XXI

Here are some dramas that may make you laugh or feel good:
Be Melodramatic
Chief Kim
Into the Ring
Marriage, Not Dating
Prison Playbook (a dark comedy)
The Tale of Nokdu
Mad for Each Other (deals with a heavy issue but worth the watch)
Psychopath Diary
Hospital Playlist
Touch Your Heart
Work Later, Drink Now
My Lovely Sam Soon
A Poem A Day
Eulachacha Waikiki
Let's Eat
Pegasus Market
Single & Ready To Mingle

My thoughts after watching episodes 24-25 (yes, I understand the characters' actions & am not hating on any of them but rather I'm thinking from their pov):

1. I've been thinking it since their initial fight, but I don't mind Yan Xi & her ex staying broken up (unless she suddenly stops being clingy, then their issues will not go away)
2. I like that Gu Xiao is showing some action to be more responsible (though of course he could've sent more than a text to San San before he left)
3. Dr. Yan's speech to the patient's family was perfect & I don't care I wish they would be sued or something (though it could've been worse, it's true that they damaged someone's reputation/career & there needs to be a consequence for that besides saying "sorry")
4. Bless Mrs. Lin for not telling Zhi Xiao what to do but just letting her be & being there for her (though I am touched by Mr. Lin's words too from a father not wanting to see his daughter hurt)
5. I couldn't help but chuckle at Gu Wei pretending to be sick to get Zhi Xiao to forgive him
6. Though I agree with the reasons Zhi Xiao told him caused their breakup, my heart ached hearing her say them & seeing him accept them

As for the entire situation leading to their breakup, I think their reactions were realistic for their characters. Some may feel as if Zhi Xiao overreacted but Gu Wei didn't give her any reason to feel confident in them. He went from wanting to meet her parents with the intention to make promises about their future to suddenly saying he can't promise anything. (I would be so hurt & embarrassed in front of my parents.) He offers no real explanation to her about why he needs time & disappears from her. I would also think my bf is realizing he doesn't want a serious future with me. Then she has to find out from his colleagues the reason for his disappearance. It would be disheartening to think that he doesn't see me as someone he could confide in or share in his struggles. & when the situation is resolved, it appears as if he wants to brush off having the conversation & acting as if he didn't ghost her. (Him only answering "yes" when she asked him if things were resolved & then bringing up something else afterwards wouldn't help him at all.) It's not until he realizes she's pissed that he wants to really explain things (or so she would think).

Now, for those that are wondering "why couldn't Gu Wei have told her what was going?" it's not as simple as it appears. For starters, there wasn't really a good moment to do so with everything around him crashing down & him not wanting to spoil her happy moment of signing the contract. When he was trying to get a word in, she (or something) would interrupt him ruining the chance. Though she saw that something was wrong with him (before & during the dinner with her parents), she didn't give it too much thought to push a conversation. I think most of us can agree that him distancing himself like he did was hurtful to her. The thing is that he was sinking in his past trauma & wasn't seeing anything else. Though it ended up backfiring, he didn't want to show a weak side nor drag her down with him so he thought it was better to appear when he was able to stand strong again. Aside from her kick, I also thought that her words were a bit harsh - like you know he's anxious & suffering because of the situation & you think calling him a failure as a boyfriend is a good thing to say? Well, I guess in this case, it was since that conversation got him to return & face his problem. Maybe because he's given in to her before he thought that she would grant him the same mercy & there would be no problem returning to the way they were.

I felt Zhi Xiao's disappointment & anger. I felt Gu Wei's anxiety & lost feelings. It's not a matter of "she was right" or "he was right." It's not even a matter of "she could've done this" or "he should've done this." With the experiences that these characters have & the way they've been written, their reactions make sense & I'm not sure if they could've been written any better. (Of course us viewers wanting to see something different is a whole other story.)

I was thinking that as well as I watched the episodes. It was this big deal on Weibo yet no one around her saw anything? That was a bit unbelievable.

Though there are things that I question, for the most part this drama full of clichés was a welcome break after watching many heavier themed dramas. & it's been a while since a romcom was airing too so I guess part of it is viewers hoping many more will follow shortly after this.

It would fall more in line with how his characters has been so far.

It would be more funny that way than to see him play the typical role of the rich family member scaring off the significant other of their loved one, though (to some extent) I would understand why he would do so.

Yeah, I just wasn't laughing at the actions of this cousin in this episode like most seemed to be. & I thought that if we had a male character acting that way towards Youngseo or Hari, then I think more people would've pointed out it's inappropriate behavior. Also, it kind of felt a bit off as throughout the show there's been subtle comments made about hot issues (like the hidden camera, the size of women's clothes, "dating outside your league", etc.) yet they played off this lowkey dating harassment as solely comedic.

I'm not saying I like Min Woo but yeah, after hearing Yoo Ra's confession, including admitting she was seeing someone aside from MW, it felt weird to say Ha Ri say "I can see why Yoo Ra is acting like this."

Watch Taemu's grandpa be like "I'm just kidding, Ms. Shin. I wanted to try & have a scene like the ones I see in the drama I watch." 😂

I don't mind angst, as long as it's good storyline wise, but this kind of angst created because of toxic online culture isn't fun too watch when I've seen what it's done to my favorites.

& I understand, as hopefully things will mostly be resolved with tomorrow's episodes.

Yes, I completely agree with what you wrote about how the actor showed Gu Wei's struggles. They could've made him voice out his thoughts more or even cry but I like how they stayed true to Gu Wei's character & everything was subtle. Honestly, I think that's what made it more heartbreaking for me - seeing him want to speak but not being able to share his words yet.

Thank you. I wasn't sure if that description would make sense but I'm glad that you understood.

As soon as I saw him say he was doing the surgery, I had sinking feeling in my stomach. I didn't even know what the actor himself had gone through until after I finished the episode, so I can only imagine how fans who were aware felt watching all that.

Ah, thank you for the reminder! My mind was racing with thoughts so I forgot to do so.
& quite a few things happened that made me want to share my thoughts, so thank you for liking them :)

& I hope that you can understand & respect those that believe that you don't have to be friendly with gaslighters & cheaters who can't properly apologize to the ones they hurt ^_^

Here are my thoughts about episodes 21-23:
1. When Zhi Xiao first found out, I'm so glad that she didn't listen to Yan Xi's advice of asking Gu Wei not to go to Germany
2. I love how Zhi Xiao's mom was over the moon when she found out they were dating lol (also, I'm glad that Mr. Lin wasn't too upset about them)
3. I cringed when Yan Xi was demanding her ex bf to apologize when he said he wanted to talk about the issues they have (while she still isn't acknowledging that her behavior is harmful, he at least realized they both are responsible)
4. While I still don't really care about him, Gu Xiao has actually tried when it comes to San San so it made me roll my eyes when she demanded to check his phone (what does he even like about her???)
5. Speaking of San San, I was half expecting her to send the weibo news about Gu Wei to Zhi Xiao (you know since she's always in their business)
6. I was wondering when we would see Gao Xi again (I hope she had a nice vacation & was able to let go of any romantic feelings she had)
7. It's scary & sickening at how easily you can destroy someone's life by posting things
8. I knew it was too good to be true when it appeared that both Gu Wei & Zhi Xiao could go to Germany
9. Watching what happened to Gu Wei & seeing him attempt to tell Zhi Xiao but not being able to get a word in was difficult to watch, like I don't even want to put it into words but, my goodness, the actor did such a great job in portraying calm helplessness (I wanted to mention it before but this is my first drama of his & I've been impressed by him)
10. I feel so bad for doctors who do their best for their patients but experience difficulties because the patients' family members are in pain & can't see past that

Yeah, I think the cousin is funny & the actress does a great job with the character, but sending him messages when he already rejected her, & showing up drunk to his house & to his workplace was not okay. &, yes, she didn't tell Youngseo that making YS think that her crush was just scared to cross lines.

After finishing episode 9, I think I have two unpopular opinions:

1. Though they aren't really harmful, I personally wouldn't really enjoy having colleagues like the ones that Hari does as they're lowkey pushy & nosey (literally dragging her away to give the presentation in front of Taemu, inviting themselves to her movie date, snatching the shoes out of her hand & asking her questions, & I guess it's a cultural thing but making her go out to eat/drink after she rejects it. Yes, I know all these things are for the plot.)

2. What Youngseo's cousin was doing to Sunghoon could be considered stalking & I don't find it funny that she was still trying to go after him when she knew that he had a girlfriend. The "you're not married so I still have a chance" mentality is always gross to me. (Yes, I know it was for comedic purposes & to create a conflict between him & Youngseo. That's just how I feel about those things in general.)

The episodes seem to fly by too so I hope that you'll enjoy :)