The World of the Married (2020) User Reviews

Gripping even as it veers into absurdity

[peychaudsbitters · 8/10 · 29 August 2021]

I watched both versions and preferred the Korean one (though I loved Simon and Kate's house more). The World of the Married tones down the sex and amps up the Greek chorus element (the Gosan women's association). The Korean version does a better job of creating an oppressive environment of stifling conformity and pettiness within the hospital and the city's elite that better explains (but does not justify) the couple's actions.

In Doctor Foster, it is all Suranne Jones all the time. Don't get me wrong - she's an amazing actor. Kim Hee Ae is a different kind of actor, more understated, so her actions come off as more shocking. The son and the other side characters (yes, the children are secondary to the twisted couple), are also fleshed out better. I understood the neighbors better, and their relationship trajectory was quietly devastating. There's an additional plotline involving a younger couple ensnared by the main couple to carrying out their revenge. Melodramatic and heartbreaking on its own. There's more of an emotional investment overall with the Korean version.

K dramas are known for how much their original soundtracks (OSTs) add to the storytelling. The World of the Married is no exception. I can still hear the violins in the minor key. Also, the fashions are yummier.

Why the hell am I here ? Just to suffer....

[wookiealwayshotashell · 8/10 · 8 May 2022]

These shows made me suffer like hell, Penthouse, The World Of Married etc.... When I started watching I thought Tae ho was villain in this drama. But after completing all episodes, and I have reached a conclusion this story also a villain and whole main cast and whole main cast are aslo villains. So dark.... My state of mind wasn't normal while watching this. Seeing. Watching Han So Hee healed me a bit. Since I started having a crush on her. My pretty Han so Hee, love you.

Toxic Divorce

[ph-50615 · 8/10 · 28 January 2021]

Sociopath ex husband and woman with the worst communication skills ever. She is surrounded by nasty backstabbers including her so called friend. Depressing that neither parent puts the child first. I keep watching to see if it gets better.

Edit- I bumped it up a notch to 8. This drama does depict a lot of the bad stuff that couples go through. It did not make me cry at all because none of the characters were very sympathetic. Really the main characters are all pretty screwed up. The ending was better than expected.

KDrama at its best to date!

[pennyloo · 10/10 · 16 May 2020]

Having watched so many TV dramas for decades, this is a real gem. Don't listen to the haters. Amazing production (notice the details of everything, even the home appliances exude luxury), the story (though its a remake of BBC's Dr Foster, but which remake is better than the original? This), and most importantly, the Mind Blowing acting especially from Kim Hae Ee. It's not your average Kdrama. It's an emotional roller-coaster, keeping you at the edge of your seats through all episodes, it's the best. Hell of a ride that you will never regret!

Absolutely blew me away

[hajarqanich · 10/10 · 20 April 2020]

This series absolutely blew me away, not to be compared with the usual Kdrama series. Initially i wasn't sure about the series specially in the first 2 episodes .. oh drear i wasn't ready for the amount of twists unleashed later... Definitely worth watching.

Never like korean drama before I watched this.

[capri_joe · 10/10 · 2 May 2020]

This is.. well amazing drama, the plot is twisted(you never see it coming) every episode is giving you a shock therapy.

Title of drama suits to drama itself

[bibinthomaskalathinanikal · 10/10 · 5 May 2020]

Oh my god .. absolutely great story telling..each episode keeps u interesting must watch drama highly recommend to anyone first epiosde itself is great start of drama

From brilliance becomes boring.........

[it-toon · 6/10 · 3 June 2021]

Well., first half is absolutely brilliant but the second half is totally lost. It's a big mess and ruin all this legendary direction and story line. What's a pity. It could be one of my all time favorite but now.... No!

Not your standard Kdrama- Loved this!

[cchengchristy · 10/10 · 15 May 2020]

This series is not like your typical Kdrama series! The plot is unique and will leave you intrigued as to what will happen next. Actress & actors are amazing! The series will make you think about class & gender issues as well as marriage of course.

Good Enough

[PennyReviews · 7/10 · 1 June 2020]

" The world of the married " handled adult themes that other dramas shy off, usually.

The drama's appeal to the public is probably due to the intense scenes and the frustrating situations that it presented. The story is packed with twists, revenge, drama and just enough events to make you mad and frustrated, and it keeps that momentum up till the very ending. The latter was actually pretty unpredictable and probably fitted the drama well.

However, there were times in the drama that felt that they were repeated. Also, the whole frustration thing was a bit too much after a while. Finally, the drama had a bit of a slow down towards episode 6, but got back on track quickly.

Still, the performances were excellent and pretty intense. The drama did, in addition, a good job with handling the side stories.

So, overall, seven out of ten.

Definently an absolutely great Drama

[fiischki · 10/10 · 17 May 2020]

I just finished it and I've got to say: I just read a review saying that it's too stressful to watch cause the characters are so hateful and let me tell you: YES, THEY ARE. AND THAT is what I absolutely LOVED about it. Never have I ever hated characters so much in a Drama before and wanted justice so bad. The main lead is a strong woman/female lead which you just want to go off. And that is what I absolutely got. We followed her through her ups and downs and got to feel her emotions, reactions developments and even failures in the most realistic way. Even the side characters stories were delivered so well. Since episode one I was immediately hooked through each and every episode. Another thing I loved is that in my opinion it also greatly did not follow the usual K-Drama-Route with certain events. I just can recommend anyone to watch it and of course, judge for themselves.

6 or 7

[mungunbayarbatbayar · 7/10 · 27 May 2022]

First episode was really mind-blowing interesting. Then couldn't watched next eps because of life situation. Then a year later, Watched the first 6 or 7 eps then it's not really seductive enough or wasn't like couldn't keep my eyes off. And because of there are many other movies in my list to watch, ive decided to remove it from list. It's just note.

One of the most overrated k-drama ever

[ndyputria · 1/10 · 2 May 2020]

All the characters are so hateful. its really a stressful drama

WOW

[jryiphnwy · 10/10 · 4 June 2021]

Didn't expect to like this movie at first but i was blown away! Great plot! Actors/actresses portrayed the characters really well, their emotions felt so real.

First Korean drama I've seen and it didn't disappoint.

[diaratos · 10/10 · 30 December 2020]

Gripping and all too close to reality. The script, the performance, everything about this show blew me away.

The most thrilling drama about divorce and adultery

[phd_travel · 10/10 · 29 May 2020]

The ratings are so high for a reason. This is a superbly entertaining drama. Every episode is exciting. Many series falter towards the latter third but World of the Married doesn't let up of a minute. But it isn't just dramatic for the sake of being dramatic. It keeps within plausibility. There are a lot of truths about divorce and the stigma divorced women face. The hypocrisy of society is laid bare. How different people deal with infidelity is another issue tackled head on. The most heart breaking aspect is the effect of battling parents on the child.

The cast is well chosen and act very well. Kim Hee Ae maintains sympathy throughout even when she is acting wrongly out of emotion. Not an easy task. But it's her costars that really shine. The villains are some of the best in the history of K drama. Park Hae Joon as the philandering husband is superb. His lack of remorse and selfishness are unflinchingly portrayed. Han So Hee plays the vixen mistress everyone loves to hate. She actually acts very well especially when she is getting her just desserts. Her sadness and anxiety are convincing. CLOY fans will be thrilled to see the Rat Kim Yeong Min in a lothario role. Quite delightful. Special mention of the young actor who plays the adorable son caught in the cross fire. Jeon Jin Seo has a major part for such a young actor. And the success of many a dramatic scene rests on his effective but not overdone performance. The double faced friend is unique too.

The soundtrack is like a religious chant and effective if a bit overused.

Not only is this one of the most entertaining drama series ever made. it is a good warning about the dangers of infidelity and adultery.

First Time

[FairyManh_2007 · 10/10 · 17 May 2020]

This movie let me say wow and promptly write a review. All the story, plot and twist are cliff-hanger and unpredictable. Time flies fast when watching this movie because every scene is so tensional and breathing at the end of the drama .

Could have been a 10/10 but...

[Kim3on3 · 7/10 · 5 January 2023]

There's a lot to love about "The World of the Married" . The acting is brilliant , The directing is solid with some at times really nice environmental storytelling , The tension each episode builds and the inevitable twists were consistently breathtaking , The music is fantastic and perhaps above all else and for the most part it does an excellent job at exploring the themes of Obsession , The effects of cheating , The stigma of being a divorced woman , How kids end up getting hurt the most , The cost of revenge , Hypocrisy among many other things

The two things that stopped this show from being excellent are

• The pacing . The second half dragged on FOREVER and it pulled so many bait and switches that it actually start to get annoying and even redundant near the end . Characters started making illogical choices and out of nowhere "face turns" simply because the plot called for it which made me believe that beyond the initial premise they had no idea where they wanted the story to go . This wouldn't have been so bad though if it wasn't for...

• The ending . There were many MANY times where they could have ended the show and they would have gotten their point across but they kept going and going all for an ending that was woefully unsatisfying and not in the way they intended . The show constantly teases you with a dark ending but it never truly happens which is disappointing because even as someone that typically hates dark endings this story REALLY called for it . It was like watching a Greek tragedy that is too afraid to be an actual tragedy

I very rarely if ever watch Korean dramas or cinema because their stuff is very often either disturbingly dark or way too lighthearted and cheesy but on occasion I'll read a premise that will pick my interest and that's what happened with "The World of the Married" . Despite my grievances I still believe that it is a show worth watching as when it's good it's bloody brilliant . Too bad that the final 4 episodes or so butchered what could have been a masterpiece.

same as uk version- strong start, weak ending.

[lyla_k · 8/10 · 18 May 2020]

People reviewing and giving 10 stars without finish the full season/ending is truly too reckless. Like another reviewer, this is also my first time watching kdrama, as most of them (including this) i find them quite slow-paced and bore me out. This, however, has a relatively more interesting plot that intrigues my attention. i watched the UK version to see how much they have chosen to stick to the originial or has adapted. Although both of them start strong and end badly, i must say at first i do prefer the korean version more but i prefer the uk ending. The ending in this version simply feels incomplete and leaves the watchers hanging feeling nonsense and absurdity. As.well i do prefer the chemistry of the couple in the uk version more since there is complexity, a mixture of madness and passion between the uk couple.

Can be better but director made it worse in some episodes.

[mailtaskservice · 7/10 · 4 February 2021]

In 2021, our demands for better drama and movie had gone up because we had advanced so much and we can no longer stick to the old ways. This drama was high viewing because no other better drama on tv at the same time. This is just a slight above average drama quality compared to Koreans. It did not really have that excitement and tense we need. The story, actings,... all are just slight above normal drama, nothing special. The episode 10 was totally nonsense, no logic, bad story, bad directorship, all down to drain quality. On episode 15 half was also a disaster but better than Ep10. Overall, it only deserves a middle ground average standard. The year 2020 and 2021 are bad lousy years to watch Korean dramas because their standards had slided downwards like what HK did, quantity became more important than quality. This is just a past time drama, nothing much to appreciate.

Absolutely brilliant and addictive kdrama !

[crownpln · 10/10 · 9 August 2020]

Undoubtedly the most enjoyable kdrama I have watched till date and I've watched a lot. The lead actress was absolutely fab and so was the entire cast. I didnt know what was going to happen from one episode to the next and the satisfaction of the wife taking revenge is beyond words. This drama kept me sane during the hardest part of the covid19 pandemic so I'm really grateful to the cast...definitely recommend this...youll be glued, I promise.

Disappointing- It was good but it wasn't THAT good

[elodiehuynh · 7/10 · 31 August 2020]

Disappointing given it's at the top of the "highest rating ever list". I'm beginning to suspect that the high nation rating could be attributed to the fact that people were in lockdown and had nothing else to do but tune into TV dramas. Some episodes were riveting and but overall there wasn't enough guts to it on the whole. Goes back and forth a lot on the same issue with the same couple, therefore lingered and got stagnant. I had high expectations for the ending but it didn't deliver, I feel like I'm still waiting for an ending. There are other korean dramas out there that are soooo much better like 'Mr Sunshine', 'Guardian/Goblin: Lonely & Great God', 'The King Eternal Monarch', 'Descendants of the Sun'- just to name a few.

Don't let yourself influence by It's ratting

[Misss25 · 3/10 · 23 December 2021]

I started watching this drama with my high expectations but It disappointed me badly. I'm surprised how it is considered Korea's No.1 drama. I feel sick after watching this. I really don't understand the ending. What was the director wanted to convey only he knows?

The doctor Sul is taking revenge on tae, this is understandable but why she saved him from murder case or why she runs for him at the end? Why her son left her? This remains unanswered.

Great remake!

[taneesha-66477 · 9/10 · 30 May 2021]

This drama had the added benefit of being condensed into one season It made the show way more intense extremely dramatic and left you constantly wondering what's next, this is a remake of the UK show Doctor Foster it is quite remarkable as it is pretty much the same but with added glitz and glamour of the houses, the outfits and lifestyles. I would have given this a ten because I was glued to the screen as I binged it on Netflix but the son was one of the worst characters I have ever had the displeasure of watching on screen, I felt it was extremely hard to feel sorry for him at any moment the show is mostly based around him but at some point I was just hoping that someone would you know kidnap him LOL.

Brilliant!!!

[7ZEN · 10/10 · 22 July 2020]

Life is complicated and we all know and feel this most of the time... Surprisingly, this K-drama delivers a very compelling and realistic glance at those intricate relationships and charged moments one married faces, while gets involved into an extra-marital relationship. Acting, sound, cinematography and emotional involvement - worth it!