My Liberation Notes Review

**Warnings – spoiler ahead**

I chose to watch My Liberation Notes because I felt like I was going through what the show was trying to portray. The drama is a slice a life that showcases three siblings who strive in some way to seek fulfillment and freedom from their overly mundane lives as working adults. I feel like I’m currently in a similar spot where I’m trying to find ways to feel more fulfilled. So I thought maybe I could learn a thing or two from this Korean drama.

I also chose to watch this Korean drama because it had similar vibes to My Mister, which is my favorite Korean drama of all time.

Here’s my review on My Liberation Notes.

Overall Thoughts

The first thing that I have to say is that this show is not for everyone. When I think of shows that anybody can watch, I think of Descendants of the Sun or Crash Landing On You. In those dramas, there’s a healthy balance of romance, comedy, action, and slice of life in those dramas. This is 100% slice of life and it has an incredibly slow plot build up for each character. If you don’t like dramas that take a really long time to build up plot, I wouldn’t recommend watching this. I admit that I even skipped some time during several episodes.

Nonetheless, the show itself is incredibly thought provoking. The show delicately balances the different struggles of 4 main characters – that’s trying to tell 4 different stories at once. As a result, it is jam packed with metaphors and deep ideas about life in each episode.

The other thing I must mention is how the show tackles the romance theme that’s common in Korean dramas. In this drama, there’s barely any hand holding or kissing or flirting. The honeymoon phases of a new relationship are pretty short. To deliver the romance theme, the lack of physicality was made up by the show’s focus on how the characters define what love means to them. Is love based strictly on worship (with Mr. Gu & Mi-Jeong)? Is love based on just fulfilling the temporary desires (Gi-Jeong & Tae-hoon)? It was quite a fresh perspective on how a Korean drama portrays romance in a relationship.

Best Song from the OST

Korean drama music is always good to listen too. Almost every korean song I listen to has come from a korean drama that I’ve watched. Here’s my pick from this korean drama!

It’s upbeat. It’s unique. Even though most of the korean drama is on the gloomy side, this song always brings a smile to my face when it’s played.

Key themes in the drama

Although most Korean dramas are fictional, the character’s actions and drama writing often communicate life themes and lessons that are very applicable to our own lives. Here are some that I felt were very tangible to me.

Don’t lie to yourself or other people

I will not pretend to be happy. I will not pretend to be unhappy. I will be honest.

The Liberation Club

If you lie to yourself, you’ll end up losing yourself. You’ll forget who you are, who you want to be, and what you want to do with your life. If you lie to other people, you end up hurting not just them but also yourself. We see that living more truthfully has lessened the burden that each member of the Liberation Club carried at the beginning of the drama. It’s definitely easier to lie to try and get by in a life that’s mundane or difficult, but that doesn’t lessen the burden or pain you carry. It only delays it.

Don’t take family for granted

So this is what it’s like to have no parents. It felt like I lost one of my arms when I lost my dad. When my mother passed away too, it felt like both my arms were gone.

Cho Tae Hun

When the sibling’s mother died, we see all the emotions of guilt and sadness come out of each siblings. We never saw any of that when the mother was still alive because all the siblings were too busy to consider their mother’s well being. They rarerly spoke or hung out with their Mom much (and even the Dad); they all treated their parents as people who would only provide food and shelter. After she died, the siblings didn’t want to risk ending their relationship with their father the same way. So they started to work on their relationship with their father more.

If you have time, reach out to those you love or value and check in with them!

Small moments of peace can make a difference

Five minutes a day. If you have five minutes of peace, it’s bearable

Mi Jeong

We will all have our crappy days. There are things that can completely screw up our day and we can’t do anything about it because it’s out of our control. Whether it’s a bad boss or toxic boyfriend, it can feel so overwhelmingly unfair and stressful that even the smallest moments of joy or peace can feel negligent, but don’t give those moments up! Although it may not be much, each moment has the potential to make your day just that much better. And having a “less shittier day” is better than having a completely shitty day. If you need to, set a small goal for having a joyful or good day. It can be as small as five minutes 🙂

Closing Thoughts

The nuggets of wisdom and story telling that this Korean drama has is incredible. It is incredibly dense and has a very slow plot build so it may not be everybody’s cup of tea; however, I plan to re-watch this Korean drama when I reach the age of the main characters. I think I’ll have a greater appreciation for the journey each character goes through. Would I recommend this Korean drama? Yes, but only if you feel like you’re struggling with overcoming a mundane life. That struggle will keep you focused and headstrong to finish this entire drama.

I hope you enjoyed my review on My Liberation Notes!