First Impressions: Kim So Hyun And Hwang Minhyun’s “My Lovely Liar” Is A Fun Blend of Music, Misdirection, And Mystery

Kim So Hyun is back! After over two years since her last drama, she has returned alongside Hwang Minhyun on the small screen in tvN’s newest Monday-Tuesday offering “My Lovely Liar,” which is currently shaping up to be a blast! Without further ado, here’s everything we loved about the premiere episodes!

Warning: spoilers for episodes 1-2 below.

1. Mok Sol Hee and her ability

There’s been lie-detection in dramas before (most notably in “Pinocchio“), but Mok Sol Hee’s (Kim So Hyun) talent is a little different in the sense that it’s more of a muscle or a sixth sense. She doesn’t have to try to hear if people are telling the truth. It’s automatic. And, from what we’ve seen thus far, she can’t wear the ability out. The only catch is that she needs to be present in order to hear if someone is telling the truth. With a talent like hers, she could have run any number of pyramid schemes. Her mom Cha Hyang Sook (Jin Kyung) seems bent on doing just that all by herself. But Sol Hee doesn’t con people or charge them unfairly. She provides a discreet service for people who are seeking to determine if the person they’re dealing with, such as a boyfriend, a gang member, or a realtor, is being honest. And her reputation is spotless because she’s always spot-on.

She lives in a well-off community, masks her business within a tarot shop, and even has a chauffeur, Baek Chi Hoon (Ha Jong Woo). Her goals are simple: to save up enough money to own a building. That is, if her mother doesn’t decimate her bank account first. As for her father Mok Tae Seob (Ahn Nae Sang), he seems to be traveling the world, sending Sol Hee pictures of his whereabouts. All in all, it’s a pretty comfortable life. But there are hints that there’s more to Sol Hee—like her mother yelling that she went to prison for her. Like the fact that her father never sends a picture of his face, so we don’t really know who it is sending her these images. Whatever secrets she’s hiding, her life is about to get a lot more complicated after running into Kim Do Ha (Hwang Minhyun). The thing is, she has met him once before.

2. Kim Do Ha’s shrouded past

Kim Do Ha, songwriter and musician extraordinaire, would prefer to just do his job without outside interference. He exclusively writes music for the pop star sensation Sha On (Lee Si Woo) who has a massive crush on him and knows what he looks like. So does Sha On’s agency CEO and Do Ha’s longtime friend Jo Deuk Chan (Yoon Ji On). The trouble is that no one else knows who Do Ha is or what he looks like. And there’s a reason he prefers it that way.

The show is spacing out its tidbits of what happened in Do Ha’s past. But the first one is that his name isn’t Do Ha, it’s Seung Ju. The second is that he was the prime suspect in a five-year-old murder in the town of Hakcheon. The victim? His girlfriend at the time, Choi Eom Ji (Song Ji Hyun). There are flashbacks to a time when Do Ha was arrested and investigated by police with everyone taking pictures of his face. His own mom, Hakcheon’s mayor, seems to secretly fear him. Since then, he has become a recluse, hiding from everyone and finding joy only in music.

When Sha On slips up and leads the paparazzi to Do Ha’s place, he’s not only swarmed but the tabloids run articles that he’s dating her. Deuk Chan arranges for Do Ha to leave Seoul for a bit and get some R&R, which brings him right to Sol Hee’s sleepy town. He recognizes her immediately as the girl who stood up for him five years ago when Eom Ji’s brother, Choi Eom Ho (Kwon Dong Ho), was accusing him of emotional cruelty to Eom Ji and of cheating on her. She made an impression that he never forgot.

On the other hand, Sol Hee doesn’t remember him because it’s been five years! But there are those who haven’t been able to forget for just as long.

3. Choi Eom Ho’s rage

Eom Ji has been missing for five years after texting her brother and Do Ha that she was going to take her life. Eom Ho still believes that Do Ha was the culprit and hasn’t stopped seeking justice for his sister. But there’s no body, which contributed to the charges against Do Ha being dropped. That doesn’t stop Eom Ho from being a nuisance at the local police station, demanding that the case be reinvestigated.

Lee Kang Min (Seo Ji Hoon), an officer at said station, seems sympathetic to Eom Ho’s plight but can’t do anything personally. Eom Ho seems to be the initial antagonist here, at least until we discover what happened to Eom Ji or who was behind it. But given that Do Ha lives in fear of that case being reopened, Eom Ho’s persistence means he’s Do Ha’s biggest threat for now.

4. Sol Hee seeing Do Ha’s face

As it happens, Sol Hee and Do Ha end up being neighbors. She saves him once more when he’s accidentally mistaken as a creep, and the two slowly develop a slight interest in each other. It’s done very well too. She’s curious about why he wears a mask at all times. They’re both soccer fans but cheer for opposing teams and can hear each other on the other side of the wall during game night. They’re both wary, cautious people, but something about the other confuses them.

Do Ha doesn’t get how Sol Hee can be so open and certain about when someone is being honest. Sol Hee is incredibly curious about what’s under Do Ha’s mask and how the man doesn’t use white lies the way others do. When her newest client ends up being a rival songwriter who blackmails himself into a meeting with Do Ha to expose his face, Sol Hee gets angry at the other man’s underhanded tactics and rescues Do Ha. But she can’t resist taking a slight peek at his face. To her credit, she really tries to stop herself but just can’t help it. And that’s where the premiere week leaves us!

There’s a lot to like about “My Lovely Liar.” The characters feel well fleshed-out and relatable. Do Ha’s anxiety and agoraphobia come across well and have a solid basis given what he went through while being investigated for murder. Kim So Hyun imbues Sol Hee with a great mix of optimism and cynicism. It’s fitting, given how often she hears people lie. The side characters, including Cassandra (Park Kyung Hye) and Baek Chi Hoon (Ha Jong Woo), don’t come across as stilted yet.

The first week doesn’t delve into too much besides Sol Hee and Do Ha, so we don’t know how everyone else, including Kang Min, will fit into the picture. But next week’s preview shows Kang Min arriving in Sol Hee’s area as well and that the two seem to have a bitter history. It also shows Do Ha in public without his mask for the first time. But what prompts this sudden change? Next Monday has the answer!

Watch the premiere below!

What did you think of this week’s episodes? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Shalini_A is a long time Asian-drama addict. When not watching dramas, she fangirls over Ji Sung, and spins thrillers set in increasingly fantastic worlds. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram, and feel free to ask her anything!

Currently Watching:  “Longing For You,” “Revenant,” “Not Others,” and “My Lovely Liar.”
Looking Forward to: “Gyeongseong Creature,” “Ask The Stars,” “The Girl Downstairs,” “The Worst Evil,” “Queen of Tears,” “Vigilante,” “Daily Dose of Sunshine,” and Ji Sung’s next drama.

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