“Absolute Boyfriend” (절대 그이)

By Jae-Ha Kim
Substack
August 31, 2019

☆☆☆☆
Zero Nine / Young-Goo (played by Yeo Jin-Goo)
Um Da-Da (played by Bang Min-Ah)
Ma Wang-Jun (played by Hong Jong-hyun)
↑Note: Korean names denote the surname followed by the given name.

I completely understand getting attached to inanimate objects. I say goodbye to my house when we go on vacation. I feel bad for old furniture (being thrown away) that has served me well. And when I sold my last automobile, I cried. (Granted, that was because it was tied to memories of my father, for whom I had originally purchased the car).

But it was difficult to get behind the premise of  “Absolute Boyfriend,” where a woman falls in love with a robot that has been programmed to be the perfect boyfriend.

Da-Da is a special effects makeup artist who is in a secret relationship with famous actor Wang-Jun. On the night of their seventh anniversary, she decorates his house and waits for him to return. But when he arrives with his management team and some members of the press, she does her best to hide. Unfortunately for her, she is discovered.

Instead of coming clean and saying, “Guys, this is my girlfriend,” or making up any number of other excuses (she’s my cleaning lady!), he accuses her of being a stalker, which gets the police involved.

Enter Young-Goo, a high-end love robot that is loyal to its owner and behaves with unconditional love.

Portrayed by Yeo Jin-Goo, who was exceptional in “The Crowned Clown,” Young-Goo is adorable, lovable and (of course) highly attractive. These traits are appealing to most people, but especially to someone like Da-Da, whose heart has been stomped on by a man she thought was her soulmate. Initially repulsed by Young-Goo (because … robot), she falls in love with him, despite the fact that he’s not a human being.

Or maybe it’s because he’s not a human being and therefore she believes she won’t get hurt again.

Au contraire.

There’s a lot of nonsense that ensues, with seemingly everyone in her circle finding out he’s a robot. There’s also a so-bad-it’s-good subplot that involves Diana, a sociopathic heiress, who loves nothing more than to purchase and destroy love robots. Hong Seo-Young (“Her Private Life“) was spectacular in every scene she appeared. She was someone I loved to hate, because she was one of the few characters who remained true to her (awful) self.

This series dragged on and would’ve benefited from some judicious editing to keep things interesting.

There were some sweet moments, such as Da-Da explaining her love for Young-Goo when things got tough for them:

The dialogue here was very touching and truthful, much moreso than the pop culture catchphrase, “Love means never having to say you’re sorry,” from the 1970s film, “Love Story.”

As the story unfolds and Da-Da professes her love for him, something unusual happens. Young-Goo begins to feel human traits that hadn’t been programmed in him. For instance, his heart flutters when he’s around her. Though it’s an attempt to trick viewers into believing that this metal concoction can be a valid replacement for a human being, Young-Goo in reality is a man-made product built to be a diversion for women (or men, as the case may be), but not necessarily a replacement.

Da-Da had accepted that she would age, while her robot boyfriend remained a youthful 20something for the remainder of her life. When it turns out he is malfunctioning and will soon completely break down unless he undergoes a procedure that will erase all his memories with her, he refuses.

The ending was left open-ended, but I have my own thoughts, which I’ll share in the Spoiler below.

At its core, “Absolute Boyfriend” isn’t about whether she would choose a robot over a human being. Rather, it’s about longing for the robot’s human traits that are lacking in too many people today. And something she will look for in her next relationship.

Airdates:

Forty episodes — each about 35-minutes long — aired on SBS from May 15 to July 18, 2019.

Spoiler Alert:

Wang-Jun never stopped loving Da-Da. The reason he broke up with her is because he has a stalker, who says he will kill Da-Da if he continues to date her. The culprit turns out to be the CEO of his agency, who views her as a liability. Fans won’t like it if his top star isn’t seen as available to delusional fans who dream of dating or marrying Wang-Jun. (And in true K-Drama fashion, even though the CEO is a slimey piece of work who tries to destroy Da-Da and Wang-Jun, he remains in the latter’s life without any legal repercussions. Really?) Wang-Jun could’ve saved himself a lot of heartache by being truthful with Da-Da and using some of his wealth to hire a bodyguard for her, instead of lying to her (even if for her own safety). But, hey, that’s just me.

A few years after Young-Goo’s death, Da-Da gets one last chance to visit him, before he is sent to the manufacturer’s headquarters for disposal (or testing … or something). After she leaves, the camera pans in to show a finger twitch, leaving it open-ended as to whether he survives. The next scene shows Da-Da smiling fondly at someone waiting for her with a mint green umbrella, exactly like the one Young-Goo used to protect her from the rain. But Wang-Jun also had that same umbrella in his car. The way the final two scenes are edited, it’s unclear how much time has passed. But she’s wearing the same clothes as when she said her final goodbye to Young-Goo, so I assume it was the same day. I think the man with the umbrella was Wang-Jun, who had returned from filming his series in the United States. The ending is fine, but I also would’ve been happy if she had remained single or, god forbid, dated a new man. She shouldn’t get back with Wang-Jun just because they had a history together. After all, the world is full of more dating options than an ex-boyfriend and a robot.

© 2019 JAE-HA KIM | All Rights Reserved