LA_Drama Fan

Ep 48 – “I’m sick and tired of this family drama”

Those words, uttered by KJH in the beginning of the Kocowa-subbed version of this episode pretty much sums up the feelings expressed in our forum here. I can’t help but believe that this was deliberately written by a writer who is at his wits-end and just wants to get the series over with too. It’s his barely-subliminal message to us.

And it would fit in, as this is the most forgettable episode yet. My biggest take-away was the delicious burger SK and her Mom had at “Organic Burger”. I loved how the adult actress did the usual not-touching-the-food bit, but the little girl couldn’t help nibbling at it, herself. I’m hungry just thinking about it.

Memorable (if few) moments:
-The most shocking thing to me was the total zombie-fication of YD. I’ve read the comments here and agreed that up to 47 that she’s been neutered to the point of almost being a piece of background furniture. But that was mild compared to here, especially in the scene at the housewarming party where she appears to be sedated. WTF? I don’t get it at all. It was like she had laryngitis this episode! Please add this Director to your Do-not-watch list. He’s incompetent beyond words.
-So, indulge me, I know she’s not particularly popular here, but YM gets her moment with DW. I think the scene where he hid her from their mothers really hurt her, and drove it home for her. I doubt she’s ever been made to feel like she was an embarrassment or something to hide, this must have crushed her ego. She makes him tell her he doesn’t like her, so she can break up with him in terms she can understand. DW, true to character, stupidly agrees. If they do reunite (which I hope they don’t, but probably will) it will be due to the actions of SK, who is certainly more mature than her father. YM’s scene with SK in the office and then the park hearkens back to when they slept together at BN’s house. They deserve each other and given more airtime, the “airhead” couple, led by SK, could have been a great counter-point to the grief that the leads endure. Which IS after all, the whole point of secondary couples - a concept lost on Writer B.
-The bit with Hee’s son vis-à-vis SooJung and Uncle DS is bordering on the absurd now (join the absurdity club, characters). I’m not sure why we should care, if Uncle is not the child’s dad?
-And speaking of that, what happened to the fortune-teller???? I can’t believe we are just going to pretend that didn’t happen either? Oh, right….that was the Writer A’s storyline that got dumped along with the pharmacist, JM’s assistant, and any other joy in this series.
-I won’t even address the highly logical and understandable decision to leave your child alone for several hours with a guy who has KJH’s track record of reasonable behavior. Sista, PLEASE!!!!

Yet another depressing, uninspired episode, done by dispirited actors in a series that is limping along to its end next weekend.

Oh, what fun. A happy-ever-after ending for this is now going to be so unbelievable that it would almost be insulting. But it will happen; we’ve been the target of their insults for the last month at least. Brace yourselves, folks.

One thing that really struck me was watching the clips Ericka posted of her in Jugglers and the other drama. I was speechless that she could believably portray someone in love. This was NOT our YeonDoo, at any time in this series. Based on her performance here, I figured she was just a poor actress who had difficulty emoting. So, that's not the case at all, and it was news to me. I usually don't watch the BTS clips they post on You Tube because I wonder just how 'candid' they are. I know the direction is greatly to blame, but I wonder if this is a happy cast? They're getting blasted by the domestic audience just as bad as they are here, so that has got to be demoralizing.

I'll watch 48 now. Lord, give me patience.

FanFan, it's funny you mention IBN. It was, and still is one of my favorite shows. We really used to get into it, in that forum here. Some pretty heated discussions!
I can at least understand where it went wrong: I feel that all-along the show was to wind up being a star-vehicle for PYJ. It was probably understood by all that the back-end would be about her, as it would make little sense to have a veteran, decorated actress like her in a secondary role. To KBS, it all worked great: she got her Actress Award at the KBS Awards earlier this year.
Since my favorite couple was the Dolts, I can end the show after their marriage around Ep 37 and just pretend the rest didn't exist. That's the only way I can feel good about it. Unfortunately, that approach doesn't work here since just ending the show at Ep30 leaves it being kind of a meh show.

Awwww, C'mon. You've never driven by a bad car-wreck and given it a furtive glance to see what happened? Even though you didn't want to?
That's all of us now.

Well put!

And THAT is what I'm waiting for. What was "THE REAL"? I don't think we'll find out until the last ep, if it's even worth wondering about anymore.

Hear, Hear!

That's very interesting! There had to be something going on behind the camera, because there's really no other explanation, unless the writer is schizophrenic? If ratings were the sole concern of the higher-ups, then I can see them wanting to follow the YLAG model, as that show (for all its faults) had high ratings.

My biggest problem is that "they" (writer/dir/producer/KBS execs) think that this approach would sit well with us. It makes me feel as if they are either taking us for granted (best case) or think we're so dumb, we'd buy into it (worst case). I suspect it's the latter, which fuels my fury with this show. He can change the plot all he wants, but his biggest sin is changing the character of his characters, if you will, especially YD, while allowing for growth for others (KJH, CM, SooJung, JM, etc.)

Yet for all this dreck, the hoped-for rating spike really never came, as the show plods along in the 20% +/- 5 range. Frankly, I'm surprised it's still that high, but I don't have a handle on what the domestic audience wants.

I especially feel bad for those of us here that were dragged into what seemed to be so much fun that we became emotionally-invested with these make-believe people in a far-away land, only to be let down so badly. I'll expand on that when we do the postmortem discussion after next weekend.

It was fun while it lasted, dear. After next weekend, think of this no more.

Ep 47 - The Man who Came to Dinner.... errr, Lunch.

This show is turning me into a conspiracy theorist!! How on earth can a series that for well over its first half was a funny, sweet, and clever story of 2 young people trying to fool their parents, turn into some kind of deranged, depressing "drama" about an obsessed couple trying to destroy a family/families? We truly have 2 completely separate series somehow grafted onto each other, like Frankenstein's K-Drama. My latest theory is that there are actually 2 people writing this....a collab, if you will. Writer A did the first half (kudos) and Writer B took over around when InOk went nuts (ban that guy from writing, FOREVER). There are 2 separate agendas going on here.

Anyways, as far as 47 goes....just when you think the episodes can't get any worse, they make it happen. This was garbage. Not worth watching. Mopping my kitchen floor is more enjoyable. Notable items:

-Granny's on-again, off-again redemption arc is on-again. I think. I've lost track now.
-KJH is in at least 75% of the scenes in this show. It's now HIS story. How the hell did THAT happen?
-And of course, he barges into EVERY family gathering. OK Writer, WE GET IT. You don't have to bludgeon us repeatedly with stupid scenes like this. WTF is it with this writer????
-YM is betrayed by SK. Her arc is doing it's best imitation of the Hindenburg crashing in New Jersey.
-I wish CS had punched KJH. Hell, I wish Granny had punched him! Anybody, please!!!

The thing about YM is interesting. She's still my only favorite character left. She was attracted to DW purely on looks, as he's a clone of her ex-BF (remember Jae? - It's been awhile.) But at some point she must have realized that DW is a total moron, unlike Jae (presumably). Was it her attraction to SK that kept her with him? Had to have been, as she should have dumped him once she saw how brain-dead he is. Run away, YM!!! You can do so much better than that train-wreck of a family.

I should probably spoiler-tag this, but I won't since it's a Public Service Announcement to NOT WATCH THIS SERIES!

Remember how pissed off we were when the SJ annoyance factor exceeded 20% of screen time? That was the good-old-days compared to this. I'll be darned if I'm going to rewatch this crap and calculate a JHAF, though. It's hard enough to watch it once.

you forgot the required amnesia case!

10000%!!!!!

You guys weren't kidding....it really is KIM JUNAH HAS COME. I just FF'd thru most of it....was he in almost EVERY scene???

I don't blame you. Thanks anyways for your insights and reactions.

time management is the key. Somewhere way back here I posted how the show is not structured properly because of too many couples. They can't focus on the one or two secondary couples like they should.

And in case I haven't been clear enough, I really dislike YD. She's done some terrible things to TK not only in ghosting him, but in how she did it: without even leaving him a goodbye note like she did for her family. She should not have been forgiven for that by the writers and we the audience need to keep that in mind too. I feel bad for TK that he's drawn to someone like her. BN was actually right: he is too good for her and the grief she's brought to his family.

correction: Married (on paper) roommates raising a baby......

Their relationship bugs me to no-end and I put most of the fault on her. (I was going to make a long post on this, but not worth it.) The only man she's loved is KJH who got her pregnant and cheated on her. She never loved TK, and still doesn't. She loves how he cares for HER child, yet still questions his love for her baby. So they are partners in child-rearing, at best. The marriage registry was a legal formality, nothing more. She has the briefest of flashes of affection for him, but they disappear as soon as they come. What are the two foundational elements of a loving relationship? Trust and Communication. They lack both. They are married because they have to be. Their "love" never grew as it normally would. And her ghosting him and having a grand old time raising HN alone, pretty much proves how much she 'loved and needed him'.

I'm sorry, but TK has always been an afterthought in her mind and at the most, he is something she reacts to now. She does not love KJH anymore, but she won't let TK into her heart as much as KJH was, despite everything he's done for her.

I wish they'd never brought her back, and concentrated on the other couples. Then they could have done a timeskip where an older TK, who's moved on with his life, meets a grown HN and gets to know her. A bittersweet ending we deserve more than the garbage we've gotten.

BT, will you be doing a recap today? I'm on the fence if I even want to see it. I'd end up FFing thru the KJH scenes and I'm not sure I want to see DW/YM downward spiral.

Yeah, this is the bottom line for the show. I keep thinking, "what could have been...."

At this point:
JH is too beloved by the writers. He'll just wind up humbled and 'dissapear into the mist'. DW is too stupid to do anything right. He'll wind up with SK's mom, because "family" and she'll go back to the US, broken-hearted, to complete her studies. This was the most wasted storyline in the series.
Maybe there will be a timeskip and they can reconcile, but his cluelessness and heartlessness has hurt her too much.

And yet, those 2 issues get <10% of the airtime of the show. He has the perfect opportunity to turn down the angst and viewer anger with the leads story line and concentrate on the others, and fails.