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Descended From the Sun: Episode 10

It’s me again, here to check back in on Descended! It’s been a while since I last wrote about it and a lot has happened, so I’m glad to have a chance to weigh in and see how things have developed since then.

There’s a good balance of light humor and romantic development in this hour, which is this show’s bread and butter (and really what we’re all watching for, I’m sure—at least I know I am. It certainly isn’t the medicine or the mercenaries or the politics). As an added bonus today, on top of all the feel-good couple moments are ones that mark serious growth and deepening emotions, although those are the things that will probably set us up for a bit of pain down the road. The very short road. We’re gonna be there pretty soon, I think! Brace yourselves.

SONG OF THE DAY

Lyn – “With You” from the Descended From the Sun OST [ Download ]

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EPISODE 10 RECAP

Standoff. While Argus lays bleeding from Fatima’s gunshot, Shi-jin tells Mo-yeon to do her job in saving lives—he’ll take the job of deciding when to take one. It seems rather douchey for Argus to throw Mo-yeon’s oath as a doctor in her face while reaching for his gun, but I suppose Argus’ douchiness was never in question.

Mo-yeon sees that Argus has gone into shock and has him moved inside, and while she treats him, the tense standoff continues outside. She fishes for the bullet without painkillers, and when Argus mentions them, she says coldly that it’s too bad she’s a bad doctor who forgot. Ha, love her.

Shi-jin’s team calls over the walkie-talkie, and Argus’ men get nervous that soldiers may be coming. Argus decides to retreat for today, but when he makes a move to take his young “rose” (real name Fatima) with him, she flinches away and Mo-yeon steps protectively in front of the girl. She refuses to give her up and tells Argus to get proper care, since she only did the bare minimum to keep him from dying.

Argus smirks at the girl and promises that when they meet again, she won’t die with such a pretty face. (Okay, the English sounds like “you’re gonna die” but the Korean subtitles say “you won’t die”… but suffice to say he’s making a threat.)

Shi-jin tells Argus to leave fast and go far, warning that his kindness is at a limit.

Shi-jin fills Dae-young in on the run-in with Argus, noting that it’s a familiar story for an ex-special forces soldier to go mercenary after quitting the military. Over in the Medicube, the measles-stricken children from the village are brought in for treatment.

Mo-yeon washes up and thinks back to Argus’ warning earlier, when he’d called Shi-jin a dangerous man and said that being around someone with a gun puts her at higher risk. (And then straight-up cackled like something in a cartoon.) The words weigh on Mo-yeon’s mind.

Fatima’s insistent on leaving, angry that Mo-yeon didn’t let Argus die. Mo-yeon says she saved Fatima from becoming a murderer, not that Fatima’s grateful; instead, she scoffs at Mo-yeon’s naive assurance that she’s safe with the army and asks if she’s supposed to trust soldiers. Has Mo-yeon ever lived through war?

Unruffled, Mo-yeon sits Fatima down and tells her matter-of-factly that even if she runs, she should eat first.

Back in Seoul, the doctors who’ve returned share their stories with the others, and Chi-hoon’s pregnant fiancée asks worriedly why he didn’t return with the rest. She’s told that he gave his seat up for an emergency patient, but worries that Chi-hoon hasn’t cheated on her while abroad, nor has he called.

It turns out that the sacrificed seat ended up unused in the end, because it was meant for diamond-thief Young-soo, who couldn’t board the flight without being captured by Argus’ men.

Myung-joo packs supplies to return to the village to check on the rest of the children. Mo-yeon wonders if she should return too, but Myung-joo tells her to stay away—Dae-young is the assigned escort on the trip and she wants alone time. Myung-joo’s surprised at Mo-yeon’s easy-going response, expecting more prickliness between them, but Mo-yeon quips that she must be the better person.

Myung-joo and Dae-young make the drive out together, and she enjoys the view—particularly of her companion, though he comments that there’s nothing special about him. She assures him that she’s got high standards—doesn’t he ever look in the mirror?

Dae-young broaches the subject of quitting the military, saying that it’s dangerous work that requires them to be apart. She asks if he’s worried because of her, and he answers, “Because of us.”

Myung-joo answers, “But I’m fine—I like Sergeant Seo Dae-young right now, as he is.” She warns him not to lay a hand on his uniform until she takes it off him, which, rawr. Although it’s perhaps not the answer to soothe his concerns.

When they arrive at the village, however, it’s completely empty. It looks like it’s been ransacked.

At military headquarters, Lieutenant General Yoon speaks to Shi-jin about a new development that’s arisen: A coup d’etat is in the works by the second-in-command, Colonel Amang. A call has come in from the CIA requesting their help, but this is not a mission of justice: “It’s politics.”

The U.S. wants to use this coup to establish a pro-American situation in the country, and Argus is supplying arms to Amang. So while he’s a black-market smuggler, he’s useful for now, and until the mission is over, they are to stay away from Argus.

Shi-jin starts to speak up, but this is not a discussion: It’s an order. The Korean forces will remain out of this situation.

Dae-young looks into the village situation and reports that the kids have been taken to an orphanage. Something seems off about the explanation, but Shi-jin informs him of their top-secret orders from headquarters. Basically, they have to look the other way.

Mo-yeon finds Shi-jin brooding, and asks about the children in the village. He says that everything worked out okay, and that it must have been reported. Ack! I know he’s not lying, but it does make my heart drop. Mo-yeon is relieved to hear it, and happy because kids brought in with measles have been doing well.

Shi-jin notes her loose hair and asks her to hold his cup for her, to which she wryly points out that such a request always ends with him doing something strange. He leans in to retie her hair, not deterred when she shies away saying she hasn’t washed her hair today (“It’s not like you wash your hair a lot anyway”).

She says she could do this herself (I notice she’s not stopping him), and he replies that dating is about letting someone do things for you that you could do for yourself. She promises to return the favor later, and he holds her to it.

Mo-yeon leaps up when she gets a message that deliveries have arrived, and Shi-jin pouts that she’d ditch him for that. “Would you choose the delivery or me?” he asks. “You, of course,” she says brightly, and then runs off for her package.

She collects her package, sent by Dr. Pyo, while Sang-hyun eagerly opens his box. He slides over the brand-new sneakers to Ja-ae, saying that he noted her size. He turns to go, basking in the cool hero moment… until she says he got the wrong size. HA. But she can’t hide her pleasure at the unexpected gift.

Mo-yeon takes another box intending to pass it along, and radios Dae-young to ask where this Shin Ji-young person is. Immediately Shi-jin and Dae-young look up in wide-eyed alarm, and tear out of there at a run. Ha, I notice the box is covered in “Oppa, be strong!” messages.

Myung-joo hears the exchange too, and it makes her storm off immediately. The men race frantically to get there first, but Myung-joo arrives ahead of them and bristles at the hearts on the package, ripping it open. She goes for the card first—which contains a photo of Dae-young, Shi-jin, and two women in flight attendant uniforms.

It says, “The day we met Shi-jin oppa ♥ We send our memories ♥ ♥” Reading the note, Mo-yeon says grimly, “Lieutenant Yoon, bring me a gun.”

The men burst into the room and blurt, “It’s a misunderstanding!” Sure, that’s not suspicious. Mo-yeon points out his big smile in the photo, and Shi-jin says, “I’m not smiling! I’m just making a smile-like face!”

Dae-young says the woman’s a cousin, so Myung-joo tells both men to identify which one in the photo is the cousin—at the same time. They each blurt a different answer, gulp, then switch their answers. Two strikes! Oh, they are so in the doghouse.

The ladies take their boyfriends to task, and the boyfriends both make a muck of a defense, getting caught in lies. Dae-young throws Shi-jin under the bus by saying the blind date was for him, and Shi-jin returns the favor by saying it was Dae-young who kept in touch.

Dae-young tells Myung-joo that there was no skinship and he only met for tea. Shi-jin uses the same line, though Mo-yeon scoffs that he’d left her with such a woebegone face that she’d felt sad, only to have him go off and have fun with other women. Both guys try to downplay the incident and sound as innocent as possible, but they’re pretty terrible at it, and the ladies are sharp at detecting their flimsy excuses.

Mo-yeon gets interrupted by a call from Dr. Pyo, and tells Shi-jin that the call saved his life. She steps aside to chat with her friend, who teases her about dating Shi-jin before turning the phone over to Chi-hoon’s anxious fiancée. She still hasn’t heard from him and is now worried that he’s dead, or that she’s been dumped.

Chi-hoon is currently tending to his surly patient, Min-jae, who continues to rebuff treatment, saying that he won’t trust anything he gives him. Chi-hoon wells up with tears and admits that Min-jae’s words were right, and that he was so scared that in that moment, he wasn’t a doctor. “I’m truly sorry for running away on my own,” he says.

Min-jae says without sympathy that Chi-hoon’s extremely selfish for only wanting to relieve his own guilt. But Chi-hoon says that’s not it—he’d have done that from the start if he could. “I just… I don’t know what to do,” he says helplessly. “Please tell me.”

He speaks through a growing flood of tears that Min-jae is the only one he can talk to. Min-jae isn’t ready to forgive, though, reminding Chi-hoon that he shouldn’t hold out his hand for help, not when he didn’t take Min-jae’s hand before.

Chi-hoon sobs alone outside, and turns off his walkie-talkie when Mo-yeon tries to contact him. A little boy comes up to him and says he must be hurting, and Chi-hoon sobs harder, holding on to his little hands.

Trouble arises when theft is discovered in the medical storage area—the locked cabinet has been broken into and all the narcotic painkillers have been taken. No patients have gone missing, but Mo-yeon has a hunch about the culprit.

It’s Fatima, who calls someone named Tommy from a pay phone, arms full of pilfered drugs. She plans to sell them all, then run away with Tommy.

Shi-jin takes the lead in the search, taking Mo-yeon to that bar that sells everything but women and information. The woman there reminds him of that rule, but Shi-jin appeals to her for help, saying they have to find the girl before someone else does. It’s enough to get her to make a call about where to find the drug dealers.

Her tip takes them to the ruins of a large building, and as they arrive, a scream sounds in the distance—it’s Fatima, having been taken advantage of by her precious Tommy. He takes the drugs and slaps her around, saying it’s her fault for trusting him.

Mo-yeon bursts in rather recklessly with Shi-jin right behind, and Tommy assures his dealer buddies that they’ve got the soldier outmanned. Out come seven guns, all pointed at him.

Shi-jin tells Mo-yeon not to worry, joking that he’ll cover one side while she takes the other. Ha, she just shoots him this look: Is this really the time?

His attempt to get them to let the women go is poorly received, so he gets more serious and tells Mo-yeon to run for the car on his word. She is to drive it to the front of the building—and if he doesn’t come out in five minutes, drive off without him.

As the drug dealers advance, Shi-jin makes a big show of slowly putting down his gun, explaining in Korean that he can’t fire his own gun anyway, since that would require mountains of paperwork. “So,” he says as the leader reaches down to grab Shi-jin’s gun, “let me use yours.”

He shouts for Mo-yeon to run. Quick as a flash, he disables the leader and fights off the thugs who come at him, shooting a steady stream of bullets at the ground and the building, creating confusion. Down they go, one after another, more injured from body blows than bullets, and Shi-jin collects Fatima and heads for the exit.

But they’re not fast enough, and the bad guys recover their weapons and shoot at him. Shi-jin takes cover behind an old truck and fires back, but he’s out of ammo and now they’re back in full force, approaching quickly…

Outside, Mo-yeon waits in the car with an anxious eye on the clock. Five minutes pass, so she decides it’s time to drive… straight into the building. Haha, she really is the car-killer, isn’t she?

She careens into the building and forces the shooters to run back to avoid being flattened, then backs up (nearly flattening Shi-jin’s hand) to order Shi-jin and Fatima into the car. Sir, yes, sir!

Mo-yeon is positively giddy with the adrenaline rush as she drives off, while Shi-jin looks exhausted and grumbles about nearly losing his hand. She airily says she knew he’d get out of the way, ha.

Then their car starts to smoke, and sputters to a stop. She wonders why, while Shi-jin notes that it’s her third car death.

While overseeing work in the minefield, Dae-young broods over the lieutenant general’s ultimatum about quitting the military, just as Myung-joo arrives, ignoring his instructions to stay in the safety zone. She orders him to step face to face with her, then dots his face with sunblock, telling him that this isn’t reconciliation, “just skinship.”

He’s the one who pulls back, saying the others will see, but then he takes her hand and leans in and she’s the one who gets bashful. She closes her eyes as he moves closer… and just before their lips touch, Shi-jin’s voice radios over for help.

While they wait, Mo-yeon wonders how Fatima knew to pick out only the narcotic drugs, and Shi-jin supposes her life has been one that taught her to recognize money. Mo-yeon sighs that it would be nice if her life were one that taught her about cheaper drugs that save the most lives, like antibiotics.

Mo-yeon tells a subdued Fatima that from now on, she is to do as Mo-yeon says, starting with resuming school. Fatima snaps, “What do you care?” Mo-yeon replies that she’ll pay for her school tuition, and that she’ll expect repayment later. Shi-jin pats Mo-yeon’s hair encouragingly, until she says, “I haven’t washed it.”

Later that evening, he finds her drying her damp hair in the main hall, and he teases her about finally washing it. He asks if she really means to pay for Fatima’s education, saying that holding a hand out to someone means you’re taking on responsibility for their life. Mo-yeon replies simply: “We just do what we can, when we can do it. Even if we make a mess of it.”

He says she can’t save everyone she meets, nor will it change the world. She replies that it would change Fatima’s life, and to Fatima, the world will change. That’s good enough.

Shi-jin reminds her that she’d said she wasn’t that kind of doctor. Mo-yeon reminds him that he’d said she was.

Shi-jin can’t help but be impressed, and asks, “Why do you give off your charm so often? I’ve already fallen for you.” He thanks her for saving him today, and they settle down to eat a snack of ramyun… just as the lights go out.

So Shi-jin suggests snacktime in the special forces style—wearing helmets with night goggles. They toast.

Time to check in with our diamond thief Young-soo, who crouches over the toilet to retrieve his stolen reward. It sounds excruciating, which frankly is as much as he deserves. He buys a plane ticket to Korea and a forged passport in a new name, planning the next phase of his getaway. (I notice the passport reads Urk, though I’ve seen Uruk written in past episodes. Eh, at least it’s fictional.)

He gets the diamonds out of his system… and then has to reswallow them for the next leg of his travel. Eww.

Young-soo dons a disguise and presents his passport, but the forgery is caught right away and he’s detained by police. Shi-jin and Dae-young find it curious that it’s not Interpol or American forces who have him; this means there’s someone at the police who wants Young-soo apprehended.

Min-jae overhears their speculation and wonders if it has to do with the diamonds, asking how much money a fist-sized collection is worth. He tells them he’d seen Young-soo placing them into a safe, recalling the curious behavior he’d noticed, and this explains his fixation on getting into the building after the earthquake.

Shi-jin has a bad feeling about this, saying that cases like this often end with the person dying in police custody. He and Dae-young move out.

It’s Argus, of course, who has Young-soo, but a thorough search turns up no diamonds. Argus notes that they haven’t looked in his stomach, and has Young-soo laid out on a table, ready to be cut into.

But a bullet flies through the window and a teargas grenade is set off, sending everyone running for cover. Soldiers pour in from all sides, and in the chaos, Argus makes a break for it.

A gunshot stops him short, and a red dot appears on his forehead. Shi-jin keeps him there while his soldiers neutralize the scene, but they’re not interested in apprehending everyone today. Shi-jin says they’ll only be taking the Korean criminal with them calls his team off with Young-soo in their custody, leaving Argus to seethe.

Young-soo is taken to the Medicube, where he moans in pain clutching his stomach and feigns ignorance about the diamonds. Mo-yeon confirms from the X-ray that they are in fact inside his stomach, and Shi-jin chides Young-soo to stop with the sick patient act—just as Young-soo spews blood.

Mo-yeon diagnoses internal bleeding caused by the diamonds and calls for surgery. He’s in bad shape, and Mo-yeon realizes quickly that something is amiss, aside from the obvious. Blood spatters on her and Myung-joo’s faces, and she sees that a tumor has burst, which shouldn’t have anything to do with diamonds in the stomach. Putting the symptoms together, she orders her team to stand back immediately: She suspects infection of a contagious virus.

She and Myung-joo have already come in contact, so they’ll have to complete the surgery while the rest of the staff leaves.

Sang-hyun explains to the soldiers what an M-level virus is: An M2 virus is very serious, but if it’s M3, it’s akin to Ebola in magnitude. Shi-jin and Dae-young beeline for the operating room, only to be held back at the doors.

Myung-joo tries to joke that it’s nice that Dae-young ran faster than when he heard the flight attendant’s name, but he’s not in the mood for that, pent up with worry.

Shi-jin looks just as intent, asking Mo-yeon what he can do for her. She wants an answer about which woman in the photograph wrote the heart-filled note, and he replies readily and explains that she had a lot of aegyo. Mo-yeon marvels at the straight answer, and Shi-jin says it didn’t seem appropriate to joke in this moment.

That makes Myung-joo say lightly that they must be dying for their men to hear everything as deathbed words. Then she assures them that nobody’s dying, and they’ll be fine.

Mo-yeon and Myung-joo have their blood drawn for virus testing, but the lab can’t do it till at least the next day. There’s a lab at the U.S. army base nearby, and Shi-jin offers to handle the request, making a quick call. Dae-young is just as eager to do something, and the two men deliver the blood samples to the base.

That leaves the two doctors alone in the operating room, having done what they can for the patient, with nothing to do but wait for results. They even manage to joke about taking a diamond for themselves, since nobody knows how many there are.

At the army base, the verdict comes in: The patient tested positive for M3 virus, and so did one of the doctors. Shi-jin and Dae-young brace themselves for the answer.

They burst back into the Medicube wearing dark faces, and Dae-young goes straight to Myung-joo and envelops her in a hug. She’s startled and starts to push him away, saying she might be infected—and then stops, realizing why he’s holding her.

“It’s me,” Myung-joo realizes. A tear falls from Dae-young’s eye.

 
COMMENTS

One of the things I liked best about this episode was in the show finally bringing the two couples abreast of each other, not just on the surface as people dating near each other, but as friends going through similar relationship stages and working through issues beyond the initial attraction and getting-together phase. They’re not quite mirrored scenarios since the couples are dealing with some pretty different issues, but I like it much better when Mo-yeon and Myung-joo are talking instead of sniping, and when the conversations drop the jokes to get a bit more real.

For instance, the moment in the operation room when both soldiers are locked out of the room—it’s a great build-up, and there’s an effective use of that scenario to flip the dynamic on its head. It’s more powerful for me to see the two badass soldiers helpless for once, unable to do anything to help other than play courier, while their women stand strong in the middle of a crisis cracking jokes. And here Shi-jin is, our constant jokester with the glib tongue, saying that he doesn’t think he can make a joke in such a scenario.

I tend to find the medicine in this show to be set dressing for the most part, here to give the characters stuff to do without really being thought out or researched, so I do find it welcome that we do finally have a medical case that carries a narrative purpose and delivers emotional impact. Honestly, if all, or most—or heck, even some—of the cases were fleshed out this way, to tie into the main characters’ arcs in a way that’s actually essential to their narrative arc and growth, this show would have been on a whole new level. Rather than bemoan the lack, I’ll just be grateful we got at least one—a medical crisis where our hearts are engaged, that puts us a little on edge awaiting the suspenseful results.

I’d say the smuggling/politics/military plotlines of the show suffer from that same disconnect—they’re not really plotted to mean much other than providing surface conflict, which means I don’t care about the missions or Argus’ cadre of terrible actors or the extras speaking bad English. (Oy, the bad English! Make it stop!)

I do think this episode stepped it up by managing to find a thread connecting those stories to our main characters, such as Argus confronting Shi-jin directly and taunting Mo-yeon about being with someone like him. He planted doubts in her mind that may have an actual effect in her relationship, and his involvement in the children’s village did prompt Shi-jin to lie (sorta) to her, which I anticipate could drive a wedge between them in the future. The show should really do more of that, finding ways to tie the Plot of the Day into the overall arc better. Most of the time we’ve had to sit through those bad guy scenes just to get to the good stuff (at least, that’s how I’ve felt) when this episode showed us that you can bring things together if you try a little harder and flesh out those storylines.

It isn’t like these flawed beats ruin the show—far from it, since it does such a good job delivering a constant stream of romantic gratification and light humor. I mostly think of those plots as missed opportunities and empty filler, which could have been used more effectively and elevated the show to something even better. Not that the show needs the help garnering more love and eyeballs, with the massive popularity it’s sparked. I just can’t help being greedy, and always wanting more. More!

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Gee
I'm rooting for Goo Won couple
Fighting!

Weak in the knees everytime seeing Song Joong Ki here.

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Me too <3

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Me three
Their loveline is very interesting and their interactions feels real and genuine <3

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Me four!

And thank you for the recap! Oooof, that ending!!! I really felt bad for MJ and DY. I actually replayed that scene, and that was when I realized how much time they spent on it. The way that DY rushes into the room, the way that SJ walks in, silently, looking at the both of them, in each others' arms (well, more like DY holding MJ tightly, and not letting go), the way that couple just stands there, the way that MJ (who at first fights DY coming into the room and hugging her) slowly realizes that she is the one who is infected, and the way she lets DY hold her tightly. That scene really had an impact (for me), and was well acted. I am glad that we are focusing on the MJ-DY couple. I really love them.

I am also waiting for the instrumental track for this drama, as I love it. There is a song that is played when the boys rush to the girls, to see if they are OK. It is an instrumental song, and it is just so beautiful. I think I heard it once, and it stayed in my head, making me wonder where I had heard it, only to realize that it was during that scene. I also love the other instrumental tracks they have, many of which have a military beat to them. I wonder if the OST CD will have one disc or two. I am impatiently waiting for it to come out. They remind me of the OST for TK2HS, and I loved every song on it, except for the rock one. I ended up buying the CD, especially because of the instrumental songs. Sorry for the rambling.

Am I the only one who falls in love with the instrumental pieces in Kdramas? They do them so well, and I love how creative they can get. The Liar Game (Korean version) CD never came out (from what I know), and it is a shame, because that drama had a really great instrumental OST. The songs with lyrics were good as well.

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You're definitely not the only one-- I rewatched a few dramas recently and found myself getting the instrumental tracks stuck in my head as well! Some of them are kinda hard to find, but they always bring me back to specific moments in the drama that I loved.

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Same! TK2H's instrumentals gets me everytime it plays in my car. The last few intrumentals that I fell in love with was from the Healer and CITT soundtracks. Saw some scans of the DotS OST booklet and it looks pretty. Might buy it when I visit Seoul in a few moths.

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You are not the only one. The music is a big part of why I started watching kdrama. Though not evident in DOTS, I am often reminded of old movies like Gidget or any Doris Day and Rock Hudson from the early 60s. It's a great escape.

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Same here the music was one of the reasons I got hooked on kdramas I feel like music is an important role in making a good drama it sets the mood if you have a bad song it ruins the scene (at least for me) oh and TK2H is my all time favorite ost =D

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Hi Ivore
I actually listen to almost exclusively kdrama OSTS nowadays. I still go back repeatedly to certain pieces in My Secret Hotel, Sassy Go Go, Healer, KMHM, Liar Game, I Remember You.... and not of course DOTS as well.

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I am thankful that the editor showed restraint at the ending scene in NOT including any music then. We could just appreciate the actors emoting the scene on their own.

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me five

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Legit, SJK's character, no matter how stagnant he seems to be as of now, is still so so captivating. Every time he's on screen, I feel so pleased, my eyes are just always soaking in the pretty; I feel that way when SHK and SJK are in the same scenes as well. The visual overload, ngl, is one of the reasons I'm watching DOTS. Everything's so goddamned pretty.

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I'm with you on this one. I feel like my eyes are always blessed watching this drama, especially with all the pretty!! And I often find myself pausing episodes just to admire the actors and the cinematography. Haha!!

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That being said, there is so much that I loved in this ep. Argus might not be a very good villain in the eyes of some, however I see him as a representation of some of the things that can happen in places where there are political instability and war. And the recent earthquake in Urk did not help either. So the fact that Argus has the power he has in that region makes sense to me, and I am OK with that. Touching on human trafficking, selling weapons, and destabilizing a whole village(s?), and making them constantly move, makes me curious to see how the show will handle those issues, and link them to how more aware SJ and MY become of each other’s roles in dangerous places. I also hope that at some point, they will be returning to Korea, as I am curious to see them there, after their experiences in Urk.

I love how the show manages to maintain the comedic moments, the romantic ones, the action ones, and the melodramatic ones. That scene about receiving the package from one of the flight attendants was so hilarious, and so well done, I loved it. On the romance front, it is still the little things that make me appreciate this show: the fact that SJ wanted to do MY’s hair, in spite of her not having washed it yet, and that line, “loving someone is doing for them what they could do for themselves.” I also loved the “almost” kiss between MJ and DY (and the fact that she had to order it). I thought it was cute. I loved MY’s quick thinking when she decided to go in, and get SJ and Rose, and how excited she was after that. And the boys’ reactions at finding out that their women had been infected with a very dangerous virus, Awww… How scared they were when they went to see them: SJ became a puppy in MY’s hands, and DY was out of his mind. *Sad Face* I also personally liked the rescue scene of Manager JY. I couldn’t help but wonder though, the signs of not feeling well he mentioned in ep.9, when he wanted to leave Urk, were they totally fake, or were they based on something? Because we saw how sick he was in this ep. I look forward to Daddy Yoon’s reactions (after learning that his daughter is very sick), and to next weeks’ episodes.

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Love the chemistry between the cast! There's a balance of romance, suapense and comedy.
Can't wait for next week!

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Heh, I am back too! Was away with no internet so I missed out on commenting on episode 9. I had so much problems with that episode, mainly because I felt so cheated by the sudden resolution to all love lines. It felt too ex machina and rushed.

Thankfully, episode 10 was right on the money - hitting all the right notes. I am totally enjoying this episode with all the right balance of humor and serious moments. This episode is focused a little more on the women which i thoroughly appreciated. That OR scene like what Javabean said was really great since we get to see a reversal of roles. The women in this show are all very brave and independent. That moment when Moyeon very bravely saved drove her car in and saved them was fabulous: she would make a great soldier. Plus we get to see Shi Jin struggle with his job! He always mentioned that he needs and have to and respect that his job requires him to take orders that does not even make sense or are morally right at times. This time with Argus, he is seriously troubled by the politics at play. Totally agreeing with Javabeans that I don't care much about Argus and all that psudo and unconvincing politics they try to throw in but when it is linked directly to our characters, it made more sense and carry more weight.

My heart totally ache for my time-travellers. Looks like they missed the moment again. I can't help but wonder what would have happened if they didn't save that idiot. On a side note, to be very honest, swallowing diamonds that you have passed out is more likely to give you bacterial infection than viral. The diamonds would not carry the virus as well so that random viral infection (one that is as rare as ebola) is a little bewildering. Unless of course there is already an outbreak somewhere. But this show is not known for being well-researched medically so ah wells.

CAN'T WAIT FOR MOREEEEE

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I was dying laughing at the part where Hye Kyo told the Fatima finish school. The girl is a homeless orphan living in a gang zone about to be sold into prostitution. I doubt she was ever in school and if she was, that's the very least of the problems she needed taken care of.

Am I the only 1 who skips the Onew scenes. The entire situation is so stupid.

And did the guy really think he would get away with that awful disguise?

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I skipped that scene too :3 he always cry like a baby and im used to it.

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I thought I was the only who didn't like Onew's scenes. I'm starting to think that he's just a crybaby instead of a doctor. Totally not worth my time watching him cry all the time

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No you are not the only one. I have suggested all along that his character's silly bellyaching was contrived and always feels randomly inserted. I can't feel a thing for either him or stupid construction worker who thinks ANYONE should stick around when they have large rocks falling on their head. I'm tempted to fast forward through these scenes but I haven't gone that far yet. Yes, Onew is cute and he cries well, enough already.

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I just want to scream go onew- seriously, nobody died! Go home to your pregnant wife. I need that storyline resolved asap.

Also, I honestly think considering how quick on the uptake Fatima is she just needed a sponsor. Move away to a new city, go back to school, have an actual sponsor looking out for your well being. I really liked her acting and I know it's fiction but I'm rooting for Fatima, fighting!

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I did skip Onew's part as well... Onew is a doctor, and it's understandable that he fled the scene that time because the rocks were already falling. He's there to help as a doctor, and the soldiers are the one who do the initial rescue. just confront him Onew, don't be such a scaredy cat. Tell him, if the tables have turned, what would that cocky patient do?

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Yeah, I wonder why the writer holds out on this storyline for Onew. It's annoyingly petty for me. Like, stop being a crybaby and be a doctor. For the patient, recognize the part where you survived instead of holding a grudge against somebody for not rescuing u. You lived, right? So why do you still complain?

It's annoying, really. One's character will also do a lot of growing up in this drama but it just feels so slow, and the crying annoys you.

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I think the only reason Onew's parts make me really sad is because I'm a massive fan of his and have been for many years. I hate Chi-Hoon though, and I can't decipher whether I'm concerned for Onew or Chi-Hoon because to me they are two different people, not an actor playing a character. I think Min-Jae is tormenting him and he needs to stop, but Chi-Hoon needs to get back to Korea ASAP for his fiancée. His crying is really good, though, and Onew himself is going out of his comfort zone for this. From this happy, bubbly, always smiling, talented singer to playing a character whose been through a major natural disaster is pretty huge jump. Props to him for doing his best!

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I think the writer's continuing it because it's a pretty realistic representation of the shellshock of mental trauma. Chi Hoon is a talented, wealthy, stable, cheerful doctor in Korea who is clearly well-protected by family influence. Now within months of landing in a war zone, he's done two things to majorly shake his faith in himself: the misdiagnosis and being freaked out by the aftershocks and running (and even though it's the right thing to do in an aftershock, the problem is that he didn't make a measured decision - he just ran).

Returning to mental balance is nowhere near as common after an emergency as people here think. Chi Hoon is carrying the PTSD storyline for the rest of the characters, and I think he's doing it really well - crumbling internally and starting to make bad choices because of a distorted view of reality.

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Yup, I agree wit this. And I think Min Jae is not just being immature - he too had a huge traumatic shock and a personal loss in his manager. Grief can come out mixed with anger, like taking it out on someone to blame. And I totally get the anger he had when he said to Chi Hoo, why should I save you, you didn't save me.

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agreed! a good side story to highlight the serious effects of ptsd!

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Yeah the situation is so stupid. The kid is like.. holding something Chihun couldn't control against him?/???? Perhaps that's his character, to be petty and immature, but ugh it frustrates me.

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im angrier at chihun for entertaining it. the kid's logic is flawed beyond belief. yea a doctor should save a patient, but what good is that doctor if he is trapped under some rocks with you. he just had a normal human reflex and decided to save himself. i can't believe he left his pregnant wife at home to "prove he is a real doctor" to some idiot. he needs to stop being in his feelings.

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omg yes that as well. it's definitely aggravated by minjae, but chihun's guilt is... ??? i feel like dr. song needs to have a heart to heart w/ him and tell him that he shouldn't be feeling so guilty about a situation in which he didn't do anything wrong

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Omg yes, seriously dnt like the story line and onew isn't really selling the role either, I his skip it automatically when it comes on

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<he just had a normal human reflex and decided to save himself

I don't even think it's normal human reflex. When I did Search and Rescue, one of the first things that was drummed into us was to consider our own safety first because there's one thing worse than having to rescue one person: that's rescuing two people. You don't risk yourself, you don't play hero in unsafe situations. A doctor is no good when he's a dead doctor. Though I remember they had issues with this as well in D-Day, sending doctors into caved in spaces without helmet and without the firefighters even checking if the site was secure....

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+100 I find the whole storyline frustrating for this reason. Why hasn't anyone gotten it across to Chi-hoon and the patient that he actually did the right thing in the situation? His choice not to be the 'hero' is likely what saved them both. At the very least, I'm hoping this will be the eventual resolution to their storyline, but that doesn't mean I'm not annoyed in the interim.

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@alua, you're absolutely correct that Chi Hoon and the other rescuers would have been instructed to run - I think the problem is that he's extremely aware that he didn't make a S&R decision to evacuate, he panicked and bolted. Intentional action versus unintentional.

Same result, obviously, but it's an ugly thing to realize about yourself, and CH was already in a bad place from misdiagnosing the prior patient.

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I like the Onew storyline, but it probably should have wrapped up awhile ago. The earthquake is old news.

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But in the first place, he was not a military doctor, shouldn't go into the collapsed building.
If really a military doctor need to go in the collapsed building it is to give medical help to any survivor found (but unable to come out). Not to search for survivor.

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I personally appreciate Onew's acting on an emotional front, and am okay with the prolonged angst re the weight of his guilt. Sure, the situation may not seem like a big deal, nor does it link to the current arc as such, but I like that it's a personal struggle which he is desperate to overcome, for his peace of mind, and for the sake of becoming the type of doctor he wants to become (as idealistic as it may seem).

I guess in the long run, it does somewhat highlight how we can't always be the saviour, nor are we expected to be - sometimes, running away is the only option, but it's an option he's struggling to cope with. In that respect, his emotional struggle ties in with the broader elements of the show, at least thematically, in that it poses similar questions to the ones that our lead characters are faced with in terms of professional/moral duties.

And whilst the earthquake is old news, I like that his personal arc emphasises the lasting impact of such a calamity, and how it's not easily forgotten, especially when one was a part of that tragedy. Greatly done, and mad props to Onew's acting - his crying gets me every time!

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I absolutely think the show is setting us up for Chi Hoon's attempted (I hope it's only that) suicide. I am annoyed that one of the soldiers hasn't made it clear to him that removing himself was the right thing to do, but part of the problem is that he refuses to let anyone talk to him about it.

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Thank you! Considering how much praise Onew received from others here week after week I was already wondering if there's something wrong with me coz he got on my nerves from the very beginning. Yes I get it, you're a chaebol doctor who's never experienced any hardships in life...once, but geeezzzz, enough of the crying and seek for help.

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The situation isn't stupid and this kind of thing happens in real life too. It's not about whether people think what he did was right or not but rather what he thinks. He thinks he killed a person to save his life and that is what he has to make peace with. The fact that the person survived is not important because when he fled he did think the person would die and that is what haunts him. Considering that the "victim" thinks the same makes it even worse. But to be honest it seems to me that the worker doesn't want to forgive CH because he can't forgive himself for what happened to that older guy that gave him his helmet.

You can compare the situation to what MJ had to decide - is it better to let Argus die for the greater good? For some people that would be a no brainer, for others the choice they make will haunt them later regardless which they choose. The greater good in this situation is CH's life.

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+1

I agree that in the big picture of this show, where honor is at stake and the taking of lives, saving of lives and the choosing who lives or dies is a major theme being explored, Chi Hun's reactions gives the alternative to what it could have been like for Mo Yeon if she had let Argus or even that first VIP die, against what she felt was honorable.

If Chi Hun's instinct for self-preservation, although understandable and not a deliberate act, can have this impact on him, how much worse if any honorable doctor had chosen to kill or let Argus die. Shi Jin had known this when he told Mo Yeon to save Argus. It was her job and the honorable thing for her to do, and the only choice she could make, so that she would not feel as Chi Hun does.

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These things do happen, but that doesn't necessarily mean it works in a narrative. It would be a lot more compelling if the guy had actually died because...

< He thinks he killed a person to save his life and that is what he has to make peace with

... he didn't kill a person and, narratively, that does matter. It takes out of a lot of the impact for the guilt we're supposed to empathise with. If the guy survived and isn't hanging on by the thread of his life either, the writer is going to have to put that impact back in, normally by giving meaningful insight into the character's inner turmoil. This doesn't seem to have been done very effectively here, otherwise you wouldn't be getting so many comments of "this again/still?"

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That's the case with any narrative, I think. Some will feel the impact whereas others, won't. I can see why some may find it prolonged in the negative sense, but the fact that there are people who do feel the emotional impact of Onew's character situation, and sympathise with his inner turmoil, equally points to its effectiveness. Of course, that's not to say that it works for all, but frankly, that argument stands for pretty much any narrative.

I may not empathise with the guilt he personally feels, but as a viewer, I sure do empathise with his inability to move on and overcome his feelings of guilt - whatever the reason.

Just my two cents as a person who does appreciate where they're going with Onew's character. ^^

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And don't forget, all of this happened AFTER he had already lost a patient through misdiagnosing. He was already doubting himself, he is surrounded by people who seem strong, assured, and fearless in the face of danger (soldiers, doctors and nurses alike) and he has failed twice.

I am rather ticked at Mo-yeon - as the head of this team, she is responsible for her staff. In the aftermath of a major disaster, she should spend a little more time and attention on the well-being of those under her, eapecially when they start behaving oddly.

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Her character has been the most annoying for me out of the 4 main characters. Maybe it's cos I just cannot relate to such a character but more than once throughout the show I wondered how on earth someone like this can go so far in life to be a doctor.

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It's really not her fault. She has other crap going on and isn't a baby sitter. The older doctor did try to talk to him, but it didn't help. If he noticed shouldn't he have said something to others that the guy was having problems? Or try to get him some actual help for his obvious PTSD? It's unfair to say it's her responsibility to do all this when she's dealing with other issues (and I'm not talking dating).

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Chi Hoon's scenes are starting to tire out. How long are we dragging this out? Next to SJ, CH's character doesn't grow too. We only have 6 episodes left, I'd like CH to finally straighten things out and get better.

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I really, really like the Onew scenes - had no idea who he was coming in, but I think the scripting (mostly) and the acting (consistently) are very good.

Chi Hoon is someone who is about as privileged as you can get. He's rich, he's male, he's smart enough to become a surgeon, and he's got a bright personality that seems to weather most storms. And those are exactly the people who when they snap, they snap HARD - they don't have any coping mechanisms based on smaller failures, so this hits them like a tsunami. Think of all your small failures from high school and your first jobs: you got to deal with them individually and they were likely relatively small, and you were in a junior position anyhow so you probably got some cover from your bosses.

Chi Hoon has been broken by the double-whammy of misdiagnosis and abandoning his patient. He shouldn't feel responsible for that last one, but he's not in a healthy mental place and he's not got the perspective to talk himself down. These failures have gone right to the root of him, in a place where he's also outside of his family's influence for the first time. He must be questioning every single thing about himself and his abilities.

I've seen this happen with charismatic people from privileged backgrounds, so this entire storyline is striking me as both true and valuable. You can't take the weight of the world on your shoulders, and Chi Hoon's colleagues are certainly aware there's something off but not quite realizing how badly he's been damaged. He needs not just to talk to someone, but for someone to approach him and spend a long time stepping through what happened and breaking it into workable chunks.

He's already in a weird self-sacrificing state, which is not a good sign. He's basically offered to do anything Whiny Patient (who I also love, by the way) asks, and he made the insane choice of giving up his seat to the plant manager despite being quite obviously the better person to get on the flight. He's devaluing and deprioritizing himself in a way that spells nothing good in a war zone.

It's a very, very good character study and thought-provoking.

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I'm with your insightful post on this.

And I don't blame him for the crying. At the end of the day, he's a young lad, and not a particularly hardened one. So yes, he is shocked and full of self-loathing, and also in despair. And I like that the show is depicting how weak real people can be - not everyone is a hero like Shi Jin - in real life, people are scared and traumatised when something terrible happens.

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There was a weak character in "Neighborhood Hero" who drove me completely insane, partly because he was weak but mostly because the other characters kept overlooking his weakness and acting as though he was trustworthy/capable, and that's just not how reality functions.

But here, Onew is being very quiet and inward with his self-hatred, and he's still functioning as a doctor to the rest of the team, so they're just not realizing how bad this is - and that I find very true to life. I would not be at all surprised if a soldier figures out what's going on with Chi Hoon before the medical team does, as it's something a solider sees more often and would recognize the signs.

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That's an interesting comment - about the inward despair - and I think that's what makes it more heartrending.

Viewers are complaining that he is crying a lot, but I guess we forget we are given the omniscient view - we're allowed to see him crying, but for his workplace - they don't see it. They only know he's disappeared a lot, and very quiet and subdued, and not quite himself.

I do hope someone notices and helps him soon - before this quiet despair drives him to some crazy act of compensatory bravery just to redeem himself.

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10000 likes for this post.

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Maybe I'm dreaming, but I thought that in an early episode one of the characters said in passing that Chi-hoon had used his family influence to get out of his mandatory army service.
To me, this would explain a lot - it explains why he is totally unprepared for living in a war zone, why he seems to lack basic survival skills, why it gets to him, and why he so easily gives in to massive guilt. It was probably a huge blow to his self-esteem and also probably made him feel hugely guilty just being around these fantabulous special ops guys, who are ten times the man he is.

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Chi-hoon does have zero experience with these situations - he hasn't gone for his mandatory service yet..remember in an earlier episode he asked Myungjoo about whether army medics have guns, and if they have to treat the injured enemy.

This is probably in line with his age in the show (or real-life), he's still in his early/mid 20s and will probably serve in his later 20s, after he finishes his 4-year residency in 3 years at least!

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I skip the scenes because i feel bad he's hurting although seriously Get over it already BUT i don't skip because of him, i skip because of the patient, he makes my blood boil,with his stupid guilting, i honestly don't see the reason for it,if Onew hadn't found him first he'd be dead.
If this was real life I'd advise him to get another job or you'll be in therapy your whole life,you can't be falling apart everytime someone dies or almost dies.

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I think you dislike it because it hurts so much when you think it's an unfair situation, he doesn't have to be like that or experience that.

but I feel like his story is the another side of these volunteering activity in military area that people need to realize, it's not for the weak mind, it hits him so hard that he doesn't knew what to do.
He is a responsible person in his mind and that patient reaction is something he can't let go.

I think his story is needed, either for him or for other character since there's no one there that had the same experience with him,
sometimes it make me question how they all okay with all the things happen, oh maybe because they already a professional but for me, there must be the downside, they can't be all happy and they choose chi hoon character for that,
this is the things that across me as message that you can hope for all rainbow experience and you need to have cope mechanism

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Does DOTS/DFTS have some meaning in Korean that has been lost in translation? Or has its meaning not been explained yet in the show?

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So far I haven't seen the explanation in the show, but my guess is that for the locals or the ones in need since they (special forces) often arrive by helicopter you have to watch the sky and with the sunlight you can't see clearly, so it may appear as they are descended from the sun, that's my personal explanation so it may be wrong ^^' .
But then special forces also often arrive by night, so IDK... :)

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Not to nitpick, but I don't think "descendants" and "to descend" are translated into the same root word in Korean. I guess they could still be seen as descendants of the sun, but probably not related to them descending from the sky.

I'd really like to know some theories on the meaning of the title, too. I feel like the typical ending where the couples get married and live happily ever after would be too typical for a story like this, and I'm starting to worry that the best we can hope for is an open ending, where the couples meet each other briefly after a long separation... not like they haven't been separated enough times, though.

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I think its because our characters are from the East, where the sun is rising. Just like how Japan is called, the land of the rising sun.

Their arrival in the fictional country Urk in the west has triggered a lot of changes for the whole community. They brought about not just military protection and medical expertise but they also brought hope and vision to the community. Like a "saviour" approach. Though majority of the time, we only see the romance and the couples and not their missions. :) That's just my opinion.

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I don't think it's been explained yet? I'm curious about the title as well.

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Me too, I have been curious about the title for a while now.

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This is one I found in the net-
"Titled "Sons of the Sun" is pointedly expresses the plight of character to face extreme situations in conflict areas in the image of the intense sun. Original doctors talk to the Doctors Without Borders but was corrected on the subject at the planning stage to talk with your doctor Army Ranger Captain. In extreme situations you want to scorching sun imaged by the soldiers of the enemy and humanist attitudes of the characters lives as doctors decided the title of the play as "descendants of the sun."

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Another one-
One of the reason could be that
This is about youth' guts, courage, love who never fell into despair and always got back up no matter how dire situation they were thrown into. They are heroes who brightens this world like sun which always give light and energy fully without any preservation.

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My guess is that it's called Descendants of the Sun because the cast is just too damn hot. (Jk tho, I really don't know what it means)

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"I've only done the best treatment..so you don't die right away"

LOL!! Kang Moyeon is killing it so far! Evolving slowly and then bringing up so many dimensions to her rather reserved ep 1 personality.

Wish I could say the same about Shijin - his 'duty above everything' beliefs are getting affected by seeing the other side of the conflict, would we be seeing the change soon? His actions are severely limited by the rigid hierarchy of the Army, would he be reckless enough to go against them. Without that, and despite his personal convictions, he'd soon be a pawn in the political game that's been played out

Am I allowed to love the momentary camaraderie the two ladies seem to have found? They are cut out of the same cloth, and now that minor distractions like a common ex are out of the way, they can be (reluctant) buddies. Their budding lovelines seem to balance off their interactions - Myungjoo is a bit like Shijin when it comes to love - and now that they are in full fledged relationships, I can hope that all four could be friends

The blind date with the flight attendants may seem random - but I remember Daeyoung promising that if Shijin did not pick up Myungjoo's call.. Can I hope they were just going through the motions for the other's sake and their heart wasn't in it?

Next week is going to be crazy - the virus, the cure that goes missing and an abduction.. Woah"I've only done the best treatment..so you don't die right away"

LOL!! Kang Moyeon is killing it so far! Evolving slowly and then bringing up so many dimensions to her rather reserved ep 1 personality.

Wish I could say the same about Shijin - his 'duty above everything' beliefs are getting affected by seeing the other side of the conflict, would we be seeing the change soon? His actions are severely limited by the rigid hierarchy of the Army, would he be reckless enough to go against them. Without that, and despite his personal convictions, he'd soon be a pawn in the political game that's been played out

Am I allowed to love the momentary camaraderie the two ladies seem to have found? They are cut out of the same cloth, and now that minor distractions like a common ex are out of the way, they can be (reluctant) buddies. Their budding lovelines seem to balance off their interactions - Myungjoo is a bit like Shijin when it comes to love - and now that they are in full fledged relationships, I can hope that all four could be friends

The blind date with the flight attendants may seem random - but I remember Daeyoung promising that if Shijin did not pick up Myungjoo's call.. Can I hope they were just going through the motions for the other's sake and their heart wasn't in it?

Next week is going to be crazy - the virus, the cure that goes missing and an abduction.. Woah

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The virus scenes looked fascinating. I can't wait for Dae young to absolutely go insane with worry next week. It's going to be quite the episode next week.

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My heart did a little flip when Daeyoung yelled/interrupted so strongly at Myungjoo's joke. His intensity really just made me feel things T___T I hope MJ's ok in the next episode...

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1000+

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Shi Jin went after Argus with his team to capture the manager and I'm pretty sure he wasn't meant to have anything to do with them anymore so he was already going againist the rules in that sense...

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If called on that one, I think he might say that there was a disappearance of a Korean national while in police custody and when they located him Argus and his men were there so they left the kidnappers alone... So TECHNICALLY, you could argue that he had no idea that Argus was behind it.

Untrue of course, but at least the story hangs together.

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can any one clarify this for me, why cant dae young be promoted to be an officer like my or sj? mj dad said he wont accept a sergeant major as a sil. so if he's an officer like mj wouldn't it solve their problems?

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Dae young is just an enlisted (probably uneducated) soldier, SJ went to an elite school(like west point). So DY can only rise so far.

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Hi,

I thought SJ said he also went to West Point, in that ep. during the earthquake (ep.7 or 8?), when MY was writing the name of the medication and how to administer it in English. Viki's subs had him say, "I went to West Point. When I come back, I will be speaking in English to you," (or something along those lines). That made me assume that beyond going to Seoul University, and the Military Academy in Korea, SJ also went to West Point. Was I wrong in assuming that? I am curious now...

Would West Point have a short track for people who have already studied in their own country, and just qualify for more education, or some kind of "exchange student program?" (Or something along those lines). I know SJ is supposed to be 34, and that he has already spent 10 years as a soldier, so... Would what I suggested add up? And make sense?

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In the US military, an officer and an enlisted relationship is a no-no. There are proper protocols to adhere to. I don't know if the same rule regarding relationships applies in South Korea...Enlisted status doesn't mean uneducated. It could mean lacking in the education requirement...Since military service is mandatory in SK, some people delay going until they obtain graduation from college enabling them officer's status. Even graduates from non-military college could be an officer. It is not necessary to graduate from a military institution like West Point... Dae-young needs to obtain a higher education and probably get a college degree to be eligible for the officers' program if he so desires to make a career of the military. Or he could just quit as Myung-joo's father suggested. He could get out of the service and learn the family business.

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No actually in south korea and even in my country there are only a few ways to be a commissioned officer. Go to the military academy which is equal to a uni degree. Or go to officer school. I guess the uni degree is needed for officer school but even if daeyoung had it he can't automatically be a CO without still going through one of the two options. The problem for daeyoung is that both these options have an age limit. I read that in the US there are special ways to jump from NCO to CO status but they only really occur in cases like war time events.

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Oh i am sorry i didnt see the latter part of your post. But nevertheless, daeyoung cannot be a CO because of his age. I think he is older than shijin and for the officer school in korea 34 is the limit iiirc

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My knowledge is based on SG army so might not be applicable but here u go.

Army rank are divided between commission and non commission rank.

Only commission rank ppl can go up all the way to be a commander. And even the lowest rank of commission rank has higher rank than the highest non-commissioned rank (ie. MJ is Lieutenant - lowest rank as commission officer DY is Sergeant Major - highest rank of non-commission officer)

I don't know what's the requirement to be commission officer. But as the story told us DY doesn't come for a well-off family and initially goes to army to escape from his gangster background.

SJ and MJ are his opposite, comes from military family and obviously has done everything "correctly" as per military way and therefore able to be commissioned and on track for further promotion.

I don't know if in Korea it is possible or not to join commissioned track from non-commissioned track as an officer.

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Commissioned officers have college degrees from their chosen field which depends whether they start at O-1 rank to O-8. SJ is Captain which is an O-3 in the army. MJ is addressed as Lieutenant but because she's a doctor. she must be an O-2. Cadets who graduated from a military school start at O-1...Non-commissioned rank is what we call enlisted personnel. There are 13 ranks in the US army so I'm not sure if it's the same equivalent in SK. Anyway, DY is deserving respect by SJ because of his experience and years of service. I don't think family background and/or environment are basis for military ranking. Education is the main basis like a nurse by profession joining the service will be an O-1. A doctor will be an O-3 because of at least 8 years of medical training. However, a commissioned nurse will become an O-3 after at least 5 years of service. That's how they calculate"time in rate".

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Oh in my comment, Family background that I mentioned is more of a general "privilege" sense to why they are able to be commissioned.

As simple as having a well off enough family to send them to colleague and financially not needed to work to focus on education. And maybe the knowledge of which exact education to choose to be useful in army career.

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Tbh i think non commisioned officers are the backbone of the military. Like, they execute or implement everything. The officers are usually more administrative like shijin's direct superior. As with all professions, i respect the ordinery workers so much. They do much of the work but usually get lower pay than the bosses, although i understand the importance of the management side

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You are right in saying that non-commissioned officers are the backbone of the military. Officers like MJ's dad mostly play politics and play the rank game. The way the Lieutenant General (O-9) interferes in the love-life of DY and MJ and even involving SJ show it...I didn't get to mention the age limit when one enters the service. In SK, I think it's 34 and depending on which branch, the mandatory service is around two years. Most servicemen get out after mandatory service like the entertainment idols and actors like SJK. DY must be a military career person. He could be at least over 10 years in the service which shows leadership and confidence in what he does. It is still possible for him to make a jump to commissioned officers status but because of the politics involved, some still decides to keep being enlisted and enjoy the respect of commissioned officers in the process. The military has programs available to them for advancement...In the real work order, there is a clear distinction between a white-collar job like the bosses and the blue-collar job who are the people working under them. Again as I mention in my previous post, education is a key.

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I am a shawol but to be honest, i was skeptical to see Onew act on a project this big. He is decent but I've never seen him on a project larger than parodies and all those ridiculous acting stints that comes with being an idol. And the 2nd episode where he first appeared didn't really sold me out.

But eventually, his performance won me over. And this episode killed it for me. I'm now really, really convinced. And no, these are not tears coming out of my eyes. NO.

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he was in a few musicals in 2009 and 2010. and got really good reviews for his performance in them. its not the same as being in a project like this but its def alot more than silly parodies or sitcoms or cameos. for some reason after shinee came back in 2012, he hasnt been in any musicals (or much else actually...)
I was a uh big shawol back in the day. not so much now. just cuz im sorta bored of kpop now. but yeah, he was in alot of variety as well. had alot of charm/wit. i think he always had talent. but u know how it is sometimes for idols. talent or even popularity isnt enough when the company has you as a low priority or some other such things that can happen in show biz.

I like him in this but I also feel like the stupid plot with the earthquake survivor is dragging him down alot. like he can cry prettily and all but cmon now. im torn tbh cuz on the one hand this is the most exposure he's gotten in a solo project in like 5 or 6 years. but this story arc is soooo annoyiiiiing.
I really need it to wrap up. yes keep giving him scenes writers but enough crying! (i realize the production already concluded but u know what i mean)

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I thin be stopped performing in musicals because of the nodules on his vocal cords that he finally had removed in 2014. He spent months in recovery and vocal training again and could not sing

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Oh gosh the typos huhu. I think he

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The ending really REALLY is amazing. The silence (unlike the usual over the top bgm in the background) really made a huge impact to the scene. It really made it clear on how much he loves YMJ. I just hope this virus would be a wake up call for SDY, making him realise his love for YMJ and also to YMJ's father.

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I totally agree!!!!! I thought the lack of BGM made a big impact, not only on how much SDY loves MJ, but also on how serious this virus is/might be. The way that he stormed in, not caring if he would be infected as well. The way he kept holding her, as she fought him, the way he embraced her, and the way he silently cried (one tear), was so powerful, I thought. And because there was no BGM to distract us, that scene felt so long to me, but it was good.

I also loved that scene because in ep.9, MJ complained in front of SJ that SDY would not even go as far as holding her hand or hug her. Well... He ended up holding her hand in front of her dad, and proclaiming his love for her. And here, she finally gets what she had wanted for a long time, though that came after some bad news. And yes I know, SDY hugged her when he was leaving (and she was going to Urk), and also after the earthquake. But that is the thing with him: so far, he has seemed to only hug her after something tragic or bad has happened. Let's see what happens if she makes it, if he changes when it comes to skinship with MJ in the future. As the woman said, "she is not asking for too much..." And I totally understand her :-)

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I really appreciate how this show uses "silence" to emphasize certain emotional scenes like the ending in this episode and the shoe tying scene between SJ and MY. It gives that much added emotional impact and I love it!

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Thanks JB for the recap! Still thoroughly entertained and hooked on this show. I love how the writers do callbacks to previous episodes and how characters are slowly changing and evolving from the situations they are exposed to.

Also I enjoyed the fact that Youngsoo had another purpose in the show which then lead to forward movement of our main story and the story of our couples.

Lastly, I like how both SJ and MY deal with their crush/love for each other, incorporating their professions: MY for lack of SJ's pic was staring at his Xray result, MY using her stethoscope to eavesdrop on SJ and MJ, SJ stalking her thru his sniper riffle, their "special forces style" ramyun date. Loved all those scenarios!

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Oops, sorry, meant to post down below!! :(

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Thank you for the recap! This show just tears me apart T_T First an earthquake, now an epidemic.

Things I took note of this episode:
- Chi Hoon’s patient is starting to grate on my nerves. I get it that he’s just probably feeling highly defensive and angry because he was so scared to be left alone in there to die, but somebody needs to give that kid a good shaking. He’s only thinking about himself, and we all know that he wouldn’t have gotten out had Chi Hoon not gotten out and alerted the soldiers. Imagine if they had both just died in there (though he clearly does not know this). I feel so bad for Chi Hoon’s heavily pregnant wife!

- But ok, at least he was useful in bringing up the diamonds later on. And LOL at the 2 men ignoring his “how much are the diamonds?”

- That scene when DY got the call from MY to retrieve his parcel and the two men ran so fast that the papers just went EVERYWHERE. I almost died of laughter in the slow motion clip when the papers were plastered to DY’s stomach as he ran forward.

- They can’t lie to save their lives in front of the girls even if they’re Special Forces, bless them.

- MY’s happy face (:D) when she celebrated escaping the bad guys vs SJ’s face (-_-) – her excitement was really cute.

- DY and MJ’s –almost- kiss at the minefield! Oy, Big Boss, please get your own car!! LOL

- When annoying manager Young-soo swallowed the diamonds last episode… my thought was… really?? You just swallowed a handful of the hardest/one of the hardest materials in the world and you expected to come out okay? And THEN YOU SWALLOWED THEM AGAIN? Like, firstly, EW??? And secondly, ARE YOU MAD? And then you had to get yourself cut up and spread a deadly virus around? Why are you such a troublemaker?

- That terrible photoshopped photo of him with a giant mustache on the passport HAHA.

- I was somehow expecting MY to be the one getting the M3 virus somehow. My heart totally broke when DY just rushed in to hug MJ. Nooooooo.

- The politics of not being able to stop Argus... argh. It puts Sijin in such a bad, bad position because this is something big. They want to overthrow the government and they need Argus to do it, even at the cost of all his illegal activities.

Thoughts about the preview for next episode
- Ahh, the typical kidnapping scene again. I am looking forward to SJ and DY’s heroic rescue.
- Why in the world did that person sound so casual and relaxed when she told SJ “oh the police took her and Fatima”..?! I mean, sure, in their world, the police may be all upright and all that, but which police brings away people gagged and forcibly into a police car? COME ON. Am I the only one who feels that way?

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re: next episode--
I think remember someone saying that Argus has scoped out the strength/numbers of the Korean Military stationed in Urk, so I'm guessing that Argus has upped the ante and convinced the entire police force to do his evil bidding? I mean we've already seen how much power Argus has over the police force; they're practically an extension of his gang. Local police are pretty corrupt bc of him and maybe they've just given up all pretenses of upholding righteousness??
But of course, like JB said, there's a sort of disconnect in the really obvious "evil" tasks that are carried out. Some of the actions in this drama just give off that kind of feel-- things are definitely exaggerated sometimes lmao

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Well, I think the police probably didn't force them if they went. If they were gagged and forced I'm sure it would be bigger news? I thought the preview said they went to the police. It probably looked on the up and up for nobody to question it. MY doesn't know the police are corrupt.

Politics do put SJ in a bad position, but I don't think he's going to have much trouble going against him to save MY. He already did go after him when he shouldn't have this episode.

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I mean she had her mouth duct-taped when she was pushed into the car; I thought it was pretty clear that she went unwillingly? Maybe she was framed for something so the police could take her? All guesses here though, haha.

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@lemondoodle
Oh, I thought I saw in the preview that MY was gagged as she was led into the police car! Maybe I misunderstood the preview and that scene was what SJ imagined to have happened as the person told him about MY. (Sounded like one of the nurses).

Yeah I did wonder why SJ still went after Argus and revealed himself, despite being ordered not to? What was the motivation to save Youngsoo?

@michelle
Yes I remember that part too! It sounded really ominous because it made it sound like Argus had the upper hand now - and with MY's life at stake, I think it's even more difficult for SJ and his men to turn the tables? I am really looking forward to how it will work out though! And I know MJ will get out of this ok, (oh gosh the ice bath) and I'm really hoping her illness doesn't last too long!

Goodness though, with all the police under Argus, there's practically 0 law enforcement in Urk.

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Re: maybe we misinterpreted the scene
Oh I didn't even think of that! With all the drastic evil things happening around here, I thought it was plausible that MY actually was taken away in such a forcible manner bc it'd be consistent with all the other horrible things that Argus's gangs do.
Also:
My question as well! Why did SJ still go after Argus despite being told not to interfere? I don't think it was for the diamonds (money) solely? Did Shijin's sense of justice/moral compass compel him to stop whatever illegal body dissection they were about to perform on Youngsoo?

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@michelle
See, I doubt it looked or someone would say something. Unwillingly probably, but maybe not suspicious enough to alert anyone.

As for being pushed into the car and her looking back, some people are suggesting that's when she gets taken (again) after Argus suggests a deal, the diamonds for the medicine or MY and SJ has to take the medicine (probably by MY's choice) and MY gets take away.

This is just speculation. I refuse to believe people wouldn't say anything about MY being kidnapped in front of them lol

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Lmao true. I just thought it was possible because Argus said smth about scoping out the true numbers of the Korean military force, making it seem like he had the upper hand to carry out something as ridiculous as a kidnapping in broad daylight.

What you've guessed makes sense to me too though... I guess we'll find out next wednesday!

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I loved this, "They can’t lie to save their lives in front of the girls even if they’re Special Forces, bless them."

And at first, I also thought MY would be the one infected with the virus, for some reason. However, looking at SDY's strong reactions, I am kind of "glad" that MJ was the one infected. We might see a somewhat SDY in the next episodes. One can hope, right? :-)

WRT to Argus and his kidnapping of MY (whether it is once or twice), I feel that the guy is asking to be killed, tbh. He has already rubbed it in in front of SJ, who even regretted letting him live (and losing his superior in the process). Now he is messing with MY? That's like asking for a death wish for sure (methinks).

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Same! I'm actually glad that MJ was the one to be infected - it even makes sense, really. After all, DY has always been so quiet and stoic when it comes to their relationship, (though it's quite clear he really does love her) that I'm sure MJ's infection of the M3 virus will really shake things up in him. Maybe even in MJ's father? At least her illness might force them both to really consider how much they both love MJ and how they've been showing it. I'm really hoping for some great DY scenes in the next few episodes!

Oh, Argus is going down for shureee. It's quite funny because my friend really likes Argus (she thinks he's handsome) and when we talk about the show she's always "please don't let Argus die.." and I'm the exact opposite. I'm hoping maybe we might get a bit more story to Argus? Unless the writer intends to keep him as a more one-dimensional character of a soldier turned mercenary due to greed. Hmm.

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" I almost died of laughter in the slow motion clip when the papers were plastered to DY’s stomach as he ran forward. "

This was so funny I don't know how many times I rewatched it! Also people said that the song playing while both boys were running was the Dragonball OST? Lololol!!

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idk about dragonball but i think that's the song the soldiers always sing during their shirtless morning run ;)

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Oh I see! Thanks for clarifying, haha! It was a nice touch, noh? Really added to the hilarity!

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Perhaps you didn't know, but Dramabeans has a no-spoilers policy that includes not discussing previews, so please refrain from doing so in the future. Thank you.

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I actually did not know about not mentioning previews, since it's in the episode I figured everyone would watch the preview. Never seen someone complain about it before, bu very sorry!

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Oh, I'm so sorry about that! I was unaware that previews were counted as spoilers, I will take note of it! Thanks for letting me know.

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Songsong couple is lovely. BUT goowon couple is so strong. They dont talk much, yet you can feel their affection.

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Whoa.. thankyou for recapping JB♡
I've been waiting for a whole day.
This episode really gave me soo much feels.. at the beginning i laughed and keep smiling like an idiot. At the end i cried.. i moved when shi jin asked mo yeon what he could do for her and when dae young scolded myung joo too. I loved DoTS to the moon and back.. it's so hard waiting until next week T.T

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Glad to see JB weigh in on DOTS!
I liked the medical crises here as well-- it felt more woven in with the doctors and the story in general.
Why did Shijin still go after Argus/Youngsoo after directly being told to turn a blind eye to Argus's operations? Was his sense of justice that compelling? I mean I suppose it led to the operation scene, but besides the diamonds, was Youngsoo important enough to defy the Commissioner?

Also, the Minjae/Chihun scenes-- the entire situation frustrates me bc I feel like Minjae should know that Chihun did everything he within his bounds as a doctor during the crisis? If he'd stayed there was no guarantee that he would be saved by Chihun either?? And the constant needling just seems so unfair to him-- especially the rebuking after Chihun confesses his internal conflict only to Minjae and not to anyone else. Am I just entirely unsympathetic to Minjae?? Or maybe it's just character that's callous and immature??? Idk but I just want Chihun to be ok ;_____;

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No, I agree with you about the Minjae/Chihoon scenes!

I don't understand - Chihoon confessed to him in a flood of tears which looked pretty genuine to me. And for the record, it’s a doctor’s job to save your life, not to excavate you out of a pile of rocks – he’s not an excavator/soldier/rock climber, for goodness’s sake. Minjae needs a good dose of gratefulness IMO. I’m not feeling his anger, nor his “justification” for not helping Chihoon. If Chihoon is a bad doctor for not helping him get out of the caved-in building, then I don’t know what Minjae is for not wanting to extend any help to Chihoon, just because.

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Precisely. Sighs-- I feel like this angle probably should've been wrapped up like an episode or two ago. When Minjae initially made the first bitter remark, I hoped that that would be it and they would solve it next episode with someone (like dr. song) explaining the situation between both of them and how it's not Chihun's fault ok!!! He actually saved u!!! But alas, it is what it is. Show is dragging this out.

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I think maybe they had to drag it out so that Youngsoo could get on the plane instead of ChiHoon, which, ok, but... I thought by Ep 10 it would be settled already. Especially after CH and his flood of tears to MJ?

I mean, if CH's going to be moping around he's not going to be much use to the team, especially with all the intense events happening next episode. SO fingers crossed that somebody snaps him out of it soon! I'm sure he feels guilty for leaving ChiHoon in the building (but come on, it was soldier's orders to get out if an aftershock hit) - but ChiHoon really needs to get himself out of his pool of self-misery too.

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I'm with the two of you... his story arch is kinda dragging. It's been what? 5/4 episodes? I understand that his guilt stricken - his young and on his 1st year of residency, and I think he doesn't have any exposure to cases were patients blame their doctors if any untoward things happens to them... but He's a professional. He should get his act together. Hopefully someone (Dr. Song or Mo Yeon) will help him out of his misery.

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Just want to fill you in that chihoon is still useful for other cases like he told sijin about M3 virus testing thing. He's not really useless except for minjae case because the patient is rejecting his care and he's too guilt stricken.
I'm with you about the chihoon/minjae stroy dragging too but in real situation, it's only been a week. So yeah the dramatic earthquake can't be that easy to be forgotten either. I wish he went back to his wife according to plan..

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To me ChiHoon seems like he's suffering from something like PTSD, not exactly self-inflicted misery.... so it'd be hard for him to just shake off that trauma and just pull himself together. I think the fault is partially with the other doctors who need to notice that something's wrong with him and get him some help.

Maybe he's sheltered and he was unprepared for the actual horrors of a disaster zone, but nobody can truly be prepared until they've been there. So his situation is representative of every new doctor/peacekeeper/soldier/etc who probably goes through something similar as they learn that they can't save everyone and they have to make hard, grey-area choices sometimes while out in the "real world". I think it's a really important character to have in a drama like this, though do I agree that Chihoon's story arc needs some forward momentum from now on for the sake of the plot, (though in reality it's likely something that takes a lot of time to work through).

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"I feel like Minjae should know that Chihun did everything he within his bounds as a doctor during the crisis?"

Of course he should! But he's a self-centered, selfish, lazy little twerp, so he's going to be a pain in the ass instead.

Honestly, I love Min Jae because he's so, so tunnel-vision. He's been consistent all the way through: concerned about himself but in a hilariously lazy way. Yes he's being incredibly mean to Chi Hoon, but he probably doesn't find himself in this position of manipulative power that much, and he's making the most of it. And in the meantime I get to watch him wander around with an IV bag balanced on his head, because yes, that is literally the laziest way you could move around with an IV, even though there seems to be no reason for him to roam around obliviously interrupting serious soldier talk. I love him.

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songsong couple is sooo cute.
despite the flaws of this show... im still enjoying it.
can't wait for the next episodes!
it's going to be intense next week!
argh... can't wait!

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I'm not even slightly worried MJ will die... probably just a wake-up call for the men in her life to stop acting like they are.

I don't think the Argus thing will cause problems between MY and SJ because he's obviously not going to leave him alone. I worry more about his career after this mess is over.

I freaking long how cute SJ and MY are, even if I'm super worried crap will hit the fan soon. Kdrama couples aren't that happy this early without something bad happening. MY making promises to do something for him that he can do himself just has bad news written all over it.

MY also remains awesome as usual. She really has adjusted to army life. I just kinda love her driving in and saving him lol

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This episode was mostly light and fun but then my heart sank with goowon couple at the end ;_;

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This show should be called the stupid and the beautiful. Because it's stupid but they're beautiful.

Now, I shall run far far away before I am pelted to death

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Hahahaha! ?

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yes it should be, stupid for all the military and medical plot lines

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... enz, you are very brave. Hee...

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Hahahaha +1

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I was wondering, does M3 Virus exists? How is it transmitted? Is it blood-borne? since accordingly the 2 female leads were the only ones who were in contact with the virus... and on the teaser for the next ep they were downing gowns and masks, but no caps..

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plus all of them (the med team on the OR and the 2 soldiers) have contact with the patient prior to his diagnosis...

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I was wondering that, too!

Ok to be perfectly honest and at the risk of sounding really stupid... when the blood splashed over their faces and MY forced them all to remove their hands from the table...

My first thought was: oh god Youngsoo has AIDS or something. (Because that was the first blood-borne virus I thought of, LOL).

But it turned out to be this M3 thing... and Youngsoo has been living and breathing the same air as them for a very long while... so how exactly is it transmitted?

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It was transmitted through MJ's eye I'm assuming.

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And if it is just blood borne then, why did they have to be quarantined? If it is transmitted in other forms, then they would all potentially be at risk

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That's what's running on my mind while I was watching those scenes... If it's less worst or almost equal to Ebola then I'm sure it's quite a big thing... really contagious.

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I agree with you.. But my explanation was that this virus seems to be blood borne, and highly contagious through direct contact with infected blood (similar to AIDS I guess). And we've seen that only the 2 doctors contacted his infected blood. But then again, they both got blood on their faces so unless MJ's face was wounded or she got the virus through her eyes (is that possible?)

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Since the drama is fictional but dramatizing a similar reality illustrating M3 as like Ebola, I believe the virus is blood-borne and the splattered blood on Myung-joo's eye is direct contact on her mucosa since Young-soo is a carrier of the virus.

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Reminds me of this old CSI episode where they caught the killer because the blood of the murdered girl with HIV got into his eye and eventually, the killer began showing symptoms.

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I was wondering if the whole surgical team should have been quarantined too!!

I looked up Ebola: "Ebola then spreads through human-to-human transmission via direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected people, and with surfaces and materials (e.g. bedding, clothing) contaminated with these fluids.

Health-care workers have frequently been infected while treating patients with suspected or confirmed EVD. This has occurred through close contact with patients when infection control precautions are not strictly practiced."

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs103/en/

So, the show is not totally off ie it is not air borne but spread through bodily secretions/fluids.

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I think it's an Ebola-like virus, M3 but not actually Ebola from what I can understand...hope that helps!

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The M3 virus in this show is fictional, though they did mention a comparison to Ebola to show the gravity of the situtation. "M3" strains are used at times when genotyping certain viruses (which I don't think any was mentioned in the show?).

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It looks blood-borne, though I'm also reading a translation that claims it's influenza, so...? Whoever did effects did a good job: the blood splatter avoided MY's eye, but definitely did go into MJ's.

It has to be blood-related. I mean, it would be both effective and super-sneaky for DY to hug MJ and ensure he gets quarantined with her, but I don't think that's the case.

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I guess M3 refers to MERS-COV. The symptoms shown in the drama is quite similar to the symptoms of MERS-Cov. This drama was shot last year which coincides with the MERS-Cov outbreak in South Korea.

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2nd time I am complaining about the actor who is portraying the villain Argus. The guy just does not do a credible job as a villain. He utters the lines in a "villainish" tone accompanied by villainous facial and body language but the execution of lines is still sophomoric. And his poor acting is more pronounced and even more glaring because he is speaking English in a Korean language film. He's been in other Korean dramas previously, most often again the villain, and still poorly acted. Gosh, guy!

Other than that, I anxiously await each episode and could not imagine this drama without Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo.

(Did you ever notice the attractiveness of SJK's eyes when the camera zeros in on his eyes when he is wearing his helmet? )

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I'm good with the Argus guy. Compared to the usual scope of "foreign villains", he's very good. There's only so much he can do about a scripted line that has him telling a doctor she'd better fix him so he can murder a 15 year old trafficking victim.

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Yep. He's not good, but he's so good compared to the usual foreign actors in kdramas, I can't help but be grateful for him LOL

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Thanks JB!

I like how the show is giving us the chance to think with the characters about the dilemmas faced ... giving us situation after situation to examine each principle of honor further, and sometimes turning tables along the way.

Question of honor
For Shi Jin the job required risk to life and killing. Mo Yeon had to choose between loving him or sticking to what she believed was honorable, ie not killing but saving lives no matter what, so much so that she did it anyway regardless of the damage that, that did to Shi Jin's career (although she did not know it would happen). Then .... she has to decide which person lived or died in the earthquake. ... This episode she has to decide if Argus is worth saving and she actually had turned away from her original honorable stand, and the Hippocratic Oath, at least for a minute, when she considered that it was better to let him die.

Saving Private Ryan, ... saving Young Soo ... when it means more innocent lives are risked or lost. What is the right and honorable thing to do?

Turning Tables
This episode, the guys get to feel the fear, horror and the helplessness (that Mo Yeon has been struggling against since Ep 1) with the possibility of losing the gals. Poor Dae Young has been holding out so long out of honor, and now it seems too late. He is facing what Myung Ju said... It is more scary to think of life without the loved one than to worry about the job. Maybe he will choose to quit if Myung Ju can survive.

We also explore other scenarios of what could be for our main characters.
"... it’s a familiar story for an ex-special forces soldier to go mercenary after quitting the military." And we have Dae Young having to decide to leave the military to work for his future mum-in-law's company. But without Myung Ju, if he still quits, what might he choose to be?

Great timing!
- Isn't is just the way, when Mo Yeon is coming around to accepting hanging out a guy with a gun, that she is repeatedly tested by more guys with more guns! :)

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If SJK just levelled up to Won Bin status in through this drama. SO HOT. I've always liked his voice and found him cute since music bank. And then was thoroughly impressed with wolf boy. But this. changes. everything.

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Hi JB thanks for the recap! I really appreciate this episode since we got to see how the characters grow throughout the incidents! I come to realize that SJ and MJ have somewhat similar character and so do MY and DY. You know, SJ-MJ have this direct "if i love him/her, i'll strive to them", while MY-DY are about "if it's best for us, no matter how much it hurts, then i'll choose it". And i TRULY appreciate how JK, HK, JG, and JW play them, it makes me believe in them :")

Anyway guys, is it just me or the story of dr.Song and dr.Ha seems a bit intriguing, like....i can't help but thinking that dr.Song would die (please don't author-nim!!)
You know, with the shoes, like it's the last memento from him, then the folder, which i don't know why but i guess it's not porn but something related to their relationship, AND now he's got flu after treating the children!

Well.....i hope it's just me being a mellow person but i can't help to think about it LOL

ANYWAYS, whatever happens in the future episode i hope we get more explanation from all the missing links because i really love this drama but yeah JB's right, some things need to be connected to each other

Sorry for blabbering!!

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Great ending. I really applaud the director. There was total silence during that last scene, everyone (both the characters and the viewers) were holding their breaths. No need for music or conversation. The eyes, the language of the body were all that was needed to relay the gravity of that scene. It was great. I know I speak for most when I say I teared up even before MJ realized it was her. DY's tear was a tearjerker.

Can't wait for next episode! Thurs, come sooner!

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I love this show, but dear lawd Chihun, stop crying already!

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Script writernims, please stop making chihoon cry and show his professional side more. Also that Doctor Song, please be okay. I'm worried since he's wearing mask too..

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Actually I've noticed that in English people say Urk and Koreans say Uruk. I feel like it's the koreanized name of the country. At least that's how I convinced myself from hearing different versions of the country's name is 10 episodes

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Yeah, to be honest, the English in this show is FAR better than a line or two we hear in most Kdramas. The fact that fictional Urk is made up of so many diverse people so I can chalk up the not-so-bad (in my opinion) English to groups of diverse people using a language common to them all.

Love EVERYTHING about this show - yes, even Chi-yoon's crying. He seems like the rich kid who, at home, can be proud of defying his rich family to become a doctor, probably about to marry his pregnant girlfriend, again, probably against his family's wishes. He thinks he can handle anything like a "regular" guy. He is disappointed in himself and now thinks of himself as a coward. "How can I be a good father?"

I really hope we get to see one of the badazz special forces guys tell him they would've run too in that situation. Yes we've seen Shin jin cover someone from falling rocks but that was a different situation as far as the walls had been shorn up and he was standing next to the person already. I'm sure if he had been in Chi hoon's place, he would've done the same thing rather than be trapped (probably with broken limbs from the fall) a level above where the punk worker was anyway.

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My best guess for "Urk" in Korean is "어륵", which forces a vowel between the "r" and "k" sounds simply because you can't have a syllable with no vowel.

"얽" just doesn't work. It would sound like "Urr" most of the time.

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Someone heal chi hoons broken heart!!!! It's been 4 episodes already. Although I love this drama, some of the action scenes were poorly executed. ?

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Thanks JB for the recap! Still thoroughly entertained and hooked on this show. I love how the writers do callbacks to previous episodes and how characters are slowly changing and evolving from the situations they are exposed to.

Also I enjoyed the fact that Youngsoo had another purpose in the show which then lead to forward movement of our main story and the story of our couples.

Lastly, I like how both SJ and MY deal with their crush/love for each other, incorporating their professions: MY for lack of SJ’s pic was staring at his Xray result, MY using her stethoscope to eavesdrop on SJ and MJ, SJ stalking her thru his sniper riffle, their “special forces style” ramyun date. Loved all those scenarios!

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Me too!

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I'm not going to harp on the Onew story line again since by episode 10 so many people here have decided they finally feel the same way I have about it all along. It feels inserted and contrived, now it's gone full blow absurd. Let's just be thankful it's not the main story. SM Entertainment is certainly getting it's money's worth out of the idol placement in this drama. They must have chipped in some hefty won and lucky Onew gets to cry all over the most watched drama of 2016.

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You said you're not going to harp on it... but that's exactly what you did. If you don't like the storyline that's totally valid. It's also valid to dislike Onew's acting skills.

But it's not ok to say that SM bought Onew this screentime or role. The writer wrote this part because she wanted it in her drama, not because Onew or SM or paid for it, and she did so presumably before Onew was even cast. To claim otherwise is completely unfair.

Many people here in Korea are Onew's fans and we're watching this drama just because of him. So please don't be so rude. Comments like yours sour my drama watching experience and make me not want to return to Dramabeans. If you don't like the storyline or Onew's acting you can express that without making it unpleasant for those of us who do enjoy them.

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Thank you, Kailani

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they really are throwing everything and the kitchen sink into this drama, don't they? xD

i honestly rolled my eyes a bit when the virus thingy came up because, wow there is such a thing as overkill. but i guess without all these outside crisis the story will just be..bland. the last scene makes me root for the virus arc tho because it was so powerful and at least this time the crisis hits really close to home to our 4 leads. i wonder if they minimized skinship between DY and MJ because of their RL huge age difference or/and because jingoo is married in RL? i feel like we won't get as much as a kiss til the end lol

how funny was that package scene- who said bros always come before hos since these 2 so readily throw each other under the bus whenever there's a sign of trouble in paradise lmao.. i love how SJ automatically adopted the military stance when MY scolded him with eyes downcast and all.. and how his eyes moved to the upper left before repeating her excuse all this time 'it wasn't me' HAHA. and the difference between SJ smooth talking tactics and DY's wide eyed terror just killed me xD

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GooWon actually has a lot of skinship, but mostly hugs. The main OTP has kissed a lot, but haven't held hands or hugged (really) even once. I find the skin ship reasonably balanced. Plus they are supposed to be a couple that longs for each other, so they shouldn't be making out all the time.

I find the virus story bland because she's not dying lol. It's so obviously done to move their love line forward, not as a real threat. I might be heartless, but w it's not believable anything will happen to any of the main or supporting characters in ep. 10 so I'm not getting worked up about it.

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Chi-Hoon is a metaphor for all young doctors. I know it's been discussed in the course of the show but I didn't fully appreciate it until this episode. All young doctors/lawyers/social workers believe they can save every case they meet. In the legal industry, there's a saying, "it's not whether you'll be sued for malpractice, but when." I'm sure surgeon have something similar about losing patients. The problem is no one prepares you for the losses. No one tells you that there are cases that stay with you a lifetime, good or bad, and it's probably the bad ones that impact you more. No one tells you how to live with your mistakes and shows how to get back up after you fail. Chi-Hoon represents that lonely dark place. I commend the writers for spotlighting this part of the profession. Maybe someone will see the importance of mental health through his story.

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For people who criticized onew/chihoons storyline, I think you have to look eat it in a different perspective. Acting aside, for me, his dilemma is very real.

He was this lucky go happy, idealistic person who has pretty much had a free pass in life. We know his back story is that he's a rich kid and 2nd year resident with a Preggo wife who is also a doctor. So we're meant to think that he hasn't really faced much conflict. And we can see from that scene where he gets mad bc the sunbae Doctor asked them to eat all out of the same bowl of bibimbap and he was lie, how can we , as doctors, we should have higher standards!!

His character had always thought that he could do the right thing, make the upright, honorable decision. We also see this because he also volunteers to come on this trip. He thought he'd come, face hard decisions, but would be able to make the honorable choice, and can go home feeling like it was a good experience. But now he's thrown into a war zone, limited resources, and all of a sudden, forced to practice disaster medicine. Maybe because I am a medical resident now, his conflict hits really close to home for me. It's true, no one died. And we all know from the outside, that it's better that he fled at that time because he's a doctor, saving himself will allow him to save a lot of other people. But when you've mostly practice medicine in a controlled environment like a hospital, and you're not experienced, it's hard to separate yourself and not be so emotionally vested. he is obviously suffering some kind of PTSD from his whole experience but is refusing to talk about it. For me, his arc is very interesting because it's relatable to me. I do hope they find a resolution for it within th next week though.

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I think he is the parallel of everyone that somehow unaffected by all the turmoil or they just too strong.

volunteering in military area shouldn't just take as the same things and this is his message, you need to prepare yourself cause it may hit your break point and you have to prepare your mental before going to conflict area,

I find his story is really heartbreaking and can be his own story line, it just quite a change route than the overall drama tone,
like he is the only one that sad and has inner conflict that clearly shown in the drama, but we need that pov and I think he executed it well, I hate to see him crying because it just so painful, it reminds me of all the things I can't control but I also feel guilty foe reason I knew shouldn't affected me at all.

The dragging point is maybe because he is supporting character, he doesn't take so much screen time tbh, it just 5 minutes maximum but look at the impact, you like it or not it leave an impression

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Just a friendly reminder that Dramabeans has a no-spoilers policy, and JB made it clear that that includes not discussing previews here in the recaps section. (I think that since the spoilers tags didn't work out, spoilers that are well marked are considered okay in the Open Thread.)

I'm hoping that most of the commenters who have been discussing previews didn't know about the policy, because otherwise, it's just plain rude. There are a lot of us on the site, including JB and GF, who don't want to know anything about what's going to happen ahead of time. There are plenty of other sites where you're free to discuss the previews, so please don't ruin the one place that's supposed to be safe for those of us who don't want our drama-watching experience spoiled. Thank you.

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When people have infectious diseases like AIDS don't doctors and nurses wear goggles (and masks)? I guess they had no way of knowing that disgusting diamond guy had an infectious disease.

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Yes, that was the dumbest part to me. You're operating for internal bleeding and you're not wearing eye guards? But ...whatever. I thought goggles were standard procedure for all surgeries.

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It used to annoy me on shows like "Grey's Anatomy" but I think from a practical filming standpoint, if people wore goggles, the lights and cameras might end up reflected in the goggle lenses.

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"The show should really do more of that, finding ways to tie the Plot of the Day into the overall arc better."

Brava, Javabeans - +100 to that comment.

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Idk why but I feel like Shi Jin is very awkward person outside the military area,
he describe so perfect in his own field but he is quite ineffective in society,
that maybe parallel to how Argus change job because soldier that back to society can't really take how corrupt and (you can said) how ungrateful society to what they did.

I have little time so I just want to said that ^^, keep rising DoTS

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"Most of the time we’ve had to sit through those bad guy scenes just to get to the good stuff (at least, that’s how I’ve felt) when this episode showed us that you can bring things together if you try a little harder and flesh out those storylines." Agree with you, JB!

Now, I don't have any problem with any medical stuffs or war-zone stuffs lol. I fully accept the fact that I won't get anything I expected. But It feels nice to think that I've finally found the core problem that doesn't engage my interest to the overall storyline of this drama, which is such a loss for me since I thought I missed the interesting part that most viewers could feel/see. Like JB said, (i probably just) can't help but being greedy wanting to see more.

There are 6 episodes left, and I have high hope that DOTS still has big arc awaiting us. So, bring it on, show!

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Whoa!!

I woke up to this DOTS recap and just merely two hours later I saw a post about it on a news channel I regularly read!

First time ever I see such a wave that is not just in South Korea, but also China, and surrounding countries... Or even those from the other side of the globe!

Here it is :
Descendants of the Sun: the Korean military romance sweeping Asia - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-35888537

❤❤❤

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Hello Flin,
And thank you so much for posting this link. I read it, and found it to be quite informative. If you come across more articles like this one, please make sure to post the links. Thank you!

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Hi @Ivoire ! *wave frantically*
Annyeong!

I enjoyed reading your comments every now and then. Yes, sure will.
There were actually a big hype about dots in our media but they are not English, ?

Please keep up the analysis... Somehow I feel like I could write thesis on kdrama. Haha

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It made me laugh to see that other Asian countries are warning that, no matter how popular kdramas are, forced kissing is not okay.

Luckily DOTS has been doing a pretty good job with staying away from borderline sexual assault, but that article is spot-on with other kdramas. I watched "Secret" the other week and at one point was shouting "whoa! NOT OKAY!" at Ji Sung.

If Korea could just get that element right (no forced kissing, no frozen fish-faces, participation from both parties) then I can overlook the Candy and evil-mother-in-law tropes.

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After this ep i realized why i just cannot take this show seriously. Its tone and the resolution for everything that has happened make it into a simple romance drama... So even though so many life-threatening events have happened, I don't really feel emotionally pulled in by them because i don't believe anyone will have an unhappy ending. With the virus, i just went oh another challenge, but no worries everyone will be fine in the end. I applaud onew for his acting but i feel like everyone is doing romance while he alone is being asked to film a melodrama. I love the second couple to bits though, and joongki is so attractive in this and it is an easy watch so that's great.

Anyone notice that at first Fatima was trying to come off as someone with broken english, then she turns into an american teen going through puberty?

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HAHAHA I GET THAT PART ABOUT FATIMA. She suddenly turns in to a Valley girl.. It's hilarious and I didn't notice it until you said so

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Hi, what is a "Valley Girl?"

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Oh and i started laughing in the fight scene with tommy and his gang. They had guns but they kept moving closer to shijin to engage him in combat. I was like do they think teir holding knives love lol. Why in the world did they not shoot shijin from a distance

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They're

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Geeezzz..stop complaining and just enjoy the show peeps.

Or i'd rather just enjoy joong ki ?

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Whoa, is voicing out our different opinion among the majority considered as complaining now?

Sorry if your comment wasn't meant for me, but I might say this. (I hope that some people can be more open to hear opposite opinion from others who have zero intention in ruining the party)
I personally enjoyed DotS for some reasons, but I don't want to be a broken record by saying the things that have already been mentioned by others for 1092138th times. So, I wrote my other thoughts about DotS.

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Hey there!

Javabeans is as always providing as a solid recaps, and for that: cheers!

As for DOTS, kyyyyyyyyyaaaaah! is a nice drama, and I'm being hooked on because the second lead's boat is sailing too, and uri Dae-Young is showing off more and more of his soft side, and less of his stoned face...

All the scenes fall into place, the music is so good, the landscapes, aaaah! are awesome!!!

But, captain Shi Jin's character takes some decisions that ask us, the viewers, to trust too much in the writer's wish to keep all the lead characters alive throughout the show. If not, why does he always adventures by himself (often accompanied only by Mo-yeon) into a field where he and his troup are detached to keep the peace. All the surroundings are unsafe, and yet he charges in, heads on, and everytime he succeds barely scratched.

Let the earthquake aside, everything seems so easy for him alone, and without breaking a sweat he accomplishes tasks that are hard to do in real life even as an elite troup soldier.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of Song Joon-Ki and he plays his role fantastcally, if I have a problem, or questions to ask, they are regarding the scenarion/plot.

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I love reading comments on the recaps because some of it I feel like I can relate a lot!
I particularly love episodes 9 and 10 because I feel like we/I finally survived through Mo Yeon's struggle with acceptance of Capt.Yoo's love. It was all very cute esp when the two boyfriends realized the package from the air stewardess is caught by the girlfriends. Love it when they insert the song that their military sing as they dashed across grounds in attempt to salvage the situation.

I do find that Onew/CH scenes were a little dragged out, tbh by his crying in ep 10, I was a little worned out. I do get that his scenes is a good portrayal of what a rich, sheltered kid would have become in such situations...but I find that this part of the story line is a little overused.
I was hoping this situation will be salvaged by MY/one of the HS hospital staffs by ep 10 because seeing how busy MY can be with dating and getting into dangerous situations (or crashing the 4th car maybe?), who is going to have the time for CH therapy?
I do hope that the script will not rush to settle it just because of insufficient time, after all 16eps c'mon...so much to cover for the remaining 6 eps.

I kind of expected MJ to be the one to get the M3 virus, if not how to reverse MJ father's attitude towards DY right? Haha. Also that MY is supposedly a very strong character so giving her the virus would defeat the purpose of her character outline (I feel).

Fighting scenes with Tommy & gang were a little unrealistic since all of them had guns, one of them could have shot YSJ while he was kicking guns off the rest lol.
Possible excuse for this is that Tommy & gang were too young and they had the guns only to boost their courage? Fear of shooting maybe?

I am not very knowledgable about the medical/military stuff so I am not very picky on THAT portion of the story plot.
But I don't get how/why only MJ & MY should be quarantined? I get that being the two leads, they should be stuck inside, but how about the others? How did they determined that only MJ & MY are the ones that should be quarantined?

I kind of fell in love with the whole Capt Yoo & MY relationship because it is pretty mature. In rare cases of a KR drama, the female lead ACTUALLY thinks of their possible future before leaping into a mad romance.

Looking forward to the remaining 6 episodes!

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I didnt flow well with episode 9... But wit a badass epi 10, i got hooked again! D free expression of emotions was highly captivating nd was also very natural. Lee chi hoon's part realy touched me nd i like d fact that he's learnt nd wants to make amends... Infact I love every bit of this episode nd cant wait 4 more episodes...

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just discussing trivia about Dots here - in particular about KES. She is a real Harry Potter fan. Anyone picked up on the HP references? In Heirs in which KES was the writer-nim, Eun Sang asked Kim Tan exactly which school he attends in California and he deadpanned "Hogwart's School of Wizardry and Witchcarft". In DotS, the same thing happens, one of the Alpha Team's sub-groups is code-named - yupz - Harry Potter.... sorry but it's nerdmode for me today!

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I find it a bit weird that theres almost no one who is concerned about Chi-yoon. Just that one doctor...

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Really diggin' the romance between MJ and DY(?). It's so... heartbreaking at first and then it's really just sweet and light now.

Found the Chi-Hun scenes at best misplaced.. They're really unnecessary. He left the boy to die, he feels guilty, he tries to make up for it, period. The crying scenes were drawn out for too long with the trembling and whatever. I'm really wondering if they're doing fanservice because it's Onew (which is plenty of pretty and he does the character justice but it's a little overdone, in my opinion)

Finished all 10 episodes in one go and now I'm just wishing I hadn't and had followed it week after week because I haven't had time to think about the things that happened so far :-(

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I'm trying to figure out when the blind date happened. It couldn't have been when SJ and DY were most most recently in Korea because the other soldiers were there (sidenote: love their bets). It had to have been sometime during the Urk deployment, otherwise MY doesn't have a reason to be angry since she met SJ right before he left (MJ, on the other hand, is rightfully missed). Maybe it was in the short time between when MY ended things and the team left for Urk, in which case, I get why she's upset.

Also, I was confused about whether or not DY's cousin was in the picture at all. Were they lying about which one she was too to protect each other?

Maybe I missed something in the translation. Anybody have any ideas?

All those questions aside, that was one of my favorite scenes. The slow motion run, how terrified the men are, SJ's "harsh scolding"--all of it. I've rewatched it three times.

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Hi ZeeZee,

My understanding is that they met with the ladies AFTER MY broke up with YSJ, but BEFORE he left for Urk. I don't know if you remember this, however MJ's dad had told them that they had two weeks before they left, so they should spend time with their families and loved ones. YSJ tried to do that, but MY broke up with him. Remember that scene when they were showering, and SDY was surprised to see that YSJ was back from his date already? YSJ didn't want to talk about that. And SDY didn't try to see YMJ either, and he didn't want to talk about that either. So they then had about ten days or more of free time, and I believe that it was then that SDY made good on his promise.

If you think about it, YSJ did nothing wrong at the time, since MY made it clear that she was not interested in dating him, AT ALL. However, when the package arrived in Urk, YSJ had FINALLY gotten his confession from MY, and she had FINALLY accepted to date him. I felt that YSJ didn't want to mess things with MY, so he feared the repercussions of her seeing the package, and it turns out that he was right. SDY was just avoiding MJ at the time, to go along with what her dad wanted.

I also believe that the cousin was there, because she was the one SDY was going to set YSJ up with. Go back to their conversation in episode 1, and you will see. And the cousin then brought a colleague or friend with her, so it was a double date. And yes, both guys lied. SDY even threw YSJ under the bus, to save himself, LOL... They both wanted to minimize how bad things looked, because they did look kinda bad. MY thought YSJ was crushed, and yes he was very disappointed and maybe somewhat sad, but he tried to move on, I think. In spite of that, his feelings for MY have been sincere all along.

I hope my answer helped :-)

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Thanks, Ivoire! I had thought the date referred to in the shower (another favorite scene for other reasons) was his last date with MY.

I agree he didn't technically do anything wrong (this is no Ross and Rachel situation here), but I get why she's upset, and its awesome that SJ gets it too.

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You are welcome ZeeZee! I'm glad my answer was helpful. I think you didn't understand one of the things I said in my first paragraph. Yes, the short lived date mentioned in the shower between YSJ and SDY WAS the LAST date YSJ and MY HAD in Seoul, BEFORE they met again in Urk. It was their second date, and MY dumped him then.

What I was trying to say was that YSJ TRIED to spend some time with the woman he was hoping would become his girlfriend, as the Chief Commander had suggested. Remember that he had given them two weeks, before their departure, and so YSJ thought he could have a few dates with MY during two weeks. However, YSJ did not get to experience that with MY in Seoul, since she broke up with him on that second date.

When he was brooding in the shower, and SDY found him there, SDY was surprised because he knew that YSJ was supposed to STILL be out on a date. Thing was, the date was cut short, and we know why.

I'm personally on YSJ's side, considering how MY had treated him during the date. She was in her Ivory Tower, and she looked down on what she THOUGHT he did for a living, WITHOUT trying to get the full picture. Even back then, I knew her thinking was wrong. I felt that she didn't fully pay attention to what he had said. And she seemed convinced that she would never EVER date him, because as she saw it, their beliefs were different.

I don't blame YSJ for trying to move on at the time. It was a healthy thing to do, when the woman you were VERY interested in makes it clear that she is TOTALLY not interested in trying to date you. He couldn't (and shouldn't) have stayed heartbroken over her forever, which, based on her reaction is this episode was what she had hoped happened. I guess things would have been worse, if he had tried to make that argument :-) which btw, is a valid one. I did find the whole scene entertaining though :-)

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Also, funny you referenced Ross and Rachel from Friends here:-)

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Also in episode 10, SDY told MJ that his cousin was there. If you replay that conversation, you will see it.

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