Thank you, @dramaddictally, for the quick weecap! Yeo-rum has just been burned by her relationship and Jae-hoon pushing it doesn't sit well with me. She needs time and space for now. She's already realizing that it hurts to see Jae-hoon with Ji-yeon. And the crazy PD Chae-ri should experience the same thing she's doing to the cast of her show!

”The first kiss to ever happen was said to have happened between man and God.
He made a man out of dust and breathed life into his nostrils.
He became a living man.
If this Creation account from Hebrews is true, then kissing another can possibly be sharing our living soul.

How is it, that we share our souls with anybody?
The thought occurs to me sometimes:
The thought that kissing became very easy. The thought that kissing became an ordinary thing.
Your feelings, nervousness, and breath, signals directly sent during a kiss. Your world is supposed to be shaking at that moment. But why does it not feel like anything, often times?

The act of kissing is said to be human instinct, for detecting another’s genes
Then, a meaningless kiss, is that a DNA Problem?
It may be a great or a wonderful kiss. Give a score. Assess and judge. And sometimes, leaving a boring romance behind.
It became just a starter before sex. With whom and where? Not knowing what kind of signals were sent. Moments that are difficult to recall. An everyday romance.
The moment that kissing became an ordinary thing. The moment that kissing became very easy.

But this moment, is not an ordinary moment. This moment is not easy.

Go Yeo Reum is not ordinary.
The feeling of my heart and head shaking, of all people, because of Park Jae Hoon.”

Royal Kiss Analyst over here losing her frakking MIND over this duologue. Hold on, I need a minute.

Jae-hoon may have been pushing when he kissed her, but Yeo-reum was using him when she asked for the kiss scene and blatantly lying when she said she felt nothing. The flashbacks show she's been avoiding her feelings for him since she was a student. I hope we learn why.

While I do agree that the show should have addressed Jiwan's story in a different way (ie. she needs help and need to realize that it wasn't her fault.), I don't think the story exists just to push the kissing scene.

The story introduces more questions about reality TV: what is the responsibility and ethics of reality TV producers, why would participants reveal personal things while being recorded (shouldn't they know better), and can you produce entertainment without hurting the participants?

Chaeri, of course, is crazy--all for entertainment with zero ethics. Yeo-rum, on the other hand, can't seem to produce entertainment because she's too righteous. Although I'm waiting for Yeo-rum's win, I am a fan of Chaeri. And, that again also reveals something twisted about this whole reality TV industry. I shouldn't be a fan of a producer who turns participants' misfortune, traumas, and embarrassment into entertainment.

I hold myself not to comment, but I can't, it is reaching my limit: I hate how they dress Lee Da-hee in here. She is already so skinny, and they make her even look skinnier. I wish they dress her like Seo Ji-hye in Kiss Six Sense (bad drama, wonderful fashion). Argg my eyes hurt Y2K fashion should be burnt. LOL

I recently watched a series about two women hunting down a UFO abduction cult and I was better able to suspend my disbelief on than I can with this little show. Something about this series just rings false. Even if the leads are dressed in a T shirt & jeans it feels like they were awkwardly costumed by the wardrobe department. I can't believe those are their clothes, those are their jobs, those are their parents, those apartments are how they live, those are words that would come out of their mouths. You get the uncomfortable feeling the leads are always aware the camera is on them. Its uncomfortable to watch.

I want to see how Yeo Reum can one up Chae Ri's craziness then things can only get more interesting from there.
It was quite unfortunate that Jae Hoon got rejected again. Yeo Reum is not really in the best state of mind right now and jumping into another relationship would be the last thing she would do. She does like Jae Hoon so I wonder why she is lying.
I do like Ji Yeon but I know she will only get hurt more if she continues to pursue Jae Hoon. Its not like he will change whom he loves anytime soon.

@dramaddictally thanks for the weecap and that last picture. I was loving his missed opportunities and that one was the best alternative especially because he carried it through to its ridiculous conclusion.

My other comedy gold moments were the imagined love scene in the tent and the transformation from ‘I don’t put oil on a man’ to supplying a full on back and shoulder massage. Who puts sun lotion under their armpits and why would you need anyone else to apply it in that fully accessible place?😐 So my question is was this a power play knowing these shots could be captured on camera and would show who was the dominant male in that situation or was it to show the chef as a people pleaser. He was told to stop being a sucker forced into butler mode taking pictures of a vain woman by and the very person telling him to regain control forces him in to butler mode having skinship with a male against his wishes.

Jiwan’s situation could lead to criminal proceedings if she disclosed to the police as it’s probably a full on Me too situation so having it on air could impact on her ability to take it further. The cousin could have sued her for defamation as he is likely to have built himself a nice smokescreen which he would not want ruined. This was a prime example of participants weaknesses being exploited for ratings with no care for the long term implications for the victim.

Why Yeoreum felt the need to lie about the kiss rather than say she was not ready to consider her feelings at the moment with the recent break up and needing to prove herself at work putting her in a position where she can’t be expected to make rational decisions in this area of her life.

Jiyeon’s logic is ridiculous she repeatedly said she was happy to be used by Jaehoon and then she had the cheek to dictate to Yeoreum to set boundaries as if that is all that was needed for her to get in with Jaehoon. I would have been glad for her to leave as the audience likes a rogue and would have been fine with seeing who Jaehoon went after next and that would probably raise the ratings more than this twist.

These episodes were good. I also think that they served to move the romantic plot forward.

Is it just my mood at the moment or does this drama have a melancholic undertone that runs through all the episodes?

I actually like Ji-yeon, but now I find her expectations and accusations exhausting. Jae-hoon has told her several times that he is not interested.

I go along with a lot of things, but the two main characters really can't pass for 20-year-olds anymore. I had to laugh out loud when I saw them.

Chae-Ri is such my favourite villain. She's super good at doing her job but her job sucks.

I really like how Ji-Yeon was honest with her feelings. She really likes Jae-Hoon. If she said she was ready to be used, like Jae-Hoon said it too, it doesn't mean to be humiliated and both suffered from Yeo-Rum's request. I didn't like the fact she didn't say why she needed a kiss but explained a kiss meant nothing.

I’m finding the reality dating show very hard to stomach, even though it’s fictional. It’s gross to exploit people and hurt them for monetary gain, but I’ll spare you my rant about the great ills of capitalism. The frustrating thing is that holding one person or company responsible when things go pear-shaped is not effective. The system is rigged in a way that motivates and rewards us for exploiting each other, so doing the right thing is hard, but that’s no excuse to put profit over people in this way. Yuck.😖 Someone please give Sang Woo a prize. He is a decent, kind and considerate human being, and took a big risk/hit to do the right thing.

Ji Wan’s revelations should have prompted a well-being check, and the producers could have offered her a chance to leave the show (not that it seems she wants to). They’re playing with fire here, and too many people can be harmed, not least Ji Wan herself. I’m hopeful that because she’s not a main character, we won’t be subjected to the false narrative of love being able to cure all traumas and poor mental health. (PLEASE, show!! At least do that much!)

I’ve already had a rant about Ji Yeon on @asterell’s wall post, so I feel I shouldn’t go there again, but people acting the victim under the guise of sweetness is one of my bugbears.

And then we have Yeo Reum making some poor choices. I think she lied to Jae Hoon about not feeling anything after their kiss for a few reasons. For one, she seems to default to prioritising her work when there’s chaos in other areas of her life, but I think it’s also because she’s not in a place to process or understand how she feels about him. She called off her wedding to IW, on the day of, a hot minute ago. Also, she’s been swayed by Ji Yeon’s tears and feels guilty about hurting her because Ji Yeon has feelings for Jae Hoon. And then there seems to be another reason - whatever made her lie as a twenty year old when they kissed for the first time. Anyhow, if I were Jae Hoon, I would have been offended by her asking me to kiss JY for the show, let alone everything else he’s seeing from his perspective (such as Kang PD’s edits).

I was amused by the contrasting advice Jae Hoon was given by their best friends. And I was surprised JH viewed his first conversation with YR as a rejection when she said she needs a friend rather than a man at the moment. I understood that as “let’s park this for the time being because this is what I need right now,” rather than “I’m not interested in you romantically.” Communication is hard.😅

I’m hoping I’ll find the next episodes less hard to watch…I miss the first episodes a lot. Thank goodness for the brief bits of humour here and there. Chef Jang being played was very satisfying!😁

Where do I even start!! Arrrrghhhhhhhhhh. So frustrated with the show itself (I hate these shows) and the leads.

The only person who didn’t frustrate me was Kang Chae Ri because she did exactly what I would expect her to do. I can’t even be mad at her because it’s how these shows work and she is part of that system. ! I hate these shows for this very reason. (and more). Btw, is it legal to take footage without consent and air it?

YR- nooo girl. No. You asked him a favor to be on the show and he did it. For you. Now you know he has feelings for you. How could you ask that?
Also, she could have handled the Ji wan issue differently and professionally. Is there nothing that protects the participants ? This is a serious issue and I am sure there are legal counsels for such.

JH - Dude! she asked you to be a friend for now! What’s with the kiss!
Sigh.

JY - Girl! You can like who you want. That’s your problem and I won’t judge you for it. But you have no business asking the PD if she likes him or saying she should draw the line clearly. She has no obligation to answer her feelings to You!
You constantly keep crossing the line and moping like you are a victim. I don’t feel for you anymore.

Anyway. A lot of mess. And cringe.

Best part.
1) YR and hoobae relationship

LOVE IS FOR SUCKERS: This is the week when nearly everyone worked my last nerve. First, Ji-yeon. As Daebak Grits said, she's a woman in her thirties, but she's acting like a teenager with her first (unrequited) crush. I *might* have felt a little bad for her that her crush doesn't like her back, except she's decided to ignore his very kind and respectful (and multiple!) rejections of her and focus on whether or not Yeo Reum likes him back to determine whether or not she should keep pursuing Jae hoon. This is not just pathetic, but also, deeply annoying. She keeps whining about her heartbreak over being in a one-sided love, while simultaneously acting entitled to Jae hoon's affections. The guy's just not that into you, girl! Move on already.

And Chae-ri is too one-note of a villain. I guess it's kindof cool that we're seeing a woman playing the stereotypical role of the heartless, ambitious senior at work, and I'm sure there are many reality TV execs out there, but her actions did not work for me this week. She had a point about the fact that participants tacitly agree to let go of having any say in what airs once they confess something while cameras are obviously rolling, but she then lost credibility when she secretly filmed Jae hoon and Ji-yeon And the way she threw things and screamed at Yeo Reum's hoobae was neither funny nor professional. I'm glad her boss pointed that out. I don't know, maybe it's the actress; her character annoyed me in "Love All Play," too. Right now, the character has no redeeming qualities at all, and the actress isn't playing her with any nuance.

Finally, Yeo Reum's rejection(s) were harsh and hard to watch. If she doesn't return his feelings, fine, but it's a romcom, and I think we're supposed to believe that she does. But we're not given any clear indication of her motivations and struggles in these episodes--and instead, too much airtime is spent on the vacuous reality show characters--so I found all of the drama depressing.

Quite a frustrating pair of episodes this week, for me personally.

Last week's episodes really charmed me, but this week I found myself gritting my teeth at every single character decision.
For starters, Jae-hoon. Last week he said he'd be whatever Yeo-reum needed. What happened to that swoony attitude? If he's been waiting for her for seventeen years, I think a couple of more months hardly make a difference. And what really grinds my gears is the preview for next week, in which [SPOILER]. Bitch what? What about the aforementioned seventeen years of friendship, or that time she literally helped him deal with his depression? The man is about to be thrown 🙄
I also kept wishing Yeo-reum would be more honest with him, and then ended up screaming at my screen whenever she wasn't. I can understand her acting that way at 20, but 37? Ma'am, I am BEGGING you to act like an adult.
I liked Ji-yeon, I really did, but she's seriously getting on my nerves. 'No' doesn't mean 'maybe'. 'I like someone else' doesn't mean 'maybe I'll like you if that person doesn't like me back'. F*ck outta here with your whining.
Kang Chae-ri continues to be fun - until I remember she has no qualms about using someone's sexual assault as a means to get higher ratings. At that point I'm forced to cancel her in my heart 💔Et tu, Brute?

Thank you for such a great recap that expressed so many of my feelings. I was SO frustrated with the plot this week. The backstory made me confused - why did she reject him back then? AND then I was SO SO frustrated with how they did the plot this week because I thought it was unnecessary and I began to lose sympathy for YR because I did not like her asking Jaehoon to kiss another woman. Her boss put her in there to curb Chae-ri so I felt like she just had to call her boss and say Chae-ri wants to air footage of someone confessing a sexual assault and that person has now asked us not to air it, which seems exactly what he would to curb. Before they get sued for defamation by the person accused of sexual assault OR invasion of privacy by Jiwan (depending on what the contract says). I also didn't like YR telling Jaehoon she felt nothing. I didn't understand why she was lying. And I don't really understand Jiyeon's obsession with Jaehoon who has told her so many times he's not interested.

I think I'm in the minority, but I wasn't all that bothered by Yeo Reum asking Jae Hoon to do the kiss. Her desire to protect Ji Wan is so strong, and Ji Wan is completely deserving of that protection. Obviously, it hurt Jae Hoon for her to make such a request, and then she rejects him again after their kiss instead of being honest about her feelings, and that part does frustrate me, because why? But Chae Ri was not going to just give up that footage. If the assistant hadn't deleted it, I fully believe Chae Ri would have still secretly pocketed it to use in a later episode everyone had forgotten about it. Honestly, part of me is worried she's going to figure out a way to recover it for that express purpose.

Barely hanging on with this drama I'm afraid.
JH shouldn't have pushed YR so much. It's way too early after her breakup for that, plus she's under serious work pressure.
YR crossed several lines in her friendship also. I appreciate she was under pressure, but I thought she was far too harsh with JH.
Can't say either character endeared themselves to me.
Finally, as per other beanies, the use of the same actors in the flashback was ridiculous.

I don't understand Ji-Yeon. What does she think will happen, she'll trick Jae-Hoon into being in a relationship with her? I don't know how clearer he could have been in telling, and showing her that he isn't interested. Girl, please. 🙄