Kathryn_51

NUMBER THREE in Netflix Global Top 10.

The remarkable thing about this drama's rating on Netflix is that each week the viewership is compared to other series/dramas that are released all at once. So, naturally, the others are going to have more "hours viewed" for the week.

Anyway, congratulations "Love Next Door" production teams!🎆🎉

I've had hope that after presenting Seung-hyo's life/personality and emotions, writer-nim will pivot in the 2nd half of the drama and present the same for Seok-ryu. Almost all of the childhood "memories" have been his - very, very few from her. So, I also hope we get more of her childhood memories/USA backstory and "inner thoughts" - which is critical to understanding a character's true emotions.

And. . . . I STILL want to know what happened after the two of them fell onto the bed after that slip trying to put stars on the ceiling. We saw Seok-ryu's memory of that event as she gazed from her window to Seung-hyo. What happened immediately after??

Thank-you for an articulate response. I read comments that he treated SR badly or did something "wrong", but I couldn't fathom what was so upsetting. And I still don't understand how emotional some viewers get over Fictional Characters. 😊

Interesting that you believe this drama is mostly about Seok-ryu. I've come to a different conclusion - Seung-hyo is the main protagonist. He's the one who has changed gradually over the few months since Seok-ryu returned. It's his diaries that are posted on the tvN site.

Meanwhile, although we are gradually learning Seok-ryu's back-story, she has NOT changed that much - she is still in a funk from her sad life in the USA and she's trying to recover but we don't see a lot of introspection (inner thoughts) from her. She's living at home - we see some sweet scenes with her mother (the pin, etc.) but she's still keeping secrets - lots of them - from her family.

I'm watching because of Jung So Min (never heard of Jung hae-in before) but I'm more interested in how the writer is showing Seung-hyo's gradual change.

I'm still trying to understand what Seung-hyo did that was "wrong".

Thanks for sharing. 😊

I have no idea when the family will find out. This drama is actually primarily about Seung-hyo and the changes he goes through (the original title was "Golden Boy"). Seok-ryu is the catalyst but he's the main protagonist.

Here's something I've learned to do cut down the stress. Before I watched Ep. 8, I visited the tvN site and read the spoiler/preview for Episode 9 - so I already knew that she would be in the hospital and the title of Ep. 9 would be "cancer". Plus I knew the proposal was coming, etc. It helped a lot to have a vague idea of how bad Episode 8 would be. 😊😊

Spoiler - Spoiler - Spoiler - but you don't seem to mind. From tvN:

"A fiery battle of nerves erupts between two men, Seung-hyo and Hyun-joon,
over the pomegranate [Seok-ryu] coming out of the hospital.
Seunghyo is worried about the past time between Hyunjoon and Pomegranate.
Hyunjoon proposes to Pomegranate for the second time!
In the end, Seunghyo and Pomegranate have a big argument!

Also: "Jung So-min's confession breaks Jung Hae-in's heart'"

So, yeah, he's upset that she never confided to him.

Episode 9 is going to be awful, awful, awful.
Episode 10 - The fiancé leaves[my prediction] - I hope writer-nim will be creative and not go the standard, uber-trope of "FL plans to return to USA with her ex. . . but changes her mind in the last 5 seconds of the episode".

Lol, yes , that's a very American view. Not sure if Koreans would view it that way - $50K is pretty major anywhere. Good point.

But there are no grandmothers so.. . . .I hope the excerpt I posted above is tvN' way to explain Heung-syo's fascination with the past, Korean culture, and his skill/talent for melding it to the modern era. Crossing fingers. 🤞🤞🤞

Maybe not 50 years, but. . . . 25ish years later (parents would all be in the 85 range at that point). My main point is that understanding history/Korea's past and culture is part of Seung's-hyo's character. Persona. What's important to him and how he creates that "unique and colorful spatial contents". I'm hoping that is writer-nim's point.

He asked Seok-ryu to look behind her, not just forward. This drama will be 10⭐ for me if the writer weaves it all together. OTOH, if any of the main characters is killed of? Basement level ratings from me.

Seung-hyo and the Funeral Home.

I've been a bit worried about the funeral home scene for one reason - when the Director asked SH why he was so interested (he had visited several of them), he was interrupted before he could give an answer.

But as to WHY he visits them, the tvN website provides a bit of insight into his character and his style of architecture (and this was also clearly demonstrated when he showed Atelier to seok-ryu in its final stage of construction)

"[He] loves faded and unique objects, spaces with stories and history. His identity is to unravel the sentiment of old in a sophisticated way and create unique and colorful spatial contents.
Exhibitions and brands are combined with architecture to carry out various interesting projects."

If that first scene was any sort of foreshadowing, I'm worried about one of the four parents.

He's "special appearance" so I think he will be gone by the end of Ep. 10 (after 4 episodes - just like the ML's ex).

I forgot about that, lol. Just remembered that he was wearing the same clothes when they me outside his new building.

Re: $50,000 bonus. Several days ago, I re-watched the first couple of episodes - and took notes on conversations of their story/history. In the first few minutes, the moms were bragging about their children and seok-ryu's mom talked about her big salary and "incentive" she earned - flash to a clip of Seok-ryu looking at her phone and it showed $50,000 had been deposited.
Her family is not "poor". She sent lots of gifts - designer clothes, expensive make-up, etc. but my impression (rightly or wrongly) is that they would have been insulted if she sent money - her father especially would have hated relying upon his daughter for money. Gifts? ok Money? not so much.
There is zero chance she didn't have outstanding medical/disability insurance if she worked for one of the mega tech companies. Zero.

It is NOT from the future.

The award is 2024 Magazine Award. Twenty Twenty-four!
He has been visiting MANY funeral homes
He is wearing the same suit all day - including when he eventually meets up with Seok-ryu.

I don't know who designed the suit but ALL of his clothes are black - Tom Browne designer.

Snowdrop was NEVER called a comedy.

I'll admit - there is a bit of foreshadowing when the funeral director asks why he is interested and before he can answer, he gets interrupted by the phone call from his partner.

But that scene was NOT from the future.

Lots of discussion below about medical expenses in the USA and quite a bit of misunderstanding.

If you work for a mega tech corporation in the US (Microsoft, Google, Apple, etc.) you have outstanding medical insurance. After a certain deductible is reached (usually $5K), the insurance covers everything. In a company like that, you also get medical leave, short term disability, etc.

Seok-ryu also received huge bonuses - in one scene, it was $50,000.

She did not need to rely on her boyfriend for medical expenses.

I, for one, would like to know why the boyfriend visited her family 2 years ago - which may have been close to the time her one year absence was about to end? It's not like he was visiting his family as well - they are in the US. I don't believe they were engaged at the time, correct?

We already know that Hyun-joon is slime. My hope is that he will prove to be absolute villainous slime - visiting her parents to scope out her family situation,? figuring out that they won't be interfering in-laws? and deciding to get engaged to a woman that he can control. That whole Culinary Institute of America stuff is symbolic of a man who has lost control and wants to gain it back. Yeah, the more I think about it, I hope that's where this is leading. 😊😎😇

Ahhhh. . . a sane mind emerges.

I, for one, wished he hadn't confessed so early -I really wanted to know more about Seok-ryu's feelings, both in high school/college and upon her return. But the story is what writer-nim wants and it's not as if anything really BAD happened.

Meanwhile, I really 💕the parent scenes and insight into their history/background/feelings.

Not to mention her heart thumping in the convenience store!

No heart thumps for the ex!

Be of good cheer because I have positive news re: Stomach cancer:

The 5-year relative survival rates for different stages of stomach cancer are:

75% for localized stomach cancer (cancer is in the stomach only)
35% for regional stomach cancer (cancer has spread beyond the stomach to nearby lymph nodes or organs)
7% for metastatic stomach cancer (cancer has spread beyond the stomach to a distant part of the body)

https://www.cancer.gov/types/stomach/survival#:~:text=Doctors%20estimate%20stomach

Yeah, I'm with you my rating will to .5⭐ if this is a bad ending. I wish we could give negative⭐ ratings for some dramas. In fact, it will go to 5⭐ (at best) if any of the family members dies. But, in the poster they have lollipops! I'm not too worried.