'Suspicious Partner' Is a Papa John's Commercial Disguised as a Cute Romantic Comedy/Legal Thriller

The very first thing that made me take notice of Suspicious Partner (also known as Love in Trouble) is the playfully adorable girls on its poster (see above).  However, though they are attractive, those two actresses – Nam Ji-jyun and Kwon Nara – don’t quite command the same charm and loveliness on the actual screen as they do in that poster.  Kudos to whoever is responsible for crafting it.  It’s stirringly eye-catching.

But the main reason that made me decide to watch Suspicious Partner is Ji Chang-wook.  Prior to this, I had previously seen two K-drama series of his: Healer and The K2.  He was good in both of them, but I didn’t find him very arresting at all.  Then I saw the film Fabricated City, and I was tremendously impressed of his brilliant acting – I became kind of a fan.  He’s mostly well-known for playing characters who do martial arts, so it was interesting to see how he would fare in a non-action role in Suspicious Partner.

In it, Chang-wook plays Noh Ji-wook, a prosecutor who bumps into a prosecutor trainee named Eun Bong-hee (Nam Ji-hyun).  Due to a series of events – which includes the false accusation of one to the other of being a pervert, discovering that their respective significant others have cheated on them, getting black-out drunk and not remembering what happened that night, tons of squabbling, obliviously witnessing a serial killer at work, an ensuing chance murder, one becoming accused and framed for that murder, and the other coming to the rescue in court – the two become attorneys, start a quirky law firm, and set out on a crusade to bring the real murderer to justice.  And as expected, a romance gradually develops between them.

Suspicious Partner has parts that are funny, heartwarming, and utterly cute.  And these are brought about when narrative creates interactions, then develop dynamics, between the likable characters – both main and supporting.  There are a couple of such that I found reasonably endearing, but most amusing of all is that of Ji-wook and Bong-hee’s bananas firm, especially during their muddled meetings – a running joke that never gets tiresome.  In the light-hearted side of things, this series is nearly flawless.  It’s at this aspect, too, where its romance works the best.

Unfortunately, it’s worse when it comes to its “serious” side.  This is where its characters and romance become somewhat boring and pretentious.  Granted, it does have some solid thriller executions, and it touches on some intriguing ideas, like exploring psychological responses to traumatic childhood moments.   But, as a whole, Suspicious Partner falters in satisfying in a more thoughtful level.  In turn, the suspension of disbelief regarding coincidences in the plot, improbable courtroom scenarios, and legal inconsistencies is strained.  Now, these somewhat also exist in I Hear Your Voice, my all-time favorite K-Drama, but its storytelling is so purposeful and deeply delightful, even in its use of implausible plot details, that these concerns can be easily dismissed as peripheral.  On the other hand, Suspicious Partner doesn’t quite earn the privilege of being cut some slack.  Hence, there are several times in which its narrative feels like a victim of lazy writing.

I also didn’t like that is has 40 episodes – the most of all the Koreanovelas I’ve seen so far.  Sure, each episode is only half an hour long – about half of the runtime of a usual K-drama episode.  Nonetheless, I still felt 40 episodes were too much for this series.  It easily could have wrapped up sooner, and would have been better as a result.  In addition, it seems like this was intended to be presented in the standard 50-to-60-minute-per-episode format, but then the episodes were divided into two.  I say this due to the feel of the pacing as well as the oddly anticlimactic conclusions in some episodes.

Moreover, it’s worth mentioning that this show has this apparent sponsorship deal with Papa John’s.  Now, product placements are common in Koreanovelas.  But I found what was done here more blatant and considerable as usual.  It’s slightly annoying because it’s as if this series exist primarily to promote the product.  This would have turned me off more if I didn’t love pizza – which I tremendously do.

Lastly, I was expecting the strongest, most magnetic performance of this show to come out Ji Chang-wook – again, he’s the main reason I decided to watch this show.  But it surprisingly came from the actor who played the main villain – the serial killer.  Actually, everyone in the cast was charismatic and solid.  But the villain (to avoid spoilers, I won’t disclose the actor’s name) is that clear standout.  In a sense, I’m bit of disappointed since I was hoping to be mostly blown away by Ji Chang-wook once more, as it will be quite some time – at least, two years, I think – before we get the opportunity of seeing him on screen again, for he’s already started with his mandatory military service last month.

All these said, I still do think Suspicious Partner works more than it falls short.  It’s at its best as a fluffy romantic comedy.  But being meshed with a legal thriller… well, not so much.