REVIEW: ‘Frankly Speaking’ Episodes 3–4

Frankly Speaking Episodes 3-4 feature our two lead characters struggling. Announcer Song Ki-baek’s (Ko Kyoung-po) career is plummeting to rock bottom. Placed on probation due to his behavior, he’s left scrambling to figure out how to pursue his dream still while grappling with his brain injury.  TV variety show writer On Woo-joo (Kang Han-Na) is trying to make a new show happen. However, the arrival of a more successful junior writer has more people criticizing Woo-joo, leaving her feeling hopeless.

Frankly Speaking Episode 3 starts with Ki-baek’s voiceover explaining why he’s chosen to lie for so many years. A volatile childhood and his mother’s advice led to his embrace of the white lie. Sure, it might have reduced conflict. But now with his ability to lie taken away from him, Ki-baek struggles with how to move forward. His relationships up to this point were built on lies.

Much of Ki-baek’s time spent in Frankly Speaking Episodes 3-4 is him figuring out how to answer what is next for him. His career as an announcer was the only thing he had that provided stability. Not his family, not his colleagues, or his living situation. The only thing that kept him going was his dream of being an announcer. Due to Woo-joo’s influence and their conversations, he is finally able to let go of this dream.

This culminates in his insistence on auditioning for the JBC announcer position. Despite his reputation leading up to the first episode, everyone at JBC has turned on him. They whisper loudly, wanting him to hear what they think. The slow descent of heartbreak shows on his face as each new whisper rattles his mind. But the effort to maintain composure only wins out when, just before he is about to do his camera audition, Woo-joo gives him a pep talk.

He nails the camera audition but overhears others talking about how someone else with a bigger following will be taking the spot. The auditions are merely a formality. It is here where Ki-baek makes a pivotal decision. “In my life full of lies, it was the only real thing,” he says. He verbally tears JBC in mic-drop fashion in front of the entire crew. His boss tries to confront him, but Ki-baek unleashes hell into his ears.

It is a moment of triumph. The moment feels necessary and earned after watching others use him in Episode 1. But now, Ki-baek is unemployed. And the people in his corner are dealing with their own issues. The pressure for Woo-joo to find prime-time talent and build out a show is mounting. The arrival of her much more successful junior colleague, Lee Ha-young (Lee Bom Suri), contributes further to the humiliation she feels.

Throughout the course of Frankly Speaking Episodes 3-4, Woo-joo splits her time between trying to make sure Ki-baek is okay and trying to build out a show for her colleagues. Peers and strangers whisper around her, much like Ki-baek experienced. Whether due to the show idea not being original or her being in over her head, everyone’s doubts weigh heavily on Woo-joo.

One person who’s trying to help in his own way is Woo-joo’s ex and the nation’s Son-in-Law, Kim Jeong-heon (Joo Jong-Hyuk). Since Episode 2, he’s been trying to find ways to talk to her. There’s a clear indication that he wants to rekindle whatever it is they had. But Woo-joo has resisted every step of the way. After overhearing a conversation between Ha-young and her boss dismissing her, Woo-joo makes the call to ask Jeong-heon to join her show.

There are still hurt feelings there, but if she wants to make the show a success, Woo-joo has to swallow her pride. Pride is something Ki-baek also needs to let go of. In Episode 4, Ki-Baek witnesses what’s happened to his idol. Rather than having a successful career as a freelancer, his idol is hosting festivals for senior citizens. Something that Ki-baek feels is beneath him. This pride also pushes him away from his family, particularly the middle brother, who holds visible animosity.

After seeing his idol fall, a miserable cloud hangs over Ki-baek until the end of the episode. But his path is firmly tied to Woo-joo’s. In Frankly Speaking Episodes 3-4, with nowhere else to go, he moves back into the house his family rents. Conveniently, the house is owned by Woo-joo’s mother, and the two run into each other by accident on the rooftop. It is this very rooftop where Episode 4 concludes, and a mutual understanding forms.

This mutual understanding culminates in Ki-baek agreeing to join Woo-joo on her new show. But the shoot is likely not going to be smooth sailing. As the camera pans around the area, the arrival of Jeong-heon and the look on his face when he spies Ki-baek and Woo-joo’s smile draw frustration. This love triangle is slowly brewing, and given Jeon-heon’s and Ki-baek’s shared history, future episodes look to be pretty intense between our trio.

Frankly Speaking Episodes 3-4 cools it down slightly in the physical comedy department. As Ki-baek grapples with trying to figure out his place in life and how to address his injury’s side effects, there is a slight air of seriousness. That said, actor Ko Kyoung-po nails Ki-baek’s professionalism and frustration well at the end of Episode 3. When he gives his final sign-off as an announcer, his expressionless face nails the balance and humor needed for the dialogue.

While we get plenty of time with Ki-baek, the exploration of Woo-joo and her struggles is much-needed. This isn’t a simple love interest character. She’s got her own problems to deal with, and dating is the furthest thing on her mind. However, in Frankly Speaking Episodes 3-4, we can clearly see through the dialogue, chemistry, and actress Kang Han-Na’s expressive face the possibility of love blossoming in the TV writer’s heart.

Frankly Speaking Episodes 3-4 maintains the natural momentum from its opening episodes. The character development of Ki-baek and Woo-joo fleshes them out to be respective foils of one another but also makes them wholly relatable. At this point, I’m fully invested, and I can’t wait to see what happens next for these two awkwardly workaholic leads.

Frankly Speaking Episodes 1-6 are now streaming on Netflix, with new episodes premiering Wednesdays and Thursdays.