61 Comments On “Queen of Tears: Eps 15 & 16 Open Thread”

  1. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Thanks @pkml3! I figure I’ll be more angry than tearful because I expect loads of crap from Eun Sang. However, I’ve got my box of tissues ready for the finale!! 🙂

  2. I’m game for a rewatch. I just need to know the exact time and day. 😃

    I’m a sucker for this drama. I wonder why? 🙄😂

    Kumawo! 🌷🙇🏻‍♀️

  3. I shed so much tears in Ep14. The new trailer TVN released for Ep15 is promising and more positive. Haein following Hyunwoo just like the first time she fell for him and followed his bus.

    Finale weekend!!!

  4. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Hi @Diane, that’s what I was hoping for… that the heart will want what it wants, and Hae In always was attracted to HW. I guess it will be some 8-9 hours before I may get it subbed and up for us to view. Counting down . . .

  5. Enjoyed the cameo of the comic book store owner character from My Love From Another Star.

    Though, as much as I’m liking this drama, some of it is too predictable.

    Spoiler for ep 15:

    It was inevitable that he’d be in danger and would get hit by a car. Now that her health is no longer in danger and so the separation anxiety is resolved then the “twist” had to come from his life being in danger.

    Seeing them at the crosswalk meant we just knew that he’d get hit by a car (or maybe I’ve just watched too many dramas).

    I predict a happy ending though – which would be wonderful. I’ll miss the characters and this show a lot when it’s done.

  6. 😂 Without watching the beginning, I scrolled to see how Ep 15 would end. As soon as I saw them running on opposite side of the street trying to get to each other, I had that ominous feeling that the cliffhanger would nosedive into makjang/soap opera territory.

    Spoiler alert:

    1. She vanished into thin air
    2. He was hit by a car
    3. Bloody end

    😂😂😂

    There’s no escaping this makjang hell.

  7. I haven’t seen it yet but who wouldn’t think that there won’t be an accident/truck of doom when they’re both running on opposite sides of the road and it’s the end of the episode? Us kdrama watchers should know that off by heart.

    How much suffering does Hyun-woo and Hae-in need to go through? 🙄

    The writer better give us lots of happy times and kisses tonight. I’ve never wanted to see another kiss especially after the last one on episode 5!!! 😭

  8. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    @pkml3,
    Queen of Tears Ep 15
    I skipped watch until the part where HI is looking through her empty drawers and listening to her MP3 player. I’ll probably only watch the end of Ep 15 and then jump to Ep 16. Can’t bear watching scenes where we get the lies of Eun Sang.

    I did say on the LR thread that this show was going into predictable territory, which means I can pretty much ignore Ep 15 and parts of 16. Now that you mention makjang, all the more I’d like to avoid a proper watch of 15.

    Plothole: family should not have let only HW go to Germany. After hearing that he’s imprisoned they should have gone over to support HI. She’d have been alone… instead they just let ES do it???

    Camera focus: The notebook was not fully burnt to ashes when the snow came down and presumably put out the fire. So it should turn up in Ep 16 if not earlier.

    Plot point: If HI is smart, then seeing all the drawers empty should wise her up to someone hiding stuff from her, and hence lying as well. The main person talking and filling her head with info had been ES. Her logical conclusion should be that he’s the most suspicious character.

    I had hoped that listening to the MP3 would have jogged her memory or what’s left of it. But I’ll have to watch more to see.

    🥗🍊🥞🍉☕🥪🥛🍪🌷🌾🌹 🥗🍊🥞🍉☕🥪🥛🍪🌷🌾🌹

    BTW, @pkml3, I’ve done up a schedule for the Rewatch of Signal. So far, the majority of regular rewatchers are fine with this. Please put this up for the Rewatch Thread of Signal. Many thanks!

    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18NCxv3slRaamb3oK-CZAWH3o3DuLyte8/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=107152512466791964570&rtpof=true&sd=true

    🥗🍊🥞🍉☕🥪🥛🍪🌷🌾🌹 🥗🍊🥞🍉☕🥪🥛🍪🌷🌾🌹

  9. @GB – the notebook did not burn and was sent back to Hae in. She read the content from that and then called HW to meet him. ES knew that something was amiss when HI did not ask her question – ES already had a tracker on HI car – so he knew when she went to meet HW. HI saw ES hand and realized that he was fabricating information about himself and her family.

    Even though HW got hit by the car, there is going to be a happy ending and as pkml3 said, a makjang with so many things happening till the last moment.

  10. 🤪 Never mind Hyunwoo and Hae-in suffering. What about us viewers?! After putting us through the wringer for 15 weeks, we DESERVE a HEA.

    I was imagining a vehicle hitting one person first then ricocheting and hitting the other person, kinda like a bowling ball. 🎳

    I must give the directors credit though. The screenwriter didn’t pen anything new. We’ve seen this vehicle-of-doom trope countless times. But the camera shots, editing, the falling snow, the pedestrian light, and background music were on point.

    For example, in that parallel street running, the camera filming Hyunwoo was on the opposite side of the street; it was fairly stationary. The impression given here was that we were Hae-In’s shoes watching Hyunwoo.

    In contrast, the camera filming Hae-in was right beside her. In fact, we could see HyunWoo from her perspective, that is, from over her shoulders. And since the camera was following her as she ran down the pavement, it was shaky.

    We were meant to identify with Hae-In. We were supposed to feel her unsteadiness, her anxiety, her angst.

    The scene tugged at our heartstrings because we *were* Hae-In. The scene would have felt differently if we were seeing it from Hyunwoo’s POV. 🙂

    This kdrama! I knew this episode was going to be a train wreck but I couldn’t stop myself from watching it. 😂😂😂 I only put it in hold while I was in Seoul so I wouldn’t be distracted.

  11. 100% AGREE!!! What about us viewers? 😂 I look forward to that scene, Queen.

    The final episode will be 1 hour and 50 minutes, so 30 minutes should be to finish all the angst and the rest I pray will just be what we and BaekHong DESERVE like you said. Give us all the feels!!! ❤️❤️❤️

  12. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Thanks @angelwingssf, @pkml3 and @agdr03, you’ve saved me the trouble to watch Ep 15. I’ve got some work to do today, so I’d prefer to spend my leisure time on something less annoying. 😉

  13. Annyeong,

    Yes Thanks PM3 for the thread. So you were in Seoul!!?? Cool.

    Ep 15 ~ here’s my recap reactions

    I can’t believe ES burned HI’s journal with the lucky charm keychain 😭 so heartless. Despicable man. Oooh maybe the rain and snow will keep it in tact. Yes!!!! It did 👏🏽

    Gossip among the nurses. Who is the real fiancé? We all know who! Ugh! ES you can’t buy love! K aigooo

    Omg ES is weaving a web of lies!!! ES is totally making HW a bad guy and making HI suicidal. Omo. Yea he’s a good actor 🤯 poor HI she’s being deceived. So sad.

    HW in the interrogation room. Detective is clueless. 😓

    One month later, they’re back in Korea. ES had time to brainwash HI and made her family look bad. It’s too bad none of them made the time to visit her in Germany. So sad coz ES is the one exploiting her. I don’t think ES knew that she pulled out the divorce papers. So all these time HW has been in prison 😳

    ES confronts his mom about her murderous intent on HI and she confirmed it. He threatens to reveal the video of her also trying to harm the already dead chairman if she tries it again. They’re enemies now.

    Instead of visiting HI in Germany, the family hired some detectives LOL the comics store people from that show “my love from the star” am I right??? Omg. Yes I am. @Cherie confirmed this. Cool.

    HI went back to their old house and find all the drawers empty. She goes to HW’s bedroom and finds her old mp3. She listens to it and figures she will use it to know her “enemy” coz she doesn’t know herself either haha.

    HI visits HW in prison coz deep in her heart, there’s more to HW’s case. I love how teary eyed HW was the whole time, how caring he was to her and restating his promise to her. This took HI by surprise and she came out with her heart palpitating, she needed medicine haha.

    The big difference between HW and ES- HW left her heart racing. HI doesn’t want ES in her room and is not pleased with his touch or presence either. Yes! (More of this in the epilogue)

    Whose car got a tracking? HI?

    HI back at the office. The old workers have signed an NDA. 2 people have come to thank her for her generosity and that made her feel like She’s a Mother Theresa 😀. She will reinstate old secretary Na- coz she needs her, her external hard drive. yes!!

    A lot of people are working with HW and getting evidence that was not submitted. After providing decisive evidence during the hearing… the real culprit is caught!!! Yes!!! HW is acquitted!!! So proud of his team!!

    HI is so cute. She was there at the release of HW and she’s like a detective, writing down facts about HW on her journal- #1 he has an amicable family and #2 he doesn’t like tofu. 😅. secretary Na said she’s more of a stalker than her supposed “stalker” HW 🤪

    To celebrate HW’s release, the family store is having a half off sale 😎 Dad DG is feeling generous.

    I love how HI followed HW all the way to Yongdu -ri. Fact #3 he likes red bean porridge. secretary Na wonders why HI doesn’t know whom she truly loves. She can’t say but she told her “your heart lies where your body goes” 😍 which she is doing currently hehe

    Back in Germany, HI’s journal is found and HW had asked for it. Yes!! I was thinking it will be mailed to HI but then it might get intercepted by ES.

    Aunt Beom also came to provide a party for HW complete with prizes!!! Daebak . She was saving the best for YS but he gave it away. Beom is disappointed 😢 she goes after him and confesses not knowing it was heard by the town folks. Omo. The mic was live LOL So funny how SC just let it all unfold without stopping her. 🤣

    DH is being held by her baby daddy. SC goes after the van on his bike. He’s gotten pretty good
    on the bike. He got beaten up following the advice of his master then overpowered them like a superhero. He faints and his master finishes off the last goon. DH and SC has a sweet moment when she ran to him and held him and getting all emotional.

    HW and Hi had a talk upon his return to work. Funny how she thought he was holding her back. But it was her bag that got caught on the chair. 🤪

    The journal has arrived at HI’s house. But Grace interrupted and she didn’t get to open it ugh. Yes why is HI getting fooled by ES but not her haha

    Both HI and HW got an invite to the aquarium. HI set it up a month ago and 4 years ago. Daebak!! I loved how they set up the projection with the backdrop of the tank. Awww their wedding video. The flowers and card. HW told HI to start doubting and not believe ES. She noticed his hand has a stitch scars.

    HI went to see a drunk ES and she noticed 2 things: ES has video footages of the chairman’s office and his right hand does not have stitch scars. He wants them to move to the US 🫤

    Back at her house, she got HW’s number and set up a meet. The. She finally opened the package from Germany and started reading. 😭 “if you’re still confused, just remember this. He’s the reason why I didn’t want to lose my memory and even if I did, he’s the reason why I wanted to live. BHW is the reason why I want to remember forever .” 💕

    HI is running out of the house. She’s crying as she drives. ***Oh no, it is HI’s car that has the tracking 😱 and sure enough ES got notified 🙄

    Hi and HW are on opposite side of the street. HW told her to stay there. That darn stop light!! The bus covered HI and when it passed, she was gone. HW crosses and got hit by a car 🙄🫨🫣😤😫😩 ugh!!! Really!!

    Epilogue. The detectives share their findings while in Germany. ES showed much care to HI while recuperating but she ended up turning him down in many occasions. They concluded he will place the family in grave danger. And that’s when we showed him run over HW 🤬

    So who took HI??

    Preview. HW will undergo surgery and after he will go find HI somewhere in the mountains? Ugh.

    @pm3 I agree, welcome to makjang world 🫣🥺😩😫😤😳

  14. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Thanks @HK_Lady! Another thorough and succinct recap. I think if I watch, I’ll just target the times when HI stalks HW. LOL.

  15. @pk3, @agrd3, and @GB – we definitely deserve a HEA. 15 weeks of push and pull, wringing out, I need more than 5 minutes of happy time and a time skip – NO! I need more, hopefully the entire episode – who am I kidding? wishful thinking is all.

    Anyway, enjoying watching it on the train while travelling in Switzerland. Beautiful alps, and awesome train rides

  16. Where are my kisses??? 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

    Where do I send an official complaint??? 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

  17. Annyeong,

    You’re welcome @gb. Maybe my recap will help @agdr who doesn’t want to watch all the angst of ep 15 haha.

    @pm3 I appreciate the analysis of ep 15 ending – pointing out how the director made us feel like we’re HI. Makes me want to watch that part again even with all the angst it made us feel. The director made us feel anticipation that we just want them to reunite – back in each other’s arms. With HI feeling all sorry for HW which she predicted she may end up doing (ignoring him) – I love her journal- she wrote it giving herself all the possible scenarios that could happen after the surgery.

    I wanna know how she just vanished esp when we know that ES was in the car seeing them both at opposite ends and then his mad self gunning for HW.

    And the preview on the snowy mountain… feels like their lives are in danger again. Yes we just want a happy ending. @agdr I also hope we get one hour of happy ending vibes and only 30 min of makjang hell per @pm3 haha

  18. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    @agdr03, true, true, I know how you feel. We’ve been let down. That was a happy ending but why does it feel like this?

  19. I agree with you @ Growing beautifully why do I feel this way? So much misery for a family that seemed to have it all.

  20. Hello all 🥺🥺
    It’s been too long since I feel so awkward by the ending of a drama that I think I need to go here and read all your comments the drama experts..

    And I am sure I am not the only one. Agdr, GB, Kelley….. you guys feel it tooo right?!?!? I am not crazy right ?!?!?!?!?!?
    I feeel so heartbroken by the end of this episode and I didn’t understand why. I felt this ache last night.

    My logic: ok, every makjang antagonist characters have reached their miserable fate. Ok, our main couple are back together now. We even get to seee the glimpse of their child. The sides couple : beomja auntie and soocheol+dahye also have the heartwarming scenes. Even hyunwoo’s sister (i thought i could see one more of cameo in this drama, as her husband, but no, i just have to be happy with the plane ticket and how the husband relayed i love you towards his father-in-law) this scene still feel nice for me.

    My heart: why do i feel so empty and sad about the main couple. I don’t understand. I think i am crazy. I feel the happy ending so bittersweet for me. Is it because the timeline has been stretched to the 50 years later in the future. The scene of the old guy visiting a grave brought flowers. I remember this scene when Hae in saw this man and suddenly the man is disappeared. I remember HI told HW whether he would be like that when HI already gone. And to top it off, the scene in lavender field. Oh why oh why. HI with the white dress, as the angel who will pick HW soul from this earth. I watch too many fantasy drama, and this is exactly the scene when some Haraboji who love his wife so much, reaching his end of lifetime and imagining the scenes when he would follow her to death. The wife will be young again, the wife will turn her back looking so angelic, and she will take the husband hand to bring him to heaven.
    No no no no why this is tooo sad for me to be the ending of this drama. I don’t need this kind of scenes. I just need it to be end with like a wedding or the xx-th honeymooon. More cute scenes between the couple. Why do i have to see these scenes 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

    Hhhhhhh.. i am so sorry.
    I never write any of my thoughts before for this drama. But suddenly I feel so … i don’t know i just want to let it out. Where can Ifile my official complaint?!?!?! 😭😭😭😭🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹

  21. Moonstar512,

    I feel the same way dkdkdkd I wish we saw more glimpses of them being happy instead of a montage. I also don’t know how to ease this pain. It’s such a bittersweet ending that my heart hurts just by thinking about it.

  22. Howdy! I haven’t seen the last episode but I know that there wasn’t any kisses, only one sweet kiss in the cheeks. 🥰

    That was my complaint.

    I’ll come back after I watch it. ☺️

  23. Thank God I wasn’t the only one disappointed with this HEA. I felt some scenes dragged on in both eps 15&16. And did we really not get one long passionate kiss in the finale? They both had great kissing scenes in their previous dramas so, “Ottoke?! Weh?!”

  24. 😂😂 I’ll take the HEA.

    I was so bummed out about the ending of “Crash Landing With You” (long distance relationship + inexecutable marriage = unresolved ending), that this is still an improvement.

    On a side note, I’m glad “Queen of Tears” broke CLOY’s viewing record. 🎉🎉

    I always thought the numbers were hyper-inflated and thus, an aberration. Back in 2020, a) the world needed a distraction from the COVID scare, b) the home isolation and social distancing meant we were glued to our TVs and laptops as our primary source of entertainment, and c) many viewers were neophytes to the kdrama scenes/tropes and they just lapped up all the over-the-top romantic scenes in CLOY without discernment.

    It was hard to argue that the screenwriter was engaged in cliches that we kdrama veterans had seen many times, when the newbies were so enthralled by them all. To them, the love between Capt Ri and Seri was the greatest thing since sliced bread — or Romeo and Juliet. 🙄🙄🤪🤪🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️

    I think this drama deserves a second look if only to assess the consistency in the writer’s style, organization, and worldview.

    Of course, it also helps that the main actor is muy simpatico. I still remember when I first saw him weep in “The Moon Embracing the Sun.” He realized that he had been unwittingly torturing his long-lost childhood friend and sworn lover, so he broke down in tears. I typically don’t like to watch grown men crying, but Kim Soo Hyun did it so prettily that I wanted to pat his back and say, “There. There. It’ll be okay.”

    Off to watch now.

  25. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    @agdr03, @Kelley, @moonstar512, @Foreverinreverie, @Say08

    It wasn’t just the lack of kisses, warm hugs and total absence of grand couple times that spoiled this ending… it was the wrong kind of ending for this kind of show.

    We are not alone. I didn’t go elsewhere to see what rants there may be in other comments but I’m sure there are many who’ve faithfully followed this bittersweet series, expecting a warm, uplifting ending and enough suggestions in the end that would enable us to imagine a happily ever after for the families and our main couple. By that I mean that we get to SEE their faces, see them HAPPY and laughing, and having great family times together, with their child or children, with their parents and siblings, with their faithful friends and co-workers, etc. ‘See‘ is the operative word here.

    The Opening Credits OST has that conditional phrase…”As long as you stay with me…” It seems that this is the main premise to define the love of this couple, and yet, no long scenes of happy couple conversations, no long scenes of sweet gestures from HI as a wife or ordinary warm meals between husband and wife. We get plunged into their estrangement very quickly and stay there for a long time.

    And in the Opening Credits we get to see them as newborns, babies, toddlers, kids, teens, adults, dating… and it seems Show thinks we need to see the whole life cycle so in Episode 16 we see them elderly and dead!!! As long as they stayed together until death, it was supposed to be sufficient for viewers. How wrong it is!

    So, what happened with that montage of dating and couple times that we get to see in the opening credits? How about the smattering of shots where they were together and romantic? They are not fleshed out at all. There is insufficient time given to flashback memories of any of those times before their first marriage. They were just shown to us to tease, and then nothing further when they are married and are together. In the end they essentially behaved like acquaintances with cheek-pecking privileges, and nothing more.

    I know that we are supposed to rejoice that their motto of always being beside each other held through until the end. So, what was it that we were meant to be satisfied with? … Did I get the date right? (I’m too cheesed off to go back to check!!!) Hae In was born in 1999 and died in 2074, and HW was still around to mourn her, so they had some 50 years together. From a real-life point of view, that’s supposed to be pretty good for a marriage. From a drama viewer’s point of view, showing that kind of ending without first showing us the joy that our couple enjoyed for many of those years is a cop out.

    I can’t imagine how the Show makers can think that not showing us the faces of our leads as the years passed with just a montage of feet climbing up the stairs in Germany is meant to satisfy viewers.

    Worst of all, it didn’t end off on a note of liveliness with joyful anticipation of more life together, but on a note of death, with a voiceover speaking of it as still being together (in spirit) while waiting or anticipating being together in death. I can understand this type of ending in a show like Hotel Del Luna, which has already clued us in to the needful end, but it was not necessary for Queen of Tears where we needed to look no further than the next 2 years of their lives together, knowing that they both survived and were happy.

    This is really one of the first shows where I am able to say that it was a ‘happy’ ending with every conflict resolved and pretty bows tied like a gift for each character’s ending, but that it left a sour taste in the mouth that won’t go away.

  26. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    @pkml3, Enjoy your watch of Ep 16.

    Well, perhaps we can say that after Crash Landing we should have been warned. But at least Crash Landing had more lengthy couple interactions that felt romantic and warm.

    This writer’s happily ever after is just the fulfillment of a ‘commitment’ to being faithful when apart or separated by death, without needing the feels. The assurance of the commitment is sufficient for Writer-nim and the romance is just a happy side-effect.

  27. Yeah, I heard it was a major letdown. I haven’t seen it yet but based on my friends’ rants and spoilers I’ve read, I am not at all looking forward to watch it. But I suppose I kind of expected it with the way this writer ends her dramas. I hope the special episodes deliver! Maybe they will show us the scenes we have all been craving for this long-suffering couple.

  28. @GB,
    I could not agree more on what you’ve written above. This is the first time maybe, I feel that the happy ending could feel worse than the sad ending. On the sad ending, at least it was a clean slate. But an ending like this Show, that give us the sour taste like you said… really dragged to the bone. Hahaha. I ironically laughed because I couldn’t find a best word to describe my feeling towards the writer.

    I’m starting to assume that the writer initially didn’t want to give us the happy ending. But maybe the investor, the production house, etc. Pushed her to give the happy ending, but to satisfy her own desire, the viewers got to see the Unnecessary scenes on ending. Like, yes I know, all the people will be dead in the end. However, I hope to watch this Show not to be thrown back into the reality life we live in. I want to get inside their sweet moments.. or what about HI filling the candy jar, making new sweet memories with HW. That’s one of my purpose on watching this drama. But no, the Show don’t care about what the viewers want to *SEE*.

    Really.. Even having meal with conversations between all characters would be nice and enough for me.
    😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨

  29. Hi Moonstar512 and GB

    You summed up perfectly what I wanted to say. And yes the montage from episode 1 was what I hooked me from the beginning, I was intrigued and I wanted to know how they’ll fall in love again only for the writer to resolve everything in episode 16.

    I also laughed and smiled through the pain at the ending like I know it’s HEA but still I wish we had more of their married life moments. I watched this to escape reality but they definitely brought me back with that ending

  30. Annyeong,

    I know not everyone is happy with the HEA of QOT but… here’s my

    EP16 ~ finale recap reactions 🥹

    Omo it’s not ES who’s in the car of doom. Who is that???
    So we know who got HI now, don’t we. Omo

    As HW is being wheeled to surgery, flashback to his proposal at the aquarium. HI has forewarned her about her family. HW had no idea what her family is like before he proposed? Why had he not meet the family first? But I like what he said about siding with her even though she sides with her family. That’s what marriage is. I laughed with them when HW shared that he was duped by scammers. I loved his proposal. Realist yet romantic at the same time. Almost like a vow really.

    HI wakes up in someone’s bedroom. More likely ES 🫤

    The parents went to the hospital but HW is gone.

    HI managed to escape the bedroom but was dumbfounded when she saw ES in the living room with a gun. HI is smart when she tried not to provoke ES. She has to play dumb. But ES has other plans about leaving and getting married.

    HW used Grace again to have Ms Moh locate where HI is before he left the hospital. Ms Moh finds out that all the $$$ has been by converted to dollars by ES. She leaves the house. HW and atty YG follows her entourage of cars. The procession led them to the Hong Villa where they hunt.

    HW goes in by foot. We see the snow falling, the silhouette of the snow covered trees. HW is not in a good condition to be doing this rescue 😓.

    HI overhears ES and Ms Moh talk about when Su-wan died. She caused it the accident. She was disappointed that HI made it alive then😳 and that’s because HW saved her. And he does it again tonight. ES saw them running away and he goes after them with a shotgun.

    HW wanted HI to go ahead to the main gate but HI won’t leave her. She revealed to him that she knows everything now. Even the part about being in the same boat (his proposal). So HW holds on to her and they clasped hands as they escape through the snowy forest.

    ES is in his jeep and sees them. The police arrives and YG opens the gate for them. As ES stops in front of them, the helicopter 🚁 hovers above them.

    HI confesses that ES made her feel uneasy even though she didn’t have her memory. I think when she said “over my dead body” that triggered him. As police surrounds ES, he brings his gun up and aims for HI. He fires and HW took the bullet instead. EScreloads his gun then the police fires on him before he takes another shot. Daebak. ES dead body drops in the cement. We see HI’s necklace on him. HW slowly falls onto the white snow as it turns red blood. Hi is crying 😭 and screaming.

    In the ambulance, HW is losing more blood. He raises his hand and HI grabs it. Before HW goes into surgery scene is so much like when Hi went to her surgery. HI remembers that moment. She cried and felt to bad that she mistreated HW.

    Meanwhile, Ms Moh and her goons found the money. The police came and informed her of ES’s death. Flashback to when she abandoned ES as a boy 😭

    HI’s parents are looking at a family album – the last summer at the beach in particular when SW drowned. They were interrupted by Beom with bad news.

    HW’s parents are back in the hospital where they saw HI and introduced themselves. Hi cried some more saying sorry. HW’s mom reassuringly hugged her.

    Intertwined fate. The moms talk about the beach event where HI’s mom blamed HI for the death of her brother. How she didn’t realize somebody saved HI from drowning. And how she was too preoccupied by the loss to know who even saved HI. HW’s mom encouraged her to let go of the past, pray HW pulls through and be grateful moving forward. I love how the parents bond in this show.

    Ms Moh confirmed ES’s death and wants all his shares transferred to her. She continues to aim for the chairmanship. Ms Moh got the iPad with the incriminating videos and threw them in the river 🙄

    The family gathered to hear the good news that HW pulled through. He’s still unconscious.

    HI is on HW’s hospital bedside with no sleep or food 😳. She feigns fainting Miss Drama Queen HI 👏🏽. HW wakes up and held on to her coz she was gonna call the doctor. They both felt sorry for their failures. It’s a 2 way street. I like how HW was able to reach out to gently touch her face and cup her cheek. *swoon 💕 I’m glad they had this moment before the family came and broke their moment. But the family moment that followed was equally sweet.

    I like when Secretary Na shared what she learned from the drama unfolding before their eyes. That abstract nouns like love, friendship, faithfulness and loyalty may not be visible but they definitely exist. Plus they’re the most powerful.

    Divorce Atty KYG and HI finally met in the hospital. He reminded her that it’s pointless to dig into the past and to just worry about HW who is blinded by love and sacrificed himself for her. HI commended him for being a good friend. He was flattered and said “the truth always reveal itself in tough times”. And that’s why HW realized how much he loves HI.

    Love is in the air. HI read the last thing she wrote to herself – not to let go of HW. She left the room and when she returned, the journal is on the table. HW wrote a reply to her last note- “I won’t let you let go. I’m still here” 💕 HW is sly. But not too good coz HI caught him 😄. They were having a moment so instead of barging in, the family went out to eat instead 😃 even though they’re starting out as strangers, that’s the best part and couples are happiest – per the Yongdu-ri ladies. They’re swooning at the thought of HI and HW having a new beginning 🤣 that husbands are the most handsome- when you barely know them LOL. We see HI taking care of HW on the hospital and spoon feeding him. 💕

    At HMD’s grave, the 3 siblings reunite and vow to avenge their dad.

    I was right. ES would have intercepted the package from Germany 😳 – HW had to use Grace to make sure that didn’t happen. Plus the MP3 showing up in his room. Thanks Grace 👏🏽. Daebak!!

    DH brings SC to the orphanage where they first met. How she awaited their visit and the strawberry shortcake. How she stole his bunny doll and kept it all these years. How she waited for him and now it’s his turn. She wants to pay for her crimes but SC won’t let her.

    In court, DH testifies against Ms Moh. But she doesn’t have any evidence 🥹 HI’s testimony or closing statement is the biggest shocker of all coz of what she overheard the night she was kidnapped. And they have proof. Again, Grace to the rescue. She swapped and copied the iPad. 👏🏽 It was damning and there’s no turning back from that. She was arrested right there and then. And the Queens Grouo family has been reinstated 👏🏽

    ES’s painting is replaced with the Hong and Baek family portrait 💕

    Aunt Beom started dating Mr Kim. It’s his first time to be in a relationship. Omo. Beom tells him to take his sweet time LOL

    HW sister gets a plane fare from the parentals so they don’t end up divorcing LOL

    HI ends up back in HW’s room. One single glow in the dark star and the worst memory came back to haunt her. We find out what happened to the baby. It was a miscarriage. 💔 That’s when things got cold and walls were built between our OTP. 😭

    The proposal at the cherry blossoms 🌸 road ❤️❤️❤️ “I’ll stay by your side. No matter what happens, I can mend things when they’re broken. it may not always be perfect but I can do that. If that’s ok with you, then will you marry me”. So seamless, effortless, natural 🥹 who can say no to that? 🤪

    But HI doesn’t want to rush. Starting with holding hands. Having breakfast together. Taking walks everyday. Road trip every season.

    SC and Geon boy greets DH when she was released from prison. The father son looked so cute 🥰 SC was proud to announce that he taught Geon how to ride the bike. Awww 😊 and Grace was included and invited to the family dinner 👏🏽

    So funny. aunt Beom is losing her patience with Mr Kim. She was expecting a first kiss on the lips but got one on the cheeks instead LOL. She’s pretty with her long hair and she looks more demure haha

    We see HI and HW back in Sans Souci Palace stairs together, then with a little girl in tow 🥰💕😍 at another time, then after 2074 we see one solitary old man climbing the stairs.

    In the spring, we see the same old man visiting the garden that has a memorial stone on it in memory of Hae In **22 Aug 1990- 7 April 2974** spending my life with you has been a miracle”

    Interestingly enough, this scene was seen by HI before her surgery. 😳 Daebak. HI lived to be 84!!! Wow.

    We see the old HW back in the lavender flower Field. I love this location 🥰 who doesn’t?

    We see their younger versions and a voiceover — “one day when only one of us is left… the other one can come meet them. Then it won’t be scary at all. Because we’ll be together”.

    Happy ending. We see family photo frames.

  31. I do agree with all of you that the last episode felt more like tying up the lose ends and was truly exhausted with HW having to get through another hurdle with the gun shot and being rushed to the hospital. There was no romance with the main leads and it was a closure for all the sides with the court drama and all. There was no pregnancy for HI or the love the parents had when they had their child.

    It looks like even in the end, they stayed true to their title, that this was about the overflowing tears (not the happy ones with their scenes) but the tears due to their sadness, and more about their separation and death. They should have shown more about being in the same boat together, working life with one another, for much longer than a 30 seconds and then go on with the death of HI – for a second there, I thought – was that her brother ? leaving flowers at his grave? since HI had seen that man in Germany; But it was an old HW leaving flowers on HI grave. Felt like we saw the life time of the people with only the problems exaggerated without giving us the Happy moments for us to reminiscence about our OTP.

    The only thing that made me happy was about ES’s mother being treated in the prison cell and the comparison of her in the Kitchen at the chairman’s house and attacking the members of the household (think Beomja ?) who backed off where as here, they kicked her but to the ground.

    It has been nice reading all your views and look forward to seeing Queen’s take and writing on it. Please include lot of kiss scenes – so we can at least relish on that.

  32. For all of the reasons listed above AND the brave soul who noted that we watch for the drama not for reality. Thank you!! That probably more than the lack of a wedding and other kissing scenes probably did me in. They took me on this surreal ride and then dumped me back to real life.

    Side note: even though our main characters live happily for 50 more years the pictures/visuals we were shown seemed to miss the last 47 of them — no shots of them watching the daughter growing, marry etc and the family photos displayed all made me think that of photos of a young family- not one that aged together so until I read about the dates on the headstone I thought she really didn’t get AS long as she got- sort of like you can’t beat fate/the treatment only worked for a little while which really made me sad. Knowing the writer’s truth helped a little but still.

    Lastly I thought the words ‘Happy Ending’ was the writer’s sarcastic way of saying, ‘here’s your happy ending viewer, now shut up and sit down.’ I didn’t even watch it all I was so disappointed.

  33. I’ve watched the final episode but then I saw this and I’m stuck. 🥰

    I’ll say my final goodbye when I’m ready. Maybe TVN will hear our cries for what’s missing and put it in the special episodes. 🤞🏻I’m not holding my breath though. 😂

    CTO.

    https://x.com/leinforhyo/status/1784801378826874893?s=46&t=BT0tHWWRRX1rx64As5f8XQ

  34. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    @agdr03 From what I read of the special episodes, they are only interviews with the cast and not even with the cast together. I do not think all these edited Behind the Scenes shots will get shown. My question is why in the first place were they cut? 😓 They would have assuaged the bitterness of this ending.

  35. Hi @GB, yeah I read it too that the special episodes were mostly interviews of the cast and commentaries.

    I agree that if they had shown more of how HI and HW lived their life as a family with SooBin, then that would have made us very happy. I would be over the moon and I’d say the drama would be perfect then.

    They have a lot of happy times in Germany. Who knows? Maybe they will show it? Why am I so optimistic? LOL!

  36. Here is KSH and KJW saying their thank you for making Queen Of Tears TVN’s Number 1 highest rated drama of all time. 🥳🥳🥳

    https://x.com/cjndrama/status/1785214192519418092?s=46&t=BT0tHWWRRX1rx64As5f8XQ

  37. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Hi @agdr03 thanks for the link to Baek-Hong saying thanks. LOL I didn’t know we could make so many versions of hearts with a partner!

    What was the other leaked video link that I missed?

  38. Me too @GB. I didn’t know there’s that much. 😁

    The other video link that’s not working anymore was ImSol and SunJae finally admitting that they like each other, not just in words. 😉

  39. Awww Baek SooBin (real name Haebom? Sorry if it’s wrong), is a cutie!!! 🥰

    CTO!

    https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6Xe2gWJCnC/?igsh=Ynl6bGp4cTBnZXFl

  40. I’ve calmed down now and more capable of saying a rational opinion regarding the end of Queen of Tears. Lol

    After rewatching, I’ve come to realize that I am actually okay with the ending. I no longer cried out of frustration but cried because I was happy. It hurts because it was realistic.

    Oh to love and be loved is such a wonderful feeling. And knowing that they stayed together until the end will really tug at your heartstrings. Like what Kim Soo Hyun said in one of the interviews/presscon you would really be asking the question is it possible to love like that?

    It’s sad the Netflix did not include this in the end but in the original broadcast they ended with a parting message.

    Based from papago translation the message read:
    “I hope it was a time to look back and love the precious people around you.”

    And it basically summed up the entire message of the story. To remember the good times but to also live in the moment.

    I think one of the main issues I had with watching Queen of Tears was that I mainly focused on the ‘romcom’ thinking it would just be light and breezy and full of laughter. After the ending, I was reminded about what my HS teacher told us in class, that just because there is comedy it doesn’t mean it has to be funny,comedies also end in happy endings. And to be with your most beloved in the afterlife is one of the best happy endings one could wish for.

    I hope you would continue to do your deep dive of the OST because QOT OST has one of the best osts out there. The main theme ‘In a beautiful way’ as well as the last song sung by Kim Soo Hyun is the best at tying up the whole drama together. Way home is such a beautiful lullaby. I think almost all of the OST give off the melancholic and wistful vibe when you listen to it. Anyway im sorry if this wasn’t coherent enough but yeah. Thank you, Queen of Tears. And thank you guys for wonderful commentary.

  41. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    I was surprised by this review of a Korean drama by AvenueX. Here she is speaking about QoT and she gave us a 31 minutes’ review which is pretty long.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qR0dkmaMD9s

    I’m still watching it while waiting for the Rewatch Party to start. 🙂

  42. Thanks @GB for the link. Her review mentioned a fair bit of my experience watching QOT. Although the last few episodes had gone into the makjang zone, I enjoyed QOT very much overall and even the ending too. Many people didn’t like the ending but I find it acceptable and beautifully done with KSH song. It reminds me of another drama Uncontrollably Fond where the death of the male lead was handled very gently and appropriately.

  43. Waaaaaaaa! 🥰 I’ll take it! I’m happy. 😍Thank you TVN!

    No wonder they had a honeymoon baby!

    CTO!

    https://x.com/aishiiibal/status/1787108434468630746?s=46&t=BT0tHWWRRX1rx64As5f8XQ

  44. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    @agdr03, thanks for the link! This is what I was referring to when I said that we were baited by shots of them being so lovey-dovey… we only had the short version of these. I was waiting for their more substantial honeymoon flashbacks or if these were to give indications of their future happy times, then I was waiting for more cordial couple times and family get-together times … but we were ‘cheated’!!! We had so much angsty times and these scenes which seemed to promise more joy to balance out the angst, never materialised.

  45. Foreverinreverie

    This is so true, the Germany montage really had me hook, line and sinker only for it to be just glimpses in the actual drama. Everyone on X has been shouting we were robbed. Ahahhah they have the most beautiful kissing scenes though. Hopefully they give us better content for the Blu-ray.

  46. Their kissing scenes were really sizzling!

    https://www.facebook.com/share/v/z83ugbu8kdiar8bh/?mibextid=WC7FNe

    You’re welcome.

  47. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Thanks @Dogtor… precisely! These scenes are sizzling and took time and money to make. There are so many of them … so why are they only shown in a flash, in passing? What a waste of time and effort. 😒😤😖

  48. Maybe TVN is playing a hand of poker.

  49. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Hi All, this is part 1 of the deleted scenes.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJGa0PHOJk0 Sweet Moments indeed!

    I caught another video supposedly about the Special Episode but didn’t care for the commentary. I won’t post that one unless there’s something really interesting in it.

  50. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    More deleted sweet scenes!

  51. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Something interesting about some of the scenes in this Show. Some scenes/sites were AI generated with an LED screen.

    https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/hobbiesandactivities/906246/queen-of-tears-got-some-help-from-ai-for-this-car-scene/story/

  52. Thanks GB for the link, I heard from my friend that many scenes are from AI.. but still candy for the eyes.. is it the future of the upcoming kdrama? where maybe half of the scenes will be generated by AI.

    I also heard that the script of this drama was made from 10 years ago (is it truee?). This made me feel understanding about how makjang the last several episodes were, hahaha. Because if I remember, ten years ago, the dramatic scenes were so “in”.

    All in all, there are so many relationship advices that we could learn from this drama. I am so glad that I watch this drama, and reading all of your comment here… I am anticipating the next project of the actors and actresses, they were all coool.

  53. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Hi @moonstar512, you’re very welcome!

    I’m guessing that if AI generated scenery is going to be loads cheaper than going far away on location, then yes, I imagine many future shows will have AI views, scenery, backdrops. A big plus to this would be being able to create a Winter scene in Summer or Autumn, or a stormy scene or a snowing scene indoors (like QoT did) so as to save time and it would be so much safer.

    I don’t follow news on shows, and so I don’t know if the script is 10 years old or not, however I believe writers have ideas in their minds and in drafts from years back that they take out to work on slowly over time.

    Yes, there was something quite over the top melo about the last episodes. They did feel ‘familiar’. Perhaps I used to watch too many melos!

    The husband-and-wife dynamic was certainly worth exploring. Those scenes may make us look at our own lives and go ‘Hmmmmm’. 🙂

  54. It’s time to say goodbye to HI and HW too while it’s still May 31 here in Oz. Just so I can start June anew. 🙂 It did take me awhile but I’m here. Did I held a grudge for the not a lot of fluffy and especially missing kisses in the last episode? Maybe, a little. 🙂

    If there was a drama where I cried at almost every episode then this is it. I’ve said that too, a million times. It was a drama where I couldn’t wait for the episodes to come. It was a drama where nothing’s new except the way it was told was good for me. It got me hooked. I thought really, the problem was that they didn’t communicate after getting married but then I know that feeling too, sometimes. 🙂

    I loved how HI and HW admitted that they forgot what they promised each other in the first place and that’s HI not making HW cry and HW being by HI’s side no matter what. I’m glad they found their way to each other after surviving a tumor and a car accident/bullet.

    I loved how both families where just there for each other too especially the Baek family.

    It was nice to know that they lived a good life together with their daughter and as HI put on her grave stone, it was a miracle spending her life with HW.

    Thank you KSH and KJW for bringing to life Hae-In and Hyun-Wo. It was quite a kdrama ride with my tissues. I will remember it for a long time. 🙂

  55. I’m linking here additional notes from the director you guys might like.

    https://x.com/KimSoohyunshiph/status/1798532132949930199?t=mwxLUly7_M2xolHRnHmhVw&s=19

  56. This doesn’t surprise me, @Foreverinreverie. Some viewers may rail at the cornucopia of tropes in the story and the overdone makjang themes, but I thought the show maintained a tight script. There wasn’t an irrelevant or superfluous scene.

    Thanks for sharing. I should take a screenshot and post it for future reference.

  57. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Thanks for the link @Foreverinreverie. That was insightful. It’s good to know what is in the mind of the makers of the Shows that we watch.

    @pkml3, I did screenshot the interview notes. It’s one worth keeping and referring to from time to time. By what we know is important for at least one director in the making a show, we can start to see what is lacking and why in other shows, or appreciate even more those that are made well.

  58. Thanks, @GB.

    I made fun of QOT for its makjang-ness. But I admire the writer and director’s commitment to makjang-ness. They didn’t let up.

    From start of the show — when Hyunwoo faked his happiness during the interview about their courtship and marriage (and silently dissing his naivety for believing in a HEA) — until the end of the show — when the aged HyunWoo walked to her grave and then met her at the lavender field (signifying that this time around, there was no fakery involved and their dreams of a HEA were fulfilled dreams) — the writer and director wanted to tug at our heartstrings in order to get us to reflect on WHY we were crying in the first place, WHY we were engrossed in Hyunwoo and HaeIn’s marital woes, WHY we appreciated HyunWoo’s valiant attempts to salvage their relationship instead of just throwing in the towel.

    Unfortunately, most people just got stuck in the emotions/moving scenes/drama and didn’t go past them. I wish I took the time to discuss this drama….

    Truly, I didn’t mind the lack of kissing scenes in the final episode. It would smack of fan service.

    Gotta run.

  59. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Have a good ‘run’ @pkml3. I miss discussing shows with you, but time is one rare commodity for you!

  60. @pm3, I agree. I found the finale very fitting. The lack of kissing did not bother me at all. The only thing that did not sit well with me was the humor in the first couple of episodes.

  61. GrowingBeautifully (GB)

    Here’s a very professional review of this Show. It’s a negative review and I agree with it. This always brought me to wonder how we can enjoy watching a show that is not well made, and I came to the conclusion that we like what we like, whether it’s good or not, and there are many complex reasons for how we feel about anything. However objectively, if we can step away from our feelings, we can try to see whether it was a show that deserved the praise or not.

    The actors made this show watchable and even fun and touching. There were parts of the production to do with the look, mood setting, … that were very well done. But the writing was actually far from good. Here’s the review.

    https://mydramalist.com/article/autopsying-queen-of-tears

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