I’m watching this kdrama for the make-up tutorials.
I’m not watching this for:
• Park BoGum (that baduk guy Taec from “Reply 1988”),
• Park So Dam (before her fame due to “Parasite,” she was in “Cinderella and the Four Princes” and “A Beautiful Mind” — I watched her in those and I like her), and
• Byeon Woosook (the tall guy in “Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency”).
Here’s the synopsis of the show from Asianwiki. BoGum’s character is HyeJoon.
Sa Hye-Joon is smart and handsome. He is a nice guy and a popular model, but what he really wants is to become an actor. He has auditioned for many acting roles, but hasn’t found success yet. Unfortunately, Sa Hye-Joon doesn’t have much presence as an actor. Meanwhile, An Jung-Ha works as a make-up artist.
The thread is now open for spoilers, analyses, rants and raves. I don’t foresee a lot of analysis required for this kdrama because this show will be a Park BoGum lovefest.
For fun, I made a bingo game for us. The first individual to spot 5 tropes (they don’t have to be in a straight line) wins!
Let’s enjoy the show!
Kim Hye Yoon, Danoh from EY, is making a cameo in the first episode 🙂
I have read a comment that said ep1 is flat as expected of this writer… 🤣🤣🤣 in order to fill the bingo box, I am gonna have to watch the whole thing, right? *praying for at least 5 tropes in one ep* lol
Hahaha lmfao at bingo “Unfinished Drink (two cups, optional), and Hospital Scene (amnesia, optional)”. So far, i just saw the subway ppl and bogum’s no nudity 😅. Also, sodam and bogum are so eyecandy and their chemistry is 😍😍 especially when sodam is applying make up on bogum and he is looking at her, i’m holding my breath there 😁. Sodam also has beautiful skin ❤. Tbh, i’m not used in seeing bogum in action scene so i was laughing the whole time when he was going to hit the manager. I’m sorry bogum, i always see him as taek 😂
Is it just me, or does he seem, with all his youthful righteousness, to be headed for a fall? The imminent enlistment is apt. That must be why it begins in 2018? I like the FL.
Aigoo we have Chae Song-Ah in Brahms and Ahn Jeong-Ah in RoY… And real life BHS of FoE wears plain t-shirts with only ‘FG’ written on them lmao. FG is everywhere jdadsadjshdhdsdhffs ;P
Side note: Park So Dam really gave me Chae Song Hwa vibes during her exchange with her junior colleague 🙂
Does the professor–otherwise known as Mom, the Stalker or the unashamed briber–count as supportive family in our trope bingo? Guess not, because that kind of support ignores her son’s wishes to succeed on his own merits.
And we see when they’re in the makeup chair, like mother, like son. Both pressured AJH to complete their makeup after she declined for good reasons.
We’ve had jealousy in the Senior make up artist witchy person. 🧟♀️😁
@011sn, I agree with you on the beautiful skin. The makeup scene was delicious. Not in a salacious way of course, no Ma’am. I may have to rewatch that bit. 🙋🏼♀️
😂 don’t know about RoY (haven’t started) but in the Brahms drama I counted 6(7) so far. Accidental skinship, love triangle (x2) – they should get double points for this, jealousy, walk in the rain, flashback, coffee date (she passed him his CD and then sat and chatted with him as an excuse? 😂👍).
🤪 So I made a generic Bingo??!! Who would have thought it?
Can’t start any new drama now. Workload…💼
But finished Alice Ep 4 yesterday. Will write tomorrow.
🍪🍪🍪 for the generic bingo.
Trope Bingo
Unfinished drink: I suppose I’m pushing it to say Hye Jun putting down a bottle of wine without opening it counts as an unfinished drink because the wine never even made it into the glasses.
Flashback: In ep 2 Hye Jun has two flashbacks relating to designer Charlie Jung. The first one was not clear to me on first watch where it fit into the timeline: that it was a flashback. We have an abrupt change from CJ asking Hye Jun after the fashion show, “Don’t you have anything to tell me?” to a scene with the two of them taking a drive in a high-end sports car, talking comfortably. They end up at CJ’s home, and CJ confesses his love for HJ. Hye Jun politely rejects the confession. See the write up on the back hug below for the rest of this scene. And then we suddenly jump back to the afternoon following the Homme Jung fashion show and see HJ talking with CJ. Their postures show that both feel uncomfortable. CJ makes an offer to HJ to be his agent and sponsor; lover is implied. HJ declines. CJ, refusing to be deterred, gives him a week to think about it. Later that night when HJ is walking home, he thinks back to earlier that day when CJ expressed disappointment in him for not accepting help with his career. HJ’s response to that memory: “Screw you.”
Back Hug: Designer Charlie Jung confesses to Hye Jun after tricking HJ into coming alone to his house. HJ tries to deflect the confession. CJ says, “I don’t want to stop, now that I developed feelings for you. I won’t stop even if you turn me down.” After HJ rejects the confession a second time and turns to walk away, CJ steps forward and embraces HJ from the back, one hand on HJ’s shoulder and the other on his waist; HJ wordlessly removes the hand from his waist and walks away. This back hug is very wrong on CJ’s part because for HJ the physical contact is not welcome. No permission! And CJ using trickery and his higher status to pressure HJ into an unwanted relationship is flat-out sexual harassmant. Kudos to writer and director for giving us a different perspective on the back hug trope.
We do see a samgyupsal dinner, but it isn’t a date: it is a friendly get-together in JH’s house with JH and her friend, a junior at her work.
I note that the director of Record of Youth, Ahn Gil Ho, was one of the two directors of Rooftop Prince and the director of Memories of the Alhambra. I haven’t watched any of his other work.
😂😂
Bingo! You win!
I didn’t know you were competitive, Welmaris! 😂
I’ll make a trophy 🏆 for you tomorrow. I can hardly keep my eyes open. Good night! 😴😴
Competitive? Me? Maybe…kinda…occasionally. I do like to try and rise to a challenge. But in this instance, I find the exercise of watching carefully and looking critically to be its own reward. Thanks, Packmule3, for providing the incentive.
As for the purse-a-day trope, I’ve seen HJ carrying at least two different bags so far. One was larger with color blocks. I particularly noticed it in his lap while he was riding the bus. The other is a smaller black blocky number with a scarf tied to the strap.
😂 I did say “handbag a day” so BoGum’s bags qualify. I don’t know what to call handbags for men. Murse instead of purse? Manchel instead of satchel?
Yes, I tie brightly colored scarves too to the strap of a black or brown bag. The scarf transforms a boring bag into a jaunty bag.
Maybe we should approach this show from a fashionista’s point of view to make it palatable to watch. Like we were math nerds for “The King: Eternal Monarch.”
Well done, @Welmaris!
It seemed to me that some of the male models in the Milan Catwalk held what I would call handbags. I remember about a year ago in real life, an idol was criticised for carrying a ‘woman’s’ bag from a brand he models for. Maybe it’s a very cutting edge trend? To me, I’m quite easy about whatever people carry to hold their gear. Unless it sends me into spasms of envy….🤣
I’m enjoying this so far. I especially like the FL’s enterprise. Like the ML, she is moonlighting, but saves her wages and has found ways to make money doing what she likes. She has her values, but is more canny than HJ. She admitted to her senior that everyone has bitchy moments (not exact quote). She seems more mature than HJ.
I also like the new manager who took HJ to Milan but had never been on a flight herself before. She was having such a good time.
@Fern, I love the lady agent too!😍 She was in Hi Bye Mama and very protective of Yuri there. I am watching this totally for the girls, MinJae eonni, Ahn Jeong Ah and HJ’s mom. Jeong Ah is really a no nonsense one when it comes to handling her life and she is 26!🤭🤭🤭🤭 On the other hand there is the indecisive 29 y.o. Chae Song Ah of Brahms who seems to have the same career issue as Hye Jun here😅. Still not buying the pretty face PBG.
P/S: I didn’t know that you can buy followers for IG 👀.
@miracle23, I’ve heard that it can be done. There was recently a scandal about chart manipulation in the Korean music industry to do with companies purchasing likes and ‘views’ to increase status and therefore sales. The thing is, it’s hard to prove so even if someone knows that it has happened and reports it publicly, they can receive a libel suit unless they have cast iron proof. The firms selling the likes and views were thought to be located in other countries outside Korea and well hidden. I don’t know what the current status is.
My daughter *thinks* that buying followers on ig is legal as long as the person posting isn’t promoting products. (n.b.We’re not lawyers.)
We’ve seen the contrasts being drawn between Hye Jun and Hae Hyo.
Exercise: HJ lifts cases of bottled drinks at one of his part-time jobs; HH works out on fancy gym equipment, guided by a personal trainer.
Bedroom decor: HJ has a mass-produced poster featuring himself, in some ad campaign, attached to the back of the door to the room he shares with his grandpa; HH has a larger-than-life-size framed photo of himself on the wall of his well-appointed bedroom.
Career: HJ’s father and brother vehemently oppose his continuing to pursue a career in modeling and acting, his mother vacillates, and only his grandpa gives him emotional (but not practical) support. HJ rejects strings-attached sponsorship, wanting to succeed on his own merits. He says he’d rather forsake his career than compromise his principles. HH’s mother actively promotes her son behind his back and against his wishes, using questionable means that would probably result in public censure if made known.
Family means: HJ’s family, with modest income, struggles with debt incurred by the grandpa due to a bad investment. HJ works two part-time jobs to supplement his earnings from modeling. Only HJ’s older brother works a white-collar job; the mom is a housekeeper and the dad works in construction. HH is from a wealthy family. They employ HJ’s mom as their housekeeper. Despite the disparity in their families’ financial situations, HJ and HH have been friends since elementary school.
Sexuality: HJ rejects advances from Charlie Jung, even if his career might benefit from accepting them. Scene from ep. 1, HJ to HH: “Why are you staring at me?” HH: “I love you, Hye Jun.” HJ: “Stop it.” HH jokingly purses his lips and leans toward HJ. HJ, while playfully fending him off: “Stop it. Hey, quit it. Come on. You’re crazy.” HH, shouting after HJ, who’s running away, “I’m going to do it one of these days!” My suspicion is that HH has not come to terms with his sexuality: so closeted that he would deny, even to himself, his leaning toward homosexuality.
The female lead, An Jeong Ha, is a fan of HJ, but denies it to his face, claiming she’s a fan of HH. Other than this deception, which is baffling to me, JH and HJ develop a friendship in which they can banter with each other and be bluntly honest. JH is not awed when she meets HH because she’s not his fan, and tells him as much, but asks him to not share the secret that she’s actually a fan of JH. This is a thin plot line, and I will be disappointed if the writer tries to keep it as a factor in how JH interacts with HJ. As their relationship develops through shared experiences and conversation, it shouldn’t matter whether or not she was his fan before she met him, as long as she’s not a stalker (and there’s been no hint of that). I will also be disappointed in writer if the story line goes into the tired old territory of two friends battling for the affections of the same girl.
That is another trope there @Welmaris, best friends falling for the same girl😅 I don’t know for long I will stay with RoY. Hopefully long enough😁
Thank you @Fern. 😊 I find it a mind boggling thing to do🤭. I don’t know how to feel about Hye Hyo yet. He does seem like he wants to succeed on his own accord but he doesn’t really put that much efforts to check if his mom has anything to do with him getting jobs etc despite her numerous slips. Too trusting. How will he handle it when the truth is out?
I think @Welmaris has said it all. 😂👍. I just watched Ep1&2 and I like the grittiness of this drama better. I like the fact that both HJ and JH have spunk. They’ve been hit with hard realities but are choosing to forge ahead with their own version of reality regardless. RoY FL has done the same as Brahms FL – quitting her office job (tried and tested “career” paths) and opted to chase a “dream”. For some reason I respect her decision more than Brahms FL. I think the difference is the way she’s approached it. She’s not wallowing in self pity with the hard knocks. She has a little cry, vents and then gets right back up again – spunky. So far anyway. 😂
Kudos to KHY for her spunky takedown of her celebrity bf. I wonder if that will be HJ in future. KHY’s character is also a makeup artist. Foreshadowing maybe? 🤔
Thanks @Welmaris! I like that contrast. ☺️
So far I’m liking it too. The friendship looks real but I know it’ll be tested. I liked that HJ and JH got along well right from the start. I thought JH was awesome when she first met HJ. She did very well to not be star truck. As a fan, for him to see how she was doing after the incident with her senior and to get his mobile number by the end of it? I would have been beside myself. 😆
I liked that HJ turned down CJ from every angle there is. I like Noona too! She did great with talking to the Paris counterpart and to pretend that she’s HJ’s new agency. ☺️
I especially like Grandpa just because I didn’t grow up to have a grandpa to either one of my parents side. 😊 I also like the daughter-in-law and father in-law relationship. ☺️
I really like this drama. Ep1&2 have hit all the right notes for me. I love Park So Dam’s character. A fan girl but not a whiff of ditziness about her? Yes! She has a strong sense of self. I really like that about her. And all the family relationships and dynamics seem just right. Love Noona MinJae already. Her agency is called Jjampong. 😂
I still find BoGum uneven in his acting but it’s okay. I am staying for SoDam. I love her chirpiness.
I am adding grandpa in my list! 😊😊😊 Righy, @nrllee? AJA really hits the right notes for thus far. She fangirling but she is also realistic. 😊 It is sufficient for her to just supports him. I see no demands there like the other fangirl 😏
@miracle23 yes to grandpa. ❤️. AJA is a thinking fan girl. She even said she didn’t want to get married. She’s got her own dreams to pursue and nobody is going to derail that. Not even her bias. 😂. She’s a woman with her own mind. Yes she can fan girl (like us) but she’s got her own life to live and she’s realistic about it. No wonder HyeJun was like, hey here’s my number. 🤣
Also I thought those bags were dubbed “man bags”? 🤔
I like the grandpa, too. Mine always lived with us and he was so dear. He kept out of arguments, though; a man of few words. HJ’s grandfather and his mom are his supporters.
I liked AJA’s not-quite banter with HJ after she turned down the offer for dinner. (How many fans would?) They exchange phrases and offer them back which says to me that they are very conscious of each other and paying close attention to what the other is saying.
As far as acting goes, Park So Dam is impressive. She manages to be low key but effective as a survivor, and positive. I liked her five points about her great day. I don’t have the impression that her feisty personality is being shoved down our throats, if you know what I mean. PBG’s character wants to stick with his dreams as AJA does, but he had things to learn about positive thinking from her. I sort of feel that HJ wants to remain pristine whilst AJA admits to having bitchy moments. I feel that hers is either a unique character or the actress is making her so.
Awww you were so lucky @Fern to have your Grandpa live with you. ☺️ My boys only have my Dad now because my Father in-law passed away last year but he lived in Chicago. They talked a lot in FaceTime though.
I wonder what will happen to stop HJ in going to the army. It’s good how HJ and JA’s just hit it off and started their friendship. HJ is pretty straightforward just as JA knows what she wants.
Maybe he will go into the army and come back stronger. The series starts in 2018, or am I mis-remembering?
I admired HJ’s haircut. That fade including sideburns would take a lot of skill and maintenance, but it looks good on him.
I am watching this one with you guys. Hope it is good. All the actors are new to me, so keeping an open mind.
I saw an article with a prefix “Protected” ; Where do I get the password to these packmule?
I guess the email associated with my screen name is screwed up. Cannot login. Can you change it to this email. Thanks.
@angelwingssf you can check HP hiatus thread for details on the email add to request for pwd. I will send it right as I am staying up late tonight. 😊
Watching this one with you all! I have little to contribute for now, @Welmaris has made really good detailed analysis and comparisons. I am a little biased towards BoGum so I may not be the best judge of acting here. I read somewhere that he was not the first choice for the drama’s lead, Jang Ki-Yong was the first choice (he acted in Search WWW). Jang started out as a model who eventually because an actor, so I understand why he was the first choice. I mean, he has the look of a model.
I have not heard much good things about this writer’s style so I am watching this drama with bated breath…and quoting from this website on the direction of the drama…
https://mottokorea.co.kr/2020/09/02/youth-record-writer-ha-myung-hee-park-bo-gum-an-actor-who-moves-his-heart-with-emotional-acting/
Writer Ha Myung-hee said, “I believe that passion for life and open thinking are important characteristics of youth, not numbers. I started with the thought that I want to summarize these characteristics of youth.” She then pointed out the distinction, saying, “It is not a story of overcoming and winning, not to talk about the hardships of the reality that youth are facing.” “I added the subtitle, ‘Remember and be with me,’ with the intention of wanting people who pass through their twenties to say, ‘You are right,’ and for those who have passed their twenties to remember and be with them in their twenties.”
@grace Jang KiYong gave this one up and picked up Born Again with Jin SeYeon. That drama flopped. Storytelling was absurd and the FL… 🙄. It was panned everywhere. Dramabeans had a particularly scathing (but hilarious) review on the first ep.
Never seen any of the writer’s previous works so I watch with unbiased eyes.
Hmmm. I like PBG but I wouldn’t have minded Jang Ki Yong. 🤦🏼♀️ I was rather impressed by him in www. Just saying.
@Fern yeah. I think the story telling in Born Again failed there. The ratings were bad and then mid drama they called in 2 other writers? To try to salvage the situation? It made it worse. Bad call on JKY’s part for choosing that drama over this one.
@miracle23, can you please send me a follow link to this email below. Thanks so much for your help.
@miracle23 – I saved the changes – Now how do I get the password?
@angelwingssf I will send you the password into your Soompi account? Via PM. So check there.
@nrllee ah that’s sad when the writing and directing doesn’t do justice to the actors or the other way round. two more days to Episode 3! (I’ll play the Bingo for Epi 3 & 4)
Btw is there a @Welmaris, did you mention the Subway PPL? I keep seeing Subway in shows…I wonder how much money they are splurging on being shown on dramas!!
@Grace, someone else had already called out the Subway PPL early in the trope bingo game. Subway does have quite a presence, doesn’t it? I think every drama in 2016 had Subway in it, then for a couple of years it disappeared. It’s baa-aaak! While Subway was gone, we saw a lot of BBQ Chicken.
@Fern, maybe you’re right that HJ will go to the army. It’s probably best to do it as he is 26 already. Dad will be happy for sure. 😬 My boys always had the number 2 haircut from me when they were younger but now they get proper haircuts. 😄
The relationship chart.
https://i.ibb.co/942xSqn/A74-D87-AA-DD3-C-46-C6-8-CB0-2-A1720-AE1609.jpg
@welmaris mentioned sexuality. I too wonder if HH is not entirely sure about his sexuality. No love line between HH and AJA in the chart. His coming out would throw a spanner in the works of his mother if that’s where the writer is taking us.
What’s a “number 2” haircut, @agdr03?
I agree. It’s good to do his military training at 26 but then… what kind of RECORD of youth is that when he’s off doing time in the military. What will he be recording there? 😂
Plus, when he’s done with his service, he can’t still be a YOUTH, right? 😂 Conscription has a way turning boys into men.
I think in the drama, his service will be delayed. He’s going to have a “last fling,” a last hurrah before his enlistment.
@packmule3 it’s a buzz cut. Clippers. There are different clipper guards that you snap on.
https://i.ibb.co/H2rP1j2/7701-E8-EE-5476-42-B3-B462-33-C04-F02-F926.jpg
#2 1/4” hair
Thanks @nrllee ☺️
Yes, they are almost bald but it’s clean and it’s really good during summer. 😃 Nowadays it’s hard for them to get a haircut 😬 they have their own styles.
True if HJ goes to the army at 26 then where’s his record, so I’m wondering what will stop him from doing it. We’ll see tomorrow. ☺️
Oh the character chart has no triangle but it’s a different triangle 😆 Interesting. I thought HH was just kidding when he said he wanted to kiss him but he did say I’ll do it next time 😬