natyok9378

Yeah, I get some of the criticisms, but this one is just weird. Like, the writers knew they had to give Arisu & Usagi some kind of reason (and it had to be based on something previously established to make sense), but they can't just do that for everyone. Let's be real: nobody here would've actually wanted to see all these characters get send back to the Borderlands for no real reason after we already watched 2 seasons of them fighting to survive. It works with the new characters because we didn't know them before, so we don't really think of how incredibly unfair all of this actually is.

I mean, yeah, turning everybody into a zombie would've been the ideal solution. But also: stressful situation have a habit of bringing out the worst of human nature, because everyone is desperate to survive. Rei said it perfectly: either the zombies win through exponential growth, or the humans gets scared and start killing all of them. The humans heavely outnumbered the zombies at the start, so obviously nobody actually wanted to become a zombie, because they didn't wanna die.

And I think Arisu was just playing the long game to see which way things would turn out. He obviously also wanted to save his team, because that's just how he is, even if it might put himself at more risk. So based on how things were initially going, finding the vaccine cards was the smart play, which always could've been used to turn him into a human at the end.

Okay, but the music used when they were escaping the Borderlands is so good? They used it in S1 as well, and in certain other moments, but it elevates literally every scene it is used in. I love it.

A mix of manipulation but also never being able to move on from her father's death. Sure, her direct decision not being shown could cause confusion, but I think her struggles were clearly shown, making it understandable. Her father wasn't there, but she didn't know that. It's not exactly a coincidence that almost as soon as she was in the borderlands (and had her memories back), her focus shifted back to "survive and live".

Honestly, I always treated this season as a "bonus round". Not necessarily a direct sequel to S1 & 2, but a follow-up that takes elements that weren't fully resolved in S2 to tell a new story, while also serving as an epilogue of sorts. It's different, but I also think that it should be different, since the original story was concluded, and this isn't that story. And I think this season works best if you follow this logic. Do I think this season is necessarily as good as the first two? Honestly, no. Do I still think it's great television? You bet I do. Do I think it's a satisfying conclusion? Also yes.

I liked the new characters, and ended up rooting for them fairly quickly. And I like how it wasn't actually immediately obvious who was gonna live or die (the brother being the only exception I think), which made the games even more thrilling. I thought the games were great, and they really showcased human nature at it's worst, but also sometimes, at it's best.

Arisu & Usagi were obviously at the heart of everything, and they were as great as ever, even if Usagi might not have as many physical elements this season (she still had a lot of moments to shine though, and let's be real, I'm not sure Arisu would've been able to climb those rocks in the finale on his own).

I did notice some interesting parallels with the S2 finale in this finale. Ultimately, Ryuji was moved by Arisu & Usagi's love, much like Mira was as well. And much like Arisu got one last moment where he saw his friends before leaving the borderlands in S2, Usagi gets the same with her father this season.

And, no, I don't think the ending is necessarily setting up an American version. It's just that the Borderlands is a global thing, and I'm actually glad that the next big disaster might be in the US, as it means our characters in Japan are safe (and I did have a good chuckle at the Alice nametag).

All right, throw that love triangle away, it's lazy and predictable, just pair up Jong-hui with the brother.

Though what I want most of all is for both of these women to have a happy ending that's not just them ending up with a guy, and also for their friendship to have a happy ending. I'm still recovering from You and Everything Else, I can't handle another cryfest.

99% sure it's not the wife. Preview seems to hint at her being pregnant, which would be a logical continuation of that story. I am suspecting her friend though.

Also, unpopular opinion, but I'm not even that mad at the police team. Yeah, digging into his background was out of line, but that's what all your half truths and lies get you. It's his last lie that really ruined it I think. Na-hee asked him point blank if he was hiding anything else, and he lied to her face. He really should've been honest in that moment, and things probably would've gone over a lot better. Heck, even Su-yeol seemed to have realized that lying accomplishes nothing, since the next thing he did was be honest with his wife.

No.

Sang-yeon was incredibly complicated, and yet, I never hated her. She was deeply flawed, and her relationship with Eun-jung clearly wasn't exactly healthy, and yet I always found myself understanding her, or at least trying to. I think all of this works really well, because the drama is aware of all these things. It never glorifies it, but it also refuses to paint Sang-yeon as the antagonist. The relationship between Eun-jung & Sang-yeon was the highlight here, and putting a single label on what they had couldn't even begin to do it justice, but in the very end, I do think what they had was painfully beautiful. That final episode had me crying over and over again, and I don't regret a single second of it.

I think my main problem here was Sang-hak. Like, he wasn't bad, don't get me wrong. There's definitely a charm to him in the beginning. But also, he didn't really have a story, or a reason to exist beyond just being a love interest and to come between the two women. That's fine in the beginning, it works, but by the time we get to the workplace arc, much of his initial charm is gone, and I think he really begins to overstay his welcome. Like, I was honestly relieved that they ended that story in episode 13, and didn't feel the need to bring him into the present-day story. I just think that story went on for longer than it should've.

Honestly, it's not even that hard to do. You just need to make sure both leads actually have an equal chance, or at least appear to. But when promotional materials, and even this first episode, already push the Yeong-rye/ Jae-pil pairing, your love triangle basically failed before it even properly began. If you make it obvious who the audience is supposed to root for in a love triangle, that kinda makes the whole thing pointless. You don't really need multiple seasons for this.

The most important question before episode 2 though: will they actually watch Madame Aema? Will these innocent souls be tainted forever? Like, you can't leave me in suspense here.

Did they look this old though? Like, no matter how you twist and turn it, the logistics of this guy passing for a 12th grader is questionable at best (especially when put alongside Sang-cheol, who literally looks 10 years younger).

Look, I'm usually not one to complain about age stuff, but Jae-pil literally looks like a 30 year old. And it's even more ridiculous when you put him alongside Sang-cheol, who actually looks like he could pass for 20. Like, I can't take that seriously.

Anyway, this was fun, though this could very easily turn into a trainwreck with this kind of plot. But, also, like, what's the point of a love triangle to begin with if you can already predict from the start that he's going to end up with Yeong-rye?

Also, I hope nobody missed that 20 second epilogue after the preview because I nearly did.

I mean, blaming her is easy, but none of that would've happened to begin with if Su-yeol was honest about his mother. She wanted answers because his actions raise questions that he can't answer. Of course she has an attitude, because she can't trust him, and rightfully so, because he is lying. His lies are understandable, but that's only because we have the context other people don't. That whole team is a mess because there's no trust there, and it's going to keep being a mess as long as the lies persist.

Great second episode. I'm curious about the ending reveals, since none of that happens in the jdrama, so I'm interested to see what that's all about.

There's no romance. At most, there's a one-sided crush from Gu-ho's side, but even that's debatable. And even if that's the case, a one-sided crush is not a romance.

Great first episode. Also a good adaptation of the Japanese drama so far: it's actually very similar, but they kinda gave it their own touch, and it works. Park Min Young is clearly having a lot of fun here, and it shows.

There's no romance in this though.

No.

I mean, I guess you can ship PMY & JJH's characters, but then don't come complaining if it doesn't go anywhere.

Look, I've been giving Ji-hyeok the benefit of the doubt, but he's really starting to annoy me. He's as stubborn as it gets, and now he just comes waltzing back after being MIA for over a month, being a d*ck to literally everybody except his mom, making no attempt to actually communicate with the people that are supposed to be his friends, and instead of asking them things in a respectful way, he just makes demands.

Honestly, I wouldn't even blame Seong-jae if he just told Ji-hyeok's family everything, but he's too good of a person to do that.