Sassy Go Go: Episode 10
by Saya
I know you guys love to see our chipmunk couple up here (so do I), but let’s show Soo-ah some love for coming this far and finding ways and reasons to smile. Because everyone ought to be loved, at least by one person — and if not loved, then at least saved. And no one needs saving more than Soo-ah.
EPISODE 10 RECAP
Soo-ah storms up to Yeon-doo and slaps her hard across the face. She thinks Yeon-doo is putting on the innocent act, and gets increasingly worked up. Yeol and Ha-joon arrive to see them at the head of the stairs. Soo-ah seizes Yeon-doo by the collar, screaming that she’ll kill her, and throws her down the stairs.
Yeol catches her but goes down, and the two of them roll all the way to the bottom, where Yeol now lies and unconscious and bleeding. Ha-joon and Soo-ah both look on, stricken. With mounting panic, Yeon-doo tries to rouse him.
He’s taken away by ambulance, Yeon-doo and Teacher Yang going with him. The remaining team curse Soo-ah, and only Dong-jae looks back to see her watching from the shadows. We see her eaten up by anxiety.
Principal Choi views the uploaded video of Soo-ah, and she’s horrified by Yeol’s accident — how will she explain it to his dad? Huh. Soo-ah’s mom is no better — when she finds out Soo-ah stole the midterm and hurt another student, she yells Director Lee for mismanaging her charge. Ah, priorities.
Yeol’s dad asks Yeon-doo’s mom if she’s told her about them yet, but she wants to wait until they meet this weekend, since marrying her classmate’s father is no small beans. Dad perks up at the idea that Yeol would be Yeon-doo’s oppa (lul, not in the way you’re thinking, Dad…). Mom tells him not to get ahead of himself — they need permission from the kids first. Thank God.
Just then, Dad gets a call from Teacher Yang about Yeol’s accident, and straightens in shock.
At the hospital, Yang wants to call Yeon-doo’s mom as well, but she stops him since she doesn’t want to worry Mom over a sprained wrist. He tells her to cheer up since the doctors said Yeol will be fine — he’s only unconscious because of medication.
Sitting by Yeol’s bed, she tearfully tells him how scared she was for him, and urges him to wake up or else. Eyes still closed, Yeol smiles at that, and asks just how she’s going to get him back. Delighted he’s awake, she makes to get Teacher Yang, but he catches her arm.
Meanwhile, Ha-joon tears into the hospital looking for Yeol.
Yeol sits up, noting that she’s pretty good at not answering questions. How is she going to get him back? After a moment, she leans in and drops a little kiss on his jaw. “Like this,” she whispers, edging away.
Taking her wrist, he spins her back and does it properly. Ha-joon arrives just in time to witness the kiss. Oh nooo, his poor puppy heart! He turns away, pained, and now sees his memories of Yeon-doo and Yeol together in a different light. Oh Ha-joonie, I thought you knew!
Yeon-doo’s mom comes as far as the hospital with Yeol’s dad but leaves him there, because she doesn’t feel right meeting Yeol like this.
Dad’s agitated arrival surprises Yeol, and Yeon-doo smoothes over the awkward by introducing herself as Yeol’s classmate. She puffs up when he says she’s a good friend, and Yeol has to laugh a little at that.
Yeon-doo leaves them to it, and outside the hospital room, we see Mom came all the way up. But when Dad phones, she pretends she’s on the way home, and mother and daughter narrowly miss each other. Yeon-doo is lost in a world of squee as she relives the kiss over and over, so when Dong-jae calls, she wails that she’s not okay at all — her heart is bursting.
Father and son, meanwhile, are at a loss for how to be with each other. Dad keeps offering to do stuff for Yeol, which is so weird for them that Yeol eventually tells him to just ignore him like normal. Dad remembers what Yeon-doo’s mom said, about saying sorry, thank you, and I love you to your kids, and thanks Yeol for being okay.
Soo-ah huddles in her hidey spot, where Dong-jae finds her. He tells her to apologize to Yeon-doo; she wasn’t the one who uploaded the video. And to Yeol, who got hurt because of her. She knows it was because of her, she tells him, and walks away like a broken doll.
She arrives at her mom’s office, where Mom is all business. She tells Soo-ah that there’s no purpose in her remaining at Sevit, so they’re making preparations for her to study abroad.
Soo-ah, broken-voiced, tells Mom how she hurt someone. She didn’t mean to— Mom cuts her off: It’s taken care of. That’s not it — Soo-ah is desperate to make her mom understand all the wrong things she did, like abandoning Yeon-doo, framing Yeol, cheating. But Mom cuts her off again, “Those things are nothing.”
“They’re…nothing?” Soo-asks in a lost voice. Mom tells her to keep her eyes on the Ivy League prize and not let trivialities distract her — she’ll protect her specs, she promises, eyes burning with fanaticism. Her words close in on Soo-ah, and she gets more and more upset. She asks if there’s even any end to this road. Oblivious to her daughter’s distress, Mom extols that there lies future they long for. But getting there is so hard, says Soo-ah, tears falling freely.
Soo-ah can’t bring herself to enter the hospital, and calls to find out Yeol’s condition. When she hears he’s okay, she breaks down in tears of gratitude.
Poor Ha-joon sits out in the hospital foyer, when he spots Yeon-doo coming down. He watches her go.
Ha-joon lets himself into Yeol’s room, where Yeol scolds him for coming so late. But he can’t keep the smile off his face when he tells his friend that Yeon-doo was keeping him company. At the sight of his bandages, Ha-joon gets mad about Soo-ah, but Yeol warns him not to make any trouble while he’s away.
Eager to change subject, he reminds Ha-joon of a childhood promise to tell each other first if they had a girl they liked. “I think I have one…a girl I really like,” he confides. But Ha-joon stops him from saying more, and says he’ll hear it another day, when he’s better.
Yeon-doo catches Ha-joon arriving back at the dorms. Seeing her only reminds him of the kiss and he tries to bolt, but she blocks him. She wonders why he didn’t turn up at the hospital and he grumps that he was busy. But his marshmallow nature doesn’t let him leave without checking that she’s okay. She teases him, pleased that he worried about her.
She joins Dong-jae in the common room, and he tells her unhappily that everyone’s been criticizing Soo-ah, while she’s without a single friend in support. But Yeon-doo finds it hard to disagree, with Yeol hurt like that. She’s tired of giving Soo-ah chances.
Soo-ah’s phone buzzes with messages about her in the class chatroom — that she’s a monster, she should just die, and so on. She imagines them surrounding her with their censure and accusing words, and screams. She doesn’t dare to enter the school building.
Instead, she wanders the streets. Stopping at her reflection in a window (under the words “I am”), she thinks back on her wrongdoings.
By and by, she visits the ashes of So-young, her middle school friend who committed suicide. She remembers her mom’s derision at the Sevit kids’ happy tomfoolery when they first arrived, and sobbing, she asks So-young if it’s really not okay for them to be happy now.
Yeon-doo lies awake in her dorm, troubled by Soo-ah’s empty corner.
The next day, Teacher Yang is also anxious about Soo-ah’s absence, and can’t reach her when she calls. He spots Yeon-doo sneaking out and is about to stop her when he catches himself. Instead, he texts her that she’s rumbled, but lets her off as long as she’s back before lunch ends.
Yeon-doo surprises Yeol with a smuggled-in lunch (replete with twin banana milks), and he’s adorably thrilled but also worried they might get into trouble. She teases that she told EVERYONE she was coming here.
Yeol starts snapping zillions of pictures of her, and falls back in satisfaction. He was dying to see her, and now he can see her all the time, he sighs. But not one to waste the moment, he sits up again, eager to use his time with Real Yeon-doo. His adoration makes her equal parts bashful and squeeful.
Soo-ah makes it as far as the door of Yeol’s hospital room this time. He’s surrounded by the club members — his friends — and she watches them for a moment, sad. She tucks an envelope into the doorframe and leaves.
She crosses paths with Dong-jae again. She confirms that she came to see Yeol, and owed Yeon-doo an apology, too. Finally looking at peace, she walks on. But she calls back to Dong-jae, and asks him for a favor.
Soo-ah and Dong-jae play games in an arcade, carefree and laughing. She says she’s going to do everything she wants today, and eagerly asks what other fun stuff there is. Dong-jae wonders if she won’t get in trouble with her mom, and she says her mom won’t be scolding her anymore. But the quiet despair lying beneath her smile is the saddest thing in the world. Oh no, Soo-ah.
Yeon-doo tries unsuccessfully to get hold of Dong-jae, while he and Soo-ah ride bikes along the river. He smiles to see her so happy, and they settle on a bench with ice creams. Dong-jae says she was always too busy with studying to do fun stuff, and she regrets never coming here with Yeon-doo. He says she can start now, doing fun things.
She apologizes for hurting him by using his handicap against him before. He’s surprised — she doesn’t usually say sorry. She can only agree, and adds that it wasn’t so hard after all. “I’m sorry, Ha Dong-jae,” she says again.
Yeon-doo pops out of the boisterous sickroom for water, and Soo-ah’s envelope drops at her feet. It’s addressed to her, and she finds a letter inside. Eyes widening, she turns back to her friends — there’s something off with Soo-ah, she says, showing them the letter. They read it, and look up at her in shock.
It’s dark now, and Soo-ah and Dong-jae amble together. She thanks him for helping her make good memories to take with her. He’s surprised she’s not heading back to the dorms, but she tells him she has to stop by somewhere else first. She leaves him with the wish that he overcomes his phobia for physical contact. Thanking him with a heartfelt smile, she leaves first.
Close to tears, Yeon-doo finally gets hold of Dong-jae, who tells her he was just with Soo-ah this whole time and she seemed fine. She frantically asks where he is, and Dong-jae sets off at a run to look for Soo-ah.
Principal Choi informs Soo-ah’s mom that she can’t erase Soo-ah’s cheating or Yeol’s accident, when the evidence is clear. Mom argues that that’s why she received so many gifts — to make the impossible possible. Deep in denial, she entrusts Choi with giving Soo-ah a clean record even if she leaves Sevit. But Choi finally grows a spine and is firm this time: Soo-ah will forfeit the midterm and be penalized with community service, “Both you and Soo-ah crossed the line. It’s too late for me to protect you.”
Just then, Mom gets a call telling her Soo-ah disappeared after leaving a suicide note. Both women are startled.
The whole team, Yeol included, crowd the pavement outside the hospital frantically trying to catch a taxi. Yeon-doo clutches the letter in her injured hand, crying, and Yeol lays a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
In voiceover, we hear Soo-ah’s words to Yeon-doo: “I’m sorry. Why were these words so hard to say all this time?” She walks along the street alone, remembering the times Yeon-doo helped her. Her letter continues, “How to say thank you, how to say sorry, how to reach out when I’m lonely…for me, everything was too hard.” She thought if she just studied like crazy, she’d definitely become happy:
“Even if I was miserable today, I thought I would definitely become happy tomorrow. But Yeon-doo-ya, why is it that I became more unhappy? Why did breathing get more and more difficult? Why did I turn into a monster? I despise myself so much that I don’t have the confidence to keep going. Don’t believe in adults’ lies of sacrificing today’s happiness for the sake of tomorrow’s. Don’t forget the truth that you have to be happy today, in order to be happy tomorrow.”
In closing, she apologizes again — to Yeon-doo, to Yeol, to Teacher Yang and all her friends — with the hope that she won’t cause them any more hardship. She comes to a halt now, in the street, and switches on her phone.
Soo-ah’s mom paces her office waiting for news when she gets a text from Soo-ah. In it, Soo-ah apologizes for falling short as a daughter, but is glad that she was able to gain first place and grant Mom’s wish at least once, even if not by her own merit.
The kids comb the streets for Soo-ah, calling out her name. They regroup, and Da-mi wails that it was her fault. They all feel responsible, and Ha-joon remembers her tearful confession about her head eating up her heart. He urges everyone to search again.
Yeon-doo is particularly smitten by her role, sure that her threat to expose her was the last straw for Soo-ah. She cries in helplessness, and Yeol, too, regrets how harsh he was.
By himself, Dong-jae runs up and down in search of her. Soo-ah steps out onto a busy road, eyes unfocused. He spots her at the same time as Yeon-doo and Yeol, at opposite sides of the crossing. Yeon-doo screams her name.
A car barrels towards Soo-ah, horn blaring (don’t your brakes work?), and she waits for it. At the last moment, a hand grabs hers — Dong-jae pulls her into an embrace, phobia be damned. He breathes in relief, and across the street, so do Yeon-doo and Yeol. A tear slips down Soo-ah’s cheek, and she clutches him tighter as she cries in earnest.
The team are back at school, but their spirits are low as no one’s been able to see Soo-ah yet. They’re disappointed when Yeon-doo returns from another fruitless attempt.
Sharing strawberry milks with Dong-jae, Yeon-doo tests him with tentative little pokes, not yet used to his new touchability. She thinks it’s bizarre that he conquered his disability like this, and he admits that he doesn’t really remember what was going through his mind then. She wonders sadly when they’ll get to see Soo-ah again.
Soo-ah’s mom is back in control, and making arrangements for Soo-ah to study abroad. She tells Soo-ah not to worry — this is all nothing, and when she goes abroad, everything will be as good as new. Mom, you’re not helping. Soo-ah lies limp and unresponsive.
At school, a trio of students gossip that Soo-ah’s mentally ill, and are pleased that her absence means their rank goes up. The cheerleaders burst in and surround them. Da-mi yells at them, and elbows Tae-pyung, who also yells at them.
One by one, the team criticize the group for their malice towards their fellow student, when they could be saying words of support and encouragement, like, “you’ll be okay” or “anyone can make a mistake,” or “if you’re having a hard time, we’ll help you.”
One of the boys acknowledges it was wrong to badmouth her, but ask who they are to get involved in someone else’s business. They all bristle at the suggestion that Soo-ah’s “someone else” and Hyo-shik asks if they haven’t seen them cheerleading together. “We’re one team, and we’re friends,” he tells them, threatening to really give it to them if he catches them at it again.
Director Lee thanks Principal Choi for helping Soo-ah’s transfer. Left alone with Teacher Im, Choi eagerly plans dismantling the cheerleading club now that Soo-ah’s gone. But Im reminds her that they definitely can’t, since the Ministry has their eye on them. Aw, Teacher Im providing covert support.
The team miss Soo-ah at practice. She’s still not allowed visitors, Yeon-doo says sadly. Teacher Yang comes bearing the news that Soo-ah’s going to study abroad. The whole team is crestfallen.
In her hospital room, Director Lee puts Soo-ah’s phone into her hand, saying the message looks important. It’s a video from Jae-young and Na-yeon, and Soo-ah can’t help cracking a smile.
For what must be the first time, she’s out of bed and energized, running to her phone every time it pings, her smiles blossoming into laughs. Dong-jae’s video shows him successfully accomplishing a thigh stand with Jae-young, and he tells her it’s thanks to her that he can do it now. Even gruff Ha-joon says a whole three words, until Hyo-shik forces him to show a little more love. With a pained smile, he says that everyone goes through hard times, “Let’s endure them together.”
She’s dressed to leave, bags packed, when she gets one last message, from Yeon-doo. It’s a homemade “slideshow” of their times together (the Teletubbies one, omg, dying). The last page shows the two of them and asks, “Friends…real?”
The camera pans out to show everyone gathered in the background. Yeon-doo says she couldn’t hate her completely, because of these memories, and tells Soo-ah she’s not alone, “You have friends who would do anything with you, and you have teachers who’ll take your side no matter what.” Everyone crowds into the picture.
They’ll show her how to ask for help, Yeon-doo promises — so she has to hurry back. Plus, Yeon-doo wails, she’s the one who made the cheerleading club! Soo-ah’s eyes well with tears.
COMMENTS
I know some of you guys (and LollyPip!) were done with Soo-ah weeks ago, but if it helps, I don’t see this as redemption: Soo-ah got saved (and boy, did she need it).
I’ve found her a sympathetic (and desperately pitiable) antagonist all along, and you’ve got to appreciate how she wasn’t written off with a perfunctory, plot-serving, magical turnaround. Her friends rallying to save her doesn’t mean she’s forgiven — it means she has to come back and earn it. I’m glad that she was allowed to grow as a character, and it underlines again what I think is the primary message of the show: friends forever. It’s a long way for the team to have come, too. Soo-ah is the last through the door, really, because person for person, it’s been a while since Real King and Baek Ho have been divided. I think Soo-ah is the final stitch that knits them together inseparably, for better or for worse.
Soo-ah and the kids need to be together to fix things — they can’t fix them by being apart, and certaintly not if someone is gone. It’s a special thing about their friendships, and their youth, that the answer to their problems is closeness, not distance. They’re not adults, they’re not seeking closure or trying to move on. They’re kids seeking friendship, approval, trust, acceptance from each other. The kids’ repeated message to her is “come back”. But they both need it — she needs their forgiveness and they need her to be okay; nobody wants to drive someone to kill themselves.
I don’t think it’s necessarily their “fault” that Soo-ah chose to try to kill herself (more factors went into it than that), but it’s a terrible burden to be left knowing your actions pushed someone over the edge. But in the midst of the moment where she’s so hateful, so wrong, so irredeemable, pushing her to do the right thing seems like an obvious given. That it can go wrong all too easily is a lesson on responsibility for the rest of the kids — one they internalize well, as they close ranks to defend Soo-ah against the gossips. And it makes me all warm and fuzzy every time the gang unites.
And! Dong-jae, the boy who can’t touch people, finally overcomes his block, with the one person who needed it the most. It is a little pat, but it’s significant that it comes as a moment of mutual saving, a direct reverse of the time his touch caused harm (and gave rise to his phobia), to his touch saving a life.
I’m in two minds about whether she really meant to die. Watching Soo-ah walk around like someone with all her strings cut, there’s no doubt that her mom plays the most instrumental role in breaking her. Mom has her emotionally enslaved in a way that feels much more insidious than, say, Ha-joon’s relationship with his dad, because Soo-ah becomes victim to her programming. Trapped inside Mom’s vision for her, she necessarily loses herself, even though her heart still struggles to do the right thing. In crisis and desperate for correction, she visits her mother, but the dissonance of her response (“it’s nothing”) proves intolerable, shattering their illusory world. (And the worst part? Even after she tries to die, Mom doesn’t change one bit.)
So now, Soo-ah finally sees herself properly for the first time, and though full of regret, she’s hopeful — until the kids’ chatroom messages make her believe she’s unforgivable. She’s vulnerable enough that losing hope of her friends’ forgiveness makes her lose hope of forgiving herself. That’s what makes the team’s intervention all the more moving, because it’s not pity they’re giving her, but a chance — to atone, to earn her place, to be a worthy friend.
I admit, I didn’t see Ha-joon’s devotion to Yeon-doo as a crush until last episode. (Will Ji-soo never have an attainable love? For the love of puppies and marshmallows, let him have his honey in his next show, dramaland! Or else!). But I wonder in part if it’s just a matter of timing, with Yeol’s edge being that he caught her heart first. After all, both boys respect her, look out for her, bring her umbrellas, adore her, and most of all, are changed by knowing her. In a lesser (and more aggravating) show, we might even have seen her vacillating between the two, while they ruined their lifelong friendship fighting over her and we tore our hair out. What do you guys think?
Still, it’s not all timing. They constantly uncover deeper things in common, and we watch them fall so naturally into sync with each other — this episode is peppered with small moments when Yeol drops quiet reassuring touches that are so unaffected and real. Perhaps most importantly, they stimulate each other in ways that cause them to grow. We’ve seen them challenge each other’s prejudices and preconceptions, and we’ve seen each stand by the other during hardship and private sadnesses. Their dynamic is profound in its simplicity — there’s no power-play, no posturing, no pretending. They remain frank and communicative, and you never forget that they’re friends first.
I hope it doesn’t throw a spanner in the works for my favorite sunnymallow friendship, though. I’ll take it as a good sign, that Ha-joonie’s feelings for Yeol remain unmarred by his feelings for Yeon-doo. I love that he can’t even hate Yeol because he loves him! I’m half-worried by what this does to the three’s easy camaraderie, but the other half of me firmly believes in Sassy, come hell or high school. Or finale week. Sob.
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1 neener ~ Inside the Magic Shop ~
November 6, 2015 at 3:19 AM
That kiss! I love how many times it replayed in the episode, no need for us to replay it hahaha
I do hope that the message conveyed to the audience is more on the forgiving side and how loving these kids are rather than 'committing suicide is the only way to be forgiven,'. Because that's just not right.
Anyways, looking forward to how the writer will tie things up. Don't let us down Show, you've been doing great!
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Adal
November 6, 2015 at 4:56 AM
I loved the kiss scene too! It was so well done! I must've replayed it a dozen times! And the way Yeol looks at Yeon doo makes ME all flushed! That actor is soooo good at his role.
And I agree the suicide thing feels like a total cop out. 'I am sorry guys for what I did to you so I am just going to kill myself now' . I would've much preferred 'I am sorry guys, I was wrong, what can I do to make amends?'
However, I must admit said suicide attempt is more in keeping with Soo ah's character. Part of the reason I find it hard to take it seriously, though, is because she used the same tactic to stall Kim Yeol in an earlier episode (the tears and fake apology ), and she was also going to use the same tactic with Teacher Yang to buy more time before the video broke out. I don’t doubt that she is sincere this time, and maybe this is the only way she could cry out for help given her history with her best friend and her inhuman mom. She's still a kid. I have every hope that she will turn out to be a healthy adult.
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neener ~ Inside the Magic Shop ~
November 6, 2015 at 7:07 AM
I do believe in the writer that she will do something about Soo Ah's return and not leave us hanging. And we all know the Mom has got a lot of changing to do with herself. Like what Saya said, her mother is the worst after what happened with Soo Ah and still react that way. The actress is great for making me hate her and to think she played the best friend in Angry Mom.
Let's not hope they will not spend that long on Soo Ah's case because we need to focus on our OTP hahaha I seriously wouldn't mind seeing Yeol smile and just be lovey-dovey with Yeon Doo hihihihi
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plumwine
November 6, 2015 at 12:30 PM
How could I miss that Soo Ah's mom is The great BFF of Angry mom!? She is a great actress!
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neener ~ Inside the Magic Shop ~
November 6, 2015 at 2:54 PM
She is and her role here is just ggggrrrrr ?
Chrissie
November 7, 2015 at 1:32 AM
I don't think any of Soo-Ah's apologies were fake, except the one with the teacher. I think she really broke down when confronted by Kim Yeol. Also, i don't think the only reason why she wanted to commit suicide was because of her wrongdoings, but also because of her mum and the stress that she is facing. Plus, you can tell that she was really doing a lot of reflections and she felt really bad for hurting Kim Yeol. She was genuinely happy when she saw her friends' videos. I think she'll really become another person after this incident.
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2 harukogirl
November 6, 2015 at 3:23 AM
Omg, I loved this episode so much!!#
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3 k_rin
November 6, 2015 at 3:26 AM
Thank you for the recap Saya!! I too, like Lollipop, was beyond done with Soo Ah weeks ago!! This episode was so good though in showing us her internal struggle and I really felt the weight of her actions. She wasn't doing things just to be bratty, she had constant pressure from her mom that finally pushed her overboard. It led me to see her in a new light and I felt nothing but pity for her!! I was so happy that all the kids reached out to her! I was also definitely crying the whole episode haha. The only thing stopping me from jumping up and down from Yeon Doo's and Kim Yeol's progression is the fact that their parents are planning a wedding now. It's always been at the back of my head so I'm never able to fully enjoy their fluffiness. I'm really nervous about what they're planning on doing with all that. I don't want either couple to break up so I'm hoping they'll sprinkle a ton of magic dust to make everything work for everyone!!
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4 pigsnout|SassyGoHigh ♥♥♥
November 6, 2015 at 3:27 AM
THE KISS!!! THEY FINALLY KISSED!!
btw if you look at the scene, Yeol didn't catch Yeon Doo's wrist, he caught her hand. I'm sure of this!
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pigsnout|SassyGoHigh ♥♥♥
November 6, 2015 at 3:39 AM
Also, Soo Ah's scenes with her mother just made me so upset and angry.
Your teenage daughter tried to kill herself, and your solution to her problems is to send her away from her home and everyone she knows, just a week later?! WTF!!!!
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 3:51 AM
Don't even get me started on that terrible excuse of a mother. I had a classmate who had a father like that, and it took three suicide attempts before dear dad gave up the notion that his son must study medicine or else (he ended up studying law).
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PeepsLeAwesomePotato
November 6, 2015 at 7:17 AM
Whaaaaaaaat?! What kind of person pours all their dreams onto another person like that?
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 8:49 AM
My classmate's dad, that's who. And he's hardly unique that way - some people really do not give a rap about their children's wellbeing as long as said children are doing what they say, no matter how unhappily.
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 8:51 AM
Basically, I don't find it at all unrealistic or far-fetched that Soo-ah's mother has just dismissed an actual suicide attempt from her daughter in an effort to get her 'back on track'. Because there's worse in (seemingly average, normal) real life.
skelly
November 6, 2015 at 10:12 AM
Parents do it all the time. Often they see children as extensions of themselves, a continuation of their own life trajectory and a direct reflection on the success or failure of their life. Having a noteworthy child: doctor, lawyer, captain of industry, etc. etc. is proof that the parent is a good person and did a good job.
Speaking as a parent with college-age kids, it is sometimes very difficult to know when to stop: when to stop helping, when to stop coaching, when to stop talking. But that is impossible if you have never learned that it is Not About You.
kuromitsu
November 6, 2015 at 10:34 AM
Watch the 3 Idiots movie. It's a fun Indian movie which shows all sorts of problems that occur when learning and living takes a backseat to acquiring paper credentials.
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 11:52 AM
@kuromitsu - 3 Idiots actually touches on that, but in such a superficial way that it doesn't even come close to the reality of what it's like (it was based on a very popular book but the filmmakers refused to credit the author for the story - that book is called 5 Point Someone)
A better example of an Indian film that deals with hellish authoritative parents and their effects on teenage children, is Udaan.
fishfingers_fb
November 7, 2015 at 11:18 AM
"Whaaaaaaaat?! What kind of person pours all their dreams onto another person like that?"
Not unusual at all. It's a generation thing, too, for parents to see their children as extension of themselves rather than their own person. In my parent-culture, it's certainly a given that the children will obey their parents, no matter what and adults will never be called to account for their wrongdoing. It's one of the reasons I identify with so much of the angst in kdramas that are only a product of an eastern mindset.
fishfingers_fb
November 7, 2015 at 11:19 AM
and god forbid you ever even SUGGEST an elder might be wrong - heaven will smite you before that could ever be true
lol not bitter
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 7:11 PM
@finshfingers_fb - you're right, it is down to the parenting culture/view of the relations between parents and children, and that may be what causes some viewers such disbelief about what Soo-ah's mother is doing to her.
And that kind of thing certainly doesn't end when the children attain legal adulthood, or are done with their education - you can bet that in ten years' time, if Soo-ah is still alive, her mother would be ordering her to marry someone suitable (picked out and approved by mommy dearest herself, of course)
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 3:49 AM
yeah, that was a hand-grab, not a wrist grab. BIG difference there, guys!
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fishfingers_fb
November 6, 2015 at 3:55 AM
Even when I rewatched it, I thought it was closer to her forearm!
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pigsnout|SassyGoHigh ♥♥♥
November 6, 2015 at 4:11 AM
he definitely got mostly her hand and not her arm, it landed closer to her palm facing up.
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iamme
November 6, 2015 at 4:41 AM
That kisssss! Been waiting for it since first episode with Yeol's tease.. And after more and more tease by each episodes, we finally get the real one.! And it's even better because Yeon Doo kiss him first, eventhough it's cheek kiss..
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5 Nana
November 6, 2015 at 3:34 AM
I have to admit i didnot finish this episode.. too busy holding my sobs.. reading this recap doesnt help.. thanks Saya..
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6 es
November 6, 2015 at 3:34 AM
"Don’t believe in adults’ lies of sacrificing today’s happiness for the sake of tomorrow’s. Don’t forget the truth that you have to be happy today, in order to be happy tomorrow.”"
Man that quote KILLED me. I have mixed feelings about this episode, but when I was watching it, I was definitely very emotional, especially during Soo-ah's letter voiceover. And the ending as well LOL - I was all "this is so cheesy but WHY AM I CRYING" lmao. I've never hated Soo-ah enough to not want to see her forgiven so I'm happy to see that she's been given a second chance; I do hope, though, that she also receives the adequate punishment for what she's done as well, and it doesn't just get swept under the rug.
The only thing is, Soo-ah's dragged-out villainy and redemption arc has come at the expense of other characters' stories like Ha-joon and Dong-jae. For me, it feels like we've been given too much of Soo-ah and too little of the other characters, which is pretty disappointing given that Ha-joon and Dong-jae's backstories had so much untapped potential that'll never be satisfactorily explored now. :(
Also how am I going to survive without this show after next week sobs. Can we just have two episodes of Yeol and Yeon-doo being extra cute together please omg.
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pigsnout|SassyGoHigh ♥♥♥
November 6, 2015 at 3:43 AM
Well, Soo Ah was always one of the main driving forces behind the plot of SGG in a way that Ha Joon/Dong Jae were not. .....it's her scheming that leads to everything from Real King getting banned to Yeol being framed. So of course her story is the leading one out of those three.
There are still 2 eps left, I trust the writers.
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es
November 6, 2015 at 5:51 AM
That's what I'm saying, that we've been given too much of Soo-ah because she's been made the catalyst for everything that has happened so far, so Dong-jae's and Ha-joon's storylines fall by the wayside as a result.
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7 red
November 6, 2015 at 3:34 AM
Loved the recap thank you!!
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8 Karmy
November 6, 2015 at 3:38 AM
Thanks for the recaps, Saya! I love our couple, KYxKYD! But I cried so much this episode! First, because HJ and then the friendship's videos...
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9 Itenoria
November 6, 2015 at 3:51 AM
Kyaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That kiss. Oh that kiss. I think it's perfection! Perfection and even better than the kiss that would have happened when they were in Instructor Nam's house. Why? Because in that one she was drunk. And no matter how hot Kim Yeol is and how much we know Yeon Doo secretly wants it, she was still impaired. But in this kiss, this kiss that Kim Yeol waited for, she made the move first. She kissed him first (on the cheek, but it still counts!) and he pulled her in to finish him. I could hear him breathing "Thank God!" as he pulled her in to kiss her. Just like I was breathing it.
Ha-Joon. Poor poor baby. I've always been team Kim Yeol-Yeon Doo from the first episode but I felt sorry for Ha-Joon. Especially considering that like Saya, I never thought he had a crush crush on her. I mean come on, that time just before the glass fell and he was talking with Kim Yeol about whether he was interested in Yeon Doo and Kim Yeol said he was, I thought Ha-Joon clocked that. Plus when Kim Yeol said there was a girl he wanted to kiss, Ha-Joon noticed that he was looking at Yeon Doo! Or maybe Ha-joon never figured that Yeon Doo might like Kim Yeol back and thought he could get a chance.
Please please don't let the parents bring too much angst. Realistically, the parents should be the one to end up together. I mean, why break up when your kids are still in high school right? They could end up with different people. But huh-hun. In my imaginary world, Kim Yeol and Yeon Doo date all through high school, through college, and then end up married! If Yoon-Jae could like Shi-won through high school and to two kids after marriage, Kim Yeol can pull it off. Plus, more crinkles. Who wouldn't want to spend the rest of their life staring at those crinkles.
Finally, So-Ah. Thank goodness she was saved. I went from utterly detesting her character to hoping that she is rescued and given the chance to earn the forgiveness of her peers because I know she can. As for her mother though, I don't think that woman can be redeemed. Urgh! She and Ha-Joon's father should get together (Far away from their kids). They fit.
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itheatlantic
November 6, 2015 at 5:29 AM
"If Yoon-Jae could like Shi-won through high school and to two kids after marriage, Kim Yeol can pull it off."
THIS. <3 <3 <3
When I was watching this episode it felt rushed. Especially the ending part. But I love how Saya saw it not as a redemption but a chance for Soo Ah to prove that she can be forgiven.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 12:15 PM
re: the drunk almost-kiss, they were both drunk - Yeol was steadier on his feet than Yeon-doo/not drowsy, but I very much doubt the Dutch courage wasn't influencing him too. So I'm thrilled it finally happened (I swear it feels like I've been waiting all drama long for this!), and that it happened after Yeon-doo initiated it, while they were both very much still in their senses.
and a huge YES to optimism about Yeol and Yeon-doo's future. Like you said, if it can happen with Shi-won and Yoon-jae, why not for these two?
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fab
November 6, 2015 at 2:58 PM
LOL @ "Dutch courage", Ik.
It felt like forever waiting for that one kiss, because the earlier they kiss the more kisses you get, like in AM1997. Haha. But I'm glad it happened after he confessed instead of just randomly. HJ though. SMH.
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10 wolfpac987
November 6, 2015 at 4:18 AM
People mentioned in last episode's comments how the redemption was in keeping with though show, albeit rushed, but I actually disagree. I think the writing was very inconsistent with Soo Ah's character. It's like they just took every "bad guy" or "evil" plotline and shoved it onto her character and have now tried to explain it away with the "rage momentarily blinded me" reasoning. I can understand that excuse for the things she did that were in the passion of the moment (stealing the USB, slapping YS, slapping YS again, even pushing YS down the stairs) but that excuse cannot make up for all of the very calculated things she did. In fact, I would argue she had more planned schemes than not (the photo of Yeol and YS "kissing" during a meet up she suggested, using the basketball players to rough up DJ, taking HJ's bloody rag to the principal, the whole molestation issue). The writers wrote a cold, meticulous sociopath 60% of the time, an out of control elitist rage monster 20%, and a damaged teen 20%. That's why this redemption just doesn't make sense to me. She suddenly feels repentant because she sent someone to the hospital? Uhhh, she made Dong Jae lose consciousness all the way back in episode 3 and that was a planned attack.
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pigsnout|SassyGoHigh ♥♥♥
November 6, 2015 at 4:33 AM
How was it inconsistent? All Soo Ah's actions were done to achieve one goal, which was having perfect specs and being #1 so she could be a perfect Ivy League applicant. Anyone she saw as an obstacle or danger to something she needed for that goal, she went after them with various degrees of calculation/anger.
the first kiss pic that got Real King banned? Soo Ah's real target was Yeol, rank #1. Taking evidence of Ha Joon's cutting to the principal? She wanted to force Yeol to cooperate and them to join cheerleading so her specs would be perfect. The attack on Dong Jae? Was meant to force Yeon Doo to agree to join the cheerleading too, again for Soo Ah's specs. The exploiting of the scandal of Teacher Yang happened because she found out he was the whistleblower who endangered her specs and got them invesigated by the Education Office. Framing Yeol for cheating? That's Soo Ah's next attempt to take the #1 spot.
the nature of how premeditated her actions were may be different each time, but her motivation for doing it has been the most consistent right from episode 1, along with the upbringing that teaches her that it's ok to do this.
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wolfpac987
November 8, 2015 at 8:20 PM
No I totally agree that she had the same motivation throughout, but my point is they specifically explained the reason for her actions as being blinded by rage, but every episode prior showed something different. I just don't feel any emotional connection at all for her or her "change of heart" no matter how I try (which I blame on the writing, the whole point of my original post). We'll just have to agree to disagree :)
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kae
November 6, 2015 at 4:50 AM
Yes, Soo Ah did pathetic and calculating actions but 99% of the time, we actually see her panic, waver, or ask herself why she had to do those things in the first place. And this gives the viewers some hope on her character, that maybe she can still be redeemed (unlike her mother or the infamous Kang So Young).
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Misslezah
November 7, 2015 at 9:31 AM
Yes!!! This explains my feelings perfectly. I was beginning to think I was the only one who gives zero f*cks for soo ah and I found it ridiculous that the brat was suddenly a treasured gem amongst her friends after all the horrible things she did. Thank you for putting my thoughts into words so eloquently.
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MESaya
November 9, 2015 at 2:04 AM
But when you about to loose someone, especially when you are still young and still have the capability to forgive and forget, you do (forgive and forget) more easily.
It's us, adult, who have the tendency to hold grudges and not forgive easily.
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11 lostmysanity
November 6, 2015 at 4:19 AM
This episode made me realise that Soo-ah is really really pretty when she smiles. Especially when she smiles honestly.
Poor Hajoon, I really wanted to give that puppy a hug. I hope that he can still get some sort of happy ending.
Both Soo-ah and Hajoon are really like puppies in this episode, who needed hugs and love. Ha-joon is like a Rottweiler, gruff but lovable; Soo-ah like a Chihuahua, all bark but no bite, small and petite.
Hope the last 2 episodes will be great! (please resolve the weird parents storyline, it's making me nervous)
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12 misshoggy
November 6, 2015 at 4:24 AM
So warm and fuzzy on the inside knowing that these kids are teaching Soo-ah how to ask for help and that she's getting the support that she needs to claim the heart's that been eaten by her head (and mum's ambition).
I know from ep 9 comments that that some that get very vindictive over Soo-ah's 'not punishment'. Just want to put up this article to show that punishment-reward system does not help with rehabilitating 'bad behavior', it's actually support and understanding from their loved ones, finding that root of the problem is the cure that they need.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/schools-behavior-discipline-collaborative-proactive-solutions-ross-greene
Hope that helps to understand that
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growingbeautifully
November 7, 2015 at 5:12 AM
Thanks very much @misshoggy... that's a good article and worth thinking about. The tips are worth trying out too.
What we can do for children that is most helpful, is helping them know how to help themselves and to know that they can get what they really need (not necessarily what they want) if they can find a way to ask. It is not to go the way of indulgence, but the way of meeting real needs.
Many times, a 'challenging' child calms down, because he finds his needs are met. The challenge for the adult is observing and recognising what that need is. :)
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13 Adal
November 6, 2015 at 4:31 AM
This episode was mostly about Soo ah. I want to credit Yeon doo with being the driving force behind the webcam campaign to forgive Soo ah and get her back to school. Without Yeon doo's influence, I highly doubt that the kids would've forgiven her so easily or tried so hard to let her know she was forgiven, welcomed back and part of their team. Even KY said as much to YD after their cheerleading practice in ep. 9.
I saw the influence Yeon doo had on the group when she went missing, everyone went crazy looking for her, a stark contrast to how unconcerned the students were when Soo-ah went missing in an earlier episode. Of course by this time, they had bonded and began to care for each other as a team, that aspect can't be overlooked, still, Soo-ah didn't have many friends.
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Linh
November 6, 2015 at 6:08 AM
Not only when Yeon Doo went missing, she was the influence of bringing the whole group together like this too, and even put influences on Yeol and Ha Joon changing. Now she even influence the team to make this video, however, I'm pretty sure this time, the team may likely be willing to do so too.
Just like what Saya said on the recap of episode 2, loyalty means a lot to Yeon Doo. She sustains by her connection to her friends, that's why all of her betrayals and enemies are all crushing.
Like seriously though, I'm actually quite surprised and amused about how can an 18 year old teenager like Yeon Doo, and it's seriously only her who influence everyone around her. She influenced the Real King and Baekho kids to bond, then to Jae Young and Na Yeon to do a favor to her, then to even Teacher Yang, then to Ha Joon, then Yeol, now even Soo Ah. She even almost influenced the Principal as well, when she and the Real King members all barged in her office and handed her the apology letters.
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14 Mawar
November 6, 2015 at 4:33 AM
What will happen? Its pitty if YD's mom n Yeol's daddy cancel their marriage! They r too cute together!! But...if they go with it...won't it be uncomfortable for Y2D? Hmmmmm...
And dongjae ahhhhh...u adorable u! Congrats. Now u can hug n kiss anytime u want ekekekekek
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15 nemonemo
November 6, 2015 at 4:33 AM
I am quite pissed. I know, I know, this is a high school drama, people should be happy and supporting and always friends. But I am still very perplexed, and in disagreement, of the writers’ hoax to make SooAh the poor victim of this entire situation and make everyone think it is their fault she would have died.
Yes, I understand that she is deep inside a nice girl who has grown up with a terrible mother and toxic environment, it explains why she turned out that way but it doesn’t justify it. Not everyone who has gone through the same things makes the decisions that she made. So I don’t understand why she deserves the rest of the kids, especially YD, Y, DJ and HJ who forgave her countless times.
The person that should really feel at fault and say sorry to her is her mom
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pigsnout|SassyGoHigh ♥♥♥
November 6, 2015 at 4:39 AM
The other kids reached out to her with the videos as much for their own sakeas for Soo Ah's. Nothing justifies Soo Ah's actions here but like you said, it explains them. Too many people here think those things mean one and the same.
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fishfingers_fb
November 7, 2015 at 10:23 AM
This. It might not have been their fault if she had died, but one's conscience doesn't necessarily let a person make such fine distinctions. Those kids would have carried it with them the rest of their lives, if she really had died.
The thing is, it's two different things. Soo-ah's wrongdoings are one thing, and the pressure put on her by the others is another. Let's not act like the kids were flawless either - Hyo-shik was wrong to take a video that wasn't his, Da-mi was wrong to upload it to SNS (seriously that part made me so mad at her - who was she to interfere like that when YD or Yeol themselves didn't, and had more right?), Yeol was wrong to blackmail and threaten her. He could have done it by the book (which, honestly, would be unpleasant as well), but he chose to personally force her.
Of course...I don't hate Yeol (nevah!), but the point I'm making is that they've nearly all done blameworthy things. So to say that the hands they hold out to Soo-ah are purely for her sake, well...not really. They need their own redemptions, and the necessary form of their redemption is that Soo-ah doesn't die and doesn't come to lasting harm. In the end, when faced with the possibility of it, the kids don't want true harm to come to her, they just want a fair playing field, where they can fight things out on equal terms.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 9:35 AM
That's a good point, about the others' actions also adding to it - obviously, they never meant for it to drive Soo-ah to her death, and Soo-ah's conscience was already strained even before Yeol began the blackmail - but like you said, if she'd died then they really would have carried it with them for a long time afterwards. And they don't deserve to feel that way - it's not just Hyo-shik, Da-mi and Yeol who'd feel bad, it's everyone who endorsed their actions, no matter how contentious their relations with her were before.
Soo-ah spent the grace period Yeol and Yeon-doo granted her, looking for a way out by fair means or foul (well, ok, foul means all the way) but the video going public and her subsequent outcast status, on top of which her mother was totally unhelpful (to put it mildly), basically did leave her feeling like the only 'way out' involved ending her own life. She may not have had a concrete plan about how to achieve it, but the intent was certainly there, there's no doubt on that score.
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This is Cat
November 6, 2015 at 7:01 AM
I agree. I didn't like how all the kids put the blame on themselves for Soo Ah's situation. Except Yeol when his identity as the blackmailer was unknown.
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downtherabbithole
November 6, 2015 at 8:04 AM
Uhm.... The only person that said sorry was Yeol, actually.
I don't know how so many people think that the show turned Soo Ah to a victim. If a criminal attempts suicide because of guilt but is then saved and given support, do you think he's a victim now? You think his punishment's going to be taken away from him?
Them showing support and care for Soo Ah does not equal Soo Ah getting away from the consequences scot-free. It only gives Soo Ah confidence to stand up, face her punishment, earn the trust and respect of her peers. It's a long and painful road, and she deserves it.
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kuromitsu
November 6, 2015 at 10:54 AM
And it's rightfully so, since as much as Soo Ah deserved her comeuppance, there was no reason for Yeol to torture her with blackmail.
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Misslezah
November 7, 2015 at 9:38 AM
I totally agree. I think that's what irritated me the most. After all the terrible things soo ah did to everyone else, they blamed themselves. They only defended themselves against a monster. Soo ah tried to kill someone and suddenly she's a saint because she wanted to take her life afterwards? Ridiculous.
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16 kae
November 6, 2015 at 4:47 AM
I finally found people who wants to give Soo Ah a second chance. Thanks, Dramabeans crowd. I have read some comments as soon as this episode was shown in Korea and I couldn't believe that there ARE actually people who are disappointed that the kids forgave and stood up for Soo Ah. I mean, no matter how much you hate someone, you wouldn't want her to kill herself, right? Especially if she has been your friend or acquaintance. The kids are, though people may see it as too forgiving, are better than the individualistic kids that Yeon Doo called out on the first episodes.
I think that this is a good step in Korean shows, as Korea is a country that is riddled with tens of suicide attempts a day. No matter how dark the situation is, maybe the last pull that the depressed students need is a single helping hand or a simple "I'm here for you". No one, NO ONE, deserves to die in their own hands.
And yay for Ha Dong Jae! We'll finally see him cheerlead <3
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17 MagMag
November 6, 2015 at 4:50 AM
First I thought how fickle these kids are, moving from had enough of Soo Ah to come on let's all try to find Soo Ah but I suppose when is a matter of life and death the good comes out of people.
Not long after that I was with the kids too -crying, laughing and getting mad if someone is bad mouthing one of the gang ! Soo Ah you are coming back to Sevit High right?
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18 abseoklutely
November 6, 2015 at 4:53 AM
I loved this episode it just hit all the right notes. We knew Soo-ah had to fall, and we'd already seen her comtemplate a dark choice before---ah I don't even know what to say, this episode just did it for me. I really am sad that there are only 2 more episodes left but I am grateful that in having less episodes the story thus far has been kept tight and the pace was always moving forward.
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19 Mawar
November 6, 2015 at 4:54 AM
Oooohhhh...for once i feel pity of SA. All these while i don't have any empathy towards her at all huhuhu
She is just plain stupid. Evil and stupid. I don't care if her mom pushed her, doesnt mean she get to push others too.
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20 Cassie
November 6, 2015 at 4:55 AM
Ha Joon should have never developed feelings of love towards Yeon Do when he knew that his Best Friend was very much in love with her. I hate what the writers did to Ha Joon but he will be very well at the end thankfully.
Good things will come for Ha Joon who is a victim of physical and emotional abuse from his father but he didn't become an awful person yet. It shows how much strong and full of goodness person he is, Yeol is a tremendously amazing friend but not a miracle maker.
Soo Ah wasn't anybody's real friend. She used and hurted people for her own benefits. The fact everybody who has being a victim of her actions went so soft and feeling guilty doesn't settle well with me. The show is making them feel like they helped to create the monster.
I think the feelings Dong Jae feels toward Soo Ah are pity and guilt.
I can imagine a time slip forward to the future which show Soo Ah as an amazing person she has become with the support of the guilt felt by her victims who have always being friends from the beginning. Bleh.
Soo Ah's mother still does not feel any love and care for her daughter. Guilt is a word that does not exist in her life so far while everyone around Soo Ah including her victims feel it.
There is a very bad message passing through here to teenagers "You can commit all the crimes you want and everything will be fine once you claim you're regretful".
Crazy rant over. *sigh*. Given the number of episodes I wish the show concentrated less on Soo Ah.
Two more episodes to go and the end is coming. I'm cheering up for satisfying end for all.
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Adal
November 6, 2015 at 5:13 AM
@Cassie
I agree with you completely on this:
'There is a very bad message passing through here to teenagers “You can commit all the crimes you want and everything will be fine once you claim you’re regretful” '
That's my fear as well. As much as I have no problem with Soo ah being forgiven, I do want there to be consequences for her actions as well, such as explusion from school or a mark in her academic record. It would also serve as a deterrent to other kids lest they feel they can commit all manner of bad things and skate by just by saying sorry.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 6:44 AM
If you really think Soo-ah was forgiven "just by saying sorry" in this episode, I don't know if we're even watching the same show any more.
Like kuromitsu says, this is a drama - we know the full weight of what she's feeling as she faces up to her past actions. You're not actually on a jury voting to condemn a child offender.
(and consider this shots fired - wouldn't Bok-dongie have been condemned by those same standards as well? He pretty much terrorised the school in Angry Mom until we find out what kind of duress he's under......but following the logic that expressing regret is no way to make up for the wrongs he committed as a minor and neither was turning away from the path he'd been on....think of the implications)
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Adal
November 6, 2015 at 7:12 AM
So, are you saying that the suicide attempt was her attempt to make up for the past ills done on folks? Because I don’t understand what you are trying to say. I don’t get the Angry mom reference because I never watched that drama. No one is convicting Soo ah or sentencing her on a jury. We are merely saying that the slate isn't wiped clean just because the offender feels regretful, and the offendee forgives the offender.
Yes, Soo ah felt regretful. Yes, she apologized by letter to Yeon doo then tried to kill herself. Yes, we all feel sorry for her, hope she changes and becomes a better person. Does this mean that the criminal acts of cheating on a test and framing her classmate mysteriously go away? No it doesn't. If she goes back to the school she will still need to face the consequences of those actions even though, now she has friends who will support her through it all.
I can see this, and say this because I am an adult who is raising children and trying to teach them to make smart and responsible decisions everyday, and to be accountable when they do wrong.
But what if I were just a teenager or a young kid watching this drama? What message would I take from this drama? Would I be able to take away something positive that it's NOT ok to do bad things to people because in life, there would be consequences that a simple apology would not be able to erase? Those were the concerns Cassie and I were sharing.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 9:03 AM
I still don't understand how you're interpreting any part of the episode to mean that Soo-ah has a clean slate - the principal herself stated clearly that she's going to get a zero on her midterm and be sentences to community service AT THE VERY LEAST. The slate has in no way been wiped clean, just because the team says they want her back.
And this:
What message would I take from this drama? Would I be able to take away something positive that it’s NOT ok to do bad things to people because in life, there would be consequences that a simple apology would not be able to erase?
I think the more obvious conclusion is, don't do bad things to people because you yourself will suffer most and feel worst about it.
And the 'simple apology' you're denigrating is a sincere one, and in no way even close to mitigates Soo-ah's shame and guilt at what she's done. She is facing consequences here, I don't get the insistence that things are all rosy now. The team reaching out to her, is as much for their own sakes as hers.
Huh
November 6, 2015 at 11:03 PM
What a self-righteous prick you are. Read well other people's opinion. Do not be too full of yourself.
Huh
November 6, 2015 at 11:08 PM
@ Adal
The show may have flaws, but it does not in any way give the wrong lessons you're spewing... @pogo explains it well, like so many others who have commented before you.
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 5:23 AM
@Huh - let's not stoop to name-calling, shall we? I think it's very much possible to disagree and point out where we think someone has got something wrong, without resorting to saying things like that - it's not in the spirit of dramabeans, or of this drama.
rainingfears
November 7, 2015 at 8:33 AM
I am sure that SooAh would be willing to accept all the punishments she will receive considering how she's come to terms with herself and her acts. The principal is ready to leave a mark on her records, give her a 0 for her English midterms (this is every student's worst nightmare, ok) and make her do community service. On top of that, if SooAh ever returns to Sevit (with intentions to earn her friendship back), she will have to face the students there, who obviously would not hesitate to spit at her. So no clean slate and no easy life there. Oh and not to forget: returning to Sevit means destroying her mother's dream of her going to Havard. For someone who's been living for her mother, it will definitely serve as the biggest (albeit most liberating) punishment ever.
I understand, people will think that "Oh, I made a mistake, time to kill myself! Bye world!" but that's not what this episode is about. It's about finding the road back, it's about friendship winning. It's about learning how to extend your hand before you fall into the mess that is Kwon SooAh. Like what Teacher Yang said before, when you walk down the wrong road, all you have to do is turn back. Turn around and reach out. Everyone deserves a second chance (yes SooAh has given away too many, but is she really, truly, genuinely hopeless af?). There will be someone out there, willing to take you back. That's what this episode is about.
Also, another message is that parents have to be careful what they feed their children's minds. Bad Mum is someone you literally should not be, Bad Mum should not exist. She's a terrible mother, if she even is one. More like a dictator than a mum. Good Mum is Yeondoo's Mum, everyone should be Yeondoo's Mum. I want to be like Yeondoo's Mum.
TLDR: Yes I understand you, but there are other interpretations and messages behind this episode. And there's still ep 11 and 12, so wait for it!
downtherabbithole
November 6, 2015 at 8:09 AM
I agree with you Adal, I think that consequences will stay as consequences, and nothing Soo Ah does in the future would change that.
But are you saying that the show just forgot all about it? You think they're not going to show Soo Ah accepting and acting out her punishment? It's too early I think, to judge the show that.
I believe they're not going to just go easy on her and laugh it off.
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mskab
November 6, 2015 at 7:34 AM
She is going to be punished, though. If the regret this episode isn't enough, Su Ah returning to Sevit (and I think she will) means that she's going to have to take the punishments for her actions, which is going to kill her Ivy League aspirations and break her mother. For a girl who has been living and dying (literally) for her mother's approval, that is about the biggest punishment she can receive.
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Cerulea
November 6, 2015 at 7:56 AM
At the same time, its the best things that can happen to her since its the toxic part of her life.
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Meow
November 6, 2015 at 12:51 PM
Soo-ah didn't just claim to be regretful you know. She literally broke- the entire episode progressed like that. You can't just say that you do bad things and you'll be forgiven because even until the very end Soo-ah never expected that she would be forgiven. She attempted suicide thinking she would be never forgiven.
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kuromitsu
November 6, 2015 at 5:46 AM
She just doesnt claim to be regretful, though. She IS regretful.
It's nice here because it's a drama world where we know exactly how she feels. We know that she'll forever be haunted by the consequences of her actions. In the real world, we can't know for sure, so punishments are in order.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 6:45 AM
Exactly this. We've been seeing inside her head all along, but real life doesn't afford us that chance.
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Huh
November 6, 2015 at 11:10 PM
True.
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kbaswithneko
November 6, 2015 at 6:57 AM
I think Ha Joon opening his heart to Yeon Do will end up being a healthy thing for him. He has had only one friend to sustain him all this time. While better than none, it is still closed off and a burden on that single friend. Accepting Yeon Do’s casual affectionate warmth and wanting to reciprocate in small ways is a huge step for him that will help him heal and grow as a person. I think becoming friends with the opposite sex is tricky, especially during this time of surging hormones. Does enjoying someone’s company and appreciating their personality mean I have romantic feelings for them just because they are the opposite sex? While Yeon Do has many male friends who are not in love with her, this is Ha Joon’s first female friend.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 9:41 AM
That's just the thing, Ha-joon DIDN'T know Yeol was in love with her and not just flirting like he used to do (there's a reference in ep 4 to Yeol having a reputation as a ladies' man). He may have guessed Yeol was interested in her early on, but Yeol never gives him a straightforward answer about it, and then Ha-joon finds out that he, not Yeon-doo, is Yeol's Achilles heel and the reason they got drafted into cheerleading. Sure, Yeol makes no secret of how much he likes Yeon-doo, but I can see how Ha-joon might have missed out on that realisation.
Also, I think Ha-joon's feelings really only develop in that direction in episodes 7 and 8, when Yeol is mostly away from school and he gets to spend a fair bit of time alone with Yeon-doo.
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21 ObsessedMuch
November 6, 2015 at 5:18 AM
Thanks Saya for the wonderful recap :) IMO this was the best episode of Sassy Go Go till now. Every story was touched and no one was highlighted separately. Plus there was no randomness in editing (which I have sometimes noticed in other episodes).
I really loved that Dong Jae overcame his disability in saving Soo Ah (and not Yeon Do or some other person close to him). It gives more depth to his character. Plus Soo Ah really did need saving!
That kiss! It was so adorable! But I was hurting for Ha Joon. Ji Soo really does need to do a drama where he gets the girl. I don't want him as the sad little one-sided lover anymore.
But the best thing about this episode was the 'team-ance'. The last scenes were so heart-warming. It shows what childhood was all about- innocence, friendship and forgiveness. Thank God they didn't say cruel things like 'She deserves to die" etc etc.
Anyway love the show. But will the parents really get married and make this show kinda like Gossip Girl! :P.. If it does happen though, maybe Ha Joon will have a chance, even though the twinkly eyed couple is way cute to be broken up.
But if we look at it realistically (which is not what we are supposed to do in kdramas), the parents deserve to be together more than the children. After all, their relationship is mature and they might not find anyone like each other, but the children have just begun and it would hurt less. And No, I am not going through the same thing (I am a 24 year old happily single girl). Also I don't really support the nonsense I am spouting. Just saying :P
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okiejune
November 6, 2015 at 6:03 AM
Tee-hee "team-ance"!!!!! That's just right for this show :D
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Linh
December 20, 2015 at 10:19 PM
And the thing about this 'team-ance' is that all of their chemistry was all really on point that shows real friendship, and not just characters being filled on papers that they have to be friends. But it really shows that they are real friends, their touch, chemistry, the way they react and talk with one another, it really came out all natural and real like you see they are really friends in real life. It's the actors that brings these characters into life that makes you believe they are real people and not just people in a drama talking with each other through scripts.
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22 nil
November 6, 2015 at 5:20 AM
Lot people complain (especially on viki) about how easy the kids forgive sooah just bcoz she's suicidal.
And i think it not necessarily impossible to easily forgive becoz we need to remember that all baekho kids (except yeol) had the same problem with her. They also studied like crazy, they also need the specs, and others. Its just they're not the second top( u know, people called no.2 as biggest loser) and their parent aren't as crazy as hers.
Meanwhile sooah isn't really make damage for the real king kids (and again except yeondo this time) if anything she just upgrading them from aimless dance team without trainer into a cheer squad.
And teacher yang actually had scold them in the class how they're not care enough sooah (or anyone else in this case) for not noticing her suddenly missing during class.
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Linh
December 20, 2015 at 10:45 PM
I think the main reason why these kids are... I wouldn't say they are easily forgiven her, but they are just willing to give a chance for her to show that she's still a human and have a heart for them to completely forgive her. The main thing is that this drama is depicting on friendships, and showing how these two groups of kids come together to become a bond with one another, and adding cheerleading as a side-dish in this story tells that they are learning the real meaning behind the club.
Just like what Coach Nam said to Soo Ah, including all the other kids in episode 6 that this club will only be complete when EVERYONE is included together, which that being said, these kids are mirroring from that episode, which shows that they finally know the real meaning of friendships as well as to why they have to be in this cheerleading club. They finally learn through their mistakes and experiences with each other from this club and become to know that they cannot be complete without 1 person missing, and it's not just because of the cheerleading club sake, but also their own sake, they cannot become stronger as a group if one person missing. From all the things they have been through together to make them become this close, it made them grow as people as they are now, even if the Baek Ho kids (except for Yeol) had the same problems with her and she didn't really make a damage to any of the Real King kids (except for Yeon Doo).
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23 Alkm
November 6, 2015 at 5:36 AM
I can't wait to see what would happen between Yeol and Yeon Do and thier parent's tho, that part made me really curious about the happenings the next episode
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24 wackycashew
November 6, 2015 at 5:49 AM
Thanks for the recap, Saya!
Finally, the kiss everyone has been waiting for!! =P It's so cute that YD initiated the cheek kiss as "revenge" before the actual kiss. Just really love this couple. As you described, they are always communicating honestly and so supportive and respective as well as understanding of each other.
I knew HJ was in for a heartbreak. Poor puppy marshmallow. He needs to be a lead in his next project!! XD I'm not too sure why the writer decided to go this route. It seemed obvious that he clocked Yeol's interest in YD early on. Did he not expect YD to reciprocate Yeol's feelings? In any case, I did enjoy the cute moments with HJ-YD. And his friendship with Yeol is solid. So, I have no doubt he will tuck away his feelings for YD and remain close friends with her. Even in that short scene at the dorm, he can't help but be concerned about her wrist and she still treats him the same way as usual. So, it shouldn't be too hard for HJ-Yeol-YD to retain their closeness.
SA! I was waiting to see what the writer will do to finally give this character some light at the end of the tunnel. So, it was really heartwarming to see all the kids banding together to reach out to her to show their support and forgiveness. That doesn't mean SA's actions have been swept under the rug. I think this is the approach to bring someone back who has been so far gone that she's completely lost. She was thisssss close to going over the edge. No one deserves to die by suicide. And oftentimes, people don't notice the signs even when someone like SA is desperately in need of help. She was stuck in the world her mom created and was brainwashed to not have any friends, any fun, any joy... It's all specs specs specs! Her mom is so heartless that she failed to recognize this was SA's final distress call. And she even proceeded to immediately instigate plans to move SA overseas, meaning she STILL doesn't get it!! SA needs a real mom and loving friends. Not a planned future for her in accordance to mom's rules. It's really sad to see how SA has been enveloped in darkness in her life. That quote about unhappiness is so poignant. I don't think the show was sending the message that the other kids were at fault for driving SA to suicide. I think when this situation happens, it's natural to feel guilty even if you didn't have anything to do with it directly. And if SA really did die, they would all be left wondering if there wasn't something they could've done before it was too late. So, I think it's good to see the kids being forgiving and reaching out to SA because she seriously has no one else. When someone is down, you don't beat her down even more. You offer a hand to help her get back up. That is true friendship.
I'm glad DJ overcame his phobia and saved SA. Love what you said about them being mutually saving.
Also good to see some progress in Yeol and his dad's relationship.
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ObsessedMuch
November 6, 2015 at 6:00 AM
+1 I agree with everything you said about Soo Ah. So true!
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25 Accountant05
November 6, 2015 at 6:05 AM
I just watched ep 10, and I have to say that it is strongest episode so far (I know that many of you disagree with me, but I beg to differ. Another thing, it is also a very long post. Sorry for the inconvenience :p).
At first, I was angry when I read that SA don't get any punishment for all things that she has done. I agree that her actions have crossed the line. Tbh for the past 5 episodes (maybe), I have been suppressing myself not to punch my laptop everytime SA did her evil deed. Seriously. That happened because I can't understand her wholeheartedly. But after I watched ep 10, I finally understand why she did and has been doing all those things. She wants to repent, but there is strong external pressure (her mother) which pushes her to go further. I read someone's post about SA's addiction of her mother's love. But, who will not get addict to that? Maybe because (thankfully) I grow up in a loving family, I don't have to those evil deed only to get my parent's love. But if I place myself in SA's shoes, I think it's not impossible for me to do worse things than SA's has done.
I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw her mother stated that SA don't have to worry because she will cover all those problems for her. What kind of mother she is.... She did that not because she loves SA, but because she loves HERSELF. She make her daughter to be what SHE wants her to be. She wants the status as a mother whose children go to Harvard (OMG, sigh). I know that maybe her mother also get pressure from her peers (high class society), but I can't agree with her (and HJ's father) method to keep their status.
After this episode I can see SA's true self. IMO she is a nice kid. The heart wrenching messages that she wrote to YD and her mother proved that. She simply wants to be the best daughter to her mom. She simply wants a normal life, which she can fully enjoy. She just want her mother and peers to say "thank you, sorry, I love you" to her. I think those hopes are very affordable for others but become luxury for her.
Regarding the punishment, I myself think that I don't have any right to determine what SA deserves or doesn't deserve. But one thing for sure, I disagree if one said that SA didn't get any punishment at all. She has got severe social punishment. It hurts when no one looks for her when she is missing; when no one wants to talk to her; when everyone keep judging and blaming her. However, I have to agree that those punishments are not enough. I think it's not fair if SA can go to Ivy league with fake qualifications that she got through manipulating, framing and putting someone down. But only to that level. I disagree if one said that SA doesn't deserve to get another opportunity to be helped, loved & respected
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plumwine
November 6, 2015 at 6:46 AM
I agree with you. As for the punishment it has started with her getting a zero on the exam. I guess we will have to see if more will be forthcoming.
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⭐ Sera The Ms Temper ⭐
November 6, 2015 at 7:44 AM
I totally agree with this.
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26 Accountant05
November 6, 2015 at 6:07 AM
After this episode I want to give my appreciaton to SA's character (moreover to Chae Soo Bin who portray this role wonderfully). She is just a normal girl who get lost in her way because of pressure, limited affection & her mother's greed. Even though the world left her, she stay strong (until some limit), and I love that. Thankfully now she has OTP12 (+teachers) who can help, teach and support her to walk in the right way. I am so relieved that the writer didn't make Baek Ho and Real King turned their heads from SA. She could die if no one lend his/her help.
I wrote this post not because I have lived long enough, or I am wise enough to defend SA whatsoever. But as a fellow student and as a fellow child to parents, I can understand her desire to get love, her desire to be happy. I can't tolerate when she do evil things to achieve that, but we now know that she can't stop even she wants to. If she paused, she will get worst punishment, which is her mother's underappreciation. I want to give applause again to the writers who give a chance to me to reflect back on my life and learn how to understand others better. The message is clear. Everyone needs cheer from others. Period. See you until next time!
Side note: the kiss is better than what I hope. I am so happy! <3<3<3
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kitkat
November 8, 2015 at 12:03 PM
I second that! thanks for writing it so eloquently.
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27 Sajen
November 6, 2015 at 6:17 AM
I'm of two minds of Soo-ah in that on one hand I agree she was saved not redeemed and she deserves that chance. On the other I still think the story and Soo-ah herself would have been better served by allowing her to die.
If Korea has a DCF they should have taken Soo-ah from her mother ages ago, but they definitely need to step in now.
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28 blnmom
November 6, 2015 at 6:28 AM
Wow, that was one heck of a write-up, Saya! Makes me want to read some of your other non-recap stuff. I'm sure you have some, please let us know where to find it.
I liked this ep a lot, and like where all the storylines are going, only a little uneasy about the parents' pending marriage. That's broken up many a drama couple before, hope it doesn't here. I guess we'll see next week!
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29 miisy
November 6, 2015 at 6:28 AM
well i was sorta disappointed in this episode. mainly because of how the writers 'solved' soo ah plot. the drama focused a lot on soo ah, her problems and her evil deeds. the entire show was pretty much based off on that, which meant that the rest of the casts backstories were forfeited. also because of that we never really got to see any dancing or cheerleading except the first couple of episodes ( i thought that was what the drama was suppose to be about?). if the writers were going to do that i wished that they allowed more time for the audience and the rest of the students to forgive soo ah, and watch her make amends, instead they choose the fastest and easiest way out, a 'suicide attempt', with everyone forgiving her. you can basically watch the first 2 eps and then jump to this episode and yo got soo ahs entire plot covered.
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Adal
November 6, 2015 at 6:35 AM
True.
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kuromitsu
November 7, 2015 at 2:03 AM
I don't think its a fast and easy way out, though. This is her third attempt, basically. It's been building up to this for awhile.
We saw her panicking, regretting, panicking some more, then getting goaded by the useless adults in her life into escalating. The last two episodes were the culmination of her downspiral.
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30 Stuckonyou
November 6, 2015 at 6:32 AM
The whole parent-dating plot make me nervous, SERIOUSLY.
Don't you dare ruin my OTP, show!!!
I love this drama more than I expected.
Finale week. Sob.
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31 plumwine
November 6, 2015 at 6:35 AM
Thank you for an excellent recap Saya! I happened to be one of those that was completely DONE with Soo Ah in the last few episodes, but the way it was handled in this one made me feel like she had a chance of redeeming herself.
For me it was when she went to her mom to confess and realized that it was never going to end. She has always been conflicted and asking ( ok- yelling) for people not to get in her way or she will do something. A true psychopath doesn't give out warnings or feel bad about their actions. Throughout this show we have seen her eaten up with the stress her actions and her mom's expectations have taken on her. (although her hair is always gorgeous!) She doesn't seem to like the person she is becoming and is truly appalled at what she may turn into. She just wants to stop. Unfortunately she is to young and afraid of her mom to find a better way than suicide to stop her crazy ride and make her own road. To me her apologies felt real and heartfelt and that is why I am not upset with her chance at redemption. This means she has to take an active part in her redemption which I felt she started by sincerely apologizing to Dong Jae.
As for Ha Joon's crush, it seems as he was just as surprised by it as I was. However I have faith in him and this show for him to quietly tuck his feelings away and get over it. His friendship is too strong and he knows he'll get a girl in college aka the next drama. (Please!)
I loved the video messages. They were too cute and made the invitation for a second (50th) chance much more acceptable.
Oh and thanks Tacher Im for watching out for the cheerleaders. Maybe if the principle worked out on her stomach muscles she'd have less time to meddle.
I'm holding out hope for the parents.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 7:03 AM
yeah, that scene with Soo-ah desperately trying to explain to her mother all the wrong things she'd done, only to have her mother go "I'll protect your specs, no matter what"....... you can literally SEE the light go out of Soo-ah's eyes at that moment. Like she got a death sentence instead of an ostensible second chance at everything, because it is so obvious her mother has not actually listened to a word of what her daughter is trying to tell her.
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32 Alessar
November 6, 2015 at 6:46 AM
I am SO SO ANGRY about this episode.
Showing So-ah under pressure and becoming worse and worse and be on track for suicide was a warning -- not just to people like her but to people like HER MOTHER. Having her be saved at the last minute so that there are basically no consequences is an incredible disservice to the narrative structure and the ongoing story. It is a cop-out.
There is no denying the fact: she reached the point of attempted murder. She reached the point where she was a danger to herself and others. The writer erred severely and took it 1 beat too far before reversing course.
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Cassie
November 6, 2015 at 7:02 AM
I said some thing similar in my comment above.
Soo Ah is getting loads of pity from some people here just because the character look so miserable at the end while in the show she was so manipulative. I'm impressed by her.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 7:39 AM
She's been looking miserable almost all the way through the show, not just "at the end".
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Alessar
November 6, 2015 at 7:45 AM
My point isn't that she's not pitiable - she is. But she's dangerous. Like, legit psycho dangerous. And telling people that someone like her can get better if they give them a 6th "second chance" is dangerous. It's in the same vein (though certainly not the same thing) as saying one should stay with a toxic, abusive romantic partner because they can be "changed" with enough love. That will actually just get you hurt or killed.
What she needed was court mandated therapy. Not a pollyana plot twist.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 9:11 AM
There are plenty of dramas where people have done far worse and with far less remorse than Soo-ah has shown for her own actions. I've seen less condemnation for serial killers than for this girl here, seriously.
And this is hardly a "pollyanna plot twist", the writing and acting have made it very clear that Soo-ah has been struggling all along because her attempt to ignore her own conscience in the pursuit of her mother's plans, has destabilised her to a dangerous extent.
kuromitsu
November 6, 2015 at 10:02 AM
She's not even close to Lee Min or Joon Ho psycho in IRY and people loved those guys.
She's not even paycho even. She has empathy and experiences remorse. Her problem is that she has a bad upbringing.
downtherabbithole
November 6, 2015 at 8:17 AM
.... Maybe she'll get therapy. I don't know why you think she won't just because the show didn't squeeze it in this episode.
This is NOT the end of Soo Ah's story, it's a beginning. It would be a painful one, but she will grow and she will get the happiness she always wanted. That's what I got from this episode.
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Cassie
November 6, 2015 at 8:40 AM
It's a pity that in real life teenager criminals will keep on commiting crimes after becoming adults.
Alessar: I like your analogy or whatever it's called in English.
PeepsLeAwesomePotato
November 6, 2015 at 9:22 AM
@Cassie: You mean the ones that didn't get rehabilitated; you mean the ones that weren't shown a different path; you mean the ones that we've abandoned; you mean the ones that saw no opening or other way out?
Sure, there are sociopaths and psychopaths in the world - but there are some errant teenagers who are not and are just the results of bad environments. Are we supposed to leave just them to ruins? And then when they do worse things that hurt us and we'll just curse them and shun them even more? What's the point and are you sure they're the only bad ones when we didn't even try to mitigate the problem in the first place?
And not all therapy needs to be court mandated. Support is part of therapy too - isn't that what all therapists keep harping on?
Huh
November 7, 2015 at 3:58 AM
Exactly. Some people just can't help but be so judgmental of a character, even when they have been given enough back story. makes you wonder how they are in real life. So self-righteous and narrow-minded. Must be products of a perfect environment. How can they be so eager to pass judgment, it's not even the end of the series yet.
Cassie
November 7, 2015 at 12:57 PM
I do not live in a perfect world. I do not believe in any utopia. I do not believe in complete peace. I do not believe in complete goodness.
I do not believe that criminals will stop commiting crimes if they are gaining something out of it like money or power.
I can judge a character when his/her personal characteristics are being shown.
You're judging me by believing I live in a perfect world and in this perfect world I can be self-righteous and narrow minded.
I don't think you're a criminal's butt kisser. Hopefully you're really not. Hopefully in real life when a handsome criminal or a criminal with a childish face doing some nice acting appear in front of you don't pity him.
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 11:14 AM
.....if you're judging on the basis of 'personal characteristics', then I assume that means you consider ALL of them and don't selectively exclude clear evidence (in actions and not just words) that Soo-ah did indeed feel remorse and wasn't, as you claim, acting.
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 11:24 AM
@cassie - and you also stated you don't believe in any number of perfect conditions - well, no one is asking you to. But you do seem comfortable making absolutist assertions about teenage offenders (extending the argument to Soo-ah as one of them), stating that they will keep committing crimes as adults - well, be prepared to have people disagree with that.
Oh, and you claim we're judging you for drawing the inference that you live in a perfect world where you can be so judgemental? How about you look at your own words calling people "criminal's butt kissers" for sympathising with a troubled young woman who has done awful things, and is in a state of great mental and emotional distress?
fishfingers_fb
November 7, 2015 at 10:50 AM
I think some of you are confusing things, when it comes to Soo-ah. Let me untangle what I mean.
Events:
- Soo-ah pushed YD down the stairs, saying the words 'I'll kill you'
- Yeol got injured as a result.
These are the facts, so let's start there.
Thoughts:
- Although Soo-ah pushed YD saying 'I'll kill you', I don't actually think that she thinks, 'I want to kill YD, therefore I will push her down the stairs.' She's overwrought, she's probably not even making those connections - she's mad and upset, so she lashes out. She's reacting, so she pushes YD. She'd have pushed her anywhere else. It's the (bad) luck of the draw that they happen to be at the top of the stairs. It's not premeditated or attempted murder.
Her actions are categorically wrong.
But now we have to look at the consequences, because that's what determines the coming narrative.
- Yeol doesn't die. He is mildly injured, as is Yeon-doo. This is really important, because:
- If Yeol had died or been seriously injured, IT CHANGES EVERYTHING. The whole narrative, the whole of Soo-ah's arc, fundamentally changes. It becomes a totally different story.
Therefore, it's a bit of a moot point to say that Soo-ah should be prosecuted etc. because Yeol could have died. Yes, he could have died, but he didn't.
And since the two were basically okay, it now becomes a massive cautionary tale. Soo-ah snaps awake to the reality she could have killed someone, and that brings everything home to her. She goes into crisis, and her mum's failure to acknowledge the gravity of the situation sends her into another crisis. She's contrite and determined to fix things on her own terms and take her rightful punishment...until the chatroom messages send her into yet another crisis, and she goes into some kind of mental catatonia, because she no longer sees how she can fix it if there's no possibility of being forgiven.
In summary, my point is that the fact that the accident had no serious, lasting consequences is VITAL to how the plot then proceeds. (Similarly, the fact that Soo-ah DIDN'T die is another plot game-changer.)
Also, she's not a psycho. I think it's bizarre that she's being labelled a psychopath because she did bad things. Not everyone who does bad things is a psychopath! Not everyone who commits murder is a psychopath. The vast majority of murderers and criminals are non-psychotic individuals, and their motives are often deeply emotional.
Being a non-psychotic individual in the throes of true remorse, Soo-ah is not a danger to society.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 11:37 AM
This is really accurate - the fact that Yeol wasn't seriously hurt or killed AND the fact that Soo-ah didn't die don't minimise Soo-ah's actions, but as you said, they change everything. People are trying to condemn Soo-ah saying that if Yeol had died, Soo-ah would be guilty of murder, but that's a whole lot of 'if' on which to base things.
Someone did say the plot might have been better-served by allowing Soo-ah to die, but doing so would have gone against the very message of this drama - which is that even in this horrible system, true friendship can save the damaged and floundering (and it has, so many times already).
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fishfingers_fb
November 8, 2015 at 12:07 PM
Even if he did die, it still wouldn't necessarily be murder - it would most likely be manslaughter.
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33 Adal
November 6, 2015 at 6:50 AM
Thank goodness it was Ha joon that saw them kissing! I was honestly scared that their parents would walk in on them making out in the hospital room and then.....well, what a way to be introduced to the family wouldn't you say? lol.
Honestly, the scenes between Kim Yeol and his dad were heart warming. His dad is struggling to bring a reapproachment with his son after years of neglect and I hope for both their sakes, it is successful.
I can picture what happened, Kim Yeol's mom was cheating on the dad, and abandoned their family when the husband found out. After the pain of having his heart ripped out KY's dad took solace in his work, totally neglecting his kid. KY, capable and highly intelligent, practically brought himself up, his one companion, Ha joon, his best friend and another neglected, and abused kid. Now KY's father falls in love with a warm, caring woman who gives him back his heart, brings back light into his world and encourages him to mend his ways with his son, to let his son know how much he loves him.
Only...said son is dating and in love with the woman's daughter. How's that for a plot twist? You can build a whole drama on that premise alone. Now, how are they going to resolve this in only 2 episodes? To the satisfaction of those who want BOTH couples to get together?
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okiejune
November 6, 2015 at 10:05 AM
I think Kim Yeol will see his father with Yeon Doo's mom, and realize that they are together. His father will see Kim Yeol with Yeon Doo and realize THEY are together. His father will give up his relationship for his son's sake, and that is what will reunite them.
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plumwine
November 6, 2015 at 12:37 PM
No - please!
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34 bananacrunch
November 6, 2015 at 7:06 AM
I think we were just hoping (really, really hard) that Ha Joon's feelings for Yeon Doo were purely platonic, like finding a parent after growing up without one or something. That, despite the show making it very clear that he doesn't see it that way. I like how at some point, Yeon Doo told him to get to know his heart better, because now he does, and he experiences a broken heart that he has desperately tried to protect himself for.
AND SOO AH! Yes! Clearly a character, and not a mere plot tool. Yes, she's been more than just a pain, but I do appreciate that she's written as a human, with very complex parts and all. Good job, writing team!
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35 pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 7:37 AM
I admit, I had the hugest grin on my face throughout the first part - our chipmunk couple FINALLY kissed and there was no hint of dead fish about it (I love that she initiated the cheek-kiss and THAT was what made Yeol decide now was the time to seal the deal on that episode 1 'just go for it' threat lol). No wonder Yeon-doo's squeeing as soon as she leaves his room ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥. This is one couple where it's so incredibly easy to see just why they're so smitten with each other, and I love that Yeon-doo's 'answer' to both Yeol's questions means we get a healthy dose of Sir Crinkles/Sunshine actually being together and cute (that sneaked lunch, I almost died). They've certainly earned it, even without the fear of life-threatening injuries to each other!
I guess the only negative in the entire situation was that poor Ha-joon had to be woken up to the situation and the true nature of his own feelings so suddenly. I think he honestly did register at first that Yeol had an interest in Yeon-doo, back when he first asked about why he wasn't jealous of Dong-jae or noticed the 'there's a girl I want to kiss' moment between the two of them, or even her sleeping on Yeol's shoulder in the van on the way back from the party.
The only explanation I can think of is that in the wake of the revelation that Yeol had been blackmailed into the cheerleading to protect him and NOT because of Yeon-doo as Ha-joon first supposed, he sort of minimised the idea of Yeol's attachment to her (he may well have thought Yeol was just flirting as e did in the past) and didn't realise how he himself ended up feeling about her after they got to know each other better. To me, that's the only way to make sense of his later obliviousness, including that glorious but now-painful scene in ep 8 where Yeol is openly jealous of Dong-jae and Ha-joon agrees with him and manages not to realise what it means.
But I am proud of our poor crushed puppy for not allowing his hurt feelings to register on his friend. Sure, he needs a little time-out to recover from the shock, but I love that he waits and goes to see Yeol anyway and never lets on that his own heart is broken. And then he comes back to grump at Yeon-doo about why she doesn't stay in the hospital some more for her wrist. And without knowing it, they remind him just why they're such awesome friends to have - Yeol still needs him there and missed him despite being all loved-up with Yeon-doo earlier, and Yeon-doo reminds him he's just a big marshmallow inside. He can't quit them!
(going to put the Soo-ah part of this episode in another comment for fear of being cut off)
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mskab
November 6, 2015 at 8:12 AM
I thought he did know, at least on a surface level-- he hasn't been actively pursuing her himself, even when she literally came forward and pushed her face into his chest, he hesitated a moment, sort of went, "well, what else could I do in this situation?" and then hugged her.
I think seeing how far they progressed was more of a shock to the system. As far as he knew, Yeol was interested, but Yeon Doo hadn't reciprocated, and they'd pretty much been a trio since Yeol's suspension was ended. If that was the case, that plus the shock/hurt of seeing someone you like romantically involved with someone else (even if you logically know, being confronted with it in the flesh all of a sudden can still hurt like crazy) I think would have been enough to cause the hurt reaction and cause him to reconsider all those previous, seemingly casual moments.
Both guys did so so well in that scene where Yeol is trying to tell Ha Joon- Lee Won Geun giddy and with slight embarrassment, Ji Soo with the stoic but pained face, determined not to hurt his friend but just not able to take hearing about it right then.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 8:44 AM
yeah, that sounds about accurate - like he noticed it but didn't put two and two together, either about his own feelings or how serious Yeol was about Yeon-doo. Some commenters have previously mentioned that it almost seemed like Ha-joon had trouble recognising that kind of affection or love as part of his own feelings, likely because he's never felt like that about a girl before. But then he's confronted with the sight of them kissing, and all the realisations come crashing down at once (and he has no way of knowing just then that this is their first time, and not a secret they've been keeping from him).
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 9:20 AM
And oh yeah, that scene! It's so perfectly played between the two boys - even if Ha-joon's hurt, he can't not go and see his bro, he just waits until Yeon-doo's not with him.
I really loved that Ha-joon sort of takes the reverse of his usual role here - just as Yeol tried to shield him from the knowledge of Soo-ah's blackmail of them in episode 4, here Ha-joon is the one who's trying not to let Yeol know his own major secret (which would hurt a lot if Yeol did know they'd fallen for the same girl). And I loved how giddy and happy Lee Won-geun looked just then, and how pleased he is to share this news with his best friend. And Ji-soo's response, realising that this was new to Yeol and they didn't pull the wool over his eyes as he first thought, but still needing some time before he actually had to listen to Yeol talk about her....it was perfect.
(I love that by the next time we see Yeol in the hospital, Ha-joon is right back by his side)
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 12:41 PM
also, re: timing being the main factor in Yeon-doo choosing Yeol over Ha-joon, I don't know if that's exactly accurate.
Sure, both boys look out for her and bring her umbrellas and are changed by knowing her, but it's pretty crucial to remember that even if you leave aside the open flirting, Yeol is the one who went out of his way to establish common ground between them in the first place. And it's a pretty powerful common ground - they both have friends they need to protect, Yeol puts his pride aside and actually admits to it, and THAT is what actually (unintentionally) starts to win Yeon-doo over.
In contrast, Ha-joon was still far pricklier and less likely to render himself or Yeol vulnerable to someone else by asking for help - Yeol took a massive leap of faith in trusting Yeon-doo, and that trust being reciprocated is what helped the romantic connection between them. Well, that and Yeol's flirting - Yeon-doo's a straightforward type and if even Yeol's blatant flirting and open confessions occasionally went over her head, I doubt Ha-joon would be able to make himself any clearer. In a different story, Yeon-doo/Ha-joon could have worked as a couple (and in fact they fit the classic kdrama archetypes of OTPs pretty perfectly) but here, Yeol's so atypical for a male lead that it actually makes it more exciting to watch his relationship with Yeon-doo develop.
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36 bea
November 6, 2015 at 7:38 AM
This show really points out my greatest fear in this world... Being a bad parent. Parents sometimes don't realize just how affected their kids are by their parenting methods. Or sometimes they think younger kids will just forget about things, but really some hurt stays with them until they are older. I hate it when people say, "you're already grown up so you should move on from those things that hurt you before." How nice for those who hurt you then, since seemingly the responsibility for closure now lies with the person who was hurt. I grew up with parents who were too busy to make an effort to spend time with us. We joke around that we raised ourselves, but it isn't really that far from the truth. And since I have a lot of hurt and baggage from my parents, I'm unsure if I can even be a good parent myself...
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PeepsLeAwesomePotato
November 6, 2015 at 7:50 AM
It's okay. At least now you know that "Thank You, Sorry and I Love You" goes a long way.
There's no such thing as a perfect parent. All you can do is listen to your child and apologize when you hurt him/her early enough not to let the hurt fester. Say "Thank You" to show that you appreciate him/her and "I Love You" to show that you had and will always have his/her best interest at heart and will always be someone he/she can count on.
Parenting is similar to all other relationships - you hurt, you fight, you make up. Because like all other relationships, every moment you spend with the other person is your and his/her first time experiencing that moment. You won't always know the right thing to do.
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Audrey
November 6, 2015 at 7:23 PM
I think I can say I understand your fears and worries about ever being able to be a good parent someday yourself---I (with two sisters and a brother) grew up in an emotionally and physically abusive home environment, which left inevitable scars. And no one has the right to tell you to get over it and just move on...but, because you know what hurt you growing up, you can choose to not be that kind of a parent. It's not easy, but I can tell you that it can be done. My lovely daughter is now 28, and although my parenting wasn't "perfect", Rima has always known that she is loved and accepted, that although I might not always like everything she does or decides upon, the love never stops. And we talk and share and communicate, always.
Which kind of brings me back to the Bad Mom in the drama here: she has never spent any time to get to know her daughter, has never gotten over her own selfish needs, and is trying to live her life through her own daughter to gain "reflected glory". Soo ah has never had a good model to show her how to be the good person she has inside of her.
I guess what I'm trying to say, is like Soo ah, we can through our own efforts and with the help of our friends, choose to be different, to follow a more positive path. It ain't easy, but it definitely beats the alternative, which can be self-destructive and so hurtful. You can do it!
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37 PeepsLeAwesomePotato
November 6, 2015 at 7:40 AM
Yes, yes, yes, a hundred times YES and thank you Saya for your ending comments. I had a really hard time reading comments that were demanding SooAh die.
I mean, I get it that SooAh should be punished and shouldn't be forgiven so easily (and I agree) but I cannot agree that we all just abandon her when she so obviously wants and needs to be saved. Like, even if one has no heart or emotions, it makes sense to rehabilitate people like her instead of leaving them to get worse (where they might actually harm and kill someone in the future because no one stays within the safe confines of high school forever) (and if she commits suicide... that's one less contributor to society and a pain/scar made to someone else).
I don't know if SooAh ever meant to die because it's clear that at that point, she didn't want to die (who does) but she saw no way out of it.
I think this ending-comment by you has been the best and most clarifying I've ever read. It clearly breaks down concepts and separates and classifies ideas that may have become so interlinked that they've merged inappropriately. Thank you.
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downtherabbithole
November 6, 2015 at 8:26 AM
Yeah, I'm SO CONFUSED by some of the reactions here.
We all want Soo Ah punished. We all want her to face the consequences of her actions. But how can you punish someone who almost ended her own life moments before?
She needs to be supported IN ORDER to be punished. She needs to stand straight in order to properly kneel and apologize, she needs be physically and mentally strong in order to pay her dues.
It's the same in prison too. If a prisoner attempted suicide, he'll be allowed to rest in the infirmary for a few days, given counseling until he gets better and goes back to his cell. What I'm saying is, Soo Ah is recovering in order to go back and complete her sentence.
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Huh
November 7, 2015 at 4:04 AM
So right. These people don't want to be just. They just want to be vindictive. They hate the sinner so much. Shame on them.
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sunnyxshin
November 7, 2015 at 5:25 AM
YES. I agree wholly.
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38 growingbeautifully
November 6, 2015 at 7:46 AM
Thanks Saya!
What I really like about the saving of Soo Ah is that it was a deed that was good not just for the one person, but something which raised everyone way higher and above themselves, in terms of their goodness and humane-ness, of consideration, in terms of growth and maturity and the ability to care, the heights of which they would never have been able to achieve just a few weeks earlier. By showing that there is forgiveness and hope, those kids reaslised in themselves, that they were far bigger and better than the school had ever given them credit to be.
It was a wonderful step to lead everyone towards reaching their potential to becoming great adults. Good character-building is precisely what extra-curricular activities and being in clubs is supposed to help develop. This was absent in Sevit High because of it's corruption, skewered emphasis on specs and dishonesty to gain them, until an indomitable girl decided to stand up for truth and friendship, regardless of the consequences, and inspired her friends to not just judge but to care.
The saving of Soo Ah is thus also the real blooming of the club, with true unity and friendship, and learning to look out for someone else besides themselves. This story is so much more heart warming and inspiring than I ever expected it to be and hits all the right spots for me.
Onward to the finish SGG!! and may we see more growth even in the parents, now that we have seen it in their kids. :)
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Huh
November 7, 2015 at 4:09 AM
Love reading your comment. So beautifully said. This should speak to the heart of those who want Soo ah to die or not be forgiven. It's all about healing and facing the consequences of her actions.
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growingbeautifully
November 7, 2015 at 4:52 AM
Much thanks @Huh. It's so nice of you to affirm this comment... a heartfelt comment to me.
I did post this to the Dramalovers group... I've have felt that we cannot know exactly what it's like when we are not in that exact position, facing the same pressures for as long as Soo Ah was.
(Some of us have been noting before, that for all her smarts she is quite hopeless in figuring out what lies beyond getting specs, or how to finding fulfilment in her abilities, that there are term consequences to her actions and coming to terms with interpersonal relationships/friendships which have nothing to do with using people or getting ahead. These seem alien to her.)
The judgemental part of me wants fairness and justice, to have some consequences meted out to her in equal measure to the sufferings she caused, ... however in real life, and in our own cases maybe... we know that if we had to pay back in equal measure, it would be too terrible or there might be no way to repay.
And punishment is also not only something that comes from an external source. Often enough, we punish ourselves and we can be worse judges/juries and executioners even.
I believe that it is only when we admit at least to ourselves and forgive ourselves and in the free forgiveness and acceptance of others, that we can start to change. It should not be the fear of punishment that causes the change, but love.
We all need that kind of forgiveness. It is freeing and life-giving and in the giving and the receiving of it ... is the way we become better than we might have been. :)
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39 mskab
November 6, 2015 at 7:58 AM
I think it's also worth noting that the speech the cheerleading team delivers to the students talking about Soo Ah is, at least in the beginning, almost word for word for what KYD said to them when Yeol was accused of stealing the USB. She strikes again. :)
Funnily enough, I'm not worried at all about the parents. KYD's mom has been on the fence enough about what this all means for KYD, and I think as soon as she becomes aware that Yeon is uncomfortable with the situation, given that she has been smooching her future stepbrother lately, proceedings will be brought to a halt. I'm not even sure KYD's mom really wants to get married again, anyway. From what I can tell, she really just wants to keep dating Yeol's dad.
Ha Joon's crush is harder to reconcile. I've been through every possible scenario I can think of (including a Yeon Doo time-share between Yeol and Ha Joon, but that failed too because Yeol just wants Yeon alllllll to himself, and I can't stand to even imagine anything to make that light-up-like-a-christmas-tree expression that Yeol makes when he sees Yeon Doo go away), but there's no winning. No matter how this turns out, it's going to hurt because both the characers/ leads are so, so good and they both deserve Yeon (except Yeol maybe a tiny bit more because he's been interested from the beginning and had a longer time to develop a deep relationship, and besides Yeon Doo likes him back). The best solution I can think of is, Yeol gets Yeon Doo in this drama, and then Ji Soo and Eunji do another romantic drama. It can be dramatic and makjang, I don't care, because they've got crazy intensity together and could pull it off, but my conditions are that it is at least 20 episodes and Ji Soo gets the girl. Deal, drama gods?
Actually, with how good all of this cast is, I think it will be one of those dramas where people look back in 5-10 years and wonder why it wasn't more popular, because so many good actors were in it.
Oh and the preview! (Credit to Eunzit, the apink fan who has done an insane amount of SGG translating work the past few weeks):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3MSPbznic0&feature=youtu.be&a
...that last scene!!
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downtherabbithole
November 6, 2015 at 8:29 AM
NAWGH. Well, we're going to have to face the sibling plot someday.
They look supa cute though. Oh please make this turn out good... (pleads to god-knows-who)
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siesta
November 6, 2015 at 8:46 AM
SO MANY OTP MOMENTS I AM SQUEEING IN DOG DECIBELS
/tots ignoring the siblings arc
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 3:56 AM
lol I hear you on the dog decibels, those are the exact same noises coming from me too!
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Adal
November 6, 2015 at 8:53 AM
@mskab
Thanks so much for posting this link. I've been dying to see previews of ep. 11. Looks like the cats out of the bag.
And a big thank you to Eunzit for subbing the preview!
This drama is truly THE BEST.
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mskab
November 6, 2015 at 9:10 AM
My pleasure. :) was too good not to share.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 9:35 AM
That is such a great catch about the lecture the team gives to the gossiping students - you're right, it's exactly what Yeon-doo said about Yeol! And it makes a lot of sense that they'd be more willing to defend Soo-ah against gossip this time even when she's guilty, after seeing what Yeol went through when he was falsely accused and they didn't believe him.
I almost died when Yeol's dad is all "oh, so Yeol will be her oppa", like if only he knew....
And you're right, there is no solution to the Ha-joon problem other than casting Ji-soo and Eunji in another drama together. This is where I really curse the fact that she's an idol and will likely be tied up with other activities for a while after this, which means probably no dramas from her for another year (but I NEED them paired up asap, dammit!). Yeon-doo is all Yeol's in this drama, and they are so cute and perfect and awesome together I don't want any thing to break them up.
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rhiaa
November 6, 2015 at 2:25 PM
That preview gave me a second wind when I was about to sleep last night! HOOOOOO :D :D :D
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omomo
November 7, 2015 at 12:58 AM
*unleashes an unholy fangirl scream*
BRING THE OT-FREAKING-P MOMENTS! (Man, the last scene: LWG looks so good in pink.)
Like siesta, I'll just pretend the siblings arc is non-existent.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 3:55 AM
yeah, Yeon-doo seems to have about the same reaction as we do to the idea of her and Yeol becoming siblings :)
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 3:54 AM
THAT PREVIEW!!!!
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40 SleepyInHK
November 6, 2015 at 8:00 AM
So I knew from the moment Yeon-doo gave Ha-joon the ointment and bandage that it would be a love triangle. And I may have been the only person who was super excited about it. It's not because I think love triangles are an indispensable part of k-dramas (they're a massive cliche). It's not even because Ji Soo is at his best when he's being unlucky in love (oh, Bok-dongie).
It's because I was excited about a love triangle where the boys were best friends and the second lead fell, well, second.
Usually, when two guy friends end up in love with the heroine, it goes one of two ways: second lead pines pathetically for ages and then first lead suddenly falls in love, or they both fall in love at the same time, but second lead loves her from afar for too long and first lead actually spends time with her. Bonus points if years of friendship go speeding down the toilet.
But god, this could have been so interesting. These two boys value loyalty above all else. I wanted to watch Ha-joon fall hard and hate himself for it. I wanted to see his self-loathing as he realised that he was as disloyal as possible, falling for his best friend's girl and maybe even pursuing her regardless. I wanted Yeol's furious tears as he demands why of all the girls in that school, no, all the girls in the world, Ha-joon had to like his? Oh god, the turmoil! What could have been!
So it's a huge letdown to find out Ha-joon didn't even know Yeoo liked Yeon-doo too. Did he have brain damage?! Everyone knew! Her mom knew after literally two seconds!
I'm not saying I don't enjoy this love triangle as is (damn you, Ji Soo, and your beautiful pining!). I just wish they'd had either the guts or the time to take it in a novel direction.
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downtherabbithole
November 6, 2015 at 8:32 AM
Eh, too much angst for me LOL.
I love fluff. Fluff is love. Add a little angst here and there, but keep it heartwarming.
...This is why I don't watch melos
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 9:43 AM
nah, this way is a far more interesting way to play out the love triangle than Ha-joon going full angst and betrayal on Yeol. It would be wildly out of character for Ha-joon to do anything like that anyway.
As for why Ha-joon doesn't know - well, I offered the theory that after the truth about the cheerleading came out (that Yeol had agreed to it to stop the principal tattling about his last cutting incident), he chucked away his earlier thought that Yeol agreed to the cheerleading because he liked Yeon-doo. And didn't quite register too much after that, including his own feelings for her.
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es
November 7, 2015 at 12:08 AM
this is exactly why i DIDN'T want a triangle haha. way too much angst for me. :(
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41 Miraclan
November 6, 2015 at 8:13 AM
Saya, no doubt I completely love you as a recapper. <3 <3
xoxoxoxXOXOXOXO
Is it getting creepy yet? Oh well, *HUGGGGGGGSSSSSSSSS*
*Not letting you go*
T___T
Yes, I'm a mess. It's just I'm so grateful to see someone care about Soo Ah. lol.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 9:44 AM
I know, I'm a mess too!
I'm so not ready to let go of this drama.
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SGGlove
November 6, 2015 at 10:56 AM
Me too! Can't believe it's going to be over so soon.
And love Saya as well!!
I hated Soo Ah at first, but after listening to your blog & reading Saya's recap, I've changed my mind. All of you have convinced me that my way of thinking was not right.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 11:48 AM
I think you meant to address this to @Miraclan :)
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SooAhGoGO
November 6, 2015 at 2:39 PM
Count me a convert as well!!!
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 11:05 AM
oh, and this is one episode where I don't mind the absence of an OTP cap at the top, this is Soo-ah's episode all right and it's fitting that her picture is on top.
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mira
November 7, 2015 at 9:37 AM
Oh right. I don't mind it either. In fact, I'm rather glad about it. ^^
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42 Grnapple31
November 6, 2015 at 8:23 AM
To me, this was a fantastic episode. They built up enough of soo ah's agitation and guilt towards herself over the series to make this final eruption completely believable. What made soo ah so sympathetic to me was when she finally realized her actions and what a monster she has become and goes to her mom. She seemed to want her mom to tell her she was wrong, to set her actions straight, and hopefully even scold her for all that she has done (almost feels like she wants her mom to tell her she was wrong), instead she gets the complete opposite. Her morals tell her she was wrong, but her mom tells her it's nothing and she can just erase all of her wrong doings like nothing. I love the shot of the close up on her mom, that focuses just on her mouth. I'm not sure if y'all felt it but to me it seemed like the sweet words of the devil tempting soo ah to forget it all and just keep doing wrong. That made soo ah's decision to kill herself - to find solace, peace and a maybe even to stop her own bad actions that harm others - so believable and compelling. I definitely teared up.
I wish Sassy would've had a better first two episodes. I feel like the writing found pace an focus closer to ep 3 and is really great now. I'm sad that it's wrapping up in just two more episodes because I feel like there is certainly much more story to tell. But alas~
As for Ha Joon, I'm not worried at all about his friendship with Yeol. He even recognized that he just needs time to wrap the idea of Yeol and his crush Yeon Doo together in his mind. Like he told Yeol in the hospital, just not now, tell me later.
I re-watched the earlier episodes (constantly, to be honest - this is such an uber cute show), and I can see how Ha Joon never thought it was serious between Yeol and Yeon Doo. As Da Mi pointed out in ep 5 (when she asked whether Yeol had s girlfriend), Yeol apparently had a reputation as ladies' man. And Yeol was so extremely flirty with Yeon Doo even from ep 1 when he wasn't interested in her (at that time Yeol prob thought she was cute ;) I'd like to believe). So Ha Joon probably thought Yeol was flirty with Yeon Doo because he always is, and not that Yeol seriously liked her. That's why when he flashes back after witnessing their kiss it sinks into him that Yeol and Yeon Doo are a thing, and maybe he felt a bit pained with himself for not seeing it sooner and possibly getting in the way of his friend. I think Ha Joon values both Yeon Doo and Yeol's friendship enough to not let the situation become a love triangle. I think this show has shown a lot of realistic maturity in our characters and to think Ha Joon would act so out of character doesn't seem likely.
Now! As for Yeon Doo and Yeol! Can they get any cuter?? I keep thinking this every episode and yet each episode they get cuter cuter to the point where I'm scrunching my fist, grinning like a fool and squealing. They are SUCH a cute couple. Their chemistry is off the charts! I love...
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43 Grnapple31
November 6, 2015 at 8:33 AM
Oh yeah, and I agree. Once Ha Joon found out Yeol was blackmailed into joining cheerleading because of him, and not because of Yeon Doo, and given Yeol's flirty ladies' man personality, I can see how Ha Joon may not have realized Yeol's flirting with Yeon Doo was legit.
I can't get over how much Yeol just adores Yeon Doo. Usually you see dramaland guys showing affection by being macho or saving the girl or making stupid sacrifices. I LOVE that Yeol just openly adores her. He smiles at her all the time, crinkly and all, tell her how much he misses her, tell her how much she likes her, is constantly trying to kiss her and hug her, just so much affection that it kills me! It's great to see such open affection from Yeol towards Yeon Doo. It's also kind of sad bc it's like he was starved to love and be affectionate with someone.
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Cassie
November 6, 2015 at 8:44 AM
He is totally amazing in every aspect. It's so easy for any good girl to fall in love with him fast. Only Yeon Doo is crazy (yes!).
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siesta
November 6, 2015 at 8:54 AM
i think kim yeol has spoiled me for any future relationships lol
i keep wishing for my own kind savvy flirty hot rich smartypants to fall onto!
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 10:00 AM
I know, the thing that won me over to this couple right away (besides their insane chemistry that is!) is just how openly affectionate Yeol is, and now he never even tries to pretend he doesn't like her. And at the same time, his open smittenness doesn't mean they don't connect on other levels too - this is a pairing whose roots lie in them trying to protect their respective friends, and finding common ground in that. Which is something absolutely amazing and unusual in kdramas.
Ha-joon would actually be the more conventional lead, that way (and a different kind of gruff and adorable), but Yeol's open adoration of Yeon-doo and the way he makes it clear to her (or tries lol) ALL THE TIME just elevate this way above your normal kdrama couple.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 10:50 AM
yeah, Yeol's previous rep as a ladies' man may be why Ha-joon doesn't take things super seriously when Yeol and Yeon-doo have their moments.
The most obvious one is when Yeon-doo shows him the video proving Yeol's innocence - it's a video of Hyo-shik openly teasing Yeol and Yeon-doo about being caught together, but Ha-joon doesn't even seem to register that at all, he only focuses on the USB.
(and in the actual video, Yeol is being flirty and saying nothing to actually answer Hyo-shik's question).
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44 Laura
November 6, 2015 at 8:39 AM
THEY KISSED OMG <3333
now please don't let their parents ruin everything
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45 Grnapple31
November 6, 2015 at 8:44 AM
OMG! Gad Dang it!! I shouldn't have watched Ep 11 previews!! Arrghr!!! How am I going to last this weekend!! Yeon Doo! Yeol! Ha Joon! No!!!
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46 Jayhee
November 6, 2015 at 9:22 AM
wat happened in the preview???...plzz share it wit us...plzzzzzzzzzz
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47 Jayhee
November 6, 2015 at 9:23 AM
wat happened in the preview of ep 11???...plzz share it wit us...plzzzzzzzzzz
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48 saehee
November 6, 2015 at 9:25 AM
Not really here for the conclusion of DJ's plotline. SA's can continue since she'll have a time getting back into life without falling back on her mother for support; I'm here for her tottering her way back to humanity (that's what I'm here for at this point, my darling Eunji aside.) However, DJ's story is done and I'm pretty salty about that... haha. My bias aside, I'm not sure if I buy that several years of trauma induced phobia could really be overcome that quickly and in that specific case - for YD, yes, but for SA? I'm not really sure if I want to buy that. He was a flat character and I don't think that we have more to see out of him other than maybe a small continuation of the loveline cast here. I'm pretty disappointed.
At least the SA DJ loveline isn't too intrusive? It's true that he's been the most supportive of SA from the start, bullying episode at the beginning aside, and he'd be the only one who'd even think about taking her out on a no holds barred adventure now. Sir "I do what I want when I want and how I want" is such a polar force to SA's worldview, I've always loved that they've been pushing against each other in life philosophy. That culminated to this point well. (In hindsight, now that I know that his concern for SA was genuine, I'm laughing at how wonderfully unpretentious he is - the way he shoved his drink at SA during the party is a gift.)
In general, as a vibe I got from the first episode on, I wonder if HJ and DJ were one character from the start, but the addition of both Jisoo and N to the cast necessitated splitting the character into two new roles. I've thought once or twice that the characteristics DJ had could've been split up between HJ and Team Real King without loss to YD's plotline. Now I'm wondering if the show would have been better off for it. Consolidating DJ's friendship and support for YD as a childhood friend into Team Real King would have integrated them in the plot better, and making HJ the one concerned for SA's mental health while also being friends with Y would have made both HJ more dynamic as a character and added a layer to his friendships. (It also would have made the love triangle a little harder to do; I'd be happy with that because love triangle why.) If removing DJ would have resulted in a tighter story, I'd prefer that his character had been written out (and N along with him, unfortunately. I'm immensely fond of N but Jisoo is the superior actor.)
Sorry, this post probably wasn't objective enough. As a fan of Hakyeon and just in general, I'm disappointed that DJ is less complex and integral to the story than I'd hoped, but I can't say that I'm complaining either - at least he gets to do something? This is what I should have been expecting and the onus is on me for asking more out of the show than it had promised, mildly misleading previews aside. I'm not bored with the show, but I can now see why my fellow Hakyeon fans have been dissatisfied...
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 11:03 AM
I very much doubt that Dong-jae and Ha-joon were one character - it sounds like an easy hypothesis, but frankly, N was a supporting idol cast member who was never going to be integral to the plot or have as central a function as Yeol, Yeon-doo or even Soo-ah.
I get that you want that for him as a fan, but from what I've seen of his previous acting, it's not something his skill levels can support. He's done quite all right with this particular character and a supporting role, it's not a bad idea to not be greedy and potentially muck up a role, but stick to doing what you can do well.
And I also don't think it's that far-fetched that saving someone's life could be what finally breaks down Dong-jae's phobia. If you watch the scene, he still looks like he's about to pass out as he's holding Soo-ah in the middle of the street, and Yeon-doo only tentatively pokes him - no one is going to give this boy a full-body hug right now, but he's making progress and can actually deal with having to touch people during cheerleading activities.
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saehee
November 6, 2015 at 1:54 PM
:o You've seen his previous acting? I didn't bother besides looking up some clips, I know he isn't good. I like to think I respect myself by not watching bad acting when I can get away from it. Truthfully, I was watching for him, but if it hadn't been for Eunji I wouldn't have bothered. I know what an idol project looks like when I see it so I usually let them pass by. When I saw that Eunji was headlining on this one, though, I thought I'd take a dive.
I have a lot of faith in Eunji as an actress! She pulled her role off in spades here. On top of that, N's done adequately with the material he's been given. Everyone's been fine, I don't disagree with you. I just had mixed feelings about N wanting to do SGG at all.
There's a stigma among idol-actors that they don't deserve their roles, and in some cases the stigma is REALLY undeserved (SIG and Eunji do not deserve that rep ffs). However, I agree in this case. If Hakyeon had to do SGG, I didn't want him to embarrass himself or give him bad press, and I sort of feel like he has. He wasn't stellar here; DJ was the least compelling part of the show. I'm embarrassed on his behalf and embarrassed at myself for getting so caught up in his plotline in the first place.
I guess... I won't lie and say that I don't feel as though he was robbed, but I do feel as though being in the show did neither him nor the show any sort of service.
As things stand now, if I weren't a fan of N, I'd be pretty pissed that he was in the show at all, especially if Jisoo could've had elements of his character and more screentime in exchange. IMHO you guys are being too merciful, N was throwing me off the entire time. I'm glad you are, though. It means that he's not impeding your enjoyment of the story in the same way he's grating on mine.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 2:37 AM
lol yeah, I did have the dubious privilege of watching N 'act' in Hotel King, and I can only say it's a VERY good thing that Sassy Go Go has given him limited screentime and a character who's written as someone with very limited expressiveness.
And for the most part, he's done ok and not stunk up the joint - it's obvious that his limited skill is the reason why Dong-jae's importance to the story itself is, well, not that much - he's a side character despite the poster and dramawiki putting him in the position of the traditional second lead instead of Ji-soo who was the real deal.
(which is something that really peeves me, idol actors getting credit for much more than they actually do/the actual second lead actor getting robbed of credit. This happened with Kim Ji-won in Heirs, where she was the actual second lead but the poster and wikis list Krystal in that spot. And now it's happening with Ji-soo too.....which really bugs me).
I may come off as harsh, but frankly, the annoyance against idol actors is perfectly understandable - too many idol actors breeze into plum roles without so much as an audition and then subsequently suck. And then their fans try to claim that they're entitled both to an acting career (because the day job isn't a career?) and to sucking (because they're not professional actors!) which pisses me off even more. And frankly, nothing annoys me more than seeing a great story marred by bad acting - I will never be able to love Dream High for that reason.
There are plenty of idol actors who are good, and even fantastic - Eunji and SIG are two very prominent examples who actually seem to be respected for their performances - but the problem is that the crappy ones keep booking major roles, and being praised for putting out performances that would have a rookie actor torn to shreds as an incompetent. Idols acting really only becomes a problem when they suck and keep sucking.
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June
November 8, 2015 at 7:32 PM
I still like Dream High because it introduced me to Kim So Hyun :p
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 8:55 PM
You mean Kim Soo Hyun :), and he was one of the only two cast members I'd actually have called good (the other being Eunjung)
saehee
November 6, 2015 at 1:55 PM
With regards to my theory... You've got a point. Kdrama writing is as wild as hell, lol. I'm floored that that kind of decision making goes into a show in the first place. I was wondering if the whole Jisoo-out-N-in drama from earlier in the promotions had resulted in recasting Jisoo to avoid backlash and characters had been shuffled around as a result, but maybe I was being a little too cynical on behalf of the marketing team or hopeful with regards to the writing team. Now I'm wondering what I should've been expecting here, tbh. I've never committed to watching an idol project before and I was seriously expecting another Reply.
I love N but I probably would have liked SGG a lot more if he hadn't been in it. Developing SA and HJ under the time constraints would've been ideal, and DJ didn't have to be there, period. I'm frustrated that I had expected so much in the first place, but if I hadn't, I would have missed out on LWG and JS and Soobin and some of the best acting I've seen from Eunji. Do you see what I mean? I didn't actually want Hakyeon to take on a harder role, I just wanted a cleaner story and for Hakyeon to be a better actor than he is so he could actually pull it off. I was invested in the one part of the show that ended up being kind of disappointing to me when the rest was good with a plotline trope that I never cared for. It's frustrating! I'm so used to letting a show just be without my preferences getting in the way, and yet here I am. I can't stop watching lol.
I do disagree that the live shooting didn't entail some different possible plotlines, though. The proof is in the previews, and just in filming in general; sometimes plots simply don't happen because of reasons. I'm pretty sure that was what happened here. Call me a tinhat but I'm not backing off on this one!
I think we also have to agree to disagree about the disability thing but that might be a case of N's acting severely underwhelming me again, rofl. God I wish he was only in the show when Eunji was around.
btw thank you for being so patient with your replies lol we are coming from really different sides of the tracks so i appreciate you taking the time to talk me down. i'm trying, i swear.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 2:44 AM
The Ji-soo in/N out thing, there seems to have been a little confusion about it but I doubt any casting director in their right mind (and the SGG casting director was spot-on with everyone, so he/she definitely did their job right) would even dream of making N play Ha-joon, or a character even remotely close to volatile, ten-expressions-in-one-look Ha-joon. I'd seriously question the sanity of anyone who thought it was a good idea.
N doesn't add much to the series, but he doesn't detract from it either. I get what you mean - Dong-jae is narrative dead weight, which probably explains why we got a few episodes with a lot less of his scenes and Yeon-doo hanging out with the other two boys instead. But for what his role is - cute sidekick to the heroine - he's ok.
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fishfingers_fb
November 7, 2015 at 8:31 AM
"ten-expressions-in-one-look Ha-joon"
brb flailing over how perfect that description is
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 7, 2015 at 9:13 AM
I know, right?! A classic example of what I described is the ending scene of episode 8, just that one look at Yeon-doo contains so much.
And he and Eunji need to pair up again in something, I hope someone in the industry is watching this drama and taking notice of these kids slaying their roles left and right - Lee Won-geun, Eunji, Ji-soo and Chae Soo-bin.
saehee
November 7, 2015 at 2:47 PM
@pogo: (I'm sorry you had to watch Hotel King. Sincerely.)
I'd say that Dong Jae was a complicated role, actually, and I wish a better actor had been playing him. :(
I really wish N's role had been closer to his actual personality? At least the direction of "be yourself but x" would have been a lot easier to watch than him just deadpanning through the entire show. The parts where he was with Eunji were where he had been showing much more of his own personality, and I can't say Eunji wasn't a small part of the magic (seriously, I think she could make statues dance), but I also can't say that playing to his strengths was a bad idea.
That's why I got caught up in my theories; if DJ'd been written caring, yet smothering and morally questionable, N would play a character closer to his actual personality and his stage persona. I have no idea if he could actually pull it off, but those are real elements of his personality and he's gotten plenty of practice looking menacing and eerie onstage (and to be honest those are his strengths - he's adorable but he's so much more convincing as a maniac). At least he'd have something to work with.
The next time he takes on a project (and he will, I don't think anyone could stop him) I'm actually hoping he takes on a villain role, or at least someone who can smolder at the camera without actually having to do much else. I'm not saying he has range, I just want him to take on a project where he doesn't have to work so hard to be someone he's not.
I'm actually pretty worried about Hongbin from the same band in Moorim School next year for the same reasons. He's gorgeous and his acting has improved but I don't want him to run into the same problems.
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 8:41 AM
@saehee - ha, I don't blame him for that - I went into it for the Lee Dong-wook/Lee Da-hae reunion (My Girl <333) but the entire thing sucked. And given what I have seen, I think he got the easiest job possible in Sassy Go Go - a lot of idols do ok at playing characters who are just like them even if they can't play anything else, but others struggle with even that. And whatever their image is like in the idol side of their careers, it doesn't generally translate to being able to pull off a role with an image like that as actors.
Pretty much the only thing that's interesting about Dong-jae is his oddball deadpan-ness and occasional cuteness with Yeon-doo/interactions with Soo-ah (which also work because of the deadpan-ness). If he'd been written "normal" i.e. his normal self, he'd basically be redundant in the script since all the other boys are like that already. N simply doesn't have whatever acting chops would be required to make him a blackmailing mastermind or the other things you envisioned for him - the writer of SGG has really done him and the viewers a huge favour by limiting his role to what he can do effectively on screen.
fishfingers_fb
November 8, 2015 at 10:26 AM
@pogo, I looked up the writer's previous work, and am now wondering if King's Face is worth watching (I only watched 2 episodes of it and then just ended up not going back to it). Also, this 'Little Girl Detective Park Hae Seol' which is a 4-ep drama special...have you seen either? Anyone else? Opinions?
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 8, 2015 at 11:08 AM
@fishfingers_fb - I stopped after episode 1 of King's Face since the premise didn't interest me at all, but from what I've heard it's actually better than people expected it to be? I believe the same writer also wrote Mandate of Heaven, which I found rather plodding (and the protagonists rather dull - too perfect and good). I've not seen any other work, but based on what I do know of their full-length dramas, maybe they're better at modern dramas than sageuk?
saehee
November 8, 2015 at 4:36 PM
@pogo: lol well as long as you got through it right? :/ i probably would have given up no matter how much i liked the actors in question. you're a trooper.
I had another answer typed up but I realized that you may have gotten the wrong idea here. I like N as a person and as a performer and I'm still conflicted about his performance, but if DJ had been played by a completely different actor and everything else had been identical, I still would have been unhappy with the way the story has progressed for him and in general. If N had suddenly been a magically amazing performer and been cast as Kim Yeol and some other idol actor had been cast as DJ I still would have been unhappy with DJ's plotline and the story progression. (THIS IS NOT WHAT I WANT AT ALL! THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE.) My proposed alternate plotline would still have made me happier than the current plotline.
I've said from the beginning that I do have a bias but I also wanted to express my opinions from the perspective of what I wanted from the entire story, not just from DJ's plotline. I've tried to stay true to what I intended to write about, which were my preferences for the whole story (which are as subjective as hell and do not need to be taken seriously, especially if you like it). If I've failed in that, I apologize, that wasn't my intention. I really enjoy talking about N as a performer, and I may have gotten carried away, but my priority was to the narrative and I was disappointed with it. That's what I'm getting at here.
I'm disappointed that so much of the time spent on the main three characters could've been rebalanced to include all five of the leads instead of basically dropping a character in the last fifth of the show. (I'm mad about Yoo Jung and Hak Chan in Reply 1997 for the same reason and they were handled fantastically and I still love the show beyond question. The main characters of SUFBB did not run into this problem, it was a very well-constructed narrative overall.) This show has been about pursuing happiness from the start, and I don't think that DJ's character was well rounded or as effective as he could have been in supporting that theme, especially as a character who was billed as a lead. Again, my feelings would have been the same even if N had not been cast and I had approached the show blind to all of the cast and characters.
I could have done without a lot of things for narrative cohesion: the parents' loveline, DJ's entire existence, the love triangle. Streamlining any of that out would have made me happy. That's me personally, though! I wasn't here for this story, but this worked for you. It's fine! Like I said in the last post, I'm really glad you've found something love about the show. I just can't say that I feel the same, no matter who was cast for what and why. I'm sorry.
(I could bail but I still want to know if Soo Ah will be okay? haha fml)
pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 9, 2015 at 9:42 AM
@saehee - you mention that you'd still have been unhappy with Dong-jae's plotline even if he'd been played by a much better actor - but the thing is, in many dramas (including this one), characters end up pretty much being defined and limited by what their actors can do, because the writers work around that. (this happened in Dream High and also in SUFBB)
It also means that initial plans to maybe do more with a character might not work out simply because the actor doesn't have the chops for it, so they end up sticking to what they think the actor (idol or not) CAN do. And on the flip side, it also means that drama dark horses - the characters who aren't necessarily highlighted as strongly in the publicity - end up taking more of the spotlight because the reception to their performance is just that positive (see: Kim Ji-soo, Angry Mom. And also here - he wasn't even promoted as the second lead or hinted to have any love lines, and now he is and does). We simply wouldn't have the same Dong-jae if he'd been played by anyone else - with another actor, they may well have decided to take the plot in another direction and give Dong-jae more to do. Or not, depending on how things went with the acting.
Again, I reiterate that I find N perfectly adequate as Dong-jae - for the most part, he's done what he was given to do, and done it in a manner that (mostly) doesn't make me cringe to watch him. This is only a consideration of how his limitations may have affected the character as it was being written. But thank you for being willing to discuss this at length and not start foaming at the mouth like most fans of acting-challenged idol actors usually do when db and its commenters fail to praise their idols. You're quite the exception, that way!
saehee
November 10, 2015 at 12:04 PM
I feel that, and I guess I'm grateful that PDs aren't keen on pushing idols out of a controllable box. At least it makes for good to neutral press. Must be hell for actors trying to break into the business from the ground up, though. Getting into a production for one role and then suddenly switching to another as changes in plot and ratings dictate? That sounds like a hell of a lot of stress for so many reasons...
I'm really trying not to sound delusional... I know what fans can be like, trust me. Even after this conversation, I'm still going to believe that a role that suits N's actual personality and performative strengths would be good for him, lmao. But shoving examples of my position into your face is the last thing I want to do, especially since you haven't invited it and doing so would probably make me go from zero to batshit in under ten seconds. I don't really want to start shit and you've been kind enough to humor me in all of my ranting, haha. The least I could do is have a bit of self control!
Trust me when I say that, while I disagree with your evaluation of N's capabilities, I still understand and respect your opinion on the matter. Thanks for sticking it out with me, lol. :) (i swear that's just a gif of n giving you a saucy wink it's harmless i promise)
49 Grnapple31
November 6, 2015 at 9:28 AM
JayHee,
I'm copying the link here but it was posted above (I want to make sure to give credit) and Eunzit subbed it.
http://youtu.be/u3MSPbznic0
Warning: don't die from watching it.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 12:22 PM
Too late, please order me a coffin.
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50 Shader
November 6, 2015 at 9:35 AM
Can we just say how well Chae Soo Bin is portraying Soo Ah considering she's a rookie actress with only a few projects under her belt. She has such an innocent yet cute face but she comes off vindictive and evil in her role. I look forward to her future projects.
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pogo - sailing HMS Queen of Tears and HMS Sailboat Lovely Runner🍉
November 6, 2015 at 10:04 AM
I first encountered Chae Soo-bin earlier this year when she had a cameo in Spy and made a stronger impression in five minutes than most of the other actors (notably the female lead) managed in the entire drama.
I'm still mind-blown by the fact that she only debuted last year, her performances have a finesse that is way above the level of what I'd expect from a rookie.
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