Kathryn_51

LOL, but my question was. . .does FL have a heart. I was ready to drop after 1 episode but glad I stuck with it. Absolutely love the last scene in Ep. 2. Hope their journey is enjoyable.

MDL ratings mean nothing. In Korea? One of the highest ratings (2nd episode: 8.6 in-country; 9.8% Seoul).

I was a bit skeptical this weekend, until. . . . . .that Ep. 2 final scene. Epic.

But I might be unique in kdrama viewerdom - I love a really good, well-crafted mystery.

I made the following comment after the 1st 2 episodes: This is a mess. It will either be a delightful mess or an ugly mess. I will continue to watch.

Take that for what little it is worth. 😂😂

My Episode One (non-spoiler) Review

I never understand the rules of Asian fantasy dramas, but they tried to explain how the original ghost photo studio came about (although I still don't understand what it meant/symbolized long ago).

Most of the episode was laying the foundation: Good explanation of Joo Won's character and why he does what he does. Decent explanation of Kwon Na Ra's role, but no details yet on her "power".

My boi Yoo In Soo was cute as heck (Park Dang-gu vibes) but his back-story wasn't described nor was the other ghost, but hopefully we'll get that solidified in Episode 2. Kim Young Ok plays the landlady and according to MDL, she is also Han Bom's (Kwon Na-ra) Grandmother. She is obviously the catalyst (intentional) for bringing the two leads together.

One real tear-jerker story (unlike others, I don't watch scenes that make me cry a bucketful of tears so I FF to the predictable outcome). Which is my one concern about the show - how much focus on the tear-jerker ghost stories vs character/romance development and laugh-out-loud hijinks.

But I will watch anyway and Ep. 1 gets an automatic 10⭐ from me because. . . . .Yoo In Soo is back on my screen after four long months absence (the 1st since he originally appeared in AOUAD I believe).

Not scary, but a real tear-jerker.

I probably wouldn't continue to watch if it wasn't for my favorite Yoo In Soo - who is finally back in Park Dan-gu mode.

Sunday rating: 22.1% (tied with 1st place - so no growth, but no backward slide)

Episode 50 Preview:

Sun-soon finds out that Hyo-shim has undergone liver transplant surgery and cries in front of the operating room.
Tae-ho is worried when Hyo-shim can't get in touch with him, and when he sees Hyo-sung's absence, he guesses that something bad is wrong.
Tae-hee goes with Tae-min to visit Sook-hyang.
After the surgery, Hyo-shim once again feels a fundamental doubt about her life when she sees her family members who have been stabilized by her sacrifice. [Is this a bad translation? Why should she feel a "fundamental doubt" about her life when her family has been stabilized??]
Tae-ho finds out that Hyo-sim has undergone surgery and goes to the hospital, but only Hyo-shim's vacancy remains...

Ehhhh, this looks like mega-filler episode. Who cares about Sun-soon - I want to know what happened with Hyo Jun (bar exam) and Hyo Do's reaction to seeing his father. Hyo Shim is probably back at h er apartment, waiting patiently for Tae Ho.

Well, it's only a "part" of a healthy liver. Not the whole thing.😊

Halfway thru Ep. 1 I thought the FL was one of the most thoroughly unlikeable female leads in a very long time. She doesn't deserve the ML.

But I persevered and although I continue to dislike her - and feel 100% sympathy for the ML (but heaven knows what flashbacks and more info will reveal), Episode 2 confirmed that Baek Hyun Woo is the hero. What a final scene!

Going to compare to "King The Land" - equally huge budgets, incredible cinematography and CGI, drop-dead gorgeous leads, etc. etc. Netflix whatever - but this one is far more intriguing and unique. It upends the entire "chaebol-loves-commoner" tradition and it fascinates me.

Plus. . . there is a mystery. Perhaps several mysteries. I'm pulling my notebook out. The mark of a truly incredible drama is that at the end, the viewer can say - yes, the puzzle pieces fit.

Can't wait for next weekend. 😊😊😊

I watched on Kocowa about 6 hours ago.

It was in today's episode. They said that it would take three months for a donor to fully recover - not just from the surgery itself, but for the liver to recover.

So, just my thought for a possible reason they don't get married immediately and a likely time skip. In three months, Hyo Jun will also know if he passed the bar exam, Mi-rim will have popped that baby out and I suppose their wedding will be behind the scenes, Tae Min and Tae Hee can take their vacay together while Tae Ho holds the fort (since he won't be leaving any time soon), Ru-bi will get into some special program or academy

"Midnight Studio" looks to be similar to "May I Help You", although I think there will be more humor involved.

Since my favorite Yoo In Soo is one of the leads (although not romantic) I'll be impatiently waiting for Viki to release every Monday and Tuesday.

Hyo Do has shown maturity recently - he's running the business so successfully that he's opening up a 2nd restaurant.

Vacay with TM?? Hell no - TM and Tae Hee are now there for each other and it's the only loose end I'm looking forward to watching with a neat bow.

The last couple of episodes I felt that Oh Yeon Do entered from stage left and possessed Hyo Shim. Awful stuff and I'm sorry you have to go through it bloomingtide. 😥

A reason? Annswer: to create a couple of "cliffhangers".

A "convincing" reason - They don't need a convincing reason, they just need to have conflict, tension and a couple of cliffhangers - and now apparently she disappears? Good Lord Almighty these last few episodes are the pits. 😊

So, do we get a time skip of 3 months?

I think he'll be a bit closer to Dang-gu in AoS - cheerful, exuberant. That's my hope. 🤞

Okay, I tagged it spoiler, but most of the info in my post was discussed below in open comments. 😊

Thanks for answer and instructions. I just made my request.

"Once again" is on my watchlist but. . . I recently realized that the sugary-sweet, can -do-no-wrong Main Couples are simply not appealing to me and that seems to be the foundation of weekenders.

As you know, I never warmed up to Hyo-Shim - she simply does not "compute" with me. Meanwhile, analytical and reserved Tae Min (Myers Briggs ISTJ) is my exact match. I understood him.

In my mind, LYOL sets itself apart from other weekenders because the "Mystery of Daegwallyeong Pass" didn't rely upon love-lines or family arguments or shrieking mothers - a seeming mainstay of weekenders.

I can't wait to visit Daegwallyeong when we travel to Korea in the next year.

I finally got caught up and was able to watch Ep 13 (Saturday, 3/09) on the same day it aired. This is a mini-response/opinion to . . . whatever.

Re: the plan for 16 episodes, Mental illness (e.g. depression and/or PTSD) is not something that is insta-cured. Thus, I'm glad they are taking a full 16 episodes to explore what "recovery" means in real life. Falling in love (and I do love this couple) is not an insta-cure. From the beginning of the drama, I thought this was the over-arching story - how mental illness can affect anyone - not just "weak" people. Bravo, writers.

Second, am I the only one who suspects that MOM (as in Jeong Woo's mother) is the real culprit? Not simply because of how she raised Jeong Woo, but. . . .she KNEW that Kim Myung Min was lying when he said he was taking "indigestion" medicine and she didn't give a F**K. That entire "normally you wouldn't be good enough to tutor our son but since you are poor, you will be more dependent upon me. . ." I'll pay you extra because. . . . ? I mean, really - she OWNS him.

So, I may be over-thinking that scene, but I always believe there is a reason for certain scenes (specifically, Mom witnessing Myung Min taking "powder") that are meaningless at the time we watch them. Plus, Myung Min told Jeong Woo to "forget the past". So, laying my bet - Mom is the original evil-doer.

I might be wrong, of course. Occasionally I am. 😂😎