etoks21

Gosh, don't apologize to me about any of what you wrote here. I agree with every word.
I don't know if you've noticed, but I often get into it in comments with what I call the MDL Church Girls brigade, a bunch of prudish scolds who would make Gladys Kravitz look like a whore who minds her own business. (Do you know Gladys?) :D

I don't need to "see" it, either, but if they're having sex all the time, that would be an important thing to let us know. And while I don't NEED to see it, I certainly wouldn't mind seeing it. :) (There is a prudish streak a mile wide thru the MDL membership.)
There is a big difference between a couple who are hot and heavy for each other physically and a couple who are not, for some reason.
My complaint is that I'm not getting reasons for much of anything going on or not going on between these two.

This film grows richer for me with every watch, but I have to agree with comments below that the second half could/should have been handled in a much more effective way.
There are clunky plot holes/improbabilities in the second half also, that compromise its effectiveness.
And yes, the downer ending...sucks. And I'm someone who doesn't mind a well-done downer ending.

I just read the review/article at the link below.
It crystallizes why I feel uneasy about outright liking this film.
https://thebaklareview.blogspot.com/2008/03/selda.html

In light of that, I'm going to drop my rating from an 8.5/10 to a 7/10

With this show, anything is possible.

Well, to me, that is a perfectly backward interpretation.

That was not a "dance of self-pity," btw. Did she appear to be moping to you?

I don't blame her at all for banning Dong Man when she did. He was annoying af and constantly causing confrontations and multiple outrageous incidents. Why would she want that in her club? She was protecting her establishment.
You seem to forget that she promptly lifted her ban when it was revealed that DM and Eun Ah were an item.
You also seem to forget how she has berated her husband in private for his whining and moping, and his obsession with DM. She supports her husband in public, but confronts him in private. That is where her demand that Dong Man not trash her husband to her face ever again came from, too.

I see her producing DM's film as CHALLENGING him to put up or shut up at long last.
And in challenging him, she provides him an opportunity for grand success or dismal failure. She provides herself with the opportunity to make a lot of money, too.

In her alcohol-fueled, melodramatic, and hilarious dare that he do so, she was doing her thing with her usual flair. She didn't say she WANTS DM's film to fail, she said she is willing to lose lots of money, if that's what it takes to shut him up one way or the other. But, she's not "out to destroy" him; she's out to get him to STFU, just like she is with her husband...in private.
Why would she WANT to lose a boatload of money?

"Her selfishness and greed got her betrayed by CEO Choi bc she desired to cast superstar Noh thru his help."
This is another wildly backward take. Weirdly, you interpret her desire for her company to succeed as coming from "selfishness and greed," when that's simply business. She was upfront with CEO Choi about all of it, and politely asked for his assistance in sharing the project and getting the star she thought would guarantee success.
Then Choi fucks her over, yet to you, Hye Jin is the problem?

Wow.

I agree, and I like how you've put this.

Given what we've seen of a brilliant screenplay filled with surprises and disappointments and everything in between, I'm trying to be ready for anything.
I'm not even sure I WANT Dong Man to have a massively successful outcome with his film. This series has shown me that all sorts of outcomes can be interpreted in all sorts of other ways. A cliched, rosy outcome with DM receiving a Baeksang Award for his film almost feels beneath this show's standards.
Perhaps DM's flick becomes divisive among critics and the public, and, as you suggested, achieves a sort of cult status. Either outcome would set him up for endless possibilities going forward.

We're likely going to see DM losing his shit while trying to direct his film, and having to say "Help Me." over and over....?

I doubt we're going to get a crushing defeat that destroys DM's spirit and THE END. That would be bizarre, even for this series.

Coming from you, that's a compliment.

Anyone who uses the cliché "You, sir..." is a moron attempting to sound like an intellectual.

Why then, were we shown them having hot, mutually enjoyable sex early on, but then, suddenly, it's completely unimportant to them? Makes no sense.
These guys are in their mid-30s, not their mid-70s.
I stress the word "guys" here, because healthy males are horny well into their 40s.
I wouldn't mind any of this if the script were showing us WHY things are this way between them, and how sex got dropped as an option, at least for now. Instead, it's as if the screenwriter/director just forgot that part or got cold feet and backed off on it.

I predict he will ultimately triumph. :) What that will look like will be interesting, no doubt. :)

Yeah...no.
This isn't nearly as deep as many people here seem to think it is.
Rather, it's a painfully shallow, After-School Special-level look at death, grief, emotional/psychological trauma, and gay romance under complicated circumstances.

Lovemaking/intimate time together during MC's private beach trip late in the show: 9/10
Writing/directing/acting/editing an incoherent mess: 1/10
Acting by younger half of MC: 8/10
Younger half's butt, especially considering how thin he is: 9/10
Portrayal of psychotherapy, lol: 1/10

Overall: 5/10

I suppose it was never intended to be anything more than a competently-made, gay, soft-core porn piece.
However, the first episode and the beginning of the second, and the acting of the nervous/reluctant student was so convincing and funny, that I thought it was going to be a lot more than that.

Someone needs to round up the same actors, fill out the backstory, present, and future stories with a rewrite or sequel, and go at it again. It could have been really funny. The visuals were nice, but even those became monotonous. Which is unfortunate, because there were lots of missed opportunities for hilarity along the way.

7/10

Yes, you should do that. You should follow their lead.

I don't know if you're referring to NFKorea or NF International, but this show wasn't made for the average NF viewer. I doubt NF is surprised it's not in their top 10. Most shows aren't.

What's not "mature" about "You should drop the show and watch something in your league?"
Seems like good advice.

Also, the dish falling off the table and shattering in the restaurant this ep when Dong Man put his foot in his mouth with Eun A.

This.

He apologized over and over.
Then he sat in the dark, regretting what he'd said.
Then, she called and asked for a funny story.
Because Eun A is wise and knows that people contain multitudes and make mistakes.
She forgives.
She knows DM has a huge, gentle, loving heart.

That's a very good point, and DM is dialed up to 11 compared to most of us. :)

He's not you and he's not "we," he is Dong Man.
If you haven't grasped the difference by episode 8, this show is not for you.

For me, this show is 10 times better than My Mister, which seriously and frequently dragged. That, and IU had one expression on her face the entire time.

You're supposed to think it looks disgusting. It does.

I would think the way you describe your current life would make you understand the "point" (and there are far more than one) of this drama more profoundly than most.