The thread is open.
@GB, @Snowflower and @agdr03,
Go ahead and post your thoughts. My family and I are taking a hike and attending an apple festival this weekend.
credit: kimdami-isthebest’s tumblr
Let’s enjoy the show!
The thread is open.
@GB, @Snowflower and @agdr03,
Go ahead and post your thoughts. My family and I are taking a hike and attending an apple festival this weekend.
credit: kimdami-isthebest’s tumblr
Let’s enjoy the show!
Episode 7 impressions:
Spoilers ahead!!!
Jae Pil is grating on my nerves. He is not dating YR, but when another medical student wants to take her to an event, JP gets possessive. Is this the writer’s way of showing us that JP loves YR, but does not want to admit it to himself? If so, I am not buying it.
YR is still smitten with JP and still has not confessed her feelings. She works at an upscale hair salon with Single Mom friend, and also attends night classes.
It looks like Sang Cheol will be paired with Single Mom. He does not look too interested in Single Mom for now, but he loves her little girl and the girl loves him.
Big Brother Young Shik is a judge in training and is pretty good at keeping his feelings a secret.
His friend Daddy Long Legs is sharp and charming as ever. He no longer calls YR ugly, and she calls him Oppa.
The biggest surprise was the appearance of Jong Hui. I expected her to have become an actress or a singer, but she showed up as the daughter of a VVIP, client of the hair salon where YR and Single Mom work.
I am still rooting for DLL and YR, but I am considering turning to fan fiction if things go wrong…
Fan fiction for DLL and YR? Seriously? I’d be honored if @GB and I were your first readers, @Snow Flower!
Thanks for the updates.
I’m resting my feet in the hotel so maybe I’ll take a peek at Ep 7.
Re. the re-introduction of JaePil in YeongRye’s life, 7 years later
I understand your frustration, @Snowflower. I’m not done with Episode 7 but I have to stop and write this about JP’s day off.
I don’t know what the screenwriter is up to, but to me, this whole segment is precisely the reason many girls need to read advice from “Seventeen” and other teen magazines on how to tell whether a guy likes them or not. Their radar is shot because they’ve been fed lies.
Here, let me go over the things JaePil does wrong.
1. He can’t remember when he had a day off.
It’s Yeongrye who reminds him that he was off last Monday and that it’s his third day off in eight days.
This tells me that a) he didn’t spend his days off with YeongRye, and b) even if he did spend it with her, they did nothing memorable together.
2. He gets his haircut done by Yeongrye on his day off.
YeongRye’s colleagues speculate that they’re in a romantic relationship because he goes there to get his haircut.
Nope. On the contrary, this tells me that he drops by when it’s convenient for him. He goes to her salon because a) he knows she’ll accommodate him and fit him into her schedule no matter what, and b) he can rely on her to cut his hair in the way he likes, thus sparing him the trouble of communicating with a new hair stylist.
If I were YeongRye’s friend, I’d be excited if he dropped on his busy days. That meant he’s making time for her.
3. He asks her what time she’s getting off, and she says 8:30 after she cleans up everything. He says he’ll come and pick her up.
Loony JP and YR shippers think that they’re going out on a date. Nope! The reason he’s waiting for her is that he’s taking her to the hospital to give his dad a haircut.
If he’s really into her, he should have done these things:
a) Go inside her shop and keep her company as she cleans up, rather than wait for her outside. Look at SangCheol when he picks up the little girl. He gets out of the car to meet the girl as if he can’t wait to see her.
b) Offer to feed her as soon as she gets out. Instead, YeongRye has to tell him that she’s starving to death. Lol. Guys feeding girls is a basic trope in romantic kdramas. Look at the way Sangcheol likes to feed the little girl.
4. Their dinner together isn’t a date.
Paying for her hamburger is the least that he can do after making her cut his father’s hair and for making her feed his father.
And wiping her mouth with the napkin isn’t a romantic gesture. at all. There isn’t an iota of tenderness in his action.
5. He only notices that YeongRye is carrying something when they’re already near the hospital.
Oh, for Pete’s sake! She didn’t have the box when she met him so I’m assuming that they passed by a store after the hamburger joint. If he’s into her, he should have carried the box of juice as soon as they left the store.
6. It’s his day off, right?
So why doesn’t he just walk YeongRye to the taxi stand before rushing off and assisting in the hospital? If that had been JongHui, he wouldn’t have been too eager to go back to work.
7. His stepmother has to remind him to do something about YeongRye.
Look: if after 7 years he still needs to hear from a third person what a treasure YeongRye is, then he simply isn’t into her.
@pkml3, before I read what you wrote, I decided to watch the episode and jot down notes first. Then I’ll compare notes with you.
This episode is Destiny which *sigh* sounds tiresomely like earlier episodes: Fate or Timing. I guess that’s the main theme of this series.
I found Episode 7 a good re-introduction to all the characters from the first half of the series. Everyone is present except the nasty manager. Now we will go forward with everyone as adults and teenagers. I applaud the show for not leaving any side character out. Even Hae Ja and her sidekick are still together selling clothes in Dongdangmeun.
The gathering at YR’s home and especially at her mum’s restaurant table…. Mum complains repeatedly about having to feed extra mouths but YR observes that her mum’s words and her heart are different. No matter what, she accepts all into her home and feeds them.
All who sit at her table become family of some kind, even JP’s step mum, Mum Seong Man Ok. They’ve continued to become friends and their kids are in touch. Delinquent Sae Ri is in middle school with Young Bae who now looks at her with disapproval instead of crushing on her. And I guess that Yeong Mi is taking bribes for doing some baby-sitting of Choi’s daughter.
I like how the setting of the table is a joint-community task and how they wait for the boss, Mum Ko to sit, raise her spoon and declare the meal may be eaten before they begin LOL. She’s a real queen.
We are shown by how the table is seamlessly set with everyone knowing where to place the cutlery and food items, how well they are coordinated and how they cooperate as a real community.
The addition of the drunk JP and Heong Hyun to the table tells us that they too are initiated into the community and are welcome. I note how Jeong Hyun immediately took the chair opposite YR so that he could put food on her bowl. I loved that JP is finally getting a run for his money because now he sees that he has at least 1 rival if not more for YR. However he’s been taking YR for granted for so long that he’s become inconsiderate and somewhat entitled. It seems that it’s only now that he’s becoming aware that observers are expecting them to be a couple after so many years of being more than friends. Even his step mum warns him that he’ll regret it when the ship has sailed.
For her part, it’s somewhat tiresome that YR is also unchanged when it comes to JP. She’s just too nice. She cannot say ‘No’ to helping his deplorable father and she protests too much when JP wants to help her. For some reason she still considers it her duty to provide better housing for her siblings. They of course will take her for granted.
She continues to be hesitant and to take too long to tell him her feelings. She’s really making her own destiny by being generous to a fault when it comes to giving and by not doing much of anything at all for her own happiness. She still has not been able to take and put into practice the advice that Jeong Hyun had given her, to seize the right to her own happiness.
@pkml3 @Snow Flower
I was writing notes as I watched and had down something of what you said. He’s a dog in a manger. With YR about, he does not need to make any effort but he gets things done by her for his family and for himself.
It’s now so convenient for him to have YR around that he’s probably being a dog in a manger and not letting anyone else have a chance with her. I hope Jeong Hyun bests him at that game.
I’m not done yet with episode 1, @GB. Will open thread for ep 8 before going to the Apple festival today.
But re. Dog in the Manger
You’re absolutely correct.
Many viewers will read those scenes in the beginning of Ep 7 as “cute” because to me, it’s an eye-opener. After all these years, he’s only showering her with attention because
a) he needs something from her and she handles his father like no other, and
b) JH isn’t in the picture. Once she’s back, he’s going to be conflicted again and that’s a no no for me.
His indecision and his inconstancy are red flags. 🚩
And for those who don’t know what a dog in a manger is…
The expression came from Aesop’s collections of fables. There was once a dog who lies in the feeding trough for cattle to prevent the hungry bovine from eating the hay. The dog doesn’t want the hay. It doesn’t even eat hay. He just wants to obstruct the cattle because it’s selfish and spiteful.
Thoughts on Playing Favourites
Mum Ko favours son Yeong Sik above all her children. The restaurant is even named after him although he seems to be the one member of the family least often in that restaurant and least likely to be helping with the cooking and cleaning.
Little girl, Su Jin?, daughter of Ms Choi favours Sang Cheol. Only he can feed her.
When Nasty Father of JP only eats if fed by YR, it reminded me of Su Jin. He favours YR over his own son and wife, possibly to just be difficult with the people whom he knows will not abandon him no matter how he ill-treats them.
Conversely there’s an opposite move to this game: gaining favour. The only one playing this game is Jong Hyun who is out to attract YR’s attention and approval. He waits for YR, comes out to her when he sees her, sits opposite her at table, places meat in her bowl. Pity he had so little time with her. I’m sure he’d have come up with a lot more action to curry her favour.
By contrast, nothing that JP did was done to earn YR’s regard. He was only around to get her to do something for him or for his family.
In this Episode, there’s suddenly a convergence of pressure being placed upon JP to step up and make clear his intentions with regards to YR. His step mum has started to warn him that YR might be snapped up by someone else. His fellow intern/doctor in hospital wanted him to hook him up with YR. Jeong Hyun had emerged as a rival and even Sang Cheol was asking him point blank how he felt about YR since she was supposedly more than just a friend.
Even now, JP cannot respond to that question possibly because:
1)He had never bothered to think about it and didn’t know.
2)He had never considered how she might feel or what she might have wanted in the relationship all this time. (YR should have shocked him by asking him a few times before!!!)
3)He knows he’s been just using YR because she’s so generous and he finds her convenient, but he cannot admit this to his friend.
It will come back to timing again whether or not he ever tells YR how he really feels or whether he caves and asks her to be his gf.
It’s probably fortunate that YR did not get a chance to give him the soap rose for Rose Day, because now that Jung Hui has re-entered their space, any positive response that might have been given by JP would become moot. I’d prefer that JP meets JH again before being further pressured to confess to YR out of some sense of obligation. Everyone’s going to so regret it if commits himself to being her bf, only to backtrack later.
Re. Episode Titles
This episode is Destiny which *sigh* sounds tiresomely like earlier episodes: Fate or Timing. I guess that’s the main theme of this series.
@GB, I went to google translate the Episode 3 title. It isn’t “fate.” It’s “oetten unmyeon” (어떤 운명). Meaning, what fate? Or Which fate? I guess, it’s because, back then, YeongRye was questioning whether meeting JP three time was really fate or not. This time around, she’s sure that it’s fated that she and JungHui meet again.
Also, I’m also going to consider her failure to give the roses to JP on “Rose Day” as fated. She isn’t meant to confess her feelings.
Incidentally, I think she was the one who wrote to that radio station (lol. This is giving me Reply 1988 flashbacks.) She wrote the station, “I heard there’s such a thing as a Rose Day for the first time today. I couldn’t muster the courage on Valentine’s Day, but I’ll try this time again. I’m worried things might get awkward between us, but I’ll no longer ignore my feelings that I’ve had for a long time.” And the song she requested was “Love On My Heart” by Yu Jae Ha.
I think she’s going to write to the radio station again to give the folks an update. She begins to write, “My love confession failed since I missed the right timing.”
To me, she missed her timing for a number of reasons.
1) Somebody who looked like JH passed in front of her. If this isn’t an omen, then I don’t know what is.
2) She injured her ankle so had to skip the party.
3) Then, when she was about to give the flower ornament to JP in the alley, DLL came out of her family restaurant and her tête-à-tête was aborted.
Fate didn’t just step in; it barreled its way in.
Even when she was writing her follow-up letter to the radio station, fate interrupted her.
@GB wrote,
Agree, I like that HaeJa and her sidekick are still in contact with the 3 girls. Glad that their sisterhood stayed strong all these years.
This is the camaraderie with the girls that JH misses.
*This is a spoiler for Episode 8.*
I like what Yeongsik Oppa told JH in Ep 8. JH was saying that meeting everybody again felt like a dream to her.
JH: YeongRye, Mother, YeongBae, YeongMi, Jeong Bun and Ho Suk. And even you, Oppa. I got to see everyone I wanted to see.
YeongSik: (just staring at her)
JH: Are you sure you got to see everyone you wanted to see? Isnt’’t there more?
JH: You’ve always had a knack for seeing right through people.
Lol. This is so NOT true. He only has a “knack for seeing right through people” he’s ATTRACTED TO. He can’t read his bestie DLL and his sister. He didn’t get why DLL kept offering him rides only to ditch him afterwards or why DLL often invited himself to eat at his home.
@GB wrote,
Yes, I especially like that her mother took in the single mother (Ho Suk?? Or is it Jeong Bun?). To this day, the fact remains that a large majority of women seek abortion because of economic hardship. They think that abortion is their only choice, which is downright wrong. However, when given financial assistance, emotional support, medical resources, and moral clarity, these women will choose life for their unborn babies over murder.
YeongRye’s mother, and everybody there at that breakfast table, saved a life in her/his own way.
I also like that YeongRye realized that her mother’s words and her heart don’t jive. Hopefully, this is a sign that she also recognizes that her mother loves her as much as “The Pillar” of the family.
Her mother may not have sweet words to tell her, but her actions prove that YeongRye is loved. How many of YeongRye’s friends has she accepted into the family merely because they’re YeongRye’s friends and YeongRye pleaded on their behalf?
Also, I wonder if her mom treats YeongSik differently because she is NOT so close to him as she wants. Isn’t she compensating or overcompensating?
@GB wrote:
DLL always had a seat at their table, long before Ho Suk, JeongBun and the little girl entered the scene. It’s just that after 7 years, he’s resuming his spot.
I like that DLL always hops to it when YeongRye is involved. Remember when YeongRye was sent to jail for stealing the bus? She only had to cry out “Oppa” and he was instantly at her side, weaving his way through the detectives, although she really wasn’t calling out to him. Lol.
Same thing here. He makes a beeline for her.
Mother: (addressing DLL and JP) You’ve been consumed by alcohol. Totally. It’s painful and embarrassing, isn’t it? And you have nothing to say with your big mouth.
DLL: (finally speaking up) I know. I haven’t had soju in a while. It tasted so sweet.
JP: (formally) I’m sorry.
Mother: Gosh. It’s fine. Just eat and go.
Lol. The contrast between the two prospective husbands is painful. After seven years, JP is still uncomfortable in the company of YeongRye’s mother. Can’t he tell when she’s just bantering with them? Her words and her heart aren’t different. In contrast, DLL knows YR’s mom well and parries her scolding with an exaggeration.
Mother: JaePil, don’t you have to go back to the hospital?
JP: Well, yes. I have some time today. We can go in late today because of the event last night.
Mother: So you want to eat lunch and dinner here, too?
JP: (flustered) No. No. It’s not that.
DLL: (stepping in) Gosh. What’s with this jangjorim? It’s so delicious. YeongRye, eat this. It’s a big piece.
DLL beams at her. Even the mother smiles at him. JP glares at him, though. I don’t know if he’s jealous of or annoyed with DLL for a) giving special attention to YeongRye or b) gaining YeongRye’s mother’s approval effortlessly.
@GB wrote
Because romantic kdramas are mostly women-centric, we’re used to watching the male lead DO something to gain favor and win the hand of the girl, and we’re disturbed when he doesn’t. The current dynamics between YR and JP reveal a one-sidedness. YR is doing all the giving, and JP is doing all the receiving. What has he done for her lately?
He must even be prompted to treat her out.
And I low-key detest the behavior of JP’s mom, too. She wants YR to be the girlfriend and future wife because YR can fit in, continue serving the family, be a sweet and trouble-free wife, and “shoulder” the family’s problems like a dutiful daughter-in-law. Ugh! It’s all about what YR can do for the family, and not what they can do for YR.
Who in her right mind wants that?? It’s patriarchal at its foulest.
If I were YR’s mother, I wouldn’t accept this fate for my daughter.
@GB wrote:
And this SHOULD be a red flag for any girl. If JP must be pressured to propose, then he isn’t committed. He isn’t that into YR. After seven years, he’s friend-zoned her.
This should come as a no-brainer to women nowdays, but back in 80s? 90s? yes, people are that naïve.
Let’s also take a moment to remember these two things.
1. For Rose Day, YeongRye bought a box of roses to give JP. She picked the orange ones because they supposedly meant “shy first love.” (Note: I think the better word for the color is salmon because it’s a mix of orange and pink. The hue becomes more orange or pink depending on the way light hits it.)
Then, on Rose Day, DLL arrives at Gimpo airport looking dapper in his salmon-colored jacket. I’d like to delude myself that he knew it was Rose Day and dressed up accordingly. He doesn’t need any stinkin’ roses to declare himself when he’s a walking billboard.
2. On the day DLL returned from the US after seven year absence, he decided to go check on YeongSik, have dinner at his mom’s restaurant with the hopes of seeing YeongRye, wait for YeongRye to return from her date, have a drinking contest with JP, end up drunk, sleep over at YeongRye’s and YeongSik’s home, then have breakfast with their family the next day.
SangCheol makes a big fuss about JP getting drunk and sleeping over at YeongRye’s place, but the bigger news here is that DLL did, too.
If I were DLL’s mom, I would know for sure where his priorities lie.