Netflix's new limited series Monthly Boyfriend is creating a fierce whirlwind of success, entering the Global Top 10 in 52 countries immediately upon its release. While this once again proves the power of K-content, the figure standing at the center of the hottest topic and controversy among the public surrounding this drama is undeniably the lead actress, Jisoo. As she is taking on a solo lead role while enjoying peak popularity as a member of the world-renowned girl group BLACKPINK, it is perhaps an unavoidable fate that the sharp gaze of the public and critics is focused on the leading actor's capabilities rather than the narrative of the work itself.
In the South Korean entertainment industry, it has now become a very natural trend for former or current idol group members to transition into actors and expand their field of activity. Jisoo is also a representative figure who is successfully juggling her main job as a singer while solidifying her position as an actress. However, unlike the intense and perfect charisma she exudes on stage, acting controversies constantly follow Jisoo like a tag as an actress leading a narrative in front of the camera. The discrepancy between the perfect image of a top star expected by the public and her still-unrefined capabilities as an actress is analyzed as the main cause fueling this controversy.
Looking back at her acting career, a deep sense of regret remains from her first orthodox drama debut, Snowdrop. Taking on the title role of a blockbuster project right away with no prior acting experience was both a tremendous opportunity and a poison for her. It was a casting made possible because of the massive name value of BLACKPINK, but there is a lingering regret about what it would have been like if she had climbed the steps one by one, starting with a smaller supporting role. Furthermore, since it was a period piece that required a deep understanding of delicate emotional lines and historical background, the limits of her vocalization and expressive power as a rookie actress inevitably stood out more starkly to the public's eyes.
At the time of Snowdrop's broadcast, her somewhat unstable vocalization and muffled diction—distinctly different from when she sings on stage—received painful criticism from many viewers. In her subsequent modern drama Newtopia, she showed a much-improved performance thanks to shedding the weight of a period piece, but it was still insufficient to perfectly satisfy the heightened expectations of the public. Therefore, even before this new release Monthly Boyfriend was unveiled, there were many voices expressing concern about her acting skills. Fortunately, however, thanks to the genre of the drama being a light and bubbly romantic comedy, Jisoo is showcasing a much more natural and comfortable performance that blends well with her original personality compared to her previous works.
Nevertheless, what is unfortunate is that she has not been able to completely tear down the wall of prejudice deeply embedded in the public's mind. In particular, opinions that her unique nasal voice, which is directly linked to her acting tone, hinders viewers' immersion still dominate. However, if we take these vocal shortcomings into consideration to some extent, the acting itself that she shows in this work is by no means at a bad level. Above all, Monthly Boyfriend is a solo lead project where Jisoo holds the central axis of the narrative and leads the play alone from the beginning to the end. Throughout the not-so-short breath of 10 episodes, she is silently fulfilling the heavy responsibility of leading the atmosphere of the play and persuading the viewers as the lead actress in her own way.
The most interesting viewing point of this drama is the unique virtual reality (VR) universe implied by the title Monthly Boyfriend. In the drama, there is a groundbreaking virtual dating application that soothes the loneliness of the real world, and within it, the data of dozens of attractive men who perfectly hit the users' tastes is built. Female users dreaming of romance can log into this virtual world and enjoy dating their ideal types, but the duration is strictly limited to exactly one month. For the set time of one month, the man and woman experience the fresh feeling of a "some" (flirtatious) relationship, enjoy sweet dates, and even exchange deep feelings of love comparable to actual lovers, presenting a refreshing premise.
In the real world, which contrasts with the glamorous virtual world, the protagonist 'Seo Mi-rae,' played by Jisoo, is a fiercely hardworking webtoon PD. She struggles with the heavy duty of somehow resuscitating a webtoon that has drifted away from readers' interest and hit rock bottom in popularity. Despairing over a depletion of ideas, Seo Mi-rae accidentally logs into the virtual dating app 'Monthly Boyfriend,' and begins to actively utilize the vivid and diverse dating experiences she has there as new material for her webtoon. Her strategy hits the mark beautifully, and the webtoon spectacularly reclaims the number one spot on the platform in one fell swoop. Adding tension to the play, actor Seo In-guk joins the cast as the rival webtoon PD 'Park Kyung-nam,' who clashes and competes with Seo Mi-rae at every turn in this fierce webtoon industry.
In the real world, the relationship between Seo Mi-rae and Park Kyung-nam shows the typical banter of a romantic comedy. Seo Mi-rae misunderstands Park Kyung-nam's work-related intentions and treats him harshly, but through the process of resolving misunderstandings and getting to know each other's true feelings, it gives a pleasant premonition that the two will develop from enemies into a final romantic relationship. In fact, Seo Mi-rae has an ex-boyfriend, 'Kim Se-joon,' whom she loved deeply in the past but eventually had to break up with. Due to the painful aftermath of her breakup with Kim Se-joon, played by actor Kim Sung-cheol, Seo Mi-rae was living in a dry state where her so-called 'dating cells'—the desire to love someone new—had completely died.
Ironically, what reawakened Seo Mi-rae's dead emotions was not reality, but the virtual world of 'Monthly Boyfriend.' Through the app, she enjoys dates with virtual characters who match her perfect ideal type from appearance to personality. However, whenever a deep connection is made, the memories of her ex-boyfriend Kim Se-joon, whom she thought she had forgotten, strangely and repeatedly overlap, throwing her into confusion. Meanwhile, another charm of this drama is that thanks to the premise of the protagonist meeting a new virtual lover every month, numerous handsome actors appear in droves in a special cameo format for each episode. Watching the performances of male actors with diverse charms provides excellent visual pleasure for fans of the romance genre.
A somewhat disappointing aspect of the plot's development is the fatal constraint of the virtual dating: the 'one month' time limit. The fact that the relationship is forcibly terminated without fail at the most affectionate timing, just when the two have finished exchanging feelings and are about to bear the fruits of love, gives viewers a strange sense of frustration. Additionally, the remarkably slow progress of physical affection between the protagonists follows the typical limitations of conservative Korean romance dramas, where even a light kiss scene does not easily appear despite the deep emotional lines, somewhat diminishing its appeal as a romance genre. Nevertheless, it is more than enough to appreciate Jisoo's much more comfortable charm as she throws off the shackles of heavy orthodox drama and wears the custom-fit suit of a romantic comedy. Monthly Boyfriend, composed of 10 episodes, is a well-made romance that can be enjoyed interestingly enough as a time-killer for viewers who like the unique premise of virtual dating and the sweet process of flirting.
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