If Episode 4 centered around JungWoo’s mistaken belief that he was HaNeul’s first love, then this episode revolved around HaNeul’s growing suspicion that JungWoo was in love with her.
But before I begin, let me circle back to Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing.” In my Ep 4 highlights, I compared JungWoo with Benedick from the comedy. Benedick made much ado after he was fed a made-up story that Beatrice was madly in love with him. Similarly, JungWoo overreacted when he learned that he was HaNeul’s “first love” – a contention which HaNeul quickly disavowed.
In this episode, it was HaNeul’s turn to make a big fuss. She paralleled Beatrice in the play. Beatrice was tricked by her cousin Hero into believing that Benedick loved her. However, Hero said nothing good would come of such a match as Beatrice would only slay the poor man with her arrogant wit and scornful remarks. Her cousin deemed her unworthy of Benedick.
Hero. O god of love! I know he doth deserve
As much as may be yielded to a man:
But Nature never framed a woman’s heart
Of prouder stuff than that of Beatrice;
Disdain and scorn ride sparkling in her eyes,
Misprising what they look on, and her wit
Values itself so highly that to her
All matter else seems weak: she cannot love,
Nor take no shape nor project of affection,
She is so self-endeared.
Lol. If Shakespeare were a rapper, this could have been a diss track.
After overhearing her cousin’s description of her flaws, she vowed to change her ways. Like in Benedick’s case, this trick worked only because Beatrice had latent feelings for him.
Beatrice. [Coming forward] What fire is in mine ears? Can this be true?
Stand I condemn’d for pride and scorn so much?
Contempt, farewell! and maiden pride, adieu!
No glory lives behind the back of such.
And, Benedick, love on; I will requite thee,
Taming my wild heart to thy loving hand:
If thou dost love, my kindness shall incite thee
To bind our loves up in a holy band;
For others say thou dost deserve, and I
Believe it better than reportingly.
Keep this in mind for later.
The episode began with a flashback to their high school days. HaNeul couldn’t understand what the girls saw in JungWoo. They thought he was cool and kind when she considered him a show-off. Likewise, JungWoo didn’t get why the guys said that HaNeul was pretty. But in the present, they realized that their feelings have evolved.
JungWoo: But now, why am I happy to have you by my side? When I see you, why do I feel relieved?
HaNeul: Why do you come to mind first whenever I’m upset? Why do your words comfort me?
JungWoo admitted that he was happy to hear that her blind date was a flop. And HaNeul admitted that she was more than happy when he appeared at the train station. In her own words, her heart “raced a bit.” She was downplaying it, of course.
JungWoo: Lately, what’s been wrong with us?
1. The accidental sightseeing trip to Hwabon
Not only was HaNeul a good judge of character but she also possessed good intuition. She could sense that there was something more to his sudden appearance at the train station and she wanted him to say it out loud. So, she asked directly.
HaNeul: What? Why are you here?
JungWoo: Well. I thought you’d come back crying, so I came to pick you up.
HaNeul: How did you know that I’d cry?
She left him no choice but to reveal that KyungMin, his friend and her coworker, had sunk her job interview. He defended KyungMin’s action.
JungWoo: But you see, he didn’t do it out of spite. Word spreads fast, so everyone will eventually find out. And if they find out later and it becomes an issue, you’ll suffer more.
This is JungWoo’s character flaw.
Because he was decent, kind, and fair when dealing with others, he preferred to see good in everyone and to believe that everybody had only the best intentions. One example: he knew his high school buddies were “secretly taking most of the ad revenue” but didn’t object because he thought they needed the money.
Another example: he was too trusting when he hired the anesthesiologist two months earlier. In Episode 2, KyungMin called him out for it. He asked why JungWoo hired the man when a) JungWoo didn’t know him from Adam, and b) the man’s reputation wasn’t stellar. To me, JungWoo gave a rather weak answer that the man brought his resume in person. He assumed that the man had personal reasons for wanting confidentiality and he respected that.
The interesting thing here is that KyungMin scolded him for being so trusting.
KyungMin wanted him to be a more skeptical and less gullible. But apparently JungWoo didn’t learn his lesson. He gave KyungMin the benefit of the doubt by assuming that KyungMin had HaNeul’s best interest.
HaNeul: Well, that’s true. (pausing) By the way, why did you come to pick me up?
JungWoo: Huh?
HaNeul: I mean, even friends wouldn’t come out this far. Who’d come out all the way to Hwabon?
JungWoo: Well…
Hwabon is 136 miles or 219 km from Seoul. In comparison, Sokcho, where they watched the sun rise from the East Sea, is only 93.8 or 151 km from Seoul.
What’s next for them? Jejudo?
JungWoo was naturally caught off guard by HaNeul’s persistence. Fortunately, he caught sight of some tourist brochures and came up with a lie.
JungWoo: I came to sightsee. So what?
HaNeul: What?
JungWoo: It’s true that I was worried about you. So at first I was going to wait at Seoul Station. But then, I thought, “Have I been to Hwabon before?” And I realized I hadn’t. Since you’d already be in a bad mood, I thought we could get some fresh air and eat lots of good food. You know? So yes, I’m here to sightsee.
HaNeul: Ah I see. Sightseeing.
And that’s how they ended up touring Hwabon.
My comments:
a. I like this concept of healing. I get that they were given medication for their depression. But I like that this kdrama is showing how travel is another great way to heal mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion. Since HaNeul liked to recite the chemical reactions in the body, I’m going to borrow a page from her book and cite this:
“Travel is a powerful tool to combat stress and anxiety. Our brains thrive on new experiences, and travel offers a wealth of sights, sounds, and tastes to excite our senses. This triggers the release of dopamine and serotonin, natural chemicals that boost feelings of well-being and ease stress and anxiety.”
Source: https://paintedbrain.org
b. I wouldn’t mind if this show sends the couple off to explore different regions of South Korea every week. It would be more interesting to see the usual tropes adapted to the countryside.
For example, we saw a bike riding scene in “My Demon.” (Hmph! Who bikes in high heels??!)
Compared to the “My Demon,” the bike scene in this drama was more organic and less fatuous.
I like several things about this bike scene. I like the way HaNeul couldn’t easily erase her disappointment that he only came to Hwabon for sightseeing. She rued that her heart swooned all for nothing.
I also like how a leisurely bike tour suddenly turned into a competitive bike race. It was just what one might expect of two highly competitive individuals. She gave herself a headstart, and he maniacally laughed when he rode past her.
Most of all, I like that awkward pause when he was about to flick her forehead for losing to him.
To me, this was a sign of a shift in the way he regarded her. Whereas before he wouldn’t balk at flicking an opponent’s forehead hard, now he was conscious that she wasn’t merely an opponent, but a girl deserving a bit more gentleness.
When the flick didn’t happen, she opened her eyes. She noticed that they were standing too close to each other and stepped back. She didn’t expect his soft flick. That confused her more.
Do you see now how the bike scene in “Doctor Slump” was handled differently from “My Demon”? The couple didn’t ride the bike merely to show aegyo. Rather, it was created to convey a subtle shift in JungWoo’s regard for HaNeul.
c. That’s why HaNeul wasn’t buying JungWoo’s sightseeing excuse. From high school, she knew him to be “really childish and mean” so it was very strange of him to go all the way to Hwabon merely to comfort her.
d. Thankfully, her bestie said the quiet part out loud.
Bestie: What? He’s in Hwabon?
HaNeul: He just happened to come to sightsee.
Bestie: That’s an excuse. It’s obvious that he likes you. He was worried you were alone, so he went to comfort you.
HaNeul: Don’t be absurd.
Bestie: I’m not! He invited you to see the sunrise. Then, he went to Hwabon to comfort you. He’s totally into you. It’s 100% true.
HaNeul: No, he doesn’t!
Bestie: No, make that 200% or 300%.
HaNeul: I’m hanging up if you have nothing else to say. (to herself) Why does she keep talking nonsense? (fanning herself)
This is cute. She fanned herself every time she felt overheated or she blushed from embarrassing thoughts.
And that’s how HaNeul’s secret wish that JungWoo liked her turned into a sneaking suspicion which her bestie then validated as 100% true.
In a way, her bestie acted like Beatrice’s cousin in “Much Ado About Nothing.” it was she who put the idea in HaNeul’s head that JungWoo liked her. Though HaNeul dismissed her bestie’s talk as nonsense, deep down inside, she herself suspected that JungWoo was hiding his affection for her.
2. Staying overnight
While HaNeul was away taking phone calls from her mother and her bestie, JungWoo fell into a troubled sleep. He dreamt that he was in surgery again and his patient died on the table.
When HaNeul returned to the room, he had already woken up from his nightmare. She didn’t see him in a distress state so she didn’t understand why he wanted her to stay overnight.
Note here: he didn’t grab her wrist. He was gripping her wrist.
JungWoo: (gripping her wrist) Can you stay overnight with me?
HaNeul: Huh?
JungWoo: Stay with me.
HaNeul: (overthinking because of what her bestie had just told her)
JungWoo: Stay for a bit. Should we play Go-Stop?
HaNeul: What? Go-Stop?
JungWoo: I mean, I found these cards over here. You probably never played before. I’ll teach you.
HaNeul: Sure then. Let me just put my bag in my room.
Alone in her room, she got worked up about his odd request.
HaNeul: What’s the matter with him? Why would he grab my wrist? Why would he ask me to play Go-Stop so seductively? (fanning herself)
Here, she obviously got the wrong take. He didn’t meant to ask her “seductively.” Seduction was the last thing he had in mind. Rather, he was asking her desperately to stay because he did NOT to be alone after his night terror. But he tried to cover up his desperation with that lame invitation to play Go-Stop.
The whole time they played Go-Stop, she wanted to ask him more questions but couldn’t.
HaNeul: (voiceover) It was strange. Why did he have trouble sleeping? Why did he keep grabbing my wrist? Why did he ask me to stay with him? I had a lot of questions I wanted to ask him. But I couldn’t ask him anything that night. (fanning herself again)
The point here is that she could sense that something was wrong with him but she was distracted by her overwrought feelings of being with him that night. She was fanning herself because she was flushed with excitement.
Because she was making much ado about her own feelings, she missed seeing that he was in pain. It only clicked in her mind that he was suffering from PTSD after her own psychiatrist mentioned in passing that some doctors who were involved in medical accidents developed PTSD.
She rushed back to his rooftop home and hugged him.
JungWoo: What’s the matter?
HaNeul: It must have been so hard. It’s okay. It’ll all be okay. (voiceover) I felt his pain as if it was my own. And I felt his sadness come over both of us in that moment.
JungWoo: HaNeul-ah. I have no right to be happy. But just a moment ago, I missed you.
My comments:
a. “Shared joy is a double joy; shared sorrow is half a sorrow.” HaNeul said that she felt his sadness come over both of them. Figuratively speaking, when she shared his sadness, she was lightening his load.
b. He couldn’t be with HaNeul because in his mind, he had no right to be happy. That said, he couldn’t help missing her beside him. He equated HaNeul to happiness.
c. She would have recognized his emotional problem sooner had she not been caught up in her personal feelings for him. She was blind to his pain because she was focused on knowing whether he liked her or not.
d. Unlike HaNeul, JungWoo was aware all along of HaNeul’s emotional problems. He could read her better. He was able to help her deal with her problems while he struggled with his own pain. In a way, he was the “more mature” one. He could wrestle with his problem and hers at the same time, without complaints.
Have to continue this later.
@packmule, I like this comparison to “Much Ado About Nothing!” Thank you. 😊🍪 Cookie because I can’t find anything that would fit an Elizabethan dessert. The closest might be shortbread, but that is a traditionally Scottish thing and we know how Scotland and England felt about each other back then. Elizabethans probably would have preferred chocolate chip cookies anyway. Can you imaging the hit a cookie shop would have been? Cookie Baker to Her Majesty the Queen, or similar.
https://www.waitrose.ae/en/inspiration/royal-warrant-foods/
@Fern,
I read somewhere that this drama had an “old drama” feel. The insinuation there was it’s trite and cliché.
So I upped the stakes while agreeing with the opinion. Yes, this show certainly has an “old drama” feel since the exercise of squabbling between enemies-turned-lovers had already been attempted by The Bard no less. Sometime in the 16th century.
However, when compared to that recent hit “My Demon,” this drama is very much more original and novel.
Ah. “My Demon” strikes again. I’m not watching this drama. Merely reading @pm3’s take on it and sighing in relief that it’s different from My Demon.
Re. the comestibles with the Royal Warrant
I’m funny to know that the commoners have been eating food “approved” by the Monarchy when it should be the other way around. The royals have been eating food tried-and-tested, consumed, enjoyed, recognized, and approved by the commoners like us.
I could almost hear my forefathers declare, “As we hold this truth that all men are created equal to be self-evident, no monarchy shall impose its seal of approval on public goods and services.” 🙂
Oh, Much Ado about Nothing! I remember the 1993 movie version, so much fun, also star-studded. I’ll have to rewatch that. I’d watch anything with Emma Thompson in it. She was Beatrice.
Thanks @pm3 for this! I laughed so hard at the gifs of biking in high heels! It looked so weird and funny. Thank goodness I did not watch Demon.
Will comment more later. Gotta go to office today for hybrid work.
Thanks for a great analysis of HN’s and JW’s ability to understand and heal each other through their respective traumas @pkml3!! It sounds exactly right. I applaud JW for always putting others first. It has also become something others take advantage of, as you mentioned, but he continues to be others-centred even while suffering his own PTSD.
I hope he cottons on faster that he cannot keep trusting others too easily. Possibly HN will have to be alert to falseness on his behalf.
He’s going to be so upset or so mad to find out that Kyung Min whom he trusts is actually spying on him and possibly working against him. It’s sad. I wanted him to have another friend he could trust, like HN does. Probably the other client-less plastic surgeon might be a better friend?
I’ve actually paused MMH and prefer this Doctor Slump coupling more. Their getting together is more organic, and their taking baby steps towards a romance, while attempting to heal each other, is sweet to watch. 🙂
@packmule3, “I could almost hear my forefathers declare, “As we hold this truth that all men are created equal to be self-evident, no monarchy shall impose its seal of approval on public goods and services.” 🙂 Yes, they were my forefathers, too and I can imagine it. That being said, the monarchy generally has good taste (in foodstuffs), so the warrant is fairly reliable. The Brits won’t buy it *just* because it has the warrant. They are stubborn and will buy if it has a good flavour. TBH, most will automatically buy the brand their mothers bought before them because they are used to the flavour. Heinz Baked Beans (Brit version), I’m looking at you. 😝😄