JTBC weekend drama <Rookie Employee Chairman Kang>
Pure catharsis erupted.
Lee Jun-young’s moves are giving office workers vicarious satisfaction.
In JTBC’s weekend drama ‘Rookie Employee Chairman Kang’ (creator Kim Soon-ok/ screenplay Hyun Ji-min/ director Ko Hye-jin/ produced by SLL, Corpus Korea/ original work by San Kyung), rookie employee Hwang Jun-hyeon (played by Lee Jun-young), whose body holds the soul of Choisung Group chairman Kang Yong-ho (played by Son Hyun-joo), is drawing attention with exploits that blow away office workers’ pent-up frustrations. He carries out the kind of counterattacks people have all dreamed of in stifling situations and says to his superiors what they never quite managed to say, delivering a refreshing sense of release.
First reporting to Materials Team 2 at Choisung Trading with Chairman Kang Yong-ho’s soul, Hwang confronted the Sales Team’s noncooperation head-on. When the Sales Team, having failed to send the documents, instead snapped that they shouldn’t be rushed, Hwang reminded them of the deadline and declared that if the materials were not delivered by the cutoff, he would mark them as omissionssetting the office abuzz.
Bolstering his startled seniors with the confidence that there was no need to walk on eggshells around the Sales Team, Hwang even persuaded the managing director of the Materials Division, bringing long-buried interdepartmental conflict into the open. In particular, Hwang’s remarkspinpointing Choisung Trading’s plateauing sales growth and the reality that the Sales Team can no longer claim absolute dominancebecame a starting point for correcting the long-assumed, lopsided power dynamic among departments.
Hwang’s distinctive knack also shone at the team dinner. At the gathering held after his fiery head-on showdown with the Sales Team, the Materials Division’s managing director called Materials Team 2’s Kang Bang-geul (played by Lee Joo-myung) a ‘somaek-maker’ simply because she mixes somaek well, and pressed her to pour drinks. Watching with disapproval, Hwang squarely called out the uncomfortable custom with, “What, do none of you have hands or feet?”
Hwang then entered a drinking showdown with the managing director, betting on each other’s wishes. Dangling office workers’ dreams such as ‘a ban on team dinners from now on, cash payouts of dinner budgets,’ he set the hearts of the Materials Team pounding. Once the contest began, Chairman Kang Yong-ho’s seasoned drinking savvy and Hwang’s youthful stamina created overwhelming synergy, and he handily subdued the managing director, delivering the sweet outcome of abolishing team dinners for Materials Team 2.
In this way, Hwang, who shows a chairman’s seasoned poise behind a rookie’s face, adds unpredictable fun every episode. He speaks up when it matters, pushes back against outdated culture, and still secures practical gainsleaving viewers eager to see what cathartic move he will serve up next.
Meanwhile, ‘Rookie Employee Chairman Kang’ is winning warm affection thanks to the charm of Hwang Jun-hyeon, a character who possesses both a chairman’s years of experience and a rookie’s boldness. After just four episodes, it has captured both ratings and buzz, and it continues to remain near the top of overseas OTT rankings, captivating viewers at home and abroad.
Lee Jun-young’s story, which has been shaking Choisung Group from the moment he joined, continues in JTBC’s weekend drama ‘Rookie Employee Chairman Kang,’ airing Saturdays at 10:40 p.m. and Sundays at 10:30 p.m.
