Monstar: Episode 10
by gummimochi
So that’s not exactly what I had in mind when I thought of a musical serenade, but the series does continue to hit the notes that strum the heartstrings in ways that keep surprising me. Emotions rise to the forefront this episode as our characters continue to maneuver through the difficult waters of adolescence, as they dig to search for the truth of their feelings and their place in the world.
SONG OF THE DAY
Busker Busker – “First Love” [ Download ]
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EPISODE 10: “What do I do? I’m still so bad at this”
Seol-chan catches Se-yi off-guard with a kiss. They open their eyes a few seconds later and blink at each other while their lips are still touching before they break apart, stunned.
Still in shock, Seol-chan stutters and asks what’s she’s doing to him. You initiated the smoochin’, lover boy. Se-yi turns the question back on him and asks if he was kidding around again. He admits that he wasn’t, although he’s unsure as to what compelled him to kiss her.
Se-yi raises her voice when he starts to mention that Se-yi remained still. But that only calls more attention to their awkwardness, and they suddenly rise like stiff robots and run off, avoiding eye contact.
Se-yi buries herself under the covers in embarrassment as Seol-chan looks up to see the stars draw a literal heart in the sky. Cute.
HA- I love that they both wake up the following morning asking themselves the same question: “What do I do?”
Seol-chan whines in his bed about how he can’t bear to face Se-yi at school today, and then hangs on the thought of how Se-yi didn’t pull away from the kiss. He wonders, “Could it be that…?”
In the teacher’s lounge, Sun-woo’s vague answers about Kyu-dong only worry Teacher Dokko further. However, Sun-woo does decide to partially inform her of the reason behind Kyu-dong’s absence. The issue (the bullying, I presume) is something that everyone, including themselves, has known of (and subsequently ignored) for a long time.
Eun-ha is eager to know how things went with Sun-woo yesterday, and she misinterprets her friend’s bashfulness to mean that something did happen between them despite Se-yi’s protests otherwise.
At the sight of Se-yi looking at the empty seat next to her, Eun-ha figures that Seol-chan is too tired from travelling to show up to school. But then she lights up a moment later: “Oh, he’s here!”
Eee, it’s Kyu-dong! I admit that I half-expected to see Seol-chan, but I’m more relieved to see Kyu-dong instead. Se-yi sends him a warm, encouraging smile.
Jae-rok wastes no time to launch into his mean-spirited taunts, mocking Kyu-dong for actually showing his face after facing such public humiliation. His, If it were me, I would have just died line makes me want to punch him.
Nana is about to intervene, but it’s Se-yi who speaks up first : “Hey school president’s lackey!”
She marches over to call Jae-rok a low-life coward. To that, Jae-rok merely laughs—she must feel pretty invincible these days with two of the most popular boys in school vying for her attention.
But Se-yi doesn’t skip a beat and counters that he’s too afraid of them to dare lay a finger on her. Scanning the class, she adds that there are plenty of other students who seem comfortable enough to ridicule Kyu-dong without Jae-rok’s help.
Using a rice cooker metaphor, she says that all Jae-rok has to do is lazily place a spoon on top of the bullying bowl. “Do you even know how to press the button?” Gah, I love badass Se-yi.
That’s the last straw for Jae-rok, who angrily rises from his seat. But their impending stand-off is interrupted by Do-nam’s arrival, who marches straight for Kyu-dong.
Do-nam silently tosses Kyu-dong’s backpack to him, and then pointedly glares at Jae-rok as he returns to his seat. Se-yi’s little smirk at this is so satisfying.
The class is told to relocate to a different room for their next class. Se-yi mumbles to herself in the hallway, worrying about whether Seol-chan will actually show up. Sun-woo catches up to her and he points: “Your lips…”
Se-yi suddenly covers her lips with a notebook in defense, afraid that they’ve given her away. But no, he’s referring to a stray strand of hair, but before he can help her out, Nana steps in to do it for her.
The dry content in literature class leaves the students bored to pieces, so their teacher plays a song to help illustrate the beauty of language utilized in song lyrics. As the acoustic cover of Busker Busker’s “First Love” plays onscreen, I can’t help but think that the kids will end up falling asleep to the lullaby.
Se-yi has barely gotten any sleep the night before, thus her sleep-deprived state imagines the performers (cameos played by Jo Moon-geun & Kim Ji-soo of Superstar K) singing in front of her.
Her hallucinations follow her for the rest of day, popping up everywhere from the hallway to the classroom. They even serenade her directly into her ears as she sits on a bench. It’s a delightful melody, but their hilarious facial expressions and cocked eyebrows crack me up.
At one point, even Se-yi finds herself singing along to the chorus: What do I do? / I’m still so bad at this / But my feelings have leaked and my heart grew bigger / And it keeps leaking a bit more
This is how Sun-woo finds her, and he shows concern at her exhausted state, which is when Seol-chan finally turns up for school.
Needless to say that things are awkward between the seat partners, and they try their best to avoid each other’s gaze. I love the beat when she grabs a book to use it as a barrier, unaware that it’s upside-down, and then he flips it over for her. Ha.
Seol-chan tears out the classroom as soon as they’re dismissed, using an idol group practice as an excuse. Kyu-dong makes an effort to approach Nana, who’s waiting for Sun-woo outside.
He scurries away when Do-nam walks out the doors. Do-nam hangs back to thank Nana for saving Kyu-dong on the roof, to which she answers in her usual gruff manner: “All right.”
Nana utilizes her third date with Sun-woo at her studio as he plays human mannequin for one of her designs. He asks who it’s made for. She says nobody but given how well it fits Sun-woo, I’d venture to guess that it might be for him.
The fitting brings them within close proximity, which affects Nana more than it does Sun-woo. He wonders if it’s her dream to become a fashion designer, but Nana answers that she’ll find out as she goes.
She asks if he’s willing to wait as she completes another yet unfinished design. He studies as he waits, and she steals occasional glances at him from her sewing machine.
Sitting in his chair, Ajusshi ruminates over Nawin’s sudden appearance. Before he can dwell on it further, there’s a knock at the door. Aw, I love that he’s not even surprised to see the Color Bar members anymore.
Eun-ha and Se-yi head to the basement where Kyu-dong is already at the piano. Eun-ha marvels at the idea that the ajusshi was in a band, and then wonders, “Then why is he hiding in his house like a criminal?”
But she quickly dismisses the thought and wonders if she should learn how to play an instrument, too. Then she picks up a djembe drum in a corner and lays down a basic beat. Se-yi and Kyu-dong join in and the trio plays a simple tune together.
Night falls by the time Sun-woo and Nana head out, and he asks more about Nana’s passion for fashion design. She shares how the pretty dresses the ladies at the room salon wore made them look like dolls.
Thus she began to make clothes for her dolls and eventually moved on to make clothes for people. As they look out over the city, she asks, “Are you certain of what your dream is?”
She figures that someone like Sun-woo would be. She finds those who force others to have a dream ridiculous. “If you don’t have a dream, they treat you like nothing.”
Her dream is to graduate high school and leave home, but that doesn’t fit under her parents’ standards. If she does graduate, her father promised her not to send the thugs after her anymore.
Then she brings up the matter of their remaining “date coupons.” She wants to use them on bass guitar lessons, and asks him to teach her.
Seol-chan is unable to sleep, mulling over whether he should confess his feelings to Se-yi. Recalling how Sun-woo has already beat him to the punch, he tries to think of alternative ways to say the words “I like you.”
His thought process makes me giggle as he runs through his choices (“I love you?” “My heart goes thump thump…” “Bounce?”) until he finally gives up and collapses on his bed. “If only I’d said it first!”
Then he takes the lamb doll on his bedside and wonders why Se-yi accepted his kiss.
As Se-yi climbs up the steps to her place, she pops her head out to check her surroundings. She deflates to see nobody there, and then deliberately avoids the area where they kissed, heh. She’s just about to head inside when Seol-chan’s voice rings out.
He emerges from his hiding place and she asks if he’s here to apologize. He says that he isn’t since the kiss wasn’t a joke to him. In a hesitant voice, he starts, “To be honest, i-it’s because…”
But she cuts him off, telling him not to say it. He hilariously sputters, “A-again?”
She clarifies that she merely asked him why he’s here and not about why he did “that.” Her cheeks flush pink at the indirect reference to the kiss, which Seol-chan doesn’t miss. Then he turns red in turn. So adorable.
They stand around for another minute until Seol-chan says that he’ll see her tomorrow. Next thing we know, Se-yi is walking him back ’cause yunno, he might be bored.
She suddenly stops to ask if it feels like they’re being followed. Seol-chan is spooked by the thought, to which she answers, “You’re scarier.”
Sure enough, the acoustic duo manifests behind them once more, singing Coffee House’s “Is This Love.” The music abruptly cuts out when they get to his car… and then Seol-chan walks her back up the hill. Aww.
They continue this silent routine of walking up and down the hill over and over again, and they both smile at the chance to spend just a little more time together.
Seol-chan eventually drops her off, and I love how they both linger even after they say their goodbyes. But Mom arrives just then, and Se-yi blurts out: “He’s my jjak!”
Mom recognizes him as that famous idol boy who sits next to her daughter, to which Seol-chan gapes at Se-yi with an incredulous look that says You talk about me?! He breaks into a smile.
Mom tries to broach the topic of Seol-chan with Se-yi in her room, only to get the brush-off that Mom isn’t in a position to give her advice. Oof, that’s harsh.
Seol-chan is on Cloud 9 the next morning, dancing in the car with a huge grin on his face. It’s still awkward between them in the classroom, and Seol-chan asks when Se-yi had talked about him, which Se-yi immediately protests that she didn’t.
Eun-ha pops up to suggest that Sun-woo tutors them on their upcoming exam. She nearly blurts out that she’ll be in trouble with her father should her grades drop, but quickly changes the subject. Hm.
Sun-woo agrees to help, and Seol-chan does not look happy to hear it.
It only gets worse in gym class when they’re paired off and told to hold hands as a part of a team-building exercise. That basically creates an excuse for Sun-woo to flare Seol-chan’s jealousy, and he takes Se-yi’s hand and then interlocks fingers in front of him.
He scores a few goals easily and Se-yi struggles to keep up with him. It cracks me up that Seol-chan is the unathletic one next to Nana.
But then Seol-chan notices Jae-rok winding up to kick a ball towards Se-yi. He dives to block it at the same time Sun-woo whirls her around to shield her. His heroic dive temporarily knocks him unconscious and he ends up in the infirmary.
Se-yi goes to visit him there after the kids return to class and presses an ear to his face to check if he’s breathing. When she turns to leave, he grabs her by the arm, gasping for air.
He’d been holding his breath, and when Se-yi asks why, he answers, “How can I breathe when you’re so close to my face?” She mentions that he said it meant nothing to him before, to which he blurts, “Is that the same now?”
That makes them both clam up, and he warns her to stay a safe distance lest he kisses her again. She thanks him for earlier, and he tells her that she can pay him back.
Just outside, Eun-ha hangs her head and a lone tear runs down her cheek. Aww. She retreats to the bathroom and calls herself a dummy.
We see that she’s on the roof and she takes out her notebook entitled “S & S Secret Love.” As she flips through the pages, we find out that she also saw the almost-kiss between Seol-chan and Se-yi.
Eun-ha doesn’t return to class until the end of the day. Her downcast mood is apparent, and she even ignores Seol-chan on her way out.
Eun-ha thinks back to how Seol-chan had promised to remain an idol star in her sky. When Se-yi runs up to catch up to her, Eun-ha barks at her friend to leave her alone.
Do-nam adorably drags Kyu-dong to hang out, who asks about his once frenemy’s sudden change in behavior as they play computer games. Do-nam tells him that he won’t apologize to him, but neither will he stand it if Kyu-dong does something stupid again.
Kyu-dong starts to tear up and he gets up before Do-nam can comfort him. When Kyu-dong says that he’s leaving to practice the piano, Do-nam grumbles to himself that his friend’s been doing girly things in the time they haven’t hung out. Hehe.
Nana waits alone in the basement and comes across one of Lee Hyori’s old albums. She turns it on to the song “10 Minutes” and we get a brief flashback to a younger Nana dancing to it at a noraebong.
She restarts the song and starts dancing to it, even breaking into a smile at times. Sun-woo arrives mid-song and he shushes the other boys as they watch her silhouette dance against the sunlight.
They applaud her performance once she finishes, and Nana runs off to avoid embarrassment. But Sun-woo chases after her with a smile on his face. Ooh, are you finally seeing her a little differently now?
The boys can’t help but cast looks at Nana later, who blinks in surprise at how Sun-woo pays slightly closer attention to her during their lesson.
Eun-ha can’t bring herself to tear down Seol-chan’s poster in her room and she’s still in a rotten mood at school the next day. She deliberately pushes past Se-yi, and spots Seol-chan oh-so-casually cleaning off the hurtful remarks on Se-yi’s desk.
Tears stream down her face as she recalls the memories with the Color Bar band. But now she’s brutally honest with herself as she cries, “No, I’m not all right. I didn’t want to be part of the Mimi Sisters.”
It’s heartbreaking as she looks through her phone to happier times with her band members, and returns to the classroom still discouraged.
Eun-ha is called out to talk outside, and she finally lets out her pent-up frustration at her friend. She bitterly remarks that Se-yi must think that the world revolves around her, and it doesn’t matter if Eun-ha is there or not.
When Se-yi replies that she doesn’t know where this is coming from, Eun-ha lashes out: “Do you really not know or pretending not to know?” She reminds Se-yi that there’s an unspoken rule between friends never to steal something (or in this case, someone) away from each other.
Se-yi’s still in the dark, and Eun-ha finally bursts that that’s the issue—her friend is so ignorant that she doesn’t even know what she did. She was the one who liked him first, not Se-yi.
That’s when Seol-chan interrupts their conversation, and he gently tells Eun-ha to let go of Se-yi’s arm. Eun-ha whips his hand away, and then after another tense moment, she wrings Se-yi’s arm away before storming off.
Back in class, Eun-ha writes her own version of the Little Mermaid, depicting herself as the mermaid who loved a prince and drank a potion to make her human, but lost her voice as a part of the deal.
So when the prince fell in love with someone else, the mermaid was forced to disappear into bubbles. But she was still in love with him, and the only way to escape death was to stab the prince’s heart. As she recites those words, we see that Eun-ha had visited Seol-chan in the infirmary as well.
She writes with greater fervor now as she starts to sob about how the mermaid couldn’t tell the prince that it was her who loved him first. She abandons her journal outside, which is later picked up by Hyo-rin. Aww crap.
But then she runs back to retrieve it before Hyo-rin can read a word. Much like the rest of her fantasy, Eun-ha softly floats away like bubbles disappearing into thin air.
Her sobs have now grabbed the entire class’s attention, and Se-yi can only look on helplessly. But there’s a silver lining to her distress, and their teacher praises her for her creative writing talent after class.
Se-yi stops Eun-ha as soon as she steps out of the teachers lounge. “It’s about Seol-chan and me, isn’t it?”
They sit outside to chat, and when Eun-ha calls herself a fool, Se-yi tells her that it’s not true. She means it, and Eun-ha knows it, since her friend always means what she says. That’s probably why Seol-chan took such an interest in Se-yi.
Eun-ha muses that there was a time when she shone brightly, too. Even though she can’t sing, she gave it her all in their battle performance. It was the one time she thought that she did well, but her father called her pathetic and hit her instead. Oh honey.
That was why Seol-chan was her world, since he shone brightly for the both of them. Crying now, Eun-ha tells her that she didn’t hate Se-yi because Seol-chan liked her, but rather: “You made Seol-chan into a person.”
They’re both in tears now as they blubber how sorry they are to each other. Then the camera pans upward to reveal Sun-woo and Seol-chan on the steps, who exchange looks of discomfort after having witnessed the girls’ reconciliation.
Se-yi asks the boys for a favor and she later brings Eun-ha to the basement. Eun-ha shifts uneasily when she’s asked to sing to help Seol-chan out. It’s sweet how Seol-chan responds to her hesitance with the encouragement that he specifically needs her help.
The others chime in their encouragement, and Eun-ha initially sings a few bars in a shaky voice. Her voice slowly grows stronger as they continue to record her singing voice.
When Eun-ha goes for a walk instead of returning home later that night, she receives an audio message entitled “Eun-ha Vocal.” She presses play… and hears her own voice ring out as the main vocal to the song “My Song” (originally by the indie band whose name translates to “A moonlight fairy’s comeback to a grand slam home run”).
As the song continues, we see the others help compile the track for her. Then we flash back to how Eun-ha sang with confidence back at the basement. She cries, touched.
COMMENTS
What a heartwarming and moving ending. Even at this point in the series, I’m still left pleasantly surprised at the journey each episode takes the audience to end up at a completely different place than we started. So while we spent some time to respond to the Whoops we kissed, this is awkward situation between our leads, there was always an undercurrent of Eun-ha’s struggles which finally rose to the surface.
Her frustration and outburst was a long time coming, given the clues of loneliness and inferiority to the rest of the group throughout the series. I admit that it was hard for me to warm up to Eun-ha myself, since her character could so easily be dismissed as an idol fangirl and loyal best friend to the heroine. But beneath that chipper smile, there’s a girl who longs for acceptance and is plagued by her insecurities.
The longing to escape from reality and stay within the fantastical confines of fiction and her imagination is something I can sympathize with. Now that we know of her own abusive family situation, it makes sense why she would turn to creative writing and her imagination as an outlet. Though a part of me wishes that we got to spent a bit more time to explore with Eun-ha about her familial issues, I can’t imagine that we’ll spend that much more time on the topic since we have so many other narrative threads to possibly tie in the next two episodes.
I love that we also got a chance to dig into Eun-ha’s sense of normalcy in the group, and her subsequent inferiority she feels in comparison to her other musically-talented band members. For her to understand her limitations and then be crippled by them is huge and utterly heartbreaking to watch. She looked crushed when her chance to stand out was snubbed, and frustrated at the feeling that she feels like the outcast of the group, as the shadow in the background.
Which is why I love the track that her fellow band members compiled for her so much. More than her awesome singing voice (which is of course, awesome, since Kim Min-young has a musical background), I love what the song means to Eun-ha, not just as a fangirl but as a fellow Color Bar member.
Having her idol Oppa produce a song with her voice is one thing, but then it’s also the realization that she have friends who care for her and believe that she’s important—to help her realize that she’s the star of her own life.
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Tags: featured, Ha Yeon-soo, Kang Haneul, Monstar, Yong Jun-hyung
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1 Lea
July 22, 2013 at 8:23 PM
I don't want Monstar to end D::
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MariD
July 22, 2013 at 8:35 PM
I second this!
I want it to go on forever!
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wag-a-muffin
July 23, 2013 at 7:54 AM
Me too. I keep liking these people more and more. And wish the series went on longer. Sometimes, when a show is at the "almost" ending, we get desperate, contrived situations. But in Monstar, each episode is so good. (I wish we could see two a week, though.)
Now, off topic, and please don't flame me. But my only criticism of the show is that Seol Chan keeps wearing t-shirts I SWEAR my grandma has hanging in her closet.
(But that's my ONLY gripe with this surprisingly enjoyable show.)
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Enz
July 23, 2013 at 9:57 AM
Omg, i love all his tshirts! Even halmoni's church bingo night one he wore when kissing se yi!
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blnmom
July 23, 2013 at 12:42 PM
Ha, the shirt was bad, but it was the cropped pants with the army boots that got me. WHY???? Junhyung is so hot in jeans and sneakers...
Enz
July 24, 2013 at 12:44 AM
Ya, i was okmwith that tshirt, i likedit actually but clam digger pants with boots were a bit baffling :p
Harleyqwen
July 25, 2013 at 7:27 AM
OMG he also had on a Bill Cosby sweater when they almost kissed!
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elfin
December 9, 2013 at 7:00 AM
Hahaha
pearl3101
July 23, 2013 at 12:19 PM
I only got to watch this now and I'm here already .. I don't want this to end as well.. I think I'll be following the works of this PD for quite a long time from now.. But we only have two more episodes for this and I wish it were to be extented. Each episode feels like a movie of its own, complete with the songs, the feels and our adorable teen stars. I ve always liked especially Se Yi, esp whenshe's badass.. ( Her thrashing Do-Nam in the last episode gave me goosebumps). And Seol-Chan.. I'm on his squuee list right from the start. And I love how each character is given depth. And I agree with gumminochi about Eun-ha.. Its nice that they give depth to this character who we uptil now thouht only as much as a plot element.
I especially like the writing... There are so many little details that are really enduring. Like how Se-Yi is all squishing into the matress after their awkward first kiss.. Sooo Cute. :) And how can I not mention their repeated walking back and forth. Just so they could spend a little more time together. Love. First Love. I was so happy for this scene..^^
And Do-Nam 's way of making up with Kyu-Dong. Conflict sweetly resolved. I like how he goes back to how they were before they fought, without so much as a blink of the eye.
And the scene were Eun-Ha leaves the book that Hyo-Rin picks up. I DIDNOT expect at all for her to come back and snatch it from her. You see having watched dramas for so long I expected Eun-Ha to become the wronged-BF-turned- traitor . But how she opens up to Se-Yi at the end was really moving. They were like fighting a moment ago and then falling-into-each other's-arms and crying their eyes out -- was something I myself connected with. having experienced something similar in my own life..^^
At this point the only think I don't like is Sun-Woo.. I know he's all this very handsome-gracious and great. But I hate his indifferent air. His reaction when Se-Yi tells him of Kyu-Dong's suicide attempt was just "we should not keep an incident of this magnitude from the teacher" And in the next seen he was at a hospital playing for cancer kids.. who all gather around him asking "oppa why are you here only now?" And that too in front of Se-Yi. Doesn't strike a chord. If not for Na Na liking him I would have plain simply hated him all the way. And hence to conclude.. I 'm eagerly waiting t o hsee how these kids will fair after this drama. and the writer and the PD too.... :D
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okitokki
July 25, 2013 at 6:28 PM
I agree with your take on Sunwoo. I never really liked him that much. I think a lot of us watching think of him as the typical perfect second lead character (based on some of the stuff I've seen in comments, anyway), and I never liked him much and it took me awhile to remember he's actually not supposed to be the perfect second male lead. he's attractive-ish and the class president and smart and talented... but from the beginning eun-ha (and his All for One friends, too) kept remarking how weird it was for him to suddenly be so nice (to se-yi, anyway)... because thats how they all know him: as an indifferent guy, the kind of guy who has never cared about anyone or shown interest in their lives or feelings.
also, i luff nana. ever since that episode where she first sang with the waiter/guitar player dude, i have luffed her so. freaking. much. i burst out laughing every time se-yi and sunwoo are together and she comes out of nowhere and steps in between them. too funny.
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2 Nanaki
July 22, 2013 at 8:25 PM
It was good to see Eun-ha finally let it out - she keeps a lot inside (and from the people who care about her), so hopefully now she'll be able to have more confidence in her friends and herself. I thought that was a good theme for this episode - learning that beginning to talk is that hard part and once you start, it gets easier.
But my favorite moment of this episode was after Nana has cast the boys into stupefaction and run away, Kyu-dong just gapes, 'Nana rocks.' Do-nam agrees. And neither of them can stop clapping even though she's not there anymore.
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thelady
July 22, 2013 at 8:42 PM
that was a great scene and I understand Nana's embarrassment cause I'd feel the same way if someone caught me dancing like that
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Kgrl
July 22, 2013 at 8:42 PM
So true. I've become Nana's fangirl as well. Hyori's song fit her so well. It's unbelievable that the boys wouldn't fall for her - and less than 10 minutes too. Lol.
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aly
July 22, 2013 at 8:43 PM
That Was One of my fave moments. So cute and made me laugh. Watched it twice lol
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shukmeister
July 22, 2013 at 8:45 PM
My favorite part too. Their mutual expressions watching her dance made me giggle.
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Waiting
July 22, 2013 at 10:42 PM
I loved how they uttered, "Daebak..." with mouths agape at seeing her in this new light.
There's going to be a smack down if Sun Woo and Nana do not end up together or, in the least, there is no hint that they will when the show wraps.
I heart this little show!
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Lilian
August 6, 2013 at 8:50 AM
oh yes that was realy daebak! Nana just earned herself three fanboys D
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nokcha
July 23, 2013 at 5:21 AM
Hysterical! Loved the look in the boys' eyes and the throaty ddaebak...
This was a great episode in so many ways. The bullying and bully is being dealt with, we see more dimensions of Nana (she reminds me a little of black Nana from the Japanese Nana), we see the romance between the two S's come more to the forefront and then Eun Ha. This was one of my favorite endings to an episode. So sweet and warm.
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pogo
July 23, 2013 at 7:37 AM
Yeah, Kyu-dong had it right when he said 'Nana daebak' ^_^, I really enjoyed the boys' expressions when they were watching her dance.
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3 sumee
July 22, 2013 at 8:26 PM
absolutely love love love this series ..Finally I fell head over heels with a Kdrama after ages !
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4 putihlilac
July 22, 2013 at 8:27 PM
Love it. But sad. Its going to end soon. :'(
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5 MariD
July 22, 2013 at 8:33 PM
2 episode left!!! What am going to do once its over?
I adore this little drama, it reminds me a bit of my love for Dream High & you're beautiful.
There was just soo much cute in this episode.
Seol-chan running away & then seeing the heart in the sky.
Then the singers following Se-Yi around, fantastic! Their facial expressions had me in tears.
With 2 episodes I'm still wondering how they are going to end it. We need to resolve the issues between My baby Sun-Woo & Seol-Chan. They need to become bffs again.
Then we need Sun-Woo to get a happy ending with or without NaNa
There's also the whole issue with Ajusshi, the singer & his dead sister.
How are we going to get closure???
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6 Requiem
July 22, 2013 at 8:37 PM
I tried watching the episode right after it came out, but for some reason it wouldn't stream fully for me. So, it kept pausing over and over on various parts.
I'm not sure if it's because of this or because of the writing or editing of the episode, but I really wasn't that into this episode. I'll have to watch it again soon and see if that makes it better.
I definitely liked hearing Kim Min Young sing. She has either the 2nd best or 3rd best voice of the actors (behind Dahee and maybe Kang Ui-sik). It's really too bad she won't be able to show off that voice in whatever few future songs there are left :(.
Let's look at my timeline:
Ep 10:
- All the secrets will be exposed more w/ maybe SC’s abandonment held back until ep. 11 (Only really had Eun-ha's issues shown)
- GD/DN healing starts and continues through ep. 12 (Check)
- SW/NN romance starts blooming with more dates and SW recovering from realizing SY loves SC and continues through ep. 12 (Check)
Hmmmm, still have to reveal:
- SC's abandonment
- SC/SW broken bromance
- Ajussi's nightmare/Nawin's mother
That plus the resolutions of all the other threads seem like a lot for only 2 more episodes. No extension talks, eh?
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Smile134
July 22, 2013 at 10:42 PM
They've already finished filming, so I'm pretty sure there will be no extension for Monstar :(
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pearl3101
July 23, 2013 at 12:22 PM
I too hope they give an extension. 12 episodes is just too short for this awesome and strong drama..
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7 zank
July 22, 2013 at 8:40 PM
nana and sun woo.fighting!!
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8 aly
July 22, 2013 at 8:40 PM
This episode Was amazing. I swooned so much. I have grown to adore do nam. He is One guy in the group who has always stepped up. Following nana when they were not even close comes to mind.
As much as i love nana and sun woo, i struggle with sun woo a little. He knows she likes him. He really does. But He Never holds Back in persuing se yi even when nana is Right there. He hurts her without thought, and so It annoys me that i know she will forgive all the moment He falls for her. I wish she knew how awesome she is and that she deserves more than settling for second best. Sun woo also watched kyu dong be bullied, despite of his role As class president, which makes me question just what kind of person he is exactly. Seol chan already seems to know tho.
Eun ha annoyed me to no end this ep. Thank god she redeemed herself at the end. I Hope she backs off about them. Omg guys did you see the commerial!!!! I nearly passed out Lol. Could not believe It!
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thelady
July 22, 2013 at 8:50 PM
I'm more angry at Sunwoo for the Kyudong situation than for the situation with Nana. Just because someone likes you does not mean you are obligated to modify your behavior around the other girl you like. Yes Sunwoo knows that Nana likes him or at least he does after the coupon dates started but he never mislead Nana or played with her heart. As for Kyudong, Sunwoo should have stepped in a long time ago when he saw K being humiliated everyday. Not only as the class president but as a decent human being. Sunwoo isn't scared of Jaerok so he has no excuse for his lack of interference.
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Requiem
July 22, 2013 at 8:53 PM
Kyu Dong or Do Nam should swoop in on Nana while Sunwoo is still mooning for Se-Yi!
Actually, a Do Nam-Nana couple would be cute!
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Nanaki
July 22, 2013 at 9:00 PM
They've said that he's the hands-off type, so it'd be out of character if he'd tried to stop it. Not that excuses him. It's one of the times where his interference may have made a positive difference, and he didn't even try, and inaction led to some serious consequences. Maybe now he'll try getting involved a bit more.
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aly
July 22, 2013 at 9:15 PM
All i know is that if i cared about awesome, or Just overall, i wouldn't be serenading a love song whilst the girl i know loves me is sitting right there. Yes He is not obliged to, but It would be the decent thing to so, especially since He Should know how much it hurts since He is in his own triangle. Another thing that comes to mind is how He ignored her like everyone Else in class , and acted like He didn't know her, until school would end and then aknowledge her and turned out they have a Bit of history. That always came across as Super cold to me. We can agree to disagree on that tho. Sun woo HAS always caught my attention from the start, but there have been too many instances where He has seen the group or kyu dong be bullied and Just watched. Hopefully He changes because nana deserves more than that.
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aly
July 22, 2013 at 9:19 PM
* cared about Someone* posting from my phone. And i ship do nam couple too. Too Adorbs !!
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Waiting
July 22, 2013 at 10:53 PM
It seems like everyone has a significant back story with the exception of Sun Woo. His only back story is the broken bromance with Seol-Chan? Even the broken bromance was not the only back story for each of the characters.
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pogo
July 23, 2013 at 7:46 AM
....but I don't think Sun-woo even realised Nana had feelings for him, at that point - she hadn't yet asked for her 10 dates, even.
He's wrong for a lot of other things (mainly not stopping the bullying, though I respect that he is self-aware enough to know how wrong he was) but re: Nana? He hasn't been leading her on, he's just blind.
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Enz
July 22, 2013 at 11:01 PM
Agree with you on all points here :). Why should he respond any other way than how he feels? Right now he feels nothing for nana (yet?) and lots for se yi still. How is it his fault that nana likes him. She should show it even more and risk it, just like he risked it in confessing to se yi.
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Mama J
July 23, 2013 at 3:11 AM
Agreed. Sun Woo likes who he likes, NaNa likes who she likes. Neither of them can help it, at the moment. For a while earlier I thought maybe Do Nam had a thing for NaNa and I would have liked to see him step up a bit in that area and perhaps move her away from Sun Woo.
Sun Woo and NaNa as a couple would be fine with me, but I would also be fine with Sun Woo just learning to be open and not always so perfect and careful, as his full story arc. He is a good person but he's so shut off. I want to know why, and I want to see it end.
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PollyRose
July 22, 2013 at 9:19 PM
I think the reason that Sun Woo didn't step in with Kyu Dong stems back to his issues with Seol Chan. In a previous episode, he was out with Nana for their first hangout and he mentioned that there was a time when he was a nice guy and stepped in where he though he should and it ended up hurting someone (likely SC). So he sits back now and watches, not stepping in until Se Yi arrives and starts giving him reasons to get involved.
I'm really looking forward to seeing what happened with them and I think it may have some connection to SC's abandonment issues as well...
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me2
July 23, 2013 at 7:45 AM
yes I want to know sun woo and sel chan's backstory.
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pearl3101
July 23, 2013 at 12:31 PM
I'm happy that I am not the only one feeling that way about Sun-Woo. It annoys me to no end how he is only nice to others in front of Se-Yi. and at other times he has this "I DON'T CARE" air. He annoys me even more than the bitchy second female-leads(who practically shout out "I'm MEAN") of k-drama land. But I'm not exactly sure about him knowing NA-Na's feelings for him. Never once have I felt he noticed. I think if she does confess in the future he would be surprised.
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9 thelady
July 22, 2013 at 8:40 PM
I love this drama so much. It just does everything well. Finally we got to focus on Eunha and her pain. Also Nana fitting Sunwoo in the jacket was hot! Awkward Sulchan and Seyi being adorably awkward. I'm so glad that Do-nam and Kyu-dong are friends again and that Jaerok got told to shut up.
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10 pinkkering
July 22, 2013 at 8:41 PM
Who'd have thought that a teen drama could be so heartwarming, right? Monstar's an easy contender for my 2013 top drama list, along with I Hear Your Voice.
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thelady
July 22, 2013 at 8:51 PM
I love both dramas but I feel like Monstar might be slightly better just cause the court room scenes in IHYV are so bad.
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Nanaki
July 22, 2013 at 9:05 PM
Overall I'd have to agree with you there. As a package Monstar's the better show. On the other hand, Monstar doesn't reduce me to a frayed ball of nerves that squees at appropriate intervals.
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pogo
July 23, 2013 at 7:47 AM
There is that, though Monstar has its own draggy ball-and-chain in the form of that neverending parental love triangle (which needs to be wrapped up already)
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Mama J
July 23, 2013 at 9:16 AM
Right now I've got these way high on my list plus Cruel City...and potentially Queen's Classroom as well as (even more potentially) The Blade and Petal. Past contenders for 2013 still in my running - School 2013; I really want TWtWB to be there too but I think it won't make my cut, beautiful and loved by me as it was.)
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11 savanna
July 22, 2013 at 8:45 PM
Who else is watching this on Viki? Saw this episode and whenever it was Eun-Ha's scene, the comments that popped up were vulgar, offensive and it was basically cyber bullying. They stuff people say, seriously. Had to turn off all comments when Eun-Ha showed up on the screen.
How ironic is it that Monstar has Kyung-Dong and it centers around bullying, and then you have people literally re-enacting it online.
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the other kay
July 22, 2013 at 9:18 PM
dude, i can barely watch anything on viki with the comments turned on. the amount of immature people commenting is astounding. it used to be fun, watching and commenting with others. but now, seeing all those thoughtless remarks just makes for a frustrating watch.
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ck1Oz
July 22, 2013 at 10:57 PM
Write to the moderator there to check the timed comments.
Off topic- but we've been deleting offensive and profanity laden comments on Shark. * rollseyes* and the comments on Shark were/are terrible.
My conclusion is that people think they are anonymous and just spew filth. I shudder to think that's their real thought processes.
You feel contaminated after reading countless comments like that.
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Quiet Thought
July 23, 2013 at 4:19 AM
Agreed. I stopped making comments on Vikiii because the visible comments are almost mindless, juvenile spew.
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dizzyMongoose
July 22, 2013 at 9:26 PM
Your mistake was watching with comments on. It's like Youtube comments, except timed.
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Smile134
July 22, 2013 at 10:40 PM
I watched it on Viki, too and also turned of the comment for Monstar. Reading those comments while watching just makes me mad. Man, how come people be so mean :(
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Chandler
July 23, 2013 at 3:14 PM
I was waiting for this recap just to discuss this! I was really horrified by all the things they said and kept trying to cover up their comments with more positive ones. Like seriously. Some people. Usually time comments can be really fun, but when they get like that its so frustrating and really very sad.
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Ennayra
July 23, 2013 at 5:42 PM
I'm watching on Viki too, but I never watch an episode for the first time with the comments on. I need me time with the characters, lol. Sometimes I think I hop on the dramabeans recaps too fast also - before I've really formed my opinion of an episode/character/etc.
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12 Ace
July 22, 2013 at 8:48 PM
I love this episode. Seol-chan never fails to crack me up.
Also loved the part where Nana flipped off Se-yi's hair from her lips.
Right now, Nana and Sun-woo's romance is making me more excited. I keep hoping that Sun-woo would just kiss her. That dance was awesome and I've been replaying that over and over. Lee Hyori (well, it's mnet so no surprise they featured one of her hits) may not have the best voice (although she's better now than 10 years ago) but she's got the moves and that song is definitely catchy. Love Sun-woo's reaction (sort of proud of her) and the other two guys'. The way Kyu-dong and Do-nam were stealing glances at them while Sun-woo was teaching her how to play the bass guitar was so funny.
Great that Kyu-dong and Do-nam have made up. It's sweet.
Meanwhile, Eun-ha crying with Nana reminded me of that scene in Sunny where the two girls were also crying-apologizing to each other. It was awesome of Nana, Seol-chan and Sun-woo to do that song for Eun-ha.
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Ennayra
July 23, 2013 at 5:44 PM
Yeah, I really liked all the friendship dynamics involved in this group too. And to think they all got together because of some dog poop :-)
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~Feather~
July 24, 2013 at 11:29 AM
lmao! I just realized that! XD
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13 foodluver88
July 22, 2013 at 8:52 PM
I am loving this gem of a drama! And I wish there were more episodes! I would be one happy camper if there were 16 episodes instead of 12 (usually I'm wishing dramas were shorter than they actually are).
I'm a bit worried that the pacing for the last 2 episodes will be rushed compared to the rest of the series (see, e.g., Sungkyungkwan Scandal), and it'll end on a down note. There are way too many story lines that need to be resolved in a satisfying way. Like what is Hyorin doing to do about her obsessive crush on Seol-chan? I'm waiting for her to do something crazy soon. And will someone finally give Jaerok a taste of his own medicine? What is up with the school president? Will Seol-chan and Sun-woo ever reconcile? What about Ahjusshi and Se-yi's mom? How is Se-yi going to wrap around the fact that Ahjusshi inadvertently caused her dad's death (based on what we know)? What about the homeroom teacher and the gym teacher?
Anywho, thank you for the recaps gummimochi!!
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14 whilethemusiclasts
July 22, 2013 at 8:56 PM
I love this drama so much and I can't believe we only have 2 more episodes to go. THERE'S STILL SO MUCH TO TACKLE.
Aigoo. Someone point me in the direction of Monstar fanfiction. Feels like I'm going to need it when the series does end.
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15 dizzyMongoose
July 22, 2013 at 8:56 PM
I was under the impression that Eun-Ha still can't sing, and they autotuned her for the song, so the last part where she's singing in person is sort of in spirit. Which would be a shame since the actress playing her has a really nice singing voice in reality, but would make more sense to me than Eun-Ha suddenly being able to sing.
As for the episode, seeing Nana dance and smile was smoking, even knowing that the idol playing her does that for a living, but the best part was super-short Kyu-Dong peeping up over Do-Nam's head on the stairs and their subsequent flabbergasted reactions. I totally understand, guys; Sun-Woo's the weird one for not crushing.
At this point I'm resigned to the fact that there's no way they can tie everything up in two episodes without rushing, though. The leisurely pace fits the show but is just too slow given there's only two eps left and so many plates still spinning in the air. How are they going to answer the Thai mystery, the mom misunderstanding, what happened between former best buds, the idol girlfriend problem, and somehow make Nana less miserable in the time they have left?
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Requiem
July 22, 2013 at 9:01 PM
Yeah, I agree with everything you said in this post.
And the thing is they could actually pace it out as it isn't like an extension would be out of line here, and it fits rather well since there's only 1 episode/week. And the show has been getting good ratings. And AFAIK there's no show that follows it....
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dizzyMongoose
July 22, 2013 at 9:19 PM
Nah, they've wrapped up filming already and Jun Hyung is already back with BEAST. There's not going to be an extension.
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Requiem
July 22, 2013 at 9:39 PM
Right, I was thinking about an extension earlier (around ep. 8). They could have actually prepared for an extension for these episodes. By that, I mean they could have actually filmed a lot more material and just decided how much to cut and/or added more flashback scenes depending on how a request would have turned out.
I might just be overly worried about the resolution, but it would seem prudent to try to prepare for that eventuality....
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PollyRose
July 22, 2013 at 9:25 PM
I thought they auto tuned her too and the last part was imagination. Glad I'm not the only one :)
Either way, it was a really sweet scene and I'm glad they were able to make her feel valued...though, getting her out of an abusive situation would be a REALLY good follow up. Seriously, not going to address that?
And I wasn't aware that the actress had a musical background. As a character, it is great that we have someone with a more "ordinary" talent for narrative purposes, but it would have been cool if as an actress, she could have had her background more fully utilized. But, maybe she'll have more opportunities in the future :)
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Waiting
July 22, 2013 at 10:59 PM
I have to admit that I'd love to have someone auto-tune a song for me. How cool would that be for those of us with zero talent for singing to hear what we would sound like properly tuned.
This may need to go on my bucket list. lol
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gummimochi
July 23, 2013 at 8:50 AM
I agree with y'all about the auto-tuning—it would be odd to suddenly discover Eun-ha's singing talent when we were told that she can't sing. Which is a pity since a lot of readers have pointed out that the actress herself is quite talented.
In that same vein, it's more about what that song means to her and how the scene gives her own moment to shine. And that's just fantastic.
Thanks for reading, everyone! I'm so grateful to all of you <3
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Waiting
July 23, 2013 at 10:37 AM
So thankful for your recaps!! :D
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pearl3101
July 23, 2013 at 12:38 PM
Thank you so much for the recaps. I'm happy that you cover this wonderful series. :D
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16 risa
July 22, 2013 at 9:46 PM
Thanks, gummi!
Ack, this show just gets me with all the feels. While I didn't love everything about this episode, there were plenty of moments that I did love, and at the end, I found myself basking in the warm fuzzies once again.
This show has so many great little beats that make me smile-- like Se Yi instinctively hiding her Lips of Shame, the silently-escorting-each-other date, Eun Ha grabbing back her telltale journal before Hyo Rin got a chance to read it (and thus thankfully subverting a worn out k-drama trope), and even Mom's nonchalance at seeing Se Yi in her Burrito of Befuddlement.
I'm really gonna miss Monstar-- I hope it has a better finale than SKKS (which I also loved) did.
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dizzyMongoose
July 22, 2013 at 10:17 PM
"Se Yi in her Burrito of Befuddlement"
Ha! So apt. That's better than my Cocoon of Confusion label.
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17 Lucille
July 22, 2013 at 9:54 PM
I really like this show. Thanks for the recap. I know this is probably late, but can someone give me the teacher/aunt motivation? I do not understand her character at all. Is she afraid of being fired, does she not want to be a teacher, is she embarassed to know Se yi, etc? What is her deal? I get annoyed whenever she has screen time.
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Nanaki
July 22, 2013 at 10:25 PM
I think she's just immature as a person. She seems to resent the 'interference' of other people in 'her' business, but then doesn't see why they won't do her favors - hence the snippiness with Se-yi and most of her students because she feels they all want something from her or are being purposefully disobliging. And it's why she's okay with Sun-woo, because he doesn't ask/need anything of her, and she doesn't feel obliged to do anything for him. So if you're looking for her motivation, I guess it would be 'what do I get out of this?' If she finds out about Kyu-dong I think that will change though - she's not heartless, just selfish.
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Lucille
July 23, 2013 at 3:21 PM
Thanks. You are correct she is a lot selfish. I wonder if they are going to try and give her character resolution also. Currently, she has no redeeming qualities.
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Kuaci
July 23, 2013 at 8:29 PM
2 ep left, and i hope it filled with seolchan-seyi cute screen. Forget about teacher character resolution. Just skipped it to Monstar Session 2 (LOL)
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18 Sponge
July 22, 2013 at 10:01 PM
This episode was such a tear jerker for me and continues my love for Monstar. I understand peoples initial dislike for Eunha, she is obviously flawed but so are the rest of the characters.
I hated to watch Kyudong being bullied without anyone saying anything (except for Seiyi - let me hug you - and Nana occasionally and prez in his own way but not nearly enough). I would of loved for her to stand up for him but its not in her character, she doesn't have the courage like the other characters and her loneliness feels relatable.
I dont reason her actions as those of an obsessive fan (though i can totally see why one would), i hope she steps away from her fantasy and opens up with such good friends she has around her because i still see her as a good person. She is still someone that i feel is able to understand this in time and im glad the show has given her more depth. All my feels. I'm sad that we are only left with two more episodes.
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19 whimsicalnet
July 22, 2013 at 10:02 PM
Other than the awesome story... can I get the OST?? I loved all their remakes, sometimes even more than the originals!
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ck1Oz
July 22, 2013 at 11:08 PM
I'll buy their OST CD just to get the pretty photos and lyrics. Rather than downloading it off the Net.
It's so good and makes me swoon.
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20 dustdevil
July 22, 2013 at 10:03 PM
Gah, I love this show so much. Eun-ha's sadness/jealousy at Se-yi and Seol-chan's romance was so real and perfectly played out. Nana's dancing was great, loved the boys' reactions, but I totally agree that something is going to have to change in the Sun-woo/Nana power dynamic for me to be happy with their pairing.
The Superstar K guys serenading Se-yi were hilarious--their whole look and the set-up reminded me so much of Flight of the Conchords.
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gummimochi
July 23, 2013 at 8:40 AM
HA! So I *wasn't* the only one who thought of the Flight of the Conchords during the serenade. :)
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Harleyqwen
July 25, 2013 at 8:13 AM
Flight of the Concords "You could be a part time model" just popped into my head" thank you for that!
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yoko loco
July 26, 2013 at 9:23 AM
That's what it was! I couldn't put my finger on it but it felt really familiar. FotC!
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21 StrokedPerson
July 22, 2013 at 10:08 PM
more nana and sunwoo on the upcoming episodes please!!! i ship them soooo much!!! haha
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22 Noelle
July 22, 2013 at 10:28 PM
I want more episodes. This is one instance where an extension would be greatly appreciated. I don't think they can solve everything and tie it all up nicely to give me some sense of satisfaction in just 2 episodes. There is still so much to learn and solve and mend. Please drama gods solve this issue.
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23 coby
July 22, 2013 at 10:33 PM
Monstar is awesome!
There's a lot of things that I so love in this episode that if I'll list them down it might be like another recap. I love how they walked back and forth to spend more time together and how close they were while walking, how their shoulder occasionally brushed. I can feel that they were itching to hold hands. I was hoping to see it actually, that unconsciously they held hands.
I have the same worries on how on 2 episodes we'll get the explanation about a lot of things, how the friendships were broken, the things that haunts Ajusshi to name a few.
I wonder how or what word will Seol-chan use to confess to Se-yi. :D
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24 ck1Oz
July 22, 2013 at 10:59 PM
Thank you for the recap. I think I loved this episode the best. Not for the post kiss moments but just everything.
I love the fact that it's made to feel important to the character- therefore it deserves time on screen.
Plus the funny, I love how they mix the serious and the funny. The ajusshi's revolving door today was just hilarious. Where are their parents???
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25 bleumelon
July 22, 2013 at 11:11 PM
thanks gummimochi! omg, loving monstar <3 but how can there only be 2 more episodes left? i can't imagine how they're going to resolve everything without it feeling rushed.
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26 xine
July 22, 2013 at 11:52 PM
Thanks so much gummimochi! I am loving Monstar and your recaps are delightful.
Just to throw in my two-cents worth - I have seen some cheap shots on other sites about things like the alley walk, Eun Ha's story not being dealt with in a fashion that makes for good drama, the repetition of the Sun Woo-Se Yi-Seol Chan story and so on. This director and writer and actors have done an amazing job of taking a programme that was a vehicle for music (all great! BTW) and turned it into real slice of life story of teenage angst and realities IMHO.
Eg, the alley-walk - cute! But also, who has not sat on the phone with first b/f or g/f more or less in silence except for you hang up first - no you hang up first - more silence! So true to life. People have complained about Se Yi's serenade - but what a marvellous way to show us where her head is at! Also people complaining that the drama hasn't sorted out Eun Ha's domestic abuse. How likely is it that kids this age in the throes of their own issues would (a) actually notice and (b) would intrude? Eun Ha's first issue is that she feels invisible - isolated - friendless. And that's because she makes herself invisible, living in her head and her fan dreams and her writing. But the very minute she took matters into her own hands and actually stepped up and confessed her feelings she and her issues became visible and the Color Bar response was fabulous - warm, supportive, caring and giving her pride in herself, which will give her the tools to start to sort out her own life. And I find Seol Chan's behaviour really credible. The difference between now and his earlier more macho approach to the almost kiss . . . he has acted in dramas and written songs about relationships, it seems, but the deeper he gets into his own drama the more he realises that life is NOT a drama and he needs to be authentic. What can he say that is not trite and has been said before. How does he express his growing emotions IRL? And so on. Anyway - feel better now. Thanks if you got this far. 8-)
Hoping for a series 2 given the number of storylines that could be followed up!
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Enz
July 23, 2013 at 12:56 AM
Thats what i kept saying about that walk.. Its the walking version of the phone call where no one wants to ahng up. Thanks for your thoughts. Love them :)
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Enz
July 23, 2013 at 1:59 AM
Oops.. Hang, Not ahng
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Ace
July 23, 2013 at 1:02 AM
Completely agree with your comments. Plus, at last someone used 'throes' not 'throws'. I'm still waiting for someone to use 'fazed' instead of 'phased' (as defined in Urban dictionary: how illiterates spell "fazed"). ;)
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Laya
July 26, 2013 at 11:31 AM
Lol the alley walk.
In my student years, it was the "I'll walk you home/to the dorm" "I'll walk you to the corner" kind of thing, and to end it we'd joke that if we kept it up we'd be walking back and forth all night. Looks like Seol-chan and Se-yi did! :D (So yes, it wasn't that far-fetched to me.)
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27 MizzMizzEka
July 23, 2013 at 2:12 AM
I cant stop laughs when see Seol Chan proudly feeeling after meet SeYi at nights, he sooo funny when he says life was feeeling better and more simple after do that confession thing, hahahaha.
truthfully I was faling in love with all that casts, but when I see one commercial beetween the scenes, that took Se Yi and Sun Woo cast acts as couple, my hearts breaks, for me it ruines the love story beetween SeYi and Seol Chan :(
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28 Fangy
July 23, 2013 at 2:32 AM
Thanks gummimochi for recapping yet another wonderful episode of Monstar!
Even though the secondary characters' arcs are quickly resolved, it doesn't feel it's just a touch and go. I like how they close Eun-ha's arc, and how she relates her story with the Little Mermaid. As she narrates it and the scenes that go with her story, at one time, I was worried that she would really kill her prince with the sword (i.e. exposing S & S Secret Love = ruining Seolchan's career). In other dramas, this would have been the case especially near the end of the drama. My mind actually went "Oh shit!" when Hyorin picked up the journal. But like the Little Mermaid, she came back and snatched the journal away...choosing to turn into bubbles (give her blessing to S & S?)
This turning into bubbles is also a metaphor of her inferiority complex and her value of her own existence. In last episode, Seyi was oblivous to Eun-ha's plight as she was consumed by her own emotions and Kyudong's suicide. Now that she and Seolchan have come to a sorta understanding, and Kyudong and Donam's friendship seems to be on the mend, Seyi is able to step up as Eun-ha's friend. And she wasn't shy to confront her friend (thank you for not doing the obvious noble idiocy of avoiding Seolchan to preserve her friendship with Eun-ha). Perhaps that's why Eun-ha is able to open up to her about her father's abuse and her inferiority complex. And Seyi acted on it, and showed her friend in a poignant way that she is not alone and is a star with her own right.
So, I'm glad that the girls patched up quickly. Interestingly, the director showed the 2 boys watching from behind when the girls made up. Perhaps, a hint to the boys that they should also try to make up from their broken friendship.
Or perhaps, there is a plan for Season 2. Hence, they don't feel the urgency to patch the 2 boys back? Afterall, Kyudong and Donam have fulfilled the quota of a mending friendship. It would be fun in Season 2 if the 2 boys continue their petty quibbles. Besides, aside from the earlier episode whereby Sunwoo tried to be friendly, I don't see any other sign or intention of mending. To be honest, the 2 of them are doing well without each other for the past years, unlike Kyudong and Donam (or Namsoon and Heungsoo of School 2013 - Yes! I have to mention them!) As much as I would like them to, the urgency is not much felt.
With so many other issues unresolved, I did wonder how they are going to end this show with 2 episodes left. But, since the writer is the one who wrote Arang and The Magistrate, I'm putting good faith on the last two episodes.
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momosa
July 23, 2013 at 7:13 PM
..Perhaps, a hint to the boys that they should also try to make up from their broken friendship.
Yeah, it's coming. Just love how every scene is so meaningfully & tightly done, I'm sure the uncomfortable look-away scene has double meaning - one at the girls crying & another at their own fall-out.
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29 Peridot
July 23, 2013 at 5:16 AM
I am glad that this show finally explored a bit of Eunha's background (even if it left me wanting more). Viewers may be tempted to view her simply as a fangirl. While I do not think that the behavior of obsessive fangirls, who do not want their precious idols to live normal lives and experience all-to-human emotions, can be excused or justified, I am glad that this episode provided a little perspective into why someone like Seolchan would be so significant in the life of someone like Eunha.
I must admit that I was angered by some of the live comments people were posting on viki. These comments were hateful and referred to the character's (and by default, the actress's) weight and physical features. People were angered that a character like Eunha could be the main focus of an episode and that she was, therefore, taking away precious time from the better looking leads. At one point, I just had turn off the comments. I briefly turned them back on after a bit of Eunha's story had been revealed to see if that context would have tempered the vitriolic nature of the comments;unfortunately and for the most part, that was not the case.
It troubles me that many people believe that stories should focus on characters who are more conventionally good looking or who conform to traditional standards of beauty. I often find that those to whom many would not give a second glance--those who do not fit a certain look--have the more interesting stories to tell. There are plenty of beautiful souls whose outward 'packages' may not be considered beautiful or worthy of a full episode's attention.
I am not sure how the show will address the remaining issues in its two episodes. I know that in real life not every problem can be given a neat solution, but I wish that this show would not have devoted most of its time to the awkward emotions and denial of its OTP. Also, suicide and domestic abuse are not issues to be introduced for dramatic effect but treated nonchalantly. I must admit, however, that the Kyudong-Donam moments added a lot of cuteness to this episode :)
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pogo
July 23, 2013 at 8:19 AM
@Peridot - viki comments being disgusting and misogynistic is nothing new - during Gu Family Book, you had people actually saying that a character deserved to be raped, so being mean about an actress's looks does not surprise me.
I do agree that the pace needs to pick up a little, and even though I love our OTP, they could lose the superfluous Adam/Se-yi's parents love triangle and have more focus on other relationships.
(and I love the Kyu-dong and Do-nam moments in here too, especially their matching flabbergasted expressions when they caught Nana dancing)
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Peridot
July 23, 2013 at 10:14 AM
Hi Pogo :) Thank you for your reply. In the past, I would normally disable comments. Lately, however, I have not been doing so--a big mistake! The hatred an immaturity of some viewers should not continue to amaze me (but I can still find myself surprised, somehow).
Let us hope that if all the issues cannot be concluded perfectly than at least the remaining episodes will not feel rushed.
And please, more Kyudong-Donam moments :)
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30 john
July 23, 2013 at 5:18 AM
gummimochi ~
Thanks for the recap.
Nana is full of surprises, she has a lot going for her. Wake up Sun-Woo.
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31 sirena
July 23, 2013 at 6:19 AM
I enjoyed this episode because it was full of wonderful moments between the characters (I'm flashing back to the bromance moments between Kyu-dong and Do-nam). I am also glad that the writer(s) did touch upon Eunha's abusive family life (if not to my complete satisfaction).
I can relate to Eunha because I know what it means to feel as if you're on the outside looking in. Part of something and yet not. Eunha is a wonderful character and it hurt and disgusted me to read some of the comments by viewers on Viki (one of the reasons why I normally disable the comments).
It would be nice if the writer(s) are planning a second season because I do not see how they can quickly address the remaining story arcs in two episodes.
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32 cheliwel
July 23, 2013 at 6:27 AM
This episode was kinda boring. Two more episodes and it feels like they're slowing down some of the plots.
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33 maimymlt
July 23, 2013 at 6:45 AM
My favorite scene was Se Yi speaking out for Kyu Dong. You Go Girl!!! And the actor, Yoon Jong-Hoon, that plays Jae Rok, NAILED it with his expression when Do Nam glares him down. You can see his slow awareness that the "bond" with Do Nam has changed. And Se Yi's little lip roll, smirk - MwaHaHaHaHa - loved it!
I also love that the basement has become the "go to" place. Adam needs it as much as the kids do!
Absolutely gonna miss this show.
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34 Downtheroad
July 23, 2013 at 6:59 AM
I feel like since this drama mostly have depicted the lives of it's characters in a very down to earth way and also very close to real life in some ways. Maybe it won't resolve all the issues we feel have to be resolved. Since many issues don't get resolved in real life.
Maybe some threads are gonna be left open...
Oh drama how I love thee! My new crack *sigh*
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35 Lixie
July 23, 2013 at 7:32 AM
I liked the 2 first eps of this show but I kind of hate it lately. It seems so senseless to me. I don't get anything or like any characters anymore. I disliked ep 10 just like all the others, maybe a little more than 9. When I really like a show I think it's interesting to know why others dislike it so I'm going to list why mostly I don't even understand Monstar anymore but just because maybe there is another me out there, not trying to annoy any fans ok?:)
- the mystery behind SY's father death bores me. The whole situation with her and the guy who was supposed to be her fathers friend is absurd.
- The fight with her mom was crazy too, I bet there is some silly explanation that any mother would have shouted in a second but this one remains silent.
- The main OTP has cute scenes sometimes but they are usually absurdly naive and I was never like that, I never even knew anyone like that, in which world they are living? The girl is so annoying.
- I really don't like the way KD situation was dealt with, bullying is such a serious matter and the show made it seem like it was more about Donam than the class behaviour.
- Eunha charcater was very odd for me too. The show made it seem like her crazy sasaeng ideas were almost natural , totally ok, and having an abusive parent was not such a big deal either.
I'll still finish it but only because it is short and I hate dropping dramas.
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Peridot
July 23, 2013 at 10:25 AM
Hi Lixie, I think that you make very valid points. I am not as thrilled by this show as I used to be. I wish that less time was devoted to the OTP so that more time could be spent on fleshing out and truly exploring the other conflicts. And it's true, Kyudong's problems are not solely defined by his past relationship with Donam. He has been habitually tormented by Jinrok and the rest of his classmates, who are either complacent in that abuse or contribute to it in different ways. More importantly, his plight had long been known by a class president who willfully ignored it. That is one blatant character flaw of Sunwoo that I cannot abide.
About Eunha...while she may have reached an understanding with her friends, I cannot help but think that the abuse she has experienced will continue until she finds a way to leave home. As someone above wrote, however, the other teenagers are too consumed with their own problems to deal with another one of such a great magnitude. While this may be true, I cannot help but be troubled that something that affects many people in the world will be quickly brought up and just as quickly dismissed in a show marketed toward young people. Sorry, I did not mean to write such a long response. I hope that I have clearly articulated my thoughts.
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Peridot
July 23, 2013 at 10:36 AM
Oops! I meant Jaerok, not Jinrok (I must have been thinking about "Flower Boy Next Door").
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Lixie
July 23, 2013 at 1:31 PM
@Peridot You wrote something I felt the same about. Sunwoo. Again show portrays him as something and what I see is entirely different. None of his new friends including KD seems to care for his lack of attitude towards the bullying. Someone above wrote maybe his past with SC would have some explanation for that but as far as I'm concerned there is NO trauma that would be enough to cover for this. Also, he hears the guy tried to kill himself and feels not guilty for a single moment.
Something else bothered me in 10 and everybody seemed to like. Nana's dance. She is the least annoying character for me but even her actions don't make sense. I can't imagine a tough girl raised in a bar would really be into that kind of sexy silly dance. It's a detail, I know, but even the details matter.
I don't like when shows use serious issues and don't treat them as such either. That is why I liked To The Beautiful You being as fluffy as it was, it's much better when shows know their range and focus in what the strong points are.
Not to say I did not like anything, I really liked the serenade song. :)
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thelady
July 23, 2013 at 9:25 PM
Nana being raised in a room salon is the reason she knows that dance. I don't find it out of character at all. She was a bored kid with a large screen tv and an empty room. She entertained herself by singing and dancing. That is why she had a hidden singing talent and now revealed to have hidden dancing talent.
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Lixie
July 24, 2013 at 7:32 AM
I don't mean I found strange she would like to dance or sing or be good at it. It's the song chosen that seemed out of character. Maybe she would have liked that as a kid if she was a bit more naive when younger. Maybe it's the westerner in me that doesn't understand but that song reminded me of those cute sexy silly songs that many girl bands sing, to me, that is not a song a tough, cynical teenager like Nana would like.
~Feather~
July 24, 2013 at 12:09 PM
@Lixie
I don't think that it was out of character for Nana, though. I feel like that tough and cynical image she displays is just that - an image. I don't believe that those traits make up the entirety of her personality. In past episodes we've been able to see that she feels ashamed about her home situation and has found numerous ways of escaping from it. These escapes came in the form of her interest in fashion and (like thelady said) dancing and singing since she was probably left to her own devices as a child. I think she may be the type that is kinda shy but puts up a front. :)
Well, that's what I think anyway. I don't usually comment so if I don't make any sense, feel free to ignore me.
sirena
July 23, 2013 at 10:49 AM
I am in agreement. In my previous post I stated that there are moments in this episode that I truly enjoy. However, I am not satisfied with the way that serious issues such as bullying, attempted suicide, and abuse have been handled.
Also, why must the writer(s) waste time on this constant back and forth between the main OTP? Are we as viewers expected to endure this stupidity on the part of Seol-chan and Se-yi for the remaining two episodes?
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Lixie
July 23, 2013 at 1:39 PM
@Sirena Writer is trying to convey this silliness as being young and naive. I don't know why but I usually like those strange characters that don't even recognize falling in love. I could buy this in YAB, Full House 2, in Flower Boy R.Shop, even a bit in Cyrano but I think the trick is the guy or girl has to be really quirky for it to work. SeYi and Soul-Chan are both too normal so for me that is why it comes across as stupidity instead of naiveness.
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36 pogo
July 23, 2013 at 7:58 AM
Am I the only one who was not totally into the pacing/felt it was slow? I liked that we got to explore Eun-ha's problem at last, but the one-episode wrapup felt rushed and I do feel like the hints dropped in other episodes weren't enough to make any of this cohesive (School 2013 was better at doing character-of-the-week stories, even if they were as After School Special-y as Eun-ha's).
As for the episode itself, everything about Seol-chan and Se-yi this week made me giggle, from the hallucinating serenade to the confession contemplation. And Seol-chan and Sun-woo watching the girls reconcile was equal parts adorable and hilarious. I just wish we'd get more time to actually focus on them instead of Ajusshi Whose High School Love Angst I No Longer Care About.
And one of my favourite parts has to be getting to see Nana dance. I know Dahee is an idol and can bust the moves like one, but I liked that in that scene, she looked more like a girl just having fun with what she loved - not a pro like Seol-chan (and I might have squealed a little when all three boys showed up and Kyu-dong and Do-nam looked gobsmacked by her. Finally someone wakes up to her hotness, even if her outfit from the performance didn't clue them in already!).
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37 zakin89
July 23, 2013 at 8:44 AM
I don't want it to end, I don't want it to end!!! I can't believe that there are only two more episodes left...
There were so many moments this episode that had me in stitches, made me nearly cry and some also made me a bit angry (Jae Rok... 'nuff said) and I just can't get enough of them!
Monstar is one of those few dramas lately where I am anticipating every episode as if it were the last (IHYV being the other one).
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38 BAR
July 23, 2013 at 10:29 AM
I don't want to have to be the Negative Nancy amidst all this gushing praise, so I'm just going to direct you to my comments on Couch-Kimchi (http://couch-kimchi.com/2013/07/21/monstar-episode-10-recap-plot-what-plot/#comment-12941), in which I state all that I need to state. The only things bearing repeating are:
1. This show has Legend of Korra levels of pacing problems
2. "Hey Quagmire, that reminds me of the time I walked home with a Kpop star."
3. OMONA NANA/DAHEE IS THE EMBODIMENT OF SEX OMG OMO HEOLLLLL.
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Peridot
July 23, 2013 at 7:08 PM
Trust me, you are not the only one with negative criticism. You can see my posts above (#29 and reply #35.1). I've lost my initial enthusiasm for this show. On another note, I am sorry that you experienced abuse, but I hope that you are doing well now. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
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39 D's handphone
July 23, 2013 at 12:04 PM
What i love most is how much it reminds me of my high school years (we didnt have an idol in our midst but someone of that stature) the supporting cast are amazing, the maths teacher - an actor or a real teacher? The classmates, especially the two infront of seyi & seol chan- they're hilarious!.
off topic but I totally squee when I recognized a cath kidston pattern in this drama, so far I spotted at least 3..
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40 blnmom
July 23, 2013 at 12:45 PM
The scenes with Seolchan and his manager are the best. I could watch a whole hour with just those two.
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ys
July 23, 2013 at 4:59 PM
Ma Bong Chul!
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41 dew
July 23, 2013 at 2:41 PM
what the meaning of "jjak"?
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gummimochi
July 23, 2013 at 6:29 PM
Good question! There are multiple meanings for "jjak" that were briefly explained in past recaps, but it varies upon context.
The way that Se-yi uses it here is "seat partner" aka the dude who sits next to her in class. There are, of course, more romantic meanings like "my other half" or "soulmate." But those haven't been in play... at least, yet.
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42 ripper9100
July 23, 2013 at 2:52 PM
I enjoy this show but this was a waste of an episode there are so many interesting plot points left to explore and they wasted so much time on such an unlikable character like Eunha and all the pointless serenading...
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43 MyLincoln12
July 23, 2013 at 4:25 PM
I think I'm going to cry when this drama ends! =(
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44 visitor
July 23, 2013 at 4:40 PM
So, as ya'll have pointed out 2 EPISODES LEFT HOW THE HELL WILL THEY WRAP EVERYTHING UP?? We have to keep in mind that we're getting a solid 80 mins a week, which, if you convert it to your standard 60 min per episodes, means that we're still getting 16 episodes. I have ...considerable faith that they will manage to give... pretty satisfying conclusions to every loose end they have out there. I think the pacing has been constant and fitting for a drama of this genre. While I'm not thrilled about such heavy issues as bullying, child abuse etc. being kinda steamrolled over, I think one shouldn't forget that at its core this is a high school drama favouring the light, fluffy side of things, not to be confused and/or compared to School 2013 for example. This is not supposed to excuse the fact that they don't do the heavy issues complete justice, I just think it's important to remember that their overall focus is on positivity, on optimism, on warmth and love, on the things that bring us back from dark places without trivializing those.
Yeah, sorry, I'm not really coherent right now.
What I initially wanted to say/ rant about was: effung JUNG SUN WOO. AAaaarrrgh, like, WHAT ISIT WITH THIS BLASTED CHRACTER?? I can't decide whether he's sloppily written or really as deep as I like to think. For instance, the issue with Kyu Dong- he just stood by despite having all the power in the world to stop or at least dim the bullying. And I don't care about his 'hands off policy', what KD had to endure borders on emotional terrorism. Maybe I'm just naive or maybe my school has just been a sheltered environment but I have a red vision each time Jae Rok opens his mouth. So, the fact that SW did NOTHING to make it even a fucking little bit easier for KD is just about irredeamable in my eyes. And, sure, Teacher Dokgo is not better but it was made clear that she disconnected from her job, her duties and her students a while ago, so while not any less terrible, it is at least understandable that she paid no attention. But SW was smack in the middle of it, every day, he could have opened his mouth at any given moment... The fact that he didn't speaks volumes about his general disconnectedness (yes, that's a word, of course) from... everything (and I sincerely hope they find the time to properly adress this. As someone pointed out, it has probably something to do with the fallout with Seol Chan. But dude, seriously? Seon Woo must've fucked up BIG TIME to justify his 'hands off policy' with Kyu Dong). I think, until Seyi showed up, he was merely a walking corpse, bored to death and perpetually mentally removed from his surroundings.
Except. Except that in the first episode, he casually texts Nana to ask why she's not at school. AND DO YOU SEE MY PROBLEM HERE? Mr Icecoldprincecannotbebotheredwithanything texts the supposed gangster's lover. Just...vhat. Is that a cultural thing where class presidents personally look after every student? Are they made resposible for imperfect attendance? Seriously, someone plz tell me. I mean, I'm trying really hard to imagine how this whole situation with the two having each other's number and casual texting came about. Also, in a later episode when they talk outside Adam ahjusshi's house and he says something like 'that's not hte Nana i know'. AND IM LIKE WHAT 'NANA YOU KNOW'?!!! Seriously, how did this happen that two completely closed off people like them developed a rapport of 'knowing each other'?? Of course I haven't forgotten that she is in love with him but from the looks of it, at the start of the drama timeline Nana hasn't made a move in that regard. I interpret her 'Swamp'-flashback in the way that the falling in love took place not too long ago- as in, not childhood-first love (as SW and SY). Though, that could have been misleading and she could have been crushing since kindergarten. But still, she did not confess, did not profess a particular liking, soooo...HOW IN HELL DID THAT HAPPEN THAT THEY EXCHANGE NUMBERS AND HES ALL HEY WHERE ARE YOU ITS SCHOOL TIME I MISS YOUR EYES STARING HOLES INTO THE BACK OF MY HEAD...Seriously, give me that scene. Givit.
Ok, this is way too long but I'm past the point of no return so.
Why the SW-Nana balance drives me insane is also that...could it be...that they are actually portaying a male-female-friendship with no second thoughts? Only from his end obviously. Because, I agree with those of you that said that SW has no clue about Nana's true feelings. Remember how episode erm 8 (?), when the two couples went on their 'dates' and then it was a disaster and then SW explained to Seyi that he hung out wih Nana bc she was 'bored' (not that SY cared either way at that point)? That explanation felt genuine to me, I think he really had no clue. So, consequently, what are his motives when he texts her, urges her to join the group, when he STAYS AT HER ATELIER FOR AN HOUR BC SURE BESTIE ILL MODEL YOUR WHOLE COLLECTION FOR YOU HOMEWORK WHAT HOMEWORK??? Could it be that he...just...likes...her...with...no...thoughts...on...smooching? Seriously, the number of times he smiled around her in JUST this episode... *shivers* He just enjoys her company. This is so... profound, I have tears in mah eyes. Somehow, in his utter isolation, she stood out to him and he decided 'to get to know' her and when he did, he liked what he'd discovered and decided to -sortakinda- be her friend. It's devastating of course that this in turn hurts Nana in the end. I think that she realized that SW's attraction to SY is something that will pass (and is, as has been pointed out, less about first love and much more about one-upping SC. SERIOUSLY, that 'confession'? Alsmost insulting for SY in that SW used a delicate and intimate circumstance that involved her as a weapon against SC. Not that i didn't enjoy the scene, bc dude, Junhyung and Kang Ha Neul just have 'it' and the intensity and they so obvs want to be bros again andandand. But in regards to SY it was a dick move.). But even when SW will come to the same conclusion, I'm not sure if he will really 'see' Nana, at least not in the way she wants him to. I feel, at this point, it would be a little too much of a leap of character and this show has, in my pinion, handled character development in mostly linear lines so far, so I don't think they will make any wild jumps (coughcompletelyunrelatedcoughgufamilybookcough).
This is out of control. I should really stop. Apologies, I just marathoned the last 5 episodes bc uni and now FEELINGS EVERYWHERE.
So. Where was I... Wild jumps, right. Of course they have set up the couple pretty... solidly in the way that there's so much intimacy and intensity (and it's not ALL Kang Ha Neul's bedroom eyes. It's also SW's disregard of WHAT PERSONAL SPACE IM ALWAYS THIS CLOSE TO PEOPLE WHEN SNAPPING CIGARETTES THAT ARE NO GOOD VERY BAD FOR THEIR HEALTH AND ANGELIC VOICE ). Even the songs SW sang for/ with SY and Nana- while his chemistry with Ha Yeon Soo is daaaamn fine (aarrrrgh, that commercial), the relationship wit SY is painted in pastels, unnowhatimean: it's tender, full of unspoken secrets, longing looks. To me, it is exactly what it is on paper- a childhood love that never got a resolution. As a couple, to me, they are literally these little children who never got the chance and when they're together, that innocence, that sense of past-ness is unmistakeable. So, everytime SW sings with SY, it's great harmony, it's melodious and sweet but to me it also always has a sense of emptiness, it stays on the surface. And then. When he sings with Nana... I'm ashamed of how often I replayed that duet... It was so emotional and powerful and just passionate and intimate- gaaaahhh. Like, unno, those great moments that just stun you into silence- that was one for me. This is in no way a critique of the singing abilities of anyone- I'm utterly blown away by seriously every musical piece on the show. I just think that the relationships SW has with SY and Nana are particularly well reflected in the music he performs for/ with the two. Kudos there.
So, you see my problem: on one side, on one level, SW is indifferent to Nana, thinks that she is 'bored' when she asks him out... on the other side he is clearly drawn to her, because he now knows the nature of her problems (at home), because he now knows she has that VOICE TO RULE THEM ALL, because he now knows that she got moves and is on the way to Seoul fashion week BUT. But, he was somehow drawn to her even before all that. He has always seen 'something' in her. Or at least that's what I like to think.
Apologies again for this monster (no lame pun intended), it just kinda got away from me. I'm looking forwars to our last episodes and crossing mah fingers that show doesn't eff up *coughgufamilybookcough*.
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Ennayra
July 23, 2013 at 5:55 PM
I loved reading about your feelings. Well spoken! Nana is one of my favorite characters and you had me cracking up by the end... VOICE TO RULE THEM ALL :-)
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vira
July 26, 2013 at 1:13 AM
I wish I had a like button. That was awesome. (lol Gu family book, I think the only interesting thing about was lee yong bi's character)
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45 Minaya
July 23, 2013 at 6:20 PM
At first, while watching the episode I felt like Eun ha was being a bit OTT about Seol Chan and Seyi, I didn't understand.
But after thinking about it, I felt really stupid because we're so alike.
At a glance, Eun ha is the typical student, nothing really stands out of her and she's friendly, easy to talk to.
She's ao lonely and seeks refuge in her fandom and fanfictions, Seol Chan being part of it so I related to her so much as I felt the exact same thing.
It's hard to talk about abuse when you're so used to covering it up, although there are times where you want to let it out, it's really hard.
I understood till there.
Then, I got a little lost because I thought she was actually upset about her idol liking someone but... that wasn't actually it.
She needed to let out all her feelings and things she's been keeping in and Seol Chan&Seyi were the last straw.
Then again, it's easy to focus all your feelings into one thing that's making you upset even when there's more things to it.
Not every person gets out of family abuse, so I'm fine that they didn't show her dealing with her father and ending it because that's not most realities. It takes a lot to confront it and not everyone is capable.
I feel disappointed by the way they handled her situation though, they gave way too much time to Seol Chan and Seyi when honestly, I would've liked to see more of Eun Ha. It felt as if her issues weren't worthy enough to have more time on it and that their love story was far more important.
I probably contradicted myself in this comment haha.
Also, I feel very uninterested on Ahjussi's and Seyi's mother's past, I could care less.
I also think that it'd be weird if Sunwoo and Seol Chan resolved their issues and forgave each other. It took a lot of time for Do Nam and Kyo-dong and the two othee guys have way more pride.
Some things are not meant to be resolved.
Nana's way too good for Prez, she better have a good ending, with or without him o matter how much I ship them.
This is the longest comment I ever written on here, feeling proud for some reason.
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46 sendo
July 23, 2013 at 6:27 PM
Download subtitles here :
+ http://freedownloadplane.net/monstar/
+ http://freedownloadplane.net/
:D
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47 Littlehearts
July 23, 2013 at 7:56 PM
Oh what am i going to do with sun woo??? I loved him so much at the beginning. But nana is getting so much better that i am beginning to think sun woo doesn't even deserve her. The extent to which its hurting her... Poor thing. He should just tell her to stop if he's not interested. If this goes on, i'll end up hating sun woo.
And i swear, i've never come across leads as dumb as sc and sy. I laugh at the amount of stupidity there. I can't believe they're still not sure about each other even after the kiss!!!
I still love the show, though:)
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48 riqi
July 23, 2013 at 9:01 PM
Did anyone notice Sun Woo's facial expression while they were singing, that "Na,na,na" part? He smiled, like he was thinking of Nana. :D
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49 MeeisLee
July 24, 2013 at 7:55 AM
ZOMG. Monstar, you have my heart!!! I can't believe I almost missed out on this amazing show. I'm sure I had some more serious comments to make about the show and whatnot but all I can do is squee right now.
This show is reigniting the kpop/kmusic fangirl in me. I've had Busker Busker's "First Love" on constant replay since I watched the episode Saturday along with Kim Sun Jae's "As I Told You" (the song Seol Chan and his manager were singing in the car). And I've found renewed interest in Beast's (the boyband Junhyung is apart of) music. So I keep finding it funny how Seol Chan emerges from the shadows to talk to Se Yi by her doorstep since their new single is titled "Shadow." Hahaha.
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50 kokoro_chin
July 24, 2013 at 8:32 AM
is it safe to say i only watch this drama for Sun-woo and kim nana. just love those two!!!
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