Between The Lines

It's hard not to complain about her when in every episode she displays those flaws for all to see. Its kind of shoved in our face. Awful behaviour is still awful regardless of any family dynamics.

Agree the other cops "investigating" Jin Hee was funny, plus as an added bonus Jae Won smiled!!!

I'm hoping something has been lost in translation because of the horrible subtitles, but if Yu Jing parents actually treat her this way, then WOW........ they clearly don't understand their daughter even when she attempts to talk to them.

I understand that Eun Mi has her fan's which is good, differing opinions is one of the enjoyable things about this forum. Eun Mi does have her qualities, she both loves her daughter and is fiercely protective of her. She should be admired for giving birth to Jin Hee when there would be many reasons not too, this is a testament to her character.

The problem I have and why I've always struggled with her is simply because being immature and not attempting to grow as person is not a quality that should be admired in my opinion.

Being consistent, can be the equivalent of being stubborn. Being stubborn is again not always the best quality.

Eun Mi, whether it be as a mother, a friend or a roommate, consistently puts her desires ahead of Jin Hee. Jin Hee is clearly uncomfortable with her mothers relationship with Jin Hong, yet Eun Mi doesn't even attempt to address this with Jin Hee. Her "solution" is to force this situation on Jin Hee or at very least disregards Jin Hee feelings altogether.

As Jin Hee said "How come no one cares about me feeling uncomfortable?"

In episode 10, I felt I saw the good and the bad of Eun Mi. She was both a caring mother and oblivious to Jin Hee feelings all in the space of 1 episode.

One of my favourite parts from ep 6 was Hwang Min Hyun performance, he combined a wide eyed innocence, with a slightly puzzled demeaner as the mask was literally removed from his face.

It felt like he had just arrived from another planet and he was trying to adapt to his new environment. It was funny and cute.

I've generally enjoyed everything so far about this drama, however I do think the balance between the mystery element of the plot and the romance storyline was better in the first 4 episodes than these last 2. These last 2 were very heavy on the romance storyline, which is ok, but personally it's little bit like eating too much ice cream, a little bit too loaded with sugar.

To be clear, I don't dislike the last 2 episodes, its just the bar was set pretty high during the first few episodes, these last 2 haven't reached the same levels for me.

There is still too many storylines ongoing in the drama which isn't necessarily a good thing, despite some thinking this will keep the show entertaining. The danger with this is that the really good parts of the drama get short changed to accommodate the less interesting elements.

More of something doesn't mean the end result will be better.

This is a good drama, I personally hope that the balance it had in the first 4 episodes returns so we get both advancement in the overall plot and the romance storyline continues to develop. Apologies for being greedy, I want both.

The Murderer - an alternative ending(part wishful think too)

Jin Hong is the murderer & Eun Mi is his partner in crime -(IKR, major plot twist)

Jin Hee and Jae Won investigate and discover the murderer's identity- (finally some screentime together....yeah!)

Jin Hee and Jae Won arrest Jin Hong and Eun Mi -(personal satisfaction of seeing Jin Hong and Eun Mi in cuffs.)

Jae Won supports Jin Hee through the trial and we finally get some romance for Jin Hee. (Thats Jin Hee for the win!!)

I guess I can dream.....sigh....

Some might say that Jin Hee is awesome in spite of Eun Mi not because of her.....

I have no words left to describe what this drama actually is or what I hoped it to be....

My dislike for Eun Mi & Jin Hong just grows by the episode. I'm just done with them

Park Sung Hoon did you upset the director? Did you annoy the producer? These are my only logical conclusions, because after 9 episodes the only things I know about your character is his name and he's a cop.

I simply don't get it.

Maybe I'm the problem? Maybe watching 9 episodes of a 40+ year old woman acting like a teenager just isn't for me, only made worse when her boyfriend appears and follows her around like a lost puppy! Apologies to all puppies, no offensive intended, you I like, these characters not so much.

This felt very "fluffy" as an episode, it was a set up episode to advance the relationship of Sol Hee and Do Ha. Beyond that I was a little disappointed that her superpower and his involvement in a murder was largely ignored. Still feels that they are juggling a lot of storylines, which feels a bit unnecessary.

Certainly there will be other factors such as casting/scheduling etc. In some respects the fact that there’s uncertainty around the ending maybe a problem in itself. Should someone invest 20hrs in a drama that doesn’t give them the ending they want? The Red Sleeve viewers knew what to expect. My Dearest who knows?

I can see some similarities but its not a re-telling by any stretch.

Gil Chae, Jang Hyun, Yeon Jun and Eun Ae have some similarities too Scarlett, Rhett, Melanie and Ashley. This in both characteristics and in there situations.

Gil Chae did suggest marrying one of the other scholars in order to attract the attention of Yeon Jun.

The backdrop of the war of secession in the novel and we have the invasion in the drama.

Ashley/Yeon Jun reaction to war is also similar.

I do think we saw clear differences in ep 4 particularly from Gil Chae. I hope that this continues and they avoid any further similarities.

"With a great power, comes great hair loss"

I'm trying to picture all the Marvel/DC superhero's wearing a toupee!

I don't mind a sad ending if it fits with the overall story, my personal loathe is any kind of trope! but they are usually inescapable! Personally I like episode 1&2 because of what follows. I really like the difference in tones the first 2 episodes have compared to last 2. Each provide contrasting emotions if that makes sense? In terms of episode 1 for me it perhaps lacked that 1 attention grabbing scene that might have kept some undecided viewers watching further. Again that was at least my perception!

I think your right he was triggered by finding the old couple and his desire to find Gil Chae. That was he motivation in this moment. As each episode goes by I'm enjoying this more and more!

Absolutely, the genre of a drama will certainly have an impact. I think with this drama in particular there seemed to be more noise about the ending than I recall other similar drama's having. That was my perception at least! I also remember a early clip/trailer that I saw, which also had a tragic feel to it. I think in a round about way, what I'm really saying is that I'm not surprised by the reception given the perception/noise/genre of this drama.

I'm watching it on Viki, you will probably find it on a streaming site like Dramacool.

I know there's talk out there regarding the reception for this drama and as to why it isn't getting as much attention as you might expect. I would imagine for many the perception of what this drama will be, is reason that more people haven't given it a try. There's been so much speculation that this is a tragic story even before an episode had even dropped. The comparisons to Gone with the Wind will only have added to this perception.

The reality is, that more people watch drama's for a happy ending rather than a sad one, so the perception of this drama is not helping.

Additionally, the first 2 episodes actually work against it. To be clear, this is in respect of a viewer who is slightly ambivalent or undecided about watching this drama. The first 2 episodes are not dynamic, they are not going to hook their attention, at best they are set up or contrast episodes for what is to follow.

My response to these are simple.

At this stage, as a viewer, I don't know which direction the drama will take. Both a happy or sad ending is possible.
I 'm familiar with GWTW, the drama is not a retelling of that story, it is similar but not the same. Gil Chae would likely be married and pregnant by now if it was following the same storyline.

Change episode episode 3 and 4 to episode 1 and 2. If they had started this drama with episodes with 3 and 4, would your undecided viewer still be undecided? Doubtful!

Personally, after ep 4 I don't care what the perception is or if there's a bias towards a happy or sad ending, so far I have been entertained, and I'm looking forward to the upcoming episodes.

I wonder if the Kings reactions during the war, or lack of, fit in with the wider plot, particularly with what we saw at the beginning of ep 1 and then Jang Hyun reference to "Why should I help a King who runs away"?

Given that between the King and his ministers they have failed with any credible plan, to the extent they are now just waiting to be rescued. The only task the King was asked to accomplish was to inspire confidence in his soldiers, basically the equivalent of shaking some hands and kiss some babies.
He sadly, couldn't even complete this task of staying upright and walking in a straight line.

Jang Hyun seems to be a free thinker and strikes me as someone who wouldn't blindly follow anyone who wasn't worthy of his loyalty.

Is this connected to "those words that should not exist "?

A few things stood out to me after episode 4.

They really killed the transition between the first 2 episodes and the last 2. They've manged to weave the playfulness of Gil Chae and the naivety of the scholars seamlessly into the outbreak of war and the tragedy and horror that brings. To accomplish that in 4 episodes is impressive without having to make leaps in storytelling.

For all Gil Chae silliness earlier on, we really got to witness her strength in this episode, faced with a horrifying situation, she rose to the challenge. She surpassed the scholar's in this regard.

I really liked the use of the weather and environment as a backdrop to the change in tone of the drama. In most of of the first 2 episodes the sun was shining, villagers were spending time by the river, it was all very peaceful. In ep 4 particularly, the use of the cold/snow and mountainous conditions shifted the entire feeling of the drama. Everything was more ominous, horrifying and tragic.

It was always strange to me that Scarlett was ever considered a heroine. She just has too many unlikable traits. Hopefully Gil Chae will quickly see the light in the upcoming episodes.
Scarlett and Melanie were just extreme opposites, both were hard to like for different reasons of course.