MinHo holds steady.
Why hasn’t he jumped ahead now that Dr. Ye officially dumped BoYoung?
Because unlike the ignorant Ye Liners, I’m giving Dr. Ye a chance to redeem himself given that we already know his mysterious backstory.
We were right to foresee that Dr. Ye didn’t love BoYoung enough to stick around and fight for her. Remember his indecision in the bathroom? He didn’t want to repeat a mistake so he berated himself for acting hastily. Same thing this time. He didn’t want to repeat the mistake he did with his ex-girlfriend/co-worker, so he was extricating himself from a tricky work romance with BoYoung. He was nipping it in the bud.
And we were right to anticipate that MinHo would leave BoYoung because he loved her that much.
It was foreshadowed in the poem in Episode 8, “The Point of No Return.” Paraphrased, he was leaving her, the girl he loved, and turning away as if he didn’t care. He was going to hide the pain that he felt, and hide his desire to stay. He was going to hold back his tears and walk away as if he wasn’t shattering. He loved her so, therefore he must go away.
At the beginning of Episode 9, he was determined to keep his resolution. He saw her in the morning, apologized for his past misdeed, and wished her good luck. All day long, he stayed on a light and friendly footing. But we knew it’d been a strain for him when he refused to go to the farewell dinner for the Chief. Later that evening, he worried about BoYoung when he discovered that her anticipated promotion fell through again.
At this point, I would say that he was behaving pretty much like a second lead male. The second male lead is famous for worrying about the girl, accompanying her when the tsundere hero is gone, and being available to cry on.
And MinHo behaved like that with BoYoung today. He had “yielded” his love (as poets would say it) so she could pursue her happiness with Dr. Ye, without any interference from him. blah blah blah whatever. That’s what a good second lead does.
But the poem changed it all. The titular poem of Episode 9 is “Height.” It goes like this:
Height
by Yoo Ahn Jin
I’m ashamed to say that until now
I only cried for myself.
My most painful cries
Still only come out for myself.
How much older do I need to get to grow a bigger heart
And how much taller does my heart need to get
Before I can cry for someone else?
My eyes can only see myself
On the most sorrowful days.
My ears can only hear my laugh
On the most happy days.
I’ve never realized how imperfect my heart is.
I’m embarrassed and ashamed.
After the narration of the poem, MinHo addressed the sleeping Boyoung. “You’re selfish? I’m really the selfish one. Even though I decided to wish you the best, hearing that it didn’t work out between you and Dr. Ye makes me feel relieved.”
Even with his best intention to let her go, he cannot simply and consciously order his heart to fall “out” of love with her. His imperfect heart will always seek his own happiness first.
Thus the story arc of this episode began with MinHo and BoYoung going separate ways in the morning, and ended with MinHo and BoYoung sitting on the parch bench at night.
credit: liveasbutterflies
I like how he gingerly sat closer to her and lightly nudged her head so it would fall on his shoulder. lol. Considering that she had whacked him on his head a couple of times, this was very decent of him.
The other poem:
Me
by Kim Yong Taek
As I think of you
If I look at the mountains on a rainy day in May
I run out of breath completely
Please have me before I run out of breath.
And the annoying line from the song:
Marsh
by Jo Gan Woo
When I first laid my eyes on her, she was another man’s wife
I looked at her through the opening between my curtains.
done editing. 4/24. I want you gals to know that I did my flash poll at 11pm while I was sipping chamomile and lavender tea. Butthurt fangirls who are lurking in my blog should try that drink sometimes. It relaxes.
I have to say I am a bit worried for my ship even though it doesn’t make any sense to give the second chance to Dr Ye now and punish MH for rejecting BY back in the college.
I suspect that Dr Ye will find out in which place guys are staying in next episode and decide to embrace his (?)feelings for BY. It will be just at the end of episode leaving me & MH crushed.
On the positive side, episode 9 proved to me that Ye & BY have just no chemistry. If they are trying to make them seem like soulmates, then I just can’t see it.
@Lespoir48
After seeing ep 10 preview, I am a bit worried for my ship too since the preview seem to show Dr. Ye’s heart hurting (maybe coz he lost a fangirl. Lol). I do wish it’s just a misdirection. I don’t feel any chemistry between BY and Dr. Ye too. He was sure about his rejection of BY’s feelings from the start, he was not totally influenced by his ex to make that decision.
I still have hope for MH though. I love the ending in the bench with him confessing his selfishness to a sleeping BY about how he felt relieved that BY and Dr. Ye didn’t work out. He was so worried for her. I do admit I expected that full time job didn’t pull though for her. The writer seemed to like a repetitive pattern. And MH has been a great support system for her during those downers these past few episodes. Still, there’s a lot of MH/BY today more than Dr. Ye/BY. I am having doubts about her ending up with MH because when she almost fell on the stairs, MH saved her but the writer didn’t make it kdrama style with a twist of the body and a dip of the female with both their eyes meeting each other. Hehehe. Instead, he did what any sane person would do and took hold of her collar to prevent her from falling. But I still have hope that maybe the writer doesn’t wanna confuse her at this stage coz she was so fixed on Dr. Ye.
You’re living up to your name, Lespoir48! 😂 Hope.
I didn’t even think about that. When I do it, it’s adultery. When you do it, it’s romance. They both rejected her so they’re on par now. But wait… Dr Ye’s not over his ex yet. There are unresolved issues there. He has that baggage and MH doesn’t. Lol.
I don’t know much about Ye and BY chemistry. Isn’t an Ahjussi and Niece a chemical bonding, too? That dance must have been played for laughs, right? Like those cotton candy fantasies and the Dubai wife? Because for one, her white dress was 1980s style. And for another, the actor looked like he was holding back himself back from guffawing at the dance. It’s THAT kind of silly dance.
😂😂 You described that kdrama trope for falling fall so well, sansukini! It’s like a tango dip to me.
I thought saving her by the collar was too funny. Like, he didn’t want to touch her or have physical contact with her. It reminded me of saving a kitten from harm by grabbing it on scruff of its neck.
I’ve been thinking that when he cleans up his act, MH is a decent guy. He’s far more perceptive than Dr Ye. And he gets along with the other staff members and his roommates. And he has one friend NamWon beside him all this time. I’m always worried about kdrama heroes who are lone wolves like Ye. In real life, the guy’s friends – or lack of friends – are a good indicator of his emotional and social skills. I personally wouldn’t have dated a loner. I wouldn’t want to be his sole obsession or his only confidante or his whole world. It would have been too burdensome.
And worrisome. How come he couldn’t keep friends? What was wrong with his personality? Was he a social misfit? I’d be psychoanalyzing him 24/7.
Just quickly leaving something I found interesting this episode. There is a reference to La La Land (the imagination waltz).
*Spoiler* Now this was one movie where the leads did not end up together. Their careers took precedence over their romance. A controversial ending but many agreed it was realistic. *Spoiler end*
Now today we did spend alot of time on the ‘lead’ and side characters’ careers di’nt we?
Huh? You mean in the movie, La La Land, the two people dancing didn’t end up together?
See? That’s how bad I am. I don’t watch Hollywood movies anymore because all the free time I have, I spend on non-Hollywood shows. My girlfriends have been on my case because the last time we did a book review (for our book club), I “cheated” and read only segments.
Haha yes they don’t end up together at the end of the movie. They do a fantasy vs reality thing at the end. Sorry i ruined the ending if you were ever planning to catch it and that this reference probably doesnt make sense. So lets say like when Sansukini talked about the twill and the dip, thats what happens in la la land (cleverly could mean the movie or literally Boyoung/Namwoo’s imagination.) The collar grab is what happens in reality.
Nope. I wasn’t planning on watching LaLa Land. It’s down low on my viewing list.
The collar grab is totally unromantic but hey! it works. It’s to prove a point that even though she told MH to ~ stay out her love life because she’ll deal with any rejection or pain that comes her way, MinHo will be behind her saving her neck.
Then, MH, despite him angrily telling her, “Fine. Do what you want” he still worries about her.
Yup. Fantasy, infatuation = Dr. Ye (sorry, YeLiners). Reality = MH
Defcon’s fall was ?? expected. It was to teach him a lesson, too.
Maybe, it’s just me but don’t you think that Dr Ye’s ex looked kinda … ugly? She looks like a drowned rat. If that was the kind of lady that HE found attractive, I’d be insulted if I were BoYoung. You know what I mean?
Hahaha I had read someone call her ‘the pasty face ex’, so thats what I call her now like its one word, no just ‘the ex’. Also now that you’ve pointed it, out the pastyfaceex looks.. old.. like an ahjumma. Even her voice sounds like an older lady’s (side note: I have thought this about Dr.Kim too). So if thats Dr.Ye’s type where does that leave our girl (in lower case) Boyoung?
We’re on the same wavelength. If that’s his standard of “love” that ex-lover of his, no wonder he likes BoYoung.
Didn’t MinHo call her a middle aged woman? pwahahaha. Trust MH to be a jerk even when his criticisms are right on the money. lol.
I finally got some time to pen a longer thought on what I meant by the focus being on careers this episode. Today we spent time on Chief Yang’s job being in jeopardy, how Jooyoung’s nascent career was doubted and written off, Boyoung’s full time position was up in the air again. I noted that Dr.Ye’s friend mentions a teaching position to Dr.Ye, how the students love his lectures, not but twice. We also saw how Dr.Ye left his previous job, cutting off all ties with his boss and mentor who was like a father figure to him. Only to later learn that his boss fought for Dr.Ye’s honour even if that spelt a bitter end of his career.
This bring me to the next theme. That of ‘a noble idiot’. Right in the very beginning we see how Minho says he’s going to give up on his love and wishes Boyoung to be happy. Classic noble idiot move. Then, in the end, Boyoung was regretting, not the fact that she was rejected, but that she confessed to somebody not over his heartbreak. The two prominent featured poems also moved from ‘me’ to I am ashamed I was only thinking of me. With Dr.Ye I really can’t put my finger on what he’s feeling exactly. Scene: He thinks about how everyone was gossiping about the ex at the funeral and he hated that. When his ex calls he says he’s not going to pick her calls anymore, because “That’s what I need to do”. After which he resolved to meet Boyoung and reject her confession, it was something he needed to do. Is Dr.Ye a/ going to be a noble idiot? That he rejected Boyoung so that *she* will not be subjected to workplace gossip like the ex? Will he take up the teaching position, despite enjoying treating patients, thereby securing Chief Yang’s position and freeing up a full timer’s place for Boyoung? That he would let her heart heal. Will he do whats he needs to do, rather than what he wants to do?
In the meanwhile guess who ‘fessed up to *not* being a noble idiot…
Wait a min. Boyoung said that SHE didn’t mind being subjected to rumors. However she minded if the guy she liked HEARD about the rumors and THOUGHT she was “easy”.
It was Dr Ye who didn’t want the rumors.
What’s he talking about? Who’s he blaming?
But knowing Boyoung would she really be ok with rumours about her? She came to hate Minho when she discovered he spread the rumour about her liking him, when they were in college. Boyoung loves her job alot and she wants to stay there for a long time. If she was hit with rumours like the ex girlfriend was, what would happen to her job? Like Dr.Ye said, a crush on a boy during college would be a innocent past. But what about the vicious ones about Dr.Ye and the ex that would follow them around forever. Note at the funeral everybody turned to look at the ex when she arrived. It was her character that was questioned in the end. Not Dr. Ye’s and not the doctor who was sued for malpractice.
“What’s he talking about? Who’s he blaming?”
Uhh I am not sure I understand this. Who is he blaming for the rumours spread at his old hospital?