bloomingtide

Thx 😘

Still 17/Thirty But Seventeen is pretty similar and equally wholesome.

i talked about the pacing issues here, more or less:

https://kisskh.at/749363-separate-lives-at-hyosim-s#comment-15400221

there are *some* creepy bits with the antagonist that is an evil spirit and all, but nothing too scary. It is rather light-hearted, funny and sometimes has its sad and angsty moments, but nothing too weighty. The ghosts working with/for ML are a lovable bunch, far away from being scary, tbh. Dorky is more a word i would use for them haha

Viki. Failing that, you most likely find it on every non-legit sites like dramacool etc

Catching up on the last three eps (bc the flood of airing kdrama is OVERWHELMING atm tbh) and things really loved:

- the way the writer explained why the brothers differ so much in character, why Bogeol is quiet and distant bc he is living with the weight of the past while his brother was freed from it and could be more carefree and outgoing. It all makes PERFECT sense and i love characters being written this coherent, which does not happen too often in kdrama, alas.

-The way 2ML is handled in general. No love triangle bs. He might have had a small crush but it is more about his overall care for MH as a family member, taking care that she does not eating alone, upset that Bogeol leaves her alone... things like that a big brother would do. Of course he has to adjust to Bogeol and Mohak growing closer romantically, but it was never jealousy per se. Just a change of dynamics between them. I hope he finds his happiness too, tho.

-The symbolism. With the typhoon coming either way no matter how hard one prays for it to spare one which was a GREAT metaphor for the upcoming trouble for all of the characters. The show is full of little nuggets of symbolism and contrasts in general that warm my cold dead writer heart. The ice box metaphor will live forever rent free in my head.

- The emotional weight of it is palpable every step of the way. Every character makes sacrifices, symbolized by Ranjoo who gives up her goal of selling the albums for MH. People here hated her for this? Seriously?

-The way Kiho looked up sentence for patricide but Mokha thought he was looking at p*rn and told him to not stoop so low was so oddly fitting and comforting, especially to Kiho. Shows the writers knack for dialogue and parallelism. Also him only being weak with her, aww. Their hugs look like the most comforting thing.

Bogeol/Kiho continues to be the greenest flag. That is all.

-The frenemy-ship between Mokha and that manager guy is my fave small detail, with the song and all. And how she contrasted his pessimism with her optimism. "If i fail after 10 yrs then i have spent 10 yrs doing what i love." Bless.

- Now where psycho dad has found them it all comes to a head but i love MH's braveness in the face of literal evil, standing up for them who has become her family and refuses to give up on them despite everyone telling her so for the sake of her career (still watching eps 10 atm)

-While the story SEEMS to be more focused on the brothers, i see it as a whole, bc overall Kiho's story with Mokha is so interlinked that it is all a big whole, and without each other they and its story would only be halves and incomplete. There is no Kiho without Mokha and the other way around. You cannot split their stories from each other, hence the way it is told makes PERFECT sense to me.

Most Romcoms tend to bore me in the long run, but i can rec "From Now On Showtime if you like fantasy/supernatural in your romcom. Destiny With You is under the same category too, but needs attention due to non-chronological storyline. Crazy Love, Dali And The Cocky Prince are great imo, Thirty But Seventeen (Still 17 on NF) is very wholesome too. I am not a robot is a good one too.

Yeah he is just so soooo gross (and now irredeemable in my eyes.) What struck me as even worse is his line of "I came here prepared being slapped" which means this creep had planned to force himself onto her from the get go, no matter how she would react to it. Or rather well aware she would not like it but he gave not a single damn. YIIIIIIIKES. This guy needs to be on all the watchlists, marks of a predator right here.

heh yeah, after being a brat at first, that is. But he has owned up and apologized for this so it is all good. Showed the contrast of his character to Taemin who literally assaulted and then proceeded to blame her for not holding back bc " she kept refusing him." And refused to apologize. Disgusting.

So i guess Taeho has to be the greenest flag to balance out the reddest red by this creep TM

Agree on the mother but at least HS is freed from her new debt. Couldn't care less for the brainless infant to no longer have the watch tho.

Also it was not a kiss, it was assault. Fully non consensual and gross. My blood boiled reading the viki timed comments there, mocking it as bad acting bc how it was a "dead fish kiss." THAT WAS THE POINT PEOPLE. THE KISS FORCED ON HER WAS FULLY NON-CONSENSUAL AND NOT SUPPOSED TO BE ROMANTIC (┛◉Д◉)┛彡┻━┻

Yes it was the "my wifey" infliction of his line there which made me giggle and rewatch this scene embarrassingly often haha. I love how well Hajun can switch from smitten golden retriever to cheeky boi and back, while being a genuinely good, caring guy that is not stupid. Such a nice balance of character and Hajun harmonizes so well with his fellow lead Uee too which shows in their natural chemistry <3 I haven't seen Uee before this drama, but it seems that she is the perfect choice as FL indeed hehe.

Oooooh it is you who followed me over there just now? Noice, i will follow back as i don't mind irl getting mixed up in my TL. It is actually already a potporri out of kdrama, gaming, memes, politics/news and cats hahaha so yeah.

And yeah, i decided to screencap all the Taehshim scenes per eoisode and make content for LYOL over there on twitter (no i will never call it x) bc no one else does, lol. Compared to TRHC (which was the much worse show tbh) it is a wasteland over there, tweet-wise. I wonder why TRHC was so much more popular internationally tbh, but ah well. I am hyperfixating on Taeho/Hyoshim while ranting about TM being a creep rn, so if that is your kind of content, welcome welcome :D Bc for me it is the leads that let me stay and sift through the otherwise hot mess of this drama's story pacing lmao.

Oh same, very happy about it too. Like Uee seems to be more on the lanky side in general which is great for the role, makes it more believable. I think i also read she did train with a runner specialist and got some (basic) PT schooling months prior to the start of shooting so that she could accurately portray the role. So yay for that and seeing Taeho onscreen openly being charmed by her physicality and how well she eats etc is the cutest thing. Hence I love this as such a Taeho thing to do and say, and Hajun always accompanies this line with a goofy smile that screams smitten puppy. Adorable.

That scene were he bought clothes for her (and not corrected the store clerk that it is a gift for his girlfriend haha 😆) never fails to amuse me. He confused the hell out of her as he replied with "healthy and pretty" to her what is her style question, but then she played along bc she saw that he is such a goner for his gf, lmao.

https://twitter.com/sundogsnrainbow/status/1729551376844259684

Taeho always describing Hyoshim as "healthy and pretty" when asked what kind of person she is, is my (new) favorite thing in this show tbh 😆

Taemin: Dude feels trapped in his role as chaebol he never wanted and sees HS as kind of salvation, a piece of freedom for him and regaining control over his predetermined life and obligations to his family. So he has build up this fantasy of his life with her in his head for so long that he follows it without ANY regard what Hyoshim actually wants or what the consequences of HIS actions for her would be (her job, the evil mother, gossip, the public hounding her as golddigger etc etc etc ) He "loves" her and that is all what counts and he sees. No matter what she says or thinks bc his feelings are paramount, always. He is deluded in his obsession of the IDEA of her, this symbol of a mystical wife to him that nothing can persuade him stopping from going after her AND he feels fully justified in doing so. After all, he "knows her and has loved her for such a long time already" so in his mind he is entitled to become and be her significant other, and of course HS will also recognize his love for her and love him back, given enough time and dedication (read: harassment) of him.

It is the kind of twisted entitlement/ownership and control he exerts over HS as a person and life that his family exerts over him and wants to escape from. TM is doing and decides what is "best for her" without ever taking any of HS's thoughts and feelings into account. Or hearing anything she has said that is not fitting into the very narrow idea he has of her. Her discomfort and multitudinous rejections of his feelings is just because she is not "ready yet" to love him and not because his obsession with her makes her feel unsafe and his advances and feelings are unwelcome and one-sided. Nope, "she just does not know it better." so he has to take charge in the matter. TM is repeating the same toxic cycle his family does with him, and does not even is aware of doing so. Blinded by this obsession to "have her/make her his" he doesn't SEE the hurt and problems he is causing HS by the mere fact of him not stopping/relentlessly continuing his advances despite her rejections thereof, and worse even announcing it to everyone around him. To people who wish her harm and thus effectively painting a target on HS back this way. It is all about him, and his feelings alone that need fulfillment, from start to finish. So much that he even BLAMES her for assaulting her and refuses to apologize bc SHE makes him wait when he loves her so much and wants to be with her" and how "he can not help himself" (YIKES) What HS actually wants, needs or thinks matters little in all of this, except for what she embodies, this ideal he has in his head, his escapism.

Plus another element is of course is his ego and his (perhaps subconscious) belief that she should be grateful for such a great man such himself taking interest into her. After all, he is capable of saving her from her hard life and give her "a better one." She does not need to “live like this”, when she has him caring for her. Which again is completely detached from who Hyoshim is and wants out of life, her independence and all. Everything about it screams “trophy wife”he wants to stow away from anyone else, like a puppet on a string. Nothing is rooted in reality and fully disrespecting Hyoshim, her agency and needs.

Taeho: He is cheeky, a bit irreverent, always toeing the lines of (her) boundaries without crossing it or going too far in disrespecting the lines drawn. For someone who literally started off on a wrong foot with HS, he quickly gained understanding of and for her, and with it also came affection. Sure, he was a brat in the beginning but unlike he thought her doing by lashing out at her, Hyoshim never backed down and instead gave all back what he threw at her. That left an impression and led toward his reconsideration of his behavior toward her after he looked closer, beyond his first bad impression. Taeho was impressed by her tenacity and hardworking, no-nonsense attitude which led to curiosity about her person beyond that/being PT. He also owned up to and apologized after a bit for acting for being so rude toward her in the beginning, which was much needed to start over with a clean sheet with her. He shows interest in her person, what she thinks, has to say, is charmed by the little things she does (her eating so well haha) and does not load off his sob stories onto her to garner pity/sympathy points, even if he has enough reason to complain given his fam situation and loneliness. (He used as a reason why he was so rude to her at first in his apology, but not as a reason to *excuse* his rudeness. Big difference)

He makes a genuine effort of getting to know her, checks in with her, but respects it when she does not want to share her time or space with him (which is often, lol) And we know also now that he found her “very pretty from the second time on he saw her” (which is that ending scene in the gym from episode one, haha. And the way he always describes HY as "healthy and pretty" with a goofy smitten smile is my favorite thing bc it is so very Taeho 😆)

His prior bickering has shifted into easy banter and teasing in an cheeky prodding way, he allows himself because SHE allows him that. But TH never takes it too far, because he listens to her, and her thoughts, feelings and comfort are important to him. Also why he backed down from pursuing her when she asked him to, despite his obvious hurt about it. But his feelings are not her responsibility and so he manages it on his own. (as one should) He is self-sufficient and easygoing, but of course he sees HS also as someone he wants to rely on, yet he does not force her into that role or anything she does not want. TH respects her for who she is and does, is not trying to change her or whisk the “poor working class girl” away from her hard life. (Sure, he wants to support her and be there for her when needed/wanted especially emotionally, because he cares for her and her well-being like someone would for the person you like/is fond of.) Him buying her clothes and telling her it is a bonus to her model job, so she does not feel pressured or bad to accept them, shows his understanding of her and that. And he definitely mentally filed away all these things HY cried about having missed out on while saving up, and tries to do it for and with her, going forward. This is not a matter of “having a better status/more money than her and showing off to impress her” but a sign that he cares and listens to her. However premature his attempt to fulfill her wishes was in the end tho xD So I hope down the line Hyoshim gets to eat pasta on Jeju Island with her then bf, and having the best time, haha.

Tldr: Where TM fails to even see past his own feelings, TH looks closer and sees her, always.

I am sure i mentioned it before here in regards of Taeho vs Taemin and how they view Hyoshim, but after yesterday's episode it bears repeating (under spoilers bc loooong lol)

I'm here for the lead couple only atp. And even that storyline is crawling at snail's pace alas. As I said in another comment this drama has such a weird pacing that is much closer to a daily drama than a weekender. Even with 50 eps at nearly halfway thru you would think having seen some form of development in chars and story that isn't miniscule bg info dropped every few episodes. But nope we are in a stalemate and I'm not sure what the writer is waiting for but the pace is not pacing... At all. It would do the show so well if they would start focusing on advancing a few storylines only instead to check in with every character ever in every episode like a goddamn to do checklist, and halting the story progression thru it to a screeching halt. Also so unneeded after the intro phase. They could always come back and give more focus to other chars once there was enough progression in some storylines, but nope we do nothing of these sensible things lol. 🙄 I can only hope the second half is less of a circular snorefest than the first one bc at this pace it will indeed need daily drama like 120 eps to get somewhere lol.

Goddamn these Villa residents are even more useless than Hyodo and that is an achievement. Even granny while perpetually annoyed by everyone on this show like I am, does add fuckall for the story. She could just as much be back and drugged up in that residence and it would be nary making any difference. They all collectively forgot about her uncanny similarity in looks to a certain rich lady too so that is great and the only interesting aspect of that lot lost to writer amnesia. Why th are we seeing them for several minutes and scenes every single episode again? Most unneeded bit of this show rn, and only taking away from the leads screentime tbh. I always have the urge to poke them with a stick and yell DO SOMETHING ngl 🤣

Unfortunately i think the CEO/poor woman trope is so ingrained into kdrama and people's head bynow that a portion of them gobbles it up uncritically as "romantic," even if the CEO here is an entitled dickhead who only cares about his feelings alone and disregards and takes away all of FL's agency. I sure HOPE that the writer's intent is NOT romantic here but i fear it is seen by a weird small part of viewers as such. Gross.

I can see how putting TM on blast to contrast him with a respectful TH who backs off when requested so by FL is the writer's intent now you mentioned it, but i don't understand the length she is going at here. This shit should have ended *several* episodes ago instead to build it up further and further to worse and more extreme degrees. Because this is just circular bs by now story.wise and so very uncomfortable to watch and not only due to the needless ADDITIONAL suffering put upon FL who is already getting beaten down time again and again. It was absolutely redundant to go at such length here to depict FL's suffering/helplessness to the viewers bc WE HAVE HER SEEN NOT DOING ANYTHING BUT YET. We already know, ffs. Why couldn't they have given something good instead?

Like, instead of this nonsense we could have focused on her evolving and progress to move her closer to the titular goal of this show, and toward opening up further to Taeho, too. But nope she is once again put through the wringer without rhyme or reason and this time it is due to one dude's creepy and twisted obsession and delusion with her. Like when will it end? Wtf does it take for this asshole to leave her alone? Will he ever? Or are we going to see him obsessively stalk her even as she is dating Taeho? This is not a love triangle and never have been one. It is harassment only, plain and simple. So many red flags, just how many MORE is the writer planning on hissing with this shithead and for how many eps longer?

https://shorturl.at/aES46

If there is one thing this drama shows well it it the differences between rich and poor without the usual romanticism and rose tinted glasses of other kdrama. The CEO/poor woman trope in particular. Because here the wealthy CEO is an entitled dickhead who forces himself on the "poor woman physically AND emotionally without any regard or respect for her person and agency, whatsoever. And of course the classism and the looking down and pure disdain on the "lesser" ppl by the rich assholes as if people in service jobs/lower are disgusting insects crawling over their $10k limited edition high heels. The struggle of everyday ppl to get by and needing their job for their livelihood no matter how demeaning or toxic the environment of it is, is also well portrayed. This lack of power that HS possesses in all regards of her life (aka being just a cog in the wheel) is rather striking and much closer to the reality than those rose-tinted CEO/poor woman cinderella kdramas, where the differences of standing is NOT a problem whatsoever. Especially regarding the "poor woman" who gets her mandatory glow up into a very accepting rich society. Lmao. That being said, i am gonna judge tf out of anyone here who is (still) shipping TM with HS after yesterday's episode, going forward. Sorry not sorry.

Taeho escaped the classism hell of his family thanks to his life abroad and is thus a well-adjusted person without this toxic way of thinking. (The scene of him enjoying the night view at her place instead to judge the place and neighborhood as shabby like HS feared him doing, was rather telling regarding that.) The pearl clutching of these two elitist cow witches were funny af tho. They are SUCH ridiculous caricatures of rich women in this drama that it is most likely closer to reality than we will ever know.