Extraordinary Attorney Woo

Extraordinary Attorney Woo is a 2022 South Korean television series starring Park Eun-bin in the title role, along with Kang Tae-oh and Kang Ki-young. It follows Woo Young-woo, a female rookie attorney with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who is hired by a major law firm in Seoul. Being different from her neurotypical peers, her manner of communication is seen by them as odd, awkward, and blunt. 

With each legal case and through her intelligence and photographic memory, she becomes an increasingly competent attorney. Extraordinary Attorney Woo tells the story of Woo Young-woo, a lawyer with autism spectrum disorder who is raised by her single father. She grows up with a single friend at school, Dong Geu-ra-mi, an oddball girl who protects her from school bullies. She graduates at the top of her law school class at Seoul National University. Because of her condition, no one will hire her. 

However, through a connection of her father’s, she obtains her first job at Hanbada, a large Seoul law firm. Attorney Woo’s intelligence and photographic memory help her to become an excellent lawyer as she is able to recall laws and almost anything she reads, sees, or hears perfectly. Being different from neurotypical peers, her manner of communication is initially seen by the majority as odd and awkward and her strong emotional intelligence remains unrecognized. 

But as the series progresses, many of the people she meets, such as her supervising lawyer, Jung Myung-seok, her law school classmate and peer, Choi Su-yeon, and legal support staffer Lee Jun-ho adjust to her as she learns her craft as a rookie attorney. But she also encounters people who are prejudiced against her and others with disabilities. Many of the legal cases in the series involve finely balanced legal issues and sometimes difficult ethical questions. 

Attorney Woo’s approach is often unique and helps resolve cases in unexpected ways. A story-line about Young-woo’s parents runs through the series and involves the rivalry between two major law firms, both chaired by female attorneys, Han Seon-young, CEO of Hanbada, and Tae Soo-mi, CEO of Taesan, as well as her jealous colleague Kwon Min-woo. Another theme that runs through the series is Young-woo’s strong interest in whales and other marine mammals. 

Her tendency to analogize situations she faces in her professional and private life with the lives and characteristics of whales and dolphins often surprises and confounds the people who surround her. Her light bulb moments often coincide with fantasizing about these creatures. It aired on ENA from June 29 to August 18, 2022, every Wednesday and Thursday at 21:00 (KST) for 16 episodes. 

It is also available for streaming on Netflix in selected regions. Extraordinary Attorney Woo set the record for the highest ratings in ENA history. It received audience acclaim with its final episode recording an 17.5% nationwide ratings, making it the seventh highest rated drama in Korean cable television history and sixth highest rated television drama by the number of viewers.