Episode 9: Consolation vs Resolution

Just to be clear, here are the synonyms of the words.

Resolution = pledge, promise, commitment, resolve, decision, determination, tenacity

I’m sure you’ll find many examples of resolutions in this episode. Thank you. I don’t need to write about them.

Consolation = comfort, support, sympathy, commiseration, reassurance, compassion

To console someone is to give him comfort, be compassionate, sympathize and reassure him that things will get better.

But the funny thing about “consolation” is that it’s a “two-faced” word. It can mean the OPPOSITE of comfort, support, and encouragement. Take for example, a consolation prize. Nobody wants to get the consolation prize, especially the loser. Who aims to win the consolation prize? Everyone has his/her sight on the trophy. But it’s good sportsmanship and pride that compel the second-place finisher to accept the token prize with a smile.

To me, it’s this second, opposite, or “two-faced” meaning of consolation that Manager Park YongKwan was offering to MokHa. They were both observing trainees practicing their routine.

Manager: Kids like them are just hopeless. You see a lot of trainees like them in this industry. They confuse false hope with tenacity and think holding out is the best thing. In this business, moderate talent is pretty much a disaster.
MH: Disaster, my foot.
Manager: It’s true. They’re not just wasting their own time. They’re wasting the time and money others invest in them. Then, they end up regretting it. They think “Giving up requires courage too.”
MH: Are you trying to tell me something?
Manager: Those are just your insecurities.

My comments:

1. I think MokHa got the wrong end of the stick here. She was sensitive and prickly because of what BoGyeol’s stepfather said at the breakfast table about her “antis.” He said that they were just jealous of her.

2. The manager was speaking from experience; he was merely reflecting on HIS failed quest to stardom. He didn’t mean to diss or ridicule her. He had good intentions.

3. He was giving her consolation, that is, the “consolation prize” that I told you about. He anticipated her failing like him so, out of concern for her, he was warning her to not get her hopes up and to prepare for a big disappointment.

4. He was telling her that there was nothing pathetic or disgraceful about quitting. It also took courage to know and accept one’s limitations. He was reassuring her that quitting was fine because he had done it, too.

Manager: (continuing) And as for you, your life’s working out just as you planned.
MH: Hold on. Is that a compliment or are you just jealous?
Manager: What?
MH: If you’re ridiculing me for succeeding, does that mean you’re jealous? I’ll be on my way.
Manager: This is why I don’t like you. You’re so obnoxious.

And that’s when MokHa realized that he was the composer of the song she wanted to sing at the showcase. He most likely called himself “Stagnant Water” because he felt that he was going nowhere in his career.

A few days later, she gave him revised lyrics of his composition.

Manager: Yah! Come to your senses already. That archive is like a trash can. It’s the gutter where songs go when other artists reject them. Picking a song from there means that you’re nothing special. All of us…we’re all worthless, okay?

He instantly regretted his outburst. His insecurities were showing.

Manager: Couldn’t you have picked up on that before I had to say that to you?

He was exasperated with her partly because she was so naïve and clueless, and partly because she reminded him of himself when he started out.

Manager: I meant it when I said giving up required courage. I said that for your sake.
MH: Giving up requires courage, too? If that was the case, then I wouldn’t be here right now. On that deserted island, I would’ve been long dead by now.

This! The Manager’s ten-year struggle (was it 10 or fewer years?) in the entertainment industry paled in comparison to MokHa’s 15-year SURVIVAL on a deserted island.

His hardship <<<< her hardship; his courage <<<< her courage

So the Manager tried a different tack to convince her of the futility of her efforts.

Manager: What if you’re still a nobody after ten years? Wouldn’t you regret it?
MH: Well…I’ll probably regret it a little. But I’d regret it even more if I never even try. At least for ten years, I’d be doing what I love the most. So if your truly do care about me, then please give it a listen.
Manager: Aren’t you afraid of failing?
MH: Come on. They say failure is the mother of success. I’ll just take it as learning a lesson from another mother. And move on.
Manager: You must have several mothers.

Meaning, she must have failed a lot.

Then, he told her to do whatever she liked with his composition.

😂 She exhausted him so he gave up.

To me, this is a great example of consolation. It showed that there are occasions when consolation isn’t

There’s probably a few more examples of consolation. Off the top of my head, I can remember:

1. RanJoo’s mom giving her a key, (Was that a key to a safety deposit box?)
2. President Lee offering the Manager a job as a “consolation” for losing the contest, and
3. the dog welcoming RanJoo home.

But I must move on to the main point of my write-up or else, I’ll run out of time to comment on Episode 10.

Consolation vs resolution scene between BoGyeol and MokHa.

Remember this is MY interpretation. Take it or leave it. Don’t argue with me. The exit button is your friend.

BoGyeol thought that MokHa was consoling him after the beating he received from his father. She was bandaging his hand when she noticed that his hand was trembling. She must have been disconcerted because she always believed him to be undaunted and determined. The only other time he had shown trepidation was that time on the island when they were sitting at the pier at dawn, and getting ready to run away. Back then, he asked her if she didn’t regret coming to him.

He said that he didn’t have confidence. Though he only said it in passing, he was worried that he wouldn’t be able to get them through all the rough times ahead all on his own. He was worried that he would fail her colossally.

This time again, BoGyeol felt the same self-doubt and anxiety.

He had been told off by WooHak for secretly meeting with their father. WooHak believed it was a foolish move given that their father was capable of anything. BoGyeol was convinced however that their father would stop short of committing a criminal offence (i.e., murdering him). He said, “Reputation is important to our father. He’d never let himself become a criminal.”

While I know that his father is a criminal, I agree with BoGyeol that his father liked to keep up appearances.

Did you get why he did that? He left BoGyeol all the insurance money and invested all his paychecks into it because he wanted to keep up the pretense – his “reputation” – of being a loyal and loving father despite his son being an ungrateful bastard.

That’s why BoGyeol was certain that his father wouldn’t attempt to kill him. Filicide would irreparably damage his loving father image which he carefully crafted and maintained all these years. But WooHak pointed out that BoGyeol was basing his certitude on his 15-year-old memories. So to stop WooHak from nagging him, BoGyeol took responsibility. “Don’t worry. If I’m wrong…I’ll take responsibility.”

This whole “taking responsibility” is such a conversation-ender, isn’t it? How can you continue arguing when the guy already vowed to shoulder all the consequences of his decisions. As we say in Americanism, “the buck stops here.”

After WooHak left them, MokHa took care of BoGyeol’s injuries. She noticed his trembling hand. It was barely perceptible, but this sign of distress was so unexpected coming from the ever-confident, ever-strong, and ever-reliable BoGyeol that she looked at him in surprise.

It dawned on her that BoGyeol’s confidence was just for show. He looked defeated.

So, she called him, “Kiho-ya”

To me, it was fitting that she forgot to call him BoGyeol. Using his real name, KiHo, it seemed as if they were transported back in time and were replaying that moment on the pier 15 years ago, when young KiHo was worried about their future together.

BG: I’m not too confident. I said I’d take responsibility. But I’m not sure I can, MokHa.

BG: If I see my father again…I’m afraid…of what I’ll do…to him.

True. He was no longer afraid of his father’s punches anymore because he was tougher and stronger than ever before.

Ironically, however, it’s the fact that he was tougher and stronger that troubled him. He feared that should there be a provoking incident with his father or a moment of imminent danger, he could lose control of himself, and unleash his fury with deadly force. He was capable of injuring his father to the point of death. But he refused to give in to the rage inside of him and become a violent man like his father. That’s his greatest fear: to turn into a monster like his father.

Remember what he told his junior colleague at work? WooHad had the reputation of being “savage” (i.e., untamed, reckless, fearless) while he was the pushover. He corrected his junior colleague and assured him that it was the other way around. To me, he was always aware of the aggression within him, and mildness (or gentleness) was an acquired coping mechanism. His father exposed him to brutality but he reined in his emotions so he wouldn’t become his father’s son.

To strike back at his father is to walk in his father’s footsteps. There was an invisible line he never wanted to cross.

MH: (cupping his face) Don’t worry. You’ll never see him again. Nothing will happen.

To me, she meant two things. One, she planned to stop all encounters between BoGyeol and his father. Two, she planned to prevent BoGyeol’s anger from getting the better of him and destroying him. Just like KiHo took her away from her father, she intended to shield him from his father.

Spoiler: in Episode 8, when BoGyeol brought her to bed after her confrontation with his father, MokHa told him not to waste any emotion or time on his father. She said that his father wasn’t even worth the anger, and that the best thing to do about him was total erasure. To me, she sounded worried. She successfully prevented BoGyeol from meeting his father. But she worried that he would go after his father and retaliate for the attack on his family and MokHa. She was reasoning with him to stay cool.

BG: (holding her hand) But…But what if…

And then, she took him into her arms. She began to pat his back.

MH: There are no what-ifs. Never. It won’t ever happen.

Again, two meanings. One, he would never meet his father. Two, he would never become a monster like his father. She was going to prevent both scenarios from happening.

This was her resolution, her pledge, her resolve.

Then, the camera panned down from BoGyeol’s face to his bandaged hand. This was to show that his tremors had stopped. MokHa’s words consoled him.

BTW, this director is big on hands. Just like he likes to use banners in his kdramas, he likes to focus on the hands of the male characters. In “Start Up” for instance, Dalmi measured her hand against Dosan, and observed how big his hands were. She also bandaged his hands after he smashed the glass to defend Dalmi.

Big hands are supposed to convey strength, dependability, and protection. (Lol. Stop your dirty thoughts, though. I know what you’re thinking….) 

MH: You went through so much today. Now, it’s all over. It’s okay. Really. It’s okay.

She hugged him tightly. And his eyes closed.

My comments: 

1. Yes, he needed this hug.

2. This scene is emotional because we’re watching events coming full circle. Fifteen years ago, young KiHo and young MokHa found each other. They didn’t realize that they were both victims of child abuse.

Now, they were hugging as survivors of child abuse. The scene is meant to be cathartic because the hug was a long time coming.

KiHo: She was nothing more than a brainless fangirl.
Mokha: He was a money-grubbing lunatic. Back then, we thought we’d have absolutely nothing in common.
KiHo: But little did we know, in that hot summer of 2007, that we were in our own different season.

I said their school uniforms were significant. All their classmates were wearing short sleeves because they were dressed for the hot summer weather in 2007. Only the two of them were dressed as if it was either springtime or autumn outdoors. He was wearing a coat; she was wearing a long-sleeved blouse. It wasn’t obvious to them, then but they were dressed out-of-season to hide the black-and-blue bruises on their arms.

3. For MokHa, the nightmare already ended. She found her closure. In the beginning of this episode, she recounted to BoGyeol how she found her father’s dead body washed up on the beach. BoGyeol assumed that she must have been terrified; she denied it saying that she felt sadness. When she could view the past without rancor or bitterness, then we know that she had her closure.

4. Noteworthy: her scenes as she was recounting her story were edited and spliced to show BoGyeol’s confrontation with his father. While she was telling BoGyeol that she was sad about her father’s unfortunate life, BoGyeol was getting badly beaten up.

To me, this editing was a good call because dovetailing her story with BoGyeol’s thrashing achieved two things. First, it gave the illusion that BoGyeol was remembering MokHa’s words WHILE he was getting beaten up.

Two, it showed how MokHa’s story gave BoGyeol resolve.

He was able to bear the beating because he viewed his father as a pitiful, miserable man who was taking out his frustrations on him, just like MokHa viewed her dad. Both their fathers should have found a way to create their own happiness but didn’t.

I like that BoGyeol warned his father that if he ever went near his family or MokHa again, he wouldn’t hold back. In effect, he told him that those people were HIS happiness and he would permit him to take them away from him.

5. But unlike MokHa, BoGyeol’s nightmare hadn’t ended yet. The fifteen years were only given a temporary respite. His abuser was still alive and searching for him and the others. So, he assumed that he had to face his abuser on his own. He assumed (incorrectly, of course) that he must take charge of the situation by himself. He also assumed incorrectly that the responsibility of containing their father was his alone.

And he assumed incorrectly that all MokHa was doing her was to offer him was consolation and comfort.

6. Note this: when MokHa kept repeating words of reassurance like she did here, “You went through so much today. Now, it’s all over. It’s okay. Really. It’s okay.” you have to wonder who she really was reassuring. Was it BoGyeol? Or was it herself?

I think it was both. Outwardly, she was reassuring BoGyeol. But inwardly, she was reassuring herself, too, that everything would be fine in the future. You see, as she was comforting him, the idea finally came to her that the best way — the only way — to stop BoGyeol from hurting again was to attain her goal of becoming a musical legend.

She knew it was an uphill battle so she was reassuring herself like a mantra, “It’s okay. Really. It’s okay.” This was her resolve, her decision, her determination to help him, speaking.

Hence, in a voiceover, BoGyeol said, “Those words MokHa said weren’t of comfort. They were words of resolve, but I realized it too late.”

My comments: 

1. For sure, he was consoled and comforted by MokHa’s presence. He was no longer distressed. His hand stopped trembling. That said, if he only knew what she was about to do *for* him, then fear would have gripped his heart once again.

Why?

2. I haven’t watched Episode 10. (I will tonight.) But I can guess what MokHa’s resolution is. She resolved to become a Diva. That night, as she was hugging BoGyeol, she discovered what she had to do.

See her clear eyes? That’s resolve.

3. To echo BoGyeol’s words from 15 years ago, she had to become a singer. And not just any singer. She needed to become so famous that no one would dare mistreat him, not even his father.

It was her turn now to rescue him. She must become a Diva, not only for herself, but also for him. That’s her do-or-die mission because at stake was his existence.

But of course to become a Diva, sacrifices would have to be made. There was already foreshadowing in Episode 1 when KiHo told her that she must forget everyone on the island, including her bestie and even himself. She would have to sacrifice people.

4. Mokha was making good on her promise to him. Fifteen years ago, she resolved to take care of him.

MH: Here on out, I’m going to take really good care of you, okay?
KiHo/BoGyeol: You are? This isn’t a proposal?
MH: What? I wasn’t going to propose. Just listen. I was promising that I’ll take care of you like an adult.
KiHo/BoGyeol: “Adult”? You? How?
MH: Now that I know RanJoo picked me for my singing, I probably have a set career as an artist. This puts me on a new level. You’re just a kid. I’m a public figure.
KiHo/BoGyeol: “Just a kid”? Oh wow.
MH: (grabbing him by the shoulders) Your studies are what’s important now. The rest will be up to me, all right? Just be cool. I gotcha.
KiHo/BoGyeol: Pffft. Like I can trust you.

Her lost years on the island were just a detour. She could start taking care of him “like an adult” now. Her promise back then is now a resolution.

5. Also, back in middle school, she announced her promise publicly and loudly because she had the subtlety of a bullhorn. This time, she knew better. Actions speak louder than words.

6. BoGyeol’s mother’s words came true again. She said, “If you wish for something with all your heart, one way or another, it’ll come true one day. And it’ll happen in an unexpected way.”

BoGyeol wished that MokHa would become a famous artist. He couldn’t have foreseen that she would be driven away from his side again to make his wish come true.

All in all, if you ask me which one is more integral to the progress of MokHa and BoGyeol’s relationship, consolation or resolution, I would say resolution.

Good night.