Queen Of Tears (PG13)

Netflix
4 stars

South Korean actor Kim Soo-hyun is back to headline a romantic K-drama after his 2020 hit series It’s Okay To Not Be Okay, alongside Kim Ji-won, last seen in 2022’s My Liberation Notes.

They play power couple Baek Hyun-woo and Hong Hae-in respectively, and theirs is the fairy-tale marriage.

After a whirlwind office romance, they exchange vows in a picture-perfect wedding ceremony, and both run the Queens Group, a department store conglomerate. She is the chief executive and he is the legal director.

But three years into the marriage, the spark fizzles out. Hyun-woo has had enough of his frosty ice queen and wants out.

Queen Of Tears is the most-watched show on Netflix in seven markets, including Singapore, Japan and Taiwan. The drama also charted on the Top 10 in 40 countries for three straight weeks.

Here are three reasons the 16-episode series deserves your time.

1. Dynamic plot

Spearheaded by celebrated South Korean screenwriter Park Ji-eun of Crash Landing On You (2019) fame, Queen Of Tears takes a refreshing route by reversing typical K-drama gender roles.

The Cinderella here is Hyun-woo, the protagonist who marries chaebol heiress Hae-in. He is also the one bringing on the tears. She is the one who hops onto her private helicopter and flies to the countryside, where she sweeps him off his feet.

Another standout moment sees the show challenging South Korean patriarchy by having Queens Group’s sons-in-law prepare the food for an ancestral ritual, a task usually undertaken by the daughters-in-law.

The scene depicting a kitchen filled with well-dressed men donning aprons and plating ceremonial dishes also offers comic relief.

Park is not afraid to drop a bombshell at the end of the first episode, and doles out plot twists one after another.

Sure, there are the typical K-drama tropes. And for a series billed as a romantic comedy, Queen Of Tears turns on the waterworks one too many times.

Now into its sixth episode, the drama is still a breeze to watch despite its patchy pacing.

2. Pretty perfect pairing

Both Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Ji-won are superb actors.

At 36, he has won numerous acting accolades for K-dramas such as Dream High (2011), Moon Embracing The Sun (2012) and My Love From The Star (2013 to 2014).

Kim Ji-won, 31, is another powerhouse who never fails to shine in series like Descendants Of The Sun (2016) and Fight For My Way (2017).

They make a fantastic pair, fuelled by their amazing chemistry. It does not take much effort to root for the couple as they fall in and out of love, and reclaim their lost love.

3. Eye-candy cast

Queen Of Tears reminds viewers how dreamy Kim Soo-hyun is. One scene has Hae-in swooning over Hyun-woo as he walks out of the shower topless, his ripped body on full display.

The episodes of the photogenic couple rekindling their romance in picturesque Germany are beautifully filmed.

Apart from the fetching leads, Park Sung-hoon, who plays suave Yoon Eun-sung, a high-flying investor and Hae-in’s ex-boyfriend, also adds to the eye candy.

Unlike his villainous turn in the revenge series The Glory (2022 to 2023), Park is arguably even more dashing here than Kim Soo-hyun.