Slow but worthwhile

This drama gets better on your 2nd time watching.

During my first watch, throughout ep 1 - 9 i disliked jiwoo's character so much. Even as he explained his reasons in ep 7, i couldn't understand them. It felt selfish of him. His worries could have easily been resolved if he had communicated openly with seojoon in the first place. And i absolutely hated how unnecessarily mean and harsh jiwoo was on seojoon. My heart ached for seojoon, for him still trying to reconcile his relationship with jiwoo despite the constant rejection. I was waiting for a good reason as to why he left, why he's so persistent in not getting back together with seojoon despite the poor guy's begging. And when i found out loneliness and guilt was the reason, it felt small.

However, watching it a 2nd time it dawned on me that not all relationship problems arise from external obstacles, most of the time it manifests internally. And jiwoo's case perfectly showcases how internalizing his fears to avoid problems in their happy relationship would eventually come back and hit him harder. Even the jump cuts between present and flashbacks made me co confused during my 1st watch, but rewatching it made me appreciate the director's skills and foresight. It was beautifully executed and the transitions flowed, showing the drastic contrast between his current life and his life with jiwoo. Same routine yet different feelings and scenes. There were many symbolisms and parallels used by the director in S2 to build up sj and jw's story, it'll hit you harder when you realise it.

Honestly i didn't like season 1 that much, it was definitely one of my top K bls but it didnt struck me as hard. There were many plot holes in season 1 and due to the short running time, they couldnt dive much into the characters and their relationship. I found it rushed as the characters just suddenly fell in love and they didnt show why or how. But season 2 completely changed my view on TMS. It felt complete. You get to learn more about each character and see the development of their relationship. I loved the addition of jiwoo's ex as that was a chapter in jiwoo's life which he needed to close and move on from. It also helped put things into perspective for him since she was in his shoes during their relationship - she constantly felt lonely while jiwoo could not understand why she felt that way. Presently, jiwoo feels lonely while seojoon is blissfully unaware.

To those who say TMS S1 was better and this sequel was a waste, i honestly disagree. I love the route they chose for S2 instead of just showing fluffy domestic moments. It would feel empty like that. S2 chose to showcase that not every story ends with happily ever after, it depends on the couple's efforts to compromise, trust and openly communicate with each other. In many instances you will notice how despite seojoon putting 100% into the relationship, his actions done out of love yet it backfired and in turn caused more internal turmoil for jiwoo. Seojoon is unaware of this because he only sees his side of their relationship. In jiwoo's case, he expected seojoon to know how he feels and what he isnt happy with because he is an actor. Going as far as running away and naming his restaurant "Ti Aspetto" ( Im waiting for you) expecting seojoon to understand the underlying meaning. These are common mistakes we as humans do in real life relationships and its so refreshing to see them being addressed, it feels relatable cause the characters are imperfect.

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