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What's Wrong with Secretary Kim (김비서가 왜 그럴까): Plot, Characters and Cast
What's Wrong with Secretary Kim (김비서가 왜 그럴까, Gimbiseoga Wae Geureolkka) is an office romantic comedy that tvN aired in 2018, with 16 episodes. It adapts Jung Kyung-yoon's 2013 novel, which was also turned into a webtoon, with a script by Jung Eun-young and direction by Park Joon-hwa. It's the story of a boss who never imagined life without his secretary. Here you have the plot, characters, cast and each one's Saju.
- Cast
- Park Seo-joon, Park Min-young, Lee Tae-hwan, Kang Ki-young, Pyo Ye-jin
- tvN
- 2018 · 16 episodes
Plot (no spoilers)
Lee Young-joon is the vice-chairman of Yumyung Group, and he will happily tell you he is perfect. He is rich, handsome and brilliant at business, and also so in love with himself that working beside him is a full-time job. For nine years, that job has belonged to Kim Mi-so, a secretary so efficient that the office runs like clockwork around her. She knows his schedule, his moods and his tastes better than he does. Then, on an ordinary day, she tells him she is quitting.
Young-joon can't believe it. He offers her a promotion to director, a car, a house, even to pay off her family's debts, and nothing works. So he tries the one thing he never has: looking at her as a person rather than an assistant. Meanwhile, Mi-so starts searching for a boy tied to a blurry, frightening memory from her childhood, and Young-joon's older brother Lee Sung-yeon, a bestselling author who writes as Morpheus, shows an interest in her of his own. At the office, Young-joon's best friend Park Yoo-sik volunteers as love counselor, and rookie Kim Ji-a tries to fill shoes that seem impossibly big. The question stops being why Mi-so wants to leave and becomes what would make her stay.
Characters and their Saju
Lee Young-joon 이영준
Park Seo-joon · Yang Fire · The Sun
Young-joon is the narcissistic vice-chairman of Yumyung Group: handsome, rich and very good at what he does. He talks about himself in superlatives and expects the world to agree. Behind all that polish is a man who has never had to wonder what other people need, until his secretary resigns.
If Young-joon had a Saju card, it would be Yang Fire · The Sun: he truly believes everything revolves around him, and in the office it almost does. The Sun's lesson is discovering that its warmth is measured by what grows under its light, not by how much it dazzles.
Kim Mi-so 김미소
Park Min-young · Yin Earth · The Garden
Mi-so is a legend in the secretarial world: nine years at Young-joon's side, never a detail out of place and always a calm smile. She has spent a long time putting work and her family first. Her resignation isn't a whim; it's the first time she is choosing something for herself.
If Mi-so had a Saju card, it would be Yin Earth · The Garden: patient soil where everyone else's plans take root. For nine years she tended other people's flowers. Now the Garden wants a corner of its own, to plant her own seeds and watch them bloom.
Lee Sung-yeon 이성연
Lee Tae-hwan · Yin Water · The Rain
Sung-yeon is Young-joon's older brother and a bestselling author who publishes as Morpheus. His manners are gentle, but he keeps his family at a distance and his brother in a cold standoff. When he meets Mi-so, he shows an interest in her that makes everything far more personal.
If Sung-yeon had a Saju card, it would be Yin Water · The Rain: quiet, introspective and hard to read, a drizzle that seeps into old cracks. His words move his readers, but the Rain also needs a little sunlight to stop feeling gray inside.
Park Yoo-sik 박유식
Kang Ki-young · Yang Earth · The Mountain
Yoo-sik is the president of Yumyung Group and Young-joon's best friend. He is the only person who can tell the vice-chairman the truth with a laugh, and he gladly takes on the role of love counselor. His advice isn't always elegant, but it's always loyal.
If Yoo-sik had a Saju card, it would be Yang Earth · The Mountain: solid, dependable and always in the same place when his friend needs to climb up and see things clearly. Mountains don't flatter; they simply give you a better view.
Kim Ji-a 김지아
Pyo Ye-jin · Yin Wood · The Climbing Vine
Ji-a is the rookie secretary hired to replace Mi-so. Cheerful and eager, she arrives with good intentions and a lot to learn, in an office where her predecessor set the bar sky-high. Watching her find her place is one of the series' lighter pleasures.
If Ji-a had a Saju card, it would be Yin Wood · The Climbing Vine: young, flexible and growing fast thanks to whoever teaches her. A vine starts small against a huge wall, but give it one season and it covers it from end to end.
And what would your Saju be? Find out free with your birth date.
Why so many people fell for it
What's Wrong with Secretary Kim is office romcom comfort at its purest: sparkling banter, a ridiculous boss who learns to listen and a heroine who decides her own worth. Park Seo-joon and Park Min-young's chemistry carried it to an 8.6% finale, first in its time slot across all channels. In Latin America it streams on Netflix and Viki, and in May 2026 Mexico's Canal 5 began airing it on free-to-air TV.
Facts
- Based on Jung Kyung-yoon's 2013 novel, which was also adapted into a webtoon.
- Its final episode averaged 8.6%, first in its time slot across all channels.
- It has been remade in the Philippines, Thailand, China and Indonesia.
Ending (spoilers)
Show the ending
Spoiler: Young-joon turns out to be the boy who was kidnapped alongside Mi-so when they were small, and he had pretended to forget it to protect his family. He reconciles with his brother Sung-yeon, proposes to Mi-so, and the series closes on their wedding day.
If you liked it, watch next
- Business Proposal 2022 · SBS
- Full House 2004 · KBS2
- My Love from the Star 2013 · SBS
Frequently asked questions
What is What's Wrong with Secretary Kim about?
Narcissistic vice-chairman Lee Young-joon is stunned when Kim Mi-so, his perfect secretary for nine years, announces she is quitting. He tries everything to keep her and, along the way, starts to see her as a person rather than an assistant.
Is What's Wrong with Secretary Kim based on a book?
Yes. It adapts a 2013 novel by Jung Kyung-yoon, which was also turned into a webtoon. The drama was written by Jung Eun-young and directed by Park Joon-hwa.
Who's who in the What's Wrong with Secretary Kim cast?
Park Seo-joon is Lee Young-joon, Park Min-young is Kim Mi-so, Lee Tae-hwan is Lee Sung-yeon, Kang Ki-young is Park Yoo-sik and Pyo Ye-jin is Kim Ji-a.
Where can I watch it in Latin America?
It's on Netflix under its English title and on Rakuten Viki with Spanish subtitles. In Mexico, Canal 5 began broadcasting it on free-to-air TV in May 2026.
