YazQuan

Died! What? You need a spoiler tag on this. I did not need to know that at this point (E9).

Secretary Kim had me caught between a punch and a "There, there, poor baby" shoulder pat because of her devoted, unrequited love for Choi Yoo Jin.

Song Yoon Ah is masterful in playing a neglected, affection starved wife/daughter and amoral puppeteer driven to protect what she believes should be hers, even at the cost of her soul and any number of random lives. Her vicious, yet vulnerable, performance reminds me of Kim Ok Bin's similarly brilliant Tae Al Ha in "Arthdal Chronicles."

IRL women with the age, power, and experience of Choi Yoo-Jin are catnip for young men, so why not in drama. And for women, too, judging by Secretary Kim's possessive protectiveness. Even though it's not developed here, I love to see the age gap trope turned on its head, à la "Something In The Rain." The subtle, near tongue-in-cheek love quadrangle in K2 is entertaining.

Ep 9: There is a deliciously combustive little love quadrangle forming here. Anticipating a messy explosion.

Thanks for including Sheng Wei. She has a compelling screen presence that elevates everyone around her.

It was difficult for me to drop a Jung So Min series, but her character was such a whiny, spineless loser I couldn't bear it any more.

Why is this a scandal for Han So Hee? She's not responsible for her mother's behavior and there's no evidence she had anything to do with anyone else's breakup. This is absurd, mean spirited gossip.

Queer-baiting downer.

Lol! Thanks for the laugh! That's a whole lot of projection going on there!

Wacky comment from a viewer who couldn't make it clearer that they're thriving watching what pleases them.

I deeply, deeply appreciate those who take the time to subtitle The Loyal Pin so it can be enjoyed internationally. Before the release of TLP, I read a lot about the mid 20th century style of Thai language that was used in the script to make the dialogue more historically accurate. I was looking forward to seeing how that would translate to English, so I'm disappointed that the English translation doesn't reflect the historical language of the time period. It's like I was anticipating Cherry Garcia and got store brand vanilla. I like vanilla, but I really wanted more flavor.

Generally, I would agree with you about the overuse of jealousy scenes in GL, but I'm okay with it in TLP. Pin is essentially an outsider to the royal family; has little to no control over her own life; is left at home while Anil travels overseas; of lower social status, not quite a servant, but still in service to the family; and has to watch from the sidelines while higher status women compete for her lover's attention. In these circumstances, Pin would be a saint if she wasn't jealous.

I think a 16 episode series could easily become 12 if Idol Factory got rid of the long, long, long stares the characters give each other. It's a flaw in all their dramas.

There was a lot to pack in. The Loyal Pin was two volumes in book form. Even so, they've dropped a lot of detail that was in the books.

I keep reading "explicit" and "porn" without examples of what puts this drama over the line. Given how conservative kdrama generally is, what are we talking here - open mouth kiss? An inch of cleavage? Two people on a bed together less than fully dressed from head to toe? Nudity below the clavicle?

The outrage machine seems to be at full throttle, but does anyone who is caught up in that really know why? If so, please share with the class.

Finished the series... and it's aggravating that the only two people who completely got away with, in fact got rewarded for, their habitual criminal behavior were a corrupt civil prosecutor and a corrupt military prosecutor.

If you missed this part, "ML treated a victim of an horrific rape with utter contempt and tried to stomp on her for money without even a moment's hesitation", then we are indeed not watching the same series. The scenes depicting the rape and its aftermath were explicit and clear. If you blew it off, that's your prerogative, but it's lame to pretend it didn't happen just because you're okay with it.

Through 14 episodes I've been thinking that the most fair resolution of this drama is that Doh Bae Man ends up being arrested and prosecuted as a willing and enthusiastic actor in the endemic corruption that he only begins to resist in the later episodes. I'm afraid the script is headed toward making him a hero instead of the amoral opportunist he really is.

Yes, it's great that DBM realizes what a class A ass he's been all along, but that shouldn't bring complete absolution and total immunity for the character's past actions. People were grievously harmed by him and at least one person died directly as a result of his callous, greedy behavior. DBM should experience real consequences for that, but I get it that doing the right thing might totally screw up the feel good HEA vibe of popular drama.

I admit I'm speculating about Doh Bae Man ending up a script hero instead of the villain he actually is, despite his change of heart. I'm just beginning episode 15, so it's possible he gets a just comeuppance, but I'm not betting on it.

Always amusing when someone throws up their hands in faux innocence, "hey, it's just fiction," like the direction of that fiction couldn't possibly be a choice that reflects the values of the producer, director, and writer. In this case, it's also a choice that reflects the values of its apologists.

A valid defense would have been that this is a plot device to show the depths of how immoral and avaricious Doh Bae Man is at the outset, that it creates a stark contrast to his growth and awakening throughout the course of the drama.

Apparently, it also serves to show that some viewers are on the moral level of the pre-awareness Doberman.