Living Tribunal

Oh, come on now, not intentionally chummy? So, hanging out with the SML, giving him all the emotional attention while conveniently forgetting to mention she has a boyfriend isn’t ‘intentional’? Sure. But the ML helping a friend (SFL)—even if we assume he knew her intentions—makes him the worse person here? Right, because double standards make everything ‘too good’ for your liking.

Oh, so hanging around the SML and getting all chummy with him while being in a relationship isn't considered sabotaging her own relationship? She couldn’t even tell the SML she’s dating someone else. But somehow, the ML helping his friend (SFL)—when we’re not even sure if he knows her true intentions—makes him the villain and someone to hate? Totally makes sense. I get your point, bro.

Yep you are only not liking him but I bet FL is your favorite even though she has been doing the same thing.

After watching this again, I'm just so confused. Why didn't the grandpa do anything to Yu Ra? She's indirectly responsible for his only heir's death! As a powerful chaebol, he should have used some shady tricks, like they do in real life, to take her down or even worse. But no, he's just a useless old man who can't protect his family or his company's 600,000 employees. It's infuriating!

Not just that drama—there are so many recent ones where the same thing happens, all in the name of romance and female empowerment. I could list plenty of examples, but they rarely get called out because the SMLs are always nice, genuine, and good-looking. It’s like their charm makes it easier for the FL’s actions to be justified, no matter how unfair or insensitive they are to the ML. This pattern keeps repeating, and it’s honestly frustrating.

Exactly, it’s such a double standard, and it’s happening so often in dramas now. FLs get away with so much just because they’re the leads. They hit the ML or other characters, don’t set proper boundaries with SMLs even when they’re in a relationship, and sometimes even act controlling or possessive, but it’s all framed as “cute” or “empowering.” Meanwhile, if the ML did even half of this, he’d be labeled as toxic or a red flag. It’s honestly getting tiring to see these double standards play out repeatedly.

There are so few FLs who actually do this, so I’ve stopped expecting much. She’ll probably just say she’s dating the ML, reject the SML, and then still stay all buddy-buddy with him. I don’t get how you can stay friends with someone who clearly has feelings for you while you’re in a relationship. It’s like they don’t even think about how their partner would feel about it. This seems to be more of an issue with FLs, though, since we rarely see decent SFLs for the same thing to happen.

Bro, I feel you. I want this to happen too, but it’s unlikely. These days, there are very few dramas where the FL and ML are equally balanced in their relationship. Most of the time, the ML does all the heavy lifting, while the FL seems to have the SML to “practice” her relationship skills. The only drama I’ve seen this year where the FL put in more effort than the ML is Smile Code.

Honestly, there were moments I wanted to knock some sense into her because of how persistent she was in pursuing the ML—she was doing most of the work for the majority of the relationship! Sometimes, I just wished she would stop pursuing him so he could step up and put in some effort too. She totally deserved that, especially since she was such a good partner. It would’ve been great to see him realize her worth and chase her for a change. But he chased for a very short time and she forgave him.

This show was great until the unnecessary breakup. I understand Ji Won has trauma, but that doesn’t justify starting and ending relationships without giving her partner a chance to explain. She was in a seven-year relationship, was somewhat flirting with Eun Ho, and openly flirting with Ji Hyeok (her new boyfriend). Yet, this is framed as female empowerment. But the moment she discovers her new boyfriend had an ex-fiancée, she unilaterally breaks up with him without even hearing his side of the story. Honestly, she’s not a good partner and, in my opinion, doesn’t deserve Ji Hyeok. For a moment, I wished Ji Hyeok had moved on with someone else just so Ji Won could feel the pain of losing a genuinely good guy she wouldn’t have had if she had truly thought things through. It took Ji Hyeok to almost die just so she can make up her mind when it should have been his choice on whether he wants to take her or not but just because of the simp he is, he took her like a dog wagging his tail just to get her attention.

Nope, the rumours are saying either Q2 or Q3. So, we have to wait for a long time.

Till the end of the moon

Did you guys really like the second couple? Personally, I couldn’t understand how they ended up together at all. They felt quite boring and lacked any real character development as a pair, even though both had sensitive pasts. There was no emotional attachment between them, yet they suddenly got together in one episode. I also didn’t like how the leads kept forgiving people without any apology, as if the wrongdoer was the victim who didn’t need to say sorry at all.

I never said she was dating anyone; I just feel that the SML could be a good partner for her. To me, it seems like she isn’t as deeply in love as the ML is. We empathize with everything the ML endured and admire how he still helped her, even though, from his perspective, their relationship had ended very badly. But did we see the same kind of effort or understanding from the FL? No, right?

That’s why I was wistfully thinking that maybe the ML deserves someone else (not her friend, the SFL)—someone who would genuinely appreciate his efforts. So far, I haven’t seen any signs of that from the FL. Instead of constantly bickering, she could have tried to understand his reasons for the breakup or at least made some effort to address it.

I just hope the ML gives himself a chance to date someone else. The FL has someone else now, so he should stop caring for her and focus on himself instead of wasting his care on someone who doesn’t deserve it—at least based on what I’ve seen so far. It would be healthier for him, but alas, how can this be a rom-com if they don’t turn the ML’s love for the FL into comedy?

She was angry because, after his confession, he admitted that he needed some time to figure out how to properly care for her. He told her that while he liked her, he didn’t know how to love anyone yet. You see, that’s why the ML didn’t get on the stage. Honestly, though, that scene isn’t one of my favorite moments for the FL. She shouldn’t have pressured him into making a decision when he clearly wasn’t ready.

There were countless moments when I just wanted to slap both leads for their illogical and indecent behaviors—enough to fill a whole page. Let's put the ML aside, as he is technically a patient with emotional blindness, but I expected some understanding from her side, at least, given how determined she was in treating and pursuing him. She should not have made jokes about his condition, and she certainly should not have pressured him into accepting her somewhat public confession.

In the preview for next ep, she is again seen to be doing the same thing so i'm not sure whether she will confess or not.

This drama is really good, but one thing I didn't like was how Zhang Qingya didn’t face proper punishment. It’s frustrating how villains in Chinese dramas often don’t get the justice they deserve. Is there some unspoken rule about that? In contrast, I feel Korean dramas handle revenge much better. The villains usually get their rightful karma and punishment, which makes the whole experience so much more satisfying.

Thanks 😊

Thanks 😊