“ An art curator’s life unravels, as she tries to keep her pastime as a die-hard K-pop fan secret from her gallery’s new director.”
Where do I start with Her Private Life? I thought this was going to be a lighthearted K-drama about a K-pop fangirl. In fact, the first episode’s early introduction to fangirling had me wondering if this was going to be too cheesy for me. Turns out while there are many fun and humorous moments, the depth of HPL’s storylines caught me completely off guard.
**SPOILER ALERT: If you haven’t watched Her Private Life (which I highly recommend) I suggest you wait to read this post because I can’t write about this K-Drama without giving spoilers. The spoilers will definitely impact your viewing experience and it’ll be much more enjoyable if you see it first, then come back to read this post. From here on out you’ve been warned—SPOILERS AHEAD!
Review: Her Private Life
I’ve been a fan of Park Min-Young (박 민영) since I first saw her in City Hunter and What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim
I was pleasantly surprised to find her portraying Seong Deok-Mi, the fangirl trying to hide her love of “One” certain K-Pop idol. I really appreciate the fact Deok-Mi is a multi-dimensional character and not just the stereotypical fangirl most people assume they already know. As an art museum curator with a once-promising future as an artist and a knack for photography—Deok-Mi goes to extreme lengths to keep her love of Cha Si-An, and her fan website,
, a secret. Because how ridiculous would it look for a grown woman to be fanning over an idol? As someone who loves K-dramas and BTS, I can definitely relate to Deok-Mi.
Her Private Life: Episodes 9 16 (series Review) » Dramabeans Korean Drama Recaps
“ Fangirling means you’re happy and blissful just by looking at that person. Looking at the person makes you happy and joyful. You wish for that person to do well and you like to see them smile. ”
Honestly, at this stage of the game, I don’t really care what people think of me—but this hasn’t always been the case. As a Korean adoptee growing up pretty much a sole minority in Iowa—the majority of my life has been spent feeling like I don’t fit in. Kids used to ask me if I was Chinese or Japanese and when I’d tell them I was Korean, they hadn’t even heard of Korea. My kids (who are half Korean) have had similar experiences with many of their peers not knowing much about Korea. As singer-songwriters and the folk-pop duo, Chasing Lovely, they’ve been somewhat surprised to find Koreans can even sing. Okay, that’s an exaggeration, but they question why there have been no prominent Asian American artists in the pop market given what they’re seeing in K-Pop. Who knows how their musical journey may have been impacted—had they not felt so isolated—by having Korean artists in America as role models.
The lack of positive Asian role models in American media also had me buying into the notion that being Asian isn’t so great because all I had were my own experiences. I was constantly teased for my Asian eyes and nose. I was spoken to in a fake Asian accent followed by laughter. Other than the occasional exotic stereotype Asian women are straddled with (which is actually creepy), much of the time Asians are portrayed as a joke in American entertainment productions—certainly not something I would want to identify with. I was literally afraid to have kids because they would be a mirror image—an Asian reflection I myself was not comfortable with or used to seeing in my home, community, or on my TV.
Dorama Review] Her Private Life/ Su Vida Privada [esp/eng] @justtalking — Hive
When I discovered K-dramas a year ago I could not have been more surprised (and embarrassed by my ignorance) to realize Koreans are multidimensional AND attractive. As my youngest has teased me, maybe to some extent I am reliving my teen years, but I’m making up for a lot of lost time. Everything Korean is on-trend these days—K-Pop, K-Dramas, K-Beauty, K-Language, and K-Food—and I for one couldn’t be more pleased. My kids also marvel at this turn of events. So yeah—I’m a fangirl. I guess you could even say this website has turned into my own 한국으로의 길—
When Deok-Mi’s boss Ryan Gold learns of her obsession with Si-An he was not only NOT put off by it, he supported her in her passion. Deok-Mi explains to Ryan, “fangirling means you’re happy and blissful just by looking at that person. Looking at the person makes you happy and joyful. You wish for that person to do well and you like to see them smile.” I don’t know if this is the exact quote, but it is what Viki translated it to be—and I couldn’t agree more. I’m only a year into my K-drama journey, and half that into my appreciation of BTS but I’m doing nothing to keep the fact I am unabashedly a fan of Lee Min-ho, Park Seo-Jun, Hyun Bin, and BTS members Kim Nam-Joon, Kim Seok-Jin, Min Yoon-Gi, Jung Ho-Seok, Park Ji-Min, Kim Tae-Hyung, and Jeon Jung-Kook. The pure joy they bring to my life while long overdue has been at a time we all need something that can put a smile on our faces. I find myself bursting out in laughter, clapping, and even fist-bumping with my kids when they’re watching or listening with me. The latter sometimes involves much use of the rewind button. ㅠㅠ
Now let’s talk about Ryan Gold. He’s the real inspiration behind this post. It wasn’t until doing a deep-dive on Kim Jae-Uk (김재욱) the actor who portrayed Ryan Gold, that I realized he was one of my favorite characters in Coffee Prince, No Seon-Ki. I had heard the name Ryan Gold mentioned in a couple of K-Dramatics Club rooms on Clubhouse but didn’t remember anyone talking about him being a KAD. Not only is Ryan Gold a K-Adoptee—he is the strongest Korean adoptee character I’ve ever seen in a K-drama. And it shows me someone in Korea gets it, someone in Korea understands—in the very deepest sense. Ryan Gold is a K-Adoptee who grew up in the U.S. and to say I was surprised by the depth of this character would be a major understatement. If you look at the description on AsianWiki, Netlfix, or Viki there isn’t even any mention regarding Ryan Gold being adopted. But his K-adoptee storyline was front and center, not just a footnote. In fact, I would go so far as to say, this could’ve been titled His Private Life—that’s how integral Ryan’s history is to the storyline. Kim Jae-Uk portrayed Ryan so beautifully, I cannot rave enough about his performance from the subtle facial expressions to the heartwrenching sobbing.
Exclusive: “her Private Life” Cast Talks About Personal Fangirl Experiences, Previous Dramas, And Real Life Chemistry
One of the first things noted about Ryan is how his name sounds when spoken by a native Korean speaker. There is no “R” in the Korean language, the closest thing is the rieul “ㄹ”—a character that combines the “R” and “L” sounds, so when you say Ryan with a Korean accent it sounds like lion. Ryan is frustrated every time his name is spoken after he moves to Korea to become the director of the Cheum Museum of Art. I have to admit it took me a bit to embrace this part of the storyline because making fun of an Asian accent is one of the biggest ways Asians are othered in the U.S. When someone speaks English with an accent it means they know a second language, but many Americans are largely arrogant in their assumption that an accent from countries of color somehow indicates an ignorant person while British and French accents are seen as glamorous. The irony as to where the ignorance lies seems glaring, but tune into any number of American movies or television shows with an Asian character speaking with an accent and you’ll find much of the time that accent is the punchline to the joke—a way to poke fun and make them look as if they’re stupid at worst or at the very least, less-than. Ryan eventually embraces his Korean peers’ love of his alternative name, “Lion, ” and I was able to as well because it was like an inside joke. When you consider this K-drama was made to air on Korean TV to a Korean audience, it gives you a different perspective. You often hear people referring to Ryan as saja (사자), which means lion in Korean. I think Ryan’s early frustration with the mispronunciation is a nod to the fact this is something that would’ve brought pain to him in America. I would say the writer was very intentional in naming Mr. Gold and hopefully people will pay attention to all the little Easter eggs that can be found throughout HPL if you’re paying attention.
One side note to mention on the topic of English pronunciation of Korean names. Nearly everywhere Kim Jae-Uk is mentioned online his name is romanized as Kim Jae-Wook. The “W” sound in Korean is not one specific character like the “W” in English, so the
When I discovered K-dramas a year ago I could not have been more surprised (and embarrassed by my ignorance) to realize Koreans are multidimensional AND attractive. As my youngest has teased me, maybe to some extent I am reliving my teen years, but I’m making up for a lot of lost time. Everything Korean is on-trend these days—K-Pop, K-Dramas, K-Beauty, K-Language, and K-Food—and I for one couldn’t be more pleased. My kids also marvel at this turn of events. So yeah—I’m a fangirl. I guess you could even say this website has turned into my own 한국으로의 길—
When Deok-Mi’s boss Ryan Gold learns of her obsession with Si-An he was not only NOT put off by it, he supported her in her passion. Deok-Mi explains to Ryan, “fangirling means you’re happy and blissful just by looking at that person. Looking at the person makes you happy and joyful. You wish for that person to do well and you like to see them smile.” I don’t know if this is the exact quote, but it is what Viki translated it to be—and I couldn’t agree more. I’m only a year into my K-drama journey, and half that into my appreciation of BTS but I’m doing nothing to keep the fact I am unabashedly a fan of Lee Min-ho, Park Seo-Jun, Hyun Bin, and BTS members Kim Nam-Joon, Kim Seok-Jin, Min Yoon-Gi, Jung Ho-Seok, Park Ji-Min, Kim Tae-Hyung, and Jeon Jung-Kook. The pure joy they bring to my life while long overdue has been at a time we all need something that can put a smile on our faces. I find myself bursting out in laughter, clapping, and even fist-bumping with my kids when they’re watching or listening with me. The latter sometimes involves much use of the rewind button. ㅠㅠ
Now let’s talk about Ryan Gold. He’s the real inspiration behind this post. It wasn’t until doing a deep-dive on Kim Jae-Uk (김재욱) the actor who portrayed Ryan Gold, that I realized he was one of my favorite characters in Coffee Prince, No Seon-Ki. I had heard the name Ryan Gold mentioned in a couple of K-Dramatics Club rooms on Clubhouse but didn’t remember anyone talking about him being a KAD. Not only is Ryan Gold a K-Adoptee—he is the strongest Korean adoptee character I’ve ever seen in a K-drama. And it shows me someone in Korea gets it, someone in Korea understands—in the very deepest sense. Ryan Gold is a K-Adoptee who grew up in the U.S. and to say I was surprised by the depth of this character would be a major understatement. If you look at the description on AsianWiki, Netlfix, or Viki there isn’t even any mention regarding Ryan Gold being adopted. But his K-adoptee storyline was front and center, not just a footnote. In fact, I would go so far as to say, this could’ve been titled His Private Life—that’s how integral Ryan’s history is to the storyline. Kim Jae-Uk portrayed Ryan so beautifully, I cannot rave enough about his performance from the subtle facial expressions to the heartwrenching sobbing.
Exclusive: “her Private Life” Cast Talks About Personal Fangirl Experiences, Previous Dramas, And Real Life Chemistry
One of the first things noted about Ryan is how his name sounds when spoken by a native Korean speaker. There is no “R” in the Korean language, the closest thing is the rieul “ㄹ”—a character that combines the “R” and “L” sounds, so when you say Ryan with a Korean accent it sounds like lion. Ryan is frustrated every time his name is spoken after he moves to Korea to become the director of the Cheum Museum of Art. I have to admit it took me a bit to embrace this part of the storyline because making fun of an Asian accent is one of the biggest ways Asians are othered in the U.S. When someone speaks English with an accent it means they know a second language, but many Americans are largely arrogant in their assumption that an accent from countries of color somehow indicates an ignorant person while British and French accents are seen as glamorous. The irony as to where the ignorance lies seems glaring, but tune into any number of American movies or television shows with an Asian character speaking with an accent and you’ll find much of the time that accent is the punchline to the joke—a way to poke fun and make them look as if they’re stupid at worst or at the very least, less-than. Ryan eventually embraces his Korean peers’ love of his alternative name, “Lion, ” and I was able to as well because it was like an inside joke. When you consider this K-drama was made to air on Korean TV to a Korean audience, it gives you a different perspective. You often hear people referring to Ryan as saja (사자), which means lion in Korean. I think Ryan’s early frustration with the mispronunciation is a nod to the fact this is something that would’ve brought pain to him in America. I would say the writer was very intentional in naming Mr. Gold and hopefully people will pay attention to all the little Easter eggs that can be found throughout HPL if you’re paying attention.
One side note to mention on the topic of English pronunciation of Korean names. Nearly everywhere Kim Jae-Uk is mentioned online his name is romanized as Kim Jae-Wook. The “W” sound in Korean is not one specific character like the “W” in English, so the
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