I’m gratified that so many members here enjoyed this episode. While it didn’t leave us wanting to jump into the Han River (until the very end – thanks again, writers) we continue to have our intelligence insulted by the show’s production team. So instead of highs/lows for Ep39, here are LAD’s Excellence in Disdain Awards, presented to our TRHC Brain Trust:
1st place – The “I guess we forgot to mention that” Award. Granny goes missing and the Gong Family is in an uproar! Where could she have gone??? So, let’s remember shall we? We’re talking about an 80+year old woman with mobility issues who frequently needs assistance and uses a cane. Her ability to go long distances (and short ones, for that matter) are limited due to age-related lack of endurance. Did it occur to ANYONE in that house to check with the family driver who is at her beck and call 24/7? Didn’t anyone realize that she sure as hell ain’t walking very far, or God-Forbid, taking a bus –That was a plot hole big enough to SWALLOW a bus! Mr. Kim would have taken her, ASK HIM! Who the hell is checking these scripts??????
2nd Place – The “We think you’re stupid and it shows” Award. And yet ANOTHER episode goes by and they continue to have us believe that a couple can date for over a year, and not ONCE ask each other about their respective families? That YM & DW have never even thought about meeting each other’s parents????? That he is so dense he’s not figured out where she lives by now? OK, that might be believable, he IS pretty dense, but she’s not! And what about SK??? And you writers think that’s OK??? Because we won’t notice as we’re giddy-as-heck because of the new direction the show’s taken???? GET “REAL” YOU IDIOTS. You’re as delusional as SeJin and InOk!
3rd Place – The “Why be smart when you can be predictable” Award. Yet again, and all-too-predictably YD lies to TK and does not mention her terror ride with InOk to JH’s joint. This was so obvious I even put it out as a poll question a week ago! And all this, after both of them promised to tell each other the truth about the things in their lives (for the umpteenth time). And TK is just fine with her lying to his face about something so important???? Have the writers just stopped caring about the leads and keep them in the same rut, because IT’S SO “REAL”?? You people are PROFESSIONAL TELEVISION SCRIPT WRITERS. Don’t let a retired IT Professional out-guess you. Be better!
(Dis)Honorable Mention – The “We didn’t forget, we’re just teasing you award”. After finally showing us some Signs of Intelligent Life at KBS Headquarters and having TK say he’s going to register their marriage right away, the matter goes unmentioned here. Our leads both have a day off, and do they go to the borough office and see our favorite civil servant to get registered? Uhhhhh, NO. He’s too busy waiting tables and she’s doing whatever-the-hell she does. SIGHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
And the really sad part of this is that I haven’t even watched the whole episode. I just FF’d liberally thru it and probably saw a little over of half. So there might be even worse stuff that I didn’t see.
Bartender, it’s 8pm and time for TRHC Ep 37 to air on KBS America….Give me a Belvedere Collins and keep them coming.
That was the only part that disappointed me, that MR stood there with her arms hanging limp at her sides as he…
i just rewatched that ep before I was about to turn off for the night. It's funny, they keep putting her in flats.....I guess with heels she'd tower over KS? They're almost the same height?
btw there is another fan theory on youtube i remember being brought up here too, that Haneul gets seriously sick…
I've always thought (and I hate myself for even thinking about this stupid show at this point) that JH, out of spite, would insist on a DNA test for himself, the baby & TK to show for certain that HE was the dad and TK was not involved. This would blow up in his face, spectacularly, if we have our way. I don't know if he could legally insist on TK being tested as well, but this is dramaland, after all. And nothing else in this show makes sense anyways.
Brace yourself for tomorrow, BT. Have a good night.
I guess with all we know now, it is safe to say she never really cared for what her son is or rather has been…
I had forgotten how well written she was, after having to deal with this crappy post-ep 31 script. It really made me sad how they screwed up such a fun show.
Imo, for what it is worth, telling HR serves no purpose in getting her to quit liking and pursuing KS. How is…
i "think" that the reason was what he told her originally - that HongDo and her family will always be attached to him. Which is not what HR wants. She won't be able to spirit him away, as she told the MIL she would do once he was married. But he could have been a bit more vague about it, although she might not have bought it.
6 weeks left including next week if it ends at 120 episodes. They’ve gone back and forth so many times but I…
Since the weekend is almost here with 2 days of nothing, I was thinking of this the other day: What if she didn't stage her death, and something really DID happen? Option 1 - she was rescued, barely alive by someone and has lived as an amnesiac (or maybe invalid) since? No one knows who she was (including her) until they see a stray carton of HDF eats? This would make for an interesting story line, but they are running out of time for it. (of course, we have to suspend reality that something like this could have happened without national publicity that would have shown her face to KS, the Seoul PD detective assigned to her case, etc.) Option 2 - she died in the river, but her remains were never found, and by now are buried under 5-10 years of silt. A river clearing operation brings up her remains and brings final closure to HongDo and her family . This puts the final bow on the SunJu story in 1-2 episodes and gets rid of her story-line permanently and shuts up those of us thinking she faked it. "Fan Service", if you will.
I really like option 1: Her coming back to her family with no memory of anything or anyone (with or without a new family of her own, doesn't matter)...I think that would have made for a fascinating story arc back in Episode 30 that could have chewed up a lot of the filler. But the plot has now passed SunJu by, so it's not needed. I think it was a missed opportunity.
OH well, just random thoughts (and yeah, I realize this is a twist on the accident-victim we saw early on that was mistaken for SJ. I still think they should have run with that.)
6 weeks left including next week if it ends at 120 episodes. They’ve gone back and forth so many times but I…
IF (and that's a big IF) they bring SunJu back, how long is that arc? At least 2 weeks, I think? I can't see it going more than 10 episodes....maybe only one week, at the pace they are going at? Speaking selfishly, we need to have her come in with her havoc and leave so that we have enough time for a wedding an d hopefully a time skip to their expecting their first child together in their new home.
Holy Moly! How can they keep this pace up? To say this series has hit its stride is an understatement. For me, this episode was all about facial expressions:
-KS facial expression at the end while hugging her. "yes, this is right" is what I read into it. - MiRae's Grouper expression when KS hugged her -Punk learning who YJ is. Loved the expression on HIS face when she told him how KS developed the porridge product. -Aunty Ding's sly expression telling Big Dong the Chairman approves of DH. I had hoped she'd really taunt him with it. -HS's tortured face when he decided to tell HR the truth about JD. - JDs pout when she entered the classroom with her scraped knee.
I'll go against the grain here an put in my differing .02 cents on why HS did that: I think he finally decided to use the 'nuclear option' to blast HR out of her delirium that she and KS can be an item AND to stop her from bullying MR. I believe he worries about that bullying factor and thought that finding out that KS will never be hers 100% would be the shock that would bring HR back to reality. Everything else he's tried hasn't worked. He doesn't want her making a fool of them by continuing to pursue him, and he knows KS's heart lies with MR. So he has to do something to 1) stop HR and 2) get KS to admit his feelings for MR. He did both in this episode.
I respect the differing viewpoints here, and it's all part of how we interpret this show thru our own life experiences and biases. We'll find out what happens soon....but this was for the best, because it will eventually push KS/MR/JD together to unite as a family (until SunJu returns) and will outcast HR from their social circle. It's like when Aunty Ding blabbed about DH being MRs father to SJ. Yes, I was angry at that, but realized that it needed to happen to push the plot along.
At this rate, KS and MR should start holding hands (in secret) next week, and we should be getting ready for the return of SunJu. If she really does return, they should start dropping hints soon. There's only one month left, after next week, right?
Main writer do have major pacing issues. But i think she shines when it comes to meaningful lines. The last words…
The pacing on this show is unreal. To think they dawdled for 50 episodes and now we have both of the leads essentially confessing in the period of one week! It's like they suddenly looked at the calendar and said "Oh Snap! We're running out of time!"
Don't get too wrapped up in the age discrepancy. I've seen it be off by a few years in lots of k-dramas. The continuity…
Yeah, there is a thread about it, but its buried wayyyy down in the comments by now. Basically, per the script, she told SK she got her 'new mom' when she was 10 years old and we know InOk married into the family 20 years ago, thus she's 30, and I think he's 27? But per the KBS website, she's shown to be younger. So, they just don't track this stuff that well.
Hmm…so I was looking at the ages of the characters on the KBS site.KS - 35 years oldSD - 57 years oldThat doesn’t…
Don't get too wrapped up in the age discrepancy. I've seen it be off by a few years in lots of k-dramas. The continuity people (if there are any) don't pay much attention to this stuff as the scripts are being written. We have the same deal in TRHC, regarding YM's age too.
I guess with all we know now, it is safe to say she never really cared for what her son is or rather has been…
My problem is that we are trying to create reasons and explanations for bad character development. I don't want to legitimize the bad decisions made by the writing team by coming up with reasons that IO acts so badly out of character because some #@$#% writer suddenly decided to create drama and drive up ratings.
Wasn't there a saying once? "You can't explain stupid" That's what we are stuck trying to do. Lazy, stupid writing has ruined what was such an interesting and entertaining show. And it's not just IO....when I watched Ep 4-6, I was reminded how great a character YD was, and how they watered her down....they took a spicy salsa and threw in dozens of tomatoes to make it bland.
Sorry for the Salsa reference, I'm thinking of making tacos for dinner. Anyhow, we'll see what they come up with in 48 hours. Get some rest, you'll need it for Saturday morning.
1st place – The “I guess we forgot to mention that” Award. Granny goes missing and the Gong Family is in an uproar! Where could she have gone??? So, let’s remember shall we? We’re talking about an 80+year old woman with mobility issues who frequently needs assistance and uses a cane. Her ability to go long distances (and short ones, for that matter) are limited due to age-related lack of endurance. Did it occur to ANYONE in that house to check with the family driver who is at her beck and call 24/7? Didn’t anyone realize that she sure as hell ain’t walking very far, or God-Forbid, taking a bus –That was a plot hole big enough to SWALLOW a bus! Mr. Kim would have taken her, ASK HIM! Who the hell is checking these scripts??????
2nd Place – The “We think you’re stupid and it shows” Award. And yet ANOTHER episode goes by and they continue to have us believe that a couple can date for over a year, and not ONCE ask each other about their respective families? That YM & DW have never even thought about meeting each other’s parents????? That he is so dense he’s not figured out where she lives by now? OK, that might be believable, he IS pretty dense, but she’s not! And what about SK??? And you writers think that’s OK??? Because we won’t notice as we’re giddy-as-heck because of the new direction the show’s taken???? GET “REAL” YOU IDIOTS. You’re as delusional as SeJin and InOk!
3rd Place – The “Why be smart when you can be predictable” Award. Yet again, and all-too-predictably YD lies to TK and does not mention her terror ride with InOk to JH’s joint. This was so obvious I even put it out as a poll question a week ago! And all this, after both of them promised to tell each other the truth about the things in their lives (for the umpteenth time). And TK is just fine with her lying to his face about something so important???? Have the writers just stopped caring about the leads and keep them in the same rut, because IT’S SO “REAL”?? You people are PROFESSIONAL TELEVISION SCRIPT WRITERS. Don’t let a retired IT Professional out-guess you. Be better!
(Dis)Honorable Mention – The “We didn’t forget, we’re just teasing you award”. After finally showing us some Signs of Intelligent Life at KBS Headquarters and having TK say he’s going to register their marriage right away, the matter goes unmentioned here. Our leads both have a day off, and do they go to the borough office and see our favorite civil servant to get registered? Uhhhhh, NO. He’s too busy waiting tables and she’s doing whatever-the-hell she does. SIGHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
And the really sad part of this is that I haven’t even watched the whole episode. I just FF’d liberally thru it and probably saw a little over of half. So there might be even worse stuff that I didn’t see.
Bartender, it’s 8pm and time for TRHC Ep 37 to air on KBS America….Give me a Belvedere Collins and keep them coming.
Brace yourself for tomorrow, BT. Have a good night.
Option 1 - she was rescued, barely alive by someone and has lived as an amnesiac (or maybe invalid) since? No one knows who she was (including her) until they see a stray carton of HDF eats? This would make for an interesting story line, but they are running out of time for it. (of course, we have to suspend reality that something like this could have happened without national publicity that would have shown her face to KS, the Seoul PD detective assigned to her case, etc.)
Option 2 - she died in the river, but her remains were never found, and by now are buried under 5-10 years of silt. A river clearing operation brings up her remains and brings final closure to HongDo and her family . This puts the final bow on the SunJu story in 1-2 episodes and gets rid of her story-line permanently and shuts up those of us thinking she faked it. "Fan Service", if you will.
I really like option 1: Her coming back to her family with no memory of anything or anyone (with or without a new family of her own, doesn't matter)...I think that would have made for a fascinating story arc back in Episode 30 that could have chewed up a lot of the filler. But the plot has now passed SunJu by, so it's not needed. I think it was a missed opportunity.
OH well, just random thoughts
(and yeah, I realize this is a twist on the accident-victim we saw early on that was mistaken for SJ. I still think they should have run with that.)
-KS facial expression at the end while hugging her. "yes, this is right" is what I read into it.
- MiRae's Grouper expression when KS hugged her
-Punk learning who YJ is. Loved the expression on HIS face when she told him how KS developed the porridge product.
-Aunty Ding's sly expression telling Big Dong the Chairman approves of DH. I had hoped she'd really taunt him with it.
-HS's tortured face when he decided to tell HR the truth about JD.
- JDs pout when she entered the classroom with her scraped knee.
I'll go against the grain here an put in my differing .02 cents on why HS did that:
I think he finally decided to use the 'nuclear option' to blast HR out of her delirium that she and KS can be an item AND to stop her from bullying MR. I believe he worries about that bullying factor and thought that finding out that KS will never be hers 100% would be the shock that would bring HR back to reality. Everything else he's tried hasn't worked. He doesn't want her making a fool of them by continuing to pursue him, and he knows KS's heart lies with MR. So he has to do something to 1) stop HR and 2) get KS to admit his feelings for MR. He did both in this episode.
I respect the differing viewpoints here, and it's all part of how we interpret this show thru our own life experiences and biases. We'll find out what happens soon....but this was for the best, because it will eventually push KS/MR/JD together to unite as a family (until SunJu returns) and will outcast HR from their social circle. It's like when Aunty Ding blabbed about DH being MRs father to SJ. Yes, I was angry at that, but realized that it needed to happen to push the plot along.
At this rate, KS and MR should start holding hands (in secret) next week, and we should be getting ready for the return of SunJu. If she really does return, they should start dropping hints soon. There's only one month left, after next week, right?
But PLEASE hug your man back. Don't be like Yeon Doo
Basically, per the script, she told SK she got her 'new mom' when she was 10 years old and we know InOk married into the family 20 years ago, thus she's 30, and I think he's 27? But per the KBS website, she's shown to be younger. So, they just don't track this stuff that well.
Wasn't there a saying once? "You can't explain stupid" That's what we are stuck trying to do. Lazy, stupid writing has ruined what was such an interesting and entertaining show. And it's not just IO....when I watched Ep 4-6, I was reminded how great a character YD was, and how they watered her down....they took a spicy salsa and threw in dozens of tomatoes to make it bland.
Sorry for the Salsa reference, I'm thinking of making tacos for dinner. Anyhow, we'll see what they come up with in 48 hours. Get some rest, you'll need it for Saturday morning.