Amongst all the "girl pretends to be a boy" dramas this is the most believeable one and the actress does an outstanding job. The story itself is very hilarious and fascinating till episode 12. At this point with other dramas i would get bored but this drama has such strong chemistry between the actors that it kept me watching even the back and forth romantic battle between the main leads which felt quite refreshing for some reason.
Yoon Eun Hye does a terrific job, give it a shot.
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it's got Comedy. Romance. Drama. In that order.
what i like about it is how the main character is trying soo hard not to fall in love. I mean, most stories would show how the girl falls in love with the boy or vice versa. But it's usually without them putting up a fight against their own feelings.
then characters are believable. so if you're gonna watch a series. I think this series wont let you down.
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This drama has an amazing cast from Gong Yoo to Eun hye.All are at their best acting in this drama.Eun Hye who is so feminine,its hard to imagine her as a boy but she pulls off the role amazingly making us realize that she's a good actress who knows how to act.
coming to gong yoo.that guy has a screen presence where its impossible not to notice how he acts to the way he looks in aviators..:D
He really pulls us in on his daddy issues and his confused love with the lead and the 2nd lead.
The plot may seem very mediocre initially but as one proceeds further into the drama we can see the plot is not the main question but basically the growth of the characters.Throughout the drama the characters grow which makes them seem more human with human follies and vices.
the chemistry between the lead is taut with tension where we dont knw if the next moment they are gonna shout at each other or staring at each other with longing.Gong Yoo and Eun Hye really know how to get those tears falling because in this drama there is a lot of angst involved because of the gender bender and other situations.
the music score simply is superb.one could rewatch the show just for the songs.the songs are picked very selectively telling us about the moods the characters are in and since most of them are in english it makes it more amazing because instead of goin online and checking the english lyrics for korean songs we just understnd what the songs are saying
i give it an 8 for the story because everybody has atleast sampled one drama where there is a girl disguising as a guy.The love story of the second leads is equally engrossing and has its highs and lows.There is noone who is as vicious as Se Na(the villain from Rooftop prince) so this drama is a bit light on the nerves where one doesnt feel like killing the ex.
the only thing i found flawed was the extension of the drama by 1 episode which really hurt it beacause the ending was not satisfying to me.the drama does feel a bit dragged in few episodes but if one has the patience im sure they'r not gona regret continuing it.
so go and watch this amazing piece of drama if you havent seen it yet..
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This review may contain spoilers
Very nice music
Music was iconic, SML sung that song at his wedding afaik.On SFL, my opinion (not sure if shared, but I would say factually correct) is that the show *did* kind of shy away from the wreckage she left behind her, for example by not showing flashbacks of HS bearing with her lies for more than a year, or imagining her with her lover, etc. This was all mentioned, but then it was either dropped or brushed aside, so it was:
1. Kind of brought up in single occasions and then not mentioned again
2. Ignored as if phychological trauma and emotional damage simply disappeared when convenient, as if by choice, like one could flip a switch rather than go to therapy
3. Minimized, or muted/dampened reactions compared to the true pain and emotional damage and wreckage that going through such experiences would have caused, which is why I never suspected a betrayal until he brought it up at the airport... I would say, for example, that his adverse reaction to DK was tamed even if you consider he played it cool while being hurt and disturbed, but it was I would say not even, or barely, the level of insecurity one would feel for her running away with the guy, not what I would expect if she had actually been seeing him behind his back for more than a year prior to running off with him. Also him meeting the guy and shaking hands, and putting up that atrocious conversation about a project with the guy that couldn't even remember how many time he had met him, as if everything was okay.
I would also say definitively that she wasn't really willing to face such damage and was not even asked to, and in fact did not, despite her wanting to have another chance with Han-sung. When he unloaded the pain he felt at knowing and putting up with her more than year long daily lies when she told him she was working while meeting DK behind his back, and then run off ignoring his pleas and begging for her to stay, she brushes it aside and absurdly assumes that now that he had could be with her after all that pain and effort (on his part) he should not even think about feeling love for anyone else... Can one get more delusional than someone that assumes that humiliating and deceiving your partner for more than a year, then running of with your lover for two without a single word, makes for someone that one would want to have around? Anyone sane would have told her that he would leave the "honor" and "privilege" of dating her to someone else, and the true question is not how he could love someone else, but how couldn't he love anyone else (including nobody, i.e. staying single). Not that this is ever discussed again in any serious manner, it's brought up in a creepy fashion at the end where HS is made to listen to her minimize and brush aside flippantly this horrific betrayal and try to compare it with his onesided and short lived mini-crush and unreciprocated little kiss, which is about as serious a comparison as one's pimple and Mt. Everest. One then wonders why he didn't open up about his insecurities about DK, who he understandable hates, as he says, and played it cool while not being okay, something she knew and exploited -mentioning their NY home in front of him, trying to make him jealous with a man she cheated with for more than a year, and telling him DK loves her still and she might be starting to feel the same when she threatened going to NY... is this the behavior of someone that cares about their partner's psychological health and emotional well being or of someone that is self centered and doesn't put any weight in the (impossible) task or rebuilding trust (not that she is ever asked to, it's an issue that by magic does not make an appearance, again the consequences of her actions being brought up only when convenient for the plot). Making a joke out of his insecurities with DK and her betrayal after witnessing his emotional breakdown at the side of the road to the airport? And listening to that and still being concerned only with what she felt, daring to talk about feeling pathetic when he confessed to having lived through the hell of knowing of her betrayal for more than a year, forgiving her and begging her to stay, only to be left when she run off with her lover and he didn't hear from her again for two years? How self absorbed and utterly shameless do you need to be to prioritize yourself?
I don't know if this would be considered a wicked woman trope, to be honest none of the characters were flat, but she as sure as anything is true was toxic in the extreme, I would say even up until the end we have her talking about wanting to escape the damaged pride of having HS leave her by running away first (and therefore lying about it being about giving him a choice -she was strong arming him and not giving him space, after he was willing to wait for her for years -not that he should have, he should have tried to move past it, given that despite the delusion of imagining some mystical connection, the reality of the situation is that she had been lying to his face for more than a year and then run off, and only came back after she and DK broke up, which absolutely nothing guaranteed would happen... and if you think someone would never stab you in the back and then deceive you for more than a year, maybe it's time to consider that you don't know them as well as you think you did, and the person worthy of such loyalty, respect, honesty and trust existed only in his head, while the real person did not deserve any of those things, having shown herself to be disloyal and untrustworthy. One would reevaluate their judgment (and in the case of anyone sane with a shred of love and respect and self dignity, conclude that they didn't deserve him, or his loyalty, respect and trust, having shown him none of the former two and broken the latter -his trust-.
I wouldn't really say the show treated every character with mercy and understanding and nuance, I really felt that HS's insecurities and trauma was swept under the rug, I would have liked much more focus on the more than year long deception and the whole background: she said she loved DK. Did she not love HS? And now she loves him again? And doesn't love DK? What happened? How did it come about? Can they please address her betrayal without making a joke about it (and forcing HS to go along with the joke the same way they were joking about HS and FL, namely not really a joke)? And maybe his insecurities around DK, without him feeling unable to open up and having to play it cool, with her mocking him when she knew about how he felt towards the guy and still teased him, talked to him on the phone and had one on one meetings and lunch with the guy, and used him, the person she had been betraying HS with for more than a year and run off with for two more, to make HS jealous, something that appears insanely cruel. I mean, think about the pain when he brought up the more than year long string of lies she told to his face on the side road on the way to the airport, which she brushed aside in the most insulting way possible, and with the most revolting moral equivalence -really, more than one year of hell where she cheats on someone that would never even take coffee with another girl, and for which she was his whole world and would have never thought her capable of such a betrayal, followed by running off with her lover to another continent without a word for two years, talked about in the same phrase as a one sided mini-crush with a small unreciprocated kiss? Messages with someone that rejected him that he read on the side? When she is someone that deceived him in such a manner for more than a year, and shows no respect or consideration for his perspective, minimizing and making a joke out of his understandable insecurities, flirting and meeting up with someone she cheated on HS with for more than a year, and that still has feelings for her (and is creepily ambiguous and touchy feely, the intimate head caress taking on a whole other feeling after her betrayal and considering that, contrary to the cousin who put his head on her lap, DK did get between her and HS). Nothing about this is her taking responsibility in any mature sense, or in any sense of the word at all, in fact she merely showed up after more than a year of lies and two years where he didn't heard from her and knew of her through the press, and he basically took her back immediately. None of the issues are discussed after being brought up, his insecurities and the betrayal are made into a joke, rather than taken seriously and actually addressed, and she does absolutely nothing to gain his trust back (or not lose it further, for example by meeting up with a still smitten man who she cheated on HS with while not only fully knowing his insecurities after she had completely destroyed his trust, but even exploiting these insecurities to make him jealous, throwing DK's love in his face and telling him she might be loving him back again, and threatening to leave, despite his pleading, rather than giving him space -in the end, she doesn't give him space, it's him that is reduced to begging and then she comes back after going missing without saying anything-). Not that I think in real life it would be possible for her to rebuild said trust, but it's interesting to note that she does not even try, and the show basically brushes everything aside and she is taken back immediately, her using a men she cheated with to coerce HS into begging her not to leave turns into mocking his insecurities around DK, and talking about wounded pride (one of, but certainly not the main reason he would not want to hear his name, and more than enough to make his blood boil, given the more than year long betrayal, her callousness and lack of consideration in talking with him on the phone and meeting up one on one, having lunch together, and explicitly making use of him to make him jealous, without any consideration for how he might have felt, despite playing it cool, after she had lied to him for more than a year and run off for two... again, the threat makes it clear she knew exactly what buttons to push, and the flirting with the cousin might not be threatening because he doesn't have a chance -but still inconsiderate all things considered for her not to put down boundaries-, but the intimate interaction with DK, not putting down strong boundaries as he tried to flirt with her, but rather cleverly retorting while meeting up together to reminish about their first meeting, him touching her head intimately, etc., while he was the man she cheated on HS with, and she is supposed to try to make an attempt to heal the emotional wounds, rebuild trust, address his insecurities with care, concern and respect for his point of view -not necessarily agreeing, but at least taking it seriously and not turning it into a joke-... she is doing the opposite of that, not that imho in reality she would have a chance to rebuild trust even if she tried, but the show does not even require her to, she is taken back and he is the one begging her not to leave a second time, kimtchi takes up more time than working through the betrayal).
Bottom line, she barely apologizes, contrary to My Mister the actual consequences of the betrayal are not really shown -to the point that until the episode with the breakdown at the side of the road to the airport I was convinced she had simply left him, not lied to him for more than a year, which has totally different implications... dumping him would have been a choice that treated him with respect and honesty if she didn't love him, and loved DK, given that the alternative was doing what she did, namely humiliating and deceiving him for more than a year are quite another matter-. My Mister talks about how dramas romanticize or minimize affairs, and in this case we conveniently are not shown flashbacks of the pair of discovering the betrayal, or thinking about her with her lover behind his back, etc., we are only shown, impossibly, happy memories, which given his outburst in the beginning and at the side of the road were not the only thing on his mind... but if we were show it, then we would be forced to face reality and wonder why would anyone with a shred of self respect and self dignity pine after someone like that or want to take her back, same reason, I guess (in addition to shock value) to make it clear that she actually was lying about working and seeing DK behind his back for more than a year so late in the game, increasing the chances that the viewer is already committed to the pairing (in fact the betrayal is not brought up in a serious manner ever again, despite the obvious pain HS felt when he brought it up, and it being a raw issue that would realistically have needed to be discussed together with the DK elephant in the room, and her using his pain at her betrayal to make him jealous, weaponizing the wound she had inflicted in a sociopathically cruel and sadistic fashion. Again, good thing that at least she was jealous (the reason she did this) because at least she cared, then again when she talked about the pride of not letting him leave her, when he was begging her to stay after more of a year of lies back in the day, and is now begging her again after her repulsive ultimatum and power play on his emotional wounds tied to DK, threatening to leave him for DK, or when she mentioned feeling pathetic when he watched messages (platonic ones) from FL after hearing him confess the heartbreak of more than a year of her lying to his face and abandoning him among his pleas, not to be heard from for two years... I mean, does she have any shame, any sense of perspective? Is it possible for her to not even acknowledge that what she is feeling is a billionth of what he had felt, than what he had done is a billionth of a fraction than what she had put him through, a hell that lasted for a long time? How could she be focused on herself and talk about this without acknowledging *his* pain, humiliation, wounded pride, broken self dignity and self respect (he resorted to begging and was ignored), broken trust... I mean, to hear this and not want to disappear in shame at the very notion of talking about yourself, given the magnitude of the difference in what she had done to him.... this is not taking responsibility in any sense of the word. The definition of toxicity.
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Another very strong point is how this show even though it's kinda cheesy, it's NOT AT ALL cheesy as other shows, and NOT overacted. I'm not against "cheese" of course, (or I wouldn't watch these shows) but I gotta say it was very nice to watch something like this and not getting sidetracked by how awkward a scene is with all the cutesy effects and so on. Of course it has your average misunderstandings from time to time, but not too much.
The most precious thing about it in my opinion is how the romantic scenes are acted out. It's so well made! It's not parodic, it's not super cheesy, no sound effects or silly camerawork, tasteless music and so on... It's so PURE. I can't be sure but I'd guess some of the scenes are actually the results of accidents and improvisations, and how the actors go with the flow is just amazing to watch. There are so many little details they do, which are so personal, playful, and amazingly cute, and those are being acted out with such genuine, lovable feelings.
If you are like me who loves to watch sweet couple moments with a little bit of drama going on, I really recommend it!
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Although the story is the most lacking thing in the entire drama, it's still brilliant. The gender confusion was definitely the best part and how people eventually found out that Go Eun Chan was never a guy. It is slightly cliche that the female lead's love interest found out last, but I guess it wasn't as cliche back in 2007 as it is now. One thing about the story of Coffee Prince that I wasn't pleased with as the amount of attention that was drawn to Choi Han Seong and Han Yoo Joo. I honestly felt that they didn't need as much screen time (and didn't need to be named as the main protagonists) as Eun Chan and Choi Han Kyul. Their story was just made up of arguments and lovey-dovey stuff. I'm sure they could have still fit in a marriage and miscarriage if they were supporting characters instead. Also, with the miscarriage, I think a lot of people were confused as to what happened with that, so that could have been explained better. But despite all of that, Eun Chan and Han Kyul's relationship throughout the entire series was amazing and I absolutely loved watching it.
Now, the acting in this was superb. I couldn't have asked for a better casting job. I'll start with Han Kyul's actor (as he was my favourite character), Gong Yoo. I just want to say that he is super, amazingly hot, and people could just watch Coffee Prince for his looks. And whenever he smiles, it's the cutest thing. Anyway, Yoo's acting skills are the best and he was completely in character the entire time. Next is Eun Chan's actress: Yoon Eun Hye. Half of the time I was watching this, I would completely forget her character is a girl because she's that convincing. Give or take that her character is annoying when persistent, but still extremely lovable. Last is Lee Sun Gyun as Choi Han Seong, and Chae Jung Ahn as Han Yoo Joo. I won't say much about them because I didn't pay much attention to their time in Coffee Prince, but they were extremely good actors. The only acting choice I didn't like was Yoon Young Ah as Eun Chan's sister: Eun Sae. Not only was her character so annoying, her acting was inconsistent and she didn't show more than five facial expressions.
I can't say I enjoyed the soundtrack all that much during the series, it was never my sort of thing. But it does suit well with the theme and atmosphere of the series. My favourite song would most definitely be Polly by The Melody (I think the song is called Polly anyway). Not much else I can say about the music, but it makes sure to keep in tone with the scenes.
Oh my god, yes, I would definitely rewatch. I need to see those scenes with Han Kyul and Eun Chan again. Those are just the best scenes to watch when I need cheering up.
Overall, besides the issues previously mentioned, Coffee Prince is definitely worth anyone's time, especially those who love romcoms and extremely hot actors and actresses.
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binged it in 2 days
I was a bit hesitant about watching it since it is an older drama and the oldest kdrama I've watched is Boys Over Flowers which I found to be quite average but Coffee Prince truly did exceed my expectations. I binged it in 2 days because I was that obsessed with it, and I barely binge, but I genuinely could not get enough.I'll start on what I disliked before I go on my huge rant about how much I love this. The second couple wasn't very appealing. Their loveline was just so messy, getting mad at each other for basically cheating but then doing it themselves and all that. I didn't particularly care about their problems and ended up watching their scenes at 2x at one point. When I rewatch this (and I definitely will), I'm gonna straight up skip their scenes entirely because they felt like such a drag. Another subplot I didn't like was the FL's mother's loveline. The mother isn't very likeable so again I didn't care about her romance with that one uncle. It just felt like a filler.
Now onto what I liked, which is the main couple. Their chemistry was absolutely everything, I could watch a whole other season of them just existing and bickering together no plot needed. It's crazy how well they fitted onscreen, the casting director did an amazing job. I was especially impressed by Yoon Eunhye who plays Go Eunchan. She was so natural playing a tomboy, it did not seem forced at all. The character herself didn't feel like she was forcing her personality to act more like a boy, she was just being herself and everyone else saw it in a male light. Even though it isn't completely believable for us as viewers, I can see how the characters saw Eunchan as a boy, from her appearance and behavior. Gong Yoo's Hankyul, although annoying at times, wasn't the typical arrogant emotionless rich snob that a lot of male leads end up being and I'm so glad for that.
I really enjoyed their love story develop too. Eunchan had to hide her identity/gender because she needed the money and at one point it did become too scary to reveal the truth. A lot of people are like "she could have told him sooner and saved all that trouble" but she got close to Hankyul fast and didn't want to risk losing him, so she kept lying. In times like this it does feel easier to lie, especially something so big that could make them hate you forever. Also I personally LOVED the angst. It was just so good, them getting feelings and trying to avoid each other, making the other person confused.. too good. I understand this isn't for everyone but yeah the angsty scenes happen a decent amount and each time I was yelling at my screen because I loved it that much. The high tension and passionate confessions? Amazing. Couldn't get enough of it. I think we deserved one more episode of them just being a happy cute couple though.
The 'princes'/coworkers were really fun too. I didn't like how easily they let slip the truth about Eunchan's gender to each other considering it was her secret, but other than that they were my second favorite part about this drama. They all have their own individual personalities but when they're together it's a very entertaining mix. They all care about each other. Lee Eon's (rip) character, Minyeop, was my personal favorite. He's so dumb but so sweet you can't help but like him. I loved how he kept looking out for Eunchan and tried to protect her as best as he could.
Overall, this was an amazing drama. I can't stop thinking about it, especially the main couple. Can't wait to rewatch this in a year or two.
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An Unexpectedly, Beautifully Raw Portrayal of Attraction
Let's get one thig out of the way - this drama has haunted me since the day I finished it. And I mean that in the best way.For days after finishing Coffee Prince I could scarcely close my eyes without picturing Gong Yoo's pained face as he lies next to Yoon Eun Hye on the beach. This drama took me by surprise with the sheer amount of pained yearning present in the main romance - and the unexpected 'love is love' message. Almost unheard of in any show, in any language, from 2007, but from South Korea? God, I still can't get it out of my mind.
Gong Yoo is the star of this drama. There's no denying it. His struggle with his emotions for Go Eun Chan is real and raw and sometimes painful to watch. It's perhaps one of my favourite performances in a drama, ever. This storyline can get heavy at times, but it stays rooted in that tenderness of true, terrifyingly deep love. The angst of the show comes from these themes of falling in love despite yourself, of forgiving the ones you love, of hiding the truth and forgiving yourself for it.
While the chemistry between GY and YEH is electric, the entire cast seems to mesh well together. Every scene with the coffee shop crew feels fun and comfortable, like you're watching a real group of friends hanging out. The secondary performances are memorable, and the style of the show at large is simply heart-warming and comforting.
But, god, Gong Yoo. Watch it just for him and his painful painful yearning, I beg you. You won't regret it.
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The drama made a special place in my heart, I like when many character has a problem which is solved within the story, family, friend, the Prince team and secret love. I loved them all.
P. S. The eye killer waffle boy Kim Jaw Wook, he already hot here so it's a bonus to re-watch it again & again lol.
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Smooth. Honest. Sexy. Humble. Coffee Prince reallyyyy stole my heart. With the great music, actors, & romance lines that always held a sense of realism no matter how crossed the wires got -- it was just an absolute joy to watch. But surprisingly enough, even with all that, that wasn't what hooked me. It's truly the basic plot of the story, one that is so unique & original, that it keeps pulling me back. Eun-Chan is a girl, pretending to be a guy, who falls in love with a guy, who thinks she's a guy. And it was so well done! Eun-Chan and Han-Gyul were hot..er..I mean, really good together, & there were so many relationship beats that had me squeeing because of how spot on they felt to real life. They reacted to their circumstances the way I could imagine reacting, so as the audience I was totally with them through all the ups & downs. Oh, and hey, who could forget about the other boys of the show! They really made the coffee shop feel like a family & definitely rounded out the tone, & my overall love for show. The episode I knew this show was the one? When they went to the apple farm. I don't know why but for some reason I remember just totally relaxing into that episode. It was fun, yet soothingly quiet. I found myself feeling very peaceful, allowing myself to let the show take me wherever it wanted to take me. It was so nonchalant in a beautiful way and just took me away to Eun-Chan and Han-Gyul's world. Absolutely wonderful show.
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It was okay
I'm really not into older dramas. They really grate on me. I started watching Full House and had to stop. Decided to watch this one because it's so highly rated. I like Gong Yoo. I loved him in Goblin, but haven't watched him in anything else. Tried to watch Big and didn't feel it either. I even tried watching Princess Hours and had no luck.This drama kept me mostly all the way through. However, was this even a romance? Yes, there were some cute moments here and there but the 'romance' felt more like a friendship and I am not sure how these two fell in love in the first place. Like what? I'm still waiting for it. I am not sure why the FL was mad most of the time and she annoyed me to no end. She was such a self, confused character. I would have preferred if she was actually a boy or a lesbian...would have made for a better story...like someone who is actually struggling.
Not much else to say except for the fact that it was long.
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Good drama
Overall, a good drama.Personally, I would have liked to see SFL struggle more to get back SML (actaully, to be honest I would have very much preferred him to look at other options and conclude the obvious, namelythat he could do better than someone that would treat him as she did, deceiving him for more than a year, disappearing for two years without a word, and then have the gall to ask him to get back together after she broke up with the guy she cheated with... and he could do better with anyone else, or even by himself) or at least a stronger love triangle where SFL actually faced a challenge. I mean, there was more struggle and uncertainty with the This Week My Wife Is Having An Affair love triangle, and it was basically an afterthought. I wished that SML had channeled Astrid from the ending of the Crazy Rich Asian movie and demonstrated he had a little spine, self dignity and self respect.
The fact is, SFL doesn't really have to face the consequences of her actions, because such consequences are a token resistence that crumbles basically in their first meeting, then he takes her back. And that happens in the first episodes, after which she is no longer the one that chases after him and tries to get back together, he is the one that chases after her, from going to her apartment after their first intimate encounter to literally begging her not to run off with DK, the man she had cheated with, once again. This is insane. Even in something completely ludicrous, where FL should have definitely not taken him back, like World of the Married, the cheating partner has to go through more hoops in order to get a new chance, while here, absurdly, its the SML that runs after her anyway and tries to convince her to stay, after basically folding immediately when she asked him to take her back, despite the pain and betrayal she had put through -what he had to put up with was orders of magnitude worse, she just walzes back in his life after more than one year of cheating and two years off with her lover... I mean, they don't even discuss why she is back: did she have a change of heart, and if then why? Did the relationship just not pan out and so he is the backup? Did DK cheat on her with the briefly mentioned model? One really is forced to try to convince themselves of the first option based on what little evidence the show provides, and the "why is she back" bit is barely touched on-.
I mean, compare this with the hoops the SFL in Backstreet Rookie has to go through, after merely kissing another guy and briefly leaving: there we at least see the reason she is back, we see that she finally learned to appreciate ML (and she never really loved the other guy, anyway) and before she didn't realize how committed the latter was to her, and she goes back (and never really gets a chance). Here we don't know why she is back (did things not pan out and he is the fallback? Or did she suddenly realize she really loved him? But she said she loved DK when she run off with him, and seemed to know all along how much HS loved her and how she was his entire world, so it's not as if she knows anything more about him than when she intentionally deceived him for more than a year while seeing DK behind his back, and run off with DK for two years without saying another word to HS... I really would have liked to be given a reason beyond her saying that she wants to get back together).
This is exemplified by the flippant way his concerns around DK are dismissed/made fun of. He tries to play it cool, but is disturbed that she is still talking with the guy (and meeting up one on one, with a creepily intimate vibe and her giving clever replies and not really putting the foot down and drawing boundaries, when he is still trying to win her back). I would have been okay with saying that his advances were inappropriate and she was going to walk away if he didn't stop hitting on her (she banters with him and makes clever comebacks, frankly it was more like flirting, and I would say that she was at least indulging his flirting if not partecipating -by the end, definitely participating and stringing him along to make HS jealous, which given DK was the guy she cheated with for a year was simply insanely disrespectful, though I liked the jealousy on *her* part, high time she understood she couldn't take him for granted, though unfortunately in practice she could safely take him for granted and he was back to begging and grovelling in two seconds flat-), though I would have very much preferred if she had shown some consideration for HS's obvious insecurities and understood that this was a bad idea in the first place.
Here we are not talking about indulging or pandering to some irrational jealousy. The key point here is that no, her being with HS is not enough to reassure him that he is the one she had chosen, because prior to that, while they were together, she cheated on HS with DK for more than a year, so clearly her being with HS was insufficient to assume she wouldn't cross any boundaries in the past: it would have been a completely different situation had she decided to break things off with HS and then purse a relationship with DK, in that case it would have hurt, but he could have at least trusted that if she had developed feelings for someone else she would talk to him about it and not double time him. He simply cannot make that assumption, because she has shown herself to be the kind of person that would keep her foot in two shoes and lie to his face for more than a year (for that matter, I was about to say "chose him over DK", but it's not clear whether this was because she relized she loved him and not DK, or because DK cheated on her with the underwear model, or she broke up because of something else DK did, so it's not clear that the "choice" is not a convenient fallback... I chose to go with the first option because the alternatives would be even more unpalatable and even more taking him for granted).
Given that betrayal and the fact that DK is still trying to get back with her, this is not simply mantaining a friendly relationship with an ex-bf, it's not a separate matter. And if HS feels that he has to keep his mouth shut about his feelings to be able to stay with her, and when he tries to express them he is not taken seriously, there is a problem. If YJ has no idea that HS would be bothered by her taking calls from the man she had been seeing behind his back for more than a year and agree to one-on-one meetings and lunch, then she would be completely insensitive. I was about to say that nobody could have expected him to be relaxed about that that quickly, but that was before knowing of the betrayal and about YJ using DK to make HS jealous... after knowing that, I would switch that quickly to ever, and say that the phrase is validated, because nobody did expect that, and in particular she did not: she knows perfectly well how HS truly feels about DK. When he comments on him wanting her back because she is a talented artist, she says it's a surprise to hear him say something nice about the guy (considering he had been seeing his gf behind his back for more than a year and she run off with him for two, what a surprise). And later on she exploits the pain he felt with regards to DK to remind him that she had lived with the guy in their NY house and he still has feelings for her, and she might be starting to reciprocate, to make him jealous, before outright telling him that she is going back to him.
To be honest, if we were to speak about practical advice I would give someone in HS's situation, it would be to run for the hills and choose anyone else (or nobody and stay single). A perfect life of two rich artistic guys with nice houses, the dream life/couple? And YJ and HS being even more unhappy than FL? Well, in reality I would say that HS was the only miserable one, and he had perfectly good reasons to be: that completely ignores the fact that there is more to life than money and YJ betrayed HS, while nobody stabbed FL in the back in such a manner. Her knowing him so well as to share something like the little foot fetish and choosing to lie to his face for more than a year, knowing full well about how much he loved her and trusted her, and self servingly exploiting and breaking that trust, and then running off for two without a word, and later exploiting knowing which buttons to push to hurt him with his insecurities regardind DK... it all makes her actions all the more damning (in Backstreet Rookie at least SFL was confused about ML's commitment to her and didn't realize how much he had sacrificed for her, here she knew all about his feelings and took him for granted, deceiving him anyway and then later intentionally using DK to hurt him).
I would have liked to see a real triangle, for HS to have had other actual relationships and given it a real try. It just seems mightily unfair that he would wait for her for years and not have the chance to truly explore and discover whether someone else could make him happy... with him being strong armed and pressured into a decision and not having any experience with a relatioship with any other girl, I really cannot say he is making an informed decision (and in fact imho anyone else would have been a better choice, given that they had not betrayed him in such a horrific manner, in fact staying alone would have been preferable). More than that, that way YJ would have had to actually do some work to win HS back, while this way she essentially just shows up and asks. One cannot even talk about her evolving: she still thinks that it's okay for someone to stab people in the back to get what they want (she tells ML that had he really been interested her being his cousin's gf wouldn't have mattered and he would have tried to steal her away for real... as if people simply acted on their impulses with no consideration for the fact that they are hurting people that they don't know and never did anything to them, or people they know and care about, and getting what they wanted by any means necessary is the only thing that matters... would have liked to see how she would have felt like had she been on the receiving end of such a life philosophy and had someone really been trying to take HS away from her, rather than it being HS's one sided crush... this is simply basic golden rule stuff, treat others like you want to be treated, and people being able to separate their emotions from whether pursuing someone is a good idea and wouldn't want to come between two people in an established relationship, and I would have liked ML to push back on her hogwash and restate that no, as he told his gf, the fact that he is HS's cousin mattered, he is not a sociopath that is completely self serving and does not mind stabbing people -in this case family he cares about- in the back in the pursue of his goals... though his flirting was still inappropriate -it was not clear to me that HS truly didn't mind when he put his head in YJ's lap, but it's something ML should have wondered about, though maybe it's something he did, and in fact he did seem aware of the fact that he and his flirting were not being taken seriously- and I appreciated FL calling him out on it), she just decided for some reason that now she does not want DK anymore and wants HS again.
It's not clear to me that he can expect this not to happen in the future, and to be completely honest I guess that nobody can guarantee not to fall out of love with someone and in love with someone else, and in such a case it would be perfectly fine to be upfront and honest about it and break things off, the worry is whether she would be like last time and deceive him for more than a year: to be clear, had she simply dumped him and run off for two years, while unpleasant for HS, I wouldn't have had a problem with it, because she would have been honest and really the only alternative if she was in love with DK and not with HS would have been what she chose, namely lying to HS' face for more than a year. If she still thinks that what she wants is all that matters and she can stab the people she loves in the back to get it (as she implied when talking to ML about his crush on her), then with that mentality it's not clear that she wouldn't lie to HS again if a similar situation to the one with DK arose in the future, maybe being in DK's shoes this time around and hurting someone else as well, like she suggested ML to hurt his cousin by pursuing his girlfriend for real. The notion that one might think that despite one's feelings and emotions and what they want/wish for, there are other considerations, and they don't want to be the type of person that would come between two people in an established relationship, or be willing, in order to get what they want, to unfairly treat someone they didn't know and that never did anything to them, or stab a family member and someone he cares about in the back, as if wanting something or someone is a free pass, a get out of jail free card, and merely desiring something or someone wsa a universal justification in and of itself. Again, the double standard of thinking that this is all perfectly okay if she does it to someone else, but it's not if even much less is done to her. That's the reason I would have liked her to have some real competition, rather than simply someone that had no interest in coming between her and her boyfriend and was completely unthreatening.
It's absurd that she doesn't have to do anything to win the person she deceived for more than a year back other than show up and ask, and he is the one that needs to beg her to stay, again. Once again, it's not her fighting to get him back, it's him fighting to get her to stay -and, after putting up with more than a year of betrayals, he needs to beg her not to run off to the lover she cheated on him with *again*, when she was the one that asked him to take her back? After more than a year of lies and running off for two years without a word, she gets to come back into his life just by asking once and barely saying sorry, and he has to grovel and beg her not to leave him again for the man she had cheated with?-. I simply find it absurd that she basically didn't need to face any challenge to get him back, she just had to show up and ask twice.
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