Before you skip over K-drama Little Women, it is a very loose adaptation of the more familiar novel and film of the same name. With just a few parallels, this could be a unique story all of its own and it is great!
Little Women is a Korean drama that follows the lives of three sisters. There is the eldest sister Oh In-ju (Kim Go-eun), the middle sister Oh In-kyung (Nam Ji-hyun) and the youngest sister, Oh In-hye (Park Ji-hu).
Their father is a gambler who left them to go to the Philippines and their mother is just as useless and quickly abandons them.
What Is K-Drama Little Women About?
First off, getting your head around all of the players is tricky if you haven't watched it but here goes…
The three sisters have grown up in a terribly poor environment and for the most part, are still living paycheck to paycheck. Oh In-ju works in a bank, Oh In-Kyung is a reporter for a local tv station, and Oh In-hye is still in school at a prestigious art high school on scholarship.
Oh In-Ju is the outcast on the 13th floor, who is friends with Jin Hwa-young, the outcast on the 14th floor who looks after the CEO's orchids.
When Jin Hwa-young kills herself, In-Ju discovers that she was actually embezzling money from the bank. The ‘slush fund' was worth 70 billion (Korean won) and now the Director wants the money back.
That's when In-Ju finds 2 billion of the money in a gym locker with a note from her friend to spend the money and have the life she always wanted for her and her sisters.
The problem is that the money is stolen and there are some very dangerous people who want it back.
That's when Oh In-Kyung's story intertwines. She is trying to expose Park Jae-Sang, a mayoral candidate, for corruption.
The uber-wealthy Park family paint the perfect picture but something dark lies beneath and Oh In-Kyung wants it revealed to the world.
But there is one major problem. The Park family have taken the youngest sister, In-Hye under their wing and she has started to like living a life of luxury.
As the story unfolds, all three lives are in danger as the stakes to find the 70 billion are ramped up. Despite being completely in over their heads, can the sisters take on the Park family and win?
Little Women Official Trailer
Is Little Women Worth Watching?
Absolutely 100% yes. Little Women is a phenomenal series. It is a modern Korean twist on rich vs poor, the strong vs the weak and just how far people will go to get power and keep it.
Kim Go-Eun is superb as the naive and occasionally clueless sister In-Ju. With absolutely no idea what to do with the money, she turns to Choi Do-Il (Wi Ha-Joon), a money launderer tasked with finding the missing money.
They strike a deal but is In-Ju once again being taken advantage of? Her sister seems to think so as she digs more and more into the Park family.
Little Women excels at having a lot of subplots that initially don't seem to connect. But as each episode rolls on the stories start to connect and the full picture of what exactly is happening becomes much clearer.
Even In-Ju's friendship with Jin Hwa-Young isn't what it seems as the full extent of her embezzlement is uncovered.
Every episode of the K-drama Little Women is perfectly paced, moves the story along while posing new questions and overall it keeps you hooked.
The three sisters are incredibly easy to root for, even if they do make the occasional eyerollingly bad decision. And despite a few red herrings along the way, those characterized as good and bad are often not all they seem on the surface.
If you want drama with money laundering, murder, political intrigue and a true David vs Goliath story, then check out Little Women. You won't be disappointed.
K-Drama Little Women Cast
A series as good as Little Women from South Korea has to have an amazing cast. But it also needs a solid production team which includes director Kim Hee-won, writer Chung Seo-kyung and producers Cho Moon-joo, Shin Ye-ji and Jo Soo-young.
Kim Go-eun as In-ju, the eldest of three poor sisters whose dream is to make money and live an ordinary life.
Nam Ji-hyun as In-kyung, the middle sister who works at a news station and is incredibly moralistic. Believes in always doing the right thing.
Park Ji-hu (All of us are Dead) as Oh In-hye, the youngest sister, who is fiercely protected by her older siblings but who is tired of living in poverty.
Wi Ha-joon (Squid Game) as Choi Do-il, a money launder who befriends Oh In-ju when is looking for the missing slush fund.
Kim Mi-sook as Oh Hae-seok, the very wealthy great aunt of the sisters.
Um Ki-joon as Park Jae-sang, an ambitious and wealthy politician who gets involved with the three sisters.
Uhm Ji-won as Won Sang-ah, the General's daughter and Park Jae-sang's wife.
Jeon Chae-eun as Park Hyo-rin, Park Jae-sang's daughter.
Lee Do-yeop as Won Ki-seon, Won Sang-ah's father.
Lee Min-woo as Won Sang-woo, Won Ki-seon's son and Won Sang-ah's older brother.
Park Ji-young as Ahn Hee-yeon, the Oh sisters mother
Kang Hoon as Ha Jong-ho, Oh In-kyung's childhood friend.
Ben Ng
This show was underwhelming to say the least. Kim go eun just kept crying and the male lead acting was stiff.
Storyline absolutely trying too hard to create suspense. New random characters popping up from nowhere. One of the worst kdramas in recent years
Acting wise, villains won sang-a and the hubby definitely took the cake.
Kdrama fans seem to have low expectations I realised. Almost every kdrama is highly rated.