jennyanyd0ts

Good for you! Exactly what I am planning to do!

I didn't understand this scene at first. The enigmatic phone call, why was he taking money from his stash and what was he going to do with it?
Now I think like you: he is going to help and pay off his buddy's debts with the 'Chairman'. That makes most sense.

I imagine Chang Hee giving Gu another bear hug.... 😉But would Gu survive this onslaught of affection in his current physical state???



[only joking]

I am still digesting the last episode and trying to collect my thoughts.
First impressions:
The last episode was 1 hr 20 min. long but I was never bored and time slipped by unnoticed. I was surprised (and almost disappointed) when the end credits started to roll!!! I honestly got up to check if this was really the end and that 1 . 20 hrs had passed!

The last episode was very true to the entire tone this show had set out from the start: realistic, unshowy, observant but non- judgmental, serene.

I had a few moments of tense anxiety, worrying whether MLN will go the usual way of Kdrama (i.e. dramatic deaths, accidents, deadly illnesses) - but, thankfully, it didn't!
(I was sooooo worried for Mr Gu when he went to pick up that coin from the sewer grill..... 😨 I was like " please, please, please.... don't let him be run over by a car and die beautifully and tragically on the street...!!!! "😊)
I needn't have worried. The writer of MLN would never have given the characters and the audience such a trite, cheap, boring end!!!

Chang Hee's story was wonderful!
I never took too much interest in this character but he is the one who really underwent some fundamental changes throughout the period depicted here. His was a real story arch - maybe a bit too happy-endy in the end (?) - but it was so satisfying to see him sitting in that classroom, finally realising that he had a calling, a talent, something that made him special and that will point the way to him receiving satisfaction from a job that not many people want to and can do.

The actor did an amazing job of portraying his feelings and the slow realisation that he had stumbled by accident right into a classroom where he belonged.

10/10 points.
I will re-watch the entire show again to pay more attention to the amazing camera work and other things I did not notice watching it for the first time.

Yep, reading your comment, that's plausible... It could be a very clever, difficult, long-term plan executed by Gu!
So Gu lets himself go and drinks like a fish somewhat on purpose so that he will be fired or abandoned by his boss. When Gu is no longer of use to his boss, neglects his duties, makes mistakes, maybe he will finally be let go of and liberated from the loan-sharking world....

If only Gu's liver will hold out until this plan comes to fruition..!!. It would also explain why it took him almost 2 years to contact MJ again! This plan would take some time to develop and work... And we have already seen the 'Chairman' gave him a (worried?) pep talk about his drinking problem, so we might be close to the point where Gu is no longer useful to him ...... and then he would be *free*.

Great interpretation and thoughts!
Thank you - I never have that many ideas or insights into the characters. That's why I love reading other's comments here. They provide so much food for thought!

Totally agree with you!
I was at first a bit surprised and deflated seeing that apart from a change in location, not much has changed to the positive in the siblings' lives.
(Apart from Mi-Jeong, she seems much happier and smiles a lot more than we saw before...)

Then I thought, yes, this is brilliant, and exactly how real life usually plays out. People change jobs, partners and countries in the hope of escaping something - the mundanity of life, a horrible colleague, financial strife - only to discover that things won't magically change because "everywhere you go, there you are."
(i.e. you are always taking your emotional baggage with you and have to confront your problems/issues, no matter where you go)
The screenwriter behind this show is a genius with a lot of insight into the human condition.

Totally agree with you!
I was at first a bit surprised and deflated seeing that apart from a change in location, not much has changed to the positive in the siblings' lives.
(Apart from Mi-Jeong, she seems much happier and smiles a lot more than we saw before...)

Then I thought, yes, this is brilliant, and exactly how real life usually plays out. People change jobs, partners and countries in the hope of escaping something - the mundanity of life, a horrible colleague, financial strife - only to discover that things won't magically change because "everywhere you go, there you are."
(i.e. you are always taking your emotional baggage with you and have to confront your problems/issues, no matter where you go)
The screenwriter behind this show is a genius with a lot of insight into the human condition.

I can sympathise with you. I thought those dogs were beautiful, looked like German shepard dogs, there was a lovely white one... But, I also live in a country where there are next to no stray dogs, so I have no idea how dangerous they are.

I loved the fact that Mr Gu seemed to care for them, however! Fed them and provided a sun shade.

But he just abandoned them, apparently without regret when he left for Seoul.... (Just like the Yeom family)
So did he really care or not?

Maybe this is just to show Gu' s callous side when he is back in his life as club manager in Seoul.
In his Seoul life, he is 'bad' - uncaring, bossy , calling his subordinate by any name that comes into his mind.

He is unlikely to have shown this side of his character in Sanpo, where he and his life was 'good'.

Thus: Seoul Gu = bad
Sanpo Gu = good

What you wrote is very interesting. To be honest I didn't get what this name change was all about. Found it very odd that Gu just shouts out any name and his underling comes running...

I thought it's more an expression of power - the guys' position is so low and insignificant, his superiors cannot even be bothered to remember or bother about his name...

But it's still a weird scenario... I'm still puzzled ....

This movie was on TV last night in my country and I nearly missed it. Beautiful, moving story with brilliant, unshowy, understated acting by the two main protagonists. 9 points from me. Highly recommended!

I can't wait to see how things actually played out, how the siblings moved to Seoul and finally left Dad/liberated themselves from their stifling childhood home. Will they live together just like Tae Hoon and his two sisters after his divorce or will they have moved in with partners or ...?

Oh, okay, I hadn't thought of that... The missing pictures on the wall. Your explanation makes sense.

Wow! That is some complicated stuff...
I don't reckon it's that difficult to follow the timeline as I remember a few scenes where the years are clearly shown to the audience.

For example, in the Dad's workshop, when Gu and Yeom Dad are working together during that hothot summer a wall calender dated 2019 is clearly shown a few times.
Then, we already had scenes of Gu back to his job at the club/casino in Seoul and we saw him leaving a New Years' Party for 2022...

So, I think the "summer of Gu" for the Yeom family was 2019, he left them before winter was over bec. Mi Jung repeatedly mentioned she and Gu were going to be "transformed" by the end of winter through their practice of adoring each other-- and we never got to see that... Gu's return then is in 2022 - it's again very cold, he's freezing waiting for Mi Jung in front of the train station, so it could be early 2022.

Question: Is Dad really married again? I must've missed that reference. I thought that lady could just be a house-keeper or hired domestic helper..... (?)

I was so moved and touched by the scene where Chang Hee is waiting at the parking space he once visited with Gu in the hope of meeting him again...
😢

I've already decided to rewatch the entire series from the start once we get the final episode next weekend.... 😀

I'm surprised nobody actually comments or picked up on the fact that Mr Gu acts like a bit of a jerk (or gae seki ?) by returning to the family who welcomed him and helped him recover from something akin to a mental/physical breakdown a few years ago.
Now he is trying to visit them again; after breaking off all contact completely , he seems to have arrived at the same point of breakdown again, he seems tired, run down, alcoholic, depressed.
Isn't it utterly selfish to only now think about Mi Jung and the Yeom family again when he might need them again for another recovery??

Wow, there were a few unexpected developments in episode 13 and 14.
This was a very moving and realistic depiction of grief in this last episode.
Mi Jung and her father - dry eyed, stoic, but probably screaming on the inside, and the two older siblings - more outwardly emotional, crying their eyes out and overcome with tears at any given time during the day - waiting for the bus or eating breakfast with Dad.....
This resonated very much with me and I found it realistic and beautiful.

It's so sad that the father cannot find any words to communicate his feelings. He is more open and talkative with Mr Gu than with his own family... That breakfast of father and son was devastating, when Chang Hee is suddenly overcome with tears and doesn't dare to cry openly in front of his father, but gets up from the table to sob and cry somewhere else...... This is so sad... I wonder if we will get a few more scenes with Dad that could explain his extremely taciturn character and emotional unavailability... But there's not much time left!!!

Btw- has anyone noticed the jaunty, imaginative camerawork recently? In one scene with Ki Jung the camera is positioned inside a laundry basket (!)and we see her looking and reaching inside it, and in another similar shot, the camera looks up at her from inside some kind of cupboard/refridgerator from which she heaves out some kimchi (? I think..) containers . Those were some unusual, cool shots and camera angles...

I felt so sad for the Dad when Mr Gu left. ;-(
He had finally found someone he could work with and was clearly hoping for more - a future with Gu there permanently. He was even teaching him about how to handle customers' orders and how not to be defrauded of his money when they suddenly cancel orders .... Gu's uncomfortable, guilty expression spoke volumes about his intentions to leave soon....