Chihiro

right, and here is where the wild speculation kicks in. it was shown in the last 2 eps she was continuing her father's research on the zombies and it was stated at the end of the last episode that there were still many unknown elements about the resurrection plant/worms.
honestly, she's probably dead. i appreciate that ending for her. i think it fit her character arc very well. slightly anticlimactic but you know, the more i think about it the better it seems to fit? the end of cho hak-ju's line brought about by the same arrogance that began the plague in the first place? i don't dislike it.
however, what if? something in the research brought about an unexpected result? anyway, like i said earlier it's all unclear theories with no justification besides the queen looking like a younger jun ji hyun. simply a fun thought exercise lol. just getting my thoughts onto a public forum, that's all

lol i said this more bc i thought jun ji hyun looked like a grown-up version of the queen than anything else. there's no other backing for it. but i agree with op that her death, while understandable, was a bit anticlimactic. no need for insults friend

and that's why my theory is that she survived being dumped into the lake and grew up into Jun Ji Hyun's character!

it may seem like she's being incredibly stupid but I understand why she did what she did. leaving to preserve their friendship and then not being friends after that? yes it's dumb, but she knows it. even if they're not friends anymore at least she can keep her memory of their time together untouched, where her main fear if they started a relationship was that they would break up. then even her memory of him would be tainted. she wasn't able to believe his words, that's why it took him making an art exhibition based around their time together for her to go back. through it he helped her to understand that even after a year without her, nothing changed. they could be what they were and more. when she returned i believe the possibility of them ever breaking up was gone from her thoughts.

she may have seemed like she knew what she wanted, but it's never that easy. she was so scared that he would change, that she would change, but really i think she was insecure about her place in his life. It seemed like the only thing she could hold onto at that point in her life was their friendship. after his confession there was no way she could face him again because then even that was gone. she didn't have enough confidence in herself or him to believe that a relationship would work, so she retreated.

maybe try school 2017, the main guy has that kind of persona. rough on the outside, soft on the inside. :)

D'''': noooooooooo

i'm up to ep 21, but i'm worried now. could you spoil the ending for me?

haha, perfect! thanks!

is there romance in this? or is it more like they're learning about the world together?

very much agreed! the way his relationships were handled was the result of some A+ writing

hmm..i would say there are only hints of romance here and there. one character most likely had a one-sided crush, and the leads developed a very strong friendship that could perhaps turn into something more in the future

Thanks! Haha, i think i'll wait until next week to see what's up before i start...

I'm not so good with anticipation when it has to do with angst...so could someone comment if the leads are working together yet? Or if at least the judge has returned from the dark side? Thanks!

I thought it was based on what Akane said, "It feels good to be with someone who wants to be with you" that kind of thing. That's why they went to other people. Because it felt good to be wanted. Hana thought something like, "that's when i learned mugi had a dark side too," referring to how they each used someone to feel better. They're with each other because of mutual understanding and physical need. That was my take anyway...

don't worry, the leads chemistry only improves throughout the show. i think episode 15 showcases it best...maybe withhold judgement until then?

thank you! :)

is there somewhere i can watch this subbed in the 4 episode format instead of 20?

no, you see after he faked his death he came to the real world and found that he, as the main character, could will himself into or out of W. that's how he was able to trap the killer and not get himself caught and how he could disappear in the elevator when he thought yeon joo was in danger. i believe he couldn't leave in the last part because he said to yeon joo that he remembered he just wished the manhwa was over and that was when the "last episode" words showed up and everyone was pulled back in. that's why he couldn't leave, because something has to happen to either him or the killer for it to end.

@rainruma yeah, i agree about 8th's wife. i feel like that one flashback about her and 8th's relationship wasn't enough, but i'm hoping to hear more from 8th or 13th about it. one of my fav relationships in bbjx was ruo xi and her sister. the dynamic between the three characters here was so different that i don't think soo and her cousin could have had the same kind of connection as ruo xi and her sister. But even so, i think they did a pretty solid job with this.

as for 4th, haha, i really don't mind that he was given a reason. it makes it easier to empathize with his character. i feel like i almost had to force myself into understanding the 4th of bbjx. and i think it also fits with the history of goryeo better. instead of becoming king (emperor) directly following the death of his father like in bbjx, in ml (according to history at least) his father dies, crown prince becomes king and dies, then 3rd prince becomes king and dies, and finally 4th takes the throne. so i guess we'll have to wait and see how faithful this is to the actual history.

i don't really want to make any assumptions about ep 6 because i think i'll be surprised whatever way it turns out. however, i do think that 4th and 8th will be working together for the rescue of soo. though the romance does seem to be moving faster, haha, i think that's just because soo and so simply have more scenes together than ruo xi and 4th did by this point in bbjx. for now it appears, to me anyway, that so has developed more than a passing curiousity for soo, but i don't know if it's love yet. he certainly cares, but besides some staring and odd conversation on his part, i don't want to draw conclusions yet. and soo, from what we've seen so far i think i can safely say she's enamored with 8th at the moment. unless something changes drastically in the next episode, she's not going to switch over quite yet. personally, i like that they're spending time together instead of just observing each other, haha. i hope that before anything really serious happens between them they can develop the kind friendship that we didn't get to see between them in bbjx.

(woah, i really rambled. sorry for the essay! OTL )

@rainruma you know, i'm not so sure about the "typical kdrama formula" for so and soo. there was a scene in one of the first previews that showed someone smashing a bracelet. and that leads me to think about the all important returning of the bracelet to the 8th prince in bbjx (hmm hmm? ;D). in any case i'm interested to see how the relationship plays out in moon lovers.

i agree about 4th and 8th as well. not that they didn't show emotion necessarily, but something about them as characters seemed stiff, idk. here, (i know some will disagree) i kind of like the close-ups, i think it gives more nuance to the performance and gives better insights into their personalities.