Updated 18th October 2024.
TVING’s 사장님의 식단표 Spice Up Our Love main poster.
“눈 떠보니, 내가 쓴 19금 웹소설 속 여주가 됐다!”
“When I opened my eyes, I was the female protagonist in a 19+ web novel I wrote!”
Spice Up Our Love 사장님의 식단표 is a TVING original drama released on 3rd October 2024. This series is a spin-off of the TVN drama No Gain No Love 손해 보기 싫어서. It was originally called The CEO’s Menu, which is the literal translation of its Korean title but later named Spice Up Our Love.
In No Gain No Love, the second female lead, Nam Ja Yeon writes a web novel called Spice Up Our Love. In this spin-off, she’s isekai (a person who is transported to, reborn, or trapped in a parallel universe or fantasy world) into this novel of hers. She takes possession (빙의물) of Seo Yeon Seo, the web novel’s female lead and meets the novel’s male protagonist, Kang Ha Jun.
TVN’s No Gain No Love ended its run on Tuesday, 1st October 2024 and Spice Up Our Love followed up at 12pm KST on Thursday, 3rd October 2024 in TVING with full episodes release.
TVING’s 사장님의 식단표 Spice Up Our Love poster B cut. This poster was inspired by one of the graphics in Nam Ja Yeon’s Spice Up Our Love web novel. See below.
Ohh how I wish this web novel existed in reality!
If you’re wondering how you can get a hand on this web novel Spice Up Our Love to read it, I’m sorry to tell you it doesn’t exist at all. This is a web novel written by the second female lead in the Korean drama No Gain No Love.
Amazon Prime Video’s 사장님의 식단표 Spice Up Our Love poster.
“I woke up to find myself in my own romance novel”
Hangul (Korean title): 사장님의 식단표
Korean romanization title: Sajangnimui Sikdanpyo
Literal title: The CEO’s Menu
International English title: Spice Up Our Love
Hanja title: 社長님의 食單표
Director: Jeong Hoon
Writer (screenplay): Jo Min Jeong
Creator: Kim Hye Young
Production company: Bonfactory
Filming period: April 2024 ~ 18th April 2024 (pre-production)
Streaming (Korea): TVING
Streaming (Global): Amazon Prime Video
Release date: 3rd October 2024, Thursday, 12pm KST
Total episodes: 2
Running time (total): 99 minutes
Genres: Romantic comedy, fantasy, possession
Viewing rating: 15+ viewing age
Synopsis:
A fantasy romance drama about an unpredictable romance between a 19+ web novel writer, Nam Ja Yeon, who possesses the female protagonist of her own novel, Seo Yeon Seo, and the male protagonist of the novel, Kang Ha Jun.
She panics when she discovers that the perfect man in her web novel, Kang Ha Jun, is not her muse Yeo Ha Jun (played by Lee Yoo Jin), but Bok Gyu Hyun (played by Lee Sang Yi) of No Gain No Love.
Cast:
Lee Sang Yi as Bok Gyu Hyun & Kang Ha Jun (CEO of GB Electric)
Han Ji Hyun as Nam Ja Yeon & Seo Yeon Seo (nutritionist at GB Electric)
Lee You Jin as Kang Ha Jun (CEO of GB Electric) & Kim Do Gyeom (Secretary of GB Electric’s CEO, also Yeon Seo’s ex-boyfriend)
Park Jeong Woo as Kim Do Gyeom (Secretary of GB Electric’s CEO, also Yeon Seo’s ex-boyfriend)
Kim Yong Myung as Hospital Director Oh, bus driver & taxi driver
Joo Min Kyung as Cha Hee Sung
Lee Do Guk as Nam Chang-Il (Nam Ja Yeon’s father)
Yeo Ji Min as Nam Ja Yeon (teen)
Main Trailer: I’m a writer who has become the heroine of my own 19+ work ㅠㅠ
Music:
1. Spice Up Our Love OST Part 1
Title: 둘만의 세상 (A World For Us)
Release date: 3rd October 2024
Artist: Lee Sang Yi
2. Spice Up Our Love OST Part 2
Title: Miracle
Release date: 9th October 2024
Artist: Hemian
My Review:
Talk about hyping and raising the anticipation of Spice Up Our Love when No Gain No Love just begins airing. With the drop of the posters, my already high anticipation went up a few too many notches. However, the most disappointing thing is the episode count. Only 2?!? The teaser & still photos do not vibe with me. And so, come 3rd October, I sorta hesitated to click play.
Episode 1 is a cringe-fest, especially Bok Gyu Hyun’s Kang Ha Jun’s SEO… YEON SEO shi. I love some of its humor though, like Kim Yong Myung who plays several roles here. He was the convenience store manager in No Gain No Love.
While witnessing the Truck of Doom heading towards Bok Gyu Hyun outside the police station, Nam Ja Yeon faints and thereby ‘possesses’ Seo Yeon Seo, the female protagonist of her own web novel. One could say she’s in a dream state. This is in ep 5 of No Gain No Love.
Episode 2 is so much better. The one that caught me in tears is the scene of his dad, a good person in this universe that Ja Yeon created, walking away hand in hand with teen Ja Yeon. Both are smiling.
Overall, I find that Yeo Ha Jun’s Kang Ha Jun has more chemistry with Seo Yeon Seo than Bok Gyu Hyun’s Kang Ha Jun.
My Ratings: 6.9/10. Forgettable and missable. Perhaps, I’m harsh because my expectations were really sky-high at the beginning when news broke about the spin-off. Perhaps, I’m harsh because Fork Gyu never apologized to Hae Young & Ji Wook in No Gain No Love, so it was & still is weird to ship a red flag guy with a woman who’s in trauma, still. Perhaps, I would’ve enjoyed Spice Up Our Love if I never watched No Gain No Love. And, perhaps IF they did not do No Gain No Love dirty, I might’ve gone into Spice Up Our Love with a happier heart.
If I had to choose one, I would choose No Gain No Love any day!
Photos from TVING.
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