The much-awaited Viu original drama Doom at Your Service starring Seo In Guk and Park Bo Young recently concluded its premiere week last May 11 and it’s already shaping up to be a fantasy romance drama worth diving into!

The drama centres on Tak Dong Kyung (Park Bo Young), a web novel editor who has been stricken with pain, grief, and hardship almost all her life. After making a makgeolli-induced wish for doom to be brought into the world, she accidentally summons Myul Mang (Seo In Guk), a supernatural being responsible for death and destruction.

If that synopsis hasn’t hooked you yet, here are five more reasons why you should make Doom at Your Service your weekly K-drama habit. Minor spoilers ahead for episodes one and two!

Seo In Guk & Park Bo Young’s Small Screen Comebacks

Doom at Your Service marks Seo In Guk and Park Bo Young’s return to K-dramaland as lead actors after being away from the small screen for a few years.

Seo In Guk made special appearances in Navillera (2021) and Abyss (2019), but it’s been three years since he led a drama as the protagonist in Hundred Million Stars from the Sky (2018). In an online press conference held last May 6, Seo In Guk shared that he felt a lot of pressure as Doom at Your Service is his first full drama appearance in three years, but his excitement for the project helped him overcome his worries.

Meanwhile, we last saw Park Bo Young two years ago in Abyss (2019), where she portrayed a reincarnated prosecution lawyer who tries to figure out who killed her in her past life. When asked about what she thought of her new role in Doom at Your Service, Park Bo Young said she believes that a lot of people can relate to Tak Dong Kyung in that she’s a character who has accepted the reality of life and thus prefers to live one day at a time.

Seo In Guk and Park Bo Young have been K-drama staples for many years now, and them choosing Doom at Your Service as their comeback project is definitely a treat for us K-drama fans!

Doom, Destiny, and the Supernatural

Doom at Your Service is rich with supernatural lore. Myul Mang, whose name literally means “ruin” or “destruction” in Korean, is the personification of doom in this drama. We first meet Myul Mang during the hospital scene in episode one where he punishes a criminal for attempting to escape the punishment destined for him. Myul Mang’s character brings into focus the overarching theme of the drama: we may try to avoid our fate, but there will always be higher beings to pull us back into our destined paths.

And speaking of higher beings, Jung Ji So also plays Son Yeo Shin, a goddess to whom Myul Mang reports. She disguises herself as a sickly hospital patient while she observes the humans around her. There’s a particularly striking line she tells Myul Mang in episode two: “Fate is cruel to everyone.”

The Charismatic Yet Mysterious Myul Mang

Maybe it’s just Seo In Guk’s natural charisma, but Myul Mang’s character is more mischievous than evil despite being the messenger of doom. There’s a hilarious sequence in the latter part of episode one where Myul Mang morphs into different people while convincing Tak Dong Kyung that he truly is a supernatural being — he becomes an average commuter, then a kimbap vendor, and then a web novel writer. But despite Myul Mang’s playful nature, there’s also this air of mystery around him, particularly regarding his past.

How did he become the personification of doom in the first place? Why was he chosen by Son Yeo Shin for this role? These are questions we’re eager to learn the answers to as the story unfolds in future episodes!

Tak Dong Kyung’s Grit & Tenacity

From the very first scene of episode one, we already see how difficult Tak Dong Kyung’s life is. She learns from her neurosurgeon that she has glioblastoma and that she has more or less three months to live. She finds out that her boyfriend is actually a married man about to become a father. She has a brother who constantly mooches money from her and wastes it on computer games. It appears Tak Dong Kyung’s misfortunes just keep on piling up.

But what’s admirable about her character is that while she may have no control over her seemingly rotten luck, she does know how to control her reactions to these misfortunes. She confronts these disappointments head-on and deals with them on her own terms and not anyone else’s. We’re already looking forward to seeing her character development progress further!

The Chemistry Between the Main Leads

In an interview prior to the drama’s premiere, Director Kwon Young Il applauded Seo In Guk and Park Bo Young’s ability to pull off the romance between their characters, saying that their chemistry “unconditionally deserves a perfect score”. The director also shared that they filmed each scene with “heart-fluttering excitement”.

And indeed, our hearts fluttered at the latter part of episode two when Myul Mang suddenly called Tak Dong Kyung “honey” while sporting a teasing smirk. But the cherry on top was the very last scene of the episode when Tak Dong Kyung surprised Myul Mang (and us viewers!) by asking him to live with her. We surely can’t wait to witness more heart-fluttering moments between the two!

Doom at Your Service and other exclusive titles can be streamed on the Viu app which can be downloaded for free on the App Store, Google Play Store, and selected smart TVs, as well as on Viu’s official website.

The Seoul Story would like to thank Viu Philippines for inviting us to the premiere screening! We’re looking forward to the next #ViuTogether!

Written by: Sai

Established in 2011, The Seoul Story is a Southeast Asia-based Korean Events, Entertainment & Lifestyle News Site On The Go

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