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It’s Okay to Not Be Okay: Episode 15

by SailorJumun

In its penultimate episode, It’s Okay takes all the pain that’s been building up and unleashes it all at once. There are just some forces determined to tear our characters apart and keep them miserable. Luckily, our hero is no stranger to misery — he’s been there and he’s getting better and better at finding his way out.

 
EPISODE 15: “A tale of two brothers”

We rewind to Do Hui-jae holding Sang-tae in the mansion — and it looks like she drugged his drink, as he’s getting sleepier and sleepier. She caresses his hair, and he weakly resists before passing out on the couch.

That’s when Hui-jae calls Kang-tae using Sang-tae’s phone. She laughs at Kang-tae’s worried tone, saying he’s always looking for his brother. Well, if he wants to meet them, she says, he’ll have to come to the cursed castle.

Kang-tae is back at the mansion in no time, walking right in and finding Hui-jae in the study. Kang-tae panics to see his brother unconscious, and again, Hui-jae laughs. She says it’s too bad she wasn’t able to put Moon-young to sleep as well: “I really wanted to see which one of them you’d choose.”

Kang-tae demands to know why Hui-jae is doing this to them, and she answers that they changed her daughter. In other words, they ruined her most precious artwork that she so carefully molded.

Kang-tae angrily argues that Moon-young is a person and not artwork, making Hui-jae explode. Because of him, she screams, Moon-young won’t listen to her. And like any other artwork that fails, she’ll have to discard her.

To Kang-tae’s horrified expression, Hui-jae smiles and says, “I don’t want to do that because of all the hard work I’ve done.” So she’s giving him the chance to take his brother and run away, as far away from Moon-young as possible.

As Hui-jae expected, Kang-tae refuses, so she presents him with another option: Kill her. That way, Kang-tae gets his revenge and Moon-young returns to her old self; it’s the perfect ending where everyone’s happy. He tells her to give up that stupid ending, because he’ll never give up on Moon-young.

Even when, Hui-jae asks, Moon-young is the reason why Kang-tae’s mother died? She’s more than happy to go into that story, saying she met his mom right here.

In flashback, we see that Kang-tae’s mom was sent to the mansion as the family’s new housekeeper. One day, while outside, Mom saw that the young Moon-young was fixated on a bird with a broken wing. And to Mom’s surprise, Moon-young was wondering if she should put the bird out of its misery.

Concerned, Mom would later relay this to Hui-jae, who smiled and said that she was proud of her daughter.

But then Mom started to suggest Moon-young go to the hospital her eldest son went to, and Hui-jae frowned. We transition from Hui-jae stabbing her paperwork with her pen… to that night in the alley, when she stabbed Mom in the neck.

“That’s it?” Kang-tae says, voice shaking. “Because of one thing she said, you killed her?” Seeing the smug look on Hui-jae’s face, Kang-tae snaps — he lunges forward and starts to choke her. As he does, she just encourages him to kill her, to not be weak.

Kang-tae’s crying, feeling nothing but fury, when he suddenly remembers something Moon-young said. It’s from the night she was drunk, when she admitted that she still viewed Hui-jae as her mom. With this in mind, Kang-tae slowly releases his hold on Hui-jae.

All of a sudden, Hui-jae grabs a tranquilizer from her bag and shoves it into Kang-tae’s side. She watches him fall to his knees, saying that he is weak, unlike her and her daughter.

Just then, Moon-young comes rushing in, taking in the scene. She stares down Hui-jae and states that she’s not like her, that she’s not a monster. She then grabs a pen off the desk and comes at her. But Kang-tae quickly puts himself between them, stopping the pen with his palm.

“You promised that you wouldn’t do this,” Kang-tae says, before passing out in Moon-young’s arms. In shock, Moon-young starts crying and begging for him to wake up.

Hui-jae comes up behind them and grabs Moon-young by the hair, seething that this is what she gets for not listening, for thinking she could ever escape. With that, Hui-jae takes the pen and raises it over Kang-tae–

And wham! Sang-tae hits Hui-jae over the head with a book, yelling, “Don’t hurt my siblings!” We see Hui-jae fall to the ground, and then we pan back to Sang-tae standing over his siblings, only now it’s their younger selves.

The next thing we know, the police arrive and take Hui-jae into custody (thanks to Director Oh, it seems). Seeing Director Oh, Hui-jae tells him that she’s already won; Moon-young and Kang-tae are too weak to stay together. But Director Oh says that people stay together because they’re weak.

Director Oh elaborates that people lean on each other and that’s what makes them human. When will Hui-jae become human, he wonders. Before the police take Hui-jae away, Director Oh asks her what she did with Park Ok-ran.

Hui-jae calls Ok-ran a great actress, and we see that before, Hui-jae would send her notecards with screen directions like “Walk down the hall and hum.” Hui-jae says that Ok-ran has left the stage now, and in return, Director Oh says that Hui-jae should leave the stage too. He watches as the car drives off, with her laughing inside.

Later, Director Oh gets Kang-tae settled in Moon-young’s bed and hooked up to an IV. Director Oh assures Moon-young that Kang-tae will wake up soon, but the worry never leaves her face. When Director Oh leaves, Moon-young sits by Kang-tae’s side and takes his hand, which is now bandaged up.

“You get hurt because of me every single time,” Moon-young says, tears streaming down her face. She remembers what her mom said, about them being the same, and she continues that she’ll ruin his life if they stay together.

Meanwhile, Sang-in is at the police station desperately trying to reach Moon-young or Kang-tae or anyone. Ha, apparently, after Moon-young ran off, he was pulled over for making an illegal U-turn and nearly hitting a deer. He’s been stuck at the station since, having no idea what’s happened.

Joo-ri and Seung-jae finally come to Sang-in’s rescue, and Joo-ri assures him that, according to Jae-soo, Moon-young and Kang-tae are fine. Still in the dark, Joo-ri asks what happened. Sang-in doesn’t go into details, but he does say that the couple have it so hard, as if some mean god is relentlessly sending them misfortunes.

Joo-ri brings up the law of the total number of misfortunes. They all have their set amount of happiness and misfortune assigned. And since the couple has endured all their misfortunes, they’re sure to get their happiness soon. To that, Sang-in smiles, while behind them, Seung-jae shudders from the cheesiness.

Jae-soo is still with Sang-tae, who can’t stop bragging about the way he saved his brother and sister. Jae-soo is proud of him (as am I), but he does worry when Kang-tae will wake up — is he Sleeping Beauty or something? In response, Sang-tae says that Sleeping Beauty needs a kiss, hee.

Eventually, much into the night, Kang-tae wakes up alone. He stumbles out of bed and runs to his room, relieved to find his brother sound asleep. He turns and sees Moon-young there waiting for him, smiling sadly. He starts to say that he had a really long nightmare, and she tells him that it was real.

With that, Moon-young takes Kang-tae downstairs to talk, and she surprises him by telling him to move out. She explains that she’s not an empty can, that she has feelings too, so she can never forget how much she made the brothers suffer. And she knows that the brothers won’t be able to forget either.

“Rather than forget it,” Kang-tae says, “we can overcome it.” He’s confident that he can think of today’s events as nothing but a nightmare. But she just tells him to stop acting like everything’s okay. If he stayed, he’d be wearing a mask around her just as he did around Sang-tae, and she doesn’t want that.

Moon-young orders Kang-tae to leave with Sang-tae tomorrow. She gets up to leave, but he grabs her and asks if she’s being sincere. Her expression cold, she says that she is, and that she wants to go back to living alone. He reluctantly lets her go, and she escapes to her room. Once alone, she quietly tells herself, “You did well.”

The next morning, Kang-tae wakes Sang-tae, hugging him and thanking him for saving them. Curious, Sang-tae then asks why a nice person like Nurse Park would try to harm them. Kang-tae tries to be careful with his words and explains that she was only pretending to be nice.

In reality, Kang-tae says, Nurse Park hated seeing people happy. That reminds Sang-tae of Do Hui-jae’s book The Murder of the Witch of the West, which had a character who killed anyone who was happy. They both agree that Nurse Park and the character are horrible people.

The brothers turn to look at Sang-tae’s giant stuffed dinosaur. Since the dinosaur was a gift from Nurse Park, Kang-tae figures they should throw it out. “No,” Sang-tae argues. “Dooly’s mom didn’t do anything wrong. The person who gave it to me is bad, but Dooly’s mom isn’t.” Kang-tae smiles, saying that he’s right.

In her room, Moon-young is still in bed, unable to stop thinking about when Kang-tae got hurt. She hears Kang-tae at the door telling her that he left breakfast and that he’s going to the hospital, but she doesn’t answer.

Kang-tae joins Sang-tae downstairs, and he hesitantly asks what he would do if Moon-young asked them to move out. Naturally, Sang-tae says that they would have to take her with them. And if she told them to go alone, he would tell her “Over my dead body.” At first, Kang-tae laughs, and then he nods, determined.

At OK Hospital, Kang-tae turns in his letter of resignation. Kang-tae tells Director Oh that he’ll be taking a break, and Director Oh smiles and says that he’s taking a break too — he feels he has to take responsibility for what happened. Kang-tae is saddened to hear this, but even so, he asks that he can have one last session.

Kang-tae admits that he lied to Moon-young. When he thinks about Do Hui-jae and how unfairly his mom died, it’s actually unbearable. Director Oh nods with understanding. “Being together torments you,” he says. “But if you break up, it’ll be equally painful. If both options feel like death, wouldn’t it be better to suffer together?”

Director Oh figures that Kang-tae wanted to kill Hui-jae, so why didn’t he? Hearing that Kang-tae stopped because he thought of Moon-young, Director Oh says that that’s his answer. The one who torments him can also be the one who saves him.

Back at the mansion, Moon-young comes downstairs, and Sang-tae immediately wants to show her his homework. She tells him that the homework doesn’t matter anymore, because she’s not publishing her book. She asks him to move out, and, just as he said he would, he says, “Over my dead body!”

Later, Sang-in and Seung-jae come by when Moon-young is covering up the furniture with sheets. Sang-in is horrified to learn that she’s selling the house, and even more so that she wants to quit writing. When Moon-young walks away, Seung-jae suggests they simply find another writer to work with.

Sang-in looks at Seung-jae incredulously, saying he was never in this for the money. He knows that writing fairy tales is Moon-young’s only way of speaking to the world. So Moon-young saying she’s quitting is pretty much her saying she’s given up on living.

After Kang-tae’s impromptu therapy session, he tells Director Oh that he’ll still come by to visit — maybe even plant a tree out in the garden.

Kang-tae returns home and finds Moon-young in bed, in the middle of a nightmare. He places the Mang-tae doll in her hand to calm her, inadvertently waking her up. Seeing that he’s still here, she tells him to move out already; he’s the one who always said he didn’t want people leaning on him.

Besides, she says, people like her are meant to live alone and not with others. But he argues that that’s impossible for her: “Because now, you know how it feels to have a warm heart and full stomach.” He leans in, touching her cheek, and tells her to admit that she’s just a kid longing to be loved.

Moon-young looks at Kang-tae, that exact longing in her eyes, but she snaps herself out of it and goes under the covers. Ever persistent, Kang-tae asks if she wants to hear a story (ignoring her protests).

“A long time ago, there lived two brothers who cared for each other very much. One day, it was the harvest season, so they both harvested rice. The older brother was worried his little brother might run out of rice, so he secretly carried a sack of rice at night and left it in front of his little brother’s house. The same day, the little brother also carried a sack of rice and put it in front of his older brother’s house… This continued for days.”

Kang-tae concludes that the moral of the story is that loved ones should stick together, so they don’t end up doing pointless work. He admits that Sang-tae came up with the story, and he too believes in it.

Kang-tae gets frustrated when Moon-young still refuses to come out, so he yells at her for being stubborn. That gets her out, demanding to know if he just raised his voice at her. And, HA, he’s so flustered that he blames it on the echo in the room and then scurries out.

The brothers are disappointed that the story failed, with Sang-tae assuming Kang-tae told it in a boring way. Later, they try to get Moon-young to eat dinner, since she hasn’t eaten for days, but she won’t be moved. So Kang-tae makes a call, initiating a Plan B.

The next day, Joo-ri calls Moon-young and says that her mom is sick, and that she’d appreciate it if Moon-young went down and checked on her. Though Moon-young refuses, we immediately cut to her at the apartment. And whataya know, Mom is completely fine.

To Moon-young’s surprise, Mom has prepared a meal for her. “Just go along with it and eat,” Mom says. “Do you know how many people were involved in planning this so we could put something in that empty stomach?” In flashback, we see that Kang-tae called Sang-in, wanting him and the others to help him out. Mom even took the day off work to pull off the charade. Augh, as if I didn’t love them enough already.

Of course, Moon-young can’t deny Mom’s hospitality, so she obediently sits down and eats. She gets emotional, though, when she hears that Kang-tae set this up; she wonders why they’re all so nice to her. Smiling, Mom says it’s because everything about her is lovable — especially the fact that she likes Kang-tae for who he is. Speechless, Moon-young blinks away her tears and continues to eat. Soon, Jae-soo shows up (right on schedule) to be her drinking buddy, and to trash talk Kang-tae.

Meanwhile, Kang-tae and Sang-tae are at the hospital planting a new tree, an ornament with their family portrait hanging on its branch. Kang-tae dedicates the tree to their mom, saying they can visit it whenever they miss her.

The boys sweetly greet their mom, bragging about how well they’ve grown. Kang-tae promises to take care of Sang-tae, but Sang-tae says that their mom didn’t have him to be the protector. Sang-tae is the big brother, and he proved that by saving him.

But now, Sang-tae thinks it’s about time Kang-tae takes care of himself. Because Sang-tae is “too busy,” lol. As Sang-tae walks off, the teary-eyed Kang-tae laughs and says, “You heard that, right, Mom?”

Moon-young comes home late, and by that time, she’s pretty drunk. She sees Sang-tae waiting for her on the stairs and joins him, a languid smile on her face. That smile turns into a pout, though, when he brings up his homework again.

She insists that she’s retiring, and to that, he retorts that he can find another bestie to work with. Offended by his lack of loyalty, she gives in and agrees to take a look at his drawings. Excited, he takes out his sketchbook and flips to a certain page — to a sketch of Kang-tae. Aww, it’s when Kang-tae was smiling in his sleep.

“It’s a happy expression,” he says. “He smiled like this after he told me he liked someone.” He points to the expression, saying it’s not fake, and she starts to cry. He’s confused by her reaction, but she simply says it’s because the drawing is so beautiful. She asks if she can keep it, and he gladly tears it out for her.

Sang-tae still wishes Moon-young would publish her book; he wants to be able to show it off to his mom. She asks what he means, and he explains that he and his brother planted a tree at the hospital.

So the next day, Moon-young visits this tree and gives the brothers’ mom a sincere apology. Kang-tae then appears, having followed her, and tells her that he’s going to keep trying. He’s going to overcome everything, so he wants her to stop pushing him away.

Incredulous, Moon-young walks past. Kang-tae stops her, holding out his hand and saying she should at least take responsibility for his injury. But he’s frustrated still, as she just apologizes and continues on. Now desperate, he calls out, “I love you. I love you, Go Moon-young.”

Moon-young stops in her tracks and turns to face him… only to turn away and keep walking. And, pffffft, he was not expecting that. He starts shouting, “I said I love you! I really love you!” the EXACT same way she did in Episode 4. From afar, a few patients watch him chase after her and joke that love sure changes people.

Once Moon-young is back home, she sits in the study and stares at the now wilted flowers that Kang-tae gave her on their trip. She sets them down when he barges in, and she’s annoyed as he continues to say that he loves her.

She starts to threaten him, meaning to say that she’s going to rip his mouth, but he kisses her and asks if she meant this. She’s too stunned to speak, even more so as he picks her up and gets her on the desk. Slowly, slowly, he leans in to kiss her again, as she slowly, almost painfully, leans away.

 
COMMENTS

I hate to say this, but this was the weakest episode, by far. It’s sad, because initially, the drama was going nowhere but up, consistently exceeding my expectations. But then Episodes 14 and 15 hit and everything fell apart. We had all this buildup, of this ghost haunting our characters, and it led to a disappointing payoff. It led to a confrontation that had me cringing into oblivion. Jang Young-nam’s acting as Do Hui-jae was way over the top, but I can’t even blame her. I have to blame the writing, because it took Do Hui-jae and made a laughable cartoon out of her. If I’d known that this was what we were getting, I would’ve checked out. I would’ve preferred it if the mother remained a ghost — a traumatic but intangible roadblock. And now I’m thinking of what the drama could’ve been, had it taken a more psychological horror approach rather than a real one.

I will say, though, that Sang-tae saving his siblings saved the episode for me. In fact, all of my favorite characters saved it. They were, and are, the one thing that’s kept me locked in this drama. I mean, thinking back to where they started, the amount of growth is unbelievable. For instance, the brothers were in this intense but toxic relationship, and it gradually turned into a genuine and healthy love. There’s more openness, more understanding. But most importantly, there’s a connection without being tied together. It’s like they finally found a way to be brothers but still have their own identities, their own lives. So, that moment with their mom’s tree was monumental. For years, Kang-tae had been hurt by what his mom said, about him being born to take care of his brother. But all that pain washed away when Sang-tae denied that claim. Kang-tae needed to hear that, even if it wasn’t from his mom.

Of course, it’s not just the brothers. The couple has gone through incredible growth too. The entire romance started with Moon-young seeing Kang-tae as a pretty object and wanting to keep him. With Kang-tae seeing Moon-young as a pest in his already miserable life. Now, things couldn’t be more different. Just compare the knife-stabbing scene in the first episode to the pen-stabbing scene in this episode. There was so much more meaning in Kang-tae’s save, so much more pain and sadness in their eyes. Which leads me to all the parallels. The parallel I just mentioned was certainly effective, but it was all the parallels after that really got me. Kang-tae had to spend the last few days in Moon-young’s shoes, and it was hilarious. For the first time ever, he was the pest vying for attention. He was the one putting himself out there. It was hilarious but also sweet, because it was coming from real love.

Real quick, I want to bring up my recapping process. I actually watch each episode twice, once to write the recap and once to take the screencaps. It can be tiring, but it can also be surprisingly enlightening. Because, I’ll admit it, the first time I watched this episode, I thought it was completely stupid and pointless. I thought to myself, why do we have to spend a whole hour on Moon-young sulking? Why, when her one roadblock is sitting in jail? Then, on my second viewing, her sulking made sense. Her roadblock was never her mom, but the idea of her mom. Or, more specifically, the idea of this family tie hurting everything she touches. That’s been her fear her entire life, and to have it happen right in front of her… Eesh. On top of that, she could see that it bothered Kang-tae. I appreciated that she acknowledged that, and that he acknowledged that in his therapy session. What they went through, it’s not easy to get over.

It’s not easy, but it’s possible. The first time Kang-tae said he could overcome his trauma, I didn’t believe him. But the second time he said it, at the end, I did believe. Because by then, he accepted that it was still bothering him and that it’s something he has to work on. Hopefully, in the drama’s final hour, Moon-young will accept that they can work through their troubles and still be happy together. That there’s a reason why Kang-tae and everyone else is fighting for her.

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Tags: It's Okay to Not Be Okay, Kim Soo-hyun, Oh Jung-se, Park Jin-ju, Park Kyu-young, Seo Ye-ji

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On any other day I would have pointed out the fun aspects of the episodes (KSH acting as MY is the best) but no, not today. As a person who loved this drama and rated it to be 95% perfect I just have to rationalize the Mom’s plot to be content. They clowned us all, they clowned us badly but that doesn’t mean I’ll live on with being proved wrong about the mom arc.
First let’s get the facts we got from ep1-14 about MY’s parents, Go Dae Hwan and Do Hui Jae (things aren’t written in its order of revelation):
1. Go Dae Hwan had brain tumor that caused cognitive deterioration mental disorders (symptoms- Hallucination, bouts of rage seen in ep-1,3)
2. His condition started more than 20 years ago, even before the night he attempted to kill his wife Do Hui Jae.
3. Do Hui Jae seems to truly have ASPD although the drama never confirmed this. But if we see her actions it is clear she manifests one or more psychological issues which she purposefully tried to imply on Moon Young to create a clone of her.
This is my rationalization of how things might have happened on the night they fought/confronted each other 20 yrs ago in the castle.
GDH was mortified over his illness and how things are about to affect his family. As a witness to his wife’s abusive behavior towards his child MY, he was having a hard time to think how things would turn out for MY and what type of “monster” his wife was. After few drinks he confronted DHJ while having an episode of rage (part of his mental/neural condition). Things escalated as they both provoked each with other, esp, DHJ as she delved into how the caretaker was obnoxious and got killed due to her intrusive behavior. Blinded by anger and thought of what a horrible person he has been living with, he pushed her. She did fall and hurt her head. MY has definitely witnessed this but the shock made her numb and distorted her memory of what happened afterwards. When he saw the blood flood the floor he realized his actions and quickly dragged the body to basement. But as DHJ wasn’t dead she escaped the castle. (MY has mentioned in an episode that the authority didn’t find a body after searching for the body) Disoriented, clearly drunk, hallucinated GDH then made up an alternate scenario where he disposed the body (Patients with neural complications [eg. Encephalitis, brain tumor] may face time lapse, loss/distortion of memory). The next morning when MY saw her father with muddy shoes that was only him returning after throwing an empty bag in a river.
Now coming to DHJ, she survived the fall and recovered from it. It must have taken a good 2/3 years to go through that AND get the full face plastic surgery. So let’s take 6 yrs out for her makeover. Now fixated on getting revenge and enjoying a second chance at being crazy, she figured out being a medical staff will let her torture her husband. Medical occupation is among the top 5 choices picked by psychopaths (at least according to the series hannibal). Being a highly...

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Disappearing of one person so important and with money she earned I don't know if they've reported her death, because father "killed" her by protecting his daughter's soul. Did they have separate bank accounts and the husband wasn't asked questions? They could have made another investigative series from this 😉

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I think they did report her death, I saw munyeong mention in one episode about how her body was searched but never found (that's a definite excuse to rewatch the episodes lol ).
Lemme come up with a rationalization over this issue once I rewatch it in a month. Apparently my love for the drama is so strong that my brain is refusing to accept any plotholes that might tarnish the drama's beauty. I am like a mother trying to make a child perfect by imposing things on it..... oh no that sounds eerily familiar *nervous laughter*

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I failed to read your explanation till the end and realized you accounted for everything and explanation solid 👍. Thanks that actually helps my injured mind. How she could have swam out of the water made no sense to me so him imagining that part makes a lot of sense.

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I don't blame you, dear. It's a damned 672-word long essay!!! Also, I just found out the conclusion part wasn't uploaded as the comment has 500-word limit 😂 Gotta add it in my comment.

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Being a highly intelligent and creative person she disguised herself, kept her demeanor low-key by getting joy from torturing her murderer (Let’s throw in some medical malpractice by her that worsened GDH’s condition because why not). She did keep a tab on MY during those 14 yrs. And that was an obsession which triggered her ep15 actions. Just how 20 yrs ago she was triggered to murder the woman who messed with her daughter, her urge to eliminate factors who/which may change her masterpiece MY resurfaced.

P.S. @sailorjumun for your dedication. Today’s comment was longer than usual and I appreciate it!
P.P.S. Do point out if I missed anything. The “essay” 😅😅 I wrote last night was much better than this one. Still bitter about it honestly. The refresh button felt like that damn deer.

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Haha Playstore, just let it go.... we all know it is simply bad writing. Like you, my logical self cannot accept this plot hole bigger than a crater, but after watching ep 16 [REDACTED]

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Can't man... I just can't. Not yet *smh*

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OMG i am so happy that someone put this all in words so thank you for this essay! To me this is exactly what explains it and I don't see it as terrible writing. Sometimes it is nice to have to find the clues and determine the solution yourself. Kudos to you!

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hahaha, ur summary of the "nurse park story arc" (i like this phrase 'cause it rhymes) literally pains me .......... but the rest of the show is so damn good.............

i will not ignore your essay and return to meditating my mantra "focus on the growth, focus on the growth, focus on the growth" x1000 hehehe. :)

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Well I did focus on the growth and the 'nurse park story arc' never bothered me anyway 😅

But you know that little itching feeling you get from a bit of dry skin during winter, that can't be treated or ignored, but you go on with it anyway and enjoy the winter? It's kinda like that with this arc.

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love your analogy! i hear ya, i hear ya, i'm trying, and i think i will overcome and heal (thx to the beauty of MY and GT hehe) ...

we kdrama fans are just always in search of the "perfect drama" after experiencing it before with, say, reply series, coffee prince, secret garden, etc. etc. (for me, my ahjussi) ... and this one truly had potential to be that ... but alas, it just fell short cause of the Arc, which is fine but disappointing for the perfectionist ...

so to take ur analogy further, the perfectionist kdrama fan would buy a million types of lotion to moisture his or her dry winter hands ... and then he or she would write to the kdrama writer (joyong in this case), "you had so much potential, but you failed me ... and failures are meant to be discarded." and then the kdrama psycho would kidnap joyong's family and feed them sleeping tranquilizers and grab joyong by the hair and laugh maniacally as he or she takes a pen to stab the imperfect writer with a fountain pen, "BWAHAHAHA."

(hehe see what i did there?)

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🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I was already sounding like Do Hui Jae now you just made me to be her 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

All annoyance for nurse park arc left aside, I'm really really content with the drama. YFAS gives me big laughs and swoony feelings on every rewatch, and now this one can give me deep thoughts and swoony moments to enjoy in every rewatch. I should not be complaining.

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thanks for laying this all out so thoughtfully! i can definitely imagine that things could have played out in this manner.

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Thanks @sailorjumun. I can't imagine all the work that goes into your recaps, which are gold. I was also so impressed with the parallels in this episode. *siiigh* I admittedly also really dislike how Hui-jae's story panned out...I wish the drama in this kdrama was amped down a liiiittle by keeping her dead. But anyway enough about that. Despite this setback, Moon-young grew a heckin lot, Kang-tae grew exponentially, and Sang-tae is like a different person and its all for the better. I honestly couldn't ask for more and I'll choose to focus my attention upon these amazing and successful aspects of this drama which made soooo happy and kept me going all these weeks. I wasn't even mad about Moon-young sulking for like an hour and a half. Through in a tragic Shakespearean backstory and I can't imagine anyone would come out mentally unscathed. I actually appreciate how they showed Ju-ri and the entire crew work so hard to be there for the couple. They make a real family and as corny and cliche as that is, it was beautiful and I loved it. Also, as someone who has intrusive and persistent thoughts and imagery, I totally understand why Moon-young fought so hard to be left alone. Man if I was in her place I might have caught the next flight to Neverland to escape the hell that is the mind. So I appreciate that the episode focused upon Kang-tae and Moon-young being so honest about their emotional struggles and admitting that they weren't sure they could do it. Guys what will I do after this drama ends!? I don't think I can watch another kdrama in a while...

Back to ep 16 where I left off...still more than half remaining *snickers*

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At first, i felt like DHJ part was cut short and that she suddendly lost her scaryness. But then it dawned on me, that's exactly how she should be. If she remained a ghost,it would have haunted the trio and she would become a fiction of their minds that'll haunt them for life. But instead when she actually showed up and to protect their family,the trio made up their minds to face DHJ head-on and we learned in IOTNBO that facing your problem head-on is the only way to solve them and thats exactly why we felt like DHJ lost her scaryness COZ the trio actually made that happen. And this realisation meant soo much to me, it goes on to show that, the drama is much more than just a kdrama.
And i remmeber kimsoohyun always talkin abt how this was a healing drama and i kept thinking about how a drama can be healing, NOW i know. This drama was truly healing. Where the trio's charcter development made my heart tingle and i grew with them. Loved how MY got to taste get confession from none other than the KT.
But most of all, i wanna thank the writer, who wrote the characters soo well to the point that i cant emphasis it enough. There have been many writers who took away an actors charm by supressing their characters but IOTNBO gave every single charcter their development they truly deserve.

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The writer met the right cast to convey a nice story. While the PD found a cast that inspired and pointed him in the right direction as well as a cast that acted his interpretation of a scene very well. I was about to lose it when KSH chose his project because 'Hyde Jekyll and Me' was HB's post gundae drama comeback which was a disaster. Live watching that was painful. Not to mention angel eyes which I watched while being half-ass asleep. I am happy things turned well for IOTNBO. They all deserve praise!

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You are so right about the mother IMO. They faced up to her and did away with her. Snap. Perfect return to the Boy Who Fed on Nightmares"

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i think both you and @sailorjumun make good, conflicting points. i'm not sure what to believe haha.

@sailorjumun preferred that the mother stay as a ghost because in real life, most of the time, mental difficulties are battling ghosts of our past, like the traumatized ahjussi that fought in the vietnam war. i think she was thinking it would be a better message if the trio conquered the ghosts through different, less dramatic means like love and therapy.

but you make a good point too. HOW would writer-nim show the trio conquering the ghost of dhj??? In such a satisfying way? Love/therapy may be just a cheesy and overdramatic. I'm slowly convincing myself that what we saw may have been the best way: bring dhj back to life and smack her with a book. :) thinking about this more haha ....

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Haha right, i love how this drama can make us have different opinion instaed of a read-made theory. Because in reality ways to deal with mental issues varies from person to person, and IOTNBO took a method i personally love but there are other ways too.
And i truly believe because of my own mental battles from recent years, the best way to overcome a battle be it big or small is to face it head-on. So this drama means soo much to me🤗

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"And i truly believe because of my own mental battles from recent years, the best way to overcome a battle be it big or small is to face it head-on. So this drama means soo much to me🤗" couldn't agree more ... 나도 ... 🤗

i rave at the show for how they handled kmy and dad because sometimes, that's just what happens. words are left unsaid and/or do not necessarily help (even though all of the nurses and therapists insist that you face things head on). sometimes you don't get the chance to say anything, and sometimes there are no regrets but just longing, like with kmy.

and i'm beginning to rave at how kmy and mom was more of a "head-on" ("head-to-book?" hehe) display of confronting one's demons, like when a therapist tells his or her patient to go to the place of one's PTSD.

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Exactlyyy, i thought KMY and her dad will be forced to have a relationship they never had. But the writer was true to KMYs character. Just like you said, they never had a relationship but just longing👍.
But then there is MKT, who always thought his mother never cared abt him as she had to care for an autistic son all whilst being a single mother. And when MKT finally realized it,all he could say was how much he missed his mom,ahh god i still remember him breaking down and crying his eyes out😭
I just cant move on from this masterpiece of a drama called IOTNBO😭😭😭

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I agree that the DHJ storyline wasn't strong and the MY’s mother’s reveal was so anticlimactic and it makes you wonder if they’ve been building up to this huge reveal that never lived up to the hype. The theories by so many beanies were honestly more interesting, esp the ones about how the head nurse wasn't actually DHJ but the sister.

But now that I’ve had time to think about it and look back, to give a slightly different perspective, I don’t think that they failed to build up to the hype or fell flat - not in the hands of such a talented team. It was a powerful message about how our fears can seem so overwhelming and gripping, but when we face them, they’re actually not that scary. MY’s mother was terrifying when she was a spectre, hovering around MY in every way, in her night terrors, haunting her father. It was the fears of the characters, who we perceived her through, that fuelled her imposing and terrifying presence. And when it all falls away, we (including our trio) realise that she is just human - twisted, overdramatic, sociopathic, yes - but fallible. In the scene with kang tae, the realisation of how small she was next to him and the reminder that he had been training his whole life to protect his brother made it clear that the question was never about whether he was able to overcome her physically. It was more of his own demons that he had to overcome, which he did beautifully. It was never about her. So yes, it was anticlimactic, but it reminded me that it was never about MY’s mother or the murder mystery. The heart of the story was always about our three leads and their growth.

And we have seen so much growth in this episode, that the separation didn't feel like a forced one (I could have done without it of course, but I can understand why moon young closed herself off). We see moon young thinking from the perspective of others for the first time, prioritising the emotional health of kang tae and choosing to push him away. This was a stark contrast to her at the start where she does everything to get what she wants, without much thought for the feelings of the other person. The role reversal of kang tae having to chase moon young and express himself was also demonstrative of so much growth, I especially appreciated the parallels and how he is now the one holding on and refusing to let go, not out of duty but because it's better to be tormented together and rather than to be tormented apart. To work through their problems together, no matter how painful, rather than to run away. And we have always talked about how sang tae would be the one to save them, and our dear sang tae oppa really delivered on all fronts in this episode <3

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excellent POV on the mom's arc and how it's meant to give the message you explained. I think you're absolutely correct about the writer's POV on this subplot.

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Dramabeans won't let me upvote you more than once. :(

Thank you for sharing this. I was disappointed that it was never explained how mom survived and was quite pissed because of it but your take on her made me feel a bit better about her arc. We do see our fears way too big than what they actually are so this makes so much sense.

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Absolutely love this! The nuance and thought that's been put into the writing of this story is excellent, and it's amazing how much we get out of it when we pull back the layers.

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I like that idea! That is consistent with what the drama has been showing us. If that was really what they were aiming for, I just wish that they've explained it to the audience, or at least not included details which they won't bother explaining.

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This, this, this. I really like your interpretation of this episode. And while I too could've done without the separation I think it was really important for Moon Young's character growth. We get definite confirmation (although we already knew it) that she is definitely not an empty can by puting the brothers emotional well being above her own. And it was also a good throwback to all the times she claimed she will never let KT go, yet now like KT said in an earlier episode she does because she really loves him. It's proof that she loves him beyond selfish or superficial reasons.

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This, this, and this! Thank you for articulating this. This is exactly how I feel about this drama and about the mom plot.

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@omichan Thank you for this very thoughtful post. I am one of those Beanies who was very disappointed with the mother-really being-alive-all-this-time plot twist. However, I agree that the trio realizing that they do not have to live in fear of her, that they can overcome her and reclaim their happiness and their freedom, does mitigate some of my disappointment in this plot angle.

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well said @omichan!

like everyone else, nurse park story arc ... ugh ... i accept it less than you do. :)

but like you, i disagree with those who don't understand MY's behavior. the show was actually surprisingly brilliant about this. when someone you love suffers, guilt naturally ensues as a way to control one's feelings, fear of the situation. there are countless examples of irrational guilt, such as those who blame themselves for not finding their deceased love one's illness/cancer earlier. or those who had a fight with their loves one right before he or she gets into a car/plane crash and dies.

i actually think the show didn't make MY guilty enough. she pushed KT away meekly a couple times, but when sexy times came along ..... hehehe, what guilt??? actually, it was a perfect amount of guilt. :)

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I wish to upvote your comment here 3000 times, @omichan ✌

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Despite the certain flaws of the Mom story, I just want to say that the moment Sang-Tae hit her with a huge thick book on the head was GOLD for me, the most precious thing in this episode, and I personally wish that this were a trope for dealing with this type and many other types of vilains in dramaland, instead of just having the main leads, after suffering some more abuse in the last episode, stare at the bad person heavily, and then later are upset when the villain (for example) kills him/herself. This book approach is just so much more satisfying.

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And the book is the world's best fairy tales. Lol. I loved that detail.

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Yes, that was the cherry on top of the cake.

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I loved that moment!

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i'm beginning to think joyong wrote the illogical nurse park story arc SOLELY for the shot of ST hitting nurse park with the book hahaha.

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*Kim Mi Kyung is THE best k-drama momma, yes?
* I lorvved MY-Jae su drinking scene. JaeSu always calling GT the sly 🦊 gumiho and MY gleefully latching onto her suspicion finally being corroborated by GT's previous SO . But poor JS, as with ST he loses the ally as soon as he bad mouths GT a little too much. 😂
*Soo how can I procure an audio clip of KSH shouting 'I love you' with increasing volume and intensity at my I mean MY's indifferent response. It's for..erm research..erm being done by a friend 😅

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research, KSH, Dork - these are few of the top keywords that gets this beanie jump into a bandwagon. I will definitely figure out a way to get a clear audio file outta that scene, Gidaehaeyo beanie-ssi.

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https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1k6ifyCSEGkRMwYFPmfKnxWRcQgsSOBr9?usp=sharing

There are two FLAC files with the audio of KSH screaming 사랑해 /사랑한다고. Thanks for giving me the idea, might as well set the second clip as my alarm tone 😂

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Omo Omo Omo.... @playstore-nim,you rock 백만 감사 I was NOT expecting it!!! Thanks fellow bean-ssi..❤️😍💐💐💐
The second clip esp is definitely gonna be my alarm tone as well. After I share it with my friend with the scientific bent of mind, ofc 😉

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It's not much just some honest work as a fan. I have already set it as my alarm tone can't wait to wake up tomorrow with KSH's yelling voice. Ughhh.... It's gonna be a pleasant morning tomorrow.

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@playstore, the only thing we want to know is how the alarm went this morning...

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@kate88hammond I woke up 20 minutes earlier than the alarm! 🤣🤣🤣 The anticipation was too great I guess. better luck to me for tomorrow morning. I'll post an update on my fan wall lol.

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You are amazing. :) Who wouldn't want to wake up to that???

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Right? This is the kinda positive affirmation every one needs in these depressing times 😉

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Amen!!

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❤❤❤❤❤

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@playstore Thank you for sharing! I love this moment because it is a complete reversal of when MY was screaming the same words at him :)

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You're welcome.

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Thank you so much for sharing this! Made my day :)

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Totally agree with you.. The ep 15 and 15 were boring and slow.
Seriously show, no explanations about how Do Hee Jae survive?
The mistery about the character was a big Part of the charm of show.
But now I'm sooo disappointed.

I'm afraid to see this show and finish on less good vibes than the beginning which was soooo great.

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Watch ep. 16, trust me you'll be satisfied.

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I bet everyone already talked about everything I wanted to say about this episode so I'll just comment on a few stuff lost in translation.

When Sang-tae gave Moon-young the happy Gang-tae drawing, he says 양보할게. Netflix translated this as "I'll give it to you" which is correct but 양보 is yield/concede. He's saying I'm giving way to you. You can have Gang-tae. He kept on saying he'll never give Gang-tae to Moon-young because he's his brother but in this scene, he finally yields.

Also, when he said he wants to work with other authors, Moon-young asked if he'd work with just anyone. She says 개나 소나 which is literally whether it be dogs or cows (literally anybody). Sang-tae retorts he won't because he'll be working with humans. Lol. Cheeky.

Thank you for the recap!!

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Thank goodness I have picked up enough hangeul in past years to have known the subtitles didn't convey the meaning but just translated it into similar English expressions. Thanks for pointing this out for everyone :)

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wow thank you!

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before netflix exist where i live in, i would search multiple source for different kind of translation to ease my mind! there are times i think they are saying different thing, but got translated in a different way. thank you for this.

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Yeah! Viki was pretty good with this but I dont know how it looks now. Wow I havent watched anything from there for ages.

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yeah netflix translation is too simplified. the conversation is more witty and clever than whatever netflix translates.

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Especially Sang-tae's! He's so savage.

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Yes to this 😁

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Thanks, as ever, for this. It makes that first bit so much more meaningful. I interpreted that scene on the stairs as the final step in the Group Collusion to help MY realize how much they care for her and want her to be a part of them and not wall herself away. Everyone played a part, and this was ST's contribution to that United Effort.

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Yes! His over my dead body was hilarious! He stepped back and let go of Gang-tae so that he won't lose Moon-young.

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Thank you for these translations. These were a huge help to non-Korean-speakers like me.

I loved all the episodes ... every aspect. I was not at all disappointed with E15 , not even with the mom part. I think the Show's treatment/portrayal of the mom served to emphasize how far the 3 characters have gone in terms of growth and healing vs to the mom who was still living the way she did 20 years earlier.

Thanks for the fast recaps!

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I didn't like the mom arc but after reading beanies' comments, I was fine with it. That was really good explanation.

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Wow. That adds so much. It shows how he has grown that he would give something away like that.

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@earthna Thank you for this information! Times like this I wish I knew the language because so much is missed in (mis)translation.

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It's the localization. Even the names of folktales get butchered. Why can't they jjst do translator's notes? Sigh. This is a problem everywhere though so it's hard.

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Hehe, I squealed after you said "Cheeky." LOVE ST.

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Thank you so much for pointing this out. The scene becomes even more poignant in my eyes now. As KT said sometimes one has to let go because one truly loves that person. ST let go of KT and the picture because he truly loved both KT and MY.

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1) All the parallels. Oh how the tables have turned. KT has become the chaser.
2)JR's mom and co. working together just to get MY to eat. JS and MY badmouthing KT was a nice touch.
3) Nurse Park being vanquished by a book of fairy tales. Priceless.
4)"Over my dead body" Need I say more.
5) The deer strikes again. This deer must have some symbolism or something.
6) I kind of wish they had kept the same actress for mom.

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Yes to no. 6! This would have actually made the whole thing work so much better with minimal changes. So why didn't they???

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«KT has become the chaser.»

Not really, he is just trying to give her some excuses to go back on her decision. She is hot, but in the plot he is actually chased by other women, but nobody is (quite sensibly) chasing her. When Ju-ri's mother says that she admires Moon-Young for liking Kang-Tae even if he has nothing, that's not quite true: he is very hot, and she obviously has difficulty holding back her lust for him, and is very jealous. Then she also likes how he stands up to her knowing that she is weak for him.

However this plot is a welcome variant on the classic k-rom/drama of plain tomboysh poor girl being hopelessly in love with really hot very rich jerk boy who is tamed by her: here we have a very hot, very rich jerk girl being hopelessly in love with really hot poor boy who tames her.

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I really like your take. Very well put !

And man GT is soooooo hot! And so is MY. Scorching the screen 😍

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Also, I too was really bored of all these chaebol heroes. We need more of average background male leads please. They are fare more interesting!

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Sure, this episode probably wasn't as strong as earlier episodes. I enjoyed how it's winding down towards the end. I didn't need the extra drama/suspense. I was glad to see some resolution to a lot of things.

Random notes/thoughts:

- When it was revealed why Kang-tae and Sung-tae’s mother died, my heart dropped because it was just something so utterly petty.

- When Sang-tae made the save with that book smash, I jumped out of my seat with excitement. That was some superhero stuff right there :)

- Maybe I missed it, but did they ever explain the body in the water sequence some episodes back?

- The moving out over my dead body bit had me laughing :) I’m going to keep that phrase, in Korean, in the back of my head for future use.

- The entire plan B where they get Moon-young to finally eat… If that’s not love or at least showing her that people care about her, I don’t know what is.

- The tree planting part… awwwww :)

- The drawing of Kang-tae that was given to Moon-young, also awwwwww :)

- The declaration of love from episode 4, in reverse… That had twitter blowing up a little and I got a huge chuckle out of that!

This episode definitely had a lot of great moments and it made the end of this show a little easier to handle.

@SailorJumun, thank you for doing the recaps this season. You’re the best!!!

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Thank you. And thank you for also seeing what I see in this drama. I completely agree with you when you say: "It’s sad, because initially, the drama was going nowhere but up, consistently exceeding my expectations. " and "If I’d known that this was what we were getting, I would’ve checked out.".

Well I did stop, but curiosity brought me back. I like a good script, a good story, I am always curious to know what is gonna happen next and what was the writer thinking. But it feels like, many other dramas, after episode 13, things got lost. I understand we need filler episodes (well, some dramas) and I really didnt think this drama needed filling. There is a lot to unpack, but there is no amount of beautiful dresses and great shoes and make up that will make the mom plot right. It was bad writing. And the villain got just a few minutes into this episode, which means it was also lazy writing.

Anyway, am I the only one that dont like that the mother killed the boys mother? And for that reason? I hate this kinda of plot. It goes into "Come and hug me" kinda of plot and in real life I dont see how they can end up together. I am sorry, but I cant. KT is someone deeply linked by his mother and the results of their relationship and he is still okay that her mother killed his mother? That is messed up. Yeah, love conquers it all, but.... was it necessary?

I am not saying I didnt like this drama, there were amazing scenes, there is a fantastic performance by the 3 main actors, but I was kinda expecting something else. Or more of it. Because it started so strong, but then got...... so... okay.

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The mother's story was pretty disapointing from the start to the end. They never really showed her abuse, it was more some pieces in nightmares. They didn't develop really well her character : her fake death was completely incongruous, her fake job didn't match the character, the reason of the murderer of SG and KT's mother was weak and the final? It was filmed as comedy and not as dramatic it should have been. The father wasn't better written.

The most satisfaying part is the brothers. Their growth was beautiful to watch.

The funny part was how they inversed MY and KTs' roles in their relationship.

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August 11, 2020 at 5:04 PM
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The mother's most important actions to the plot happened 20 years before - her actions during this story have been generally not critical to the growth and healing the characters have experienced, which was the point of the show, so yes, people who focus deeply on this plot element are loosing sight of the point of the show.
The main point of her character shows to tell how personality disorders in people can be caused by abusive behaviours by Parents, why are viewers not noting that!!!

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i actually enjoy episode 15 a lot. a lot of viewers feel like DHJ like a plot hole but its us the viewers who make her a big deal all along. i really love how our characters talk to each other, helping each other, crying together in this episode. after everything that happens in the castle im sure MY is hurting the most because her own mom hurts ST and KT (again. in their home. in front of her) and eventho she shuts herself (and starving) im so so glad that she didnt running away. im so happy people around her didnt let her suffer alone, its so refreshing watching this episode without noble idiocy.
i agree with KT seems lying about he could overcome it first but its feel more genuine after he talk to people around him, its show how powerful proper conversation and people warmth around us.
i love how the writer keep repeating the conversation on different time, different characters, its touching and fun without being boring.
KT's "YAAAAA I LOVE YOU!!!!!!" is my favorite ;)

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You're right, we viewers probably did make her a bigger deal than she needed to be - just like the trio themselves, perhaps.

I also loved the "Yaaaa, I love you!" bit. I could almost hear him thinking, 'Sh*t, why isn't this working?!' Priceless. :-)

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and he did it in his (ex) workplace lol he doesnt care about anything else anymore huh

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Ha, so true! He really has adopted some MY tendencies. :-) Remember when she asked him if he wanted to sleep with her in the reception? Ha, I DIED.

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On a side note, didn't KT get too many off days in OK hospital? :P

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The mother's most important actions to the plot happened 20 years before - her actions during this story have been generally not critical to the growth and healing the characters have experienced, which was the point of the show, so yes, people who focus deeply on this plot element are loosing sight of the point of the show.

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Actually thought Jang Young-Nam was woefully miscast. Her mannerisms (hand gestures) and speech as Do Hui-jae were completely off the mark. I almost believe that her arc was condensed to the first 20 min once the directors realized they had nothing to work with. She just couldn't command the screen and it was more irritating than comical to see her try to portray her character.

It would have been one thing had the directors played up the comedy in the confrontation to show what a pitiful villain she was and that our trio had nothing to fear. Instead, the direction was intentionally dramatic with hackneyed tropes about what it means to be a person. Yuck.

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Agree. I think that if they were going to invest in the mom arc, then they should have stuck with the original actress all the way through. Those original scenes were definitely creepier; Nurse-Park-as-Mom was too shrill, and I just couldn't make the switch in my head once they revealed who she was.

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dead on. why cast two moms?? it can't be for the reveal 'cause they could've just hid the first mom like they did for half the show!

ugh, *think about the growth instead think about the growth instead x100 (hehe need this mantra as i read these comments).

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The mother's ghost/memory was more threatening than when the writer(s) decided to resurrect her.

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Like many, I was never a huge fan of the Evil Mom thing we had going on, and I'm pleased that it was wrapped up quickly in the beginning. As @sailorjumun says, "Her roadblock was never her mom, but the idea of her mom," and it makes sense that they would all have needed some time after that. This arc was the weakest, but by looking at it as more of a device to show how we assign meaning to things and that it's in our power to change the paradigm by examining our beliefs and making different choices, I can just about swallow it (combined with the fact that I love this show so much, I'm willing to make some allowances).

Didn't love MY's noble idiocy either (I would have preferred if she'd just once again told KT that she needed some time to be by herself), but it was pretty clear to me from the get-go that she was never fully invested in it. What I did really like is her telling KT that he wasn't okay, and that she didn't want him to wear a mask in front of her nor walk on eggshells in front of him. She understood that if they tried to paper over the cracks, it would break them in the long run. They had to face the aftermath, just like they had to face the Shadow Witch. And I'm glad KT took that to heart and sought help. I only wish that MY had, too.

I also really like the reverse parallels as many have mentioned - KT as MY had me laughing throughout, especially when he got irritated with her over and over that it wasn't working. Her "Did you just yell at me?!" was fantastic - for just moment, she forgot was dramatically pushing him away, haha.

Finally, can I just ask if KSH has some kind of magic switch he flips when he wants to get the girl? He's this adorable, sweet, slightly goofy guy one minute, and then he blinks and his eyes are smoldering, everything goes still and you can cut the tension with a knife (or, in this show, a pen). HOW DOES HE DO THAT?!? And every time, MY looks like she's in a trance and is about to melt into some kind of love superglue all over him. It's hella impressive how they nail that each and every time, and on the turn of a dime, too.

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I totally agree with your last para....

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@carlybisek I was telling my sister that the reveal of the mother being alive all this time was the one aspect of the show that bothered me. However, this aside, the show was strong from start to finish. As yes, the way that Kang-Tae switches from adorably dorky to incredible sexy and smoldering is amazing! 😍

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liked "This arc was the weakest, but by looking at it as more of a device to show how we assign meaning to things and that it's in our power to change the paradigm by examining our beliefs and making different choices, I can just about swallow it."

I thought about this a lot. Perhaps "nurse park as dhj" was all just a device to allow for the trio to truly and visually conquer the demons ... and perhaps it was the ONLY device because although there are a lot of fun theories out there, I can't really pick one that is as clear and stunning visually as the one Joyong fortunately/unfortunately picked ... and that one is aligned with fairy tales. One has to fight the witch in the end.

I think the show does a good job with MY and her trauma/guilt. In real life, guilt comes naturally to people as a way to control difficult situations, e.g., there are countless people who blame themselves for not catching their deceased loves one cancer. But it goes away pretty quickly once some therapy kicks in. And as you mentioned, MY moves on pretty quick with some ...... ahem "other" therapy (hahaha sorry about that but had to be mentioned). :)

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I think you're probably right about the plot device. It was simple and understandable, and it fits in well with the evil mother/stepmother thread that runs through many a fairy tale. Also: thanks for making me laugh! Yes, it's interesting what can happen we people 'cooperate'! :-)

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Ahhhhh.... Kim Soo Hyun..... He is... Ahhhh.asghfhfdkshj.. *makes weird noises like the dork king*
I have lost words to describe his magical onscreen presence, his transitioning ability to transform from the dork king to a mesmerizing actor, and his humble personality.

I will just set the alarm that now has the saranghae serenade screamed by him and sleep. It's been a long day full of withdrawal struggle.

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i don't usually swoon male leads, but i have to hand it to KSH, he was swoonerific at the end of this show. some of his comeback retorts to MY were hilarious (at least joyong can definitely write flirting), and his acting with ST at the end ... damn ... makes grown men cry.

BUT, I think SYJ beats KSH in the "saranghae" battle. SYJ literally is outta breath after her screams; KSH plays it too cool and calm. That's right KSH stans, come at me. :)

https://twitter.com/iconickdramas/status/1292458072816807936?s=20

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*whispers* I agree with you! :-)

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KSH was everything I was hoping he would be in his comeback drama and then some more. I feel well fed as a fan 😃

BUT Did YA JUST SAY KSH's 'Yaaa' scream was cool and calm! Did ya see that man popping his neck veins to scream her name!! And then then and then.... The blazer... He took off the blazer.... *Playstore malfunctions*

Duh just kidding! both of them were spectacular but SYJ definitely beat him with that epic 'gangtae-ssi' starter.

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hahaha if ksh was a good actor, he would've RIPPED OFF his blazer WITH PASSION, making playstore not only malfunction but head explode. ;)

Veins?!?!? what veins?!?

haha i can't force this syj vs. ksh battle. it just doesn't feel right. ksh and syj stans are fully united right now (in sorrow as the show is over). my apologies for trying to divide #hyunji nation. :)

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@ltung23 umm.... You don't rip your clothes off passionately when you're outside. It's basic etiquette 🤭🤭

No comments on veins, I've already commented lots of weird things about KSH to be misinterpreted as a possible weirdo/pervert by the moderators (if there is any). About time I restrained myself as a fan.

We are definitely together in this as hyunji fandom. I'm not a shipper of hyunji, but I absolutely love both of them as actors so that's that.

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i think, KMY was manipulative, and merely angry when she said it.

MGT, really meant it when he said it. he went "yaaaa! i love you!" just because out of frustration that KMY cant see he was being very genuine about it.

lets face it. being honest and not being fake toward his ownself is kind of new to MGT. he got frustrated when KMY did not budge after he told the story of the two brothers, even the little skinship (mgt touching MY face) doesnt work either.

he was so cute when he end up tone down his frustration to a childish one in the castle, but eventually it was the kiss that sway KMY.

omo, sorry for an essay instead of a simple opinion.

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never be sorry for a long post in DB especially when its part of Fanboy/fangirl ranting 😄
You are right about GT being annoyed when he confessed genuinely but she didn't respond accordingly. That first "I love you" was heartfelt. Whereas GMY started with "Gangtaessi" and some yelled out fake love you-s. Both are epic on their own. That kiss..... *sigh*

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Yes, agree, both 'I love you!' incidents are different (and both funny). The first, because MY starts out confident that her manipulation will work, and then it's funny to watch it absolutely crash and burn and she gets super annoyed. With KT, he does love her, but it's just...not his style. And he's doing it because he's trying to reach her in a way that she will 'understand' (see also his, "Hey, you hurt my hand, how will you compensate me" line right before). He's trying to mirror her in a desperate attempt to reach her, but it doesn't work because, like when she did it, it's not genuine. For me, there's a very specific moment at beginning of ep 16 that I think is the turning point, but I don't want to comment on that on an ep 15 recap. :-)

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oh no! i forgot that KMY's "saranghae" was "less" geniuine! AAAHHH! that's a HUGE blow for this faux KMY vs. MGT "saranghae" battle!!! AAAHHH! what have i done? :)

i LOOOOVVEEE how the two bros. story was a scheme by MST to convince KMY that everything is okay. LOOOOVVEEE. the cute subtleties in this show are amazing.

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I hate dramas where the the couples decide to "give each other space" and return back after a day
It was very much realistic of MY wanting to retreat because GT is known In this series as someone who masks his feelings so she didn't want him to feel awkward around her or to pretend that he's happy with the fact that he's living a miserable life because of her mom. My opinion tho

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I read somewhere else a point I very much agree with. How or why the mom survived is not important. What is important is that our trio are able to overcome and move on from the teams that this woman caused. She deserved no more consideration then a speck of dust. She feeds on their unhappiness and by them not going along she loses power over them. I will wait till ten final ep recap to say more.

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There is never a perfect drama. There are either characters you find annoying or plots that that just seem pointless. For IOTNBO, there was honestly no characters that I disliked in the story (maybe the male nurse/director's son when he spread those rumours and caused Sang Tae to have that crazy outbreak but...only a little) and that is honestly rare. I found myself relating to each character and anticipating their growth. So although we could have DEFINITELY done without the-crazy-psycho-mum-returning-back-from-the-dead and taking up most of an episode when we could have had more steamy hot kiss scenes, I'm willing to let it go for the character development that we got to see. I'm so proud of our trio and how far they've come. It really makes me sad to have to say goodbye.

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Yeah that backstory reveal was so freaking underwhelming...I.... Wow. Had I known that was the twist going in I would have skipped this drama tbh....

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Episode 15 was a weak one for me.

1) When KT expressed his incredulity to DhJ, “That’s why you killed my mum?”...forgive me, I actually laughed....Was the show taking a dig at its own farcical tale of the 2 mums?

2) MY spending the whole hour insisting the 2 Moon brothers leave the house also did not gell so well with me. Somehow, I feel it is inconsistent with the strength and determination her character has always exhibited. She has fought hard to be with KT and nothing has changed from ep 14. One mum still killed another but this time, her crazy one is firmly behind bars. No doubt a total shock, but given KT’s willingness to overcome it, and her love for him, I was not convinced she needed to be so resolute and persistent in kicking them out.

3) Nevertheless, this sets everything up nicely for the hilarious parallels at the end of the episode, with KT declaring his love for MY multiple times, only to be totally ignored.

4) And of course, who can resist smouldering KT finally making a move on MY? The boy should have just started with that and saved himself a lot of work...lol..

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2) Yeah, that was something they could have wrapped up a bit more quickly, too. It only slightly worked for me in the sense that she called KT on on trying to "pretend it was a nightmare" and that it would just go away, but then I think it would have made more sense if she said they needed some time to pause and process vs the dramatic "leave me to my lonely castle" thing. Not that I don't like a dramatic MY, but that didn't seem her style.

4) The answer is no one. No one can resists a smoldering KT. And thank the gods for it. :-)

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Do women really find KT "smouldering" haha? As an ahjussi kdrama fan, I find him more nerdy cute haha, especially in this show when he's mostly wearing GAP tees. In any event, the women of this world agree with you more than me, so ...

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KSH was definitely nerdy cute as Gang Tae (except the time he wore the suit and channeled KSH's aura). I am a simple fangirl but I definitely did not find his smoldering.

Ryuhwan was smoldering but not Gang Tae.

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smol·der·ing
/ˈsmōldəriNG/

the process of burning slowly with smoke but no flame.

ok, ok, i'll give you all GT in a suit. i guess that makes MY a forest fire. :-P

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I for one found him smouldering throughout the series (even when he was dressed in worn out monochromatic tees).The scene when he is heaving over MY to stop her from attacking him (when they were out on their night trip) - phew! Or when he was serving breakfast to MY in her castle dressed in a cheque shirt. Or even in his work uniform when tried to tease MY in the pizza scene. The only 2 outfits in which I didn't find him smouldering were the blue jacket he wore in the rain when he goes to pick up MY (while she is wandering alone on the road) and the suit in the family photo (he looked much better without the tie and the hairdo in this episode's suiting run). As some beanies mentioned, he burns people down with the look in his eyes. The last scene in this episode - who on earth can resist him? Infact I think this is one of his most sensuous screen presence in his dramas (haven't seen Real :P)

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hahaha, i'm definitely a dood 'cause i don't even remember half of these smouldering hot MGT scenes! meanwhile, with KMY, i have encyclopedic knowledge like you with MGT. i will make up the difference during rewatch. ;)

but yes, totally liked "Or when he was serving breakfast to MY in her castle dressed in a cheque shirt." that is pure romantic forest fire MGT for the ice queen KMY. well done, caretaker playa, well done.

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Hehe, sly fox player :P

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"cheque shirt" giggle giggle giggle

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You can see how carried away I was to write "cheque" instead of "check" :P

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Guys STAPH IT! Ya'll discussing about MGT and KSH's hotness, outfits and whatnot is making me want to jump in the conversation every single time. I'm already all over the place (read DB). I don't need more reason to let my inner beast out and make you all crazy by my elaborate comments. My sisters and best friends are already out here to murder me 😭

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Please join @playstore it's always fun to gush together 💖

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Does anyone remember the scene in which he was heaving his tee after MY kissed him to seal the deal once they returned to the castle post the family pic session?

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@princessdiaries6 Once I start rambling on KSH (or Do Kyungsoo/exo/GD/Goblin/YFAS) I start talking like drunk Seung chan.... or drunk Do Min Joon minus the alcohol. It's better I practice some self restraint now and then!

BTW i mentioned that scene in ep 13 recap 😅 we had a whole conversation on it. Part of my comment to remind you all when that happened because why not?
"2. I am quite surprised that no one talked about the scene at 23:50 minute mark. Before Sang Tae mentioned Gang Tae's red cheeks, I saw the man walking through the door while fanning himself with his tee, I was like "Why is he doing something that I do every so often". Then it hit me like GT hit MY in ep11 after that run up, that it was exactly like ep11 but this time without the attendance of creepy viewers *wink wink*.
I praise the writer, director, and KSH once again for pulling that subtle move and fanning "SS MoonMoon" ship's burning coal to move ahead."

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haha, it's okay @playstore to not be okay 'cause of KSH's hotness. i think you're in a safe place. unlike other shows, i think everyone is on the same page with you and will accept the gushing 'cause they too want to gush. :) esp. because we are talking about ep. 15 and it's "gushable" cliffhanger. As long as it's slightly more intellectual and level-headed than "twitter gushing," i think you'll be ok! i think ........ :)

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@ltung23 "twitter gushing" 🤣🤣🤣🤣

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Totally... he is red hot...exudes devastating boyish charms in those tees, and is deadly sexy when he wants the girl (or when he is fending her off😅...)

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You used the most apt word for him - devastating 🤩😍

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She was actually being very realistic, she recently discovered that her mom is literally the cause of Gangtae's tough life and sangtae's reoccurring nightmares, how do you still expect her to wholeheartedly face him and jump on him like she did before?
That scene also shows to munyeong's growth and how she's learnt a little bit of empathy
There was nothing offstyle about it

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I find it interesting how caught up in the past DHJ is that she have lost any change for growth or changing her world perspective. She show how damaging it is holding on to your old self. In contrast we have our trio showing how to let go of the past and trauma. Therefor they can form meaningful relationships and become happy. I guess this also reason why we never really got any concrete detail on how DHJ escaped, because it happened so many years ago and it do not matters anymore. What matters is now and how to make the best of it to grow and become better human for yourself and people around you.

A determined KT is swoony! Love that this time it is him that have to hold onto MY. Love MY is thinking about KT and ST wellbeing staying with her. ST giving her his drawing of KT showing that he gives GT to MY. Also love ST "over my dead body". This episode just show of far they have come, and how they want to protect each other in different ways as show in the confrontation with DHJ. The best part was ST knocking her down with that fairytale book!

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@sailorjumun Thank you for another recap! I was talking to my sister about the moment when Sang-Tae hits the mother over the head with the book (go Sang-Tae!) and you see him, Kang-Tae and Moon-young as their younger selves. I interpreted this to mean that even though they are adults, they are all still those scared and confused children inside.

I loved the scene where Sang-Tae and Kang-Tae plant the tree in honor of their mother. It is significant that Kang-Tae is the one who decides to plant the tree. He has finally forgiven his mother and has finally understood how much she truly loved and cared for him.

Lastly, the ending! That kiss and then Kang-Tae leaning in seductively!♥♥♥

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«He has finally forgiven his mother and has finally understood how much she truly loved and cared for him.»

Ahem no, she did not, but he has forgiven her, in part because he has realized that Sang-Tae has now saved his life. Both Kang-Tae and Moon-Young have been scarred by their mothers.

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Hi @walexb Yes, Kang-Tae and Moon-Young have been affected by the actions of their mothers. However, with regards to Kang-Tae, I do believe that his mother loved him. I do not condone her actions but I do not doubt that she loved both her sons.

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@sailorjumun, you crushed it in your comments section. but alas, it made me sad 'cause as a mini-stan of this show, i was hoping you could find more of a silver lining for the nurse park story arc. but alas, you couldn't, and you crushed it ... and my heart haha.

for me, the nurse park story arc is just so not creative. besides being overdramatic and cringe-worthy as @sailorjumun observed, it pales in comparison with the other 2 ways MY conquered her demons: 1) the cursed castle became a warm home thanks to ST and GT and their sibling bickering and homecooking; and 2) the way the drama handled MY and her dad. I marveled at how the show handled this!!! It was subtle and realistic, no dramatic convo between MY and dad loaded with one-liners and zingers. Just sadness, regret ... and the most effing hot funeral dress I have ever seen in my life (sorta a weird thing to say, but totally true).

HOW COME CONQUERING MOM HAD TO BE SO KDRAMA CLICHE?!?

I almost feel as if some TVN suit made Joyong simplify the Nurse Park story arc cause she was setting up for some convoluted sister story, "The mass audience won't understand, Joyong." But that's just another theory. :)

Ok, enough about this, as everyone has said, the rest of the show was amazing with its growth and tear-inducing scenes. I disagree with all the "MY is being a noble idiot" comments for the same reasons that @sailorjumun stated. Trauma really is a bitch.

U da best @sailorjumun!

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«HOW COME CONQUERING MOM HAD TO BE SO KDRAMA CLICHE?!?»

#1 Korean tiger moms are often pretty ferocious.

#2 Even outside Korea a lot of mothers are pretty terrible.

#3 In Korea political correctness is not yet so advanced that it is difficult to make a less than glowingly positive (or empoweringly negative) female character.

As to #1 the usual k-drama convention is that poor rural mothers or grandmothers are warm and loving, and rich urban mothers or grandmothers are terrible, and this often happens to male characters.

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«HOW COME CONQUERING MOM HAD TO BE SO KDRAMA CLICHE?!?»
«#1 Korean tiger moms are often pretty ferocious.»

There is another related point: k-dramas are in the "chix flix" genre, so targeted at women, and it is traditional for mothers-in-law or grandmothers-in-law to be bossy to the girlfriends and wives of their sons.

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https://twitter.com/iconickdramas/status/1292458072816807936?s=20

I just want to put this here so maybe we can discuss this more hehe, being probably the most important scene of Ep. 15. :) Iconic? Overrated? Who did it better, SYJ or KSH? OBJECTIVELY.

As for me, SYJ ahjussi uncle fan, I find it iconic, and I'm not even sure why. I don't even remember the love confessions from other kdramas. Would appreciate any psychoanalysis. Thanks in advance. :)

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It's pretty iconic. The drama seems popular with K-pop and I've seen a few copying SYJ's saranghaes. 😅 Many female K-pop idols are also totally girl crushing on SYJ.

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haha YES. yea KSH fans, where are all the KSH tik toks, yo?!?! (and yes, my slight animosity for KSH comes straight from pure jealousy. :))

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I am a lady and I definitely swoon over KSH but hands down SYJ's version stands out in my opinion. She just owned the scene - the dialogues
delivery, the body language, the facial expressions, the voice modulation - ooooooo! I had never seen such a 'confession' scene and I don't think I will ever forget it. Iconic is an understatement !

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On a parallel note, KSH is better at the crying scenes. He just broke my heart in all the scenes he broke down in. Although SYJ's portrayal of MY's sadness and guilt is great too but I think she has a better hold over comic or weird scenes (which is no less hard work either).

I don't usually ship people but these two are a match in talent!

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Yes. KSH cries so beautifully. Heartrending tears, that you feel so wretched to watch. He certainly turned on the water taps throughout the whole series. Who can forget the scene when ST accused him of wanting him dead, or his anguish when he found out MY’s mum killed his?

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Absolutely agree. I especially love his scene on the stairs - the way he folded his hands, the shock in his eyes, the pain, the guilt - it was as if he was dying (indeed KT's situation in that scene) and KSH brought it out so beautifully and naturally.

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your comment made me swoon. you had me after "oooooo." don't forget the side french beret (or whatever thing that hat is; too fashionable for me to describe). :)

totally agree about KSH owning the crying scenes, esp in these last 2 episodes. and to say that he's better than SYJ is truly saying something 'cause she ain't no slouch. i felt like KSH was a bit overrated for a long time ("#1 paid actor? c'mon, more like #10!"), but in this show, he won me over. bon voyage KSH/SYJ, MGT/KMY.

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Yeah, I totally agree with you - being able to hold oneself against SYJ or OJS (he's talent is unbelievable, will check out his other shows now too) is totally something to reckon with :)
And yeah I think it's KSH's best performance till date. What a comeback to the screens!
As for SYJ, I hope she does more of such quirky/unusual characters, such a welcome relief from the run-of-the-mill touch-me-and-I-will-wilt lasses. Saranghae SYJ!

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Re. SYJ, I do hope she does more quirky and offbeat roles. But I do think after IOTNBO and the love that KMY received, we will surely see future dramas "copying" this character in one way or another. It was a risky character to portray and could've come of as caricaturish at te hands of a less adept actress but SYJ pulled it off and made KMY truly charismatic. Many actresses in her age bracket are probably looking into portraying someone similar.

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lol @origami at "touch-me-and-I-will-wilt lasses." technically, KMY did wilt when MGT touched her, but as a KMY fan, i hope everyone ignores that fact. :) it's a different kind of ... wilt?? :-P

but yes, after SYJ returns to a couple more serious roles as a method actress, i hope she returns to comedy or something offbeat 'cause i can barely remember any leading ladies making me laugh like she did in this show.

@doublefault yes, i totally agree it was risky for SYJ. i was so nervous for SYJ in episode 1 when i SHOCKINGLY realized that she was going to play the jeong jihyun/iu role. the fact that she pulled it off and frankly outshined jjh/iu ...... is why i'm here. :)

as a crazed lover of the jju/iu/now syj fashionista bitch role, i don't mind if someone else takes a crack at it. as long as 1 outta 5 hit, i'll be a happy boy. yes, i'm aware i probably have issues. :)

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Well, at least they took care of the Do Hui-jae formed plothole blessedly fast and in a lovely way with Sang-tae being the hero of the day.

Magical tranquilizer syringes are one of my pet peeves though, the fast-forward button may be utilized on the coming binge-watch.

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