CoffeeBlender

L'Amour, Les Baguettes, Paris by Stella Jang.

Redemption. A better life for Hyunwoo’s family. Justice for Do Jun.

The ending of the drama for me was great. He got to live both lives and in the end, was able to build a better future for his family as Hyunwoo (with his behind the scenes helping) and find justice as Do Jun. Do Jun repeatedly said that what happened in the past will happen again so the lifespan of Do Jun was already set in stone. Through his experience, Hyun Woo was able to find redemption, as he himself said it.

I read from a comment on this site that this was based on a real event. Sharing you the linked article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52797527

After reading this article, this drama hit really differently knowing that there were people who experienced such inhumane treatment in real life.

People relate to people and dramas differently. People are also unique and for me, as I deal with people with various personalities for work, do not find them boring and weird. But you do find them weird and boring and complaining a lot.

Sorry for saying this but why did you waste time if you found the drama unsatisfying to the point that it gave you nothing in return? I read several of your comments spanning days and why do you keep on coming back here when this drama gave you nothing in return? It’s like staying friends with a person you do not like and badmouthing and saying that the friendship is wasting your time them behind their backs or in front of them.

Are you gaining something from continuing to come back here and ranting how you wasted your time by watching this drama?

Depression was not romanticized in this drama. The suicide of Mr. Gu’s girlfriend, the guilt that Mr. Gu carried over what happened, especially since he found his girlfriend burdensome that he recommended that he see a psychiatrist shows the reality for some, if not most, significant others’ of people suffering from depression.

Mijung’s statements whether said or not shows the reality of how people may not be aware that they have a problem. When she mentioned about people jumping while Chungha and her were staring at the high rise apartment shows how people miss signs. I would not consider Mijung to be exhibiting anhedonia since she is able to enjoy the company of others - her siblings and Chungha. She initiated the worship setup with Mr. Gu and felt happy. She did recognize that she was not okay but she was taking steps to liberate herself, hence her suggestion of forming the Liberation Club.

As for the shady business, room salons are legal in SK. What is illegal is the provision of extra services. Of course it can be said that prostitution is offered in all room salons but that would be faulty generalization. Also, Mr. Gu reported the brother of his deceased girlfriend due to his gambling business inside the bar. Regardless of his motivation for his exposing an illegal activity (gambling is), it does show accountability in the drama. For your comment regarding alcoholism, I made a comment below. For Changhee and Hyuna, you said it yourself, “might.” Exes can be friends. For Kijung and Taehoon, the drama does not really paint a love conquers all scenario. The brief moment of sweetness in the end shows that Kijung is to stay because she loves and pities him. However, Taehoon is the one that needs to liberate himself the most as he said that he did not liberate himself. Where there story will go, I do not know. But for that moment before, during and after the rose giving, they are happy.

As I always said in my previous comments, different strokes for different people. My comments above are how I see the drama. I would have wanted though to see more storylines from the other characters, especially the friend with the glasses.

Mr. Gu started drinking heavily after his girlfriend died and it hasn’t been a year when he agreed to worship Mijung. Add two years when they were separated and the bottles on his hallway is less than the bottles in his room in Sanpo. Physically, it has not been long enough to cause irreversible damage on his body. The drama, however, has shown on two instances that Mr. Gu was physically injured because of his blackouts. As for the lack of destructive behavior towards others, alcohol does lower down our inhibitions and there is an increased risk for violent behavior but people behave differently when they are drunk. Some people are even high functional alcoholics.

The ending, which others found unsatisfactory because of a lack of closure is why I like the ending of the drama. They did not commit to a regular romantic relationship. They had therapy sessions. The drama ended with Mr. Gu trudging because he was still a work in progress (but aren’t we all). When the chairman talked to him about his drinking problems, Mr. Gu revealed that he is engaged in therapy sessions. For someone who has addiction problems, the recognition of such is already a big step. Ending the drama with Mr. Gu free from his alcoholism would be unrealistic as this would show that it is easy to resolve it. That Mijung’s reappearance in his life will solve his issues.

As I said earlier, different strokes for different people. This drama has a niche market and obviously, you don’t belong to it. The plot may be boring for some, but for me personally, the plot is interesting and that I see a lot of things going on even in those moments when they are just eating silently or when Mijung and Mr. Gu just walk past each other.

For Kijung, her liberation from her high standards which is reflective of what society deems to be the standard is a feat given SK’s standard of viewing unmarried women at her age as wasteful, more so having a boyfriend who is divorced and who has a child.

For Changhee, his finding meaning in providing comfort to those who are bereaved is a feat considering that he owns a store and earns quite a lot of money.

For Mijung, her liberation from her distorted version of herself and her hatred is a feat as I have friends for more than 30 years who are like Mijung.

The Yeom siblings stories were made more meaningful in the drama because of moments that may be slooow but these moments show their growth processes, as if I am there. At the same time, the ending shows life’s reality that liberation is more likely a long process, which is a realistic way of a drama presenting itself as an inspiration to its viewers who are seeking liberation.

Anyway, I looked at the URL you shared and I only finished one on tat list - Be Melodramatic. Much as I love Be Melodramatic, I don’t find it introspective. Same is true for Tomorrow and You are my Spring which I did not finish.

I enjoyed Because this is my First Life as well but I like MLN much better because of how it resonates with my personal life and the different lives around me. Liberation may happen as a light bulb moment but for most, at least, for me and the people I know, it takes time to really happen. There are times when we move forward but there are times we feel as if nothing is happening and even, we feel as if we are regressing at times. This happens even when on the surface, other people may view us (me and my people) as having okay lives. But then when you do things repeatedly because life requires you to do such things, you get to question the relevance of these in the formation of life’s meaning. So yeah, different strokes for different folks. I agree with Lee El and Lee Min Ko when they said that this is more of a documentary as compared to a drama as it tackles existential questions.

You said that the drama was slooow in your later comment. I am guessing that when you watch a drama or movie, you would like to be entertained or prefer a plot-based drama like makjangs as compared to slice of life dramas. OP also used the word “probably” so his/her statement is not definitive.

This drama is introspective. Some of the cast members even said that this is more of a documentary than a drama. The dialogues, while you said are relatable are what keeps the drama moving forward plot wise thereby making it slow. However, for me who loved the drama, those dialogues makes it well-written as I get to read the characters’ thoughts. There were many times when I checked the time as I did not want it to end.

At the end of the day, we all have preferences. I never finished a makjang drama as I find it unbearable. Different strokes for different folks.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs may explain this. Once physiological needs are achieved, we move to higher level needs.

I personally don’t find them complaining too much as I am within the same age range with the two elder siblings. Their complaints are things that I hear from my friends and even from myself that’s why I find them relatable. The drama is not a social commentary on who has the most miserable life within the context of SK society. Everybody has problems. Everybody is imperfect and leads imperfect lives. As we want something better for ourselves aand those who are important to us, we complain or verbalize our dissatisfaction with our lives. Of course when we do that, our focus is ourselves. Even the rich have problems and it would be unfair to question why they are unhappy while they can essentially afford what they want. To constantly remind ourselves that someone has it worse than us is unhealthy from my perspective as this leads to toxic positivity.

Episode 15 was different, a bit weird even. I missed Sanpo while watching the episode. However, years passed already and I could see how the characters have changed, yet remained the same.

The Yeom siblings still having that distance but are still living together in a different place warmed my heart. What was even more heartwarming was their calls with their father. They seem to be talking more now that they are living apart, with their father being more expressive. This drama just feels so real in expressing how love is being expressed between and among family members without the in your face “we are family” dialogues.

The individual journeys of the Yeom siblings and Mr. Gu? I’m still processing them. There’s just a lot of dialogue in today’s episode that hits home but what I can say for now is that Mr. Gu’s acting is just wow! His range is amazing. I’m happy that he is gaining the recognition that he deserves. But going back to the story, his confession makes me uneasy. It’s as if he is preparing Mijung for another separation.

Sorry but I would have to disagree with your several of your statements. This is based on my interpretation of the drama of course.

The siblings not wanting to have a goal is incorrect. As Changhee has verbalized, he is trying to figure himself out hence his resignation. He has been doing his job for 8 years and could not get a promotion. The novelty and joy of having a car wore off even if the car he drove was a Rolls-Royce. He discovered the deeper meaning of what owning a car meant. For Changhee to resign was actually a brave decision because he was reassessing his goals and is letting go of going with the flow - of what society considers as normal.

For Kijung, her main concern was her very high standards which resulted in her turning down potential relationships. Now, she is confronted with getting the approval of her boyfriend’s family, at the expense of her pride.

For Mijung, her goal is liberation. Taehoon said that their goal is to be happy.

Going back to Changhee, this drama questions societal norms as well. What does it mean to be normal? Because for me, society imposes what’s normal and what we should be aspiring for and this varies culturally and also varies over time. Of course there are thought processes that are not considered as normal in the medical sense and Mijung’s seeming depression is part of that. However, human beings are diverse with unique experiences.

For me, the Yeom siblings are normal. They are very human and with that are imperfections. They struggle with existential questions. They are trying to figure out an authentic life for themselves given their situations.

Same thoughts. While they are separated physically, Mijung is a constant in Mr. Gu’s thoughts.

Mr. Gu has really transformed. I could not see a hint of the Sanpo Mr. Gu. SSK’s acting is really terrific, especially when he was looking at the baby. His eyes this time showed sadness and longing, unlike when he was in Sanpo where it seemed like he was just lost.

Mrs. Yeom has also transformed, even for a very short while. I think it was the first time where she really smiled. I wish she had more smiling moments in her life. She lived her life serving her husband and her children and it’s sad how she died heartbroken.

Her heartbreak and joy as well as the smile of Mr. Yeom when Changhee won shows that though they are not really a family that talks, particularly Mr. Yeom, they care for each other. But then, as Changhee voiced out, parental verbal affirmation is still important.

It was quite different as Mr. Gu’s absence in Sanpo was really palpable. It was not just Mijung who missed him. It also felt different that I did not see the Yeom family eat together in this episode. I still have much to process for this episode. Overall, this episode was just sad.

I’m leaning towards the symbolic presentation of the whole breaking the bulb to the kiss as s*x as the bulb was shown to be not broken after the kiss.

I see Mr. Gu’s love language as acts of service. That’s why he referred his ex to a psychiatrist because he found her frustrating (my interpretation of this is he just did not know how to deal with it through words). He also told Mr. Baek that he changed as his partner rarely talks. I interpret Mijung’s neediness as a means to distract Mr. Gu from drinking. Hyunah said that Mijung did the worshipping thing to save Mr. Gu and I agree with Hyunah’s interpretation.

You’ll see though a slight change in their interaction on episode 12. He even tells Mijung that she doesn’t have a filter anymore which shows that he has been intently listening to her. Also, as Mr. Gu said, her whole family is there so it would be cringe for them to be lovey dovey.

If you read older comments, I am sure you read more comments talking about their chemistry than the lack thereof. I’ve read a lot of comments that the rubbing of Mijung’s back was more heart fluttering than the kiss. JTBC released stills of the close-up version of the kiss BTW. Also, the kissing scene and the scenes before that are considered by some as symbolic.

For me, Mr. Gu is not bored. I see him as listening intently at Mijung’s rants and sometimes strange musings. My basis are his gazes and his body language. If Mr. Gu was bored with her, he would not have done acts of service with her/made efforts to be with her.

Their story is not the usual rom-com as they started their relationship with worshipping as their foundation. Hence, it’s not about physical or sexual expressions. Once Mijung stated that she was dating Mr. Gu, we see a shift in their interaction, hence the kiss.

At the end of the day, we all have our way of interpreting what we watch and this is how I see Mr. Gu and Mijung’s relationship. This is coming from a person who values deep and honest conversations as basis for chemistry.

As a long time reader of Dramabeans, nice to see you here. I watched this mainly because of the writer. A quick Google search turns up this result about the drama: Three siblings, exhausted by the monotony of day-to-day adulthood, seek to find fulfillment and freedom from their humdrum lives. The other synopsis is even more vague - a story of three siblings and a stranger.

I don’t see where the scam is though. I am a firm believer that nobody can complete another person but I do believe that butterflies make a person’s world more colorful.

Kijung remained single for a long time, perhaps even since birth because of her high standards. She vowed to love anyone but she struggled with it at first. If she truly believed that butterflies solved everything, she would have been in relationships with men below her standards. Also, even though she felt more energetic because of Taehoon, she recognizes that not all is rosy as she asked about what she needs to know when dating a man with a child.

For Changhee, he is liberating himself from societally imposed standards of success which made him insecure. Hyunah as someone he might end up with is secondary to the story.

For Mijung, it may seem on the surface that butterflies solve her issues as well as Mr. Gu’s but we see that through the past of Mr. Gu, butterflies is not enough especially when dealing with someone who has mental issues. The direction of their story right now explores how love is not enough. Their separation on episode 12 is realistic.

When we meet someone, it is but natural that that person may leave an impact on you. What more if butterflies are involved? However, I beg to disagree that butterflies is presented in this drama as a cure-all.

Yes. I find him kindhearted. The way he treated the stray dogs and him saying that Mijung’s family could have just raised their goats without eating it shows that he values life in general.

For me, the laughter of Mr. Gu at the end signifies guilt. When he was asked to watch his behavior, he asked if someone died and he and he laughed again when he said that indeed, someone died. It’s his way of expressing that he did not wish for Mr. Baek to die and that what happened was surreal. If Mr. Baek did not run away from the police, he would have been alive.