Intense Opening That Rewrote ENA Channel History, The Return of Trusted Actors The new drama Honor, ambitiously introduced by the ENA channel, is gathering hot attention as soon as it started airing. The fact that it recorded the highest viewership ratings for a first episode in the channel's history proves how great the public's anticipation for this work was. At the center of that anticipation lies a flashy cast that overwhelmingly captures the eye. Lee Na-young, Jung Eun-chae, and Lee Chung-ah. It is no exaggeration to say that the drama has already achieved half its success the moment these three actors, who instill trust just by their names, are captured in one frame. In particular, the unique cold yet intellectual images of the three actors are added to the genre characteristics of a crime thriller and legal drama, creating a sophisticated atmosphere differentiated from existing dramas.
Lee Na-young's Welcome Return, A Leap from Healing to Social Messages Above all, the most eye-catching figure is Lee Na-young. It drew great interest as it is her return work chosen after the 2023 Wavve original drama Park Ha-kyung's Journey, following a period of sparse activity after her marriage. If the previous work, Park Ha-kyung's Journey, was like a simple prop conveying the happiness and healing of small daily life, this Honor is completely different in texture. In this work, she plays the role of lawyer 'Yoon Ra-young', who possesses both sharp reason and hot emotion, facing the darkest and most sensitive wound of our society: sex crimes. Lee Na-young's acting transformation, returning with a cool gaze instead of a gentle smile, proves once again how wide her spectrum as an actress is.
Three Friends, Three Lawyers... The Chemistry of a Perfect Triangle The drama leads the story by presenting three actors—Lee Na-young, Jung Eun-chae, and Lee Chung-ah—as joint protagonists. While works depicting friendship and life with three women as the core have often been found in recent drama trends, Honor sought differentiation by adding the keywords "professional" and "survival" to that relationship. Utilizing the advantage that balancing characters and expanding narratives is easier with three people than with two, it densely portrays the conflicts and solidarity experienced by three friends with different personalities and backgrounds as they run a law firm together. Their relationship, bound as friends, colleagues, and a community of fate, is the core driving force maintaining the tension of the play.
Justice Over Profit, The Unique Operating Structure of a Firm Dedicated to Sex Crimes The law firm where the three belong is quite different in nature from general law firms. It is a dedicated firm that defends only victims of sex crimes, placing its purpose on protecting the human rights of victims and realizing justice rather than generating profit. Behind the background that makes such operation possible in the lawyer industry dominated by capitalist logic is the existence of 'Kang Shin-jae', played by Jung Eun-chae. As the daughter and successor of the CEO of 'Haeil', a leading large law firm in Korea, she becomes a reliable shield for her friends based on massive financial power. Thanks to this, they can focus solely on the truth of the case without worrying about legal fees, but on the other hand, it simultaneously implies the uneasy duality of being under the shadow of the colossal power called 'Haeil'.
Yoon Ra-young and Hwang Hyun-jin, and Slowly Revealing Ominous Signs Although it looks like an ideal law firm implementing justice without financial worries, the drama shows subtle cracks from the beginning. 'Yoon Ra-young', a cool-headed principled person played by Lee Na-young, and 'Hwang Hyun-jin', a realistic and passionate person played by Lee Chung-ah, boast perfect teamwork with Kang Shin-jae. However, as the drama enters its second episode, nuances begin to drift implying that their activities do not stem solely from good will to help the socially weak. Although they are outwardly flashy and confident career women, the anxiety passing through their eyes and the moments of silence they cannot speak of even to each other raise doubts about the real purpose for which this law firm was established.
That Day 20 Years Ago, The Cartel of Silence Binding Three Women The core mystery of the drama touches upon the past of 20 years ago. The fact that the three friends became lawyers dedicated to sex crimes is slowly revealed to be no coincidence. Although the full story has not been revealed, clues appear suggesting that all three of them, or someone among them, were victims or parties to an indelible sexual violence case in the past. The trauma of 20 years ago still binds their lives in the present, enabling the speculation that operating the law firm itself might be a means to heal past wounds or perhaps for revenge. The process of digging into how the nightmare of the past is connected to current events presents suffocating suspense to the viewers.
The First Request, The Truth of a Famous Celebrity's Minor Sexual Assault Case The episode dominating the early part of the drama is a minor sexual assault case involving a famous celebrity. The celebrity pointed out as the perpetrator claims innocence, saying it was a consensual relationship, and the victim shuts her mouth in front of decisive statements while appealing for justice. Yoon Ra-young intuitively senses that the victim is hiding something. Despite the clear existence of damage, the trial faces difficulties as the circumstances of the two meeting and the meeting process through an app are dubious. In a situation where the victim's silence and lies become issues in the case and the possibility of winning becomes slim, watching how the lawyers break through this dilemma is a viewing point.
Not a Simple Sex Crime, A Massive Background and Dark Cartel This case, which seemed like a simple deviation or a crime between individuals, reveals itself to be the tip of a massive iceberg as the investigation continues. The reason the victim tried to hide the truth was not simply due to shame, but due to fear of a larger background force lurking behind it. The app that arranged the meeting, the organized sexual exploitation structure hidden behind it, and the shadow of power protecting it slowly reveal their outlines. The case expands beyond a simple legal battle to a fight against massive invisible evil, increasing the scale of the play.
Shocking Affair and Murder, Catastrophe Surrounding Hwang Hyun-jin In the process of chasing the truth of the case, the drama presents another shocking development. Hwang Hyun-jin (played by Lee Chung-ah) contacts a reporter who was her past lover for coverage of the case, and the setup where she, a married woman, spends the night with her old lover gave a big shock to the viewers. What is even more surprising is that she shares this fact with her friends Ra-young and Shin-jae without hesitation. However, the catastrophe does not end here. As the reporter who promised to hand over decisive evidence is mysteriously murdered, Hwang Hyun-jin faces the crisis of going from a party in an affair to a suspect or witness in a murder case. This complex situation, where a love affair melodrama and a crime thriller are mixed, puts even the friendship of the three friends to the test.
Power of the Swedish Original, The Birth of a Well-Made Legal Thriller Honor, which captivated viewers with unpredictable developments and unconventional settings, is actually based on a popular Swedish drama of the same name aired in 2019. By adding Korean sentiment to the solid storyline of the original and coating it with the irreplaceable acting skills of Lee Na-young, Jung Eun-chae, and Lee Chung-ah, a well-made remake was born. This drama, planned for a total of 12 episodes, has only just raised the curtain. Whether the women fighting with the wounds of the past can defeat the massive evil and protect true 'Honor'—I look forward even more to the story that will unfold. ENA channel's record-breaking viewership rating was by no means a coincidence.
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