36 Comments On “The Uncanny Counter: Eps 13 & 14 Open Thread”
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
Great! Thanks @pkml3. 🙂
Idungkulitayam
The kid in the last scene… I was this close 👌 to flip my laptop out of frustration
Cleopatra
Yeah!
I am waiting patiently for Episode 13!
majiiii
I cant hate Cheong Sin for his character! His twist as a love deprived child was countering with the evil inside him. It was portrayed well and somehow realistic. Im feeling so sorry for him. Though the woman with her really gets to my nerve. Haha
Though I’m looking forward to the their action scene, It was very unlikely to expect the kid and what he have done at the end.
It’s a bit sad for me cause only if he did not end it and that was summoned, I hope he could have a different start even as a prisoner. I think Uncanny counter is really emphasizing here how families played a big role on our choices and desire to do good or evil.
I agree. For some reason I can’t seem to hate this Cheong Sin. Must be because I pitied him when he was ordered to buy his half-brother a mango cake for his birthday and kill the old man who was being a nuisance to the Mayor. What a weird set-up. That would really warp his soul.
Anyway, will watch the show later.
nrllee
Urgh…so apparently the latest news is that the original writer has left the series, citing differences of opinion with the PD. I don’t like it when that happens, it usually means the flow of the show is interrupted and plot holes happen.
I bet the disagreement of writer and PD is on what to do to Cheongsin.
I love how Cheongsin has this affinity for orphaned children and how he wants these kids be protected from evil, and so he was protected by the child in return. But his character shift feels a little jarring to me. Kudos to the team as they are able to complete the whole Cheongsin background story in one episode, still it is so sudden.
Also if Cheongsin is that hellbent on having his revenge to his first father, I think he could’ve done it earlier. He’s already been killing people for 10 years or longer. What made him wait to do his revenge?
Another thing, Cheongsin must have struggled fighting to have control on himself against his evil spirit, especially after becoming level 4. The evil spirit would’ve no qualms killing the children after he killed CS first father. But we don’t see him struggle at all. Instead it was after he ate his companion’s spirit when he’d desire to eat/kill the child, which ended quickly.
Cheongsin’s end is bittersweet. If only the child had known what’s going on 😢. CS would’ve been alive, serve his sentence, maybe get his parole and then begin fresh working at an orphanage or something. I’m never been so sad of the villain’s demise 😞. Also goodbye my villainous ship 😭. I can’t ship Hyang-hee and Myeonhwi ehhhww hehehhahahahuhuhu
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
It’s interesting our comments here. We are so far in agreement that although he’s a ruthless, self-seeking and evil killer, Ji Cheong Sin is the character that we want to believe redeemable and that he deserves a chance at a happier life. Strangely, despite being fully subsumed by the evil spirit(s), (or so we are told) we see that Killer Sin still has his own faculties and makes decisions that are not demon-like. He appears to have retained some smidgen of humanity, because he relates with the ill-treated children.
I expect that with the shut down of the Barrier, the evil spirits will quickly revive and heal Killer Sin, so that he returns, up and about before too long.
I’ve begun to feel that some parts of the episode are not being edited as they could be, like the part when Yung was about to show the Counters how the Barrier was formed. Mo Tak was given too much time protesting and asking questions when he should have just remained quiet and paid attention.
I’m wondering if the recording of the Police Chief’s conversation is considered valid evidence and admissible in court. Fortunately Ha Nul could turn whistle-blower but with the whole precinct behind him. Usually that would make a person anathema.
Next episode we should get to see grandma and grandpa again (according to the preview). It will be interesting to know if grandma has retained most of her memories, even after Jang Mul supposedly erased them.
Cleopatra
Hello Everyone!
Okay this episode was unexpected. We got to see more about Cheong Sin’s past. @GB you are right, we all have sympathy for this devil.
You know what they say: An abused person can become the most ruthless abuser.
Cheong Sin didn’t find love, he found abuse instead. For that reason alone, he believed that doing that to others (e.g. beatings and later on killings) was okay!
His ahbujji would be proud of him, if he cooperate with what he wanted.
CS wanted validation and assurance from the paternal figure. He wanted to feel accepted from him and loved.
I love how Lee Hong-Dae encountered his character. It was a nice touch to see that even when CS became 4 level Demon, his humanity was there, even though slightly in the scene with the kiddo.
In Episode 14 preview, we got to see that the evil spirit took over Mayor’s Shin body. He was a murderer, so It wasn’t a twist for me.
As for the writernim’s departure that are not good news. I agree with @nrrlee!
Welcome to the blog @Majiiii
Juriel
So the first screenwriter has stepped down, and the director stepped in to write Episode 13.
Actually I noticed a change in the basic logic of the story in Episode 13. Why, oh why does the guilt-ridden child appear? Is there really a possibility that Cheong-sin can feel regret for the past and that he is available for redemption? Not, I think, the Level 4 Cheong-sin. I’m sorry to disagree with my respected blog-colleagues on this one, but it’s too late. John Milton knew how to write true evil villainy, and I hope humans haven’t totally lost the touch. Cheong-sin has become a monster, and the remaining episodes should be showing how the Yong/Counters coterie sees to his ending. After all Don Giovanni gets hauled down to hell at the end, without option; he’s earned it.
We’ll see what the in-coming screenwriter has to say. It’s a task I wouldn’t take on, but I do hope (expect) that some contact between So Mun and his parents is achieved, and that So Mun’s future as a Counter and protector/ethical developer of human-ness is assured.
Cleopatra
Hey @Juriel,
I am trying to understand the logic. I am not saying that Cheong Sin has become clean for all that he did.
The thing is the Director how much of writernim’s ideas he used in Episode 13? We cannot tell. Still, as you said there were inconsistencies. I noticed them too.
I suspect that we will get to see Mayor Shin’s evilness being more evil than Cheong Sin’s.
Evil is Evil I agree with you. We have talked about it with the ladies about the grey areas for some k-drama’s characters (check our talks about Lee Rang in Tale of the Nine Tailed).
Unfortunately, I don’t understand WHY the PD want to change a writernim’s script. The story was coherent. Who is going to take this script at this time and how are they going to end season 1?
nrllee
Rumor is that the writer and PD differed on how they wanted to end S1. All hearsay but from what I can gather, the writer wanted self contained seasons. So she wanted the story line to find its resolution at the end of the season. PD wanted a cliffhanger. Open ended. So audiences would have to wait it out. The self contained seasons would mean there’s not that urgency to get the scripts out quickly for the following season so the writer can take her time and write a better story. The cliffhanger ending would result in a sense of urgency to deliver the next season so as not to lose the momentum gained from the previous one. And with the current uncertainty that COVID presents for scheduling and filming, having the seasons stand alone means that should subsequent seasons not eventuate for some reason, at least the story would make sense for the season(s) already done. I guess we will have to wait and see if this rumor has any truth in it after this season’s finale.
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
@nrllee @Cleopatra @Juriel
Thanks for the clarification, @nrllee. I believe you’re probably right. If that’s what the writer wanted, then I’m more for the writer and it’s a pity if this season ends with a cliff hanger and we have to wait another couple of years to know what happens.
I too feel that if we had the Level 3 Cheong Sin, then it would be more understandable that he has vestiges of human feeling for the children. But we have a Level 4 through-and-through demon, and there’s no logical reason for him caring for any human being.
The other illogical thing, is for Sin to kill himself. He’s always turned the gun his enemies held against them and ensure that he was safe.
These are the unfortunate twists that do not make sense (yet or ever), and might be the cause for/due to the loss of the writer .
LeeDale9198
@nrllee there we have it. I’ve been looking for the right term on this seasonal thing.
I’d side with writer-nim here (hearsay or whatever). I would love this drama series to have self-contained seasons, just like the Dr. Romantic series. Yes there’s more to dive in on Dr. Romantic (e.g. the hospital finally being independently operated, return of S1 doctors, etc.). But the ending is satisfying enough that when somehow if S3’s release would not be possible, then at least there is some sort of closure to the story.
I’m afraid things will go down for this drama. The change of writers when there are only few episodes left is unfortunate. I fear the I illogical things in UC would become even more illogical. I don’t know about the webtoon but I wished the drama is more faithful to the original work.
Gonna brace myself to this roller coaster ride of the drama.
Esst3
Honestly never liked a villain as much as Cheong Sin! But I’m so confused as to why he’d turn the gun on himself. The end of episode 13 was anticlimactic for me and didn’t make sense. They’d spoken so much about a level 4 demon and the staffs were just an idea they weren’t sure would work and Cheong Sun didn’t even put up a fight (although seeing the Yung Territory colours light up behind So Mun was so cool!). I was expecting so much more than I got.
I’m not surprised about the Mayor, in an earlier episode I said that I felt he already had an evil spirit. Won’t have time to watch episode 14 right now but I hope this means So Mun’s parents can be saved.
Sad to hear about the writer leaving, not sure why the director/producer didn’t agree with her. With k-dramas going seasonal I feel like some will make the Hollywood mistake of focusing on money rather than good story telling. Hopefully this drama doesn’t go down that path.
In last week’s episode thread I said I’d find out how the manhwa differs to the dramas. I could only find Chapter 0 + 1 in English, looks like it hasn’t been translated yet. Due to this there aren’t any discussion about the differences since most people watching the show probably haven’t read the manhwa. Even if there are discussion it’s probably in Korean and I don’t understand 😭
But with the changes to the writer, now more than ever I really want to read the manhwa and see what was initially done with the story.
Cleopatra
Hey @Esst3, @LeeDale9198, @GB and @nrllee,
I read your comments and I agree with all of you.
I didn’t answer sooner, because I wanted to let some time pass, in order to differentiate myself for what I watched in the morning.
If we follow the ARC from the beginning, what happened today destroyed the building up of the plot so far.
As @GB and @Esst3 said, Cheong Sin was a Level 4 Evil Spirit. That means the host and the evil spirit became one.
If they were one, how come the human CS overcame the evil spirit that was so powerful?
The Evil Spirit wouldn’t let him to start. It is like hijacking. It would make sense if he was still a Level 3.
That is a huge inconsistency with the plot. It means the human part in CS overcame the demon. It doesn’t make sense how that happened.
UNLESS,
the Evil Spirit knew human Cheong Sin’s guilts, his need to be loved and not to hurt the kids that’s why he decided to leave / abandon the Host.
BUT,
that doesn’t make sense either. We haven’t seen the Evil Spirit taking over CS and having its own personality in order to conclude what happened as the Evil Spirit’s decision.
I mean CS was a healthy young man, why did the Evil Spirit have to dump this Host, in order to go to Mayor Shin’s more mature body?
If they wanted from the beginning to show that the Level 4 had the same ability with Wi-Gen ( I mean when Sung Ji-Ru was murdered by Cheong Sin that in order to survice she had to find another Host = So Mun), then they missed their opportunity in execution and blowed it up instead.
In any case, I agree with everyone who supported the writer vs the PD.
The series should have self contained seasons. It gives more conclusion and freedom to the writer(s) to go somewhere else and not having to repeat the same old story. 🙁
Cleopatra
Kalimera from my part of the world,
I wanted to say something, we all forgot to mention regarding Episode 13.
I really cannot understand how come Jang Hye-Kyeong, who is the Mayor’s Secretary, had a video footage with the killing of her (best?) friend JJang Hye-Kyeong and she didn’t do anything all these years. She was to talk to Go MoTak but then she did nothing at all. Instead she was helping the murderer of her friend!
And now that her remains were found, Cho Tae-Sin obtained the footage and blackmailed the Mayor that’s why he committed suicide.
This is a major moral let down, even worse that making grey Cheong Sin.
LeeDale9198
At the preview for ep. 15, there appears another counter not related to the Eonni gang. Arrrggghhh this drama is frustrating me more and more!
Watching this drama’s like drinking something that’s leaving a bad taste but can’t stop drinking because I already spent so much to it. 😞😢☹️
Cleopatra
Hey @LeeDale9198,
I haven’t watched Episode 14 yet. Later on.
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
@Cleopatra
I had to go back and re-watch that part on what Tae Sin said about Secretary Jang and the pet camera… I missed that she was a good friend of Kim Yeong Nim. Yes, that’s very disturbing. Didn’t she see that her friend had been stabbed by Mayor Shin? I felt it strange that Mayor Shin was watching that video as if he didn’t know what would happen next. So there is a great logic lapse here. Also very strange that Sec Jang was sitting around looking stunned, as if she never knew of the murder, until (we assume) Tae Sin showed her.
And now that her remains were found, Cho Tae-Sin obtained the footage and blackmailed the Mayor that’s why he committed suicide?
I guess he’s trying to appear pathetic by attempting suicide and then hiding out in hospital on a comfortable bed, instead of in jail.
Now that I re-watched a bit, I see another big issue with Ji Cheong Sin’s shooting of himself – he’s supposed to be *immortal* now. That’s what Yung spirit Gi Ran said. So we should see Killer Sin again… in which case, if there’s possession by evil spirits of Mayor Shin… are they the same ones who used to possess Ji Cheong Sin? Or, which I think should be the case, he remains immortal and retains all those evil spirits.
Signs of the writing losing its coherence and logic?
Cleopatra
@GB,
That’s why I am trying to differentiate myself when I am watching some scenes, in order to understand what I am seeing.
The Uncanny Counter has huge potential and I think that they will ruin it. I agree with you the writing is losing its coherence and logic and unfortunately the actors / actresses cannot do anything about it…
What a shame…
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
I did a very quick watch of Ep 14. I’m guessing that the trend of making the baddies invincible will continue until Ep 16 and that we may be left with a cliff hanger.
What ‘immortality’ means in this show
I generally understand it to mean that body and soul will survive, even after the body has undergone being killed, but Show has added the Barrier to mess with the logic even more.
In the Barrier, it seems that the body can still die but the evil spirits cannot be caught/summoned by the Counters.
By shooting himself, Ji Cheong Sin seems to have made himself even more powerful, since now he can zip about and possess other bodies.
However he looks mighty solid when he visits Mayor Shin
Now just the Territory is enough to warn Shin that the Counters may be around so he can run away.
And he can communicate telepathically with Baek Hyang Hee. The poor Counters are going to have a tougher and tougher time getting him.
What’s happening with Hyeok U?
We saw in an earlier episode that Mayor Shin’s son, Hyeok U, also has a demon in him, however now his demon is no more in evidence. He gets bullied without being able to retaliate. I’d like to think that So Mun’s advice to him that he’s still young and can change, was taken to heart, however, Show does not tell us if Hyeok U has lost his demon or not.
Then we see that he tries to kill his father … I did not catch the reason why … does anyone know why?
And then we see that the evil spirits in his father do not seem to recognise any evil spirits in Hyeok U, when previously Ji Cheong Sin did. However Shin’s demons are prepared to kill Hyeok U anyway, at the proper time. So the son is in danger from his father.
Ad Hoc Stuff
Interesting that Grandma seems to be in her right mind. Grandpa knows that there’s something bothering So Mun but he does not ask what.
So Mun finds out through touching Hyeok U that his father is possessed by Ji Cheong Sin.
Once again by accident, SM discovers he has a new power – psycho-kinesis too? The only bit of hope for the Counters, now that a staff gets broken.
Cleopatra
Hey @GB,
I finished Episode 14 last night. I wanted to share the following:
I didn’t want the Counters speculate about the possibility that Evil Spirits can leave a Host to find another Host. I wanted it to be shown to the viewers. (I pinpointed it in an earlier post on this thread)
That means and the Yung people didn’t know that a Evil Spirit Level 4 can become the opposite of a Yung Spirit.
I wrote even the example above:
“If they wanted to show that the Level 4 had the same ability with Wi-Gen […]. then they missed the opportunity and blowed it up instead.”
I have to admit Episode 14 was better shaped than Episode 13, mostly because we got to see how So Mun reacted to what happened.
In this episode we got to see Emotions, plenty of them and how those shaped So Mun in order to gain the power of phycho-kinesis.
Still, I feel that are inconsistencies, as you pinpointed above, with the character of Heyok U.
Heyok U wanted to kill his father @GB, because Mayor Shin was abusing him.
It was not showed to us, but it was foreshadowed in the earlier episodes.
Also you are right about the Evil Spirit Cheong Sin spotted in HY.
So what happened in between?
If there was a change in Heyok U’s mentality is there a chance that the evil spirit that was in him left the Host again? This is not explained at all, so I take it to be a glitch.
Still, in Episode 14, It was confirmed that the Host can hijack the Evil Spirit, in that part when the Cheong Sin / Level 4 Demon, wanted to kill HU and the Mayor surpassed him.
So the logistics say that the Soul has free will even when the body is hosting an Evil Spirit, something that is opposite with what we know in general.
Mainstream examples the movies “The Exorcist” or “Constantine”.
As for Ha-Na, I don’t believe that she poisoned her folks. If she did, she wouldn’t be a Counter in the first place. The Yung Community wouldn’t pick her up. She would be a killer. Baek Hyang-Hee is messing with her guilt that she is the sole survivor of her family.
Lastly, In the Episode 15 preview, we got to see another Counter as @LeeDale9198 , informed us above.
We already know that there are other Counters. What we didn’t know that there were in that part of South Korea. If you remember, in a previously blog post, we were wondering how come this team of (4 actives + 1 operational) counters could do the whole South Korea without help.
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
Hi @Cleopatra, are you having morning tea break now? I’m literally having afternoon tea now, at home, with yummy pineapple tarts and herbal tea.
Yes, I did read your posts on the points you’ve mentioned here.
Agree that the Counters and Yung should not be having to guess what the situation means. My take on this is that the PD or whoever is in charge is deliberately leaving everything open so that at a whim, if viewers complain or if they paint themselves into the corner, they can just throw in some new ‘thing’ that may not even be logical, to add more tension, and prevent the good guys from winning too soon. So logic and explanations are not going to be given to use poor viewers *angry emoji*
I wrote even the example above:
“If they wanted to show that the Level 4 had the same ability with Wi-Gen […]. then they missed the opportunity and blowed it up instead.”
– I’m thinking that they want to make the baddies appear to be much more powerful than all of Yung and the Counters combined, except for So Mun who is the uncanny one. The PD/writer may start turning on more and more powers that SM will suddenly find he has to counterbalance how powerful the PD/writer has made the baddies.
In this episode we got to see Emotions, plenty of them and how those shaped So Mun in order to gain the power of phycho-kinesis.
Yes but the emotions-to-powers logic is not properly elucidated. We do not know what made each of the Counters able to have or exercise the powers that they do. SM only guessed (and Wigen guessed wrongly before) that he could summon the Territory because he was desperate to save the child.
So now, are we to connect being brave and wanting to stand up to the taunts of Shin/Sin demon to being psychokinetic? It’s still unclear. Which brings me back to the point above… as it suits the show, more powers will emerge. This is pretty much how manhwa writers operate, I guess. To keep the readers coming back for more, new and inexplicable things happen, and logic is not necessarily followed.
Heyok U wanted to kill his father @GB, because Mayor Shin was abusing him. It was not showed to us, but it was foreshadowed in the earlier episodes.
– Thanks for this info.
If there was a change in Heyok U’s mentality is there a chance that the evil spirit that was in him left the Host again? This is not explained at all, so I take it to be a glitch.
Still, in Episode 14, It was confirmed that the Host can hijack the Evil Spirit, in that part when the Cheong Sin / Level 4 Demon, wanted to kill HU and the Mayor surpassed him.
– This is one of the other events that gives us hope. It fails on the basis of logic again, since to be fully a demon, means one has no more human control over the evil spirit,… but whatever. At least it gives us reason to hope.
I didn’t interpret what Baek HH said to mean that she accused Ha Na of poisoning her family, only that being the sole survivor should make her feel guilty that she didn’t die with them. I need to re-watch to read the subs.
The sudden appearance of the new Counter – again this is what I mean about Show or the PD just throwing in anything that will serve to make the story last longer, when the PD/writer runs out of ideas or is stuck because of failed logic.
If you remember, in a previously blog post, we were wondering how come this team of (4 actives + 1 operational) counters could do the whole South Korea without help.
– Yup, I remember that comment. To which I now add an *eyeroll* and *le sigh*. I expect that Show will keep throwing in new characters and powers, etc which may have little or no link to the first 14 episodes.
Juriel
These are very interesting comments, particularly those regarding Heyok U. From the very beginning of the series, I have been expecting some serious development of HU’s character, but nothing’s happened. Up to Episode 11 he is used simply as a foil for So Mun, and it has been so frustrating for me to realise that he has a backstory which is not revealed.
Things move along a little more satisfactorily from the moment HU tries to kill his father, but even then his thoughts/feelings are not made clear. At least his rejection of So Mun has been a constant up to the end of episode 14. I do wonder how the HU/SM relationship will resolve itself in the end, with only two more episodes to go.
Perhaps there’s just too much involved in the general storyline for this series to fit satisfactorily into the 16-episode structure.
Cleopatra
Hey @GB!
Yes, it was my morning break, although I don’t drink tea at the moment. I like it, but I drink it when I am at home mostly. I like pineapple and I have found a delicious cake recipe I am doing here and there. (Note to self: Let’s make a pineapple cake the next days – I kinda missed it!) I had my tangerines though and I feel okay!
I really cannot understand how the PD is messing with the writer-nim’s work. As far as I have heard OCN did the same to Black’s Series – and I love that story so very much.
If you are a writer you have an idea to your head, where your story wants to go and what to do with the characters too. I mean when I was writing my fanfics, I always knew how the story would be processed. Even later on my novel (I haven’t finished it writing) I followed the same rules.
But from what I am understanding in K-Dramas they aka the PD or the Director care more about the ratings and hence are changing the story accordingly. I feel that is a huge stress that burdens the creative writing team how to proceed.
Yes, you are right, they want an Open Ending. They are drugging the end with more new powers in order to confuse the viewers, but we aren’t any ordinary viewers. I have gathered from all our conversations with many fellow commenters in BOD that we have standards and we are not easily swayed by these techniques.
This imbalance of the Evil forces vs The Good forces is not something I accept that easily. Okay, they want to give So Mun extra abilities, because The Uncanny Counter is a manhwa first and a TV show later on? Do it, but have a logical explanation to it.
In creative writing you have to have a climate at some point in your story. The Uncanny Counter was going towards it, but the climate we are getting is not that well build. So, we are frustrated and analyzing everything because it doesn’t make sense.
I am glad that we are agreeing about the mechanics of the TUC universe. There is Hope as Mae Ok said. -lol-
I kinda feel though that the actors / actresses are not okay with what happened with the writer-nim and PD. I felt that So Mun’s was exaggerating in his acting a bit in his break down scene.
Anyway, about Hana I felt that something was off at that scene. I will check it again though to see If I didn’t get it right.
As for Heyok U, I was hoping for some character development too, @Juriel.
Since it was evident from the beginning that the story involved him as the Mayor Shin’s son. Unfortunately, I haven’t read the manhwa and I don’t know what happens to the Original Universe.
Still, I am happy we are discussing this in depth. Yeah to more k-drama trope / plot convos!
Growingbeautifully (GB)
@Juriel I believe we will deliberately be left in limbo so that we’ll rush to watch Season 2. 😀
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
@Cleopatra, yes the real shame and wrongdoing is that the craft of the writer is disdained and the writer himself/herself disrespected. I feel sorry for the original writer who had most likely, coherent plans and a conclusion that would not be as random as I fear the last 2 episodes might end up being.
What I hate most when PDs mess with the writing for motives other than to make the show better, is that they generally disrespect the viewers as well. As you say, we are not mindless consumers of dramas, but thinking individuals who can see that we are ‘being played’. To abandon the show in a huff may backfire on us, because we may be throwing out the baby with the bathwater, however to keep watching til the end makes us feel that we’re allowing ourselves to be strung along by the PD.
If, as you say, even the actors are feeling it, and it’s beginning to show in their work, then that’s really bad. *grumpy face emoji* 😀
Cleopatra
@GB,
I totally agree with what you said!
We have two episodes left and we will see what happens. I will try to be optimistic because I liked the Series so much. Still, some people think that they can fool around, but that is not an issue any longer.
P.S. I forgot to mention it before, but I will do it here.
Kwon So-Eun was calling So Mun that forbidden word (Oppa).
Did you like it? I didn’t!
She is a kiddo, just call him Huyng instead!
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
@Cleopatra LOL.
Kwon So-Eun was calling So Mun that forbidden word (Oppa).
Did you like it? I didn’t!
She is a kiddo, just call him Huyng instead!
– I thought it was OK, because as a young girl child speaking to a boy teenager, oppa is the right term. If he was older than a teen, she might call him ahjusshi. Oppa is not only meant for one’s bf as you probably know.
There are times of course where girls deliberately want to be, maybe tomboyish? and so call the older boy ‘hyung’. These however are understood to mean that she’s trying to be ‘funny’ by not using the correct honorific title. I’ve not heard the equivalent with boys however ie I have not heard younger boys deliberately calling older females ‘unnie’ … because then they’d be treated like girls. LOL.
If it was a boy child calling So Mun, then he should call him hyung. It’s only these terms ‘oppa’/ ‘hyung’ … or ‘unnie’/’noona’ that seems to be determined by the gender of the one calling the older person. Otherwise adults can be ‘ahjusshi’ or ‘ahjumma’ to anyone younger regardless of gender. I find that difference interesting.
Cleopatra
@GB,
Thank you for explaining even more the honorifics logistics!
I have read about the meaning of “oppa / hyung” and “unnie / noona”,
but I guess I was perplexed about it in this case.
GrowingBeautifully (GB)
You’re most welcome @Cleopatra. For the Chinese, the difference in sibling honorific titles is not based on the gender of the one doing the calling, but on the gender of the one being called and whether the one who calls the other by title is older or younger. So a boy or girl will call an older brother ‘gege’ and a younger brother ‘didi’.
However the confusion is when uncles/aunts/cousins need to be differentiated by whether they are related by blood or by marriage and also by the birth hierarchy, I think. *eye roll* Something like First Uncle on my Father’s Side has a title different from the First Uncle on my Mother’s side, or even from the Second Uncle on my Father’s side. *rueful smirk*
Cleopatra
@GB,
In Greece we don’t use honorifics.
Of course we will be polite if we are talking in someone older than us.
We talk to them formal. There are some cases that informal talk is used instead.
We will use the terms “Mister” (Κύριος / Kyrios) and “Mrs.” (Κυρία / kyria) and afterwards their name, even if they are older than us or not.
If we are blood related yes we will use the words Uncle (Θείος / Theios) / Aunt (Θεία / theia)
In case, we are meeting someone work related that goes Mister / Mrs + Surname.
Or
If our age is similar we talk formally to them, until we both agree that we should talk informal.
Nowadays “Miss” (Δεσποινίς / Despoinis / Despoina -> Virginity —> Virgin Mary) is not that used for women that are not married, as it existed some decades before. The proper term is “Mrs.” The term “Miss” is only used for teenage girls.
For youngsters we call them by name or if we talk about them vaguely we can say
“The boy” ( το αγόρι / to agori) or “the girl” (το κορίτσι / to koritsi).
I am glad though that I am learning new things, because if you want to come in contact with many cultures, you have to be respectful of their ways.
So, from that point of view, If at one point we manage to be covid-free and we can travel around the world again, it would be nice to see new places and new people.
Our understanding of each other, lies when you try to understand another’s culture.
If we stripped our language barriers, different religions and different cultures, in the end we are all human beings with the same questions and passions about Life. We are all trying to fit in this beautiful and sometimes terrifying planet.
Ella
I’m finally done catching up with you guys 😁
Cleopatra
Yeah @Ella!
Happy to have you here on TUC as well!
Ella
Hahaaa.. I was planning to catch up before Ep13 aired but can’t make it 😁
I have to track back to read all your comments now that I’m up to date lol..
Some of my thoughts:
– One thing I love the most about the gang is the way they don’t give up and support each other, they really are a family.
– So Mun’s friends, they’re awesome and the way they protect So Mun
– I’m annoyed with Wigen, she did nothing for So Mun and he did not deserve her treatment.
Great! Thanks @pkml3. 🙂
The kid in the last scene… I was this close 👌 to flip my laptop out of frustration
Yeah!
I am waiting patiently for Episode 13!
I cant hate Cheong Sin for his character! His twist as a love deprived child was countering with the evil inside him. It was portrayed well and somehow realistic. Im feeling so sorry for him. Though the woman with her really gets to my nerve. Haha
Though I’m looking forward to the their action scene, It was very unlikely to expect the kid and what he have done at the end.
It’s a bit sad for me cause only if he did not end it and that was summoned, I hope he could have a different start even as a prisoner. I think Uncanny counter is really emphasizing here how families played a big role on our choices and desire to do good or evil.
I love this series. Cant wait for episode 13!
Welcome to the blog, @ majiii.
I agree. For some reason I can’t seem to hate this Cheong Sin. Must be because I pitied him when he was ordered to buy his half-brother a mango cake for his birthday and kill the old man who was being a nuisance to the Mayor. What a weird set-up. That would really warp his soul.
Anyway, will watch the show later.
Urgh…so apparently the latest news is that the original writer has left the series, citing differences of opinion with the PD. I don’t like it when that happens, it usually means the flow of the show is interrupted and plot holes happen.
https://www.allkpop.com/article/2021/01/the-writer-of-the-uncanny-counter-gets-replaced-mid-series
I bet the disagreement of writer and PD is on what to do to Cheongsin.
I love how Cheongsin has this affinity for orphaned children and how he wants these kids be protected from evil, and so he was protected by the child in return. But his character shift feels a little jarring to me. Kudos to the team as they are able to complete the whole Cheongsin background story in one episode, still it is so sudden.
Also if Cheongsin is that hellbent on having his revenge to his first father, I think he could’ve done it earlier. He’s already been killing people for 10 years or longer. What made him wait to do his revenge?
Another thing, Cheongsin must have struggled fighting to have control on himself against his evil spirit, especially after becoming level 4. The evil spirit would’ve no qualms killing the children after he killed CS first father. But we don’t see him struggle at all. Instead it was after he ate his companion’s spirit when he’d desire to eat/kill the child, which ended quickly.
Cheongsin’s end is bittersweet. If only the child had known what’s going on 😢. CS would’ve been alive, serve his sentence, maybe get his parole and then begin fresh working at an orphanage or something. I’m never been so sad of the villain’s demise 😞. Also goodbye my villainous ship 😭. I can’t ship Hyang-hee and Myeonhwi ehhhww hehehhahahahuhuhu
It’s interesting our comments here. We are so far in agreement that although he’s a ruthless, self-seeking and evil killer, Ji Cheong Sin is the character that we want to believe redeemable and that he deserves a chance at a happier life. Strangely, despite being fully subsumed by the evil spirit(s), (or so we are told) we see that Killer Sin still has his own faculties and makes decisions that are not demon-like. He appears to have retained some smidgen of humanity, because he relates with the ill-treated children.
I expect that with the shut down of the Barrier, the evil spirits will quickly revive and heal Killer Sin, so that he returns, up and about before too long.
I’ve begun to feel that some parts of the episode are not being edited as they could be, like the part when Yung was about to show the Counters how the Barrier was formed. Mo Tak was given too much time protesting and asking questions when he should have just remained quiet and paid attention.
I’m wondering if the recording of the Police Chief’s conversation is considered valid evidence and admissible in court. Fortunately Ha Nul could turn whistle-blower but with the whole precinct behind him. Usually that would make a person anathema.
Next episode we should get to see grandma and grandpa again (according to the preview). It will be interesting to know if grandma has retained most of her memories, even after Jang Mul supposedly erased them.
Hello Everyone!
Okay this episode was unexpected. We got to see more about Cheong Sin’s past. @GB you are right, we all have sympathy for this devil.
You know what they say: An abused person can become the most ruthless abuser.
Cheong Sin didn’t find love, he found abuse instead. For that reason alone, he believed that doing that to others (e.g. beatings and later on killings) was okay!
His ahbujji would be proud of him, if he cooperate with what he wanted.
CS wanted validation and assurance from the paternal figure. He wanted to feel accepted from him and loved.
I love how Lee Hong-Dae encountered his character. It was a nice touch to see that even when CS became 4 level Demon, his humanity was there, even though slightly in the scene with the kiddo.
In Episode 14 preview, we got to see that the evil spirit took over Mayor’s Shin body. He was a murderer, so It wasn’t a twist for me.
As for the writernim’s departure that are not good news. I agree with @nrrlee!
Welcome to the blog @Majiiii
So the first screenwriter has stepped down, and the director stepped in to write Episode 13.
Actually I noticed a change in the basic logic of the story in Episode 13. Why, oh why does the guilt-ridden child appear? Is there really a possibility that Cheong-sin can feel regret for the past and that he is available for redemption? Not, I think, the Level 4 Cheong-sin. I’m sorry to disagree with my respected blog-colleagues on this one, but it’s too late. John Milton knew how to write true evil villainy, and I hope humans haven’t totally lost the touch. Cheong-sin has become a monster, and the remaining episodes should be showing how the Yong/Counters coterie sees to his ending. After all Don Giovanni gets hauled down to hell at the end, without option; he’s earned it.
We’ll see what the in-coming screenwriter has to say. It’s a task I wouldn’t take on, but I do hope (expect) that some contact between So Mun and his parents is achieved, and that So Mun’s future as a Counter and protector/ethical developer of human-ness is assured.
Hey @Juriel,
I am trying to understand the logic. I am not saying that Cheong Sin has become clean for all that he did.
The thing is the Director how much of writernim’s ideas he used in Episode 13? We cannot tell. Still, as you said there were inconsistencies. I noticed them too.
I suspect that we will get to see Mayor Shin’s evilness being more evil than Cheong Sin’s.
Evil is Evil I agree with you. We have talked about it with the ladies about the grey areas for some k-drama’s characters (check our talks about Lee Rang in Tale of the Nine Tailed).
Unfortunately, I don’t understand WHY the PD want to change a writernim’s script. The story was coherent. Who is going to take this script at this time and how are they going to end season 1?
Rumor is that the writer and PD differed on how they wanted to end S1. All hearsay but from what I can gather, the writer wanted self contained seasons. So she wanted the story line to find its resolution at the end of the season. PD wanted a cliffhanger. Open ended. So audiences would have to wait it out. The self contained seasons would mean there’s not that urgency to get the scripts out quickly for the following season so the writer can take her time and write a better story. The cliffhanger ending would result in a sense of urgency to deliver the next season so as not to lose the momentum gained from the previous one. And with the current uncertainty that COVID presents for scheduling and filming, having the seasons stand alone means that should subsequent seasons not eventuate for some reason, at least the story would make sense for the season(s) already done. I guess we will have to wait and see if this rumor has any truth in it after this season’s finale.
@nrllee @Cleopatra @Juriel
Thanks for the clarification, @nrllee. I believe you’re probably right. If that’s what the writer wanted, then I’m more for the writer and it’s a pity if this season ends with a cliff hanger and we have to wait another couple of years to know what happens.
I too feel that if we had the Level 3 Cheong Sin, then it would be more understandable that he has vestiges of human feeling for the children. But we have a Level 4 through-and-through demon, and there’s no logical reason for him caring for any human being.
The other illogical thing, is for Sin to kill himself. He’s always turned the gun his enemies held against them and ensure that he was safe.
These are the unfortunate twists that do not make sense (yet or ever), and might be the cause for/due to the loss of the writer .
@nrllee there we have it. I’ve been looking for the right term on this seasonal thing.
I’d side with writer-nim here (hearsay or whatever). I would love this drama series to have self-contained seasons, just like the Dr. Romantic series. Yes there’s more to dive in on Dr. Romantic (e.g. the hospital finally being independently operated, return of S1 doctors, etc.). But the ending is satisfying enough that when somehow if S3’s release would not be possible, then at least there is some sort of closure to the story.
I’m afraid things will go down for this drama. The change of writers when there are only few episodes left is unfortunate. I fear the I illogical things in UC would become even more illogical. I don’t know about the webtoon but I wished the drama is more faithful to the original work.
Gonna brace myself to this roller coaster ride of the drama.
Honestly never liked a villain as much as Cheong Sin! But I’m so confused as to why he’d turn the gun on himself. The end of episode 13 was anticlimactic for me and didn’t make sense. They’d spoken so much about a level 4 demon and the staffs were just an idea they weren’t sure would work and Cheong Sun didn’t even put up a fight (although seeing the Yung Territory colours light up behind So Mun was so cool!). I was expecting so much more than I got.
I’m not surprised about the Mayor, in an earlier episode I said that I felt he already had an evil spirit. Won’t have time to watch episode 14 right now but I hope this means So Mun’s parents can be saved.
Sad to hear about the writer leaving, not sure why the director/producer didn’t agree with her. With k-dramas going seasonal I feel like some will make the Hollywood mistake of focusing on money rather than good story telling. Hopefully this drama doesn’t go down that path.
In last week’s episode thread I said I’d find out how the manhwa differs to the dramas. I could only find Chapter 0 + 1 in English, looks like it hasn’t been translated yet. Due to this there aren’t any discussion about the differences since most people watching the show probably haven’t read the manhwa. Even if there are discussion it’s probably in Korean and I don’t understand 😭
But with the changes to the writer, now more than ever I really want to read the manhwa and see what was initially done with the story.
Hey @Esst3, @LeeDale9198, @GB and @nrllee,
I read your comments and I agree with all of you.
I didn’t answer sooner, because I wanted to let some time pass, in order to differentiate myself for what I watched in the morning.
If we follow the ARC from the beginning, what happened today destroyed the building up of the plot so far.
As @GB and @Esst3 said, Cheong Sin was a Level 4 Evil Spirit. That means the host and the evil spirit became one.
If they were one, how come the human CS overcame the evil spirit that was so powerful?
The Evil Spirit wouldn’t let him to start. It is like hijacking. It would make sense if he was still a Level 3.
That is a huge inconsistency with the plot. It means the human part in CS overcame the demon. It doesn’t make sense how that happened.
UNLESS,
the Evil Spirit knew human Cheong Sin’s guilts, his need to be loved and not to hurt the kids that’s why he decided to leave / abandon the Host.
BUT,
that doesn’t make sense either. We haven’t seen the Evil Spirit taking over CS and having its own personality in order to conclude what happened as the Evil Spirit’s decision.
I mean CS was a healthy young man, why did the Evil Spirit have to dump this Host, in order to go to Mayor Shin’s more mature body?
If they wanted from the beginning to show that the Level 4 had the same ability with Wi-Gen ( I mean when Sung Ji-Ru was murdered by Cheong Sin that in order to survice she had to find another Host = So Mun), then they missed their opportunity in execution and blowed it up instead.
In any case, I agree with everyone who supported the writer vs the PD.
The series should have self contained seasons. It gives more conclusion and freedom to the writer(s) to go somewhere else and not having to repeat the same old story. 🙁
Kalimera from my part of the world,
I wanted to say something, we all forgot to mention regarding Episode 13.
I really cannot understand how come Jang Hye-Kyeong, who is the Mayor’s Secretary, had a video footage with the killing of her (best?) friend JJang Hye-Kyeong and she didn’t do anything all these years. She was to talk to Go MoTak but then she did nothing at all. Instead she was helping the murderer of her friend!
And now that her remains were found, Cho Tae-Sin obtained the footage and blackmailed the Mayor that’s why he committed suicide.
This is a major moral let down, even worse that making grey Cheong Sin.
At the preview for ep. 15, there appears another counter not related to the Eonni gang. Arrrggghhh this drama is frustrating me more and more!
Watching this drama’s like drinking something that’s leaving a bad taste but can’t stop drinking because I already spent so much to it. 😞😢☹️
Hey @LeeDale9198,
I haven’t watched Episode 14 yet. Later on.
@Cleopatra
I had to go back and re-watch that part on what Tae Sin said about Secretary Jang and the pet camera… I missed that she was a good friend of Kim Yeong Nim. Yes, that’s very disturbing. Didn’t she see that her friend had been stabbed by Mayor Shin? I felt it strange that Mayor Shin was watching that video as if he didn’t know what would happen next. So there is a great logic lapse here. Also very strange that Sec Jang was sitting around looking stunned, as if she never knew of the murder, until (we assume) Tae Sin showed her.
I guess he’s trying to appear pathetic by attempting suicide and then hiding out in hospital on a comfortable bed, instead of in jail.
Now that I re-watched a bit, I see another big issue with Ji Cheong Sin’s shooting of himself – he’s supposed to be *immortal* now. That’s what Yung spirit Gi Ran said. So we should see Killer Sin again… in which case, if there’s possession by evil spirits of Mayor Shin… are they the same ones who used to possess Ji Cheong Sin? Or, which I think should be the case, he remains immortal and retains all those evil spirits.
Signs of the writing losing its coherence and logic?
@GB,
That’s why I am trying to differentiate myself when I am watching some scenes, in order to understand what I am seeing.
The Uncanny Counter has huge potential and I think that they will ruin it. I agree with you the writing is losing its coherence and logic and unfortunately the actors / actresses cannot do anything about it…
What a shame…
I did a very quick watch of Ep 14. I’m guessing that the trend of making the baddies invincible will continue until Ep 16 and that we may be left with a cliff hanger.
What ‘immortality’ means in this show
I generally understand it to mean that body and soul will survive, even after the body has undergone being killed, but Show has added the Barrier to mess with the logic even more.
In the Barrier, it seems that the body can still die but the evil spirits cannot be caught/summoned by the Counters.
By shooting himself, Ji Cheong Sin seems to have made himself even more powerful, since now he can zip about and possess other bodies.
However he looks mighty solid when he visits Mayor Shin
Now just the Territory is enough to warn Shin that the Counters may be around so he can run away.
And he can communicate telepathically with Baek Hyang Hee. The poor Counters are going to have a tougher and tougher time getting him.
What’s happening with Hyeok U?
We saw in an earlier episode that Mayor Shin’s son, Hyeok U, also has a demon in him, however now his demon is no more in evidence. He gets bullied without being able to retaliate. I’d like to think that So Mun’s advice to him that he’s still young and can change, was taken to heart, however, Show does not tell us if Hyeok U has lost his demon or not.
Then we see that he tries to kill his father … I did not catch the reason why … does anyone know why?
And then we see that the evil spirits in his father do not seem to recognise any evil spirits in Hyeok U, when previously Ji Cheong Sin did. However Shin’s demons are prepared to kill Hyeok U anyway, at the proper time. So the son is in danger from his father.
Ad Hoc Stuff
Interesting that Grandma seems to be in her right mind. Grandpa knows that there’s something bothering So Mun but he does not ask what.
So Mun finds out through touching Hyeok U that his father is possessed by Ji Cheong Sin.
Once again by accident, SM discovers he has a new power – psycho-kinesis too? The only bit of hope for the Counters, now that a staff gets broken.
Hey @GB,
I finished Episode 14 last night. I wanted to share the following:
I didn’t want the Counters speculate about the possibility that Evil Spirits can leave a Host to find another Host. I wanted it to be shown to the viewers. (I pinpointed it in an earlier post on this thread)
That means and the Yung people didn’t know that a Evil Spirit Level 4 can become the opposite of a Yung Spirit.
I wrote even the example above:
“If they wanted to show that the Level 4 had the same ability with Wi-Gen […]. then they missed the opportunity and blowed it up instead.”
I have to admit Episode 14 was better shaped than Episode 13, mostly because we got to see how So Mun reacted to what happened.
In this episode we got to see Emotions, plenty of them and how those shaped So Mun in order to gain the power of phycho-kinesis.
Still, I feel that are inconsistencies, as you pinpointed above, with the character of Heyok U.
Heyok U wanted to kill his father @GB, because Mayor Shin was abusing him.
It was not showed to us, but it was foreshadowed in the earlier episodes.
Also you are right about the Evil Spirit Cheong Sin spotted in HY.
So what happened in between?
If there was a change in Heyok U’s mentality is there a chance that the evil spirit that was in him left the Host again? This is not explained at all, so I take it to be a glitch.
Still, in Episode 14, It was confirmed that the Host can hijack the Evil Spirit, in that part when the Cheong Sin / Level 4 Demon, wanted to kill HU and the Mayor surpassed him.
So the logistics say that the Soul has free will even when the body is hosting an Evil Spirit, something that is opposite with what we know in general.
Mainstream examples the movies “The Exorcist” or “Constantine”.
As for Ha-Na, I don’t believe that she poisoned her folks. If she did, she wouldn’t be a Counter in the first place. The Yung Community wouldn’t pick her up. She would be a killer. Baek Hyang-Hee is messing with her guilt that she is the sole survivor of her family.
Lastly, In the Episode 15 preview, we got to see another Counter as @LeeDale9198 , informed us above.
We already know that there are other Counters. What we didn’t know that there were in that part of South Korea. If you remember, in a previously blog post, we were wondering how come this team of (4 actives + 1 operational) counters could do the whole South Korea without help.
Hi @Cleopatra, are you having morning tea break now? I’m literally having afternoon tea now, at home, with yummy pineapple tarts and herbal tea.
Yes, I did read your posts on the points you’ve mentioned here.
Agree that the Counters and Yung should not be having to guess what the situation means. My take on this is that the PD or whoever is in charge is deliberately leaving everything open so that at a whim, if viewers complain or if they paint themselves into the corner, they can just throw in some new ‘thing’ that may not even be logical, to add more tension, and prevent the good guys from winning too soon. So logic and explanations are not going to be given to use poor viewers *angry emoji*
– I’m thinking that they want to make the baddies appear to be much more powerful than all of Yung and the Counters combined, except for So Mun who is the uncanny one. The PD/writer may start turning on more and more powers that SM will suddenly find he has to counterbalance how powerful the PD/writer has made the baddies.
Yes but the emotions-to-powers logic is not properly elucidated. We do not know what made each of the Counters able to have or exercise the powers that they do. SM only guessed (and Wigen guessed wrongly before) that he could summon the Territory because he was desperate to save the child.
So now, are we to connect being brave and wanting to stand up to the taunts of Shin/Sin demon to being psychokinetic? It’s still unclear. Which brings me back to the point above… as it suits the show, more powers will emerge. This is pretty much how manhwa writers operate, I guess. To keep the readers coming back for more, new and inexplicable things happen, and logic is not necessarily followed.
– Thanks for this info.
– This is one of the other events that gives us hope. It fails on the basis of logic again, since to be fully a demon, means one has no more human control over the evil spirit,… but whatever. At least it gives us reason to hope.
I didn’t interpret what Baek HH said to mean that she accused Ha Na of poisoning her family, only that being the sole survivor should make her feel guilty that she didn’t die with them. I need to re-watch to read the subs.
The sudden appearance of the new Counter – again this is what I mean about Show or the PD just throwing in anything that will serve to make the story last longer, when the PD/writer runs out of ideas or is stuck because of failed logic.
– Yup, I remember that comment. To which I now add an *eyeroll* and *le sigh*. I expect that Show will keep throwing in new characters and powers, etc which may have little or no link to the first 14 episodes.
These are very interesting comments, particularly those regarding Heyok U. From the very beginning of the series, I have been expecting some serious development of HU’s character, but nothing’s happened. Up to Episode 11 he is used simply as a foil for So Mun, and it has been so frustrating for me to realise that he has a backstory which is not revealed.
Things move along a little more satisfactorily from the moment HU tries to kill his father, but even then his thoughts/feelings are not made clear. At least his rejection of So Mun has been a constant up to the end of episode 14. I do wonder how the HU/SM relationship will resolve itself in the end, with only two more episodes to go.
Perhaps there’s just too much involved in the general storyline for this series to fit satisfactorily into the 16-episode structure.
Hey @GB!
Yes, it was my morning break, although I don’t drink tea at the moment. I like it, but I drink it when I am at home mostly. I like pineapple and I have found a delicious cake recipe I am doing here and there. (Note to self: Let’s make a pineapple cake the next days – I kinda missed it!) I had my tangerines though and I feel okay!
I really cannot understand how the PD is messing with the writer-nim’s work. As far as I have heard OCN did the same to Black’s Series – and I love that story so very much.
If you are a writer you have an idea to your head, where your story wants to go and what to do with the characters too. I mean when I was writing my fanfics, I always knew how the story would be processed. Even later on my novel (I haven’t finished it writing) I followed the same rules.
But from what I am understanding in K-Dramas they aka the PD or the Director care more about the ratings and hence are changing the story accordingly. I feel that is a huge stress that burdens the creative writing team how to proceed.
Yes, you are right, they want an Open Ending. They are drugging the end with more new powers in order to confuse the viewers, but we aren’t any ordinary viewers. I have gathered from all our conversations with many fellow commenters in BOD that we have standards and we are not easily swayed by these techniques.
This imbalance of the Evil forces vs The Good forces is not something I accept that easily. Okay, they want to give So Mun extra abilities, because The Uncanny Counter is a manhwa first and a TV show later on? Do it, but have a logical explanation to it.
In creative writing you have to have a climate at some point in your story. The Uncanny Counter was going towards it, but the climate we are getting is not that well build. So, we are frustrated and analyzing everything because it doesn’t make sense.
I am glad that we are agreeing about the mechanics of the TUC universe. There is Hope as Mae Ok said. -lol-
I kinda feel though that the actors / actresses are not okay with what happened with the writer-nim and PD. I felt that So Mun’s was exaggerating in his acting a bit in his break down scene.
Anyway, about Hana I felt that something was off at that scene. I will check it again though to see If I didn’t get it right.
As for Heyok U, I was hoping for some character development too, @Juriel.
Since it was evident from the beginning that the story involved him as the Mayor Shin’s son. Unfortunately, I haven’t read the manhwa and I don’t know what happens to the Original Universe.
Still, I am happy we are discussing this in depth. Yeah to more k-drama trope / plot convos!
@Juriel I believe we will deliberately be left in limbo so that we’ll rush to watch Season 2. 😀
@Cleopatra, yes the real shame and wrongdoing is that the craft of the writer is disdained and the writer himself/herself disrespected. I feel sorry for the original writer who had most likely, coherent plans and a conclusion that would not be as random as I fear the last 2 episodes might end up being.
What I hate most when PDs mess with the writing for motives other than to make the show better, is that they generally disrespect the viewers as well. As you say, we are not mindless consumers of dramas, but thinking individuals who can see that we are ‘being played’. To abandon the show in a huff may backfire on us, because we may be throwing out the baby with the bathwater, however to keep watching til the end makes us feel that we’re allowing ourselves to be strung along by the PD.
If, as you say, even the actors are feeling it, and it’s beginning to show in their work, then that’s really bad. *grumpy face emoji* 😀
@GB,
I totally agree with what you said!
We have two episodes left and we will see what happens. I will try to be optimistic because I liked the Series so much. Still, some people think that they can fool around, but that is not an issue any longer.
P.S. I forgot to mention it before, but I will do it here.
Kwon So-Eun was calling So Mun that forbidden word (Oppa).
Did you like it? I didn’t!
She is a kiddo, just call him Huyng instead!
@Cleopatra LOL.
– I thought it was OK, because as a young girl child speaking to a boy teenager, oppa is the right term. If he was older than a teen, she might call him ahjusshi. Oppa is not only meant for one’s bf as you probably know.
There are times of course where girls deliberately want to be, maybe tomboyish? and so call the older boy ‘hyung’. These however are understood to mean that she’s trying to be ‘funny’ by not using the correct honorific title. I’ve not heard the equivalent with boys however ie I have not heard younger boys deliberately calling older females ‘unnie’ … because then they’d be treated like girls. LOL.
If it was a boy child calling So Mun, then he should call him hyung. It’s only these terms ‘oppa’/ ‘hyung’ … or ‘unnie’/’noona’ that seems to be determined by the gender of the one calling the older person. Otherwise adults can be ‘ahjusshi’ or ‘ahjumma’ to anyone younger regardless of gender. I find that difference interesting.
@GB,
Thank you for explaining even more the honorifics logistics!
I have read about the meaning of “oppa / hyung” and “unnie / noona”,
but I guess I was perplexed about it in this case.
You’re most welcome @Cleopatra. For the Chinese, the difference in sibling honorific titles is not based on the gender of the one doing the calling, but on the gender of the one being called and whether the one who calls the other by title is older or younger. So a boy or girl will call an older brother ‘gege’ and a younger brother ‘didi’.
However the confusion is when uncles/aunts/cousins need to be differentiated by whether they are related by blood or by marriage and also by the birth hierarchy, I think. *eye roll* Something like First Uncle on my Father’s Side has a title different from the First Uncle on my Mother’s side, or even from the Second Uncle on my Father’s side. *rueful smirk*
@GB,
In Greece we don’t use honorifics.
Of course we will be polite if we are talking in someone older than us.
We talk to them formal. There are some cases that informal talk is used instead.
We will use the terms “Mister” (Κύριος / Kyrios) and “Mrs.” (Κυρία / kyria) and afterwards their name, even if they are older than us or not.
If we are blood related yes we will use the words Uncle (Θείος / Theios) / Aunt (Θεία / theia)
In case, we are meeting someone work related that goes Mister / Mrs + Surname.
Or
If our age is similar we talk formally to them, until we both agree that we should talk informal.
Nowadays “Miss” (Δεσποινίς / Despoinis / Despoina -> Virginity —> Virgin Mary) is not that used for women that are not married, as it existed some decades before. The proper term is “Mrs.” The term “Miss” is only used for teenage girls.
For youngsters we call them by name or if we talk about them vaguely we can say
“The boy” ( το αγόρι / to agori) or “the girl” (το κορίτσι / to koritsi).
I am glad though that I am learning new things, because if you want to come in contact with many cultures, you have to be respectful of their ways.
So, from that point of view, If at one point we manage to be covid-free and we can travel around the world again, it would be nice to see new places and new people.
Our understanding of each other, lies when you try to understand another’s culture.
If we stripped our language barriers, different religions and different cultures, in the end we are all human beings with the same questions and passions about Life. We are all trying to fit in this beautiful and sometimes terrifying planet.
I’m finally done catching up with you guys 😁
Yeah @Ella!
Happy to have you here on TUC as well!
Hahaaa.. I was planning to catch up before Ep13 aired but can’t make it 😁
I have to track back to read all your comments now that I’m up to date lol..
Some of my thoughts:
– One thing I love the most about the gang is the way they don’t give up and support each other, they really are a family.
– So Mun’s friends, they’re awesome and the way they protect So Mun
– I’m annoyed with Wigen, she did nothing for So Mun and he did not deserve her treatment.