lmangla

So strange. I wrote a review but it is not showing up on the page. Some tech glitch? Am confused.

I enjoyed the scene between DanHui and JungRan where DanHui had to explain the fear of losing someone. The shock that JungRan actually cares about Driver Song was interesting. It has made her realize the weight of her own actions.

I liked that DanHui didn't go all forgiveness mode and instead noted that JungRan will have to get used to saying sorry a lot. I am curious about what kind of ending the writer will go with for JungRan. She did commit quite a number of crimes working under Park Tae Ho.

I also liked this final confrontation between DanHui and Park Tae Ho and the evaluation of his life, his definition of loyalty and love. Park TaeHo does not look like the character that will serve jail time. Probably would rather die than face jail. Let's see how it all wraps up.

Watching ep 21 and I find YeongJu and SeungYu serioulsy infuriating. Both mother and son are way too stuck in victim mentality and they are going to get really knockered (I hope) in the drama.
YeongJu actually tells her eldest that her own pain is higher than Oreum being sick -- seriously???
SeongYu has the audacity to say that SeungHyeon can have another child and somehow it is the couple's fault for having a sick child -- seriously????
I want both of these to be slapped badly and I hope it happens.

So YeongJu is just a victim diva. No one owes you anything for your pain and suffering. Things happen. How we choose to react to is OUR CHOICE. Yes, our choice! Look, I have friends and relatives who got divorced (some were cheated on) but they didn't hold on to a dead marriage. Yes, there was pain but they eventually moved on and even got re-married. Some are single but well.

Sticking on to a dead marriage for 30 years was YeongJu's choice and decision. Regardless of how a relationship breaks, no one can force you to be in relationship against your will. That is just wrong. YeongJu acts like she is a victim for living in the shadows but that was HER choice.

SeongYu acts like JiNi being born destroyed his family and now again tearing them apart. Nope, that is just deflecting and blaming someone else.

The fact is that the dad who chose to step out of the marriage even though he had kids. While YeongJu would love to think it was just lust, the fact is that he stayed with Seri for 30 years and had a family with her even when she drove him nuts. He chose to leave YeongJu even though they had kids together . JiNi wasn't the reason He chose a new family. He chose Seri.

We don't know how the relationship with YeongJu was prior to Seri. It is always easy to romanticize as it being good but based on conversations with folks I know, my view is that relationships don't breakdown in a vacuum. It is often a slow erosion or the discord was always there from the beginning. So the affair is less of a surprise but more of a confirmation that it was already broken for quite some time.

It is easier to blame JiNi than for SeongYu to take a look in the mirror. Families have disagreements and SeongHyeon actually getting closer to accepting JiNi is a choice he is making. He and his mother are absolutely callous and think nothing of the pain of SeongHyeon and instead expect him to adjust during this traumatic time. So it is their own insensitivity and callousness that is splitting this family apart.

There will be more pain to follow for this family before they find peace. Till YeongJu and SeongYu stop acting like they are participating for a prize in victim olympics, there will be no real forgiveness. They have to look in the mirror and realize they too are super selfish.

They are entitled users. YeongJu held on to a marriage on paper out of spite for 30 years and thinks she is the victim. She is so angry that she passed on her ill heart to her sons as legacy. After a certain point, not letting someone go is also emotional abuse.

My guess is the sons will end up coming full circle where they basically understand that marriages/relationships can fall apart and it is just part of life. Knowing how to let go is key to moving on in a healthy way.

Caught up on this week's episodes and I actually get why JiNi decides to donate but be anonymous. YeongJu and her sons want to use her but they still hate and despise her.

While SeongHyeon is getting to the point that he doesn't care about the circumstances of JiNi's birth, YeongJu still will not take back those words and curses. So they were totally fine with JiNi almost offing herself from the stress of not having her father's name. They were totally fine to try fleece Seri and JiNi after his death. But now, they want her bone marrow but they cannot sincerely apologize. It is a fake apology where they want something but the moment they get it, they will go back to wishing she never existed.

As JiNi said, if it was a random child, she would have happily donated anyway. Whereas being related, it means that the father had to fall in love with SeRi, the affair had to happen, JiNi had to be born. In other words, YeongJu as well as her sons have to accept that all of the things that happened was in a way a good thing but they are nowhere near to letting go of the past.

YeongJu is still in the victim mentality and it still makes her mad. She only wants to see her own hurts but is unwilling to accept how her actions and words also harmed others.

So yea, JiNi donating anonymously makes total sense. JiNi is not being naive or being overly kind. She would have donated to anyone and that would have been an outsider. It therefore makes sense to donate as an outsider to Oreum because that is what she is and has always been. So how can she help as a family member when they have never seen her? So this way, she gets to do the good thing but keep her pride as well as her parents. She also acknowledges the past and has not let go of what happened. In other words, she is not being a doormat but walking an interesting middle ground.

The way JiHu talks -- it sounds like he was cheated on in his prior relationship?? That was my guess. No idea why he is with DoHee though. Force of habit?

Yea it was nice to see her push back; I was thinking we will have to wait till the end of the drama to see any comeback but it looks like those martial arts lessons were useful.

Yea, I was not expecting the whiplash reaction either. Without that, I would have seen her interest in HyunJun as mostly guilt. However, she seems rather upset and so her feelings might be more. So far, all we have is her stunned looks. I rather like the drama gives us quiet reactions rather than words in some scenes. Makes an interesting pace.

That is what makes this arc unexpectedly interesting. So I was not expecting MinJun to frame this as love -- basically he is saying that this isn't some pity emotion but actually something deeper. If it was any other character, I would have dismissed it. But since it was MinJun, I am taking his observation.

Some love stories are passionate but usually the weekend dramas will do different types of love. Basically the idea is that not all romantic stories are flashy but some are quieter and just as real.

HyunJun like you said is passionate. He is not going to be aware or recognize that JinJu is actually seeing him in a romantic light at all. Something dramatic has to happen for JinJu to admit how she feels and actually verbalize it and for HyunJun to recognize that it is no longer one-sided.

Actually it was in reference to JinJu being hurt by YuNa potentially marrying HyunJun. That said, YuNa is a complex individual. YuNa is a bully but someone who is weak (holds no power). She feels guilt but placates herself by pushing the blame on to others. She feels that she is entitled to a good life and she will do whatever but at the same time, she is petrified of a lot of things. It will be interesting to see if she accepts her wrongdoing and gets punishment or runs in some fashion from looking at the mirror. My bet is that she will run.

Yea, we normally don't see the worry+guilt vibe as a romantic love component but it makes sense within this drama. There is so much stuff happening revenge arc that a passionate love story would feel out of place.

Instead, it is about having a support and companion during the storm. From that view, I can see how JinJu became attached to HyunJun without meaning to.

I wonder if writer changed track away from MinJun due to local audience reactions or if it was intended from the start.

Normally I am not a fan of triangles but in this drama, I am actually enjoying this arc. While I had a hunch that HyunJun would be end game, I like how the writer is approaching this.

It is MinJun who notices what is going on and says it aloud. He isn't angry, frustrated or even sad. He is almost resigned and has accepted that JinJu has perhaps moved on. She has been so busy with the revenge that she has never had to sit with her feelings which means she doesn't know what she actually feels for HyunJun.

It is MinJun who is defining it for her -- guilt+worry+thinking about him+wanting to see him -- all of that looks more like love. This isn't about who is better for her or some grand passion. Instead, it is a quiet attachment that has snuck up on JinJu without her even realizing it.

HyunJun initially was easy going but it did not mean that it cost him to support her. He put everything he had to be by her side and he felt like she rejected him because he was illegitimate. She didn't share her plans and basically used him only when it suited her purposes.

He then rejected her and chose himself. Adele Group is not about money but more about identity. He thinks he will no longer feel the sting of rejection if he is chairman. He is upset because he was pushed aside by MinJun and JinJu.

Now that he might be moving on to YuNa, JinJu is unexpectedly hurt. Even if he uses marriage as a tool in the same way she did, she is upset. Why? She had gotten used to his support. He was a safety net. Perhaps he was never just a tool.

Funnily enough, even though he is against her, both MinJun and JinJu know that he won't compromise either of their safety and let out about the audio file. There is still an implicit trust, care and love tied up in this triangle. Rather enjoying this quiet vibe.

Not a fan of sickness arc in dramas but if it does go down that route, my guess is that there will be a transplant needed for little kiddo and only JiNi will be the match and the first family will be forced to crawl ....

The article wasn't very clear about what rights those living together have. In my country, if a couple live together for a certain number of years, they are considered to be in common-law marriage and they also have rights towards inheritance, property as well as children. So it is likely that Korean lawmakers are also debating on these kind of modern dynamics.

The second wife would fit the terms for a common law marriage (in some countries) especially since the relationship was for 25+ years and they owned things together. So it could easily be a lawsuit on who has claims if the previous relationship was pretty much dead in the water and the current marriage is the defacto one.

Not sure if the writer will go into those aspects but the drama is making me think about why lawmakers in my country felt the need to address co-habitation. It is messy when there legalities are murky.

Since the name of the drama is family register, I wanted to check if there are some legal changes that could explain the context. So, there are some administrative changes expected to roll out in October this year.

https://evrimagaci.org/gpt/south-korea-to-overhaul-family-records-for-privacy-538786
According to this article, it is to reflect more diverse family types. While I didn't understand all the ins and out, the drama itself might be a reflection of wider changes how the society views this situation.

I don't understand the first wife's perspective at all. No idea why she would cling on to a dead marriage for some 30 years when the guy had left. Why would she care for her in-laws when the husband left? It makes no sense to hold on to so much bitterness that she passed it on to her sons. She was unwilling to accept that her marriage fell apart.

this is one drama where I am not too bothered about which way the romance arc will go. In some dramas, I am totally fuming at the end but here, I would be fine if she ends up with MJ even though I am leaning more towards HyunJun.

I am more curious about what will happen with Adele. While we are guessing Butler Jang is possibly working with the Madam and they are all related to the original owners, we don't know for sure. Will Jung Ran will face any punishment? What about her sidekick SeongTae?

So thankfully, the drama still has something to look forward to even as we hit the last arcs and we are not going around in circles like in some dramas.

With first love return stories, both parties are somehow frozen in time. Here it is only MinJun.

BaekJinJu v1.0 is actually a different woman from BaekJinJu v2.0 (Chloe). BaekJinJu was kind and believed the best in people. Chloe is willing to use people and will not play pity games. She does not feel sorry for YuNa. The old version did. That is why it makes sense to me when HyunJun told MinJun that he fell in love with Chloe and not BaekJinJu.

MinJun knows and loves BaekJinJu but does he really know Chloe? The one who makes tough choices and does not look back? Would he able to accept that she has changed and he is not getting back that version of her even after the revenge is done?

When the person changes too much, there is no reset to the first love in many dramas. In some, they stick with the original pairing. The writer is not giving away the cards.

HyunJun could go the completely evil track or he could also go through this current track where he is clearly divided. Either way, it will be interesting to watch.

So MinJun's arc does not need a romance for it to be finished. It basically has him finding out the truth about his mother, the murder and now confronting Park Tae Ho. Then he can move on as Adele was never his thing. If he gets romance, it is a bonus. If he doesn't, he would still be fine.

With HyunJun, he needs to find himself. Basically it is what SeongTae said -- regardless of who the father is, HyunJun should just be HyunJun. Right now, HyunJun thinks he has been rejected/abandoned by both MinJun and Chloe and is very upset.

Basically his self-worth has taken a further dive as he thinks he was not considered important by the two people he loves. So he is trying to reclaim his sense of self by taking over Adele. However, even if he succeeds, he will still be lost.

In the end, he needs to know that he is loved and valued regardless for who he is. For that, he needs to have his brother back (MinJun) and he needs to have Chloe show him that she didn't throw him because he was no longer useful or Park TaeHo's son. So he needs to know that it is okay to just be HyunJun.

So from arc perspective, HyunJun needs the romance more which is why I don't see it as weird that Chloe has mixed feelings. However, it really depends on audience as well as writer. Sometimes writers will throw curve balls but in the end, it will come back to first love. Or if the story demands a reset and moving on, then a new pairing to conclude. Like I said, it could go either way.

Yea it can go either way. Chloe seemed surprisingly glad to see HJ (thinking he had come back to her) and actually kind of hurt that he said goodbye. Unclear whether she is feeling just guilty or more. So the writer is going to keep us guessing for a few more episodes.

Not necessarily; I think MinJun and Chloe pairing was always a bit dicey because his father killed her father. So if they got together despite that, we would need a Romeo+Juliet type passionate love story. However, we haven't really gotten that.

It was more of a first love story which can always go either direction -- restart or just close the chapter. So moving on in different directions finally free from the past could also be a good ending. We will have to wait and see which way it goes.