Very nice article and I did have to rethink how I thought on this show a bit. That said, I still have a problem with how Hye Jin and Mi Son, the two from Seoul, are portrayed as worldly and fashionable and sophisticated and the local women are not. It felt like the production was very much looking down on and condescending towards the small town inhabitants. Obviously, you’re not going to wardrobe these characters like they were in some high fashion environment, but there were times when it felt mean-spirited how badly they were made to look.
The all time “I don’t get it. I thought this was supposed to be good. Why is it so unbearably terrible?” for me is DOTS. Nothing else comes close. I know there’s a lot of shows out there that just aren’t my taste. I can understand there’s an allure for some shows even if I’m not interested. But not DOTS.
Having the hardest time trying to decide which of the dummies is the dumbest. Live streamer? His dad? The apartment rep? The lawyer? So many worthy candidates…
Are either of the main characters supposed to be likable? That they aren't (based on the comments here) seems to be the consensus. But was that by design of the writer? Or are the actors failing to play the parts as well as they should?
There’s some shows that have come out the last few weeks with a lot more hype & big stars & big budgets and they aren’t anywhere near as entertaining as this show.
With all the timelines and characters and whatnot, this show needs to be really well edited so the pieces come together in a way that’s coherent. In some episodes, it works. Other times, it’s really tough to enjoy because it feels like three different shows spliced randomly together.
This!! Agree with every single thing here. Towards the end, I felt a shorter series of shorter duration would…
I have no evidence outside of simply watching the show, but my theory is that after about the 4th episode, they realized Season 3 was unlikely to happen and had to close out the storylines and when they shifted gears, it never re-engaged like it had before.
Thank you for this great, thought-provoking piece. More "Overanalyzing" articles please. I am down 24/7/365 for this kind of stuff.
Here's my two main complaints:
1. How is it that the whole time Min Ha is crushing on Suk Hyung that no other guy is pursuing her? Having someone else enter the picture as a threat was an OBVIOUS way to get him to come to his senses. Instead, there's no plausible transition from he doesn't have a romantic interest in her to he does. And outside the context of a "we need a useful narrative device to put these two together", she's smart, funny, pretty, sweet and successful. She should be getting 1-3 confessions an episode. Suk Hyung should have been put in a position where he had to pursue her actively rather than simply change his mind to accept her feelings.
2. Agreed that the Jung Won and Gyeo Wool relationship never went anywhere once they were together. He gives up a lifelong dream largely so he can be with her but there wasn't any "with" either of them. He worked. She worked. They never spent any time together or at least it felt like it. There was some effort to stir up some family acceptance controversy, but it was never going to go anywhere when his mom was so jazzed that he had a girlfriend. IF I WAS THE WRITER? Easy. There's the tension between Jung Won's Catholic faith and his personal desires. In season 1, we saw that when things go bad at work, he gets drunk. So something bad happens, he gets drunk. She comforts him. The Catholic faith loses out again. And she gets pregnant.
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Are either of the main characters supposed to be likable? That they aren't (based on the comments here) seems to be the consensus. But was that by design of the writer? Or are the actors failing to play the parts as well as they should?
Team Hyun Ji btw…
Here's my two main complaints:
1. How is it that the whole time Min Ha is crushing on Suk Hyung that no other guy is pursuing her? Having someone else enter the picture as a threat was an OBVIOUS way to get him to come to his senses. Instead, there's no plausible transition from he doesn't have a romantic interest in her to he does. And outside the context of a "we need a useful narrative device to put these two together", she's smart, funny, pretty, sweet and successful. She should be getting 1-3 confessions an episode. Suk Hyung should have been put in a position where he had to pursue her actively rather than simply change his mind to accept her feelings.
2. Agreed that the Jung Won and Gyeo Wool relationship never went anywhere once they were together. He gives up a lifelong dream largely so he can be with her but there wasn't any "with" either of them. He worked. She worked. They never spent any time together or at least it felt like it. There was some effort to stir up some family acceptance controversy, but it was never going to go anywhere when his mom was so jazzed that he had a girlfriend. IF I WAS THE WRITER? Easy. There's the tension between Jung Won's Catholic faith and his personal desires. In season 1, we saw that when things go bad at work, he gets drunk. So something bad happens, he gets drunk. She comforts him. The Catholic faith loses out again. And she gets pregnant.
Am I very entertained by Hyun Ji and can’t wait to see what she does next? 10/10 yes.