Ter22331

this is probably the meanest thing I've ever said about this show, but I have to imagine Iwa also gets tired. Being with someone that insecure over everything is exhausting 🙈 yeah, he's definitely a poor communicator, but also Miyata's issues are something he needs to fix for himself.

it's so unbalanced and Miyata's problem is that he NEEDS it to be balanced. A lot of people would be happy dating someone super successful, but Miyata just feels bad about himself. This isn't the relationship for him, I really hope they break up.

Okay, so I'm not in the minority here rooting for them to break up.

Honestly, Miyata just needs space to get his life together and find his confidence. A partner who loves you isn't a magic fix for your insecurities, so if you're making each other this miserable, take a page from Rui's book and break tf up!

this is the first time I've ever paid for Express, and I'm so glad I did. ATC will undeniably go down in history as one of the best cdramas, and I'm so grateful that I got to be part of this experience.

All the ingredients are there; I should be EATING this up. Why am I so bored? 😭 Atp I'm only watching for Tianna and Zhao Heng.

I wanna be a superhero, keep it real...

oh my god, you're the only one who gets it!! 😭 thank you.

I don't blame any viewer who feels let down because in TV land, a big cliffhanger = a big moment. That's how TV works. It's fine if this show wants to be quiet and slow, but then stop baiting people with cliffhangers just to get them hooked! Let the story hook people on its own.

I disagree actually. I think the story is told beautifully, but they made a mistake by relying on genre conventions. A slow-paced, artistic story like this doesn't benefit from dramatic cliffhangers, and it makes viewers feel betrayed. This is a calm, slow paced, contemplative show .... using big cliffhangers betrays that, in my opinion. But the way the story is being told is perfect and I love that it utilizes a more abstract, non-linear approach where we fill in the blanks for ourselves.

well, my entire comment is about how ending critical episodes on cliffhangers creates certain expectations for viewers, because genre conventions say that dramatic cliffhangers are resolved with dramatic conclusions.

So I disagree with you that the fault lies with promotion, not production. Production chose to use dramatic cliffhangers - promotion has nothing to do with it.

The rest of your comment is things I never even said (.e.g expecting a big revenge plot. Huh? That has nothing to do with anything I'm saying, so I won't respond beyond your first paragraph.)

between episodes 39 & 42, a lot of people are expressing disappointment that the big moments we've been waiting for don't quite deliver.

I think that's the only flaw in this show. Ending episodes on big cliffhangers primes the audience to expect something huge and/or cathartic. But this show has consistently shown that it's less interested in following typical drama conventions, and it's more slow paced and mundane.

I don't think audiences are wrong for feeling let down, because these cliffhanger dramatics in ep 39 & 42 can be seen as a mild betrayal of what the show stands for. They're very effective for building anticipation, but then that's also what leads to the stark disappointment.

I find your comment amusing because I'm the exact opposite. I hate it when shows do flashbacks just to tell the audience "see, this is how he's piecing the dots together." It feels like an insult to my intelligence haha. The character is smart, he has all the clues, it's obvious (to me, at least) that he puts them together. A show that needs to hold the audience's hand that much betrays a lack of trust in their audience's intelligence, imo, and that always makes me lose respect for it. It's really interesting to see someone with a polar opposite perspective 😄

he already knows who she is, so his probing was already done. he burned the evidence because he figured out the answer and as soon as he knew, he wanted to close that chapter and leave it a secret

hahaha so true. And that's why I love season 2. It's not that Miyata is just jealous for no reason, he has ALLLL the reasons to feel insecure. Seriously, the writers didn't leave one single thing for him to feel confident about. 😭 I'm enjoying exploring the question of what to do when you're deeply insecure, your insecurity is ruining your relationship, but also it's not just all in your head so you can't just snap out of it.

And I agree with you completely: he's in an impossible situation. How is he supposed to feel confident when his partner is his literal savior keeping his career afloat? Something needs to change. He's for real stuck in that senpai-junior relationship and doesn't have any opportunity to transition to being in a relationship of equals.

Tbh on deeper thought, I think Miyata needs a wakeup call. 😭😭 I mean, Iwanaga is basically singlehandedly keeping Miyata's career going, so we can't pretend they're on an equal level. But Miyata can't be happy with his relationship unless he feels like an equal. He can't be happy with the relationship he has, so what now? I guess that's why this show is so interesting. Miyata truly is below than Iwanaga in almost all social aspects. There's no way to avoid it. Not just in terms of wealth, but he's also less friendly & charismatic. There's no area where he shines. And instead of sitting with this himself, he sorta makes it Iwanaga's problem by sulking and pulling Iwanaga into that savior role. He's already relying on Iwanaga as a savior for his career, and now he's unconsciously recreating that dynamic in their relationship by making his insecurity a problem that Iwanaga needs to keep addressing, e.g. his constant sulking is an attempt to pull Iwanaga in to fix the issue. It's very unconscious and he's not actively choosing to do that, but it is a clear pattern by this point.

I love that this is a workplace drama that takes the work seriously, not just as a vehicle for the romantic plot!!! Xu Chi is a formidable colleague, but I have a feeling she's going to be humbled soon.

so forgettable tbh. but at least it introduced me to One Love One Heart, and that banger of an opening theme song. 🩷

looking forward to seeing Ayuta in School Trip s2. it's crazy how he has more personality there as a side character compared to these whole 9 episodes that fell so flat...

all of them in one room like it's a family reunion 🤣🤣 so well said. that scene pissed me off because it was so lazy. Riku and Daon had such a cute storyline and then all we get is them holding hands and being like "yeah, we're dating now." so frustrating.

what happens when a man who sees as everyone as replaceable meets a woman whose greatest fear is being replaced? 🤔

oh, I'm going to LOVE this one....

oh my god, it's so frustrating watching Miyata be so deeply insecure. but also, it kind of makes sense following season 1. he's never really gotten over the wound of feeling like he was beneath his senpai. and them being together isn't a magic cure. he still remembers that he was all in and senpai was making bets as though everything was just a big joke. unfortunately senpai is so nonchalant about the whole thing, so Miyata might just have to learn how to shoulder this insecurity on his own.

If this doesn't come to Gaga, I'm going to cry.