["that's why on the trip he tried so hard to attract Tae Gyeong's attention to himself, but when he saw that he couldn't he gave up."]
exactly, he gave up. he did the right thing. after noting tae's inclinations to Daon he gave up, he didn't go full confessional & ask him "Can i like you tae" like Daon did when Tae made it clearly known he wanted to return Shin's affections.
[ " but 2 days later (after the riot broke out) he said that if Da On didn't go after Tae Gyeong he would" ]
Daon does not have the capacity to be there for tae... Daon;s limitations thwarted hope of reconciliation in the near future - Daon has to come to terms w his sexuality, this is a long journey - at that point no one in their right mind could predict the writers would do a 180 & unrealistically transform daon overnight... the pretense of their couplehood had basically ended there when he didn't run after Tae, hope was no longer there - in that moment Shin wasn't disrupting anyone's chances to be w Tae.,he wasn't coming between anyone., instead he urged Daon to run after him first & then Shin gave Daon one last chance, & deservedly got his blessing.
[. "No, I'm sorry, but Shin Woo only gave up Tae Gyeong to Da On when he realized that his feelings weren't being reciprocated". ] [so you can't say that he acted right and Da On acted wrong]
Not exactly - Like I said Shin took a step back and backed out when he saw two people coming together. Daon doesn't do the same when Tae confesses he wants to return affections to Shin Woo - Daon follows that with a love confession - this is one of the reasons most people are not responding well to Daon's behavior in this episode.
[" Besides he was just prioritizing Tae Gyeong" ] Don;t you remember Shin encouraging Daon at the school trip - he passed on advice he personally received from Namjung onto Daon. Out of the blue, of his own volition, he raised the subject delicately and wanted to nudge Daon towards being comfortable with his same sex attractions and the new terrain he was entering - without being explicit he communicated all this, he was having a conversation with him no one ever had, he was being a good friend - helping Daon open his own heart to himself. Shin Woo kick started Daon's journey to accepting himself you could say. Even in Tae's company he prefaces his support for Tae by first speaking on behalf of Daon, as a friend who understands him and the predicament he has himself faced before.
This is a sweet little nugget this is. Perfect for a sunday afternoon light affair with some earnest performances & story with a really cool premise - a man disguised as his sister gets married to the handsome nobleman ryu and a sweet friendship that grows into a tender fondness ensues. However the scale of the story is small, there are no subplots or any garnishing - there's a charming simplicity to the scope of this story - it gets right to it with 8 short episodes but you'll find yourself appreciating it.
I really like the actors, both adorable and convincing. The production value isn't high enough for a period piece but they've managed to create something special and with quality. I'm sure if the budget was higher the scale of the story would be more expansive, with more characters, details & parallel storylines - the story lends itself to a bigger scale easily - wouldn't mind if this was ever remade with 20 eps - it would work.
Firstly, Shin Woo wasn't giving a threat but was telling Daon that if he (Shin) invests his emotions into that boy now, he won't be able to prioritize Daon's emotions later - up until then Shin Woo only thought of Daon - he was a doormat- and Shin did a lot - he has nudged and guided Daon in his trying period the most, he was forthcoming in pushing Daon towards Tae and initiated a lot of support even before the scandal to make Daon feel comfortable with his new feelings and situation. He did his duty - he put Daon first thoroughly.
He couldn't have done more, he stepped back from Tae - he was sacrificing his own feeling and priortized Daon like that is all that matters - but self sacrifice too becomes unintelligent and pointless after a point & that point had come because Tae was in turmoil & Daon wasn't equipped mentally to deal with him, Daon just couldnt invest his emotions into the boy. ShinWoo at that specific moment was putting his own needs first because he did all he could to no avail, up until then the boy was breaking himself into pieces in respect of Daon's situation- he held back from Tae up until then precisely because he DID understand what Daon was going through.
The guy was the definition of fair and he did his duty. Put Daon in the same situation and there's not even much hesitation. Daon when confronted with the same situation, showed no consideration to those involved and just dived in and went for in spite of tae confessing that he wanted to now return Shin Woo's feelings. Daon dived in inspite of the giving his blessing to Shin, which Shin received under fair circumstances. When Shin Woo faced the same situation, Shin was considerate of both their hearts & did not put himself first, he let them go, he just kept low and backed out when he saw two people coming together.
On a side note - Comparing Daon's social scandal to Shin Woo's middle school bullying makes a lot of sense but even though Daon has familial issues, he is going through this as an 18 year old in 12th grade, a very mature n maternal one i might add, that too one year before he's about to depart, he is more in a position of power in that school too - he's got authority & A LOT of social currency to somewhat bank on , he has a support system & friends who accept him & buddies Num that stand up for him & in solidarity , and Daon has the safe haven of the student council to belong to even if his social structures are falling apart. - more so Daon has Shin Woo giving his helping hand even before the gossip scandal came to be, nudging him, giving him advice & making him reflect. Daon had some things going for him but Shin Woo had none of that as a kid. The boy was defenseless & innocent enough to let his same sex desires be known to his peers and he was bullied in a way that was bad enough that made him switch schools - it- this wasn't just murmurs and gossip, it was something that followed him till he reached grade 11 - Shin Woo went through a lot . the point is given his troubled past, his actions were accordingly defined by compassion & support towards Daon, which Daon was indeed in need of because his world was falling apart.
I agree, that none of the characters know what they want. They're teenagers. I didn't know either. And most of…
interesting, you're right. if you follow their interiority it is not logical for Daon to come out on the other side so quickly n be ready to accept his new situation so perfectly. Daon's life s defined by the need for approval & to be liked by his peers/ociety- and his need is at a VERY high degree - so someone like that can't just switch to being open about their same sex attractions so easily, would they?
In "reality", if they were true to the characters, Daon would be devastated, the limitations of his personality would come into even clearer focus in this trying period of scandal - he would lie, hide & excuse everything away - this character should have been in a messier head space as Tae had caused him a social disaster which would be a challenge for him to resolve
A HUGE challenge might i add becuase he is finally facing what his personality is designed to avoid his whole life. You've made a really good point about this character not breaking down - it doesn't make sense for him to be so put together when his entire personhood is being tested and this is a test he is meant to fail becuase he essentially is being made to face something he's programmed himself to run away from all his life.
- the events in ep 15 on many levels disappoint drama lovers and one of them is the writers did not follow the truth of the characters here. They might have written the storyline but characters they created have a direction and truth in and of itself and keeping with that logic is the writers job (lol i guess i just made that up). If they took the story where the character's were taking it to - you'd see Daon was meant to step back, & remain in the shadows sorting himself out and this room would give Tae the chance to reflect & see what he really feels without being blinded by what is a frivolous crush. Daon is doing the same soul searching Shin Woo did once upon a time, this was a chance for Shin & Daon to come together to guide him out of this - but none of this happens.
INSTEAD Daon jumps right back into centerstage, is magically transformed, and competes with SHin Woo for Tae's affection & Tae rather than realizing his deeper dynamic with Shin Woo, is shown to be still confused in spite of all the time that has passed & developments that have occured.The writers were kind of insincere, they know the characters wouldn't be here mentally if they were being honest - they chose to tease the audiences expectations rather than tell the story wherever it took them.
I don't understand why everyone hates Da On so much, what's he did wrong? He is the one who always stands beside…
daon is basically tae's mom - daon gives such gives mothering energy. i never saw the chemistry daon fans talk bout .i cant see them romantically...there's something very sexless n maternal bout Daon. ...more like a overly exaggerated perfect stepford mom who dotes on her child. my dislike for the pairing comes from this mostly.
I want people to be honest when I ask this. Will people be as petty as they were for Love Alarm 2 if the person…
if he doesn't get shinwoo - it just does not work as a story. writer's made the audience primarily fall in love with Shin Woo...his struggle, journey, characterization casts him as the most deserving of having his true love and as the perfect fit for Tae's personality.
i say cast another actor for Daon if you wanted to keep me guessing, coz that guy is all with the loving maternal energy here - Tae is more like his child he dotes on than his potential lover. i cant see them romantically.
EXACTLY- Daon has ZERO integrity. Don't care for him AT ALL now. Makes you think n value Shin Woo - Shin Woo had…
him being closeted is not an issue for me at all, nor is his hesitancy to accept himself or his affections for Tae. that all is fine & only enriches him - it's his acting choices to convey his perfectionism n people pleasingness.
EXACTLY- Daon has ZERO integrity. Don't care for him AT ALL now. Makes you think n value Shin Woo - Shin Woo had…
that's alright. i explained myself in my comment & it's not predicated on my like for Shin Woo but on the events in ep 15 n those preceding it. i otherwise didn't have a huge problem with him at all.
with regards to your curiosity, from whatever i commented above to the characterization of Daon & the acting choices made, i do generally dislike Daon but it's never bothered me this much.
Shin Woo or no shin woo, based on characterization alone, if this series only starred Daon & tae, i would have skipped the show as i cannot root for this pairing - he's more maternal than romantic - i don't see the chemistry & the personality, the way he chose to convey it rather, is off putting- the gestures n style of acting are unnatural -this isn't a nuanced rendition of a people pleaser but an animatronic interpretation of it - in my opinion it doesn't work. the actors playing tae, shin n num are much better.
Funny how we all know who endgame is but still cry over how it might break our heart if Shinwoo doesn't get his…
the writing is great. they're teasing us fans perfectly, keeping us on the edge even though we know the ending and that's becuase we want it to end a specific way-we want to see Tae not only just choose Shin but tht they also reveal that Shin is more than just an option to choose from. I guess the writers or I hope the writers know what fans want to see is Tae reciprocate the SAME depth of affection that Shin has towards him, affection that outdoes any feeling he ever had for his first crush, Daon.
i think if ep 16 gives us a flashback of Shin's confession scene ("i will always be thinking about you") & finally show Tae's reaction to it - i think they can recover the damage from there by showing Tae's response to it- coz right now the writers have done a great job pissing ShinTae shippers off by showing that Tae considers Shin as just an option & not a priority.
Idk why I don't want Shinwoo to end up with tae anymore ... Shinwoo deserve to be someone's priority not an option…
im in the same space now. the magic from the shinTae pairing was sucked out in ep 15....if tae thinks Shin is an option, tae doesn't deserve him or deserve us as an audience rooting for him
I don't want shin woo and Tae kyong to end up together in the last part of the episode but I think that's where…
yeah, thats exactly it,,you're right - Shin Woo isn't just a choice ... cannot be ... it doesn't fit given what the story has shown so far ... the writers don't need to be clever about this and play with our expectations now in the second last episode, they need to follow story and a person with the moral fibre and a heart like Shin Woo must be rewarded with the same amount of love by ep 15 at least - there's no two ways about it. At this point it's not cool to make him "a choice".
exactly, he gave up. he did the right thing. after noting tae's inclinations to Daon he gave up, he didn't go full confessional & ask him "Can i like you tae" like Daon did when Tae made it clearly known he wanted to return Shin's affections.
[ " but 2 days later (after the riot broke out) he said that if Da On didn't go after Tae Gyeong he would" ]
Daon does not have the capacity to be there for tae... Daon;s limitations thwarted hope of reconciliation in the near future - Daon has to come to terms w his sexuality, this is a long journey - at that point no one in their right mind could predict the writers would do a 180 & unrealistically transform daon overnight... the pretense of their couplehood had basically ended there when he didn't run after Tae, hope was no longer there - in that moment Shin wasn't disrupting anyone's chances to be w Tae.,he wasn't coming between anyone., instead he urged Daon to run after him first & then Shin gave Daon one last chance, & deservedly got his blessing.
[so you can't say that he acted right and Da On acted wrong]
Not exactly - Like I said Shin took a step back and backed out when he saw two people coming together. Daon doesn't do the same when Tae confesses he wants to return affections to Shin Woo - Daon follows that with a love confession - this is one of the reasons most people are not responding well to Daon's behavior in this episode.
[" Besides he was just prioritizing Tae Gyeong" ]
Don;t you remember Shin encouraging Daon at the school trip - he passed on advice he personally received from Namjung onto Daon. Out of the blue, of his own volition, he raised the subject delicately and wanted to nudge Daon towards being comfortable with his same sex attractions and the new terrain he was entering - without being explicit he communicated all this, he was having a conversation with him no one ever had, he was being a good friend - helping Daon open his own heart to himself. Shin Woo kick started Daon's journey to accepting himself you could say. Even in Tae's company he prefaces his support for Tae by first speaking on behalf of Daon, as a friend who understands him and the predicament he has himself faced before.
I really like the actors, both adorable and convincing. The production value isn't high enough for a period piece but they've managed to create something special and with quality. I'm sure if the budget was higher the scale of the story would be more expansive, with more characters, details & parallel storylines - the story lends itself to a bigger scale easily - wouldn't mind if this was ever remade with 20 eps - it would work.
Watch this please!
He couldn't have done more, he stepped back from Tae - he was sacrificing his own feeling and priortized Daon like that is all that matters - but self sacrifice too becomes unintelligent and pointless after a point & that point had come because Tae was in turmoil & Daon wasn't equipped mentally to deal with him, Daon just couldnt invest his emotions into the boy. ShinWoo at that specific moment was putting his own needs first because he did all he could to no avail, up until then the boy was breaking himself into pieces in respect of Daon's situation- he held back from Tae up until then precisely because he DID understand what Daon was going through.
The guy was the definition of fair and he did his duty. Put Daon in the same situation and there's not even much hesitation. Daon when confronted with the same situation, showed no consideration to those involved and just dived in and went for in spite of tae confessing that he wanted to now return Shin Woo's feelings. Daon dived in inspite of the giving his blessing to Shin, which Shin received under fair circumstances. When Shin Woo faced the same situation, Shin was considerate of both their hearts & did not put himself first, he let them go, he just kept low and backed out when he saw two people coming together.
On a side note - Comparing Daon's social scandal to Shin Woo's middle school bullying makes a lot of sense but even though Daon has familial issues, he is going through this as an 18 year old in 12th grade, a very mature n maternal one i might add, that too one year before he's about to depart, he is more in a position of power in that school too - he's got authority & A LOT of social currency to somewhat bank on , he has a support system & friends who accept him & buddies Num that stand up for him & in solidarity , and Daon has the safe haven of the student council to belong to even if his social structures are falling apart. - more so Daon has Shin Woo giving his helping hand even before the gossip scandal came to be, nudging him, giving him advice & making him reflect. Daon had some things going for him but Shin Woo had none of that as a kid. The boy was defenseless & innocent enough to let his same sex desires be known to his peers and he was bullied in a way that was bad enough that made him switch schools - it- this wasn't just murmurs and gossip, it was something that followed him till he reached grade 11 - Shin Woo went through a lot . the point is given his troubled past, his actions were accordingly defined by compassion & support towards Daon, which Daon was indeed in need of because his world was falling apart.
In "reality", if they were true to the characters, Daon would be devastated, the limitations of his personality would come into even clearer focus in this trying period of scandal - he would lie, hide & excuse everything away - this character should have been in a messier head space as Tae had caused him a social disaster which would be a challenge for him to resolve
A HUGE challenge might i add becuase he is finally facing what his personality is designed to avoid his whole life. You've made a really good point about this character not breaking down - it doesn't make sense for him to be so put together when his entire personhood is being tested and this is a test he is meant to fail becuase he essentially is being made to face something he's programmed himself to run away from all his life.
- the events in ep 15 on many levels disappoint drama lovers and one of them is the writers did not follow the truth of the characters here. They might have written the storyline but characters they created have a direction and truth in and of itself and keeping with that logic is the writers job (lol i guess i just made that up). If they took the story where the character's were taking it to - you'd see Daon was meant to step back, & remain in the shadows sorting himself out and this room would give Tae the chance to reflect & see what he really feels without being blinded by what is a frivolous crush. Daon is doing the same soul searching Shin Woo did once upon a time, this was a chance for Shin & Daon to come together to guide him out of this - but none of this happens.
INSTEAD Daon jumps right back into centerstage, is magically transformed, and competes with SHin Woo for Tae's affection & Tae rather than realizing his deeper dynamic with Shin Woo, is shown to be still confused in spite of all the time that has passed & developments that have occured.The writers were kind of insincere, they know the characters wouldn't be here mentally if they were being honest - they chose to tease the audiences expectations rather than tell the story wherever it took them.
...more like a overly exaggerated perfect stepford mom who dotes on her child. my dislike for the pairing comes from this mostly.
i say cast another actor for Daon if you wanted to keep me guessing, coz that guy is all with the loving maternal energy here - Tae is more like his child he dotes on than his potential lover. i cant see them romantically.
with regards to your curiosity, from whatever i commented above to the characterization of Daon & the acting choices made, i do generally dislike Daon but it's never bothered me this much.
Shin Woo or no shin woo, based on characterization alone, if this series only starred Daon & tae, i would have skipped the show as i cannot root for this pairing - he's more maternal than romantic - i don't see the chemistry & the personality, the way he chose to convey it rather, is off putting- the gestures n style of acting are unnatural -this isn't a nuanced rendition of a people pleaser but an animatronic interpretation of it - in my opinion it doesn't work. the actors playing tae, shin n num are much better.
i think if ep 16 gives us a flashback of Shin's confession scene ("i will always be thinking about you") & finally show Tae's reaction to it - i think they can recover the damage from there by showing Tae's response to it- coz right now the writers have done a great job pissing ShinTae shippers off by showing that Tae considers Shin as just an option & not a priority.