Good Manager (Korean김과장; Hanja金科長; RRKimgwajang; lit. Chief Kim) is a South Korean television drama starring Namkoong Min, Nam Sang-mi, Lee Jun-ho, and Jung Hye-sung. It aired on KBS2 from January 25 to March 30, 2017 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 22:00 (KST) for 20 episodes.[2][3][4]

Good Manager
Promotional poster
Also known asManager Kim[1]
Hangul
김과장
Genre
Created byKBS Drama Production
Written byPark Jae-beom
Directed by
  • Lee Jae-hoon
  • Choi Yoon-suk
Creative directors
  • Lee Seung-hoon
  • Choi Dong-sook
Starring
Composers
  • Hwang Dong-sub
  • Lee Sung-kyun
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languageKorean
No. of episodes20
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Lee Eun-jin
  • Choi Jun-ho
Production locationsSeoul & Gyeonggi Province, South Korea
Cinematography
  • Wi Chang-suk
  • Kim Pil-seung
Editors
  • Kim Mi-kyung
  • Lee Min-kyung
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time60 minutes
Production companyLogos Film
Original release
NetworkKBS2
ReleaseJanuary 25 (2017-01-25) –
March 30, 2017 (2017-03-30)

Synopsis

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Kim Sung-ryong, a certified public accountant who becomes a middle manager at TQ Group company in order to embezzle a large sum of money, ends up fighting for his employees' fundamental rights.[5]

Cast

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Main

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Kim Sung-ryong used to be a small-time accountant from Gunsan, a small city in North Jeolla Province, working for a mobster. He was investigated every year for accounting fraud and tax evasion but was proven innocent every time. Then, he got accepted to TQ as the chief of their accounting department.
A strong and ethical woman. She is the assistant manager of TQ's accounting department.
Seo Yul used to be an ace prosecutor until the chairman of the TQ group appointed him to be the Director for Finance.
A police officer working undercover as an intern of the Finance department, who was hired as a spy by a prosecutor.

Supporting

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TQ Group Business Operation Department

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People at TQ Group

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People at Seoul Central District Prosecutors

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People at Gunsan

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Extended

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  • Lee Sung-wook
  • Park Kwang-jae
  • Jeon Ye-seo
  • Nam Sang-baek
  • Choi Kyu-shik
  • Choi Jae-sub
  • Eom Ji-man
  • Jo Jae-won
  • Heo Sun-haeng
  • Lee Yoon-sang

Special appearances

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  • Kim Eung-soo as Bae Deok-po, gang leader (Ep. 1, 20)
  • Lee Sang-hoon
  • Song Yeong-gil
  • Jung Kyung-ho as man blackmailing Kim Sung-ryong
  • Lee Si-eon as Prosecutor Park Yong-tae (Ep. 20)
  • Kim Kang-hoon as Kim Sung-ryong (young)
  • Choi Jae-Hwan as Joong Gun, union leader (Ep. 5)
  • Park Ji-il as Head of department Choi Ik-joong (Ep. 17)

Production

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Original soundtrack

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Good Manager
OST Album
Soundtrack album
GenreSoundtrack
LanguageKorean, English
LabelLOEN Entertainment, The Groove Company
ProducerHwang Dong-sub, Lee Sung-kyun (The Groove)

Part 1

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."Must Be The Money"
  • Kim Sung-tae
  • Choi Hye-sun
DinDin03:14
2."Must Be The Money" (Inst.) 
  • Kim Sung-tae
  • Choi Hye-sun
 03:14
Total length:06:28

Part 2

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."How It Happens"Drew Ryan Scott
  • Drew Ryan Scott
  • Ping
After Romeo03:37
2."How It Happens" (Inst.) 
  • Drew Ryan Scott
  • Ping
 03:37
Total length:07:14

Part 3

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."Starlight Falling Night" (별빛이 쏟아지는 밤)Hwang Yong-juHwang Yong-juSong Yuvin MYTEEN03:29
2."Starlight Falling Night" (Inst.) Hwang Yong-ju 03:29
Total length:06:58

Part 4

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."Will You Love Me"
  • Lee Shin-sung
  • ZigZag Note
  • ZigZag Note
  • Kim Young-sung
GB9, Kim So-hee04:14
2."Will You Love Me" (Inst.) 
  • ZigZag Note
  • Kim Young-sung
 04:16
Total length:08:30

Part 5

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."Roller Coaster" (롤러코스터)Kim Sung-tae
  • Kim Sung-tae
  • Lee Gun-woo
Seenroot03:14
2."Roller Coaster" (Inst.) 
  • Kim Sung-tae
  • Lee Gun-woo
 03:14
Total length:06:28

Part 6

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."Dream" (꿈을 꾼다)
  • B.O.K
  • E-QLO
  • Seo Yeong-eun
  • B.O.K
  • E-QLO
Seo Yeong-eun04:44
2."Dream" (Inst.) 
  • B.O.K
  • E-QLO
 04:44
Total length:09:28

Part 7

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."Unbelievable"Lee Seung-woo
  • Lee Seung-woo
  • In Young-hun
  • Edison
Soulstar03:41
2."Unbelievable" (Inst.) 
  • Lee Seung-woo
  • In Young-hun
  • Edison
 03:41
Total length:07:22

Part 8

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No.TitleLyricsMusicArtistLength
1."That's Right" (그래)Kim Sung-tae
  • Lee Gun-woo
  • Kim Sung-tae
Dalda03:35
2."That's Right" (Inst.) 
  • Lee Gun-woo
  • Kim Sung-tae
 03:35
Total length:07:10

Reception

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Despite competing against big-budget drama Saimdang, Light's Diary in the same time slot and having no big-name stars, the drama managed to top ratings during its run and enjoyed explosive popularity.[12] It received positive reviews for its punchy and satirical lines on the corrupt corporate owners and the society, which resonated with the viewers; and the multifaceted performance of lead actor Namkoong Min, whose perfect amalgamation of character creation and acting saves “Good Manager” from what could have been an average office crime comedy.[13] Korea Times said that the drama "has the ability to tell uncomfortable stories (story of embezzlement cases, mass layoffs and other societal issues regarding fierce competition) in a witty way".[14]

Ratings

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In this table, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.

Ep. Original broadcast date Average audience share
TNmS[15] AGB Nielsen[16]
Nationwide Seoul Nationwide Seoul
1 January 25, 2017 6.6% (19th) 7.1% (19th) 7.8% (17th) 7.7% (15th)
2 January 26, 2017 6.3% (20th) 6.5% (18th) 7.2% (18th) 7.2% (15th)
3 February 1, 2017 11.7% (7th) 13.3% (4th) 12.8% (5th) 12.8% (5th)
4 February 2, 2017 11.5% (7th) 13.3% (4th) 13.8% (4th) 14.1% (4th)
5 February 8, 2017 13.2% (4th) 15.5% (4th) 15.5% (4th) 15.8% (4th)
6 February 9, 2017 12.1% (6th) 12.9% (4th) 16.7% (4th) 17.6% (3rd)
7 February 15, 2017 13.1% (4th) 15.0% (4th) 16.1% (4th) 16.3% (4th)
8 February 16, 2017 13.7% (4th) 15.6% (4th) 17.6% (4th) 17.3% (4th)
9 February 22, 2017 15.5% (4th) 16.2% (4th) 17.8% (3rd) 18.0% (3rd)
10 February 23, 2017 15.2% (4th) 15.6% (4th) 17.2% (4th) 17.3% (3rd)
11 March 1, 2017 15.6% (4th) 17.0% (3rd) 18.4% (3rd) 19.2% (3rd)
12 March 2, 2017 16.3% (4th) 17.8% (3rd) 18.4% (3rd) 18.5% (3rd)
13 March 8, 2017 15.3% (4th) 16.2% (4th) 16.8% (4th) 16.8% (4th)
14 March 9, 2017 14.3% (4th) 14.9% (4th) 17.1% (4th) 16.9% (3rd)
15 March 15, 2017 14.6% (4th) 16.1% (3rd) 18.4% (4th) 19.1% (3rd)
16 March 16, 2017 16.2% (4th) 18.1% (3rd) 17.1% (4th) 17.6% (3rd)
17 March 22, 2017 17.4% (4th) 19.7% (4th) 17.4% (4th) 17.5% (4th)
18 March 23, 2017 16.0% (4th) 17.3% (3rd) 17.0% (4th) 17.5% (3rd)
19 March 29, 2017 17.0% (4th) 18.6% (3rd) 16.9% (4th) 16.8% (4th)
20 March 30, 2017 18.0% (4th) 18.7% (3rd) 17.2% (4th) 17.8% (3rd)
Average 14.0% 15.3% 15.9% 16.1%

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Recipient Result
2017 Best Actor Namkoong Min Nominated
44th Korean Broadcasting Awards
Actor Award Won
Best Drama Good Manager Nominated
Best Production Director Lee Jang-soo Won
Best Screenplay Lee Eun-jin Nominated
Top Excellence Award, Actor Namkoong Min Nominated
Excellence Award, Actress Lee Il-hwa Won
Best Original Soundtrack DinDin (Must Be The Money) Won
Best Actor Namkoong Min Nominated
Top Excellence Award, Actor Namkoong Min Won
Excellence Award, Actor in a Mid-length Drama Lee Jun-ho Won
Namkoong Min Nominated
Excellence Award, Actress in a Mid-length Drama Nam Sang-mi Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Dong Ha Nominated
Kim Won-hae Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Lee Il-hwa Won
Jung Hye-sung Won
Seo Jeong-yeon Nominated
Best New Actor Kim Seon-ho Nominated
Lee Jun-ho Nominated
Best New Actress Lim Hwa-young Nominated
Netizen Award – Male Namkoong Min Nominated
Lee Jun-ho Nominated
Best Couple Award Namkoong Min & Nam Sang-mi Nominated
Namkoong Min & Lee Jun-ho Won
2018
30th Korea Producer Awards
Best Drama Good Manager Won

Adaptation

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It was announced on March 24, 2017 that KBS Media will publish a book titled "Chief Kim's Work Book" set to be released in April related to the drama that will contain great tips for work life. The book will feature the drama's best scenes, best lines, and all of the illustrated episode endings. The illustrations will be drawn by webtoon artist Yang Kyung-soo, who partnered with the drama to create the ending scenes for each episode. This project is the first collaboration between a drama and a webtoon.[18]

References

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  1. ^ "Manager Kim [Title in the URL]". Korean Broadcasting System. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  2. ^ "[단독]'굿닥터' 박재범 작가 신작, KBS 11월 수목극 편성 확정". inews24 (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-12-06.
  3. ^ '김과장' 남상미·남궁민·이준호, 출연…내년 1월 25일 첫방 (공식입장). NewsPim (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  4. ^ 윤, 고은. "남궁민-남상미, KBS '김과장'서 코믹 호흡". Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  5. ^ "[리폿@스타] '김과장' 남궁민X남상미, 남남커플 대박 터질까" (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-12-06.
  6. ^ "남궁민, KBS 드라마 '김과장' 주인공 낙점!...지난 10일 첫촬영 시작". 서울경제 (in Korean). 2016-12-12. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  7. ^ "남궁민, KBS '김과장'에 주연 캐스팅…'남상미와 호흡 맞춘다'". 포커스뉴스 (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2016-12-20. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  8. ^ '김과장' 남상미 "2년만의 복귀, 긴장감·설렘 공존" (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  9. ^ [단독] 정혜성, '김과장' 주연도 꿰찼다…남궁민과 재회 (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  10. ^ "배우 이일화, KBS2 새 수목드라마 '김과장' 전격 합류! – 국제뉴스" (in Korean). 2016-12-15. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
  11. ^ '김과장' 남궁민·남상미·이준호·정혜성, 첫 만남 어땠나. www.mydaily.co.kr (in Korean). 27 December 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-29.
  12. ^ "Office comedy 'Good Manager' rules TV popularity chart". The Korea Herald. 2017-03-14.
  13. ^ "'Good Manager' shines by doing away with office TV tropes". Yonhap News Agency. 2017-03-31.
  14. ^ "'Good Manager' rises from underdog to favorite". The Korea Times. 2017-02-14.
  15. ^ "TNmS Daily Ratings". TNmS (in Korean). Retrieved January 25, 2017.
  16. ^ "Nielsen Korea". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Retrieved January 25, 2017.
  17. ^ Lee, Kyung-ho (January 1, 2018). "김영철·천호진,KBS 연기대상 공동 수상..아버지의 힘!(종합)". Star News (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  18. ^ '김과장', 4월 책으로 출간…직장생활 꿀팁+웹툰 콜라보. Nate News (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-03-26.
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