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What’s Up: Episodes 5-6

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Wow. This is the continuation of Jae Hun’s story, but it wraps up so well, and made me giddy. On the other hand, I started to hate Chae Young with a venom. Basically, I have not liked Jang Hee Jin in any drama I’ve seen her in so far. Woohoo for consistency?

[By the way, you can now watch it on DramaFever.]

SONG OF THE DAY

This song is the one that the two teams have to create a musical around. While the original is good, I definitely like the “remixes” better. B-Team’s song is so much more addicting.

“You & I” Park Bom – Single [download]

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Jae Hun gets back up again runs up and down the stairs. He’s so tired he can barely pick up the pen he dropped, and he even hallucinates seeing the Red Tracksuit Ghost dancing at the top of the stairs. It isn’t until early morning when he finally realizes he’s slept the whole night outside. His alarm clock is Sun-Man, counting out Jae Hun’s tally sheet. He’s only climbed the steps 112 times. He’s supposed to climb it 286 times.

Jae Hun grabs a pen and starts marking in 286 tally marks. He may be cheating, but his motto is to “always try your best at everything because trying is good enough.”

Sun-Man is curious as to why Jae Hun applied to the musical department, especially since it’s not a well-paying job. Well… that’s ’cause Jae Hun thought “musical” was the same as “play,” and he thought it’d be interesting. (In fact, in the short story at the end of episode, it shows Tae Hee and Do Sung trying to explain what a musical is during the audition. They give a terrible explanation that only confuses Jae Hun more, but it’s cute to see them try to explain as simply as possible.)

Sun-Man doesn’t entirely believe Jae Hun’s explanation on why he wants to do a musical, and wonders if his student will give up midway after saying he “tried.” He knows that Jae Hun doesn’t care about winning the musical competition because he’s never taken up a challenge and tried to win before. “I’m doing this for your mother’s sake – you need to wake up. Your dreams need a reality check!” Such inspiring speech early in the morning, Professor!

As soon as Jae Hun has stomped away, Sun-Man calls out for Yeon Joo to stop hiding from afar.

Outside, Do Sung gives his music sampling to Tae Hee and the others in the team to listen. They really like his more upbeat, rock twist to the song, but when they ask who arranged the song, Do Sung lies that his uncle knows someone in the music industry, and helped them with it. The twins on the team bring out large speakers, and they all start improvising a dance right there and then.

Jae Hun bangs on the door of Cheon Jin, who’s groggy with sleep. He hands him the piece of paper with 286 tally marks, and walks off. Huh.

The security guard sweeps the courtyard as B-Team dances with their own rendition of the song, and he notices Jae Hun watching with a wistful look, and Chae Young on the other side staring down resentfully.

Professor Yang’s assistants quake in fear before her office, as she’s inside on the phone, yelling at a voice instructor who suddenly decides to up-and-leave in the middle of the semester to perform in a concert. As they walk away, Doo Ri confidently strolls right into the office, just as Prof. Yang yells, “What’s this!?” Um…awkward? But Doo Ri makes no move to leave, and Prof. Yang doesn’t stop her conversation. She continues yelling until the professor on the other end hangs up. When she finally asks Doo Ri what she’s doing here, Doo Ri says she must have been in the wrong room, since she’s looking for Sun-Man.

And she leaves and looks for the correct office. Heh – even Prof. Yang is befuddled for a moment. She just got mixed up with that renegade professor!

Doo Ri walks into Sun-Man changing his shirt, and hands over the script and music for her particular performance. She honestly relays the message that Chae Young doesn’t think she’s been helpful at all, so the least she could do is run errands. Sun-Man tells her to leave it on the desk, but that’s when Prof. Yang barges right in, wanting him to take over in teaching voice classes.

Sun-Man respectfully wishes to decline, but Prof. Yang won’t let him off the hook. What, is he scared to sing? He only stopped singing five years and four months ago, so he should still be able to sing. Sun-Man wants her to stop talking, especially with Doo Ri still in the room, but Prof. Yang goes on: “Do you mean I should stop saying how a popular musical actor stopped singing all of a sudden? Where should I start? I’d say it was your sense of guilt, and from a religious standpoint, it was your sense of consciousness…”

OOOH – and that’s when Sun-Man shuts her up by agreeing to teach the classes. Doo Ri isn’t an idiot – there’s a story here!

The students are all in a studio practicing their somersault flips, with Byeong Gun ending up falling on his face, Do Sung doing a perfect one, and Tae Hee falling off to the side. Yeon Joo sneaks inside and sits next to Chae Young, who claims to have hurt her foot. Yeon Joo: “Ah, you mean you can’t do it?” I love how Yeon Joo figured her out right away and calls Chae Young out on it.

Jae Hun notices her though and calls her outside for a talk. He wants the truth now – why did the police come looking for his mother? (The detective being Detective Cho, not Jang, as I had mentioned previously.) She fesses up that Ha Geun hurt someone. They don’t know how badly the victim was hurt because they ran away. The other rival gangsters – the leader being a guy named Wu Du – decided to frame it on Jae Hun and Ha Geun, since they’ve been wanting revenge for a while.

Yeon Joo feels sorry, but she’s not willing to go as far as tell the police the truth. Jae Hun’s so angry because he’s only started getting his life together. He no longer wants to be held back because of his friends, and doesn’t want to talk to the police anymore. But when he turns back to look at her, Yeon Joo’s gone.

Meanwhile, Detective Cho has arrived at the school, and he informs the security guard and Prof. Yang that he wants to speak with Jae Hun.

Sun-Man is desperately trying to locate a substitute for the vocal lessons, calling up a buddy Jung Myung Hwan. Chae Young keeps blocking his way, insisting to speak with him – even though he’s on the phone! Annoying brat… ANYWAYS – she just wanted to make sure that it’s OK to receive outside help for the musical. (Uhm… this question would have been more appropriate before you did this, but fine…) Sun-Man is like, “Sure, whatever,” and then finally registers the fact that she’s the director of A-Team. He advises her to do whatever it takes to create the best musical possible (uh-oh…) and to take off her shoulder pads (HA!). But she has one more thing to tell him: reporters will be coming because she’s in a school musical, and they may want to interview him, a former rising star in musicals.

That bit of news makes his blood run cold. I am SO CURIOUS to find out what his issue is with acting. It’s probably very predictable and cliched, but his reaction is to run down an empty hallway and drink soju by the bottle. Of course, Doo Ri also happens to catch all of this on her camera.

Jae Hun gets called to Prof. Yang’s office, but he hesitates in going in. He’s about to turn away when Do Sung and Tae Hee catch him outside and remind him again that he’s wanted. And yet still he hesitates in opening the door…

It opens – and it’s Detective Cho. Too late to run now. He gets dragged in, and Do Sung and Tae Hee immediately rush to the door to eavesdrop. Detective Cho immediately recognizes Jae Hun from somewhere, and they both slowly realize that they had encountered each other before, when Jae Hun had impersonated a detective to get his friend Ha Geun off. Detective Cho grabs Jae Hun in a bind to arrest him. The issue this time is not for the impersonation, but for the pickpocket case in the alley that led to a man getting injured on the 16th.

When Tae Hee hears the date, she immediately remembers that she kept a mobile diary, and tells Do Sung to delay them as much as possible while she runs to get her phone. Meanwhile, Jae Hun struggles to get free, but Detective Cho threatens him with cuffs.

When they walk out, Do Sung does his best to stop them from going anywhere. He says that they’re creating a musical, and they desperately need Jae Hun for practice since he’s the director. Detective Cho pushes him away, and so Do Sung ends up grabbing Jae Hun on the waist and getting dragged along. HEE!

Byeong Gun returns to campus and sees Jae Hun getting shoved into a car. Tae Hee runs out and catches them, calling for the police to stop. In her mobile diary, she had kept a log of the 16th – it was the day she was with Jae Hun in the middle of the night, and had been singing and dancing to him about her parents’ love story. So if she were with him, there’s no way he could have been in the alley!

Detective Cho thinks this is ridiculous, but then Do Sung pipes up: he was with Jae Hun all night because he pulled an all-nighter, and Jae Hun was in the room the whole time. He spots Byeong Gun and calls him over – Byeong Gun saw Jae Hun in the room right? Byeong Gun agrees – he borrowed toothpaste from them sometime between 10:55 to 11:05PM. He knows the time exactly because he went right after his drama (HEE!) Then Oh Doo Ri comes out and hands Detective Cho a camera – she took a picture of Jae Hun around 10:50pm on campus, celebrating after beating a computer game. And THEN the security guard shows up and attests that he saw all these students go into their dorms between 10-11PM because they all have a curfew.

The amount of loyalty these people have, without even knowing the entire situation, makes me so giddy!

With no choice, Detective Cho lets Jae Hun go, and lets him know that they’re not over with him yet. They still have the impersonation matter to deal with on a later date. From afar, Yeon Joo watches everyone start joking around and Jae Hun smiling at his new friends.

At the cafeteria, she writes Jae Hun a note on the napkin:

You’re really weird. All the professors and students here are really weird. You know you only have yourself to blame for this, you chose the school remember? But you’re a little weird too, so you fit right into this weird school. You and your school are two peas in a pod. You know what, Jae Hun? You and Ha Geun were always something, but I was the one who made it possible for you guys in the first place. So don’t think you’re ahead me in getting a fresh start at life. Whether it’s a game or real life, what matters is who finishes what they’ve started. I’m going to start a new life too, whatever it may be! Something that makes my heart race, that’s worth risking my life for. I’m sure there’s something like that for me in this world.

You see, I wasn’t sure how to get my life off to a fresh start, is all. P.S. That girl Tae Hee doesn’t like you. You’re the one who’s drooling over her. Poor guy!

And Yeon Joo heads over to the hospital with mango juice for the pickpocket victim – atta girl!

Jae Hun laughs to himself as he reads the note, eliciting a stare from Do Sung in the room. Do Sung is feeling slighted that Jae Hun didn’t even thank Tae Hee for what she did. “You don’t have to thank me either!” he adds, but of course that means, “You should thank me you bastard!” Jae Hun doesn’t thank him of course, so Do Sung harrumphs. So cute.

He doesn’t even want to tell Jae Hun where Tae Hee is initially, but finally admits that she’s in the practice room. Jae Hun musses up Do Sung’s hair and thanks him, “My dear, loyal, porn-watching friend!”

In the practice room, Tae Hee is trying to master the flip, but she keeps falling to her right. Her father – IN AN ANGEL OUTFIT – laughs at her from the benches, and advises that she veer more towards the left while flipping so that she can fall in the middle at least. Tae Hee tries again, but she fails – which makes Angel Daddy laugh hard. She tells him to stop laughing; Angel Daddy: “I was snickering.”

He tells her to find the rhythm in the world. Try to become “one with the world’s rhythm” and then she’ll find her balance. With a deep breath, Tae Hee tries again, and this time she does it successfully, landing on her two feet! She turns to cheer with her father…except it’s Jae Hun! And he was spotting her for this last attempt.

Jae Hun stumbles to his feet, but then ends up being reaaaaaally close to Tae Hee’s face. Awkward. He steps back quickly, and then after a long moment, he thanks her for what she did earlier. She then goes back to practicing, since she wants to practice getting the flip just right, which for Jae Hun is a tad disappointing (aww) but he finds a reason to stay behind a little longer – he wants to see her mobile diary!

Doo Ri continues stalking Sun-Man through the night, watching as he tries to hide the evidence of drinking in a fire extinguisher (not smart) before going into a storage room. Doo Ri glees at the idea that the professor has a secret, and debates on whether to reveal it to the world, or keep it quiet for now.

Chae Young’s Roomie Ka Young brushes some aloe mask on Chae Young’s face (even scratching her nose for her – ick) while dishing that they got someone to rearrange the music for them and it’s great. However they don’t have choreography because Jae Hun’s a terrible director. She’ll even share the music with Chae Young. ICK to the infinity. Roomie thinks that the music would make the professors have a hard time choosing the winner, so Chae Young snaps – music isn’t everything in a drama yunno!

Chae Young wonders how Jae Hun got in if he’s never seen a musical and has no talent. She assumes he has a lot of money, or some connections to the school. Yunno, not everyone is like you Chae Young – some have actual talent.

Jae Hun and Tae Hee walk home together, and it turns out he has promised to buy her pizza and has to dance for the musical before she’ll show him her mobile diary. On top of that, she wants to know what was the “love letter” he received from Yeon Joo – because Do Sung is curious too. HAHA.

Jae Hun grudgingly agrees, and he hands it to her. In return she hands over the phone; he’s mighty curious because he wants to know if she said anything about liking him! He warns her not to read the “PS” section, but she refuses to promise that. He chases after her, dropping his wallet in the process.

The yellow piece of paper with the address falls out, and Tae Hee picks it up…curious as to what it is. Jae Hun explains that it’s nothing but a good luck charm. Makes sense – since the address and paper was what prompted him to start his life anew. She hands it back to him (still not knowing the meaning of it!) and also the letter Yeon Joo wrote him. She wants him to regard it as a second good luck charm. Cool – Jae Hun gets to keep his secrets! But wait – what does she want in return?

“Instead – can you sing a song?”

Jae Hun hands back her phone – he’d rather not read it than sing a song. DANGGIT! I was waiting for it!

B-Team practices the song in a studio with Do Sung as the music director. Ka Young  gets the first verse, and then Tae Hee next. Then for the chorus everyone joins in. Tae Hee tries to goad Jae Hun to sing, but he can’t. He can’t bring himself to open his mouth, and so, frustrated, Do Sung turns off the little boom box. Boo.

On the other side of the coin, A-Team cowers in fear before Soo Bin, who’s none too happy that Chae Young and Yun Chu are missing from this practice. Chae Young is actually bribing a musical lighting/stage production student to do the lighting for her team. The girl’s got spunk, and she’s none too interested in helping a B-list star. However, if she does Chae Young this favor, Chae Young will get her a position as assistant to a Soo Bin’s concert director Oh Jang Won. WELL with that on the line…

In the middle of the night, Jae Hun climbs up the torturous “Stairs of Friendship” and rehearses the choreography. He even sings! although it’s not that great at the moment.  As he dances, the Red Tracksuit Ghost appears, and starts mimicking his every move. HEHE.

A-Team celebrates with some drinks, and Chae Young steps aside to take a call from a friend making the costumes. Byeong Gun comes by and opens a can of soda for her, but Chae Young rejects it. He adds a straw; that’s when she takes it.

And now we arrive at the day of the performance! In the dressing room, the B-Team members tell Jae Hun to sing, but don’t make a sound. Open his mouth, but be on beat. Don’t forget the choreography! It’s so sad the members are ordering their director around on how to not perform for the sake of the team. Glasses Girl comes by and tells them that a whole lot of professors are in the audience, and Doo Ri comes from behind saying that reporters will be there too.

They wonder where the rest of her team is, and that’s when A-Team makes their grand entrance, decked out in stylish, classy outfits. They look so much better put-together than the B-Team’s matching checkered scarves.

Sun-Man does a coin toss – and B-Team goes first. They take the stage – very nervously – sitting around the steps. It has a very “kids got together and sang” vibe rather than a real, written-out musical. But I think their rendition rocks ass – and they all look like they’re having fun. Even Jae Hun loosens up as he dances. [download – edited episode rip]

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Chae Young watches from above, a little annoyed that their song is so damn good; Sun-Man rocks his head, enjoying himself until he catches sight of reporters waving at him; Do Sung sings his solo victoriously, until he catches the eye of a photographer – the same photographer who got his face as Hades – and runs away. I don’t think the photographer recognized him yet though…

Next it’s A-Team. Before they get on stage, Chae Young tells Ji Eun to stand behind the piano in the dark, rather than in her usual position at the steps. This is so when Ji Eun sings her final solo note, the spotlight is to shine on her and dazzle the crowds with her voice – which they would have only heard in the darkness. Chae Young also tells Byeong Gun to lip-sync, since he’s not a great singer. He wants to do his best, but she tells him not to.

It starts off with a ballet in silhouette, and then opens up with the Dancer singing as the male. Their version of the song is more like a romantic duet, with the cast acting as waiters in a restaurant, setting up for a romantic date between the male and female lead. Doo Ri is supposed to make an entrance being carried on a table, but when she spots her mother in the audience, she makes a quick exit off the stage. [download – unedited episode rip]

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The final note arrives, and the spotlight shines… on Chae Young instead, sitting at where Ji Eun should have been. She’s been lip-syncing to Ji Eun’s voice the entire time, so the audience thinks that Chae Young’s voice is pure and sweet. URGH. This is also unexpected for the class, and they have to quickly recover and change their steps a little to accommodate Chae Young’s appearance. DOUBLE URGH.

Guess who wins? Yup – A-Team. GAH.

Outside the building, reporters gather to gush over Chae Young’s bright new future in musicals. Even Professor Yang – who wasn’t so kindly during the audition – fawns over how Chae Young entered with pure talent, not because of who she was or through connections. The reporters presume Chae Young attended the college because of the famed Sun Woo Young, since he was the president Goh Mi Young’s own pupil. But then they catch sight of Sun-Man at the door and chase after him, leaving Chae Young and Prof. Yang hanging.

B-Team heads back to their dorms, in somewhat high spirits because winning wasn’t everything to them – they’re just glad they pulled it off. Byeong Gun jumps out in front of them and gloats: “I’m a winner! You’re a loser!” And they all grab to beat him up – playfully of course.

That’s when they see Ji Eun confront Chae Young in front of them. Ji Eun is mighty hurt and pissed that Chae Young did this bait-and-switch on her; was it because Chae Young couldn’t stand other people (more talented than she) getting all the attention? Chae Young has no reply, and turns to walk away, but she spots Byeong Gun and the B-Team listening to the entire conversation.

Chae Young: “Kim Byeong Gun – I told you to tell the staging team. Was that too difficult? To put the spotlight on Ji Eun during the solo? You just had to tell them one thing. Because of you I’m in trouble.”

Byeong Gun is too shocked to reply, and Chae Young demands an apology from Ji Eun for wrongly accusing her. CAN I PUNCH THIS WOMAN OR WHAT?!

Doo Ri’s mother, Yoo Ri Na (which could be her stage name), is let up to her daughter’s dorm room, and Tae Hee tries to play hostess. The mother notices that Tae Hee has an actual record player, and they bond over their love of music and records of Queen and Rolling Stones. Aww… But on top of this, Doo Ri’s mother also knew Tae Hee’s father – Jon Gabriel Park. (What a rock star name.) She used to sing too, but retired after making it big.

Doo Ri finally arrives in her room, and her mother can’t even look at her androgynous looking, short-haired daughter. Doo Ri kicks Tae Hee out of the room so that they could speak in private. Tae Hee waits in the waiting area, talking to her Angel Daddy, joyful at the idea of her dad and Doo Ri’s mother singing together. She wonders if Doo Ri’s mother met her own mother, and if she fought with her own mother before she left when Tae Hee was three. Angel Daddy has no answer. Tae Hee also wonders aloud if her dad went to Seoul that day of his accident in search of her mother. If she hadn’t said “that thing,” would he have gone searching for her mom? Would he have died?

What is “that thing!?” Of course, no one will tell me now. Angel Daddy also disappears from Tae Hee’s side, and she calls him a scaredy-cat.

Back in the room, Doo Ri’s mother wants her daughter to take off the wig. She’s even disappointed that her daughter didn’t appear in the musical. When Doo Ri shows her her closet full of worn, old looking clothes, the mother gathers them up to throw them away. She doesn’t listen to Doo Ri telling her to stop, suggesting they go shopping and get a hair cut instead. Doo Ri finally snaps: “Can I stop pretending to be your little doll!? I’ve done it for 20 years now! Can’t you just let me go?”

Mother won’t listen, rather ignoring everything Doo Ri says. She won’t let her daughter go – the only thing she has left. She leaves in a huff, and Doo Ri chases after her to the car. She notices her mother is too shaken to drive, but her mother doesn’t care: “Maybe it’ll be better if I just die.” It’s overly dramatic, but it comes from a place of hurt and pain for the mother.

Doo Ri finally relents. She sings a few lines from their musical song, which calms her mother a little bit. She tells her mother that she was supposed to play lead, but Chae Young took the spotlight for herself. She also promises to go shopping with her mother over the weekend. Mother drives off really happy, but Doo Ri is left unsatisfied.

In the darkness again, Jae Hun tries to sing the song. It’s awkward and hesitating, but when he turns around, he sees Chae Young sitting, moping by the “steps of friendship.” (Is she feeling guilty?! Is she feeling guilty?!) He goes off, embarrassed, but then comes back and asks if she was crying. She glares, he walks away. He comes back again.

Her team won, so he’s puzzled as to why she’s so glum. She fires back – why is he so happy when he lost? To him, this competition isn’t a matter of life and death – it’s just an expression of art, and it’s just a way for him to have fun! Oooh – but that ends up being the wrong thing to say. Chae Young is pissed off that for him and his team, they approached it as just good fun, when for her, she worked hard, losing sleep over her performance. (Wait – I thought she outsourced all the work…) She feels miserable over beating a bunch of “losers” who didn’t even give her a good challenge, and thus make the win all the more sweeter.

She stomps off, and Jae Hun calls out an apology. He’s sincere (when I think he shouldn’t be), admitting that her performance was the first musical he’d ever seen, and he was moved by it. He also says that she’s his first celebrity sighting, and leaves her with fighting words: “You’re a star! The best!”

He’s so sweet, but I hate he’s giving it to Chae Young, who deserves none of his kindness.

Doo Ri wanders into a practice room, where an older student is banging on his drums. Her ghost-like appearance freaks him out, and she asks if he could borrow his drumsticks. He’s hesitant to give it to her – someone whom he doesn’t believe knows how to play drums – but she looks so sad that he finally gives it to her.

As she bangs the drumsticks, she thinks back to her childhood, when she was basically her mother’s little doll and forced to sing and wear frilly dresses because of her stage mother. She hits so hard that one of the sticks breaks in half, and that’s when Sun-Man comes upon this scene.

He sits next to her, wanting to show her how to play with broken sticks, when Doo Ri interrupts:

Doo Ri: There once was a woman who was about to become a star. But then she got married and gave up all her hopes and dreams. She had a daughter too. And she lived happily ever after… Well, I wish that were true. But her husband cheated on her with a woman who was more famous and younger than her. In this story… what do you think went wrong?

Sun Man: Well, I can tell you one thing for sure about the story. The daughter in the story – she has done nothing wrong.

Tears welling in her eyes, Doo Ri asks him to repeat it, and Sun-Man does, and tells her she’s also allowed to cry. Doo Ri lets the tears fall, and Sun-Man pats her ont he shoulder.

The photographer comes upon this scene and snaps a few pictures, squealing, “I love this school!”

Comments:

I am SO IN LOVE with the characters in this show! First off, Sun-Man is really fun to watch. I love how he doesn’t bother learning the names of the students – rather he learns as he has one-to-one interactions with all of them, and in a way, he starts connecting with each of them. He’s a bit too tortured in this episode, so I’m hoping that the reason why he quit acting is a solid one. And then to our rag-tag group of friends, I definitely enjoy how they’re all friends first, team rivals second. Especially in the case of Byeong Gun and Doo Ri, I feel like they’d stick around for Jae Hun and co. rather than be all secretive. Chae Young’s Roomie Ka Young is annoying, but I can see why she’d divulge her team’s doings: she thinks it’s  harmless, and she admires Chae Young. And as for Doo Ri, I truly feel for her. Her story was the focus of episode 6’s little background vignette, where after her mother received the call of Doo Ri’s acceptance, she called up the father and declared that she was going to make sure Doo Ri becomes a bright and successful star – something that the mother herself never was. To be your mother’s pawn for 20 years is much too long to bear, so I can’t wait for her to break free, but also to become a star in her own right.

As for Tae Hee’s interaction with her father – he’s become her conscience now. He responds exactly how she thinks of he would respond, and for the questions she doesn’t know the answer to, then Angel Daddy has no response either. I’m glad that he, and even the Red Tracksuit Ghost, aren’t really just one-off cameos. They seem to appear in almost every episode, making them recurring guardian angels that are less gimmicky, and more substantial. I find the ghost very interesting in that it only shows up for Jae Hun; it’s like it’s living vicariously through Jae Hun’s time in school. Not perfect at everything, but trying his best.

I enjoy how mundane moments are made into really comedic moments. How Doo Ri and Prof. Yang have their awkward stare-off in Yang’s office; how Detective Cho and his partner look up at the stairs hesitantly, and unwittingly keep blocking Prof. Yang’s way. Humor in the small moments keep me coming back for more.

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Yes, I love those mundane moments. Sometimes, that's whats make dramas so memorable for me.

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I like this drama but the super delayed recaps and unsubbed videos kills the excitement it starts to wane.

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kaedejun, my dear, you're efforts are not unappreciated. thank you and keep them coming!

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I love every moment of this drama, I was getting little bored with recent dramas however, this one got me excited from the first ep!

I'm just baffled as to why main channels reject to air this show, it doesn't even make sense since they air other un-watchable crap (no offence). Or would've watched this a year ago! -__-

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Wow, this drama got me hooked right from the start and it just keeps delivering. Awesomeness.

And it's never slow, I think 45-ish minutes per episode is just perfect. Just love cable.

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I loved that little scene when Doo Ri showed up in Sloppy Teacher's office to run errands... and he's like "I need to take off my shirt, do you mind?" and she's like "Go ahead!". Ahahah

These were some pretty good episodes. But this drama is so DARK. The lighting, the colours, the whole look.

I admit that all in all I am somewhat disappointed in this drama. Since it was completely finished way before airing, I thought we'd get great quality in the editing. But it doesn't look like it.

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hmm actually this drama is filmed with a 70 min episode in mind (because usually airtime for an episode is 70 mins). but MBN cut it down to 45 mins, for some reason (cr: derpodale). so they had to do last min cuts, and yeah editing is of course abit choppy.
but i have to say, i really still enjoy this drama alot.

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should i say it? i think i might love this drama....in any case, i have high hopes! as soon as the newest episodes were subbed (7 and 8) i snapped them up (:

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oops i meant "(7 and 8 )" haha
THANK YOU FOR THE RECAP!!

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this drama is just so ridiculously good. i like it way better than dream high and all the little multilayered interactions and relationships the characters have with each other, even when you would never think that they would even be friends with each other makes it amazing. after all isnt that what going to college is about? going somewhere new and being completely out of your cocoon and learning to connect with the people around you despite what your personalities or histories are like. I LOVE THIS DRAMA SO MUCH!!! rarely (maybe beside protect the boss) has there been a drama in which I connect and love all the characters so much (even chae young! and i really loved what jae hun did for her and the kindness and comfort he showed her. since all the negativity and criticisms that shes faced in life thus far has turned her into a tortured and mean person, maybe some kindness will finally cause her to change her outlook on life and her willingness to cheat her way to the top...)

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THANK YOU! Loving it better than Dream High also!

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The scene where everyone came in to "rescue" Jae-hun had me grinning like an idiot. I admit it was kinda cheesy, but it was just so sweet. I thought the pickpocket victim was dead, since the police did say that there was murder involved. either way, it's good he's alive.

It's also great to see that Jae-hun is making effort to fit in with his peers and with music. I think he realised that he has finally found a place where he feels he belongs.

Doo-ri's mother's blatant emotional blackmail is just mad. It's scary how obsessed she is that she's completely unaware of (or worse, ignoring) her daughter's feelings.

As for Chae-young, I think I get why she is behaving the way she is, considering her upbringing, her inferiority issues and all. While her flaws are understandable, I am also finding it hard like her. I don't think Jang Hee-jin is making her character as sympathetic as she could've been.

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Is it possible to be addicted to recaps? If only I had time to watch this show right now - can't wait until I can marathon it! Thank you, kaedejun! :D

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That's my line ! haha, I wish I'd watch it but Time isn't on my side at the moment....Such a fickle friend, I swear.
Thank you too kaedejun, for making me enjoy this gem of a drama!

pstttt, Am I wrong to think that little Doo-ri looks a LOT like Hye-mi's sister in DH ?
haha, with 2 musical dramas in her resume she'll maybe turn singer next!

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It is hyemi's sister! :) well, the actress. hahaha

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the kid is actually her youngversion you'll see in later episodes

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I'm beginning to fall in love with this drama. All of the main characters are interesting, and I really enjoy watching the development of their varying relationships with each other. Speaking of which, I think the cast definitely has good chemistry together.

P.S. The awkwardness of Jae Hun's stumbling up close to Tae Hee's face in this episode is totally surpassed by their stretch exercise scene in episode 7...although I must admit that it's also sorta hot.

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This drama is definitely ain't Dream High or The Musical, as it's so dark and gloomy (at least in the mood/ setting/ colours), but I guess that's what I love most about it. It's a totally underrated drama, and yeah, probably won't be accepted as much as the fun and vibrant Dream High. Can't help comparing, since I first watch WU with a DH in mind. It's dark, and has indie feel to it, but also surprisingly heartwarming, and though it did take me a while to get to the wagon, but by the end of ep 6, I'm IN it!

I'm no musical genius, but I love the music scores of WU, as it gives me that dark, phantom-like feeling. I guess it fits the them really well - really, really love the bground song for Doori's story.. it was totally creepy! (at least for me hehe)

.. and that whimsical and imagery bits- really nice touch! - Doo ri with her vidcam, Doo sung with his mask, Tae Hee with her father, Jae Hun with the (cute) ghost, Byeong Gun with his imagery persona and Chae Yong with her ... err ... popularity craze? Haha.

In previous episode it was all about escapism (for each student), and now I think it's about learning to accept what's in front of them, and maybe later, it'll be about protecting what's important for them.

And the little stories at the end- lovely! It's like watching 30 sec different drama altogether.. heee!

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but,,i thought the 'red tracksuit ghost' is one of the kwon twin..isn't he?

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"He’s so sweet, but I hate he’s giving it to Chae Young, who deserves none of his kindness."

Chae Young might not deserve his kindness but she needs it, desperately. Even though she did pull favors, Chae Young did work really hard for the musical - there's that one scene where she's practicing in the dance studio over and over again.
I think the actor's life has tied up her self worth with the attention she gets from other people and she's obsessed with feeling good. Once she makes friends with the other characters I think she'll mellow out and understand there are more important things in life.

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Agreed 100%. Piggybacking on your comment, but I actually really like Chae Young. I can see why people hate her — she's a major raging bitch and a bit of a glory-stealing liar. But honestly, you can't blame her for that? The chick's been working in the acting industry since she was a child (read: she's immensely screwed up and grew up with a completely different perspective on right and wrong on the stage).

She grew up fighting for the spotlight in a dog-eats-dog world and what she's doing right now seems to be, to her, just another way to stay on the "escalator going down". I can't hate her for that. I do hope she'll go through some character change throughout the drama, though.

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My sympathy went out the door with the lip-syncing and then lying on poor Byeung Gun! There will have to be a 360 change for me to be sympathetic.

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I agree too, I don't hate her either (..or rather not completely hate her). I sort of understand her point of view, her struggles and her ideology about the entertainment industry. You do see flicker of emotions through-out, some scenes where she monologues. Although she has clichéd characteristic of K-drama "bitch" normally I would not sympathise those types of characters, but here we see more realistic portrayal as to way she is, made her more 3-dimensional.

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Thanks for the recap, Kaedejun! I really like the double episode recapping - it must have taken you a few hours - really appreciate you doing this for us.

This drama is really cranking right along - love the way they wrapped up Pickpocket girl's storyline. I was afraid the writer would drag this piece of the plot way over it's due date. Nice to see a neat (and fast) ending for her.

WU? is everything that the awful "The Musical" wasn't, and where I wish that "Dream High" had gone - more layering of the storyline. But, WU? has an intensity that makes it it's own animal - it's not quite a melo, I think, in large part due to the nice and full inclusion of the music and team performance, something that YFFM and The Musical tried to have but didn't. Dream High did, just wish there could have been more.

There are so many character side plots in WU? that it could have easily become one confusing unwatchable mess - but here it's handled so well that it's all interesting. It makes me look forward (impatiently) for the next episodes. It's a great interwoven story and a fun watch.

The only thing I still find irritating is the sloppy and choppy editing due to the time cut-downs. I'm wondering if those little vignettes at the end of each episode is the way the PD/writer(s) is attempting to salvage some of the episode butchering they've been forced into.

Doo Ri's mother is the StageMom from Hell - TLC should pick her up for "Toddlers and Tiaras". She'd fit right in. I'm not too sure how I feel about Doo Ri creeping around with her camcorder - it's coming across as potential blackmail fodder and I don't think it fits her character's bent. It smacks of sneaky.
:)

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Thanks so much for the recap!!
On another note, am I the only one rooting for Doo Ri and Sun-Man to get together? Because in the next episode, it seems like they were heading there??

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Haven't been able to watch yet (but been keeping up with your awesome recaps!). Just judging from the screencaps, some of them look like a Vogue shoot. This has some stellar cinematography!

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Thanks kaedejun ! Glad you enjoy it. I'm sure it's easier to recap a good show than a missed one.
And this one seems " deep rooted " with a lot of fertilizer added to the ground.
I agree that the photography is gorgeous. As the choppy editing, personally it doesn't shock me.
One thing i've noticed : All the characters are played by good and charismatic actors, but not " all good looking " ones ( where is that idol hiding ? ). The physical imperfections give a sense of reality, because everyone has flaws.
Might have a soft spot for that borderline Drunken Master. Btw, While i read the recap, my PC played " Raise your glass " by Pink. Funnily appropriate.

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Even though I don't have have a favorite character, Doo Ri is leading with Byung Gun not too far behind. I seriously wanted to slap Chae Young when she took the girl's spot light and blamed it on Gun. I was so touched by how they all stood up for Jae Hun when the detective was going to take him away and the girl that plays his friend (She was Hwan's sister in Shinning Inheritance), I loved her and her interactions with the characters at the school. I wanna see her in another drama.

I loved the ghost and his funny dance moves, it's hilarious!

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I love Tae Hee and Jae Hun. I am really shipping them at the moment, and any romantic interactions between them make me very hyper and happy. I really hope they can end up together, but the complications...

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thanks for the recaps.

though the drama's rather choppy from re-editing to fit in the cable's timeslot, though the drama's a little dark, but i just love it.

it's like everyone's there at the school with a secret of their own, and it's like they're hoping the secret will just varnish by itself with them working hard in school learning about musicals, etc.

i definitely hope that as the drama progress, the students and professor will be brighter as they receive and give all the love and support among themselves.

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Yes, there is definitely a smell of paranoia in those corridors. It's like the survival game in the Lost series. Even the fact that we have two groups with different philosophies : By any means necessary versus Let's improvise. And interesting leaders emerging.

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I love this drama! And I love Doo Ri more! :)

Just to point out, the Red Track-suit guy actually also appeared to Tae Hee once.

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Thank you for the wonderful recaps, Kaedejun!

Like about ninety percent of the commenters here I adore Doo Ri, who is the most badass, carefree, interesting character ever. From episodes 7 and 8 I'm thinking that, yeah, [*SPOILER*] we're having a Doo Ri / Prof. loveline, as onesided as it is at the moment.

Byung Gun is adorkable and I hope we get more of a focus on him and his criminally uncaring family soon. I hope we get more of a focus on Soo Bin, too (he seems to be the character with the least "troubled backstory" but he's still quite fascinating, so). And more bromance.

The only thing I'm dreading is the shitstorm that will come when the big "you killed your love interest's father" reveal comes. Oh god, the angst. The angst.

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Totally saw that coming! Especially since I watched all the episodes raw, I didn't even know that Doo Ri was stalking Prof. because she was suspicious, I thought she was stalking him because she liked him. lol

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So I'm not the only one that noticed it! Lol... though when I think bout it logically it seems weird to ship Doo Ri and Sun-Man but yet my heart disagrees... ottoke? We'll just have to see what actually happens...

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I really love the music in this drama and the way it is used.
And I love how all the characters are not about "winning" but more about figuring out who they are and their place in the world.

DH was surprisingly disappointing in the music performances considering that they were using singers for the main cast.

-Spoiler-
I watched the latest episode raw and WOW Oh Manseok rocks. This might be the first drama I want a DVD of.

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I am loving the drama and loving your recaps. I'm getting confused, though. Is Oh Man Seok's character named "Sun-Man"? Because the subtitles I'm watching have his name as "Sunwoo Young". Aigoo, it's confusing for my little brain if the recaps and fansubs have different names for the same character.

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The subs are right — his character's name is Sun Woo Young. Sun-Man is Kaedejun's nickname for him since his first name is just "Young" and it's kind of an awkward name to use, I guess?

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Ohhh. In my head, he's sorta just "Professor" so I keep getting side-tracked ("Who's Sun-Man again?") when reading the recaps. Thanks for the info!

The recaps are great, by the way. I love the audio rips. Keep them up, Kaedejun!

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Thanks for the recap!!

Totally was waiting for Jae Hun to sing for Tae Hee at the end of ep 5! AGGGGHHH ~~~ when that episode airs in which Jae Hun can finally sing confidently... MAJOR FLAILING ahead. Kae, you might want to call me after that episode airs just to check if I am still breathing.

And btw.. I am watching this drama thru livestream every Sat and Sun at 4am. I have never watched any drama live before. Only for my Lim Ju Hwan, of course!

GO TEAM PARK KYU!

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Thank you very much for the recaps! I'm loving this drama and am glad for any opportunity to relive the episodes. With such wonderful characters (except Chae Young, who's easier to hate than root for) and acting and a nice balance of dark and light, it deserves to be more popular. Plus, the little interactions between characters feel so natural, like Doo Ri making gun signs at Byeong Gun or Jae Hun ruffling Do Sung's hair. I'm a bit wary of the upcoming angst, but I have faith in the writer.

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Thanks a lot for the recap!

I LOVE this drama!
I LOVE all the characters...even Chae Yeong and the (bossy) senior who fancies her...he is cute and even the police man! I also liked the substitute vocal teacher that SunWoo brings in Ep.7! LOL.
I wish the subber team subbed the drama sooner (thanks for your efforts)... :)
I also wish that DaeSung and Lee Soo Hyuk got more screen time...but it's okay....things are in flow as it is.
The story and the drama do justice to each character.

I am not much of a fan of the main lead- Im Joo Hwan, but because the drama is soooooo good and because he acts good, I am liking him too. There is something about him that ticks me off since his many other roles; don't know what and also I am not a fan of loud men but I guess I know where his character is coming from. All in all, his character doesn't deserve Park Tae Hee because of what he did...I would be majorly disappointed if they wind up

The editing is not a problem with me because I can relate with the next scene. I like how the drama was filmed and edited (not montage wise but per scene wise) and also the colour tone of the drama...

I LOVE Love love Oh Man Sook and I am majorly shipping him and DooRi. They have an interesting chemistry! :)

DooRi's character is very interesting except for her sneaky side...
All the characters are in an individual quest for their identity, which I like.
The angel dad and Park Tae Hee's conversation leaves me emotional each time...
This drama is like an allegorical fable with a subliminal deep underlying meaning like many other Korean/Asian dramas....

Oh Man Sook deserves more recognition: He can ACT, SING, has tons of screen presence and has great sense of humour, his timings are right, looks totally good….etc…etc….wonder why he is not as popular as Kwon Sang Woo and the likes whose *massive popularity I never understood (not that I don’t like him and the others).

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Yes, totally agree that Oh Man Seok deserves more MORE recognition and popularity. It is so satisfying to watch him - he makes his character so 'human' - a person who is so alive and lovable that the viewers can relate to and feel with him.
Wish more people, casting managers included, get to recognize this amazing actor. I hope to see more of Oh Man Seok - he is such a gem!!!!

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This drama is really good.

Certain websites have already posted subs for episode 7/8. I really want to add to the discussion of this drama but I have to wait until episode 8's recap to get into detail on how excellent this drama is becoming.

Has anyone noticed the extra scenes at the end of the credits to this show?

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I watched until episode 10 already and I am dying to discuss it with someone. I love this drama so far. Although Park Tae Hee's character is getting in my nerves now, or maybe it's the actress. She perpetually has the same expression and it's very annoying...

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NOW I REALLY HATE THAT CHAE YOUNG!!!
HOW DARE IS SHE????
SHE STEALS THE GIRL'S VOICE AND MAKES THE GUY AS THE GUILTY ONE!!!!

WHAT THE HECK!!!

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HATE Chae Young! Can't wait for her to get her comeuppance!! Jae Eun? Too nice to her!! Did not deserve any sympathy! I am so loving this show!!!

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Totally off topic, but does anyone notice how f*ckin HOT Soo Bin is? DAYUM

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There was a song at the end of the episode that played, I really want to know what it was, does anyone know the song or know who sings it?

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