You’re Beautiful: Episode 14
by javabeans
Once again, we run the gamut of emotions from light to heavy, which I always find to be a welcome thing when a drama heads to its more serious moments. Yes, some of the conflicts amp up in this episode, but it also has more of its trademark goofy parody sequences to lighten the in-between moments. The threesome parody in this episode is possibly my favorite Hong sisters parody ever.
SONG OF THE DAY
Jang Geun-seok – “Good Bye.” This song plays late in the episode. [ Download ]
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
EPISODE 14 RECAP
Tae-kyung is about to tell Mi-nyo something, starting, “Go Mi-nam, I… you…” But then, he’s interrupted by excited fans, who wave excitedly as they arrive in buses.
Tae-kyung is annoyed with the interruption, particularly since Mi-nyeo takes it as her cute to excuse herself. Explaining that she’ll act as though he’s just sending her off, she starts to leave.
He holds her back, saying, “Hear me out first.” Leaning in close, he says, “I like you.”
(Omo!)
Having gotten that out in the open, he lets her go, but now she’s so shocked that she stands in a daze. As the fangirls swarm around him, Mi-nyeo wonders if she heard right. She thinks, “I wish the world would quiet down so I can hear the soft words in my memory.”
She thinks back, confirming that he had indeed said those words, and suddenly the world around her is all roses and butterflies. LITERALLY.
As this finally sinks in, Mi-nyeo starts giggling out loud in glee, exultant. She doesn’t see Tae-kyung sitting in his car a short distance away, who smiles and says, “So she did hear me properly.”
On the plane, Shin-woo looks at the empty seat next to him and tells himself, “I knew she wouldn’t come. But since I told her that I’ve already begun [to have feelings], that’s enough.”
Almost immediately, photos pop up online of Tae-kyung and Mi-nam at the airport. Heyi is annoyed — why would Tae-kyung go to the airport to see Mi-nam? — and displeased. Meanwhile, may I take the moment to point out the HILARITY of the top 3 online star searches, as seen in Heyi’s web browser??
- Dong Bang Single
- So Nyeo Junior
- Super Shidae
Tae-kyung gives Mi-nyeo a ride home. Mi-nyeo wonders how to handle herself around him, given his declaration: “Should I tell him that I heard him and give him permission too?” However, she imagines him issuing a gruff response, and considers trying the opposite instead — she could say she didn’t hear what he said and ask him to repeat it. But she imagines him sneering at that, “You didn’t hear? Then cancel it!”
Mi-nyeo decides to accept his statement gratefully, and figures that she doesn’t need to hear him say it anyway, because “if I hear him say that he likes me again, my heart may burst.”
Tae-kyung breaks the silence by suggesting they grab something to eat, and asks if she likes spaghetti. Mi-nyeo hiccups. Puzzled, he repeats the question, and she hiccups again. Testing out a theory, Tae-kyung enunciates clearly, “Do you LIKE charcoal-grilled kalbi? Do you LIKE naengmyun? What about sushi, do you LIKE it? I LIKE sushi.” She hiccups every time he says the word LIKE.
He prods her to answer (which is his way of getting her to say she likes him back). Mi-nyeo answers, “I really, really like [it] very, very much.”
Sushi lunch. Mi-nyeo takes all the shrimp and crab off his plate because of his allergies, happy to eat them. When Tae-kyung tells her to give him two pieces in exchange for the ones she took, her face falls — she was counting on eating them. So Tae-kyung relents and tells her to eat them all, so as not to lose points. (“Why is it so tough to preserve my score?”)
When Mi-nyeo brings up the issue of photos from the airport being made public, Tae-kyung answers that he’s not very worried. There’s nothing scandalous about him seeing her off, although he is aware that fans often create stories out of nothing. He adds (with a perfectly straight face), “There are a lot of love stories that don’t even feature women.”
He’s talking, yup, about fanfic. (I love it!) In what is my favorite giggly sequence this episode (possible this drama?), he explains, “Most of them are a love triangle between me, Shin-woo, and Jeremy.”
LULZ! Imaginations run wild in his exaggerated examples: two hands cover Fanfic Tae-kyung’s eyes and he asks hopefully, “Shin-woo?” The hands move aside to reveal a hurt Jeremy, who says, “You’re always looking for Shin-woo.” Holding Tae-kyung’s hand to his chest, Fanfic Jeremy says, “You’re inside my heart.”
At that moment, a glass shatters — Fanfic Shin-woo has walked in and seen this intimate moment. Angry at being thus replaced by Jeremy, he vows, “I’m going to destroy you both!”
(OMG. I love that the writers work in details incorporating some of the more ridiculous aspects of idol life. First Sung-chan’s ridiculous English, and now yaoi fanfiction.)
Jeremy logs on to read the latest stories online, getting a kick out of them. He’s waiting at the broadcast station where he is going to make a surprise cameo appearance at the end. He plans to use this as his platform for telling Mi-nam how he feels in the form of a song.
However, his web browsing leads him to the airport photos of Mi-nam and Tae-kyung, which makes him wonder what’s going on. With the question dangling in the air, he can’t concentrate until he confirms the truth with Tae-kyung, and heads out. He only has an hour before he has to make his appearance, and if he doesn’t make it there will be trouble.
Hoon-yi sees Tae-kyung and Mi-nyeo arriving at the agency together, and gapes. Why did Tae-kyung interfere and go to the airport? A little triumphantly, Tae-kyung tells Hoon-yi, “Take a good look.” He whirls Mi-nyeo around and hugs her, prompting her to press her nose. Having proved his point to the manager, he heads off to work.
Hoon-yi can’t believe it — so her pig-nose was because of Tae-kyung? She asks anxiously, “Does he know what that means?” Hoon-yi can’t understand why, of all the people in the world, she’d fall for mean ol’ Tae-kyung. She answers, “At some point, I started to feel electric shocks.”
Jeremy arrives in time to catch the end of this conversation. Staring at Mi-nyeo intently, he asks, “Do you like Tae-kyung hyung?” She’s a little surprised by the blunt question, but nods. Jeremy’s face twists to hear it, and he runs off.
When they learn that Jeremy is still missing from the studio, Hoon-yi and Mi-nyeo try to track him down. They have no luck, but Mi-nyeo remembers the bus and follows her hunch to the bus stop.
She sees Jeremy sitting alone in an empty bus and races after it. She climbs onboard and starts to approach Jeremy, who looks up and glares: “This is my bus. Get off.” Seeing how upset Jeremy is, Mi-nyeo feels horrible as he continues, with wounded confusion:
Jeremy: “When I thought you were a guy, I was okay with it. When I found out you were a girl, I was okay with it. But if you like Tae-kyung hyung, I can’t be okay with it. Why? Why wasn’t it me? I told you about my treasure bus, and I let you close to Jolie, and I was going to sing a song only for you. Why don’t you like me?”
They sit in silence on opposite sides of the bus for a while. Jeremy answers a call from the studio, and agrees to sing his song over the phone instead. He’s chosen a cheerful children’s tune called “Such Good Words.”
As Jeremy introduces his selection, he looks over at Mi-nyeo, directing his words to her: “These good words were so precious to me that I saved them up. If I keep them inside too much, they turn into words I can’t say again. But I hope they’re not disagreeable words, useless words, or words that make you sad.” Knowing he’s talking to her, Mi-nyeo gestures that no, she doesn’t think that.
He starts to sing: “I love you, these words are such good words. When our family goes to bed, they give and receive these words. I love you, these words are such good words. These are words Jeremy wants to give to her.”
Lee Hong-ki – “참 좋은말” (Such Good Words). Again, ripped from the episode. [ Download ]
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
When he finishes, she tells him, “They’re very good words.” He answers, “But you can’t accept them. Right, Go Mi-nam?” That’s true, and Mi-nyeo apologizes.
Jeremy tells her frankly, “I can’t say it’s okay right now. When this bus returns to its place, then it’ll become okay.” When the bus rolls to a stop, he tells her, “When I get off this bus, I’m going to return to being the happy Jeremy. Forget everything I said here. If you don’t forget them, I can’t return. Got it, Go Mi-nam?”
True to his word, when he steps off the bus, he puts on a cheery face and talks in his usual energetic way. They head off to eat ice cream together, with only the fleetingest of looks betraying that Jeremy isn’t as happy as he’s acting.
Tae-kyung and his producer meet with a former singer who once knew Go Jae-hyun. The singer explains that Go Jae-hyun was a nice, ordinary guy who had dated Hwa-ran. The relationship fell apart when she went to another man, and afterward he got together with another woman, who was preparing to be a singer herself. Not knowing of Tae-kyung’s personal connection to this story, he insinuates that Hwa-ran had quite a lot of men in her day.
Tae-kyung mutters to himself, “That grand love sounds quite messy when discussed in other people’s words.”
Hwa-ran hates the idea of “that woman’s daughter” and her son being cozy, and decides to do something about it. She presents Mi-nyeo with a gift — a dress — and says meaningfully, “I picked right, didn’t I?”
Hwa-ran assures M-nyeo not to worry — she doesn’t want to mess with her. Mi-nyeo asks Hwa-ran to pretend not to know until her brother returns soon, and that her bandmates are not to blame. Hwa-ran concludes, “They knew and covered for you, and were your friends. You did something very dangerous. It’s complicated to explain to you, but Hwang Tae-kyung and I have a special personal relationship. Be careful not to get involved and make things complicated.”
Mi-nyeo promises, “No matter what happens, I will make sure not to cause trouble for Hwang Tae-kyung. I cannot let him be hurt.” Hwa-ran replies, “From his perspective, it would have been better not getting involved with you.”
Mi-nyeo chalks Hwa-ran’s statements up to being a protective mother, but still, this whole situation makes her uneasy. She can’t let Tae-kyung know that she knows about his relationship with his mother — he was so sad on his birthday that she couldn’t bring herself to say it — but feigning ignorance means she’s caught in the middle: “It feels like I’m lying to him, and it doesn’t feel good.”
I appreciate the way the writers turn the situation from serious to funny in a natural way: After everything that’s happened, Mi-nyeo has had quite a tiring day. However, Tae-kyung doesn’t know this and wonders why she hasn’t called him all day. He concedes, “Well, I did tell her not to inconvenience me, so she must have spent all day waiting.”
To his surprise, she answers the phone in a sleepy voice. Disappointed (and offended), Tae-kyung retorts, “Forget it! Keep sleeping, you sleepyheaded Pig-Rabbit!”
Not satisfied to end things on that note, he calls her out and takes her to the movie theater. When she warns him that she may fall asleep, he insists that he didn’t call her out to watch the movie (i.e., as a date) — he just needs a guide in the dark. He didn’t need HER, he needed her EYES. He orders her onward: “Go Mi-nam’s Eyes, guide me.”
He takes her hand as she leads him inside the darkened theater, but balks at her seating choice and orders her to move. He complains at her next choice, too — but it’s clear to us that he just likes holding her hand and is prolonging the moment.
We can be sure of that because he doesn’t strictly need her hand-holding — at one moment he forgets himself and starts to lead her instead. Surprised, Mi-nyeo asks whether he can see. He clears his throat and says, “Go Mi-nam’s Eyes, eyes can’t talk.”
Afterward, they step out on a deck overlooking the city, and the lights are so bright that she can’t see the stars. Noting that he can’t ever see the stars, she breathes on the glass and draws a star in the mist. Seeing another star — a lamp — she comments, “Even when it’s not a dark night, there are a lot of stars around us. After I stop acting as Go Mi-nam and go far away, I’ll search for stars and think of you.” After her brother returns, it would be better for her to be at a distance.
Tae-kyung answers lightly, “Go looking for those stars. I’ll check up on you to ask how many you’ve found. I’ll be expecting you to see a lot.” She thinks to herself, “But the star I like the best is one I can’t take with me, so I’ll miss it a lot.”
Tae-kyung promises to show her more stars and motions her closer — then holds up his knuckle. If he were to give her a noogie, she should see five more stars.
Mi-nyeo wonders worriedly if he would really do it, and braces herself as he pulls back, winding up for a big one…
…but instead, he swoops in for a kiss.
(I don’t know if there were spoilers for this kiss but if there were I AM SO GLAD I didn’t know about them. Full squealing effect preserved!)
Shin-woo returns from his trip to Busan, and Mi-nyeo feels sorry and uncomfortable around him. He has brought back a gift for her from his mother, because he couldn’t bring himself to tell her the full story. He doesn’t expect Mi-nyeo to accept it, but wanted to show her his mother’s gesture.
The time away seems to have been good for Shin-woo, because he talks with more assertion now. He tells her that he’d been a good hyung to her, but their relationship lacked tension. Now, he intends to add a sense of pressure to her, which sounds bad but means merely that he’s going to take a new direction: “I’ve stepped back until now because I’ve been comforting you. Now I’m going to step forward and comfort myself.”
Planning progresses for Mi-nam’s solo album, and Hoon-yi announces with great excitement that the real Mi-nam is returning the day before the showcase. Jeremy wonders what the real Mi-nam is like, and gets back the answer that Mi-nam may look like his sister but his personality is different: “He has Tae-kyung’s charisma, Shin-woo’s softness, and Jeremy’s brightness.”
Although this should be good news, each member has his own subdued reaction to it.
Hoon-yi is so psyched to have his Mi-nam troubles nearing their end that he lets slip to the stylist that Mi-nyeo and Tae-kyung like each other. The stylist had believed that Heyi and Tae-kyung were dating, so now she tells Heyi that she knows the truth.
Heyi’s reaction to news is sheer shock: “They’re for real?” This pushes her over the edge, and she bursts out, “How can that he set me aside and go for her? I really hate Go Mi-nam!” Shoving items off the counter, she sobs angrily.
Per their half-joking “agreement,” Mi-nyeo shows Tae-kyung pictures of all the stars she found today: a star-shaped shirt pin and a tomato stem, for example.
He teases her for only finding three, so she responds bashfully, “Right now, the star I like the most is with me every day.” Then, afraid she said too much, she points up to the sun as though saying she meant the star in the sky. Not him, of course!
He plays along, “Ahh, that star you said is the coolest. Where is that?” Mi-nyeo doesn’t want to admit the truth, so she says, “You can’t see stars anyway. You don’t have to know.”
Tae-kyung offers to watch her favorite star with her tonight, and they set a date. He wonders if they’ll be able to see any in this weather, but decides, “I don’t need those stars anyway. I’m the star she likes best.”
Sung-chan takes Mi-nyeo to meet the producer, who has finished work on Hwa-ran’s remake song. As she listens to the song playing in the background, knowing this was her father’s work, she decides to tell Tae-kyung about her father tonight.
Spying a star-shaped ashtray, she picks it up as the two men gossip about the songwriter and Hwa-ran having been lovers. Shocked, Mi-nyeo lets the ashtray fall from her grasp, and it shatters on the ground. (Ah, the familiar destruction of a symbolic trinket to foreshadow impending troubles! This has been used in more than one Hong sisters drama before, and is frankly a tactic I could do without.)
Not knowing that Mi-nyeo has broken her star (in a symbolic gesture), Tae-kyung takes out a star-shaped necklace wherein the star is meant to represent him. He plans to give it to her later, and (very adorably) taunts Pig-Rabbit with it, saying, “This isn’t yours.”
Mi-nyeo asks her aunt whether her father was really involved with Hwa-ran. Aunt Mi-ja hadn’t told her “because I thought it would upset you to know your father left your mother for Mo Hwa-ran. You were looking so hard for your mother. If you knew that she’d been abandoned and died alone, you might hate your father.”
Mi-nyeo is devastated and still half-disbelieving, so she decides to confirm the truth. She heads to the hotel, where Hwa-ran’s assistant informs her of Mi-nyeo’s arrival. Deciding to get the truth all out at once, Hwa-ran calls Tae-kyung to summon him too, saying, “It’s someone you know. I want to confirm it before it causes trouble for you. It’s a girl named Go Mi-nyeo.”
Hoping that the information is false, Mi-nyeo asks Hwa-ran to confirm that she and Go Jae-hyun were just friends. Hwa-ran answers, “We weren’t just friends. We loved each so much that we can’t forget each other for the rest of our lives.”
Shocked at his mother’s revelation, Tae-kyung bursts into Mi-nyeo’s room looking for some proof. Spying the photo of the young twins with their father, his eye then falls on the autographed photo of Hwa-ran. Mi-nyeo’s handwritten note wishes him a happy birthday — and although that’s not exactly incriminating, it makes him wonder why she wouldn’t have given it to him on his birthday.
Mi-nyeo isn’t very impressed to hear of Hwa-ran’s grand love, and says, “You abandoned and hurt the person you should have treated as the most precious in the world. I can’t believe when a person like that speaks of love. That’s not love.”
Hwa-ran laughs: “You say the same thing as your mother did. She ignored me and didn’t believe your father would return to me.” Mi-nyeo insists, “My father had no reason to love a person like you.” Hwa-ran holds up the CD as proof — he wrote the song for her, and even her mother acknowledged it.
Hwa-ran: “Do you want to insist it’s not true? My son Tae-kyung may not have understood, but he acknowledged it. That’s why he remade this song. I told you I saw you once as children. If your father hadn’t died early, I could have become your mother. Tae-kyung knows that, too. …But you didn’t tell him you’re Jae-hyun’s daughter, did you? Does he know that you know he’s my son? If you didn’t say that, you must not have told him that I know you’re a girl.”
Mi-nyeo: “I didn’t mean to deceive him.”
Hwa-ran: “Tell him that. See if he believes you.”
Tae-kyung bursts in, half-incredulous and half-reproachful to see Mi-nyeo standing with his mother. Hwa-ran makes things worse by turning Mi-nyeo around to face Tae-kyung, and announcing, “This girl is the daughter of the man I loved. She says she didn’t intend to deceive you.”
Tae-kyung walks out without a word. Seeing Mi-nyeo’s reaction, Hwa-ran asks, “Is the reason you wanted to deny it because of my son?” She tells Mi-nyeo to recognize the truth and give up.
Reporter Kim works on his story about Mi-nyeo and Shin-woo’s relationship, but something is niggling at the back of his mind. Every time Mi-nyeo made an appearance, Mi-nam was absent. It’s the Clark Kent principle, and he puts two and two together.
He tries to confirm this with Heyi, but she no longer wants to be involved with A.N.JELL. To which he responds, “Go Mi-nam and Go Mi-nyeo are the same person, right? Is he a guy, or a girl?”
Working off this assumption, the reporter tells Sung-chan that he wants to delay printing the story until he can interview Mi-nam and Mi-nyeo at the same time. Sung-chan asks Shin-woo to handle this with the twins.
As Shin-woo steps out of his meeting with Sung-chan, he sees Tae-kyung stomping upstairs, with Mi-nyeo following close behind and pleading for him to listen.
Tae-kyung asks when she found out about his mother. Hearing her answer, he says, “So there was a reason that whenever I felt upset about my mother, you showed up.” Has she also been meeting with his mother for a while? He adds, “My mother loved your father so much she abandoned me and wanted to be your mother. Did you hear that?”
Mi-nyeo starts to talk, but he cuts off her explanation: “She said you were close enough that she used to bring you cookies. Do you remember? Try getting along well with her from now on. But don’t involve me.”
She holds his arm and pleads for him to listen. He throws her arm aside, snapping, “Don’t be where I can see you. I don’t want to see you.”
He storms off, leaving Mi-nyeo to crumple to the ground in sobs. But he doesn’t get far, and wipes at his own tears as he listens to Mi-nyeo crying a level below — as Shin-woo watches from across the lobby.
COMMENTS
Half the time, I find Hwa-ran to be such an excessively hateful person that it’s hard to find the truth of her character — is she TOO awful to be a credible villain? The best villains show complexity, and don’t explain their reasons in one-dimensional, simplistic terms like “I loved him that much.”
The other half of the time, I think that there must be more behind her actions and find her fascinating. If you see her as a supremely selfish and weak woman, she’s more intriguing than if you were to write her off as a stock villainness. For instance, take her desire to separate the couple. Initially, she sees Mi-nam as an extension of his/her father and looks upon him approvingly. But then, Hwa-ran sees flashes of Mi-nyeo’s mother in her, and therefore finds the idea of that girl with her son to be abhorrent.
It’s not that she loves Tae-kyung so much to want him to be with a good woman — Tae-kyung is just an extension of herself. She looks at the world through a twisted perspective, like looking through a fisheye lens: she and her love are at the center, and everything else is skewed around to fit the frame, shoved off to the side.
We can’t leave out mention of Lee Hong-ki‘s fabulous bus scene, can we? GREAT SCENE. Like with Jung Yong-hwa yesterday, the beauty of the acting wasn’t in the big, dramatic emotions, but the way both guys found the quiet little beats to twist your heart into a painful knot. He didn’t rage at Mi-nyeo, but asked plaintively why she didn’t like him back when he liked her so much. We know it doesn’t work that way, but Jeremy’s heart has its own straightforward way of working.
The way he sings his song is just killer, because you can’t fake that, folks. You can fake crying to some extent, but cry-singing isn’t something you can reproduce authentically without actually going there, and Lee Hong-ki goes there. Ow.
I have to give mad props to Park Shin-hye for rounding out the bus scene so well even though she hardly said a thing. I love that she respects his pain to give him his space when they sit in silence, and I love the look she gives him to assure him that his song isn’t worthless. I wondered if it was out of character for Mi-nyeo to understand so readily that Jeremy liked her — when she was so dense with Shin-woo and Tae-kyung — but I suppose Jeremy was the most straightforward in saying, straight-out, that he liked her.
Criticisms:
The Hong sisters do comedy and angst very well, and manage to mix the two so that most of the time the drama doesn’t get too sunk down in the melodrama. However, I think in every one of their dramas except (surprisingly?) Fantasy Couple, their Big Misunderstanding has been just a wee bit too much for my tastes. Hong Gil Dong wasn’t so bad, but I recall that at the time, the Big Misunderstanding in My Girl closely echoed the setup of Delightful Girl Chun-hyang, and that was a complaint for some fans of My Girl. Instead of feeling like a natural development in the couple’s romance, it felt like it was forced conflict, and it didn’t quite ring true. But I’m sure the Hong sisters took complaints to heart, because when people assumed they’d use a similar structure in Fantasy Couple, they announced that they wouldn’t. Thankfully, that drama avoided a time leap, and I hope this one does too.
To take a look at this episode in a critical light, I’d say we’re dealing more with forced conflict than natural development. Tae-kyung’s response at the end is probably understandable given the context, and I think he’s right in feeling hurt. But he’s overreacting, and his negative opinion of Mi-nyeo is one that would take five minutes of explanation to dispel. All he has to do is calm down and hear how she came to find out the truth, and I think we’d be good. She was wrong in hiding the truth from him, but even so, honestly this is hardly a big enough offense to rend asunder a Love That Is Meant To BeKDRAMA.
To play devil’s advocate, we can also take an apologist standpoint. Tae-kyung has put Mi-nyeo on something of a pedestal, since she has been so good and so forgiving this whole series long. Hearing that Mi-nyeo actively deceived him must shake his entire faith in her. It doesn’t help that it was his hated mother who uttered a defense of Mi-nyeo (“She didn’t mean to deceive you”). Coming from those lips, it sounds like an excuse rather than the truth. And worst of all, his mother issues are his blind spot, so he reacts to the emotion rather than sorting out the facts. It may be that Mi-nyeo meant well, but he sees her standing with the mother who abandoned him, who all but declared she’d rather have raised Mi-nyeo than Tae-kyung. To know that Mi-nyeo knew the truth and was still able to treat his mother civilly, well, that feels like a betrayal. Almost like she chose his mother over him.
It’s not expressly logical, but such is the heat of the moment. (Honestly, I don’t entirely buy the apologist argument, but I thought I’d put it out there.)
RELATED POSTS
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 13
- Chinese fans show support for You’re Beautiful
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 12
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 11
- Pig-Rabbit for sale (calling You’re Beautiful fans)
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 10
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 9
- Cast of You’re Beautiful buoyed by fan support
- You’re Beautiful’s passionate cult following
- Small dramas stay afloat amongst blockbusters
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 8
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 7
- Jang Geun-seok flooded with CF offers
- Park Shin-hye is tired but happy
- A.N.JELL’s music is a hit
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 6
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 5
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 4
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 3
- Behind the scenes with You’re Beautiful’s cast
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 2
- You’re Beautiful: Episode 1
- FT Island’s Hong-ki ready to return to acting
Tags: Jang Geun-seok, Jung Yong-hwa, Lee Hong-ki, Park Shin-hye, You're Beautiful
![[K-drama Treasure Hunt] Heart-fluttery bottle opening](http://d263ao8qih4miy.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Kdrama-treasure-hunt.png)
Required fields are marked *
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
201 YABaddict
November 20, 2009 at 11:29 AM
Fwhew...finally watched this episode, and maybe thanks to all the spoilers and this recap, it wasn't too painful to watch...
Regarding MHR, I think she manipulated GMN's mom into giving up Mr. Go. When she said "you'll give up just like your mother did" to GMN (something like that), she was probably saying "I'll make you give up just like I made your mother give up"... yes, as some have already said, manipulative psycho... She obviously does things only for herself and for her own gains...noone else matters, not even her son...
My predictions for the last 2 episodes :-(
I think it will take the whole ep 15 for TK to come to terms with MN and realize MN is not the one who hurt him. And this conflict between TK and MN will actually bring Jeremy and SW to accept them as a couple and actually support them in resolving their conflict. I don't think TK will need a push from either one to get MN back, as he has taken things into his own hands in the past, and I hope will continue to do so.
Is the showcase by which the real GMN is supposed to be back happening in Japan? I think that might just be the end of ep 16. In the end, everything and everyone is in its/their "right" place. The real GMN takes the stage, ANJell plays a concert, with MN in the audience and TK only looking at her (having resolved their misunderstanding)! Yeah, that's what I would like to see, kind of like the ending of Nodame Cantabile.
and then...The End! NOOOO...Ah, what will we do without YAB?
Momolito where are you? I think we need to start planning a rehab center!
Oh, and I think in between I will try to rewatch Lovers in Paris, I saw it it seems so long ago, I don't remember the part they parodied... which episode was it in???
Required fields are marked *
202 jandoe
November 20, 2009 at 12:12 PM
if i'm being really, really honest, something about the plot is not striking my fancy. The Big Misunderstanding just keep feeling too trivial that in my head i'm really trying to refrain from (mentally) rolling my eyes. i've genuinely really loved this show and the comedic scenes are still awesome to me, and all the squealing moments but... all these aside, i don't know, the plot is beginning to seem weak to me, as if the loopholes are beginning to show.
but hmm, i'm still putting my faith and good spirit for ep 15 and 16 to close up well. let's hope they don't disappoint - and on a side note, contrary to most fans' belief, i think finishing at 16 is just nice; if it drags on too much, it might loses its magic.
(cos cynically, that's what i'm starting to feel, sigh)
Required fields are marked *
203 Devi
November 20, 2009 at 12:59 PM
Such a good episode! But as for the apologist arguement, I think it did play out that way, but even though he didn't hear her out and tried to brush Min-nyeo off, he stopped and didn't walk away yet completely. They just had to have that cliffhanger ending! Hopefully they don't use this as an opportunity for Shin-woo to try in a swoop in and add another wrench into the mix. Hopefully everything wraps up well. On another note, I found out that pre-orders for the Pig-Rabbit are up at various sites like yesasia. I WANT ONE!!!!! But they're so expensive D:
Required fields are marked *
204 Nanaee
November 20, 2009 at 1:22 PM
Is this drama really going to end next week??? i am so looking forwards to next week cos it is a long holiday weekends; but i am not looking forwards for this drama to end.... Arrhh... I want more...
Required fields are marked *
205 crazyfan
November 20, 2009 at 1:48 PM
I cried when I heard Hong-ki singing D: I felt so bad for Jeremy!
Required fields are marked *
206 Ejan
November 20, 2009 at 1:58 PM
so excited to see the real go minam..... thank's for the recaps!!!
Required fields are marked *
207 jo
November 20, 2009 at 2:20 PM
Honestly, I think TK has every right to hate on MN, that's only natural--as a human being....as an abandoned child. It's true that his reaction seemed very exaggerated because he should have listened to her explanation. But Taekyung's got this wound in him since childhood. He's got a mom that he hates and loves. I think TK's bitterness has a lot to do with the fact that his mom abandoned him for MN's dad. It'd be hard to swallow, if I were in his shoes, I'd be mad as well.
Required fields are marked *
208
November 20, 2009 at 2:45 PM
I really love this show. I hope the rating gets better for the last two ep.
So far, I feel this is the best of Hong sister's.
Required fields are marked *
209 YABaddict
November 20, 2009 at 3:27 PM
I just had another thought...what about GMN's mom's grave? Shouldn't they at least find out who the twins' real mom was, and then maybe a visit to her grave? Maybe TK will find out for GMN???
Required fields are marked *
210 christaa
November 20, 2009 at 3:29 PM
omg, i cannot survive the week without these recaps. thankyou, thankyou, THANKYOUUUUU.. i just lurve this chemistry between the oh-so-innocent mi nam and the even cuter tae kyung!! i hope they can get together next week
Required fields are marked *
211 enjai
November 20, 2009 at 3:51 PM
thanks JB...you're simply the best...
Required fields are marked *
212 ockoala
November 20, 2009 at 3:52 PM
Thanks for the recap, JB. I've been loving your recaps more in these last few episodes than the episodes themselves, but YB is still a very enjoyable drama. I'm sad all four leads look absolutely exhausted - JGS especially, his lines are deep set, and his one smaller eye is totally noticeable cuz he's so sleep-deprived. Poor baby needs to sleep.
SPOILER BELOW - a note to all commenters, please refrain from discussing what you see in this article without marking it as spoiler. I know JB doesn't want to be spoiled (as do others), which is why I am posting only a link rather than discussing it myself. However, if you read the spoiler and then comment afterwards, it may spoil it for others. So, please read at your discretion, and let's keep the spoiling only to those who want to know (which is why I am posting it). Thank you!
http://epochtimes.co.kr/news/view.html?section=111&category=117&no=100421
Looking forward to the grand finale next week!
Required fields are marked *
213 Namispop
November 20, 2009 at 3:57 PM
Thanks, JB, for the fast and awesome recap! For me, your recap is what enables me to hang on until ViiKii uploads the subbed episode...so many, many thanks! =D
Wow, what an amazing, funny, and heart wrenching episode...as we all knew it would be.
Random thoughts-
JB, I agree with the apologist perspective, and would only add that, not only does TK place Minyeo on a pedestal...she is completely unique in his life, as she is the only person able to make TK come out of his bulletproof shell and actually be happy. By dropping his protective shell, he opens his vulnerability. He has given himself, his faith, and his trust, to Minyeo. He believes in her completely. So, this is why his reaction is so sharp and harsh, when he finds out that she has known about his mother and their relationship since his real birthday. And the way that he finds Minyeo standing by his mother was an image of betrayal in his eyes. It was, of course, an over-reaction...but, under the circumstances not entirely unreasonable.
Hongki's bus scene...wow. Not to take anything away from JYH's performance in the previous episode...but, for me, Hongki's crying and cry-singing scene was particularly heart wrenching. He completely went there...and took all of us right along with him. Who didn't have tears to fight back or allow to flow freely, while watching Hongki's innocent and boyish heart get completely and utterly crushed? His performance was raw...but still very beautiful to watch. Wow.
Was I the only one here who felt sorry for He Yi? Her reaction to hearing the style coordinator say that what TK and Minam shared was the real thing, while hers(He Yi's) was fake...it touched me. Yeah, she's been a real bitch to Minam and the guys, and I've wanted her to step in front of a fast moving train a bunch of times. But, through all her crap, she is in love with TK...and, at that scene and moment, I felt sorry for her.
What's going to happen to Minyeo, now? I'm guessing that she's going to disappear. She's had her heart stomped on by TK, her star. She's going to completely blame herself for TK's pain, and, upon reflection, she's going to acknowledge that she's broken(unintentionally, of course) both Jeremy's and Shin Woo's hearts as well. What's left for her to do?
I agree with the other folks, here, who believe that MHR's perception that Minyeo's father left Minyeo's mother for her will prove to be completely the opposite of the truth. I think that Minyeo's father left MHR, and wrote that song, asking Mineyo's mom to come back to him. MHR refused to accept this, and has probably lied to herself, over and over, that it was the other way around. When you lie to yourself enough times, you eventually come to believe it as truth...especially with the aid of alcohol, and lots of it. I think that the real Minam knows the truth about what really happened, and he will reveal it.
I love this drama, and can't wait until the(sob) final two episodes arrive.
Until then, Happy Thanksgiving, JB and everyone!
Required fields are marked *
214 findland
November 20, 2009 at 4:28 PM
Thanks Sukispop, you remind me to wish everyone and JB a happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you and your family in JB blog!
We will have only 2 more episodes to go
I'll definately miss this kind of Drama Mania
My mouth open to an O again
So much comments and discussion I like to read.
Required fields are marked *
215 Momolito
November 20, 2009 at 4:55 PM
@ YAB addict Hi!
I didnt have time to watch the episode because momolito wanted to star ahead on my early packing for rehab. Its going to be full and i want a good room at least. I love the episode. JGS rock it again and melted my heart. But jeremy stole the episode, such a good scene. I almost cried!! Im exited for next week, but im sad that my addiction is going to end. Lets see what will happen when the real Go MI Nam comes back. I think he will make a chaos. TK fighting!!
Bu the next week your name will change to IUSEDTOBEyabaddict
Required fields are marked *
216 moodeely
November 20, 2009 at 5:27 PM
aaaah, another awesome episode that definitely hits the spot in my heart.
First of all, thanks for the recaps again!
This is by far the episode that made me laugh and cry so hard! The fan fic parody seriously killed me, hahahaha, best one so far! and oh my heart is breaking for Jeremy....that bus scene, so awesome. It's weird but I feel more sorry for Jeremy than for Shinwoo, maybe its because Jeremy has always been straightforward with his feelings for Go Minam and I feel like Shinwoo has been a coward with his feelings for the longest time. When you think about it, he had the advantage to begin with because he knew he was a girl and he could have watch over her with her knowing that he's doing that. That's why she fell for Tae Kyung first, because even though he can be a little conceited and arrogant in his cute little way, she sees that Tae Kyung looks out for her and cares about her. But just like the typical kdrama second lead, he had to be nice and keep the secret to "preserve the peace" (which I don't buy....hehe sorry Shinwoo)
I'm sad that this drama is coming to an end....I haven't been obsessed with a drama like this in a long time, damn YAB withdrawals are definitely going to hit me big this time =)
Required fields are marked *
217 rock_milinviernos
November 20, 2009 at 5:30 PM
can't wait for the next episode... it gets exciting at every episode... waaaaaaaaah! it's making me nervous
Required fields are marked *
218 yvhsien
November 20, 2009 at 5:38 PM
Finally got to read all the comments and loved them.
When TK said “Don’t be where I can see you”, it was a total reversal of “Don’t be where I can’t see you”. That must have really hurt MN. She never got the chance to explain her side of the story. She, like TK, had every right to be angry and bitter considering her mum died alone because of TK’s mum. But she loved TK enough to not let that get in the way of her love for him. He’ll have to come to the same realization. Now, I’m not sure if the real MN will be that forgiving. He seems to be the opposite of MNYeo from the little we’ve seen of him.
@23 dlslk
I have an inch of hope that TK will come to realize how much MN means to him in the beginning of Ep 15 (as a continuation from Ep 14) since he’s still standing there, and he can hear how much MN is hurting. Even if he doesn’t apologize, I hope he shows himself and let her explain her side of the story. Can I have faith in the Hong sisters to keep TK’s character consistent as others have mentioned – he tends to flare up and then calm down later?
@34 jing
It’s not that MHR doesn’t want MN for her son, it’s that she reminds her too much of MN’s mum. She seems to have a huge hang-up about MN’s mum and everything that has to do with her, she hates it. This is also why I think after MHR left GJH, he really fell in love with MN’s mum and that song MHR is so obsessed with was actually really meant for MN’s mum. MHR in her sick, twisted way wants so much to be in MN’s mum’s shoes, she has become disillusioned. Her facts and fiction has collided and she’s now living in the fictional. She doesn’t love anyone, not TK, not GJH. She loves herself.
As for HY, we have not heard the last from her. She is going to spill it to that annoying reporter. She thinks she is hurting MN but will also hurt TK. And I hope that’s when she’ll wake up and change.
@66 and 80 Nom_Kitteh
I love your explanation of TK’s reaction.
As 131 Quaggy mentioned, I think the reason SW is witnessing that last scene with TK/MN is exactly to give him closure. He should realize now that those two’s hearts are completely, hopelessly lost to each other. Especially if TK turns around and comes down those stairs to MN.
@76 lholie and @104 aicqn
I think it’s consistent with MN’s character to react the way she did. I think the real MN would stop MHR from recording the song. And that’s another reason he needs to come back (besides the three I listed earlier).
I think aicqn’s description of the real MN is quite spot on. Even when they were younger, he had some temper and would stand up for both of them. He will not tolerate these bullies that have been hurting his sister. He will definitely not let MHR record that song. And he’ll definitely give TK a hard time.
I love what aicqn said about him remembering MHR and not liking her. That’s why he didn’t want her touching his ears. That makes sense.
@83 raahmose
“she will always find the stars, but he will never find another moon.”
I love, love that. It’s the essence of their love. The star and the moon. The thing is there is only one star for her. As she stated before, he shines brighter than others. And for that reason, she will be waiting for him when he does come to his senses.
@147 bitzes
Where did you find the info about the scenes that were edited out? It’s too bad they had to do that.
So so sorry this is so long. Blame it on my YAB addiction and fellow addicts.
Required fields are marked *
219 E-gyrl
November 20, 2009 at 5:43 PM
First of all, Shin Woo has become the man of my dreams now that he is trying to be all in Mi Nyeo face( OMG that is so sexy).That was the only thing missing about him that made me be like "eh" towards him. I always like this particular guy in most dramas (except Ji Hoo in BOF), so now that he is doing something like being selfish I crave him even more... I know, I know but don't judge me. ;)
Second, I cannot BELIEVE half of the things that come out of TK's mother's mouth, she is soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo crazy. You abandoned your kid, told him you would raise someone else kids, and then have the nerve to be mad when he likes Mi Nyeo cause she is like her mother that she did not even know? This is only logical in a crazy person's world. I hate her and there is nothing that can change this result. I don't even care to understand her cause she is so wrong.
Third, the person who kept me holding on for this ep (don;t get it twisted SW is why I have held on for the show... This Noona loves him!) was J-E-R-E-M-Y! His scene was so important to me and precious. It made me fall in love with his character, and showed how genuine and great he truly is. The world needs more guys like Jeremy, sweet guys who are just living their lives and are all about the peace at all cost.
Required fields are marked *
220 rock_milinviernos
November 20, 2009 at 6:31 PM
I hope the real Go Mi-nam will return quickly to keep that reporter out of the way and I hope that Tae-kyung will know that Mi-nyeo and Mi-nam had the same difficult situation that their father left their mother for Hwa-ran. I think it will make him understand a bit more about Mi-nyeo. Ugh! If only he listened to her for a while. He should've given her a couple of minutes to explain. But then again... the story wouldn't be as exciting as now if that happens, right?
It's really nice to read the recaps. It felt like I can understand the story very well before and after watching it. You're doing a great job and you're quite fast.
I soooooo like it very much!!!
Required fields are marked *
221 jackie
November 20, 2009 at 7:04 PM
god. i don't even know what to say. this episode, as it switched from scene to scene, made me laugh, cry, and squeal, in that order. over and over and over.
the scene with jeremy really wrung out the strings of my heart though. lee hongki, you can ACT. and he is one hell of a singer. plus, he's so cute.. ;_;
anyway. the cute scenes with taekyung and minyeo were ridiculously adorable. i was emitting sounds i didn't even know were possible.
i loved this episode SO MUCH :] i can't believe there's only two left. i guess that means back to normal life.. arghaasjdfhla D:
do you guys think episode 15 will be happy or sad?
Required fields are marked *
222 nc
November 20, 2009 at 7:34 PM
@ 221 Jackie
i think ep 15 will probably be as much of a roller coaster as ep 14 was!!!!!
i keep reading comments over and over again cuz i need something to sustain me until next wed!! AAAHHHHHHH!! going through withdrawal sucks, its not even over yet. =(
Required fields are marked *
223 serendipity
November 20, 2009 at 8:07 PM
Very nice start! Very nicely done realisation and adorable embarrassment. Well worth the wait. Best indirect declarations (what do you LIKE to eat?) EVER!!
Oh my word! The slash fanfic sequence! I laughed like a drain! I thought it couldn't possibly get any funnier - and then we have Jeremy reading and enjoying the fanfic! Oh my stars. And what a great moment for Hongki on the bus. What a star turn!
I like that the villainy has shifted from HY to MHR. MHR is much more scary. It ratches up the tension, because she's much more of a force to be reckoned with, coming with so much more psycho-pathology and baggage.
I really really ought to object to TK haranguing MN in order to get her to hold his hand, in principle (abuse and control of girlfriend, bad). But I guess I love JGS too much to.
I'm quite conflicted about Sir ShinWoo the Sorry. At times I think he is a lovely character. And at times I find him exasperating - if you care, why make MN feel bad by showing her the gift his mother meant for his girlfriend? (Yes, you go, girl: walk away from that emotional manipulation). All I know for sure is: He is interesting enough as a character to deserve to be better acted.
The whole birth secret, parental thing I found a bit tedious. Because I'd anticipated all the angst. Ah, sometimes it's best not to think too much and just watch. Hard to do when there are weeks between episodes. There's much to be said for waiting for a whole series to end and watching it all at one shot. Nonetheless, contrived and predictable as it was, as TK waited for MN to turn up for their star-gazing date and the cute music was still playing, I could feel the doom approaching and felt the dread.
Wow. News you shouldn't break on the phone. No. (1): that the girl your son loves is the daughter of the man for whom you left him.
I totally said before that we were going to be treated to sweet MN-TK moments, to be totally set-up to be hit by a wave of angst, and I was totally right, wasn't I. Sigh. But because this is the last week-long cliff-hanger of the series, I didn't mind the over-dramatic ending too much, as the logical part of my mind kicked in and I realised, yeah, they are bound to pull out all the stops angst-wise. They're not here to teach us about being sensible - they are here to create a drama that will have everyone dying to tune in next week. I guess I 'm feeling magnanimous. At the same time, I do actually buy the premise: TK hasn't had much time to process. He's a very hurt man. His mother is his hot button. He's just made himself vulnerable by confessing his feelings to a girl. He now thinks that girl has been in cahoots with his mother. He's not really in a position to be sensible, fair or gentle, right now. And he has always had self-awareness and self-management issues. I don't have as much trouble with TK's reaction (which I feel is more-or-less in character), as I have with the TIMING, which I feel is totally contrived. Just when MN starts to understand the full picture, to her credit she decides to come clean and tell TK, but right at that time Fate intervenes -- Argh! The ill hand of Bad Luck! That, I can't stand.
The short glimpse of the real Go Mi Nam (smirking) was intriguing. I honestly didn't think they'd bother to bring him on, except maybe in a cameo right at the end (a la My Girl) or in a series of photographs of A.N.Jells doing their thing, perhaps, to close the series. But I would so love to see Park Shin Hye do an assertive male MN. I think she has the acting chops to carry it off. I don't think he is the deus ex machina and certainly don't expect him to swoop in and defend his sister and defeat the Evil Witch and all that. I just want to see PSH pull it off.
@87 Nea
Yes, I too found it interesting and ominous that MN doesn't feel secure in her position. But I guess that's quite understandable. It's hard to jump from being a "useless nobody" to being someone whom TK would be committed to in the long term. She probably still can't quite believe that he loves her, and feels in her heart that she can't be more than a passing fancy.
Required fields are marked *
224 usedtoberesponsibleworkingadult
November 20, 2009 at 8:12 PM
hiya - think the economy / healthcare sector will collapse come next thurs then all of us usedtoberesponsibleworkingadults go into simultaneous withdrawal and check into rehab fast?
Required fields are marked *
225 Snikki
November 20, 2009 at 8:28 PM
I just finished watching this episode!
Random things...
- I giggled at the fanfic; knowing that Jeremy...er, Hong Ki half-meant his dialogue to Tae Kyung/JGS...hihihi...
- Speaking of Hong Ki, I would love to see him in more dramas. He has proven his acting range. I wonder where he drew his emotions; that was some serious sobbing.
- Mo Hwa Ran, or who I'd like to call Mo Whore-an after watching this episode is a freaking psycho bitch. Her character's so unbelievable; I think the writers just wrote her in to cause sturm und drang.
- And lastly, I can't wait to see the real Go Mi Nam. Maybe Jeremy will develop a crush on him, too. As for Shinwoo, hmm... I guess I have no choice but to take him, he is therefore mine. :P
Required fields are marked *
226 anjell
November 20, 2009 at 8:35 PM
just watched ep 14 last night! now we are getting to the painful part... :(
anyway, i would like to share my thoughts ;)
i laughed a lot while watching this episode. the fanfic was freakin hilarious! i also couldn't stop laughing at minam's scene after tae kyung told her he likes her.
i was not very impressed with hong ki's acting skill in this episode but i was really touched by the bus scene... i think it was unfortunate for him to be the last one to find out minam's a girl (among ANjell members)...
has anybody seen the taiwanese drama "devil beside you"? the kissing scene in this episode is similar to the one in that drama! but that's fine with me! :)
the foreshadowing (broken star ashtray) reminded me of the snow globe in "my girl"
lastly, i have this feeling that the song that mi nam's father composed was really for mi nam's mom....
can't wait to see the last 2 episodes...i am excited but at the same time sad for the coming ending... :(
Required fields are marked *
227 Anh Nguyen
November 20, 2009 at 9:10 PM
#223 Serendipity,
I love your comments. I check back the one you made in ep13 recap and it was hilarious! :D
I agree with you about the development of romance between Tk-Mn. Some people want more romantic moments (aka following Kdrama tradition of ‘going to the beach’, ‘amusement park’) but come on, it is Tk-Mn we are talking about. I actually find their romantic development after the “like” declaration sweet and enjoyable. Just like first love.
Sir ShinWoo the Sorry. How can you think of such a name? I think the writers have done a great favour to his characters in ep13 sequences. Yes, it would turn out better if it is better acted. But well, he’s a new comer so I can give a little bit of credit for that. Besides, it is hard to keep up with JGS and PSH.
I am loving PSH in the series. Really looking forward to her portraying the real GMN.
And pls, Hong sisters, do not use the "2-3 years" later on us this time. (I watched My Girl recently and thought that it was such a tiresome plot).
Required fields are marked *
228 Van
November 20, 2009 at 9:18 PM
My goodness! This is the first time I sat down and watched an episode of You're Beautiful with my friend and we literally had so many emotions in just one episode, it was crazy. First, the whole "I like you" from Tae-Kyung made us jump outta our seats and SQUEALING and hugging. Then, it was Hong Ki's MAGIC bus scene -- just like everyone else, broke our hearts. And then, just everything else.
Ugh, for the first time of watching this drama, I don't think I can predict what's gonna happen next. And I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing but all I know is that I'm not gonna go out looking for spoilers. Nuh uh!
OH! Did NOBODY even SEE(???) that little part about "the REAL Go Mi Nam"? Am I the only one who's excited about that? I don't know why people thought there was going to be someone else playing the role of the real Go Mi Nam since they've been showing the picture of Park Shin Hye the entire time BUT I'm looking forward to see if he'll officially appear! Maybe it's just me but I actually like the fact that Park Shin Hye is playing two roles (sort of -- till now?). Just to see how her acting is going to be like as her brother. Definitely awesome! Overall, good episode. Thanks Javabeans, for the recaps!
Can't wait for the last two episodes! ...THE LAST TWO EPISODES?!!!!
Required fields are marked *
229 jackie
November 20, 2009 at 9:46 PM
omfg. i am incredibly INCREDIBLY pissed at myself at the website allkpop.com
my mouse just skimmed over one of the main articles on the homepage, and a textbox popped up. the first line was, "you're beautiful spoilers below!" so my mouse immediately switched tabs, but not before my eyes automatically scanned the text box. what the hell. i just got the whole freaking drama ruined for me. i'm going to go kick a baby kthxbai
Required fields are marked *
230
November 20, 2009 at 9:48 PM
@226 anjell - I saw DBY -- and when I saw the kiss scene, the first thing that came to mind was DBY =) I'm sure it's been used in other dramas as well. I don't have a problem with it... but I just didn't feel like it was filmed that well. The camera circling... it's wasn't the best... it could have been better. But i do think it was touching for them.
Looking forward to the last 2 episodes although I enjoyed the first 1-9 better than the more recent ones, but it has been a great ride.
Required fields are marked *
231 littlecharmsy
November 20, 2009 at 10:18 PM
@ 223 serendipity
"I don’t think he is the deus ex machina and certainly don’t expect him to swoop in and defend his sister and defeat the Evil Witch and all that"
(I was thinking along the same lines!)
I really hope you’re right. Using Minam’s return to resolve all the conflicts won’t do the drama or the writing any justice… Based on this drama and the many comments, the Hong sisters are so much better than that. I would really like to see the characters we’ve all known and love to resolve their conflicts themselves, each according to his character. Jeremy has already done so. It’s time for Shinwoo to end his misery—say/do something now or forever hold your peace. But really, he has to concede to TK… but after witnessing the breakdown between TK and Minyeo, even though there was a lot of anger from TK, who can deny that they absolutely LOVE each other? Minyeo will probably run away, TK will confront his mom, and THEN Minam can rip MHR a new one (ok, I haven’t really thought about this last sentence and scenarios so much).
On a side note—has TK ever told Minyeo he loves her, or just LIKES her? I was impressed that Jeremy told her (granted, through a song) that he loves her. Aaah, to be that innocent and straightforward. And Hongki was A-MA-ZING. Speechless… my heart still breaks just thinking about that scene.
Looking forward to PSH's portrayal of manly GMN.
Required fields are marked *
232 stranger
November 20, 2009 at 10:18 PM
Thanks for the wonderfully insightful analysis/recap. You're always the best, JB.
I'd have to say that Lee Hongki really shined in this episode. And I absolutely love the play on words in several scenes that really lightened up the mood. I can't believe there are only 2 episodes left. I'm curious at how they are going to wrap everything up. Despite my early withdrawal symptoms, I still believe that brevity in a drama is rare, yet precious. So I hope this drama will go out with a big bang.
Required fields are marked *
233 littlecharmsy
November 20, 2009 at 10:28 PM
Oh, and one good thing I do have to say about the spoilers/previews for ep14... it helped me recognize the term "like" in Korean, and when I heard TK say it to Minyeo, I squealed too! Oh so loud! At work. I was so proud. Thought I'd share :-D
Required fields are marked *
234 kaedejun
November 20, 2009 at 10:29 PM
i have this really weird feeling that they're going to hire another actor for the real Go Mi Nam - and just use the excuse that he had surgery to explain why they now look a little different.
O_O
also, with that little glimpse of the real go mi nam, maybe it was the angle or something but it didn't look like it was PSH
Required fields are marked *
235 serendipity
November 20, 2009 at 10:52 PM
@ 231 littlecharmsy
Well, I don't know the nuanced difference between "I like you" and "I love you" in Korean. But you are right. TK doesn't communicate his love very clearly. So I'm personally inclined to cut MN a little slack for being so dense and insecure.
Hong Ki's scene-stealing moment -- By the way, did anyone else notice that this totally under-cut the whole premise of this story? With such a super singer as Hong Ki in the band, who can emote in song so heart-wrenchingly, and who can keep (more-or-less) in tune while singing unaccompanied while on a bus and sobbing,... Why on earth would you need to bring in a new vocalist for A.N. Jell?!
Also, can I just say this: Just because I'm anal this way and notice these things. There's been much swooning over JGS as a singer, and some grumbling about JGS' "Fly me to the moon" not being sung live. There are two good reason why they used a studio recording of "Fly me". (1) JGS's piano playing is not up to it. It seems that he can pick out a tune. But he almost certainly doesn't have the skill (a level up) to accompany himself creditably. Besides which, if he can really play the piano I feel sure that they would have capitalised on it and shown his hand-work (a la Hyun Bin). (2) JGS' singing is not up to it. His voice has a very nice quality, but he can't keep in tune reliably. He usually tails off flat. His "Rudolf" rendition was cringing. He couldn't even sing one line of "I will promise" in the lavatory without going flat at the end. His pitching needs studio touch-up. For some people, you *want* them to lip-synch to a studio recording!
Required fields are marked *
236 mizuki
November 20, 2009 at 11:02 PM
@ 234
It was PSH, I saw the BTS pics of that scene and it was her. I'm pretty sure it was her. Noticed that her hair has been shorter than previous eps? ^_^ I saw some spoilers pics (that I wasn't supposed to see... I'm trying to avoid all the spoilers), and I think the Hong sisters may not have the time leap after all.
Required fields are marked *
237 GMN
November 20, 2009 at 11:22 PM
The real GMN may look different after the "plastic surgery". So, perhaps PSH is not the one playing the real GMN? Just a thought...
Required fields are marked *
238 anjell
November 21, 2009 at 12:39 AM
@228 van
i'm excited about the real GMN too!!!!!! i actually played that part over and over again coz i thought park shin hye's REALLY CUTE even as a guy!!!! ;)
by the way, i would also like to add that i am liking shin woo's character more and more these past few episodes... i think he's more honest with his feelings now than before...
Required fields are marked *
239 jubilantia
November 21, 2009 at 1:27 AM
As usual, excellent recap, javabeans! My thoughts:
First of all, my totally off-the-wall prediction: I think real Go Mi Nam is going to be a complete egotistical jerkface, and that he will come back and fall head over heels for Heyi. Logically, having the twin be a male version of Mi-nyeo would be boring, so I think they're going to go totally zany with his character. I'm excited to see Park Shin Hye play a whole new person. Whatever they do, I can't wait.
Chalk up another heart lost to Jeremy, and Hongki, because he really did rock it. I did think the placement and degree of Jeremy's outburst seemed a bit weird, especially since we didn't see him as much last episode and they haven't really built the romantic tension as much with Jeremy since the bus episode, but this took nothing away from Hong-ki's heartrending singing.
As for the last scenario, I am going with the apologists on this one. It's a bit contrived, but I don't think that JGS's reaction is much of a stretch, given his history with his mom. Reasonable? No, but logical given his character. Also, interesting how Hwa Ran has gone from "I wanted to be your fake mom!" to "Get away from my actual son that I've basically ignored for years, bitch!" Not completely unexpected, but definitely twisted, as you pointed out.
I like how this drama is dabbling in the effects of fame- positive and negative- on idols in real life. I think us regular folks forget sometimes that they're still people, ones that are in a sense giving up their private lives for empty fan worship. Throw as much money at me as you want, but the money will never be worth giving up my identity, and I think people forget that that's basically the contract. Some people weather it okay, but it consumes others, or changes them.
(We're seeing it a lot over here with the Robert Pattinson/ Twilight thing, where the fans project these completely false images of their favorite characters onto the actors, and cease to treat the actors as real people.)
I'm a little disappointed that in this drama the guys are all painted in a positive light (well, mostly positive, in the case of JGS) while the famous women are almost all painted negatively (Hwa Ran and Heyi). I would have liked to see, say, maybe a rival male pop group (D.E. VILL- Still Pretty. All Evil.) I hope they mix it up a little with real Mi Nam.
(So won't the real Mi Nam please stand up?
Please stand up?
Please stand up? <----Repeat: SO. PSYCHED.)
Required fields are marked *
240 yvhsien
November 21, 2009 at 2:35 AM
Did anyone notice that the hoodie MN wore at the theater had a bunch of stars on them? It's funny how she pointed out the three stars to TK and omitted the one on her hoodie. I'm sure it was deliberately done.
Also noticed, as I watching some old episodes this past few days, the "Breathless" song TK was listening to in the pig chase scene was also the same one on the billboard from Ep 2 when MN had jumped off the truck and they were walking back. TK was trying to explain to MN he should be like that guy on the billboard, which if I'm not mistaken was him (JGS) with one of the phone CF.
Required fields are marked *
241 mee
November 21, 2009 at 3:08 AM
MHR is definitely a twisted character, and I don't think entirely unbelievable, at least in the context of the drama. I think MHR represents what Heyi could become, if Heyi stays on her current course, and Heyi illustrates how MHR came to be who she is now. MHR was probably an idol star in her time, with everybody telling her how great she is, and she herself believing she could have anybody she wanted. Heyi's found out she can't have TK, and it's brought out some ugly behavior from her. At least for Heyi, this can be attributed to immaturity - she really doesn't know how to respond like an adult in her dealings with other people.
Heyi is at least getting some kind of reality check right now, through the A.N.Jell members. Now imagine if the reality check hadn't come until she was much older, after very many men falling at her feet. I think for MHR this reality check was MN's dad. As MHR couldn't have him while he was alive, she's decided to take possession of him after his death. Since both MN's parents are dead, MHR can twist past events any way she wants. This would explain MHR's almost pathological obsession with her love affair with MN's dad - there actually wasn't one!
In this light MHR is not a cartoonishly evil figure, but a rather sad one. Her body has aged, but mentally and emotionally she has still stayed a teenager with the teenager's ideas of passionate, romantic love, rejecting the more mature forms of love such as that of being a loving mother to TK.
Required fields are marked *
242 Lynnette
November 21, 2009 at 3:12 AM
thanks for the recap. my heart melts when jeremy was in that bus scene. gosh. his crying/singing sent shivers down my spine.
also also, the three simple words "♥ 좋아해~" had me screeching like a young fangirl.
gosh gosh! cant wait for the next esp!~ (:
Required fields are marked *
243 Diwata
November 21, 2009 at 3:56 AM
I couldn't predict whether the real GMN would get on so well with the three other guys, but seeing how they reacted to the news of his arrival makes me feel apprehensive about their first meeting. It seems possible that the real GMN may have that dare-devil recklesness in him (what with the scar he had as a souvenir from his biking accident with his best buddy). I think he also dotes on his sister a lot (remembering what his best buddy said about him collecting egg rolls for her to eat) but may also have the tendency to be over-protective towards her (recalling how he shielded her when the other kids were taunting them in the playground scene). I suspect that his manager didn't tell him about the 'Big Switch' and that's prolly the reason why he has not been checking up on her while he is recovering abroad. If this assumption is true, I dare not imagine how he would react once he finds out how his well-meaning, yet, errant manager got his sister in this whole mess. He could have a volatile, in-your-face personality, but I think his heart is in it's right place. And I guess, only his sister could center the loose cannon in him.
Required fields are marked *
244 Diwata
November 21, 2009 at 4:16 AM
@ 241 mee
Yeah, I agree with you on your thoughts about TK's mom. At this point in her life, she should be at an psycho-emotional stage of mentoring the younger ones, of gaining their respect, of accepting that there are things that are simply not meant to be, and celebrating your personal victories no matter how small they may seem. It's so sad that she is stuck somewhere in her unresolved past, competing pathetically with the younger ones and stubbornly choosing to prove that she is Right yet Miserable instead of resolving to be Happy and coming into terms with her Mistakes. Oh, that's why I love Erickson a lot.
Required fields are marked *
245 UEEloveerrr:P
November 21, 2009 at 5:11 AM
Actually, you can't blame hwa ran from telling the truth, she actually did a right thing. But.. She should not interfere from their problems, she should let Go Min Nyeo do it not her. It's not her problem. ( btw, she made the episode end faster!! :@) Omg, i was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo upset at jeremy's part. Like omg, if i was her i will neither choose TK nor SW, i will rather choose Jeremyy <3 dis show made me like jeremy now he's my fav in FTI LOL AWWW. haahaha
Required fields are marked *
246 Judy
November 21, 2009 at 6:52 AM
YB project.....
http://yabfighting.wordpress.com/
The cast must be very touched when seeing the books, CDs and gifts. Fan power.......
Required fields are marked *
247 frumbie
November 21, 2009 at 6:58 AM
i've been reading a lot of recaps in this site for different dramas for the past three years but gawd, it's the first time i burst into tears while reading one! and in a Jeremy scene to my surprise! that was freaking heart-wrenching! and i haven't watched the video yet so i'm sure i'll be crying again...good job Lee Hong Ki!
Required fields are marked *
248 julie
November 21, 2009 at 7:05 AM
seriously....can't they make the series go to 20 episodes...or 25......ahhhh i'm gonna miss this show much once it's over next week.....can't the people watching iris, just watch alias....its like the same thing......you're beautiful deserves more viewers
Required fields are marked *
249 Mel
November 21, 2009 at 7:31 AM
To 204 Nanaee :
Oh my goodness! You just reminded me that it's ending right next week! Which is only 4 days away :-( Sobs :-( What am I to do without YAB???
212 Ockoala:
Thanks for the link!! I squealed when the picture popped out only to read the word "parodies". So I guess it's not real then :( Would be so happy if there is such an ending!!! Thanks again :-)
Required fields are marked *
250 rainerust
November 21, 2009 at 7:48 AM
Don't know if anyone else noticed but I died laughing during the trio's parody because the writer even parodied words that, according to an X-man episode (this is a Korean variety show and not the good old mutant X-men as we know it), "stole a thousand women's hearts in Korea" (i.e. what Jeremy's line was - "You are in my heart." LOL - stolen directly from Lovers in Paris, if I'm not wrong).
I love the way the writers manage to work all these subtle (or not so subtle!) references in, not to mention this episode really convinced me that the entire cast can act - from Lee Hongki (that bus scene! just killed me!) to Jang Geun Seok, to Jung Yong Hwa.
Do agree that the ending scene re: the Mother seemed a little bit much/less for a plot device keeping the two lead characters apart, but in Tae Kyung's defense, I do think that because it came out of the blue (the whole finding out Go Mi Nyeo is the daughter of the guy whom his mother abandoned him for) his emotional reaction is actually understandable. Might seem big, but I can see why he's so angry.
Not to mention I think he's saying stuff he doesn't actually mean (which happens all the time anyway) and he honestly doesn't mean that bit he says at the end when he tells MY that he doesn't want to see her anymore (tears @ the end prove it). Anyways, fingers crossed for the next 2 episodes - I certainly hope the series will end with a bang!
P.S. Sorry I got here late but was caught up with work. Anyways, great recap as usual JB! :)
Required fields are marked *