# The Good Bad Mother (2023)

> After a traffic accident leaves a prosecutor with the mind of a child, he and his mother must rebuild their broken bond on a rural farm.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/135665

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 14
- Episode runtime: 68 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama, comedy
- Created by: Sim Na-yeon, Bae Se-young
- Network: JTBC
- Cast: Ra Mi-ran, Lee Do-hyun, Ahn Eun-jin, Yoo In-soo, Choi Mu-sung, Jung Woong-in, Hong Bi-ra, Seo Yi-sook
- TMDB rating: 8.4/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27042206/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: mild
- Tone: bittersweet, tender, darkly comic, melancholic, emotional

## What critics say

Acclaimed for its emotional depth, the lead performance of Lee Do-hyun, and its blend of dark and light tones around a son's regression and his mother's devotion.

## Synopsis

The Good Bad Mother (2023) is a South Korean family drama created by Sim Na-yeon and Bae Se-young for JTBC, a single-season limited series of fourteen episodes. Ambitious prosecutor Choi Kang-ho (Lee Do-hyun) is left with the mind of a child after a traffic accident, and his mother Jin Young-soon (Ra Mi-ran) must take him back to the village and farm where she lives. Their daily life is built from small, concrete frictions: feeding animals, mending old quarrels with childhood friends, and relearning how to speak to one another after years of distance. Supporting roles from Ahn Eun-jin, Yoo In-soo and Choi Mu-sung widen the village circle around them. The show moves at a measured pace, following a slice of life rhythm rather than courtroom procedure. Its tone is darker than expected yet frequently lighter than its premise suggests, mixing grief, dark comic tenderness and quiet humor. Themes of maternal sacrifice, reversed caregiving and the difficulty of forgiveness run through each episode. Set in present day rural South Korea, it is a contemplative, emotionally raw series that fans of Mare of Easttown and Extraordinary Attorney Woo will find resonance in, and it suits viewers who want a tearjerker about family repair.

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