L13

First two episodes were pure kino. This is what kdrama should be about! I've missed watching good TV.

"This eye for an eye justice is what we all hope for in the real world where justice can sometimes, if not most of the times, DO not fit the crime."

Please don't spew nonsense on my behalf. I support rehabilitative justice and see zero value in the retributive aspect of prison sentences, let alone violence.

So far it's awesome. It pays homage to the Stranger series in terms of atmosphere, grittiness, attention to office politics, broader themes, visual language, etc. while adding an extra sprinkle of black comedy. I like the direction better than in Stranger 2 as well; it's a bit subtler and doesn't overuse the iconic soundtrack/hit you over the head with reminders that YOU'RE WATCHING SECRET FOREST every 5 minutes. The cast is full of great veteran actors.

This is just good TV, pure and simple. I love it.

(Obviously it would be nice if there was more than one female character, but oh well...)

Do we know if there will be any cameos from Hwang Simok or Han Yeojin?

It’s a “happy ending” in the sense that after almost killing the FL multiple times and using her in all sorts of callous ways that suggest he doesn’t give a shit about her safety or happiness, the ML refuses to let her go when she asks for her freedom, imprisons her in a palace and makes her his empress in the end. But that’s not really a good ending for her and it doesn’t feel like he’s learned any lessons or resolved to treat her differently—he’s simply realized how obsessed he is with her, so he’s decided he can never let her out of his sight again.

This drama has the potential to be good if they can dial down the ML from abusive gaslighting organ-harvesting possessive psychopath to toxic asshole at least. The premise is good and some disturbing assholery/toxic masculinity can add flavor to historical romance for me, but there’s just no reason to root for the main couple to end up together in the novel because of the ML’s relentless cruelty toward the FL. The drama really needs to give him some character development (by which I mean a new personality) to make the ending palatable.

Newsflash, the novel sucks balls because of the pedophilic overtones and nobody wants to watch a romantic drama about a 12-year-old and an 18-year-old falling in love. Shut up.

I really enjoyed the first episode! It’s touching without getting too preachy, and the protagonist is likable.

Nice, thank you so much! It sounds pretty good, so I’m looking forward to it.

Is this getting subbed by anyone?

No, she was.

Not only that, but he/the novel started waxing rhapsodic about her "soft curves" or "delicate features" or whatever when she was like 11. I read the whole thing because the worldbuilding/politics was very good, but the pedo undertones were super disturbing and made it impossible for me to enjoy the romance.

I really hope our heroine will be postpubescent for the majority of the drama...

Me neither… Japan can make great romantic shows, so it sucks that we keep getting this trash instead.

And one of them is her student! In real life, a “poly relationship” between an adult, a second adult and the second adult’s underage sibling should land both adults in jail (and the teenager in therapy, hopefully).

This sounds like pure trash. Do Japanese viewers really find these endless stories about insecure female teachers defying the dictates of adulthood to have sexy affairs with TEENAGERS thrilling or romantic? I find this kind of female protagonist irredeemably repulsive and the “domineering 18-year-old gentleman” male type absurd.

18-year-old boys smell bad, are stupid, walk everywhere in groups and laugh at older women behind their backs! To suggest a boy that age could be suave, faithful, mysterious, and deeply in love with a grown woman (as these stories always do) is such a distortion of age-appropriate characterisation it's practically a pedophilic fantasy.

They need to stop helping fr

Oh FFS, it was her first time having sex ever and she was insecure and unsure. Sex is messy and people sometimes do and say things they'll regret later in the heat of the moment. She didn't press charges against him or try to ruin his life; that whole thing wasn't about him and her trying to harm him, but about her not knowing how to navigate such a new experience with her baggage. They talked it out, she apologised, they moved past it. Get over it!

You guys should watch Will Love in Spring, which was airing around the same time as Lovely Runner IIRC. The contrast in how these two shows treated the FL's disability was staggering. (Also WLS is drama of the year for me so far, in general, so I recommend it everywhere.)

A fun first episode lubricated by good editing that made the fast pace of the backstory sequence feel smooth instead of disorientating. Even though the narrative didn’t linger on the FL’s father, his funeral was touching enough to make me feel bad for both him and his surviving family, and the FL’s mother in particular was very well established as a complex and sympathetic character. The comedic touches here and there were fresh enough to make me laugh for real, especially the leads’ two crosswalk encounters. (The ML making a show of checking his pockets for money while the FL paid for their room in the love motel using her disability welfare card was my favourite gag.) The ML really was a scumbag eight years ago, but in a realistic and hopefully redeemable way. I’m curious about the aunt’s precocious son and the ML’s family. The small bedside moment with the lighter between the ML and his mother felt authentic and cute.

I’m in!

The age gap tag is not appropriate here... They're only supposed to be one year apart! That's the whole premise of their romance: that due to Chu Yu's status as Wei Yun's eldest sister-in-law everyone acts like there's a massive difference in seniority between them, but they're in fact the same age and nature takes its course when they start living together.

Both leads are totally miscast too.