Eleison

Yeah, that makes sense! And he has done a good job at all the roles he's played. His looks make him stand out, but he has also delivered in his acting. And you're right, he hasn't done the cold, rich, misunderstood chaebol, which I feel like is a Kdrama ML Rite of Passage. 😅 Whelp, he managed to squeeze into people's hearts another way, haha. But yeah, contrary to popular opinion, I do think Lee Min Ho can act, but he's a good example of someone who doesn't pick much variety in roles. Cha Eun Woo's another example, though recently I think he's been trying a bit more, but I think he's also solidified his role already so it might be too late...

Yes, and the small towns have their downsides, and they're stifling to the young and ambitious, but every place has its upsides and downsides, it's just a matter of which ones we are willing to put up with. I think as people age and mature and progress through stages of life, what we find important in a community and a place to live changes. Isn't that why you always find the trendy spots in cities mostly populated by young people unless they're rolling in money and can seclude themselves in a mansion away from the fractious craziness of city life? It's not a life that can be sustained by most unless they're willing to discard or pass up other good things in life (like having a family, getting to be with your kids as they grow up rather than leaving them in daycare most of the time cause you're too busy at work to spend time with them, a slower pace in your day, etc.). Yes, the rustic charm is cozy.

If I remember, Our Beloved Summer did get a lot of hate (it was certainly quite slow, much slower than this drama and much more of a somber, regret-filled tone to it and more melodramatic), but it still has maintained high ratings. 😏 Another drama with a male lead who couldn't get over the female lead after years of separation. 🤔

In this drama, he reminds me a bit of younger Baek Dong Soo (JCW's younger self, not when his character was played by Yeo Jin Goo) before the character "grows up," and his alias in Healer.

"No one can ever be happy or achieve real success by putting another down, it won't last." --Neither can you succeed or last by cheating your way to the top! Eventually your real self will be exposed, because you can't deliver on other people's excellence when you haven't cultivated their skill.

I actually think that's the clever thing Sam Dal realized. This actually makes Eun Joo probably more upset than being sued for defamation because then it would have looked like Sam Dal cared (and before Sam Dal showed up, Eun Joo might have convinced herself she could do this on her own (I loved how they teased her failure when she told the creative team they had to figure out the styling and hair for the models themselves, and everyone was like, "What? What do you mean WE have to do it? That's usually YOUR job." 😅), but after Sam Dal was confident about her failure, I'm sure it sparked a flame of doubt that won't be easily snuffed out). Also, this way, it looks like Sam Dal can't be bothered, which made both her betrayers feel like dirt, and really gets their goat, haha. It's not a realistic way to handle this situation, but I'm looking forward to watching her nemeses crash and burn as Eun Joo tries to be the creative she's not (like you said).

As some others have pointed out, the downside to how she's handling this is her family's being dragged through the mud as well, and they are being affected by her choices. However, neither sister looked like they had much going for them in Seoul at the beginning, anyway, so I think we'll watch things turn out for them, too. So far this does seem to be a very anti-Seoul PA, haha. I'm sure many can relate to finding Seoul not all it's cracked up to be.

If it has an ending like Goblin I'll be so glad I waited until it was done airing to watch this! Cause I don't want to watch another ending like Goblin. Why I never tried 2521. I hate it when dramas tease happy endings and then don't deliver.

A lot of action/thriller dramas (like Stranger or Signal) have these types of male leads, as well as some office dramas (like The Good Manager, if I remember correctly). Most slower paced dramas (like healing or slice-of-life dramas) or comedic dramas will have romance in them.

Haha, your comment made me chuckle when I pictured the cockroaches. 🤣 But yes, THAT is maddening. How does that happen? I have no idea. Probably has to do with money, unfortunately, and maybe some clever social maneuvering by an adept agency? It's anybody's guess. 🤷‍♀️

Oh yeah, a cameo appearance would be perfect. We can dream! 😅

It's not hard for me to believe. Cancelling through social media/the internet has become a very powerful means of ousting people from their positions/reputations with the flimsiest of "evidence" (it's scary, really). And most people don't have a way of accessing info about what really happened, and not many seem devoted to sharing it if the fake, twisted or exaggerated story makes them more money. Eventually the truth will/would probably come to light and the person cancelled could get back to normal life without legal repercussions, but by then it's probably too late; the damage has been done. And people don't stick around for the truth, they just move on to the next piece of juicy drama. Think of how much traction publicity for Ukraine and even Israel/Gaza has lost the longer these conflicts go on. People's attention spans are short; they don't really care much about the truth, and just want stuff to gossip and gasp about.

There were Start-Up level arguments about all the SML syndrome from this drama, so you're not alone! It was aggressively discussed while this was airing. 😏

Haha, maybe. 😅 I will say that I don't know if any of the male leads' version of 'a man' in Kdramas exist in the real world anyway? 🤷‍♀️ I'll stop pestering you now, though; I appreciate you humoring me. :)

Haha cosmonaut? And maybe you're right, they do have a formula, and know how to crank out good quality stuff. I'm still floored by the transformation of production quality from dramas pre-2015/2016 to post-2015/2016; it got startlingly better! And of course, what the market values changes as time passes, too, so that explains the shift in style and feel from older dramas.

And what do you mean by "attributes that are most basic to a man"? You don't have to answer if you find me annoying, haha. 😏

Hey there, fellow Castaway Diva lovers, can we please be polite to people in replies who say they didn't love this drama in the comments, even when they are rude or thoughtless? I'm not saying we can't disagree with them, not at all, and I'm not saying that everyone here is doing this, either, but when we do disagree, I'm suggesting we push back and dialogue kindly but with conviction or with thoughtful reasons or simply ignore them if we don't agree, not unnecessarily aggravate them.

It bums me out that people might think this thread is not a hospitable place for them to share their opinions. I get that some of us are passionate about this drama and love it dearly (I say "us" because I love it, too! And wish I could talk everyone who comes here into loving it), but this is a place for people to say what they think even if they don't agree with the majority. Yes? Let's not leave a bad taste in people's mouths...

I'm curious if I'll still like Kdramas now that I liked when I started watching them. I'm not sure if I've gotten pickier or easier to please, haha. It would be an interesting experience to try out!

Though I do think I've gotten a better feel for well-written dramas over poorly written ones as opposed to realizing what is not bad writing but just my preference. It's starting to drive me nuts the way people label dramas they don't have a taste for as "badly written." Can't you just admit it wasn't to your liking rather than pulling the "badly written" card? 🤯 Disliking a drama because it is poorly written is very different from disliking it because it was not your type of thing! I know we've talked about this, so I'm sounding like a broken record, haha. I try to not let it bother me, but it still does. 😭

Interesting comment. I personally struggle with using the word 'manly,' myself, as it seems a slippery word that can be easily weaponized according to people's preferences. I'm curious what you mean by it here? Would you use it and 'masculine' in a similar way? And don't worry, I'm not setting up a trap; I really am just curious. :)

Yes, I'm enjoying them. I'm personally loving the slow pace, and am happy to watch things slowly unfold.

Yeah, I am a bit nervous about that, but the "The Boys Over Samdal" friendship is being sold as a large part of this story, so even if it gets a bit rocky, I think it'll come out alright. They had enough pain and agony already for Sam Dal, and I sense some coming from a completely different quarter based on some hints dropped here and there, so I think our friends will continue to be a bastion of coziness amidst the suffering. Here's hoping! 🤞

"The Boys Over Samdal" (I love that!) was my favorite part, and I really like the actress who plays Jin Dal in a funny role. I saw her in K2 as a serious henchwoman to the villainess and prefer her performance so much more in this. The sisters together are also always a highlight. They have great chemistry and play believable sisters who care deeply for each other but who still bicker and fight. I know some might say these characters might feel like they're portrayed as juvenile for their age, but I kind of like how unbuttoned they all are. Sometimes we adults get so boring because we think we have to have everything together all the time. So I kind of love the lack of inhibitions these characters have.