Platinum Fox

Is it just me or are the Japanese really okay with teenage boys having noona girlfriends? Every version I have watched (three) makes these boys out to be great catches because they can attract older women, one even makes it a goal to go after older married women. Otherwise, I did like this version and did hope that Rui would get the love of his life back after he graduated and lived a little.

Just finished three of the adaptations of this drama, and by far this is the best as far as story line and the great social messages for all ages. Had to look past the bad acting of the male lead ( I blame the director, not the actor).

It should. Is it a 10/10, no, as the lead actor is a terrible actor (which I blame the director), but the story is much cleaner and has great social messages for its intended audience, teenagers. jmo

Don't know if you watched any of the ones Molham recommended, but I have, except for Pasta and My Girlfriend is Gumiho. I have noticed that many kdramas around this time focus on classism and toxic male leads with "commoners" being their tamers and the Cinderella plot line.

For me, the least of the toxic male leads of her recommendations is Rooftop Prince. It was fun and entertaining, but not profound. Secret Garden, for me, has the most toxic male lead and he doesn't change much in the end. His behavior just becomes tolerable as the "commoner" who tames him is a stunt woman. The rest of the recommendations fall in the middle.

I would recommend Sungkyunkwan Scandal and Jewel in the Crown or Dong Yi. In both the male leads are very green flag.

Actually, I am looking at it from the "real" world perspective according to Chinese law and culture. The drama starts with Sang Zhi at the age of 14. The age every person in Chinese society is considered "mature" enough to have a relationship, including sex, with any person 14 and older according to the age of consent law. Because of this low age of consent, in China, the only "protection" 14 year olds have against predatory older people are the parents and siblings. The law will not help them. Hence, Sang Yan is very protective of his younger sister when the boys become "big bad wolves".

Throughout the drama with DJX, Sang Yan has slowly handed DJX his "brotherly" duties because Sang Yan is tired of it. What did DJX do, well, he takes those "brotherly" duties a step further all behind Sang Yan's back. Something he told Sang Yan he was going to do when he tells Sang Yan, "I am not her brother." According to Chinese culture, when Sang Yan punches DJX, Sang Yan is finally the perfect brother. However, it is a little late in the game as she is 19 and almost a full blown adult. Most countries consider people of age 18 adults free to make their own choices and get married without parental consent. In China the marriageable age is 20 for females and 22 for males. Throughout most of the drama DJX has been a full blown adult, whereas Sang Zhi has been a child, except when it comes to the age of consent.

I see that you have watched The First Frost. Notice at the very beginning when WYF goes to the police about the neighbor attacking her, the friends of the neighbor come after her. Her family does not protect her only Sang Yan, so Sang Yan is acting according to Chinese culture. Also, WYF's family do not do their job in protecting her when she is raped in high school by a family member. With that in mind, punching DJX is nothing compared to not protecting your sibling or child at all.

For me, Hidden Love is a well written social commentary on a lot of different subjects, but the main one is the protection of teenagers from predatory older adults.

Thanks for the discussion.

When you look at the drama as a whole and the message it conveys, Sang Yan's behavior of punching DJX is extremely valid and quite common in the drama world. Guy friends tend to fight it out and then talk, not talk it out first. DJX understands this bro code and why he allows Sang Yan to hit him in the first place. DJX felt he deserved it as he has hidden many things from Sang Yan, especially his interactions and intentions with SZ from the very beginning.

When Sang Zhi asked him to go to the school in place of her brother, they kept that a secret from Sang Yan. Why? Why did DJX go in the first place? We don't know his intentions until episode 25. It is only then that we realize how green flag he is. When he hides the fact that he is meeting her to give back the notebook and even writes an essay, what is his intentions? When he hides the fact that he accidentally kisses her on the forehead, what are his intentions? DJX hasn't exactly been straightforward with Sang Yan, except to say, "I am not her brother," with the period scene.

Perception plays a key role in this drama. It is what drives the unrequited love aspect and how the characters and the audience can feel okay with the age gap. The audience perceives DJX as a brother to Sang Zhi and not a boyfriend when she is 14 and 17. Yet, if you juxtapose Sang Yan's behavior and DJX's behavior against each other is DJX acting as the perfect brother or as a boyfriend? All the memorable things DJX does for Sang Zhi (the claw machine, the bicycle ride, the milk bottle scene) can all be construed as romantic gestures. Love and romance does not have to be just hugs, kisses, and sex.

In China the age of consent is 14 with no restrictions. DJX could legally date Sang Zhi if he wanted. Sang Yan couldn't do a thing about it, except punch him and disown as a friend. Thus why this drama is a cautionary tale. Not all males are green flag males. DJX is as green as they get. He waits until she is mostly an adult to have a physical relationship with her. I do say mostly because marriageable age is 20 for girls and 22 for males.

I can see where you are coming from, but it makes perfect sense as to why Sang Yan punches DJX. From the very beginning she has been of legal age to start her sexual journey with whomever she wants, and the only way to protect 14 and 17 year old Sang Zhi is carefully choose who she sees and dates (thus the online boyfriend). Fortunately, DJX is a green flag male and not the big bad wolf.

Hope this helps.

The pacing of this drama was the slowest I have seen yet, but it seems to symbolize the lives of our characters perfectly. None of them were going anywhere until the entrance of Chae Song Ah.

Wonderful music, great story, and great acting. Loved it all.

You have brought up a really good point about XFF. Her actions with the fake pregnancy was there for a very good reason. We want heroes and heroines to be perfect and god/goddess like. XFF's action was to show that she is indeed human, and she does pay for this action at the end. She must wait for XH to return from the border war, if he makes it all. This is poetic justice as I am sure they consummated their marriage before he left for the war and possibly even before (candlelight kiss scene). She did not get pregnant, so she is paying the price for being greedy in her revenge. She must remain alone.

The whole drama is based on appearance vs. reality. Viewers wanted a happy ending, so they made the five minute special ending to keep viewers happy, but in reality the drama's ending is as it should be with her paying for going too far in revenge.

Yes, I agree with you about the forgotten values, and I want to apologize. I came off a little harsh. I edited my comment above. I also have to disagree with you. She is very interested in him, and she does show it. DJX picks up on this and even begins to flirt with her until Sang Yan shuts him down in the car. I don't know of a brother who would place a warm milk bottle on his sister's cheek to symbolize a kiss. I also don't know of any brother who would pick out the food that his sister is allergic to, so that she could eat it, especially Sang Yan who has repeatedly ignored his sister and tried to get out of buying the menstrual pads for her. In those same scenes DJX goes and gets her a warm cup of water to help with the cramps, picks out a dark skirt because that is what she was wearing to begin with. Is he just the perfect brother or the perfect boyfriend? For me, DJX has repeatedly shown that he is interested in her, especially when she is 17. It is just under the guise of being her brother because viewers would be more comfortable with that. Hence why people say the first eight episodes are creepy. They are meant to be.

Thank you for the discussion and again I apologize for my harsh comment.

Thank you.

Yes, the first eight episodes can be deemed as creepy and that is okay. The first five to seven minutes of this drama tells you that this story will be about relationships with age gaps, especially those in the teenage years as per Sang Zhi's age. Not every guy is a green flag male like DJX that is why girls must take precautionary measures and wait. Many viewers see this drama as a sweet, fluffy, simple drama, but it is way more than that.

And I agree with you, it does deserve a 10 rating as it is an intelligently written social commentary on the age of consent law.

Actually, the first eight episodes are the reason for the entire drama. The author of the Hidden Love novel stated that she wanted to create a story where her unrequited love actually turned into love. If you take out the unrequited love aspect, then the story does not make sense. The writers of the drama turned this story into a cautionary tale, not every guy is a green flag male like DJX. Thus why you feel that creepiness in the beginning. Also, the age of consent in China is 14, so 14 year old Sang Zhi according to Chinese law is mature enough to handle a relationship even with someone five years older than her.

This is why the beginning episodes. In most of the world the age of consent is 16. The drama is saying that 14 year olds are still children and need to be protected from predatory older people, even those just five years older as they are at a different maturity level and height. This drama is actually a very intelligently written social commentary on the age of consent. jmo

Thank you for your detailed response. Yes, we certainly have a different perspective as I have not fully read Hidden Love. I made it through 8 chapters. When I first watched this another commenter read the novel and I read The End of Eternity and we compared notes, but not to the extent that you did. Since you know the novel Hidden Love really well, could you answer some questions for me? What was DJX's job after graduation in the novel? How involved were the parents in disciplining Sang Zhi? Were the bear and dog stuffed animals in the novel? Did DJX call her a puffer fish in novel? Was the structure of the novel chronological or did it have flashbacks like the drama? These are just some of the easter eggs that I saw in the drama. what easter eggs did you find? For me, there are at least 20 or more.

In addition, I went back and watched episode 10 again and you are right. It is a picture of the roommates, not the computer students and their professor. Thanks for correcting me. I will write more over the weekend, but wanted to ask those things.

If you annotated The End of Eternity, did you notice all the references and concepts to it in Hidden Love? I would love your thoughts on this since you read The End of Eternity.

There are numerous reasons why The End of Eternity (TEE) is related to this drama, but I will focus on your questions.
First, The End of Eternity is a social commentary on the use of nuclear energy, so you know right from the start that this drama will be a social commentary as TEE is shown within the first five minutes of the drama and repeatedly after that for the first few episodes. I watched this for that very reason as Zhao Lu Si always plays a character who speaks out for or against societal issues. This has the standard bullying, female education, and the sins of the father should not affect the family. However, I did not understand why she spoke like a child up until the very last episode. I literally turned off the sound as her voice did not match her age. But her voice makes sense when you understand the laws of the country. At 14 she is old enough to have sex with anyone she wants from the age of 14 and above, no restrictions. Females are able to get married at the age of 20 and males the age of 22. So at 14 she is old enough to have sex, but not get married. She is essentially a child until she is 20 in a social sense. This is why she keeps stressing throughout the later part of the drama that she is all grown up. She is an adult, when in reality she is not according to Chinese law. The drama asks is it morally right for 14/19 and 17/22 year olds to get together? No, wait until the person is at least 19 or older. It is very taboo to have a child out of wedlock and before marriageable age, yet the age of consent is 14. The people of China are trying to get the law changed, but with no luck. If you can't change a law, change the people's mindset about the law.

In TEE, Harlan describes Noys, a 28 year old woman, as a child as she appears to not understand what Eternity does. According to Harlan, Noys does not understand the ways of the world just like a 14 year old does not understand the ways of the world. Yet, they are fully capable of having sex with anyone 14 and above. This drama is a cautionary tale/references to Little Red Riding Hood are sprinkled throughout when she is 17.

As for the picture, DJX has pictures of his mother, his computer friends, and Sang Zhi. These are the people he is closest to and cares about. He does not have pictures of his roommates. Why, because he has nothing in common with them except where they live. You can tell he has fallen for Sang Zhi when she is 17 by his expressions while they are walking up the stairs when he is moving in and during the bicycle ride. It is most apparent when they reunite after a year and he is extremely angry at her for ghosting him. Love must wait. In episode 23 we learn that DJX has liked Sang Zhi since she was 17, but is too embarrassed to say so. At graduation, neither Sang Zhi nor DJX knows what to call the other as both are clearly not thinking of each other as brother and sister, especially Sang Zhi. Societal norms says that DJX should not be chasing after someone five years his junior, especially when she is 17 (still a child), and he is a full blown adult. It is what makes him a dog. Now what does all this have to do with TEE?

In TEE, Noys and Harlan must hide their relationship from the people Harlan works with as it is against the rules for people who work at Eternity to have relationships. Harlan finds out that on the next write in, Noys will be eliminated, so he hides her in the future. In the future after he destroys Eternity, he will be able to love her without restrictions. Much like DJX can fully love Sang Zhi when she turns 20 as she is of marriageable age and no longer socially a child. No restrictions. The eternity of childhood will come to an end in time. "Time has its magic drawing us closer in height and distance." Sang Zhi narrates this at he beginning of the drama while the book The End of Eternity is shown.

A hundred years we would not think twice about the age gap of 14/19 or even 14/21 as these were normal age gaps. It is only with time that we have changed our perception of childhood. Perception drives this drama.

Here is something that I wrote two years ago with someone else who read The End of Eternity.
https://kisskh.at/profile/bokminthe/review/301991

Hope this helps. There are many easter eggs in this drama as well that support what I am saying. The brand name of the skirt is one them.

If you like Zhao Lu Si, you should watch her Love's Ambition drama.

Actually, she did support his revenge. Why do you think she and her family went to the Ling house after he dumped her on the eve of their marriage? She doesn't dump him because he wanted revenge, and it was not an easy choice for her. It was the smartest choice for her. If he hides everything from her now, what will he be like in the future? How can she trust him in the future?

Yes, you are correct. The novel is totally different than the drama, but the writer was not going for a scene by scene adaption. It was clear the writer was going for dark comedy. For me, this was an expertly done makjang parody on historical dramas up until episode 24. They poked so much fun at Love Like the Galaxy (LLtG), I was rolling with laughter. It fell off after episode 24 because they relied too much on slap-stick comedy to get their point across. It only came back in the last two episodes when they again started to poke fun at LLtG. jmo

What she wanted was to be recognized for her own merits. When she creates something that is practical, LBY is praised and given a fief for it. She is a very intelligent woman when it comes to creating inventions and making life better in a practical sense which is what the emperor emphasizes within his kingdom (frugality) with all of his kids. She wants to be treated as an equal contributor. This is why she emphasizes to the third prince I can do things on my own and be just fine. I don't need a man to take care of me.

As for LBY, she understands who he is, but he hides it from her. They are not on the same page when it comes to love. Why love someone who hides his most precious secret from her. Yes, he shows he loves her with a bunch of actions, but the most important part of his life he hides from her. It is her that solves his dilemma in the end. Had he told her all his secrets, they could have worked on them together to come up with a solution. He chose to go it alone.

It is only after they are separated for five years that he truly understands what she meant to him and vice versa. When they work together to finish what his and her family started at Lone City, they are on the same page when it comes to love. No more secrets.

Hope this helps. Happy drama watching

What were you confused about?

Enjoyed this and will probably watch it again sometime, but need to let it mellow in my brain.