kate_xulansis

Episode 14 really got me needing the last two episodes!!! This is the first time one of our leads hasn’t opened up about their true feelings/situations and it’s got me anxious as heck lol. I understand why (ML had to go abroad and focus on his work) but I hated that FL had to suffer on her own without his support in the background. Just knowing your partner sees your situation and understands it can help you get through it. Not to mention, her silence ends up having some consequences on ML when he ends up going through that triggering event again at the end. Poor dude got retraumatized but I love how he worked through it—it really showed his growth in comparison to the start of the series. And some positives: the drama seems to finally be addressing divorce and im hoping it continues its streak of educating us in the correct direction. I’m hoping (but not expecting) that the one friend with the horrible husband gives it a thought too, to exhibit that divorce isn’t some immoral thing that should shame women but can instead free them from harmful relationships… but I think that may be pushing it for a kdrama.

regardless, I love this show.

has a second couple (so a 2ML and 2FL) but no serious love rivals

or the mother maybe

also would like to add (although this is once again a spoiler that I don’t recommend spoiling for yourself)


















He doesn’t actually try to kill him. Like he does but when he could have given the final blow that would have for sure killed wei ying, he purposely misses (we don’t see that until the scene plays out at like ep 33 or something). The sword hits the rock, not him.

It’s not just me! I rated this bad boy a whooping 9/10 and raved about it in my notes… it’s only been a few months but I DONT REMEMBER ANYTHING lol wth

yes! like I understand the initial reaction of people saying it’s cliche, but at this point in the drama I don’t understand how so many people are still missing the point of all those cliches.

it’s like the comment above mentioning how Mr No was forgotten about by the writers when obviously he’s undercover as a double agent and will reveal his hard work to us in an upcoming episode after they make it seem like he’s being disloyal to ML lol. The cliches that are staring them in the face almost go unnoticed and the cliches that they’re worried will happen flip it’s script. Yet it all gets twisted into insults about the writers forgetting plot devices. It amazes me how hardwired we’ve become to have such a knee-jerk reaction.

especially since it’s a kdrama as well. There is a cliche machine in dramaland (that we love to hate and hate to love) that spits out the same formula over and over, and these writers are actually blatantly and shamelessly using it only to flip the script on like 2/3rds of them lol. They tease us constantly with cliche tropes, only to have the characters basically laugh at the expected reaction and do something that no one expected. Like when FL was totally clueless on why ML thought she wanted to break up. I love it lol

have I mentioned to y’all how much I f*cking love this drama?

My god, I keep expecting the worse and only end up with more green flags. This writing is simply beautiful. The type of writing we don’t see because how do you make an unproblematic story interesting? But for a lot of people (obviously not all) they accomplished it. They showed us a real world that is plagued with inequalities, and slowly gave us the ideal version of a world I think we all crave. The way some people grow and develop in this world to respect others; how they take accountability; even how they make mistakes and learn to not repeat them again… the writing is unlike anything dramaland has ever offered to us.

It doesn’t matter if a lot of people find it boring and not well written, in my opinion, it’s so goddamn revolutionary. Episode 13, I expected the typical dramatic scene to unfold, instead we have trust and respect and people who are unwilling to be manipulated by others or the situations around them. And then to bring the son in like that? To showcase growth once more? damn. I wanted to cry from how amazing it felt to watch it all happen.

of course, it is still a drama and I do expect the other shoe to drop (unfortunately), but I hope they keep up these themes because they are just beautiful to watch. My heart is very happy as of now.

I actually liked this WAY more than I thought I would. I see some people have an issue with Min Ho (the actor’s acting in particular), but I was instantly rooting for him. Maybe it’s because I binged it all night on no sleep, but I thought he really sold his character! Sure he wasn’t as seasoned as he could be, but I thought he did a wonderful job. I would like to see him play more roles in the future.

The storyline is definitely your typical melodramatic formula (with the misunderstandings, separations, and lies), but it never lost its original appeal which always left a sweet aftertaste.

hm… not nearly as sad as it could have been, but abrupt at the very end and given no explanation. some think it’s open to interpretation. Some even choose to see it as a happy ending. For me it was more of a vague but hopeful conclusion to a series of heart wrenching endings, which made it very bittersweet.

I’m only half way through it but oh the acting is so bad. bless their hearts. the crying scenes with ML tho… im convinced this boy has never cried a day in his life if he thinks that will fool anyone. Besides for the acting, the script felt a bit over the top… like I know it’s short, but it was such a rough and obvious transition for the leads’ relationship.

but that crying tho lol

my heart 😭😭😭 that ending gave no explanation and I’m so mad but oh my heart is aching. ML is the cutest most precious thing that needs to always be protected. Help, the tears won’t stop. I already miss them.

honestly, the only reason I’m trying to keep expectations low is because of that formula. The show so far has absolutely exceeded my first expectations (especially with ML, I was so worried he was going to be another arrogant, childish, and controlling ML so that gradual/quick growth was super unexpected and amazing to see), so I just wanna keep up that feeling of being pleasantly surprised by the healthiness by expecting all the red flags instead lol

Wonderful comments answering you in detail, but I’d also like to add a more broader reasoning. Most relationships in real life are because of convenience. Meaning the person you see the most, spend the most time with, have common interests with and don’t dislike, will often become a potential partner if there is also physical or/and emotional attraction there. Add in potential triggers to either trauma or the opposite (something good from their past experiences), and the people will definitely notice one another.

Basically, if you have many of those factors and there is chance upon chance of meeting, you’re likely to feel something. And if they show signs of it being mutual, that feeling will grow and you will end up learning more and more about them until many details on top of those broader factors above become the many reasons you end up falling in love with them. Or, the opposite, where those details become the reasons why something like a fling or a crush doesn’t go anywhere.

everyone talking about how 16 episodes is too long and I’m over here thinking I would gladly watch their day-to-day lives forever and never get enough 😭I just LOVE their relationship. How ML has grown so much thanks to FL, how he makes mistakes and takes responsibility for them and THEN fixes his behaviour so the same mistakes don’t occur. And the communication between the two where they both talk about their troubles and actively grow (FL too)! Even the wholesome obsession with one another lol… I feel like I’ve unknowingly been starved of healthy relationships and this is satisfying and fulfilling it. There’s been very few examples of imperfect people growing to become genuinely wonderful partners in dramaland, I’m so glad I decided to watch this show and I hope it sticks with those themes of healthy communication and respect and doesn’t let us down in the upcoming episodes. 🙏🏼

why does it say 16 episodes here and 17 on viki? Just the way the episodes were cut? or is there extra content on viki?

perhaps! I feel like since this is probably the climax of the series, it’s going to go a little different. The father seems to already know who FL is to ML and purposely set it up this way, so there’s no ‘saving’ her from the intentions of the dinner (which was for her to witness the fact that ML will marry someone else and that her status can’t compete). So it doesn’t matter if ML physically saves her or he’s frozen, the damage is already done. But since the father is probably just wanting to scare her away from ML, her job is probably safe since she’s a really good worker even in his eyes. What FL does, however, I haven’t the imagination for. Probably not much? I doubt the misunderstanding between her and ML will last long (considering how fast they have always resolved issues between them).

I also see growth in the sister’s near future—where she steps back from business and focuses on her failing family (especially her son). I’m not sure what her breaking point will be, but I’m sure it involves ML and his management style lol and of course Mr No. double agent-ing

would be kinda cool to see a workers strike or something if the sister gets her way in controlling everything. Would really emphasize how important the employees are, but I doubt that would happen lol.

So basically you want an on-the-nose plot like I mentioned (murder mystery or maybe some unresolved childhood secret connecting the two or a drama that’s mainly about corporate espionage etc). This isn’t on the nose, but as I said, there is a plot (aka essence), the plot being about respecting people regardless of your status and fighting for people to be respected. Since the beginning it has always stressed and built up these themes by being about three workers being taken advantage of by a corporation wanting to gain profit at the expense of their employees. And to drive the plot home, you watch ML go from an ignorant guy in that corporation to someone who grows into an influential fighter for respect—with FL and her friends being the ones to open his eyes to that reality. It’s just not your usual in your face twisty plot that changes the direction of the show and causes drama between the leads. As I mentioned, the plot is growth.

but regardless of that, why go in automatically expecting action when you’re choosing to watch a rom-com? There are many shows that openly have all those genres, but this isn’t one of those dramas. If that’s not your cup of tea, doesn’t that mean you aren’t the audience KTL is catering to?

I’m not generalizing, I was mentioning the opposite situations of what I’ve seen people complaining about in KTL and putting it all together to exaggerate the silliness of some of the complaints about it lol

also, omg, their first challenge is upon them as a couple. The ending of ep 12 was so hard to watch! I’m not prepared for the drama.

why are people still complaining about “no plot”? the drama is almost done, we’re aware and we love it anyways. and anyways, the plot IS building healthy relationships and learning how to respect others. It might not be a plot that’s right on the nose (like a murder mystery or misunderstandings keeping the leads apart lol), but it is there. Growth is the plot. everything else (like the sister and the mother) are sub-plots that help our characters grow (the sister being a foil character who challenges ml to grow in the opposite way as her). It’s as if the show isn’t toxic enough to please people. I’ve heard complaints about the leads getting together too fast, how ML changed too quickly and unrealistically, how there’s too much romance. So if we’re to listen to that, people would rather misunderstandings or poor communication to keep the leads apart, a ML that doesn’t adapt and grow in his mistakes and has to constantly make the same mistakes until he figures it out after hurting FL too many times to count and she finally decides to maybe leave him, and a couple who is afraid to show affection to one another.

I, for one, will happily take this cute, healthy relationship over that any day :)