Things that made me go hmmmm….

1. His declaration

At the end of the episode, did he declare himself already? Huh?

MW: Why did you…see that?
CS: I know, why is it that I can see you? I’m afraid that I might have to pay the price. Jang Manwol-ssi. After I began to see you, I think of you…very much, awfully a lot. Jang Manwol-ssi, you’re devouring all my nights and dreams.

A note here on Hong sisters’ style. They like to use “devouring” and “gorging” on food as metaphors for an emotional HUNGER for a person. I remember pointing this out in their kdrama, “Warm and Cozy” (2015).

So, @flying_tool, when you commented that Manwol was “foodie,” there’s actually more to it than a running joke on that comedian on “Deathly Taste.”

 

2. His dreams

Where they sent by the Old Woman? To what purpose? Did the evening primrose have something to do with this?

The impression here is that Chansung is being awakened to the past life of Manwol. The audience might interpret his dreams as a sign of his personal connection with Manwol, i.e., he’s the reincarnation of THE guy in Manwol’s life.

However, it’s possible that he was acquiring FALSE memories of another person. If the Old Woman was trying to prod Manwol become alive again, she might be planting these dreams in Chansung’s mind so Chansung could understand Manwol’s issues and help her out.

Here’s that dialogue between the Old Woman and Manwol.

OW: Are you looking at the moon that has come up today? Or the moon that came up a thousand years ago?
MW: They are all one and the same.
OW: (giving her a funny look then changing topic) The flowers in the garden have blossomed brightly. You must have taken good care of your guests so far at the Guest House of the Moon.

Ahhh. So the flowers represent the spirits she’d help cross over successfully?

MW: I’ve changed the name of this place. It’s not a guest house. It’s Hotel del Luna. Stop calling me an innkeeper. I’m the president.

lol. Manwol became abrasive after she was praised by the Old Woman. I think she didn’t want to hear accolades for doing her job well so she nitpicked.

OW: They’re the same thing. I saw the human who was serving you had left. When he dies, it will soon lead him to life.
MW: I also died. Why don’t they take me?

Remember what I wrote about living vs existing? The tree, the tiger, and now the Manager Noh had given Manwol reasons to ponder about her life. Manager Noh died and he was quickly taken to the afterlife. Unlike her. She feels dead already but she still hasn’t left the world.

OW: (reminding her) You didn’t die. I told you: you’re tied to the Moon Tree, and the flow of life and death has stopped for you.

Meaning, time stopped for her. Like the tree.

MW: How long will you keep me tied up?
OW: It’s you who isn’t budging.

Here, we see that the Old Woman doesn’t hate her. As I said before, the fact that Manwol’s being punished here (instead of being banished to nothingness) means that there’s still hope for her redemption or her rebirth.

MW: I died dried up and shriveled. (then gazing at the dead tree) If you cut it up and burn it, I’ll be on my way.

Meaning, if she was tied to the Moon Tree, then the Old Woman might as well kill the tree because she herself was already dead inside. There wasn’t any point in prolonging death because for all intents and purposes, she was dead.

OW: The leaves sprout, and the flowers blossom and fall. The time of life and death will flow once again.

The Old Woman was foretelling Manwol’s future. She’d start living again. But of course, where there’s life, there’s also death. Life and death are a matching set … like the tiger and the painting, and Mt. Baekdu and the East Sea.

OW: (continuing) Don’t you think you should leave something pretty like this behind?

The Old Woman looked down at the flowers blooming. She meant that, when Manwol died and crossed over to the afterlife, there should also be a floral memento like the other ghosts-guests Manwol had helped to heal and cross over. The flowers meant that the spirit was healed successfully and had gotten rid of its grudges.

MW: (disdainfully) I’ve nothing colorful like that to leave behind. Why don’t you pick the bright flowers and send all those off to pitiful spirits? (she leaves)
OW: That child is still filled to the brim.

She meant that Manwol was still true to her name. She was a “full moon. A moon full of deep-seated grudges.” She then approached the tree.

OW: I can’t leave you like this forever.

She made the purple flowers bloom which she would place on the chest of the sleeping Chansung. As a result, Chansung began to dream of Manwol meeting the guy at the tree

Note the flower on the guy’s headband.

I think it matches her hair stick pin.

 

3. Reincarnation?

Personally, I do NOT want Chansung to be the reincarnated guy. And I don’t think Chansung would agree to that either. He already had problems accepting that he was the third choice for the job as manager.

Bellhop: You’re so unlucky. You were third in line, but you ended up as our manager. We didn’t know you’d come either.
CS: What do you mean I was third in line?
Bellhop: They told me not to talk about you being the third choice.
CS: Are you saying I was third in line for the job?
Bellhop: (appeasing him) Nooo…
CS: This means there were two other individuals in line before me?
Bellhop: You’re now here so you’re the winner.
CS: It’s a feat that I’m not happy about.

At first watch, I thought he was making a fuss because he was annoyed with his bad luck. If the first two candidates didn’t decline the job, then he would have been FREED from fulfilling the promise of his father. He could blame the first two candidates for his “imprisonment” in the hotel.

But as it turned out, he was upset because he wasn’t the first choice. He thought all along that he was special and that she had been waiting for his arrival for 20 years. To his chagrin, he was only the third pick.

CS: Is this that tree? The tree that my father touched. The reason why I was sold here.
MW: You’re right. You’re paying the price, too.
CS: But it didn’t have to be me. I heard I was the third one on the list.

lol. He’s annoyed.

CS: (continuing) I really thought it had to be me. You said I caught your fancy, so I made a huge decision to come here. But I’m here in place of the first and second on that list.

lol. See that? He’s complaining because he wanted to be her top choice…no. her ONLY choice. He AGREED to come and work there because he thought he was essential.

MW: Yes, there were first and second placed individuals who were on the list before you.
CS: Am I even in the 3rd place? Was I the fourth or fifth place by any chance?

lol. He’s insecure now. And THAT’s why I don’t think he would like to be the reincarnation of Manwol’s first love. His pride wouldn’t accept that.

MW: Who said you were the third place?

I’m not sure if this was a rhetorical question or she was asking for the actual name of the person who blabbered. That would be Bellhop.

CS: There were more before me?!!

He was shocked because he interpreted her question to mean “How presumptuous of you to think you could come in third when there were many more capable men to choose from?”

MW: You’re the zeroth place. The zeroth place. It had to be you. You completely caught my fancy.

And he was mollified.

I’ll explain the “zero” later.

 

4. Curiosity kills the cat.

He was warned by the housekeeper.

CS: Where is the garden with the huge tree? I didn’t get to see it today.
Housekeeper: She probably didn’t show it to you because it’s unnecessary.
CS: Is there some kind of tie between Ms Jang and that tree?
Housekeeper: Mr. Gu Chansung-ssi, how long do you want to work here?
CS: As short as possible since I didn’t come here by choice.
Housekeeper: Then, it’d be best to keep your curiosities minimal.
CS: You must mean the longer I’ll be tied to this place, the more I know.
Housekeeper: The rest of us will take care of attending to the guests. All you have to do is occupy yourself with things related to the humans.
CS: I’ll do that.

I’m not sure if he was being obtuse here. He assumed that there wasn’t the need for him to know a whole deal of information since he was only working there temporarily. If he intended to stay longer, then he’d obviously learn more on the job.

He didn’t notice that housekeeper didn’t bother to confirm his assumption. Instead, she deflected and talked about the separation of their duties.

I think the housekeeper was censuring him. She was telling him to mind his own business. He said that he was there under duress. He wasn’t working there out of service or loyalty. He wasn’t going to be there for the long haul. Therefore, since he intended to leave as quickly as possible, he shouldn’t be nosy about their boss, Jang Mangwol.

 

5. Logo

Her stamp of ownership:

The bellhop said that anything marked with that symbol belonged to Ms. Jang. It reminded me of livestock branding. Cows are branded with a hot iron to identify their owner.

But her personal stamp looked different from the company logo. As I explained it the other blog-post, the logo was a combination of a crescent and a leafy twig. Manwol’s personal stamp, however, looked like a moon sliced through with a swish of a blade.

Kinda like Zorro, lol.

Now, remember what Manwol said the he was in zeroth place? Math geeks will know that the alternate sign for a zero is a circle with a slash through it. To distinguish a zero from the capital letter O, the circle is slashed, like this Ø.

As you can see, zero then looks pretty similar to Manwol’s brand.

Interesting, right? He’s hers.

 

6. The portraits

I think Viki subbers failed here.

Manager Noh wasn’t the 98th person. He was the 48th manager and Chansung is the 49th.

I’m transferring my previous explanation of the portraits from Episodes 1&2 because I think it still holds true.

With Manwol, however, I think she’s resigned to living eternally and she’s deliberately NOT forming attachments with humans like Manager Noh. She knows it’s futile. That’s why the paintings in her salon or drawing room were all pictures of her and not her human managers. Did you notice that?

I was going to write about them but ran out of time.

If I understand this correctly, ALL the paintings of her on the wall represent a manager. There’s NO actual portrait of the manager because what’s the use? She’ll never remember all of them anyway if she’s to live forever. Right?

But on their retirement, the managers were allowed to hang a painting of their time at the hotel. The painting would depict Manwol as she looked like during their time of service.

That’s why Manager Noh hung a portrait of Manwol before he left. He said, “Of the time that I spent here, this (her painting) is all that will remain here.” Then, he made a wish for her, “I hope that you’ll have a shining memory of humans who’ll pass by.”

To me, the painting was to designate the end of his “era” just like all the other paintings hanging on the wall commemorated the passing of a former manager.

So, if you look at all her portraits in that room, you can count how many managers she has had, since portraiture and photography were invented.

 

7. Her cupidity

It’s beginning to dawn on me that her greatest sin could be her cupidity. She’s acquisitive to the point of being greedy; she covets things that don’t belong to her. She was the head of a gang of bandits ambushing travelers on the road.

BTW, cupidity means greed for money and possessions and in mythology, Cupid is shown with a bow and arrow. Kinda like her.

Do you see the irony here?

Chansung’s father was a thief himself.

Chansung didn’t like that his father was going to claim money that wasn’t theirs. He returned the money to its owner.

He also told his dad that flowers were fine because he could just pick them without danger.

Dad: Son. Just wait. Dad’s going to make a lot of money and buy you a birthday present.
CS: A present?
Old Woman: A flower! Flowers are given during birthdays. A flower!
Dad: I said we aren’t buying flowers.
CS: Flowers are fine as well, Dad. You don’t have to use money to buy them. It’s alright if you just pick flowers for me. So don’t do anything dangerous trying to make money.
Old Woman: (she’s touched) My goodness!
Dad: Look at this kid. Worrying about all sorts of things.

I wonder when it will hit him that it’s “his” fault that he ended up working at Hotel del Luna. lol.

Okay, got to sleep now. Jetlag happens.