344

Strong Woman Do Bong-soon: Episode 6

Man, this show makes me laugh. And sigh. And cheer. And freak out. And great, now I’m exhausted too. Still, I don’t care, I want more!

Bong-soon has decided to use her powers for good, but right now it’s taking all her strength just to manage her eccentric CEO and upright detective. Meanwhile, we get a step closer to identifying our kidnapper, but sometimes more answers just means more questions.

 
EPISODE 6: “Happy Together”

After making the announcement that he intends to stay at Min-hyuk Mansion, Gook-doo and Min-hyuk have a mini standoff. As the two posture at each other, Bong-soon gazes dreamily at Gook-doo for coming to her “rescue.” Heh, Min-hyuk waves a hand in front of her face, but she doesn’t even notice.

Kyung-shim recuperates in the hospital with Bong-soon’s mom at her side. Two policemen from Gook-doo’s team visit with an assortment of masks, but none come close to Masked Man’s head covering.

Back to the standoff, Gook-doo asks Min-hyuk to let him stay, offering to sleep on the sofa. Bong-soon doesn’t want her crush sleeping on the hard sofa, but Min-hyuk coyly says that he and Gook-doo can just share a bed then. Bong-soon lunges to push her boss away from her crush, grabbing Min-hyuk so hard that he yelps in pain. Panicked, she blurts out, “He’s gay!”

Both boys stare at her (Min-hyuk especially) and she whisper-yells at Min-hyuk that everyone knows already so he might as well say the truth to avoid misunderstandings. Glaring, Min-hyuk agrees: They should tell the truth. Then he announces, “She’s my bodyguard!” Heh, one “outing” deserves another?

Bong-soon and Min-hyuk have a silent glare battle while a completely confused Gook-doo yells that it makes no sense for a weak girl like Bong-soon to be his bodyguard.

Min-hyuk has had just about enough and sputters out, “Weak?! She… she—” Bong-soon pushes him away and instead spins the story to sound like Min-hyuk hired a female bodyguard to avoid scandals with attractive male bodyguards. Min-hyuk stares at her the whole time, at first in shock at her brazenness, then he starts to slowly nod as well.

Gook-doo sort of accepts Bong-soon’s cover story, but still insists on staying the night, suggesting they all sleep in separate rooms. This, however, leads the three to each imagine different scenarios of the other two sneaking off together: Min-hyuk imagines Bong-soon sneaking in to see Gook-doo, Gook-doo pictures Min-hyuk with Bong-soon, and Bong-soon, of course, envisions Min-hyuk putting the moves on Gook-doo. Wow, everyone is so pretty that I’m really okay with any of those scenarios coming true.

Gook-doo jumps up to say that the three of them shouldn’t split up, and the other two are quick to agree. Min-hyuk decides that since they’ll all be staying together, then how about they pull an all-nighter?

Cut to the three of them at a bar. Min-hyuk and Gook-do engage in a round of pool while Bong-soon watches, thoroughly unimpressed with both of them. As the boys play, there are gaming sound effects playing whenever they make a shot, making the pool hall feel like an old school video arcade.

Min-hyuk soundly whips Gook-doo’s butt at pool, making cheeky comments as he cleans the table. However, Gook-do gets his revenge when the boys progress to darts. Min-hyuk is laughably bad while Gook-doo hits the center every time.

The boys move on to their final battle: alcohol. Min-hyuk lines up the beer bombs while Bong-soon futilely tries to get them to stop their pissing contest. They chug glass after glass, glaring at one another as they get increasingly sloshed. The whole time, Bong-soon sits between them, sipping her drink through a straw and looking at the boys like the dummies they are.

At the hospital, Mom and Dad both sit with Kyung-shim. Dad feels that Mom went too far this time in pushing their daughter at her boss when she could have just gone and stayed with her grandmother if she was in danger. Kyung-shim chimes in that she doesn’t think that Min-hyuk is gay after watching him at the club. Dad starts to freak out that Bong-soon might be sleeping alone at a straight man’s house, but Mom yells that this is for the best and adds that she hopes her daughter and future son-in-law had a good first night together. Dad chokes, “Son-in-law!?!”

Said son-in-law is currently very drunk… and cuddling with an equally wasted Gook-doo on a bar pool table. Omo, is he stroking his face? I love it.

Bong-soon tuts at the pair of them. She grabs both guys and walks out with a boy slung over each shoulder like the tiny badass she is. Muttering the whole way, Bong-soon plops her cargo down outside the bar (dropping Min-hyuk rather more harshly), then leaves to get a hangover cure for Gook-doo.

Two men happen upon our unconscious boys and proceed to pick their pockets as the inebriated boys lie there helplessly. Bong-soon comes back to catch them in the act and yells at them to give back what they stole. Neither man is impressed. Instead, one man starts messing with Bong-soon. Bad idea.

Grabbing the man’s arm, she whips him away from her, flinging him twenty feet through the air. Idiot #2 tries to attack the pint-sized Hercules with a two-by-four, but Bong-soon snaps the wood, and soon he’s soaring through the air to join his friend.

Not far away, Boss Tak and Jaws are still tailing Bong-soon and watching everything unfold from their car, gasping to see the tiny girl thrashing the larger men with supernatural ease. Boss Tak asks what the heck this girl is, and Jaws answers, “Vampire?”

Bong-soon drives her boys home and deposits both on the couch, hilariously pushing Min-hyuk to the side as she takes extra care of Gook-doo. She even props the detective’s feet upon her sleeping boss.

In the Do-bong neighborhood, Boss Tak’s men patrol the neighborhood, but they seem to be bullying the young women more than protecting them. A police car also patrols the neighborhood, but trailing right behind it is a silver sedan. Unfortunately the driver doesn’t appear to be a cop, as he slowly follows a young woman as she closes down a pharmacy and walks home.

Min-hyuk awakens in the night to find himself on the floor… while Gook-doo sleeps peacefully on the couch, resting on pillows and covered with a blanket. Pah! Min-hyuk grumps that Bong-soon left him to freeze on the floor, then grabs one of Gook-doo’s pillows and rips off the blanket (“That’s mine!”). He stops by Bong-soon’s room, and her sleeping profile makes him think of his pink-hooded rescuer from years ago, but he scoffs that it’s too impossible a coincidence.

Min-hyuk and Gook-doo wake up to a huge breakfast spread, complete with hangover soup. (Hah! Bong-soon has decorated the chopstick she stabbed into the counter with a tiny Korean flag.) Gook-doo asks how they got home last night, and Bong-soon smoothly lies that they walked home themselves. She then pretends to be unable to open the jam jar, prompting Gook-doo to open it for her, making Min-hyuk scoff at the display.

Min-hyuk wonders who won their drinking contest last night, and both boys swear that they remember seeing the other guy on the floor. Gook-doo asks if Min-hyuk is really gay, but Min-hyuk says that he doesn’t answer questions about his personal life.

Gook-doo decides that, regardless, he can’t leave Min-hyuk alone with Bong-soon. Min-hyuk argues back that he can’t leave her alone with Gook-doo either, but Bong-soon puts a stop to it by saying that she can’t leave the two of them together. When they look at her blankly, she asks if they really don’t remember what happened last night.

Oh my. Rewind to last night: The guys are hammered, and Gook-doo stumbles his way over to Min-hyuk’s side of the table. The detective gives our CEO a sultry look and semi-grinds against him(!!!). Gook-doo moves to the dance floor and starts a sexy dance, complete with a full body roll, lip bite, and beckoning finger towards Min-hyuk. Is he giggling at him?!

Min-hyuk drunkenly stares back, grinning. He staggers forward and the two… dance? They’re both so drunk that it’s more like them hanging onto each other than choreography. Suddenly, Gook-doo tips Min-hyuk back in a swoon-worthy dip, and the two lean in close for a kiss. Okay, I can’t squeal any higher right now.

It’s at the point that Bong-soon, who has been watching all this with mounting horror, leaps off her chair and smacks both boys in the mouth, effectively pushing them away from each other. She’s a little extra pushy with Min-hyuk. Jealous much?

The boys actually push Bong-soon out of the way, and Gook-doo grabs onto Min-hyuk, “Before midnight, I must go home, or my coach will become a pumpkin.” Then our Cinderella Detective gives a tragic goodbye to his Min-hyuk Prince Charming, blowing a kiss at the other man before stumbling off to fall asleep on the pool table. Min-hyuk soon follows, clambering onto the table and snuggling with his princess.

Back in the present, both guys cringe as the memory returns. To cover up the awkwardness, Min-hyuk takes a sip of Bong-soon’s hangover soup, but promptly chokes from the spiciness. Not to be outdone, Gook-doo tries his soup as well and stoically tries not to show any reaction. He doesn’t succeed.

It turns into yet another contest with both men gagging while denying that it’s spicy. Gook-doo: “I’m fine, is it spicy?” Min-hyuk: “Did I say something?” Hee, Min-hyuk looks like he’s going to die.

While the boys are choking from the spicy food, Bong-soon calmly eats chocolate next to them, humming happily at how sweet it is. Min-yuk tries to grab some of her chocolate, but she bats him away and offers the treat to her crush instead, leaving her boss glaring.

Min-hyuk gets a call from his stalker, and Gook-doo and Bong-soon listen as Min-hyuk yells at the voice to say his threats to his face. The stalker wants him to renounce his claim to his father’s company at the board meeting tomorrow, threatening that next time, he’ll use real bullets.

Gook-doo gets called into work. He turns to Min-hyuk and sincerely asks, as one man to another, “Please look after Bong-soon.” Heh, there’s dramatic music as Gook-doo slo-mo walks out, flapping his coat heroically. Even Min-hyuk nods as though admitting, “Yeah, that was cool.”

After Gook-doo leaves, Bong-soon drops the innocent act and the two bicker over who is protecting who. Min-hyuk accuses her of breaking her contract again by trying to kill him with her spicy soup. Bong-soon exasperatedly asks if every injury he gets is her fault, but he points out that since he met her, every injury was caused by her. Touché.

Smiling, Bong-soon sweetly intimidates, “You should stop before you get hurt somewhere else.” The saccharine threat effectively ends the argument, and Min-hyuk meekly returns to his spicy meal.

At the office, Secretary Gong has bad news: Min-hyuk’s father’s company stock has dropped after a tabloid report outed Min-hyuk as being gay.

Min-hyuk quickly makes another call to his reporter friend to get him to remove the libelous articles, and Bong-soon overhears him thank the reporter for removing the “drunk girl videos” from before. She realizes that Min-hyuk was the one responsible for taking down her pole “dancing” video and thanks him sincerely. Ever modest, he grins that of course she should thank him.

Min-hyuk finally gets a lead on the motorcycle belonging to the stalker. It was put up for sale and he’s able to get the stalker’s name, height, weight, and occupation. He works for Baek Tak Development, a company with ties to Min-hyuk’s father, and whose CEO turns out to be none other than our very own Boss Tak. Coincidence?

Bong-soon promises that she will catch the stalker for her boss, and Min-hyuk seems moved by her fervor.

Back in the car, Bong-soon and Min-hyuk come upon a two-car accident in the middle of the road. It looks like the man in the first car stepped on the brakes suddenly and the woman behind him couldn’t stop in time, crashing into his car.

The man turns out to be a real ass, yelling at the woman as she cowers in her car. Bong-soon and Min-hyuk watch with growing indignation as the man bangs on the car door, literally forcing the terrified woman out of the vehicle. Min-hyuk can’t take anymore and starts to get out of the car, only to realize that his pint-sized bodyguard is already out and striding towards the douche.

The man starts to get physical with the woman, but Bong-soon arrives and yanks him off. She tells him off for overdoing things when the woman already apologized, but the man continues his tirade and mocks the two of them, clearly feeling superior to the smaller women.

However, Min-hyuk makes his way over and the schmuck immediately shrinks back, losing his haughty demeanor when confronted with another man. While Min-hyuk thoroughly intimidates the scumbag, Bong-soon quietly sneaks off unnoticed.

When Min-hyuk threatens to call the police, Schmuck starts laughing insanely at all of them, but quickly retreats to his own car and just takes off, yelling curses out his window as he runs away from the accident he caused. Loser.

Min-hyuk returns to his car, but stops to see that Bong-soon is nowhere to be found. Hah! Is she in the jerk’s car?

Schmuck cruises away, laughing to himself that he totally went easy on all of them because he’s such a nice guy. (Ugh.) But lo and behold, there’s a tiny Bong-soon in his backseat, and she pops up to scare the living daylights out of the guy.

Bong-soon calmly tells Schmuck to pull over to someplace quiet since she has something to say to him. Creep that he is, he assumes that she’s looking for some hanky-panky and cheerfully agrees. Bong-soon’s expression just about says it all.

Smarty-pants Min-hyuk has also guessed where his wayward bodyguard disappeared to and follows the other car.

Schmuck stops near an empty field – Min-hyuk parking not far behind — and Bong-soon jumps out of his car. Sighing that she just can’t let this go, Bong-soon strolls up to the front of the car and tells the man to hold on tight. Then she gives a mighty shove sideways and the whole car starts spinning like a top, complete with one screaming Schmuck inside.

As the car spins, Bong-soon delivers a pretty awesome speech, reaming into the guy for picking on a woman weaker than himself. It’s a pity Schmuck can’t hear it over his screeching and increasing nausea.

Throughout this, Min-hyuk watches from a distance in growing alarm and amazement at the revolving car and ranting Bong-soon.

The car finally skids to a stop, and the man can barely crawl ten feet away before being sick. Bong-soon walks back and encounters a shell-shocked Min-hyuk. He hilariously flinches whenever she comes close, agreeing easily to everything she says as she jumps back in the car.

Gook-doo’s team has found the owner of the burner phone that the designated driver used to contact the ballet teacher (the kidnapper’s third victim) immediately before she was taken, but the man swears that he was never able to find the woman at the bar that night. Gook-doo surmises that the kidnapper must have been at the bar near the victim, overheard her calling a driver, and posed as said driver.

They do catch a small break: The CCTV caught the kidnapper as he walked from the bar to the car, and his height and build matches that of the man impersonating the doctor (who stole the second victim), confirming that the two missing cases are related.

Min-hyuk and Bong-soon stop to watch a sunset together. He brings up the movie King Kong, and how he’s starting to feel like the movie’s heroine, which makes Bong-soon snap back, “Are you saying I am King Kong?” Min-hyuk: “A peanut-sized King Kong.” Pfft.

Min-hyuk marvels at how much strength is condensed in her tiny body, and asks if it’s some kind of super power. Bong-soon reveals that she was born this way: the strength runs in her family, passing down through the female line.

Min-hyuk latches on to that asks, “So what you’re saying is, if I got married to you… I’m not saying that I am going to marry you…” Oh sweetie, someone’s thinking ahead. Min-hyuk amends his question, clarifying that if she marries someone and they have a daughter, would that daughter also be super strong?

Bong-soon nods dejectedly, seemingly embarrassed, and Min-hyuk gets adorably protective of her. “What did you do wrong to hang you head like that?” He compares it to how he was born so good-looking: neither of them asked for it. Pah! Well, I suppose his level of prettiness can count as a super power.

Min-hyuk brings up Bong-soon’s comment from the other night about wanting to use her strength for something good. He argues that she needs training — since all the best gaming characters can’t rely on pure strength – and sweetly offers to help her figure out how to use her strength, promising to make her into a “real life Xena.”

Min-hyuk’s sincere pledge makes Bong-soon look at him a bit differently, and they both smile at one another as the sun sets.

Gook-doo gets some bad – but overdue – news from Hee-ji. She apologizes and says that recently she’s been wavering in their relationship, finding herself drawn to another man. Well, at least she told him. That’s something.

Bong-soon calls Gook-doo on her way home, and he makes her promise to lock her door at night since he can’t stay over tonight. Bong-soon assures him that she’s actually stronger that she looks (Min-hyuk nods enthusiastically), but Gook-doo answers, “No matter how strong you are, in my eyes, you’re still a fragile woman.”

Turns out, Min-hyuk and Bong-soon aren’t going straight home, since they stop at his family’s house first. He tells her that since he promised to help her, she should help him too.

It’s another awkward Ahn family dinner when Dad suddenly orders Min-hyuk to get married. He’s decided that they need to tie their family to a respectable one to help negate their gangster image and quell the rumors of Min-hyuk’s sexuality.

Dad already has a girl picked out for his son, but Min-hyuk throws a wrench in his father’s plans when he announces that he already has a girlfriend… and holds up Bong-soon’s hand. Pwahaha! Oh, this is great.

Min-hyuk proudly proclaims that the two of them already live together, and when his father asks if this is true, the stunned Bong-soon ekes out that it’s not exactly untrue. Min-hyuk adds in that Bong-soon’s mother is very conservative, so they haven’t gotten permission from her family yet. Hah! If only.

Min-hyuk declares that he will definitely get married to Bong-soon as he pets her head and calls her pretty. He then promises to give his father grandchildren soon, making Bong-soon choke from what must be a mild heart attack. As she coughs, Min-hyuk cheerfully asks how many kids she wants.

On the drive home, Bong-soon lets Min-hyuk have it, shouting about this being a clear breach of contract. Min-hyuk defensively yells back that it’s not like he wanted this either, but his father was all set to arrange his marriage. Bong-soon warns that her mother would be furious if she knew about this, and at that moment, Mommy Dearest calls for a status update on Operation: Seduce the Boss.

Mother and daughter commence a conversation of opposites, as Bong-soon puts on a show for Min-hyuk, and Mom gives seduction instructions:

Mom: “You’re doing your best, right?”

Bong-soon: “Mom! Don’t worry! Our CEO is not that kind of person.”

Mom: “Knock him out.”

Bong-soon: “Nothing’s happened. Don’t worry.”

Mom: “How could nothing have happened by now? Give him alcohol!”

The next morning dawns, and Min-hyuk strides into the sleeping Bong-soon’s room. He gazes for a moment at her sleeping form, then blows a whistle — loudly. He calls out that today, they’re going to start her training. Bong-soon is less than enthusiastic and grumpily rolls over, prompting Min-hyuk to blow the whistle for so long that he actually runs out of breath.

First stop on their day of training is a giant rock wall, which Bong-soon scales with ridiculous ease, Min-hyuk’s eyebrow rising along with her. Next, Min-hyuk’s jaw literally drops as Bong-soon effortlessly runs with ten tires dragging behind her.

Mom and her ladies go for a hike, and Mom reassures the women that she sowed a talisman from a shaman into the blanket that she sent along with Bong-soon, so she’s sure things will progress quickly.

Gook-doo’s police team is finally able to draw up a sketch of the kidnapper’s unique mask, but they’ve been unable to find a matching material for it.

Bong-soon gives her official interview with Gook-doo. She describes everything from her encounter with the kidnapper, but leaves out the part where she kicked his butt. She does say that she saw the man’s eyes through his mask, and she picked up a strange smell from him: an oily gasoline odor, similar to the scent of new asphalt.

After the interview, Gook-doo walks Bong-soon out. She picks up on his mood, and he admits that Hee-ji has feelings for someone else. The strange thing is that he doesn’t feel anything about it. Bong-soon gently tells him that the hurt will come later, but she reassures him that it will eventually pass, and Hee-ji will come to her senses soon.

Gook-doo stares intently at her and asks, “Why are we friends?” Omo! It’s a simple question, but the intonation makes it sound more like he’s asking why they’re only friends. Bong-soon looks up at him, and they lock eyes for a moment. Gook-doo shakes it off and reminds Bong-soon to lock her door at night, since he doesn’t trust that her boss is really gay.

Bong-soon’s kiddos are out gathering trash for their noonim when they run into Boss Tak’s thugs. One of the thugs spits out his gum, and the kids take issue with it. Soon they’re all lined up posturing at each other, and it’s a bit amusing how they all seem exactly alike, just ten years apart.

The leader of the schoolboys warns the thugs not to mess with them, “If our noonim finds out, you ajusshis will flip over.” Aww. Such a loyal underling puppy.

The ten years do make a difference though, and the kiddos eventually back off. The thugs laugh at the kid’s threats of their noonim, but are quickly distracted to see a young woman alone.

They harass the woman to sign their petition (presumably in support of their boss’ redevelopment), grabbing her arm to try and force her to sign as she cries out for someone to save her.

Suddenly one of the men gets hit with a clothing sack as a voice cries out, “What are you doing?!” We see the back of a white haired figure, and the men all complain at the interrupting grandma… until that grandma proceeds to knock the stuffing out of all of them, sending the grown men through the air. Ah! Is this Bong-soon’s grandma?

At a pharmacy, a young man comes to pick up a prescription sedative to help with his insomnia. Wait, isn’t that the witness from the second victim?

The helpful pharmacist invites the man to come to church with her and her daughter, saying that praying at midnight mass helped ease her mind enough to sleep. The man timidly points out that the neighborhood has become dangerous this late at night, but the pharmacist insists that God has protected her.

Dad closes up the walnut shop while Mom looks around for someone, saying that “she” said she would meet them at the store. Then, along comes the badass grandmother and Mom runs at her, happily yelling “Mom!” Heh, Mom runs up for a hug, but Grandma is so strong that Mom literally bounces right off.

Dad hurries up and gives a respectful bow, but Grandma’s gentle handshake crunches his hand, and she tuts at him for being so weak. I already love her.

We return to the underground bridal prison, and Masked Man glares at the twisted pipe – curtesy of Bong-soon – then visits his second bride: the ballet teacher. As woman cries in terror, he crouches down and strokes her face. He says she must have been acting out because she was lonely, but urges her not to worry, since he’ll bring her some new friends soon. She begs him to let her go home, but he loses his temper and yells that this is her home now.

Then he reaches up and takes off the mask, and we finally see his face: It’s the man from the pharmacy, and the witness who supposedly “saved” the first bride. The woman whimper-screams and the kidnapper leans in, breathing heavily as he draws in close to her. Ack! No! Let’s just keep it at kidnapping. Please don’t add rape, too.

Bong-soon heads to bed that night and, remembering Gook-doo’s words, she locks her bedroom door. Also in the house, Min-hyuk paces as he thinks back to when he saw Boss Tak at the hospital, trying to piece all the clues together.

At the same time, the pharmacist woman walks home alone, not seeing the masked figure following her until it’s too late. The man grabs her from behind he we hear a muffled scream.

As Bong-soon sleeps peacefully, her doorknob starts to jiggle as though someone is trying to force their way in. In Min-hyuk’s room, a black clad figure comes in, and Min-hyuk jerks awake to find someone holding a knife to his throat.

 
COMMENTS

Yeesh. Well, that’s not a great way to wake up. Hopefully Bong-soon is a light sleeper.

I’m so curious about this kidnapper (as long as he stays far, far away from me). Kudos to everyone who guessed that the witness was actually the bad guy, but now I have more questions than ever. Why did he let his second victim be found and brought the hospital, only so he could steal her again? Was that part of the plan? What is his plan? I had thought he was going after random skinny women, but his latest victim, the pharmacist, was someone he has a connection with. Does this mean he knew the other women in some way? And why did he remove the mask? If he was going to take it off, why bother wearing it in the prison to begin with?

So many questions, and sadly, the only answer is “wait and see.” Curse you for pulling me in, Show.

I did want to address a topic that keeps coming up: the way that the show uses the possibility of Min-hyuk being gay as comedic fodder. I recognize that this is a sensitive issue for a lot of people, and there is no “right answer” for how we should react — since an inherent part of the whole subject is a person’s right to choose how they feel. My personal stance is that the show is not trying to mock or belittle homosexuality. The real humor comes from the misunderstandings, not the concept of being gay. During Gook-doo and Min-hyuk’s drunken bar escapades, I laughed my butt off — not because the thought of them being gay was funny, but because of how they would feel the next morning to remember their antics. Also, Bong-soon’s reaction to Min-hyuk’s preferences is very telling: She never once derides or insults Min-hyuk for being gay. She may bicker with him and badmouth him to others, but that is purely based on his personality and not his sexuality.

I am a little disappointed with how easily Bong-soon blabs to everyone that her boss is gay, especially in a society where the majority is still unaccepting of LGBT rights. However, people’s reactions to the news have never been negative towards Min-hyuk as a person. Mom is disappointed only because she might lose out on him as a son-in-law — I imagine that if he preferred blondes or was already dating someone, her reaction would still be the same: seduce no matter the obstacle. Gook-doo also hasn’t changed at all towards Min-hyuk: He still dislikes him (no more, no less). So far, the only bad response came from the scandalous article “outing” Min-hyuk, which I viewed as more of a commentary on society than an attack against homosexuality.

I truly believe that at the heart of gay rights are a group of people fighting for the right to be themselves; to be accepted for who they are and what they feel. I’d argue that that mirrors the struggles of both of our leads, with Bong-soon wanting to be accepted for her strength, and Min-hyuk refusing to define or justify himself to others. If anything, I believe that the show and its characters seem very accepting of a gay lead, and honestly, I’d be perfectly fine with whoever Min-hyuk ends up with: Bong-soon or Gook-doo. Those boys be hawt!

 
RELATED POSTS

Tags: , , , , ,

344

Required fields are marked *

Bongsoon and minhyuk looked like a married couple in the scene where they were waving ji soo goodbye.. Hyungsik is so cute!!

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

I know right! Hyungsik is so adorably cute - can't wait a week to see the next episode with him! Have a serious case of Hyungsikness ?! Glad PBY doesn't like him yet or the show would be done for us ?! Love you Hyung Sik ❤️

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

so Min Hyuk'first love was Bong-soon??
she saved his life ^^ and i've never thought of his wall pic will be Boong soon, so suprised >__<

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I thought the part where BS lifted the bus was just a dream MH had. And I was expecting MH to have created that character in one of his game which we do not get to see yet.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

No, I don't think it is a dream. I remember he says in the preview that he always remembers this angel his mom sent from the heaven whenever he takes the bus. Suffice to say, BS did save him when he was in the bus accident that day.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I never really noticed just how much I love Bong-soon and Min-hyuk's bickering, and how it already became a permanent fixture in their relationship, until Gook-doo joined them this eps. Suddenly Bong-soon acting all dainty with her saccharine sweet voice, and I felt frustrated watching it. I can't imagine how suffocating it must be for her to suppress her sass and smart mouth.

On another note, I kinda love how fast Min-hyuk's mind jumped into the idea of marriage with Bong-soon. His slip of tongue when they spend time together beside the river was both swoony and funny. Not to mention his nonchalant announcement to his family that they already plan to have 2 kids.

0
12
reply

Required fields are marked *

omg yes!! When he said "If I marry you.." then realized how ridiculous it must sound to her... I was like YES. MARRY HER. X)

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

"If i marry you"..no.no. "if you marry me"

haha!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

minhyuk is a man of vision lol
that was a freudian slip if i ever heard one

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think the reason why bong soon cute act fits for me is because she didn't change her voice, she has a cute voice and just changing intonation when she suddenly act cute,

I remember when she hides behind the chair is ep 5 and that just really cute without being extra,

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I didn't feel like she was "holding back" as much as the happy, giddy, saccharine sweetness just comes out when she's near her beloved. She was still blatantly treating them differently. Just a thought!

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oops that was supposed to be 2.7. Posted in the wrong place!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I loved Gd joining the duo because the fanservice we got :=P

...but isn't it a good thing that Hee-Ji isn't the police officer and Gd the musician. If things would be reverse and if HJ had joined her childhood friend Bong-Ki for a sleepover and would be envious envious of him cos of the cute female CEO, imagine how many hate comments her character would have got as a cheater.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

THIS! I don't know why the recap always seems to imply HJ is doing so much more wrong than GD. Since last episode, it was pretty clear that GD had feelings for BS, much more than just friends. Yes, it's horrible that it's for GD's best friend, but at least HJ came out and be honest about it while GD didn't say a word.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Double standards, i guess. Our society is much more demanding of women when it comes to sexual behaviour and maintaining a relationship.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree with you folks about double standards...but if roles had been reversed I wouldn't fault HJ either. It could go either way at this point, but I get the impression that perhaps GD didn't realize, until now, that his feelings are beyond that of caring for a friend.

Then again, maybe he's holding back a long-time love for her for his own reason, which would make my previous comment invalid.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

That was a proposal right there!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Haha, you're right about how Bong-soon always suppressing her real personality when she's with Gook-doo. I want to see his reaction to her sassy 'tude and how she interacts with Min-hyuk. He'll be like, "Bong-soon, is that you?" and she'll be like, "Gook-dooya, it's not what it looks like!" Haha. Every time he calls her a weak woman, I'm just like, "Dude, you don't even know!" I appreciate him for caring for and worrying about her, but it kinda bothers me how he always thinks of her as a weak little girl...

The sunset scene was SO BEAUTIFUL, omg. The sweet moment they shared when Min-hyuk suggested the idea of helping her control her super strength, the way they both looked at each other, the scenery, the colors, etc.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Was a little busy and didn't have time to write a long ramble about this episode, but a few things stood out to me:

- My god, the mum's "he must be ugly, that's why he wears a mask". My only thought was "are you for real, woman?!"

- Those 2 sheepish silly boys when they realized what they did while drunk... priceless. I love it.

- BS scolding the evil driver for basically being a bastard to weak women but being all intimidated the moment another man steps out of his car. You go, girl! I myself was wondering why the evil driver backed off after MH came out of the car to give him his two cents. I think it really brings out the whole "equality" between genders kind of thing, especially with how the villains in this show are always seen to mock BS for being small and puny.

- That said, I also like how BS gave him her own punishment, even though technically MH was the one to "save the day" by making the man back off.

My favourite scene in this episode has to be when MH tells her that he will help her use her strength to do good, peanut-sized King Kong that she is. He says it so affectionately, and I think one of the best things about their budding relationship is that he knows about her power and he's not cowed by it. Sure, he gets freaked out by it, but he doesn't let it make him back down. In fact I think he rather admires it and I love him all the more for that.

At the same time, I think the juxtaposition of her pretending to be weak in front of GD is important as well. I wouldn't discredit GD by saying that he doesn't even know the "real her", because she hasn't ever let him see the real her, and he also strikes me as someone who would choose to believe what he believes in and nothing else. I want to say "ahhh MH is perfect for her, because he knows who she is and is still attracted, whereas GD doesn't know a thing for her" but to be fair to him, he's never had a chance to know it. So I'm really interested in how his reaction will be when he finds out her true strength!

1
30
reply

Required fields are marked *

– My god, the mum’s “he must be ugly, that’s why he wears a mask”. My only thought was “are you for real, woman?!”

I actually think the analogy of the mum makes sense, people who hide their face with hideous yet upfront crime is not likely an expressionist, means they have serious insecurity in the way they view their appearance.

The kidnapper manage to hide from security camera and skilful in the hospital but still use the mask in front of the woman after he kidnapped them and while kidnapping them,
the super detail yet hiding mask also suggest that he feels that his face isn't enough.

The mum probably talk in many joking and slightly demeaning manner but what she said imo most often true.

0
11
reply

Required fields are marked *

In that it may be true that he might have issues with his appearance and the way he views himself... I just felt that the mum's comment... made no sense?

I get that it was partly for comedic intent, but I would like to think that a kidnapper/criminal would most likely not want to have his face captured on any camera while doing a crime, and not because he was "ugly"? (Why, indeed, would you wear a mask while committing a crime?)

Also the fact that she said to rule out all handsome men probably kind of shows that her intention of saying that really didn't have a much deeper meaning, haha! A criminal could be drop dead gorgeous and still have a lot of issues with his self-image (following what you said).

Also, I did wonder why he finally took off his mask around the women?

0
9
reply

Required fields are marked *

in the technical aspect: yeah, the mask is for the camera but he didn't get captured on any camera so far,
his face sketch is based on bong soon and her friend testimony,
he is meticulous, and why it should be that kind of mask and why he still wear it inside,

the term ugly for people can be different,
the mum is not an expert in language so she used the term loosely but the logic behind her assumption for me rings a bell,

the insecurity didn't always come from "how you actually looked" but "how you decipher your appearance and the demeanour"
the kidnapper act worry when he is in the pharmacy, try to avoid eye contact and looked like doesn't have any confidence, but the crime is brutal and show that he wants to be dominant by knocking the victim off before taking them to the cage, his body also full of scar and he keeps saying that the woman is beautiful,
So when the mum said that the kidnapper is ugly, the police who catch the logic can actually broaden the term into being insecure about appearance and see if any of the potential perpetrators+witness has experience that related to the "physical shaming" and "event included being not wanted by woman [in related to the case]",
the final reveal could be because the show wants us to see him and he is familiar with the victim already.

Maybe I read this too much but the shows keeps bringing another crime show on the conversation and what I want to say it that sometimes the truth/analogy/clue can be said by anyone and even if that person wasn't the best on the show, it doesn't make what h/she said less valuable.

This also what I see in the way bong soon's mum reacted to Minhyuk gay theory, she brushed it off by saying it doesn't matter, which actually not a matter to be fuss upon, it's who he likes that is what matter.

People can behave a certain way or more negative but that doesn't mean they always wrong.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I get what you mean and I think it's an interesting concept that the police officers keep referencing the crime show and they may be using BS's mum to actually say these "important phrases", as you say!

Personally I have nothing against Bong Soon's mother, actually. I find her kind of a hoot and I quite enjoy her scenes. What I actually meant by my comment of "are you for real, woman?!" wasn't meant to be an outrage but more of amused at what she'd said?

0

I think that there's a deeper meaning to the fact that she ruled out all handsome men. The society is mostly forgiving towards good looking/attractive people. Even kids perceived good looking people as "good" people. I remember an episode of The Return of Superman where the Lee Twins were taught not to talk to stranger. When presented with photos of scarier/not so friendly looking people they immediately said that they won't talk to them but upon seeing photos good looking people they said that it's okay to talk to them. Sometimes all this things are not just the problem with upbringing/societal expectation but it has to do with how to brain processes things (there are lot of studies on this topic). I feel like it is a nudge to the society about how shallow we all are, deep deep down.

1
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

Two words. Ted Bundy.
(Extremely good looking psychopath, was called the casanova killer)

0

humans are shallow by nature. which is very normal because our senses are limited. we cannot 'see' into other people's thoughts/feelings- we are trained since birth to judge other people's emotions using visual cues. 'furrowed brows,tensed muscles" = angry. 'tears' = sad

so it is understandable that we would, for example, perceive someone who has a smiley face as nicer than those who have a resting bitch face, so to speak.

0

That was not the Lee Twins but the SoDa siblings...that social experiment from Superman is Back...

0

i thought it made sense in context with mom's character. because one emphasized point of her personality is her confidence in giving advice that is actually TERRIBLE. the police clearly thought her suggestion was ridiculous & it turned out that she was wrong. just like it was ridiculous when she told bong soon to dress sexy like her, & pointed to her hilariously gaudy socks+heels combo. or how she keeps pushing bong soon & minhyuk to sleep together as if that's the only way to get married (because that's what happened to her!)

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I actually thinking that the man is inferior in his looks,
he is not attractive since it does not show from his outside demeanour,

so the point of him being not handsome (in mean by not attractive, especially with his scar on his body and the way he behaves does make sense),

he advice is terrible in taken in general but the thought of logic she used makes sense,
that's why I think we need to "the opinion" not just "who say it"

0

The witness / kidnapper is actually not bad looking, because I remember when he appeared the first time (episode 1 or 2) I thought to myself, why would they cast a handsome dude for a 1 minute appearance - and that is when I started to suspect him.

0

agree with low self confidence of the kidnaper..

even as witness , see how fidety and meek he appeared.. which i believe would also be reflective of how he is in general..

obviously he is faking a lot of it.. but body language of years will also reflect osmewhere

seems like a loner, ditched by a girlfriend

( wonder for what because he is good looking.. maybe he was abused)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Bong Soon's mom is the worst. She's shallow and she treats her daughter like crap.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Those 2 sheepish silly boys when they realized what they did while drunk… priceless. I love it.

I had trouble with that bit. I don't think two (probably non-gay?) guys would act like that no matter how drunk they were.

So either:
1: Writer is letting humor kick the ass of consistency (and her humor is totally strong enough to do that)
or
2: Bong-soon made it up to embarrass them. Why should the guys be the only petty ones? :)

1
11
reply

Required fields are marked *

And I messed up the blockquote again :(

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

:(

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Gosh, I don't even know how to do blockquotes, haha!

I think the writer is just really making it as hilarious as it could possibly be, LOL. Especially since BS is so horrified at the thought of GD and MH having something going on (god forbid someone actually trying to steal her precious GD away). Actually, I think in one of the BTS the actors mentioned that there is a LOT of ad-lib going on, so maybe the actors themselves wanted to milk the most comedy out of that scene.

Oh man I like the idea of BS being petty and making it up because I really wouldn't put it past her, haha!

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

You do blockquotes with the less-than and greater-than symbols and forward slash. I can't really show you because if I type them they will end up being acting on instead of looking like what I typed. On my keyboard they are the shift-comma, shift-period and the diagonal line below the question mark.

Start a blockquote by having the word "blockquote" sandwiched between less-than & greater-than (without the quotes or any spaces), like:
less-than "blockquote" greater-than

End the blockquote with almost the same thing, except put a forward-slash after the less-than and before the "blockquote".
less-than slash "blockquote" greater-than

I missed the forward-slash and ended up double-block-quoting the rest of my post, but I can't prove it now because some kind person (Mary?) seems to have edited it for me. Thank you.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

End the blockquote with almost the same thing, except put a forward-slash after the less-than and before the “blockquote”.
less-than slash “blockquote” greater-than

Imma try...

0

I don’t think two (probably non-gay?) guys would act like that no matter how drunk they were.

I know plenty of non-gay guys who flirt with one another because they're comfortable with their sexuality. :shrug: Not a big deal where I'm from.

I think it's more likely that Gook-doo is a bit of a closet case & the drunkenness allowed him to act in a way he could disavow later ("...I was drunk/don't remember"), OR that it was possible he thought he'd "prove" that Min-Hyuk wasn't gay by coming onto him - only to have his bluff called.

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oh my goodness, I would love this show if it turned out that Gook Du doesn't feel bad about the break up because he's secretly closeted. That would be awesome. But I think they're probably going to go the route of the two guys falling for Bong Soon. Gook Du as soon as Bong Soon starts falling for Min Hyuk but before she realises it, giving her time to be confused about her remaining feelings for Bong Soon. That would be the typical kdrama plot, right?

I'd still enjoy it, but the first option sounds pretty revolutionary for a kdrama. I feel like this kind of show could make it work without making homosexuality into a joke. I like the way they treat homosexuality in this show. I don't feel like it's played as a joke or as something horrible.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

That was my first thought when I saw that scene. Gook Doo being gay would explain some things--like his lukewarm relationship with his gf--and him worrying about MH and BS kissing is ambiguous enough. And perhaps this is the first time he's aware of his feelings.

I sort of doubt that BS was making the scene up because GD was the instigator and that would go against her view of GD as her Prince Charming.

0

But I think they’re probably going to go the route of the two guys falling for Bong Soon.

:sigh: I know. But how beautiful - and much more interesting - the other storyline would be. Ah, well, there's always fanfic.

0

Ah yeah, I wish I could find some fanfic... if the writers actually were brave enough to write GD as gay tho, it would be amazing for good exposure to the lgbt community in korea.

0

OK....the bar scene recap by BS showing us the sexy dance GD did to and around MH....has anybody considered it was his sly drunken attempt to test if MH is really gay? Remember at the end of his conversation w/BS, at the Police station he told her MH, "that guy" is "definitely not gay", so wake up!.

That drunk dance scene was a hysterical, mostly, to me, because it came from no where and I wasn't sure why it was happening. But, OH MY that young man can dance. Like, he could earn extra money as a stripper dressed in a cop costume. I think I would pay to watch him dance....no, I'm sure I would pay to watch him dance. Also, MH reaction was to act as if he was a spaz, not a turned on. I think the actors did a great job in that scene and I was cracking up.

Also, for 2 straight guys interested in the same woman, conscious of it or not, they are admirably civil to each other. Most guys in competition for the same skirt are portrayed as
bafoons or act like bristling idiots to each other. These two aren't friendly, but, they aren't ugly about it either.

She is going to have a real problem on her hands when GD becomes aware she's been hiding her true strength from him all this time. He's going to be angry and hurt, especially since MH knew when he didn't It'll be interesting to see how she handles this problem she's created by letting him believe, and acting accordingly, to his perception of her.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Maybe she never knew Tuxedo Mask aka sailormoon, kaitu kid aka conan or superman/supergirl

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

At the same time, I think the juxtaposition of her pretending to be weak in front of GD is important as well. I wouldn’t discredit GD by saying that he doesn’t even know the “real her”, because she hasn’t ever let him see the real her, and he also strikes me as someone who would choose to believe what he believes in and nothing else. I want to say “ahhh MH is perfect for her, because he knows who she is and is still attracted, whereas GD doesn’t know a thing for her” but to be fair to him, he’s never had a chance to know it. So I’m really interested in how his reaction will be when he finds out her true strength!

He made it clear that he doesn't even want to know. For him, women are weak. Are supposed to be weak.

He has a crush on her that he isn't allowed to act upon because he has a girlfriend. That makes him ignore his job, his girlfriend and everything so he can hover around BS, but he constantly talks to and about her as some special instance of his very problematic concept of "woman". He doesn't tell her not to stay with her boss because of something that has to do with the BS he knows and he has a crush on, he tells her "a women shouldn't ..." all the time.

THAT is what I am discrediting him for.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

He has a crush on her that he isn’t allowed to act upon because he has a girlfriend. That makes him ignore his job, his girlfriend and everything so he can hover around BS, but he constantly talks to and about her as some special instance of his very problematic concept of “woman”. He doesn’t tell her not to stay with her boss because of something that has to do with the BS he knows and he has a crush on, he tells her “a women shouldn’t …” all the time.

THAT is what I am discrediting him for.

I think I just want to totally hug you!!!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Agree with you that he does have a problematic view of women, and his character is very rigid in his way of thinking; he likes to choose to believe what he thinks is definitely true (aka his own opinions).

But in a sense, the way BS acts really hasn't given him cause to believe otherwise? (Like pretending not to be able to open the jar, speaking softly and subserviently whenever she's talking to him, etc.). Kind of how it takes 2 hands to clap? And adding onto the fact that he probably follows the "conservative Asian mindset". (I know for a fact that my parents would definitely say "What?! A girl had better not stay the night at her boss's house" as well).

Though of course I'm really not justifying his words/actions, just saying that because of all the amount of "urghhh Gookdu's character" comments I've seen, perhaps we could cut him some slack, LOL!

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I actually thought BS going after the evil driver after MH helped was like going beyond what should have been done. I know the writers probably want to show her powers more, plus show that she is slowly turning more into that superhero MH would love to see. But on the flip side he was showing his own protection of BS, his ability as a man to protect her, and that was downgraded after she went after the driver. Even though BS is strong, she is still a woman at heart and will want a man to step up once in awhile.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

What does it say about a girl when she looks at a kdrama killer and goes "Hey, look at them abs! He's sexy!"? I mean what is it with making serial killers look like runway models? Where did all those ugly looking bad guys go? And from what kind of psychological illness do I suffer to think serial killers are baes? I blame Park Bo Gum for starting that trend of sexy little serial killers and setting my heart aflutter! Shame on him!

0
20
reply

Required fields are marked *

And Kim Jae Wook in Voice, he's sexy too. I forget he's a psychopath serial killer and needs to be punished instead i keep looking at his hair and nice figure.

Good looking serial killers are distraction of us viewers with weak herats towards beauty so we won't sympathize with the victims, and forgive them at the end of the show like what usually happened with k-drama because the only one who complains about forgiveness is us viewers.

0
6
reply

Required fields are marked *

Don't even get me started on Kim Jaw Wook... I could write essays on his cheekbones alone...

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Agree

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

Ha haa what about park bogum.most lived serial killer ever.???

0

*loved

0

what about park bogum.most lived serial killer ever

Oh, man - he was so creepy in "I Remember You". I thought his physical attractiveness actually accentuated the sense of 'wrongness' around his character, because his sweet face & smile were so at odds with his inner life. :shudder:

There was an essay about horror movies I read some years ago which compared monster movies & their antagonists with characters like Park Bo Geum's in IRY - the essay said something like...Larry Talbot in the Wolfman movies is only the monster when he looks monstrous - but [characters like the above] are much more frightening, because inside, they're always the monster.

0

Or it could be a reminder that something that look good on the outside could be rank inside. The concept of beauty and goodness are not always synonymous. ..... though a somehing or someone may look good we should look beyond the surface in life and in love.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Its not just kdramas lol, don't you remember the good looking guys mug shot tht was floating around the internet nd pple were going like " but hes so goodlooking" nd some even asked fr his release, don't worry you aint weird, I think our brains stop functioning when we see pretty nd we can't look beyond tht, so everything else stops mattering, lol

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

So what you are saying is... we are not crazy just shallow as hell... that makes me feel better but bad at the same time... Then again it's not like we got into kdramas because of the deep and philosophical story telling. I'm pretty sure we can all admit we got in it for the pretty, with good writing and directing being a bonus in the business... The amount of plot holes I can forgive I think is proportional to how gorgeous the actors are, which I think is quite telling at how much I am willing to stand lol.

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

1
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yeah I had seen that criminal making the rounds online and knew about his modeling contract, last I heard he had actually walked the runway at New York Fashion show.

And I do realize pretty people have it better in general, I actually have a friend who is absolutely stunning, to the point that when we were studying abroad in Europe and we would walk around in markets, he would come out with armfuls of stuff vendors just gave him for free. He saw it as absolutely normal, while the rest of us pointed out that he was the only one that came out with free stuff. People were just more inclined to be polite and cater to him, to the point that he and I went to a store once looking to buy presents for our mothers, the sales lady never directed her comments towards me and instead spoke directly to him even though he did not understand her and I was the one speaking to her!

I guess this skin deep judgement is also the reason why some fans, when an actor they like commits a crime or is accused of rape are quick to say that he must have been either framed or the girl is a gold digger looking for her settlement. And maybe this is also the reason why we say "bad boys" are hot, maybe is not the fact that they are bad that attract us, maybe it is because they are good looking and doing the things that we would never do that we find attractive, we forgive the flaws because of their looks and just want the pretty package.

And you are right, as long as our admiration stays within the realm of fiction in kdramas, we should be good. I myself would never think of giving a free pass to a criminal just because he is hot. But now I am glad I bought up this topic, kdramas are always good to discuss social dysfunctionality XD.

1
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

0

"having a great face don’t give you a pass to not use your brain"...
Hi, @La Plume.... I have to agree with you. Even though the way we understand beauty will always makee something or somebody attractive to our eyes, that shouldnt justify for them not to have brain.
Yet, in regard to Dramas... I think it is actually a very strategical move to cast mostly beautiful people on the outside because we never have time to dig into their "personalities" in order to find out if they are also beautiful in the inside.
That is something you can do with a novel, in literature (and by the way, for that you also have to be a very good writer), but not in TV.

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I feel a weird version of this image distorting reality.

I know 3 or 4 people that are super gorgeous, male and female, (an engineer, a doctor, a lawer, a psychologist...).
Every time I'm with them I feel like I've sneaked in to a photo shoot of a catalog or something.
I don't ever feel bad about my looks, I'm super confident, but objectively they are pretty pretty people.

The weird thing is that I'm always surprised of how nice they are to me, allways happy to see me, they listen to me attentively, dance with me, laugh at my jokes...
Is like in my mind beautiful people didn't have to be nice, like normal people is.

I blame all those curt 2º generation chaebols, misstreating their candies.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i am immune after seeing him beat up girls with a metal rod. i so wanted to bash his face in and knock off his teeth until he resembles the guy in the hospital Bong-Ki mummy-bandaged.

...which is bad of me as he is clearly a mental case with his mother beating him up with her undies in his childhood or something.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Is it bad that I totally cracked up at your last sentence?? How to make your serial killer more humane 101: give them crappy childhood backstory.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

i don't think it's about 'how to make your serial killer more humane', rather it's more like they used to be human, before someone or something turns them into such inhumane characters. as for the 'crappy childhood backstory', childhood is a very crucial time to form the way we view the world and what we become as adults. that is probably the only reason for such childhood trauma backstories for most psyhos. i don't understand why any story which tells us the painful past of the villains becomes another cliche for humanizing the bad guys, while the stories with the heroes who struggle through their bad times are just the ideal people in dramaland. having said that, i'll admit the latter sounds like min hyuk whereas i can't think of any kind of redemption for this psycho kidnapper. but the show does a good work with the kidnapping scenes; i flinch all through them, hoping the girl gets saved at least at the last moment. i will also be the first to cheer when he finally gets caught.
sorry if you are offended or anything.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I don't feel that way at all about this killer but I felt real guilty about my crush on J in Bloody Monday.

"Remember, Mindy... He might be charismatic but he is a psychopathic terrorist..."

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

No one is blaming you on crushing on J, well at least it won't be coming from me. xD

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Dramaland has very interesting villains recently don't they? I confess I did have dirty thoughts for a sec when the abs were flashing. Unfortunately this drama's serial killer isn't played by an actor that is as good as Park Bo Gum or Kim Jae Weook - or perhaps the PD just haven't give him a time to shine yet - so I feel no sympathy whatsoever towards him. Not to say that serial killers in life need sympathy but when watching a suspense drama like this, it's fun to have an intriguing villain.

See the thing with Park Bo Gum's character is that, though his eyes made feel chilly to the bone, he has a good hyung who becomes his inspiration for redemption. So like, there's a hope for him!

Kim Jae Wook on the other hand, man the thought of him showering in blood still give me shivers. He's like Damien the Lucifer's kid and the only thing that can redeem him is perhaps exorcism. If he ever takes a romcom role after this, I still would suspect him of having ulterior motive to the lead girl.

Also, am I the only one that is confused on this? For half of this episode, I though there are actually 2 serial killers on the loose - one who beats the girl victim to death, the other one who kidnaps them to make them his bride. But turned out it's the same dude - which then confuses me, why the different MO?

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes, they are the same person.
I think the confusion here is the label of the villain himself.
He is not a serial killer. He is a lunatic kidnapper & a pervert maniac who kidnaps, tortures girls and made them his "bride". And to explain why the 1st victim got killed, correct me if I'm wrong , but Gook Du (and even Min Hyuk) already deduct it based on the autopsy that the masked-man didn't originally intended to kill her. He most probably accidentally stabs her because she fights too much.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Park Bo Gum in I Remember You was such a great actor in that role! I thought his character portrayal was brilliant. Made you anxious to see what he would do next. I was so disappointed when that drama ended.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

JTBC struck gold with this. Can't wait for the next episode.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I am really annoyed with that gay part. Why does she still think he's a gay? Even GD knows MH is not. Anyway, dear hyun sik, I have a King Kong-sized crush on you.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Soooooooo Finally recap is here! Thanks Candidclown!!
Now I can join the trivia!!!!! yeah!!!!!!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

As much as I like the fluff, budding romance and laughs, there is really not much going on at the end of the episode or rather the week. The frustration is starting to grow on me and wonder if they will spend 16 episodes finding this ONE villain as that will be helluva waste of her special power. I mean we have quite established the fact of her strength so shall we start kicking the real asses now?

On another note, I do like the part that the scriptwriter trying to demonstrate the humour by downplay her ability by making her as cutesy and vulnerable as possible, look at that small, pink work table.

1
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes, I agree with you. I'm growing a bit frustrated with episodes from this week. While the fluff and funny is constant and great - there was no movement in the plot...I mean, absolutely none. We're no closer to figuring out the killer than GD; sure now he's seen BS's face, however after getting hit by her, he suddenly appears in this episode doing pretty good and able to over come another female victim (what are these cops doing!?!?!).

I like my cute balanced by logic - we've spent enough time with hijinks and funny moments and I'm good - now let's move onto some real stuff....Bong Soon really doing something with her strength and finally realizing how awesome she is.

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

It isnt DBS duty to find the kidnapper. Its police job. She is just a witness. Her job is to find the guy threatening her boss. And a long run will be the gangster group.

DBS hasnt known how to control her power yet. She doesnt know what is the right job or the wrong job for her to lose power.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i feel like this week WAS a turning point because bong soon is now taking active steps to change into the person she wants to be. if nothing continues to happen in the following weeks, then i would definitely agree with you. but we first had to establish the characters & show how bong soon has hidden her powers. then she tried using them but it resulted in a bunch of mishaps because she has no control. now her & minhyuk decided this week to take control of her abilities & "use them for good." i think the progression is logical instead of starting with her being a picture perfect superhero!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Anyone thinks that BS may somehow lose her power later due to abuse, get caught by the kidnapper, saved by MH (whom she perceive as weak) and then miraculously get back her power in the most crucial moment or either after all villains have been caught?
Otherwise, can't think much of how the storyline goes....

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

thought it was Im Shiwan..the kidnapper

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I thought I was the only one who thought the kidnapper was a Siwan lookalike! ><

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Haha same!! He's like a bigger mature version of Im Siwan

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

This gem of a show is my crack drama rn. I know it's been said so many times but BS and MH's bickering is also something that I've been loving. Whenever MH covers his eyes, oh my life- how is he so adorable. That three way scenario where MH was imagining BS kissing GD etc. made me crack up, pls do more of these scenes. I know staring at someone while they're sleeping shouldn't be cute really, but MH's gazes at BS are killing me ahhhhhh

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

That drunk dancing scene after the drinking contest... omo.

That scene gave me the best belly laugh I've had in a while.

Lovin' this show so far!

0
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

I LOLed so hard at that scene. Especially Gook-doo's dramatic cinderella goodbye.

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

he even threw away his glass slipper before climbing onto the pool table lo

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Omg, lol @ that! It was so random--and so was their drunken acts. Like, why would Gook-doo want to kiss Min-hyuk when he was drunk and why did the boys suddenly wanna dance and basically be all over each other? Lawl! Anyways, it was random, but omg, it was HILARIOUS when he suddenly said "It's midnight. I must go before my carriage turns into a pumpkin," and then proceeds to plop right on the pool table. Hahaha, what?!

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Like, why would Gook-doo want to kiss Min-hyuk when he was drunk

Are you telling me there are people who wouldn't want to kiss Min-Hyuk? I think not. ;)

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

+1000 :D

0

No matter how strong you are, in my eyes, you’re still a fragile woman. ...URGH. REALLY????

I know SHE found it romantic, but NO ...just no! That is not romantic, that is some wannabe Macho-Bullshit.

Really. I just can't with this .... He constantly berates her, treats her like she is stupid, talks over her and orders her around. And seeing her playing the simpering little girl everytime GD is close really frustrates me. Because she makes herself LESS in order for him to like her. Sure ...he does not know better, because she has never told him about her superpowers. But it is quite clear that BS thinks he would not like her that way, if he knew the REAL her. He seemingly can't even see her as a capable, smart, confidant woman because that is not part of his worldview ... and that sentence basically proves it.

Thankfully we are apparently now getting to the part of the show where BS starts to slowly think differently, judging from the way she reacted and looked at MH when he said he wanted to help her use her powers for good.

I like how this show has established from the beginning that MH has no pseudo-Alpha-Male hangups. That he is completely secure in his very own kind of manhood (and has also NO PROBLEM about people guessing he is gay and only balking at that when that means BS will not see him in a romantic light).
Fancying BS with all her strength, thinking her sexy not DESPITE but BECAUSE of it ... is so great. She never had to hide herself from him ...and he completely accepts her for who she is.
And that THAT is the man you should be going for ... ..

1
19
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hell to the yes for this whole comment!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

= No matter how strong you are, in my eyes, you’re still a fragile woman. =

I am glad he say that cause this is how many 1st lead in other drama do this to other girl and often makes them falls over heals,
also shown with bong soon attitude but we as viewer + min hyuk can see that it wasn't the right way to say and also show that woman can be strong on her own that no one knows.

she can be fragile now but she will be strong and he implied that no matter how strong she is, he can't recognise it and she will still a fragile one that needs to be saved.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I love Ji Soo, but I have to admit that I also dont like the way he treats BS.
On the other hand, MH is absolutely beautiful, and he bickers with her, that is true, but he is never rude, never really bossy or minimizing her, not even belittling her because of what she lacks (English, for instance).
He is handsome, successful, and smart. He could see her as a lowly person because well... she is from a lower class, and yet, he does not.
I think MH treats her with dignity, and just bickers with her because it is fun, and because is only teasing.
Whenever he will really fall in love with her, he will treat her like a princess, even though she is strong like Hulk!! he he...

So, I dont suffer the sencond male lead syndrome.
I still like Ji soo a lot, but boy, this girls is not for you...

1
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes! Rather than belittling, he empowers her to be better (like giving her books to study, and adorable desk to study at).

I think this show is really interesting with the way it compared various levels of misogyny and belittling of women.

At the extreme end, we have the kidnapper. His objection of women is so extreme they literally exist only to meet his needs and reflect how he desires to shape them (thin dolls, controlling their food). He robs them of voice and agency.

In the middle are the other macho men who look down on woman and think it is okay to take advantage of their strength to coerce woman into doing what they want. Even mom to some extent is the inverse of this, cowing men to do what she wants because she is stronger (with the walnut business money).

Then you have GD. He is a nice guy who uses his strength to help the "little" woman. The fundamental problem is that he buys into the prevailing thinking about women that only sees them as small weak and helpless. No matter the truth, BS will always be "fragile" to him. She projects herself around him as that way because she overheard him say that is the way he likes women to be. His identity is somewhat dependent on relating to women in a certain way. As other commentators pointed out, he often talks over BS and imposes his view on her (even if he is actually entirely off base because he doesn't know the truth).

BS is conflicted because she likes GD, but she must always hide who she truly is (devalue her true self and be embarrassed by it). Even as she secretly earns to embrace this aspect of herself and use it to help others.

That's what makes MH awesome. He is confident in his own identity. He knows who she is and admires it. He even likes the idea his future potential daughters being strong like her. (I think BS's dad might have been the same). He also acts as a catalyst to help her become a better self (but not in a way that imposes his own vision, but rather one that embraces hers).

I hope BS comes to realize that she doesn't have to be shaped by someone else's ideas to be worthy of love and relationship (no matter how well intended those ideas are) and learns to be value herself and be valued for her true self.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

Beautifully written!

He also acts as a catalyst to help her become a better self (but not in a way that imposes his own vision, but rather one that embraces hers).

That was very powerful indeed.

As Goethe put it: "What from your mother you've inherited, you must earn again, to own it straight."

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oh my God, yes... You are so right. And BS´s dad, whoever woudl say he is weak, but actually, he is simply nice and he knows his values very well... He just happened to marry a "macho"-woman (who by the way lost her powers by bulling others! jajajajajajajaj).
BS and GD would never work, because he doesnt know who she really is.... He has no idea, like MH said, and BS has done wrong by hidding herself. She is basically lying to him all the time, and lying never works...

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

When I said "you are right", i meant @Dramabird... he he... Sorry that i don´t know well how to post my answers.

0

We all know she will certainly fall to that man at the end so I'm closing my eyes every time Bong Soon flaunts how she desperately likes Gook Du. i'll understand that he is BS long time 1st crush & it is only a matter of time where she'll learn to look at the other man around her. And.. Am I the only one? I think GD knew about BS's super strength. Like how he emphasize during the phone call that "FOR HIM" she is still a weak girl, the highschool flashback where he intentionally let BS hear him say that he likes 'fragile' girls whom he can protect. I feel something odd at that scene, why would he do that? Is something else happen that the viewers are yet to know?
And Ofcourse, GD's "Why are we friends?" to BS. I see that coming LOL. Min hyuk is right. Bong Soon's one sided crush isn't really one sided after all.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Nee, I don´t think he knows... He is so squared-minde that he wouldnt do so much in order to "protect" her if he knew...
But it will be very cool when he finds out.
And I believe that is when he will really, also, really fall for her....
What BS thought he should never know is what will make him fall for her, but by then she will be already in love with somebody else!!!!! he heheheheheh

Sorry, BS, Buda didn´t help you with that one, but you will have something better!!!! Dont worry.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

@Joyee I completely agree with you on this one, I feel like GD already knows that she has that super strength but for some reason he doesn't want to reveal he knows.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

+1

Wish we could up vote

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes!

Though in Gookdu's defense... honestly she's never let him see the real her before. The way she behaves around him - it could probably give him cause to think that she's being silly or foolish. (Not that it really justifies all the yelling and whatnot, really)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

yes, yes, YES! And I love how it was so easy and smooth for BS to tell MH the truth about her strength. He even sort of 'proposed' to her after revealing the truth.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Just as Joon-Hyung found Bok Joo sexy. Haha.
So does Min Hyuk to Bong Soon. Lovin the show more! Can't help but play How Would It Be (Standing Egg) over and over again and countlessly watching the preview for Episode 7. ?

Also digging for clues on the next scenes from the MV's online like the part where Mimi Hyuk lies in the hospital and Bong Soon wipes his faces while she's wearing the pink sweater and they just stare at each other! OMO ?

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Exactly the content I come to the comments section for.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i am hoping that we will later find out gook du has known about bong soon's powers all along & how she feels insecure about them. so he just pretends not to know & repeatedly tells her she's weak because he believes that's what she wants him to think of her :P

even tho i don't actually think that will happen LOL

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

About what Gook-doo said: I, too, couldn't help rolling my eyes at how he's constantly calling Bong-soon weak. When he said that line to her, I thought he could've easily said, "No matter how strong you are, I still want to protect you." Now THAT would've been swoon worthy.

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Your comment remind me with the conversation that I have with my cousin and my best friend. My cousin just having hard time because her boyfriend's parents doesn't like her for her kinda messy habits and laziness.
My best friend said "at least you're being disliked because your shortcoming, so you can improve yourself, not because your capability and you need to hating yourself because of that."
This is actually a jab on my relationship which my husband doesn't like it that I'm smarter than him. He got inferiority complex because of it. And he's telling my parents he got intimidated communicating with me because of it. Then my parents told me that my intellectuals make me arrogant and keep me from properly respecting my husband. It making me helpless. I can no longer become myself and not allowed to voice my thoughts.
Gokdoo remind me of my husband, I think he got inferiority complex if he acknowledged Bongsoon is stronger than him. He doesn't love Bongsoon for what she is, but what he has in mind. The idea of Bongsoon that he already formed in his mind is what he likes. It is kinda weird with so many blatant hints on his face about how strong Bongsoon is yet he keep ignoring it. I'm curious what will happen if he finally discover the truth.

1
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oh Minni! Relationships involve compromises, but lowering your intellect shouldn't be one that you have to make. How does one stop being smart anyway?! Fighting!!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

"My personal stance is that the show is not trying to mock or belittle homosexuality. The real humor comes from the misunderstandings, not the concept of being gay."

- I'm on the same ground as CandidClown. I never notice any scene where the show degrade homosexuality. Bong Soon's aggresive reactions are purely because she likes Gook Du & not because she dislikes Min Hyuk's (mistaken) orientation. Are the criticisms regarding the homosexuality mostly came from I-fans? If yes, perhaps it is a matter of culture (which is understandable) 'cause If koreans find it offensive, i don't think it will get the love it is getting now. In my country Philippines, this kind of humor is acceptable as long as it is not below the belt. Taking it too seriously might spoil my watching that's why I just check out every episode with enjoyment. Forget about the slow plot & choppy editing at times. It have good actors & the music will make you fall in love.
This show makes me laugh, swoon & forget about my stressful week. As for me who just wants to have a breather for my weekend, SWDS is the best choice. *heart eyes*

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I totally agree with you on this one!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm really looking forward to the romance taking off soon in earnest with Bong-soon and Min-hyuk. They are going to be adorably dorky together.

But I have to be honest. Min-hyuk and Gook-Do are the HOTTEST couple in a drama I have seen in a long time!

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

We already got a sneak peak from Gook Du's imagination and now I'm wanting moreeeee

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

OMG, the way the hugged on the pool, I wanted to be in the middle of that embrace, hahaha!!

And yeah, I want Min Hyuk to raise the temperature of his relationship with Bong Soon already, PHS is so hot I can wait to see him in full seduction mode.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

That dream sequence... I'll take it as a sneak peek into Min Hyuk and Bong Soon's future kiss. Did anybody else notice how expressive his eyes were, when he was about to kiss her??

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

raise your hand if you imagine yourself in BS place in that scene! *raises both hands and feet*

phew /fans self

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes! *Squeals!*

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think the drama based purely on the enjoyment value,
again this reminds me of shounen anime genre,
when you have this goofball main character, over power, one-sided love who then meet someone who can help the MC to utilised her power to the maximum.

She didn't have any purpose for the power before and now she has it, the grandma appearance is great for me because it adds something to the family dynamic, the killer revelation also at the right time cause it doesn't make sense to make us wait, the cohabitation hijinks also funny enough.

Then about the gay accusation, I think it doesn't depict that being gay is bad but it all comes to their own competition, how min hyuk being gay doesn't actually matter for bong sun except that if he is aiming for gook doo (which is min hyuk did so far), bong sun and min hyuk's mum worry about the gay is more about society and how they want an heir,

and I actually think that min hyuk act with being indifferent about being gay is the highlight, that it wasn't other people business and they are all equal, just like you don't fuss over someone being straight, you don't fuss over someone being gay since here, his orientation is related to the chance of being with him.
the friend based his assumption based on how she saw min hyuk act in the club and book doo or other man never say anything to min hyuk that will make the gay label bad,
the example is that bong soon never says anything that min hyuk did is deprive of him being gay, like his clothes choices or mock him but she always afraid when he acted close to gook doo which gonna happen even with a woman.
Gook doo has a girlfriend so she thought that the idea of min hyuk being gay will make them less close because she thought minhyuk is her rival, this makes them as equal chance and not demeaning.

[I probably misinterprets many things since it's been quite a time after I watch this so feel free to corrected me]

0
16
reply

Required fields are marked *

"min hyuk act with being indifferent about being gay is the highlight, that it wasn’t other people business and they are all equal, just like you don’t fuss over someone being straight, you don’t fuss over someone being gay"

+100000000

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Re: Gay accusation
I think the problem is this drama used comedy as its platform to show the idea of accepting people with different traits (whether it's about someone's sexuality, physical appearance, or anything else). It's easy to misunderstand comedic moments. Something that was totally funny for me could be seen as offensive by someone else. And this show's brand of comedy is more in-your-face rather than subtle. Personally, I don't think this drama tried to belittle or mock someone for being gay. But I could see how other person would misinterpreted those scenes that way.

0
13
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree that the comedy is not meaning to be analysed by word only cause it used more casual words (which also can be missed in translation)
it triggering for people that want the theme of sexuality to be more in depth but in all honesty, I agree with the Op, there's no need to questioning someone sexuality that far and assumed the ill intention,
if people were being okay with anything then no one is beneath others,

if there's some line that shown about bong soon being wary for minhyuk than the girlfriend, then it's bad but for now, we saw that bongsoon take both of them as her rival.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

It’s easy to misunderstand comedic moments.

I agree that humor is not going to come off the same to all viewers, but I don't think that my issues with the show's treatment of homosexuality stem from a misunderstanding of what they are trying to portray.

For folks who don't see how the portrayal of Min-hyuk's sexuality is troubling, I have an analogy. Think about how East Asian male characters have typically been portrayed in Western media. So often, they are portrayed as foolish and bumbling, mixing up their "l"s and their "r"s, with exaggeratedly squinty eyes. The character Long Duck Dong [ (((>_< ))) at that name!!] in Sixteen Candles is a perfect example of this. The "joke" in these portrayals is the character's race, and it's dehumanizing and awful. Thankfully, East Asian men's representation in media is getting better (think of Glenn in Walking Dead), but the progress is very, very slow.

Like the usual portrayal of East Asian characters in Western media, the portrayal of gay men in media is also often one-note and dehumanizing. Just as Asian men's racial identity is used for laughs in the example above, gay men's sexuality is the butt of the joke in most media. They are almost always played as effeminate and campy. Their gestures are often exaggerated and flamboyant (think of the stereotype of limp-wristed gay men). They are shown as coming on to straight men and delighting in making straight men feel uncomfortable*. They often appear in really bad drag**, like Min-hyuk did in Bong-soon's dream. All of these character traits appear when this show draws attention to Min-hyuk's possible sexuality. Heck, if I had a bingo card for SWDBS that included all the Bad Media Tropes for Gay Men, I would have had bingo three times over by now.

This is the problem I have with SWDBS and its LGBTQ-related story lines (and why I dropped the drama after episode 4). They recycle the same tired material we usually see, and rather than doing it in a way that critiques the tropes, they do it in a way that encourages people to laugh at homosexuality.

I hear the argument that Korea is not as progressive as the US in their views of homosexuality and so any positive portrayal of a non-straight character should be seen as a good thing. I see the logic in that position. To that I would say that a) the portrayal isn't actually that positive and b) that the only way we got to a place of relative acceptance of gay people in the US was because people pointed out these problematic portrayals when they saw them and demanded better.

*This isn't something that happens much in real life, because of the very real threat of violence that gay men face if they flirt with a straight man.

**Dressing in women's clothing is not actually a "gay thing". Most gay men do not dress in women's clothes, nor do they want to. A man who dresses in women's clothing for enjoyment is a transvestite or a drag...

1
11
reply

Required fields are marked *

...queen, and he can be gay or straight. In fact, one of the most visible transvestite personalities is Eddie Izzard, who is a straight man.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

--- So often, they are portrayed as foolish and bumbling, mixing up their “l”s and their “r”s, with exaggeratedly squinty eyes. The character Long Duck Dong [ (((>_< ))) at that name!!] in Sixteen Candles is a perfect example of this. ----

above mimicked asian characteristic when they aren't asian with the supposedly asian name (which is fake)

so where's is the part when the gay is mimicked with supposedly gay action that depicted that it was false?
minhyuk deliberately want to provoke bong soon by giving his honest thought about gook doo,
is that means gay can't flirt unless it's gay romance??
is that means girl can't act jealous if the man they like is targetted by another men??
what kind of double standards is this,
you are tired of gay being the laugh baiting,
do anyone laugh at them?
people are intrigue and can shipping them?

---- They recycle the same tired material we usually see, and rather than doing it in a way that critiques the tropes, they do it in a way that encourages people to laugh at homosexuality. ----

what material did they recycle? the flirt between 2 straight guy that also happen in normal drama and straight relationship,
you want them to critique the tropes in a drama about strong woman? why?
do people laugh because minhyuk is gay??
more people laugh because they know that bong soon has smaller chance getting gookdoo because of minhyuk,
mean they are taking their feeling as real,

they encouraged the way gay men didn't need to scream about their sexuality for other people and it's okay to comment on man's butt,

you want a drama that tackle sexuality when the drama focused is strong woman and how we see people differently because of our bias,
the drama is not perfect but to assuming a mountain hill based on one or two translation jokes that you dislike doesn't make the drama inherently bad

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Longtime lurker here- I've been seeing the teasers and catching up on recaps of this show since I was getting excited about its premise. But the moment I saw the "twist" to the typical love triangle, I was raising eyebrows. I was really hoping that maybe, maybe, we could see a show with a canonly bisexual main lead with misunderstandings being the comedic material. We got them alright, but not in the way I was hoping for.

I agree with you, Andrea. In fact, I'll be honest and say that this kind of ignorant portrayal of gay people hits a little too close to home for me.

The kind of "shenanigans" that drunk Gook-doo and Min-hyuk get into are really... cringeworthy instead of funny. I honestly don't think these jokes are deconstructing or criticizing the societal treatment of gay people. Instead, it's just perpetuating an idea that gay people are somehow these uncomfortable, wacky characters that invade personal boundaries for kicks and giggles which is simply not true. I'd understand why parents who watch this show would come away thinking that they should keep their kids away from gay people.

The drunken scenes alone made me turn away - that's just not my brand of humor I guess.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

--- The drunken scenes alone made me turn away – that’s just not my brand of humor I guess. ---

woaah why is everything is looked at the sexuality roses glassed??
and not two people who hate each other and make up when they get drunk because they apparently have the same imagination

0

You've explained it very clearly, Andrea. Whether or not the show's use of homosexuality is demeaning is not so much a matter of interpretation or personal reaction, but more about the context of representation as you've highlighted.

The fact that no character openly says something bad about gay men does not prove that the show itself is not derisive towards gay men. In addition to what Andrea has already mentioned about the damaging stereotypical portrayals of gay men as sexually forward or using particular gestures (the limp wrist), the characters themselves also tap into a ton of stereotypes.

Bongsoon and Kyungshim decided that Minhyuk was gay because he liked shopping, dressed well, and seemed to have no interest in women (BS: "How can a guy like shopping?"). BS's mum made this remark at one point, when BS told her MH is not interested in girls: "Before we got Soon-shim, I used to hate dogs. People change." Such a remark is underpinned by the mistaken view that sexuality is a lifestyle choice (like a taste in food or an attitude towards animals) rather than biologically innate.

But what is most disturbing is how BS's mum keeps commenting that BS should just force herself on MH ("She should just force it. What a waste of all that power."). This ignores the horrible reality that gay men are often sexually assaulted 1) in efforts to "straighten" them, or 2) because they are seen already as sexually loose and desperate (refer to Andrea's comment on the stereotypical portrayal of gay men as always "coming on to straight men").

Further, it seems to be trying to make a joke based on the unexpected gender reversal scenario (girl forcing herself onto a guy instead of vice versa). This shoots any feminist agenda the show is trying to achieve right in the foot, because sexual assault, whether it is perpetrated by a man on a woman, a woman on a man, a man on a man, or a woman on a woman, is not something to be incorporated into a throwaway comic line.

And remember the supposed motorcyclist stalker and how he threatened to sexually assault BS? When he wails that his motorcycle was stolen, BS immediately becomes apologetic and sympathetic and lets him go, as if he didn't just sexually threaten her moments ago. The show as a whole is trying to say something about the condition of women, but these instances of trivialising sexual assault and the easy breezy way that other instances of such threat are removed (via BS's super strength) doesn't help achieve a compelling gender commentary that the show is trying for.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

YES to all of this, especially your last two paragraphs. Apart from the icky portrayal of homosexuality, the issues that you talk about in your last two paragraphs are another reason why I dropped the drama after episode 4.

I had really high hopes for this show for many reasons (cast, plot), but one of the main reasons was that I loved Ms. Temper and Nam Jung-ki, which JTBC put out last year (or was it two years ago now?). It was one of the most solidly feminist shows I've ever seen, in either Western or Korean media. On the heels of that gem, I was expecting great things from this drama, especially with regard to gender. Instead, I find Bong-soon to be an oddly flat and unlikable character, one whose motivations I can't seem to parse. The story seems to focus more on how she reacts to the two male leads rather than focusing on Bong-soon herself. It makes me sad because the premise of this show was so promising!

0

Relax guys ! It's just a comedy show like SNL ! Why over analyze it ?its something that you watch for laughs at the end of a stressful work week and unwind . Don't think it was meant for being a nod to social change or poke fun at homosexuals or bisexuals or even women. Society is similar everywhere. I stay in the US. See similar situations like Ji Soo's patronizing behavior or Mom's advice to young daughter or spousal abuse in my line of work all the time . Even homosexuals have difficulty opening up here too . And I should know- being an Obgyn doctor!its not just in Korea. And spousal abuse here is not reportable unless it's by the victim . Imagine my frustration.
My advice to all you young people- get the angst out . These are purely imaginary shows - meant to lighten your stressful lives ! Treat it that way and move on . The actors are young and really cute . Love PHS and PBY together. Glad she can be her own self with him . Enough with the societal expectations . Have fun and enjoy life . Life is short . Keep it sweet ! Just laugh and the world laughs with you ☺!

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Relax guys ! It’s just a comedy show like SNL ! Why over analyze it ?

Because it's fun. That's what we do here! Are you new? :cheeky grin:

I over-analyze every show; it's part of the fun of watching it. Nearly every show has layers of meaning - the acting, the directing, the lighting, the sound, the music - they can all say different things, and carry different emphasis. Over-analyzing is like connecting the dots to make a picture. :)

0

Totally agree! K-drama is for entertainment and not a social coomentary so no need to overthink everything:)

0

@Ryou We can disagree about whether or not this drama is treating its homosexual themes appropriately, but I am going to push back against the idea that "K-drama is for entertainment and not social commentary".

Not every K-drama is a social commentary, sure. But SO may of them are:

Sandglass (one of the most popular K-dramas of all time) -- political/governmental oppression

Ms. Temper & Nam Jung-ki -- sexism in the workplace

Angry Mom -- corruption

It's Okay, That's Love -- mental illness and how society perceives it

Dal-ja's Spring (and similar dramas) -- struggles of professional women in the workplace, and how that conflicts with traditional gender roles

Greatest Love -- the superficiality of fame

Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo -- societal ideas about femininity

...I could go on and on. Suffice it to say that I think a lot of K-dramas intentionally try to generate social commentary, and it is a feature of k-dramas that many people enjoy.

0

@Valentina & Ryou: Yes, dramas don't always have to take on social/serious issues; they can be pure fun, or have a good story, or lovable characters, all without touching on such topics.

But I can't really bring myself to root for a show if its entertainment value comes at the expense of certain social groups. I think it's one thing for socially problematic elements to arise as a byproduct of a certain plot or character choice: for example, in Hwarang, Aro had the potential to be a spunky, independent heroine, but the writing turned her into a typical damsel in distress. That's frustrating for sure, but it's not deeply problematic.

Whereas SWDBS deliberately puts forward portrayals that perpetuate already prevalent and damaging stereotypes, and not just as some plot point, but for comedic purposes, which really trivialises the struggles of these groups in society.

Maybe an analogy will help: imagine you are a drama fan, and you happen to be gay, or have experienced sexual assault before, or are a primary caretaker for a family member who is crippled / not in control of his or her bowels / has speech impairments. You pick up this drama because it looks cute and fun, hoping that it gives you some respite from the troubles you have to deal with daily. And then you see all these scenes that are insensitive and trivialising. Not only are you reminded of the very things you are trying to forget about, but you are expected to be okay with these struggles being made fun of.

So yes, Kdramas are primarily for entertainment purposes, and serving as a sociocultural commentary is not always the priority for the production team; that's reasonable and perfectly okay. But it's one thing to not have a sociocultural agenda, and another thing to capitalise on demeaning sociocultural/ media stereotypes to create entertainment value.

For a medium that is so wide-reaching, I don't think it's unreasonable to wish that the production team had reflected more carefully on their social responsibility, and at least try to avoid such insensitive portrayals. They definitely could've retained Min-hyuk's gay rumours just as a plot point, minus anything about representation, without making fun of gay men in this way.

1

About the gay thing: I was personally hoping Minhyuk would be canonically gay, or bisexual, just because seeing representation in kdramas would be nice. And I agree, the show itself hasn't really pulled anything super homophobic and the funniness around this situation is bc of the resultant misunderstandings and the "love triangle", not Minhyuk's sexuality itself.

The only issue I would have is if the writers later pull a "Oh I was just pretending to be gay because there are already rumors about it so why not go along with it for fun." on Minhyuk. I've been reading some people saying that's how it is, and for some reason that doesn't sit right with me. I'd see it going that way though, because Minhyuk in fact doesn't /do/ anything to make people think he's not gay. If it's because he's comfortable with his sexuality, awesome. But if he's doing it for the giggles then -___-

(But I wanted bisexual!Minhyuk and Bongsoon to pine after Gookdoo together, realize he's a jerk, and then get together :D)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

"the show is not trying to mock or belittle homosexuality. The real humor comes from the misunderstandings, not the concept of being gay"...
Totally agree with you, Candidclown... It will be a hot topic throughout the serie recaps and comments. Also, I have heard that in Corea it is a big thing, obviously, not accepted...
It will dragg people up and down. But I hope all of us will talk about it with respect. It must be difficult for those that are, and those around and stereotypes and all that...

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

You know these past few episodes have made me want to just smack Gook-du upside the head. Boy, calm down with all the misogyny! If he refers to this girl as fragile one more time...

I have realized if anyone other than Park Bo-young was playing Bong-soon, I definitely wouldn't like her as much as I do. But I loved her the most this episode! From her giving no f*cks about the boys pissing match to her standing up to that douche and her speech while she spinning his car like a top... This made me realize Bong-soon is the hero we need but definitely don't deserve.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

"...they haven’t gotten permission from her family yet..." I just laughed out loud on how (extremely) supportive her mom is.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

She literally bundled up lingerie and wedding ducks and that damn blanket (which even I want them to sleep together on) You go, mom.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Somehow feel a foreboding that the two ending up under that blanket will be Min-hyuk & Gook-do ^^

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i know they're playing it up for laughs but i was seriously irked when MH woke up on the floor with nothing in the middle of winter. man, that was just plain mean. esp since BS is very capable of dumping him on his bed at least. forget assassins, he's gonna die freezing his ass off down there /sigh

that moment when MH told BS that she shouldn't be ashamed of herself because her being born strong was not her fault just like it's not his fault for being born a stud- it's like the heavenly voices starts singing, the sun shining brightly etc etc.. that's how much i loved him for it lol. this is no peanut-sized king kong crush i'm feelin' here..

1
20
reply

Required fields are marked *

I thought i was the only one who got annoyed with tBS just leaving MH on the floor it really made my blood boil lol i know its just a drama but i was so affected by that scene alone.

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Same! The fact that it is Min Hyuk's house & Bong Soon just let him sleep on the floor is rude. MH is just too nice to let it go. He even stares at her so lovingly while she's sleeping & wish her a goodnight before going to his room. He is indeed very smitten with Bong soon. I remember him saying it in ep4 that he just couldn't get himself mad at her HAH! She got you boy!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

there are moments when BS' nastiness is too much so that the only reason i'm shipping her with MH is because she makes MH happy for some reason lol

just like when she just outed MH as gay in front of GD like that, just because what, she thought MH would jump GD's bones straightaway? that's a highly personal thing and she's just so rude

1
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

THANK YOU OMG I thought I was the only one feeling this. All of that stuff irked me so much, and WHAT was UP with the whole feeding chocolate to GD when MH was literally sitting there and had asked her for it, like, it's literally his house and he's your BOSS get it together girl.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I was annoyed by it too. The inconsistency in BS's characterization is starting to creep up. She was shown as a sassy but kind hearted person but in the last two episodes she is coming across as unprofessional, rude, and inconsiderate, especially in the scenes where she is interacting with MH. I know the writers are trying to contrast how BS behaves in front of GD and how she normally behaves but taking it to such extremes (sleeping on the job, not taking any proactive steps to protect said boss, calling your boss lazy, dumping him on the floor in HIS own house) is distracting. In addition, I feel that MH is such a cool character it makes BS's behavior more disappointing. I hope they don't keep it up. BS's response when she saw her friend hurt was perfect. The hurt, anger, and worry was just right. It was weird watching BS forget all about that the minute GD showed up and start acting cute!
The weakest part of the show is GD and BS interactions and the after effects on BS.

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I also didnt like that. It is a technik of the writer/producer team because the more "nasty" she could be with him now, the more she will love him later, and they want us to show how much a person change after really really falling in love... I got it. But...
It is inconsistent with the character. She is (or has to be) a nice person, simply as that... She sees injustice and if she has not taken so much action is because she grew up hidding her powers.
I mean... She is not perfect, but she is nice. Leaving him on the floor, no matter how "annoying" he may be. I find it inconsistent with her character. But again, I understand it is a resource of the show to makes us laugh.
On the other hand, I liked that he actually didnt get that mad about, he didnt care too much...
which makes me love him even more!!!! Oh my! I am on team MH!!!!!

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

I cannot accept the idea that BS is nice. No matter how much evidence of her nastiness I chalk up to comic relief, if I tried to ignore her non-nice attitude, her being inconsiderate, her disproportionate retributions, her bully tendencies, etc., there wouldn't be much of her scenes left. A few ones where she lies to GD and the few scenes with her friend.

BS may be "good", she likes to punish bad guys, but she sure is not nice.

1
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Well... yeah, maybe you are right. She also took the job merely for the money.
Man, but she is so fun! I really want to like her. I hope she will improve...

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Don't get me wrong, I like her character (well, I'd appreciate a little bit more depth to her character for christmas, but ...).

She's still much closer to being nice than most male lead characters in rom-coms (who I learned to accept to some degree). I'm very willing to give her the benefit of equal opportunity, especially because she seems to be willing to accept the invitation to self-empowerment.

0

i don't disagree that sometimes bong soon's attitude toward minhyuk makes me cringe. however, i have noticed - it is only us who have seen the more tender moments of vulnerability & kindness he displays. & whenever bong soon witnesses those: is phone calls with the stalker, him talking about his family, him ignoring her drunken outburst, him getting rid of her pole video... she softens immediately.
it's not totally surprising that she finds his regular attitude & treatment off-putting (even tho i could argue she gives it back worse!) because he is a spoiled, emotionally deprived chaebol who uses his blunt jokes & CEO position as a wall to protect himself.

& in those moments i really can't wait for them to actually be best buddies (tho i hope the bickering continues) because they seem to genuinely be good for one another. minhyuk for bong soon's growth into a more tolerant person who uses her strength for good. & bong soon for minhyuk's lack of emotional support/family.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

True, and also...
Even though we love dramas, we cannot realistically expect much depth out of each single character, or perfection in the way they act.
I suppose, incongruences like that happen a lot in the real life, and we never get to understand why people are like this or like that... we make our own judgements and carry on.
Human psychology is very complex.
But, on the surface, I have to agree totally that MH will make her use her strenght to be better, and she will give him a nice family he never had.

Also very shortly, she is actually nice to her family. Has a good relationship with papa and brother, and tolerates very well her mom as well... They eat together very prettily. I wish i could have a family like that!!!!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

"... i was seriously irked when MH woke up on the floor with nothing in the middle of winter"

Totally! You might favor one person a bit because you have a crush on him, but every person (even if you perceive that person to be your "annoying" boss) deserves a certain amount of respect and care. I found it super annoying watching her only share the chocolate with BD too. You shouldn't discriminate with food! (Especially if you are eating it)

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

i knoooow right! its just basic human decency. no matter how annoying someone is, it's just not right to let them freeze on the floor in winter when you are capable of moving them somewhere else. especially when it's his house and you are the guest who should be thankful he even let you stay over. i hate being cold (esp while sleeping) so this is a sore point for me lol

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Most Korean houses have heated floors, so sleeping on the floor is warmer than sleeping on a bed.
But yeah, i wish BS would tone down her meanness towards MH. I also think that about her mother's attitude towards her husband so it might be a thing that runs in the family with the supernatural strength. *sigh*

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

traditional korean houses with wooden floors maybe, but not modern ones with tiles. the cost of heating would be staggering.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Modern Korean houses have heated floors too. If you can't afford to heat the whole house you just heat the rooms that need to be warm. Or you heat the floors just a little.
My husband is Korean and I've visited Korea a lot. I also live in a house with a Korean style floor heating system. I have never been in a Korean home that didn't have heated floors. I think it's a very cost effective way to keep your home warm. When I visit my in laws in winter I usually have trouble sleeping from being too hot (everyone sleeps on the floor and I'm not used to sleeping on warm surfaces).
Though I have to admit I've never been in a chaebol's house. They might have a different heating system.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

im thinking about that tho. drama-wise, if the tile is cold, theres no way minhyuk not get up before morning. he would climb just like what he did when bongsoon slept on his sofa.

and for chaebol... modern house with floor heater is totally affordable. even middle-class koreans have it on their tile floor. they just need to turn on selected area.

0

I thought Bong Soon dumped both boys in the couch? Min Hyuk probably feel cramped and moved to the floor instead, but yes, BS could have just carried him to his room.

She is way too nasty to Min Hyuk, and this is the first time while watching a drama that I wished for a female second lead to appear to make BS jealous.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Will she even be jealous? Most probably, she would be warning the girl of the dangers of hanging out with MH, and that MH is gay. HAHA.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The scene of MH waking on the floor behind the couch while GD was sleeping comfy w/ a smile on his face made me laugh. The fact that he got the unfairness of it and ripped off the pillow and blanket away from GD's peacefully sleeping body cracked me up. It was brutally clear she still sees GD as her choice of prince and MH is just her boss.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

just going to start a list of details about this show that i love love love (whether probably written or ad-libbed by actors) - feel free to add on!

1. how minhyuk is ALWAYS paranoid that dbs is badmouthing him.... and how he's ALWAYS right that she is

0
30
reply

Required fields are marked *

The actors DO ad-lib in SWDBS!

Remember the "logout" / "login" drunk DBS scene? Bong Soon's mom ad-libbed "don't you mean login?" !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5JbLc9hlLM

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

cute cute cute *hearteyes*

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Is that PBY normal voice? It's so cute. Especially when she said sorry for pinching PHS cheeks.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

So cute how Mom shared the tangerines with Brother and Friend! Lawl, I haven't memorized their names yet...

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

every time minhyuk mimics bongsoon

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

He totally shmashes it!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

@siesta YES

2. how BS stuffed MH's bowl full with rice as compared to GD's the morning after - presumably so he'd be too full to have the dishes which would then be for GD

0
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

Or because he would be the one getting fat, and not GD!! LOL!!!!!!!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i was so confused but i remembered MH asking for rice(food) the night before so she gave him a mountain the next morning lol

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Ohhh that was it! So fun!!!!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Also, I think she always gives him a mountain of rice because he eats only one meal a day (as he said previously). Lol

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

OMG! These little details make me amused, as with the Korean flag on the chopstick. Really loved MH's reaction to the mountain of rice compared to GD's normal bowl of rice.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

3. MH's incredulous face every time GD or BS imply she's weak and needs protection

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

Gold! I love him so much!!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oh, his face when she pretends to be too weak to open the jam jar was hilarious - the face of a man who cannot believe you did that just now.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

AGREE!!! That was perfection of a reaction to her shameless act of weak little woman.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

4. Ji Soo's 12 pairs of REALLY TIGHT JEANS that he seems to have on rotation... thank you drama producers.... I must've done something right

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

his poor family jewels tho...

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

LOL I think you will like this from today's free hugs event
https://instagram.com/p/BRnNYBVDswh/

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I know, right? So much fanservice.

:thinks of Ji Soo's drunken body roll:

:fans self:

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

5. the REALISTIC way the show portrays the many challenges women have to navigate through daily life:
- BS having to pretend she can't open the jar so that GD will help her and get to feel like a big man doing it and not feel threatened by her ability to do everything herself.. I do it too. Not proud of it and trying to change it now
- The way the roadrage driver just instantly backed off when MH walked up to him as a fellow male. MAKES. ME. SO. MAAAAAAD.
- The way EVERY SINGLE SLIMY character (roadrage, pickpockets, school bullies?) has tried to hit on BS when EVERY SINGLE TIME she has been trying to stand up for justice.
- Molester on the train... Don't think I need to say more on this actually. I actually just made a police report last night after seeing a man on the train touch and lean on 4 women in a row. Two just walked off looking REALLY uncomfortable and it makes me so MAD this guy will probably never see justice because "this is quite a weak case actually, he wasn't actually groping anyone so it's just harassment" - the police.

0
8
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm surprised how everyone is going on about how the show is disrespecting LGBT rights (and the likes) but no one seems to have picked on the way Bong Soon gets hit on by every man she tries to serve justice to.

0
7
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

No, "hit on", as in sexually harassed?

0

THIS! I was going to make a similar comment, but scrolled through to see if someone else caught this. Every time a woman stands up for herself, it is interpreted as a sexual invitation. The show is balancing role reversals (MinHyuk in the "woman's" role as the weak protectee and Bong Soon in the "man's" role as the strong protector) and role stereotypes. Perhaps it is this contrast along with the anime-level/style of storytelling that making it so obvious to me. Whatever it is, as a woman, I definitely appreciate this being pointed out as something that women have deal with all to often and how it is not right.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Agree! Little King Kong and her heroine feels ?

0

AGREE.

DBS was being slapped by numerous men yet nobody even made a comment about it.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I have hated it every time... But then I am glad he received what they deserved. Yet, how about other women they do the same? The others are not strong like BS!!!

I hate men who hit women, (the other way around, without a reason is also not good), but it is sad to know, and we know that historically, it is always men harassing women, beating them, humiliating them, raping them, etc... just because physically they are stronger.

This is how I like very much this show... It is about a woman who is empowered by nature and she will become a protector for those she loves in a very tangible and physical way. I wish I could do that!

0

This annoyed me but after happening several times, it got me thinking that it may be part of BS's power rule? Like she only hits these guys back as part of self defense, instead of taking advantage of her superpower. Thus in this case, no diarrhea / loss of power after the fight.

0

I think the all the hits bong soon's get just by looked small is really offensive,
because it straight up violence and they didn't pursue with other act because she beats them after few slapped,
looked at the other woman who get groped,
this is also should be talked and I am glad you brought up this issue

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hahaha, I love that, too! I lol-ed so hard that time when she was talking crap about him to her friend on the phone IN HIS CAR and cut to him watching her on his monitor screens and hearing every bad thing she's saying about him! Omg, so funny!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

There was a recent article on Hee-chul, and he said he doesn't fervently deny the rumours that he is gay because if he denies it adamantly he knows it would make being gay seem like a wrong thing, and he definitely does not advocate that idea.

Maybe it's the same thing for Min-hyuk?

By the way I read this from some other comment on the site, apparently they deduced that the kidnapper pretended to be the witness so that he could call the police so that the 2nd girl would be saved, since he never wanted to kill her but only to threaten her and hurt her (like knock her out??) so that it would be easier to kidnap her. After all, Min-hyuk did theorize that the kidnapper killed the 1st girl by accident, hence since the 2nd girl was in a dangerous situation, he called the police so that the girl could receive treatment, which he then kidnapped her after her health stabilized. Since he was the one who called the police, it would be odd if he ran away so he stayed and became the witness instead, knowing that there would be less suspicion on him that way too.

1
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think what heechul said about
"rejected strongly on gay accusation" can be seen as rude applied here too,
like
"what is wrong with being gay or not, let me be anything but that's not how you always need to define me, it just me"

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Heechul as in Suju's Heechul right? Now that you brought him up I realised how similar Minhyuk is to Heechul. They're both rather unique and quirky but work well and have a nice heart. They act like tsunderes (I've heard how Heechul takes care of his members and he acts like its nothing).

And nice thinking about Mr. Kidnapper's thinking. Did they ever get the chance to interrogate 1st Bride/2nd Victim? I hope Guk-doo figures this one out, because he was the one who quickly deduced that Mr. Kidnapper wasn't trying to kill 1st Victim.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

the only thing i dont like about heechul is that he likes to start rumors about some idol being gay..i get that its not bad being gay but you should never do that making speculations about someone else gender.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

You meant sexuality, right? not gender ;)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Now that you brought him up, I do think he is quite similar with Min-hyuk. My sister is a big fan of Hee-chul, and she always said how it bothered her that in almost every thread about him, people always so busy talking about whether he is gay or not. Eventhough there are so many good and fun things to talk about him. It shouldn't be mattered whether he is gay or straight, he is just him. I don't get why people so obsessed over it.

I think it's kinda similar with the situation Min-hyuk in. People are too busy talking about him possibly being a gay that they forgot about his many other good traits and achievements. And he is just confident enough to not take any issue with those rumours and let people think whatever they want, while he is still being his awesome self.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

There's lots of complaints about SWDBS regarding our female lead not being a professional to which I agree, but other than that I love this drama to bits!

I also think that no one's reacting negatively to Minhyuk's supposed sexuality and it's just a "okay... anyway back to business" kind of reaction which I think it's fine? Or at least that was how I reacted to my friends when they came out to me (please let me know if this is offensive and I will try to react appropriately next time someone else comes out to me!).

After watching Voice I feel like my expectations for the kidnapper story thread go higher. I'm hoping for a Bong-soon vs kidnapper showdown at his dungeon, and then the police comes to clean up her mess. Though I'm worried she might accidentally kill Mr. Kidnapper because she's enraged with the way he treats women. I mean she did send Schmuck vomiting. What more for Mr. Kidnapper?

But okay I need to find someone like Minhyuk (Jung Joonhyung already set the bar high but standards never go low!). He found Bongsoon's strength sexy, and I think Bongsoon's strength is supposed to be a symbol for women who are 'strong' in their careers (leaders etc.) especially those in male-dominated industries, which for Bongsoon is the bodyguard post. I personally have TONS of male friends like Guk-doo who see me as small and weak and refuse to let me carry heavy equipment. I have to literally carry the equipment and tell them to move aside for them to get the message. And then Minhyuk comes in and be amazed by her strength. Even building his best selling game is built around a strong heroine (as said by another commenter on one of the 'What We Are Watching' posts).

But I think we can move on faster now that someone intruded Minhyuk's home to kill him. Both story threads (Mr. Kidnapper and Mr. Caller) need to move now that the rom-com side has solidified the ship. Sorry Guk-doo, you'll have to get another girl. You've ignored Ms. Peanut for too long to want her now (I like the Peanut King Kong name, it's so cute).

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

"Bongsoon’s strength is supposed to be a symbol for women who are ‘strong’ in their careers (leaders etc.) especially those in male-dominated industries, which for Bongsoon is the bodyguard post."

I have to agree with this comment. Instead of making a female centric drama where its female lead is a professional who have a successful carreer or is respected in the society, the show opted to use a metaphor to attract viewers & bring entertainment but at the same time, convey the message of women empowerment through bong soon's super strength.
Bong Soon's speech during the spinning car scene is so on point. Funny how the society claim that their is equality today but still look down on women when it comes to simple things.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I.Was.right.

(about the kidnapper/marriagepervertbadguy.)

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Haha, good for you! ? But I wonder why Bongsoon thought that wasn't his voice. I guess we'll find out.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

If I didn't remember correctly she heard the voice of the husband/fiancee of one of the victims, not the witness. Because Gukdoo suspected the husband/fiancee that's why he brought her the recording. o_o

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I rewatched the scene just to make sure & YES, it is not the witness' voice but the fiancé of one of the vicitms

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Ah, ok, thanks for clearing that up for me!

0

Okay does it mean that Min-hyuk's middle brother is his stalker, since he is not the kidnapper? Originally, I thought the kidnapper and Min-hyuk's stalker are one person but then their intentions seem more and more distinct.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Clearly, yes. The Do-Bong Neighborhood kidnapper & MH's stalker are not the same. According to MH's, the stalker works under the leader of the thugs (Boss Tak) and I think Boss Tak's thug/stalker service is hired by one of MH brothers

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

If Min-hyuk's supportive/good brother is his stalker then I'll be right TWICE! (I don't know if my brain could process that, since I'm wrong so often.)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

BS really portrays what some girls do in real life in front of man. Like her pretending the jam jar is too hard to open, or her sickly sweet tone she puts on infront of GD, it really sickens me. Its sad tht it happens IRL, I feel like thts why most relationships fail, the partner discovers tht the person they fell for doesn't exist nd it all just goes downhill from there on. I wish people didn't need to pretend to be something they are not in order to suit someone elses taste, specifically women, you don't hve to pretend to be weak in order to boost some guys ego or to fit in this image of what society views as femininity

Also I feel bad for GD coz he doesn't know the real BS, I hve a feeling tht he would like her either way nd most probably enjoy her strength, its a real pity. I feel lke BS dd both of them a disservice, but fr the plotline im totally happy abt tht lol, MH nd BS for life

0
8
reply

Required fields are marked *

i think it's human nature to act a little differently towards their romantic partner, a little sweeter, softer, to show that they're special (i have had partners who complained that i treat them the same as i treat everyone else lol). and sometimes you do want to be pampered by your partner, so i don't really have a problem with that. it only becomes a problem when you hide parts of your personality like BS does with GD, so they never really know you as a whole person.

as long as the aegyo is the seasoning instead of the main course i think it's fine

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

the subs were kinda off- what minhyuk said was not making BS into 'Xena' but 'Ji'nara', a female character in Starcraft
spoken like a true korean gamer lol

http://starcraft.wikia.com/wiki/Ji%27nara

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

ugh sorry, didnt mean that as a reply ^^;

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

This goes to show that if women doesn't want to be belittled by men, let us not act like one in front of them.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think people hide because of they afraid of getting hurt
"what if they don't like the real me" since we actually don't know a lot about other people.

I can understand people who do that if they just met because of the certain boundary to maintain the healthy relationship to each other but gook doo and bong soon seem to know each other for a very long time and she pretending to match him more than to hide what she ashamed of.
She is afraid to be dislikeable by gook doo more than afraid to be seen as powerful since she does show her power to other people.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Gook Doo has a "tipe". I see nothing wrong with that.
We all have our preferences more or less.

Is it wrong to try emulate the "tipe" of girl our crush likes?.

Yes, but then again, I haven't spend 10 years in love with a guy that dates a string of dainty ladies one after another.

And we are forgetting the repression her mother does on her and her abilities.
Mom just wants to see her married, like it is her only option, I found that more damaging and offensive.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think it's okay to have a type,
the problem for gook doo and bong soon for me is how long they've been friends,
her cousin knew she was strong,
and for all of that years pretending, I don't think it was healthy since her strength is part of her life that even her mum say mean things about it,
all of them knew that she has it in her,

it sad to feel like you can't open up about the real part of you while keep hoping over your one sided love

I don't think gook doo is more fault than her mum, I just think that it really show how bongsoon and gook doo are not compatible,

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Well, I must admit I have done the same. But hey! Just to a man who I know has a very very very low selfsteem, and my cousin (male cousin) told me to do it like that, because men need to feel "needed", to feel they are doing us a favor...
Not sure weather that is really male human nature. I am a very cappable girl and I am used to do everything, and I am good at many things. But then, I dont want to boast about it.
I have thought, simply, sometimes it is good for them to feel useful, even in such small things.
I haven´t done it in order to fake myself. But because I know he has low self steem, i try to find reasons to make him feel useful.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Haha.. Minhyuk when he asked" If i were to marry you".. cute... I can very well imagine a dutiful father in MinHyuk loving and caring for his pint sized super strong baby girl... Getting beaten yet caring and loving her more.... I realised that BS father is also like that... Very loving towards his kids.... Hate the mom though... She couldn't cook a meal for her kids which has to be done by BS.. She s not working or doing anything useful either... Hate women like her.... If she were working and couldn't take care of her kids it's fine.. all she does is going around d with two other ladies and chatting away is not the way one lives...
Love BS father... He is the refelction of future MinHyuk... How loving and caring (even to his wife)...
For now Bongki doesn't interest me much... Even though i like the actor...
Same goes for GookDoo....
I hated it when BS mistreated MH and cared for GD... Where was this guy GD till MH came into her life... Now acting very caring and stuff..
Looking forward to MH and BS romance.... ??

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Ughhhh now I want to watch them getting married and have super cute but strong daughters with MH devoting his time for the babies.
I so want it to happen. Pls writernim!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I love all of MH-BS bickering. All the micro expressions on MH's face when they do so.. priceless!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I loved when MH said he would help her. Oh my, this is how I fall in love. A man who can really support you and help you to become better....
That is why his character is better than Ji soo´s.... Sorry Ji soo....
Min Hyuk, I love you!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm really thinking Hyungsik is 4d in real life lol

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I am so appreciative of the conversations on identity that have been had on the threads of the past episodes of SWDBS. I am also grateful CandidClown that you acknowledged the topic and gave a hefty portion of your end-commentary to it.

"My personal stance is that the show is not trying to mock or belittle homosexuality. The real humor comes from the misunderstandings, not the concept of being gay. During Good-doo and Min-Hyuk's drunken bar escapades, I laughed my butt off — not because the thought of them being gay was funny, but because of how they would feel the next morning to remember their antics…
Mom is disappointed only because she might lose out on him as a son-in-law — I imagine that if he preferred blondes or was already dating someone, her reaction would still be the same: seduce no matter the obstacle"

On my end, I disagree that the show is not capitalizing on gay-ness for its comedic purposes. The context in those scenes that you described matters. We cannot divorce their possible identities from their action and from how the show portrays. The caveat to all of our analyses is that we do not know MH's sexual identity - and as a matter of fact, we do not know any of the characters' sexual identities in this show (but presume that they are all hetero except for MH…which in itself speaks to dominant hetero culture: more on that in the following paragraphs). For now, if I am to analyze the characters based on what the show has hinted to in its trailers, MH is possibly gay or bi/pan or sexually fluid and if I am to take the show at this face-value assumption, it matters that MH's interactions with GD are played for laughs. Yes the humour is coming from the mis-understandings and from the drunken bar escapades…and potentially how they would feel the next morning…and it matters that the characters whose inter-relationships are giving us these laughs are not conforming to hetero-norms (including GD). Context matters. I am reminded of Western movies and dramas where Asian characters (and that identity in itself being a non-monolithic one) do a lot of "funny" things…and when we zoom in, we can say "ah, I would laugh if anyone did that, and it is the action that I find funny, not their ethnic identity." This might be true, and at the same time it matters that Asian characters are more often than not providing comedic effects in Western productions. When we divorce context from the details, we can lose sight of the patterns. I do not see GD grinding on BS and that being played for laughs. I do not see MH grabbing BS's buttocks and that being played for laughs. Again, we can laugh at the individual acts themselves, and I think at the same time it is important for us to realize that these acts are not isolated events where they are happening out of context. They are in a long line of same-sex relationships being portrayed as "funny" or not being taken seriously in shows.

0
15
reply

Required fields are marked *

Queer people go through these cringe-worthy moments too in relationships (and perhaps even more so because one's potential love interest might be straight). And at the same time, there is a seriousness and sacredness in queer relationships (same as in hetero-relationships), and shows really need to get better at showing these serious parts, otherwise they continue to be damaging to the queer community.

In terms of Mom being disappointed…it matters what her disappointment is about. Again, we cannot divorce context from details. Mom being disappointed about MH dating a blond is not the same as Mom being disappointed that MH is gay and might not be available to date BS. His gayness is not an "obstacle", it is who he is (if he indeed is that…which we still do not know). If again Mom's disappointment was that MH was Muslim and she was patiently waiting for that "obstacle of Muslim-hood" to disappear…that is not in the same context as waiting for him to not be with someone whose hair is blond…there is a heavier weight to that Muslim religion (which in Korea is a life of struggle…as it is all over the world) or gay identity that is being seen as an obstacle or being bashed aside as transient. And perhaps the problem is an absence of critique within the show of how the characters around MH might be homophobic. There is the idea of presenting a character as we often see them in society - a good person yet due to society's influences possessing a mindset that fails to fully embrace homosexuals - but then presenting them in such a way that the audience is not sure if the show is giving that character a pass or if it (along with the audience) is critiquing the character. The thing is I want to trust that this show is self-aware and yet I…I am not confident that it is. Which leads me to my next point in this unintentionally loooong essay:

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I want to acknowledge that we do not know MH's sexual identity, and that we do not actually need to know. Perhaps he is gay, perhaps he is bi/pan, perhaps he is hetero, perhaps he assumes no sexual identity whatsoever. The way he identifies is the way he identifies, and that should be true in a show the same way it is in reality. At the same time, we can apply some nuance here and zoom out to look at how shows tend to portray homo-sexual/bi-sexual relationships. There is a gay-baiting phenomenon where a show (in its descriptions, or the way characters are developed over time) seems to hint at a possibility of same-sex/same-gender relationships, and then because of that often-times very blatant hint manages to draw in members of the queer community who are hoping for a delivery…only for the possibility to be denied by the end of the show. The character either ends up with someone of the opposite sex (as I suspect is what will happen in this show) or the directors/producers just blame the queer community for making stuff up (I am looking at you, BBC Sherlock). And again, I want to acknowledge that sexuality can be very fluid and not all of us are set on one sexual identity…and even if we claim to be, we are allowed to be fluid even within that claim. AND the trend still stands in shows will bait audience with progressiveness and with seeking to represent a population or a way of being that is often-times ignored or harmed in mainstream society…and then end up sticking to dominant ways of being. I do not need these characters to identify as gay/bi/pan/sexually fluid…and at the same time if a show mentions the possibility of same-sex relationships, I come in expecting to that possibility to be taken seriously and to be made a reality instead of it being just that…a tease. The character themselves do not even have to identify as gay/bi/pan/sexually fluid to engage in same-sex relationships…which adds another layer of beauty that shows can utilize. I go back again to this show's self-awareness regarding sexuality. I said before that MH does not have to be anything and he can also be everything or one thing or two or many…and I expect that if the show is setting out to incorporate queerness into its plot in a serious (key word "serious) way and not for comedy, and if MH ends up with BS, then how amazing would it be for there to be commentary on sexual fluidity within the show itself? Or for there to be acknowledgement of how we (the audience and other characters beside MH) are questioning MH's sexual identity but not that of GD…or BS…or all of the other characters. I should be able to write this unintentional thesis not just about MH but also GD too. And so the lesson there to me is that we as a society automatically assume hetero-ness when sexual identity is not mentioned, the same way we assume "white" and "male" when race and gender are not explicitly mentioned. Yep, I am expecting too much out of this show.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

again tbvh, in my opinion,
not being labelled and act like it's normal like many commenters above is the right things,
you said that you are okay with them being anything and then you proceeded to assume that "if they ended up straight, it means they diminished the LGBQT aspect in life"
well not all people is gay,
I am sorry and it still possible to be straight or bi like you said, what he ended up with doesn't need to support any agenda unless what he loves, compatible and helps him,

the show didn't say anything bad as a result of being gay, except when it interferes with they own romance,
this is not a show when a gay character can't get married or hiding their identity, it's about a girl who is really strong and hides her power,
why that the show have to encapsulate the trend to be not offensive and choose minority portrayal just to show that they are supportive for the "said minority", they were being supportive by act is as normal things,
seriously I fail to see the logic when a supposedly gay character ends up with another gender means dismissing people sexuality,
this is the drama when people are allowed to dream about all the possibility and choose what best for them,

now let's see from personality aspect, which one is the right one for minhyuk?
is that related to the sexuality again?
so if min hyuk choose bong soon who appears to understand him more, it makes being gay is not real?

again, the one I don't understand is why it needed to be gay that is the highlighted when every relationship has their own part,
if bong soon and gook do both likes min hyuk and compatible with min hyuk and the story make shame for minhyuk to choose gook doo, then we can talk about gender issue,
without even gender, I can see how gook doo and minhyuk is not a thing,

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Whew. That might be the longest post I have written on here. Again, thank you all for the thoughts and the discussions. As some have said before, this conversation matters because it reflects people's actual lives in society.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

wait isn't bong soon and mom being afraid is sowing that they take the possible romantic relationship between gookdo and minhyuk as a serious problem?

- - - They are in a long line of same-sex relationships being portrayed as “funny” or not being taken seriously in shows - - -

they don't want to change him or mock him,
they just think he might can to her when he gets to know her (mam),
and min hyuk and gook do will get it on if they are close (bong soon)

I don't think it depicted as funny because their preferences, it's funny because they (the character's) didn't see it coming,
it more in line with having the pinky promise with you enemy for a long time

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I also appreciate CandidClown's explanation, even though I disagree with her. It's really nice to be able to discuss these complex issues in a sincere and thoughtful way.

I actually decided to drop the drama after Episode 4 because of my discomfort with it playing up homosexuality for laughs and my disappointment with Bong-soon's (rather flat) character. But I checked this post because I wanted to see if she acknowledged some of the comments from her last recap. It was really nice to see that she did. Thank you CandidClown! ^_^

And @ L, thank you for your detailed post. You explained a lot of the background and context, which I think is really key to why some of us feel so uncomfortable with the show.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree that context matters and I'm also unhappy with the show's handling of the gay/not gay issues. I would not give this drama any medals for acceptance or tolerance. First, Korean dramas routinely use a character's possible atttraction to a person of the same gender primarily as a plot device to advance hetereosexual love (i.e., gender benders) and this is no different. Second, I'm uncomfortable with dramas where leads pretend to be gay in order to further their own agenda, which trivializes the real heartache that many gay people go through when coming out (e.g., Personal Taste and Strong Woman.) Third, people point to the main characters' acceptance of Min Hyuk's alleged sexuality as if the writer should be lauded for being so open and accepting but, as you say, the drama IS playing homosexuality for laughs. Thus, I respectfully disagree that "[t]he real humor comes from the misunderstandings, not the concept of being gay." I'm not convinced that people would be laughing as much if Gook Doo were a woman. And try applying that statement to a character who is black or disabled and the misunderstandings may not seem quite as funny.
Thank you, L, for your thoughtful analysis, which states much more eloquently than I some issues with this drama.

0
8
reply

Required fields are marked *

Clarification to my comment above. I mean to say "try applying that statement to a character who is black or disabled and you may understand why the misunderstandings may not seem quite as funny."

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

while i agree with candidclown's analysis, i also respect the opinion of you & L... i believe the only mainstream drama that has has ever presented homosexuality properly in conjunction with heterosexual love lines is reply 1997.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think Secret Garden also did a surprisingly good job with their portrayal of homosexuality.

A commenter on a past thread mentioned Life is Beautiful as a really sympathetic, realistic depiction of a gay relationship. I haven't seen that drama (yet!), but I read reviews saying much the same.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

oh that's true, i'm happy to be corrected on this topic :P
i do find it interesting that korean dramas & movies are so vastly different in the presentation of issues & themes. though there is still stigma in society, i've seen homosexual relationships done way more justice in korean films like "just friends?" "antique bakery" etc.

i can respect that korea is trying. i'm more mollified by the idea that the younger generations in all countries around the world are far more open-minded about these types of topics, so one day it will no longer be an issue...

0

"- Korean dramas routinely use a character’s possible atttraction to a person of the same gender primarily as a plot device to advance hetereosexual love-"

I don't mean to nitpick but gender bender is just a... thing. It will be in Japanese manga, anime or dramas (I won't list them because there's just too many) -asian dramas etc, american movies/shows ("She's the Man" to name one, although there's more that I'm too lazy to think of), probably in other international movies/shows (I speak only two languages, Google search in English can only take you so far) and heck I'm pretty sure Shakespeare himself did some gender bending in a few of his works along with plenty of authors. So it becomes a plot point, is that bad? No. It's a plot point we can love or hate, no problem.

"-I’m uncomfortable with dramas where leads pretend to be gay in order to further their own agenda, which trivializes the real heartache that many gay people go through when coming out"

Aw, I used to know a sweet guy who was very shy with the possibility of introducing a significant other to his family. I'm pretty sure his family knew of his orientation since he didn't hide it, but he didn't want to shove it in his family's face either since he didn't want to possibly make them uncomfortable. And that's a mild case compared to other families who just completely reject the individual. I know it can be painful but I'm the type to go "good riddance" when that happens because no dear friend or anyone at all, should have to force close relations to people who reject them. There's roughly around 7 billion people in the world and you can find better.

On the other hand, I don't think 'pretending' to be gay trivialises the heartache. Maybe that's too straightforward of me to say but some people don't even pretend, it is just assumed. And if you are truly comfortable with your sexual identity, sometimes you just go along with it for giggles because your humour just happens to be like that. Even if the person was really pretending, it's honestly their life. They can do whatever they want (as long as nobody gets hurt) and it's their choice. They might even get weird looks from pretending (*sighs*) but if they're okay with it, there should be no problem. In fact, outwardly denying that they're homosexual could easily set off some people (who should chill) even if it happens to be true and they are actually in full support of homosexuality.

I've been pretty impressed with Min-hyuk's "No comment," stance because it's so neutral. Anyway, you can't force that information out of anyone (shouldn't) and it's not as if he'll hide it when it is actually important, we can only see what he does in future.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

Lastly though, this isn't an argument. You are perfectly entitled to have your own opinions and I wouldn't dish out medals to this drama for seriously portraying acceptance either. I'm just not taking it that seriously at all. It's more like a weekly happy pill of ensured procrastination for me. My responsibilities are going to hound me down in my next life.

It's fun that people can think differently, -I'd be so bored otherwise, and I'm glad that I can get a glimpse of difference perspectives all the time.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Gah my comment was way too long. Apologies in advance.

0

Thank you for your thoughtful comments. I didn't mean to imply that gender benders are bad. As you noted, Shakespeare used them to great effect. I was trying to say that this drama seems no different from those gender benders in that homosexual love is being used as a plot device to further heterosexual love and thus the drama doesn't deserve a medal for tolerance. My medal comment was inappropriate and I should have said instead, "Thus, this drama presents no groundbreaking defense of gay love or acceptance."

I do stand by my opinion that the drama trivializes a person's decision to come out. My comment did not refer to people about whom that is assumed, correctly or not. I agree that that's their business and they have no obligation to share their orientation with the world. But I do have a problem with people pretending to be gay because they think it's funny or because it will get them something. It's one thing to refuse to respond to people's incorrect assumptions; it's another thing to pretend that you're a member of a group whose members have faced serious prejudice and discrimination, even murder, in the past. Perhaps I haven't followed this drama as closely as I should have but it isn't clear to me that the rumor didn't originate with Min Hyuk or that he didn't instruct his secretary to tell Bo Soon that he's gay. And is his response always neutral? Hasn't he sometimes responded by acting arch and coy, winking and generally playing up stereotypes about gay men? An argument can be made that he's doing so to mock those very stereotypes but that's difficult for me to believe, given the drama's general tenor. I truly hope that I will be proven wrong!

Finally, I really appreciate your different perspective and want to thank you again for sharing them. It's great that people have been engaged and interested and willing to discuss this issue. Although the drama is a light rom-com and not in the running for an Oscar, people's willingness to engage in sincere discussions about these issues can't help but increase acceptance and tolerance.

0

I'm liking the show but sadly I'm not loving this show as much as I hoped I would. I love all the actors (PBY is one of my favorite actresses and I'm obsessed with PHS right now) and the premise is perfect but it's just not really working for me. The editing seems sloppy and a bit jarring at times. At times I find Bong-Soon annoying with just how immature she can be. It’s like she has no work ethic or professionalism. I understand not liking your boss but she is so obvious about it, that she is lucky her boss finds it adorable and cute rather then annoying. She also is a pretty horrible body guard. I love Ji Soo, and he has been one of those actors I’ve been keeping my eye on since Angry Mom, but he seems to not fit this role. He is getting better from the beginning but I just have a hard time seeing him as a detective. Plus, he is also a pretty bad detective.

I also am not very thrilled with how the show handles Min-Hyuk’s supposed homosexuality. There have been little comments in the show that have annoyed me (I don’t know if that was just the translation though). I have found some of the scenes hilarious (like her imagining them kissing each other) but there is still the issue of making a joke out of being gay. The show isn’t bad in the fact that most of the characters just roll with it and accept it, thankfully, but it comes down to the simple fact that him possibly being gay is a punchline. So despite the fact I do find a lot of the scenes funny, they are also tinged with salt. I know not everyone will or does feel this way, which is fine, but this is part of my issue with the show.

Don’t get me wrong because I am enjoying it, mostly because of Min-Hyuk, and will continue to watch it, but in my opinion it definitely isn’t rave worthy or one of those shows I can’t wait to watch more of.

1
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Though I enjoyed most of the show so far, the first part of this episode kind of disappointed me... I understand the need of the funny moments with two good looking young actors (rating-wise) but to drag the bromance that much, is...well, too much...I mean, like 15 minutes of the episode was centred on them...I don't know, the first thing that comes to mind is that superficiality is starting to gain lot of space here.
I know, it's a rom-com with supernatural involved and all, but still, I expected the plot to become more of a visual "bildungsroman" for Bong Soon...instead of her development she did not surpass the teenager level in my opinion - with her Gook Doo fantasies and lack of professionalism or drive to achieving what she professes to be her dream.
On the other hand, Min Hyuk in his craziness, is quite the opposite... he might seem at first shallow, but is really more mature than expected..
My opinion.... thank you:)
And I wish everybody the happiest spring ever!!!

1
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i though the king kong part was cute and sweet and funny he let slip that he want to marry her

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Min-hyuk lines up the beer bombs while Bong-soon futilely tries to get them to stop their pissing contest.

Technically, the pissing contest has to come a while after the drinking contest :)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I liked Ji Soo's acting in the scene after he met his gf. He's much better when he's toned down. I also felt there were more Gook Doo and Bong Soon moments the past 2 eps.. Ji soo is killer when he turns on his gaze. Hope Min Hyuk turns up next ep cuz I'm getting slightly swayed. And the killer really reminds me of signal.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm kinda swaying, too! ;x When he told Bong-soon that he was okay with the breakup and asked her why they were friends, GAHHHHHH. THAT LOOK in his eyes! It's the ever so familiar lovesick puppy dog look that Ji-soo's so darn good at! Oh man, I don't want him to hurt when he finds himself liking Bong-soon, but she's starting to fall for Min-hyuk... I'm not worried about NOT rooting for Min-hyuk though, because he's so darn charming, but Ji-soo!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I nvr understood y ppl liked to ship actors in real life, but this drama makes me understand how ppl come to that point, their chemistry feels so real that u can't help thinking "surely this must be more then just

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I nvr understood y ppl liked to ship actors in real life, but this drama makes me understand how ppl come to that point, their chemistry feels so real that u can’t help thinking “surely this must be more then just Acting.."

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Bong-song yah, please at least let Min-Hyuk sleep on the sofa next time. Poor MH, it is his house

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I know... I feel so bad for how Bong-soon (mis)treats Min-hyuk compared to how well she treats Gook-doo! Gah, he was just laying on the cold hard ground (OH~!) AND W/O A BLANKET! ;o

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Park Hyunsik's eyes are so amazing. They're so full of emotion, you can clearly see his feelings through his eyes. The way he looks at Bongsoon with those eyes, man. Man! I swear I swoon everytime!

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

boy's eyes are working overtime.. the PD should give them a bonus!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Those eyes made me swoon, it's so mesmerizing <3

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I totally don't get why men (gangster or non gangster) in this show would alway slap BS in the face just for them to feel superior. Not just in this show but in most korean dramas where women are being bullied just because they speak their mind or when they are defending themselves.

1
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

totally don’t get why men (gangster or non gangster) in this show would alway slap BS in the face just for them to feel superior.

Maybe it's the Korean bully equivalent of 'stop hitting yourself'?

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Eh, I've noticed that too! But for the most part, I kinda flinch and chuckle because every time they slap her head/face, she goes "Eh~" or "Uh" and looks annoyed and of course, we all know what happens next. It's hard to watch, but I guess it's just sad how these men treat women like Bong-soon who stand up for themselves/others...

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

reading that description I just had to go and start watching this drama as well, oh my, it is getting funnier. it feels like they have been given a dare to fun it up in the craziest of ways.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

As an avid Criminal Minds watcher, I called it right away that that "savior" guy was the kidnapper. Too easy, come on show lol. Jk. But seriously, it's basically textbook. Perpetrators always try to re-insert themselves into the investigations somehow. That's how they get off. The fact that Mr. Masked Guy made it seem like he's a good Samaritan AND dressed up as a doctor too (a position w high regard in society) tells me he's not just a killer & a kidnapper BUT a narcissist as well.

1
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Wow, everyone is so pretty that I’m really okay with any of those scenarios coming true.

Hell to the yes, Candidclown. That drunken dancing was hot like the sun.

Min-hyuk really continues to code as gay for me - his mannerisms (his isolation at work, his inhibition-loosed drunkenness which resulted in flirting with Gook-doo instead of Bong-soon, and his leaning on Bong-soon as a beard (an American term which refers to a person that pretends to be the significant other of a gay person to deflect attention), etc.

Even his 'acting gay' mannerisms (:eyeroll:) come across to me as someone who's attracted to men but doesn't really know what that means for him, or how to be that, as all he knows is what he's seen in campy portrayals. I knew a number of kids who acted that way in high school, precisely because they didn't have examples other than what was on TV.

The show is clearly signaling an attraction to Bong-soon, but it seems to me to not be a physical attraction so much as a craving for company and protection.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think that it's Gook Do that's hiding and struggling with his sexual identity.
At the end of ep 6, he ask BS "Why are we friends?"
I thought that he was realizing his love for Bong Soon. But then another thought hit me. Maybe he is struggling with the fact that he just broke up with his GF and it didn't hurt that much. Maybe he is struggling and sad and apologetic with BS because he is not in love with her. I think he wants to say that they are friends because he can't have romantic feeling s for her or any other woman.
Gook Do has been portrayed as excessively gruff, protective, sexist, and overbearing. I think these are all the layers that Gook Do has wrapped himself in to hide and conform as straight man in his world.

0
10
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes! I had the same thought. Perhaps it's also why he is so sure that MH is not gay.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think he wants to say that they are friends because he can’t have romantic feeling s for her or any other woman.

I could see that. He surely hasn't acted like he was that attached to his girlfriend. And it would make a lot of narrative sense, too. And yeah, when they got drunk, look who they flirted with.

Having the two of them (Gook-doo and Min-hyuk) fall for one another would be a great plot twist (and darkly funny, because poor Bong-soon, always a bridesmaid), but it would be just as good to have Gook-doo confess that he's gay as Min-hyuk realizes ok, maybe he likes girls, too.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

It takes me so long to compose my thoughts that I never know who's comment I will be following. I think your comment #45 about Min Hyuk's reactions was very interesting and observant. I think the writer is using that confusion about MH to deflect attention from Gook Do and make him seem like a typical second lead.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I had a lot of gay friends in high school (back in the '70s - there were a lot fewer role models for gay kids in rural Southern America than there are now.)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I like Ji Soo's acting of Gook Do. I see him as shut-down and emotionally aloof, never allowing any "gayness" to escape until that drunken bar scene.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

That would be awesome if the show ended up with ji soo as the gay one! Something I never knew I wanted. And it would explain why he came onto min hyuk when drunk, haha. This drama is just ok in my book, but if they took this turn, it'd be turned up a notch for me!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oh wow, that's one hell of an interesting theory! Makes sense for the drunk dance scene, at least. Hats of if the show is really going that way, definitely will be a much more compelling love triangle.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Its interesting that Gook Do chooses the Cinderella story to act out. With the magic of alcohol he can leave the drudgery of being a cop and come out of the closet and have some fun. He was looking for his kPrince Charming. But at midnight he knows he has to go back to being the hard working, no fun, straight guy cop.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

so, kind of a Reply 1997 scenario? except Bong Soon is Joon Jae this time?

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I thought he was being wistful here. Because he just broke up with his girlfriend, and he was in a more reflective mood. Like he is suddenly thinking of all his friends around him and what makes them stay together, what makes them drift apart from each other. Notice how he was all soft spoken when talking to BS on the phone right after his break up with HJ.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Y'all, I'm just SO GLAD that Gook-doo's gf FINALLY confessed to him that her heart's wavered. The fact that he's okay with the breakup makes me sigh though, because that means that Ji-soo's definitely still the lovesick puppy again. It's gonna hurt me when Gook-doo starts feeling real romantic feelings for Bong-soon, but she's falling for Min-hyuk... gah. WAE!? I'm all aboard the Bong-soon/Min-hyuk ship, but Gook-doo means well and really does care for Bong-soon and how he's slowly starting to soften up to Bong-soon rather than be his usual curt self, makes me feel for him already...

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Same here...
I was asking myself why nobody was commenting on the Hee-ji issue, when we have been all trashing her in the two last recaps lists of comments!!! LOL!!!
But yes...

I felt happy she told him. Even though she is not a very important character, and she is not even interesting, I liked that she was honest (not that late).

I love when in a Drama, people tell the truth of what they feel and what they do, because... Well, simply because honesty is one of my core values. But also, it makes it easier to focus and things that happen, and not the waste of lines and scenes, and stupid noble idiocy of some many dramas where there are thousands of misunderstandniss and lies and slanders that will be solve only at the end!
For me, such dramas are so unrealistic and such characterizations are so stupid...
Hee-ji is like... null... but at least she was honest. Good for her.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I do have an issue with the way the gay subject is being handled, even though BS and those around her are not seeming to view it in a negative light. But then I also have an issue with a lot of the gender related stuff that keeps coming up - what with the whole woman is weak and man is strong theme running strong. I am holding out hope that because the whole premise of the show is that the lead woman is actually superhumanly strong, these themes will be addressed in a really satisfying way, and that we're building up to some kind of mentality reversal. I would really enjoy seeing GD get a rude awakening to his ridiculously outdated and patronising views. Hopefully on this same note we might come to a conclusion about the reason why MH is letting people believe he's gay, in a way that somehow serves a purpose to challenge ignorance rather than a just comedic plot point.

1
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hopefully they will shift it more into the direction that her strength comes from a powerful drive to step out and fight for justice. You know, like a strong willpower that gives superhuman strength. And I would like to see different ways how those characters unexpectedly even to themselves summon their strength and show Bong Soon it is not about saving everyone alone and being a fantasy superhero, but having faith in other peoples´ strength as well.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Note aside: I think those thugs guarding the streets of BS´s neighborhood and the highschool Bong-soon’s kiddos and even the grandmother, all of them will help BS to catch the criminal.
I am excited with the character of the grandmother!!!!
Didnt watch the preview but if she came, she will be around for a little while! Yes!!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I like your explanation about how they are portraying homosexuality you have Minhyuk's stepmom being awful about it but then you have Bong Soon and the others not really caring about it and just treating him normally. I'm still really curious about how Minhyuk's gay rumor started

Sometimes I feel whiplash when i watch this show because one minute its fluffy comedy and then there's q whole bunch of suspense and a creepy kidnapper but this show is honestly so entertaining despite that though.

Bong Soon's cuteness never fails to make me squeal she's so adorable and her scenes with Minhyuk are amazing.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *