Vicariously

I get there was a cliffhanger at the end, but the plot in Signal felt pretty done by the end of the show. I don't think it's a good idea to have another season of this - it's not like Stranger where there's a really strong theme to continue (i.e. showing how hard it is to deal with corruption)

To say that he forgave her, I don't even think that's right. All Dong Hoon wanted was someone to take his side. It's not that he overlooks Ji An's flaws, he's overwhelmed by the feeling that she heard everything that happened to him, and still took his side. When we think of the age of the two, it's natural to think of DH as the more fatherly character and JA as the younger girl being protected. But in a lot of ways it's the other way around. DH wants someone who will look after him, who will protect him and make him feel safe. Obviously he can't say that out loud because he's a middle-aged man and men aren't supposed to say things like that. But there's an immense feeling of comfort that he feels when JA tells him 'it's not a big deal', he clearly wants someone who can play that kind of role for him. So he was never truly mad at her in the first place to need to forgive her, he wasn't feeling kind to her when he ignored the wiretap. He felt loved and protected, for the first time in a very long time.

I agree, I guess I had higher expectations cause the rest of the show was so consistent character-wise. I feel like there should've been a way to have the father pass away without making the FL act against her nature

Was it worth continuing? I started to fall asleep during the 9th episode with how slow and how much it just felt like filler.

The scene where one of the younger doctor's just googling lung diseases that match certain symptoms was just crazy to me.

Thanks! Yeah, for most of the way I thought it was gonna be my favourite drama of the year, but it really fell apart. A pity since I really like dramas that have more melancholic FLs, but the writing let her down here

I can't get over her using Urban Dictionary as a translator, almost was crying laughing so hard. Is this really something people do?

Thanks! Yeah, I didn't think they showed the change in her feelings well at all. The writers did the FL dirty since they gave her so many scenes of her being upset, but it would've been better if it was more gradual. And if they showed us more about her past relationships and the scars they leave (the way they did for the ML). Or the other pressures/anxieties in her life that made her want more security from a guy. I guess I like the idea of showing a relationship change and grow, but there wasn't really any 'growth' here, it just got worse. If they stayed broken up by the ending, I'd like that more. Maybe in like a 500 Days of Summer way with the ML meeting someone new later.

I don't think Moeun is a bad person or anything (she seems nice). I just think that both her and JW (to a lesser degree) avoided having 'grown-up' or serious conversations. And it's hard to sustain any relationship that way. There's nothing wrong with them getting back together, it just feels hollow since some steps got skipped.

I think you're interpreting her feelings right. My problem isn't about 'what' she's feeling, it's that she doesn't fully talk them through with JW. I think that relationships are about sharing and being open with your feelings, anxieties, thoughts, etc. That's how you get closer to each other. They don't really have these talks because she's kinda avoidant and also because their ability to communicate with each other just isn't good. Neither of these things changes by the end!

I wish this drama showed Moeun working through the things that bother her, and becoming more secure with JW and her intentions for him. When she feels sad about the moments they shared at the start of the relationship, it feels like there's something deeper that's wrong here. It would've been really cool to see how someone who's avoidant starts to be less like that. Maybe it would be less 'dramatic', but the strength of this show was never that anyway. Beats having a timeskip (where not much happens) and reuniting after without anything solved.

There's nothing wrong with sharing things like that, it's the other way around. Wish the second male leads in dramas would be real friends and actually be helpful, rather than having their own schemes

The line from the play Moeun says right before the end only adds to this: "Wouldn't it be okay to stay together until they start to hate each other?"

We already saw this relationship break down once. The definition of insanity quote everybody knows should apply here. The ending almost feels like time travel in the show, going back to when the relationship started, with no thought or attempt to resolve any of the problems you know are going to appear.

All of this comes down to communication and the assumptions we make about people's behaviour. Those of us who aren't satisfied with the ending, who feel like there's a big conversation missing, want to see things communicated explicitly.

When Moeun sees JW talking to his ex late at night, she feels insecure. It's not enough to assume that 'it's not a big deal, he's moved on from her already'. She has to (and does) confront him about this. Those of us who feel a bit iffy about this ending are actually coming from a similar place as Moeun. Just as she felt insecure about his intentions with his ex, we feel uncertain about her intentions/true feelings towards JW. How do I know that she won't decide another 3 months after the ending that him not being able to hear is an unresolvable problem again?

In your post, you made a long list of inferences/assumptions about Moeun's reasoning behind her behaviour (and I'm not saying you're wrong), but some things have to be said explicitly. We never get to see Moeun fully talk through her worries with JW, so there's no reason to believe that anything's been solved. The ending just feels a bit worrying, without that reassurance.

It feels like there's a connection missing. Maybe she was cheated on in the past and is really sensitive to things like this because of that? But without showing us some kind of reason like that, it just feels a bit self-sabotaging. She has what she wants, why run away?

Watching this, I just feel really sad for Jinwoo. It's one thing to break up with someone, but the way this seems to be unfolding (the causes), it feels like it just undermines him as a human being, and that's upsetting to watch. It's like all the microaggressions are piling up. When he says he wishes this is 'his last love', it feels like this relationship has made him so vulnerable.

I've always despised the way that second ML characters behave in dramas, and I find the way Johan acts here to be really distasteful. But rather than just being angry, I think the pace of this show let me realize that I actually just feel sad for the ML. He's been opened up to all of these new people in Moeun's world, and none of them (other than her) seem to respect him at all.

I kinda want to see more scenes of him teaching with the kids, since I feel like that's the one domain when we really get to see him excel and be confident. Even with his art, you have Seo Kyung managing things in a way that feels a bit controlling. But in the classroom, it feels like a truly welcoming and joyful (!) place in a way that none of the other places are like.

I think a break-up is much easier to imagine than cheating, because Moeun has shown no romantic interest in her friend whatsoever. She's made that really clear at least a couple of times already. If she was going to cheat, it should require someone new to appear in the picture.

When I watched the first couple of episodes, I was impressed by the amount of effort that Moeun was putting in here. It's not easy to learn how to communicate the way she's been trying, it takes so much time and mental effort. And it's that mental strain, especially when she's already trying so hard working on her acting, that really struck me. And it feels like there have been a couple of moments now (on *both* her and JW's side) that the mental effort of trying to fully communicate with each other has started to be overwhelming. They haven't expressed everything they should express, with the excuse that it'll take too long or can be done tomorrow. But that's also not just due to the communication gap - their own insecurities are responsible too.

The scene where she says she feels tired, all that effort has gotten to her. I wish she'd have this conversation with JW instead, instead of just smiling all the time (it's a bit weird how often she does it) around him. I'd strongly prefer if this drama were to avoid a cliched break-up (or even worse, the cheating idea), because it'd be more meaningful to show the leads communicate with each other and work their way through these things in a more mature way.

I loved this until I didn't. It felt immersive, coherent and profound, right up to one point.

It makes no sense why the FL didn't go see her father when she came back to Seoul from the bus trip. The whole reason she leaves the ML (rather than going to the sea with him) is because she gets a text from her husband worrying about her dad. The last time she saw her dad, he was slumped outside of his apartment because he'd forgotten the password. Realistically, she should be filled with anxiety until she sees him and knows he's okay. But she doesn't go see him, and it leads to him dying, and then the leads separating.

I felt like the illusion of reality in the drama got shattered then, and it couldn't be put back together.