Give me time. I’ll finish this after breakfast.
*********************
This is precisely why I disallowed fangirls on my blog: If you go to other drama sites right now, they’ve been hijacked and transformed into a virtual wailing wall for JP’s fangirls to whine about his cruel fate ad nauseum. (Wait. I’ll also defend him later…when I have time and if I feel up to it. 😈)
And, as if that weren’t bad enough, some fangirls were going after Dosan with pitchforks for cheating on his Math Olympiad test.
Kill the Beast!!!
I’ll take the case of the kid first because kids should be defended.
This is what Dosan said about the “L’affaire Math Olympiad.”
Back then, I had solved all the questions except for just one. I used to solve that type of question very easily, but I struggled with it that day. At that moment, a gust of wind suddenly blew in from somewhere. And that one line from that solution caught my eye. I thought that wind was a blessing. But that one line…because I saw that one line, I forgot the fact that I had solved nine questions on my own. The medal felt so heavy. So I ended up… (He handed his medal to the kid. His mom touted that he was a compassionate child) … That wasn’t why I gave it away. I didn’t deserve the medal. (Looking at the wind rustling the leaves outside the ceremony room) That gust of wind in the exam room that day was not a blessing. (He would quit the college fast track) Later, that wind turned into a scary storm that destroyed my self-esteem. The luck that came with the wind, I seized the luck. (thinking of the scrunchie) And once again, just like that day 15 years ago, I was falling apart, slowly but surely.
I have NOT watched the entire episode, so I’m going to limit myself to four points:
1. Dosan was a child.
There’s a reason why we have a juvenile court system and a criminal court system. It’s because we, as a civilized society, understand that a child is developmentally different from an adult. Mentally, emotionally, physically, psychologically, spiritually, he isn’t capable of thinking like an adult and therefore is considered less blameworthy than an adult.
Whatever wrongdoing that Dosan did as a middle schooler, like cheating on the test, he cannot be given the same harsh criticism, the same public censure and the same punishment, heaped upon an adult caught cheating on a civil exam test or tax return form, or on his wife. The writer knows this. (But apparently, the fangirls don’t.)
So remember this: Dosan was a child.
And remember this, too: It tells you a lot about a kdrama viewer’s mentality when he/she cannot discern between righteous and SELF-righteous outrage.
2. Dosan had NO intent to cheat.
For one, there was no premeditation. He didn’t call upon the wind to blow the paper to land at his feet. He didn’t scheme to steal the paper. He didn’t arrange to sit in front of this older boy.
For another, there was no deliberation. He didn’t intently study the paper to look for the answer, and neither did he squint his eyes and examine the paper closely. By his own account, he happened to glance down at the paper that landed by his side, and he saw one line.
And that line gave him the idea how to solve the problem.
Two notes here:
Note 1: (I believe I discussed this in “The King: Eternal Monarch”) In contests like the Math Olympiad, the answer isn’t easily derived like “1 + 1 = 2. Answer: 2.”
No.
In contests like Math Olympiad, the solution is more complex and complicated. Cheating isn’t easy. The test-taker is required to show a series of steps, to manipulate numbers and variables, and to demonstrate an understanding of the math theory behind the problem. Even when the answer is the same, the solution can be different.
I’m sure if somebody had raised a big stink 15 years ago, and the test papers were compared side by side, young Dosan’s solution would have been different from the other student’s.
Moreover, seeing one line wouldn’t have helped Dosan if he didn’t know WHAT to do with that line, in the first place. Take for instance, Einstein’s famous equation, E = mc2. To a baker, plumber, and a typical middle schooler, this equation would be as useful as pound of beef. If they were to see it on a frying pan from across the room, they would know exactly what to do with it. (/sarcasm)
Beef is the answer. Yes, that’s right. Beef.
Note 2: Most people do NOT understand what it means to be a genius. A genius isn’t the person with an encyclopedic knowledge. Rather, a genius is the one with the ability to see, assimilate and transform something ordinary into something beyond its original form, something extraordinary.
Normal people can never truly grasp the inspiration, energy, and creativity of a genius in action. 🤷♀️
Geniuses have dramatic moments of insight where great things and thoughts are born whole. Poems are written in dreams. Symphonies are composed complete. Science is accomplished with eureka shrieks. Businesses are built by magic touch. Something is not, then is.
–Kevin Ashton, “How to Fly a Horse”
To me, young Dosan misunderstood his genius. He accidentally saw one line on another boy’s paper, and that accident sparked his own solution.
The chain of event is actually very similar to his invention of the NoonGil. Remember what happened that day?
From Ep 8, at 8:02
Dalmi: Do you think we could make guide dogs talk?
They all looked at the seeing-eye dog.
Dalmi’s random comment was like that piece of paper randomly landing beside the young Dosan during the Olympiad test. Dalmi’s comment and the test paper both came out nowhere. Dosan heard her comment, and 15 years ago, he saw the paper landing beside him.
Chulsan: We can’t because we’re developers, not gods. (chuckling)
Dosan continued to look at the dog.
Ha! He stared longer at that dog than he did at the test paper but nobody would consider his action here “cheating” on Dalmi (who first proposed the idea) or “cheating” on the dog (that gave them the idea).
Do you get what I mean? Sometimes, what you consider cheating isn’t so clear-cut as you think it is. Just like lying, there are shades and nuances.
Dalmi: You’re right. I know it’s impossible, but if I were blind, I’d need that more than anything. “How many people are in front of me? What do their expressions look like? Where’s the crosswalk?” I’d wish my dog could answer those questions.
Dalmi’s random comment set the wheels turning in Dosan’s mind. The seeing-eye dog was equivalent to the one line on the test paper. They both sparked an idea, a solution in Dosan’s head.
Young Dosan:
Old Dosan:
Chulsan: But you can’t make a dog talk.
Dosan was assimilating Chulsan’s comment, and more wheels were turning in his head. Chulsan made a good point. Their AI visual program cannot talk. Dosan’s mind was figuring out how to work around this problem.
Youngsan: Not even Tony Stark could do that.
And that’s when he figured it out. As I said before, why should he want to be Tony Stark when he could be himself?
Dosan: Wait, we can do it.
Chulsan: Are you saying you can surpass Tony Stark?
Dosan: (ignoring the joke on Tony Stark) Dalmi.
Dalmi: Yes?
Dosan: You’re a genius. How did you think of such a great idea?
lol. I mentioned in my previous post that I liked that he praised Dalmi and gave her the credit for coming up with the idea. He didn’t brag about his genius, despite the fact that it was he who figured out everything.
But this can be a good and bad quality. I like it when when he spreads the glory all around and doesn’t hog the limelight. He’s a teamplayer.
But sometimes, he needs to be less self-effacing and to take credit for his handiwork. He was the one who came up with the idea to combine their image recognition technology with the Yeongsil voice-processing technology. Yeongsil could communicate to the visually impaired person what it was seeing through the camera lens.
Dalmi: Me? I don’t think I am.
Dosan: You re. You really are a genius.
The rest of the guys were baffled.
Dalmi: What’s so great about my idea? Why am I suddenly a genius?
Dosan: Let’s go. I’ll explain to you. Come on.
Dalmi: Me? I’m a genius?
Saha: Am I the only one who doesn’t understand what’s going on?
Youngsan: What is he talking about? Why is she a genius?
Chulsan: Because she’s exceptionally pretty? But that’s you, Ms. Jung.
See that? It’s pretty obvious to everyone that Dosan was exaggerating Dalmi’s genius. She merely expressed a wish, how could that make her a genius? If expressing a wish makes a person a genius, then all ugly people who wished that they were Princess Grace Kelly would be geniuses, too.
The real genius here is Dosan. He heard Dalmi’s wish, looked at the seeing-eye dog, and then saw the possibility in his head.
And that’s why the young Dosan originally thought of the wind as a “blessing.”
He’d already solved nine problems on his own, but he got a momentary brain freeze on the 10th question.
Then the wind blew a paper, and he happened to glance at it. He noticed one line, and immediately everything fell in place. Just like in the passage I quoted earlier:
Geniuses have dramatic moments of insight where great things and thoughts are born whole. Poems are written in dreams. Symphonies are composed complete. Science is accomplished with eureka shrieks. Businesses are built by magic touch. Something is not, then is.
–Kevin Ashton, “How to Fly a Horse”
He couldn’t unsee what he’d already seen. That was his Eureka moment. A genius mind works that way; it only takes an instant for something to click. Hence, Dosan thanked the gust of wind and called it a blessing. He thought it was an act of providence that gave him the inspiration.
3. Young Dosan’s self-imposed punishment wasn’t commensurate to his guilt.
It didn’t dawn on him that his action had hurt someone until the awards ceremony. He heard another parent berate a classmate in public. “Why the heck are you crying? You lost to a kid. Aren’t you embarrassed?” and realized that his action had an unintended consequence.
Look: If an adult cheated on her spouse, or committed voter fraud, tax fraud or insurance fraud, she wouldn’t be jailed for 15 years. But young Dosan felt so guilty of his “crime” that he made himself his own prosecutor, judge, and correctional officer.
Looking back, he realized that, because of that one line, he’d forgotten that he solved nine on his own. In his head, that one line tainted all the rest.
He began (erroneously) believing that:
a. the wind wasn’t blessing him when it blew the paper beside him, and
b. his genius wasn’t a blessing either. He had begun to associate his genius to cheating, something to be shameful of.
But as I said, if he had been a baker, a plumber, or an ordinary child, seeing that one line wouldn’t have any difference to him. He still wouldn’t have solved that 10th problem, and the other nine problems before that.
Look again: If young Dosan had been sent to juvenile court system for a misdemeanor and judged “delinquent” when he was in middle school, he could be sentenced to detention, house arrest or placement at foster home. He could also be ordered to pay a fine, do community and undergo rehabilitation. He could also be freed on probation.
Whatever the judgement is, the juvenile justice system believes that:
a. the behavior of a minor can be changed for the better, and
b. he shouldn’t be stigmatized for an offense that he did at a young age.
To me, Dosan had been hard on himself, harder than any judge.
For 15 years, he imprisoned himself in guilt. He didn’t show mercy on himself for that incident. He deprived himself of his right to enjoy his genius. Without seeking counseling, he deemed himself a loser, and this became a self-perpetuating thought.
That’s sad.
4. To be continued ⏰
Its an interesting topic on his lack of self esteem. I look forward to reading the rest of your opinions on this episode because at this point after talking to other people I’m starting to feel tired of this shipping war and love triangle. Just want the time skip to happen so I see where we’re at with our characters then.
I still have to watch Eps 9 and 10. I thought the issue of the Math Olympiad has to be dealt with separately because this one would help us understand his motivation better.
That whole cheating incident warped his self-esteem because he began seeing his genius as something to be ashamed of. It was tied to an moment of “cognitive dissonance.”
He always envisioned as a good child/loved son. But that whole incident — which as I explained, he didn’t plan to cheat on the exam — caused him to think of himself as a bad kid and failure of a son.
He struggled reconciling his two concepts of his ego: good genius kid and bad cheater kid. If he had talked to a counselor, that adult would frame that whole incident so he wasn’t beating himself up over it.
One, it wasn’t his fault.
Two, as soon as he could, he sought to remedy the situation.
Three, he punished himself long enough. 🙂 If he has been Catholic, the priest would have absolved of his “sin.”
I am tired of the shipping war that is raging on, it is getting quite delusional. Delusions are lies you tell yourself which you believe. That is another kind of lie which Dosan is believing, not that he is aware of it, but yes if the perspective he takes is different, he would have grown more confident of what he is capable of. It is also mixed up with living up to someone’s expectation like how in ep10, he tells his dad that
“It’s very tiring to live as someone’s pride and joy. You’re afraid of disappointing the person, so you pretend you’re strong and competent.”
I like how we see Dosan’s growth here in ep10. His remorse, his confession about how why he continued with the lie “That one day felt so nice that I missed my chance to stop. I kept putting it off until tomorrow and ended up wanting to go on as long as I could.” This time he said what he could not say when was a kid and just couldn’t tell his parents the real reason about why he wanted to go back to middle school.
@packmule3, love the discussion about Dosan’s genius. He is very gifted. He won the competitive coding contest on his own. However, he does have some judgment oroblems as evidenced by his choice of videographer for his thank you speech, providing us with the hystericalvideo by his um, “auteur” cousin. Jyp is no slouch-he was a poor orphan with no connections who won the investment award that started his road to riches. For me, part of the enjoyment I have for this drama is looking at how they use their gifts to accomplish their goals and in their relationships with Grandma and Dalmi. The writer uses a set up that provides interesting contrasts between the two men with the most interesting to me being how family and lack thereof influences their choices. I also appreciate watching their inner longing for Dalmi. As I’ve said in previous posts about other dramas, it’s the ride, with all of its potholes and detours that keeps me craving more. And that’s why I am hooked by K Dramas in particular.
O come on. How is that cheating? He didn’t intentionally steal a glance at someone else’s paper who was sitting next to him? The wind blew it onto the floor and he just “happened” to see it? Out of curiosity? Just like what would happen if someone dropped a pen? And you just do a cursory side glance to see what it was? Not his fault that his genius mind used that line to kickstart his brain again? 🙄. I am with you @packmule3. Geniuses see patterns in things that ordinary people don’t pick up.
I have read that there are JP fan girls ready to burn DS at the stake. What is with fan girls and the tsundere male? Like JungHwan in R88? I may have been Team Good Boy in the beginning because of Nam DaReum but his pettiness is getting old. DoSan for the win. 😂
@ nrllee, Am with you on fangirls and also shippers-I want to tell them to get a life. We sàw how crazy it got with HPL. I, like probably all if us, have preferences and have varied depending upon when things happen in the story. But good K Dramas have fascinating rides and this one is no exception. Just hope these viewers can chill.
Nrllee, one scene I remember from the movie “Amadeus” was Mozart playing Salieri’s composition. Salieri had worked on it for ages bec he was going to be presented it to the Emperor. He thanked the Lord for giving him the “inspiration.”
Mozart walked in the royal court as the Emperor was playing the composition. He said he didn’t need to read the music sheet as he’d memorized it already. So the Emperor challenged him to play it. Not only did he play it from memory, but, on the spot, he revised, improvised and improve the original.
I don’t think that scene is historical accurate but it displays genius at work. That flash of insight or spark of inspiration of a brilliant mind is the “differentiation” that Chulsan and Youngsan were talking about. It’s what sets a brilliant person from a normal person. But it’s a scary thing too bec geniuses too often forget to follow through with action.
https://youtu.be/P5n0pkNpDWY
As for the fangirls, we knew this was coming, right? That’s why we battened down the hatches and limited the Start-Up threads to old-timers.
I’m apologize to the new lurkers wanting to join my blog but I’m not currently accepting new Bitches. 😕 There are so many of you wanting to join, and there’s only one of me moderating the blog. However, when I see an interesting comment or email, I’ll mention it and give the poster a shoutout.
@packmule3 Re fan girls, yes. As soon as you put up the first impressions about Team Nerd Vs Team Good Boy, the writing was on the wall. 😂.
@OldAmericanLady at the end of the day, it’s a story. Fictional. Present your case and then shake hands at the end of the fight. No hard feelings. It’s all about the learning. During the discourse one should stay objective and be open to shifting your point of view or modifying it if the plot line moves or the opposing argument is more valid? Weighing your options as the drama unfolds and gives you more data to either ratify your existing stance or topples it. Keeping an open mind. Learning as you go. If you stay blinkered you learn nothing.
Heads up @packmule3 you’ve been quoted/linked in S forum. So be prepared for incoming.
Already got them. ☠️ Thanks.
It’s scary when these JP fangirls, in their hatred for a FICTIONAL character, refuse to look at simple facts. You don’t have to be an attorney to see that:
It’s a child that we’re dealing with.
It was an accident.
The child remedied it.
The 15-year self-punishment didn’t fit the crime.
Remember these people who insist on stoning the child, and stay away from them. They seem to be the sort who, upon hearing the good Lord Jesus’ command, “Let any one of you who is without sin, cast the first stone,” would continue to pick up the biggest rock that they could find. 🤦♀️
Thank you, Packmule. This is a nice analysis. Do San was a kid and what happened to him feels very human and relatable.
A bit separate but I really enjoy Nam Joo Hyuk’s performance as Do San. He’s endearing, but also sharp when he needs to, but also vulnerable. It’s good stuff.
Dear Ladies, you make me reconsider this Drama. I left before Dal-Mi found Do-San by buying the autographed baseball. I know Ms. Suzy is a beautiful woman, but she puts me down with her acting.
Another thing I want to say is about Ms. Choi and her (late) son. This Drama is not only about the titular Start-Up and the people in it. For me it is also a love letter to all those generations that gave their happiness and hard work to build that miracle that are several asian countries right now.
The Japanese man that spent his life at work (Akira Kurosawa’s “To Live” comes to mind), the Korean grandparents that had to make everything out of a war-devastated wasteland, the Singaporeans that had to figure out what to do with their country after they were expelled from the Malasyan federation, the Chinese people that made China come back after the Mao years, the Taiwanese people that had to run for their lives. That is Ms. Choi, a honest, loving and hardworking mother that raised an honest, loving and hardworking son. Her son that gave his life to reunite his family and that didn’t live to see his vision coming to reality represents the average overworked asian salaryperson that gives all to bring food to the table and to give their offsprings a better chance in life, but that probably doesn’t have dreams their own since they are so focused on their family.
On another note, could I ask @Packmule3, @nrllee or @GrowingBeautifully for the passwords?, I am still invested in Hospital Playlist 😉 .
Anyway, it has been a pleasure to read you. When @Packmule3 publishes several posts of a Drama it is a good sign of its quality!!!
@FGB4877 follow instructions as set out in the HP Hiatus 3 thread.
I want to get up and clap like that Meryl Streep meme. Thank you for this post and all your other posts! Don’t know if this comment will be approved but it’s enough to know that you might see it. I appreciate you very much.
All the points you listed here are so valid. Reading comments from the other side over the weeks sometimes had me so confused thinking and wondering if we’re watching the same drama. But anyways, very thankful for your analysis and breakdown as always!
You’re welcome. Glad you agree.
People just don’t get how a genius mind works. The wind blew the paper his way. He glanced at it because it landed by his feet. What was he supposed to do? Gouge his eyes out?
That second (or three seconds) was enough for him to figure out the whole solution on his own.
If he was a genius cat taking a cooking exam class, he could have seen X = Liver, on somebody’s else paper, and suddenly be inspired to write a recipe for Tender Liver and Chicken Pate. The feline exam proctor could be called upon to inspect the test papers for “cheating.” But cheating wouldn’t be proven if the only line similar between the two test papers was X = Liver.
Do you see what I mean? 😂😂
And to think, that wind was truly a blessing to him or fate agreeing that he and Dalmi should meet because he was all over the news. JP saw him and got envious which was why he used his name. I love how the dramas storylines are all interconnected which is a very difficult thing to do. I hope everyone appreciates the script/writing and story.
Plus the letter envelope that Dalmi wrote about the music box says she was writing to the person she loved and it just so happens that was the same letter that moved Dosan (who became Dalmi’s true love).
I live your take on this as well!
I mean.. Its kinda fair that he peaked at the other contestant’s paper… Sometimes you have to make mistakes and swerve from being all goodie goodie to reward yourself in the future..
Beside peaking didn’t cause much trouble… Of course our DS had to put up with some insecurities.. But he ended up wining the competition and this incident led him to DM his soulmate