Once in a while, when a script doesn’t seem to be given due justice, I pop up to suggest an alternative interpretation. I ship scripts.
There seems to be a growing controversy regarding the age difference between the bride Eun-Tak and the goblin Shin. At best, viewers feel a sense of discomfort; at worst, they are repulsed. “It gives me the creeps seeing her so young!” “OMG! She isn’t even a mature 20-something year old professional!” “He looks like a pervert!”
Although these viewers who clutch their pearls at the sight of a high schooler romancing a 939 year old hunk may have an understandable reaction, a second look at the script will hopefully enlighten opinions and allay anxieties.
1. First of all, ET’s character should be judged on her level of maturity, not her level of education. Believe me. I’ve seen 20-something, 30- something, 40-something and 50-something professional idiots, because immaturity isn’t a monopoly of the young and the restless.
Sure, ET is a 19 year old senior in high school. But compared to Sunny and Deok-Hwa who presumably both attained higher education, she is decidedly more mature.
In temperament, ET is more industrious than Sunny, who couldn’t care less about her moribund chicken store. She works like a responsible adult, while Sunny worries about her well-preserved appearance and her non-existent boyfriend.
In mindset, not only is ET more dependable than DH, who is out to make a fast buck at Shin’s expense, but she can be as cunning as DH, too. Recall that scene in the bookstore in Episode 3. DH lectures her on how to fend off con-men. But much to his chagrin, he himself almost falls for her trick to discount the book as a “used” item.
Additionally, the script shows ET’s social maturity in relation to people around her.
As examples: Her mother remarks upon her precocity and ET replies that she has a knack for “picking up all these things from all sorts of people”. The cabbage grandmother relies upon ET’s maturity to cope on her own with her sudden mother’s death and distressing family circumstances. At her aunt’s house, ET takes care of her lazy relatives and endures their cruelty like a saint. Then in school, she successfully manages her studies despite bullying and ostracism. It’s evident that ET has demonstrated maturity at each stage of her life, no matter the curveballs thrown at her.
Thus to me, her school uniform can in no way determine, measure, or represent her actual emotional and mental growth. As the saying goes, one can’t judge a book by its covers.
2. Secondly, ET isn’t at all as naïve or innocent as she appears to be. Her character is more complex and nuanced.
For instance, did anybody notice her sniffing? 🙂 Her sniffing annoyed me from the start, because I consider it crude to sniff in polite society — unless one smells something burning, of course. But this sniffing habit of hers is in the script, and it gives her away. As of Episode 4, there are at least six instances of her sniffs, and in each occasion, what she says out loud is different from what she thinks in private. *If I have time, I’ll go over these six sniffle-gates….
Her body language is curious, given that she has this keen ability to quickly grasp events and find connections but she tries to hide this talent. (Recall how she realizes her mother has passed away, and she thanks her power to see ghosts so she can have a final conversation with her mother) She has learned to dissimulate her thoughts in order to survive living with ghosts. And her sniffing is a sign that she’s onto something, but she isn’t telling anyone.
Her acute sense of perception is on display in Episode 4 when she hazards a guess that if Shin makes rainstorm when he’s sad, then he makes cherry blossoms when he’s happy. On the surface, her question seems innocuous enough. But remember back in Episode 2, she’s been informed by the friendly ghosts that Shin made a cherry tree bloom in winter when he saved her and her mother from death. Knowing that cherry blossoms are his special trademark, she deduces that he performs this feat of magic whenever he’s happy. The sight of the blossoms on the trees the following morning after his drunken revelry confirms her “happy theory”.
Another example of her ability to perceive things without giving herself away is the sword. Whereas Shin openly blabbers about the sword whenever he is discombobulated or inebriated, ET is more discreet when it comes to disclosure. In fact, in Episode 3, when Shin pressures her to reveal whether she sees something in him or not, she resists him and replies cryptically:
“My mother used to say that a person had to see where they’re lying down in order to stretch out their legs, and know where they’re going when they leave. You understand what I’m saying, right?”
(I love how she often asks him if HE gets HER whenever she’s hinting at something.)
Unfortunately, Shin doesn’t get what she’s driving at. What she means here is that she won’t give him the answer until she first considers the possible consequences of her revelation. She looks before she leaps. Only when she discovers that Shin is leaving because she can’t see the sword, does she disclose the truth to him. But even then, she has considered three viable options for her going forward. She is capable of solving her dilemma in a logical way.
There are more examples in the script where she understand more than she lets on, but for brevity’s sake, I’ll limit myself to those two. The point here is the character ET is NOT a gullible child as viewers think she is.
As a matter of fact, Shin may appear older and wiser, but he is quite juvenile in his decision-making process especially when it involves human relationships. For instance, his bromance with the Reaper is amusing to watch primarily because they’re both petty. Like, taunting each other with their Calvin Kleins boxers and granny mob caps? (To be honest, though, I wonder if there’s a bit of sexism involved here. Shin and the Reaper get a pass when they act with aegyo because they are “oppas” or something. But when ET does aegyo, she is slammed as childish and immature.)
Shin also mistakes emotional angst for actual physical maladies, and receives counseling from his 25 year old (!) nephew DH. He misses both verbal and nonverbal cues from ET that she wants his company, not so much the food. (She orders the large juice when she’s already full because she doesn’t want him to leave yet. Duh, ahjussi!) Even ET knows how to push his buttons when she tests his jealousy. She grabs the maple leaf from him to give to a Canadian oppa; she describes the Reaper handsome but declines to do the same with him; she casually lets it slip that DH “oppa” is helping her; and she pesters him about a boyfriend. The whole time, Shin is clueless to her push-pull antics.
So, who again is the inexperienced character here? He may be 939 years old, but when it comes to dating, he can very well be another callow youth.
3. Finally, and most importantly, the dynamics of the relationship between ET and Shin should be viewed in terms of complementarity. Or yin-yang. Or black and white. Or opposite attracts. Or two halves in search of wholeness. The point of the story is that ET and Shin balance each other. I think the “ick” factor enters the equation, when viewers misconstrue or misinterpret the affinity between them as carnal or predatory.
I’ll cite two instances from the script – enhanced by the cinematography – of this complementarity.
One scene is in Episode 3. Both ET and Shin are sitting at their tables, their heads resting on one hand, one arm outstretched. Do you see the contrasting elements? His table is long, wooden, scratched, and empty. His table tells pretty much what he can expect of the infinite centuries ahead of him: unending, dull, scarred, and barren.
In contrast, her table is small, with a laminate/plasticky table top, and laden with school books and paraphernalia. Her table symbolizes her human future: brief, superficial, cluttered. It’s a life bogged down with mundane problems.
The other interesting feature of this scene is that both their arms are outstretched as if they are reaching for the other person across time and space. They’re two entirely different people. But, unconsciously, their actions mirror each other. See that? Yin-yang.
If the viewers are to look at the artistry of this scene with unbiased eyes, they’ll understand that there’s absolutely nothing lewd nor lascivious intended for the couple here. The shot is meant to be metaphorical, not smutty. 
The banter about the Red Carpet is another occasion in the script which shows complementarity. Unfortunately the symbolism is missed by viewers, probably because the scene is so whimsical and light-hearted. In Episode 2, when ET is stepping on the autumn leaves in a park in Quebec City, she asks Shin if he made the red carpet for her because HE is HONORED to hang out with her. The red carpet is a privilege reserved only for VIPs. When he ignores her joke, she consoles herself, saying she’s relieved that he didn’t comment with a putdown. She thinks the whole park is romantic because of the ambiance that fairies walk among the humans. (Hence, the Fairies Crossing sign.) She later continues her cheekiness by joking that HE must be HAPPY to have met and captured a fairy like her – she’s Tinkerbell! — in the park.
By Episode 4, however, the viewers can see that ET has lost that original spunk and spirit because she is beginning to doubt that she is wanted by Shin. In fact, she is frustrated by her lack of power and her inferior status relative to Shin. That’s why she becomes ecstatic when he suddenly changes the yellow pedestrian lines into orange — just for her. To her, he is remembering her silly old joke about creating the red carpet of leaves for her because he is HONORED by her company. To him, on the other hand, he is FINALLY discovering and accepting that she has unparalleled power over him.
Now, many viewers have expressed an issue with this scene in Episode 4. To me, their main problem is that they have imposed their preconceived image of an innocent CHILD on ET’s character as she hops on the crosswalk. They have forgotten the whole context of the Red Carpet. That is, if Shin is the Goblin, then ET claims to be Tinkerbell.
Yes, she considers herself the Goblin’s bride because that’s her destiny. But in her mind, she’s also searching for her identity and one of the identities she tries on for herself is that of a Disney fairy. She openly jokes about being Tinkerbell in Episode 1.
Thus, when she dances at that intersection on Chemin du Roy — like she pranced the other time at the park and on the streets of Quebec City — she dances NOT as a carefree GIRL but as an ebullient Tinkerbell. Do you see it?
The more appropriate imagery here is this: Tinkerbell darts and flutters everywhere while the Goblin plods grudgingly behind her. ET and Shin represent a fairy and a goblin, two different creatures who nonetheless complement each other.
[An aside: her ribbon bowtie resembles the shape of Tink’s wings anyway. But I’m glad ET didn’t wear anything as hideous as that green uniform…err…pixie costume.]Again, if the viewers were to follow the script and watch the show with an open mind, it’s discernible that the interaction between the two protagonists of this kdrama is very much DIFFERENT from that of Lolita and Humbert in Nabokov’s novel. There’s no pedophilia here. This is garden-variety fairy tale.
Gotta flit. Hope this helps.
Originally posted here: soompi, goblin, p 238
This is such a nice throwback, @plml3, I am one of those who really enjoyed Goblin, ending and all, and never had an issue with the disparity of age of the actors in real life or of the characters in reel life. I felt absolutely no ickkiness at all. She was playful and trying to make a connection with the curmudgeon that ‘fate’ tells her is supposed to be her husband, afterall, and he was very much like the reclusive, long-suffering uncle who was forced to babysit the ebullient niece. There was never a hint of anything salacious.
I like your idea that she was the fairy to his goblin and I certainly agree with the complementarity of the 2 characters. In fact, I was thinking that if the images of them with heads on table could be put head to head, so to speak, his left and her right outstretched arms would be mirrored to touch each other.
In terms of mental maturity, I often did think Eun Tak was the adult when compared to both Goblin and Reaper. I don’t recall her being petty like they were.
I was also wondering for a long time about why she didn’t admit to seeing the sword. Any child would have been the first to point it out if they could see it, but she didn’t, like an adult. I thought it was just like what we do, we pretend we don’t see, so that we do not embarrass the other person. I also thought it was show’s attempt to lengthen the time of tension and I chafed at it. However I’m reminded about how intelligent and rationale she is/was when you mention that she considered all the alternatives and what consequences seeing the sword might have.
This was indeed a great show, with a script that once again, is not fully appreciated, and with lovely camera work. I still listen to Goblin OSTs in the car. Thanks for this throwback. It was an enjoyable read and a walk through my murkily remembered fun Goblin-watching days. 😄
(Oh by the way, I unclicked and re-clicked on the options in WordPress to see if I could get notifications again. In effect I did not make any observable changes, but I believe it may have worked!!! Keeping fingers crossed that I’ll know when you’ve posted responses on the threads.)
I didn’t have issue with their age. I think the fact the ages 9,19 and 29 were important for the story, her name will be given to the Reaper. Their love story was pretty innocent when she was 19 years old, it was more mature when she was 29 years old.
Oh I’d forgotten so much. Thank you for the throwback. I loved this show from beginning to end and was in no way perturbed by the age difference. She is the GOBLIN BRIDE!!! There is no other man for her and no other woman for him. That’s that. Fate destiny whatever. Neither has any control over it. So age doesn’t really factor. It is and always will be. Both are the living dead – both had died before and were brought back to life – so age doesn’t really count imho. The story revolves to some degree around their trying to get the timing of their relationship right – ie. not die and live out a life together. If that involves a disparity in age well so be it – that’s the best they can hope for. The ending imho satisfies as it holds the promise that they can live out a life together with relatively similar ages. Loved it 💕
Eh? You’re back? Did the moderator unblock you? 👩⚖️
“Goblin” tourism is a big phenomenon in Quebec City. I was there last year for business and I happened to stay at the Chateau featured in the kdrama.
Whoa!! There were lots of tourists milling around the lobby. They were taking photos of the famous mailbox, the stairs, the lobby. As courtesy, I would take another elevator so I wouldn’t get in the way of their pics and photo-bomb them.
It was funny knowing WHY they were all there and at the same time, pretending I didn’t know anything about it. My Canadian colleagues met me at the lobby, and they began explaining to me about the tourists. They would have been very surprised had I revealed that I watched it too. 😂😂
Hi. I’m back. Turns out only some of my posts were deleted. We’ll play it by ear but I’ll let you know if it happens too frequently.
So…You have an alter ego? A Clark Kent type persona who doesn’t watch Dramas? Pret-ty cool!
If I ever visit that chateaux (lottery be a lady tonight!) the fact that I’d have a look on my face akin to that of a fish staring out from a fishmongers window would give me away.
Did you go to Quebec specifically to see the Goblin location?
Your posts were deleted after you posted them? But I’m the only admin and mod here and I didn’t delete anything.🤔
No, my office doesn’t know I watch dramas. Why should they? It’s none of their business.
I don’t see it as Clark Kent posturing. I see it more as survival technique.
Because there are many fangirls who are featherbrained and sophomoric, there’s still stigma attached to adults who watch kdramas. It will take away from my “gravitas” at work and my efficacy as an employer should my viewing habits be publicized. Unfortunately, in my circles, nobody would raise an eyebrow if I was to talk about “Hamilton” or “Le Nozze de Figaro.” But if I was to casually mention that I saw a trailer for, say, “Goblin” they wouldn’t know what the heck I’m talking about and WHY it would even be relevant for me to bring up.
My business counterparts in Canada didn’t even know the name of the kdrama when they were explaining the tourists. They just called it “an Asian” drama that caused a worldwide interest on Chateau de Frontenac. To come out and say “Hey! I’m a fan of that show!” would serve no purpose but to shut them up and show their ignorance. Not a good way to start a business meeting….
No. I was in Quebec for business. My office booked the hotel. 🙂
The chateau is beautiful but amenities and service? There are many hotels in Asia that can rival it. Raffles in Singapore. The Peninsula in Hong Kong. Shangri-la in Manila. To name a few.
I visited Quebec (the region) and for my stop in Quebec I slept in the Chateau just because of the Goblin 😀 I could hear the song of Crush everywhere in the city, it was so weird but pretty fun in the same time.
Every time I read this, I wonder if you’re ever going to expand on ET’s sniffle-gates…?
The personalities of the Goblin and the Reaper being frozen at the juvenile stage when it comes to personal relationships – I never could come to a decent supposition on why they would be put/held in that state? After a few centuries of observing and working with human beings of all different types, they should have far greater self awareness/maturity … any ideas?
Thanks!
I was joking about the Clark Kent persona. You’ve raised an interesting point about peoples perceptions of kdrama or any form of lightweight romance material. Sad but true.
@Flying Tool, (and @pkml3)
what an interesting question. It never occurred to me to ask. I just assumed it was a kdrama thing to amuse us viewers.
Like…here are characters centuries old and somewhat powerful, but they are not smarter or more mature than we are, in fact they are more petty and silly than most of us. We laugh at the incongruity.
Maybe we are even secretly relieved that such ‘deities’ have foibles despite having abilities that we can never attain. Because they are childish, we find them relatable (we were all children once) and likable, instead of being only in awe of them. So their stories will matter more to us.
@pkml3, I never paid attention to Eun Tak’s sniffs before, but now that it’s been highlighted, I wanted to check that they signify that what she is thinking is not being shown in what she says or does. And to see if she consciously makes a decision, despite what she thinks, to hide or address a question obliquely. I believe that those sniffs do say something like that. However I had to do a whole bunch of things and could not re-watch the right parts of Goblin.
I must say though, that re-watching it was as addictive as my first watches. I wanted to catch every expression and the significance of what was said, now that I can go in with hindsight.
Yes, wouldn’t it be fun to re-watch this and analyze it all over again?
If “I’ll Go to You on a Beautiful Day” doesn’t work, I can pick this up instead (and “W”). I’m traveling soon, though, so I’m not sure if I’ve enough “bitch” in me after my meetings. I hope I’m not dead-tired to blog then.
But yes, her sniffing was interesting. In the beginning, when she was still getting to know him, she’d sniff. lol. She lost that tic later on.
Yes, as gods go, the Goblin, the Reaper, the Butterfly, and the Red Lady, were petulant. Personally, I would detest calling them gods because my concept of a deity is linked to a supreme omniscient, wise, and loving Being. The gods in Goblin were actually worse creatures than human beings because they behaved like humans, only with super-powers, thus magnifying or super-sizing the worst traits in humanity with grotesque results.
For instance, punishing Goblin to a never-ending life? Too cruel.
Not knowing his real sister? Too cruel also.
An eternity of loneliness? Too cruel for words.
When I think of the way the gods are portrayed here, I’d be turned off gods too. lol.
Dear @GrowingBeautifully, it is always a treat to read you.
My take about both Goblin and Reaper being childish is quite different and it relates more to the people we are deep inside us.
Once we get true friends we can be comfortable with it is a thing of beauty how we can become ourselves again. One thing I didn’t understand when I was a child was how my uptight parents could be a riot with their close friends and closest family members. Now I know they always were those funny and loving people but I rarely had the pleasure back then to enjoy that side of them, the carefree people that had to hide that side of them in order to fulfill their role as parents or as lawyers.
Like Ms. @Packmule3 not letting her business partners know she knew that “Asian Drama” everybody was fussing about while in Quebec.
That is why we know both are really close and that is also why when Goblin discovered that Grim Reaper was the reincarnation of his King and Brother in Law, he simply abandoned his home and left Grim alone. For Goblin it was a heartbreaking twist and needed time to process this, for Grim it was a terrible punisment, to see his best (only?) friend go and not knowing if he was to return.
So I don’t think less of them for being childish to each other 😉 . But I would have beef with them if they made a decision concerning the wellness of another person in a rashly and irresponsible way, which if I remember correctly they never did.
As for Goblin falling for a barely illegal EunTak, I’ll let this song from José José, 40 y 20:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86FCW0GRRcc
Lies are all lies
Mentiras son todas mentiras
Things people say
Cosas que dice la gente
To say that this love is forbidden
Decir que este amor es prohibido
I’m forty-twenty
Que tengo cuarenta y tu veinte
That I am autumn in your life
Que yo soy otoño en tu vida
And you are sweet spring
Y tu eres dulce primavera
They don’t know that I keep a summer
No saben que guardo un verano
That when I look at you it burns you
Que cuando te miro te quema
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
It is love that matters and not
Es el amor lo que importa y no
What people say
Lo que diga la gente
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
Take my hand, walk with me
Toma mi mano, camina conmigo
Looking straight ahead
Mirando de frente
It doesn’t matter that they don’t understand me
No importa que a mi no me entiendan
And that under comment
Y que por lo bajo comenten
That there is a big difference
Que existe una gran diferencia
I’m forty-twenty
Que tengo cuarenta y tu veinte
That I have many experiences
Que yo tengo muchas vivencias
And you have so much innocence
Y tu tienes tanta inocencia
They don’t know that our secret
No saben que nuestro secreto
It is your youth and my experience
Es tu juventud y mi experiencia
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
It is love that matters and not
Es el amor lo que importa y no
What people say
Lo que diga la gente
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
Forty Twenty
Cuarenta y veinte
Take my hand, walk with me
Toma mi mano, camina conmigo
Looking straight ahead
Mirando de frente
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: R Livi
40 y 20 lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
And if you don’t mind if I get a Venezuelan tune from Simón Díaz, there is “Caballo Viejo” (Old Horse):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4slLpbnoN5A
NOTE: I used Google Translate and retouched its translation to shed some light in these lyrics, but it is not perfect (also, I am not too much into music from the Llanos (Lowlands):
When love comes like this way,
Cuando el amor llega así, de esta manera,
one does not even realize, the Cauca (a region) gets green again,
uno no se da ni cuenta, el cauca reverdece
the guamanchito (Pereskia guamacho) blooms and the rope bursts
y el guamanchito florece y la soga se revienta
When love comes like this,
Cuando el amor llega así, de esta manera,
one does not even realize, the cauca (a region) gets green again
uno no se da ni cuenta, el cauca reverdece
and the guamanchito blooms and the rope bursts
y el guamanchito florece y la soga se revienta
Horse is freed into the savanna because it is old and tired,
Caballo le dan sabana porque está viejo y cansao,
but they don’t realize that a heart that is bound
pero no se dan de cuenta que un corazón amarrao
when they let go of its reins it is a runaway horse
cuando le sueltan la rienda es caballo desbocao
And if an old horse finds a filly,
Y si una potra lasana caballo viejo se encuentra,
his chest burst and ignores fences,
el pecho se le desgrana y no le hace caso a faceta,
and does not obey to any brake nor gets stopped by a lease
y no lo obedece a freno ni lo para un pas arrienda
old horse ahoy!!!
Caballo viejo caracha!
To this old horse you have to give two aspirins man!
A este caballo viejo, hay que darle dos aspirinas hombre
When love comes like this,
Cuando el amor llega así, de esta manera
one is not to blame, falling in love (it also has the meaning of loving each other and in a lesser way to this context, to love oneself) has no schedules,
uno no tiene la culpa, quererse no tiene horarios,
no date on the calendar when your desires crop up together
ni fecha en el calendario cuando las ganas se juntan
When love comes this way,
Cuando el amor llega así, de esta manera,
one is not to blame, loving oneself has no schedules,
uno no tiene la culpa, quererse no tiene horarios,
no date on the calendar when your desires crop up together
ni fecha en el calendario cuando las ganas se juntan
Horse is given savanna, and has his time counted,
Caballo le dan sabana, y tiene el tiempo contao,
and leaves in the morning with his little hurry step,
y se va por la mañana con su pasito apurao,
to rendevous with his filly that has him head over heels
a verse con su potranca que lo tiene emparrascao
The foal (young male horse) goes time to time because he has too much time ahead,
El potro va tiempo al tiempo porque le sobra la edad,
old horse can’t lose the flower he is given,
caballo viejo no puede perder la flor que le dan,
because after this life there is no other opportunity
porque después de esta vida no hay otra oportunidad
The old horse does not want to waste time
El caballo no quiere perder el tiempo
When love comes like this, [then] it comes like this,
Cuando el amor llega así, llega así,
that way
de esa manera
When love comes like this, [then] it comes like this,
Cuando el amor llega así, llega así,
that way
de esa manera
When love comes like this, it comes like this,
Cuando el amor llega así, llega así,
that way
de esa manera
When love comes like this, it comes like this,
Cuando el amor llega así, llega así,
that way
de esa manera
Horse is given savanna
Caballo le dan sabana
Because he is old and tired
Porque esta viejo y cansao
Horse is given savanna
Caballo le dan sabana
Because he is old and tired
Porque esta viejo y cansao
Horse is given savanna
Caballo le dan sabana
Because he is old and tired
Porque esta viejo y cansao
Horse is given savanna
Caballo le dan sabana
Because he is old and tired
Porque esta viejo y cansao
Loving oneself has no schedule,
Quererse no tiene horario,
no date on the horse calendar
ni fecha en el calendario caballo
Loving oneself has no schedule,
Quererse no tiene horario,
no date on the horse calendar
ni fecha en el calendario caballo
Loving oneself has no schedule,
Quererse no tiene horario,
no date on the horse calendar
ni fecha en el calendario caballo
Loving oneself has no schedule,
Quererse no tiene horario,
no date on the horse calendar
ni fecha en el calendario caballo
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Simon Diaz
Caballo Viejo lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc
First forgive my carelesness whit the first song’s translation: [He is] 40 and [she is] 20.
Second, to look away in disgust for old Goblin falling in love with EunTak is like looking away for Gu Mi Ho (Shin Min Ah – My Girlfriend is a Gumiho) to fall in love with her stunt man.
Personally I think that falling in love is a gift, one that gets more scarce as we get older since our bagagge grows, so any person trying to make a relationship like that work has all my respect. The lack of common background and references doesn’t help.
Have a nice day!!! =D
As here, the article itself is a copy and paste from another forum, I will also copy and paste my comment! 😀
So here is a review of the “goblin” drama, which I dropped after episode 6.
In a way, I envy those who sincerely liked this drama, because it’s always nice to like something. I am a pitiful spectator who finds it very hard to sincerely love a drama. More than half of them are quickly dropped. Then there is the large percentage of dramas that “‘I like but nothing more”. Finally, the very small percentage of drama that I like completely, including the two or three dramas that are pure genius. I am a victim of a very high level of requirement, having seen too many films and series, as well as being naturally endowed with a certain artistic sensitivity. So you mustn’t blame me.
An army of “goblin” fanatics might land on this blog, sorry for the blog owner.
Certainly, I’m about to be murdered.
———————————————
Goblin’s making-of.
Behind the scene : Conversation between screenwriter Kim Eun Sook and film director Lee Eung Bok.
LEE – Writer Kim, I’ve been waiting for your script for days!
KIM – Oh! Sorry, it slipped my mind.
Writer Kim Eun Sook takes a piece of paper and quickly writes something on it.
Then she hands the paper to director Lee Eung Bok.
KIM – There you go.
LEE – … ?!!!
KIM – The script! Read it!
LEE : (He reads the sheet).
LEE – That… That’s all?
On the sheet of paper, it says:
(pretty setting)
900yearsGOB – So, do you see it?
SCHOOLGIRL – What do I see?
(nice atmosphere)
SCHOOLGIRL – Am I the Goblin’s fiancée?
900yearsGOB – Only if you see it.
(some flashback)
900yearsGOB – Let’s not see each other anymore.
(someone crying)
SCHOOLGIRL – Ah! You’ve come back.
(someone making an easy joke)
SCHOOLGIRL – Give me 5 million.
(something that sounds like an end scene)
LEE – But… but… What else should I put in?
KIM – Whatever you want, you have carte blanche.
LEE – Rea… Really?!
KIM – As long as it’s pretty and a bit fairylike.
LEE : (Wondered face in disbelief)
LEE – Am I really doing everything I want?!
KIM – Yes.
LEE – All the aesthetic stuff I haven’t ever been able to fit anywhere else?!
KIM – I’m telling you…
LEE – Uh, a meeting on a pier by the sea, and the wind?
KIM – Yeah, lots of wind.
LEE – A scene with snow at night.
KIM – Perfect.
LEE – People passing each other without recognizing each other, in slow motion and in the rain?
KIM – Yeah, that’s the spirit.
LEE – Uh… A stage in Canada?!
KIM – Yes, Canada is very pretty, especially in the Indian summer season.
LEE : (worried look).
LEE – How are we going to explain that they suddenly find themselves in Canada?
KIM – Is it really that important? As long as it’s nice?
LEE – Still…
KIM – Yes, you’re right, we should come up with something…
LEE : (Thinking about it, he takes out a cigarette and puts it in his mouth. Then he takes out a box of matches and tries to rub one, but it won’t light).
LEE – Bloody hell, we’re not in a drama, I have the right to light this fucking cigarette!
KIM – I’ve got it!!!!
KIM – Every time the heroin lights something, it forces the goblin to teleport to her.
KIM – Anyway, let’s just say that the Goblin can teleport to wherever he wants.
LEE – But… But why?
KIM – Just… because!
LEE – People are going to scream at the plothole.
KIM – Ridiculous, to find a “plothole”, there would have to be a “plot” already.
LEE – Okay okay.
LEE – On the other hand, in terms of dialogue, your script is a bit short.
LEE – Even with my aesthetic scenes, we’ll never manage to furnish everything.
KIM – Tttt, no problem.
KIM – All you have to do is take these lines of dialogue and repeat it several times during the episodes.
LEE – Huh?! Those same lines?!
KIM – Yes, yes. Better little and well written than much and badly written.
LEE – Um, it would be better Above all: much and well written, than little and badly written…
LEE – Besides, people will fall asleep, they might miss the lines.
KIM – You’re right, don’t forget to add flashbacks with these dialogues.
KIM – That way we’re sure the audience won’t miss anything.
LEE – Scriptwriter Kim, I know you’re the highest paid writer on the circuit…
LEE – … and in a way the best for the producers…
LEE – But I have a feeling your drama is going to be boring to death.
KIM – Not at all, it’ll be a blockbuster!
LEE – But a blockbuster needs a thrilling story! Suspense! Cliffhangers!
KIM : (mocking smile)
LEE – While your mess is frozen stagnant stalling!
LEE – Nothing’s moving. Everything sounds hollow, it’s an empty shell!
KIM – Director Lee, you just gave me the recipe for a western blockbuster.
KIM – I make drama blockbusters! That has nothing to do with it.
LEE – A drama blockbuster must be that shitty boring?!
KIM – Don’t worry, I know the recipe.
KIM – Top actors, a good promo, your undeniable talent, screaming songs for teenage girls.
KIM – It’s fast food drama. No need for a story, or anything stressful… especially for us.
KIM – We give viewers what they want without skimping on clichés and over-the-top glamour.
LEE – A McDrama’…
LEE – I have a feeling that the MVs on youtube will be even better than the drama…
KIM – That’s very good, it’ll give us good publicity.
LEE – I feel a bit ashamed.
LEE – We’re pulling the whole drama industry down with something like this.
LEE – Plus, we’re really taking people for dumb.
KIM – Yah! We’re not here to make art.
KIM – We throw the sauce, we collect the money, and the producers are happy.
LEE – Well, since I’ve got all the latitude to do all I want…
LEE – … I’m still going to try to do something artistic with this, at least for the images.
LEE – After all, that’s the main interest in working with you.
Dear packmule3,
Thank you once again for your observations!
I am finishing Goblin tonight and I have to say that I cried a lot for this k-drama. I didn’t expect it at first with all the Bromance sequence, but I knew it hence, I should be prepared…
Still, I am mesmerized by the story and it’s depth.
I cannot understand the underage issue, since in Greece we become adults at 18.
Still for me, the first part of their love, i.e. when ET is 19, is platonic.
Kim Shin is not touching her at all, except the times where he pats her head or caresses her hair. He lets her do all the first steps and he doesn’t even admit to ET that she is his first love.
Only the kiss before his death is deepened by him, because he knows that he will eventually die. His ethical code is so high. He will defend at all costs his loved ones, including his bride. And that is an information she doesn’t even know.
His honorable death in front of his King, is his way to keep his promise.
When he returns from Limbo 9 years later, he is desperate to touch and kiss her as a man does to his Lady, PROPERLY! Her amnesia is making it worse for him.
Still LS remains stoic and keeps his distance from her, until ET summoned him when she remembered her ahjussi in Quebec!
I really don’t understand how some people misinterpret or being mean about a story. It is fantasy, a fable, a myth. Tales make us to understand Life, even better. That’s why we remember Homer’s Iliad or the Odyssey, or other stories / sagas / fairytales according to the culture everyone is familiar with.
As a person who writes stories myself, the power of creating worlds with your fantasy is a blessing. It is indeed a talent that needs to blossom with more writing. I am grateful for Kim Eun-Sook’s ability to create worlds that make you fall in love, laugh, cry and smile, contemplating Life itself.
I have to admit that when I started watching k-dramas, this past late August, it made me dream more, asked myself some difficult questions and got some painful but honest answers. I guess, I was in tune with all that is happening to me.
So, now I have a dream myself. To write more. To write (beautiful) stories that people will love, make them dream and make an impact and for that I am grateful…
Thanks for sharing @Cleopatra. I’m glad you liked the story told in Goblin. I enjoyed it very much. Happy writing to inspire dreams!
Dear @GB,
I am happy that I have you and I can share my thoughts with you!
Thank you (Efharisto / ευχαριστώ )!
Correction : I have found you.
Correction: I have found you.
LOL @Cleopatra, yes, I’m glad to have read your post, or found you and read you too! Are you watching any more kdramas now?
@GB LMAO!
Well, I finish each Series as a Series in a whole. It works better for me that way, understanding the Story like reading a book…
I want to fully comprehend what I am watching because of the complexity of their Arcs (See Black) and understand what exactly they are implying.
I am watching episodes with my faithful companion in k-dramas aka mom.
She introduced me to TKEM and she has seen more k-dramas titles than me, like Mr. Sunshine, My Country New Age, Rugal and Vagabond. So, it is our bonding time..
I have a growing list though. Mostly, I follow my instinct about what to watch next…
Now I am debating with myself after Gong Yoo’s antics in Goblin. Should I watch the “Coffee Prince” ? ( and make my internal fangirl cheer loud and clear for those eyes? Seriously after watching Song Seung-Heon as Black, I didn’t expect Gong Yoo, but DAMN those eyes and smile. LOL) ☺️😁😂
Should I watch Lee Dong Wook’s “Tail of the Nine Tailed” ?
Should I watch Lee Min Ho’s “The Legend of Blue Sea”, as I was planning ?
Yeah I am totally confused… I am clueless… 🙄😊
@Cleopatra
That’s so nice that you get to bond with your mum over a show. I seldom watch the same show or even at the same time with my husband, LOL, and we may or may not end up discussing them.
I guess I am pretty similar in how I choose what to watch: I read the synopsis, consider whether the actors may ‘turn me off’, and figure there’s hope that I will like (instinct?) it, before I start.
Speaking of being ‘clueless’ … recently on another blog, there was a nice, long write-up on what the blogger (and commentors) do in order to choose shows to watch. I wrote there, that sometimes I do something unexpected like jump in at Ep 4 to see how it feels, before going backwards to watch the earlier episodes or abandoning the show. Here’s the link in case you want to check it out. https://thefangirlverdict.com/2020/10/17/dear-kfangurl-how-do-you-choose-which-dramas-to-watch/
If you are going in for shows by the actors who are headlining, then, I guess for Lee Dong Wook, the Tale of the Nine Tailed is as good as any. I feel he gets a chance to be a little more interesting here, and since you like Goblin, this is another fantasy somewhat a cousin of shows like Goblin. Some scenes are unexplained but I appreciate that the major plot points flow and make sense. It’s currently airing though, so if you want to binge watch a whole Series, as you mentioned, you’ll have to wait another 2 weeks. For a very early LDW, you can watch My Girl, if you haven’t already done so.
Where Lee Min Ho is concerned, I feel that his best showing was in TK:EM. I caught him in his early days in City Hunter and Personal Taste which were entertaining in different ways.
Dear @GB,
Good morning from my part of the world! Thank you for the link, I will read it later on.
For what you said about actors headlining, I tried to watch Tempted with Woo Do-Hwan but I dropped it. That was after watching Black and before watching Goblin.
The moment I watched Goblin, I knew it was the right thing to do.
I have heard many good things about the Tale of The Nine Tailed and I have to say that Lee Dong Wook intrigues me as an actor because he has a very expressive caliber. I love watching theather and I can understand if someone is talented or not.
LDW surprised me in a very positive way. He made me cry at the same time he was crying, while he was portraying the Grim Reaper and that was something unexpected.
He has a very expressive face and his eyes brought the needed sorrow to the surface. So, for me his character had a complexity and depth, regarding his status as the sinful King vs to the “amnesiac” Grim Reaper. (I will refrain myself from talking about Gong Yoo…)
As for Lee Min Ho I read that his acting is the best in TK:EM. I think the reason it happened is because this role required from him to show that he matured. Also, the fact that Kim Go-Eun was his co-star allowed him to show what he actually can act and he is not only a pretty face. IMHO, the one helped the other to bring out their best attributes.
TK:EM is a story that will stay in my heart anyway. So, yeah. I will return to it from time to time.
I am glad we are talking about these things. I will decide and I will tell you what I will watch next! Have a nice day!