SongofSixpence

I'm also concerned about the lack of oversight. So much of social media is nothing but bots, trolls and shill accounts - MDL looks like it's heading in exactly the same direction.

Yep!

Please mark your comment as a spoiler!

ML isn't faking and an important part of the story revolves around what happened and why he has no memory. Ep 12 is when everything comes back.

Been there, done that (as have others) and MDL does nothing. The mods either don't care or lack the resources to address the issue.

Not to discourage anyone from reporting - go for it! But temper your expectations.

Since the incel trolls are attempting to de-lurk, here's a reminder list of the worst offenders for anyone who prefers to block or ignore them:

@mooc (https://kisskh.at/profile/mooc)
@SongKangDeek (https://kisskh.at/profile/SongKangDeek)
@drama watcher (https://kisskh.at/profile/otakoshanks)
@Whale Warrior (https://kisskh.at/profile/Superuser)
@spicyme1 (https://kisskh.at/profile/spicyme1)
@MarkJason (https://kisskh.at/profile/PeterUEA)

If you want receipts, scroll back through the comments to the first week of airing.

When ML was 18 he was put into care after his grandmother became ill. It's implied that he was fostered by FL's mom but after FL (and her foster sisters) had moved out - she would have been 25 at the time.

Three options (or some combination thereof) from the story hints:

1. Visited his estranged family in Canada - ML's mom moved there and married after he was born, leaving him with his grandmom.
2. Found out he's secretly the chaebol affair baby and was in training to join the company now that chaebol dad is at odds with heir SML.
3. Joined the new hires as part of an investigation - in episode 1 ML says he went to the corporate job interview to help his mentor out.

Could have been an off-beat slice of life romcom where ML and FL play house and learn the true meaning of family by bringing up Baby together.

Instead, chaebols all the way down.

Lol! I'm with you - any option but affair baby! I'm partial to #3 actually, lets really mix things up with some Joseon era flashbacks.

I hoped that maybe ML was still in a training period and that's why he has a mentor and works odd hours at the shop - like FL says, we know literally nothing about him. But affair baby seems most likely.

No idea! It could just be a throwaway detail, but when the press info for the drama was released a main part of ML's character description was he worked as a police adjunct.

Same! I was thrilled to have a struggling, part-time convenience store worker foster kid ML for once, but alas. It's disappointing, especially since his family issues could have played out as more realistic and relatable.

FL told ML to do whatever he wanted, but the 3 month time skip is odd no matter how you look at it. It's too long to visit an estranged mother - that's a lot of pressure. It's too short to finish any kind of training or degree. He obviously didn't quit his job and do nothing, but the car didn't pick ML up until the very end - so what gives?

In the first ep we learned ML was a citizen police officer and he went to the job interview to help out his mentor - where he got evidence of discriminatory workplace practices. Maybe that's what's happening again, just with him as a new hire?

I can't say I find corruption plots any more interesting than affair babies, but I'm still hoping ML isn't the affair baby. I Rin for chaebol affair baby!

While I loved most of these first 4 episodes (especially the relationship between the foster sisters), I'm going to lose interest very quickly if this turns into yet another romcom where a wealthy Ktrauma ML has to navigate family issues while FL supports him from the sidelines.

Part of the fun of noona romances is that FL often gets to play the traditional ML role - aloof, higher socioeconomic status and tsundere. I think one of the reasons why NGNL is more popular than noona dramas usually are on MDL is it's closer to a standard romcom in plot, format and relationship dynamics. But that's a negative for me since I really enjoy the tropes and subversions in noona romances - they're a nice break from the Kdrama status quo.

Still looking forward to next week! However...

In order to establish a common law marriage in South Korea all you need to do is:

1. Publicly announce the relationship (eg, wedding invitations).
2. Have a public wedding ceremony or start living together.

It doesn't require a marriage registration and it protects same sex couples and grants them partner benefits too. Did y'all never wonder why there's so many contract marriage Kdramas?

https://www.thekoreanlawblog.com/2023/10/korean-common-law-marriage-korea.html
https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/07/23/south-koreas-supreme-court-affirms-rights-same-sex-partners

Imo, nope! It would undermine the strength of the story and character arcs - FL is learning to value a relationship where she doesn't outright gain anything and ML is learning that his worth isn't tied to what he can provide for other people.

I think money would cheapen that (pun intended). At best that sort of story would end with ML refusing his chaebol inheritance and FL deciding she loves him anyway which would be... okay, but formulaic and uninteresting.

I vote I Rin (FL's ex's wife) for chaebol affair baby. We already know her mom was high school friends with SML's mom and she and SML grew up together.

Because This is My First Life has an 8 year gap (FL 30, ML 38) and Itaewon Class has a 10 year gap (FL 19, ML 29). If you didn't have an issue with them, what concerns you about NGNL (ML 26, FL 33)?

Unless you're referring to the 12 year irl gap, in which case it's still less than Goblin and Backstreet Rookie.

I'm not an easy crier but the scene where FL's foster sisters say it isn't a wedding but a funeral almost got me. One of things I love most about Kdramas are the complex, layered relationships - even if it results in some tropes that are polarizing (like birth secrets and past connections).

Which is why the theme of the drama - what people are owed in their relationships - is still tugging at my heartstrings just right. We get to see FL and her parents (did they owe her a normal childhood or the foster kids a home?), FL and her foster siblings (friends or truly sisters?) and now FL and her fake husband - plus ML's mysterious family backstory. It's reflected in the continued snark about marriage "benefits" too, like the secretary pointing out the company only provides benefits because they gain from it in the long run.

That said, I live in hope ML isn't the affair baby and it's all a huge fake out. The chaebol family inheritance plot line is too OTT tropey for me - it belongs in a weekend soap opera and it's seriously detracting from the main story.

Yep, that's trickier to discern on MDL. A Netflix OTT release will list only Netflix as the Original Network (ie, The Glory) and will follow KMRB restrictions. A Kdrama that Netflix co-produced for airing and streaming will list both the South Korean station and Netflix as the Original Network (ie, Alchemy of Souls) and follow broadcasting restrictions.

There's no good way to filter out Netflix OTT only productions because excluding Netflix from a search will also exclude everything they've co-produced. So the only option is to check each drama, sorry!

To your other question, depends on genre and target audience. There's plenty of violent action/revenge Kdramas, but also cheeky romcoms and mildly sexy melos. The political climate plays a role in what Kdramas can get away with too (ie, delaying Resident Playbook till 2025 because of the medical strikes) so I think trends come and go.

As for NGNL content, it's all innuendo and no details. There's a few scenes that refer back to one of FL's exs who wasn't "satisfying" and one scene in a convenience store where she buys a handful of condoms to make a point. It's raunchy, but no more so than ML's parents and sister in Hogu's Love discussing him possibly losing his virginity. :P

And I'm glad I could help!

OTT means it was produced to go directly to streaming, so it doesn't have to follow the strict regulations (and sometimes outright censorship) on-air Kdramas do. I think OTT dramas follow the same rating/restrictions system (KMRB) as Kmovies - and if you've ever seen a Kmovie they're far more graphic than Kdramas. Maybe that's what the commenter was referring to?

Either way, I'm sorry they made you feel ignorant because it's a good question.

Generally speaking anything that's broadcast on network stations (SBS, KBS, MBC) is going to be family friendly. On cable (tvN, JTBC, ENA) dramas might get a little racy, violent or deal with more mature subjects but won't be explicit. On OTT only releases follow the platform ratings guidelines - if it says 18/19+ assume adult content.

You've got Hogu's Love (also a tvN drama) on your watchlist and I'd say NGNL is about the same level of sex jokes and innuendo. So I don't think you'd be bothered by the humor or explicitness here, but YMMV!

It's a cable drama airing on tvN - so not OTT, but not a network drama either. Like the US, cable TV in South Korea is more cheeky while networks (especially KBS, which is the national broadcaster) are more conservative.