Bad Guy: Episode 17 (Final)

342 August 10, 2010January 24, 2016

by javabeans

Here we are, the finale! I thought it was better than Episode 16, but frankly that isn’t saying much. At least 16 was entertaining and off-the-wall. This episode, as the wrap-up, was more puzzling.

I know there was a three-episode cut-down and all that scheduling madness. HOWEVER, the drama finished filming two weeks before the last episodes aired. In the world of the live-shoot production system, that is a luxurious timespan with which to work some post-production magic. Or, you know, throw up your hands in defeat and give up.

SONG OF THE DAY

Bad Guy OST – “웃지마 울지마” (Don’t laugh, don’t cry) by 4Men, Jang Hye-jin
[ Download ]

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FINAL EPISODE RECAP

At the psych ward, Jae-in and Tae-sung find Gun-wook’s room empty, so they split up and scour the grounds for him — where, we must note, every single psych-ward extra plays up the I’M CRAZY act like they’re auditioning for a Park Chan-wook movie. Or maybe they were just trying to one-up Gun-wook. Cringes all around.

In Madam Shin’s office, a perfectly sane-looking Gun-wook sits in her chair, his back to her. Rain pounds the windows and lightning gives an eerie strobe effect to the room, which is lit in a blood-washed tint. But when she whirls the chair around to confront the seated figure, he disappears. Poof.

She whirls around — he’s walking away from her. Then he flickers into nonbeing again. Her voice recording starts playing — the one where she gives the veiled kill order — and she is seriously spooked. Is she going mad, or is somebody in possession of a super-elaborate hologram projector? She screams at her invisible tormentor to come out and confront her.

After their unfruitful search at the hospital, Tae-sung drops Jae-in off. He has seemingly come to grips with her choice, assuring her that he won’t come looking for her anymore so she can go and be happy with Gun-wook. I appreciate the maturity, but the writers keep jerking Tae-sung from one extreme to another and it’s jarring. Emotional whiplash.

Jae-in thanks him for his understanding, then hurries away to see Gun-wook. It isn’t until he’s alone that Tae-sung allows himself to drop the smile and feel the blow of losing her.

Assuming Gun-wook has returned home, Jae-in rushes into his apartment excitedly… only to find Tae-ra instead, staring at his Wall of Revenge. For a brief moment we get that “back off from my man” glare so beknownst to the denizens of Jerry Springer, but Tae-ra drops the hauteur when Jae-in reveals that Gun-wook is alive.

Tae-ra registers Jae-in’s disappointment that Gun-wook didn’t recognize her, and guesses that they were closer than she thought. She also makes a few mental connections and asks if she and Gun-wook were in it together to ensnare members of the Hong family. (No, alas, that was PURE COINCIDENCE.) [Just like my hatred of these last two episodes. Pure coincidence. -GF]

Tae-ra accuses Jae-in of breaking up with Tae-sung because he’s no longer the president’s blood son, but that’s news to Jae-in, who hadn’t known this latest development. She answers that it doesn’t matter to her — what matters is that she wants the person for himself, which is why she can’t be with Tae-sung.

Can we take a moment to mourn for Tae-sung, who eats alone at home that evening? Solitary eating can be such a powerfully sad image in dramas (it comes in just below the crying-into-food imagery on the Pathetic-o-Meter — which, we might note, Tae-sung has also done). After Jae-in leaves, all Tae-sung has left of her is the packed food she had made for Gun-wook.

Always a step behind everybody else, the two cops arrive at the mental ward recently vacated by Gun-wook. At least they make up for it with one discovery: a small gadget is affixed to a wall-mounted speaker, which appears to be a video camera in disguise.

Gun-wook has reportedly been transferred to another hospital, and the nurse hands over an envelope left behind by Gun-wook’s guarantor for the cops. Opening it, they find a voice recording device. Lucky for these two that the clues keep falling into their laps, eh?

We don’t hear the contents, but the evidence is strong enough to arrest Madam Shin for ordering Gun-wook’s murder.

Unsurprisingly, she is hardly cooperative during the interrogation and answers questions with “Ask my lawyer.” This leads to the unintentionally hilarious exchange whereby she scoffs that he’s asking questions he knows the answers to, and he demands that she answer them anyway, growling, “Shin Myung-hwa-sshi! Give me your name!” Oh, lulz.

Tae-ra watches anxiously as her mother, joined by her lawyer, is questioned by the police. Super pet peeve: Upon the lawyer’s exit from the room, Tae-ra asks for a status update and the lawyer says, IN FRONT OF A COP, “The evidence is pretty clear so she doesn’t have much room to make excuses.” WTF, lawyer? [Thankfully, the cops are equally stupid, so it’s a wash. -GF]

As Gun-wook is alive, Madam Shin won’t be facing the worst-case legal scenario, though it wasn’t for want of trying on her part. It strikes me that for such a rich and powerful woman, Madam Shin sure has trouble hiring minions who can do their jobs properly.

Tae-sung enters, in shock at the news that Madam Shin tried to kill Gun-wook. He learns that Gun-wook presented proof against her and grows angry, growling that he’ll have to meet him. (So confused at all the weird emotions. So… Gun-wook was just supposed to let her get away with trying to killing him?)

Gun-wook’s partner meets with Secretary Kim. The two speak frankly about Gun-wook’s Ultimate Plan, indicating that they are in cahoots. We aren’t told how long Secretary Kim has been working with them, but it appears to be a recent partnership.

The partner says how Gun-wook had been surprised to find that Tae-sung was as much a victim in this as he was, and says that “one person” has caused quite a lot of grief for everyone. It has the ominous ring of a Madam Shin takedown, or so we can hope.

Infuriated that Gun-wook is responsible for Madam Shin’s arrest (though I’d put the blame on the one who committed the crime, myself…), Tae-sung arrives at Gun-wook’s apartment and bangs on the door. Inside, guess who’s perfectly healthy and sane? So much for the insanity act being real. [Aaaaaaaaaargh! -GF]

Gun-wook ignores Tae-sung’s shouts and looks enigmatically at his lighter, then burns more stuff. Wait, did he steal this lighter back from Madam Shin? How… and when?

Gun-wook narrates resolutely as though addressing Tae-sung: “Even if the life you hated till now is a lie, it changes nothing. The hurt you caused someone while living recklessly doesn’t get erased. Is that unfair? It can’t be helped. That’s you, and that’s me.”

Madam Shin is tried for her crime, and here’s the gist of her cross-examination::

Prosecutor: “Did you order Gun-wook killed?”
Madam Shin: “Nope. Never.”
Prosecutor: “Really? For sure?”
Madam Shin: “Yup.”
Defense lawyer: “The defendant didn’t order a hit.”
Madam Shin: “Why would I? My life is great. He could have been my son. I deny everything.”

(Worst trial ever.)

Next, the recording sent to the cops is submitted as evidence. Now we hear its contents — it’s taken from the scene where she ordered Secretary Kim to take care of Gun-wook, who should have been offed twenty years, and threatens that she is not a patient woman.

Madam Shin is unruffled because the tape isn’t actually that damning — I mean, it implies things, but it’s not conclusive proof. She calmly identifies the voice as hers, but says she never ordered Gun-wook killed. She spoke out of anger, and points out that people say “I’m gonna die” all the time and don’t actually mean to drop dead. You know the prosecution sucks when Madam Shin is the one making the most sense in the courtroom.

She even keeps her cool when Secretary Kim testifies against her and reveals that after getting the order, he had instead warned Gun-wook of what she was planning. (Ah, this explains how he was able to ride with him in the ambulance to the hospital, then act as his guarantor.)

However, one more witness is brought in, and this ruffles her composure. He’s the hit man ordered to kill Gun-wook the third time (or is it fourth?), and he confesses under pressure. After the previous attempt failed, he was ordered to kill Gun-wook.

Clearly she hadn’t anticipated yet another trusted employee turning on her, and she loses it. She shrieks, in her nails-on-a-chalkboard screech, “When did I say that?!” She starts babbling about a setup, insisting that this is a trap and that she has no idea who the guy is.

However, that’s not all: More evidence is submitted, this time a video. Now we see what the hidden devices were for (keen eyes will have noticed a glimpse of this device in Madam Shin’s office as well). The clip shows Madam Shin’s paranoid rant from the top of the episode, where she screams at an invisible Gun-wook about how she should have had him taken out twenty years ago.

Madam Shin shrills at the court that she didn’t kill anyone, but her desperate reaction is pretty damning. After she has regained her composure, she gives her last statement, taking the martyr’s stance that she’ll endure all this to get to the bottom of the mess. You and OJ both.

Now it’s Jae-in’s turn to lose her mind. Just as Madam Shin says she had no reason to kill the boy she once treated as a son, Jae-in stands up IN THE MIDDLE OF COURT and starts screaming that Madam Shin is a lying horrible murderer who ruined Gun-wook’s life and stole away his family. She’s dragged away by the bailiff.

Outside, Old Cop comes up to Jae-in to give her the recorder containing the evidence, explaining that there was additional material on it. Gun-wook’s message says, “Moon Jae-in, are you listening? This is the truth of the world you longed for. What will you do now? You choose. I’ll always be in the same place.”

Having lost her case in this alternate universe where conspiracy-to-commit-murder crimes are tried in a single day, Madam Shin is loaded onto the prison bus. She turns to address Gun-wook, who is watching nearby, and asks how he feels after messing with his father and sister — and reveals that yes, he’s the real Tae-sung.

Explaining that she’d kicked out the true child and brought in the fake, she taunts him with the truth that he lost everything for himself. She smirks, “I won.”

This delivers a huge blow to Gun-wook, as well as Tae-ra, who has overheard. The housekeeper now turns to face him, addressing him as “Young Master,” apologizing for not telling him earlier.

Tae-ra has such a shock at this news that I wondered if she was somehow unaware of her own paternity and thought she and Gun-wook were full siblings. (Gah, this drama has too many birth secrets.) It turns out she does know they’re not related, but her reaction makes me think wistfully of the awesomely dark drama we might have had if they’d actually gone there and made them blood siblings. Oh, Bad Guy, you leave me with so many what-ifs.

With this revelation comes the knowledge that Gun-wook destroyed his own family, and he finds his father. President Hong is conscious and aware, but still recovering and unable to speak as Gun-wook breaks down clutching his hand. Although he’s mostly reacting in remorse, I have to believe there’s a tiny bit of relief mixed in at finally reuniting with his father. [Such a waste of a potentially interesting relationship. -GF]

The two longtime servants muse over the grievous sin they’ve committed against Gun-wook. Secretary Kim explains the reason for his defection from Madam Shin’s ranks, relating how he lost his wife to illness during the time he was serving prison time after taking the fall for the president. When he was released, the president expressed no interest or care about the wife.

That had shattered Kim’s illusions and his unwavering loyalty to Haeshin, and afterward he sought out Gun-wook’s dead parents (and cared for their graves) in an attempt to ease his guilty conscience.

Tae-sung submits his resignation letter to Tae-ra, who tries to talk him out of it. He answers that he wants to live on his own now: “And if I come to work for Haeshin, I’ll come on my own merit. I want to live not because I’m somebody’s son but just as myself.”

He’s come a long way, hasn’t he? Now he acts the part of concerned brother, explaining that at least she and Gun-wook aren’t related. Therefore, he advises her not to agonize too much about it.

With a smile, Tae-ra asks for a hug, and I wonder if it’s a first for them. He’s always been the troublemaking rebel, and she’s always been the censuring older sister who took her parents’ side. Funny how Tae-sung is acting the part of son and brother now, after realizing he’s not their blood relation.

Tae-sung guesses that Tae-ra still cares for Gun-wook and urges her to protect her relationship with him. That prodding is enough to send her to Gun-wook’s apartment, where she finds him on the ground, lost in a daze.

She tells him that she’ll call him by the name Shim Gun-wook for the last time today, as they still have some things to settle. First of all, she doesn’t regret meeting him — she felt thrilled and excited for the first time in a long time. Even though she knew he wasn’t being honest about his interest in Mo-nae, she couldn’t help falling for him.

He falls over, and she rushes to his side. Seeing that he was clutching an old family photo — back when he was part of the Hong family — Tae-ra makes a keen insight, that this all (the revenge plan) was his way of returning to the family. Did he miss it so much?

She confesses that she had a tough time after he was kicked out of the family, and even though she knew it wasn’t his fault, she had felt betrayed by the young Gun-wook. She apologizes for that, and adds that perhaps that thought might be a comfort to him now. Tae-ra’s voice starts wavering with emotion as she says she’ll try to call him Tae-sung.

Tae-ra returns to the auditorium, where she imagines the spirit of the young Tae-sung greeting her enthusiastically. She kneels down and hugs him, and says sorry. The boy cheerily tells her it’s okay.

(Is this whole family prone to hallucinating now? These fantasy bits can be quite evocative when used sparingly… but Little Tae-sung has made an appearance in multiple people’s imaginations now, which would be more apropos were he a paranormal specter and not a metaphorical device.)

Tae-sung interrupts Jae-in’s lunch to tell her to be with Gun-wook now, because he’s bound to be in a lot of pain with the discovery that he was the real Tae-sung all along.

Shocked, Jae-in heads to Gun-wook’s apartment right away, just as Gun-wook takes out a gun. He contemplates it for long moments before lifting it to his temple… which is when Jae-in bursts in.

Quickly, he tosses the gun aside. She approaches silently and puts her arms around him. She speaks consolingly, saying that she understands that he must be feeling upset after harboring his revenge plans for so long.

Gun-wook starts to protest, but emotion wracks his voice and he can barely get the words out. Jae-in says that the family can forgive him, then takes his hand to turn him around to face her. She introduces herself as though this is their first meeting and they’re starting afresh, and prods him to introduce himself as Hong Tae-sung. He struggles, but gets the words out.

Jae-in holds him, and they share a moment as the embrace turns into a kiss. Which is when Mo-nae, back from the States and wearing a peeved expression on her face, arrives at the apartment.

Mo-nae lets herself in, further incensed at the sight of YET another woman making out with Gun-wook. Quickly, she turns and goes without being seen.

(Does nobody in this drama lock their doors, either? Have they been watching Personal Taste? ‘Twould save everyone a lot of grief, is all I’m sayin’.)

Mo-nae waits outside in the shadows, biding her time until the opening presents itself. Jae-in invites her sister over and leaves the apartment to meet her in the street, which is when Mo-nae lets herself in. Gun-wook isn’t in sight so she looks around, further pissed off to see that photo of Jae-in and Gun-wook. So much pain hath that Polaroid wrought.

And then, she sees the gun on the ground and picks it up.

When Gun-wook enters the room, Mo-nae points the gun at Gun-wook and blames him for wrecking her family. All her earlier bitterness of being passed up for her sister is multiplied by her fury at hearing about her family’s misfortunes and the knowledge that Gun-wook was behind it all.

Mo-nae makes her accusations, which are all fairly on the mark, her voice shaking with rage as Gun-wook tries to calm her down. He takes a few steps toward her, but she shrilly yells for him to stay away. How dare he even use her name?

She blames him for making her this way — she’d been happy before — and shrieks, “I wish you were dead!”

She fires the gun.

Out in the street, unaware of any trouble, Jae-in greets her sister. As they chat, Won-in expresses her approval of the match, saying how much better this is than Gun-wook and his rope.

In a bit of dramatic irony, she points out that his rope would have taken him to heaven, which would imply death. Little does she know how prescient that sentiment actually is.

Gun-wook’s not dead, though, and when we return to the scene at the apartment, both parties are still standing in their original positions. Mo-nae looks startled with herself at the gunshot, but when Gun-wook starts to approach her again, she gets all worked up again and keeps the gun fixed on him.

Gun-wook speaks to her gently with a hint of a smile and says, “I’m sorry.” He asks her to call him oppa just once, like old times, but she refuses — he’s nothing to her now.

Finally, Mo-nae lowers the gun and drops it on the ground, the fight sapped out of her. She leaves quickly…

And it’s only now that the camera pans down and reveals to us that he’s been shot. Ahhh!

He falls to the ground and holds his bleeding side, but for some reason he doesn’t call for help. He’s fixated on the gun and grabs a towel to wrap it in, intent on getting rid of the evidence.

Staggering to his feet, Gun-wook leaves the apartment, headed for god knows where, doing his best to stay upright while keeping the gun hidden. He attracts some curious stares but nobody intervenes.

Jae-in goes grocery shopping with her sister, intending to make Gun-wook that home cooking he loves so much. They figure that he must have stepped out on an errand and wait for him to return, but the night grows long.

Finally, Jae-in spots a hand-written note, which says that his adoptive parents from the U.S. called him about an urgent matter, which she interprets to mean that he dashed out on a last-minute trip to the States.

All the while, Gun-wook continues to stagger in the streets until the camera blurs and fades out, denying us confirmation of his whereabouts.

When we fade back in, it’s some unspecified time later. President Hong sits with his daughter, able to speak now, and asks about Tae-sung. She answers that both are doing well, assuring him that “that child” will return someday. He muses that he’d like to bring the whole family together for a nice meal when that happens.

Tae-ra receives a box in the mail, which she opens to find a care package. The note is addressed to So-dam, but the contents are meant for Tae-ra — a DVD of Dirty Dancing, for example, recalls her memory of her long-ago day of playing hooky. The note tells So-dam to smile a lot in front of her mother and is signed from “So-dam’s loving uncle.”

In Jae-in’s apartment, a crane falls as she walks by — it’s the one she found that day in Jeju, upon which Gun-wook had written the names of the Hongs and described them as “family.” Underneath that he’s added “Jae-in, Won-in” and a non-word that seems like he was about to write “family” but cut out one character short.

Won-in brings in a care package from the mail, and this one contains a glass mask, similar to the one Ryu-sensei had made. [One-of-a-kind my ASS! -GF] A note reads:

“How would the world look out of the eyes of the one you loved? Jae-in-ah… I’ve had that thought. If I look at the world through a different gaze, how would it be? Jae-in… how are you? You have to be happy no matter what. If you look at my world through those eyes… I’ll be able to laugh, too. Now, won’t you look at my world instead of me?”

Excited at this indication that Gun-wook is back (clearly she read the note without actually READING the note), Jae-in rushes to his apartment — but it’s empty.

Apparently justice is swift but short in this universe, because Madam Shin is let out and resumes her place in Haeshin Group. Tae-ra takes over, while Tae-sung appears to be traveling on his own, and Mo-nae continues her dilettante lifestyle of yoga lessons and spa treatments.

Meanwhile, Jae-in thinks over Gun-wook’s note, which ends with the words that began this journey: “In the complete darkness of night, it’s hard to tell which is the sky and which is land, and whether the light is fire or stars. Where is it I’m going? Is it heaven? Or is it hell?”

And then! A body is found by the water: Gun-wook.

As Jae-in wanders by the police station, she misses the notice posted directly behind her, which is an announcement of a dead body bearing Gun-wook’s resemblance, replete with back scar, asking for people to help them identify it.

Jae-in wonders, “Gun-wook, where are you? Is the world you’re looking at happy now?”

THE END

Bad Guy OST – “어디에” (Where) by Mi (美) [ Download ]

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JAVABEANS’ COMMENTS

WTF, finale?

First, the things that don’t make sense (and there are many):

For instance, the lighter. Gun-wook got that back how? I’m sure there are ways to fanwank this so that it’s technically possible for him to have gotten the lighter back from Madam Shin’s possession, but it doesn’t fit with what we’re shown. It’s a tiny detail, but when you take lots of little details and add them up, the plot logic of everything starts teetering.

Let’s even say we forget the lighter. What about that crane? Jae-in has had it in her possession since the day she found it in Jeju Island, only now it bears her name and Won-in with “famil–” written on it? When did Gun-wook steal the crane, open it up, add to the note, fold it back up, and return it to its place? I don’t doubt that there’s a way to fit this into the technical timeline, but it was clearly done for dramatic impact without considering all the pieces fitting into the overall logic.

What about Madam Shin’s hallucinations? Was she really just suffering from guilty conscience? I don’t buy that she HAS one, so while her mental breakdown is greatly satisfying to watch, I find it out of character. I read a Korean blog that was greatly disgruntled with this point, having thought (and hoped) that perhaps Gun-wook was medicating Madam Shin’s water or some such with the aid of the maid, which would have been great.

Also, it’s ridiculous how she keeps killing people to clean up after herself, which requires more killing, which turns into this whole mad cycle. There’s a Mad TV sketch where a character kills a pet by accident, but is seen by the postman at the door, so he kills the postman to keep him quiet, and then a neighbor comes by and sees the dead postman so he kills the neighbor too, until there’s a ridiculous pile of bodies heaped at the front door.

One murder, chilling. Two murders, probably still chilling. But when murder becomes her go-to solution for managing a problem, it becomes laughable.

Watching Bad Guy is like looking at a piece of lace. At a distance, you’re not quite sure what the pattern is but it looks pretty enough. But then you get up close and realize those are huge honkin’ (plot) HOLES, not lacework.

All that aside, however, my biggest beef is that NOBODY GOT WHAT THEY DESERVED.

I guess Gun-wook let himself die because it was more important to clear his little sister of the shooting, but why didn’t he go for help? The fact that he doesn’t try — and it must have been a survivable wound if he was able to walk all the way to the river — suggests that he was ready to go. Maybe this is the punishment he said he would accept “later,” after his revenge was meted out.

Only, I’ll contend that Gun-wook hasn’t actually done anything deserving karmic retribution. In fact, I recall griping that he’s hardly a bad guy at all, because he didn’t do anything that illegal. He uncovered the Haeshin Group’s corruption and Tae-kyun ended up dying, but it was Tae-kyun’s own behavior that got himself killed — he was the one conducting shady deals, and he was the one drunk driving.

Even if we were arguing karmic retribution, the drama is woefully inconsistent on this score, because Madam Shin gets out of prison in a matter of days. (Perhaps weeks, but if Gun-wook mailed his care packages before dying and they were delivered after Madam Shin was released, we’re talking a very short time.) And Mo-nae must have seen that Gun-wook was shot — so she just gets away with murder? She ends the drama blithely indulging in luxurious activities while Gun-wook’s body lays unclaimed and moldering?

HOW DOES THAT MAKE SENSE. WHAT IN THE HELL. WHY DID I WATCH YOU.

Perhaps one could argue that that was the point, that revenge plots will result in your own downfall. (And murder plots won’t?) So then Bad Guy becomes this exercise in futility, because Gun-wook’s life served no purpose and the ones who created so much misery and stomped on people like bugs are just going to keep on keepin’ on.

A brief note on the acting. Kim Nam-gil was good. Not brilliant — he unfortunately did not live up to his performance in Queen Seon-deok for me, because his Gun-wook was just so damn enigmatic and impassive all the damn time that I couldn’t connect with him or understand him. Han Ga-in reminds me a lot of Han Ye-seul in Will It Snow For Christmas — that is to say, serviceable at times but really nothing worth particular mention. Jung So-min was a lovely surprise and I’ll look forward to seeing her portray a (hopefully) more enjoyable character in Playful Kiss.

Oh Yeon-soo was the shining star in terms of acting technique, and I’m sorry I haven’t mentioned her before. However, as much as I appreciated her performance, I felt absolutely nothing for her character, so my admiration remains on a purely technical level for her restrained, repressed performance. In contrast, even though she was better than Kim Jae-wook, his character was much better written, and therefore his performance had greater impact for me than hers did, because I felt for Tae-sung. That was a trait missing from everyone else, which may explain why there was so much praise directed his way. Is he a better actor than Kim Nam-gil? I wouldn’t say yes or no — but the alchemy of his performance and his character was stronger, for me.

On the direction, music, and cinematography score, this drama gets an A. Maybe A+. On the story score, I don’t even feel able to score it properly because right now there are not enough letters to do it justice.

GIRLFRIDAY’S COMMENTS

This whole final episode was one big steaming pile of crap. I hated it with the fire of a thousand suns. With a cherry on top.

Dear writer: you took seventeen episodes to tell us that the rich stay rich and the struggling middle class DIE, people who have money can get away with murder, and that blood purity somehow washes away all sins. Yeah. Hitler thought that too. If you wanted me to be bitter and angry about the human condition, you should have set up your drama to, oh, I don’t know…BE a dark and insightful commentary on the human condition. If I hadn’t donated my heart to science to pay for my overpriced education, I’d have shed a tear.

For the sake of my fragile sanity, I’m going with: Gun-wook died twenty years ago that rainy night along with his dog, and Ghost of Gun-wook has been haunting us ever since. Think about it. It totally works. Yeah. I’m done.

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1 Carmie

August 10, 2010 at 10:56 PM

THanks for telling me that it wasn't really worth the watch. I knew it would be a bad thing going into this drama so I held back to see if it ended well and I'd rather not watch something that would have me going WTF at the end.

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GirlHero

August 24, 2010 at 10:08 PM

Hey thanks guys @ dramabeans, you have just saved an hour of my life.
I usually lurk around this website reading the oh so enjoyable recaps without leaving note, but this time I thought I'd share my thoughts with you.
After watching many asian dramas, I have come to the conclusion that it's better for one's sanity to skip the finale episode (at the very least) especially when the plot is built around some wealthy family engaged in internal visceral war while poor virtuous folks get sucked in a vortex of lies, greed, backstabbing, kidnapping, revenge , murders, etc...

As expexted Bad Guy did not stray from the path most traveled and provided us with a horrid dénouement. But then again as Gandalf the grey said "do not trust the hope."
That said, having watched many kdrama and enjoyed a few, I have come out with some disturbing observations which I intend on sharing with you :)

1. Patriarchs in kdrama are usually depicted as revered members of society who command great respect for their achievements. However, they have disengaged themselves from all family matters and are cold to their spouses and some if not all their children. Patriarchs do not love their wives, they married them out of filial piety/ family interest and suffer their bad marriages with stoicism (while their spouses rely on alchol and medication).
And yet Patriarchs do not hate, they just burry themselves into work and forget how to feel. When their fragile world crumbles (usually as a result of an evil deed committed by their wives), they usually suffer a stroke and relapse into a coma thereby giving an opportunity to their already unstable wives to plan and execute even more heinous deeds.
Some Patriachs have children out of wedlock whom they cherish more than all their other children combined. The existence of a bastard child creates a dark hole into the soul of their wives and may possibly account for the flourishing of their evil hateful spirit.

2. The wives are hateful poisonous single-minded creatures ( their spawn must take over their father's company, or/ and marry into wealthy families regardless of their own personal desires hopes or ambitions). They pressure their children into falling within the lines they have drawn out for them if not they resort to emotional blackmail or what ever other means of control.
They twist their children minds (claiming it is for their own good) and end up turning them into cold angry sad lonely calculative unsympathetic sods. It is not always sure whether the mothers love their children or if they are just manipulating them for the sake of their personal fulfilment or vandetta.

I could go on and on but my point is that I am starting to take issue on how women seem to be predisposed to evilness in drama more so than men. Don't get me wrong I do enjoy hating on some of those characters but I find the contrast between those characters ( patriarch vs wife) a bit too much. Like Madam Shin for instance was a seriously perturbed individual who should not even be legally let out on the streets. Seriously, i believe the existence of tae-sung/wook merely precipitated her madness, she was off the reservation way before he came into the picture.

Lastly, I somehow feel that these kind drama mean to illicit a dissentiment of sort or a weariness from the regular people/viewers (middle-class more likely) towards the wealthy. It is ofcourse an exaggeration on my part, but it makes me wonder...
Maybe the wealthy does stomp on the poor, maybe money can dispel bad karma or buy you absolution, but I am not sure if I wish to see it horridly contextualized in a drama, the writers should at least make it engaging enough
so that I can appreciate the sourness of the regular/average folks' inevitable collision against stronger destructive cosmic forces aka wealthy people.
Some drama however do try to convey a vision of the human condition in a less sordid way (Bad Guy obviously failed on that account). But most of the time, i just have a meltdown for few days during which I chant mantras and call on bodhisattvas, Mary mother of Christ, frodo ( may he destroy the ring of power), and all the saints in heaven's abode to help me carry the burden of my ordinary (= doomed to be obliterated by wealthy beings) life. What can I say... I am a drama addict!!! But then again we all have different ways to deal and cope with harsh circumstances (real or fictional) like writing long convoluted comments about Asian dramas :)

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chesca

November 9, 2010 at 10:37 PM

uhmm ... can't blame them .. well the lead is bout to go to military service in a few weeks ... so i say they rushed the story ... but it really pissed me of ... why so Kim Nam-Gil have to die in almost all of the drama's his in ... WTF !!!

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chesca

November 9, 2010 at 10:40 PM

but they all acted very well ...
think they just ran out of time since Nam-Gil as the lead will have to go to military service ...

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2 westerneyes

August 10, 2010 at 10:59 PM

Oh really? Fuck this fucking finale. This was my first kdrama, and I was totally let down by the ending of a story with soooo much potential. I'm sour. ...fuck this shit. I wish I never started watching.

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Linh

August 11, 2010 at 9:38 AM

It really sux that this was your first kdrama. I hope you continue to watch kdramas despite how this one ended so frigging horribly.

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tarddy

November 22, 2010 at 10:33 PM

OH NO! Watch good dramas like Aesoe!

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pidud

December 29, 2013 at 11:27 PM

yap! agree!! I love Kim Nam Gil. After watching TGQS, Shark, and then this thing. This fucked me!
The ending was soooo bad!!!!!!
Ah!! I'm really pissed!

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3 cc

August 10, 2010 at 11:00 PM

I agree with Carmie.

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4 simplygracey

August 10, 2010 at 11:01 PM

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH <3 you guys. simply amazing recap and totally agree with everything you guys ranted about. TOUCHE.

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5 KNG Dekkoya!

August 10, 2010 at 11:03 PM

I personally think the ending did lack something but i'm not gonna cuss it out as passionately as you guys did.. I think the Drama was really sped up crazily and some elegance of the first episodes' was lost. However, it could not but remind me of F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby". The story did have a lot of the same complications and overwhelming Dénouement that wrenches the hearts of the "Struggling Middle Class; thus us" who fell helplessly and relentlessly in love with Geun Wook..

it is not a happy happy milodramatic kinda drama; it's a dark one without the hilarious reversal of characters that leaves you puzzled and sometimes drives you to lose your faith in the whole genuineness of the plot, characters and so on.

I wish the drama didn't have KNG's enlisting looming in the back of it. I wish Kim Jae wook's character was not shattered this way and allowed him to go astray at the end of the drama. The only one thing i'm happy about was Jae In - late - but feel-good realization that money can't buy you happiness. it can buy you though the best shoes in the world but never compensate for the embrace of a person who could literally suffice for even the world.

Geun Wook was that person to Jae in and she to him. but the realism of the drama renders you pondering about your decisions VS your desires and wishes. Every girl could be the Jae in getting the glass slippers of Geun Wook who, being the mush he is (i know he is in the drama behind the I-want-to-distroy-haeshin facade) he could have been extricated from this reeking hate and repugnance for Haeshin.

However, the drama left me imprinting on Geun wook (Twilight reference) or KNG and has made me a ticking clock till he gets back from the Army and woo me further more...

Yorobeun... sogo ismnida.

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6 norimaki

August 10, 2010 at 11:03 PM

no need to watch the rest of the drama then ... this recap says it all ... thank you JB and GF !!!! I'm with you in your sentiments ...

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7 sake

August 10, 2010 at 11:04 PM

Okay, may I say that I have not watched ONE episode... And *I* am PISSED.

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jpak

August 11, 2010 at 7:36 PM

true that.

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Jack

August 14, 2010 at 7:30 PM

Same. this was one big "WTF" of a drama.

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TS

November 23, 2012 at 7:50 PM

I got up through episode 11, then decided to read the rest of the recaps to see if the ending was good. And then I was really pissed. I feel let down!

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8 Cute.dork

August 10, 2010 at 11:07 PM

This ending was terrible but I would like to belive that jae in sees the notice when she turns around after this episode ends..xD ahaha

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9 KDramaminions

August 10, 2010 at 11:08 PM

I totally agree with you guys. What's with the happy ending for the rich and the tragic ending for the supposedly-bad guy? I felt angry with the ending, especially with Monae, who enjoy her lavish life without having any remorses. Wasn't she supposed to find out the truth about her long lost brother Gunwook/Taesung? Arghhhh. The whole ending just makes me question even more about humanity. Is this what we call justice, retribution or karma- whatever you want to call it- when the rich happily enjoy his/her life despite their own wrong deeds? This show FOR SURE has done a fantastic job at being the role model for our cause-consequence logic
The end of my ranting.

PS: It feels good to let your anger all out.

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10 h1llaro

August 10, 2010 at 11:10 PM

The beginning set this drama up for SO much promise, but the ending just killed it for me, seriously...pretty much nothing has changed for those who GW wanted to revenge upon.

I'm just going to rewatch the beginning episodes and forget about the ending because it is so beautiful to look at. Seriously, KJW??? also, awesome music!

Well, thanks for at least sticking it out you guys, love your recaps! :]

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11 patdxaddict

August 10, 2010 at 11:12 PM

I think he didn't go to the hospital after he got shot because he felt it was the way he would pay for tearing his own family apart. And not knowing it until the very end. I also agree on how can everyone be so blissfully unaware of his condition...that really irked me. KNG really stole my heart in this episode. His acting was so heartfelt!

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12 sweetkiss

August 10, 2010 at 11:13 PM

lol word stupidest 3 episodes ever...

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13 captivated

August 10, 2010 at 11:18 PM

Next stop MY GIRLFRIEND IS A GUMIHO...... I still love bad guy...even with not so beautiful ending...because it meant to be BAD...

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14 cb

August 10, 2010 at 11:21 PM

the story was good but the ending totally sucked!

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15 Annie

August 10, 2010 at 11:21 PM

just give me back 17 hours and 3 months of time for chasing this wtf drama, there is not meaning to the ending or the drama. waste of time

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16 soojungeee

August 10, 2010 at 11:27 PM

This drama just gradually became a 막장 drama the last few episodes... I'm so disappointed because the cinematography, music, actors, and original plot basis is really good.... only if KNG didn't have to go to the army... but even if he didn't, I hope this isn't the ending the writers were aiming for. I don't mind Gun-wook dying in the end... but why the heck does Shin 여사 get out from jail so quickly? I like the drama's underlying theme of "revenge is futile," but what is the drama trying to say with Shin 여사's crime being only slightly punished? WHAT THE. I really liked this drama until the last 3 episodes... THAT IS ALL. I STILL LOVE YOU, KNG, KJW, and OYS.

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17 Luna

August 10, 2010 at 11:27 PM

i know right!! WHY DID I WATCH THIS DRAMA??
the ending wasn't what i hope for though the drama looked good but just a mess..the change of direction in the middle of the drama.

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18 momosan

August 10, 2010 at 11:28 PM

See, this is where I was screaming WTF!? at the screen. Episode 16 was WTH enough, but 17 descended into WTF-ery.

In theory, I have no problem with the plot. It was just that the logic holes of how it got where it was going were too big and bizarre to ignore.

The multiple hallucinations? The time warp involved in the care packages? The cops not ID'ing a body of a guy they are looking for? Madame Shin spends what appears to be a week in jail for attempted murder? And dudes, if you are going to semi-frame someone for attempted murder, that was the weakest job I've seen. How does that make sense?

The tragedy of this drama is that it was well acted, beautifully shot, wonderfully scored (made me a fan of 4Men) and then it was sent to perdition in part by the station that was airing it and in part by the writers who apparently got drunk and threw an outline at the actors for the last three episodes and claimed it was a script.

Alas, while I adore me some KNG, this drama will not be living on my hard drive for the next 2 years to entertain me when I get pangs of nostalgia for him....

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Jodasg

August 11, 2010 at 4:43 AM

Actually i will, just the scenes btw him & Won-in. Others, forget it :P

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momosan

August 11, 2010 at 8:39 AM

You've got a point. KNG and Won In and the ice cream scene from episode 14. I may keep those for future reference...

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19 Ani

August 10, 2010 at 11:34 PM

They could have at least put Tae-sung and Jae-in back together. I mean seriously, is that too much to ask? Well, it was fun reading the recaps while they lasted. My beautiful Kim Jae-wook please pick another drama and soon. Kim Nam-gil? Please be safe and come back ready for another drama, so be healthy.

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20 missy

August 10, 2010 at 11:34 PM

Bang!

that is why i did not watch the finale ( i mean the last video). i know something not delightful will happen. gah why became so disappointing Bad Guy? I was so fond of you until your last hours.

what a tragedy for Gun-wook, for the plot, for the logic, for the ending, and for all of us!

i was expecting for GW to die in the end but at least Madam Shin should be dead and Tae-sung will be happy ( i have a soft spot for him)

and i so much agree with GW's not-doing-anything-worth-killing-him!!! as i pointed out on the ep 15, he is not a mad man at all.

grrrr... i shall forget that these things happened and end the finale with that kiss :3

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21 shiningmoon

August 10, 2010 at 11:35 PM

Jajajajaja (insane laugh) I really don't know how I kept watching this drama, well in reallity I quit 4 ep before, I just read your recaps. But how is suppose that we are gonna cope with this situation??? he was mistreated, abandoned and robed about everything in his live and he finish dead???
And the bad people just keep living their lives like nothing happened???
That's is just absurd... what a bad, sad and dissapointing end. I feel like I wasted 13 hours of my live watching this. Well just is time to turn the page.
Thanks girls for your hard work!!! You are amazing!!!
p.s.-Just, forgive for my bad grammar, Eng. is not my strong point, but I'm trying to improve.

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22 belleza

August 10, 2010 at 11:37 PM

And, see, this is why I liked the ending. The Bitch won. The story ends with a stunning whimper, which I felt worked appropriately with the themes in the story. It had numbing uncertainty and I totally resonated with that.

Kim Jae Wook was the breakout star, though having said that, from his movie work and Kingdom of the Wind, you could tell he could take on a role in different styles. Kim Jae Wook threw off a big J-dorama vibe in his acting style (a sexy "Johnny" performance is much like watching Mick Jagger circa Get Yer Ya Ya's out: a well-executed catwalk between high-cheekboned arrogance and adolescent melo-pity.) And then I realized that I had that very same impression during Coffee Prince and forgotten it. He is a VERY welcome contrast against the typical (and still very welcome, mind you) K-drama masculitronics.

I liked Han Ga-in's performance. Snarky, mean, regretful.

I liked Kim Hye Ok here, though her screaming shrew performance is actually a trademark style of hers. Sometimes it's dramatic (she was in What Happened in Bali for one episode, and she was CHILLING.) Sometimes it's done for laughs. When she does film, she dials that down and gives complex motherhood performances. Recommended.

As for Kim Nam Gil . . . sigh. 2013 is not too far away?

Now onto Gumiho. Or Playful Homicide?

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celestialorigin

August 11, 2010 at 2:04 AM

Ms. Belleza

You know I'm a big fan of your writings. Whatever you've written had always been very convincing to me. Even right here on above comment You are 100% on about my! KJW.

After reading your OT post? (Was it there it was posted???) It was so wired, within that comment, that micro cosmos of yours, everything made perfect sense and I started doubting my own feelings about BG: disappointment, WTF factors and so on... Lol, just for a sec.

So, I found myself for the first time, whoops, no, for the second time, (considering I belong to Bora must be saved!/no killing Bora/Forget about Bora all together and move on, side), not resonating with you.

Anyhow, now it's finished and time to move on...

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anastassia

August 15, 2010 at 9:02 PM

Me too!!

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23 zodd

August 10, 2010 at 11:40 PM

The last two episodes really took a huge dive in quality everything felt so rushed. And the ending ugh.

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24 Jennifer

August 10, 2010 at 11:42 PM

I didn't mind that the evil bitch didn't get what she deserved or that the male lead died without anyone knowing. Predictable endings get mighty old. What I hated was that how it happened didn't make a lick of sense. It was rushed, lazy, and nonsensical writing at its worst.

Still, I don't regret watching because I did enjoy most of it. It's just such a shame because this had so much potential to end on an amazing note.

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25 Birdie

August 10, 2010 at 11:49 PM

Thanks for the recaps.Aren't you glad you don't have to sit through this again? The story fails when the writer has no idea what message to relate. Even from the start it felt like we were just given scenes to watch.Just like PT, not locking doors make no sense. Very disappointing drama considering the talent of the cast.

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26 jons

August 10, 2010 at 11:54 PM

This ending totally caught me off guard! I did not see monae coming back as a pshyco!!! I hated her charcter-because I felt like she spoiled the almost happy ending. I think javabeans put it nicely. He decided to let himself doe because he wanted to cover up for his litttle sister. Did she not know yet about the truth? It really killed me when he asked her to call him oppa....,how sad :(

This drama was a pain in my ass. I felt bad because of all the problems the production had-but I've been only following dramabeans-haven't watched a single episode. It's really a sad ending. He pretty much suffered and suffered. KNG had me in this one. I thought his acting was impressive. HGI was pretty but her acting was satisfactory. And my last note is-lee min ho almost took this project as the lead-I'm really glad he didn't. Bad Guy was intresting but not a keeper for me.

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newbie

August 11, 2010 at 1:14 AM

well jons, as bad as this drama turned out to be, I think it'll be worse if Lee min ho had taken the lead role.
I personally don't think LMH could pull it off better than KNG, partly because the character is not just for him.
I can't even imagine what would the drama be with LMH in it. With KNG and the other casts,at least we've got good acting to watch. No offense jons, as you also seems to be KNG's fan

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Javabeans

August 11, 2010 at 1:17 AM

I think the role Lee Min-ho would have taken is Kim Jae-wook's, not Kim Nam-gil's.

I'm perfectly satisfied with Kim Jae-wook, but I think Lee Min-ho would have been great, too.

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jeankaycee

August 11, 2010 at 1:50 AM

cant imagine Tae-sung to be portrayed by other actor than Kim Jae-wook's portrayal because he have done such a great job.

i watched this drama because i caught few of his scene and got curious on his performance.

but then lee minho might be good as well.

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belleza

August 11, 2010 at 2:56 AM

Lee Min Ho wouldn't be a right fit for this role because of his age. But oh how I wish he could play opposite Kim Ji Soo (i.e. younger man/older woman politics, adultery, effant terrible behaviour) in Tokyo Tower!

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Hannah

August 11, 2010 at 3:20 AM

Just the thought of Min Ho being involved in another almost-good drama makes me frustrated. Dude is so cute (his smile!) but the dramas he's been in don't even allow me to fangirl properly.

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jons

August 11, 2010 at 11:14 AM

Oh was he really? I didn't know that. I just read that he was considering "a lead" not "the lead" thanks for confirming. I don't think I could see him in this as kng. It'd make more sense for the role of taesung. He needs to try a melodrama but at the time, if he had taken this instead of pt, I'm not sure if he wouldve been able to pull it off.

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27

August 10, 2010 at 11:59 PM

And how about the romantic one-sided and unfulfilled incest love Mo-Nae had for Gun Wook. They must've been Queen Seon Deok and Bi-dam in a past life. And Madam Shin? Well, she was Yu-Shin of course.

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joyowon

October 18, 2011 at 9:45 AM

hahaha! that was funny!! =)

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28 chicosci

August 11, 2010 at 12:04 AM

I think its better if everyone dies...

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ranter raver

August 11, 2010 at 5:06 PM

tama!

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29 MEIKO**** ^-^

August 11, 2010 at 12:06 AM

*sigh*

Yup, the ending was a crap...not because the main character died but the revelation and plots were all over the place.....

>MO-NAE= just went and did her yoga...was that a subtle meaning that she went crazy herself??? that was a 360 turn of her personality for someone who was kind, young and stubborn and inlove with the guy.... it wasnt like Sec Kim didnt explain the "why's"...

> TAE-SUNG= he went all dramatic about "i wanna be a good son now, blah, blah" then leaves the family coz he wants make his own name??? in the middle of a family tragedy???
Oh he also "ATE"!! the food MEANT for GUN-WOOK while he was all alone mourning the love lost??? it's either he was so hungry from that long search, or that was a fast change of heart...

>Madam Shin= I have the same thoughts as JavaB's... I also thought she was being drugged...

>TAE-RA= was the only one that made sense..... hahaha!!!

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30 leslie

August 11, 2010 at 12:12 AM

stupid secretary calling him young master....

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31 Korean Santa

August 11, 2010 at 12:14 AM

Just sayin' :

1. You'd better not murder/attempt murder. Your children will inherit your evil genes.

2. You'd better not commit adultery. He/she may turn out to be your sibling through switched births/faked DNA results, etc.

3. You'd better not take revenge. You will surely die.

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32 newbie

August 11, 2010 at 12:17 AM

KNG's acting in this last episode is awesome. He can deliver such a great emotion, a heart wrenching one, without even saying a single word.

If I were to answer JB's question whether KJW is a better actor than KNG....my answer would be no...because to me KNG is way better. KJW's expression is somewhat dull, although his character is a well written one
Sorry JB, that's just what I feel

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Nana

October 9, 2010 at 11:30 AM

I agree with you,KNG is definitely the better actor,but I never emotionally connected with his character in the show the way I connected with KJW's.I think I would have liked Nam gil's character more If the writing for his character wasn't so horrid.

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33 strawhatz

August 11, 2010 at 12:23 AM

what a crappy ending, it certainly is suck.....after i finished watching the finale, all i can do is laugh.....laugh for the stupid and crazy ending and laughing at myself for even watching this drama....is this all i got after watching 17 episodes? i know he's gonna die but to die like this? no one even knows he's dead and i really hate that monae and her mom didn't get their punishment.....i never thought the writer would do this.....i got hooked when i watched ep 4 or 5, too bad it got crazier after that....the only good thing from this drama is the ost.....even the instrumentals are amazing.....though i don't like one of the songs.....oh and the directing is also great....

btw does monae know that gun wook is the real tae sung? how could someone tell her that gunwook is taking revenge and not telling her about the fact that gunwook is her real brother?

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34 zaha

August 11, 2010 at 12:25 AM

i really wish the ending was different, although i know that would have been impossible. i wonder how it would have been if they were able to go with the 20.

and i agree fully with what girlfriday said.

this finale just has WTF written all over it.

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beggar1015

August 11, 2010 at 2:08 PM

I also wonder if there is floating around out there a completed script for the show back when they thought they had 20 episodes to tell the story. I'm left to wonder just how different it all could have been with just three more hours...

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35 loonyluna

August 11, 2010 at 12:25 AM

I hate the ending. but I agree with newbie that KNG is brilliant in this episode. I cried my heart out just to see him in the scene with taera and jae in....and it's true, I marvel the way he can convey his feelings so the viewers can feel it ,without saying a word.
And I second newbie's answer on who is the better actor.

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36 sajor

August 11, 2010 at 12:27 AM

arrgh.. if only:

1. monet did not turn out to be the one killing GW. oh monet, you were such a sweet girl! or if she did, it was only by accident, and she regretted it. should've have been GW's partner who killed him. and better yet, GW killed himself.

2. madam shin was not a murderer, and that she has a conscience also. her only crime would only be switching the tae-sungs (aside from looking down on people), and then she'll end up regretting it because of GW's revenge on her family. also, this will make GW regret his revenge more after knowing he's the real TS.

3. tae-ra and GW are blood siblings, making what they did much more shameful, thus GW's revenge much more effective. and this will give more reason why GW would want to die in the end.

and this show could've been one of the best! anyway, it's finished already. i'm still happy that i watched it. i still like it.

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37 notoriousnoona

August 11, 2010 at 12:28 AM

I enjoyed the drama overall. I definitely have similar complaints but they lack the passion that was written here. Alot of things didn't jive for me but for the majority of the series I was onboard and completely ok. It wasn't until the final episode that I got motion sickness so I can't throw the entire project in the trash... unlike other dramas I've seen(even recently).
In the end, Madam Shin and Won In continued to be my favorite characters and I was impressed by Kim Jae Wook. And even with all that said, I feel better about this ending than Coffee House. I feel satisfied.
I'd love to believe that the writer were trying to say something about society or humanity but I don't think it was. I believe "it" was speaking about one man, one life, one mindset. And sadly at times that is a little hard to choke down.

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anastassia

August 15, 2010 at 9:08 PM

Well said.

For a drama its a bad ending, what the heck kind of the things.

For life, thats the truth. Only it is explain not that good in this ending.

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38 tm

August 11, 2010 at 12:42 AM

i'm disappointed that it was the innocent mo-nae that had used the gun to kill gun wook. to me it made no sense cos mo-nae, having known nothing at all, just came into the apartment and grab the gun on the floor and shoot him? although it wasn't her intention to kill him, but her "accident" killing apparently made me go nuts.

i don't mind gunwook is dead, but to be killed by an innocent mo-nae just makes it not worth it.

anyways, this drama is over and finally we can move on to the my girlfriend's a gumiho!~

great job of r e c a p p i n g!! Thanks~!

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39 coollady

August 11, 2010 at 1:01 AM

sigh...look, i'm okay with GW dying...heck, i'm kinda okay that no one got what they deserved esp. Madam Shin. i'm just so confused as to why GW without anyone knowing! it makes no logical sense and the fact that everyone esp. Jae In is waiting for a dead GW to come back just breaks my heart...and not in a good way either.

this is the third horrible finale episode i've watched this year out of three dramas that i've watched...how disappointing!

the only saving grace about this episode was that the direction and cinematography was still gorgeous to look at (PD-nim, i'll be watching out for you in the future).

and is it me or did they make Kim Nam Gil extra handsome this episode. maybe it was the white suit...maybe it was because i was deprived of him for almost a whole episode worth...or maybe b/c the plot was going downhill and i purposely distracted myself by looking at him...but KNG looked great in the episode. haha.

thanks for the 17 wonderful recaps!

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40 yoyo

August 11, 2010 at 1:02 AM

can anyone who watched this drama explain to me how come tae-ra and gunwook aren't siblings? i mean they are half-siblings arent they? Unless tae-ra is not that man's in the wheel chair real daughter.

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Javabeans

August 11, 2010 at 1:11 AM

About 2-3 episodes ago, the drama threw out the seemingly random bit of info that President Hong is not Tae-ra's biological father. He said he's always treated her like his own, but he married Madam Shin after Tae-ra had already been born. Apparently this is Mme's second marriage, as she made it a point to say that Tae-ra was born in the sanctity of wedlock and bears absolutely no resemblance to the horrible dirty lovechild Tae-sung.

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yoyo

August 11, 2010 at 5:40 AM

thats what i thought. thanks for explaining again.

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41 daisytwenties

August 11, 2010 at 1:03 AM

HORR.IB.LE.

Gah. It pains me to see how much they....hm....SCREWED UP something that had alot of potential to be so much better than what it ended as (crap).

The one thing that I really couldn't stand was Mo-nae's role in the last episode. Yeah, Madam Shin got out pretty early but at least she still paid for it with SOME jail time. Like, WHAT THE HELL? Mo-nae shoots Gun-wook. Gun-wook dies. Mo-nae gets to live without punishment? um. what the effff?

AND, it felt like all the characters' stories ended very loosely and didn't have a clean cut ending, Y'know?

Okay, like. Tae-ra, Daddy Hong, Jae-in, etc. still think that he's alive and will come back one day. Um. great.

Tae-sung is all alone now. Yeah, he changed but I think he deserved a happier ending not some crap ending where he's traveling (?). Like at least show him maybe reconciling with his birth mom or SOMETHING.

Lots of complaints, i know. But for a person like me who watched the show and forgave all of the nonsensical details for KNG, it's frustrating that I stuck with it.

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42 Jenju

August 11, 2010 at 1:11 AM

I am so glad that I was not the only one that thought the finale was complete and utter BS.

I was looking forward to this recap because I had been thinking that perhaps I was missing something and I was being too harsh by being so anger. But no, I am justified.

I just really want my 17 hrs back.

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TS

November 23, 2012 at 7:54 PM

No kidding.

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43 celestialorigin

August 11, 2010 at 1:17 AM

I never watched the last episode of CU. Somehow, my curiosity persuaded myself to watch it raw... And was I sorry! So, this recap really summarizes it. No need to waste my time to watch it with subs.

On top of everything mentioned above. I'm really weary of the stuff like over exaggerated malice depicted by Madam Shin. It gets so tiresome very quickly. Why, is this type a staple in K drama? Can we do without? Gosh, I deal with all sort of people traumatized by their childhood experiences(by someone like her, (but less potent than her character for sure) with my work. I'm always amazed by how courageous and forgiving humans are in the end.

It really is too bad since I loved the music, cinematography and two gorgeous men and pretty women in this drama.

Thanks for the great recaps as usual, you guys rock!

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44 Buki

August 11, 2010 at 1:22 AM

I can't believe they didn't have a final Taesung Taesung(Gun Wook) scene. That was the final confrontation i was really looking fwd too. I'm disappointed too with the finale. I wonder if it would have been smoother with the 3 extra episodes.

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45 Osang

August 11, 2010 at 1:25 AM

Wow!!! this is why I love JB .... I live far from your civilized world and I was hoping to buy the DVD of the drama upon release but I guess it will be a waste of my hard earned money.... change my mind ..... I wont even bother to think buying ....

too bad for my Bidam!!!!!

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46 Orion

August 11, 2010 at 1:27 AM

Lol at girlfriday's comments! Ahahaha!

I personally dropped the series in the 3rd or so episode. I didn't like Gun Wook, Tae Ra was annoying and so was her daughter, the gold-digger what's-her-name they both like later on as well. Didn't like the acting, didn't like the main character (he neeever reacted much to anything) and I hated how they started to mix romance with a series that looked like a good thriller for a while.

Either make a soap-opera melodrama thriller wannabe like this looks and state it from the beginning or make a proper thriller/revenge/evil plot series. Don't start with the latter and turn it into the first.

The only thing about this that triggered my interest, was Kim Jae Wook, who as far as I saw, was amazing. He's really grown as an actor and his character was the only one who wasn't crazy or/and annoying. But the series was just so bad that I couldn't keep watching, even for his sake.

Having said that, I think the Korean army should really lighten up a bit. At least let their actors finish their damn ongoing projects before joining! Make sure they come in before starting another one, yes, but to yank them away just before a production is over, harms the series, harms the industry and therefore harms your country, you idiots.

Although, if the series ended up as stupid as you guys describe it to be (and I believe you 100% since it even started stupid), then even Kim Nam Gil's presense wouldn't have saved it. I've never seen the guy in anything and I hear he's a great actor, but he sure picked a wrong work to show it cause even he was terrible there.

Anyway, good riddens and gf and jb, you can now relax a bit, loves. Eat some garlic and lower your blood pressure, cause you seem as pissed about this as I also often get about works turning out bad. XD

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pipit

August 11, 2010 at 3:36 AM

Hehehe.....I love your comment a lot. Don't watch this one and never wanted to. The mustache was the deciding factor. And then JB's recap for episode one. I totally agree with: if you want to have a revenge story (thriller) you'd better not mix it with romance. Not many can pull that off. Currently watching a man called god. And totally love it. Hope they don't screw this revenge story with a love line either!!!!

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momosan

August 11, 2010 at 8:49 AM

AMCG is a different revenge world from BG, but because it's from a manga, it has a style of wack all it's own. But at least you are clued in from episode 1 with the hologram and the batcave that you are in for weirdness of the highest sort. Get a drink and some popcorn and sit back and enjoy some weird. Personally I laughed hysterically every time any character uttered "Peter Pan" and the line from early in the show "Peter Pan! They said you died in Nicaragua" will go down in my memory as one of the most hysterical lines ever intentionally uttered in a k-drama.

ummm...sorry to threadjack - back to BG!