basically I have finished this in 3 days with 3 sleepiness nights (do not try this at home, thanks Netflix) and I really enjoyed watching the two leads. I just thought they were absolutely adorable together like their interactions were just wholesome and natural. Ki-joo Jin and Young-kwang Kim did such a adorable job for playing the characters, especially holding out for a steamy kiss at the end there ;)

I even loved the Veronica Park character ,like you hardly see confident and laid back flirty girls in any romance show I've seen. She made me laugh y'all with her nonsense that she comes out with, including the other secretaries and the mother xD

However I will say that there were quite a few downfalls in this like when two people died in different scenes, they didn't add enough emotion to them.. I mean I nearly dropped this kromcom because the way they treated the tragic death scenes in this, weren't taken seriously and were quickly forgotten about. Also I didn't think that broken elevator scene in the end was really that necessary to end a story, I mean the guy got help and lived happily ever after!

Regardless of those complaints, this is such a very cute kdrama. It's very animated in some parts but it's very entertaining to watch at just 16 episodes. Give it a try if you want your heart to bloom!

Suprisingly good.

[leahcubed · 10/10 · 7 November 2022]

10/10 is my rating. This is a 2019 South Korean Romantic Drama with 32 episodes of about 35 minutes. Also known as "How to Train My Blind Boss."

First I provide a synopsis then a review.

Synopsis

Do Min-ik (Kim Young-kwang) is not an easy boss to work for as he relies on his secretary for everything but does not employ beyond a year. Jung Gal-hee (Jin Ki-joo) is determined to be the one to change that, and get her contract renewed, and goes out of her way to meet her bosses' crazy demands. That all changes when Ki-joo's contract is up and Director Min-ik indicates he will not renew. Gal-hee vows to get revenge on her boss and, in an alcohol fueled foray sets out to find him only to discover he needs help as someone genuinely tried to hurt him. Upon recovery from the immediate injury Min-ik suffers from prosopagnosia and is only able to see the face of his secretary as his many hours with her imprinted her image in his mind. Now desperate beyond his only 1 year per secretary policy, he begs Gal-hee to help him navigate a world where everyone looks the same only, this time, she has some conditions. Min-iks adopted mother has designs to use her son to further the family business and wants him to go on blind dates with Veronica Park (Kim Jae-kyung) a former heiress who is notorious for going through men and being difficult to work with. It so happens that Gal-hee used to work for Veronica and used to pretend to be her for various crazy stunts Veronica would involve her secretary in. Due to a mix up in schedules Gal-hee winds up pretending to be Veronica for a blind date with Min-ik and he falls for Gal-hee's version of the heiress. To make things even more complicated the real Veronica, during the same mix-up, falls for Min-ik's friend and fellow company director Ki Dae-joo (Koo Ja-sung). Will Min-ik forgive Gal-hee for tricking him? Has the real Veronica finally met her match?

Review I tried to think of things I did not like about this series but they were so minor I have to say this is rather perfect. It ends well. The couples romances are well placed, believable and heart warming. Veronica Park is such an iconic character if you watch it for no other reason - watching it for that role would be worth it. But it is really good in addition to that.

Spoiler alert* I did not like that she tricked him. But, in the series, that was not justified and she was not happy with herself about it either. So I felt like she redeemed herself and him forgiving her made sense. I liked that his cold adopted mother "came around" and it was obvious, in her way, that she loved her adopted son. I liked that there was no miracle cure for his facial blindness and that he had to go through a whole process to learn to accept himself with the disability. He found ways to work around it. I liked that they did not miraculously and unbelievably find a way to preserve the Chairman job for him but the way they worked it out was very satisfying. You knew that he would be chairman in the near future. His love and caring for her when she was protesting was so cute. He was willing to give up anything to make things right for her. His relationship with her siblings, the way he "spoiled" them set the tone for how great of a relationship he would have with them in the future. He gained a close knit family and they gained a provider/protector. It was not clear or closed up if Gal-hee discovered her sister had the earrings. Or if her sister got the role. It was implied but it felt like we followed that character so closely I would liked to have known how things went for her. I would watch this one again and highly recommend it to anyone that likes heartwarming romance. There is very little intrigue in this one, the villans are pretty run of the mill, but the relationships completely carry the story in a good way.

Nothing new here

[geewhiz46 · 6/10 · 30 December 2022]

I guess I am old fashioned inasamuch as I don't like cowardly heroes!

This starts off predictably enough with the plain bespectacled secretary being run ragged by her arrogant boss.

He has some issues with his family which are never really fully explained.

He has an accident and ends up with face blindness. This is the second series using this device and I didn't like that one either. It's just too cruel to use in a series such as this.

Through a contrived plot the secretary assumes another identity in which plain becomes pretty (as if we didn't know) and her boss falls in love with her.

The FL has a sister and a blind brother - in one incomprehensible scene these two hijack the couples first date and demand food and sympathy. I was totally disgusted by that - I think it was supposed to be funny - it wasn't.

There is the usual scheming to remove him as Ceo - the usual misunderstandings etc.

It was predictable - but I did not like the ending at all.

Unrealistic

[feliciastrand-71308 · 4/10 · 10 May 2020]

This caused a lot of emotions for me which is why it even got a four. I got invested in the story. But without spoiling I found the last few episodes just so unrealistic that I could barely finish the drama at all. I liked the characters but found the last part of the story somewhat unbareable. I'm sorry, but I wouldn't recommend it.

Cute Fluffy drama

[kinogems · 7/10 · 15 February 2022]

It's cute and the leads have good chemistry. The plot isn't something extraordinary but it's good enough. It's a lighthearted fluff drama. It's funny too and my mom really enjoyed watching it.

This show is soooooo good

[kyramaster · 9/10 · 2 January 2023]

I love this show , I binge watched it cus I thought there where 32 episodes but in netflix only 16. I wished there were more episodes. They said in the last part of the moments he could see her face. I wished they showed that , I wished they showed them getting married. Over all I realy reccomend it , be prepeard to not be able to top this. I love the main characters. I wish they were dating in real life. I like the mental health representation. And the emotion they put into this. I hope to see Kim Young-Kwang and Jin Ki-joo star together om upcoming shows, there chemistry was soo good. 9.5/10.

Good

[applesauce365 · 8/10 · 26 June 2021]

The drama is fun, there's comedy, romance and 2 eye candies. But the portrayal of prosopagnosia was flawed. They just blurred the faces. But that's not the case. I think it would've been better to show them as unfitting puzzle pieces.

Underrated

[unrivaledraj · 10/10 · 25 February 2024]

I'd like to begin by saying, the description here on Imdb is very incorrect and misleading.

And this drama is severely underrated.

This is nothing like your office romance goes, especially between boss and secretary, so to compare it to What's wrong with secretary Kim and Her Private Life would be absolutely incorrect.

As your usual tropes of office romance goes, this one avoids most of them very nearly and refreshingly, first of all there's no secrecy involved in the romance, like I'm boss and you are secretary and no one should know about us etc, this drama doesn't even bother to address with this silly trope which honestly has been stretched too far by every other Kdramas.

As the description says ML is "heart of stone", is far from truth, on the contrary I can't remember previously when I saw in a kdrama, a ML who's rich, a boss and is not flashy or rude or arrogant etc. ML is a soft hearted character, has patience, chuckled and smiles like a kid, doesn't get angry at ridiculous things, even when facing adversities and betrayals, doesn't go around acting like man child and blaming everyone around him, is true to his feelings. It was such a refreshing vibe, absolutely loved it.

And the FL is absolute love, works hard, doesn't act smirky, again doesn't blame anyone else for her wrongdoings or runaway or quit like I have seen in several other dramas.

The chemistry between the two is amazing, it was like watching two best friends falling for each other, or realising how much they wanna be with each other more than anything else. It was beautiful, and both actors did fabulous job in their roles. Even though they officially become a couple just 2 episodes before finale. Their whole journey to that point was nothing less than watching two people in love with each other.

I also absolutely love how 90% of the show and screentime goes to the main leads as the core revolves around them, and even the side stories and subplots are related to them and doesn't distract us from the main plot, even the second leads romance was good enough.

My favourite part of the show was having no love triangles, absolutely none. I'm tired of kdramas stretching out the love triangle thing so much, two man going bonkers for the FL. This show kicked out at that trope with ease and I absolutely love them for that.

This kdrama will remain in my top 5 kdramas of all time, ost and bgm wasn't that remarkable. But it made me binge watch every episode, even though one can predict the story, it was beautiful and emotional enough with lovable leads as to make me wanna keep watching all of it unfold.

Thank you for making this show, and I hope more similar ones are made.

Fun and Quirky

[elbehar · 8/10 · 11 March 2023]

When yout heart truely loves you can see the one you love even in your darkest moment and even ifvyour brain doesn't know.

She's the quirky secretary that does just about anything and everything for her stern demanding boss.

Though in general the characters are perfect... two in particular, though useful for the story, were over exaggerated and a bit too much for my taste.

With each new episode we begin to understand and love the main characters. With twists and turns and a little bit of drama you will eatbeach episode with eagerness to get to the next. And mike most Korean series (that I'm becoming a huge fan of) the end os what yiu would had hoped all along.

Really?!

[lilou-clark · 5/10 · 26 October 2020]

I am at Episode 9 but can barely continue watching. The female lead role, serious so annoying! Who would do something like this, specially to someone you say you like. So selfish!!!!!

Worst Drama, Don't waste your time

[zackary-62272 · 1/10 · 26 December 2020]

Kim Young Kwang spoiled this drama. I never saw any of his drama went succeful ever. This one is not different also. Except main lead this drama have no chemistry in anywhere.

What even is this

[sxhqjxm · 1/10 · 22 November 2023]

At the beginning, I thought this was an exciting story, like office romance stories in general, but I was wrong. I don't like male actors and their acting is bad. I don't know why I feel cringe when I see his acting. Shouldn't he be acting authoritative and firm? When he's the director of a big company, he's actually like a stupid child. Especially with the strange story that ML was stabbed by a knife and fell and suffered from the disease of not being able to recognize faces?? What is this rubbish story. Worst drama I've watched this year. Forced to watch until end but i cant. It this what it this i give it low rating.