Another one for Throwback Thursday.

This is my companion piece to Jang’s Not-So-Secret Admirer.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

In a word, no.

In Mr. Knightley’s words, “Really, it’s better to be without wits than to misapply them as you do, fangirls!”

I heard that the former fans of JungHwan from “Reply 1988” have now morphed into the IJ fans AND continue to misunderstand Taek’s character.

I also heard they’re doing their special kind of connect-the-dots and matching Deoksun’s interaction with Taek to Songhwa’s interaction with Ikjun with disastrous consequences. lol. They’re going to mess this up again…just like they failed the “Line Theory” last week.

This is incorrect.

This is correct. Here’s the explanation: Hospital Playlist: Updated: The Line War, lol

But because I’m feeling magnanimous tonight, I’ll throw them a lifeline and educate them. If they must use Taek and “Reply” 1988 as some sort of magical spectacles to interpret “Hospital Playlist,” then they must learn at least these Four Basic Facts about “Reply 1988.”

Fact # 1. Taek personally NEVER sought babying from Deoksun. 

Unlike IJ over here.

It is true that Deoksun fussed over Taek for not wearing shoes and sweaters. She was always worried that he’d catch a cold. However, Taek always said that he was fine.

In fact, in that famous scene when Taek appeared at her side at the musical hall, he gave her his coat, saying that he was hot so she should have it.

Why did he do that?

It’s because he knew all along that SHE was the one who felt the cold. But she  PROJECTED her cold intolerance onto him. He just went along with her fretting over him because it made her happy.

I explained this four years ago.

Taec loves DS and he knows that DS likes to fuss so HE allows her to fuss. He’s indulging her.

Like in Episode 20.

Check out the scene of 2016 TK and DS at 1:38:49 when he was trying to open the tin of Danish Butter Cookies. No, he wasn’t being “clingy” then; he didn’t ask for help; he didn’t need her help.

He already had the lid off. Did you notice that?

Yet she took the whole tin from him, from his hands – without stopping to pause in her interview — and proceeded to open it for him. SHE just assumed that he couldn’t do it on his own.

And HE didn’t stop her. He didn’t get mad at her. He didn’t tell her, “I GOT THIS, WOMAN! Don’t baby me.”

Or to use a term often used in Gender Studies at universities: “Don’t emasculate me!”

A differentAlpha-male type of man would find Deoksun’s level of pampering annoying and emasculating. But for Taec, it didn’t matter. He tolerated her coddling. He indulged her because it made her feel important, wanted, and needed.

DongRyul actually pointed this important male-female dynamic in Episode 5 when he lectured JungHwan.

JH’s mom was angry at him, his dad AND Hyung. JH couldn’t figure out why. They did what they had to do: they cleaned up the house before she came home. They left the house as tidy as she left it. So why was their mom angry?!!

DongRyul explained that their mom was angry because she suddenly felt UNIMPORTANT. When she came home to find the place tidy, the message there was this: Mom is NOT needed. The guys could survive well without Mom.

So, this dynamics existed between Deoksun and Taek, too.

Taek knew WITHOUT HAVING TO BE TOLD that cosseting was Deoksun’s personal trait. He didn’t stop her because that was her way of showing affection.

See that? Since 1988, he understood Deoksun’s personality and accepted her as she was.

Thus, if IJ fans believe that IJ is similar to Taek because of the babying, then they didn’t understand the show.

Fact #2. When it comes to pampering, JW = Deoksun. 

JW fusses over Songhwa like Deoksun fussed over Taec.

That’s why I speculated BEFORE the airing of episode 8 that JW carried the heat therapy patches with him for Songhwa. I didn’t think it was accidental that he had them in his bag in Episode 2. JWan wondered what else did he carry in his bag.

As it turned out, it’s not a secret among the guys (hey! even her chief resident knew it) that Songhwa has a cervical herniated disc. It’s not far-fetched that JW monitors her condition. The second she rubbed her neck, he jumped in and offered her remedy. Later, when she sniffled, he handed her tissue wordlessly.

At mealtime, he babies Songhwa by serving her first with grilled meat and giving JWan the stink-eye when JWan stole the portion he meant for Songhwa.

He’s very attuned to Songhwa. He could tell that something was bothering her by her body language.

He could also tell that something was upsetting her by her voice over the phone.

See that?

JW is Deoksun all over again.

Although Taec never asked for anything much (but coffee was his thing), she knew Taec’s food preferences. Like, he had a sensitive tummy during his tournaments.

Just like JW knew Songhwa’s appetite because she was starving after her duty.

Fact #3. Parents are game changers.

In Reply 1988, Taec insisted that he was fine attending his baduk tournament in China alone. His father couldn’t go because he was hospitalized. But his father worried that he needed someone to take care of him.

So behind his back, Taec’s father spoke with Deoksun’s parents and asked for a favor. He requested that Deoksun be allowed to go to China in his place to attend to Taec. He worried that if left by himself, Taec would forget to eat.

Her parents hesitated because Deoksun was an “idiot.” They felt sorry that Taec would be burdened by her.

Plus, Taec had a ferocious temper they said. What if he got mad at Deoksun? The father replied, “No, Taec likes Deoksun. They will get along fine.”

The point here is that the father knew what was good for his son. He was the game changer.

In “Hospital Playlist,” Rosa is the game changer. JW wants to go through life “alone” and enter the priesthood. But she’s the one insisting he needed a reliable life partner at his side.

And behind-the-scenes, Rosa was in touch with Songhwa.

Re. the flowers in Ep 5, at 56:35.

Nrllee wrote:

I am wondering if the flowers were actually from Andrea? He was at his mom’s earlier when they played mafia. The orange flowers are roses. Can’t make out the white one. Possibly lisanthus.

I liked this idea. However, nrllee, I looked back at the conversation to the conversation in Ep 8 with Andrea and his mom, and it seemed to me that Andrea had NO clue about flowers.

JW: Mom, Songhwa asked if this is good enough.
Mom: That’s perfect.

To me, there were two possibilities:

A. he could have been sent to go to Songhwa to borrow a vase;
B. he volunteered to ask Songhwa if she had a vase that he could borrow.

Either way, it looks to me as if Songhwa herself filled the vase with water. He didn’t do it. He relied on Songhwa to know what to do with the vase.

To me, if the flowers did come from the mom and Songhwa knew it, then there was something DEEPER going on between these two ladies than they let on. Not only that, they were both keeping JW out of the loop.

You see, it bugs me that neither one acknowledged the flowers Songhwa didn’t ask JW to relay a message, “Hey, tell your mom I loved the flowers she sent me,” and the mom didn’t ask him, “Oh? How did she like the flowers I sent her?”

Do you see that? There appears to be tacit agreement NOT to mention that the flowers were sent and received. They were pretending as if nothing happened.

JW: My gosh. That looks beautiful. Songhwa is beautiful and smart, and has wits like this. Therefore, why isn’t–

By “wits,” Rosa meant common sense, prudence and judgment. And because she used Songhwa as her yardstick, Maggot will come up short.

Has wits = Songhwa

credit: fandomattagasm

Half-wit = Jang, lol.

credit: fandomattagasm

JW: Why isn’t she married?
Mom: No. Why doesn’t she like my son?
JW: (looked away and sighed)
Mom: If you marry a girl like Songhwa I could join the Lord even tomorrow and have nothing to wish for.

Join the Lord doesn’t mean entering a convent. She meant dying and going to heaven.

JW: Come on.
Mom: My son is sensitive and delicate. You’re beautiful like flowers. And you also easily get hurt like flowers. It’d be nice if you have a reliable life partner like Songhwa.

We all noticed that JW did NOT deny that it would be nice if he had a reliable life partner in life like Songhwa. He just switched topics.

JW: Mom, you’re turning 70 soon. I’ll send you on a trip. Tell me anywhere you want to go. I must book it now to get tickets. And we’ll have a birthday party, too. I’ll make sure you’re not lonely even without Dad here with us.
Mom: Forget it. I don’t want a party. No more throwing parties, okay? I’ll go somewhere close like Southeast Asia with Songhwa. Or should we go to the Jeju Island? The four of us can go together?
JW: Why are there four of us?
Mom: I must take Jongsu with me. He’s a lonely man.

Did you notice that, too? He was NOT opposed to going on vacation with Songhwa and his mom. He was wondering about the FOURTH person.

Like Taek’s dad, Rosa insisted that JW needed someone with him on the journey, that is, his “life journey.” Both parents had a certain girl in mind. Their parental instincts knew what kind of girl was suitable for their sons.

In Taec’s case, his dad had asked permission from her parents (she was only 18 years old) without Taec knowing. Her parents were unwilling at first because they didn’t think Deoksun could be a big help to Taec.

As for JW, his mom sent flowers to Songhwa directly (she’s 40 years old) without his knowledge, too. Songhwa probably didn’t think she should interfere with JW’s decision to enter the priesthood.

Fact #4. Mothers aren’t the only ones who nurture.

Girlfriends do, too.

In Reply 1988, it annoyed me to no end that JungHwan fans dismissed Deoksun’s affections for Taec as nothing more than “motherly”.

They saw DS do the following:

– lugged heavy luggage to China to prepare for TK’s comfort,
– risked the wrath of her sister by bringing their electric blanket to China to give to TK,
– COLOR-coordinated TK’s own clothes to wear, (when she didn’t even bother to choose the color of Junghwan’s pink shirt),
– berated management for a better room for TK (note: while she remained in her freezing room),
– stood out in the cold for an hour for his fusion Asian cuisine,
– pestered the concierge for unburnt eggs for TK (when there was a buffet breakfast available for them),
– waited for more than 10 hours for TK’s game to end while sitting on an uncomfortable chair.

All these, Deoksun did for Taek, but the JungHwan fans downplayed her time, energy, and effort as nothing but maternal instincts.

What the heck?

What more did she have to do to prove that she liked this guy IN SECRET for a long time?

Look: if a guy does similar nurturing acts for a girl, the viewers won’t see his actions as a “paternal.” They’d call it sweet, swoon-worthy, thoughtful, romantic. etc.

But because the gestures here were performed by Deoksun for Taec — and Taec couldn’t possibly be the husband — then her romantic actions were downplayed and belittled as “motherly.”

Take note: if the writer wanted to show that Deoksun’s feelings were merely maternal, Deoksun wouldn’t have worn Taec’s pink sweater.

That’s a trope for this kdrama writer. The couple don’t necessarily wear “couple outfits” but the girl certainly wears something that came from the guy. lol. That’s why the lead female in Reply 1997 broke down and cried when the sweaty tshirt she got from her idol was laundered. lol.

Now, if only the IJ’s fangirls open their eyes, they’ll see that Songhwa DOES NOT pamper IJ.

In fact, she messed up his bandages, and made his fingers look like they belonged to a frog. Viewers laughed, of course.

But IJ was right to complain that she tied them too tight, thus delaying his fingers’  healing.

And she didn’t feel sympathy that he was going to do surgery for what? 12 hours? wearing that Darth Vader’s helmet. Viewers laughed, of course.

But IJ was right to complain that she should have removed it first for his comfort.

See that?

Songhwa’s lack of “maternal” instincts for IJ was obvious to me. But I guess it wasn’t obvious to deluded fans.

I said this before: this writer is big on little details. She thinks that if you love somebody, you notice these little things about that person. And you do these acts of kindness, (“babying” as biased fans mock Deoksun and Taec) for that person simply because you care.

For instance, in their trip to China, Taec never knew until the end of his stay, that Deoksun was the reason he had been well-rested and ready for his tournament each  day. He said, “I ate really well this time around. I didn’t even miss one meal. I got great sleep, and the room was nice and warm. I was in peak condition this time.”

Deoksun did everything for him without resentment, without grudges. She was happy to go through the trouble for him. She didn’t mind that Taec didn’t know that she had been “mothering” (ha!) him.

 

In contrast, Songhwa bickered with IJ. She helped him but she was also annoyed that he inconvenienced her. She didn’t like that he was ungrateful after she treated him.

IJ: Had you not tied them so tight it wouldn’t have taken this long. Doctors who go overboard are always the problem.
Songhwa: What the hell? I got to the wedding 30 minutes late because of you.
IJ: Why go to a stranger’s wedding to begin with?
Songhwa: I was late because of you.
IJ: My hand is like this because of you.
Songhwa: I shouldn’t have helped you. You’re banned from my office.
IJ: Jeez, then you’re banned from my office too.

To me, the IJ fans don’t know what they’re talking about when they say that IJ is like Taec, and Songhwa is like Deoksun. It will take longer than three seasons for that ship to reach a happy ending if the fangirls expect to follow in the footsteps of Taec and Deoksun.