“Ms. Hammurabi” is a 2018 Korean drama series with 16 episodes, categorized as Legal drama, Romance, and Comedy (Rom-Com), based on the screenwriter’s own novel of the same name, and is streaming on Viki and KOCOWA+.
SUMMARY: Three judges with completely different educational backgrounds, work experiences, personalities and ways of reviewing the evidence and testimonies, still manage to work together and come to an agreement on various case decisions.
♦ Stop That! Judges Don’t Smile or Cry!
In “Ms. Hammurabi”, Park Cha O Reum is a rookie judge. On her way to work the very first day, she became a celebrity. It wasn’t intentional. She was riding the train to work and noticed a young woman who was being sexually harassed and stepped in to defend her. In the process of her noble act, others recorded her and uploaded the video to social media. By the time she got to work, her boss, the Senior Judge Han Se-Sang was not impressed. The last thing he wanted was a judge who was a social media celebrity working with him.
Im Ba-Reun is a fellow judge who was on the same train heading to work. He witnessed everything. In addition, he already knew the rookie judge. They went to high school together and he always admired her. Even though they were both shy and reserved but did talk to each other. Now they were going to be working together in the same office. She introduced herself as if they did not know each other but then recognized him. Park Cha O Reum was excited to be working with him.
Im Ba-Reun was secretly happy about working with the schoolmate he had always liked. But he wasn’t sure what it would be like working with her as a judge. They had different life experiences, educational backgrounds, and very different temperaments.
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Im Ba-Reun attended a prestigious university, got top grades, placed first in all of the examinations, etc. But his father was an alcoholic and his mother worked hard to support their family. Now that he was a judge he could be a contributor to the family’s finances.
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Park Cha O Reum came from a well-to-do family, played the piano, and took care of a sick mother. Her grandmother encouraged her to become a judge. Through self-study and determination, she made it!
The first thing Im Ba-Reun cautioned her about showing her emotions on her face. As judges, it should not be easy for people to read their expressions. He said she needed to be detached and not be a human. Park Cha O Reum said that she intended to be a human and a judge. It’s possible!
Han Se-Sang, the Senior Judge, did not attend a prestigious university and other judges tended to look down on him because of that. Nevertheless, he was an exceptional judge – fair, and honest, and he yelled very loudly; best described as “having a fiery temper but with no bad intent”. He also advised Park Cha O Reum about becoming too emotionally involved in the cases. Park Cha O Reum did not make a good first impression on her Senior, but she was confident she could win him over. She was certain that the three of them would get along just fine.
However, one colleague described the trio as: “the reckless senior judge, the rude guy who goes by the book, and the crazy rookie.” How could they possibly get along?
Main Characters:
- Park Cha O Reum (played by Go Ara, “The Childe”, “Black”, “The Magician”, “Haechi”, “Hwarang”)
- Im Ba-Reun (played by Kim Myung-Soo, “Perfect Family”, “Dare to Love Me”, “Numbers”, “Royal Secret Agent”, “Angel’s Last Mission: Love”, “The Emperor: Owner of the Mask”, “My Lovely Girl”, “The Master’s Sun”)
- Han Se-Sang (played by Sung Dong-Il, “The Cursed”, “Hijack 1971”, “The Chase”, “Curtain Call”, “Along With the Gods: The Last 49 Days”, “RV: Resurrected Victims”, “The Grand Heist”, “Han River Police”, “Ghost Doctor”, “Sisyphus: The Myth”)
- Lee Do-Yeon (played by Lee Elijah, “Decoy 1 and 2”)
- Jung Bo-Wang (played by Ryu Deok-Hwan)
Where to Watch
NOTE: Watch “Ms Hammurabi” free with ads on Tubi TV.
Viewership and Rating:
My personal rating is the same as the same as My Drama List.
This series is streaming on both Viki and KOCOWA+. Even though it was released in 2018, it showed up in the category for “HOT NOW!” and since I like legal drama I decided to watch it. The cast is adorable and the cases were interesting. Yeah. It was a little bit too sappy and emotional at times. Judges really shouldn’t cry. But overall, I thought the Viki rating was overly generous and the IMDb wasn’t generous enough. The Drama List rating was just right!
For those who may not understand the reference in the title:
- Hammurabi was the 6th king of the First Dynasty of Babylon, known for creating the Code of Hammurabi, one of the earliest and most complete written legal codes. The lead female character was likened to Hammurabi. However, if you know something about Hammurabi’s justice system, you’ll realize the judge was far more compassionate when rendering judgment than any judge would have been if they had gone by Hammurabi’s Code.
LINKS OF INTEREST:
K-Drama Review: Ms. Hammurabi | TheKMeal
Ms Hammurabi [Short Review] | Red watches TV
Completed: Review on ‘Ms Hammurabi’ | The Korean Lass
About Time, Ms Hammurabi, Undateables, and Sketch K-drama Reviews | Kdrama Fighting!
TRAILER/TEASER:
KDTeaser tv. “Ms Hammurabi ( Korean Drama ) Teaser Full Video.” YouTube, Video, 28 Apr. 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8dKtyq4CeA.
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