Editorials 
This review may contain spoilers
4 Hands 2 Sonatas: When the Victim Is Asked to Forgive Everyone
This is one of those dramas that left me with two completely conflicting feelings: I genuinely loved its characters and their emotional complexity, but I also finished it incredibly frustrated with the way their suffering was handled—especially JY’s.
And yes, I know the story is primarily told through Pi-o’s perspective. I understand that. I understand why we spend so much time inside his insecurity, his inferiority complex, his guilt, and his complicated feelings toward JY.
#1
BUT, WHAT ABOUT JY?
We barely got to see what JY was feeling through any of it. Even when he tried to hide his pain and put on a brave face for Pi-o, the drama never really allowed us to understand what was happening inside him.
And yes, I know the story isn't necessarily about JY perspective.
But that doesn't mean I can't be bitter about how little emotional space he was given.
Because JY lost something enormous. And it wasn't simply his ability to play piano. His talent was deeply connected to his late mother, his identity, and one of the most meaningful parts of his life. Watching that be taken away from him because of someone else's insecurity was devastating.
And somehow, throughout the entire story, JY was repeatedly expected to be the understanding one.
He had to forgive.
He had to understand.
He had to make amends.
He had to carry other people's guilt.
He had to soften his anger so everyone else could feel better.
At some point I was genuinely like: WHY IS EVERYONE MAKING THE PERSON WHO WAS HURT RESPONSIBLE FOR EVERYONE ELSE'S EMOTIONS???
#2
PI-O: A VICTIM, BUT NOT AN "INNOCENT" ONE
I sympathize with Pi-o a lot.
His inferiority complex wasn't something JY created. His mother and grandfather essentially built it into him. He was constantly compared to JY and made to feel like he was living in someone else's shadow.
He wanted to stand beside JY, but the adults around him constantly taught him that he was standing behind JY.
So yes, I understand him.
I understand the jealousy.
I understand the insecurity.
I understand why JY's talent could trigger him.
I even understand why Pi-o made some of the choices he did.
But I cannot use that understanding to pretend that his actions toward JY weren't wrong.
Because being insecure is a normal human emotion. But Pi-o's inferiority complex became something he repeatedly projected onto JY.
Imagine accomplishing something and looking over at your friend, only for him to respond with, essentially, “Why you and not me?” Imagine being praised for something you're genuinely talented at and then feeling guilty because your friend is upset about it.
That's not healthy friendship.
And JY was honestly a gift of a friend. That level of consideration is insane.
And yet JY was still the one who ended up paying the highest price.
#3
SO YES, BOTH ARE VICTIMS
JY is a victim of Pi-o's inferiority complex, his mother's cruelty, and the adults who failed him.
Pi-o is a victim of his mother's greed, his grandfather's emotional abuse and neglect, his own insecurity, and ultimately his own choices.
But being a victim does not make someone incapable of hurting another victim.
That's what makes their relationship so tragic.
#4
THE MOTHER: SPAWN OF SATAN
I hated Pi-o's mother.
And I genuinely don't understand why the drama gave her so much narrative courtesy by the end.
Yes, she went to prison. Good. Great. Fantastic.
Why are we giving this woman a cute little romantic ending after she essentially destroyed JY's life and played a massive role in creating the circumstances that destroyed both boys?
Call me petty, but I wanted more consequences.
I wanted more time spent confronting what she had done. I wanted her to actually sit with the guilt and devastation she caused instead of the story moving toward “well, she did terrible things, but…”
No.
She ruined JY's life.
She contributed to Pi-o's psychological suffering.
She created the entire chain of events that destroyed both of these boys.
I wanted her downfall to have some weight.
Instead, the drama seemed almost determined to give her a little too much saving grace.
And I remain bitter.
#5
JAE-IN, AKA PI-O'S NO.1 EMPLOYEE
Jae-in irritated me for a completely different reason.
I kept thinking: Does this woman have a personality outside of Pi-o?
Every conversation seems to revolve around him.
Every emotion is about him.
Every conflict is about him.
Every decision is about him.
She's simply just Pi-o-centered.
Because she often feels less like a fully developed character and more like a narrative device whose primary function is to support Pi-o.
#6
THE MAIN ISSUE
Ultimately, the drama's biggest problem was its treatment of JY
For me, the biggest flaw of 4 Hands 2 Sonatas isn't that it made Pi-o sympathetic.
It absolutely should have.
His story is tragic.
The problem is that, at times, the drama's attempt to humanize Pi-o and redeem the people around him came at the expense of JY.
The perpetrators' actions were sometimes presented so mildly that the actual victim began to look like the villain.
JY's anger was emphasized.
JY's revenge was emphasized.
JY's harshness toward Pi-o was emphasized.
But the years of circumstances that led him there were often given less emotional weight than they deserved.
Meanwhile, Pi-o's guilt, pain, regret, and suffering were repeatedly explored.
That's why I finished the drama feeling like JY was simultaneously one of the most important characters and one of the most overlooked.
I just wanted the story to acknowledge, more fully, what was done to him.
Because before JY became someone capable of revenge, he was a boy who's talent left people speechless, a friend who constantly tried to make himself smaller for someone else's sake, a son who lost the person he loved, and ultimately a victim whose entire future was taken from him.
And I will forever mourn the JY who could have existed if his talent hadn't made someone else feel inadequate.
I'll mourn the pianist he could have become.
I'll mourn the life he could have had.
And most of all, I'll mourn the fact that almost everyone around him failed him in one way or another—and yet somehow, he was still expected to be the one to forgive.
JY, my boy:
You deserved better.
And yes, I'm still bitter about it. 😭
And yes, I know the story is primarily told through Pi-o’s perspective. I understand that. I understand why we spend so much time inside his insecurity, his inferiority complex, his guilt, and his complicated feelings toward JY.
#1
BUT, WHAT ABOUT JY?
We barely got to see what JY was feeling through any of it. Even when he tried to hide his pain and put on a brave face for Pi-o, the drama never really allowed us to understand what was happening inside him.
And yes, I know the story isn't necessarily about JY perspective.
But that doesn't mean I can't be bitter about how little emotional space he was given.
Because JY lost something enormous. And it wasn't simply his ability to play piano. His talent was deeply connected to his late mother, his identity, and one of the most meaningful parts of his life. Watching that be taken away from him because of someone else's insecurity was devastating.
And somehow, throughout the entire story, JY was repeatedly expected to be the understanding one.
He had to forgive.
He had to understand.
He had to make amends.
He had to carry other people's guilt.
He had to soften his anger so everyone else could feel better.
At some point I was genuinely like: WHY IS EVERYONE MAKING THE PERSON WHO WAS HURT RESPONSIBLE FOR EVERYONE ELSE'S EMOTIONS???
#2
PI-O: A VICTIM, BUT NOT AN "INNOCENT" ONE
I sympathize with Pi-o a lot.
His inferiority complex wasn't something JY created. His mother and grandfather essentially built it into him. He was constantly compared to JY and made to feel like he was living in someone else's shadow.
He wanted to stand beside JY, but the adults around him constantly taught him that he was standing behind JY.
So yes, I understand him.
I understand the jealousy.
I understand the insecurity.
I understand why JY's talent could trigger him.
I even understand why Pi-o made some of the choices he did.
But I cannot use that understanding to pretend that his actions toward JY weren't wrong.
Because being insecure is a normal human emotion. But Pi-o's inferiority complex became something he repeatedly projected onto JY.
Imagine accomplishing something and looking over at your friend, only for him to respond with, essentially, “Why you and not me?” Imagine being praised for something you're genuinely talented at and then feeling guilty because your friend is upset about it.
That's not healthy friendship.
And JY was honestly a gift of a friend. That level of consideration is insane.
And yet JY was still the one who ended up paying the highest price.
#3
SO YES, BOTH ARE VICTIMS
JY is a victim of Pi-o's inferiority complex, his mother's cruelty, and the adults who failed him.
Pi-o is a victim of his mother's greed, his grandfather's emotional abuse and neglect, his own insecurity, and ultimately his own choices.
But being a victim does not make someone incapable of hurting another victim.
That's what makes their relationship so tragic.
#4
THE MOTHER: SPAWN OF SATAN
I hated Pi-o's mother.
And I genuinely don't understand why the drama gave her so much narrative courtesy by the end.
Yes, she went to prison. Good. Great. Fantastic.
Why are we giving this woman a cute little romantic ending after she essentially destroyed JY's life and played a massive role in creating the circumstances that destroyed both boys?
Call me petty, but I wanted more consequences.
I wanted more time spent confronting what she had done. I wanted her to actually sit with the guilt and devastation she caused instead of the story moving toward “well, she did terrible things, but…”
No.
She ruined JY's life.
She contributed to Pi-o's psychological suffering.
She created the entire chain of events that destroyed both of these boys.
I wanted her downfall to have some weight.
Instead, the drama seemed almost determined to give her a little too much saving grace.
And I remain bitter.
#5
JAE-IN, AKA PI-O'S NO.1 EMPLOYEE
Jae-in irritated me for a completely different reason.
I kept thinking: Does this woman have a personality outside of Pi-o?
Every conversation seems to revolve around him.
Every emotion is about him.
Every conflict is about him.
Every decision is about him.
She's simply just Pi-o-centered.
Because she often feels less like a fully developed character and more like a narrative device whose primary function is to support Pi-o.
#6
THE MAIN ISSUE
Ultimately, the drama's biggest problem was its treatment of JY
For me, the biggest flaw of 4 Hands 2 Sonatas isn't that it made Pi-o sympathetic.
It absolutely should have.
His story is tragic.
The problem is that, at times, the drama's attempt to humanize Pi-o and redeem the people around him came at the expense of JY.
The perpetrators' actions were sometimes presented so mildly that the actual victim began to look like the villain.
JY's anger was emphasized.
JY's revenge was emphasized.
JY's harshness toward Pi-o was emphasized.
But the years of circumstances that led him there were often given less emotional weight than they deserved.
Meanwhile, Pi-o's guilt, pain, regret, and suffering were repeatedly explored.
That's why I finished the drama feeling like JY was simultaneously one of the most important characters and one of the most overlooked.
I just wanted the story to acknowledge, more fully, what was done to him.
Because before JY became someone capable of revenge, he was a boy who's talent left people speechless, a friend who constantly tried to make himself smaller for someone else's sake, a son who lost the person he loved, and ultimately a victim whose entire future was taken from him.
And I will forever mourn the JY who could have existed if his talent hadn't made someone else feel inadequate.
I'll mourn the pianist he could have become.
I'll mourn the life he could have had.
And most of all, I'll mourn the fact that almost everyone around him failed him in one way or another—and yet somehow, he was still expected to be the one to forgive.
JY, my boy:
You deserved better.
And yes, I'm still bitter about it. 😭
Was this review helpful to you?
