Myung-wol the Spy: Episode 18 (Final)

223 September 6, 2011January 24, 2016

by girlfriday

Oh, Myung-wol. It saddens me to think of the drama you could’ve been, when you were at the height of funny. You were quirky and offbeat and something new, and the possibilities were endless. But you caved to some of the laziest writing and directing known to man, and worst of all, you lost your quirky charm, your sense of fun, what made you… you. Despite it all I held out hope for a good ending… because I’m a glutton for punishment that way. What say you, one good episode, for old times’ sake? Why do I feel like I’m about to regret asking?

FINAL EPISODE RECAP

Kang-woo finds Myung-wol in the cave and tells her that he can’t live without her. Heaven or hell, he won’t let her go, and if they die, they die together. She still refuses (after that?) telling him that she doesn’t have it in her to stay here with him.

She tries to walk away but he backhugs her and asks if she’ll let him stay with her on her last night here. It’s a last-ditch effort, but he says if she leaves, he’ll never get to see her again.

Meanwhile, outside the cave, Ryu fights off Chairman Joo’s minions who have come after them, and finds In-ah hiding, having followed Kang-woo. He gruffly walks her down the mountain grumbling at her for coming up here, and finally snaps off her heels when she starts complaining.

He asks why she came, and she confesses that she was worried about him. He asks how much she knows, and by her evasive look, he can tell she knows everything about who he is. He asks why she’s still here then, if she knows.

In-ah: “Because I like you! You don’t know women. That’s why you’re always getting dumped.” Haha. One point for the princess. She adds, “You only see the woman you like. You can’t see the woman who likes you, can you?”

She asks him to turn himself in, but he tells her not to like someone like him. He apologizes and tells her that he can’t accept her feelings. She starts to cry and he’s startled by her tears, perhaps not realizing that she was serious until that moment. Aw, I actually feel bad for In-ah. (I know!)

She goes home and cries, and he contemplates the scarf she had given him to wrap around his knife wound the night before.

Back at spy central, Dae-kang rushes over to tell Hee-bok the big news that Myung-wol is a spy. He then deduces that Ok-soon must be a spy as well, since they’re mother-daughter. Eyes wide, he yells, “You were conned into your marriage!”

Hee-bok pretends to faint at the news, and wonders if he should just turn them in for the reward money, since no one suspects him. Sure, there’s no way that plan will backfire on you.

In the cave, Kang-woo leans on Myung-wol’s shoulder and they sit by the fire. He reminisces about their first meeting, and she’s surprised to hear that he knows it was in Singapore, when she chased him down for an autograph pretending to be the crazy fangirl.

He asks if she won’t run away with him, to somewhere where they won’t be recognized or found. That’s what I’m sayin’! But she refuses, asking why he should have to give up everything in his life for her.

She says that she won’t be happy that way, and has decided to think of it all – her being born in the north, falling in love with a man from the south, their having to part like this – as fate.

And she adds that if they’re fated to be, they’ll meet again. But… that’s… so passive and lame. Guh.

She wakes up the next morning and comes out to meet Ryu and asks why he led Kang-woo here. He asks if she wants to change her mind there’s still time…

She tells him that either way she’ll regret it. But she’d rather regret it alone than to watch Kang-woo suffer as well, and says that she’ll carry that pain on her own. Sigh. I’m not even going to argue with you anymore. Go ahead and be alone with your pain. I hope you have a lovely life together, you and PAIN.

Kang-woo wakes up alone and finds Myung-wol’s ring sitting next to him. He comes out of the cave and shouts her name over and over, breaking my heart. She stops when she hears him, but keeps going forward with determination.

They stop in to say goodbye to the spy parents, and Hee-bok sends Ryu off with worries over their well-being, and they thank each other for everything. And then Ok-soon cooks for Myung-wol, wanting once to make her food like a real mom.

With tears, Myung-wol thanks them for being like her real parents, and Ok-soon in turn thanks her for being her daughter when all she ever really wanted was a family of her own. Aw, can’t you guys stay and be a fam-uh-ly? *sniff*

Ryu waits at the dock for Myung-wol to arrive, and she manages to evade the NSA agents, but someone chloroforms her and grabs her just before she can get to Ryu. Chairman Joo gets the call that they’ve succeeded in nabbing her.

Ryu panics and heads to Kang-woo’s, searching for Myung-wol. Kang-woo hasn’t seen her either and then both boys start panicking. Just then, Kang-woo gets the call from Chairman Joo. He has Myung-wol, and he’ll kill her if he doesn’t get two things: the evidence of his involvement in his father’s murder, and Ryu’s file on the decoded books.

In-ah happens to overhear the phone call, and is appalled to find out just how scary Grandpa really is. Um… the house full of minions clad in minion-wear didn’t tip you off?

She can’t believe that he killed Kang-woo’s father and is threatening to kill Myung-wol, and insists that there’s time for him to back out now. But of course he’s way too far gone to do that, and orders the minions to lock her up in her tower.

Kang-woo contemplates the deal, and decides that he’ll do as Chairman Joo asks. Ryu says that there’s no guarantee that he’ll do as he promised, and offers his help – they’ll rescue her together. Aw, team-up! It sure took an awful long time for you guys to give in to the bromance.

Meanwhile Hee-bok heads to the police station, ready to turn Ok-soon in for a bundle of cash, but he catches sight of a pretty lady who reminds him of Ok-soon, and turns back around.

On his way out, he runs into Ok-soon who’s here attempting to do the same thing. They both accuse each other of betrayal, and then both confess that they couldn’t do it. They decide to go surrender together, holding hands. Aw.

Kang-woo meets Chairman Joo and hands over his last bit of evidence in his dad’s murder, in exchange for Myung-wol’s location. He decides he’s going to trust Joo one last time. Hello, mistake!

Sure enough, as soon as Chairman Joo gets what he wants, he sends his minions to beat Kang-woo, and sends Ryu to the wrong location, and straight into a trap.

Kang-woo takes out the file that Ryu had given him. It contains the books’ contents as well as a record of all of Chairman Joo’s misdeeds, that he entrusted to Kang-woo.

Ryu asked him to take it to the NSA in exchange for Myung-wol’s freedom. It was the last thing he could do for her, essentially betraying his country and exchanging his own freedom for hers.

Chairman Joo arrives back home, and Ryu meets him at gunpoint. He tells him that Kang-woo is on his way to give the books over to the NSA, and orders him to free Myung-wol, so Joo picks up his phone and calls his minions… and orders her killed.

Well duh. What kind of hostage negotiator doesn’t see that coming? Tsk, tsk, the spies in this world. They all went to Low-Rent Discount Spy Academy. Ryu is furious that the murdering backstabber… backstabbed him… AGAIN (never heard, “fool me twice, shame on me”?) and raises his gun to Joo’s throat.

In-ah rushes in and begs him not to do ite, and stands between Ryu and Grandpa, pleading for his life. Ryu gives in, of course, and leaves. In-ah follows him out and tells him where Myung-wol is being held.

Soon after, NSA agents bust into the house and arrest Chairman Joo for his crimes.

Ryu rushes over to save Myung-wol just in time, and tells her they’re headed to meet Kang-woo, so that she can start her new life, free and clear. She smiles in anticipation and so does Kang-woo, as the two cars speed toward each other on the same road.

But just as they spot each other, the North Korean sniper assassin appears and fires a shot at Ryu’s car, which sends them careening off the cliff.

The car flips over and bursts into flames, and Kang-woo collapses to the ground in tears, screaming her name.

One year later, Kang-woo continues to have dreams about Myung-wol and their happily married life that could have been. He plans to head to the States to clear his head and do some studying, and says goodbye to Dae-kang and In-ah.

In-ah has taken over her grandfather’s hotels, and being a CEO certainly suits her bossy style more than being a lousy actress. She still thinks fondly of Ryu, remembering him every time she trips in her heels.

Ok-soon and Hee-bok are married and doing well with restaurants and coffee shops. Ok-soon opened a Pyongyang Noodle Shop that’s booming, and Kang-woo comes by to visit and say goodbye on his way to the States.

At the airport a woman brushes past him, and though he can only see her from behind, she’s dressed exactly the way Myung-wol was, on the day he first met her. He chases her down and loses her.

He stands there, lost, confused, and then his baseball rolls toward him and stops at his feet. He picks it up and stares at it in shock.

And then Myung-wol’s voice calls out to him, “Have you been well, Comrade Kang-woo?”

He turns around in disbelief, as she tells him that it’s been a long time. She holds up the meanie face autograph he gave her on the day they met, and tells him that she’s going to get his autograph this time, and marry him and live happily with him here.

His eyes fill with tears and he finally breaks into a big smile. She tells him that it took too long to get to this point, and that she won’t ever leave him again. She runs flying into his arms and he hugs her tight.

Aw, despite the circumstances and her whole disappearing-reappearing act being TOTALLY ridiculous, I’m happy for him because he looks so happy in the moment.

Wedding time! Myung-wol and Kang-woo finally get their dream wedding with the spy parents and everyone else in attendance. Dae-kang asks the spy parents where Myung-wol’s been this whole time and they say she wouldn’t tell them. They’re just happy that she’s back, but sigh that it’s too bad for Ryu.

In-ah hears this and leaves, saddened at the mention of Ryu, and comes out to find her scarf on her windshield – the one she gave him. She clutches it and looks around, hope filling her eyes.

Though he doesn’t show himself, he watches the wedding and In-ah from a distance, burn scars showing on his arm and his neck. Why am I more moved by this couple than the main one? Sigh.

Newlyweds Myung-wol and Kang-woo drive off, calling each other by their insulting/endearing nicknames. In the distance a billboard announces the news of their wedding and Kang-woo’s return to showbiz, in the drama Myung-wol the Spy.

COMMENTS

Sigh. The thing is, that death fakeout was so obvious that it was hard to feel the kind of dramatic tension that the drama was aiming for. In fact, most of the dramatic tension in this finale was pretty much moot, because we were just re-treading the same ground as before.

Deal gone wrong with Chairman Joo? Check. Warehouse kidnappings? Check. Guns ablaze and no firing? Check. I at least thought that everything with the NSA and North Korea would come to a head in the final episode… but all the stuff I wanted to see “happened” offscreen, which is the lamest cop-out in the book.

Where did they go for a year? Why did it have to be that long? Did they make a deal with the NSA? What were the terms? What about North Korea? Even if the fake death made the North think they’d succeeded in assassinating them, doesn’t her very public marriage to Kang-woo negate all that? So then what the hell was the point of disappearing for a year?

What kills me about this drama is that it started out so funny and absurdist and wacky, with such potential for a fun take on the spy world with hijinks and showbiz meta. But the writing lost all of that initial creative flair and regurgitated one conflict over and over and over and over… until I stopped caring.

I’m glad that they got their happy ending, but I honestly couldn’t have cared less, especially since I knew they’d get their romantic happy ending. What I was curious about was HOW they were going to tie up all the high-stakes loose ends and earn their well-deserved peace. But this drama was all setup and no payoff.

If the solution was going to be this easy, then why did we have to go through all the leaving, not leaving, hiding, dealing, kidnapping, and fake death? When Kang-woo finally got shot to save Myung-wol, my hopes went back up a tiny bit, thinking that at least danger was afoot with the North Korean assassin, and that we’d see a big face-off at the very end. But I suppose if I kept going on about all the things I wished this drama had done, we’d be here till next year.

In the end I guess the only thing I really liked was what the drama used to be early on, and Eric’s performance throughout. He held on to the very end, acting his heart out, despite no one else really being in the game. While I liked everyone else in their roles and have no major complaints about them (unlike my gripes with the writing and directing), his was the only performance that stood a cut above the rest. While I didn’t love his character, I thought he brought an edge in his portrayal, which surprised me.

You know what this feels like? A breakup after you give a relationship a second, third, fourth, fifth chance, because you’re still clinging to the memories of the happy times… until it dawns on you that now the angst outweighs the happy. Sigh. Ain’t love a bitch?

223

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101 angel24

September 9, 2011 at 11:49 AM

congrats to all the cast especially for ERIC for the SUPERB performance as Kang-woo and to those people behind this drama Myung-wol the Spy for the great and very exciting drama of 2011 . Goodluck! Till next time!

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102 Jo sno

September 10, 2011 at 2:04 AM

Really? A time jump? Why do sooooo many Korean dramas and movies have to add in a time jump?

Also, how cute is it that Hee-bok ended up running a coffee shop? Coffee Prince reference.

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Jo sno

September 14, 2011 at 10:15 PM

Well, that's embarrassing! I got my K Drama Ajusshi's mixed up. (sheepish grin here)

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103 Lara

September 10, 2011 at 6:07 AM

Spot on recap. I stopped watching this drama after the 15th ep and just caught on with the recaps here. I think the earlier enjoyable episodes were more of an accident than what the writers intended, seeing how they blundered about in the later episodes.

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104 rj

September 10, 2011 at 10:08 AM

Hey guys, don't miss Spy Myung Wol's sequel: http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h324/Kairea/Spy%20Myung%20Wol/Thephantomofthecomrade.jpg

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105 ivytwines

September 10, 2011 at 10:29 AM

well it wasn't terrrrrrible. It just wasn't all that great either.

I love this drama for introducing me to my new hallyu crush, Eric. He's amazing! Gorgeous body, gorgeous voice, and gorgeous acting! *sigh* don't I wish I could be his bodyguard! *drool* Seriously, though -- here's hoping he gets a good role with good writers next time around. Something where he has to show a little (okay, a lot!) of skin would hurt either. :p

I also really liked HYS. Like many others pointed out, this drama was going downhill before the off-screen drama happened, and while I'm sure her disappearance didn't help much, it wasn't the sole thing to tank the sinking ship. Didn't they replace the writers after Ep 6? That's what blew the first hole in the boat. And even after HYS came back, the acting was still solid -- it's the writing that went off the deep end! I do hope she gets to work again in the industry!

As much as I love watching our main couple, the push-pull was getting old after a while. Why couldn't they all team up sooner to fight against the North or coerce the North into letting them stay (with NSA's help)? Now that would have been a more compelling. And honestly, when the car went over the edge, my first thought was, "did we just stumble into IRIS/ATHENA by accident?" so out of character for this drama.

I appreciate that ep 17 probably had so much filler fluff (really, who cares about DK's girlfriend??) because Eric was likely too sick to participate in much of the acting. But I really think the unexplained car explosion was completely ludicrous. Even if they could have explained it, it might have been saved -- but they didn't so...wtf!

So here's my attempt at the unexplained absence: based on the radio announcement of a joint South-North partnership, CR and MW not only survived the car wreck, but probably brokered this unlikely partnership between South and North. Likely CR manages to pull MW out of the burning car, at the expense of his own safety and so he gets burned badly doing it. She then manages to cart him off to a hospital to be treated, and they are caught/found by the NSA. Due to the deal struck by KW earlier, the NSA are willing to let MW go, but reveal that North Korea is threatening war to get back both MW and CR so they can get to the "rare earth" (again, wtf?? "rare earth" as a treasure??). MW refuses to leave without CR because she owes him so much and does care for him (as if he were her dad) and so stays with him while he recuperates. Eventually, CR (always the smarter of the two) works out a deal with North Korea where MW is allowed to stay in the South and the North promises no interference in her life in exchange for the info on the "rare earth". MW spends the rest of the time in Spy Rehab learning to live life as a South Korean, during which time CR stays to "protect" her. In return for MW's defection, North Korea requires CR to head up the excavation of the rare earth, and oversee the sharing of it with both North and South. Since outside of the NSA (who has the disk), only CR knows where the "rare earth" is found, the North has to work with him, instead of killing him. I haven't yet worked out a reasonable explanation for the NSA co-operating with him -- maybe he promises them intel about the North in exchange, or there's further secrets about the "rare earth" which only he knows, or they're simply trying to avoid war with the North over keeping their agents. *shrug* if the actual script writers can have plot holes, why can't I? :p Anyway, all this leads to needing another drama to fill in the holes in this one, so as aX suggests, bring on SPY CHOI RYU!!!

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angeley11

February 27, 2013 at 12:06 PM

OMG!!! How did you know the story that MW and CR? Can I confirm with you again that you create the story which MW and CR are missing in 1 year? Great!!! Actually I really though they are dead (I was crying hardly) since KW is the one who on the scene, but I really don't know why this drama do not air anything regarding why/how MW and CR were alive. Anyway, as long as it was happy ending and MW and KW get married!!! ^^

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wickedwings

November 9, 2013 at 6:53 PM

They should hire you as a writer! You manage to give more plausible explanation to an obscure and holey plot!

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106 LuckaPod

September 10, 2011 at 3:29 PM

I always thought I was picky when it comes to dramas and I still think that. And yet I tootally loved Myung Wol the Spy. It had everything I ever needed from perfect drama.
And the ending? Half-matrix happy end?! Count me in, I'm head over heels!
And acting was simply amazing. Thank you, Korea, for awesome drama!

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107 jekjek

September 11, 2011 at 12:05 AM

is it bad that i actually hoped that myung wol and ryu actually died? and that kang woo and myung wol were not meant to be?

ever since i started watching this drama, i really wanted myung wol and kang woo to have a happy ending. but towards the end of the drama, and after seeing how ryu really loves myung wol, i wanted him to be happy.

so i was a little bit happy that they both burned up in flames.. only to come out a year later.. and what was that about myung wol looking the same and ryu with scars? i didnt even get to see his face in the end.

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rj

September 11, 2011 at 8:24 AM

To answer your last question...I developed a few theories.
1) They were both badly burned, but Ryu used part of his skin to replace the one Myung Wol got burned. They were spending that year in recovery.
2) The don't show Ryu to prepare us for the sequel http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h324/Kairea/Spy%20Myung%20Wol/Thephantomofthecomrade.jpg
3)They just gave up on the show and the fans, so they didn't think all those loopholes would matter.

For once it would be nice to se a drama not end so abruptly. If it is 16 episodes...or 18 or 20....why not resolve the huge conflict three to four episodes before the end and then give us the happily ever after without compromising the story.
This was one show I would have loved to see things work out early on and then watch how they managed to live out their happily ever after. But most of my complaints are already covered in the screencaps and other comments.
And, yes, I laughed...a lot...when the car exploded :)

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LeeLei

September 11, 2011 at 10:36 AM

Rj, I agree with you totally on #3.

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hoochie

September 11, 2011 at 8:45 AM

Nope, I actually thought the same that they should have died. Or at least let MW come back with a CR baby and KW not knowing it's not his lols

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108 LeeLei

September 11, 2011 at 10:33 AM

I think this drama started going downhill when news came out of Han Ye Seul's walkout. I, for one, am glad that I stopped watching this series and reading recaps since then. And reading the final recap (just to satiate my curiosity,) I'm quite thankful that I made the right choice jumping ship early on; it saved me lots of hours and useless angst. I liked Eric though, I think I'll look him up in the future. As for HYS, I'll make sure to remember her name.

Kudos to javabeans and girlfriday for sticking it out with the series. You're quite the professionals for not failing the 'Myung-wol the Spy' fans out there (there's got to be some fans left, right?) who wants to see this through to the end.

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109 jat

September 11, 2011 at 12:16 PM

okay...eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr , I THOUGHT HER MISSION IS TO MARRY HIM? why the assassin was sent again? they really didn't care about the ending or our thoughts, its not wrapped neatly and there are too many questions left unsolved..what have she done to reappear AGAIN? and to get married? Is this another some kind of mission like get married and give us your baby or something? hey, maybe an exclusive close up for their wedding ..emm that's weak, I guess I have to assume she must have made sort of an agreement with both sides or triple maybe I don't know they forgot to tell me that.maybe I'll get the explanation on next episodezzzz it just there are no next episodez. SPW I loved u, but been together for months and having faith in u when people ditching u, I think I deserved better on this final goodbye.

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110 Sophie

September 11, 2011 at 6:13 PM

I was really excited when i first started watching it because just like u, i felt that it kind of negated all the stereotypical kdramas but the more it got further down, the worst the storyline became. *sigh* what with the whole han ye seul controversy, it kind of became *meehh* for me. and i was holding on to it just for the mere hope that it MIGHT get better. and i hated the ending UGHH so many unanswered questions. like i woulda bin happier if they left out the wedding part and added other details to it cuz tbh theyv already been married lol. and yeah i kinda started digging inah and ryu's couple more than these two haha. and i agree with u!! Eric's acting kind of saved this drama from going completely downhill. im watching protect the boss right now and it has that same kind of "not so stereotypical" feeling to it but im SO SCARED that it might end up just like this. i HOPE NOT >_<

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111 ab

September 12, 2011 at 11:25 PM

First time i watch Eric , HYS, LJW, LHJ.I just love them so much.
It is really sad that he show is not recognised and loved as much as it should

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112 Julio

September 19, 2011 at 11:42 AM

how come nobody is angry about Ryu's fate?! i mean not only he lost myung wol but he got all fucking burned protecting her from the fire, i guess he is so fucked up (because of the burns) that he just couldnt let In ah see him in that state :( so sad, lamest ending ever, I think i wont ever watch a romantic drama again

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twinkleee

September 19, 2011 at 6:05 PM

I am not angry but absolutely I was left feeling super sad. I feel like his face might me burned too and that's why he left the scarf instead of giving it to the girl. :(

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113 twinkleee

September 19, 2011 at 6:01 PM

Well I just marathon watched this drama over the last few days. You can tell a lot was going on behind the scenes. Poor lead actress went from bright and pretty to a worn out shell of her beautiful self. The only person I felt kept his acting game up was Eric. Everything asked of him to portray his role he accomplished. He made me a fan for life.

Still can't understand why the writing, directing, etc went from amazing to WTF. I knew something was seriously off when the writer/directors thought we would not notice the two guys were tied up all night alone and could easily have turned their backs to each other and untied themselves, yet next morning during a epic fight with the gansters they both untied themselves easily and quickly. *sigh* I wish I was a fly on the wall during filming.

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114 ayu

September 20, 2011 at 10:43 PM

eric is too good.....i hope i get somebody like him...

han ye seul....maybe she cannot get in this drama very well....not because the main actor...maybe something else....we dont know..

but i'm very luv this drama....the storyline is good....so axthe other actress/actor....

both hys and eric have a good chemistry...
i'm very sad cause this is the last ep....i will miss this series and the actor very much....

now..i'm so sadddd.....

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115 Lilian

September 25, 2011 at 7:51 AM

I feel cheated too! I loved the earlier episodes when the writing was funny and when they was a lot of meta. Even the episode when Han Ye Seul just came back. But seriously wat's up with the choppy editing especially in this last episode???

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116 Glucolin

September 28, 2011 at 4:51 AM

Thanks for the recep ! it does really help but i don't really understand the part where Meong Wol left Kang Woo, i was wondering when had she been 1 whole year after the car accident ? do you why ?

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117 bupu

October 9, 2011 at 6:38 AM

I've just finished watching this show. and must say that I'm anxiously waiting for the next Eric performance.
I think his acting was so good... that it gave me goosbumps :)
[ah, the love scene :p ]

actor playing Ryu character. interesting. but I laughed because of his moving ears! so funny... handsome, but funny :)

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118 Victoria Stuard

October 12, 2011 at 1:56 AM

Despite all the hoopla regarding the lead actress (HYS) leaving the set, I think that the poor girl was simply exhausted and stressed out. When one is in that condition, good decision making is hard to find. She acted from her gut, and split to keep her sanity. I believe I heard or read somewhere that she brought her mother back with her from LA. This tells me that emotionally she needed the support to bolster her through the rest of the drama. It was a rom-com.... the writing wasn't the best or tightest in the world, but, it was entertaining and funny, and actually even if HYS left the set, she came back and gave it her best shot. She is not responsible for bad script writing and can only act upon what she is given. She and Eric had great chemistry throughout the whole drama, and I think he helped mend fences between the crew and her. People want to talk about unprofessionalism, and yes, leaving during shooting wasn't a good thing and can be seen as unprofessional behavior, however, it does indeed call into question acting schedules and doing what is best for your actors so they don't have a melt-down in the middle of a drama production. Overall, I want to be sensitive to what HYS was feeling at the time and look on this as not just one person's responsibility, but the failure of the people in charge to consider health and safety issues of the cast and crew. I think a some compassion and empathy might have been a good thing to extend and possibly some open dialogue at the end of the drama so people might understand HYS feelings and consider ways to make it better for actors when they are working long hours. That is not meant to imply HYS should not take responsibility for her actions and face the consequences of that. I have seen this actress in other dramas and have enjoyed her immensely. I do believe she brought out the vulnerability of MW, and showed the utter lack of experience she had in life. While she was proficient in doing, she had a hard time expressing her feelings and they were hidden to her. She didn't do self-reflection and wouldn't this be typical of a country that doesn't want one to think, but only to obey the political agenda and directive? I think HYS played that well. I loved Eric and Ryu. Ryu was a little wooden, but he also did not know how to express his feelings and had them on lock down.He was also an evolving character on the emotional spectrum. It was implied they lost parents, and thus... they kept many of their feelings inside were it was safer than to express. Once Ryu begin to melt, I just fell in love with him. HYS fighting!!!! I hope that you will rest and find a haven of tranquility to heal from this experience and use what you learned in the future. I also hope her colleagues will extend some grace to her.

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119 moonrisemun

October 16, 2011 at 4:51 AM

i miss watching eric as kang woo, he's just too gorgeous and his acting was superb. hope you'll come back soon eric oppa! <3

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120 Orlando

November 3, 2011 at 5:14 PM

I'm soooo glad i found others who watched Myung Wol The Spy too. I absolutely loved this drama. Definitely hated having to "imagine" how Myung Wol & Ryu escaped the car crash, where they'd been for an entire year and why Ryu didn't just meet with Ina.

Here's something that is crazy too....what if Kang Woo had met someone within that past year? wouldn't Myung Wol just be out of luck? Too many things left out. I need a few more episodes.

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121 JJ

November 27, 2011 at 8:15 PM

I have found this drama interesting and managed to finish it within 4days. Of course a few moment I had to pause it.. wandering around the web.. then continue back because it is quite boring sometime. And this drama is quite flaw when dealing with technology and security. Spies can just walk back to the same house and places for more than 10 times without being worried to be caught by enemy. This drama is somehow romantic and comedy.. instead of action where there is loads of gunshot. This drama is not that bad and it is worth watching...

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122 TatjanaR

February 20, 2012 at 1:57 PM

I loved this drama from episode 1-12, it was fun, interesting and sprinkled with some action. However episode 13-18 just dragged this show down. This show had the potential to be great but apparently the writers, or whoever decides the direction in a drama, just didn't have it in them to make the shows appeal last more than 12 episodes....
What I liked about the drama: Hmm, well the OST was addictive and as said before episode 1-12.
I have no idea why they decided to extend this drama and make it 18 episodes they should have stopped earlier or changed writers since the writers they had for the showed seemed completely out of ideas and having lost their focus..
Why did they show the NSA, and introduce their characters when they didn't use them? Why was the only solution to all their problems to have Myung Wol remain in South Korea and not Kang Woo going to the North? Why did Myung Wol's and Major's fighting abilities drop so drastically? Why would a mere map of natural resources be so important, ok, so you need the map but shouldn't you also take into consideration that the land might be occupied and/or unattainable?
This was my first k-drama in almost a year and I thank the drama for having entertained me for 12 episodes but the remaining episodes plus the ending really left me disappointed.
Sorry for rambling on and on, I just had to have an outlet for my thoughts.

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123 imani

April 10, 2012 at 6:40 PM

-sigh- i agree with ur final comments. i was happy for their happy ending but so lost as to how they survived and yada yada blah blah. I agree Eric did great in acting... i enjoyed the first half of this drama, but the 2nd half fell flat on it's face. =( i will remember it for the enjoyment it gave me though. the beginning, and the gorgeous cast. ^^

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124 hallyu-holiChic.ph

April 11, 2012 at 8:44 PM

i was on episode 17 now. and you're right GF, it started so nice- wacky, cool, exciting, and lovely actors- it matches my expectations of a korean rom-com. i was hooked, really. but, gaaah?! what happened?! it suddenly got lame and as if they're just making the drama longer (chasing the boy- being in love with the girl- boy chasing the girl- break up- reunite again...and so forth! gaah i ran out of patience here!!!) ...my high expectations just landed on the ground. there's so many side stories that aren't important anymore. (though, it really doesn't matter to me if there's so much inconsistencies in the story, it's fiction anyway.) :0 stiil. congrats to this drama, i still enjoyed most of the episodes!

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125 hallyu-holiChic.ph

April 11, 2012 at 8:45 PM

i was just on episode 17 now. and you're right GF, it started so nice- wacky, cool, exciting, and lovely actors- it matches my expectations of a korean rom-com. i was hooked, really. but, gaaah?! what happened?! it suddenly got lame and as if they're just making the drama longer (chasing the boy- being in love with the girl- boy chasing the girl- break up- reunite again...and so forth! gaah i ran out of patience here!!!) ...my high expectations just landed on the ground. there's so many side stories that aren't important anymore. (though, it really doesn't matter to me if there's so much inconsistencies in the story, it's fiction anyway.) :0 stiil. congrats to this drama, i still enjoyed most of the episodes!

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126 Hya

May 14, 2012 at 8:21 PM

I am annoyed at anyone who calls Han ye Seul unprofessional. what did she do, besides standing up against horrible working conditions?
Also, I LOVED her in Fantasy Couple.

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127 wickedwings

November 9, 2013 at 6:49 PM

I am very late, and glad for it. Early episodes were good even though HYS's acting pained me, then ep 6 - 8 (if I am not wrong) when KW started to like her but in huge denial cracked me, starting when he walked her home to be fed impossible lies by spy-parents.. that was gold! But then the drama become repetitive to the point that there's no longer any thrill with the 112878th kidnappings and 454254th not-leavings. The plot also has so many holes that makes noone there look smart, including Chairman Joo who as the main villain usually depicted to be more cunning.

Eric is very good, I didn't expect him to be an idol, thought acting was his main occupation because he's good. LJW, JHJ, and spy parents, Dae Gang's actor, Ms Gyeong's actress are not bad. But HYS isn't that great, there was a scene where MW attempted to show her acting skill to Ms Gyeong "Here's my angry face.. my sad face.. my happy face..." where her face don't change a bit. That's actually so true for HYS herself, except for some scenes where she cries. She's ok with extreme sadness but has very limited range for subtle expression.... Sorry for HYS' fans, she's not my first choice for the best actress nomination, but it's ok if you like her because she's not the worst either.

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128 Trangggbabyy

November 26, 2013 at 8:05 PM

Oh, gosh. Your take on this drama is simply amazing and so witty! I am totally in the same mind frame with you... It was redundant once episode 12 hit. The initial creativity was really a hit and then it went downhill towards the end, with such a lame wrap-up despite the happy ending. If only I knew the drama was doing that to me. Ha ha. Good job, dramabeans!

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129 dramabird

October 16, 2015 at 3:18 PM

I'm going voting crazy!

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130 abhi

March 8, 2016 at 11:17 AM

i am so glad to have come across your review. i don't have to torture myself by watching it now when what i was looking for was true action romance.

please suggest me some drama of that genre.

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Myung-wol the Spy