That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 15
by HeadsNo2
It’s always the ones you love that hurt you the most, and after a few episodes of emotional decline, this was the episode that turned the experience sour. While not singlehandedly negating what I’ve enjoyed about this show, this episode did manage to cram everything everything I didn’t like about this show into one package. Is it good? Is it bad? I don’t know if even *I* know, because I’m still confused about my feelings and half of the characters’ feelings. But from a plain ol’ user experience: It wasn’t fun for me.
EPISODE 15 RECAP
Boss Man ensures Jin-sung’s involvement in the Rigged Game by going straight to him, claiming that he can’t trust Soo if Jin-sung doesn’t participate. Our resident loyal friend agrees on the condition that Soo doesn’t find out.
But Boss Man’s nefarious plans for him don’t end there, since he also has Jin-sung’s materialistic sister under his control.
Soo drives Hee-sun to a drinking spot on a scooter, the anguish on their faces evident since they can’t help but be reminded of Hee-joo’s death (while Soo is also reminded of his last scooter-drive with Young). They barely exchange words once they reach their destination, and choose to serve each other hefty glasses of soju instead.
Lawyer Jang tells an expressionless Young that Soo didn’t take the money, concluding that “Oh Soo must have really liked you.” He tries his best to make her happy now that he’s all she’s got, but he does grow suspicious when Young declares that she’ll be pushing the surgery back a day.
It seems like she’s lying when she reassures him that she’s not thinking of backing out, but the fact that she urges him to take another (albeit short-term) job offer should raise some red flags.
Now that they’re loosened up with a bit of alcohol, Hee-sun asks Soo why he didn’t take Young’s money. “Are you trying to look cool by risking your life?” she asks. “Do you or do you not know know the effort I put in to save your life?”
Soo nods. He knows. This causes Hee-sun to become even more confused as she tries to figure out his aim – he could have taken the money and walked away, but instead he’s returning to his old life of gambling and conning. Does that somehow redeem him? “If you’re trash, then you’re trash. If you’re a thug, live like a thug. Stop confusing me.”
His amused facade breaks a little when he admits, that yes, he should act like a thug if he is one, but he fell in love.
Soo: “Hee-sun. When I left that house, I left with dignity. Because I love her. Because she loves me too. In order to see me someday, she will live. So even if we’re apart right now… At least one time, even by chance, we will meet. Believing that, I was able to leave that house not only with dignity, but with arrogance. I didn’t even say that I was sorry. But, Young saw that side of me and told me… that she loved me.”
Words become harder for him to say as he fights back tears, especially when he tells Hee-sun that Young said she was happy, all while looking lonely. It breaks his heart to know that he hurt her, as he all but ignores Hee-sun while chastising himself through a barely-contained meltdown: “I should have just conned her. I shouldn’t have made her fall in love with a guy like me.”
Our star-crossed lovers try working out their mental anguish through exercise, though Soo breaks first and calls her. Young thinks about it with the same vapid expression she’s grown fond of and ignores the call.
Hee-sun worries for Jin-sung with the big game approaching, even though he reassures her that no one but Moo-chul could beat the dream team combo that he and his hyung make, and Moo-chul isn’t playing.
She reluctantly agrees to let him go through with it, but warns him that it’s the last time. Jin-sung kisses her on the cheek: “After this is over, let’s go to the countryside.” Oh no. Ohhhhhh no. Moments like these make my stomach sink, because you just know something bad is going to happen to Jin-sung. (Please let me be wrong. Please let me be wrong.)
Soo’s definitely suspicious that Jin-sung would so readily agree to stay out of the game, but he can’t fight Jin-sung’s megawatt “I told you to trust me!” smile. Noooo no no. *already looking for a corner to cry in*
Secretary Wang relegates herself to watching her parents from afar, smiling all the while.
Likewise, it’s nice to see Young smile again when she finds out that Lawyer Jang invited all her coffee shop friends to breakfast, with the eldest responsible for the meal. She uses the happy atmosphere to pressure Lawyer Jang into accepting that other job/case, reassuring him that she’ll be taken care of in her absence when the Coffee Shop Trio volunteers to watch over her.
He finally agrees, but only on the condition that he’ll be back before her surgery.
We find a bewildered Soo at the hospital, since he was unaware that Young pushed her surgery till the next day. Dr. Sun-hee hesitates before asking him if he knows about Moo-chul’s condition, but zips it once she realizes that Soo has no idea.
Moo-chul’s lackey comes to ask Sun-hee for painkillers on her brother’s behalf, though she rejects that request and the other – for her to give his regards to their parents. She knows he’s preparing to die and refuses to be complicit while he ties up loose ends.
Young still isn’t picking up Soo’s calls, so he writes her a text instead to ask if it’s okay for him to contact her every now and then. In the end, he chickens out of sending it.
Soo perks up when he hears the familiar clickety-clack of a white cane, and is dismayed when the wielder isn’t Young. Still, he helps the blind girl to her bus, and chooses to stay with her to protect her when the bus driver gives her a hard time.
It just so happens that her stop is near the visually impaired center Young volunteers at, and Young happens to be at the bus stop with Mi-ra and the rest of the group. Soo stares at her through the bus window while she remains unaware, and soon enough, the bus starts moving.
Soo makes the bus come to an emergency stop so he can go running after Young, landing him in the same restaurant with her and her group while he watches from another table.
Stalking is nothing new in dramaland, but Soo is seriously the saddest stalker ever. He’s even smiling like he’s that happy just to be breathing the same air as her, even if she has no idea he’s there.
Next on the agenda involves following Young in a taxi, just so he can catch a glimpse of her through their car windows. This is both pathetic and touching all at once, and I don’t know which of those I’m feeling more.
Mi-ra ends up spotting him and tells Young, and her first reaction is to ask how he looked. Mi-ra doesn’t really know how to describe his expression, but he sure didn’t look like he had a hope in his head and a song in his heart.
Moo-chul shows up at Hee-sun’s place looking like he’s seen better days. Hee-sun wins some serious points for finally calling Moo-chul out on acting like the most pitiful bastard in the world when he only lost a one-sided love – she lost her sister, her parents lost a daughter.
When she openly admits that she can’t understand him, Moo-chul all but mutters, “That’s why I’m going to try and understand myself.” He knows he’s not the only guy to have lost his girl, or to have been dumped, or to have endured a life of poverty. Hee-sun applauds all these as positive steps toward maturity.
Moo-chul falters a bit in pain, and we know why. “I was only trying my best to live,” he explains, and it sounds suspiciously like he’s learned something from Soo. He tries to explain why her that her sister’s death affected him so much, mostly because she was the only ray of light in his otherwise bleak existence.
“If I were to be born again, I wouldn’t live like this,” he adds. “But I can’t help the fact that this is the end for me. Hee-sun, even if everyone in the world curses me, I want to understand that I lived like this because I was dumb and simple. Because if I didn’t even understand myself… I’d be too pitiful.”
She knows something’s up and asks him if he’s sick, but it would be unbecoming of any drama character to ever admit to an illness.
Ah, but there’s a twist to Moo-chul’s story, as we find out from one of his minions – apparently Moo-chul is the only reason why Jin-sung and Soo are still alive, and he’s been protecting them from Boss Man all this time. Weirdly enough… I can totally buy that.
Gangster Wannabe seems to buy it too, and stalks behind a visibly ill Moo-chul as he waits for a chance to strike.
Soo convinces a group of gamblers into Boss Man’s high-stakes game, giving into their demands to make sure the game is fair. (Even though everyone knows Boss Man rigs his games.) Soo wins them over by pretending to be on their side, so that he’ll act like a double agent and take Boss Man out (monetarily), which would benefit all his rival gamblers.
But by the way Soo drops his smile out of their sight, it’s hard to know if he was telling the truth.
Young has found a new human pillow in the form of Mi-ra, though she doesn’t seem that comforted and gets up to make a call.
Meanwhile, Secretary Wang punches an I-miss-you letter in Braille to Young, only to be interrupted by her call. She picks up the phone with desperate concern, causing Young to feel guilty – she would’ve felt better if Wang was angry to get a call from the daughter who kicked her out.
“Are you scared about tomorrow’s surgery?” Secretary Wang asks.
“A little,” Young admits, adding that she knows Secretary Wang hasn’t been spending her days at a home she’s not welcome in. Wang tears up at her concern and wishes her well for her surgery, and they hang up without any hard feelings. Young’s eyes grow red with tears. All right, I’ve about had enough of this “I’m fighting the feels” face. Just let it OUT already.
Young wanders into Soo’s room in her loneliness and imagines him there smiling and talking with her like always. It’s not really clear whether these are memories of him or just her wishful thinking, but she’s happy to crawl into his bed and imagine him lying beside her as Imaginary Soo leads her fingers along the edges of a pop-up version of The Little Prince like he’s reading her a lullaby.
They’re at the part in the story where the prince calls out into a desolate landscape only to hear his echo return. “Why are all fairy tales sad?” Imaginary Soo asks, sending Young over the edge. She stifles her sobs while lying in his bed.
Lawyer Jang calls Young to tell her that the case is taking him longer than expected, though he plans to meet her at the hospital that night before her surgery in the morning. Young acts like everything is fine… but something’s fishy.
She lies to Mi-ra about Lawyer Jang returning sooner in order to get out from under her watch, though she does so with concern for Mi-ra’s job interview and a necklace gift. What is she trying to do?
Young secretly calls the hospital to delay her check-in until 9pm, because hospitals are just glorified hotels. Her last human obstacle is the maid.
Soo arrives at the hospital during the time Young is supposed to arrive, only to find out the time’s been moved. (Is she just trying to avoid him? What is she trying to accomplish?!)
The maid gets disposed of with the same lie, that Lawyer Jang will be there any minute to take care of her. Oddly enough, Young is having all her Braille books thrown away, claiming to those in the house that she won’t need them after the surgery. Which we can all translate as: Lies.
Young goes to the greenhouse once she’s finally alone, and cries when she finds that Soo re-planted the lamb’s ear she’d tossed in a tantrum.
Meanwhile, Soo waits for her at the hospital and hangs up on Moo-chul once he sees the maid bring Young’s things, but not the girl herself. Moo-chul downs painkillers to fight his increasingly-severe bouts of stomach cancer.
Lawyer Jang’s calls to Young go unheeded, as she throws the keys to the greenhouse room into the garden to hide them. Mi-ra gets a call from Lawyer Jang and starts running back toward the house. Auuuugh, this is getting frustrating.
Hee-sun sees Jin-sung off as he heads to the hospital, surprisingly chipper about getting to go into the operating room just to take care of his hyung’s girlfriend. Why are all his smiles making me nervous now? This show is going to be responsible for my ruined nails.
Soo and Sun-hee are left to worry at the hospital when Young is a no-show, though he thankfully gets a call from the missing person herself as she sits in her big, empty house.
He answers it carefully and talks like he’s easing her away from a cliff, which if he knows her well enough, is probably the metaphorical case. It’s like he knows she’s this close to skipping out on her operation, and he doesn’t want to scare her away.
The thing is, she’s already scared away, and admits as much after he catches her lying that she’s already at the hospital when she’s NOT. She tells him that it’ll all be okay since Lawyer Jang is there to pick her up, just when Sun-hee gets a call from him saying that he can’t get ahold of Young. Gah. All the LIES.
Soo starts panicking and running as he all but begs Young to listen to the tape he left her in the secret greenhouse room that explains everything, not knowing that she threw the keys away. Dude, just TELL HER NOW.
To his credit, he does try to get her to listen, but she coolly cuts him off: “I have nothing more to hear from you. I told you, I understand you.”
Soo desperately tries to get her to stay on the line so he can say what he needs, only to be met with a dead line. She’s hung up on him.
And because no one in Seoul can hail a godforsaken cab, Moo-chul comes to Soo’s rescue with the only working car around, completely hopped up on painkillers. Fun.
Young heads to the kitchen, going straight for the knives.
But wait, Moo-chul hasn’t come to the rescue after all, since he gets out of his car only to kick and punch Soo. Soo tries the pacifist route for a few jabs before he turns on him in a rage, screaming, “Young is in danger! If I don’t go right now, Young will… Young will…”
Moo-chul ekes out how good he thought Soo and Young looked together, all aglow with true love. “I always wondered if there was such a thing as love in this world. Love does exist. Just like the time when I first met you, I wanted to say goodbye to you.” And he hands over… something?
Moo-chul starts shuffling away, looking like he’s going to fall over and die any second. And… Soo just takes his car and leaves him there, with the promise that he’ll call back later. Um. Couldn’t you have just thrown him in the car with you?
Headlights engulf Moo-chul from behind, and he’s met with a knife to the gut the second he turns around. It’s Gangster Wannabe, finally cashing in on that revenge card.
Soo keeps trying to call Young as he speeds toward her house. We hear him in voiceover, “I had this to say to Young: ‘I’m sorry. I love you. It’s not over for us. Let’s meet again.”
We find Young running a suicide bath. Soo’s voiceover continues: “‘Even if it’s coincidence, for once, I sincerely hope I’ll see you.’ Although I couldn’t say all those things, because it seemed like an excuse.”
Young holds her wrist under the water stream and takes a knife to it as Soo sprints toward the house, calling her name.
“I had to say that one thing to Young… That in this hurtful world, I once thought that life was nothing. If it’s gone, it’s gone – that’s all I thought life amounted to.”
As he runs into the house, Young’s blood drips into the tub.
“But you, Young, became the last reason for me to live like a human being. Could I become the same to you? In this empty world, could I not become your last reason to live?”
Soo finally bursts into the bathroom to find Young draped over the tub, one wrist cut open and bleeding.
He desperately pulls her into his arms, calling her name to try and bring her back from the brink.
COMMENTS
The Good: I didn’t see the suicide twist coming.
The Bad: I didn’t see the suicide twist coming BECAUSE I THOUGHT WE’D BEEN OVER THIS ALREADY.
When Young started suspiciously lying to get some alone time, I felt frustrated. When she shut down and shut out any hope I had of comprehending her thought process, I felt angry. When Moo-chul had an existential crisis before he got carjacked and stabbed, I started to feel an eerie sense of calm wash over me, so that by the time we got to Young and the knives and the bathtub and the slit wrists, I’d already run the emotional gamut between anger, confusion, and frustration to transcend into that mystical and unwelcoming land of Not Caring.
Honestly, I didn’t expect this show to jump the shark so thoroughly, but here we are, at the bookend that’s supposed to reel us back in after two episodes void of any real forward development or an overall sense of purpose. Yes, people moved on screen and said words, but once we reached the point where Young decided (AGAIN) that life’s not worth living, all the filler in-between suddenly felt meaningless. And it’s not like the words that were said had any part in helping our understanding of her when she spoke 75% lies and 25% incomprehensible half-truths-open-to-interpretation.
In the end, we can only guess at what led Young to this point, and while I’m sure any and all theories could carry equal validity (she never stopped being suicidal, just kidding she did, she was never suicidal in the first place, just kidding she was, she meant it when she told Soo she wanted to live, just kidding she didn’t, she grew and matured as a character and didn’t regress, just kidding that never happened), I just can’t understand Young, The Character. I’ve tried to, because she did have plenty of valid reasons to be sad and miserable despite how keenly she understands her circumstances, BUT, having a character with a death wish and an extremely good poker face is surprisingly the antithesis of entertainment. It’s not the suicide attempt itself that’s the deal-breaker for me, it’s that feeling that we’ve spent fifteen episodes just to come back and retread the same old ground in bloodier packaging.
When it comes down to it, I have just ONE requirement to jump on board a character’s journey: They have to care.
That’s it. That’s all. Everyone gets a few get out of jail free cards when it comes to lapses in judgment, but Young’s character arc was predicated upon her willingness to live/die, without ever convincing me (until now) that she truly wanted one more than the other. And it gets old after a while to have every other character care fifty times more than she does, always treading on eggshells around her lest she be spooked by the shadow of her will to live, thus damning her and everyone around her to six more weeks of suicidal winter.
*POST-RAGE APATHY QUIT*
RELATED POSTS
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 14
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 13
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 12
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 11
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 10
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 9
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 8
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 7
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 6
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 5
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 4
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 3
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 2
- That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 1
Tags: featured, Jo In-sung, Kim Bum, Song Hye-gyo, That Winter the Wind Blows
Interview with Kim Yoo-jung
Hello Dramabeans series
![[2022 Year in Review] The Bean Count](https://www.dramabeans.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/beancount_2022.png)
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1 Ivoire
March 29, 2013 at 8:40 PM
Thank you! Off to read...
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Dominique
March 30, 2013 at 9:36 AM
As this episode stirs such indignation/frustration/praise in so many of you, there is one more piece of information that you might consider.
10 years ago, when NHK of Japan aired a Korean drama called "Winter Elegy" (or called something like that) with unprecedented rating hits, it is said to have begun what we know as Hallyu. (I have never watched it.)
10 years later, That Winter is supposed to follow in the footsteps of Winter Elegy and hoped to revive Hallyu in Japan, where Hallyu has been receiving cold shoulder of late.
That Winter is said to resemble Winter Elegy in many ways, and the story of That Winter is well known in Japan because That Winter is based on an original Japanese work.
Auspiciously, That Winter was presold to the territory of Japan, sometime before it began airing in South Korea, and it is set to air in Japan very soon. (It is currently airing in Singapore and Malaysia, I heard.)
All of this is to say that the production team of That Winter has a set of additional objectives when it comes to deciding, for instance, the number of episodes (the more episodes, the larger minimum guarantee from Japan), the target audience (which include, front and center, Japanese women viewers), which scenes to prolong or shorten, etc.
Things that will do really well in Japan include faux incest and suicide.
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james94131
March 30, 2013 at 11:35 AM
Excellent points. Above all else as emphasized in King of Dramas, kdramas are all about business and money. Due to the popularity of kdramas in multiple Asian cultures, I suspect that Korean script writers have no choice but to include story lines and styles that play well in certain other cultures that are being targeted or cultivated for business reasons regardless of artistic merit or being consistent with Korean culture.
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Fasr
March 30, 2013 at 6:23 PM
lol are we seriously blaming japanese ladies for how much of a train-wreck this drama has become?
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Belle3005
March 31, 2013 at 5:59 AM
I AM JUST SO FRUSTRATED WITH THIS DRAMA. If there's ever a good thing I have to say about this drama is that Moo Chul was hands down my favourite character. This drama is such a mess I can't even pretend to want to understand it. Why Noh Hee Kyung,why?
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rita
April 18, 2013 at 9:55 AM
LOL!!!
Yes, let's blame Japanese women for a decade of repetitive makjangs whose differences in terms of plot are only what deadly desease will be featured and how slowly will hero and heroine walk while brooding...
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anais
March 30, 2013 at 6:33 PM
Winter's Elegy is Winter Sonata with Bae Yong Joon and Choi Ji Woo.
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2 crazedlu
March 29, 2013 at 8:51 PM
da frig? eck. just eck. perish, everyone. perish.
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Mystisith
March 29, 2013 at 9:50 PM
Survival instinct seems to work strangely in that universe but if Darwin's natural selection is valid, your wish may be granted.
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3 Missthiri
March 29, 2013 at 8:57 PM
Thanks for recap. Only read ur recap coz I don't care whether she wanna die or live at this point
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4 Patsy Price
March 29, 2013 at 9:02 PM
What is with all the yelling...why don't they ever do anything useful... like try and stop the bleeding?
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altair
March 29, 2013 at 10:57 PM
In real life when you happen to stumble upon something like that, this is what usually happes: first you are stunned, shocked, paralysed, your body refuses to move, then panic strikes, you start to cry/yell/mumble/make unintelligible sounds, tremble, your mind goes in every direction, thoughts are incoherent and, if you are courageous enough, you then touch the person to see if he/she is still breathing/ has pulse. Unfortunatelly, that kind of reaction is not artistic enough to be shown on TV.
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Gidget
March 30, 2013 at 4:06 PM
Color me crazy, but in that scenario the first thing I'm doin' is dialing 911.
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Mystisith
March 30, 2013 at 4:29 PM
Me too. I will react coldly and like out of my body at first and will collapse only after the ambulance has left.
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Gidget
April 1, 2013 at 11:45 AM
Heh. Guess we're not believers in the healing power of love for someone who's bleeding and unconscious.
kaye
March 29, 2013 at 11:30 PM
someone posted about this in ep14 recap and I agree with the above explanation. That is also the reason why a doctor/nurse can't participate in their loveone's surgery/medical emergencies. And also in first aid, the first thing that you really should do is to check if the victim is conscious or not thus "hey,hey,hey are you ok", followed by calling for help, then check on whatever first aid a victim needs and in this case is to stop bleeding.
sidenote: what I noticed in this drama is the wrong usage of the ambubag in the previous episodes lol.
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Enz
March 30, 2013 at 9:34 AM
That was really annoying, the mask being upside down like that. Couldn't they have gotten that small matter right? Eesh
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5 Christy
March 29, 2013 at 9:03 PM
Show, don't make me have to put you in the corner again. -____-
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6 bebeswtz
March 29, 2013 at 9:25 PM
I think- THINK- I kinda understand, but say what you must and believe what you must, because everyone has free will of opinion ^.^ So here's my take: she DID care, and she DID want to live, at some point after meeting Soo and going through so much for him, but the thing that triggered her to go back to the way she was before, going back to the state she was at the beginning of the drama, was- not only finding out that Soo conned her- but, that, he was leaving her... and leaving her after knowing that she knew he conned her, and was STILL leaving, and WILLING to leave her.... because by that time, both Soo and Young had more-than-sibling feels of love for one another that they JUST finished interpreting as NOT sibling love for one another
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blabla100
March 30, 2013 at 12:41 AM
I think it has nothing to do with her wanted to live or not, i think she belives she's gonna die anyway in the surgery, so instead of having to go through it, she choce to end it in her house, and not on a cold bed, naked in the hospital. At least thats the impression i had while watching the last 2 episodes.
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Mama J
March 30, 2013 at 10:15 AM
That's where I am with it. They'd been pretty clear that her chances of success were minimal, and just because everyone AROUND her is acting like this is a slam dunk - remove the brain tumor, save her life and BONUS give her her eyesight (even though we've been told repeatedly that the tumor is NOT the cause of the blindness.) - doesn't mean Youngie has forgotten what Sun Hee said.
She's never had control, she's always had to rely on others. She's been very resentful and outspoken about her helplessness throughout the series. So I'm thinking she feels that if she's going to die, she's going to decide how, and when. It is her LITERAL last chance for autonomy.
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Gidget
March 30, 2013 at 4:22 PM
But that's the thing, her description of a 'cold bed' was befitting of a morgue, not a top hospital's O.R.. Trust me, going into surgery you are comfy and cozy and cared for. And you're clothed in a gown.
And regarding surgery for a deep seated tumor with a low likelihood of success...wouldn't it be more logical that they would have at least discussed gamma knife treatment instead of conventional surgery? Sheesh, this isn't 1980.
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Amy
August 16, 2014 at 1:26 PM
I realize that this reply is a year later but if by chance you do read it. How many surgeries have you actually had??? It is FREEZING in an O.R. room. They let you have a gown on for about 5 seconds until you are wheeled in and then it's all business and that doesn't not include clothing because they want full access in case anything goes wrong. I have personally had 8 heart surgeries and I can tell you one of the top things that I dread is how cold it is in there.
Sure once they hook you up, and prep your for surgery they will throw some warm blankets on ya but that can be a long time coming. Gah I cringe just thinking about it.
It my be different in other countries but any hospital I have been to within my country ( Canada) has all been the same. The only warm thing has been the staff. BRRRRRRR
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Ratsuki
March 30, 2013 at 6:24 AM
I don't think Soo is that willing to leave her, and I'm sure Young knew it as well. Soo blatantly show it with their last 'date', calling her, and all that stalking. If Young ever ask him to stay, I'm sure Soo will stay, all his debt business be damned. No, Soo doesn't want to leave her, she was the one who shut him down.
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7 snow_white
March 29, 2013 at 9:26 PM
hmmm.....now I seriously need to decide whether to start this or not....
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8 dduk
March 29, 2013 at 9:28 PM
but wasn't she always in a suicidal state? I'm not justifying the whole drama thus far b/c the drama as been going on a decline for the past 2 eps (?)
but being suicidal isn't an on/off switch. there is no on/off switch for depression and loneliness.
Frankly, I knew that Young was going to do something like this in the end because I was watching the drama with the mindset that she is seriously depressed even after she seemed to be doing "better",
She smiles, and laughs and was truly, slowly coming out of her shell. but I think people have to remember that Young has been at a young age, betrayed by everyone and didn't know who to trust since the age of 6. so yeah, that would mess anyone up.
she was depressed for a long time and to find out that the person she who she finally trusted, that ONE person was a fake/ fell in love with really just threw her over the edge.
I dunno. Just my opinions when it comes to Young... I guess her character then should have been written a tad bit better.... *shrugs*
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Saskia
March 29, 2013 at 11:09 PM
Yeah I agree with this one.
This suicide was well set up from the beginning, and completely justified. The girl has less than a tenth chance of surviving surgery. Having the operation is also objectively a suicide mission. She just wanted to die in her house, not on a table.
OP expects Young as a main character to care and know what she wants, which is fair enough for normal people in normal situations. Not Young. Like dduk mentioned above her depression was never cured, and she had more than enough shit stuff happen to her to drag her all the way back down again.
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Gidget
March 30, 2013 at 4:26 PM
But if you're serious about committing suicide, a small slash to a wrist is not the way you're going to do it. That method is more often classified as a cry for help, since it takes so...very...long.
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renan
March 31, 2013 at 4:40 PM
That is the only method she can use because it will be difficult for her to hang herself, you know she is blind. She may have opted for pills but you need an exact amount of that for her to kill herself of she's gonna throw that up if it's in excess plus she doesn't have the resources to get that. She may still be alive if she's gonna jump from her window, just broken legs lol.
Plus the fact that she uses the warm shower to prevent clotting of blood, that method she used is legitimate suicide for me.
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sebsob
March 30, 2013 at 4:33 AM
"there is no on/off switch for depression and loneliness. " Thank you for this comment. For some people suicidal tendencies don't go away. It's a life long problem and something that is there in good times as well as bad. Happiness isn't really the cure because it is something deeply ingrained in the psyche. Considering Young's life it is very much understandable how it came to this.
If Young is his last reason to live, then Soo needs to realize that though she loves him, it might not be enough.
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9 Mystisith
March 29, 2013 at 9:29 PM
Watching a drama which lets you down is hard & recapping it is even worst. Thanks!
Oh Young & me: I feel like the monkey watching the monolith in "2001, A Space Odyssey". ??
I must say I'm with Heads on that one: I don't care about her anymore. If one of them has to die in the last episode, better her than Oh Soo... (I'm almost sure he will be killed tho: Drama won't miss a chance to show how good JIS is in the scenes of agony). I'd rather have him amnesiac & starting a new life somewhere. We'll see.
The only scene I liked in this episode was the nervous breakdown of OS, it was really heartbreaking. BUT at the same time, the scene lasted too long: A whole episode is not only a scene, as good as it is, and editing is not an option. All those last episodes, I sincerely would have paid for a more dynamic storytelling & just to have more things interesting happening on my screen.
*Sighs*... I'm really ready to say goodbye to this show next week.
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sally_b
March 29, 2013 at 11:50 PM
waves Hello to @Mystisith ~
I'm going with what I've said dozens of times now ---
K-dramas should really reduce the number of episodes per show.
If a FULLY COMPLETE storyline, with deep meaningful characters can be done for Movies -- lasting approx. 2 hours. Then surely, the same can be done with innumerable dramas --- 8 to 10 Episodes. Boom...DONE.
Tight story - no filler -- and a Memorable show that gets watched again and again. (White Christmas is a perfect example.)
Perhaps someone *more in the know* than me can explain why shows MUST be 16 or more episodes. To tell the truth, if the K-drama PDs, Writers and Executives keep hurling out the kind of garbage that I've been seeing (and dropping fast) this past year...I may give up on watching all-together. rant over/ ;)
As for *the Wind Blows* ...you know something's wrong -- when at the 11th hour -- you find that perhaps the most noble character of the whole show is a ganstah hit-man dying of stomach cancer, who gets murdered first.
Show: you confuse me.
(but, I'm *in* until the END. Let's see if true to melo -- "rocks fall, everybody dies")
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sally_b
March 29, 2013 at 11:51 PM
oh...p.s. Thanks for the reviews Heads ~ (‘•ᴥ •’) ♥
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Mystisith
March 30, 2013 at 1:06 AM
@ sally_b Hi back at you! :)
I don't have a clue on why dramas are supposed to be 16, 20 or 50 eps. The number of eps should be decided depending on the richness of the story and not the other way around. For example, I don't have problems with family dramas being longer cause you are dealing with so many characters. What bugs me here, in TWTWB, is that we have a small list of characters to begin with, AND then many of those characters have nothing to do: Like, seriously. Did Kim Bum step on the toes of a VIP? Cause he could have been cut off the script and we wouldn't notice (rumors say he may be a key element of the last episode but I'll believe it when I see it).
PS: I'm often frustrated with J doramas which on the other hand, end at 9 or 11 episodes and could have been longer. *Never happy me.*
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Gidget
March 30, 2013 at 4:59 PM
I'm really new to the world of Kdramas, but for me when the wheels fall off it's for one of two reasons: deus ex machina or (its evil twin) chaos ex machina. If deus ex machina is the intervention of mystical elements to resolve dramatic tension; chaos ex machina is the intervention of irrational elements to create dramatic tension. Both leave you saying: c'mon,do you really expect me to believe that?
Where this show started falling apart for me is when they took clearly defined characters (with rules that governed their psyches), and started to have them do things that made absolutely...no...sense. There might have been a thread of established 'truth' in their conflict-creating behavior. But to believe the behavior was 'real' I was asked to disregard other more dominant elements of the character's personality. This just made it too much work to continue to try to understand or remain interested in them.
I can think of a million ways where, if the writer would have tried to stay true to the characters' personalities and personal traits, she could have made the past couple of episodes very, very interesting. Instead she had everyone turning into the zombie version of themselves in order - I think - to lend credibility to the fauxcest and suicide story lines. It's a shame, because she created characters we cared about, but then ruined the characters for a storyline we don't care about.
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sally_b
March 30, 2013 at 7:52 PM
chaos ex machina -- lol -- I like that name. (imma steal it and use it as my own ;)
I've moved my *passion* from Wind Blows ---on to Nine: Nine Times Travel....or whatever variation of redundant name it's called.
Lee Jin Wook --- the cure for all that ails me. ~
sally_b
March 30, 2013 at 7:58 PM
@Mystisith - re: Did Kim Bum step on the toes of a VIP? Cause he could have been cut off the script and we wouldn’t notice.
TRUE THAT.
I didn't want to voice it...lest someone throw a rock at me -- but I keep feeling his character is like the Japanese guy in *Flower Boy Next Door* --- basically -- furniture.
Kim Bum and his dazzling smile deserve more.
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Fasr
March 30, 2013 at 8:42 PM
jdramas also runs shorter per episode don't they? around 45 minutes? while kdramas are over one hour long.
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Hedviglilla
March 30, 2013 at 11:10 AM
Well, there are good examples of how a 20-30 episodes long drama could be great! Like Gaksital.... it had 28 episodes and yeah they were suuuuuuuuuuch wonderful 28 episodes. I think the number of episodes should depend on the plot itself, whether it can carry 20 episodes or not. As long as it can carry I'm fine watching 20, 30, 40 episodes :)
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sally_b
March 30, 2013 at 7:55 PM
Hello - I didn't watch Gaksital -- too much torture for me - it's just a matter of taste. However, enough others have hailed it as a masterful show -- so I'll accept that it can be done.
sadly.... this show didn't make that mark. Thankfully it's just got one more episode -- I can endure that much. :)
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10 BlueCurtain
March 29, 2013 at 9:30 PM
Eeef, again with the death cliffhangers? I don't really care anymore if she lives or dies. Heck, I wouldn't care if anyone in this show dies. I don't even watch it anymore, so your recaps are really handy. Thanks :)
Who else wants to strangle some of the characters for thinking so un-logically and just plain, outright unheard of/ stupid?
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kittiesoftlalalala
March 29, 2013 at 10:43 PM
Me! Me! I feel like pushing Secretary Wang off a cliff, although she didn't appear much in this episode. But last episode, her actions made noo sense whatever. Does she love Young or does she hate her? If she does love her, like the mother she's always trying to be, then why did she make her purposefully blind?
So many questions, not a lot of answers.
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pinkplatypus
March 29, 2013 at 10:46 PM
I agree with you. I don't know whether to feel sorry for Sec. Wang or to just plainly hate her.
Frankly, in the movie version she was a likeable character. But, eeh, whatever.
Anyways, I see a sad ending. I see at least one death and like kittiesoftlalalala said, not many questions answered.
But we'll wait and see next week, right?
:)
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greendale
March 29, 2013 at 10:49 PM
I'm probably going to take a break off melo after this. All the tears and angst is getting too much for my brain to make sense of. I'll probably take one of those dumb high school dramas to make me feel a bit light-hearted.
I guarantee one of the leads will die. Either Oh soo, from not paying his debt. Or Oh Young, from the suicide obsession she has.
But, hey, I'm not complaining. I'd like to see more of Jo In Sung please, because that's why I stuck through all the bad bits.
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BlueCurtain
March 29, 2013 at 11:02 PM
Yup, I agree.
But thinking more into this situation, I can almost understand Young for choosing the suicide than the surgery. The key word being almost.
I think she wanted to seize the power of her own life than to die helpless, if she did, in surgery. Or, Soo was the pillar to her, but when he left, she had nothing left to lose.
It's something along the lines of "I can't live without you" but... er, it still doesn't make sense.
I sincerely hope that at least, for the last episode, this drama will shed it's true potential and show us some heart-felt moments that will make us love and miss this show, rather than remember it as a frustrating and full-of-rage drama.
The first few episodes were coated with cuteness, so I guess when the audience saw the ugly version of the show, they were more disappointed, and I reckon myself as one.
But in the end, this is a melo. A melo that I hoped was to be done right. But then again, I had a lot of expectations for this, which was crushed by some of the scenes in this episode.
The writer stretched the end slow, added useless scenes that didn't provide us any information but just proved as a waste of time. I will not hide how frustrated I am, because well *sigh* I wanted more.
Deuces.
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Gidget
March 30, 2013 at 5:13 PM
I'm really new to the world of Kdramas, but for me when the wheels fall off it's for one of two reasons: deus ex machina or (its evil twin) chaos ex machina. If deus ex machina is the intervention of mystical elements to resolve dramatic tension; chaos ex machina is the intervention of irrational elements to create dramatic tension. Both leave you saying: c'mon,do you really expect me to believe that?
Where this show started falling apart for me is when they took clearly defined characters (with rules that governed their psyches), and started to have them do things that made absolutely...no...sense. There might have been a thread of established 'truth' in their conflict-creating behavior. But to believe the behavior was 'real' I was asked to ignore too many other more dominant elements of the character's personality. This just made it too much work to continue to try to understand them.
I can think of a million ways where, if the writer would have tried to stay true to the characters' personalities and personal traits, she could have made the past couple of episodes very, very interesting. Instead she had everyone turning into the zombie version of themselves in order - I think - to lend credibility to the fauxcest and suicide story lines. It's a shame, because she successfully created characters we cared about; but then ruined our love for the characters in order to serve a storyline we don't care about.
*sigh*
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Gidget
April 1, 2013 at 11:58 AM
Oops.
I hit the wrong "Reply" button, but didn't think this posted. Didn't mean to spam.
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11 Juhee
March 29, 2013 at 9:38 PM
This is completely my opinion but i disagree with your rant. Her trying to kill herself was a step towards a vulnerability that she had since long ago and the one thing that stopped her was Oh Soo. Since Oh Soo was taken out of the picture isn't only right from a characteristic stand point that she does attempt suicide as a final shove off the cliff for her?
Young being suicidal/depressed, yes it might seem redundant for you (especially for tv) but for me it was more of finally she's done it lets get through the depressing and move towards the happy...
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12 kaye
March 29, 2013 at 9:39 PM
thanks for the recap again!
Actually I have so many things to say in this episode but then, I'll be writing a novel lol.
It is now clear to me why OS felt the need to forcefully kiss OY. She needs to feel, and words are not enough cause she is so stubborn and calculating.
The suicide may be ugly as it looks, but I totally understand NHK's motives why she put that scene and it isn't the finale and I don't feel they jumped the shark.
For this drama to be enjoyed, I think there is a need to be focused on even the most little detail for you will have a clue on what they are trying to tell. Even the things that isn't visible in the naked eye such as their emotions should be thought upon, and I believe this drama is not for everyone's taste. This is a dark drama that was masked by the cuteness in the first few episodes so when shit hits the fan, a lot will be disappointed.
And I think I'm not the only one who still believes in the show. Looking forward to the finale.
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blabla100
March 30, 2013 at 12:47 AM
For me this show was perfect :D
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fanwho
March 30, 2013 at 10:25 AM
I watch this drama with different mindset. I am not anxicous to find out what will happen next (don't care about plot much any more). I am watching it more like I am watching a painting or picture for each scene. And feel like it is some poem about someone's inner pain. To me, this drama might be sad and slow, but beautiful, just becautiful to watch. I am really enjoying it.
As for the writer NHG, I enjoyed her 'more beautiful than flower' family drama. The scene of the mother with dementia in progree putting Red Iodine tincture all over her chest, saying her heart hurts is still vivid in my memory.
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Yenlinh69
March 30, 2013 at 11:40 AM
I really agree with you. I don't care for the plot in the show as much as for watching it for visual asthetics. For example, I watched to see Soo's expressions, his gait, the colors of the clothes he wore, or how they hung on him. For instance, the pants were a little short on him. His figure indicated to me that he had a long torso and long legs. I tried to understand the set decorations, and how old styles were mixed with the new ones. I really liked the teacups they used on the sets. Yes, I do get sidetracted, but the breaks are good.
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Curioser and Curiosor
March 30, 2013 at 3:46 PM
"For me this show was perfect"
For me too! I really love everything about it and I think that it is brilliant storytelling.
Much as my inner Jane Bennet always roots for a happy ending where the meeting of souls is concerned, I think that the way this beautifully painful story has been set up and told would make any 'easy solutions' look like lazy cop outs.
The characters in this story are in so much pain for so many well established reasons and the story has been pretty consistent about that. There have not been any crazy plot twists or miraculous resolutions so I don't really see the shark-jumping mentioned above.
I think that a large part of the challenge for the viewer has to do with tapping into his or her compassion and empathizing with the suffering these people have to endure. The kind of pain and confusion the character Oh Young has had to endure since (a) realizing that she was falling in love with her 'brother' and then (b) discovering that her real brother was dead, the man she loves was a fraud and she no longer knows what to believe, let alone how to feel. When viewers were up in arms last week for Oh Soo's forced embrace at the end of episode 13, I saw that as an integral part of the story; a dramatic means of letting viewers hold Oh Soo accountable for the pain he had inflicted on Oh Young through his fraud. But perhaps that vehemence did not translate into empathy and compassion for Oh Young -- a deeply subjective sense of what it must feel like to be betrayed by the ONE person you love and trust.
With that kind of betrayal, who would not lose faith in the world, in life, in oneself, especially when the experience blatantly confirms to you that you are, in fact, as you have always been, alone...? Add to that the fact that Oh Young has lived a lifetime of festering emotional trauma, fear and suspicion -- a life where only death seemed to offer that eternal quietus from the cruel vicissitudes of her life.
By the time she met Oh Soo, Oh Young's spirit was already ground down. I remember worrying about how soul-crushing discovering Oh Soo's fraud would be for her the more time hey spent together and grew to love each other. By the time Oh Soo showed up in her life, Oh Young had concluded that rather than "suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune," it was wiser to take control and stand up "against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them." By that eternal sleep, she could "end the heartache, and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to."
Yes, Oh Young is definitely more Hamlet than Ophelia, willing to 'go there' -- the undiscovered country -- because 'here' has consistently proved too cruel, too shattering, too unwelcoming, and discovering Oh Soo's fraud was just the last straw.
I get the impatience people have expressed, but I find that this story goes much deeper than just escapist entertainment and I am willing to pay the emotional toll it demands to see it through - happy ending or no.
In the end, however, to each his or her own, I suppose...
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BluPerry
April 1, 2013 at 12:43 AM
Brilliant analysis! This drama is a masterpiece.
I have been waiting to read your post. So happy to see one.
Thank you.
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canavalia
March 30, 2013 at 8:44 AM
I'm completely with you.
For enjoying this drama you'll need to read a lot in between the lines to get a clue about what's really going on.
I admit, episode 14 was a bit slow paced for me as well, but I really enjoyed episode 15: I'm completely understand OY suicide attempt. She made it clear a few episodes ago - she is actually expecting zero from the operation, she's just doing it, to give her beloveds the feeling, that they've done everything possible to save her. Than she finds out about OS, Wang ... ouch! ... throws them out - everything happening a few days before the planned surgery. I maybe would have been more surprised if she went totally unaffected to the surgery and had the OP just as scheduled.
The same goes for S.Wang. I think the show points out pretty clearly that she neglected OY eyes because that would make her depend even more on her and she'll have someone to pamper as she pleases till the end of her days. In the earlier episodes I thought she might be OS mother - pampering OY because she never got the chance to care about her own child...
Moo chul. I'm not surprised with him too. The show pointed it out several episodes ago, that he is protecting JS and OS - along with his own little revenge business. When he had the conversation with Kim in the Car, he made it clear to him, that the deal is, that OS will be killed after the 100 days they both agreed to. He obviously didn't tell him about "reducing" OS days, so I actually doubt he would really kill him when his reduced days are over... he is just playing with him, while "balancing out" the perfect time to be killed by Kim instead of Soo, or taking him with him - I mean, he has to go anyway, so why not take the chance and do something noble in the end? At least that seems to me was the original plan.
I want this show to have a happy ending, but I actually can't see it :/
Moo-chul .... I don't know.... he got stabbed right in front of a hospital. At least there is some hope that he will be found and treated quickly - just for the sake of OS getting a proper chance to say "goodbye" to him - since this is, what he regrets the most regarding HJ death.
OY ... same as Moo-chul ... if she really has to go, I at least want him to get to tell her what he wants her to know.
JS: I have a bad feeling for him too. He would never kill OS but prefer to die instead of him. I have a feeling that one of them has to go: JS or OS - I just don't know who will take the blame for the other.
So my tip for Episode 16:
1. Moo-chul, OY die - if OY dies I have not much hope for S.Wang either,...there is not much left in her life as well... no parents, no home, no OY, no letters to OY. I really wonder how she would move on...
If Moo-chul and OY die and OS again missed to say goodbye to them like he did with HJ ...o-oh... i think, then I at least want to see him saving JS before everything falls completely apart.
2. (I actually have a happy end version as well - HA!).
Moo-chul dies in the hospital, OY will be treated there as well - but OS gets the chance to tell them both goodbye. OY surgery will be successful (brain tumor (and eyes?!)), but - ha - she will suffer from amnesia and won't remember anyone around her. So she will get a chance to have a fresh start with OS, the Lawyer will pay for is depts, and Granny Wang can come over for some tea from time to time.
JS won't die.... because.... because ... it's a happy end!!
Looking forward to episode 16!!!!!
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Anduril
March 30, 2013 at 3:26 PM
I had the same thought about the protection comment. The minion was just referring to the interference that Moo-Chul had been running throughout the show.
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Jale
March 31, 2013 at 7:28 AM
I think some people misunderstand what Soo was saying about what he regrets about Hee Joo's death. It's not that he didn't get to say good-bye, it's that he didn't just say good-bye, rest in peace AND just let her go.
Instead he lived a reckless life anyway he wanted too by using his guilt about her death as justification for his way of life.
Most people I've seen commenting on that statement he made to Moo Chul about not feeling sorry about Hee Joo's death anymore and have moved on to loving Young to think he said he didn't get to say good-bye at her death.
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BluPerry
March 30, 2013 at 8:46 PM
@kaye, please, please do write that novel. I'll be the first one to "click" in line to read your novel. I appreciate your point of view on TW. I have learnt so much from all the comments. I enjoyed reading your analysis of TW,TWB.
The novel please, looking forward to it.
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13 nomad
March 29, 2013 at 9:41 PM
WTH?! This is now THE reason why I won't even start the show and just finish reading the recap.
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14 queenofcam
March 29, 2013 at 9:45 PM
Wow.... I'm so speechless, and so angry.
Everything about this show was doing it for me, until that last scene. I'm totally fine with suicides being incorporated into dramas IF IT MADE SENSE. Right now, I just want to slap some of that sense into Young. I'm so, SO heartbroken. How dare she? Suicide is such a selfish way to solve all your problems. Does she not know how much this will KILL Soo and Jang and Secretary Wang? It's one thing to die from the surgery, because yea it couldn't be helped. But to end your life like this minutes before the surgery that might save you? WTF YOUNG?! My only reason to try to understand why she would want to take this method to die is because she probably want to regain control of her life. She doesn't want to die from surgery and be helpless, she wants the assurance that she could end her life if she chose to. But again, if one is so scared of surgery, how is it that they're not scared of slitting their wrists?! *brain explodes*
Damn....I don't know how Noh Hee Kyung is going to get herself out of this one. I can't see anything that'll redeem Young's character for me. She's just done...unless someone else comes up with a better reason why we should forgive her. Committing suicide like that...like HeadsNo2 said, makes EVERYTHING that happened in the previous episodes (the sweet moments, Soo's sacrifice, the argument trying to convince her to live) mean NOTHING. Because even after all the efforts driven by blood and sweat from the people who love her, Young is still a selfish, emo brat who want to die and find no reason to live. Soo GAVE HIS FREAKIN' LIFE UP FOR YOU TO GET THAT SURGERY. Yes, I empathized with her and tolerated her poker face and manipulative facade before because she has every good reason to be depressed and suicidal. But come on, after all that, what kind of "lesson" or "moral" are we supposed to get out of this drama?
Please episode 16, you're the only hope to make this drama end with a good, sensible note.
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queenofcam
March 29, 2013 at 10:01 PM
Oh and one more thing. The way she called Soo right before she slit her wrists, and even hang up on him KNOWING that it would worry him just made me even more upset. I really loved Young from the very beginning, and I continued loving her (despite her unpredictable mood swings) until the very moment she laid there with bleeding wrists.
Not only that, but her actions stopped Soo from having the last confrontation with Moo Chul.... She kept Soo from being there for Moo Chul's last moments, and when he needed him the most. I know, obviously she wouldn't have known that. But it's the execution of this drama I have a problem with. I hate how in this episode, Young became a character that's painted as the root of everyone's problems. Because of her, Soo had to give up a few days of his life. Because of her decision to commit suicide at that time, Moo Chul was left alone and had to die. Because of her, Moo Chul can't have a heart-to-heart talk with Soo, and the bros weren't able to tell each other how much they cared. Because of her, Jang will be heartbroken and will be blamed for not taking care of her well enough. Because of her, Soo will be abandoned once again by the woman he loves. Way to go, Young. *cries*
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JunJae
March 29, 2013 at 10:36 PM
When she called Soo, I think they we'ree telling us why she did what she did.
Just stand in her feet and think of it this way, the person who made you want to live left you the moment it was supposed to happen. The voice over actually explained a lot as well.
Soo never told her he wanted to meet her after the surgery, after she's better. Soo never told her anything that would have made her want to live. And why is she taking the surgery she didn't want in the first place? It was all for Soo and not for herself. And I believe her actually cutting herself is the turning point for Young as a character, because the past 15 episodes she was never not suicidal, and yes she really didn't grew much but I think that's the point of the scene. Ill wait for the finale and see how they would wrap this up.
But the story still makes sense to me and I am still loving it!
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skelly
March 29, 2013 at 10:41 PM
I am not sure she was really committing suicide. A real suicide doesn't call someone beforehand that they hope will run right over and rescue them. I think this was yet another "trust fall" on her part, a way to test the people around her - do you really care about me, or is it just as well if I'm dead? She is so paranoid (and you could argue rightly so, with the way everyone lies to her and uses her) that this is the only way she can really know that people are true to her. I mean, why call him? Why send every suicide clue in the book? Why only one wrist?
And to be fair, you can't really blame Moo Chul on her - she doesn't know what's up with Moo Chul, that's just the usual Law of Crappy Coincidences that you have to have in a melo.
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kaye
March 29, 2013 at 11:01 PM
I think she has planned this all along, it is a legit suicidal attempt and it's actually one of the signs in the DSMIV-R, saying goodbye, calling someone you love before doing such an act. She called because she wants to say goodbye to OS indirectly, it just so happened that OS knew she is lying. I think she already planned this since she overheard OS and Wangs convo.
I still trust NHK and will wait for the finale patiently.
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JunJae
March 29, 2013 at 10:47 PM
Oh! And to a suicidal person, why would she care about what other people feel? She wouldn't, she would only see her own pain and after everything that happened to her it was characteristic that she cut herself. She was never strong, she always needed someone.
Rememeber the same scene at Nice Guy where MCW cried in the bath tub, it was that same feeling of loss only Young took it to another level and actually did it.
And it probably is just me but I feel like NHK is trying to reach out to the audience in general, you know South Korean's are not good at handling depression and see it as taboo.
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Juhee
March 29, 2013 at 11:40 PM
I'm sorry but I completely disagree with you. When you're in the mindset of having everyone around you whom you loved whether it was platonic or something much more betray you. That cut in my opinion could feel like to her being alive.
Of course I do not condone suicides or self deprivation but when i see Young and the life of being constantly strung up on strings. Being told where to go, whom to marry, then on top of that being lied to. It breaks ones heart and makes them numb.
Her life is the one thing that she can control and is the one thing that she alone can tempt fate with.
Her attempting suicide was a character development. Yes its sad. Yes its selfish but now she can recover and learn and grow.
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queenofcam
March 29, 2013 at 11:41 PM
Thanks for the insight guys! Now that I've calmed down a little, I'm considering what you've all said.
I think I'll have to wait for the last episode to really see what's going on in Young's mind. Overall, in a fictional character's standpoint, I understand why she did what she did. But I'm just a little disappointed. I was so engrossed in her character, and after all the tears and sweet moments between her and Soo, I really thought he helped her to realize how important she is and that life is worth living. Even if she knows Soo conned her, and she has a right to be mad at him, but knowing that his love for her is sincere should've at least changed her viewpoint about life in general. At least, that's what I thought and what I wanted Young to realize. But perhaps she just has a lower suffering threshold than Soo, so she couldn't take it anymore. This episode just made me so sad...T^T The death foreshadowing is high enough without her trying to kill herself.
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JunJae
March 30, 2013 at 5:37 AM
that is the one disappointment I have as well....
all throughout her getting people to leave her alone I knew she was gonna kill herself, but when she called Soo and from Soo's voice over, she killed herself because of Soo. And it just so sucks to admit that she's so fragile when you want her to be strong throughout the series.
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queenofcam
March 30, 2013 at 10:21 AM
I think it's time for us to accept who Young really is. =( She's a desperate, mentally unstable and traumatized woman; far from what I wanted a heroine to be. And I think that's why I was so upset, because that last scene just proved that despite all of Soo's efforts, she still wants to die. However, now that I kind of know where Noh is going with this, I have to say it's a daring step for her to take, and it's very realistic. She wants Young to overcome this desire of dying once and for all, by bringing her character to the brink of hell and back. She doesn't want to write a story about how a suicidal woman was slowly changed and wanted to live after meeting a hot conman. NO. That's like every other drama out there. She wanted views to know that no matter how much you could end up falling for a man who betrayed you, human suffering can cut too deep for ANYTHING to matter anymore. Now that Young has taken control of her life, when she regains consciousness (because I doubt she died here), she'll find a new reason to live through Soo's sacrifice.
Mystisith
March 30, 2013 at 6:00 PM
@picklemonster. Let's say that the ways everyone interprets her action here is true (suicide or help call only): Then for me, she's a despicable or selfish person and I can't root for someone like that. I just can't with nihilism or emotional blackmailing and I'd rather help someone who wants to be helped. If she survives and people around her die, then I will find that ending unfair and unpleasant (for me) but also unrealistic: Suicidal persons die and it's the family and friends who have to deal with that as survivors. Seriously, it's just wtf so if we go here, I'm expecting the characters to die in a car accident while she wakes up at the hospital. *Rolls eyes*. Yeah... Let's kill everyone in that case...
If the last episode can win me over, then I will be really impressed.
queenofcam
March 30, 2013 at 9:36 PM
Hi Mystisith!
I do agree with what you're saying. I really hate it when my favourite characters in dramas do something that makes it hard to root for them, and in this case, Young has done just that. Some people have said that it's obvious Young was suicidal to begin with, and they completely understand why Young would take that step. I agree with that too. Young has 10000 good reasons for why she wants to kill herself. And I do sympathize with all those reasons. In a way, I don't blame her for wanting to commit suicide, and it's not like she had a good mother figure around to give her genuine love so that she could love herself and others in return. When a kid goes through life lacking guidance and support, they grow up wanting to end their pain much more so than wanting to keep their loved ones happy. In this case, Young keeps thinking that she's a burden to everybody. So yea, I kinda get her. And I pity her. But my love for her lessened dramatically; even though her character in itself is very profound and intriguing, I just can't cheer on a character who really though suicide was the ONLY way out. Now, I just want her to live because I want Soo to be happy. If it wasn't for Soo, I wouldn't care so much if she died, because she WANTS to die.... *sigh*
dduk
March 29, 2013 at 11:38 PM
I SERIOUSLY DO NOT THINK when you're going to commit suicide that you would be thinking about how others would feel.
yeah, suicide is a selfish way out but think about it, she was living a life of a string doll. she had no say in her life, her future husband was picked out for her, she is disabled and the only thing... that ONE thing that she could control is her death. Even in surgery it is out of her hands.
like I said in my previous comment, suicide isn't something you switch on/off. she's been suicidal since EP ONE. she's been doing better but when Soo left her, the one person who she thought she could finally trust,... it ripped open the healing wounds.
you can't just shrug off depression/ loneliness especially when it is hanging over her head for so long... it's just not possible.
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queenofcam
March 29, 2013 at 11:52 PM
Yep, I'm sure she wouldn't care about who she'd hurt while having suicide in mind. I'm just upset that she chose to go down that road. I expected a turnaround for Young's character, and like all the other characters in the show, I wanted to see her fight for her life instead of wanting to die, especially since we're so close to the end with one more episode to go. I'm more mad about the direction this drama is going than with Young. I think that if there is supposed to be an attempted suicide scene, it should've been done earlier in the drama instead of now. But I would like to believe that Noh Hee Kyung had a good reason for putting this scene out there. I'm just gonna have to trust her for now. =)
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Newbie
March 30, 2013 at 4:58 AM
This. So much.
Suicidal people develop a tunnel vision. They function normally, interact with the people surrounding them, don't yell 'I'll kill myself', don't consider any feelings of friends, family etc. and, wham, simply do it.
Young is severly depressed, the person she came to love betrays her and she is afraid of the surgery. She finally wanted some control over her life, or better make that death.
I totally get her motivation.
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15 lysander love
March 29, 2013 at 9:48 PM
Young's character did not progress or develop. She is supposed to be a strong character, not the damsel in distress type but what's happening. She chicken out and resorted to short cut. Sooo disappointing!!
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16 ilikemangos
March 29, 2013 at 9:49 PM
dammit. i wanted winter to be one of those melos done right. But it just had to up and ruin everything in its final stretch.
I haven't watched ep 14/15 yet, but i think it's best if i just go straight to 16. These two episodes look tragic.
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kaye
March 29, 2013 at 9:53 PM
yes, i think you should wait for the finale before watching 14 and 15 because the agony of waiting for the finale will kill you. Still have faith in this drama and I will not forsake it until I watch the finale.
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BluPerry
March 30, 2013 at 8:53 PM
@kaye... I just love your open-mindedness, your thought your analysis etc. These qualities just jump out of the paragraph of your writing!
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17 jessybee
March 29, 2013 at 9:52 PM
Hi Heads, thanks for the recap, I know you are all the rage now, I get where ur thinking comes from, but I happen to find it ok for the story to go there. Its not the right thing to do, I dont condone it, but it fits with the character of young, who is deep down not strong, she just puts up a strong facade for ppl not to worry, its her defence mechanism, but in result her inner self is digging a bigger and bigger hole that she can no longer put up against. Especially now that she is without wang and soo beside her.
Then again I dont think she wanted to die, its just getting so hard and lonely for that she got scared and gave up. I am still holding out for ep 16 to see how this will be resolved. Still have faith that young will not die, that this is just a plot device...
Even though we have differing opinions, I still read ur recaps for your wicked sense of humor. Lol
I hope you dont give up on this show just yet :)
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18 Eli
March 29, 2013 at 10:13 PM
'It’s always the ones you love that hurt you the most...'
So true, Heads. So true.
I don't know what my feelings after watching this episode. But I know for sure there is this big sinking feeling. The one that I'm not sure if it is actually mean a good sign of drama or otherwise. But also, I don't think I feel any disappointment or resentment toward this drama. If I do, I won't go as far as trying to make sense for what I am feeling. So yeah, what was I trying to say again? Sigh. This drama.
Well I hope after the finale I will know for sure what to feel. Is it going to be hate or *gasp* love? After this last minute twist, I won't be surprise if I still can't tell what my feeling is next Wednesday.
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Eli
March 29, 2013 at 10:21 PM
Forgot to thank you Heads for still recapping this drama eventhough you seems losing interest in this drama way back weeks ago. Thanks, Heads! I really appreciate it.
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19 Mar
March 29, 2013 at 10:19 PM
Why the hell did she cut her wrist???
It shows how indifferent she is from young in the first episode, she still want to die
Even if Soo is not around, or even if she's being lied by everyone, didn't she say she could endure everything.
Wang lied to her since she's 6, what's the point here, is she that weak and vulnerable, it just doesn't suit the image she tries so hard to build.
I really didn't see it coming.
Moochul story is just so sad, he lives in anger, when he starts to learn something from Soo, the stomach cancer already makes him put one foot in the grave.
I hope he survives, starts everything anew, hopefully he could be the old Hyung Oh Soo and Jin Sung used to spend time together with.
The writer better has something good for the ending or else i will hate this show, i have loved this since the 1st episode, please don't make me hate this just because of the crappy ending
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kaye
March 29, 2013 at 11:10 PM
I think having cold feet about the operation maybe one of her reasons? And the fact that she'll be on the operating table and no one is there for her? Realization that the ones she sent away were actually useful and sincerely love her (it's the regret she felt) and while she wants to prove that she can live alone without them, she realized that she indeed needs OS and Wang? Her inner conflict ate her up and it's at its peak. Suicide is a no-no to do but a lot of people who are caught up in those situations ended up like that. While I don't condone suicide, I totally understand their behavior.
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20 Cary
March 29, 2013 at 10:20 PM
Thank you, HeadsNo2! I understand the feeling of being so emotionally invested and hoping the best for the story and characters, and it gives you this. On some level, I also felt that. I'm not really a fan of Melos, it's like they would do all that it takes for the audience's tears, including the most unrealistic and absurd plot devices that would make you say, okay I get it, thats enough. And so based on my experience, this show is actually one of the good ones, still, just because beneath the bad ones, the tragedy, and the conscious desire to hurt you in the most painful way possible, I still sympathize with the characters and hope for a good way to end this. Maybe something in the acting, the chemistry, or somewhere in the writing that makes this one so special.
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21 lau18em
March 29, 2013 at 10:24 PM
Thanks for the recap!
Though I do agree that her committing suicide was leaning towards to rage quit option, then I think for this drama you literally have to analyze almost everything that a character does from a non-talking perspective. Especially at the techniques which the director uses to add that extra layer of understand in each scene.
Like for instance when Young tells everyone to leave, then there are moments when each character leaves where her smile disappears & she looks every so lonely. If you compare this character trait of hers now who actually CARES about being alone unlike in the beginning of the drama where she literally did not give a shit for anyone else, then you can begin to reason why she went over that ledge. The people she finally began to trust and love not only betrayed her, (which in my opinion, she already forgave as seen in her expressions during her monologue to Soo), but the fact that they chose to leave her out of their own free will even after everything they've done & thus leave her all alone again, is what drove her over the edge. I think loneliness is what she's now scared of more than anything else, and the fact that Soo who she for the first time loves is the one who left her is the icing on the cake. You could also speculate if she knew that Soo would die if he didn't accept the money (which layer Jang informed her of), making her will not to live without him even stronger.
I mean, loneliness is a scary thought in my opinion. Especially when you are blind since your sources of familiar smells & sounds of the familiar people are gone aswell. That coupled up with depression, which really never goes away, can close someone off & make them turn to the only option familiar to them.
So yes whilst I do agree that I was disappointed with Young going back to her suicidal days, then I do emphasize with her & understand her. I just hope that the last episode will not have too many unhappy feels. I swear, it feels like were only on episode 8 of this drama, I DONT WANT IT TO END. D:
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22 Hannah
March 29, 2013 at 10:31 PM
What about Moochul?! Just when you discover that he's a good guy to Jinsung and Oh Soo... somebody stabs him and dies!! What?!! I don't even get a good explanation why and how he's been protecting Jinsung and Oh Soo.
And yes, as much as I love this show, I don't really like why we're back to Young being suicidal. Weh? Weh? Weh? To get our cliffhanger and wonder what will happen at Ep16? Throughout this series, I always look forward to the next eps because of the last scenes being a cliffhanger. But now, I just don't care anymore.
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23 KDaddict
March 29, 2013 at 10:40 PM
This show is a feast for the eyes, and that's abt it.
For the 1st few eps, I was bedazzled, n wanted to get to know the chars. Then it meandered, or rather went back n forth w Young's death wish n Wang's motivation. Why does JS love his hyung so much? Why does HS have a change of heart, n switched her affections fr OS to JS all of a sudden? Did OY or did she not know that OS wasn't her blood bro? No answers. It really tested my patience. The only char that makes sense is OS, but I can't watch a show just for 1 char. I quit several eps ago.
When all is said n done, it is a rather vacuous show. It never hooked me. I'm just glad it is only 16 eps n is almost over now.
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anotheraddict
March 29, 2013 at 11:43 PM
I agree: it's vacuous. The good thing about being emotionally detached from the drama at this point is that no matter whatever supposedly tragic demise the characters may meet, it won't upset me too much. What does upset me is the tragic demise of NHK's writing in this drama.
Great recap (as usual)~ thanks!
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kaye
March 30, 2013 at 12:20 AM
I'll try to answer your questions from my POV and from what I've seen/understand so here it goes:
1. JS love his hyung because he treats OS as his family. He said it himself I think in episode 13.
2. HS never treated OS as her romantic love and it will be complicated cause OS was her sister's love and for her it will be a betrayal to his sister if OS love another woman. She just said she has a crush on him. It's ambiguous but I think she developed her feelings with JS because they are always together (?).
3. In the cabin at episode 13, Young said that when her heart flutters because of Soo, she should have known, she should have listened to her suspicions/instincts but she didn't listen, she badly needs someone to trust.
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KDaddict
March 30, 2013 at 12:43 AM
Thx for answering. But:
1. JS is willing to Die for his hyung. Surely that is Not sth that pseudo bros do for each other. V V few ppl are willing to die for a family member, much less one that they TREAT as family. So that doesn't convince me in the least.
2. HS never treated OS as her romantic love, u say. I beg to differ. For the 1st however many eps, we saw her being jealous, possessive of OS, n she even admitted to him that she loved him. A show shouldn't spend that much time on a char's emotion, n then just throw a switch n turn it off. That kind of writing is jarring.
3. There were so many clues for OY that this OS wasn't her blood bro. I thought she should have known On Some Level. Hence her craving skinship w him didn't creep me out. Then she flipped out on the discovery that he indeed wasn't her bro. WTF is all I can say at this point!
Throw up hands n go sink face into a Hoikkaido white cheese cake!
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kaye
March 30, 2013 at 2:23 AM
Truthfully, after this episode, I'm not confused on the way the characters behave. I just feel that those questions of yours we're already answered in the past episodes. We may differ on how we look at this show and I respect that. HS clinging to OS is like clinging to her sister's memories, it's like he is one thing that her sister left in this world. She is jealous because she doesn't want OS to love another girl for it is a betrayal in her sister's memories (he forgot the death anniv of her sister). I remember a scene when he saw OS crying and comforting OY in a hospital bed, she felt no anger and she said it's weird. For JS-HS, i alrdy said that it is ambiguous, but I just look at it that she develop feelings for him since they are always together and she saw good points of JS. For OY, she said it that she had suspicions but her wanting to trust someone blinded her to see that OS is a fake one. I thought it was explained well. We, as viewers are led to different conclusions. Sorry if this post was long.
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KDaddict
March 30, 2013 at 4:49 AM
I'm not confused. I'm Not convinced. There is a difference. Just bcos a char says sth in an ep, that doesn't mean it is a (good enough) explanation; it certainly doesn't make it convincing. If you thought sth was explained well, the show works for you.
haha
March 30, 2013 at 1:49 AM
First, Thank you HeadsNO2! You said everything what I felt, so I feel better…
Second, Thank you @KDaddict! I'm glad to find someone who felt same as me.
TBH, I never understood why people were so excited with this drama. I mean…it's OK, but there were so many why? why? why? left. I didn't like Young's character from beginning. I couldn't understand Wang, Jin-sung and Hee-sun well (if I may say, I actually don't understand the meaning of existence Hee-sun's character neither). I was watching only for Soo and Moo-Chul, but then…….WHAT WAS THAT! There were a lot of nonsenses in this episode, but I really couldn't stand the scene which Soo drink with Hee-sun! OMG, why he cry like a sissy boy all of sudden? and sorry to say….but JIS was way overacting in that scene and I couldn't concentrate storyline anymore*sigh*
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kaye
March 30, 2013 at 2:02 AM
We may be of different view but I thought JIS nailed that scene. He was trying to hold his emotions for a long time since episode 13 and here he is with HS finally removing his mask. That scene may be uncomfortable to others but that just showed his vulnerability. I may be cynical at JIS at first when I begin to watch this show and I don't see him as attractive, but he is doing an amazing job in this show. Without him, I think this show will be hard to watch.
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haha
March 30, 2013 at 2:41 AM
I know. As I mentioned, he was the only reason I was watching this show, and indeed he was doing great job so far...that's why I was extra disappointed with this scene. I do understand he needed to show his emotions, and it's OK if he needed to cry...but why that way? why front of HS? That doesn't make sense to me. If the writer wanted to make the scene more meaningful, then at least she should have spend more time for side characters iso stretching the story with making all pretty scenes with OS/OY...
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kaye
March 30, 2013 at 2:54 AM
There are hints in the past episodes especially the first ones that only Heesun can read him like a book. She is very observant in OS' feelings and she is straightforward enough to castigate him. If another actress played Heesun, maybe this will be clear enough. So for me, Heesun is the only person where he can fully show his emotions. His acting there was perfect for me, only that the director make it longer. I'm not a crybaby, but that scene made me teary eyed.
kaye
March 30, 2013 at 3:01 AM
I didn't answer your question why that way? He's releasing all the hidden emotions (anger at himself, love for OY, and guilt). He suppressed it for quite some time and this time, he can't hold it back anymore.
KDaddict
March 30, 2013 at 4:45 AM
I think that JIS's acting is moving in some scenes, but I also find him Overacting in some other scenes.
Many, maybe even the majority of folks, aren't crazy abt this show on this site. But it seems to solicit strong reactions from those who love it.
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24 coily
March 29, 2013 at 10:44 PM
I think HeadsNo2 got the character right.. You describe Oh Young well ^^ Someone we cant understand..
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BlueCurtain
March 29, 2013 at 11:05 PM
Yeah, if it wasn't for HeadsNo2, Oh Young's character would've been confusing..
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25 Ben
March 29, 2013 at 11:44 PM
That suicide scene, i couldn't get it off my head. and reading the rants makes my heart aching cus of how much i'm hooked with the show and i was going to mark this as one of my favorite kdramas and i intended to share with my friends how great this drama is.
but unfortunately in the end it disappoint and hurt me so much that i doubt that i still continue or not. but my curiousity won me over i think.
and our discussion here keeps me distracted to look more for others' opinions, to try to understand many different perspectives, whether i should agree or disagree abt youngie's attempt.
In the previous eps, when youngie is willing to live and stop being suicidal, then decided to forgive soo for conning her, makes her character even more likable to me than before, until that suicide SCENE.
i read each of your comments, and i try to stand on youngie's shoes. yes, she's blind, she's lonely, she doesn't know who should she trust or spending days together. she's still burdened by how the only man he can depend on and completely trust as the only family she had betrays her. she's trapped in the dark, she can't see, she always need someone to care for her, and if i imagine myself blind, orphan, and sick, maybe i would be suicidal too.
and when she decided earlier that she wanted to live by writing it on the snow it's because she wants to make her 'oppa' happy and continue to live happily with him until she finds out the con.
then when we view this suicide as the 3rd person, we'd say that she's too selfish that she doesn't care and think about people around her who struggles to make her live and happy that with the suicide makes the others esp soo, jang, mira and wang feel guilty and it won't cure for a long long time.
the conflicts here are too complex to understand so if i continue i might write a thesis haha. i'm still expecting this drama can cure my disappointment in the last episode. that last episode has to be a 'masterpiece' to make it up. please writer Noh, don't let me loathe you :)
and many many thanks for the recaps, heads. i admire your effort to keep us updated :D
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26 kim jong in
March 30, 2013 at 12:10 AM
o come...........on ..............finally...........................the.......................girl.........who.is so willing to die has been succed in her intention ......................truly what about dear soo.........................dude .............i really don,t understand young...................................
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27 kimchiradish
March 30, 2013 at 12:12 AM
To be honest, this drama is so disappointing. LIKE WTF, YOUNG?! Whatever.... Ugh.
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28 vennythung
March 30, 2013 at 12:33 AM
Our question, also asked by Soo on the last scene of this episode ... "In this empty world, could I not become your last reason to live?"...sadly Young decided can't..huh...
However disapponting will the ending be, but must admitted, I enjoyed JIS' acting.
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29 newgirl
March 30, 2013 at 12:54 AM
For entertainment, TWTWB is hard to take. But now that I've seen this episode, I think I understand better what the writer was trying to do in the last one.
This show has really turned into a very realistic (for K-drama land), and obviously well-researched, depiction of a suicidal woman. The will of both Oh Soo and Moo Chul to live, no matter how horrible their lives are, is in direct counterpoint to her wish to die. For me the redeeming scenes in this episode were both Oh Soo (the cynic who tries to love and hope) and Moo Chul (the nihilist) talking to Hee Sun (the pragmatist) about what is meaningful in their lives, and why they continue to live. I think a better actress could have made a better foil for those two, and we would have felt the connection and similarities between OS and MC more strongly. And finally you have Jin Sung (the romantic - interestingly, not a woman in this drama.)The great actors portraying OS and MC have really made this show for me.
I find it interesting that a lot of people wanted to post their opinion on the "forced kiss" scene, and had very strong feelings about it, yet few want to discuss suicide, except to say that this scene makes them angry, disgusted and feel misled. (The topic is even more uncomfortable when the death is an "ignoble" one, as opposed to a societally approved "noble" one such as the suicide of the policeman to save Iljimae's life in "The Return of Iljimae"). Perhaps the writer intended for the audience to experience these feelings of anger, just as they are commonly felt by those who have actually lost a loved one to suicide. (These are not the only feelings of course, but anger and a sense of betrayal are some of them.)
In Oh Young we can see a number of common factors seen in many who attempt or commit suicide in the real world:
Some risk factors for suicide:
emotional trauma, history of being neglected, death of a loved one (her real brother), serious physical illness. Check, check, check and check for Young.
Feelings associated with suicide risk:
feeling like a burden, feeling ashamed, feelings of rejection, loss or loneliness.
Check, check, and check.
Symptoms of impending suicide:
Giving away belongings, talking about going away, getting ones affairs in order, lack of affect in expression (like all of Young in episode 14 and 15, except when she is trying to deceive those who care for her!), calmness after an anxious period, and prior self-destructive behavior.
All of the above - Big Checks.
Knowing these facts about suicide, and having experienced it among my own family members I wasn't at all surprised by the end of this episode, (though I really didn't want to see it). And I hope that this drama will perhaps open the door in Korea and wherever else TWTWB is seen, to openly discuss the disease of suicide and its' effect on those left behind. I don't know if the writer actually intended this, but I'd like to think so.
The question TWTWB asks is this: In this world of rampant cruelty, why do some people react like Moo Chul, some like Oh Soo, some like Oh Young, some like Hee Sun, and some like Jin Sung? And are any one better than the other?
I'll be watching the last episode to see where it goes with this.
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kaye
March 30, 2013 at 1:38 AM
Thank you for sharing these thoughts and I totally agree with you. This show is like studying the human psyche and this is why I love this show. It makes you think about their motivations, you may agree/disagree with their actions but it's the ugly truth of human behavior.
We look at things superficially and the inner motives of this show was always overlooked.
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skelly
March 30, 2013 at 6:52 AM
newgirl, really excellent analysis; thank you
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BluPerry
March 31, 2013 at 12:32 AM
@newgirl, your analysis is excellent and thank you for sharing your thoughts.
This drama is very realistic. I think NHK has succeeded in creating a roller-coaster emotional rides for the viewers. Even those who do not like it is reacting to it emotionally. I'll be watching the final episode with an open-mind.
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30 bry
March 30, 2013 at 12:56 AM
Do you think that Moo-Chul's death (if he died) will be pinned on Oh Soo? He has his car and it could look like Oh Soo stabbed him and drove away with it.
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31 Sheesh
March 30, 2013 at 1:22 AM
Young has always been suicidal.. Viewers really hate the idea of suicides aye? Ppl think whatever the situation or circumstance may be, suicide is never a justifiable option. You all hate it so much in reality and on screen. But suicide happens. NHK trying to make you all feel how its like to have someone whom you thought would be okay suddenly change 360 degrees. She made you all frustrated, clueless and wanting answers but you dont get it because the person already died or in this case you have to wait a week more for all the answers. I think NHK suceeded.
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queenofcam
March 30, 2013 at 10:05 AM
You know what? What you said really made a lot of sense. I just realized now when I saw that Soo said "In this ugly world, am I not enough reason for you to live?". Noh is smart.... she made it quiet obvious by having Soo narrate that tragically, Soo was not enough reason for Young to live. Noh dove into this drama for one reason only: to paint the desperation in her characters. Although I really, really didn't want Young to be the kind of character that would resort to suicide... I wanted her to be like most other k-drama heroines to some extent....loyal, unselfish, have a sense of self-worth. But I should've known from the beginning that Young was not meant to be that kind of character. She's carved out to be dark, mentally unstable, and traumatized. Very similar to Soo, except Soo grew up with a foster family, brothers, and a girl who loved and cared for him. Whereas in Young's case, she couldn't even trust the people around her, because she couldn't see.
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Sylbis
March 30, 2013 at 1:01 PM
Exactly! Survival is deeply embedded into our genome. Having the desire to attempt suicide and to actually commit it is a serious imbalance in the brain. Just because Young has made great leaps over such damning tribulations, it does not mean it should have made her into a stronger character, capable of overcoming the urge to end her own life. It seems like just because she displayed a will to live, it voided her claim to death, which is not the case. What she really needed was professional help, and obviously, Soo was not enough for her to continue on. Depression and suicide is difficult to understand when we are just spectators looking from the outside. Of course suicide seems selfish to us but to the the person affected, it makes perfect sense.
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32 thay
March 30, 2013 at 1:42 AM
Actually,I really disappointed with the suicide thing..and I begin to hate Young character,why she never care about the other's felling especially Oh Soo?she will give the biggest scar to him if she die that way..I hate the character,really..#sigh
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33 sunny
March 30, 2013 at 1:54 AM
i think OY want attempted suicide to take revenge to everyone who lies to her and make they guilty for her died she isnt so forgiving like we think...
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34 viaww
March 30, 2013 at 2:25 AM
I just think about it.. this drama have beauty actor and actress,, even the angle of view,,, cool
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35 ksyj2009
March 30, 2013 at 4:56 AM
Young can see...Haha! She entered Soo's room and switched the light on! :D
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36 Lilian
March 30, 2013 at 5:22 AM
I personally preferred this episode to the previous one. At least something happened! And , I did feel for the Moochul. About him being a breadwinner since 16...and I totally loved the conversation he had with HeeSun...So much more could have been explored from this side plots...argh! wasted!
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37 hyunjee
March 30, 2013 at 5:51 AM
"having a character with a death wish and an extremely good poker face is surprisingly the antithesis of entertainment."
I think this is the reason I've become disconnected from this show. I can't understand OY and I actually kind of dislike her intensely at this point. Not because of the suicide or anything (though I do think a genuine suicide attempt (vs. cry for help) involves cutting more than just one wrist), but because of how VAPID and VACUOUS her expressions are. I know it's supposed to be because she's blind, but she just comes off like a cardboard cutout. Yeah, SHK can cry on cue and look pretty but there is so much of her just standing around looking BLANK. It's hard to care.
JIS probably hams it up from time to time to compensate for her lack of presence.
And I thought Eunji was the cutest in Reply 1997. She should have just stopped there. She can't act, she screeches, and her character is really annoying.
Thanks for continuing to recap this - can't be easy.
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laura
March 30, 2013 at 7:20 AM
have a deep breath!!!! it's just a drama and nothing is real here. also don't be jealous of her beauty and the ability to act beautifully. let the jealousy blows out of your little mind
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KDaddict
March 31, 2013 at 6:35 AM
37.1 is the worst comment on this ep. I thought ppl don't do this on Dramabeans.
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skelly
March 30, 2013 at 7:30 AM
I can't understand why Eunji is getting so much praise, unless it is because idols are held to a much lower standard. She's totally one-note, and it even shows in the screen shots up above - she's got exactly the same expression on her face, whether JIS is having a breakdown in front of her or Kim Bum is kissing her cheek.
I can understand SHK's blank face - not only is she blind, but she has spent years hiding her emotions from those around her and only revealing her true emotional self to a video camera. Eun-ji's character could have been a good counterpoint, but instead she has the same snarky, disbelieving stare on all the time. It is really discordant with the acting put out by the male characters.
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hyunjee
March 30, 2013 at 10:20 AM
I could understand her blank face to a certain extent, for the reasons you name. But if you compare her in this ep to earlier eps, her range of blank faces was wider - more nuanced, like there was something going on under the surface at all times. This whole ep and last she really was zombie-ish, more flat. Like I said, hard to care.
JIS, on the other hand, is absolutely killing it and has been since day one.
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38 Sunshine
March 30, 2013 at 6:00 AM
ok the suicide twist just threw me off, it already sad enough with that cold expression that doesnt change and now we gotta deal with sadness/pitiful situation for the last few ep...dear heart i think it time to stop watching this show...i dont know how long i can take her unreasonable actions...
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Sylbis
March 30, 2013 at 1:21 PM
It isn't unreasonable at all if you try to understand her actions and emotions by interpreting her as a person who is suffering from depression.
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39 nakai
March 30, 2013 at 6:03 AM
This drama makes me laugh all for the wrong reasons.
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40 Melmax
March 30, 2013 at 7:41 AM
From the first few episodes we knew she's suicidal..... Thanks for the recap.....
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41 John
March 30, 2013 at 7:44 AM
Everyone needs to take a deep breath, step back and enjoy what up to this point was truly a great drama. Sure there were sub plots and episodes that seem to go no where, but when it is all said it done it comes down to was a good show? My answer is yes. Great acting and chemistry among some heavyweights in the business. Look forward to the ending and watching these great stars in hopefully many dramas in the future both good and bad.
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laura
March 30, 2013 at 8:05 AM
Totally agreed John. Very well said!!! It's truly a great drama we have not had for a long long time.
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sojuboy
March 30, 2013 at 4:22 PM
I agree, although there are some minor quips about Winter Sonata parallels, but they maybe doing that to appeal to the Japanese audience. Best so far in 2013. I can't see anyone topping this this year. I'm looking forward to all the Award Shows already.
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42 jude
March 30, 2013 at 7:47 AM
*sigh*
When I watch Young The Character, I feel like really seeing some people that I know of, who have been dealing with depression for quite some time and entertaining thoughts of suicide/self-harm. Their journey has never been easy (just like Young) and even though they have someone who loves them more than everything in this world (just like Young), their internal self is just fragile (even tho they might be using cheerful-happy-content facade. Again, just like Young). Most of the times, they are insightful because they spend a lot of times pondering about life (Just like Young who then was able to comfort Soo a couple episodes back). They might be willing to try to heal themselves but the healing process is never a one way track (Trust me, they tried. Just like what Young did in the drama. She agreed to try to live. That's one step forward. But having found out that Soo conned her for all this time, she took two steps backwards. And ended up being suicidal) It takes one simple blow -just one- to crack the self and put them over the edge. In this drama case, Soo walking away did just that.
So, I kinda applaud Writer Noh for bringing that sense of realism into her characters. For me personally, it's painful to see the suicide scene but the fact that some people feel disgusted, disappointed and view Young's behavior as unforgivable selfish actions, makes it (for me) even more real. Because that's how most normal people will react.
So this might be weird to say (am I the only one who is going to say this?): I still love this drama and Young has officially become my favourite character. Not because her character is likable, but because her character is relatable. The fact that Writer Noh keeps the suicide twist from original J-dorama makes me love the drama even more. Because she could have chosen/picked the happier path for Soo and Young - to show that Love Conquers Everything but she did not. So, yeah. (But really tho, Love Does Not Conquer Everything)
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Sylbis
March 30, 2013 at 1:15 PM
Thank you for sharing your experiences with those who have been or still going through depression! It really shows that a lot of people do not understand how depression works and how it distorts mental processes! And because of the lack of understanding, the response is...sequential.
And I agree with you that yes, love does not conquer all! It's what makes this drama so realistic to me, because often time than not, many people succumb to their thoughts of suicide, despite the out pour of love and support from those around them.
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43 Pm3
March 30, 2013 at 8:09 AM
Personally I like these 'slow' episodes that don't seem to progress. The problem I have with a lot of dramas is how in order to mov th storyline along, things happen out of the blue or seem like an over reaction to something. What these slow episodes show is how people reach their breaking points.
As for the suicide, I think it is not a plotline regression because it just showed that her time with Oh Soo didn't solve her existing problems-it just gave her an emotional anchor. Without that anchor and without her twisted support relationship with Secretary Wang, nothing was pulling her back from her depressive and suicidal impulses. Real healing from emotional issues needs to b self-driven, and not dependent on the presence or support of others, although those do facilitate the process.
I still really not watching this show. Song's acting has been particularly moving, and the show's close examination of human relationships and emotions has been refreshing.
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44 Alluna
March 30, 2013 at 12:42 PM
I have to say that I actually love this drama. You may think I'm crazy but to be honest I went through a really bad depression when I was younger and getting out of it is really hard. Young was depressed since she was 6 yrs old and found it hard to trust people since all of them only wanted to use her. I get that she was getting better throught the drama but once she found out the truth about Soo don't she think she would've broken down?? Yes it was a tid late for her breakdown cause I expected it to happen the same episode she found out but what the heck! So back to her suicide attempt! Lol!
About Moochul, well I never expected for them to have that final talk since Moochul wasn't going to tell Soo that he was dying nor his character was the kind to bow down to anyone!
Again I LOVE this drama! I would change some things yeah but there's no such thing as a perfect drama!
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45 Didi
March 30, 2013 at 2:33 PM
Who sings the girl version of "Winter Love" I really like that version.
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46 Anduril
March 30, 2013 at 3:40 PM
Thanks Heads for another thoughtful recap. And thanks fellow commenters for the discussion. The exploring of the topic makes it so much more alive.
I was shocked at the suicide twist. But upon reflection, I don't why I was so surprised. Like so many have said, suicidalness isn't something that just goes away. Even if you think you are cured for long while, events can trigger it back. Once suicide is viewed as a valid option, you can't go back to thinking of it as an impossibility. Also, she never really believed she would survive the surgery. It will be really ironic if she survives the suicide just to die in surgery.
I love this show for the simplicity and the groundedness of the characters. Even when I hate events in it, the discussions make me see the realities of the situation. So, ep 16, Please be the episode that make it, don't break it.
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47 fuwaaaaa
March 30, 2013 at 6:07 PM
Perhaps Noh Hee Kyung meant it that way. She wanted us to feel angry and exasperated at Young for attempting suicide after she’s been through so much and how everyone else has tried to keep her alive. But in the end, even though people have apparently done so much, there’s a limit to what they can do for someone who’s been feeling so much pain inside over the years. Even Oh Soo couldn’t keep her. Young is overwhelmed. We can’t try to understand her because she has so much pented up inside. Everyday. We can’t understand the worst of depressive states unless we’ve been through that ourselves. So I guess… The drama is meant to go in this direction, even if we don’t wish for it to go on the dark path. It has its realistic take on Young but still I’m hoping for a good happy ending which I believe is too much to ask for :P I don’t have any more tears because I’m expecting an ending we all don’t wish to confront but it is the one tragically written in the characters’ lives. Hoo…
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48 hanny
March 30, 2013 at 7:15 PM
"Soo just takes his car and leaves him there, with the promise that he’ll call back later. Um. Couldn’t you have just thrown him in the car with you?"
Uhh.. I really wish Soo asked MC to drive him to Young or at least took MC with him in the car.. Then, MC wont get stab hurtfully like that..
Thanks HeadsNo2 for the recap.. I love how this show turns my emoional up and down, can't complaint about that coz I'm so into the drama especially Oh Soo's character. For me this drama is the story about man name Oh Soo.
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marie
March 31, 2013 at 8:11 AM
i agree with you...this is about how a person (Oh Soo) try to turn his bad life into good life through Oh Young but there are so many why word in this episode :(
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49 Lisa Purba
March 30, 2013 at 9:40 PM
Perhaps most people didn’t see the suicide twist coming because they thought love conquers it all and after she found the truth about Soo everything will be okay because they love each other anyway. Well, it's not that easy. I have dealt with one of family members who suffered from depression and attempted to suicide. It's true as someone said here in the comment that love isn't enough for Young.
Soo or her "family members" should take her to an expert. Yes, giving her encourage to live and giving her much love is a support but it's not enough. Worst thing is to blame and be angry at Young when she's trying to take control of herself for once because she never had that control in her life.
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50 Gw
March 30, 2013 at 11:36 PM
I love this show, especially the dark side of it. Mostly, a drama just reached on the step of suicide attempt by the heroine but never really did it. But, this show is different. It is a very bold move for the writer to take it onto the next level and bring suicide as a topic in the society. It is a refreshing theme and for me it feels so realistic.
A character development doesn't always mean that a character has to be developed in positive way. OY who is being a suicidal character from the beginning and FINALLY did it in this episode, I see it as a character development. About OY and OS relationship, yes, love can forgive but love can't conquer all.
Uh oh, cant wait till next week. Dying to know how the writer wrap up a suicidal character.
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