I'm one of the rare few who has empathy for Non. When all you've known is a dad like that it can make you feel desperate in so many ways. Kao's empathy and kindness must have felt like divine salvation.
This is a well-written and thought out review and a great conversation starter. You make many valid points about details that I'd kinda forgotten, but as you made me recall them I was usually thinking "Yup, that's right."
Regarding Tharn and Type's relationship, I had been thinking about how once we got past the first couple of episodes we didn't see much of their interaction outside of their sex life. Yes, Type visited Tharn's home and family, which was nice, but that was about it.
Although you are pretty much on target regarding how Type's molestation was handled, in some ways I think Tharn's sexual aggressiveness was a catalyst for Type to have those harrowing flashbacks while Tharn comforted him. No matter how clumsily the molestation theme was handled, Gulf's acting here was extraordinary.
It bothered me that they went to the trouble of casting the role of Khom and included the difficult scenes between Type and Khom but never resolved anything. It didn't reflect well on Type that he treated his friend so poorly and didn't try to make amends later, once he'd adjusted more to his new situation.
What I liked the least about the series was how it was another instance of "I'm not gay, I'm just gay for you" in a BL series. I don't know why this attitude prevails in these dramas. Is it because most of the fan base is straight females who want to believe they can meet and date these fictional characters? It just strikes me as weirdly dishonest.
She was annoying from the very start but there was a point where I finally lost all patience with her.
It's the scene where Cha Ji Ahn and the team leader attend one of Lee Hyun's lectures, and afterward there's a male student from the audience who wants to speak with him privately. This student is clearly distressed. Cha Ji Ahn and the team leader each want to speak with Lee Hyun as well, but Lee Hyun tells them that the student comes first.
Cha Ji Ahn and the team leader stand some distance away as Lee Hyun takes the student aside and they begin to talk. Cha Ji Ahn gets all fired up, actually saying how offended she is that the student would be "Number One" for Lee Hyun. She even starts to walk over angrily to interrupt them, but the team leader stops her.
I ask you, what normal adult would be this insensitive and selfish? The student is visibly disturbed about something personal and turning to Lee Hyun for help. Did the writers intend Cha Ji Ahn's behavior to come off as humorous? Well, they totally misjudged on that count. She just comes off as immature and self-centered, a real jerk. The student isn't even a female, so jealousy can't be cited as the motivation for her impulsivness.
As I have watched further and the romance between her and Lee Hyun has begun to surface, I have started to skip quickly through their "cute" scenes together. You can probably imagine how much it annoyed me when the plot concocted a reason for her to stay at Lee Hyun's house with him.
The reason is because she was attacked at her own house, and eventually Lee Hyun even tells her she can stay with him until they find the culprit. Then, in another example of Cha Ji Ahn's "me first above all others" attitude, at one point she's riding in the car with her team leader, and he tells her that he's going to make it a top priority to find the guy who assaulted her. Cha Ji Ahn immediately remembers how she'll have to move out of Lee Hyun's house if they ever do get an arrest, so she tells the team leader that he doesn't need to hurry with that investigation. Terrible!
At this point it wouldn't surprise me if her character paid someone to beat her up again so that Lee Hyun would continue to shelter her. However, since I'm now at the episode where she's been roughed up and kidnapped, I guess she'll be able to use that incident to play on his sympathies. A fake beating won't be necessary.
I know it's too much to hope that they would kill off this loathsome character entirely, so I appreciate the opportunity to post this rant about what is otherwise a superb series.
man i remember this was one of my first ever kdramas so it was so magical to me but when i rewatch i realise three…
I don't understand why you think she stole her sister's life...
First off, Eunbyul purposely instigated the entire switcharoo because she wanted her sister to know what it's like to have good friends and a mother who loves her.
Second, they both came forward in the end to make it clear who was who, and Eunbyul decided she wanted to leave the school anyway.
Third, even before the switch, Eunbyul told Han Yi An that she wasn't the same person she was when they grew up, and things were now different between them. She seemed frustrated that he wasn't realizing it himself. Later on, she also gave Eunbyul her blessing to have a relationship with Han Yi An.
I agree that Tae Gwang did more to earn Eun Bi's love and trust and probably should have prevailed at the end. But I think the writers wanted there to be two love triangles -- one between the two guys and Eun Bi, and another between the two sisters and Han Yi An. The only way to end that "neatly" was to have Eun Bi and Han Yi An end up together.
For a while there I wondered if Tae Gwang would somehow end up with Eunbyl after she returned, but then I realized there wasn't enough time left in the series to develop that.
One thing I like about this drama is that after the first episode the villain, as resourceful as she is, is never able to get one past the FL.
In most of the dramas I've watched the villain is able to sustain a constant barrage of terrible acts, and only at the very end does it all come tumbling down on them. In this series it's different. There's always something (or someone) to thwart her time after time, usually in an entertaining manner. For me it got to the point that I looked forward to her next evil plot so I could see her get frustrated yet again.
I'm almost finished with the series and don't understand why Chilbong is so obsessed with Na Jung. She's immature and not very nice. Having been "spoiled" on the ending, I'm actually relieved that he has a chance to be with someone other than her.
Trash and Na Jung share a past trauma that was written on their hearts forever, and they will always share that, but it's a shaky foundation on which to build a relationship.
I'm eager to finish Reply 1994 so I can watch Reply 1997, which I understand is better and avoids any love triangulations.
So I just finished watching it but I’m confused. If yu xi gu is dead....then who was that kid hao tin was meeting…
Hao Ting was meeting with a guy he met while hiking. He’s a look-alike for Xi Gu, although someone made a good point which is that maybe the guy was a look-alike only in Hao Ting’s mind.
ofc i get that maybe the writer wanted to teach a us a lessons and really cherish our days with the people we…
Good point about the parents. We never see them accepting the relationship between Hao Ting and Xi Gu. The fact that they were coming to visit and share a meal in Episode 9 doesn't count because we don't actually see them interact with the boys.
All we see is them in Episode 10 encouraging their son to date a woman.
I finally recover from the pain to come here and make some comments after that awful ending. The story at last…
Yes, a retro ending like movies in the 50's that featured gay (oh, sorry - back then it would have been "homosexual") characters who always died in the end.
Does anyone else get the impression that the dialog for Mr. Zhou Lin, the music teacher, was dubbed? When he talks it sounds like it's in a different ambience than the other characters -- very "vanilla" sounding.
For me the Shi Gu doppelganger was a strange addition to the episode. (I don't think the voice was dubbed, though…
I like this idea! Especially since his sister didn't comment on the guy looking like Xi Gu. (I assume she saw him through the window while she was waiting outside.)
The only only thing that you can save in the last episode is Hao Ting and his mom's acting. the crying part was…
For me the Shi Gu doppelganger was a strange addition to the episode. (I don't think the voice was dubbed, though -- I think Huang Juan Zhi just did his "actor" thing and delivered a different character in terms of personality, mannerisms, and voice.)
So, Hao Ting met this guy while hiking. The resemblance to Shi Gu was undoubtedly a factor in the two becoming friends, but by the end of their scene together I think Hao Ting had woken up to the fact that this guy was never going to be a replacement for the real thing.
I do like your idea for the ending a whole lot better!
5 
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2 
Regarding Tharn and Type's relationship, I had been thinking about how once we got past the first couple of episodes we didn't see much of their interaction outside of their sex life. Yes, Type visited Tharn's home and family, which was nice, but that was about it.
Although you are pretty much on target regarding how Type's molestation was handled, in some ways I think Tharn's sexual aggressiveness was a catalyst for Type to have those harrowing flashbacks while Tharn comforted him. No matter how clumsily the molestation theme was handled, Gulf's acting here was extraordinary.
It bothered me that they went to the trouble of casting the role of Khom and included the difficult scenes between Type and Khom but never resolved anything. It didn't reflect well on Type that he treated his friend so poorly and didn't try to make amends later, once he'd adjusted more to his new situation.
What I liked the least about the series was how it was another instance of "I'm not gay, I'm just gay for you" in a BL series. I don't know why this attitude prevails in these dramas. Is it because most of the fan base is straight females who want to believe they can meet and date these fictional characters? It just strikes me as weirdly dishonest.
She was annoying from the very start but there was a point where I finally lost all patience with her.
It's the scene where Cha Ji Ahn and the team leader attend one of Lee Hyun's lectures, and afterward there's a male student from the audience who wants to speak with him privately. This student is clearly distressed. Cha Ji Ahn and the team leader each want to speak with Lee Hyun as well, but Lee Hyun tells them that the student comes first.
Cha Ji Ahn and the team leader stand some distance away as Lee Hyun takes the student aside and they begin to talk. Cha Ji Ahn gets all fired up, actually saying how offended she is that the student would be "Number One" for Lee Hyun. She even starts to walk over angrily to interrupt them, but the team leader stops her.
I ask you, what normal adult would be this insensitive and selfish? The student is visibly disturbed about something personal and turning to Lee Hyun for help. Did the writers intend Cha Ji Ahn's behavior to come off as humorous? Well, they totally misjudged on that count. She just comes off as immature and self-centered, a real jerk. The student isn't even a female, so jealousy can't be cited as the motivation for her impulsivness.
As I have watched further and the romance between her and Lee Hyun has begun to surface, I have started to skip quickly through their "cute" scenes together. You can probably imagine how much it annoyed me when the plot concocted a reason for her to stay at Lee Hyun's house with him.
The reason is because she was attacked at her own house, and eventually Lee Hyun even tells her she can stay with him until they find the culprit. Then, in another example of Cha Ji Ahn's "me first above all others" attitude, at one point she's riding in the car with her team leader, and he tells her that he's going to make it a top priority to find the guy who assaulted her. Cha Ji Ahn immediately remembers how she'll have to move out of Lee Hyun's house if they ever do get an arrest, so she tells the team leader that he doesn't need to hurry with that investigation. Terrible!
At this point it wouldn't surprise me if her character paid someone to beat her up again so that Lee Hyun would continue to shelter her. However, since I'm now at the episode where she's been roughed up and kidnapped, I guess she'll be able to use that incident to play on his sympathies. A fake beating won't be necessary.
I know it's too much to hope that they would kill off this loathsome character entirely, so I appreciate the opportunity to post this rant about what is otherwise a superb series.
First off, Eunbyul purposely instigated the entire switcharoo because she wanted her sister to know what it's like to have good friends and a mother who loves her.
Second, they both came forward in the end to make it clear who was who, and Eunbyul decided she wanted to leave the school anyway.
Third, even before the switch, Eunbyul told Han Yi An that she wasn't the same person she was when they grew up, and things were now different between them. She seemed frustrated that he wasn't realizing it himself. Later on, she also gave Eunbyul her blessing to have a relationship with Han Yi An.
I agree that Tae Gwang did more to earn Eun Bi's love and trust and probably should have prevailed at the end. But I think the writers wanted there to be two love triangles -- one between the two guys and Eun Bi, and another between the two sisters and Han Yi An. The only way to end that "neatly" was to have Eun Bi and Han Yi An end up together.
For a while there I wondered if Tae Gwang would somehow end up with Eunbyl after she returned, but then I realized there wasn't enough time left in the series to develop that.
In most of the dramas I've watched the villain is able to sustain a constant barrage of terrible acts, and only at the very end does it all come tumbling down on them. In this series it's different. There's always something (or someone) to thwart her time after time, usually in an entertaining manner. For me it got to the point that I looked forward to her next evil plot so I could see her get frustrated yet again.
Trash and Na Jung share a past trauma that was written on their hearts forever, and they will always share that, but it's a shaky foundation on which to build a relationship.
I'm eager to finish Reply 1994 so I can watch Reply 1997, which I understand is better and avoids any love triangulations.
Does Pun choose Sib or Em? (My money is on Em.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u17XIDbLODA
All we see is them in Episode 10 encouraging their son to date a woman.
So, Hao Ting met this guy while hiking. The resemblance to Shi Gu was undoubtedly a factor in the two becoming friends, but by the end of their scene together I think Hao Ting had woken up to the fact that this guy was never going to be a replacement for the real thing.
I do like your idea for the ending a whole lot better!