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That Winter, The Wind Blows: Episode 16 (Final)

by HeadsNo2

There’s a light at the end of every drama tunnel, but sometimes it’s how we get there that matters more than how bright that light turns out to be. I wish I wasn’t so conflicted over this finale or the last few episodes, because I truly did love this show in the early stages, and wish that love could have carried all the way through. By no means does that make the show terrible or the journey not worth taking, but there’s that feeling of What Could Have Been, even though that feeling got tempered by all the pretty people and all the pretty cinematography.

If nothing else, this was an insanely beautiful show, well-scored and well-acted. If we add the ‘something else,’ then this was an insanely beautiful if not sometimes-frustrating exercise in understanding people who looked like people, but had some moments where they didn’t really act like people. But it’s time to let bygones be bygones and say farewell to Winter. I’ll try to remember the good times, and I’ll be sure to remember that through you, I discovered Jo In-sung.

 
FINAL EPISODE RECAP

Oooh, a twist! Turns out Moo-chul wasn’t stabbed, because he’s too legit to quit. Instead he grabs Gangster Wannabe’s knife by the blade and gives him the smack down, even going so far as to dislocate his would-be murderer’s shoulder.

Gangster Wannabe goes scurrying off with his tail between his legs just as Moo-chul collapses, spitting up blood from his stomach cancer. Jin-sung spots him while on his way to the hospital and starts to piggyback him the rest of the way, even though Moo-chul’s already got one foot in the other world as he mumbles, “Just leave me be…”

Jin-sung doesn’t give up, until he feels Moo-chul go limp on his back. Is he dead, for real this time? Jin-sung seems to think so as he stops running and starts crying, with Moo-chul’s minion nearby to share in the grief. (Dude, where were you when your boss was driving on pain killers?)

Doctor Sun-hee treats Young at home, with Lawyer Jang and her closest friends watching nervously even as Sun-hee declares that Young will be fine when she wakes up. Good to know a little wrist-slitting never hurt anybody.

Outside the room, Sun-hee tells Soo that Moo-chul died after being sick for far too long. She got the call from Jin-sung while she was on her way to treat Young.

“He lived like a dog, and died like a dog,” she laments, though she’s not willing to let Soo comfort her as she tells him that he won’t be needed at Moo-chul’s cremation.

After she’s gone, Soo lets this news sink in. Poor guy’s had better days.

Hee-sun cries at the sight of Moo-chul’s body in the morgue, while Jin-sung stays to comfort her.

Soo stays vigilant at Young’s bedside until she wakes and realizes he’s there with her. He looks relieved as he shakes his bracelet to let her know it’s him.

Lawyer Jang finds Secretary Wang in the countryside, where she watches her elderly parents from afar. She tells him that she even got to eat with her mother the night before, though they had to hide the fact from her father.

But he’s not there to hear about her family life, and instead asks her to return to Young’s side. Secretary Wang wants to know why, considering how she made Young, you know, blind.

Back with Jin-sung, we see Moo-chul’s minion helping him out in revealing Boss Man’s plan to screw him over, since the money he borrowed for the game came from the devil himself. Now he knows, and knowing is half the battle.

Young wakes up to find Soo asleep at her bedside, and as she brushes her fingers across his face she remembers his desperate plea for her to watch his video. Soo should win an award for being the worst person to put on someone’s suicide watch, since Young manages to make it up and out of the room without waking him up.

Despite the fact that she threw the keys blindly into the greenhouse shrubbery the night before, Young emerges into the secret room without a speck of dirt on her. So… is she over the suicide thing? Talk about a quick recovery time.

She finds the Braille letter Soo left her directing her to watch the video. She listens, as in it, Soo tells her what we’ve heard him say before about how his outlook on life changed when he met her. And how, for the first time, the world seemed fair.

Young’s eyes begin to fill with tears as Soo pours his heart out in the video, saying how much he wanted to tell her when he first fell in love with her and how beautiful she was, and how much her real brother loved her. “And… I want to pay for what I’ve done,” he chokes out.

Her tears finally spill over as she stops the video, even though Video Soo seemed to have more to say.

Soo nearly drops in relief when he finds Young, even as she emotionlessly tells him she’s hungry. He offers to make her the same potato soup he did on their trip, but adds, “I want to stay with you. I need you next to me. I’m going to carry you.”

Zombie Young says okay, and he carries her three steps to the kitchen.

Soo does all the talking during dinner and even after, until Young cuts him off by telling him to leave once Lawyer Jang comes back.

“I can’t forgive you,” she says. “I can’t understand how you couldn’t even make an excuse. I don’t want to admit it, but I can’t be a better person. Even if you didn’t take the money, it won’t bring everything back to the way it was.”

Soo nods, understanding even though it hurts. But then she adds that if she lives through her surgery, they’ll meet again, and finally talk out their issues. Because now just isn’t a good time?

“When that time comes, you will answer all of my questions without hiding anything. Whether you really loved me. How guilty you felt while you loved me. Whether it really hurt you as much as it hurt me when you were lying. And… where you buried my brother, or which river you spread his ashes at. You will answer all my questions honestly.” How about NOW, since you’re already asking the questions?

(Seriously though. I don’t understand why this conversation can’t happen now. Is this another instance of Drama Syndrome, where characters would rather undergo pain and irreparable harm than do something logical?)

Young gets out what she wants to say as she fights back tears, but as she speaks, Soo lets his flow freely. “When you were gone and I couldn’t see you, the hardest part was that I still missed you. I guess it wasn’t over for me either when I let you go. Even at the moment when I wanted to end it, a part of me still wanted you to run back to me. When I slit my wrist, I looked forward to you opening my door instead of feeling scared. As if I never wanted to die.”

So… let me get this straight. She didn’t really want to commit suicide, it was just a cry for attention? I can’t even.

She takes Soo’s face in her hands as she adds that she has more to tell him, but it’ll wait until after her surgery. “It’s not over between us,” she says, echoing his line from the video. Now she’s looking toward the future, to when they’ll meet again. Ah, so maybe she’s making plans for the future since she wants to have a future now.

As if to answer her request for them to be able to talk once she wakes up, Soo kisses her.

After they each pull away, Young comforts him: “Don’t cry. I love you, very much.” Soo pulls her into an embrace even as he can’t help but crying, and he repeats over and over again, “I love you. I love you.”

Later that night, Soo affixes the bell string to her wrist again. She rings it with a smile.

He’s leaving, but not before he kisses her on the forehead, eyelid, and cheek. “I hope you like me when you see me after the surgery,” he jokes lightly. Since when did they promise to remove her brain tumor and restore her sight, considering that the two are unrelated?

He’s clearly reluctant to go, and holds onto Young’s hand for as long as he can. Only when he’s out does he call Secretary Wang to ask her to return, because he’ll feel more at ease if she’s there to take care of Young.

Lawyer Jang tries to get Soo to take the money on Young’s behalf, since it would make her feel better. Soo lies(?) that he doesn’t need it anymore, all while Young stands at her open window, ringing the glass bell as he leaves.

He turns back to her with a smile, and rings the bell bracelet.

Young notices that her pre-surgery breakfast smells better than usual, only to find that Secretary Wang returned to cook it for her. As Wang recites Young’s table setting like the old days, Young’s eyes brim with tears. She’s happy to have Wang back.

And the good times keep going as Soo helps Jin-sung and his family pack for their move to the countryside. Hee-sun looks like she’ll be joining them.

Young finally prepares for surgery, as she tells Sun-hee that she’s prepared for any eventuality – though it would be nice to live through the surgery. “I think I was really happy while I was alive,” Young remarks, which doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense.

Sun-hee, after a dose of Newfound Optimism, smiles as she claims that Young’s chances are over 50% with that kind of preparedness.

Secretary Wang and Young have a heart to heart as Wang tells her that even after the surgery, Young won’t be able to live alone – not because she’s handicapped, but because no one can do anything alone. (She’s implying that people need people, and that they need each other.)

She doesn’t want blindness to haunt Young any longer and cries that she’s sorry, which I’m guessing is finally an apology for causing her blindness in the first place. Young not only forgives her, but understands that Wang loved her all this time and just couldn’t express it properly.

Hee-sun sees Soo off for his big gamble, after which he plans to go to the hospital to see Young. He tightens the bell bracelet on his wrist in preparation, since it’s his life on the line.

Jin-sung is the one to actually drop Soo off, but methinks that Soo is unaware of Jin-sung’s involvement. At least Moo-chul’s minion seems to have Jin-sung’s back.

Boss Man is hosting the game, and announces the grand prize – seven million dollars. (Just enough to pay Soo’s debt.) And with that, all the players get gambling, while Young spends a restless night at the hospital window with the winter wind blowing.

Soo is on a timeline to make it back to the hospital, and he can’t help but think of Young’s promise of all the things she plans to tell him in the future.

Jin-sung arrives in the meantime so Boss Man can declare him Soo’s gambling partner, and all of Soo’s huffing and puffing can’t reverse the situation now. They’re in it to win it – or else.

The game amps up as Jin-sung’s family loads the truck to move… though they’re being watched by a shady-lookin’ dude. But it could be Minion’s shady-lookin’ dude guarding them, which means it’s a good thing. If not, it’s a bad thing.

Soo makes Jin-sung and Boss Man nervous when he keeps folding, but Soo reveals his tactic during a time out – he wanted to come this close to losing so Boss Man would have no option but to buy in. Because a dead Soo won’t give him any money, Boss Man has no choice but to try and win the pot to save himself from bankruptcy.

Which means Soo can play against him and take all he has left. Good play, Soo. Good play.

In an even better play orchestrated by Jin-sung, Minion comes to the rescue as he and his men take over Boss Man’s CCTV room so that they can keep watch over the game, ensuring that Boss Man can’t cheat his way out AND to assure Jin-sung and Soo’s safe escape if they win. If not, they’ll call the cops.

In the meantime, Young gets wheeled in for surgery. Soo keeps an eye on his watch, knowing time is of the essence.

Things aren’t looking good for Soo in the game, as Boss Man starts laughing as he turns over his cards. But in true drama fashion, we know Soo’s cards must be the winning ones, and Jin-sung knows as well since Soo just leaves him there.

Boss Man turns over Soo’s cards, revealing that Soo did have a flush, and thus the winning hand. Since everyone went all in, he won the game, and all of Boss Man’s money.

Soo calls Mi-ra to say he’s on his way, but still, shouldn’t he stay to make sure Jin-sung gets out of there? Didn’t things turn out badly the last time he left someone for Young?

Jin-sung tells Boss Man that all the winnings are his in order to pay Soo’s debt, but Boss Man has another plan – he knows where Jin-sung’s family is, which is already a threat in and of itself. DUDE. You got your money, what’s wrong with you?

A call to Hee-sun affirms that Boss Man isn’t lying, and Jin-sung looks devastated as the mean old geezer slides him a knife. Jin-sung, WHY did you hang up on Hee-sun?! WHY WOULD ANYONE DO THAT.

Meanwhile, Hee-sun sees a big truck headed their way on an empty street and warns Jin-sung’s father, but he can only look in shock as the truck keeps barreling toward them. We don’t hear or see it, but the look on Jin-sung’s face seems to tell us that the truck plowed into his family’s car.

I’m not sure where Soo is (Dramatic Rooftop?), but he stays on the phone with Mi-ra to get updates on Young’s surgery.

And when he turns around… he gets stabbed. Sigh. Even though I love Soo, the constant surprise-knifing is becoming its own parody at this point. Can’t we get some blunt force trauma up in here to change things up?

Soo falls to the ground with his hand holding his bleeding gut. He struggles to his knees as we pan to the shoes of the man who stabbed him, the trembling man holding the knife, and up…

It’s Jin-sung. We knew it would be, but it hurts to see the crazed look in Jin-sung’s eyes as Soo hauls himself up to eye level. Jin-sung readies to stab his best friend again, but he can’t bring himself to do it and drops the knife.

Soo holds Jin-sung’s face for as long as he can, and the two stare wordlessly at each other until Soo can’t hold himself up any longer. Jin-sung falls to his knees beside his hyung.

“Jin-sung… Why?” Soo ekes out, but his next words go to Young: “Wait for me.” Then he struggles to get up in order to go to her, though he can barely stand.

Jin-sung just kneels there, shaking and sobbing.

Soo drags his feet, futilely trying to make it to the hospital as blood streams from his wound and tears stream from his face. Eventually he collapses as the bell bracelet chimes, beginning to spasm in his death throes.

One year later. Spring.

We find Lawyer Jang, Secretary Wang, and even Myung-ho with Young and the kids from the visually-impaired center on an outing, where all the guardians have to wear blindfolds in order to experience a day in the life of the blind.

Young has a surprisingly full head of long hair a year after brain surgery, and everyone seems to be having a good time.

However, when she speaks to one of the kids next to her she reaches out to hold his hand… and seems to look him in the face when she speaks. Can she see?

As she takes a taxi home, she opens the window to feel the wind. There’s new focus to her eyes – she can definitely see.

The focus is oddly blurry as she gets out of the taxi, and the sound of Soo’s bell charm reaches her ears as a man wearing it passes her on a bicycle. Is this a dream? Why is everything so blurry?

The man with the bracelet stops ahead of her, but doesn’t turn back. He continues on, and Young smiles.

Hee-sun’s alive and living in the countryside with Jin-sung, and Jin-sung effectively scares away a possible suitor by telling him that he’s already slept with Hee-sun. Aka, back off.

Hee-sun mentions that they’re going to see Soo tomorrow, but it doesn’t seem like they’re seeing him alive when they talk about what flowers to take. They eventually decide on lamb’s ear, because that was the plant special to him and Young.

Young goes to a cafe to wait, and we see Soo’s tree painting hanging on the wall, completed. Instead of looking so desolate, it’s now been painted with blooming flowers on the branches.

At the cafe, Young is served tea by a waiter wearing Soo’s bell bracelet. “The weather’s nice today, isn’t it?” she asks, and the man clearly responds with Soo’s voice even though his figure remains blurred.

Not Soo asks her if she can’t see, and she responds by asking if he’s ever met a blind person. He has, because he loved a girl who was blind.

“Isn’t it hard when you can’t look into the eyes of someone you love?” Young asks.

“No, it wasn’t ever hard,” Blurry Figure responds. “I always felt as if she was always looking at me with all her body and heart. Can you see nothing at all?”

“No,” she responds, and we see through Young’s eyes – first it’s a blur of color, then light.

Then… the shape of a man starts to form. Soo. She can see him, even if the picture isn’t too clear, and smiles brightly. “I can see just enough to see that you’re very good looking,” she adds.

Now the shot focuses, and we see that it’s definitely Soo dressed as a waiter. But through her eyes, the focus is still so-so.

“How long have you known?” Soo asks.

Young says that she’s known his whereabouts for twenty days, since Secretary Wang waited to tell her until she finished her chemotherapy. Apparently she’s been a regular at his restaurant and picked up on the sound of his bracelet, and though he’d always bring her tea he never showed his face to her.

According to Secretary Wang, Soo started there six months ago. He’d told Wang not to tell Young.

“I waited for you for a long time,” Young says. “I waited until you would talk to me.”

“I couldn’t bring myself to do it,” Soo says with a sheepish smile. “I thought that you may not like me when you see me.” When Young scoffs at this, he asks, “Does that mean you like me?”

A tiny moment passes before he asks if they can see each other again. Young gives a coy smile, causing them both to break out in grins before Soo takes her face in his hands and kisses her.

…And then the scene changes, so that they’re suddenly kissing on on the same path where Young just walked, with Soo wearing the clothes she saw on him when he passed her on the bike.

Cherry blossom petals rain down as they kiss in soft-focus surroundings.

And when Soo pulls back, they both look into each other’s eyes, smiling.

 
COMMENTS

So for a hot second there, I thought that the ending sequence was a dream, in part because of the blurriness of it all and the inherent implausibility of… well, everything. I decided not to count Young’s full head of hair as part of the equation since I considered it a vanity issue, despite the fact that brain surgery and long-term chemotherapy should produce some visible, physical effects. But then I’d be asking for realism, and that is not what this show was selling.

I’m going to backtrack a bit to the attempted suicide, frankly because it still doesn’t make any godforsaken sense on my end. I was waiting to see if the aftermath changed how I felt about the whole ordeal, since there was a chance for the show to treat the attempt in a thoughtful and meaningful way. I wanted to see if, just maybe, the idea was to have Young hit such a low that she reached a moment of pivotal self-realization in order to decide that she wanted to live after all, in a change we could see and understand.

If anything, the aftermath made the attempt seem like a cry for attention at best, and a test of Soo’s loyalty at worst. Really, there are other ways to say you miss someone. I don’t buy that this show was making a statement about clinical depression through Young, but I do buy that she had Drama Depression, with all its requisite symptoms of plot convenience.

In the end, the suicide attempt didn’t even put her out for a night, and she was completely fine by morning. She re-thought all her previous decisions from the night before and decided to watch the video Soo so wanted her to see, which told her nothing she didn’t already realize internally. Sans a passing mention of the attempt in a confusing conversation where she simultaneously told Soo that she couldn’t forgive him yet she still loved him and wanted to be with him, I failed to see the step between “I want to die” and “I want to try living because now I’m extra sure you love me.” His love couldn’t cure her desire to die just one night earlier, but then by the morning after, his love cures all? When his love hadn’t changed one bit, giving her no other assurance than that he’d save her from herself if she slit her wrists?

That’s where Young fails as a character, even though earlier episodes showed her growing and changing from the cold and prickly person she once was, which was mostly due to Secretary Wang’s heavy hand in keeping her in a child-like state, into a woman who realized that the world wasn’t always out to get her. (Wang’s actions to put her in that initial state got a pass from the magical script fairy too, since the drama made sense of her behavior toward Young the way an abusive person justifies their actions: “I hurt you because I love you!” And that’s somehow okay, enough for everyone to realize that they were sooo wrong about Wang, and that she was really the best caretaker Young could ask for? No thanks.)

Young’s self-realizations weren’t dependent on her as an individual, and her decision to live didn’t come from a place of autonomous empowerment or anything befitting the idea of character growth, because her change in tempo was dependent on Soo’s reactions. But fine, let’s say I’ll buy that love cures all, and that she just needed to know that Soo cared. Then that means she’s still the same old Young, still capable of putting those around her through unspeakable misery because she can’t see past herself and her feelings. She’s had it rough, but so did Soo. Who, out of the two of them, showed more human compassion?

I guess I can’t begrudge a character for not being selfless, so I’ll boil it down simply: No matter her deep-seated issues, Young didn’t make for an enjoyable heroine. There was a time when I liked watching her because I expected things to change, and when they didn’t, I couldn’t understand why we would be expected to be on her journey no matter how much I wanted to be. (Seriously! Why wouldn’t I want to love her when I started out that way?) We shouldn’t have to go through what a character is feeling in order to understand them – if that were the case, how could I understand the plight of second generation chaebol princes or cross-dressing nuns joining an idol group if I’ve never been in those shoes? We have to understand where a character is coming from and why on a basic human level, regardless of circumstance. And if somehow the show fails to root a character’s emotions and reactions in some form of universal logic, then in the words of Cool Hand Luke, “What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate.”

That problem didn’t exist as much with Soo, though these past few episodes didn’t do him a ton of favors. I’m glad he grew as a person, but since when did Growth = Passivity? I missed the Soo who’d scold Young in front of a mall crowd for not accepting help, or the one who’d return a punch thrown at him. I understand why he wouldn’t take Young’s freely-offered money, but it made the entire con seem moot when he could have done this sort of one-gamble-to-rule-them-all from the beginning anyway. Even then it wouldn’t matter, since Boss Man wanted him dead, but why? Really, why?

I won’t even get into how robbed I felt of FINALLY seeing Jin-sung break away from his astounding sense of loyalty, because it would have been an amazing character moment to see exactly how the wheels turned in his head when he chose his family over his best friend. (I’m guessing the car crash was a vision of what would happen if Jin-sung disobeyed Boss Man, otherwise there would be no reason to obey if his family had already been taken from him.) Instead we only saw the aftermath in order to preserve the cheap surprise of finding out that Jin-sung’s hand was the one holding the knife, but was anyone truly surprised? And even if you were, wouldn’t it have been cooler to see that moment of decision instead?

As for the actual epilogue to all this coordinated madness, I found the actual stabbing inconsequential and the final scenes bizarre. It’s no surprise that Soo lived, since every character in this show (aside from poor Moo-chul), displayed a knack for healing without a scratch. But time skips are not a panacea, and it’s a universal truth I really wish dramaland would accept, especially when the end result isn’t anything we couldn’t have reached without it. Sure, we can theorize that Soo’s stabbing somehow put the kibosh on his burning desire to be there for Young during her surgery and chemotherapy, because it’s totally fine to let a suicidal person depending on you assume you’re dead. We can theorize that he had to heal and hide for a bit from Boss Man, and that he was fine as long as he could keep a distant eye on Young. Or that he was dead and the ending was a dream.

Instead of theorizing, there’s another option, in that the obligatory happy ending could have just made sense without requiring leaps in logic. I know what you’re saying: “Heads, that’s crazy talk!” Trust me, I know. But a girl can dream.

 
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Tags: featured, Jo In-sung, Kim Bum, Song Hye-gyo, That Winter the Wind Blows

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I think Young died sometime after her visit to the center with Myungho, while Soo died immediately after the stabbing. The blurriness only starts when the scene at the center is over, and we actually never see her get into the taxi - we just assume it was after her visit thanks to the editing. She seems to be wearing different clothes too, which makes me think that the two settings are unrelated. Anyways, my point is that during the scene at the center Young is alive (and still blind), but during the scenes from the taxi and onwards Young is already dead (from the chemo sideeffects or from herself, who knows).

Personally, I interpreted her conversation with Soo this way:

"Young says that she’s known his whereabouts for twenty days, since Secretary Wang waited to tell her until she finished her chemotherapy."
- She's known that Soo has been dead for 20 days.

"Apparently she’s been a regular at his restaurant and picked up on the sound of his bracelet, and though he’d always bring her tea he never showed his face to her. According to Secretary Wang, Soo started there six months ago. He’d told Wang not to tell Young."
- For the six months she was undergoing chemo, Secretary Wang probably had a waiter wear the bracelet and just told her that it was Soo so she wouldn't give up on her surgery. Given Wang's history, I don't think she would have a problem with keeping up this whole charade.

“I waited for you for a long time,” Young says. “I waited until you would talk to me.”
- The waiter never spoke to her, because the waiter was not Soo. The "I waited until you would talk to me" for me means that now that they are both dead, they can finally speak to each other.

Soo asks if they can see each other again, and then the scene switches so that they are back on the road. I found the ending scene a bit out of place, which makes me think that it's not "real" so to say.

Also, I don't buy that Soo could have lived through the stabbing. If I was President Kim, I would make sure that Soo was 100% finished after putting that much effort into seeing him off. If Jin Sung didn't finish the job, then Hee Sun wouldn't be alive. If Kim really let the both of them live...then he has to be the most incompetent mob boss ever, haha.

Anyways, regardless of the ending I still enjoyed this drama...up until the last 3 episodes. 14, 15, and the first half of 16 seemed to drag out forever, and then everything kind of got wrapped up (not really) all at once. But the cinematography was gorgeous!

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This is what I think too: All those figures (20 days, 6 months) give me a 49 Days feeling. They are here to suggest the process of mourning for the living and the "self reflection" for those who are dead. It also reminds me of the endig of Titanic when Rose dies and returns to her beloved who was waiting for her: All is even more beautiful than before, like a dream world.
Since the afterlife doesn't obey to our physical laws, it's also perfect to explain many headscratching elements. ;)

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I agree w this line of thinking. Plus Jin Sung looked so dour when Hee Sun was talking abt bringing flowers to visit Soo. If Soo had survived the stabbing, I think JS's expression would have been brighter, guilty but brighter, cos his hyung lived.
I also think that this much thinking regarding the show is more than it is worth.
I skipped the last few eps, cos by ep 12 things weren't making much sense. I tuned in during the last 15 mins just to check out the ending. I saw JS stab Soo, saw Young at the center, n the OTP at the cafe. I wanted to get excited for their reunion, but just couldn't, cos it just didn't compute. Why did they tell me that JS was ready to travel to hell w his hyung if he was to stab him? Why had that whole spiel abt Young's chances being less than 10%, n even the simulation failed if she was to survive the op? And since when is Retinal Pigmentation curable? With the removable of a malignant brain tumor + chemo? Also as many other ppl r saying: Why is Wang deliberately letting Young go blind OK? Not on the planet that I know.
I ended up turning off the TV 5 mins b4 the finale ended! Sth I've never done b4. Everything sure is pretty, but for me, 'pretty' alone doesn't a drama make.

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All your points: my thoughts exactly. I had a raging battle between my heart and my brain for the last 12 hours and reading your comment comforted my opinion: in the end, they both died.

Winter 2013 (march?)
- Oh Soo gets stabbed but Jin Sung can't finish the job. He didn't die yet.
- Young survived the surgery, but her eyes are incurable.
- Young doesn't know about Oh Soo's situation.

Spring 2013 (april?)
- Young starts chemotherapy.
- Oh Soo died (President Kim? Stabbing after-effects?).
- Jin Sung and Hee Sun bring Baby's Breath on Oh Soo's grave.
- Young and Wang doesn't know about Oh Soo's death.

Autumn 2013 (october?)
- Secretary Wang learns Oh Soo died.
- Young has 6 months of chemotherapy to go.

Spring 2014 (countryside scene + center scene)
- Jin Sung and Hee Sun talk about bringing Lamb's Ear on Oh Soo's grave. This is why I think Oh Soo died in Spring last year, not in Winter.
- Young completed chemo.
- 20 days later, Young learns from Secretary Wang that Oh Soo actually died.
- Young dies (tumor relapse, unsuccessful chemo, suicide... who knows).

Afterlife (from the taxi scene, please notice the blur style effects indicating the disconnection from reality)
- Young is partially able to see. (reality check: retinitis pigmentosa is incurable)
- Young searches for Oh Soo in this new "realm".
- Young and Oh Soo finally meets again at the restaurant.
- "Happy ending".

What do you think? XD

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Thumbs up.
It's a coded ending: If you stay at the surface, what you see is what you get. If you analyse, you find what the writer really wanted to say.

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The exact same thoughts here :)

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Great analysis ! Thanks !!!
I really dont know whether it is a happy ending or a tragic ending =.=

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great analysis :)

i prefer this drama to be end as sad ending than happy ending, so i like your analysis ^^
I prefer they get happy end in their other universe, but not in the real life (kinda like the ending of 'sang do, lets go to school', i like those ending .<

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It's true it could be the after life. The only thing is...Hee Sun.

After all that we have seen of her in the drama. I'm sorry, but I don't think she would ever, ever stay with Jin Sung knowing that he killed Oh Soo. The only plausible explanation for that would be that Jin Sung lied about his cause of death, but I don't see Jin Sung doing that either. But Soo's death would explain why she was riding on the backs of random dude's motorcycles...because she misses Oh Soo.

There is also the fact that. You can survive a stabbing, and Oh Soo probably went into some kind of shock or simply have passed out (your eyes can stay open when this happens).

And, I don't think Young's eyes are cured. The writer did her research, blurry vision, tunnel vision, & "they may be able to see things that hold in their line of sight long enough (if bright enough)..." are all in that final scene. Plus, it would explain why she still carries around her stick. But, then she (NHK) exaggerates it. Or romanticizes it up a bit for the sake of the finale. It could be that Young still can't see Oh Soo & says she does anyway, just imagining what he looks like.

So, I know some people are on this side, and others on that side. But, I'm still on the fence. I'm not sure, and I think that's OK.

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It seems awfully complicated. And they were constantly talking about Young being able to see again if she survived, so I'm not sure the reality check holds. (It might be more realistic, but it's not what the drama was telling us. And I don't depend on these sort of dramas being medically realistic if they can tweak things their way.)

Plus (and most importantly), if they both died it means Jin-sung's stabbing scene was really, really important. And I cannot accept that. ;) (Seriously though, it'd be a massive screwup if Jin-sung's scene actually determined the ending -- it was so pasted on.)

Also, the restaurant was so prosaic. They were on a break and the two people ahead of Young were turned away. Where's the deep death meaning in that? And why can Young only partially see in the afterlife? Shouldn't her sight be restored or at least steadily improving?

Finally, I feel like the flower discussion was meant as a fake-out so we'd think Soo died but then they're there on the table. If it was straight forward, why be coy?

That's my view, anyway. :)

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The writer and director kept saying that Jin Sung would play a huge, key role in the final episode - so how can be just ignore the stabbing? I still can't figure out what on earth they were talking about, if Soo isn't dead, because nothing else that Jin Sung did really had any impact.

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I guess they were saving him for the big fake-out (he's dead! wait, no he's not!) and I think it followed the J-drama to have the friend betray him in the end? (Never saw it, but I read it in comments somewhere.) But it played like such a creaky plot-point. In theory it added suspense at the eleventh hour, which is a good technical thing that keeps the pace up, but it wasn't handled well here.

Because it wasn't tied to the characters -- not really. We don't see Jin-sung wrestle with his decision or get any foreshadowing that his character will have this kind of decision to wrestle with (like repeats of him making a choice between his family and Soo, for example -- instead all the beats are between Jin-sung and Moo-chul, which does have a satisfying ending). And then we get no fall out in the end -- with either Jin-sung or Soo. The scene exists in a vacuum.

Unfortunately, this is true of both Jin-sung's and Hee-sun's characters arcs. They fall out of the story pretty much at the same point Soo decides he's not gong to con Young. Their storylines became fairly awkward afterwards. Never really fitting with what's going on around them.

So I can see that they were kept around for technical plot purposes (like Boss Kim, for that matter) but for some reason the writer wasn't able to really incorporate them into the whole story. (Unlike say, Moo-chul or Wang.)

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I posted my thoughts about it previously and I think they are dead too. I can buy that Young was alive at the center. I thought of that scene as part of her afterlife world, because it was important to her, but I can buy your theory. I do think that all four leads are dead in the end. The scene in the countryside with Jin sung and Hee sun was surreal as the scenes with Young and Soo. And the flowers on the table at the bistro, the lambs ear and whatever else it was Hee sun was talking about taking to Oh Soo point to Hee sun and Jin being in whatever dimension Soo and Young are in.

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The movie was better, IMHO

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Uhmm for the whole drama, 6 or 7 out of 10?

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Well done, well done TWTWB!!!

Just enjoy the drama and don't spend too much time dissecting the story finding twists and faults. It's merely a drama for entertainment sake. Accept TWTWB's great success and tip your hats. It's quite simple.

SKH is a gem, the older she is, the more beautiful and more acting skill she gets, just like a beautiful beautiful gem in a wild stony desert. No wonder why director Ka-Wai Wong picked her out for his master piece GrandMaster. With the Chinese population of over 1 billion people to pick from, why SKH? You guys should be proud of her.

Not only that, SKH did bring out the best in JIS, her leading man in TWTWB. In the past, I tried to watch WHIB but dropped out after 2 episodes and had no idea who JIS is. Last week, I tried to watch SD because of JIS but could not endure the leading actress. In those 2 dramas, JIS did not leave any impression about his acting in my mind but he left a beautiful image this time.

What to watch next? I don't know. I heard that SG was a good drama but I could not continue watching after seeing the blue tracksuit on HB when it aired a few years ago. I love HB in MNIKSS but he lost me in SG because of his gawky feature and because of the drama itself, the pace, the acting,....., not enough to capture my attention. HJW is pretty but she could not make me continue watching after tempting 3 times. Sorry SG's fans.

Full House and TWTWB will forever on my favorite list

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Am I missing something here or did the drama never explain WHYYYY Secretary Wang made Young go blind? She loves Young so much that she made her go blind? Riiiiiiiightt makes perfect sense.

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One of the big mysteries of the universe. ^^

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Like everyone else, Secretary Wang wanted her own reason to live and when Young started displaying symptoms and started needing Wang, that was her reason to go on. And she made it stay that way for 20+ years.

So, yeah, she's really a piece of work.

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Because the first time Young grabbed her hand and called her "ajumma" instead of "secretary Wang" was when she couldn't see in the morning. For secretary Wang to keep Young blind was the way to stay in the house and have a little girl needing her. That is a very convoluted way to possess a human being for "love."

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Yup. She was a creepy lady to me. She made me very uneasy.

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A dropped plot bunny. My take-Because she was needy sicko, and in true Korean Drama style got the big forgive by the victim.

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Thanks for recapping this drama Heads! I really appreciate your witty, insightful perspective and the various questions you've raised that provoke thought. Overall, TWTWB had many well-crafted little scenes that I'll skip to and rewatch again and again for the stunning cinematography, acting and dialogue. Certain scenes work as flawless vignettes, particularly towards the end when the sum of the parts just doesn't logically add up and derails. Winter has the most quotable dialogue I've come across in kdramas - NHK's words explore the human condition with such heart in a way that prevents them from straying into pretension, and the acting just elevates the words to another level.

TWTWB's not a perfect drama, but it did tick many of my boxes and leave with a bottle of my tears. And then some. Wherever they may be, Soo and Young deserve to be fulfilled and happy together after so much blood and tears. JIS and SHK embodied their (mostly) tragic characters perfectly and I can't wait to watch their future projects! I rarely follow kdramas live, or watch many for that matter, but watching TWTWB's been quite a lovely experience.

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Satisfied and like the ending. Though ambiguous, it left a deep mark and still love nhk. First time to be impressed at shk, but still she didn't make me cry and did not empathize at her character, i just dont know what is lacking.
On the other hand, JIS made a mark here and he surely knows how to make the audience cry with him. He may overact sometimes but he knows how to handle it well. Not a fan, but he is an interesting actor. Thanks to him because without his antics, shk will be hard to watch because of apathy to her characterization.

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You know what I like the most about this site? People bring their brains along when commenting. Go to many other drama sites and meet the most serious scattered-brains alive. For example at Soompi, everyone is celebrating the happy ending with teary eyes! and VERY rarely questioning the illogicality of the ending.

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LOL. I know what you feel: Soompi is nice for many things but it's not where you will find unbiased and critical comments. It's the kingdom of fangirling (nothing wrong with that but when they go on a mission to preach that oppa/unni is flawless and drama is perfect, it's annoying).

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Now I feel at home!

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if you guys are putting "the most scattered-brains" label on your chest and why NOT going out there to be a professional writer like NHK to earn a living as well as being recognized by people. why spending so much time here dissecting the drama which was a remake of the Jap. version. Why spending all your brain cells in this free website to create things which are not there at the first place? Use your valuable brain cells for your good causes.

It's very easy to criticize other people work than doing the task yourself. No one talked that much about the movie "Love me not" which is also a version of this drama. If you guys have spikes in your eyes because of jealousy, because of someone good work, because of your guys limitation. Keep quiet and say thank you and that is all.

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We don't have to be prof writers to give our 2 cents, lol.
NHK is a good writer and what she delivered here is basically not her work: Anyone can see that she had to do fanservice and compromise with her producers in order to give a calibrated show. The fact that it's a remake is another proof. A true fan of NHK would defend her artistic integrity and her sacred flame. She worths so much better than that.

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And yet Padam Padam, which I loved w my whole heart for half of its run, just ran out of steam in the 2nd half, and the ending was a cop out too. So, my impression of NHK as a writer is not all that favorable.

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*******Padam Padam spoiler for the ending: *********

The last scene when they are playing in the snow: It wasn't a cop out. It was a real scene of their life and we know that he is going to die very soon because of his cancer. But instead of showing the death (NHK said herself that it was her first version), she left us with a final positive message: We will all die eventually but what is important is the here and now, the precious minutes when we do the most silly and common things with the people we care for.
***End of spoiler***

No writer is perfect but I personally like how she depicts her characters, when she is free to do so (not the case here + original script material was flawed anyway). One thing I like too: She has a way of using spiritual and fantasy elements in her scripts without being preachy. There is some christianism, a bit of shamanism and pantheism, buddhist elements too.

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I think that's one weakness of NHK, the writing tends to ran out of steam in the middle and leaves the viewers cold. But for me, I don't feel it in her writing. It makes me wonder and try to rewatch what i've missed and eventually see what she's trying to point out. Maybe love is blind lol that's why I want to justify her style of writing.

For this one, I love the 15hours except the ending, as I was left wanting more. A lot of things were put in the viewer's interpretation and imagination--and as much as I love her way of treating audiences as smart, I still want to see a 100% closure and with certainty of the ending.

Overall, I still like this drama, may not topnotch her "more beautiful than a flower" but I like this more than padam padam.

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Dear, believe me; people are not divided into two categories of “the most scattered-brains” and "professional drama writers".

I have seen all three versions of this story, but seeing them or not, has nothing to do with this discussion, so I don't know what you're getting at by bringing them into this.

Are you telling me you've got no valuable brain cell and that's why you spend time in publishing comments in "free websites" like I do? Are you insulting me or yourself or both?

Pray, who did you think I was jealous of and on what basis you reached to that conclusion?

I'm sorry but I can't say thank you to everything and I recommend you not to either. If you are a fan of someone, the best way to help her/him is to criticize when needed. And if you don't see that need here, please don't jump at others who do.

Regards.

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In the previous ep's comments, she said ppl who criticized the show were jealous of SHK's beauty n had little minds.
I move away from koreandrama.org to get away from such ppl.

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well, I am trading the stock market online and only swinging by this website when the mkt is quiet. if i was a writer, i would have squeezed every of my brain cell to make a living and to produce a good story so people would enjoy. Do some thing good and constructive for others than just criticize other people good work.......

ding ding ding. market opens at 9:30 ding ding ding

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5 more min before the US mkt opens:

if I can not do any thing to help others, I do nothing but do not go around to destroy other people reputation and hard work by your little mind. it will make this website a better place.

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Answering back to your nonsense? Nah, I'll pass.

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"Keep quiet and say thank you and that is all."

Why should we keep quiet? After all this is discussion and we are just having fun talking about the drama we wasted 16 hours on watching. If you don't like what we are talking about just don't read and keep quiet.

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I prefer to think that Laura is not representative of the majority of commenters here.

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While I am one of those in this site that loves this drama, I don't find the ending illogical but rather an ambiguous one. I love the 15 episodes of this drama but I have to admit that I am not satisfied in the ending which I'm excited to look forward to since last week. While most NHK admirers were turned off because they don't seem to see it was NHK who wrote this drama, I feel that this is one of NHK's piece that I will remember in my entire life. She is a rare gem for me.

What I like in this site is that we agree to disagree. And I love to see that there are different views from mine, and it makes me question my views, for which I believe is a positive thing because that's when I was able to see the whole picture, why I love this show and understands that there are also people you don't like or hate this drama.

Oh and JIS, I'll look forward to your next project. You are an epitome of a good actor and I know you will improve more and do a better job in your next projects.

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* mean there are people who don't like this drama.

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Agreed. The ending is SUPER ambiguous. I read that the j-drama's ending is a happy one and the movie's ending in my opinion is a sad one, so it feels like she melded the two together in a ways. Like which end do you want? I would like the end that is explained to me, but I will gladly take this one because it sticks in my mind and causes me to think of everything up till there. It's happy, yet sad. Or it's sad, yet happy.

You can't really tell. And that I think is a gift in itself. To do ambiguity so well.

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i wish the writer could held a press conf and explain clearly about what exactly the ending is :/ i'm thinking many different sides of the ending, so confusing :(

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At such an imaginary press conf, if the truth is to be told, sth like this might be said:
Viewers really hate sad endings, esp. the kind where both leads die. They r v upset n we get a lot of hate mail for those endings. But for some melo stories, happy endings just don't make sense. So to compromise, we often come up w ambiguous endings. In the past few years, we've learnt that ambiguous endings get viewers thinking n talking abt the shows long after they r over, n that's not a bad thing for the shows. We deliberately put in signals of both kinds, so that both interpretations would be correct. You can call it fan service; you can also call it manipulation of mind n emotions; after all, isn't that what dramas do?

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Thank you for recapping this beautiful series, I, too, discovered Jo In sung. :)

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Also, over at Soompi, I was mostly attacked when I said I see more logic in both of them being dead than alive. I was told by one particular commenter that miracles exist!! and I'm the person who chose to ignore it and go for the sad ending and that I should let them be!!!

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Over at koreandrama.org, when there is a discussion going, somebody would say: Keep quiet, don't destroy our love, watch with humility, say thank you, if not you are a hater, or else stop watching, go away.
Seems that drama discussion is hard for some ppl to stomach, and I've never understood why.

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Wow! Someone said just that to me some minutes ago as you might have seen. I guess if it's this common (with the exact same words), we should name this. "Fan-bombed" ? Have I been fan-bombed? ;)

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fans... they are scary things.

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Some other favorite word are: "All negative vibes go away!"
They take away the fun of discussion, so they are left with comments such as: Oppa I love you. I love this drama. I want a happy ending. It's the best of 2013. Pls date her/him for real n have beautiful babies. Whole threads r like that.

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LOL

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LOL. +1

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+2! After a while it gets pointless to go there to actually discuss something.

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The ending was an epitome of disappointments. The drama started so well but now I realize how hollow it actually was. 16 episodes and nothing really happened.

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Generally speaking, 'pretty but hollow' is the least common denominator.

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So confused about the ending like a lot of people here. For one - far be it from me to figure out why Sec Wang deserves all-too-easy forgiveness at the end. I just can't see any reason when she committed such a sin to little Oh Young. You called it LOVE - are you kidding me, writer-nim? The way the drama justifies Sec Wang's actions is simply beyond me.

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and when sec wang let youngie's father die. it's SOOOO unforgive-able!

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No, the father signed a DNR (do not resuscitate) so Sec Wang can't legally 'save' him.

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I loved the show. One of the best, cutest! in the last 2-3 years. Oh Soo was awesome. It's absolutely a happy ending guys! Come on! :-) I'll miss you winter, I'll miss you dear Oh Soo. Great pictures. Thanks for the recaps.

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What an episode. Whoa. despite all the WTF moments of this drama, I thoroughly enjoyed it and I loved (most) of the characters. It was a roller coaster ride of emotions from start to finish, and I had fun. Soo remains my favorite character. I've not seen Jo In-sung in anything else, and he was amazing in this. Although I'd like to see him in a comedy, because I've had all the crying from him I can take for a while. Still, he's great.

Young. I don't get you. From the beginning I didn't get you, and now I'm just as in the dark as I was then. What the hell? That's all I can say. What. The. Hell?

Poor Moo-chul. Seriously. However, his ending is the only one that makes a lick of sense.

How can Secretary Want be forgiven by EVERYONE?! She made Young blind! Dude, seriously, Show! WTF?

And I don't get how Jin-sung could just betray his hyung, without getting a thorough explanation of what led him to that. Though, I guess love for his family finally overruled loyalty to his hyung. After all this time. I'm just gonna stop right there.

And Hee-sun, while annoying most of the series, wasn't so bad this episode.

Lawyer Jang. Dude, why would he bring Wang back?

And Myung-ho, dude, where've you been?

*sigh* After all that, I did like the ending. I get it. Soo didn't die, he got better and went to work at a cafe. Young survived her surgery, and is regaining some of her sight (how though? Was it caused by her brain tumor, or did she have a separate surgery that we didn't see? Thanks, Show, for more inconsistencies.), and found Soo. They talk, kiss, and live happily ever after. The End. Did I leave anything out?

However, all in all, a good melodrama. At least they didn't die. That's all I was really worried about.

Thanks for the recap, HeadsNo2!

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The ending is so confusing. I tried my hardest to pay attention at every little detail and tried put everything together, but it just doesnt make sense. As I first finished watching the finales, I believed they both actually died and what we saw at the end when they met and kissed is them in heaven. The final scene was so blurry, it just doesnt seem real to me. Plus, why did the whole restaurant disappeared at the very end???? And Jin Sung and Hee Sun were talking about bringing flowers to Soo. At first I thought it could be for Soo the real brother but then Jin Sung said "The same for Young", and everything got completely messed up in my head. There were lambs' ears on the table where Young sat in the restaurant too!
But if Young really died, how could she go to the event for blind people with Secretary Wang and everyone else? And that scene looks real! And If they both died, why was there the title "Spring Next Year"?!!
Yes we saw Jin Sung stabbed Oh Soo but I dont believe it was good enough to end Oh Soo's life. Still, I saw Oh Soo lying there as if he was really dead and Jin Sung did nothing but crying. Was it just Young's dream/imagination that she got to meet Soo again? So was the restaurant also a part of her dream or was it real? Why were there lamb's ears on the table?

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As much as I enjoyed this show in the beginning, I have to acknowledge its flaws. Its glossy superficiality, the PD's obsession with close ups that resulted in the show looking like a bunch of pretty faces floating in limbo, the logic fail, characters that essentially remained static for the entire show. Interesting secondary characters like Sec. Wang and Moochul became less complex and harder to understand as the show went on. A happy ending that was ridiculous and tacked-on just to end the damn thing.

This is the first time I've seen Jo In Sung in anything, and tbh I'm not that impressed. Song Hye Gyo has definitely improved, there was a sincerity to her acting that wasn't there before. The music was generally lovely, but in the later episodes was used just to fill the silence as miserable people stared blankly at walls with tear filled eyes.

I feel robbed.

:'(

NHK, you are better than this.

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thanks for the recap....Jo In sung! Jo In Sung! Jo In Sung! :)

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Where to start? Like Heads, I really thought that the better parts of this show were its earlier episodes. Young's entire illness confused me. Perhaps I was truly lost in translation. It was determined that the brain tumor did not cause her blindness. Her blindness was due to a degenerative condition, the effects of which were accelerated as a result of the machinations of Secretary Wang. Then a number of episodes kept insinuating that Young would be able to see if her brain-tumor-removal was a success. I hate these magical cure-alls in dramas, where a degenerative,incurable disorder or condition means the opposite of a degenerative, incurable disorder/condition. Luckily, Young's vision was not miraculously restored to its original condition of her early childhood. I also feel that the suicide attempt was unnecessary and ultimately pointless. As for whether the ending is real or a dream/death sequence...I think that there were what I would call "cheap" attempts to fool the audience, such as Jinsung and Heesun's conversation about bringing flowers to Soo. They could very well be referring to the biological brother of Young. Lamb's ear was significant to the main character Soo and Young during the course of the story, but it originally held significance in the childhoods of Young and her brother. I am more inclined to think that Soo is alive (magical drama recoveries and all). I do not think that Jinsung would be living a happy, bucolic life if he were responsible for his hyung's death. In my opinion, the final scene by the tree could be a homage to the movie ending (although the tree was very different, and the setting was a wintry forest). It served as a connecting thread and may also have contributed to the ambiguous ending. I applaud the acting in this drama, most especially that of Jo Insung. It was visually stunning. As with many dramas, however, I felt that the story could have been told in fewer episodes. Also, the last few episodes could have fleshed out certain characters (we could, for example, have been provided with some insight into Jinsung's internal thoughts and what actually drove him to betray Soo in that violent moment). And I dislike that the crimes of Secretary Wang were so easily forgotten. I can understand that the dismissal of someone like Wang, whose presence was so apparent and strongly felt in Young's life, would be very striking and cause some sense of loss. Wang was really all that Young knew in her life. While I think that forgiveness is possible in many cases, I wanted secretary Wang to understand the gravity of her actions. Would someone possessing all her faculties really allow another person to become disabled or accelerate an already degenerative condition? Wang was a character whose life contributed to the way she saw things and to the motivations behind her actions, but she nonetheless acted of her own accord. Should the audience simply smile and realize that she did everything out of love? Big disappointment!

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I've done my damnedest to make sense of what happened in the finale but still it failed to convince me no matter how much I wanted to.

Now I'm most curious how Noh Hee Kyung could possibly convince herself that her ending is a sensible one. I felt cheated by all the love, faith and trust I had for her in the past.

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Goodbye to this drama...I prefer the ending if Soo dies...tragedy will be better to be remembered.
But with episode 15 when Young tried suicide thing, if Soo dies I don't think she will have enough willingness to life...so the drama messed up within itself, make it unable to solve the better and more reasonable ending.

Shouldn't be more beautiful if Young eventually life and fight for it whilst Oh Soo turn out to die...the twist will be great...but I'm not the judge...first of all we must thanks the writer to create such characters..then we'll decide the ending by our own version...fair enough

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i'm not really fond of ambiguous endings because i prefer clear and definite answers... but thinking about it, why does it matter so much to me whether they live or die in the end? we've seen how their love has grown for each other. not being able to share that together in the future even after so much has happened is a waste, isn't it? but in the end, many of us don't get we want. a lot of people just don't get their happy endings even when they deserve to. so how do we balance that kind of reality with hope, sugar, spice and everything nice which would motivate the rest of us to 'avoid' sad endings for our own lives? sigh. i don't know what i'm saying anymore but i really enjoyed this drama. and i'm taking the happy ending side of "that winter the wind blows" because i don't like reality eheheh *runs away*

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Beautiful drama,perfect ending..it s obvious they r alive..n deliriously happy for the 1st time in tr entire adult livez..wat s all the self-inflicted confusion about the ending then?nothing blurry abt the fact dat OS s alive n the happy ending..the blurriness is to capture the blurriness of oy s vision or to symbolize hw both r blur n heady wth happiness..
Just wish dey had explained wy OS mummy left him under the tree ..did she wish him dead?
Still it s the best n mist aesthetic drama I ve seen in the past decade...n this pairing of JIS n SHG one of the best ever ..god,these two just blow u away wth tr chemistry,their looks n tr acting.Oooo love everything abt TWTWB n the OTP.

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Thanks for the recap! Overall, I liked the drama (definitely better than Padam Padam imo...) but I do feel it lost steam in the final episodes. The ending was ok. I don't think it was a dream because they gave too many details... (like, why did they need to talk about what Secretary Wang told him/her if it was a dream sequence, among other things). As for the lamb ear, I see it either as 1)they were talking about the other Soo or 2) they just gave it to this Soo (since it was in the restaurant table). I do think it was put there to throw people off though. The final kiss scene switch I see as a metaphor, or maybe a small time jump. The blurring I see as both a way to show things from Young's pov (since her vision was blurry) and a way to make their reunion more dream like... like they're so happy it seemed like a dream.
All in all, I don't regret watching it.

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oh and there's also the fact that Ji Sung would be in jail had he really killed Oh Soo lol

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i thought the two of them were already in heaven .__.

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I don't believe in Young's love. She hasn't done anything for Soo.

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Yes. We are forgiving because she has had a difficult life: abandoned by her mother, childhood cancer, blinded by her caretaker and denied her brother. But she never grew, and she never seemed to be able to give back to people, no matter how many sacrifices were made for her. I can see why Soo loves her - she is his life-long project, someone he can sacrifice for to give his life meaning - but I certainly can't like her.

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Hmm... She's the first person who ever told him he wasn't responsible for Hee-joo's death. So she gave him forgiveness and a sense of self-worth.

I think her being angry at him for lying and manipulating her was understandable. And she was forthright in her anger. But then she also forgave him which allowed him to forgive himself.

Of course, she's not Joan of Arc so once she made him leave (and threw out Wang as well, which left her far more alone than I think she'd realized she'd be) she suffered. But she does invite Soo back into her life despite what he's done to her -- ditto Wang. So... I'd say her strength is in her ability to accept the flaws of those around her and forgive them. (She does the same with her ex-fiance as well.)

And she did give him the money he needed. He chose not to take it but... what were you wanting her to do for him?

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Forgiveness, understanding, those good things were really partial and not without a tinge of despair. Even money, encouraged by Hee Sun and passed by lawyer Jang, was not really a gift of love.

But what I expected most of all from Youngie was Sacrifice of the Past. Recording all steps of life, always thinking about "what they did to me" or "what I want" for a long time perhaps made her quite self-centered, attached to her very self. I wish she could hear that little bell on Soo's wrist more often and think more in terms of what he needs. That ghostly room with memorabilia was really stuffy. It really needed some fresh air, or even … wind!

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"That ghostly room with memorabilia was really stuffy. It really needed some fresh air, or even … wind!"

Hah! You're not wrong. :D

But I do think that conversation Young had with Soo several eps ago -- where she talks about how she wished she'd been given permission to cry, and then he talked about "Soo" (as if it weren't him) killing his pregnant girlfriend and Young very matter of factly told him, no, Soo was too young and it wasn't his fault and Soo cried and cried (oh, my heart!) -- was very sincere and non-grudging.

I actually saw the aftermath of her suicide attempt as a letting go of the past -- that conversation with Soo where she tells him she loves him and they'll talk honestly together later, once they're all through the storm, etc. -- and that's why she's able to finally, finally look to the future.

So in a weird way (and not one I personally condone as an actual real-life thing to do) her suicide attempt was that opening up the window and bringing in the fresh air.

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I'm going to pretend that they died and the end was a sort of dream/heaven...thing. That's the only way the ending makes sense to me!
Anyways, lovely recaps and review. It was incredibly insightful and about summed up everything I felt about this show ahaha.

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I'm so disappointed in this drama. It just.. the last couple episodes just mashed together and made no sense. Why did Jin Sung betray Soo? And the ending? -____-

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A disappointing finale to a series that went from brilliant to illogical...
I don't see why the stabbing and weird ending was necessary... It was poetical and visually pleasing but really...

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Thank you HeadsNo2!!!

Love your style of writing and insight.

I'm so done with Melos for a while( I came because of Kim Bum and Zo In Sung), it was fun while it lasted....so let's not do this again for at least a year or so.

Now...off to go watch Shota Matsuda in all his sexyness ^.^

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i prefer this drama got sad ending, or at least open ending aarghhh... i already prepared for the sad or tragedic ending, so watch this drama had happy ending, i kinda felt betrayed... the same feeling when I watched nice guy >..<

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Beside the big mystery what's the real reason why Secretary Wang made Young blind, I also don't get it the scene where Secretary Wang got suprised when she saw the childhood picture of Oh Soo, when there's no explanation what's the relationship between them

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It's def. an open ending, IMO; nothing about it seems undoubtedly happy.

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The ending is just bits and pieces with no proper flow...don't get why she committed suicide. Don't get why they didn't explain Wang Secretary plot properly. Don't get as to why no ending with Soo and Jinsung? At least we should see one scene?

But got to agree, the show was damn beautiful and all the OSTs damn fitting as well. From Yesung to The ONE to Gummy to Taeyeon SNSD.

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Haven't watched to show or recaps, but maybe now I will. I don't always like a sugar coated ending, but I sometimes feel I've wasted my time watching when the show ends tragically ... cough ... "Bad Guy". Just hope Kim Nam-gil's character in "Shark" will have a better end.

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hh i looooove this episode separately form every single other episode ! hhehe i love the ending it was good for me ! real or not !! it was my happy ending !!
but !! the guys stayed best friends right ??! cuz they were talking abt going to visit and stuff !! what was the real thing behind the stabbing i didnt get it fully !!!

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I can buy Young's suicide attempt being “merely” a cry for attention- that's actually quite common. My psych teacher said that statistically, women try suicide more than men, but men succeed more often, and the theory is it's because women are more likely to attempt suicide as a plea for help, and men are more likely to mean to die. So that didn't seem strange at all, and the way she did it wasn't a serious way, either (one wrist, obviously not cut the 'right' way because there wasn't *that* much bleeding)- which is why she was fine after a little sleep. My kid got 27 stitches in her face from an accident with a glass, and she was playing happily and energetically the next morning, too.

What I couldn't buy was her 'explanation' for her suicide afterwards. The attempt rang true to her character and that of other suicidal people in real life, her excuse just didn't.

I also thought it was totally ridiculous to have the jump from 10% survival possibility to 50% just because now Young is more upbeat about it. I don't expect much medical accuracy from dramas, but that was just bizarre.

I can't buy Wang being brought back into the fold at all. Forgiveness, maybe, because it's tedious and burdensome to hold a grudge. But you can forgive the witch who made you blind from afar. You don't bring her home.

I can buy Kim's motivation easily- we've always known it, he's made no secret of the fact that he wants his money AND he wants Oh Soo dead because OS slept with Kim's girl, but if he had to choose, mostly he just wants OS dead after dangling him on a string for a while. And MC made it very clear- in that episode where he most satisfyingly smacked Kim's face into the steering wheel a few times- that Kim is the worst of all the baddies because he doesn't even play by the bad boys' rules. But I'd like to have known what happened to Kim later? I mean, if he's still around, then he still has this death-wish against Oh Soo, and he said he wanted JS to work for him. Or did MC's minions come in and wipe out Kim's gang? That's what I would wish for.

I can't buy JS betrayal and stabbing of OS at all. There just wasn't enough information there. It's like we're missing an entire chapter between Kim telling JS exactly where his family is and JS stabbing OS. And no matter how much he loves OS and his family how does he make that hairpin turn from fierce love and loyalty to betrayal? I really can't believe in it. What happened to his family? Did they get hit by the truck? Was it just a threat? Why was stabbing OS the only option? And I know he's not the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, but if you have arranged for MC's minions to control the CCTV room in order to make sure Kim plays fair AND you get out of Kim's clutches safely when the game is over, why instruct the minions to turn off the CCTV *before* you're out of the room safely? For me, this was the worst written part of the last episode. None of the bad stuff JS did made any sense or was consistent with his character.

The ending is all rainbows and unicorns that poop skittles, and it should have been more satisfactory than it was. It wasn't as satisfactory as it should have been thanks to all the lapses in communicating motivation and the unbelievable lapses in judgment by most of the characters in this episode.

That said, Oh Soo and Young are obviously alive. They made this as clear as possible by giving us the conversation between JS and HS about the flowers where they decide on freesia and lamb's ear (details we would not need to know otherwise), and then actually giving us a very clear close-up shot in the cafe of the basket of freesia and lamb's ear on Young's table- a close-up we wouldn't need to see unless there was a reason for it. Making it sound like they were taking flowers to a grave was deliberate obfuscation on the part of the writer. And, as others have pointed out, the blurred scenes are all the scenes shot from Young's perspective.

I loved this show until the last three episodes. The early episodes were crack-tastic and very addicting, and coming to the end of it, I feel a little bit Like I did when waking from anesthesia after surgery. I just wish the last two or three episodes spent more time on developing the story and less time on the stuff we already knew full well- young and os love each other and are sad to be apart and conflicted over that whole, "the guy I love tried to trick me out of tons of money by pretending he was my brother" issue.

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When I was the part where the doctor told them that the survival rate jumped from 10% to 50%, it felt to me as if she was lying. She walked out quickly afterwards, and everyone's face in the room had a confused expression but didn't question it. I guess, Oh Young was the only one who didn't actually get told the survival numbers, and after she had attempted to commit suicide (one that I also felt was plea for help more than a want to die), I guess the doc who was usually so cold was feeling a little generous. Who knows, though. That is just my take on it.

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DHM, great analysis! thanks

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I completely missed the flowers on the table in the restaurant/cafe. Well, that seals it then: It ended happily. :)

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"Statistically, women try suicide more than men, but men succeed more often, and the theory is it’s because women are more likely to attempt suicide as a plea for help, and men are more likely to mean to die"

Hai DHM..., I really love your comment about how logic the reason behind Young's suicide attempt is. What a strong argument, I believe.

But, one thing I disagree from all your POVs above is about JS betrayal. I didn't see his betrayal as an inconsistentcy of his character. People change and sometimes it happens in urge/ high-risk situation where people mind in an unhelpful thinking patterns and reaction. That's just my two cents.

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I think JS action was in keeping with his character. We have to remember it wasn't his head on the line, because he'd sacrifice himself for Soo. His one consistent was loyalty to family. Soo was family in regards to all of the other threats. But, now JS had to make a choice, and he chose Hee Sun and his family. Not to mention that Soo would completely agree with his choice.

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Yeah, recommended that anyone who watches TWTWB should take precaution with episodes 14/15/16.
Even though there were some illogical fails in these last three episodes, that doesn't take away from a show that is well acted, gorgeous to look at, and great the first half. I really enjoyed it. I'm not going to swear off melos because these last few episodes didn't do it for me, i just think of what could have been, and that's what gets you disappointed. But other than that, i'd still say this is one of the better melos than the ones currently out there in k-drama world. y'all know which ones im talkin bout.

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Thanks so much for all your recaps, HeadsNo2! I really enjoy your writing style and the insight you bring -- even if I don't always agree with your conclusions. :)

I'm happy for the most part, though I agree there were some stumbles. Just -- the stumbles weren't so bad for me that it killed the story. The worst bit for me was the Jin-sung stabbing scene, but I can handwave it, so I'm good.

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So, I'm late to the party, but I finally go around to watching this.

On the whole: I love this drama. It was beautifully shot, beautifully acted by beautiful people portraying such fully realized characters with immense flaws that made them infinitely interesting. The OTP had good emotional chemistry and I was fully invested in them. Jo In Sung in particular though is the star of this. Song Hye Gyo was quite right when she mentioned in an interview that this was his show, and her character was supporting.

That said, yes, the last four episodes had some flaws. It definitely felt in the run up to the finale that there was some stretching of the material. At most, I think this series could have been streamlined into 12 episodes.

And yes, Young did have that befuddling suicide attempt which seemed simultaneously to fly in the face of all her character development but was still in-character for her. I didn't have as much "WHY" over it as you, heads, because I did understand why she did it and why she'd reverted to that state. She loved Soo and she thought he wasn't coming back...

This last episode was tighter than the 3 preceding it which I liked. And the ending was purposely kept a little ambiguous, though I must say it was clear to me what the fuzzy dream-like photography was for other than alluding to...well...a dream: It's how Young sees the world now that some of her vision is returning. Everything is blurred (beautifully) around the edges and Young is the constant thing in focus. Oh Soo coming into focus was very ethereal.

So, for my head canon, Oh Soo is alive. Young sees the world in blurry hues. Jin Sung has immense guilt.

I don't watch melos as often but I seem to have a knack for picking ones that endear themselves immensely to me and end up being some of the strongest offerings of the year. And this all applies to That Winter...

I'll miss you, you pretty pretty pretty show.

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Thanks for the recaps HeadsNo2, I enjoyed them a lot.
ok, so like some of you I also think this show could have been better and I reaaaaly wanted it to be. though, that's bygone now
but was i the only one who felt mad about So-ra being like "I'll tell them. i'll give u three days then i'll tell. now, i'll really tell them. I swear after these three days this time I'll really really tell them" it seemed forever that they dragged it on in a repetitive round. but, whatever.
from some point on i was scratching my head going like"but how? why?" about many things including the very forgiving nature of many or all involved. specially about secretary Wang. Soo, I was like ok, he did wrong, but that's just useless emotion and she's physically intact so she'll forget and all. But Wang cost her her eyes. now that's a steep price. the only time I thought i got why they're doing what they're doing was when Soo called her. first I was like dude, really? but then he said something like "how could I not understand U or something" which made me think that "he thinks that she's like himself." since they both approached her to gain something. fell in love with her in the process. hurt her; one more physically than the other. so maybe, they saw it as that and forgave her for totally loving her all these years while still neglecting her eyes for some twenty years. but who am i to judge?!
Another logic for the left and right forgiving could be found in Young telling Wang she let her embezzlement matter go cause dad told her to overlook it sometimes so that there would be people left by her side. the fact is, everyone around her had done harm one way or the other. if she where to oust them, she would be be left alone. so, there's that.

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Heads, thank you. Overall, I too felt let down by this drama. At first I thought it was a masterpiece but Eps 14, 15 and 16 were a hot mess, and not in a fun way. Why does this consistently happen in K dramas? Are writers under time constraints, or pressure from producers before they're finished? Yikes!
But I would watch it all again to just see the acting chops of Jo In Sung, Kim Tae Woo (Moo Chul) and Song Hye Gyo. I hope the other actors in this drama took notes, because these are the masters. They kept me watching even as the story weakened. The cinematographers, costume designers and stylists all were top notch too. I just wish I could recommend it to others wholeheartedly.
Like a gorgeous bad boyfriend, TWTWB just betrayed my faith in it and finally, left me not really caring that I didn't understand it in the end.

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Oh Soo did die at the end, that's why Jin Sung and Hee Sun talked about bringiing flowers to him.

The part where he and Oh Young met again and kissed was all part of Young's imagination. The wind reminded her of him. Secretary Wang told her 20 days ago where he was meaning Wang told Young he had died. But because of Soo, Young learned to love life that's why she's not sad. She keeps him a part of her memory. The guy on the bike was probably somebody just passing by with a bell on the bike and Young imagined it to be Soo.

The writer kept true to her motive, Soo was suppose to die at the beginning and Young never wanted to die but death was always by her side (in Soo's words). So Soo died at the end because he was meant to die and Young was meant to live. His purpose in the story was to make Young want to live. It was a happy ending in Young's imagination.

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Your comments are precious and priceless. You are the crowned king of our viewers ...thanks for your realistic review. I like your review more than the last show :)

Why it had to end with such a lame ending ..of all the episode this was just lame and not interesting .. bizzare situation of Jin sung stabbing.. but Soo's fine, young suicide attempt , but she is happy after the morning , suddenly understanding soo. Also, after one year looking pretty with long curls at least they had to shorten her hair to make it little realistic. Come on, in one year it cant grow that much length. Want to keep her always cute and pretty ?

But overall, loved the show from episode 1 to episode 13-14 ...Loved lots of things in this show some unforgettable moments which made you cry , smile feel good and happy ... Young walking towards the train, Young's kick ass to Sec Wang and her friend, Soo begging Moo chul for young's treatment ..finest performance :) Soo's expression of a man in love with his smile and tears ....thanks for all those ! Discovered a great actor and a great guy !! Totally fell in love. Young you are a exceptional beauty with some great talent ... May you both prosper more ..! :) Goodbye "that winter ...the wind"

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I see in the last episode the failure of the drama company to get a 2 episode extension...
If they had we'd see that the whole 'JS stabs OS' was faked for Boss Kim to prevent him killing JS's family (remember all the cameras? & the guys who had JS's back? Think they might have helped here?)
So gee that would explain all the happy ever after.
So I'm fine w/the ending. Just wish we'd had at least one more episode to actually EXPLAIN all this (& see more Kim Bum ...)
As for 'let's leave a 6-year old to go blind cause I love her' Wang I did NOT rejoice to see HER come back. That was idiotic. And I had to laugh at the comment about Soo being the worst at suicide watch LOL

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In Korean Drama Land, bad guy never gets his due, So i'm not surprise at all. Over all this is the best Drama so far. I like the ending n hoping to see more of those two in near future.

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One question: anyone knows the cafe young went to in the last scene?! would love to go there if i ever visit korea during spring

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ambiguous ending is the trend nowadays and definitely safer especially for melodramas so fans won't hate it so much...
clues were thrown all over the place that soo was indeed dead.jin sung probably lied to hee sung on how he died so she didn't look too sad.they were definitely talking abt bringing flowers to his grave...why would they discuss bringing flower for a person who is still alive so seriously.its not like he was a flower fan.
He probably didn't die on the spot and had time to tell ms wang not to tell young if he died.
Young's surgery seemed to have failed So she could only see partially.she lived on for a short while,spending time with everyone before her condition relapsed or whatever. when her time was finally up it was depicted by her choosing to alighted from the cab,not going back to the worldly world but to stay in heaven N finally met soo again.
Cause heaven need not be depicted only as a place where
angels fly,hence the cafe setting.
She had been visiting him in his dream or maybe during the state when she was falling sick again n between being alive n death...soo finally revealed himself now that she has also gone to heaven.the flowers js n hs were talking abt was on the table.its a symbol like some asians belueve what you present ppl at their grave they receive in heaven

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TWTWB is indeed a special, unique and beautiful drama. The acting, scripts, cinematography were brilliantly done. JIS will be a household name, not only in Korea but all over Asia, maybe in the US also. I am very happy for him. He worked really hard and deserve very much the recognition for his efforts. SKH is also received a lot of praise for her elegant, beautiful way of acting. That's why I love so much about this drama and understand why I could not finish SG after 2 episodes. It's about the style, the beautiful, elegant actors, the scripts and many other things of the show. Different strokes for different folks I guess.

I will miss this show a lot, especially JIS and SKH. They look so good together even though he is a lot taller than her. I like the way he picked her up after she finished her scenes, asked for her coat to keep her warm. Very caring man, JIS, we love you. If not for this drama, I do not even know who is JIS.

Well done every one!!!

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Good recap.
Likes your description and the critique.
But we are still fond to watch them...hahahahah!!!!

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This drama should have been 18-20 eps because they crammed too much in ep 16....and I wanted to see more Jo to the In to the Sung!!

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Thanks for the recap, Heads. My take on episode 16….

It was a heartwrenching decision for Jin-Sung to go up to the roof top with the box cutter. He has to kill Oh Soo or his family will be killed by Boss Kim’s henchman. He stabbed Oh Soo’s stomach once but just could not bring himself to follow through with the killing because he simply was not the kind of person who could kill somebody (as mentioned in an earlier episode) and he loved Oh Soo as much as his family members. He wailed painfully as he knew that his family would die. This was depicted in the scene of a last close-up of Jin-Sung’s father’s face looking at the approaching truck. The story arc of Boss Kim as a “nemesis” ended with this tragedy. The two guys that he has wanted to make used of to kill Oh Soo did not do so due to their love for him.

The scene of Jin-Sung and Hee-Sun in the countryside was his dream/imagination of Hee-Sun in her after-life. She was still quirky; now in the same world as brother-Oh Soo; and talked about bringing him flowers like she was still a florist. Jin-Sung looked absolutely desolate.

Oh Soo survived the knife attacked (just liked he survived an earlier attack by Moo Chul in the same spot) but have been deeply affected by the tragedies that happened partly caused by his wayward ways hence it took him some time before he could present himself to Oh Young. The last part of the show was clearly a happy ending for the couple. There was no ambiguity in the dialogue.

I think OY’s suicide and OS’s stabbing were integral to the original movie and this drama adaptation to signify death of their poor wretched souls and rebirth of new lives together.

All in all, I found TWTWB a really good drama to watch.

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