Smile: Episodes 13-14
by soyjoy
Smile is hitting exactly the right notes for me. Though not wildly innovative, there’s something organic and sweet about the pacing and tone that I really enjoy. When there’s as much chemistry & development as there is in these two episodes, reducing the repartee to a line of summary just doesn’t do it justice. So I apologize if these recaps get a bit long-winded!
The actors play off each other really well in small ways that are especially hard to capture, like the moment above when Jung-in makes an excited puppy-face at Hyun-soo. Out of context, it looks almost silly, but it’s the kind of unapologetically endearing moments that abound in this drama.
EPISODE 13
Stunned by Jung-in’s kiss, Hyun-soo falls back against the wall.
Hyun-soo: What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?
Jung-in: I wanted to be a first to you, too. That way, you’ll wait for me.
Hyun-soo tries to change the subject, saying the paint won’t come off his jacket (ha! There’s our beta male.)
Jung-in: You’ll wait for me, right?
Hyun-soo: What?
Jung-in: You said you waited for Jung-kyung because she was your first love.
Hyun-soo: Sure. Sure, I w-w-waited. But who said that was my first k-k-k-kiss?
Nonchalantly, Hyun-soo says that there’s nothing he hasn’t done before.
… System OVERLOAD. You can almost see Hyun-soo popping screws as he staggers downstairs and collapses in bed. Sung-joon comes over to check on him, but, with urgency in his voice, Hyun-soo yells that he doesn’t want to be bothered, touched or even have anyone standing nearby. His whole body is tingling in shock!
Meanwhile, Geum-ja confirms her suspicions when she finds Joo-hee’s name on an ancient church bulletin in Sang-hoon’s Bible. She stalks off to find Joo-hee, who is in the backyard talking to Sang-hoon. Geum-ja rounds the corner, but Jung-kil, following close behind, pulls her back.
Sang-hoon holds Joo-hee’s hand briefly, saying that had been his wish thirty years ago. Joo-hee asks what his wish is now; he says he wants to make up with Geum-ja. But Geum-ja doesn’t hear this last part because Jung-kil pulls her away.
(Jung-kil consistently shows no affection toward Joo-hee, and even upon overhearing this incriminating conversation, his only reaction is to try to turn it to his advantage. I find Joo-hee exceedingly insipid and annoying, but seeing Jung-kil fail to display a hint of jealousy, protectiveness, or any interest at all, actually made me feel bad for her.)
Jung-kil tells Geum-ja that the Kangs’ house originally belonged to his father, so the house and car center all belong to him. He suggests that she can wield this knowledge to threaten Sang-hoon into good behavior and get more respect from Grandpa Man-bok.
Sung-joon finally gets Hyun-soo out of bed, but complains that the bed smells. Hyun-soo realizes it’s because of the paint and runs up to the attic, where Jung-in has fallen asleep among the paint fumes. He opens the window to air out the room and takes Jung-in outside.
They make a fire with fallen leaves to keep warm. Hyun-soo keeps his distance, but Jung-in tells him to sit next to her with a string of excuses: (a) it’s cold, (b) she’s still dizzy and wants to lean on him and (c) his legs must hurt from squatting. Finally she says, “Oppa, you’re acting weird.” Defensively, he sits next to her saying that’s not the case.
Jung-in: How was it?
Hyun-soo: What? H-h-h-…. H-h-h-how was what? W-w-what are you thinking?
Jung-in: I meant… the survey… how it went…
Hyun-soo falls sheepishly silent, and Jung-in mutters, “Player.”
Hyun-soo responds with feigned flippancy, “Look, for a man that’s a given! So what if I k-k-kissed someone? Just because I kissed a girl once…” His tone changes, genuinely curious. “… does that make me a player?”
Jung-in drops the subject, but as if in response she cuddles up to Hyun-soo, sayiing, “Can’t a dongseng link arms with her oppa when it’s cold?” He has to be consistent with his new playboy image, so he nervously laughs off the sexual tension, puts his arm around her and agrees that between an oppa and dongseng, it’s nice to be able to keep warm together.
(Eeeeeee!! Omgoodness, the cuteness of it all!!! Hyun-soo is making a total sucker out of me. *MELT*)
The next morning, Jung-in tells Hyun-soo they should make another fire and roast sweet potatoes. He shrugs her off, saying the fire is obviously not strong enough for the task. She pouts; he tells her, “Tuck those lips back in.” (Ha!)
But he can’t get her lips off his mind and starts seeing lips everywhere. He spazzes, but so as not to call attention to himself, he eats the “lips.” His imagination is so vivid that he struggles not to gag as he chews and swallows.
Jung-in finds onions and charcoal in her room, which Hyun-soo has put out to absorb the smell. Happy to see his thoughtful gesture, she labels them with post-it notes marked “Gift 1” and “Gift 2.”
Enter more tension between Jung-kyung and the Chief. Their relationship has already been strained because of personal matters, and now it’s spilling over into the workplace. Jung-kyung, incensed to hear that the Chief took her off a patient’s surgery, confronts him in front of colleagues. He sternly tells her it’s his policy to take a doctor off a case if the patient requests it.
Later, they make up quickly over the surgery issue, but when they get to the real problems at the heart of their relationship, making up isn’t so easy. The Chief argues that she wasn’t this way (i.e., this ‘demanding’) before Hyun-soo came back. Frustrated, he says they should take some time to rethink their relationship.
We get to dig into Sung-joon’s pro golf past, and there are skeletons lurking in his closet. The owner of the driving range asks him about his pro credentials, and he shiftily says that he left it in the U.S. He says his pro pseudonym was Tiger Buzz. “Tiger Buzz?” the owner repeats, incredulous; he’s never heard of it. (Though it does have a vaguely familiar ring… LOL. Oh, Sung-joon.)
To his salvation, a gaggle of eager ladies pass by just then, and he introduces himself as their new coach. (Damn, he’s tall.) They’re only too happy to be taught by the strapping young man. I suspect this is how he got by in the States, too…
At Global Motors, Han-se’s getting all lovey-dovey to Jung-in’s cold shoulder. “What?” she asks. “Cuz I like you,” he responds. The love sesh is rudely interrupted by Hyun-soo and his team. Seeing that the meeting room is taken, the team heads back out, but Hyun-soo yells, “Don’t close that door!” His ears perk up as he strains to listen from across the way.
While Hyun-soo is leading a meeting about the H-Spider brake system, Jung-in lets out a big yawn. (Haha–love Hyun-soo’s mid-sentence glare.)
They have coffee and desserts during the meeting, and more red juiciness = more lip fantasies. Hyun-soo passes off the cake, saying he doesn’t want it. After a beat, he says, “Nevermind—I’ll eat it,” and takes it back. And again, “Nevermind—you have it.” Hehe. I love how flummoxed he gets with all things Jung-in.
Han-se has Jung-in come to his office for lunch. Frustrated at the impasse she’s reached with Hyun-soo, she asks Han-se why he likes her.
Han-se: You’re pretty, you’re sweet and you don’t listen.
Jung-in: What?
Han-se: It’s a good thing. A woman should be like that; if she’s too easy, it’s no fun…. And truthfully, what I like most is that you make me tremble. Aside from you, no woman has ever been like that for me.
An employee comes in to tell Han-se his mother is on the way. Panic mode!! Jung-in runs into the employees’ workspace and hides under Hyun-soo’s desk. Han-se’s mother recognizes Hyun-soo and approaches the desk; Jung-in grabs Hyun-soo’s pant leg anxiously.
(Mrs. Lee really gets the shaft from wardrobe. Here she is, with all the grandeur of an ostrich.)
Once she leaves, Hyun-soo pulls Jung-in out, angry that she felt the need to hide. He tells her he’ll help her find a job elsewhere if she needs money.
Hyun-soo: You said you had no thought of getting back together with Han-se.
Jung-in: And what if I do?
(Han-se: [Eavesdropping, reacts] ?? … !!!)
Hyun-soo: What?
Jung-in: I said, so what if I do? It doesn’t matter to you whether I do or not. I’m not that smart, so don’t go confusing a person.
Jung-in’s speaks her mind with refreshing candor, and they fall silent as her meaning sinks in with Hyun-soo. Jung-kyung calls him, saying she’s at the house, but no one is there.
Jung-in always gets tight-lipped when Jung-kyung comes up, but this time, Hyun-soo tries to talk it through with her. While they’re waiting for the bus, he wonders aloud why Jung-kyung called: “Where do you think everyone went? Why would she stop by?” It’s not that he’s anxious to know; he just wants Jung-in to engage. This signals a shift in dynamics—he’s trying to involve Jung-in in the process so she doesn’t feel left out.
The cougar action in this scene is scary hilarious to watch. One woman offers to buy Sung-joon clothes, which he says he doesn’t need, and she says, “So it’s not clothes you need, but money!” She pulls out a wad of cash and greases his palm with it. He excuses himself to go count the money, saying, “I’ll be right back—I have to go powder my nose.” The women find this adorable.
Ha. Seo Dong-chan (of My Fair Lady) would have done it with more finesse than our endearingly bumbling Sung-joon, but ladies–I do believe we have a contender to take over Dong-chan’s old gigolo duds!
Sang-hoon takes Geum-ja to dinner, but their time is cut short when Jung-kil, anxious to thwart any potential reconciliation between the two, arrives with Joo-hee.
Sang-hoon does finally redeem himself later, in a rather touching scene. He tells Geum-ja the truth about Joo-hee, then continues:
They say that you realize how precious your parents and your wife are only after they’ve passed away. You’re grateful for them, you miss them, you feel sorry to them. I don’t want to have those regrets later. Dear, you’ve suffered a lot during these past thirty years. I don’t know how much time we still have left, but if we can live together another thirty years, during that time, even with you next to me, I’ll be grateful for you, miss you, and feel sorry to you.
He pulls out a ring, then kneels and puts it on the ring finger that’s never had a diamond on it til now. He explains, “I saved up some spending money to buy it, so I couldn’t get a nice one. Thank you for loving and protecting someone like me up til now.” She’s moved to tears (she’s also had her fair share of soju, hehe), and they embrace.
When Jung-in and Hyun-soo arrive at home, Jung-kyung tells Hyun-soo that she hasn’t eaten yet. In a huff, Jung-in tells them to eat by themselves and stalks off.
Hyun-soo is concerned at her reaction, but he goes with Jung-kyung and they end up at Ji-soo’s food stand. Sung-joon arrives after them and asks, “Why are you two here—where’s Jung-in?”
Home alone and furious, Jung-in needs to vent. She uses Hyun-soo’s gifts against him, taking the charcoal and writing “Idiot” on the wall he’d painted.
Sung-joon later reminds Hyun-soo about Jung-in’s intense propensity for jealousy, and Hyun-soo merely says, “Goodnight.”
“Oooh,” Sung-joon responds. “At long last you acknowledge it!”
As they get ready for bed, Jung-kyung asks Jung-in if she likes Hyun-soo, and tells her to get over him. Jung-in asks, “Why? Am I not allowed to like him?” Jung-kyung says that Hyun-soo had liked her for eight years; so even if it were to work out with Jung-in, Jung-kyung would still come to mind between them.
Jung-in confronts her sister right back, asking if she likes Hyun-soo. Jung-kyung admits it. “He’s a good person. There’s no reason not to.” She challenges Jung-in, “Do you think Hyun-soo sees you as a woman? Not as my little sister, but as Seo Jung-in, a woman?”
Jung-in: It doesn’t matter. Your feelings changed after you disliked him for so long, but now you like him. So who knows whether Oppa’s feelings might change too? So don’t say it can’t happen.
(YOU GO GIRL! That line is so perfect. I love how relationships and emotions are handled in this series—it’s true to life and handles both the rational and emotional aspects of how relationships develop, rather than relying on serendipitous maneuvers, musical cues and cliche to convey emotional crescendo.)
EPISODE 14
Neither sister can sleep, and Jung-kyung gets up to go back to the hospital. On her way out, she runs into Hyun-soo, who offers to give her a ride to the hospital.
In the car, Jung-kyung comments that it seems like rather than Jung-in being her dongseng, now she’s Jung-in’s unni. Hyun-soo is confused: aren’t they one and the same? Technically, they are, but Jung-kyung senses that her footing with him is slipping.
She says things aren’t going well with the Chief. Hyun-soo responds that liking someone won’t always be easy. Caring for someone can cause worry and hurt, and he encourages her to think of her situation as such. He says that when liking a person actually plays out in real life, it feels like taking a test without studying; or as if you’re cheating so you can’t look up straight; or when you do catch the person’s eye, your heart starts to pound. This makes him think of Jung-in swooping in for the kiss, and he shudders giddily at the thought.
Waiting up for Hyun-soo, Jung-in makes another fire by herself. After she puts it out, she kicks it over in anger.
In the morning, the family finds the overturned ashes. Jung-in yells that people who do such things should be punished, as well as people who stay out making noise at 2 a.m…. and 3:05 a.m. (Not that she was keeping track or anything.) Sung-joon realizes that Jung-in is acting out because Hyun-soo drove Jung-kyung to the hospital.
Sung-joon: [In Hyun-soo’s ear] That’s why I told you to watch out for her jealous side.
Jung-in: It’s rude to whisper when I’m right here!
Sung-joon: You see that, you see? She can’t even stand the sight of me standing with you.
Sung-joon stops by Ji-soo’s truck to raise some fanfare about his new job, but she’s sick and unresponsive. Watching from afar, Kyung-soo repeats, “Poison! Poison!”
I never knew til now that golfing could be so… ELVIS. BWAHAHA! Sung-joon gets his hip-gyration flirt on while demonstrating form. I’ve never golfed myself, but somehow I sense that this is NOT how it’s done.
Han-se calls Hyun-soo and tells him to tell Jung-in to turn on her phone. Peeved, Hyun-soo goes up to Jung-in’s room where she is woosah-ing her anger away by meditating on a black spot, her “mark of self-discipline.” She makes him meditate with her. He hits her on the forehead to snap her out of it; when he tries to do it again, she moves to block and he smiles.
Jung-in asks, “Aside from Runny Nose, is there anything that comes to mind when you think of me?” Helpfully, she offers a few ideas: Pretty, cute or loveable? Koala, parakeet, a big-eyed bunny, a bear cub? As she hovers in close giving him cutesy looks and batting her eyelashes, he can’t seem to help but pucker his lips.
“Oh!” he says. “A frog.” She snaps at him, and he says that confirms it—she’s a big-eyed green frog. Han-se calls Hyun-soo again, and he petulantly tells her to pick up. Han-se tells Jung-in to come outside (he’s on his way) because his father approved her headlight design.
She gets ready to go out, and as she comes down the ladder in a miniskirt, Hyun-soo looks on with a loud gasp. HAHAHAH!!! It’s supposed to express his disapproval and disgust, but the setup of this shot is hilariously suggestive.
Geum-ja reprimands Hyun-soo for going up to Jung-in’s room, but Jung-in tells her Hyun-soo is like an unni (older sister) to her. Geum-ja is offended, so to prove her point, Jung-in puts on Hyun-soo’s mama-boy voice and acts out the scene when Hyun-soo had come to Joon-bae’s restaurant, begging her to come home: “‘Mom—since you’re not here, I haven’t been able to eat. To me, mom’s cooking is the BEST. So huwwy up and come home~!’”
Hyun-soo gets defensive, but Geum-ja says it’s okay for him to stand in for the daughter she doesn’t have, and follows up by saying that outside of his interactions with her, he’s like his father. In a word: Macho.
Jung-in gives him a once-over, then throws her head back and milks that laugh for all it’s worth.
She meets Han-se outside, and he takes her to an apartment that he’s found for her. He tells her to leave the Kangs’ house and have a room of her own, but she retorts that she already does. “You didn’t know? I have a room. A room that Hyun-soo oppa made for me.”
She tells him not to take her for a strange woman and do things like try to give her a place to live. He asks if that makes Jung-kyung a strange woman too, since she was living with a man in an apartment. Shocked, she goes to the hospital to confront her sister. On her way, she calls Hyun-soo to ask if he’d known about this. He has no idea what she means, but worried that she’s going to create a scene, he goes out to follow her to the hospital.
Yeon-jae storms out of a cab right behind Jung-in and gets to Jung-kyung first. Having intercepted a text from Jung-kyung to her father, she confronts Jung-kyung in the middle of the hospital terminal, drawing a crowd: “Get your filthy hands off me! What did you and my father do in the apartment?” (Whoa, there. I know people think Jung-kyung is bad, but this little biotch-in-the-making here is something else entirely.)
Jung-in cuts in and puts Yeon-jae in her place, saying Jung-kyung wouldn’t date a man with a kid in tow—especially if that kid is as ill-bred as Yeon-jae. Yeon-jae is intimidated, and when the Chief comes in she runs to him, whimpering.
Jung-in asks the Chief, “Ajusshi, did my sister ask you to buy her an apartment? The sister I know is too proud and would die before asking for something like that. Ajusshi, tell me. Say it clearly in front of your daughter!”
He tells Yeon-jae that he’d already had the spare apartment, and he was only trying to help a colleague in need. “We don’t have that kind of relationship,” he says.
Disappointed by his cop-out response, Jung-kyung interrupts, “Yeon-jae, you don’t have to apologize. It wasn’t you who misunderstood, but me.”
Jung-in runs out after her sister, but Jung-kyung walks away as Hyun-soo arrives, witnessing the tail-end of the scene. Hyun-soo finds Jung-kyung and offers an ear as she verbally processes her relationship troubles. She asks for his advice, contrasting her feelings for the Chief with his feelings for her. But he says he doesn’t know the answer, since their situations were different: his was one-sided, hers is mutual. He tells her, “Just because the process is hard, don’t doubt his love.”
“Kang Hyun-soo,” Jung-kyung says, “I wish the Chief were as honest about love as you are.”
He brushes it off with a laugh: “If he had, he would’ve been rejected a long time ago, like me.”
Forget the self-discipline Rorschach; Jung-in is back to venting by darkening the word “Idiot” on her wall. She adds, x 100.
Jung-kil and Geum-ja see a lawyer about the house, who says that Jung-kil can’t make a legal claim to the house without any official records, like an IOU or proof of the Chairman’s payment. Without the backing of the law, Jung-kil tries to bully Grandpa Man-bok into turning over the house. He tells Grandpa Man-bok to come out with the truth.
Grandpa Man-bok: Look, you rascal who’s more worthless than an ant! Even the lowly ant moves its food with its own body. What are you planning to do with your body, that you’re trying to get something for nothing?
Kyung-soo later finds Jung-kil in the car center office, descending to new lows. He takes all the money from the cash register and even grabs the tip right out of Kyung-soo’s hand, claiming that it all belongs to him. (STOP! THE! ENTITLEMENT!)
Kyung-soo calls the house to tell them that Jung-kil took off with all the money, so Grandpa, Sang-hoon and Geum-ja all run out after him. Hyun-soo goes to look for Jung-in.
She’s outside, sketching headlights. He texts her, saying, “You’re needed. Come home.” She shows him the sketches she’s been working on, and they’re pretty good, but he says they’re not what he needs. “I’m hungry. Get me some food.”
She makes some bibimbap, but knowing she hasn’t had lunch, he makes her eat it. He tells her gently that Jung-kyung had been upset about the Chief, and he had only been there to listen.
Geum-ja comes home and gives Jung-in a hard time about her dad. Jung-in has no reason to stick up for him, either, so she keeps quiet. To get Geum-ja off Jung-in’s case, he leads her out of the kitchen.
As they leave, he motions to Jung-in to keep eating and gives her an exaggerated, dorky wink.
Sung-joon has been helping Ji-soo find a new place. She does find one, and to thank Sung-joon for his help, gives him a coupon to her pojangmacha. He buys her blankets and says that in exchange, she should give him an all-you-can-eat coupon. She refuses, so he says, “Forget it”; walks out, counts to five, and bursts back into the room, catching her red-handed in the frilly blankets.
Jung-kil comes to Joon-bae’s restaurant, where Grandpa Man-bok has been talking with Joon-bae. He says to Jung-kil, “I can’t live indebted, so I will give it all back to you. Let’s go.”
But Grandpa takes him to the police station. Once inside the door, he grabs him by the collar and yells, “Catch this thief!” He tells Jung-kil, “This is exactly what I had to repay to your father, the Chairman. I went to jail because of your father!”
Back at home, Hyun-soo begins to text Jung-in, asking, “Is it going well?” Hearing her coming down the stairs, he throws the phone down like a hot potato.
Jung-in: Who were you calling at this hour?
Hyun-soo: Nah, just l-l-l-looking at the time.
Jung-in: If you’re going to lie, you should fix that stutter first.
She asks him what was up with the wink from earlier. (Jung-in’s Hyun-soo impressions crack me up!!) She says, “Hey, Player. What you said about having done everything was a lie, right? You dorky mama boy.”
She asks him again for feedback on her sketches. He’s already given it some thought, and shows her the preliminary design he’s started on his computer. He launches into technical speak, none of which matters to Jung-in right now (Teehee!!).
Jung-in: I really like you, Oppa.
Hyun-soo: What?
Jung-in: You’re clumsy, dorky, you can’t wink and you lie about being a player, but I still really like you. So you should appreciate it and be good to me in the future. Wait for me, and teach me, like this. Okay?
Typical Hyun-soo, he hits her on the forehead. You can’t blame her for being slow on the block—who would hit a girl at a time like this??
He tells her to pay attention to the task at hand—but I’ll confess, his techie speak gets totally lost on me because I am just sitting here going SQUEEEEEEE at her blatantly loving looks. She doesn’t even look at the screen–not a once!
At the Chief’s apartment, Jung-kyung has packed her bags and expresses that she’s reached her limit.
Jung-kyung: You know, we’re very similar. Though we pretend not to be, we’re extremely selfish. You have your reputation at the hospital, you want to be a good father to Yeon-jae, and on top of that, me—you won’t sacrifice any of these three. So how could you love me?
Chief: Then would you be able to give up everything for me?
Jung-kyung: I left my family at another person’s house and came here without batting an eye! If it weren’t for you, would I want to be a mom right now? If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t come to work listening to the gossip at my back! If it weren’t for you, I would have met someone else by now who would make things easier for me. What else could I give up?
She walks out and calls Hyun-soo. Hyun-soo is still working on designs with Jung-in. He looks at the phone and says, “It’s Jung-kyung. Why would she be calling at this hour?”
Just as he takes the call, Jung-in says, “Don’t answer.” Jung-kyung asks Hyun-soo to come pick her up, and again, Jung-in says, “Don’t go.”
Hyun-soo argues that they can finish up when he gets back, but she insists: “No. If you leave now, I don’t think this will work. Don’t go.”
But he goes anyway, and she begins to cry. Once outside, though, he turns back.
“Let’s go together,” he says, grabbing her hand.
COMMENTARY
EEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!! Maybe it’s because the buildup has been so long in coming (enjoyable, but long), but that final scene totally got me. He’s finally beginning to reach back out to Jung-in, too.
I appreciate that this series respects the viewer enough to allow events to unfold naturally, rather than banging Big Moments over your head with flashbacks and voiced over closeups of the brooding lover. The charm of this series–and why it works–is that it uses the small moments to bring out the charisma that abounds in this cast.
A few thoughts on Jung-kyung. I haven’t had a visceral response to her because while her actions are abrasive, I do appreciate her from a character development standpoint. Though her actions are inexcusable, I think Choi Jung-yoon, who plays Jung-kyung, grounds them in motivations that make sense.
Probably thanks to the parents who raised her, Jung-kyung has little capacity to take anything other than her own needs/goals into account. So her life is a precarious balance: her career, her noncommittal single-father doctor boyfriend, and her family. She puts these three in triage and prioritizes her career and the Chief; dealing with family troubles on top of her workload and the stress of an unfulfilled relationship would be too much to handle. So her icy, inconsiderate words and actions stem her efforts to maintain this decision, and Choi Jung-yoon does a great job of portraying the resignation and frustration Jung-kyung feels as she follows through on the choices she’s made. In these episodes, the fragile balance is thrown off-kilter, cracking her “Ice” exterior and exposing her humanity.
So I don’t hate on Jung-kyung, but her relationship with Jung-in does still trouble me. It might just be because it saddens me to see them be so harsh and unforgiving towards each other. (In fact, in a recent interview Choi Jung-yoon admitted that portraying Jung-kyung’s relationship with Jung-in “makes my heart ache.”)
Though Jung-kyung keeps a cold exterior, Jung-in’s spunk and warmth usually manage to win out. But in the abrasive interactions between these two, I have yet to find anything redemptive. Perhaps that’s why family is family; other relationships wouldn’t withstand such friction. The sisters share too-similar flaws; they’re opinionated, proud, self-centered and stubborn. With this set of foibles, they’re bound to clash. And while the Kangs have loyalty in spades, loyalty is not the Seos’ strong suit—although Jung-in does stick up for her sister in the hospital scene. Perhaps she’s finally learning something from the Kangs!
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Tags: Choi Jung-yoon, Jung Kyung-ho, Lee Min-jung, Smile
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1 LucKy-
November 15, 2009 at 1:34 PM
Nice recap soyjoy..
keep it up...^^
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2 Foxxe
November 15, 2009 at 1:43 PM
Yea I love Smile, it's been great since ep 1 and hasn't lost it's flare. Just wish that they'd translate it as fast as they do "You're Beautiful". =(
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3 clowninpathos
November 15, 2009 at 1:44 PM
What? We don't have to wait until next week to find out what happened after the kiss? Well.... for the ones that only read the recaps that is... COOL...
Rarely ever comment, but also rarely do I get to be the 1st, couldn't resist. (oh, nevermind, I guess someone beat me to it, took too long to compose, I suppose...)
Haven't read it yet, but just had to say... It's nice to have you soyjoy and dw4p into the dramabeans fold... would never know about this drama if it wasn't for you compatriots :)
Must say you all are doing a good job.
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4 langdon813
November 15, 2009 at 1:53 PM
You guys have totally won me over! If not for your recaps I wouldn't have started this drama again after giving up after Episode 1. It is ADORABLE!
The scene where Jung-in is sitting in Hyun-soo's lap while he garbles on about work is absolutely precious. Just give the girl a spoon so she can eat him up already! I think I love these two almost as much as I do Tae-kyung and Go Mi-nam, and that's saying a lot.
Some of the scenes between the sisters are so realistic that they're often uncomfortable to watch, so clearly these two actresses are doing an awesome job.
Thanks for another great recap!
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5 summerraiin
November 15, 2009 at 1:53 PM
I LOVED these 2 episodes :D
Hyun Soo's lips imaginations really cracked me up
and I loved how Jung-in talked to Yeon-jae...
even though JI & JK's relationship isn't really good...JI defends JK knowing
what kind of person she is...JI is just adorable!
Can't await the next to episodes..thanks for the recap!
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6 Taohua
November 15, 2009 at 1:59 PM
Thank you for the recap! I really enjoy reading them!
I too love the way this drama is unfolding especially the romance b/t Hyun-soo and Jung-in. It's so natural and they are so comfortable with each other. And because they are so physically comfortable with each other it makes there moments together so much more fun to watch, because there isn't slow music or camera hovering on a particular moment to focus on their interaction. And Hyun-soo is getting up there to be my favorite male character of the year (LDW in Partner as Lee Taejo is currently number one). I definitely am crushing on Hyun-soo right now. Jung Kyung-ho is doing an awesome job and so is Lee Min-jung. They are so cute!
I also am getting more interested in what will happen b/t Sung-joon and Ji-soo. They have such an interesting dynamic. The parents plot line is slowly improving, except for Jung-kil. I don't know how they are going to redeem him in the end. He's so aggravating. I don't know how everyone puts up with him. Thanks again for the recaps!
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7 YABaddict
November 15, 2009 at 2:08 PM
Thank you for the recaps!
I just started ep 15 which is almost completely subbed, and I loved what I saw so far, it just made me laugh out loud! I know I'm getting a little ahead, but ep 15 is the funniest for me, along with ep 4 (I loved the karoake scene of "I don't care" with the dads).
I love the writing and the dialogues. I too get the same reactions you do after some lines "You Go Girl." JungIn's character is so refreshing, she is just so uninhibited! She does/says what she feels on the spot, sure that shows a lack of "adult" control, but that's what makes it refreshing and fun. I loved it when she said "don't go" instead of holding it in, and I like that she is open with her affection.
I think right now JungKyung is conflicted. She is going through some tough times and I think she is not bad, in her intentions, but because she's having problems with the doctor but also found a friend in HyunSoo, she's having a hard time balancing what could possibly be new feelings for her. As pointed out earlier in the series, she does not even have friends she is so cold. So having a friend in HyunSoo, she doesn't know how to handle it, and maybe is not acting quite properly in regards to JungIn. But I liked how she was honest with JungIn regarding the fact that she might always be in the middle as HS's first love, it's a fair warning, as demonstrated in the last scene. She'll have to realize that people move on, and at some point she will no longer be in between them.
Overall, I think the characters are honest, they may be flawed, but they're not playing games, they really believe what they say/do is right.
Thanks for continuing to recap this wonderful drama!
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8 Marie
November 15, 2009 at 2:13 PM
Love Love this show it's my second favourite next to you're beautiful.
What makes this show brilliant are the two main stars Hyun Soo and Jung In these two have so much chemistry that they sizzle on screen. Love them they make the show,
To the writers get rid of the sister or tone her bitchiness down, absolutely hate her how can a sister be such a witch to her younger sister. HATE her. Hope the show keeps doing well. BTW thank you so much for your recaps
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9 hulahoops87
November 15, 2009 at 2:28 PM
This drama is seriously A-dorable!! I love those little moments of interaction between Hyun-soo and Jung-in. So subtle yet very significant in the development of their relationship. Those stolen glances, sweet bickerings and secret smiles are the recipe for a perfect romcom.
I can't imagine a better pair than JKH and LMJ, their chemistry is just sizzling! They complement each other well and basically just perfect together. They are those couples that you just feel so right for each other that you don't even spare a glance at the second hero/heroin. I think what they have between Hyun-soo and Jung-in is actually what makes the drama works, enjoyable and of course so addictive. I am very much looking forward to their future story-line.
And of course, thank you so much for the wonderful recaps. It is nice that I can make sure that I did not miss any sweet moments between our beloved favourite couple.
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10 nomad
November 15, 2009 at 2:44 PM
this drama is seriously addicting! i just can't get enough of HS and JI's sizzling chemistry, especially this week's episodes. i'm starting to feel sorry for JI's family because really, they don't seem to care about each other and thus the result of being selfish.
I read from dramawiki that this drama is originally 30 episodes but i've read somewhere that it might have a 50 episodes run. anyone knows how many episodes this drama will have? i hope they'll stick to 30 'coz i'm afraid the story might get draggy later on. and i'm also selfish for only wishing that the drama should only concentrate on the main couple not caring about other characters' development lol!
thank you soyjoy for the recap! 'appreciate it very much :)
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11 frash
November 15, 2009 at 2:44 PM
omg, these episode made me "d'aaw" all over the place.
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12 tetsi
November 15, 2009 at 3:19 PM
OMG How cute is Jung In!!!!!!
she (and Hyun Soo) made me squee so hard watching this series!
they have real chemistry on screen.
Chun-Hee is just hilarious. maybe it's the fangirl in me speaking, but he's soooo adorable in his truly incompetent way (just like him in FO, really... awwww).
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13 Taohua
November 15, 2009 at 3:32 PM
Okay I just watched episode 16 and even without subs it was too cute! Hyun-soo now definitely is one of my all-time favorite characters! He feels so real to me. And if no one has claimed him...I'm calling dibs on Jung Kyung-ho :) I love love LMJ and JKH (MINE!) in this drama! And you know a drama is doing well when they don't show previews anymore. I'm guess they aren't going to show previews from now on.
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14 cheddar
November 15, 2009 at 4:03 PM
oh man, jungin and hyunsoo are cute overload! we know he's completely smitten with her from all those smiles he sneaks. oh hyunsoo, get there faster! =p
i love how the tables are turning and it's hyunsoo now who is learning that jungin might not be like a sister at all =p (dude, really? i don't think siblings kiss each other like that...*shudders) jungin deserves a medal for being such a sassy, assertive, and honest leading lady. she knows she likes hyun soo and makes it known to him instead of hiding her feelings and crying about it in the dark. when she does cry, it's for good reason: she's hella pissed and heart broken that the guy she loves may always have a place for her SISTER in his heart. anyway, back to hyunsoo. i love the fact that he's not pining over jungkyung but just being a nice guy cuz that's what he is! i think when he's with jungkyung, the warm feelings exuding from his smiles are reminiscent of his earlier naive years. he probably hasn't gotten over the habitual feelings for her but he's definitely over her. c'mon, when another person starts coming in on a conversation you're having with an ex lover/crush and that mentioned person makes you smile, you've moved on.
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15 agalang
November 15, 2009 at 4:20 PM
it's always a nice surprise for me when i see there's already a recap on this drama which i really, really love. as in. i always have this silly grin whenever i watch the show and whenever i read your wonderful recaps. giddiness galore! i especially love this two episodes. so far, it's the best yet for me. hope other people would catch on on how fun it is to watch this drama so that more people would be motivated to subbed the episodes right away (it's always a torture to wait a few days before the subs comes out). but with your excellent recaps it's starting to gain more popularity! hoooray! ^___^
love those little insights you put in in each of the scene. i'm really looking forward for more of your recaps of this drama. thanks a lot. really appreciate all the effort you put in.
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16 Mo
November 15, 2009 at 5:16 PM
YYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYY!! I'm so excited to see these 2 eps recapped. You're almost up to date with the currents eps. Thanks for the recap!
I love this drama so much. It's right up there with You're Beautiful for me. I love the characters of HS and JI , they have amazing chemistry together. Iwith at first with the character of HS. His love obession with JK had me thinking his character would be really wishy washy, but he's really the opposite. I see the "macho" in him at the end of ep 16 that Guem-Ja was talking about.
I'm not sure how I feel about JK. I think she's really selfish, but who in her family isn't. I ALMOST feel bad for her b/c no one seems to like her. But i really really don't like how she treats JI. In one of the eps she makes a comment to HS that he doesn't know her sister very well, but its really the opposite, and she's the one that doesn't know her at all.
Now i just have to wait for the completed subs of 15 and 16 so I can know what's really going on and not just what I imagined was going on when I watched the raws
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17 pabo ceo reom
November 15, 2009 at 5:50 PM
Ok everybody...once together! SQUEEEE. LOL.
Whew. Sigh. Ok let's move on now....I think the reason why this show has this overwhelming feeling of chemistry (besides the wonderful acting connection between Jung Kyung-ho and Lee Min-jung) is that it's not the typical 16 episode primetime drama. Because this is a longer series, there is more time to show the subtle details and the gradual build-up of feelings between the two leads without rushing the courting stage or implement big emotional events. This leads to a smoother, more enjoyable watching experience for us viewers and why we go SQUEEE about a thousand times.
Of course, the caveat to a longer series is that the storyline can easily become tedious, repetitive, and dragging. I think both recappers had felt that in a few earlier episodes (and we're not even half way through). So far the last 4 episodes have done well keeping up the pace, but I think the key is whether the production can keep it going. Of course there will be more obstacles coming up (what good romance doesn't?) but my hope is that the series can keep portraying its natural progression going forward.
Yay! Now to go watch episodes 15 and 16!
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18 Z
November 15, 2009 at 6:25 PM
I thought Hyun-Soo was SOOOOO hot when he was teaching Jung-In the design stuff. I studied Engineering for eight years so just take my word for it. Engineers are gererally pretty clueless hopeless in every other area of life but they are downright irresistible when they are doing their dorky thing! Nerd love forever!
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19 Sonam
November 15, 2009 at 6:44 PM
@15
Agree. I really enjoyed 13 and 14 too. The kiss and then JI telling HS she likes him and so he better be grateful and be good to her. How awesome is JI?
@6 HS is going to be my fav' Kdrama male character too. I loved TJ in Partner but that drama ended so abruptly just as I was getting to love TJ. I felt I was left stranded.
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20 glalam
November 15, 2009 at 6:46 PM
Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!!!!
I absolutely squeeled through 13&14 as well. I am so happy I didnt have to wait a week for your recaps...hehehe, I loved, loved, loved the final scene in epi. 14.
I am patiently waiting for 15&16 right now.
EEEEEEEEE too cute!
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21 thank you
November 15, 2009 at 8:28 PM
"I’ve never golfed myself, but somehow I sense that this is NOT how it’s done."
LMFAO.
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22 Quaggy
November 15, 2009 at 8:47 PM
I feel like Jung-in is getting younger and younger with every episode. Not more immature, just younger in terms of temperament to the point the fact that she was actually married (MARRIED! Not just engaged!) seems almost beyond belief. In episodes 13 & 14, we see her get all excited about roasting sweet potatoes (her first time, I think) and beginning to discover her strengths and maybe even a possible career path (graphic designer maybe?). She seems to be a young woman who just beginning to figure things out, while at the start of the series, she already had the lay of the land down, even if her perspective was skewed. If her family hadn't lost all their money and things had progressed the way she had expected when she got married, she probably would have just turned into a more charming version of her mother. Instead, it's like she now has been given a do-over and a chance to become a bigger, better version of herself.
Jung-in does seem to be a total case of nurture over nature. She learns primarily by example (and occasionally from getting her fingers burnt when the lesson is truly life altering). Even at the start of the series she was the only one in her family to treat Grandpa Man-bok with any sort of respect. (The influence of her grandfather, possibly?) Now, she's the one that has been modifying her behavior the fastest.
I think that's why I find Jung-in's relationship with her sister so tragic, since much of it seems to be learned behavior on Jung-in's part. While I have a lot of sympathy for Jung-kyung's situation, she really seems to be a self-centered as her mother. (It always has to be about her and who's giving her the most attention.) As bitter as Jung-Kyung and Jung-in's relationship is, we saw Jung-in reach out to Jung-kyung for help twice in the first episode. Jung-kyung eventually tried to do right by her sister, but it was half-hearted and grudgingly and nothing like the way Jung-in rose to her sister's defense against the director and his brat of a daughter. (And how awesome was that?! Jung-in quelled the monster with just choice words!) Definitely the Kangs' influence.
We haven't seen Jung-in turn to her sister since the first few episodes, since she now has the Kangs. She obviously has a strong (and utterly adorable) relationship with Hyun-soo and can depend on him without question, but she also seems to be pretty attached to Geum-ja. Though Geum-ja has yet to accept the role, Jung-in clearly has identified as her new mother figure. It was both funny and a little heartbreaking when she complained (in front of her own mother!) about feeling like an abandoned child after Geum-ja went home without her, because you could tell she actually kind of meant it. And I loved the look on Geum-ja after Jung-in's "Hyun-soo the Mama's Boy" impression. You could tell she was thinking "The girl's got a point!"
Okay, I'll shut up now. I promise!
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23 omg
November 15, 2009 at 8:49 PM
i was so relieved when he turned around to get her. good job hyunsoo! good job ^ ^
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24 fyoora
November 15, 2009 at 8:58 PM
First, thanks for the recaps...I've been following this drama since 1st episode only from the recaps...yup, I haven't watch the drama yet :). I have an opinion about jungkyung, I think she's now seem like hyun-soo because of habit. For her, hyunsoo in someone that would love her no matter hoe she felt about him..and so she doesn't have to put an effort to make him love her. And for her that becomes a habit. She thought his feeling will never change that's why she looks annoyed when she realize hyunsoo's attention for jung-in. She doesn't want to his feeling change towards her but I think she still doesn't love hyunsoo. She just doesn't want lost her admirer. And, the reason I have this opinion is bcause I've been in her place before, love someone when I have another man waiting for me for 8 years. And ehen finalli, he got married somehow I felt something lost. No,I don't love him, I'm happy with my own family, but the fact that he finally love someone else other than you after 8 years...makes me felt something lost..anyway..I'm happy bcause he finally found his own happiness and I hope the same goes to jungkyung and hyunsoo too :)
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25 MO
November 15, 2009 at 9:05 PM
Excellent recap...I enjoy watching this...its the Hyun-soo & Jung-in combo that keeps me so hook on this drama as they are just oozing with cute ness..and with their chemisty is so refreshing and adorable since they're so compatible with one another..I especially like ep.13 with Hyun-soo seeing Jung-in lip everywhere...that kiss is the turning point in melting his heart...he is getting there, definitely feeling something for Jung-in. She definitely got to him with that kiss, lol..and the last part of ep.14, when I was watching it, I thought he wouldn't come back for her...but he did *squeal*...Hyun-soo is definitely getting my love...just so dorkably cute, hahahha...I am dying for more of Hyun-soo & Jung-in...
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26 ar
November 15, 2009 at 9:10 PM
Thank you so much for the recap! And I agree with you abt Jung-kyung. I'm really upset at those people who call her a b&$ch without considering her background and motivations. Though her family had been very privileged, she worked really hard- at being a doctor, at being a humanitarian (she volunteered during the flashbacks), and at being a girlfriend. And there was really no point in being a good daughter because her parents obviously don't care much for their daughters and just leave them to do whatever (until they needed something...and then they threw Jung-in to the wolves). All she got in return was a family who ruined itself and a boyfriend who was never really going to commit to her and treats her like some sort of shameful secret and allows his daughter to talk smack to her. And she was even removed from a surgery in this episode. That would really stick in my craw too and turn me into an icy, bitter person. And it does look like Jung-in has it easier compared to Jung-kyung. She's younger, prettier, and more vivacious. And though Jung-in was jilted, she was never in love with Han Se to feel truly crushed and it looks like Hyun-soo is falling for Jung-in's charms too- which meant it only took Jung-in a month to find a new guy.
And i have a soft spot for the actress playing Jung-kyung. She also played a woman with a horrible man (her husband was cheating on her) in Bad Couple.
Despite all the cute Hyun-soo and Jung-in scenes, my fave scenes in these two episodes is the one where Jung-in defended her sister (take that, you selfish little girl!) and the Sung-joon and Ji soo scenes.
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27 MO
November 15, 2009 at 9:22 PM
@asianromance ... agree about the last part w/ Jung-in defending her sister..although they have tension between the two since they don't see eye-to-eye but seeing Jung-in defend her really shows that although they have a bad relationship, family is still family..I was raving w/ the You go girl since Jung-in own that little girl, such a brat and rude kid with no consideration to the place she is causing a scene at and no apology for her behavior either..I think JK made a good decision in leaving that doctor boyfriend over her...I can understand that its his daughter but if you're in a relationship, you need to understand both side's needed..for JK, what she need is his assurance that she is important to him but with his indecisiveness, it was better that she dump him...I just hope the sister can come to term w/ one another but I doubt that would happen anytime soon now due to Hyun-soo...but who knows, Hyun-soo might just be the peace that can tie them together and ease that tension between them..
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28 yinnancy
November 15, 2009 at 10:08 PM
Thanks for the recaps. I actually started watching Smile, You b/c of these recaps.
What got me really hooked on Smile, You was that the people playing SJI and KHS are so charismatic. And they have so much chemistry together! I've watched dramas before where there were people online who raved, "They have so much chemistry together!" and I would be like... "Huh, wtf are you talking about? Where is it?" Perhaps I'm a little bit more dense than other people but this is the first drama where I'm actually seeing it. Certainly, In-Soo aren't the prettiest couple that I've seen in a drama, but that combination of charisma and chemistry frankly makes them irresistible! It also helps that there are no overthetop!moments in this drama to move things along. Everything just unfolds so naturally.
So thank you very much. I really enjoy reading somebody else's comments after I've watched the episodes, and it reminds me of all the good parts again. *squee *
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29
November 15, 2009 at 10:47 PM
This drama just get better and better...the 2 main lead really have great chemistry to me..I like them a WHOLE LOT....esp Jungin...
True this drama was a little draggy but the last few ep have been really good..
I started watching this to ease my pain from waiting for You're Beautiful but now Im hook on this too...ugh....y do I have to start a drama that's not complete...Hate the wait!!!
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30 onemorepls
November 15, 2009 at 11:40 PM
"Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeel" yay recaps Can't believe my eye when I saw that the recaps were up. Thank you Thank you soyjoy. Don't worry it's not long at all, it's perfect. Love it.
I'm loving this drama. Most people are watching this to waiting for YAB but now for me it's watching YAB waiting for SMILE,YOU. hehehe. I hope the smile,you team will continue subbing this drama please.
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31 oldschoolkaypop
November 16, 2009 at 12:16 AM
I've been watching this series since day one and I am suprised the ratings are low as it is even if it is only a weekend series. Nonetheless it will be interesting to read your review of ep 15/16 because of the epic goofiness and cute humor.
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32 lia
November 16, 2009 at 1:06 AM
hmmm...nice recaps
thanks
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33 gailt
November 16, 2009 at 6:47 AM
ep14 has been my fave episode so far. i am now not ashamed to say that my current crush is a fictional character: Kang Hyun Soo. <3
great job on the recaps!
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34 Penn
November 16, 2009 at 8:13 AM
I'm starting to feel really sorry for Jung-kyung. She doesn't seem to have way to communicate well with others thus it's affecting all her relationship (boyfriend, family, co-workers, and patients including). It's also sad to see how much Jung-kyung has puts into a relationship which will never develop beyond this point.
I love how Jung-in stood up for her sister. Family is family. I think Jung-kyung is starting to realize that too. I don't she really jealous of Jung-in and Hyun-soo's relationship. I think she is more concern that Jung-in might be hurt.
So, who the heck is Ji-soo? Is she a gang member or something? I dying to know her background. Hope they reveal it soon.
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35 yenchan
November 16, 2009 at 8:16 AM
I don’t know about everyone else, but for me – you gals can make these recaps as long as you’d like! I love them! Your recaps is why I started watching the drama and your comments are always spot on with my reactions when watching the series (everytime JI speaks her mind=*fist pump*).
It’s really a shame that this series isn’t getting as much attention as YB because I think there are some things that this series does even better than YB. I’m definitely a fan of both, but for the past few episodes, the way they’ve been dragging out MN&TK’s “I like you but I think you dislike me and like someone else” plot for way too long. Why don’t people ever seem to *say* anything in kdramas..instead of implying them in ‘deep’ round-about metaphors and trying to convey them through whimpering tears. Sometimes I just want to knock everyone’s head together and be like, “Get it already!”
Amongst all that frustration, I find Jung-In’s candor so incredibly refreshing. If she likes him, she says it. If she wants him to stay, she asks. She doesn’t try to sugarcoat things or appear the “understanding damsel in the distress who will go hide in a corner and silently weep and wait to be found”.
What’s also appealing about this couple (beyond their squeal-worthy interactions..I swear..kdramas has ruined me for any potential future mate) is that they’re very *real*. The actor/actress aren’t too pretty that I feel like they’re a made-for-tv romance. They’re attractive people to be sure, but in a very down to earth so I feel like they could be two of my friends who are so perfect for each other that everyone just sees them as a unit.
I was very excited to realize that we’re only halfway through the series so there’ll be more lovable and adorable scenes ahead for our couple. I’m really hoping for some wedding bells. ^^ Teh!
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36 Kgrl
November 16, 2009 at 9:14 AM
@Taohua: *sigh* Fine, I concede. You can have JKH, but only if you promise to share him with LMJ. Jung-Ho is too cute to be separated – don’t even try it.
@Pabo ceo reom: We need to get together a Smiler Squee team. Hahaha…maybe that’ll get more ppl to notice this amazing pairing.
@Z: I think dorky nerds are the newest thing. (Big Bang Theory is hilarious.) Always had a thing for them *sheepish grin* Nerd love forever!
@Quaggy: I loved your analysis of JI and JK’s relationship, or lack of, and JI’s nurture vs. nature findings – very insightful. You should post it at our Smiler Soompi thread. It’ll be a great topic for discussion. Come join us? ^_^
@asianromance: I for one, don’t hate JK. Though I understand her upbringing and family must not have helped her character development, I think she could have done better to learn it herself. Afterall, she hints at isolating herself from her family’s “crowd,” and obviously went to university, volunteered/experienced the outside world, so I’m surprised at her lack of generosity to her own family after experiencing “normal charitable” life. Don’t get me wrong, from many aspects I can see where JK has developed a disregard for anything related to her family, but understanding it does not warrant that I like it. Lols. Of course, this does not influence my opinion of the actress – who I think is doing well to display a cold, proud, isolated, and self-centered person.
“I’ve watched dramas before where there were people online who raved, “They have so much chemistry together!” and I would be like… “Huh, wtf are you talking about? Where is it?” Perhaps I’m a little bit more dense than other people but this is the first drama where I’m actually seeing it.”
Oh, yinnancy, you’re so funny. I don’t think you’re dense, rather you probably have higher standards. So when two good-looking people stand next to each other, it doesn’t equate to “chemistry” – lols. I’m the same ^_*
@Onemorepls: Yes, YB has fallen to a secondary status with me also. But perhaps its b/c I only watched 1 episode of YB before embarking on what turned out to be an obsessive passion for SY’s Soo-In.
Yenchan, *applause* your comment was incredibly well said. I think that’s why MN’s character didn’t grab me the way JI’s did. Though I find YB to be delightfully entertaining, I’m more of a realistic person, and the realism of the characters and relationship development of Soo-In gutted me much more than MN-TK. And I would love to see JI in a wedding dress again, but this time, without having to tear it apart. ^_^
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37 Kgrl
November 16, 2009 at 9:22 AM
Darn, I left out the most important comment.
Thank you, soyjoy and dw4p for being such dedicated and wondeful Smiler recappers. Much Love.
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38 eclipse
November 16, 2009 at 9:39 AM
Two funniest lines in these eps:
"Don`t close that door!"
"Macho???!"
Thanks for the recap! It makes me remembering again all the wonderful scenes...I hope they maintain the pace and story like this...the parents`s story not too draggy anymore...Plus i kinda like the grandparents "love"story, hehe... :P
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39 Rna
November 16, 2009 at 10:21 AM
I also find Jung In's candor refreshing. I love it that she's already told Hyun Soo that she likes him "very much" and even asks GeumJa (in next episode) how she would her as her daughter-in-law- in front of Hyun Soo. I mean, how much more direct can you get? Now the viewers are just waiting for Hyun Soo to deliver his line. Haha.
I also LOVE the older brother!! Sung Joon is so hilarious. How about when he whispers to Hyun Soo, "See, she's even jealous that I'm standing next to you." And at the jail (also next episode) when Jung In leaves obviously upset, ex-fiancee Han Se stands up in order to go console her, and the older brother says, "No, you're not the one to do that," meaning he can't console her. Then he turns to Hyun Soo and says, "Little bro, what are you doing?" He always makes me laugh even with his outrageously goofy expressions.
About the Ice Sister -- I cannot stand her character. She finds excuses to bring a wedge in between Jung In and Hyun Soo with every chance she finds.
"Oh, for Dad's sake, we should move out ..."
"Oh, you're trying to get close to my younger sister because of me... don't do it... "
(But notice she comes up these excuso-reasons every time she thinks about Jung-In and Hyun Soo together. Hmm. To thine own self, be true isn't the case here, Ice Sister.)
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40 meenuby
November 16, 2009 at 10:26 AM
@ 18 Z: I'll toast to that! I love when heroes get nerdy!
@ 35 Yenchan: I think you pretty much nailed what I was feeling about YAB. I love that drama but the last few eps could have had better pacing in terms of acknowledging feelings. Only four more eps to go and I'm wondering how they'll tie up all the loose ends.
@ Quaggy: Wow, I think I loved your post.
@ Kgrl: Count me in on the Smiler Squee team! I feel like I've never been rewarded with so many adorable moments between the main couple than in this drama. Maybe we should try the City Hallers method: squeeing about the drama everywhere until people feel they HAVE to take notice. Teehee.
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41 soyjoy
November 16, 2009 at 10:39 AM
@ Quaggy:
Though Geum-ja has yet to accept the role, Jung-in clearly has identified as her new mother figure. It was both funny and a little heartbreaking when she complained (in front of her own mother!) about feeling like an abandoned child after Geum-ja went home without her, because you could tell she actually kind of meant it. And I loved the look on Geum-ja after Jung-in’s “Hyun-soo the Mama’s Boy” impression. You could tell she was thinking “The girl’s got a point!”
YES! I loved these two moments especially while watching her relationship with Geum-ja develop, and I was pretty awestruck when Jung-in stuck it to her own mother in that scene. It really made me think--wow, this girl will say anything.
And you're so right... this is the entire Kang family's chance to live better, but so far Jung-in is the only one who's shown progress. She's resilient, and she also had the biggest shakeup right before arriving at the Kangs'--a trifecta of being dumped on her wedding day, her family going bankrupt and the betrayal she felt when finding out that her father had been using the former to cover up the latter. I love at the end of episode 14, her honest admission to Han-se that, now that she's realized she was wrong to think she could be happy in the life she'd formerly envisioned for herself, she's determined to love differently.
Man, I could really go on and on about Smile but I'm trying to self-censor my addiction, so I'm really enjoying the thoughtful dialogue in all your comments!!
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42 eclipse
November 16, 2009 at 10:42 AM
I also started watching this series because of the recaps! I started watching at episode 8. I ABSOLUTELY love HS and JI.... This is probably one of the best dramas I've seen in years. I am so happy it's going to be a 50 episode series. I do wonder how they will make it that long with the storylines though.
This drama makes me smile..hehe :)
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43 soyjoy
November 16, 2009 at 10:57 AM
Ooo, also, I wanted to say thanks right back to all of YOU--your thoughtful and encouraging responses are a huge part of what makes doing these recaps so fun!!!
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44 Sonam
November 16, 2009 at 10:58 AM
@kgrl
I have been waiting for your comment so I can thank you for the invitation to join soompi. I visited and I was so intimidated and overwhelmed. It's a jungle out there. Also I am so lazy about registering and passwords. So I will meet you here to rhapsodize about this sweet drama with the most winsome couple.
Ep 17 will be a new beginning for HS/JI. Very curious what the writer and director has in store for them. I hope they keep it as real and natural as they have been doing it till now.
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45 le
November 16, 2009 at 11:14 AM
thanks for the recap, just reading it is a lot of fun, it makes me laugh and get excited about watching these episodes. i just love hyun-soo and jung-in, they are too cute and funny together.
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46 doug
November 16, 2009 at 11:15 AM
My little rant about these dramas: Don't doctors make good money in Korea? Jung Kyung seems to be broke,and unable to help her family in any way-can't get a place for them to stay,or anything. Do I take this stuff too seriously? LOL
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47 Asmaa
November 16, 2009 at 11:23 AM
thanks for the recap! It was heart-warming! I can feel Jung-in's pain, and her ssiter Jung-kyung has finally learnt how to be open about her feelings too..
Keep them coming, I don't comment much but I enjoy your recaps a lot, I know there are three people in the making of these recaps for each episode, and all of you do a great job!!
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48 yenchan
November 16, 2009 at 12:15 PM
@kgirl – did someone say Squee Party…and where can I sign up? I squee on my own, but it’s so much more fun when done in good company ^^
@eclipse – adding to your list I loved, “Put your lips back in!” it was adorable when she actually did! Sucked it right back in..lol! Ahhh..can I huggle those two? Better yet…won’t they huggle themselves!?! –tehehehe-
@Rna – I have to concur that Sung Joon is awesome! My bias Chun Hee love aside (Chunderella!), I love how even though his character is there for comic relief, he’s given depth as a character too. So we get gems like, “You two should tell the family that you’re dating” and “I told you to be careful of her jealousy. See, she’s even jealous of me standing next to you.”
@ doug – ahaha, I totally get what you mean. I know when watching these things you have to put a little sense of reality aside (like how no one does any *work* @ work..it’s just a convenient setting for coffee breaks, gossip and overhearing key information in crowded elevators) ….but sometimes I feel like we have to put our entire brains aside too. –lol-
And – does anyone else find “work place HyunSoo” incredibly HAWT? *fans self* I love when he does his smexy techy talk (engineering dorks FTW!) and puts HS in his place at meetings. “I wasn’t hired to follow orders”. I know other dramas have the leading male given some grand presentation in front of big board meetings, but I love how HS’s intelligence is given in an understated kind of way. He isn’t condescending or boastful in his interactions with HS – he’s just an honest employee that does his work well and isn’t afraid to stick up for it. It’s easy to be impressive when you hold the power – it takes a lot more guts to stand your ground as a reg employee.
Waahhh..can’t wait to get home to watch eps 15&16! Kinda sad how I squee anyways even when I don’t know what they’re actually saying just because I “sense” that it’s a squee-worthy moment. Lol!
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49 snoopyvkd
November 16, 2009 at 1:42 PM
Great recap and thanks! I don't find it long at all!
The main couple is just adorable, and I like also Sung Joon and Ji Soo. Even after reading your views about Jung Kyung, I still can't tolerate her. I think she's just plain selfish, and I often wonder if she even loves her family a bit. Seems like she only loves herself in fact.
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50 mapleoaks4
November 16, 2009 at 3:03 PM
Thank you SO much for your recaps! I've been addicted to this drama since day 1 and SO glad to know that there more Smilers out there!
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