She Would Never Know (2021)

Quick Take: She Would Never Know (2021),  starring Rowoon and Won Jin-ah.   9.2/10.  16 episodes, 65 minutes each.

Synopsis:   The original title was Senior, Don’t Put on That Lipstick, from the novel by the same name.   The story is centered on members of the marketing team at a cosmetic company.  New hire Chae Hyun-seung is smitten with his Sunbae and mentor Yoon Song-ah; however, she is in a two-year secret relationship with their boss.  Hyun-seung sets out to win Song-ah for himself.  Subplots include Hyun-Seung’s two sisters’ relationships and Song-ah’s difficult relationship with her mother, as well as a few cosmetic crises along the way.   Beware the Pitfalls of Ambition is a major theme.

Review: Well cast and well paced.  She Would Never Know goes by quick and easy.  It seems that the cosmetics company in the drama is a real one, Klauvuu, so the entire show is an extended product placement.  Not coincidentally, Rowoon is their brand representative.

Rewatchable - 4, Compelling - 4, Plot/ Story/Writing - 9,  Acting/Casting - 10, Production - 10,  Bonus -  5.    Bonus points for insights into things that can go wrong in a cosmetic company: the lab, the factory, the printer.

Notes:

Rowoon

is the stage name of Kim Seok-woo, lead vocalist of Kpop band SF9. His acting career began with School 2017 (2017). See him also in Extraordinary You (2019), The King’s Affection (2021), and Tomorrow (2022).

Won Jin-ah

has been acting in film and television dramas since 2015. See her also in Rain or Shine (2017), for which she won a Baeksang Arts Best New Actress award; Melting Me Softly (2019); and Hellbound (2021).