The Nice Guy- Episodes 1-2

The Nice Guy – Episode 1:

Let’s just say Episode 1 doesn’t ease us in, it throws us straight into the chaos.

We meet Seok-cheol bloodied and bruised, walking into a bus station to meet Mi-young. Seconds later, he’s stabbed. Welcome to The Nice Guy.

Flashback. Seok-cheol’s inner voice confesses he once dreamed of being a poet or novelist... hard to picture as he’s reciting poetry in a workshop full of people who quickly realize he’s, well, a gangster.

Meanwhile, his police friend drops a bomb: he’s organizing a mediation between two rival gangs, one of which is Seok-cheol’s. The kicker? The whole thing is being led by Seok-cheol’s dad, a retired gangster turned “mediator.”

Back home, more mess. His oldest sister, Seok-kyung, gambled away the family home’s deed and vanished. Her son’s now with their grandparents. His youngest sister, Seok-hee, is a nurse secretly dating Seok-cheol’s high school buddy, now a doctor.

In between kimchi deliveries and dodging family disasters, Seok-cheol tells his boss he’s done with gangster life. The boss agrees, but only after one final task: clear protestors from a redevelopment site. Classic "one last job" trap.

On his way to see Seok-hee, Seok-cheol bumps into Mi-young again. She’s a struggling musician with a YouTube channel and serious stage fright. Turns out, not only do they have history, they also have a shared connection: Seok-hee and Mi-young are friends.

We learn Mi-young and Seok-cheol were close in school, possibly more, until she mysteriously disappeared. Now she's broke, anxious, and trying to claw her way back with an audition. But when the moment comes, the crowd rattles her and she freezes. No song. No second chance.

Later, the two reconnect. Mi-young talks about her fear of performing. Seok-cheol doesn’t push, he listens. Then he takes her to visit her mother in a nursing home. He gently coaxes her to sing for the residents. It’s awkward, emotional, and brief, but she does it. Small win.

That night, Seok-hee calls: she’s found Seok-kyung. One of Seok-kyung’s old friends came to the hospital with a herniated disc, and the trail leads to a gambling den.

The siblings storm the place. It doesn’t go well. The den’s owner and her thugs attack. Seok-kyung doesn’t lift a finger, until she sees Seok-hee getting hurt. Then, out of nowhere, she snaps and headbutts the owner.

That’s where Episode 1 ends: fists flying, emotions running high, and family loyalty crashing through the chaos.

Welcome to The Nice Guy. 

The Nice Guy – Episode 2:

Family drama, gangster politics, and emotional wreckage... Episode 2 keeps the pressure high.

We pick up right where we left off: Seok-kyung headbutting the gambling den boss like she’s been waiting for this moment her whole life. The three siblings make a narrow escape, locking the thugs inside and booking it out of there.

They crash at the goshiwon where Seok-kyung’s been hiding. Seok-hee lays into her sister for disappearing after losing the house to the bank. It’s harsh, but fair.

Then we get Seok-kyung’s full backstory, and it hits hard. She got pregnant while working as a hairdresser, rushed into marriage, found out her husband was cheating, and got divorced before they even unpacked. Her answer? Gambling. Lots of it. Enough to cost the family their home. It’s messy, tragic, and painfully real.

Since Seok-kyung can’t bring herself to face their father, Seok-hee takes her home. Meanwhile, Mi-young is in grind mode, juggling jobs as a waitress and cleaning lady, trying to stay afloat.

Back on the gangster front, Seok-cheol gears up for his “final” job: clearing protestors off a redevelopment site. He doesn’t want bloodshed, so he approaches the protest leader and offers to talk. The man’s not budging, he’d rather die than back down.

The gang boss loses patience and sends in the goons. Things explode. While chaos unfolds outside, Seok-cheol sneaks into the protest leader’s house to stop it from getting worse. During their struggle, a fire breaks out and Seok-cheol ends up dragging the man to safety.

The next morning, Seok-cheol makes headlines as the guy who saved someone from a fire. It changes everything. The protest leader backs off, and even the gang boss is impressed. Seok-cheol gets rewarded for pulling it off without a body count.

Back home, Seok-cheol’s father is trying to clean up Seok-kyung’s mess in his own way. He visits the bank and negotiates a loan extension, but there’s a catch, they need to come up with 70 million won in two weeks to lock it in. Clock’s ticking.

Meanwhile, Mi-young spots a flyer for a singing audition, possibly a shot at something better. At the same time, she crosses paths with Kang Tae-hum, a rival gang boss who’s clearly scheming against Seok-cheol’s boss. Trouble’s brewing.

Then comes the gut punch: Seok-cheol’s father shows up at his workplace. Not for a visit. He’s there to borrow money from Seok-cheol’s boss. That moment cuts deep. Seok-cheol didn’t choose this life, his dad put him here. When his father went to prison, Seok-cheol stepped into the gangster world to pay off the family debt. Now, even as he’s clawing his way out, his father is dragging him back in.

DramaZen's Opinion

Okay, The Nice Guy came back swinging with its final episodes, and I was not ready. Episodes 1 and 2 packed so much heart, chaos, and character growth that I was on edge the whole time and loving it.

Seok-cheol is trying so hard to leave the gangster life behind, and every time he gets close, someone from his family or past pulls him right back in. The moment he saved the protest leader from the fire? I was screaming. That man is literally out here doing heroic damage control while his family unravels.

Seok-kyung’s meltdown and backstory hit surprisingly hard. I went from frustrated to full-blown sympathetic in one scene. And Mi-young’s hustle? So real. Watching her struggle with stage fright while still chasing her dream is painfully relatable.

And then there’s that final punch... the father showing up to borrow money from Seok-cheol’s boss. The same father who shoved him into this mess years ago. That scene had me clenching my fists.

This drama isn’t just about gangs or redemption, it’s about how family can save you or wreck you, sometimes at the same time. If the rest of the final arc keeps up this pace and emotional weight, we’re in for something seriously unforgettable.