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LTNS: Episodes 1-2

Esom and Ahn Jae-hong are spicing up our screens with the new short-form drama, LTNS — part sex comedy, part long, hard look at marriage. Oh, right, and part crime caper as our leads blackmail cheating spouses into forking over some cash. Our central couple may not be having sex with each other, but at least they’re not out having sex with anyone else, right?

 
EPISODES 1-2

LTNS: Episodes 1-2

We start with our leads’ frisky sex life as they get it on in the hallway of a residential building. Sure, sure, it’s all fun and games until they’re married, bored, broke, and paying a mortgage. Cut to seven years later in a post-covid housing crisis and our leads are suffering long-term indigestion from the life they’ve settled into. (“You went out for coffee again?! We have coffee in the house!”) Needless to say, the sex life they used to enjoy together is now carried out individually in separate rooms.

Our down-and-dirty couple consists of WOO JIN (Esom) and RIM PARK SAMUEL (Ahn Jae-hong), who might not be interested in each other physically anymore, but still make a doozy of a team. Samuel works as a cabbie, while Jin mans the front desk of a fancy schmancy hotel. However, as upscale as it looks, that doesn’t stop adulterers from waltzing in and asking about the hourly rates. Uh, no, Jin tells them, you have to pay for the whole night — and then she notes their names in her little blacklist book for later.

LTNS: Episodes 1-2

The book will come in handy once our couple decides to become small-time crooks, but to get there, we have to take a deep dive into their financial troubles. Aside from the apartment they’re paying off with an impossibly high interest rate, there’s also Samuel’s taxi, which has just been submerged in water. The taxi is totaled and he’ll need a new one, but the insurance won’t pay since it was his fault (no parking zone, rainy night in the countryside, sinking into a bottomless puddle — you know, the usual).

Rather than tell his wife about this misfortune, he lies that everything is under control and then attempts to borrow the money for a new car from his wealthy friend, JUNG-SOO (Lee Hak-joo). Before that can happen, we learn a few things about Jung-soo and his wife, SE-YEON (Kim Sae-byuk), when Jin and Samuel stop over to visit them at their ginormous house.

First, Jung-soo has a girlfriend on the side and his biggest concern is if the girlfriend is “cheating on him” with someone else. Samuel points out that Jung-soo is also cheating, but Jung-soo counters that you can love up to two people at once (three is too many, though, FYI). And anyway, it’s only betrayal if you get caught. (Okay, Jung-soo, okay.)

Second, Se-yeon suspects something is awry with her husband because they’re not having regular sex anymore, and to deal with her feelings, she’s taken to day drinking. She’s of the opinion that if you’re not having sex in your marriage, you must be having sex outside it. This weighs on Jin since she can’t remember the last time she and Samuel hit the sheets.

When Samuel finally gets the nerve to ask Jung-soo for the needed money, he’s rebuffed. Apparently these two had a startup together that failed, but Jung-soo is still living the high life because his in-laws are rich. Meanwhile, Samuel (with a degree from SNU) is driving a cab. But Jung-soo is not a good friend (or grateful or humble), and so, Samuel leaves empty-handed.

All these factors smack together the next day when Jin approaches Samuel, wanting to end their sexless marriage status, and he rejects her, saying he’s uncomfortable. (Him: “Do you even feel love for me right now?” Her: “What’s love got to do with it?”). Jin is worried that if he’s not sleeping with her, he must be sleeping with someone else. Tired and stressed about his predicament, Samuel blurts outs, “Affairs are for people who can afford it, like Jung-soo.” Uh boy.

Once the details come out, Jin is set to tell Se-yeon straight away. But when she makes the phone call, Se-yeon surprises her by asking what she’s going to do about the totaled taxi now that insurance won’t cover it and Jung-soo refused to give Samuel a loan. Jin is cool, acting like she already knew (as she fumes), but there’s a change of plans on telling Se-yeon about her cheating husband.

At the same time, Samuel tips off Jung-soo that he’s about to be found out. And so, Jung-soo goes to the hotel to beg Jin not to say anything. Jin tells him it’s against her principles so it’s just too bad. There’s nothing he can do. Really? What if he pays her to keep quiet? Like, something to the tune of 30 million? (Since he knows its 20 million to get a new car.)

LTNS: Episodes 1-2

After a little back and forth, Jin finally agrees and he transfers her the money immediately. Afterward, Jung-soo asks Samuel if he planned this all along. Was this a threat since he wouldn’t loan him money? Samuel denies it, but Jung-soo never wants to see him again anyway. (Good riddance.)

Samuel asks Jin why she would compromise her life philosophy for money and she tells him it’s for the new taxi. The exchange that follows has to be the least complicated discussion between a married couple I’ve ever heard. He’s like, “How did you find out?” And she’s like, “Why did you keep it a secret?” And then he says he’s sorry and she’s over it. Conflict resolved (mind blown).

LTNS: Episodes 1-2

Jin buys Samuel a more expensive car than the one he had and then rides around in the backseat as his passenger. She starts thinking about how they both live so diligently and work so hard and yet can’t seem to get ahead. She whips out her blacklist and says, “Let’s not live like this anymore.” And with that, they’re on their way to their blackmailing business, where they’ll collect money in the same way they got it from Jung-soo, one cheater at a time.

The system works like this: Jin selects targets from the cheaters that book rooms at the hotel, and Samuel picks them up in his cab, follows them, and takes incriminating photos. Their first successful target is a man who works at a bank and is dating one of his co-workers — while his wife is home pregnant. Once they’ve gathered the evidence, they send him the videos they’ve captured (with some very damning and explicit audio), along with a message requesting cash. Their first heist goes off without a hitch, and they wind up with 7 million in their pockets.

It looks like we’re being set up for episodic targets with new cheaters each week, but the much more interesting thing is what’s beginning to happen between our leads. Since they took up this endeavor together, we’re getting to know them better, and I get the sense they’re getting to know each other better too.

When they go to spy on the bank employee, they’re staked out at his house, and Samuel asks Jin if she’s ever dated a married man. She says no and changes the subject. Then, when she tells him he needs to get more conclusive evidence of cheating — like for example, the couple walking into a motel together — he says that’s not conclusive. He’s gone to a motel with a friend just to rest. She wants to know who. He says it was a long time ago. And they let it drop.

When Samuel gets tired during the stakeout, Jin drives him to a motel. They get a room and lie in bed with their backs to one another, as they reminisce about when they used to frequent hourly motels together. Samuel muses that it’s the first time they’ve slept under the same blanket in a long time and then rolls over to hug her. She wonders if he’s trying to put the moves on, but he says he just wanted to hug.

But, does she want to have sex? No. She just feels like they should since they’re married and they never do. He suggests they say nice things to each other and see if they can get in the mood. They sit up, look each other in the face, and then try to muster some compliments. She keeps complimenting his appearance and he keeps complimenting her character. But anyway, they’re both bored and so they give up and go to sleep.

LTNS: Episodes 1-2

Back at the stakeout, Samuel says he’s happy about how much time they’re spending together, and I feel like these kinds of remarks are starting to pile up. It seems to me that he might want a different kind of connection with her than the one she keeps trying to initiate.

The final bit of sweet talk from him comes when they’re going to pick up the cash from the bank employee. They’ve instructed the target to leave it in a public place, which he does, but Samuel is scared to death that he’ll be nabbed by the cops when he walks over to retrieve it. He speaks to Jin on the phone just beforehand and tells her that if he gets caught, he did this alone. Also, at home, there’s a book on the top shelf where he’s left a nest egg. She doesn’t really hear him, but I find his character more and more endearing.

Well, I’m intrigued. I think the story is on shaky legs but the leads are epic and together they’re dynamite. They’re comedic, for sure, but it’s not laugh-out-loud funny — it’s more the vibe they construct together that’s fun, relaxed, and making me wonder what will happen next. I’ve seen them together before (in the movie Microhabitat — which shares a director with this drama) and have been looking forward to their reunion.

The sex is lewd, the morals are questionable, and the side characters are mostly throw away, but the drama has me very invested in the central relationship. How will breaking down other people’s marriages help them build up their own? What secrets will be divulged about their pasts while they’re digging up everyone else’s? There’s fodder here for a smart, sweet rekindled romance at the center of the smut. Or, at the very least, we’ll get to see two characters that make a good team, as they expose jerks, crack jokes, and ride around looking cool with sunglasses at night.

LTNS: Episodes 1-2

 
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Well, one thing's for sure, I'm going to be tuning in each week so that I can have some context for @Dramaddictally's amazing recaps. This description was 100x more narratively satisfying than watching the drama...at least watching it as lazily as I did. Thank you!!

In terms of actually contributing to the conversation, I can add that I felt that the ways that Jin kept emphasizing the physical aspects of their relationship and Samuel the emotional ones was totally set up by the first scene--one that I found almost distressing. The manner in which she was teasing him about his desire seemed borderline cruel because of the way he was clearly unsure that what they were doing was appropriate. And yet that interaction seems to have set the stage for their ongoing conversations, especially the one you note in the motel room where she keeps talking about how his body is desirable and he keeps talking about how her leadership skills are desirable...I get it. I get it.

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Dramaddictly's recap was indeed better than the show.

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I was on the fence about following, even through weecaps alone, but after reading this one I’ll definitely come back for more! Thanks @dramaddictally ! Still not going to watch the drama though 😅

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@attiton Thank you! *finger hearts*

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Ugh.

So let’s say I had sex (and it doesn’t matter with whom, married man or a green alien with purple dots), would I be ok to be filmed by some strangers with insta360 in 5k and then blackmailed with that footage? God no. This is sleazy and not quite comedic, no matter how much the series tries.

I am torn with this series. On one hand, it’s silly and comedic and discusses some interesting topics, and there appears to be more than meets the eye. On the other hand, I thought the couple would be engaged with some spy craft or something, not filming couples having sex and blackmailing them about it. Not sure about this one yet.

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I haven’t watched this as yet but it occurred to me that in a country that has has had a persistent problem with “molka” - illegal recording of individuals and streaming the content - this kind of drama concept is skating on thin ice no matter how good the leads may be.
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/news/hidden-cameras-south-korea

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Yes, especially once you watch the series, there’s this one scene (actually a funny scene) where the couple eat burgers and have sex in a car. But then a male lead pulls up a selfie stick with insta360 and my bells started ringing, WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. And instantly I started thinking about “molka”. It’s one thing to snap pictures of a couple walking out of motel as it was done by a private detective in the Bequeathed. It’s entirely another thing to film a couple having sex and recording them moaning and all. Just nope.

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Exactly. The fact that the majority of “molka” targets/victims are girls and women adds a further frightening dimension because girls and women’s safety and security is being constantly undermined in a multitude of ways and new forms of technology have exacerbated this crisis.

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While I agree with all of your points, the purpose of molka is the perpetrator's sexual gratification or use of it to profit from someone else's sexual gratification. What our lead couple is filming isn't for their own or anyone else's pleasure, and in fact they're bemused and a little disgusted by the car sex. They also don't intend to distribute the video. Don't get me wrong, I'm not in any way justifying what they're doing. It's a gross violation of privacy and it's blackmail, not molka, but the adjacency to it is disturbing and the fact that the main perpetrator is female makes it no less horrid.

The actual having of sex while eating hamburgers is hilarious, though.

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I know that it isn’t the same and I appreciate your points. That’s why I added ‘proximity to molka’ below.

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It seems unlikely that she was telling the truth that the hamburger and the sex were both good, though 😏😉

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I'm a vegetarian so my mind wouldn't wander.

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I watched both episodes clear through and will likely drop the show through sheer disappointment.

Few topics can form richer comedic material than a combination of sex, blackmail and cheating. That is why I was so looking forward to this show which even had as talented an actress as Esom as the FL. But the way to approach such material should be bawdy, raunchy slapstick that stops well short of pornography but is more akin to burlesque. Instead, we have a couple exploring their relationship as a central theme? The writer did not really understand the premise that the show is built upon. Instead of rolling in the aisles laughter we get what? A comedy should be funny, and this was not. We should be able to like the characters, but I did not like either the lead characters or their victims.

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I want to watch the show you had in mind, @oldawyer. When does it air?

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When someone makes the far better remake of this show.

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Agree after watching eps 1 and 2. Their discussions were awkward and seemed to occupy some strange zone that didn't fit with the rest of it. Really, this is about two people with crushing financial debt trying to keep their heads above water. I'm pretty sure that's what's stopping him from performing, or at least it's one issue. This could easily have been made without reference to their sex life at all, but ... good news.

Give eps 3 and 4 a whirl because it really picks up, and the blackmail victims become quite a handful. The stories are good and it's also funny. These two episodes are far better than the first two and worth watching.

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OK, I might just do that.

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If the central couple were played by anyone other than Esom and Ahn Jae-hong, I'd be out. What they're doing is inexcusable but their chemistry and the contrast of their cute faces and cracked morals are keeping me in it for the moment. Unlike many, I'm not bothered by the sex and sleaze. I hope it doesn't end with him going to jail or to hell for her, though.

And Lee Hak-joo as yet another terrible husband with double standards? Please don't let him anywhere near a Jang Na-ra drama.

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It’s just the proximity to “molka” which is off putting and frightening to me.

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"cute faces and cracked morals"

I just love the way you have phrased this. Brilliant!!! 👏

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I can't get over how racy this is! It was especially weird to watch it and then see Welcome to Samdal-ri where people are freaking it over two fully clothed people in their late 30s sharing a bed

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A bit of a double standard?

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@dramaddictally Thank you for a great recap.

This is not a conventional kdrama, is it? I would immediately ditch dramas that have meaningless nude or sex scenes that are inserted just for shock value, but the leads as pointed out by @Elinor are the drawing factor. The drama is not just exploring a sexless married couple's life, but also seems to point to the double standards in the society. For instance, the FL says it is easy to target the poor (like them), but not the rich.

It is only 6 episodes and although what they are doing is legally and ethically wrong, I can't help but root for these guys to catch the cheaters! I also predict that things will go wrong once they target the prosecutor and they will end up paying the price for their crimes.

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The opening of the weecap reminds me of Mr & Mrs. Smith. It's all thrilling and lusty attraction and then smash cut to boring domesticity.

I'm always surprised when kdramas show, express, or openly talk about sex and sexuality. I don't mean that in a bad "oh my god! How could they?!" way but it's just that previously, and to some extent it still exists, kdramas would have you believing in storks bringing babies and the wholesomeness of gentle kisses. Getting off by yourself would DEFINITELY be a foreign concept (except for maybe an embarrassing moment for a teen guy).

I can understand the appeal of that but I can also appreciate showing sex or sexuality in more realistic or just open ways.

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I started this hoping it would be Gaus Electronics funny and not coarse, unfortunately the humour wasn’t for me and the sex discussions and visuals were too much. I dropped mid the second episode. I wanted to see how they were going to make the ridiculous plan work as an alternative income stream as it was so time consuming, impacted on their sleep and accrued costs. I think the soon to drop drama about the divorce lawyers surveillance crew will execute this same idea better.

On a side note the location scout needs a raise just for finding Seyeon and Jungsoo’s house, it shouts out ‘we are rich’ without saying a word.

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I watched only one episode for now. Usually, I try the rule of 4 episodes before dropping. But I liked nothing in the first episode. I didn't like the characters, I didn't like how they addressed the sex as a theme, I didn't like the set-up of being ruined, they could find a better reason than his taxi being half drowned when he was inside and how it would justify their future blackmailing.

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Dang haha

Not gonna watch the show haha but the central character's relationship actually sounds super interesting. If recaps are continuing I will likely continue to follow them :) thanks!!

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^^ +1 Same. In for the recaps and pearl clutching.

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I thought the second episode was stronger than the first. I wasn't expecting to find this quite as interesting as I did. If it wasn't only six episodes I think I would have passed on it but I have the time to watch dramas right now.

I mostly wanted to comment because I found especially the female lead's attitude to sex to be complex. She talks about it constantly but she seems almost repulsed by it. I couldn't understand precisely why she was so angry and upset at people coming into her hotel to hook up. Sure some of them were cheating but not all of them were. She seemed to have a viscerally negative reaction to it. The scene with the chocolate sheets was the perfect example, especially since she didn't know for sure it was infidelity until after she decided to "punish" them.

The way she talked about sex throughout the whole thing, she called it a duty, a responsibility, an expectation. While she seemed obsessed with it, that obsession seemed to be more disgust than anything. It's no wonder she has no problem with the stalking and blackmail.

For that alone, I'm interested enough to keep going.

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