Yup, K-drama did it again – they managed to combine a genuinely tense murder mystery with a sweet, silly romance and come up with a result that’s entertaining. Suspicious Partner (SBS 2017) is about two lawyers who fall in love – and at the end of the first episode, one of them is arrested for murder.

Noh Ji-uk (Ji Chang-wook) is a prosecutor and Eun Bong-hi (Nam Ji-hyun) is a lawyer who briefly works for him during her training. There is a clear spark between them but they are both smarting from having been cheated on by long-term partners and are wary of new love. Then Bong-hi’s ex-boyfriend is found dead in her apartment and his father – who happens to be the chief prosecutor – presses Ji-uk hard to charge Bong-hi with murder. It’s an inauspicious start for a romance.

It gradually becomes clear that there is a serial killer at work, and our stars – along with an excellent roster of supporting cast – work together to identify the real culprit. But even once they know who it is, they still need to find enough evidence to make their case in court.

Ji-uk and Bong-hi must work closely with Ji Eun-hyuk (Choi Tae-joon), a lawyer who was Ji-uk’s best friend growing up but at the start of this series they are estranged and Ji-uk is in no rush to mend bridges. The situation is further complicated by prosecutor Cha Yoo-yung (Kwon Nara, who was also in Itaewon Class), who is Ji-uk’s ex-girlfriend. And there’s some beef between Ji-uk’s mother and Bong-hi’s mother, who are both played by familiar comedic actors (Nam Gi-ae, from Oh My Venus and Descendants of the Sun, and Yoon Bok-in).

Considering the serial murders, this is a fluffy, sweet show. The peril is never very high for the leads. Though it does get creepy when someone befriends the main characters who is involved in the murders.

Overall, the show isn’t bad for gender politics. There are the usual ridiculous coincidences and misunderstandings and lost memories that are miraculously recovered. The chemistry between the leads is fine but not great. Nam Ji-hyun is adorable in a messy, hair-tossing sort of way. Ji Chang-wook is sometimes playful, sometimes cold, but doesn’t quite hit the right note for me. They do both have excellent comic timing.