Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 16 (Final)
by HeadsNo2
This is a show unafraid to explore the darkest parts of itself, taking us down to the depths of separation and emotionally gutting us in the best and most frightening of ways, so that the payoff has never felt more earned or deserved. In short, this episode is like running through an emotional obstacle course backward and blind, and it’s AWESOME. But also terrifying. Yet poignant. But mostly terrifying. Queen In-hyun’s Man, what have you done to me?
FINAL EPISODE RECAP
One year has passed. Soo-kyung and Hee-jin are in the midst of a move, though Soo-kyung’s doing most of the heavy lifting while Hee-jin pesters her from the salon, getting dolled up for a poster shoot.
She gets a call from her director asking her to do some narration work for a documentary program entitled Untold Stories of History, and more specifically for a special segment called Queen In-hyun’s Man. Hee-jin is clueless as to the meaning, and is curious that the show will be exploring a rumor she’s never heard of – that Queen In-hyun had a secret lover.
The segment is being pushed forward because of new evidence discovered a month prior, which seems to wash over Hee-jin as unimportant even as she accepts. It seems safe to say that Hee-jin has lost her memories of Boong-do, and this evidence raises some red flags – could it be Boong-do’s letter?
Hee-jin gives the documentary notes a cursory read on the ride home, curious that none of this was mentioned in her drama script. It delves into the rumors surrounding the Queen and Boong-do, a name that prompts her to say aloud: “Kim Boong-do?” She doesn’t recognize it.
Soo-kyung comes home to find Hee-jin engrossed in the notes, eager to share the juicy story she’s reading. She tells what we all know – that Boong-do was thought to have an illicit affair with the Queen, was interrogated, and died – though not long after, he was cleared of his charges. In the Annals, his passing is noted as a wrongful death due to unfounded slander.
However, the documentary tackles what supposedly happened after, with a prime minister’s recently-discovered memorandum revealing a Boong-do sighting one year after he was considered deceased.
Flash back to 1695 and the minister in question, Nam Gu-man. An accidental brush with Boong-do sends our scholar running Minister Nam’s men chase him to the inn where he’s been staying, always packed and ready to flee. He evades capture but leaves behind a book, which they deliver to the minister.
The minister finds Boong-do’s letter to Hee-jin inside, recognizing it for certain as Boong-do’s handwriting, and puzzles over the mystery. Boong-do rides away to a fork in the road, and since the destination doesn’t matter to him, he lets his horse decide which way to go.
Minister Nam goes to tell Sukjong about his strange encounter, further stumped when Sukjong asks if Boong-do looked as though he’d been suffering, claiming, “I owe Boong-do a debt.” He reminds the befuddled minister not to tell anyone about what he saw – Boong-do is already a dead man.
And so Minister Nam took to his private journal, where he wrote what Hee-jin reads today – though he may not have been sure of what happened between the King and Boong-do, he was sure Boong-do lived on the run near the border regions, and was sympathetic to his plight because his existence would forever remain a secret. (Until now.)
Soo-kyung finds Hee-jin still poring over the notes hours later – are they that interesting? Hee-jin sighs that she feels sorry for Kim Boong-do, whose life was totally ruined because of a woman. Aww.
Back in Joseon, Boong-do just can’t seem to catch a break, since he’s even recognized by a man drawing water from a well. Uh oh.
A monk comes upon him in the forest and recognizes him as the one who came searching for the head monk one year ago. Boong-do sighs that he used to think the eight provinces of Joseon were large, but his travels have now changed that view.
The monk asks, “How long will you keep running away? Aren’t you tired?” Boong-do replies, “I am tired. But although it is laughable, this has become my reason for living.” The goal of running away has become his only goal at this point, he explains, and if he were to lose that, he’d lose a reason to keep going.
Not knowing the reason, the monk advises him to pay the price if he’s committed a crime, rather than running away. Boong-do: “I want to do that too. But to be caught and to pay the price would be an even greater crime.” The monk doesn’t understand, and Boong-do doesn’t have time to explain – the man who saw him earlier has brought guards with him, and they give chase.
Boong-do finds himself surrounded by armed men who call for his arrest on charges of murder. (For the gibang massacre that left Yoon-wol and Ja-soo dead.) He’s able to fight off as many as he can, but the numbers just aren’t on his side. He looks from the crowd of people gathered to the men, sizes up his odds, and drops his weapon to surrender. Nooo!
Back in the present, Hee-jin records her lines for the segment. She mentions the letter Boong-do wrote and adds that “In it, his deep affection toward a nameless person and the sadness of their parting is evident. Considering the circumstances at the time, scholars speculate that the letter was intended for Queen In-hyun.”
I’ll be honest, I teared up just hearing her recording partner read Boong-do’s letter. Hee-jin listens intently to the letter written to her, and it’s infinitely sad that what Boong-do prayed for – that even if she read the letter in the future, she wouldn’t know it was for her – has come true.
She narrates, “A man who wanted his love to forget him. It was probably because she was beyond his reach.” As for Boong-do, mentions of the woman in later documents reveal that he was able to keep his memories.
Break time. Hee-jin watches a bit of the dramatic reenactment before Dong-min sweeps her away for a chat. Eek, is she with Dong-min again in this reality?
Thankfully that doesn’t seem to be the case, though Dong-min would like it to be. He’s all excited that she’s up to date on his overseas activities while she deadpans, “I don’t want to say this because you’ll just act superior, but news about you is all over the internet. It’s impossible not to see it.” Dong-min: “It’s not acting superior. I am superior. Only you call it acting.” Ha.
He whines about how lonely he is and how they should start dating again, even when Hee-jin points out that he’s supposedly dating a girl group member ten years his junior. Dong-min fires back that she’s too immature: “No matter how much I think about it, there is no other woman like Choi Hee-jin.”
Well, he’s got one thing right. Hee-jin isn’t having it, and points out Na-jung walking nearby, saying that they’d be a perfect fit. Dong-min, being the child that he is, calls Na-jung over to ask if she wants him to do her the favor of dating her, “Because I’m so lonely now, I can’t afford to be picky.” Haha.
Na-jung gives him the universal symbol for “No”, and Hee-jin asks exasperatingly, “When will you grow up?” Dong-min: “I don’t want to grow up.” How I love thee, Character Consistency.
Dong-min’s manager comes to collect him, but not before sliding into the chair next to Hee-jin’s in order to ask if Soo-kyung’s seeing anyone. I can’t tell if Hee-jin genuinely doesn’t know what he’s getting at or doesn’t want to, but it’s adorable how she finally sizes him up and claims that though Soo-kyung hasn’t said anything, it seems like she might have someone. Ha.
I love that Soo-kyung acts all put-out upon hearing it from Hee-jin in the car, even going so far to call Dong-min’s manager an ajusshi, although she’s clearly preening from the attention. Of course, she can’t act like Hee-jin did wrong by telling him she had someone (or she’d blow her aloof cover), and so she can only bark at Hee-jin that the documentary was a bad idea the second Hee-jin points out they’re late.
The documentary filming has gone on location to the palace, and Hee-jin grows nostalgic over the place she used to see every day for filming, now that it’s been a year. The camera pans around her and smoothly transitions us to the Joseon period, where Boong-do was brought in after being arrested.
Like Hee-jin, the sight of the palace brings nostalgia with it. However, Minister Nam and a bunch of other ministers round the nearby corner, and Boong-do turns his face so as not to be recognized…
…Which segues us back to Hee-jin. She begins to describe the famous tale of the political strife and struggle to reinstate Queen In-hyun, which has formed the basis of many dramatizations. From within that upheaval, there are records of one man who died an innocent man – the subject of today’s documentary, Kim Boong-do, Queen In-hyun’s man.
As she talks we see Boong-do standing in her path, three hundred years ago. She passes through his image as though he’s a specter, both of them standing on the same ground in two totally different times. She’s separated visually only by color while Boong-do and his surroundings remain in black and white… only the colors start to fade in and out, blurring the separation of their realties, however briefly. And Hee-jin seems to sense it.
She continues on, sometimes standing alone, sometimes standing with her back to Boong-do. She tells his story as it’s written, only tears begin to fall and she doesn’t know why. This. Is. Heartbreaking.
In his time, Boong-do is finally taken away, just when it seems like Hee-jin would be able to see him if she’d only turn around… but the director calls for her attention and the moment is gone. Something in her tells her to turn around, but by the time she does, she’s just standing alone.
Boong-do is put in prison until his scheduled morning interrogation. He’s only concerned that he’ll be recognized since he made a promise to Sukjong that he would never appear in this world again, but for now, he’s out of options.
Soo-kyung calls Hee-jin on her drive home to ask about the crying incident, and Hee-jin replies honestly that even she doesn’t know why she cried, only that she suddenly felt sad without reason. The feeling still remains.
In prison, Boong-do opens his bag where he’s been keeping his modern suit and phone all this time. Aww. He focuses on the necktie specifically, and flashes back to Hee-jin showing him how to use it, replete with a kiss. And then… oh no.
He fashions it into a noose and prepares to hang himself. A storm begins as Hee-jin waits at a stop light and turns the radio volume up, playing a song that’s become their theme.
Tears form in Boong-do’s eyes as he slips the noose over his neck. Hee-jin begins to cry. (I can’t stop crying long enough to write.) So does he, and we flash back and forth between both their faces… until Boong-do kicks the stool out from under him and hangs himself.
Hee-jin feels it in the present and sobs. Boong-do’s feet hang inches off the ground. As she cries desperately without knowing why, a memory flashes of when she programmed Boong-do’s name in his phone as “Player,” only she doesn’t know who that is. A phone search reveals nothing, though she remembers his number and punches it in.
And in the room where Boong-do hangs, his phone rings. NO. Hee-jin begins crying so hard she hyperventilates and leaves her car, while all her memories of Boong-do come flooding back. The horror hits her even worse, if that’s at all possible, and she crumples to the ground.
She goes to the documentary director still drenched from the rain, demanding to see the footage from their segment. She’s left alone to watch, finally coming upon the letter Boong-do wrote. We hear his voice reading it as she sees his face on the screen, and the realization that this letter was for her comes crashing down.
“Will we forget each other?” The letter reads, as her phone begins to ring in her car… “Or will we live unable to forget, forever tormented?” Memories of Boong-do play on the projection screen like a movie as Hee-jin watches, grief-stricken. “In an aimless life, to not even have those memories would be hell. And you… and you… if you should happen to read this letter far into the future, I pray you will not realize for whom this letter is meant.”
Only now does Hee-jin realize what Boong-do did so that she would forget him, knowing that he lived with his memories. Dear god, this poor girl. What more can she go through? What more can we go through?
The door opens behind her. Boong-do’s voice calls out, “Why didn’t you answer the phone after calling me?” She turns around, and there he is, standing in the suit he carried with him all this time. How…?
Boong-do: “I had to search for you for so long. Didn’t you call me? One hour ago.” He holds up the phone, Hee-jin just stares in shock, and he smiles.
Flash back to Boong-do hanging from the ceiling. The sound of the phone ringing brings him back from the brink, and through blurry vision he can see the screen lit up on the floor in disbelief. Filled with new resolve he grasps the noose around his neck and pulls, slowly choking as he tries to free himself.
The knot from the rafter eventually gives way, sending Boong-do sprawling to the floor, coughing. He’s barely able to grab the phone, and the moment he answers it he disappears…
…And reappears in modern day Seoul. He’d answered the phone only moments too late, since Hee-jin left it inside her car when she scrambled out of it for breathing room.
He takes one look at his surroundings, and though his vision is still blurry he can recognize the lights and sounds, and laughs with joy once he realizes where he is. He’s still got the phone to his ear and says, barely able to contain his happiness and relief, “Hello? Hello? Are you listening? Hello? Answer me please, ‘Most Beautiful Woman Ever’.”
He laughs again. Oh Boong-do, I’d laugh with you if I weren’t still emotionally traumatized.
“Are you just going to stare dumbly like that?” he asks Hee-jin, back in the present. “If you summoned somebody who was living just fine, shouldn’t you take responsibility for it?” Hee-jin can barely stammer out: “Close the door.”
He does. Hee-jin asks him to come closer, and reaches out to touch his cheek as though she still can’t believe it. “You’re real…” she murmurs. “You’re alive.”
Boong-do is even in the mood for jokes, since he tells her in his usual deadpan delivery that the year passed speedily for him – he travelled around and left a lover in every province. She playfully calls him out on lying, saying that the evidence is right there, and points to his letter projected on the screen.
Hee-jin asks him how this all happened – what about the talisman?
Boong-do: “I burned it.”
Hee-jin: “Then how did you come here?”
Boong-do: “I came back because you called me.”
Hee-jin: “Me?”
Boong-do: “You.”
He cups her face in his hands and wipes away her tears, and they convey more with looks than words can do alone. He brings up the tie (Too. Soon.), claiming that he missed the use that she’d taught him, “So much so that I wanted to die.”
She tugs on the tie just slightly, the way she did when she first introduced it to him, only this time it’s Boong-do that swoops in for the kiss.
Hee-jin: [in voiceover] “A chance encounter that started with a gap in time… that meeting already ended a year ago. Our reunion now is not because of a mysterious talisman written by a monk, but because of a string of memories that belongs only to us both. Now begins our second encounter. Now, I am his lifesaver. The price to pay? All he has to do is stay forever by my side.”
And Boong-do interrupts his own makeout session to look at the screen curiously – how does his letter still exist? Ha, I love that he’s all upset that his private letter isn’t so private anymore. He’s all, I must destroy it! which gets a chuckle out of Hee-jin, because it’s going to stay in the museum, forever out of his reach.
More kisses. Lots more.
The projection screen plays an epilogue, as Soo-kyung sits Boong-do down to get the skinny on this boyfriend Hee-jin never mentioned before. She starts rattling off questions about what university he attended, where he lives, his parents… and Boong-do chuckles, because this will be the third time they’ve had this conversation.
HEADSNO2’S COMMENTS
Now that I’m left to stare at the pile of tissues amassed from this finale, I can only shake my head at how oblivious I was at the end of episode fourteen, thinking, “Well, what could possibly go wrong from here?” Answer: EVERYTHING.
I don’t mean that in a negative sense at all, because I remain completely floored by this writer’s ability to wring maximum emotional impact from her scenes by going above and beyond, without me feeling manipulated in the process. It’s something I’ve noticed throughout the series, but where it really started to kick in was Boong-do’s talisman fade-outs – him disappearing on Hee-jin once was bad enough, but to let him reappear just long enough for them to see each other before ripping them apart? That is tragic.
And again, with Boong-do’s hanging sequence – it’s something that would have been horrible any way it was presented, but using the necktie, with all its previous warm and fuzzy connotations, was just plain traumatizing. And yet, it was such a testament to how thought-out everything was in this series – nothing was wasted, and every moment had its purpose. A necktie gift with smooches can later turn into a noose to hang our hero, and an innocuous joke about an illicit royal affair can turn into the means in which our lovers reunite. I never felt like this show was unsure of where it was going, and yet that surety didn’t equal predictability. It’s one of the (many, numerous, countless) things I loved about this show.
This is one of those dramas that got me at a gut level all the way through, and on that same level, I’m satisfied with the talisman/conflict resolution. I kept second-guessing that feeling when it was all said and done, worried that I was all too eager for a fanservice offering. And maybe I was, because even though the critic in me would have acknowledged the completely logical and realistic end – with Boong-do hanging in prison and Hee-jin living forever with her memories and no way to reach him – my satisfaction would only ever remain on a mercenary-like cerebral level. I would have to grudgingly accept the cold logistics and move on.
And yet, while having fantasy elements in a story does not automatically preclude wholly realistic ends, the use of fantasy in the resolution stayed fairly organic to the world in which it was made. The talisman had its own logic, sure, but in the end it was still just a magical piece of paper written by a bald guy. It had a set of rules and stuck by them – something I feel is always a necessity with mystical elements – and rather than feeling like the hand of fate swept in to fix everything, it suited the way the magic has worked so far for Boong-do to finally pay his debt for cheating death, with death. Without any hope of being saved Boong-do was ready to give up everything, and only at that last crucial moment did the tide turn so that the phone, a recurring motif throughout this drama, could ring with what was literally a life-saving call. Or did it? It was hard to see through a veil of tears.
Queen In-hyun’s Man was a show unto itself, seamlessly blending time travel, mystical elements, comedy, action, intrigue, and romance all into one perfect sixteen-episode package. It managed to be all things while sacrificing nothing, creating the most wholly-engaging romance I’ve experienced since The Princess’ Man, while still sustaining a lively ensemble cast that didn’t just seem to exist in our lead couple’s love vacuum. That’s a feat that’s becoming rarer and rarer, and serves as a testament to the love and care put into creating the world of this drama, which is a care I could actually see from moment one, and one I could feel when the week between episodes seemed to span years. There are a million tangible things you can attribute to this drama’s sheer magnetism (stellar directing, writing, acting, ensemble, soundtrack, Ji Hyun-woo), but in the end, it’s just another kind of magic.
JAVABEANS’ COMMENTS
And you were almost perfect.
This drama ranks pretty high on my all-time list, and managed to meld together an impressive blend of intrigue, romance, and emotion with tons of style and a captivating ambiance to boot. I loved the leads, and even when the supporting characters got upsetting, I always understood where they were coming from. The tone was pitch-perfect and moody and dramatic, and the writing worked with the fantasy time-travel device in a sharp, smart way that never assumed we were dumb, and always aimed to be thoughtful and clever. It stayed a step ahead of us and delivered in multiple ways—the romantic crescendo, the political machinations, the mystical time element. Everything was so well-placed that I was convinced it would be perfect through and through.
It’s just… one little thing. Which isn’t such a little thing, in fact. Oh, the deus ex machina, the higher power that swoops onto the stage in the last act and cleans up the messes created by the humans.
I was all set to put on my best debater’s hat and reason out why the ending worked for me, and why the phone-transportation trick was a smart way to resolve the conflict and not, in fact, a letdown. But here’s the thing: If I have to work to convince myself that it made sense, then it didn’t quite make sense.
To be sure, there are a number of ways I could probably explain the ending. Some people may call it searching for meaning in an ambiguous moment. Others have coined the term fanwank.
I get the purpose of the ending: It was Hee-jin who “called” him back, in both senses of that word. Now that the talisman’s power has been broken, all that remains is love to tie them together. It’s a wonderful message, and one I’d been looking forward to. It addresses Hee-jin’s earlier question about what cause-and-effect would be if they began a relationship, and Boong-do’s response that while their initial meeting may have been coincidence, every subsequent encounter was driven by their decisions. What an awesome line for a romance drama to take, when so many times the two leads are painted as victims—of family, of interlopers, of Fate, of circumstance.
So I love that this drama gave our couple agency over their feelings. The writer seemed determined to avoid the cliche where Fate jerks people around purely because something was “meant” to be or not be. No, this couple got to decide. Imagine that! Kudos all around. Furthermore, the drama has shown all series long that the power of their love transcended the talisman’s pull—it was so strong that Boong-do and Hee-jin could recover their lost memories even when their talisman-connection was severed. So… love opens wormholes?
But the actual mechanism of the resolution? The cure-all phone call? I’m not on that train, sorry. To borrow the drama’s own terminology: The effect was awesome, but the cause… not so much.
I have no problem accepting the existence of magic in this world; the entire time-travel premise requires it, after all. But you need to establish it, explain it, make it a part of your world. The magic of the talisman was well-established; the mojo surrounding that phone call felt pulled out of Drama’s ass. If you don’t set up the resolution adequately, then it becomes a last-minute cheap trick. The reason it leaves people dissatisfied is because Drama presents one problem, makes you worry about it, then announces, “Ha, just kidding! It’s really something else.” It’s a cheat.
This is the difference between leading someone naturally to a conclusion, and pushing them there by force. So the cell phone summons becomes an act of force(d logic), and lovely intentions aside, the effect leaves me drooping a bit. I try not to let it get me down, but I can’t pretend it doesn’t just because I don’t want it to.
For a drama that brilliantly avoided falling back on the same old set of well-worn cliches running rampant through dramaland, it’s a bit disappointing that this show pulled one out in the eleventh hour, when it really mattered. It KILLS me that the one time it misstepped is the one really crucial moment, the big climactic revelation. I dearly wish I could brush it under the rug and say it doesn’t matter, but it does.
Oh well. Perfection was probably too lofty a goal. Queen In-hyun’s Man still trumps most dramas this year, and perhaps the past several. If only it didn’t feel like it left me hanging in the end. I’ll forgive you, drama, if you give me a Boong-do to compensate.
RELATED POSTS
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 15
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 14
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 13
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 12
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 11
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 10
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 9
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 8
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 7
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 6
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 5
- Thing vs. Thing: Time-traveling Heroes
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 4
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 3
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 2
- Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 1
Tags: featured, Ji Hyun-woo, Queen In-hyun's Man, Yoo Inna
Interview with Kim Yoo-jung
Hello Dramabeans series
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151 Tati
June 13, 2012 at 6:03 PM
I actually have no problem with the cellphone being used as the means to transport Boong Do forward to the future. It is, after all, something from the future, and doesn't belong in the Joseon era. I actually have more initial doubts about the power of the talisman, simply because it is something that is very common in that period of time. A simple piece of paper, drawn using a regular ink by a not so unusual monk. So Boong Do's very possession of that cellphone in the Joseon era (along with the tie and suit, but still, these are both made of cloth, which i should say, is very much available in Joseon) is next to impossible. So: a cellphone in this present time is common; but a cellphone in the Joseon era 300 years back is nothing less than magical.
The theme of the drama is obviously the magic of love. It started out with Boong Do getting transported to the future through the talisman that was empowered by Yun Wool's love for him, and ended with Boong Do being called back to the future by a phonecall that was enabled by the power of Hee Jin's love.
Speaking of which, i had goosebumps when Boong Do's phone started ringing..
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152 Barbara Starks
June 13, 2012 at 6:19 PM
Great, drama the best I have ever seen since watching k-drama 7 years ago. If this drama can be a blue prints for others to follow I might start to watch k-drama more seriously again. Till then I think my time will be spent watching "Games of Thrones, Veep and Girls"
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153 anzu
June 13, 2012 at 6:34 PM
this was hands down one of the best dramas I've seen over the past few years - not even on the addiction level, but on an amazingly-clever-writing-and-well-executed level.
I'm very much with HeadsNo2 when we talk about the writers "ability to wring maximum emotional impact from her scenes, without me feeling manipulated in the process"
Yes: This was REALLY pretty intelligent writing.
Still, I also felt that the phone-call-deus-ex machina conclusion was forced. and not in the sense of a preference for happy vs. open endings.
but everything we've seen in the previous 15 eps would have easily carried an emotionally more conflicted ending: this show did SO well in establishing/grounding and thinking through it's own premises. I at least would've have happily gone along with a no-reunion solution that leaves our protagonists with their own, isolated decisions and/or memories because it would still have made (satisfactorarily and convincingly) sense within the narrative - which is a rare feat in this genre...
Maybe I'm just a bit disgruntled because the show didn't take advantage of a rare quality - the ending was probably nice and OK - but didn't take advantage of the things it worked so hard for.
still, and more importantly:
1000 thanks for the always entertaining, insightful and inspiring re-caps that added worlds to the pleasures of watching
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154 anzu
June 13, 2012 at 6:58 PM
addendum: let them re-unite - that's not the problem - just through other means than the phone or the I-love-you-so-much thing...
we were treated to a Boong-do who had questions reaching beyond matters of his love interest when it comes to changing worlds.
writing still constistent (to have to shed/loose everything to be free to change worlds) but somehow just not 100% up to par with what went before...
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155 addylovesbwoowd
June 13, 2012 at 9:28 PM
i thought this drama was awesome!! Vote for your favorite drama @ http://polldaddy.com/poll/6291076/
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156 jessybee
June 13, 2012 at 9:47 PM
Just wanted to say thanks to the awesome recaps and comments from JB n HEads. I am going to stalk this page to read all your insightful comments as well.
At first the ending felt like a deux et machina effect, what?! phone? how can it ring? and how did BD find Heejin? so many questions that wasn't wrapped up, maybe I was expecting more? But after a week of thinking about it and the helpful insights from bloggers and other fans, I'm starting to accept how the ending come about and just accept the happy ending.
However I am still unable to watch the last episodes despite having read all the recaps and knowing what happened. I guess it feels like if i watched than it will the end?
This drama has officially ruined other dramas for me. Wonder how is everybody moving on from QIHM? any suggestion??
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157 sally_b
June 13, 2012 at 11:09 PM
@jessybee - "This drama has officially ruined other dramas for me. Wonder how is everybody moving on from QIHM? any suggestion??"
true that.
honestly, every new show I'm watching in the aftermath PALES ~
I think the thing I enjoyed most about the show was that the writer actually PRESUMED the audience was intelligent.
HUZZAH for that.....as for moving on. not gonna.
Everytime I finish one of the new shows that has the *standard a-hole lead male*...I'm gonna queue-up any random episode of QIHM and wash away the ugly. oh yeah.';)
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158 Jn
June 14, 2012 at 4:32 AM
I'm still so obsessed with QIHM :(. It's feel so strange that there'll be no more episodes to watch and recaps to read. I have become so crazy that I read all the comments and reviews about the shows and the last four episodes all over the net (mostly from some blog and tumblr). Reading all the praises that many bloggers give to the show just makes me love and obsessed with it more (?!?!?).
At first I was like "wtf" with the ending ?!? But after reading all the thoughtful comments and argument here and there, I started to think that it really made sense. Maybe the writer have planned from the beginning that the phone would be come an important connection between the two. And in fact, she did. Just because we are so familiar with the cell-phone in our modern days, it doesn't make it any less important. As someone pointed out, talisman is the most important thing of BD, and the phone is also one of the most important thing of HJ. I just wish that the writer/director could make it a little bit more visual for us to notice the importance of the phone in their story.
By the way, I'm a little bit curious about javabeans' thought now. Wonder if she also changes her mind a bit just like me after reading all your comments :).
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159 altair
June 14, 2012 at 12:15 PM
Together with The moon that embraces the sun, this is the best drama so far this year!
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qim
June 14, 2012 at 5:45 PM
i loved MTETS alot and was my crack drama while it lasted but it comes no where close to QIM in terms of.. well, anything except acting, and that was only on kim soohyuns, jung il woo and the child actors front. the other actors were, forgettable and ive never seen such a weepy victimised passive heroine. shes the complete opposite of heejin and kim soohyun as king, well hes no boong do and though he did believe in his cause, he didnt do much in the way of achieving cept for using other ppl to do it for him?
the writing on that drama was shoddy even though it started off well and i dont think anything can come up to QIM for a while :)
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wanderlust
June 14, 2012 at 6:01 PM
oh no, Moon That Embraces the Sun does not come even close to QIM in terms of quality. They had beautiful production values but that's why I love QIM even more-
QIM had little fanfare coming in, headed by established actors who didn't have much buzz as opposed to the huge names of MTETS, shoved in between the mist of 3 other time travelling dramas, one headed by Micky which is again huge and the other by Hallyu star Song Seung Hun, and lets not forget that we knew Lee Min Ho was coming up in Faith too. ON a little cable channel as opposed to the main ones, no where near the level in ratings, but QIM managed to do something that even the big name dramas wouldn't do: ignite the imagination of millions around the world and stir up intense psychological and philosophical conversations about life, love, history and time, defying the conventions of tv watching alltogether: that you have to be passive and just absorb content and then move on.
It exploded on the blogosphere, getting not only critical acclaim butordianry acclaim, something no other drama managed to do, ranked first in search engines beating out its competitors and managed to be revolutionary in a wearied down and repetitive kdrama scene.
In short, it didn't have money, it didn't have star power, it didn't have anything going for it except for pure talent- it was an unlikely hero, the underdog who became the top dog by it's own strength alone.
It was so unexpected and I love that cuz that meant it was a huge surprise that no one could have forseen or anticipated, and I still don't think people know the impact and enormity of it's popularity, I'm sure the drama team and actors can't know that in the english speaking world, blogs have been created sorely on the back of it, people all over the world have united to discuss and argue.
I loved it with all my heart but even I can't believe and grasp how big it is. It just shows that you should never underestimate anything. big or small, you can find magic when you just believe <3
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mia
June 25, 2012 at 11:26 AM
So well put.....I could buy almost anything put forth by wanderlust, heheheh.
Your overall contribution is enormous :)
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Fay
June 30, 2012 at 9:04 PM
Again Wanderlust, your observations are dead on. I came to this drama as a filler between other dramas, but even after watching the final episode days ago, I can not let it go. It is without doubt the most haunting story I have ever seen. Please continue giving us your excellent commentary!
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foxiscully
June 22, 2012 at 9:40 AM
Yup, have to agree with Qim & Wonderlust. Started QIHM after TMTETS. The latter came in strong especially with the child stars - the YeoYoo couple is another to watch for (though I may feel like a peado - lols) - but once the adult stars came in, the drama just failed big time! Well at the Moon Princess did. Cho-Na & his brother were liveable. Also, while QIHM played the metaphor and objects cleverly, the Sun/Moon metaphor was used to death in the TMTETS. A pity really, given the fact that it had some ordinarily strong actors.
Which is kudos to QIHM. I seriously feel that JHW is so under-rated while YIN exceeded everybody's expectations with her first lead role here (loved her in SeGa btw). They seriously should be featured in WGM - can we not defer his enlistment, Mr Korean Army President Sir?
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160 kitkat
June 14, 2012 at 5:12 PM
I'm obsessed with this drama. I miss it still.... I don't know what watch now to decompress.
I may try Gaksital because of DB's enthusiasm for this drama but ...
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161 wits
June 14, 2012 at 6:12 PM
I miss Queen In Hyun's Man....
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162 miq-qim
June 14, 2012 at 8:43 PM
I dont know why many don't like the cellphone connection to bring BD back to the future incl. how battery lasted etc. I, on the other hand think it was great.
When BD was snap back to his time at the park, the cell phone immediate stopped working. It didnt even light up. It was like suspended/frozen in time (hence the phone battery didn't depleted because the phone did not experience the flow of time) .
When BD hang himself, the love between them opened up the "gap in time" (i.e. the past + present merged into the same instance). This "gap in time" was mentioned a couple of time in the narrations. Once this happened, the phone was unfrozen in time and resume its timeline at the point it was suspended when BD was snapped back. Since the past and present is now merged together the phone signal is detected by BD phone.
At the "gap in time", in order to step from the past to future you need to follow physical link that binded the two times together. And this physical link is the cell signal linking the two phones when HJ called DB cell.
QIM is undoubtedly one of best kdrama I have seen.
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my view on the drama
July 11, 2012 at 5:19 AM
ur absolutrly right look when u r watching a fantasy based drama looked u have to agree with the great ending part
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163 [email protected]
June 15, 2012 at 7:36 AM
Thanks Dramabeans! I am really at the point of giving up KDrama for the time being because there really is nothing interesting that tempts me... Until you wrote about QIHM. hhmmm lemme check it out. Tada! I am hook and planning to re-watch it again-first episodes a little slow but when it started to unravel, boy there is no turning back...
A lot better than RoofTop Prince and Kings2Heart.
This goes to my top list of all time next to SungkyunKwan Scandal, You're Beautiful and more.
Every episodes a cliff hanger... and the ending is just the right dose of what i want it to end. the epilogue's hilarious.
Kudos... It would be fun if they can have part 2 ??? :-)
Now, about Lee Min-Ho in Faith....
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164 Lilian
June 15, 2012 at 2:24 PM
oh wow! I will miss the couple. I agree that the necktie part was used well in this drama! really, something can be "good" or bad" it depends how you use it.... Ji Hyun WOo really made the right choice to star in this before heading to the army!
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165 Still love me some QIHM aka MsB
June 15, 2012 at 3:47 PM
All the episodes are on viki but alas still no English caps! So disappointed!
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Sho
June 16, 2012 at 2:15 PM
cause it just came out yesterday there. Before they only had the first 3 Episodes and then the actual show was removed from the Site until yesterday
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166 Alli
June 18, 2012 at 12:06 PM
Thanks for the recaps -- I loved them, as usual!
When I saw the ending, I was thinking to myself, "javabeans is going to call deus ex machina!" and raced here to confirm. :D It was bothering me a little, too, but I liked people's explanation of the phone being the new talisman. Since I always prefer happy endings to dramatically-consistent (grumpy-making) ones, that was good enough for me. :)
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167 tsuris
June 18, 2012 at 3:44 PM
I'M SO GLAD THEY ARE OFFICIALLY A COUPLE! http://www.allkpop.com/2012/06/yoo-in-na-confirms-that-she-is-dating-ji-hyun-woo I'm so glad, especially after her strong heart confession that she was sexually harassed by her former entertainment agency CEO http://www.allkpop.com/2010/04/yoo-in-na-was-sexually-harassed-by-former-entertainment-agency-ceo
It just made me root for them to be together all the more. QIHM <333 Hope they're happy together!
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danny
June 19, 2012 at 2:47 AM
i opened all the website you reffered. I am happy that the leads are dating, i hope they will be paired in WGM.
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tsuris
June 19, 2012 at 10:22 PM
Her official response to his confession made me so happy! <33
http://joonni.com/2012/06/18/translation-yoo-in-na-responds-on-raise-the-volume/
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168 danny
June 19, 2012 at 2:07 AM
i love this drama from ep 1 to the last.
I may not be too taken with the leads but I love the storyline.
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169 laraffinee
June 19, 2012 at 12:19 PM
I too am of the "problem with the phone" camp...yeah....I know...I still LOVE this series!!!!
I would have had Boong Do evaporate after dying from hanging and reappearing in the future time that he had visited. No phone or other prop needed. His tremendous Integrity gave him karmic freedom to return to the time of Hee Jin without having to be reborn. That is more real to me than a phone working in the Joseon period and the question of did he die from hanging or not yet.....?
I also was hoping that it would be revealed somehow that Hee Jin was the reincarnation of Yoon Wol. That would be sweet in my book!
These are my 2 cents...on a truly exceptional series! The writers really did outstanding work!
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laraffinee
June 19, 2012 at 1:40 PM
I wanted to edit my comment , but it doesn't appear to be a way....
About Yoon Wol reincarnating as Hee Jin - Yoon Wol was the equivalent of an entertainer in her time, and Hee Jin being an actress in Modern time....and the deep love that Yoon Wol had for Boong Doo...it would make sense and be so sweet if that had been uncovered in the storyline.
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ahjummabunny
June 21, 2012 at 7:17 AM
ah! that's really an interesting point you bring in. I was thinking there must be some correlation to yun wol's death calling him to joson and then hee jin calling him to the future. I'm not really clinging to that or even considering it. I'm just thinking about them being reunited.
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170 PhoenixFan
June 19, 2012 at 2:29 PM
Loved this show and it has just shown up on Hulu as the "Queen And I," not sure why they used that title but it'll be nice to see the episodes in one piece with better quality.
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171 Thet
June 20, 2012 at 7:26 PM
I have read various comments about the ending... nevertheless, I personally love the ending - just as long as the OTP have a happy ending is ok with me hehehe. Anyway, I am in awe of the writer/s, the cast and the two main actors who made me smile when they admitted to really dating. These two made my day. Now I'll listen to the OST and reminisce.
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Cee Gee
June 20, 2012 at 9:04 PM
Many thanks to the Dramabeans website for recapping this awesome drama. I'm still fairly new to kdramas, but have discovered the kdrama addiction runs deep. Especially after watching shows like QIM. I agree with most of the comments on the awesomeness of this show. Great acting, directing, editing, scenery, etc.
I had no problem with the ending especially after reading the thoughtful and thought provoking commentaries. When you rewatch it, especially Ep. 11. It's all about phones. Thanks again Dramabeans and subbers.
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172 Geemekoon
June 24, 2012 at 10:08 AM
apologies if this has already been mentioned earlier..
one of the things i noticed was the connection of objects to memories..
for example the talisman acted like a soul that embody the memories of KBD and HJ, it contained the love from both of their souls, and when it got damaged each time it affected the couple.
the mobile phone also contained many of the most sweetest romantic moments, it literally heard and remembered all those memories between KBD and HJ. It absorbed their love in essence, so as a device it was important symbol of their relationship.
lastly, objects by themselves hold no significance, but because the characters poured their souls into these objects did they have meaning and power.
My post is just a small sliver of thought that mingles with the rest of the posts here.. "wanderlust" has posted some very awesome thoughts and i just adding to that conversation.
QIHM stands apart and raises the bar for other kdramas . It has its own quirky personality unique to itself and thats what makes it amazing.. and yes, quality is all over the place with production, writing, actors and charm.
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173 helpless
June 27, 2012 at 2:25 AM
im sorry..i wanna to ask..where website so on and so forth to download kind of this drama? pleasa :) kamsahamnida
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174 sosoxrah
June 27, 2012 at 5:52 PM
I finally finished watching this episode and man, am I happy this drama didn't turn into a tragedy. I do think the cell phone time-leap transportation effect was a huge flaw because I immediately felt like it was the cell phone that had the magical powers, not Hee-jin's eternal love and longing "calling" Boong-do through time and space. It was like a cell phone commercial. Now, if you only have a Sony Ericsson, you too can do the impossible with a swipe of a finger. In the end, I don't think this drama was meant to end as a tragedy but I wish they came up with a better ending. I just can't get over the fact that technology is involved to produce magic.
Overall, the drama was well-paced and the characters were consistent. Definitely on my list of fave dramas. I was especially invested in the love story between Hee-jin and Boong-do and makes me want a Boong-do for myself. Where is my Boong-do? I'd have to give this drama a 9 out of 10, bc of the ending. Besides that, well done.
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Geemekoon
June 27, 2012 at 9:25 PM
yes.. logically, the phone would have no energy to run.. BUT even if the phone did have a charge, how does a phone get a signal from 300 years in the future before satellites exist?? obvious an impossible scenerio…
THEN the only plausible/implausible truth is that Fate can do things without any explanations
Fate used a talisman cloth as device for transporting KBD (a truly unscientific method) and it can also use another innate object such as making a “dead” phone awaken and transport KBD.
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jongkoy
June 27, 2013 at 8:33 AM
THE PHONE-TRANSPORTATION IS NEITHER FLAWED NOR A DEUX EX MACHINA.
This is evident by how the writers make the PHONE a recurring motif through out the drama: Ep 3 – Hee Jin had Boong Do's TALISMAN and BD had HJ's PHONE; Ep. 1 to 15 – most of BD and HJ's conversation was through PHONE; Ep. 16 – was the first time BD received AND answered HJ's call, notice that throughout the drama it was always BD who calls HJ and not the reverse.
In addition, except for the tie which has already served its dual purpose, the PHONE was the only tangible object connecting DB to the present/future and HJ to the past. Further, the PHONE was imbued with HJ's love and desire to protect BD, in the same way as Yoon Wol's talisman was. This makes the PHONE – a plausible modern talisman empowered by HJ and BD’s interwoven MEMORIES.
Clearly, the PHONE-plot-device was not a last minute cop-out, rather it was a well-thought-out-plot already established and rooted in the previous episodes by the writers. And hence, the ending (ep 16) makes sense — thematically, narratively and emotionally.
Please, don't give too much attention to the PHONE because it was not the PHONE per se, but the strings of EVENTS, DECISIONS and ELEMENTS, the CAUSE and EFFECT, the INTERTWINED-MEMORIES that BD and HJ shared and the ETERNAL-LOVE they have for each other that created the gap in time and triggered the time-leap transportation.
A gap in time was created when their memories intertwine – both of them remembering each other at the same time but in different times. HJ’s desire to protect BD from harm and BD’s will to be with HJ was channelled through the phone – creating a link between the past and present.
The decision to die. The event of dying. The element of phone, letter, tie, talisman, car and rain. The interwoven memories. The eternal love. These are the cause. The gap in time. The link between past and present. The transcending of time and space. These are the effect. The beginning of their everlasting reunion is the ultimate conclusion.
Therefore, I conclude that the common perception of some viewers that the phone-transportation is flawed and a deux ex machine is bereft of merit. People who perceived that way lack keen observation and do not know how to appreciate a great drama. Finally, therefore, I conclude that QIHM was very true to its tagline – a love that transcends time and space.
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I would like to add, this is for those annoying people who think that the last episode is illogical because of the phone’s battery still full after a year and joseon era having phone signal and the unlimited load.
As to the phone’s battery. The phone didn’t work in Joseon. Boong Do couldn’t even turn it on. If you don’t use your phone or your phone is turned off, even if you leave it for a year, THERE WILL STILL BE BATTERY LIFE LEFT. Cause: Boong Do’s phone cannot turn on or work. Effect: There is full battery for when it starts working again!
As to the phone’s signal and load. The gap in time created a link between the past and present, that’s why BD’s phone detected the signal. It was HJ who called BD and you don’t need load to receive calls.
As to BD’s dry appearance and nice suit despite the rain. I think BD’s hair at the end was wet. And the dry suit, maybe he bought or stole a new one. :)
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jongkoy
June 26, 2013 at 6:05 AM
I have now honestly realised that ppl think that the suicide was just for dramatic impact and she just happened to call him at that time so that’s why they think the bloody phone was the catalyst for the time travel when it wasn’t. The hanging and PHONECALL are directly related. They are cause and effect, one could not happen without the other. If he didn’t kill himself, she wouldn’t have been able to call. Even if she called, he would not be able to answer because he was not dead and had not accepted the consequences for his time meddling yet. Actually we are already shown that, she tried to call when he warped back but the number didn’t exist because he was STILL alive. By being alive in his own time he defied time and history and thy could not be forgiven so easily. It was his willing death that sent him back like all those other times. When you die, you live. And heejin can only feel when he’s in mortal danger and so since he keep running and didn’t put himself in mortal danger, she couldn’t remember or feel him. He had to die first. Death first people, forget the phone. So tired. -- Wanderlust (comment # 36)
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jongkoy
June 26, 2013 at 7:40 AM
I think the phone-transportation is not flawed nor a deux ex machina but a well-thought out plot by the writers. It is evident by how the writers make the phone a recurring motif through out the drama.
When HJ and BD were standing on the same ground in two different times during the documentary filming, HJ started to sense BD's presence. Later, when BD decided to end his life by hanging himself, HJ felt BD's pain and memories of him came rushing in.
These string of MEMORIES that they share and the LOVE they have for each other is what triggered the time-leap transportaion and not the PHONE per se.
For me, the ending makes sense -- thematically, narratively and emotionally.
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175 lala
July 5, 2012 at 9:38 PM
This drama was really shallow.....and corny
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lionking2040
July 15, 2012 at 12:38 AM
no, it is not. it is such a beautiful drama
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176 QIHM_question
July 6, 2012 at 12:52 AM
The script writer for QIHM is really talented.
Does anyone know what other works have she written?
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177 rheina07
July 9, 2012 at 4:30 AM
just finished watching this drama yesterday and totally fall in love with them
and
no wonder, boongdo and huijin became a couple after this movie ! Their chemistry is justttt wayyy too muchhh !
and those kiss, awww, it's sooo lovely and hot <3
I still in love with the scene in the palace.
It's just too awesome and I cant stop saying that the scene is the best scene I've ever watched in Korean dramas !
that scene is justtt really heart breaking, but I can say that the writer and whole production and editing team did a GREAT and AWESOME job to do that scene !!
I will recommend this drama to my friends ! It's just a great dramaaa ever this year :)
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178 my view on the drama
July 11, 2012 at 5:11 AM
TO THE RECAP WRITER
I JUST FINISHED WATCHING THIS SERIES AND I MUST SAY IT OUTNUMBERED THE ROOFTOP PRINCE WHICH HAS SIMILAR STORIES, EVEN THAT SERIES DIDN'T ANSWER HOW THEY REACH THE NEW WORLD. AS FOR THE ENDING PART ALL I CAN SAY IS THAT THE PHONE WORKED AS TALISMAN. WHEN THE GAISENG GIRL WAS KILLED HE WAS FORCED TO RETURN TO HIS PAST ERA , THAT SHOWS THAT IT WILL ONLY WORK BEC. OF HER LOVE AND BLESSINGS TOWARDS HIM WHILE SHE WAS ALIVE. SO WHEN HE DECIDED TO KILL HIMSELF HER LOVE THE THING THAT WILL BRING THEM TOWARDS HIM WORKED AS A POWERFUL TALISMAN THAT EVEN IN THAT ERA PHONE WAS CALLED OUT OTHERWISE THERE WAS NO CONNECTING THING , HE WOULD HAVE BEEN DIED IF THAT SO CALLED POWER WAS NOT PROVIED. IN SUCHA THING U CAN SAY HOW CAN U SHOW THAT PHONE WORKED BUT LOOKED IF THAT TALISMAN CAN DO WHY NOT PHONE YAAR OF IT SI A FANTANSY DRAMA AFTER ALL . I HAVE NO OBJECTION TO THE DRAMAA AS IT SEEMS WEIRED BUT ALL I CAN SAY ALL ENDS I N A HAPPY NOTE . AS I SAW SOME COMMENT ON BATTERY MAY BE HE HAS SWITCHED OFF ALL THE TIME CAN'T IT BE
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jongkoy
June 26, 2013 at 5:58 AM
The phone didn’t work in Joseon- Boong Do couldn’t even turn it on. If you don’t use your phone or your phone is turned off, even if you leave it for a year, THERE WILL STILL BE BATTERY LIFE LEFT. Cause: Boong Do’s phone cannot turn on or work. effect: There is full battery for when it starts working again!
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179 Jennifer
July 14, 2012 at 5:47 AM
This drama killed me ;_; it was so perfect, I haven't felt in this way about a drama since City Hunter and that has been a year already.
What I thought about the ending; yes, the phone seemed like a deus ex machina. But I thought it was a reference to the talisman; to live, you have to die.
I thought that this might be the last bit of magic from the talisman that teleported Boong-do back. Because hadn't he tried turning on the phone earlier in his own time and it didn't work?
I'm just sticking to the 'in order to live, you have to die' rule of the drama because I know the phone doesn't make sense... but I am just blind for the happy ending that I had wished so fervently for.
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180 hs
July 15, 2012 at 11:33 PM
I don't usually read recaps as I think that recaps are personal interpretations of viewers, not the real intentions of the writers (which is why I only arrived here now wondering what people were saying about this drama).
Reading all the heated arguments and the brilliant analysis pointed out, I cannot help but ask, why did BD decide to commit suicide that moment? Well, I know that it is for the promise he made to the king, but wouldn't he will still be exposed when the prison guards found his dead body afterwards? He didn't do it to go back to HJ, he already let go of the hope to meet her again when he burned the talisman, which is why he is so happy when he did get travelled back to the future.
Somehow, I feel that it does not suit him to commit suicide, especially by hanging himself in the prison. Being supersmart, is it really hard to escape from prison (keeping his promise to the king)? And it is rather coward of him, I think, to kill himself in the end. Because as his dead body be found later, he will not have to face the people who will be questioning his existence after being dead 'punished' by the king, anymore. That will definitely create more troubles, kind of defeat the purpose of dying protecting the promise.
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hs
July 16, 2012 at 2:05 AM
Sorry, I meant to say the comments, not the recaps that are personal interpretations... :)
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Achan
August 26, 2012 at 5:04 AM
I kinda agree... but what can you do when you're on the verge of breaking and no way out? When you love someone like BD and HJ to be separated through times, I think he made the right choice in hanging himself, coz he couldn't run away. BD did say that running away gave him another goal. The cell just made him even more depressed. It fits with the whole flow... The writer is awesome!!! Lots of symbolic objects, eg the never-running out-of-battery phone.
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181 Ringo
July 23, 2012 at 7:05 PM
Several months late. But whatever.
I loved the ending and I don't think it's as terrible a deux ex machina as say.... My Girlfriend is a Gumiho.
I interpreted the phone to be its own magical talisman and when viewed through this lens, the phone actually makes a lot of thematic sense.
Much like how Yoon-wol gave Boong-do the talisman with the wish to keep him sense, Heejin gave Boong-do the phone-talisman with the wish in order to keep in touch with him.
And I don't think its a coincidence that the first memories that Heejin has of Boong-do relates to the scene where she was preparing the phone for him.
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182 jambo42
July 29, 2012 at 11:10 AM
Not sure how I was able to ignore this drama til now. But I'm glad I started to watch it after all 16 eps were completed. For me this drama had set the bar pretty high. Great ending, great writing, wonderful pairing, with matching off-screen happy ending (hopefully).
I'm fairly satisfied with the cell-phone ending...although my initial reaction was whaaat? It still works after one year? Oh, yeah, miracles, supernatural, the power of love doesn't exactly follow human mortal logic. There were actually many clues with the phone solution. There was a scene where they focused HJ and the word TELEPHONE in glaring white was behind her. That was many episodes prior to the ending, and the fact that it's been repeatedly emphasized throughout that their means of communication was the telephone...whether in form of old-fashion almost obsolete phone booth or high tech smart phone. It makes sense to me with the prerequisite of ultimate sacrifice on BD's part. That to me is the necessary ingredient: that one must do all he can, give up everything, in order to be worthy of the miracle that would realize a happy ending. Without the sacrificial element, magical cell phones would be rendered useless, or an unbelievable ending if the Show insisted on it.
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sweetspring
July 30, 2012 at 11:51 AM
Agreed! so glad I watched it after all the episodes are out & subbed. Couldn't stand the torture of waiting otherwise!
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183 sweetspring
July 30, 2012 at 11:49 AM
I might not be such a fan of the fate card that writers pull out on a lot of draggy dramas but i'm pretty sure it was fate that lead me marathoning this show. Read its mentioning on the DB community for some months already, read about the main leads announcing their love for one another on allkpop & even watched episode 1 but then dropped it coz the editing kinda got on my nerves with all that jumpy, cutting in & out scenes. So it was that fateful moment just 3 days ago I was looking through some Youtube videos having nothing on my viewing list & bored when I clicked on a subbed Ji Hyun Woo confession to his now girlfriend. Curious, I started on QIHM again just to see if I could see how the sparks started to fly & after episode 3-4 the show got me hook, line & sinker.
I didn't mind the ending, the phone was kinda an easy way out but the loooonngg smooch (guess the director just didn't bother to yell cut since the 2 of them seem to be enjoying it so much) & the cute bit right at the end made up for it.
Only thing i have an issue- how come Boong Do wasn't more injured after his fight with the assassin, especially when the knife went right through him?
Anyway my curiosity has paid off well, not only did I enjoy a lovely drama I had almost didn't watch but also saw a real love story unfolding at the same time as a fictional one. Now that's really special!
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184 Michelle
July 31, 2012 at 4:43 AM
Actually the weirdest part of the 'call' thing is. How come that phone battery didn't die even after one year? If it's turned off,why is it suddenly on? ._.
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jongkoy
June 26, 2013 at 5:52 AM
the phone didn’t work in Joseon- Boong Do couldn’t even turn it on. If you don’t use your phone or your phone is turned off, even if you leave it for a year, THERE WILL STILL BE BATTERY LIFE LEFT. Cause: Boong Do’s phone cannot turn on or work. effect: There is full battery for when it starts working again!
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185 RB
August 8, 2012 at 12:33 PM
I just finished watching this drama and read some of the comments on here. I love that people are upset by the idea that his phone would have run out of batteries after a year, but seem to be OK with the idea of a supernatural phone call? I think if a phone call is powerful enough to barrel its way through some sort of time portal then it's probably powerful enough to juice up your phone for a bit.
I didn't have a problem with the phone call bring his link back to the future. As others have suggested, maybe the phone/phone call became his "talisman" because it was fused with Hee Jin's love, which is sort of hinted at in an earlier episode when she hide it under a rock waiting for him and later says something along the lines of "Aren't you glad I left that phone? It saved your life." The link is only activated after he repents for misusing the talisman by trying to end his own life, and she remembers what she was supposed to forget, despite it being destroyed. The only real plot hole I see is how he knew where to find her once he transported back? I'm surprised they didn't make him GPS locate her phone or something like she did at the beginning of the series.
Anyway I think the thing about the phone probably would have resonated better with people if the writer had planted more seeds about it earlier on, but I think then they might have risked being too obvious about where the ending was headed. They did hint at it once, after all. In any case I thought this drama was pretty darn good overall, and pretty unique/unpredictable. Sometimes an overwhelmingly happy ending right after extreme tragedy can kind of make you do a facepalm, but in this case it worked pretty well.
I think comparing this drama to Rooftop Prince is sort of useless, because while they both have a similar premise (Joseon-era dude travels to the present) the plot, themes and overall style are totally different. I liked both of them for different reasons.
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186 katey
August 10, 2012 at 4:56 AM
The phone was not the major fault-line for me. It felt fitting in a sense, since Hee-jin and Boong-do were never able to completely dictate their encounters because of the talisman. Now that the talisman is finally gone, and with it, Hee-jin's memories, it makes sense that the thing that might bring them back to each other was something Hee-jin gave him. To me, the phone could only work without the presence of the talisman, if that made sense.
What I had a problem with was the way Boong-do appeared so spiffy in his suit when he was obviously drenched in the pouring rain after he got transported back to Seoul. If Hee-jin was still dripping wet, how could he have gotten so cleaned up so fast??
That said, its interesting that all my fave dramas for 2012 so far are royalty-related: TK2H, QIHM, and TMETS. Thank you for all the recaps! They were awesome. :D
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187 frnk
August 18, 2012 at 11:48 PM
wow!i LOVE this drama,i think it's the best drama till now in2012,i was reading your recaps every time that you ploaded it,but i couldn't leave a comment back then,so,now i can,i really really thank you for recaping this enjoyable drama,:*
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188 Achan
August 26, 2012 at 4:55 AM
OMG! I cant believe I didn't watch this drama first, I watched the rooftop prince (honestly after watching this, I felt it was a waste of my internet).
Anyways, this is the first k-drama that has made me cry, as I very rarely shed tears over movies or dramas. But that scene when she lost Bong Do, the second time. The tears started rolling. Yoo In Na is a great actress!!! Even in Secret Garden, but you can totally see her capability through this drama.
I loved it, it kept me in suspense, thrilled, actionised and made me believe love can conquer all again.
Also I have to admit that I found another man who definitely can be Lee Min Ho's rival (please dont hit me). Ji Hyun Woo *swoons*. He is not a pretty and handsome boy as LMH, but his charisma makes him a great actor. I think with his acting I found what LMH is lacking sometimes... JHW can convey all those feelings inside and out. It just shows on his face, even though he's meant to be brave, but there is always another side to that braveriness. Anyways LMH could totally ask JHW for tips to really rip the audience's heart out. Okie peace out (please don't hurt me for picking on LMH, they're both extremely tall so I had to pick them as rivals).
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Achan
August 26, 2012 at 4:57 AM
Yeah... I did wonder aboout the phone life, how can it last that long without a charger... It must be a love talisman phone. Why else???
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189 madman999
August 30, 2012 at 11:36 AM
Just finished this drama, i liked the ending. just a touch of fantasy mixed in with a dose of belief suspension.
the premise as I understood it was that he was called back to the past by Yoon Wol's love and called back to the future by Hee Jin's love. Perfect.
the phone as a talisman/metaphor worked for me too.
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madman999
August 30, 2012 at 11:39 AM
actually, I thought that by him hanging himself/attempting to kill himself it was going to trigger the time jump as he put himself in mortal danger. however, that would probably have been too easy.
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190 folie a deux
September 13, 2012 at 3:04 AM
(Am re-posting my comment from another forum, to show how much love love love I have for this show)
If having to watch QIHM and joining in the hype this LATE is a grave offense, then I admit my shortcoming and I deeply apologize for the delayed appreciation of this drama. I was so engrossed with the other time-traveling drama that was RTP, and despite the enticing recaps and insights from bloggers JB, Jooni, et al. of QIHM I decided to put the said series on hold so I could finish the other. I thought despite a lot of the loopholes in RTP (major ones, if I could add) I can accept it with open arms because of the leads and their chemistry. But when I started watching QIHM just last week (!) and now...I'm rendered speechless...hands down, this show was really superb: the writing, directing, the casts (everyone in that drama are endearing, from the leads up to the villains--they're scary, but not hateful, and they have every reason to be a villain), the chemistry (no words to describe, just <3 <3 <3)--not an episode did I feel was wasted. It's a good thing that I've watched RTP first; had I watched it right after QIHM, then I would not even see positive stuff coming from it.
Who could ever forget Boong-do? He IS definitely the ideal man any woman would ever want---tall, fair, smart, brave, principled, conscientious, thoughtful, open, passionate (trans. lustful, LOL)...(swoons)--I blame you, Show, for ruining my chance of finding a namja like him!
As for the very much debated ending: it worked for me, because as some have pointed out in this forum and on the others, communication has been one of the pervasive themes in this drama and the phone as a modern tool of communication has been a motif used effectively to convey this up to the final stretch. Instead of fixating on the ending I become more enamored of the series as a whole as it touches not only the theme of love and fate but also a lot of philosophical questions on life, death, meaning, contact/communication, time--and I love that it was able to weave all of these in a genre that is kinda tricky to handle. But kudos to the entire team for able to pulling it off! :)
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191 Zeffir
September 15, 2012 at 12:52 PM
the only drama in a long time that I enjoyed all the time, without trying to sceam to the screen even once on " how much better the other guy is" or" why she/ he kept quite on the matter", etc (you know, the usuall feeling we have during some stupid behaviour of the characters). this show was perfect and consistent! Also, I do not agree with javabeans this time.. For me, it was no inconsistence with phone-call that brough him back. Him sacrifying his life have satisfied mythtical forces and sa soon the feeling/memory connection was back, so the technological device from future.
I wish there were more of show like that!
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192 Mel
September 25, 2012 at 12:27 PM
Have to say, I usually skip drama after a few episode and I haven't watch a drama fully for a long time. This drama manage to do it. I love the cleverness and the sudden twist and turn. most of all, I loved their characters.
Although the ending felt like it was dug up out of desperation and I was hoping the ending scene would be somewhere meaningful to the couple, but all in all I still like it.
I will give my 2 cent on the ending. When the guy burn the talisman it suppose to bring everything from the present world back to ground zero, which means her memories were erased. So the bond they have of each other was memories. It have tied them together. So by regaining her memory, she have once again created that bond between them. Which is why she could have the ability to 'call' him.
Then again, she could call him before that when the talisman still exist. ....but I suppose all drama have their own flaws and I just have to forget about it or pretend that the drama ended at episode 14. I felt that the additional 2 episode (thought is quiet good) are just extras place in last minute to fill up the required number of episode the drama suppose to have.
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193 Facades
November 18, 2012 at 9:09 AM
The power of love = good handphone reception even 300 years ago. Or that's one awesome phone service company.
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194 skyfeather
November 22, 2012 at 11:23 PM
did anybody ever see this? All I can say is...
omo omo omo *squeals*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp6JEbTAVko
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195 cjbtea
December 25, 2012 at 10:10 AM
I was late on the "band wagon" for this drama. Boy oh boy did I miss out!!!! This has catapulted up to one of my top 10 dramas EVER. Amazing acting, love the romance, mystery, action and comedy which pulls it all together. I continue to worry as I am going about my day about the talisman taking away there happiness again...am I the only one? Agonizing even after the credits have long rolled. Sigh...one to many taken away and crying scenes effect I'm afraid. Still over all - top 10 or maybe even 5 for me!! P.S. LOVE the fact they are together in real life. The chemistry showed in this drama beautifully. She's been my favorite since Secret Garden.
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196 Emily
January 4, 2013 at 12:32 PM
I loved this drama- its defiantly in my top 3 list!! I don't really care that it was the phone that brought him back to the present- I mean its fantasy so who cares?? The main couple are perfect for each other!!
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197 QIHMfan
January 24, 2013 at 7:29 PM
hello all,
i just finished watching this series and want to share some reviews IMHO..
# overally i find this drama good.. light, entertaining and funny..
# quite unique story.. instead of time travel, this one is kind of 'time wrap', means they ignore the 'usual' time travel rules.. the time come parallel in past and 2012 time.. means if you skip a hour, it's skipped too in other period..
# I feel like watching 'Disney' kind of movie.. (Disney style Kdrama) how they recite the story, how they put the mix of feeling like fun, sad, action, thriller, etc.. and how they explain everything (almost everthing are explained), how they add some miracles 'spices', and last but most important: happy ending (even it's like a forced one)..
# somehow i don't really get their love chemistry.. perhaps need more character development? or I can't find true reason why they 'really' love each other.. (see point below)
# kiss scene is always nice. But this drama has a tad too many kissing scenes.. and too long.. so feel like a 'lust' rather than 'showing love' (can someone do the summation of how long they actually been kissing the whole show? is there any drama has longer couple kiss compared to this?)
# their love 'sacrifies' two persons, one is Yoon Wol (which her fate is truly miserable for me) and Han Dong min (this one is lesser pain, but i think he really loves her -- but talisman prevents him)
- just before the end, i was actually guessing, don't say he uses cellphone to time wrap.. but then, he really DID haha.. but it's ok.. if talisman (a paper can do), why not phone.. just forget the battery issue.
as conclusion, I will give 7 out of 10 for this one :)
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QIHMfan
January 24, 2013 at 7:53 PM
a thought though, if we stick to 'time travel rules'... when the first time talisman is torn.. the 2012 got affected.. all people lost memories.. as if nothing happens. so the questions is:
1. does the talisman just fade away people memory in 2012 --including changing all the media/photo/news/etc which already publicly published (but actually BD did travel to the 2012 and all the moments we watch truly happened)
2. or, the talisman canceled BD action in the 2012.. (means he never travels) but in this case, BD should instantly disappear in the past time, because he should have been killed by then.. (reversing the time travel effect)
for me, the writer intention is more to the #1 one right? but for me a bit more make sense if #2.. because a bit strange if only removing the memories without removing the concequencies of his visit (say if BD is a bad guy, and kill president in 2012, if the talisman only removes the memory, what happened to the president by then??)
AND one more: if the horse he's been riding can travel to future (as horse is living creature too), why not try holding her hand while he's about to come back to past? or otherway, why not bringing Yoon Wol to future (well this will extend the story to more love-complex situation hehe, but at least Yoon Wol didnt need to die)
sorry if this has been discussed before, i just recently watched and still hot for me :p
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198 EvelynW
January 24, 2013 at 8:45 PM
Rejoicing at the happy ending.
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199 Henny
January 26, 2013 at 9:56 AM
one word : incredible!
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200 laraffinee
February 23, 2013 at 1:12 PM
I am now in the middle of watching this for the second time, and even though I know what is going to happen it pulls me into the world created in this drama. It is so well done and it is such a great story! Kudos to the writer, director and the the wonderful actors that brought this story to us!
This is perfection!
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