The Story of Manager Kim, a Dae-Gyeob Employee with His Own Home in Seoul, a drama adaptation of the bestselling novel whose title alone stimulates the realities and desires of countless office workers of this era, has finally reached viewers. In recent years, in a market dominated by dramas based on webtoons or web novels, the emergence of a drama based on a hit novel, armed with a solid narrative and relatable realism, has garnered significant anticipation. This work delves into the ecosystem of modern office workers through symbolic keywords that represent the pinnacle of success for some and a goal to be achieved for others: "owning my own home in Seoul" and "a manager at a large corporation (Dae-Gyeob)."
The origin story of the original novel is quite unique. The story began when author 'Song Hee-gu' started serializing it on his personal blog during the period when the real estate market in South Korea was at its hottest. This writing, which contained realistic and sharp insights into the sorrows of office life as well as investment strategies (Jae-tech) like real estate and stocks, quickly spread by word of mouth, gained explosive popularity, and eventually led to its official publication. Although the novel was titled Manager Kim, it was initially much more focused on the realistic survival strategy of investment rather than the anguish of an office worker.
Although the title is Manager Kim, most readers who have delved deep into the original novel will agree that the actual protagonist and the author's 'persona' is closer to the character 'Section Chief Song'. Section Chief Song is a character in whom the author's own experiences and philosophies are deeply projected; he is not just good at his company job but is armed with a cold sense of reality. He is depicted as the undisputed 'ace' of the company, skilled not only in office politics but also in handling his assigned tasks flawlessly.
There is a specific reason why Section Chief Song was imprinted on readers as a 'wannabe,' beyond just being a 'good worker'. It is because he refuses to remain a mere cog in the organization and instead fiercely seeks financial freedom and his own independent 'work' through relentless investment and self-development. His figure, intensely exploring his own survival methods rather than conforming to the logic of the organization, left a deep impression on many readers. Although the worldview expanded as the novel continued into a trilogy, what captivated readers' hearts until the end was Section Chief Song's realistic growth rather than Manager Kim's success story.
The news that this work, so strongly infused with investment and a cold perception of reality, would be dramatized brought both anticipation and concern. The biggest point of concern was, of course, how a mainstream drama would handle the sensitive subject of 'investment' and to what extent. In Korean society, investment is a topic of everyone's interest, yet it is also an area where ambivalent feelings coexist, often viewed negatively as 'speculation' or 'unearned income'. The production team must have had deep concerns, as highlighting this could easily place the drama at the center of controversy.
It appears the drama has opted for a bold adaptation, navigating between the original's characteristics and these real-world concerns. The character 'Section Chief Song', who was the original's core character and the author's persona, is not present in the drama. Instead, a new character named 'Manager Do' has been introduced. Manager Do is set up as a figure younger than Manager Kim but forms a tense rivalry with him. He is depicted as an almost unrealistically perfect 'cheat character' who excels at both work and investment, which is interpreted as a device to maximize dramatic conflict rather than to preserve the original's realism.
On the other hand, the title role, 'Manager Kim', is portrayed as a much more typical 'company man'. With the title of a Dae-Gyeob manager and owning his own home in Seoul, he is, on the surface, the epitome of a successful life with nothing to envy. However, the drama intensively sheds light on how precarious the castle of success he has built truly is. Here, in the most striking difference from the original, Manager Kim's 'son' appears as a character of significant importance. The son represents a completely different set of values from the older generation by turning down a coveted job at a large corporation to work at a venture company, and he is expected to form a new axis of generational conflict.
This precarious middle-aged head of the household, Manager Kim, is played passionately by actor Ryu Seung-ryong. While there were some opinions that he might be a slight miscast considering the image or age of Manager Kim in the original novel, he breaks through these concerns head-on with his acting talent from the very first episode. He realistically portrays the image of a dogmatic and frustrating 'kkondae' (older person stuck in their ways) boss who believes he is always right and doing his best, but that problems only arise because his colleagues or environment fail to keep up, firmly grounding the drama's center.
However, as a fan of the original, there are certainly points of disappointment. The 'Manager Do' character, who seems to have inherited the position of the original's de facto protagonist Section Chief Song, is featured much less than expected in the first and second episodes. The charm of the original novel, which built a multi-dimensional narrative by alternating between the perspectives of two characters with different values (Manager Kim and Section Chief Song), feels considerably diluted in the drama. Furthermore, Manager Do's personality also feels somewhat consumed as a one-dimensional rival character, lacking the depth that Section Chief Song had in the original. Meanwhile, the original author, Song Hee-gu, made a cameo appearance in the first episode, delighting fans of the original.
Whereas the original novel was a massive trilogy, the drama is compressed into a relatively short 12-episode series. This implies that rather than detailed investment information or complex psychological descriptions, the story will unfold at a fast pace, focusing on the major plotline of the crisis and events experienced strictly from 'Manager Kim's' perspective, true to its title. The transformation of actress Myung Se-bin, who plays Manager Kim's wife, from her existing sophisticated image to that of an ordinary 'ajumma' (middle-aged woman) is also a fresh point to watch. Although the viewership ratings started somewhat low, attention is focused on whether the power of the original's solid story and the actors' strong performances will create synergy and lead to a rebound in the future.
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