I was very disappointed with these final two episodes, as I know were many Beanies, but I don't really want to pile on. So many dramas these days crash and burn at Episode 14 that I don't wish to do a whole lot of complaining. I’d just like to keep it to one simple point:

What really, really bugged me about the finale week of Destined with You was the way in which almost all of the (pretty delightful) complex character-building present in the first 14 episodes was simply and utterly discarded in these last two hours.

This week, we saw flat, shadow-puppets of our beloved characters acting out desiccated story lines. Sure, Ha Joon simply glowed as Jae-kyung the whole time, and, sure, Hong-jo was the same as ever, always having been a flat shadow-puppet acting out her own inane story line...but they took away my wonderfully complicated, damaged people. I wholly resent this unforced error.

Thanks @unit for the ride—and the Fan Wall photos!

I thought I might be in the minority but I'm with you there on being happy with the ending @unit! The last few minutes on the beach especially got me blinking back tears. One of the BEST proposal scenes I’ve seen yet & will definitely go down as a favourite of mine - I really loved how understated but sincerely heartfelt it was. And the ring wasn’t ugly!! Double win! (on the topic of PPL - that close up shot on the rings and the bracelet while they were hugging is really pretty too, feels like it came straight out of a Tiffany ad.)

Could final week have been better? Sure, there’s always a margin for improvement. But in a year of questionable endings, I thought this one was one where they did a pretty good job of landing it. Loose ends were tied up, happy endings were gotten without being rushed. There were things this week that were unnecessary for sure (basically the entire Gardener Psycho plot to name one) but the best bit about DWY, if not the core of what kept the wheels turning, has always been the Shin-yu and Hong-jo moments, and we got a lot of disgustingly adorable scenes with those two this week so my heart is feeling full and satisfied in that regard.

If I were to start really listing all the things that could’ve been done better overall, it’d go for a while. But the truth is that I think I made my peace with the fact that this show was going to be all over the place a while back and I think I subconsciously adjusted my expectations accordingly as I went, so I wasn’t really super annoyed or unsatisfied with any plot points and was just more enjoying what I was enjoying, as simple as that.

I think I found also towards the end that just focusing on what I was enjoying made me enjoy it more? Where in other dramas I’d be like “this was cool BUT here’s all the things I was frustrated by”, having put that critical part of my brain to rest while watching DWY, I really just liked basking more into the glow of the stuff I was liking. It helped that the stuff I was enjoying was done well. If they’d butchered the OTP scenes or made it unbearable in that department, maybe that would’ve pushed me to focus on what wasn’t done well. But when I finished the last episode, all that stuck with me really was all the cute stuff that made me smile, squee and laugh, and the star-crossed lovers moments that made me tear up and root for the OTP to have a happy ending. All the other bits - the bits that were the technical downsides’ - I just never apparently bothered to properly save in my memories so they didn’t even really register in the first place for me to make critical commentary about. I simply just brushed it off apparently considering how not-fussed I am about them/the fact that they’re not sitting at the forefront of my mind right now 🤷‍♀️

I did mention this in a fan-wall post but I’ll say it again here: I think Rowoon come really far as an actor and was getting better and better as the show went on. He really sold the emotional...

Sigh. So much of this was fun, and then it started to veer all over the place and never really got back on course. I wish you had come to your senses, Jang Shin-yu Destined With You.

My take is as choppy and scattered as episode 16.

@seeker made a good point elsewhere that it’s really a 14-episode drama, though I’d add an epilogue taken from minutes 52 to ~55 of the otherwise non-existent episode 15. Episode 16 was pretty flat and disjointed, but no worse than I expected at this point. There were a lot of perfunctory wrap-up scenes and the courtroom may have been the most phoned-in, useless one. No, wait, Gong and Ma making up in the cafeteria was the most useless. No, hmm, HJ’s girly-squealy bonding with the obnoxious coworkers was even more useless.

Those of us who had "spending yet another night doing nothing but giggling at each other in pajamas" and "wearing his dress shirt (and nothing else)" on our bingo cards win a prize, right? (My prize starts with the initials JK.) The return of the cheesy love lines was great but too brief - I would have cheered for more, especially at the expense of everyone in the office except Gi-dong. Our koala boy didn’t get nearly enough screen time in these episodes.

They must have showed that bracelet PPL a record number of times - I was distracted from SY crying and clutching HJ’s hand by the shiny flash of it in nearly every frame, which I suppose is what the show wanted but Rowoon was doing a fine bit of emoting there and it was a shame not to focus on that.

His ring is gorgeous. Hers is so big and gaudy it looks like a prize out of a cereal box, and I can’t help but think how often she’s going to snag it on her tights or a towel or whatever.

Did SY wash his hands between handling the octopus and handling HJ? Also, that food looks disgusting, as well as incredibly awkward to eat.

Jo Bo-ah’s baby talking was maddening.

Rowoon was *good enough* for this show. He went blank occasionally, and he doesn’t have enough of the subtle something extra that better actors can bring (I’m still thinking about what Lee Jae-wook could have made of this role), but he’s done well at showing goofy, swoony, sulky, and snarky, and is at least believeable in angsty moments like stabby-crying in hanbok in the snow. I think he’s even improved since the early episodes, and he was excellent in the hospital scenes – the frenzy, the anguish, the perfect hand positioning to display PPL jewelry – and his hair looked great! On the other hand, imagining our Uncanny Val in drag during moments that drag has been life-giving, especially in these messy last few episodes.

Beanies were the stars of this show.

I loved reading your recaps, it’s always like a dessert to complete my week’s analysis of this drama lol…

I love JBA as HongJo, was able to sympathize and connect with the character….I was excited when she went to record Nayeon, but I was disappointed when she told to Nayeon she couldn’t spread it…I am like what girl!

For me Aengcho is perfect character, knows how to protect herself..she is fierce even with king and that will be my fav scene of JBA ever from now on…

agree that Female characters are written weaker compared to male characters in last eps..what is with 2 40+ woman fighting over for a guy in office..If Nayeon is not in previous life, why wasn’t her story closed sooner and make ML look like 2 legs…

In spite of all these flaws and second couple that I skipped, DWY is drama that captivated me enough to laugh, giggle and cry due to the leads, as emotions and angst was very visible..This drama would have been amazing if not for plot holes and better editing ..

Cho Bo ah and Rowoon, and their chemistry is most memorable for me…I just couldn’t get out of their BTS and Netflix videos now lol…

Thanks once again @unit for the terrific recap because it explained much of what I FF through (including the romance, but that's me). I was in a rush when Ep. 16 aired so I'll probably go back and watch Mr. Go and Boss Lady wedding.

I came for Ha Joon, stayed for Ha Joon and the magic spells, and after Episode 9, continued to stay for Ha Joon. Which is more than I can say for My Lovely Liar (dropped in spite of Seo Ji Hoon), 19th Life and Heavenly Idol (dropped in spite of Kim Min Gue).
I have previously enjoyed many so-called fantasy dramas, but 2023 era fantasy seems to have lost its enchantment (yeah, I said it) for me because of super focus on the OTP/cinematography/CGI and less focus on the actual plot and development of side characters and side stories. Plus, Hong Jo has mush for brains. Lust will do that, I hear. 😂😂😂

Absolute best twist was Shaman Eun Wol apparently "once again" (according to SY) being wrong when it came to her prognostications. I loved SY's expression when he learned he was about to have a baby sister which is totally improbable but heck - this is fantasy after all.

Sigh, at least we got a hot makeout session out of this remarkably dry couple. I got my bean, kkut, the end, meh.

Thanks for the recaps throughout @unit!
I liked the show over all, but the the ending week left me wanting.
One thing I do not like about kdramas is how gooey the MLs become after they get into a relationship. It was worse in the case of SY - the snarky SY, who flirted with Red Hand and shot cheesy lines like a canon, where was he come the end?
And I feel sore about the whole NY arc. That was unnecessary. Sigh.
And we still don't know why SY took a picture of HJ in the haunted house and how SY reached from the Garden Creep's shop to the hospital.
Oh well, there were some good parts, which I will re-watch.

I’m sad because I can’t see Shin yu again but glad it’s over now

The story is out of places and choppy but the love line is really save the show. I just don’t get it why they put so much problem in 1 plate, to much issue that must be solved and it solved in rush hour of last 2 eps.

My fav chars is Shin Yu (absolutely) even though I’m a bit dissapointed about him in earlier eps but then he just stole my heart, thank goodness he got his cute mother DNA running in his body.

I think Innever watch any drama with a lot of sweetness douse like Destined With You. I don’t how many time I rewatched how cheesy Shin Yu saying pick up lines with a straight face.

I’m not really a fan of Rowon, my first drama of him is Extraordinary you, which I’m in SLS, so I’m not into him in that drama.
I skip She would never know, Tomorrow and even King’s Affection because of him but this drama really change me, it makes me watch Rowoon other drama and really it can’t be compared with his role as ShinYu.
I really feel he’s grown up and his acting sky rocketing with this role. When I see him in his older drama, I often feels, he can do more like he did in Destined With You and all disappointed is redeem in this drama. Rowoon as Shin Yu will forever my fav, he just nailed it.

I… really enjoyed myself? These episodes were really good? I wasn’t sure if I was watching the correct drama at some point lol. But yes, all the fluffiness, the cute moments, the, er, spicy moments… they gave us everything in return for all they put us through. I loved how, at the 11th hour, Hongjo grew a backbone stood up to Nayeon and refused to back down. She was instrumental in getting the stalker arrested, so I forgive the usual Hongjo moment of disregarding personal safety. Sinyu continued to make me Ro-swoon all over him; the pre-parental scramble was hilarious and him asking her dad’s permission genuinely moved me. Even Jaekyung redeemed himself and helped put sexual predator CEO & corrupt mayor behind bars (I think). We won, lads.

Did I have an issue with a lot of things? Yes, ofc. Why is his mom still married to that jerk? The writers essentially handcuffed her to this jerk with pregnancy. And as much as I liked knowing that our OTP is getting married, weren’t they against it like 2 seconds ago? Anyways, I’d rather see them getting married than Gong and Ma, who were always depicted as super toxic. WHY IN GOD’S NAME IS HONGJO FRIENDS WITH THE COWORKERS WHO BULLIED HER? Did she forget when they leaked that video or ostracized her? Why were were the City Hall girlies fighting in the office when I can’t even get a text back??

I could go on…. But I’d rather just think about the Spider-Man kiss… or the candy floss kiss… or… 🥹🥹

I will take a cue from our recapper, who was generous on the final episodes…and…and…alas, I cannot. But I can praise the highlights of the show overall. The kinky possibilities of the red hand. Shin-yu getting a grip! The Joseon flashback with its glorious, tragic end. And of course, my crash course in Roswooning. That last pulled me through to the very end.

But no, what pulled me through were Beanies! What fun this was gabbing on the recaps, enjoying the gifs and memes, the intense fan wall posts, and the final live(ish) fan wall watch. It was a blast! Till the next one!

The ending was ... fine? And so was the show. It's just too bad that the most interesting parts -- Red Hand, Ice Hand (we never really dug into this, did we?), the spell book, how the curse worked, Aeng-cho -- were largely abandoned down the stretch in favor of a cycle of dangerous (dumb) decisions, rescues and unearned redemption stories. A compelling, tightly plotted, character-driven show with gorgeous cinematography and visuals could have been created out of this premise with this cast and budget. Oh well. DWY was entertaining enough, and the Beanie commentary even more so. What's next?

@unit, thank you for the hilarious and gracious recaps, I laughed so hard many times, like about your and Hong-Jo’s logic clashing from Day 1.
It’s a Tale of Two dramas for me: the good one one has Rowoon being so darn funny, Jo Boa making the best of a weak character, a SML who was appealing and a beautiful, emotional sageuk.
The second drama for me was utter waste: coworkers, so boring SFL, creepy Garden Man, the parents, the obtuse FL actions, wasted spellbinding potential and sooooo much PPL.
Bean, completed. 👍🏼
DWY, adios forever. 👋🏽
Beanies, thanks for the blast ❤️

First, I want to say: @unit -- I would have enjoyed this show, just from your recaps! Thank you!

As for the show, I've been on the record with some bold, striking interpretations, clearly intended by the writers, in terms of its metaphors depicting the heartbreak of sexual dysfunction and the legacy of Joseon sexism.

So, in realization of the first theme, we finally got a physically intimate scene (discreetly filmed, which I also appreciated) and the characters woke up and clearly didn't have clothes on. I'd say the bloody hand, aka the "only sleep together in sweaters curse" had been lifted!

But what about Hong Jo's battle against the legacy of the truly horrible Joseon patriarchy as represented by her reincarnation of Aengcho? Alas, here I think the writers lost the thread. What was Hong-jo doing semi-apologizing to the Dad, CLEARLY the representative of the Joseon male attitude? And what was Shin-yu doing ECHOING the serial killer villain's Joseon era line about male possession and jealousy, so much so Shin-yu bought the building WITHOUT consulting his future wife?!? Let me just point out, the failure of the show to fully realize "legacy of evil Joseon patriarchy" theme was the writer's fault, not this interpreter!

The problem was that these last two episodes were haunted by the ancient curse of the show's beginning. By portraying the two office colleagues with a mentality of 12 year olds and not having them change, by setting up a misconceived relationship between a smart and dynamic office manager and a kind-hearted but generally oafish second in command, and then for no reason having them get married; by having the second male lead coldly deny the FL's early confession and then, again for no reason whatsoever, switching him to being smitten until the end; by showing Shin-yu's mother trying to escape a horrible, abusive marriage via divorce but then totally mysteriously, have his Dad "suddenly" realize he hadn't been nice to her, further entrapping her with a miracle pregnancy that defied biology at age 49, this show taught us the important lesson: even the power of Rowoon cannot escape the destiny of a weakly written script spell book!

Phew! Finally this one is over.. This show started really strong, and I loved it, but ends up with me barely watching ep 15-16, still need to see it through anyway. at least I know what happen to Jae-kyeong 😥 Now I need a long break from Rowoon and Jo boah but will carry on with Ha joon! 😂

I agree with @Unit about just about everything. Like @Unit - I loved DESTINED WITH YOU, flaws and all.

Hong Jo was likeable despite some TSTL (Too Stupid To Live) moments and I suspect that the the writer went slightly too far in trying to make Aeng Cho and Hong Jo different individuals and ended up with Hong Jo missing the spine of steel that Aeng Cho had. It is a credit to Jo Bo-A that she played both characters well. It would have been better, IMHO, if some of the steeliness of Aeng Cho passed through the lives to Hong Jo. After all, if one believes in past lives, one would think that certain traits come with our migrating soul.

My one other niggle is that while I thought the past life episode was really compelling, it should have been brought forward by maybe a couple of episodes so that the pacing would be more even - the 2-episode finale wouldn't seemed so rushed and all the storylines would have room to play out without cramming everything in.

Otherwise, I'd rate DWY a solid 8 which could've been a 9 or even 9.5.

@unit thank you for the recaps! 👏👏👏

These last episodes surely felt like a bumpy ride, and all of what didn’t sit well with me was mentioned already. The writing of female characters was my biggest peeve, and I’m disappointed the last episode quasi gaslit some of the previous events, just to end on a high note. Hongjo befriending her horrible colleagues? Mom making up with dad, after years of of being ridiculed? Naw…

Shinyu’s silly cuteness (and eyebrows) could distract me there though (shout out to all beanies catching these formidable moments with gifs! 🤟); Jaekyung improving by each episode (I have had my suspicions about him long enough, lol, in the end I really liked him), the beautifully heartbreaking Joseon scenes, Aengcho being badass… I have to say that overall, I loved the drama! I had such a blast watching this show with all of you 😆 Oh, what am I now going to do with my Wednesday and Thursday evenings… Maybe I can dig up some old spell book and just see what happens.

🍿🦒🍿

The drama and I had been out of sync for quite a while, which is why I only half-heartedly followed the last episodes. It's a pity, I could have watched much longer Shin-yu thinking his feelings were affected by the potion and fighting against it while making incredibly cheesy declarations of love. That was exactly my kind of humour.

I'm not a fan of adult couples written as if they seem to have no libido. I also don't melt when I see a newly in love couple fully clothed and holding hands in bed. This was another reason why I became less and less emotionally involved towards the end. All the more surprising then came the closet scene, out of nowhere. I admit, suddenly the drama had my full attention again.

It was good that Hong-jo finally stood up to Na-yeon. In a way, it's telling that she's doing it now because she wants to protect Shin-yu, not only herself.

I'm disappointed, but not surprised, that Shin-yu's mother didn't go through with the divorce. As if the father would actually change that quickly. I bet he will fall back into his old pattern after a short while.

Honestly, I wasn't so angry against Hong-Jo for the gardener situation. She wanted to stop this situation and she had the opportunity but not a lot of time to arrange it. She told to the Police and had the watch. She would have let the bodyguards following her. But like Aeng-Cho, she confronted her stalker. During these episodes, she didn't back off, it was the same with Na-Yeon. I liked she said she didn't win but she was feeling relieved and I was happy she did it alone without Shin-Yu's help.

It's funny that the Gardener actually saved our couple from the curse, in the past he made them separated by death, in the present he let them to be reunited. It was definitely a merciless curse with someone who had to die. The past couple had a tragic story since the beginning, they were not from the same statut after all. But in the present, their love saved them. They were both so lonely, Hong-Jo because of the situation of her family and guilt, Shin-Yu because of his mysterious sickness. The spell book made them spending a lot of time together. Is the love spell worked or not? I think the Shaman said it, if you believe in it, it works. Between the fact Shin-Yu was already interested in Hong-Jo and the fact he believed in it, he just fell harder and sooner. During the scene of episode 2,
he was a total jerk, but he alreadly felt bad for it and before knowing for the spell did nice things to her : ate with her, gave her the dress, knew how many tasks she had etc.

The love spell made the typical cold ML in a very honest and cringey one. Rowoon really mastered this part of his role. In the meantime, Hong-Jo couln't resist to have someone in her life who took care of her, listenned to her, was interested in her life. I liked they went on her Dad's beach to get engaged, he's not a strange man in her life now.

If not a lot happened in the last 2 episodes, I was really happy to see our couple sharing nice, lovely and sexy moments together. It's always frustrating when the couple gets back together in the last 5 minutes of the drama. But I realy liked that in the last episode, it was Hong-Jo who took the lead. The bed scene was so cute! For once, I really think Shin-Yu was just tired to arrange/clean his new appartment (not that he didn't have thoughts for the future) and called her.

For the rest of the drama, I didn't really care about the other colleagues. They were obnoxious too many times with Hong-Jo (except Ma). Park Gi-Dong was the best one! It would have been nice if he followed Shin-Yu in the law firm, he liked him so much.

I always knew that Jae-Gyeong wasn't a villain. He was too different from his father and showed how he didn't have any once of respect for him. I liked that he wasn't connected to his past life. I never had a SLS for him, but I really liked him as a character. He had his chance and missed it, it was his own mistake.

I had hopes for Na-Yeon when she explained the past to Shin-Yu, she did bad...

@unit has a way of spinning recaps in the best possible light and with DWY that wasn’t an easy task. Thank you, @unit for helping me acknowledge the good parts of DWY.
If DWY had a truly redeeming quality it was that the actors rose above the terribly inadequate writing. There was no point in so many useless storylines. The co-workers from hell suddenly turning into HJ’s best friends, the Gong & Ma show that simply filled time (not to mention that terrible scene of his ex showing up at their work). The storylines that bothered me most was making Shin-yu’s mom pregnant. Dad is an abuser no matter how you spin the writing and even to the end was still denigrating HJ. Becoming pregnant is not a magic bullet that changes an abuser and shame on the writer for including that as a way to wrap up that couple’s storyline. Second, making JK a trult evil bad guy back in the Joseon era served absolutely no purpose. Zero. There was no character evolution in this series to explain why he changed and for that matter why HJ went from a strong, purposeful woman to a completely timid person who simply accepted being slapped multiple times. And like so many stories from 2023, the rushed endings with completely unrealistic resolutions was lazy writing pure and simple.
As I said, the actors rose above the material and I see Rowoon improving with each successive role so much so that I’ll give his roles a chance beyond his visuals in the future. Natural or not, Jo Bo-ah and her baby talk grated me no end, but the woman has such a sweet, open face and those beautiful, huge eyes. I’ll be checking her out as well.
Thanks for accepting me back, beanies. As I learn to navigate the site, I hope to interact with you more consistently. Again, great job, @unit!

Burying that spell book in the woods did not seem safe to me. Quite apart from the spells we would have liked to see performed, Spell of Fortune most of all. With GoodBoy Shin-hu. Woof! But even without that, leaving the spell book where people like IncelGardenGuy™ could find it ... not good.

It was a cute ending and I thoroughly enjoyed the show, though I wasn't as invested in the last episodes as I was in the beginning. The FL was indeed TSTL, but they made a cute couple and Rowoon was do damn funny and yes, really hot.

Granted I was Team Girrafe through and through but frankly Jae-kyung had been a large (and entertaining) part of the story.

Not only was his part severely curtailed in the last two episodes (was he shooting for Live Your Own Life and was hence unavailable?) he was thoughtlessly thrust into the Joseon plot.

If the writer was trying to say he was a villain in past life and has now reformed - that did not come through. Also it directly contradicts that we had been led to believe about him being a "honest and strong man" in past life.

It did no one any favors to have Jae-kyung smile and eat PPL sandwiches as punishment for past life! 😭

Hong-jo has changed Shin-yu's name in her phone as My Dear Groot ... did Shin-yu ever get around to re-naming her contact in his phone?

Low expectations is truly a receipt for a success. I mean, 2023 was The Trash Year for romance kdramas in general and fantasy romance genre in particular. So where does DWY stands if we keep aforementioned fact in mind? Well, it's kind of like SWDBS to me - cute story that delivered a lot of funny, swoony and fluffy moments despite being a hot mess overall. And another idol actor's "he really CAN act" performance as a cherry on top. That's it - no more, no less. To be honest, I expected MUCH worse from it only to be pleasantly surprised most of the times, finale included. Idk what masterpiece people seemed to expect here, but I was never in that camp, so for me all is well that ends well. And DWY did end well - not perfectly by any means, but satisfying and smoothly enough to forgive the show its many lower moments.

Our favorite cringelord JSY is back! That alone washes away so many script sins, isn't it? I think I can watch this guy being unabashedly corny besotted boyfriend for an eternity or two))) This kind of thing is VERY hard to pull off naturally, so mad respect here. Agree with everyone else that JBA as a badass AC outdoes JBA as no-sense-of-self-preservation HJ by mile, but octopus jump-hugs, bear hoodie and Cool Woman's promise to be responsible for a man she scandalized won me over as well))) And OK, can we TALK about THAT love scene? There was a bit less of aggressive femdom than I hoped, but otherwise - damn, kids! *fans herself* Worth all the wait indeed. Tho I side-eye SY's clearly supernatural ability to keep a perfect abs even after weeks of skipping his workout routine due to a serious abdominal injury. No real human being is capable of that, sir! And yes, I was worried that his stitches may not survive all that wild closet action... Guess his surgeon has an iron needlework)))

Beach proposal was very nice, unlike that other one, ugh. But really, who asked for filler couple's wedding scene? Not me! NY and jerk chaebol endings had me cackling - so much for a passionate illicit affair lol. Good for him to know that even he can do better tho. Classmate dude suddenly growing a spine along with SY's dad suddenly growing an empathy for his wife was super random and unbelievable, but whatever. Mom still should divorce him, even despite another kid - no point of staying with a man who's only good as a quality sperm donor. Wook as an actor? Uhm, ok. EW's jumpscare call was a riot, but I still dislike her misdirectingly vague oracle ways, meh. And hope HJ finds better friends than those two brain-dead girlies. Gardener remained a plot convenient mystery till the end - rofled how police questioned him about motive to kill his wife, but not where he learned black magic stuff. JK as a politician? Hmm, somehow it fits. Kudos for him to vacating the space for SY to move in. Did I FF the resolution of his dad's issue or there was none? Not that I care...

P.S. Still a much better love story than Twilight KKOKDU!

I absolutely loved the first half of this drama and loved the beanie discussion the whole series prompted, I haven't been this invested in a live watch since Alchemy of souls s2.

I was less invested as the season progressed, but the recap and the comments have helped me focus on the good. Even the comments with lists of of the less than great elements were nice to read (it's reassuring that I'm far from the only one they annoyed) - I can accept that and just remember (and likely rewatch) the parts I liked and the rest can fade from memory...

The rom-com elements of the finale week helped somewhat smooth over the really frustrating elements that has been building up for the last 8 episodes. It's all thrown together haphazardly, but turning off my brain and just enjoying the cute really helps!

Yay! Shin-yu caught the bouquet! I really like rom-com weddings to be the secondary characters' wedding and then hinting at the main couple being the next ones to get married.

I'm bummed Shin-yu's mom is pregnant now that she's restarting her acting career. Hope the dad will take on most of the childcare!. Sometimes, I feel like the writer hates her characters in this drama - particularly the women- so I'm wary.

Jae-kyung remains endearing. Ha Joon, I guess I'll see you in your other drama now.

The best reaction to a surprise public proposal (at work *cringe*)! And the most reasonable!

The drama could have been a solid 10 to 12-episoder. The writer knows how to write those super cute rom-com beats, but I felt like the writer (and maybe even the director for dragging on the moments) sort of lost control after the midway point and had the characters just circle the drain (particularly with Shin-yu sticking with Nayeon for so long, Garden Man on the loose, and all those snide/mean-girls moments) until we got some movement in the final 2 episodes that don't really connect to the rest of the story or characters much at all.

Hong-jo really won me over (Credit to Jo BoA). Sure she's naïve and has little self-preservation, but instead of making me want to throw something at her, I wanted to protect her. I stuck through the drama to see her get her happy ending and see her give Nayeon the smackdown. And now she also has a mother's love from Shin-yu's mom. I did cringe at her still trying to be friends with the mean girls.

Ro-woon did a really good job- particularly his crying scenes- and has fantastic chemistry with Jo BoA. I couldn't warm up to Shin-yu for most of the drama, but he makes Hong-jo happy and will handle a live octopus for her, so I guess that's enough.

Obviously, Shin-yu was going to catch the bouquet ...
https://www.dramabeans.com/activity/p/1469192/#acomment-1469869

Who was the wedding guest who saluted Manager Ma and held her hand? Do we know him?

Last week, after Hong-jo opened the door for Garden Man and went alone to meet him, I said, "If Hong-jo dies, oh well." I have no sympathy for her stupidity. So when the cliffhanger ended with Hong-jo unconscious in the cave, I didn't care. Then when Shin-yu wailed over her poisoned body in the hospital, I still didn't care. I knew that she wouldn't die anyway.

The two best lines this week were:

Wook: "I'm not cut out for it, but it's a job too good for me to quit."
Jae-kyung: "Since you stood up, you can just leave."

Jae-kyung was the best character in this drama, which says a lot about this drama because he wasn't actually a very good character. Last week, I had teared up when our OTP broke up but not because of our OTP, but because of Jae-kyung and Wook. I was so touched when Jae-kyung told Hong-jo, "I came out because I was worried," then when we found out that Wook hadn't left and held the car door open for Shin-yu. Hong-jo and Shin-yu are lucky to have such great friends.

The one thing I'll give Destined With You is that our serial killer was someone creepy from the beginning. I'm so tired of plot twists turning handsome, lovable characters into serial killers (Crash Course in Romance, My Lovely Liar, May I Help You?). If you're going to have a serial killer in a rom-com, it should always be ugly, old dudes.

And its done! While I may miss my time winding down over the weekend and relaxing, I don't know if I'll miss the drama itself all that much. Overall it was a decent 7/10. Had fun initially so theres that!
It was cute for a don't-think-just-watch for a while and then it veered off and made it very hard to not think.
Hong Jo's brilliant logical planning made me want to throw something and the cute OTP moments that followed barely made up for it.
The finale felt disjointed without a proper narrative flow and some of the happy tie offs felt unearned (Sin Yu's father Im looking at you).
Though if I think too much, there'll be a lot of questions (as in what even the curse was? wasn't his dad affected by it? what was psycho stalker's deal? were the spells even real?...) BUT I've come this far enjoying without thinking so it's better to keep it that way till the end.
Ro woon did very well though and his "Get a grip Jang Sin Yu" will be iconic! So thankyou for the good times show and beanies! Its been fun.

I'm really glad this show is over. I truly hate myself for sticking around for god knows what reason throughout when I should have dropped it when I had the chance.

Everything about this show was just so wrong.
There was nothing likeable about any of the characters. The show started off strong and got so boring. The spells plot was heavily used at the start just to be barely mentioned towards the end. The FL made so many questionable choices which rubbed me the wrong way.

Also the casting for Shin-yu's parents was so bad. They failed to convince me that they were actually his parents & their relationship was plain toxic. I hate that they still remained together despite all that and have another kid on the way too.

This drama became really boring by the time it reached the mid-point. The past life bit and the "thriller" bit was the cause of its undoing for me! Even Rowoon's charm could not keep it afloat. I just started skipping most bits and watching. Should have stuck to spells and romance. Why did we stop enquiring into whether the spells work or not again?

Everyone else has already given the full analysis so I don't really have much to say, apart from: I miss Shin-Yu's deadpan delivery in ep 4 but him in love is cute.

My favourite part about watching this drama was the community built, all the comments and gifs made! Thanks again 🥰 haven't had this much fun on db for a while! Onwards to the next drama :)

In the current state of affairs, I fear my not very orderly dripping of "one more funny-in-spe gif about Shin-yu" are not reaching the taggees, so for you comfort and convenience I am giving you the permalink here for those interested. You can go here and check out maybe today and again in a couple of days. https://www.dramabeans.com/members/CecilieDK/activity/1469192/
***

***
Yes, I do try to get a grip, but I fear it's either gripor gifs. So "Get a gif, DK-Drama".

@claire2009 (Healer’s) @seeker (Cera) @attiton @Jillian
@jls943 (unaspirated) @indyfan @hopefulromantic @vienibenmio @elinor @coffeprince4eva @DncingEmma @lapislazulii @sonai @mayhemf (Blue) @Gikata @marysadanaga @sp2022 @darkcc

The plot of this drama can be distilled down to this: Hong Jo takes stupid risks, Shin Yu rescues her, then repeat.

I felt frustrated so many times. Hong Jo's boyfriend hires two bodyguards to keep her safe, but she sends them off on a break(?!!), and they both go?? She actually wants to be friends with the bullying colleagues who never demonstrated the ability to be a friend? The only character in her office team whom I liked at all was her boss Ma. Shin Yu's mom is left stuck with a man who has verbally abused her for years, and the baby is supposed to magically give her a happy ending? Just when she's restarting her career as an actress?? How did Shin Yu stay involved with Na Yeon for years without discovering her real personality?? It showed that he didn't really love her, it seemed like his character had enough confidence that he should have walked away when he was not invested. Maybe watching his parents' awful relationship meant he didn't realize the flaws in his own. I don't care to list them all, but every episode had moments that left me shaking my head.

I did enjoy the cute, the leads were a fun pairing. The scenes of the two of them being happy together were done well and this was the main reason I could continue watching. Rowoon nailed the emotional hospital scenes and he definitely did the eye candy doting boyfriend well. For me the best part of this whole drama was the historical storyline and characters. I liked Hong Jo but wish she had carried with her more of Aeng Cho's fire.

Hands down this role has been Ro-woon's best. As I said in early episodes when some were put off by the cold indifference of his character, I just kept sliding my palms together up and down, smiling in anticipation, knowing that the colder our K-drama CEOs start at the beginning, the warmer-hearted they become along the way because of the FLs’ spirited heart. And ultimately, he will charge into the finale as an amazingly romantic ‘green flag’. It’s a character trope I Iove. There’s nothing like an old classically aloof & jaded hero who carries his past wounds alone and in silence. This character often matures the most over the series as we watch the shell of his cold heart warm up to her, and then melt into love. Jo Boa's character was empowered from the start, yet her life was stalling a bit when they met. The ‘love spell’ she cast on him was an awesome addition to the plot, especially seeing him go back-and-forth with himself trying to repress his ardour for her. Great humour. The time slip into the past was a highlight too as our leads each absorbed their past life’s tragedy. Going through that pain lifted their present-day relationship and made it so much more meaningful. All in all, this was a great recipe for a rom-com and Ro-woon’s kisses definitely added the spice that kicked it up a LOT of notches. Phew! 🔥🔥 Thanks #unit. I really like your recap style. It certainly mirrored the ‘com’ part of this interesting ‘rom’.