Eleison

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.

Yes, I agree. I think he's been thoroughly pleasant up to this point! They've made it clear he's not a narcissist or egotistical in the way he's dealt with customers and works at his own restaurant. He would be showing off if he had a fancy car without having money, like a lot of people do to look cooler than they are. I've really liked his character so far.

They already look cute. Also looking forward to hearing more about what happened to her and her first husband!

Yeah, they were so cute this episode! Loved them. :) I love that Sang Do has his flashy Lamborghini but still does grubby work in his restaurant and doesn't mind showing up places in an apron. 😅

Also, it was cute the way Gyeong Tae's mom popped in to tell Sam Dal to stay at home so she wouldn't get caught by the reporter. It seemed like she was being a gossip at first but then I realized she did it out of thoughtfulness. The haenyeo are annoyingly endearing. 😏

Also, excited to see the younger sister's love interest come into tomorrow's episode!

The way Sam Dal's friends came to her rescue without hesitation was just TOO CUTE. And it was so hilarious. Sang Do stumbling in like a dufus and then having a mic drop moment when he spills out the money from the box of tonics... and the music that started playing in the background... I was grinning and dying. 🤣

I am supposing it wasn't a problem since they already dated and nothing has come up about it? I remember it was a big deal in Reply 1988, but I think that was because it was the 80's? It's no wonder the stigma about that rule (wasn't it a law at some point? Yikes) had to go away because so many people wouldn't be able to marry each other since there are SO many people with the same last name in SK, haha. Roughly 8% has the surname Park, 14% has Lee, 20% has Kim... what an extra dating hassle if you had to avoid those with your last name!! 😅

Also, all dramas have their own version of artificial reality we decide we like or dislike as viewers which is what we call our "taste" and "preference." I agree with many that this is a well-made drama with a good script and well-acted. And I don't dislike the artificial reality of this drama, I just couldn't enter into it like I would for other dramas that are further removed from my own experience and work-sphere. The further removed it is from my experience, the easier it is for me to enter into the fantasy of the world created and the rules by which it operates. I just couldn't immerse myself in the "reality" of this drama.

Yes, she was very cute!! She and young Ki Ho stole the show for many viewers!

I appreciate you saying that. And I think it's totally valid to say you dislike a specific place based on your own experience of where you live (or have lived) there (where you live in a country has a lot to do with how you perceive it, yes?), but to paint a whole country with the same brush seems unfair and inappropriate, don't you think? That said, I so wish you could meet the people in the U.S. that I know! You haven't apparently met the really wonderful people here, and that bums me out.

When I was logging into Netflix today a still-shot promo for this drama popped up, and it had Park Seo Joon tied up in the manner you'd see in a sageuk when they're about to get tortured...

... and I got major Bridal Mask flashbacks since that drama was also set during the 1930's Japanese colonization AND had torture in it, an egregious amount of torture. Let's not repeat that many torture scenes, please? We don't need that many to understand that during the colonization, the Japanese were cruel. 🥺

You made some great points. :) I could try to respond to them (and I appreciate your investment in dialoguing, as I can tell you feel very passionate about this!), but my hunch is that we would just continue to talk past each other since we probably just see these situations differently. So, instead of venturing further into territory that I am probably already not qualified to speak about, I'll just add this: my knowledge of high school, which I'll admit is limited so I am making generalizations (and just my opinion), is that I accept this story can work in a webtoon, but this level of student violence doesn't regularly and realistically happen at a typical school in real life classrooms with people running it who care. Does it happen? I'm sure it does, as I can't speak for all schools and everyone's experience in them (I had a coworker who worked at a school with a teacher who didn't even notice a student stab another student, but that was a norotiously bad school in a very bad area and known for having a really, REALLY rough group of students who came from families with rampant substance abuse, crime, etc. (as well as some teachers who apparently couldn't be bothered to notice)), but is it a realistic way to portray a typical school? I don't think so. I know bullying happens, I know it's hard to stop, I was just pointing out that the way bullying is portrayed here at school is not super realistic to a typical school (my guess is that it's probably not true of SK, either, but maybe I'm wrong), and therefore hard to relate to, and to suspend disbelief for, while watching.

I definitely see the reasoning you're presenting, but if this is true of even the real world, the system is broken; for instance, if these issues happen when adults aren't around, the homeroom situation where adults aren't always present is asking for trouble (teachers should be in classrooms with students at all times; that seems like a no-brainer, and if they can't, don't have a setup where students are routinely without supervision); kids should never be left in classrooms unsupervised. And I know things can happen in secluded areas or in bathrooms, but in the middle of a classroom? Also, it's one thing to bully emotionally or psychologically; I get that that would be harder to catch, but when kids are straight up getting beaten to a pulp? And they get a "slap" on the hand? Those kids should never get a chance to be near each other again, no matter who is at fault. Also, tons of kids were watching; they couldn't speak up? The bully would have no way of retaliating if enough of them spoke up. If public schools can't keep kids safe from this stuff, why exist? Also, like there were literally no adults around for huge stretches of time during the fighting scenes in the school. Seriously?!? They're children, they shouldn't have to figure it out and fend for themselves.

Now, that said, this is a drama. A drama based on a webtoon. Realism is not what they're going for. I know this, but since I work in education I just can't stomach that this could happen in the way it's presented. I also get that kids-focused stories that set up widly unrealistic situations have to leave adults out so the characters can have their growth. It makes for a good story, but for people like me who might struggle suspending disbelief about this sort of thing in order to enjoy the drama, I wanted to warn potential viewers. For those who can enter into the fantasy of this, go for it. And if it isn't fantasy, it's heartbreaking social critique, not entertainment.