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Answer Me 1988: Episode 5

This one’s a heart-twister, but then again, aren’t they all? This season’s focus on family was a pretty spectacular move, because instead of yanking our chains about guessing at people’s future husbands, we’re instead completely engrossed in our characters’ present lives, and everyone and their mother—literally—gets a fully formed character with a backstory and a chance to shine.

 
SONG OF THE DAY

Oh Hyuk – “소녀” (Girl) for the Answer Me 1988 OST [ Download ]

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Historical Background

I don’t normally pause to introduce background history on the Answer Me series, since most of the historical and cultural context is tangential. But the political landscape is an important part of this episode, so I thought a swift intro would help, in case you begin the episode wondering what in the hell is going on.

The 1980s were an extremely volatile time in Korean politics, marked by the rule of a military dictator, Chun Doo-hwan, who named himself president and was in office from 1979 to 1988. His militant rise to power sparked mass democratization movements across the country, and he was responsible for one of the nation’s great tragedies—the Gwangju Massacre—in 1980, in which hundreds of student protestors were killed using military force.

The democratization movement continued throughout the decade, led in most part by university students. It was extremely dangerous activity that had to be carried out in secret via book clubs and student organizations, because protestors were regularly met with military force, detained without cause, and tortured.

The torture and death of a Seoul University student in 1987 helped to spur a mass demonstration in June of that year, which succeeded in forcing the government to hold democratic elections. It was in 1988 that Chun Doo-hwan stepped down and Roh Tae-woo took office, though it wasn’t exactly a change in the tide (he was one of the key figures in Chun Doo-hwan’s administration and was a military general during the Gwangju Massacre), and student protests continued throughout his term as well.

In November of 1988 (where this episode begins) ex-president Chun Doo-hwan apologized publicly to the nation and slinked off to live in a temple, and students were outraged yet again that he wasn’t held responsible for his crimes. (It wasn’t until 1995 that both Chun and Roh were indicted in a public trial for their involvement in Gwangju.)

Needless to say, it was a dangerous time to be a student protester, but they were also on the front lines of a decades-long battle against corrupt governments, and enacted real change. But it was a frightening time for their families as well, because anyone caught protesting was regularly tear-gassed, beaten, or arrested, or worse.

 
EPISODE 5: “Preparation for winter”

As Jung-hwan’s mom puts out a used coal briquette on a chilly day, the front page of the newspaper catches wind and sticks on the wall, showing a picture of ex-president Chun Doo-hwan in his public apology to the nation.

At Deok-sun’s house, the kids look at the TV and guess that Dad might be a little late today. The news shows protesters running through streets filled with tear-gas, and troops advancing on them to quell the demonstration.

Dad is, in fact, hurrying down that very street with a handkerchief over his mouth, trying to stay out of the way as he makes his way home. As he turns a corner, a young man with scrapes on his face suddenly walks up beside him and links arms with Dad. He’s got his head down and he looks nervous, and two officers are right behind him.

Dad tries not to show his nerves and just keeps walking ahead with the young man, though they’re clearly both sweating in fear. The officers are practically on top of them and they’re inches away from being yanked off the street…

At the last second, Dad throws his arm around the young man and scolds him like his son, warning him to stick to his studies and not join in protests like those other students. The officers stop and turn around at that, and phew, the coast is clear.

The student bows in gratitude, and Dad takes out the last bill in his pocket and gives it to the young man to go buy something to eat. Ugh, don’t make me cry already, Dad! He tells the kid to clean up before going home too, probably thinking of his parents’ worry.

When Dad gets home, Mom asks if he can’t take a different subway station to and from work to avoid the demonstrations, but he points out that they’re surrounded by universities on all sides. Unni Bora isn’t home yet, and Dad just assumes she’s out studying late as always.

But when Bora walks in, they all start wheezing—the smell of tear-gas is unmistakable on her. Dad is livid, and asks if she’s been out protesting. He asks if she’s lost her mind and wants to see him dead, but Bora is stone-faced and argues, “I’ve done nothing wrong!”

The others have to hold Dad back as he screams at the top of his lungs, but Bora shouts back that Dad doesn’t know anything, and slams her door shut. Mom tries to mediate, but Dad is inconsolable and shouts to his deceased parents that their granddaughter has lost her mind and is going to piss away her future as a student protester.

In her room, Bora quietly takes off her jacket and rolls up her sleeve to dab at the bloody scrapes down her arm. She takes out her books, and tucked inside is a note detailing when and where the next demonstration will be. Clearly this is not just a passing fancy for her.

Mom tells the other ajummas about it, and Sun-woo’s mom is shocked and worried. Jung-hwan’s mom says that all college students protest these days, but it’s fine as long as she’s not the one standing out in front. Mom sighs over the fight between Bora and Dad, and the other ajummas wonder why that daddy-daughter pair isn’t on good terms.

Their attention is diverted when Lee Jong-won is on TV in a commercial, and Deok-sun’s mom guesses that everyone’s going to be copying his big chair-fall move and breaking a lot of furniture in the process.

Sure enough, the boys’ classroom is gathered in a circle around Sun-woo, as he reenacts the commercial perfectly. They’re so geeky. Jung-hwan is up next, but chickens out and asks Sun-woo to show him again. But this time Sun-woo comes crashing down in a big fall, and Jung-hwan piggybacks him out of class as they run to the nurse.

Next thing we know, Sun-woo is lying in bed with a sprained ankle. His mom is sick with worry, and runs to the store to go buy groceries. She gazes at the bananas wistfully (geez, one friggin’ overripe brown banana costs 2000 won, while her entire bag of veggies costs 700 won), and then comes home with her best compromise—banana milk.

Deok-sun feeds Sun-woo his banana milk, and he tries to get her to go home because she’s hovering. Deok-sun tells Jung-hwan to leave instead, and that gets him all jealous and riled up: “What’re the two of you going to do when I’m gone?” Ha. Sun-woo tells them to stop fighting and kicks them both out instead.

Sun-woo’s mom sighs to see her stores thinning out: She’s out of rice, out of money, and down to her last coal briquette. In contrast, Jung-hwan’s parents sit at home waiting for their order of coal to arrive—all one thousand briquettes. Good grief.

The two moms meet in the street as Sun-woo’s mom is carrying home the two briquettes she just bought, and Jung-hwan’s mom tells her not to cook tonight because she made abalone for Sun-woo.

Sun-woo’s mom says that she’s preparing for her mother-in-law’s arrival, and Jung-hwan’s mom gets livid on her behalf as she remembers how that woman treated her in the past, blaming her for her son’s death and acting like she was the only one who lost him. Sun-woo’s mom laughs at her being more upset than she is, but happily borrows her vest when Jung-hwan’s mom offers to lend it to her.

That night Grandma comes to visit and comes out after talking with Sun-woo in his room. Honestly, I thought Jung-hwan’s mom was exaggerating a little, but yeeesh, this lady is awful. She does nothing but criticize Mom for every little thing, accusing her of starving her grandchildren, not heating the house enough to let them catch cold, not having enough class to wear anything better. She still laments the fact that her son married “a thing like you,” and asks if she’s purposely looking pathetic to prove some kind of point to her.

Finally, after years of just taking this kind of abuse from her, Mom says with tears in her eyes that she’s a precious daughter to her mother too, and she’s not going to take this anymore. She says that she’s going to raise her children well and put them through college if she has to cut off her own hair to do it, and tells Grandma that she’s no longer welcome in their house.

Grandma is huffy all the way out the door, and shoves an envelope of money for the grandkids at her. But Mom chases her down the street to give it back to her, insisting that she can raise them on her own. She cries as she pours herself a drink that night, and when she remembers the abalone porridge that Jung-hwan’s mom made for Sun-woo, she sighs that strangers are better than family.

In the morning, Jung-hwan’s mom learns that Taek is home and calls him over to pick up their portion of the abalone porridge that she made. She starts rattling off instructions for how to warm it up, then realizes that she lost him halfway through the conversation and just sends him on his way, heh.

He runs in Jung-hwan on his way out, and when Taek asks why he isn’t at school, Jung-hwan points out that it’s Sunday and then sighs jealously at Taek’s life. They head outside together, where they run into Deok-sun getting the morning paper in her PJs.

She doesn’t care what she looks like in front of them, but then Sun-woo comes by and she turns around to make sure she’s clear of eye boogers and drool marks, just in case. He’s here to borrow a dictionary, and Jung-hwan and Taek seem to find it a little odd.

Jung-hwan thought Sun-woo had that book already, but rationalizes that it’d be cheaper to borrow Deok-sun’s copy, since it would be like new. Sun-woo insists on going downstairs with her to get the book, and the other boys watch them intently.

At Jung-hwan’s house, Mom’s day is filled with a flurry of activity. The three men in the house can’t lift a finger without calling out to her for every little thing—cooking, unclogging the toilet, crying over a paper cut, asking for the newspaper. It’s like a house with three grown babies.

Deok-sun shovels her breakfast in and hurries off to the library to study, and Dad marvels at the change in her. Little Bro No-eul points out that it’s her first day going to the library, but Deok-sun says it’s the start that matters. She basically spends her whole morning starting—cleaning, setting up her desk and her study schedule—and then lies down for a nap.

Bora left early to study as well, and Dad worries that she’s off at another protest or something. Mom insists that she has a big test coming up and went to the library. On TV, Lee Mi-yeon’s famous chocolate commercial comes on, and No-eul sighs, “Wouldn’t it be nice if Lee Mi-yeon were my sister?” She will be in 27 years! Adorably, Dad scoffs that Deok-sun is way prettier than that girl.

Deok-sun dreams that she’s the star of that commercial, with Sun-woo as her trench coat boyfriend smiling back at her. She drools happily while sleeping on the floor of the library. At the same time, Jung-hwan smiles while dreaming the same thing, only this time he’s the the trench coat boyfriend and Deok-sun buries her face in his chest.

Jung-hwan, Hyung, and Dad are lying around in front of the TV as Mom continues to work around the house, and they don’t even get up to answer the damn phone when it’s right there.

Mom finds out that Grandma injured her ankle and has to head down to the country for two days, and begins this hilarious tutorial on how to survive, taking the three boys around the house to show them where their underwear is, how to change the coal briquettes, and what to feed themselves so that they don’t starve.

She has the hardest time actually leaving, and Dad has to shoo her out of there for her to finally go. They act somber as she walks away, but then the minute she’s out of sight, they run inside and pants start coming off. LOL.

They’re all stripped down to their boxers in a matter of seconds, and Dad parks it in front of the TV with Jung-hwan, while Hyung eats the most disgusting concoction of rice, mayonnaise, margarine, and sugar.

Deok-sun sleeps the whole day away in the library then heads home for dinner, where Dad sings her praises for working hard and says he’d be delighted if she just studied half as much as Unni. On TV, the news is reporting on another student protest, and uh-oh… it’s taking place where Bora’s note instructed her to be.

Sure enough, No-eul’s eyes widen when he notices Bora on TV, and he quietly nudges Deok-sun to look. They try to distract Dad, but Mom sees it—Bora on front lines of the protest. Eek. Dad sees it too, and there’s no explaining away this one. She’s one of the students with her fist in the air and chanting, out in front of everyone.

Mom and Dad get up immediately and start putting their coats on, and panic settles over the whole family. Are they going to try and find her in that crowd? But just as they’re about to run out the door, Bora trudges in, bloodied up and bruised, but she doesn’t look too badly injured. Oh thank goodness.

Mom just hugs her fiercely in relief, and checks to make sure Bora isn’t hurt. But Dad is beside himself and grabs her by the collar and asks if she’s totally lost her mind. He says that if she gets arrested, that’ll follow her for the rest of her life, and she’s not just ruining her whole life—she’s putting their entire family in danger.

He asks what she’s going to do about her mother, who’s lived her entire life for her children, and asks how Bora could go to demonstrations knowing that she’s putting her mother in harm’s way. Dad screams that he’s going to cut off all her hair, and Mom tries to get her to say that she’s sorry and won’t do it again.

But Bora is as stubborn as ever, and screams, “Why? What did I do wrong?!” Dad declares that she’s not leaving her room until she apologizes and swears that she’ll never protest again, and he tells Mom not to give her a drop of food or water until she complies. Mom cries and pleads with Bora to say that she’s sorry, but Bora repeats that she’s done nothing wrong and stomps off to her room.

Bora buries herself under the covers as Dad’s voice comes through the walls, lamenting how much they starved and sacrificed so that she could have a bright future and not be lacking for anything in this world. His voice breaks as he asks how she could drive a nail into her parents’ hearts when she knows this.

Deok-sun seeks out Dong-ryong’s advice over the matter, scared that her sister will be arrested just like all of her sunbaes. Dong-ryong says it’s okay—they let you go as long as you sign a document saying that you were in the wrong, but that makes Deok-sun feel worse because she knows Bora will never admit that.

Jung-hwan arrives at Taek’s and immediately gets jealous when he sees Dong-ryong and Deok-sun there alone, and asks what they’re doing. They think he’s the weirdo for asking, and Dong-ryong throws an arm around Deok-sun, which only makes it worse.

Deok-sun gets up to go to the library, and I love Jung-hwan’s dumbfounded reaction at that. The boys worry that it’s dangerous to be out this late by herself, but Deok-sun says she’ll be home before midnight.

The phone rings in Taek’s room and Dong-ryong passes the message along to Jung-hwan that his dad is hungry and wants him to make dinner. Dinner is pretty much a disaster at Jung-hwan’s house, and in the end the boys just throw everything in to a giant bowl and mix it until it’s vaguely edible. The soundtrack tells us that it’s basically dog food, but they don’t seem to mind.

Mom and No-eul get ready for bed and peer over at Dad, who’s parked himself in front of Bora’s door. Pfft, gee Dad, where do you think she gets her stubborn streak from? He refuses to budge in case Bora tries to escape, and plans to spend the night sitting up like that.

It’s getting late but Deok-sun still isn’t home (because she fell asleep again, naturally), and Jung-hwan forces himself to stay awake at his desk, even while he’s nodding off. It isn’t until he hears Deok-sun’s footsteps and her announcing herself to her parents that his bedroom light goes out. Awwww.

Sun-woo’s mom gets a call from her brother about him hurting his ankle on the job, but then she hears that her mother is coming up to visit them in Seoul, and Mom goes into a full-on panic.

At Deok-sun’s house, Dad’s dark circles are halfway down his face after a night of guarding Bora’s door. He’s even taken the day off of work to stay vigilant in his watchdog duties, and Mom sighs when he refuses to let Bora eat breakfast.

Jung-hwan’s house is a disaster zone, and by morning the heat has gone out and the toilet is stopped up again. Thankfully Hyung is good for some things, and manages to fix what’s broken.

Sun-woo’s mom runs around like a headless chicken all morning, getting her house ready for Mom-level inspection. She’s out of rice, so she runs over to Jung-hwan’s house in her socks and carries out a bag of rice to borrow for the day.

She does it again to fill her empty fridge, and then again to fill her vanity counter, each time running out of Jung-hwan’s house with another armful of things. She starts enlisting Hyung’s help as well, and when they’re done, her shed is full of coal briquettes too.

Mom visits and is only there for all of ten minutes before she runs off again. But she notices the shed full of coal and smiles to see that her daughter is living well. She knows that her mother was here to make sure that she’s doing okay on her own, and laughs at everything she went through this morning to prepare for her visit.

Deok-sun’s dad is still guarding Bora’s door, and when he complains about the meager lunch that Mom gives him and asks for an egg, Mom says they’re all out. She can’t eat with her child locked up and starving, and goes outside to pace in the yard.

When she runs into Jung-hwan’s dad taking out a jar of liquor, she suggests that he drink with her husband since he took the day off. The dads share a drink and sigh over their eldest children, and Jung-hwan’s dad sighs that they were too easy on Hyung.

Mom uses the opportunity to sneak food into Bora’s room, though Bora is in no mood to eat. She buries herself in bed and refuses to eat, so Mom finally just leaves the bowl of food by her pillow and tells her to eat it later. We see that it’s topped with the last egg that she withheld from Dad.

Sun-woo’s mom discovers an envelope of money in her bathroom with a note from her mother, calling her “my pretty daughter” and apologizing for not being able to give her much. She tells her to buy herself something pretty to wear, and Mom sniffles back tears.

She goes outside to look at the laundry she put on the clothesline in her haste to prep for her mother’s visit, and now notices that her underwear and socks are full of holes. She wipes her tears and wonders how her mother caught that. Dude, moms notice EVERYTHING.

Deok-sun’s mom comes back home to find Dad passed out in bed. She goes in to check on Bora too, but she’s gone. Oh noes. Mom goes door to door in the neighborhood looking for her in the rain, to no avail.

Bora is out at a payphone talking to someone, and then when she heads back out into the rain, she sees two officers tailing her out of the corner of her eye. She darts around a corner and tries to hide, but she can’t fold her umbrella fast enough and they catch her. They already know her name—they’ve arrested everyone else from the last protest and they’ve come for her.

She denies that she was at the demonstration, which they obviously don’t believe because her face was plastered all over the news. They’re about to take her away when Mom’s voice rings down the street, and she comes running to them while getting soaked in the rain.

She stands in front of Bora and says her daughter didn’t do anything, swearing that her daughter isn’t that kind of student. She rambles on and on about what a bright, hardworking student Bora is, and how proud everyone is, in their family and in their whole neighborhood.

The whole time Bora looks angry, but then she notices Mom’s toe soaked in blood, from where she stubbed it the other day. She’s run herself ragged trying to find her, and is pleading with the officers that her child wouldn’t do such things. Bora stifles back tears and finally blurts, “I was wrong! I was wrong! I was wrong! I’ll go to the police station.”

Mom screams and wails and tries to stop them, but they push her aside and take Bora away. Adult Bora narrates that sometimes she was ashamed of her mother and often got mad at her for not having any pride: “I just didn’t know it then, that it was because she had something more precious than herself to protect—me.”

She says that people are strongest when they’ve tossed aside their pride: “Mom is strong.” Sun-woo’s mom nags her brother over the phone for getting hurt, and asks to speak to Mom. But as soon as she hears her mother’s voice, she can’t stop the tears from coming, and cries to her mother in loud wailing sobs. Sun-woo sees his mother breaking down.

Bora’s narration continues, “They say that God couldn’t be in all places at once and so created mothers. Even when I become a mother, my mother is my guardian angel, and calling her by the name Mother makes my heart choke up. Mom is strong.”

Bora paces in a holding cell at the police station, as Mom and Dad sit across from the officers. Dad goes outside for a smoke and Jung-hwan and Taek’s dads arrive to check on them. Dad says that they’re letting Bora out, and Jung-hwan’s dad advises him to really be stern this time so that she knows she’s in trouble.

But Dad sighs, “What should I yell at her for when she didn’t do anything wrong?” The other dads remind him that he quit smoking, and Dad says he did. And then he smokes his cigarette anyway.

Mom stands outside of the holding cell, refusing to take her eyes off of Bora for one second. She just stands there spilling tears and holding a banana to give her when she’s out.

Sun-woo’s family gathers around a banana at their house too, and Sun-woo divides it in half and gives the big piece to his baby sister, and then splits the other in half for him and Mom. When she refuses, he won’t eat his piece until she eats hers.

Jung-hwan’s house is still a pigsty when he comes home from school, and everyone freezes when Hyung answers the phone and announces, “Mom is at the terminal.” Suddenly everyone’s racing around trying to clean and remove all traces of their momless bender.

I’m nervous for them as Mom comes home and looks around, but to her surprise, everything looks exactly as it should be. She finds all the side dishes eaten, the laundry put away, and the heat working as it should be. The boys are all proud of themselves, but Mom goes to her room in a sour mood.

Jung-hwan asks Dong-ryong about it, and when he returns home, he heads straight to the kitchen and burns Hyung’s hands on the stove and calls out, “Moooom, Hyung burned his hands!” Then he goes outside to where Dad is changing the coal briquettes and knocks them over on purpose, and calls out, “Mooooom, Dad broke the briquettes again!” Omg, why are you SO ADORABLE?

Then he goes to his room and digs through all of his drawers and calls out, “Mooooom, have you seen my shorts?” She’s right there every time to fix the problem, complaining the whole time that they couldn’t live without her. And just like that, her mood is lifted and she joins Dad for a snack, and Jung-hwan smiles.

Flashback to Dong-ryong’s answer to Jung-hwan: “Do you know why your mom is in a bad mood? Because you guys were doing so well. Because you were doing so well, even without Mom.” The wise one has spoken.

As Jung-hwan’s family laughs together over a late-night snack, Bora narrates that often, by the time you realize that you want to tell your mother that you’re sorry or grateful, too much time has passed. She says that the best thing to make a mother is simply to say, “Mom I need you,” and that one thing is enough.

Jung-hwan sits up late as always, waiting for Deok-sun. But on this rainy night, she’s especially late and still not home past two in the morning. Deok-sun finally wakes up at her desk and gasps to see the time, and runs out with her backpack overhead to shield herself from the rain.

She turns the corner from the library and stops in her tracks. There’s Jung-hwan, standing on the corner with an umbrella. You slay me, kid.

He holds the umbrella over her and puts it in her hand. He simply says, “Come home earlier,” and walks away. Kyaaaaaaaaaa.

In the morning, Jung-hwan steps out and sees Sun-woo hobbling up from Deok-sun’s house. This time he’s there to borrow a sewing kit, and when Jung-hwan says he’s heading out to buy batteries, Sun-woo says he has some at his house.

Jung-hwan heads inside alone while Sun-woo goes to the bathroom, and mocks him for alphabetizing his books. He digs around and finds batteries in the drawer, and laughs to see that Deok-sun’s dictionary was brand new, just as he suspected.

But then he sees something that gives him pause. It’s the exact same dictionary, and it’s Sun-woo’s. Eep.

Sun-woo comes in to find Jung-hwan standing there holding both dictionaries, and Jung-hwan looks down at the sewing kit in Sun-woo’s hand, and out to the living room where his mother is currently using her big sewing kit to mend a blanket. They look at each other, and no words are spoken, but I’d say that a lot of things are said.

 
COMMENTS

That was a nerve-racking episode. I was seriously worried about Bora, though honestly I don’t think she’s in the clear yet, because she seems headstrong enough to keep going out there even after her arrest. I’m still waiting for the show to reveal more of Bora’s perspective and her inner thoughts, because she’s an interesting mix of contradictions and I still feel like we’re on the outside with her. It was nice to have today’s voiceover coming from her, which is a good place to start since the episode focused very much on how her actions affect her family. It was especially heart-wrenching to see Dad go through such different emotions throughout the episode, because he was so sympathetic to the young man he helped on the street, then so angry and overprotective of Bora, only to reveal in the end that he’s entirely sympathetic to her cause—he’s just also her father, and would rather die than see her get hurt.

I thought it was brilliant to have Dad basically hold a one-man protest in order to convince his daughter not to protest, and fail to see the irony in it. It’s obvious that they don’t get along because they’re exactly alike, and she’s stubborn as a mule because he’s stubborn as a mule, and she’ll never back down because he’d never back down. I wouldn’t be surprised if Dad did similar things in his youth and drove his parents crazy too. But it only went on to prove that Mom was the glue that held them together, because with Dad and Bora constantly at each other’s throats and refusing to give in, Mom was the only one who could get through to her, even when Bora probably vowed not to let family guilt stand in the way of her principles. What really sold the impact of Bora’s storyline was the way Mom and Dad played their fear—in very different ways, but both violent, ferocious reactions to protect their daughter at all costs.

Sun-woo’s mom had a great moment in the spotlight in this episode as well, illustrating how a daughter remains a daughter, even when she’s a mother herself. Running around to clean up and prepare for her mother’s visit just felt so true to life, and it struck me how much of what went on in today’s episode was all about people trying not to worry their mothers. Which, go figure, is often not what makes mothers feel better. As we saw with Jung-hwan’s mom, all mothers ever want is to feel needed. I really hope that there are better days ahead for Sun-woo’s family, because it’s hard to see Mom worrying over rice and coal with a brave face. But the neighbors and the way they’re always taking care of each other make me think that they’ll always be safe and sound, because they’re part of a bigger family. And until better days, it’s the little things—the joy of a banana that they can’t afford—that keeps them going.

I love that Jung-hwan’s moment of growth with Dad was mirrored with Mom in today’s episode. It was unexpected because their storyline was mostly a comical thread (a welcome one in today’s heavy episode), and I was expecting Mom to yell at the boys for being lazy bums and never lifting a finger to help her around the house. They weren’t even a pleasant, carefree kind of messy—they were totally disgusting, and Mom’s absence me ME miss her because they were so gross. What’s adorable is that Jung-hwan is sensitive enough to know when his parents are mad but doesn’t ever know why, but he always finds a way to make it right. I can’t get over how cute his crush is either, with his growing jealousy any time Deok-sun is alone with one of the other boys, or the way he secretly waits up for her every night. Gah. When he showed up with that umbrella, tossed out the one line and just walked away? I was a goner. Oh who am I kidding, you had me at the bus last week.

 
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Wow. There's a recap already!! I love this episode and I can't wait for the next one!!!

Thanks, girlfriday!

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The recap already made me cry, can't wait for the actual subbed episode lol. I was so thinking SunWoo liked Bora and now I'm confused, hope episode 6 clears it up

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Sun Woo likes Bo Ra for sure. If he likes Doek Sun, he won't go inside Deok Sun's house and take the dictionary by himself.

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yea I think so. He doesn't act like he likes Deok sun when she is around, so I also think he's just looking for excuses to visit her house to see Bora. Plus the whole wearing wet shirt to the tutoring session.

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He likes someone in that house, but it's not Deok-Sun. He's just using Deok-Sun's friendship as an excuse to go over there all the time (which is honestly kind of a shitty thing to do) to see someone else. I'd guess Bora, but maybe it's the little bro for all we know.

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It never crossed my mind SW likes BR, even at the last segment to this episode. SW goes to DS's house to borrow yet another item, I assume BR hasn't been released from the police station just yet, and JH catches on to SW's intentions in the very end of this episode. SW likes DS for sure, is my guess, and it won't change even if the scriptwriter is gonna try to trick me in thinking otherwise.

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then prepare to be wrong at tonight's episode, you

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YES

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gosh soo true!!! for some reason i support both of them but i really like Sun woo <3

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[SPOILER DELETED]

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*sigh* why spoil the episode? WHY :c

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[SPOILER DELETED]

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Waahh!!! That sweetness when he waited to give umbrella ?

He should be the husband or else.. Hahaha

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Aaaaaaaaaah~~~ this show is so good and soooooo relatable. Sun woo's mom made me cry so much during this episode. Every one has those moments where they just want to hug their moms and cry. I really hope t things pick up for her though. Do they even have a source of income.?
And Jung hwan's mom - I laughed so hard when I saw them cleaning after that phone call. Hilarious. It reminded me of the time when my parents left me, my younger brother and older brother last year to go on a two-week trip. It's hard living with boys. They are really dirty. Ugh I used to find tin cans and glass bottles in the weirdest of places.
And Deok sun falling asleep each time she tried to study hahahahhaha. Just like me. Whenever my mother compares my grades with those of my brothers, she always says that I feel asleep all the time. Ah that's how my last year in high school was.
Oh and did anyone recognize the song that played through out the episode, something like " It all passes". I'm sure I loved listening to it before. I just can't remember when our during which drama.

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most touching episode as of yet ?

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I agree that this is the most touching ep so far.
I love that it deals w the parents' emotions too, cos parents are ppl too; they don't stop having feelings just cos they are parents now. They are still sb's child. They run to their mother when she needs help, or their mother runs to check on them. It's that unbreakable bond.

Thru the whole ep, it hasn't once crossed my mind as to who her husband is gonna be. I just enjoy how the guys are messing up the house when the lady of the house is gone. It's like vacation for them. It's really funny how they all peel off their clothes the min. she leaves.

Sb should teach Bora some manners tho. That girl has been too full of herself.

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I cried so hard during Bo Ra and Lee Il Hwa scene. This installment is better with focusing on family story and less romance.

Jung Hwan is soooo swoony tho :D

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Oh, one more thing. If sun woo likes her then I hope that they don't plan on making Jung hwan the always -taking -care -of -her but heart broken at the end kind of guy. Like Chil bong-ie.
At the end of Reply 1994, they did say that she always liked Garbage oppa so... I don't want to invest my emotions into Jung hwan but it's so hard not to. Please show, don't do this to me.
Like gf said, I'm glad that the focus is more on family instead of the stupid husband game.

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I would like to point out that garbage oppa was also always taking care of her. He gave her those tapes she wanted when she was hospitalized, he went home just to deliver the cookies she wanted when she was on bed rest, he always knew when she needed his comfort on days like her brother's death anniversary. And that was even before he confessed to loving her.

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Yeah that always gets me. I really loved both guys on that show. Garbage oppa was the one who knew her best but Chilbong-ie was the one that liked her so boldly. Which is why I thought it did Chilbongie a disservice by not letting him develop much outside of the love triangle like it did Garbage oppa.

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That's because chilbong was second lead... It's classic second lead character, his story mainly revolves around his one-sided love for the main lead. He did develop outside the love triangle, but it wasn't shown in the show because ya know romcoms they don't usually multitask well lol. They like wrapping things up only at the end

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Think they did develop Chilbongie's character some beyond his one-sided love.

Showed his relationship or lack thereof w/ his parents and in particular his mom, and that in many ways, despite being a sports star, was a lonely kid.

Hanging out at Casa Sung got him to do the things kids his age did and develop close friendships that had nothing to do w/ baseball.

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God, even reading the recaps make me cry, watching it will kill me.

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I watched it raw and didn't quite understand the ending to this episode. Thanks GF, saved the day lost in translation yet again. LOL~ Omo, omo... so SW was creating opportunities to see DS more often. Cute! Although I have to agree with GF, JH has the upper hand in all things adorable.

MacGyver oppa/hyung was so funny. I love the scene where he used the soda liter bottle to plung the clogged toilet, because the best part was watching their dad's reaction when big bro put his so called dirty glove resting on dad's shoulder. I was rolling in laughter.

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Hyung is hilarious. I'll have to try his rice/mayo/sugar recipe someday.

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Ew! Gross!! LOLOLOLOL~ That recipe made me gag.^ ^"

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I believe you missed one more ingredient; hyung's margarine (or butter?) in the recipe mix.

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ewwww That vile mix had me gagging seriously. The extent the boys were being boys in that household makes me want to smack them with something. I have lots more sympathies for Jong hwan's mom now.

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JH's family is definitely my favourite. They're all just awesome!! That entire sequence had me cracking up.

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That family reminds us what benevolence is all about. They surely deserved the lottery winnings.

Love hyung winking to the camera at the end of that sequence too.

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In 1988, my mother was also in prison due responsibility for democratic movements. She's 48 years old now same as Bo Ra.

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This is why I started to love Bo Ra's character. For me, she's more relatable than Deok Sun. Despite having fierce nature, she's so badass as my mom.

Ohh,, This episode is also about mother, isn't it?

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I want to like Bora, but at the moment her Godzilla screaming and sibling bullying rubs me the wrong way.

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Same. Bora is not "fierce", she's abusive and a bully unless proven otherwise. And the only thing that bugs me about this show is her parents let her sit there and beat the crap out of Deok-Sun without doing anything abbot it. A lot of the times her rampages against her sister were totally unprovoked too. She's early 20's, not some child either. My parents would have smacked the shit out of us for still acting like that at that age.

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Same. I am the eldest sister in my family and I would never do that. It feels like she's taking advantage of her position and it's completely unreasonable when she bullies DS. People in her age should know better (be more mature than her). There have been scenes where we could see that she cares (but even then only a teeny tiny bit) about her brother and sister but this is not nearly enough for me.

Also. Thanks a lot for the political background!! Everything makes a lot more sense to me now..

And the moms.. gosh.. the moms..

Not even mentioning Junghwan ..

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You have to understand that she's not much older than the others. She's allowed to be immature and have a temper. Just because she's the eldest doesn't make her automatically perfect. I like the quirk about her having such a ridiculous temper. My older brother is like that too. It doesn't take away from her caring because when they need it the most, she'll be there. But college is a confusing time for people and growth is a permanent part of life. You don't get siblings and automatically learn how to be mature and wise. If you ARE an awesome sibling then great, that's awesome. I hope your siblings appreciate it. But for some of us, it takes us time to mature.

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@Quinze

I thought she was 4 years older, meaning she's 22-23 years old. So no, there's no excuse for her behavior.

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Yeah, Bora has a bad temper and can be abusive, but her character needs a flaw - otherwise, she would be too much the "golden child."

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That sounds so cool. My parents are more similar to the Dad's point of view - keep your head down and don't get involved.
Respect for your mom *thumbs up*

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But then again, BoRa's parents grew up/ became adults under the dictatorship of Park ChungHee (who totally pulled off a coup and became the 3rd President of SK (1962 - 1979)). And before that it was a whole mess of political chaos.

They grew up under the hovering of the KCIA which was "given the authority to arrest and detain anyone suspected of wrongdoing or harboring anti-government sentiments. The KCIA would extend its power to economic and foreign affairs under its first director, retired Brigadier General Kim Jong-pil; a relative of Park and one of the original planners of the coup." (from Wikipedia)

That's got to influence their behaviour.

By 1980, there was enough stability and anger and righteousness for people like BoRa to emerge and effectively influence others to fight too. (Plus the push for democratization from the states was... getting intense, I would guess.)

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I don't even want Jung-Hwan for Deok-Sun anymore. I want him for myself! mwahahaha

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Just exactly feeling you !!! I want him for myself now.

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Hah agreed! That boy is an adorable baby cactus!

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The 3 boys and the lady are so funny!! I love that household the most! They are just so clumsy including the dad. Hilarious. Looooooove Them!
I don't care who she ends up with...all are cute. I can ship her with all the boys right now!

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Love your user ID. Haha~

I like AM88, however it lacks something and I had to marathon AM97 to feed my drama hunger. <3 Yoon Yoon Jae!

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Yoon Jae and Joon Hee!

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The other two series just will never match up what Reply1997 did to me and my Korean Drama addiction...not to mention my love for SIG! I am liking 88 again. Wasn't a great fan of 1994, it just lacked the punch.

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I basically watched the episode raw because subs take too long so I REALLY needed this recap to make sense of some of the details. But overall this show is amazing and you get the sense of it even without the subs. I LOVED the highlight of every mom in this episode. From Bora and Deok sun's mom running herself ragged with worry over her daughter (SO understandable and heartbreaking!) to Sun Woo's mom and her struggle to both keep her family together and then fall apart in front of her own mother (also broke my heart!) to Jung Hwan's mom needing her boys to need her in order to feel loved (I love her!)
Every moment feels endearing and loving which is what makes this show so great. I've loved the Answer Me series so far but on second rewatch I noticed that 1994 definitely lacked this touch of caring. It was there in beats but there were a lot of moments on that show that felt incredibly pointless and altogether too fixated on the husband drama.
Here while I'm SO incredibly sold on Jung Hwan, I also love Sun Woo and and Taek, and Dong Ryung. In 1994, while I loved both leads absolutely, the husband drama detracted from the development of their characters much outside of the romance. This series doesn't feel like that which I'm really happy about because like you said GF, it really centers on family and sells it so well.
Bora and Dad remind me of my older brother and my mother. They're always butting heads because they have that stubborn temper in common.
In any case, thank you GF!

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I watch the episode last night, which hardly because of the connection was so bad. This episode is really deserves its highest rating so far. I am now realize that my mom also a daughter rather than only just a mom for me. It's too hurful to see Bora's parents screaming, crying, yelling and hurting like that. I feel their worry towards Bora in every single gesture and expression they showed last night. As for Junghwan he slayed me in happiness, he's so sweet and though kinda painful looking at him struggling by himself like that, I must admit I enjoyed his every jealousy and sweet actions to uri lovely but dense Duksun.

And Junghwan as a kid, I noticed that he's always be the one who concerns the most about the atmosphere in his family, he is the one making effort to make keep the harmonious family, in his own way, secretly.

I wish Junghwan is the husband but even if he's not I wish writer won't make him too heartbroken.

I thought Leemiyeon who narrates the episode, I never thought that it was Bora :) :) :)

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It's different people who narrate each episode. Last time it was last time it was Jung-hwan's actor who narrated the thing about how we cherish old things/people even though they're tacky and comfortable.

I love Junghwan's character. He's the kid who is actually sensitive inside and tries to express his emotions indirectly instead of laying it all on the table. (He tries to hide them, but does not success at all.)

I love his care towards his parents. He looks like he's disinterested but is the actual child in the family that notices when his parents are upset and doesn't understand why as girlfriday said. I love that he goes to DongRyong for help.

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Yeah, I grew up in the states but remember when our family went to visit Korea we'd bring bananas as gifts. I thought it was so weird at the time.

My uncle and aunt were hardcore protesters and got arrested and jailed for quite a while. My mom used to cry a lot when she would call Korea for news about them. We didn't know much about it because we were kids and in another country, but I really appreciate being able to see what was really involved because of this drama and GF's excellent recap and explanation. Thanks for that.

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I'm still on the boat that Sun-woo likes Bora until it's made clear. (Or this is just me shipping them that I don'y give a damn about the clues!) Hahaha.

Gosh. Everything about this episode slayed me, and I agree with everything you said, GF. This one reminded me (and made me guilty) about my relationship with my own Mom. Thanks to this episode, I'm reflecting a lot these days.

But just to add to the feels and squee-fest: I love Jung-hwang, even more this day. And I stand firm in my conviction that he's got to be the husband. He's pulling all the right strings to my heart.

I read someone say on Twitter that 1988 just has high ratings because of the popularity of the first two, and I just right about spit my coffee after seeing that. This one's a gem on its own, I stand firm on that. I love the multifaceted development on each character and their relations, and I can't wait for the others to get explored.

Now, if only Viki can also get a license to sub this so that it can come out immediately.

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re: ratings. The first two Replies helped the first week, but anything after that is due to the show. You can't make people stay and watch the show. People were also very ready to hate it. They didn't like Hyeri, they thought the whole thing was overdone and thought the 80's were too long ago. If the quality keeps up this will go down as something truly special on its own merits.

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Yes! I also thought of this one, and forgot to add it. Hahaha. Though I read that week just this week, after 4 episodes have been aired. The first two episodes were indeed out of curiosity, but the fact that it's still climbing shows so much about its quality and good story. I really hope it continues to be consistently meaningful and amazing until the end :)

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*tweet

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Is this the same time frame as the first part of endless love? The student protests and arrests just reminded me.

Ahh, how this episode recap made me cry so hard. I wonder if i should skip watching this episode but then i'll miss such heart warming/ heartbreaking part especially it relates so much to my family in the 1980s.
I remember growing when my parents had no real income and living one meal at a time. Bread was a luxury we can't afford that we just watch every morning when the truck comes to our street every morning to sell buns and loaf.
When my mother finally got some money to buy a pack of 6 small buns, she had to sacrifice herself because there were 7 if us. We would get so excited but days like this, seeing my mother's sacrifice, i vowed to study well, live well and give my parents a better life to enjoy.

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I am all choke up reading your comment, wishing you all best in this present time~~^^ hwaiting~~

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The subbed is still not out yet. Am watching raw and reading this recap. Thanks Girlfriday!
Is that macgyver theme song playing everytime Hyung does his fix things aroundvthe house? Hahaha
I love Bora for being a student protester. It gave the story amazing family interactions. The family responses are sooo realll. I was crying buckets when mom was trying to protect her.

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Junghwan!!! <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

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I think so far, I loved this episode the most.

Why is it that even though I'm not a mom I understood the sentiments even before the explicit voice-overs? I guess having a mom makes one understand too.

While 1997 burned hot and cold like a hormonal-rebellious-idealistic-teenager, 1988 makes one sigh and smile wistfully like a wise old folk.

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Although, really... 1 hour and 30 minutes this episode?? PD, you have to keep time!

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this episode made me miss my mom even more...

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It's crazy how these recaps mirror exactly what I'm thinking! I've been a dramabeans addict for a while now, seriously your recaps keep me going, in life...lol

My friend and I have these conversations where we analyse, criticise and basically give the episode a post-mortem or sorts when we're watching a particularly enjoyable series and you guys seem to be in our heads or vice versa.. haha

Thanks a lot! We've only been learning korean for a while now so A LOT of the doubts we have bring us here for your detailed and amazing and informative recaps..

Just thought I should finally comment after the years I silently read this blog :)

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welcome out lurkers :)

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I promised myself I wouldn't take sides.....Oh who am I kidding? I am a goner. Team Jung-hwan all the way!

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Ahhhhhh thank you for this recap, girlfriday! I only wish subs for this series come faster, but in any case, I'm thankful that it's being subbed at all. So while waiting, DB recaps are all I've got, heee.

This show is just so full of heart. I teared up just reading the recap - I'll probably be bawling once I watch the episode itself!

And Junghwanahhhhhh~ how can one not love the guy? Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh.

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Gosh, this episode had me in a mess. Fantastic acting by all of the mothers. I was crying along with Sun-woo's mom; felt the worry and desperation of Bora's mom, and completely understood Jung-Hwan's mom.

Jung-hwan's little jealous moments whenever he found Duk-seon alone with one of the boys are just so adorable, but not much more than staying up late at night to make sure she got home safely. And of course the umbrella and the one-liner. Tsundere Jung-hwan FTW!

I don't quite get Sun-woo at this stage. If he has liked Duk-seon all this time, he sure has hidden his feelings quite well. And if he liked Bora, then how come he didn't notice or show any concern over Bora when she's hardly home, and is instead out protesting and is in danger of being caught?

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Right! I thought it was also weird that he wasn't shown being concerned for Bora if he liked her. It also seems a little off that he would like Deok-sun. But from the previews, I know they're meant to trick us but it I certianly felt tricked and kind of compelled to believe Sun-woo likes Deok-sun.

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Maybe he likes neither of them.. It's No'eul that he likes?

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I think he likes DS's mom.

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nah, he's into DS's dad...

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Aaaaaawwww. How can i not in love with Jung Hwan <3 He is not really handsome, but he has charm

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Girlfriday. The background information you provided in the beginning will be massively appreciated by those unfamiliar with the times. I'm sure it's these insights your recaps provide that make Dramabeans such an addictive place. So I humbly provide some more details that make some of the scenes in this episode more poignant.

Demonstrations by students had occurred throughout the 80s but it was only when the white collar office workers joined them in 87 that the dictatorship was brought down.

Sung Dongil's character represents those ajeosshis who knew what was right and protected the demonstrating students when needed and finally, when enough was enough, joined them in the streets. He knows, as he said in front of the police station, that Bora did nothing wrong. Which makes his previous outbursts so heartbreaking and touching because what does one choose - the safety of one's family or what is right? It's a choice that Bora and Bora's parents will have to make in the future.

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Gah, this episode was so heartbreaking and relatable. The narration was perfect and Bora's realization of her mother's sacrifice was a very key moment.

I definitely have a problem with Bora's character being 'the crazy bitch' and how she never thinks she is in the wrong. Reminds me of my brother and his crazy ass temper that even my parents are scared of him like Bora's temper makes her own parents scared too.

I hope that this experience will cause a slight deviation in her personality or attitude towards her parents. Or else, everything will go to crap because that temper of hers is a serious problem.

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That temper of hers is what makes her passionate and it gives her character a much better personality than just someone who's good at studying.
With regards to the protesting, I don't think she did anything wrong, she's just standing up for what she believed.

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Of course I don't think she did anything wrong in protesting, I just find it a little hurtful and a bit brat-ish that she didn't even look sorry for making her parents worry in the beginning and not trying to explain to her parents why this means so much to her. Communication is a problem.

Though you could tell that she was being stubborn by not eating and therefore punishing herself as well because she knew deep inside she was hurting her parents but was too prideful to give in to stop protesting.

I think giving her a temper is a great characterisitc, I just hope it also lessens or the fire is dimmed a bit. Trust me from experience, 'crazy bitch' is not a fun when you're scared of a family member because you know they're starting to throw a tantrum like mom being scared in episode 2.

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I just wanted to add to my original comment that the actress playing 'Bora's mother' as they call her, did a fantastic job.

I don't know much korean but I could tell the gist of what she was saying trying to deny Bora's associations and bragging about what a good student she is so Bora won't be arrested. Even though I didn't understand fully, I teared up because of the desperation that Bora's mother was expressing and the love for her daughter was so sad and touching.

Adding to the mix was Bora staring at mom's bloody toe, realizing her mother got hurt looking for her, god, it just was so relatable in a very point blank way that we as children do not often see that mothers sacrifice so much for us.

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I love this episode.

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Ah this one's showing a high probability of becoming even better than 1997.

All the families, characters and friendships are amazing in this one. And the icing on the cake is the social issue of student protests and what Korea was going through in '88 as a society and as a nation in the making. I am glad the somber bits of history haven't been glossed over.

Also Jung Hwan. <3

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Reply 1997 and Reply 1994 definitely was relatable in terms of first loves and youth but when it comes to Reply 1988, it's the most relatable because we understand the family sacrifices and that hits the hard most. I hope they continue focusing on family instead of first love taking over as the main relatable thing.

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Yes I am glad the families are given equal importance. Also is it me or is it just weird for a teenage girl to be out till 2 in the morning and come home unaccompanied to boot?

And if Sun Woo does not like Deok Sun then who will be the third wheel of the main love triangle? We know every edition of the Answer Me has a main love triangle. If SW does not like DS then it makes JH and DS's path to getting together quite hurdle-free to be honest. Or will JH continue to believe that SW and DS like each other and stay out of the way as a result?

Arrrrgh I want answers. >.<

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It's a different time, the 80's.... nowadays a girl wouldn't dare be alone like that, but people were more carefree back then. It also seems like a small and safe neighborhood.

Though they are obviously hinting at something happening to her by staying out so late. Good thing she has a semi-stalker in love with her who waits up for her right?

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My theory - SW's crush in on DS's mom.

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LOL. That would be priceless. But my money is on Bora. It's eerie how keenly Sun Woo is aware of what clothes belong to Bora. I mean why would a guy notice and remember a girl's clothes in that much detail if he doesn't like her? He also seems to bring up Bora in any conversation with Deok Seon. "Isn't that jacket your sister's? Wouldn't she take away your walkman?" etc etc. Bora is all he talks about sometimes.

Besides, Sun Woo seems to treat DS in a friendly, affectionate kind of way, like the sweet little sister. He hasn't really given away any signs of being smitten yet aside from the frequent trips to her place for borrowing things he does not need.

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i love bora now <3
and i understand why she didn't want to support the olympics

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Was the voiceover really coming from adult Bora? It sounded like Li Mi Yeon's voice for me though...

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Random thought: Hyeri looks like Fuji Miina in the first picture.

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Thanks for recap GF

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Love this episode! So much depth. I love Sun Woo's little Sis, she is so adorable and cute. :-)

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My routine now is watch this without subs and come here to read recaps to help me understand what happened.

It's freaking late here and I have work tomorrow. All I can say is I enjoy this drama so far but omg, I don't want anymore who's the husband hunt! I love everyone, okay? Don't make me choose! It was easier before because I wasn't sure what Sunwoo feels but now!!!! If Taek ever acts like he has feelings for Deoksun, I'll be done. My heart won't take it anymore.

Thanks for the recaps, girlfriday!

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Show, you are killing me. :)

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I too really wish subs would come out faster - and such a bummer Viki doesn't have it. (I know I know - I just need to learn Korean. I'm trying, but it's slow going w/ my middle age memory!)

Thank you GF for the historical background for this episode. I'm an American who is close to the same age as the characters, so I have no recollection of what was happening in So Korea back in 1988. So it's really helpful to have your explanation and that understanding when watching this episode.

This show has been so surprisingly good. I really didn't have any plans to watch it, but was looking for a filler after SGG and SWP ended. I am so glad I found it. There are so many things about the show that just make me laugh so hard - the clothes, the music, the hair, etc. i was laughing so hard watching parts of episodes 3-4 - my family thought I was kinda losing it. Like others have said, the family relationships, the teenage crushes, the neighborhood ajummas & how they all care for each other & help each other out - all so heartwarming, special, and sweet. ?

Thank you so much for recapping, DB!

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Its too good episode,I totally enjoyed it...??

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LOL. Does anyone have 'cats are assholes' flashbacks when JH intentionally pushed the briquettes off the table? The way a cat will stare into your eyes and push off your glass or plate off the table.

It was uncanny.

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LOL yes!

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R88 is too good just by reading recap can't wait to watch the episode

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What a wonderful episode that paid tribute to our mothers! I was on the verge of crying while watching Mom protecting Bora from the police.

Even Junghwan’s petty jealousy fits are so satisfying. LOL, the Lee Mi-yeon references are already so telling that he’s the end game.

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Thanks so much GF for the quick turnaround time to recap every episode! It just sucks that subs won't ever come out over the weekend. Sigh. And I know I'd still have to refer to this again for some intricate details that subbers might have missed out so this is a such a big help.

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i luff this show. i thought no sequel could beat '97, but the focus on family and how it manifests in different forms (close neighbours, squabbling siblings) makes this a different and lovable animal altogether

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JUNG HWAN JUNG HWAN <3 <3 <3 It's okay if you're not the husband, i will fly to korea and marry you!
How can someone not fall in love and melt with all his sweet actions?

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Thank you so much GF for the recap! It's seriously annoyed me that the sub is really late, and thanks to your express recap i don't get lost in the storyline.

It's really nice to saw all the character got the right amount of portion in this episode. This is my favorite part about this installment though, that the family story part is not just the "side dish". It's really relatable, and i think that's why it always hit me right in the heart. Even from EP 1, i've already cry like a river, no, it's more like niagara falls.

I laugh too hard when JH dream scene came up! It's really hard to guess who'll end up with DS and i think it's still too early to conclude anything (even though i'm on team JH, he's just so....). But one thing that i can be sure of, that SW have someone that he like in DS household (i mean it's also possible that he likes NE, cause it has been this installment's trademark). I mean, man, since Reply 1994 do that really-harsh-thing-that-i-will-never-forget-for-my-entire-lifetime to Chil Bong, anything can happen in this drama.

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Ohmygah, toooo many feels coming from this show!

It's been a while since I have this kind of addiction, wanting the weekend to come by faster and watching the show even without subs and then read the recaps here to understand what happens in the episode. Seriously, the show is that good, that I can't wait for the next episode to be aired! The story about family, friendship ring closer to home.

And throw Junghwan into the mix, you've earned yourself a dedicated fan, Show! Junghwan-ah, whyyy so adorable? Kyaaaaaaaa

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Please please pleeeeaaassseeee let JH be the husband!

When I first saw the teasers and posters I was shocked and a bit dissapointed because I thought the husband guessing would be Go Kyungpyo or Park Bogum.

But then! Junghwan made me a goner. Like seriously this boy is just.. adorable. I love the way he smiles and giggles when he dreams about Deoksun. And the umbrella too.... I'm so done with not shipping any ship. I'm soooo in for JH. Lol

Taek oh taek.. poor baby... you should go out and see the world. But you're still adorable as ever though. I kind of understand now why PBG wants to take Taek's character ever since last week episode. I hope in the future we'll get to see more sides of Taek!

Thank you for the fast recap! I love you <3

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I haven't watched a new drama since Twenty Again. I've only been reading recaps, since the internet connection had been too slow and I feel lazy to buffer..

But this recap made me cry. So, perhaps, this drama could be worth my patience :) wah!! I have to marathon the previous eps now. :'(

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[SPOILER DELETED]

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Forgot to mention, thank you girlfriday for the recap! I understood only 30% when I watched Ep 5. It sucks that subbed eps get released mid-week, but thanks to your hard work, I can wait happily until then. ^^

Thank you, thank you thank youuuuu!

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I feel like an idiot today... kicking and screaming while reading the recaps... there's no eng sub of Ep 5 so thank god for dramabeans! I seriously love this episode... jung hwan slayed me more and more and my screams go wild every jealosy scenes he have... now I'm frustrated to see some love triangle in the next ep.... grrrrr.... i want him to be the husband so badddddd....

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