Lee Seo-jin, Jung Yumi, Park Seo-joon, Choi Woo-shik, and a special appearance by BTS’s V together in a new variety show? Count me in!
The awesome team from Youn’s Kitchen and Youn’s Stay reunites for a new variety show (but sadly Youn Yuh-jung isn’t a part of the cast this time). Lee Seo-jin has now been promoted to CEO and he operates a snack bar restaurant in Bacalar, Mexico with the support and help of his team members. Given that this group of cast members have worked with Na PD before, it doesn’t come as a surprise that they did a little spin-off with their own little show. And I anticipate that like with the previous shows, this one too shall be fun, entertaining, and successful.
Episode 1 of ‘Jinny’s Kitchen’ follows a similar recipe and formula that Na PD likes to do with his shows. He does a good job of laying out the foundation and setting everything up. He provides viewers with context and background information of not only the setting and location that the show takes place in but also of the cast members and their duties. As seen in episode 1, Lee Seo-jin is now the CEO of the new business while Jung Yumi has been promoted to Executive Director. Park Seo-joon has risen to Senior Manager and Head Chef. As for Choi Woo-shik? Well, just like he was in Youn’s Stay, he is still the intern for this show. Haha. Poor Choi Woo-shik. Because he’s just a naturally funny and hilarious guy, it was sort of entertaining watching the cast members tease him jokingly. No matter what he does, he’ll always be Intern Choi. Haha.
And of course, we can’t talk about the first episode without mentioning BTS’s V. Just like how Park Seo-joon and Choi Woo-shik appeared in ‘In the Soop: Friendcation’ that was initiated by V, he returned the favor by making a special appearance in this show. It’s a great way to capture people’s attention because 1) who doesn’t know BTS and 2) who isn’t a fan of BTS? I like the way that the show did its cast member introductions and previewed a few hints as to what each person was like in their position. Intern Kim is hardworking, but he can also be a little clumsy and ditsy sometimes. He’s adorable and his appearance is a nice little refreshing cameo. V is always welcomed on my TV screen 🙂
Choi Woo-shik didn’t appear in the first episode due to schedule conflicts, but it seems as if he will appear in episode 2 as shown in the preview. Why did I start giggling the moment he showed up to the restaurant in the preview? He’s just so naturally funny and I feel like he knows how to make people laugh and he posesses so much good energy. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing him in this show since I didn’t watch Youn’s Stay (or any of the previous Youn shows for that matter).
If there’s anything to take away from episode 1 of ‘Jinny’s Kitchen’, it’s that preparations are incredibly time-consuming and hard. Just preparing all the ingredients and experimenting with making the food was challenging. And then there’s also the aspect of waiting for customers to visit and try out the restaurant. CEO Lee’s mood swings depending on the number of customers and sales was a highlight in the premiere episode. One minute he’s happy because they finally have customers and then 30 minutes later, he’s ranting and nagging and complaining. Or how about CEO Lee being a bit intimidating as the owner and the rest of his staff being nervous around him? Haha. I love it! As with anything else, the first try at something new can be daunting, intimidating, challenging, and overwhelming. It can get confusing. But the more the team gets accustomed to the operations, the easier it’ll get (hopefully). It’ll also be interesting and fun to see how CEO Lee and his team in ‘Jinny’s Kitchen’ evolve over time and bounce back with every passing challenge and opportunity (such as being too busy with too many customers as opposed to not being busy enough). ‘Jinny’s Kitchen’ was a great show for me to play in the background as I was busy doing something else (studying or working out), but it’s definitely one that I’ll keep an eye out for.
MaryMeKpop 