Korean Drama Review: Mary Stayed Out All Night

Title: Mary Stayed Out All Night/Marry Me, Mary! 
Director: Hong Suk Goo
Producer: Jung Sung Hyo
Screenwriters: In Eun Ah & Go Bong Hwang 
Network: KBS2
Originally Aired: November 8 - December 28 2010
Number of Episodes: 16
Starring: Moon Geun Young, Jang Keun Suk, Kim Jae Wook, Kim Hyo Jin 

Plot Summary:
Wi Mary has led a difficult life.  Her mother died when she was a little girl and her father is constantly getting into debt.  She's grown up taking care of herself and running from debtors.  But she's cheerful, optimistic and loves to watch dramas.  She enters into an interesting relationship with Kang Mu Gyul when she accidentally hits him with her friend's car.  At the same time, Mary's father is reunited with his childhood friend who is returning to Korea from Japan where he became immensely wealthy.  The two agree that they should keep the promise they made years ago to have Mary marry Byun Jung In, the son of her dad's friend. To escape getting married to a strange man she doesn't love, Mary convinces Mu Gyul to pose as her husband.  This only complicates matters when the fathers propose a 100 day trial period in which Mary will chose to marry either Jung In or Mu Gyul.  

What I Liked:

1. Wi Mary, Kang Mu Gyul and Their Relationship: Both characters were charismatic and easily likable.  Mary is cute, bright and bubbly.  I especially loved Jang Keun Suk's portrayal of Mu Gyul, he had that indie rocker feel to him and his smile is totally infectious.  I also love how we get to see him grow and mature a bit over the course of the drama.  I became invested in both characters and I really wanted things to work out for them.  Their scenes together were great, especially in the early episodes which were fun and lighthearted.  I found myself laughing and smiling a lot at their antics.  And of course the relationship that develops between them overtime was sweet and enjoyable to watch as well.  

2. The Gang!: i.e. Mary and Mu Gyul's friends respectively.  They're so much fun, especially when everyone got together.  They're just goofy and always seem up for having a good time, the kind of people I wouldn't mind spending time with.  They brought a lot of energy to the scenes they were in which made them fun to watch.  I wish we could have seen more of them and gotten to know them a bit better. 

3.  The Initial Interactions Between Seo Jun and Mary: In the early episodes I enjoyed seeing the two of them work together and become closer.  I liked how the two dealt with the misunderstandings they had between them and it would have been really cool to see their relationship develop further.  

4. Seo Jun's Relationship With Jung In: I liked how hard she worked with the Director to make their work successful and how he was there to support her through her own problems.  I also admired her unwavering loyalty for Jung In despite the numerous setbacks they faced.   

5. The Fashion: Of course.  I loved Mu Gyul's and Seo Jun's edgier, rock inspired outfits and how some of Seo Jun's looks seemed to come right off the runway.  I also really liked Mary's bohemian, heavily layered look which was cute and unique.  

6. The Music: I quite liked the music played by Mu Gyul's band, even if it was played a lot but I also just liked a lot of the music they had playing in the background throughout.  It was fun hearing 2NE1 when everyone was drinking and hearing "All By Myself" at an appropriate moment.  I love it when Korean dramas use old English songs in a scene that is relevant to the song. 

7. The Relationship Between Mu Gyul and Jung In: Here I'm referring mainly to the more comic interactions between the two of them.  There weren't many but when they appeared I found myself laughing a lot.  I wish we could have seen more of those moments between the two of them. 

What I Disliked: 
1. The Parents: Granted, I don't think we're supposed to like them that much and I am aware that there is a bit of a cultural difference here in that I never really understand the overbearing parents/in laws in most Korean Dramas...but these guys were too much for me.  I didn't like how the parents continually just did what they wanted without really talking to their kids and how the children just let them push them around repeatedly.  Again, to some degree I understand a child not wanting to go against their parents but their passivity was almost ridiculous as the parents' actions became more and more destructive.  My main issue though was that the whole conflict between the various parents and children became repetitive in the later episodes.  The same arguments and problems kept appearing over and over again without ever being resolved.  It became quite frustrating. 

2. Seo Jun's Relationship With Mu Gyul: I found it very hard to feel any sympathy for Seo Jun when it came to how she dealt with Mu Gyul.  She made a lot of immature decisions because of her feelings for him and I felt that it contradicted her character in a lot of ways.  

3. Jung In: There were times when I liked him, especially when he was being horribly awkward, but for the most part he was too cold for me.  As a result I never felt sympathetic towards him and so his aspect of the love triangle with Mary irritated me which is unfortunate because I really did want to like him.  

4. Manger Bang and Lee An Subplot: This whole aspect of the drama I never really cared for.  I had to resist skipping ahead of these parts in the episodes because I found them to be boring and unnecessary.  

Overview: 
I wanted to like this drama a lot more than I did.  It started off really well.  The early episodes with Mary and Mu Gyul doing stupid things and getting in and out of trouble were refreshing and a lot of fun.  But somewhere in the later episodes that was lost and the problems brought about by the 100 day contract became increasingly repetitive and frustrating.  Still, I'm glad I watched this drama if only for Moon Geun Youn and Jang Keun Suk who were fantastic.  I would recommend this drama for people who are fans of Jang Keun Suk, dramas that feature bands/music or are looking for something fun and cute. 

Rating: 3/5

So what did you think of Mary Stayed Out All Night?  And which Jang Keun Suk rocker is your favourite; Tae Kyung in You're Beautiful or Mu Gyul in Mary Stayed Out All Night?  Let me know in the comments!