Thank you so much, Saya 💖💖 I love this show and loved reading your thoughts on it!

What a pleasant surprise!
Thanks for coming through guys 💖

Yay! Thank you for creating this thread for us. I love this show. Am very antsy about how the cliffhanger is going to be resolved. Very worried about Yoon-bok. Only 12 more hours until I will have a chance to watch the next episode . . .

One of the things I love about this show is all the Mother imagery. The matryoshka dolls and the Virgin statues. They just add into the exploration of what it means to be a mother, and the different types of mothers.

I'm hereeeeee! I really enjoy this show! Knew it was going to be an unpeaceful ride, but I followed through. I agree that this show, is not just about Soojin being a mother, but how the other side characters are a mother. Like Soojin's birth and adoptive mom, Yoonbok's real mom, and Yijin's stand on being a mom.

Saya <33333333333333333333. Thank you so so much!!!

Yeaay ! Mother's thread ! Thanks @Saya 😄
It's the only airing drama which I'm being emotionally attached to now. I like all of the characters in it, especially how they portrayed all kind of mother (Soo Jin, Cha Young Shin, Soo Jin's biological mother, Hye Na's mother, Ms. Clara at the orphanage, the twin's mother). Even the implicit romance between Soo Jin and doctor Jung feels interesting to me.. And of course Yoon Bok !

Haven't started watching the latest episodes so I'll come back later to read beanies' discussion 😉

Finally! After being pleasantly surprised with Misty's OT, I had been hoping one for this drama.

I love the way the characters are written. A lot has been said about the main characters so I'll talk about the side ones. Instead of stock characters or the typical villains in other dramas, characters here are given more layers and therefore interesting. Second Sis Yi Jin could just be a jealous, money-faced evil sister but she is more than that. I also love that Detective Lee isn't like the annoying Detective Kang in Misty. He's actually competent and has his heart in the right place.

The best written villain is Hye Na's biological mother. I still hate her for what she did to her daughter but the show is so good at showing how she tries to be a good mother and at the same time, abusing her daughter on many occasions.

Another show that I would love to see, and I will, someday. However, I did want to mention that all these female-centric shows are gaining momentum in both the domestic and international realm, and their popularity is increasing too. I’m thrilled that Dramabeans has this forum and is willing to open this discussion thread! So many writers in Korea are female and it’s anout time that they are writing these shows and that they are getting the air time they so desperately deserve. In both Misty and Mother, there are women that are not afraid to enact change, for the better, hopefully, which gives me hope that our world will become a better place for it.

@saya thanks for the Open Thread!
I quickly skimmed through (you know how you WANNA know and yet you don't want spoilers so you really just skiiiiim through? lol) and I really think I should give this show a shot. I was planning on staying away from melos for a bit but the praise you have given the mostly-female-cast has drawn me in!

now I have 3 shows to start this week!!
Misty
Shall We Kiss First
Mother

woohoo!

#NoKdramaSlumpHere

I’m so glad that there’s a thread for this show because I’ve been wanting to discuss it. Honestly it’s the only drama that I’ve been watching lately and it’s so good. I agree that Seol ak is chilling. I get anxious anytime he’s on screen and I just KNEW he was going to kidnap Yoon bok but my question is why???? He abused her visciously and killed a child before her. He clearly has no capacity for emotion so is it just because he can’t stand the thought that a she got away? If not for Soo Jin, she would have been dead anyway after being beaten and left in that trash bag. Same with Ja Young, I think her only motivation for going to the police after finding Yoon bok was because she’s jealous. She literally had a funeral for her and wanted to keep up the charade that Yoon Bok was dead so I think that she can’t stand that she’s happy without her. Episode 9 was insteresting in that way as t showed the juxtaposition between her and Hong hee. They both had children at young ages but whereas Hong hee looked happy to take baby Soo Jin everywhere, Ja Young looked irritated that Yoon Bok cried as a baby and asked her for food. I was realllly hoping that Soo Jin and Yoon Bok would get away and the restriction of the drama would be about their happy life together but I knew that when presenting a case like this, it would only be too complicated.

This is such a haunting show. There have been so many touching, moving, and emotional scenes. I love that we have nuanced characters, as other Beanies above have also noted. I also appreciate the score, which is hitting all the right notes for me (I didn't even notice the pun until I went over what I wrote, lol) . I'd rather have this kind of music than jarring ballads or pop songs. I love this kind of subtlety when it comes to music choices.

Finally!!!!!! 🙂☺😀

Thank youuuu for the weecap!
Finally, somewhere to share our thoughts on this amazing drama!
Thank goodness I didnt tear my computer screen to shreds on the first ep! The first ep was menacing, and making me angry and afraid. It was hard to watch but got me to think a lot, since I saw many people got kids not because they are ready for the responsibility, but because of external pressure, or because they misunderstand the meaning of love...and end up neglecting and abusing their kids, and even worse, also being the prey (and let their kids be the prey) of some jerk who wants to free ride, by using their vulnerability.

The words: Please dont leave me, oppa. I wont be able to take care of this kid alone! I would just die without youuuu!!
Really, it has to stop. I feel like scratching the screen with a fork, each time she said that.
And guess what. He left nevertheless.

I love this drama to bits! The cinematography, the way they weave the story, the muted tone, and how it made me thinking. I love how it made me love my daughter more, and really be there for her. I love how it described us about what being mother means, the hardship of motherhood, the readiness it demands (really girls and boys, i heard you when you said that you love your bf/gf, but you should watch this before thinking of having unprotected sex!), the vulnerability of young single mothers, etc.

I absolutely love all mother-daughter time and granny-grandchild time. Even the conversations are like warm milk on cold, sleepless night. It was perfection.

Thank you, Saya!

Thanks @saya for doing this: I love this drama so much. The writing and the characterisation is so spot on.

It's an well-researched fact that the victims of abuse often do not act while they are being abused, but step in and act as soon as the abuser moves on to another (probably younger) victim. It's SooJin's abuse at the hands of her mother's boyfriend as a child that makes her step in when she sees Yoon-bok being abused. She tries to look away but can't and she acts. In a way this is mirrored when Yoon-bok doesn't cry when she gets hit but cries when the mother's boyfriend kills her gerbil.

I think the drama is very careful with its plotting and timing which is awesome. For example, Yoon-bok's mother gets arrested for child abuse hours before Yoon-bok tells the doctor her real name. Had the mother not been arrested, the doctor would/could probably not have supported SooJin.

I was 3 episodes behind and freaking out last Friday when people were commenting on how creepy the bf was - because I was worried that the doctor was going to turn out bad. I was relieved when it turned out everybody was talking about the serial killer BF.

Like @saya, I'm shipping the doctor and SooJin so hard. How nice is it that he wanted to meet her because they had a hobby in common!

YESSSSS!!!! Thank you @Saya!! I love your comments. This drama showcases all the different types of mothers. As haunting as seems, it's a welcoming haunt because the story is so well captured on screen. Thank you again!!

Oh my goodness! This drama is absolutely gripping!!

Hye Jins Mother is clearly mentally ill. She also was left to raise a newborn on her own which probably made things worse. She does know right from wrong so ultimately she deserves prison for life minimum with all her shenanigans!!! Mr boyfriend needs solitary confinement or worse ugh he scares the ish outta me.

I'm being honest but everytime the conflict focus on Soo Jin, I'm abit lukewarm. It's not the writers fault. If only Soo Jin act with a different actress. so I want that right moment when the show finally focus on Hyena and her conflict and I'm not dissapoint get what i got. I'm in crying mess in episode 9.

Yey, Saya, you picked this up! *squinting through to avoid spoilers* It seems like a show that needs beanie group therapy after each episode. :)

What I like most about this show is that it's about different types/kinds of mother. I think we can relate or see our own mother in some of them.
I view them mostly from Hye-na's eyes and Heo Yool is doing a great job playing such a heavy role for a little girl.
I think she captured the heart of the original even though her character is exposed to more dramatic events.

I've seen 10 eps so far and I don't know what to talk about and where to begin. I don't want to go back, I just want to ride with the show as it is.

I'm looking forward to more of Madam Cha. I love Lee Hye-young and her matriarchal household. On the surface they may not seems to be tight but when this tragedy strikes, I hope they'll prove how much they love and need each other.

Thanks for the open thread and the summary, Saya! Yoon Bok's so much craves a normal childhood and a happy, large family that you feel sad .... things which are a given in a regular household are dreams for her. Su Jin's sister annoys me much as the money-hungry, always jealous younger sibling. The villainous boyfriend is soo creepy and psycho that I almost stop breathing when he is onscreen. The episode 10 cliffhanger was horrible .... hope everyone keeps safe and are reunited soon. What's gonna happen to Sujin?

Now that the cops are on to Soo-jin anyway, I really want the other teacher, the one Soo-jin entrusted with the documentation of Hye-na's abuse, to step forward. The cops need to know how bad it was before Soo-jin took matters into her own hands.

(I just watched today's episode. It's not a spoiler to say that my heart was pounding throughout, is it?)

Yaaaaayyyyyyyy.... honestly, i skipped episode 1. because i dont think a cant bearable with kids-violence in this drama. but then, episode 2 get me hooked, and dr.Jung makes me want to marry him somehow! (sorry mr.husband)
and yes, finally.... thank you @saya !

and @mary , u are absolutely right, i need some of those beaniesgroup-therapy every thursday and friday, after watched the show. but work is fierce nowadays, i dont have time to read all the fanwall about Mother to get those therapy. *sad*

I won't spoil but after last night's episode, every moms- and dads-to-be need to watch this show as a prerequisite for having kids! The angles explored in this drama is not just entertaining but so eye-opening.

I LOVE this show! A little different than my love for Misty but I love it nevertheless. One thing I noticed though that prevents me from loving it more is Dr Jung.

Dont get me wrong. I ship him with Soojin as much as the drama wants me too (A LOT). He’s also probably one of the top 3 sweetest, most genuine, thoughtful, respectful, unselfish gentleman in kdramaland. But.... is it weird to think that he is TOO perfect? Like there is absolutely no fault in him. Like... none.

I mean I understand the need for him and I don’t know how he can be less perfect of a character but man... he is why I have such high standards (kidding but not really).

But besides that, this drama is riveting and heartwrenching and makes me think so much about the meaning of motherhood. I never cried so much in a drama 😭 I just cant wait for a happy ending. Please let Soojin, YoonBok and Dr Jung be a happy family by the end of this. PLEASE

I love this drama so. much. It's not for everyone, since it has some pretty significantly heavy material in it. But those things need to be openly discussed.

I love it that the title refers to so many kinds of mothers, so many questions about what makes a good one, so many issues mothers face.

I also think the acting is phenomenal. And I love the cinematography, too. Really, this is one of the best dramas I've seen in a long time. And that role was made for Lee Bo Young. I cannot say enough good about it!

thanks @saya for the wee-est weecap!! the most memorable parts of the show glossed over in the recap for me were:

1. youngsin and soojin’s conversation about truly being a mother: “you will only truly become a mother when you accept money, putting away your pride, since you will never know what will happen to your child in future, and how money will be your best friend in that situation”

2. yoonbok’s rejection of jayoung, when jayoung used the same, previously effective technique of saying that a child can only be happy when her mom is happy: “i neither like nor dislike mom, because you are no longer my mom. whether you are happy or not, it doesn’t affect me, because now i am no longer your child”

3. hyunjin’s outburst regarding how her future job security will be threatened if soojin is exposed to have ties with her, and hyunjin’s subsequent change in mindset, not to blame but to understand soojin: “i will uncover the whole truth and write the most unbiased article, because i want to know what made my sister do that”

4. sister clara and yoonbok playing the word game: (upon having to leave sister clara behind and implied not so nice things happening to her,) yb: “mom, i thought of a word to reply to sister clara’s game. please go back, i need to tell it to her,”

Thanks for this open thread. Great way to discuss shows as well. Really heavy material and show different types of mothers and how abandonment impacts children differently.

That little girl Heo Yool is such a gem, who discovered her.She is just lovely as Yoon bok.

Oh my, as a new mom, this show touched me in so many level! The whole cast is simply amazing, especially all the actresses and Yoon Bok! I love this show brings out the love and struggles of motherhood. Hearing the stories from Soo Jin's biological mom and her adopted mom are truly heartwenching :( the sacrifices one made for their child are immeasurable! I can't believe I also can understand Yoon Bok' s birth mom story as well. In a way after she had Yoon Bok, she lost her sense of self and cannot go back to the life she used to have pre-baby. That's why she was unhappy. I totally understand that, but it's unacceptable to lay her frustration to her child in a form of abuse. It broke my heart <\3 Poor Yoon Bok has to grow up so fast :( I hope this show will have a happy ending! ♡♡♡

The thing that really struck me up until this point of the show is the way in which it deals so generously with our feelings of ambivalence about the people who loves us. That we both desire to be free and to be responsible, that we both want to be possessed and to be unburdened. We are essentially birds in cages: locked up, fed and safe while dreaming of a time the cage will open and we will fly free.

Soo-jin kept a feather from a migratory bird locked in a safe disguised as a book with a key kept hidden in another book - a means of escape. But it was only through her accepting the responsibility of motherhood that she was able to finally open that safe and explore her past, even as she was unable to fly free to Iceland because of that responsibility.

I also really love the Russian dolls and the way that Yoon-bok used them to describe her 'mother' - we are all one large doll with the smaller dolls of our past experiences inside us. Everything we are is what happened to us before, kept inside us and not able to be seen until we take ourselves apart.

In the end, our desire to fly free does not trump our desire to be caged in by loving somebody and it's only through accepting that responsibility that we are finally able to reconcile who we are with who we were before.

comment on regarde L’épisode 2

I feel slighted for not beginning this sooner. What a transcendent beautiful and moving story. It's so awful that child abuse exists in this world, this drama should also be on Netflix btw.

I'm up to Ep 10, and it's a bummer that Ep 2-10 were not individually recapped on here?! And then it got we-capped later on despite the first episode being recapped?? Very confused on that, this is on par with My Ahjussi. You see LBY's character Soo Jin transform from a cold person to a benevolent person with so much to give. Heo Yool as her adoptive daughter is such a find, WOW WOW WOW. This show is a masterclass in acting, storytelling, directing, and writing. A Must Watch!!! Don't be like me, and wait this long to finally watch this.