wellwellbelle

I read the Twelve Letters Explanation of the Ending discussion post (above) after I wrote this comment and they suggested that the last mailbox is number 4, with number 1 being one that exists in the old man and cat's origin place. I think that's also a plausible explanation. There's some other cool stuff in there too, worth a look if you want to think about the magic more :)

I figured the "divine/mytical being" was the old man who pushed the cart (although the cat was definitely also a part of it; whether as his companion/familiar, or another aspect of him it's hard to say). There's a very widespread folklore trope that if you give aid to a supernatural being (unprompted and out of the goodness of your heart), they will reward or render aid in return. Before the mailbox appeared, both Yi Xun and Hai Tang helped the old man (Yi Xun picked up a falled item and helped push his cart; Hai Tang gave him the cardboard that she had been given to sel--this seems like less of a favour, but I think that the bookstore owner had intended for Hai Tang to sell the cardboard herself for a little extra cash, so in that sense it was a larger favour than just handing him the cardboard). So, it seemed like the old man rewarded them with an opportunity to change their fates.

The mailboxes were also numbered. 1991 was No. 2 and 2026 was No. 3. I feel like that mailbox we saw at the end, the bright shiny one where they never showed the number, might have been No. 1. Not that this is much explanation-wise, but it's sort of a neat thing to contemplate....

OMG I am with you. The first 40 minutes of the first episode was almost entirely unnecessary! Like, there was about 3 minutes of story in there. It was agonizing! Took me three days to watch. I've pretty much given up on the show in episode 3.

reading the synopsis after your plot summary is hilarious!

This drama taught me that there's a "mean uncle/aunt" tag. I'm off to explore!

Where do I sign up to watch the popsicle stick masterpiece? I cannot wait!

"cat videos in peace" lol. I wish you something data worthy soon to make up for this!

I've watched MDL become a place where you could really get a sense of whether a drama was for you, and where ratings tended to make sense to becoming a place where everything everyone watched seems to be a "masterpiece" and the number of 10/10 reviews are ridiculous. I always seek out the mid reviews because I want to know what the pros and cons are! Anyway, just posting a comment to say I completely agree with you :)

I loved your review, I read the whole thing, I was tempted to watch because I love the actors and the premise sounds really fun, but you have convinced me to save my time. I'm saying that because I do appreciate when people write helpful reviews, and also so I hope you know that the following is really genuine and not sarcastic: "snack some sense into them" is maybe now my second favourite typos ever :D (I once tried to write "to" and smashed the keyboard with both fingers in such a way that it came out "typo" and that continues to be my favourite typo lol). I'm just picturing someone sitting down with the writers and being like "look. Have a cookie while I explain what a good plot looks like to you. No, you need to keep eating, you don't have it yet!"

Anyway, thanks for a thorough review!

Korea is east asian though?

And that twist! I was so surprised

Agreed! The story had a romance plot. I've been weirdly calling it "straight romance" (as in it doesn't blend genres), but that's rather misleading with a show like this, lol. It's funny how many people who watch romances don't seem to realize that the story of two people going from being not in a romantic relationship to in a romantic relationship is itself a legit plot structure and the core of the genre.

So, so much

I really enjoyed the series. I liked how the realization that there is something more going on than insomnia unfolds slowly, and we realize over time how unwell Raccoon is. I also like that he feels like more than his illness, and the portrayal of a good relationship that is supportive but doesn't magically heal him.

It's because of love ;P

Ohh, thanks for the other series comparisons in your review (which is spot on about Second Chance). I'm jumping back into BL after a long hiatus, and it's good to find some places to start.

I hate that the director called episode 35 "realistic". It wasn't! It was a hot mess! It was unclear the relationship between the story teller and the general --same people? Or is the Princess story a total fiction based loosely on their lives? The scene at the market where we see all the characters in different roles and then they disappear, and the scene where he says "I wish we could live in the story and be alive in people's tellings forever" and then they have a costume change makes it REALLY unclear what is going on narratively. Calling that "realistic" is... well it's a bit much!

Anyway, I just had to rant that out somewhere.... I'm hoping they post the epilog with subtitles so I can makes some sense of it, but I have the feeling it's going to be a bit unsatisfying n o matter what.

So glad the review was helpful!

I would assume Bohn/Duen would become side characters because this season should complete their arc. It would be very annoying if it didn't.

1. I don't think they had sex at any point before moving in together, nor immediately when they moved in together.

2. I think going from "flirting" to "fan" was a big step for Tine and he's happy about it but also seems a little unsure of himself, what he's ready for, what he wants, and just how to be in a relationship that is more serious than any other relationship he's been in--so there's never having been with a guy stuff, but also never having been with someone who takes care of him, never having been this serious about someone.... he's being overwhelmed by new experiences. This is why he's sometimes pushing Sarawat away or being coy about kissing... it's not that he's afraid to kiss or it's farther than they've gone before, but that the whole experience is a bit confusing and overwhelming while also being fun and good.

3. While the show is tightly focused on the romantic development plot, they gave us some conflict around issues that were NOT about same-sex-attraction-confusion: when Tine cried about the confession, it wasn't that he didn't want to be Sarawat's boyfriend or that he was denying his feelings, but that he had tried to do something important for Sarawat and felt like he failed. So with the cheek kiss in exchange for playing Scrubb, when Tine was refusing it, I felt like you could interpret it more as "I'm not going to trade kisses for favours" rather than "I'm scared of what your kisses mean" or whatever.

The BL genre often focuses so much on the gay panic that it's the go-to explanation for moments like that and then it's confusing: like, hasn't he already accepted Sarawat, why is he refusing a little cheek kiss? But I think it played much more like the egg scene and the other domestic teasing/fun scenes.

ANYWAY

That was a lot. Clearly I think way too much about romantic plots ;P