Reborn Rich · Season 1 · Episode 1 · 18 November 2022
S1E1 Soonyang's Loyal Servant
THE MOMENT The moment Hyun-woo realises the body he now inhabits, and the cold calculation that replaces grief almost instantly.
The premiere sets up both timelines, the loyal secretary in the present and the reincarnated grandson in 1987, and the contrast between Yoon Hyun-woo’s two lives drives the hook. The chaebol family dynamics are introduced at speed, while the period production design stands out right from the pilot. The pilot also comes across as one of the stronger K-drama premieres...
Full episode analysis below. Spoiler-light verdict above.
Updated
Reborn Rich Season 1 Episode 1 ‘Soonyang’s Loyal Servant’ aired November 18, 2022 on JTBC as the premiere of a 16-episode series that became the second highest-rated drama in Korean cable history. IMDb audience score sits at 8.1. NME noted Song Joong-ki easily carries both his roles as the steadfast underling and the sharp young man hellbent on destroying the Sunyang family. The premiere delivers the concept’s dual register with efficiency: Yoon Hyun-woo in the present as the loyal secretary who discovers the family’s conspiracy against him, and the same man waking in 1987 as the family’s youngest grandson. Song Joong-ki’s handling of the switch - the cold calculation that displaces grief within minutes - establishes the season’s central argument: that the most dangerous enemy a chaebol family can make is one who knows them from the inside. The 1987 Seoul period production design signals the show’s budget commitment in its opening episode.