Again with the late post…I finished 18 Again on Thursday as usual, and spent some time mulling over and mourning the end of this great drama (and seriously pondering an immediate rewatch!). I know some beanies already said goodbye to the drama earlier this week, but I was hoping we could mourn together here one last time (or maybe another time once Ep 16 recap goes up lol).
The last week has many great moments, and full of both sad and happy tears. What this show did really well was how most emotional moments played out very naturally, and in an expected way that is not predictable or manipulative. I chalked that up to the characters being so well-drawn that we understood them as people that we know how they would act, and when they did act we empathized with them so much, we cried anyway despite knowing exactly how it would play out.
Like this scene:
🙁 saw it from miles away, and still cried buckets when he started crying 🙁
I would argue that maybe Dae-young’s despair to return to his boy actually didn’t happen early enough. That is because the conflict that was set up early on – that he had a chance to see for himself how his life could have been without getting married and skipping college at 18, was abandonned pretty early on. He very quickly realized what we had, and he was also able to help both of his children quickly as Dae-young. Through the flashbacks, we also saw him repeatedly put his family first without any hesitation. I did wonder at times whether this would have been a more gripping and modern drama if Dae-young’s morals were a bit more grey, i.e. we could see him go around enjoying his young body a bit more, being a bit more selfish and living his life for a few episodes, until he realized that wasn’t what he wanted. The conflict there would be what was intended early on: choosing yourself/your dream, or choosing your family.
That said, I really love the version of Dae-young we got: a completely devoted husband and father who very understandably for some time let the harshness of his life beat him down, and said somet things he didn’t mean and did not do some things he should have done. The main drama conflict then became “can Daeyoung figure out what he did wrong and correct it?”, which is a much less interesting conflict, but also a lot more wholesome. Funnily enough, I feel like Dae-young in this case: what would have been would have been nice, sure, but what actually happened was awesome, and I have no regret 🙂
In classic romcom style, everything is neatly wrapped up and nicely tied with a bow, and I’m here for it! Dae-young got to have the career that suits him best given the circumstances he was in (I was SO happy they figured out a realistic solution for him to get back to basketball; high school coaching would have been a bit far-fetched). Da-jung got the fame and the career she worked hard for, and deserved. And Yoon Sang Hyun finally got to have his haircut!
You know you’ve had a great journey with a drama when you can imagine the characters living on beyond the end of episode 16. In this dark time, it’s so heartwarming to think that many Dae-young & Da-jungs in the world might have overcome their struggles (though probably not through going back into your young body!), and bravely and happily continue on ahead.
Haven’t watched these episodes yet. Tbh, I got sidetracked with another show and I didn’t have enough time in the week to be watching multiple shows. However, I’m looking forward to catching up on these episodes sometime later this week!
It was an happy ending for everyone, but it was perfect for this fairy talesque story. Normally I’m not the biggest fan of a wedding in the last episode, however here I was hoping for it and really happy they made it happen.
There wasn’t enough of Lee Do-Hyun in the last episode, though. He was perfect in this drama! I will certainly look out for his next project (and Hwang In-Yeop’s!)…
I thought it would be as you said that he would enjoy his young body for a few episodes before he realizes what matters but I liked what we got. This is who Dae-young is. He never strayed. He’s always been a family guy and he loves them all. It’s just that he went through a tough time and cant help but wonder “what if?”
I also love how each character drew a boundary they never crossed. This drama could easily be so iffy. Da-jung was kind to Ji-hoon but drew the line as soon as he showed interest. Dae-young only had his eyes on Da-jung. Shi-ah never had romantic feelings for Woo-young but treated him as a friend. Even the scenes with Da-jung and Woo-young did not make me feel uncomfortable at all. I credit this largely to Lee Do-hyun. His mannerisms, the way he talked, everything, made me see him as Dae-young and not Woo-young. I’m excited to see him grow more as an actor if he’s already this good now.
I did like this show, yes, we all know the story but it was refreshing to just watch the development and not worry about the ending, for once. I like how the family relationships were explored and the realistic depiction that no marriage is perfect and it is always a work in progress. LDH surely is an actor to watch.
I’m usually not a fan of when a drama uses noble idiocy for no reason only to gloss over it. But, when this drama did it it did not make me mad at all. I was rooting so hard for the characters to have their happy ending that I could forgive just about anything. 18 Again was excellent from start to finish. Already missing it!
I found this drama healing<3 like many other drama`s they showed us how important communication is..
Everyone did a great job.
I`m happy they didn`t turn Ja Sung into a broken kid just because he didn`t get what he wanted. Seeing him caring made my heart melt. and god, Lee Do Hyun`s acting.. he was a blessing to my eyes..
it was a fun ride. thank you for the tag. <3
Super late reply! 😭 Been busy. But what a great show this has been. I didn’t expect it to touch my heart this deeply. Lee Do Hyun and 18 Again will not be forgotten. I really enjoy growing old together stories like this.
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dokutokunaneko
November 15, 2020 at 8:20 PM
Again with the late post…I finished 18 Again on Thursday as usual, and spent some time mulling over and mourning the end of this great drama (and seriously pondering an immediate rewatch!). I know some beanies already said goodbye to the drama earlier this week, but I was hoping we could mourn together here one last time (or maybe another time once Ep 16 recap goes up lol).
The last week has many great moments, and full of both sad and happy tears. What this show did really well was how most emotional moments played out very naturally, and in an expected way that is not predictable or manipulative. I chalked that up to the characters being so well-drawn that we understood them as people that we know how they would act, and when they did act we empathized with them so much, we cried anyway despite knowing exactly how it would play out.
Like this scene:
gifs courtesy of chanikang @ tumblr
🙁 saw it from miles away, and still cried buckets when he started crying 🙁
I would argue that maybe Dae-young’s despair to return to his boy actually didn’t happen early enough. That is because the conflict that was set up early on – that he had a chance to see for himself how his life could have been without getting married and skipping college at 18, was abandonned pretty early on. He very quickly realized what we had, and he was also able to help both of his children quickly as Dae-young. Through the flashbacks, we also saw him repeatedly put his family first without any hesitation. I did wonder at times whether this would have been a more gripping and modern drama if Dae-young’s morals were a bit more grey, i.e. we could see him go around enjoying his young body a bit more, being a bit more selfish and living his life for a few episodes, until he realized that wasn’t what he wanted. The conflict there would be what was intended early on: choosing yourself/your dream, or choosing your family.
That said, I really love the version of Dae-young we got: a completely devoted husband and father who very understandably for some time let the harshness of his life beat him down, and said somet things he didn’t mean and did not do some things he should have done. The main drama conflict then became “can Daeyoung figure out what he did wrong and correct it?”, which is a much less interesting conflict, but also a lot more wholesome. Funnily enough, I feel like Dae-young in this case: what would have been would have been nice, sure, but what actually happened was awesome, and I have no regret 🙂
In classic romcom style, everything is neatly wrapped up and nicely tied with a bow, and I’m here for it! Dae-young got to have the career that suits him best given the circumstances he was in (I was SO happy they figured out a realistic solution for him to get back to basketball; high school coaching would have been a bit far-fetched). Da-jung got the fame and the career she worked hard for, and deserved. And Yoon Sang Hyun finally got to have his haircut!
You know you’ve had a great journey with a drama when you can imagine the characters living on beyond the end of episode 16. In this dark time, it’s so heartwarming to think that many Dae-young & Da-jungs in the world might have overcome their struggles (though probably not through going back into your young body!), and bravely and happily continue on ahead.
This drama will live in my heart for a long time.
@13infamyss @velvetstuff @suriyana-shah @mrsz6 @flyingcolours @inkcityxx @ObsessedMuch @smaltwalt @marina @neener @manichan @dramafan12 @Jenmole @blnmom @avazilla @ayalynn123 @shichybot @Jingbee @rusnicam @irishrah @earthna @swunnie
also cc @pickleddragon if you haven’t dropped the show yet, would love to hear what you thought!
Maq
November 15, 2020 at 9:15 PM
Haven’t watched these episodes yet. Tbh, I got sidetracked with another show and I didn’t have enough time in the week to be watching multiple shows. However, I’m looking forward to catching up on these episodes sometime later this week!
SW unnie
November 15, 2020 at 11:09 PM
It was an happy ending for everyone, but it was perfect for this fairy talesque story. Normally I’m not the biggest fan of a wedding in the last episode, however here I was hoping for it and really happy they made it happen.
There wasn’t enough of Lee Do-Hyun in the last episode, though. He was perfect in this drama! I will certainly look out for his next project (and Hwang In-Yeop’s!)…
earthna
November 15, 2020 at 11:24 PM
I thought it would be as you said that he would enjoy his young body for a few episodes before he realizes what matters but I liked what we got. This is who Dae-young is. He never strayed. He’s always been a family guy and he loves them all. It’s just that he went through a tough time and cant help but wonder “what if?”
I also love how each character drew a boundary they never crossed. This drama could easily be so iffy. Da-jung was kind to Ji-hoon but drew the line as soon as he showed interest. Dae-young only had his eyes on Da-jung. Shi-ah never had romantic feelings for Woo-young but treated him as a friend. Even the scenes with Da-jung and Woo-young did not make me feel uncomfortable at all. I credit this largely to Lee Do-hyun. His mannerisms, the way he talked, everything, made me see him as Dae-young and not Woo-young. I’m excited to see him grow more as an actor if he’s already this good now.
Overall a really good drama!
pickleddragon
November 16, 2020 at 12:15 AM
I have the last 4 to watch still! Will circle back here after I’ve watched 🙂
Jingbee
November 16, 2020 at 3:30 AM
I did like this show, yes, we all know the story but it was refreshing to just watch the development and not worry about the ending, for once. I like how the family relationships were explored and the realistic depiction that no marriage is perfect and it is always a work in progress. LDH surely is an actor to watch.
Zora
November 16, 2020 at 8:47 AM
Such a heartwarming drama! I will definitely re-watch this when it is available to Viki or any legit site.
CharmingKey
November 16, 2020 at 11:14 AM
I’m usually not a fan of when a drama uses noble idiocy for no reason only to gloss over it. But, when this drama did it it did not make me mad at all. I was rooting so hard for the characters to have their happy ending that I could forgive just about anything. 18 Again was excellent from start to finish. Already missing it!
marina
November 17, 2020 at 7:55 AM
I found this drama healing<3 like many other drama`s they showed us how important communication is..
Everyone did a great job.
I`m happy they didn`t turn Ja Sung into a broken kid just because he didn`t get what he wanted. Seeing him caring made my heart melt. and god, Lee Do Hyun`s acting.. he was a blessing to my eyes..
it was a fun ride. thank you for the tag. <3
13infamyss
December 7, 2020 at 5:18 PM
Super late reply! 😭 Been busy. But what a great show this has been. I didn’t expect it to touch my heart this deeply. Lee Do Hyun and 18 Again will not be forgotten. I really enjoy growing old together stories like this.