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Rooftop Prince: Episode 13

Lots of forward movement today, with lies unraveling and Major Discoveries being made. In fact, I sort of wonder if some of this could have been paced a little slower to give us a chance to react emotionally with the characters, rather than zooming right by… but I suppose I’d rather feel something went too quickly than dragged on for too long. Quibbles.

SONG OF THE DAY

Tim – “하루가 길다” (The day is long) [ Download ]

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EPISODE 13 RECAP

Yi Gak makes his confession and they kiss.

But! The camera pans inside the house, to the rooftop family portrait… and our Joseon Travelers flicker in the photo, momentarily leaving Park-ha alone before the images return, like Marty McFly’s disappearing guitar-playing hand. Oh noes!

The ducklings are currently working their tired little butts off in the company office, and Chi-san reaches for his cup of coffee… but gets nothing but air, since his hand literally waves through the cup like a ghostly apparition.

The boys naturally freak out, but as they consider what this means, it’s not necessarily bad news: They deduce that time is nearing for their big mystery to be revealed. The prince’s wedding to Se-na is approaching, and they must be almost ready to make their jump home. But Yong-sool wonders, “If we go back, what will happen to Park-ha?”

The boys sigh, feeling sorry for her. Man-bo wonders, “Why did she have to like the prince…?” thinking of how she’ll feel to have him gone.

As for the temporarily happy couple, they sit side by side, in a bashfully giddy mood. She asks what he wants to eat, and he requests omurice, saying that he never gets sick of hers.

Park-ha offers to make it as much as he wants while he can eat it, but that’s just a reminder of their ticking clock. Her smile fades as she says wistfully that it would be nice for him to stay here: “I wish we could live in the same time. How long will you be able to stay here?”

Tae-mu comes tearing into his parking garage, his driving echoing his mood. Damn, that is the angriest perfect parking job I’ve ever seen. He’s reacting to Big News: Tae-yong has been sighted. The real Tae-yong, in Chicago. He request a confirmation photo, and it comes via text: Tae-yong, in a hospital bed. Wait, but I thought two souls couldn’t inhabit the same time-space. I guess Yi Gak’s theory was wrong on that.

The mood becomes much more somber by the time Park-ha and Yi Gak arrive at their rooftop penthouse, and Park-ha suggests, “Let’s stop here.” They both know they can’t continue, and they both know he has work to do. She says they can consider her involvement a detour, but now it’s time for him to go his way. She reminds him of his companions, as though to cut off any protests, and says, “This may feel difficult and burdensome, but this is fate. Have your engagement. That’s the right thing.”

Park-ha manages to get through this without shedding tears, then packs a bag and tells Yi Gak she’ll be staying with Mimi until she finds a new place. Caught off-guard, he demands, “Can you not just stay here for a while?!”

She points out that her staying is odder, and in his hurt he tells her that she may as well go far away while she’s at it. She says he should have let her go to America instead of holding her back, and he retorts, “I regret that too.”

Yi Gak goes in search of another home as well, and picks out an apartment in a high-rise. He calls Park-ha to insist on a meeting, overriding her protests, saying that it’s important.

Park-ha goes in for an interview with a tourism agency, where she’s asked whether she could take a job in a field office, outside of Seoul. The idea of relocating makes her pause, but she answers that she can.

Tae-mu meets Se-na and hands over a plane ticket to New York… for Park-ha. Aw, everyone just wants to get rid of her. He tells Se-na to bribe/threaten her into leaving, while he’ll “take care” of Tae-yong. With the stockholders’ meeting approaching and CEO Jang scheduled to return, they need Park-ha out of their hair asap.

Se-na’s still tentative about joining evil forces with Tae-mu, but he urges her to trust him.

At the company, the duckling trio nervously watches the broadcast of their product launch, which hits the sales goal mark and elicits whoops of excitement. Not happy is Tae-mu, whose sabotage attempts were deflected by the ducklings’ decoy information.

Se-na congratulates Yi Gak on the successful launch and tries to make plans to pick up their engagement rings later. He asks her to handle it herself, saying that he’s fine with her taking care of it. That sends her into a peevish mood, since he’s acting awfully disinterested for such a meaningful selection.

She then sees Yi Gak asking Chi-san to deliver an envelope to Park-ha. She then intercepts Chi-san and asks for a coffee break, and he complies with an anxious look at the clock. So when he steps up to pick up their order, Se-na takes a peek at the file: apartment rental contract papers, with a hand-written note reading “Let’s meet here.”

Chi-san finds Park-ha and delivers the envelope. Except now, inside is that plane ticket to New York, not the apartment papers. Oh. No. You. Didn’t. I know you’re evil, honey, but that’s just mean.

As far as messages go, this one is loud and clear (even if it’s been sabotaged), especially considering his words last night, and Park-ha’s eyes fill with tears.

That means Yi Gak is left waiting in that empty apartment, practicing his spiel over and over, trying out multiple deliveries of the line, “This is your home now. Do you like it?”

She takes a long, meandering walk home, and Yi Gak paces the apartment all evening. When he tries to call her, he gets no answer.

And then we fade out, returning a short time-skip later.

With this new information about the real Tae-yong’s whereabouts, Tae-mu makes the trip to the Chicago hospital. And this time, there’s no question that this is the real guy; Tae-mu recognizes him immediately, despite that vacant look in Tae-yong’s eyes.

Mimi packs a box of things to send Park-ha, which she tries to hide from Man-bo since she’d been sworn to secrecy. But he sees the address on the box, guessing she must have known all this time where Park-ha had gone. Wait, Park-ha’s gone? Editing could have been better to give us a sense of the time lapse.

At work, Man-bo treads cautiously, asking Yi Gak whether he’s heard from Park-ha recently. Chi-san worries; it’s been several days since she left without a word.

Yi Gak feigns disinterest, telling his boys there’s no point in worrying about someone who left so abruptly, and warns them not to mention her name in front of him.

Exhibiting his characteristic terrible timing, this is when Yong-sool happens to enter carrying a bag of peppermints (park-ha sa-tang), and gets so far as the syllables “Park-ha” before Yi Gak blows up at him. Aw, poor minion. Somebody get him some of that gak sugar (cubes) to crunch on.

Pyo Taek-soo reviews the team’s idea for a trip package they’re putting together, and Chi-san recites some potential vacation hotspots. Man-bo listens carefully, and when Chi-san mentions Jinan (the city written on that box to Park-ha), he jumps up and insists they pick that one. He cites the cherry blossom viewing as a key attraction.

So Yi Gak makes the trip there to check out the area and awaits his travel guide… and sees Park-ha leading a tour. His reaction is both excitement and relief, although he adopts his air of nonchalance to actually meet her.

Park-ha is alerted to their Very Important Person waiting for his tour, and warned to do a good job. She introduces herself brightly, belatedly realizing who that guest is only after he turns to face her and speaks. Yi Gak introduces himself as though meeting her for the first time, and after a moment to collect herself, Park-ha does the same.

Both of them tamp down their emotions—surprise, awkwardness, annoyance—to proceed with the itinerary. Using the pretext of the tour, Yi Gak needles her with questions about the facts, pointing out all the stuff she doesn’t know. He’s being annoying, but she’s trying to keep her professional tour guide facade in place, until finally she snaps and retorts that she can’t know the minutiae of what happened hundreds of years ago.

So he gets on the phone to complain to her boss, which makes her meekly apologize to her superior. Since they’re both pretending there’s nothing personal going on, this is the only way for him to get a rise out of her, and he’s pretty successful at raising her hackles with his imperious commands. And when she tries to whiz through the tour, he calls her back to demand details. Like that stone pagoda she skipped—what’s it for? How many stones are in it?

Then he orders her to the top to take photos for him. Park-ha is at her boiling point and clenches her fists, then decides she’s had enough. She slaps on a tense smile and agrees, then fakes twisting her ankle on the climb and squeals in pain. She tells him she’ll have to call in a substitute guide to take over for her.

As she explains the “situation” to her boss, Yi Gak looks at her suspiciously. The tour is thus cut short, but the day isn’t over yet: Park-ha’s bosses gather to take out their VIP to dinner.

He tries to leave early, but they insist he stay to eat, and shove the soju bottle at Park-ha: She’s the most junior employee and also the lady (urg), and therefore must serve their guest. Park-ha just barley manages to get the words out, since pouring the liquor automatically puts her into the role of subservient/supplicant, and forces her hand to pour gently when it would rather shove the thing down his throat.

She takes out her frustrations on her own glass (drinking liberally) and then on the microphone at the noraebang session that follows. She sings aggressively about “You stupid fool who left me” and ties a string of neckties around him, shoving and pulling him in time to the music.

It’s only after everyone else leaves for the night that she speaks freely to Yi Gak, which in this case means talking down in banmal and calling, “Yo, prince!” Belligerently, she asks if he’s happy after bossing her around. She crooks a drunken finger at him and tells him to follow, since she’s got something to show him.

She leads him to the house where she lives, introducing him to her elderly landlord and the woman’s grandson. The boy hilariously gives Yi Gak the evil eye; aw, does somebody have a crush on noona?

Park-ha invites him in and thrusts the plane ticket back at him. He has no idea what it is, assuming she’s confused in her drunkenness. She retorts that he must be going senile to not recognize something he gave her. He argues—he never gave her a plane ticket!

Outside, the little boy watches them arguing and fumes for Park-ha’s sake… and puts dog poop into Yi Gak’s shoes. HAHAHA.

Both of them sit there in confusion, trying to sort out the mixed wires. She got it from Chi-san, and he agrees that he’d sent him on an errand, but that she should have received different papers. Somewhere along the line, things got swapped. He asks, “Why would I send you to America? Is that why you disappeared? You hid yourself because you couldn’t trust me on that?” He calls her dumb for believing it.

And then, she falls over in her drunkenness, falling into his lap, where she nestles to sleep.

Yi Gak heads out with a sigh and puts his shoes on… and stops in horrified shock to feel something there that shouldn’t be there. The boy barks at him, “Don’t harass our Park-ha noona!” Grandma comes out to ask if he’s put dog poop in those shoes again, which makes me wonder how many admirers Park-ha has managed to amass in this short period of time.

The boy, Se-jin, darts off and yells that he’ll protect his Park-ha noona from anybody who tries to hurt her, “Because I like her!” Aw, methinks Princey could learn a thing or two. And indeed, those words cause a strange look of realization to cross Yi Gak’s face and he murmurs, “I’m learning from a child.”

Grandma threatens Se-jin with the punishment of not allowing him to participate in his kindergarten sports day, but Se-jin retorts that he’s got no parents and doesn’t want to go anyway.

Yi Gak returns home by morning and sits Chi-san down, asking him about the envelope he was to convey to Park-ha. The contents were switched, and Chi-san never opened the envelope. Did anything strange happen that day?

Chi-san racks his brains and recalls his coffee detour with Se-na. So he asks Se-na if she remembers anything about the envelope, or her coffee date with Chi-san. You can see Se-na mentally weighing her options, and then she feigns surprise: “Oh, so that must be when those got swapped!” Oh, she’s good.

She explains that she’d had an envelope with a plane ticket, and she’d picked up one with an apartment contract. He buys it entirely, relieved to have figured out the puzzle. Se-na’s safe for now, but she knows it was a close one.

With that, Yi Gak returns to Jinan, finding her as she’s concluding a call with Mom (asking Mom not to mention unni’s engagement anymore). Yi Gak picks up on those words and asks if she has a sister, but she deflects and changes the subject. Come on, smart prince, you’re almost there…

On to the cable cars, which have Yi Gak literally agape in horror. She means for them to ride that metal box hanging from a string?! Ha. He starts to storm off, refusing to ride, but she stops him with a bribe: “Wanna eat something sweet while waiting?”

Yi Gak turns right back around and rejoins her. Hee, he’s so easy.

While they wait with sweet drinks, he asks again if she has a sister, and why she never mentioned her before. Uneasily, Park-ha says that they’re not close.

Time for the car ride, which makes him gulp with nerves the closer they get to departure. He keeps his eyes screwed shut through the ascension, one hand firmly clutching Park-ha’s sleeve. Laughing, she talks to him in baby talk, and he glares.

Park-ha urges him to take a look outside, and when he finally musters the courage, the view has him amazed.

Park-ha asks where he went overnight, and he explains talking it over with Chi-san. Upon hearing that Se-na had a part in this, Park-ha immediately understands what really happened, but she declines to tell Yi Gak about it. She asks if Se-na truly is like the princess: “Not just in appearance, but on the inside. In their hearts.”

That gives him pause, and he thinks about it. Like it’s something he never considered before.

Next, it’s on to the kindergarten field day, where they cheer on Se-jin (who sadly comes in last in a race). This is Yi Gak’s idea, having heard the exchange last night, and they join in for an event themselves—the Mom & Dad three-legged race. They’re hilariously competitive (Park-ha sends one fallen couple a triumphant look, while Yi Gak pulls on the arm of another competitor), and come in first place.

I love how they get first-place stamps on their hands and immediately press it to Se-jin’s, to transfer the stamp to his hand too. He excitedly wants to claim his prize, but they tell him he can’t with a fake stamp… and that triggers something in Yi Gak’s brain.

So it is that he wears a much sterner face when he calls Se-na for another meeting, showing her the envelope again. He asks for the truth about what happened to it, not buying her answer that she already told him what she knew about it.

He explains participating in that race yesterday, and how they’d copied that stamp to the boy’s hand because he hadn’t been able to win first place himself. He asks for her lipstick, and demonstrates with his hands.

She still doesn’t get his point, but she understands that she’s in trouble, and nervously asks what he’s getting at.

Yi Gak takes out the plane ticket and confirms her story—that their respective envelopes had gotten mixed up. That means this one in his hand, containing the plane ticket, was originally hers. She confirms this.

Yi Gak tells her that Chi-san’s envelope contained contract papers—which had been stamped just before being placed inside, while still wet. Now he cuts open the envelope and bares the inner flap… with Yong Tae-yong’s stamp imprinted in reverse.

He demands, “You’re not this kind of person. Why are you lying to me?”

 
COMMENTS

I liked this episode in that it moved a lot of things forward, but the pacing definitely felt strange. Mostly regarding Park-ha’s flight in the night, which I can see not necessarily needing to be shown on camera… but at the same time, it felt jarring when all of us sudden everyone’s acting tetchy about her name, as though she’s been gone forever.

I’m not a fan of the prolonged separation, and I don’t think the answer would have been to give us a whole episode of separation moping. Frankly that would have made this feel too much like My Girl redux anyway—but on the flipside of that coin, sailing right over a time gap with one fade-out saps all the emotional punch out of the reunion. It felt like the characters were completely overreacting, because we had about two minutes to get used to the idea of Park-ha leaving before she was found. At the very least, they could have put the time-skip between episodes, so that it didn’t feel like such we sped through an important emotional beat.

That aside, I’m super pleased that the whole plane ticket misunderstanding was sorted out right away. Thank goodness for shrewd heroes, after generations of characters who are so blind to the lies around them. I’m thankful that Yi Gak was willing to entertain the notion that Se-na was lying, rather than clinging to his belief that his princess would never do such a thing.

Granted, I groan a little at his naive “You’re not this kind of person” comment, ’cause that seems like he’s giving her too much credit, but Park-ha’s comment about the reincarnated souls being same on the inside at least got him thinking. Fact of the matter is, we know that the princess and Se-na are very much two peas in a pod (or… are they the same pea? I lose track of how it works), but even without being privy to that bit of dramatic irony, Yi Gak is at least willing to consider other explanations. I just love that Se-na got caught in her lie, and good. She knows she’s on the hook, and thankfully, he’s nowhere near ready to let her off it.

Also in the Big Development category: What’s up with Tae-yong? I’d assumed, as Yi Gak had, that the two weren’t occupying the same “dimension,” so to speak, although I had my suspicions that he hadn’t died. And what will Tae-mu do about it? On one hand, Tae-yong’s existence helps him drive out the impostor… but how to do that without incriminating himself? Although he may get a little help from the amnesia fairy, if my cliche-o-meter is pinging correctly. Gah, I would dearly love if the drama could explain his condition without invoking amnesia. Pretty please, with some whipped cream and soju on top?

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I have a headache thinking how this drama is gonna unravel or end. It doesn't make sense for Tae Young and Park Ha to end up together because Tae Young is a totally different person from Yi Gak. He could be suffering from trauma or amnesia and he wouldn't be able to recognize Park Ha.

My prediction is that someone (Park Ha or Yi Gak) will have to make a sacrifice--Yi Gak staying with Park Ha in the present time or Park Ha time going back in time to Joseon era. Whatever it will be I want a happy ending for everybody, the ducklings included.

Thank you for the speedy recap JB!

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I'm so curious to see how they will resolve all the mystery ... and particularly the time travel conundrum. honestly, this show (SO GOOD!) keeps surprising me with it's fast pace and it's quick reveals ... I just hope my expectations haven't become too high! then again, I don't want them to resolve the mystery, because that would mean the show is over ... NOOOOOOOOO >_<

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agree with you (including the headache part :-P ).

It's Park Ha and Yi Gak that belong together, not PH and Tae Yong or YG and Bu Yong (whatever her name was).

Ditto on the sacrifice thing. I think it could even be that Park Ha and Yi Gak stay together, while the ducklings return to Joseon --- there have been scenes after all where the ducklings miss Joseon - their families, the places - but Yi Gak was never really included in those scenes. Which might signal a separation of their fates down the line (still wondering what PH read in that history book! It's bound to hold a clue!).

Or writers might just mess us up by separating those who belong together or give us something vague, open, or wishy washy. I don't know! There is so many WRONG endings for this drama, and only one right one in my mind....

I don't want a happy ending for everyone - not for Se-na, no way!!!

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I SO agree!

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Now that we know that TY is indeed alive, I really our princey to stay here and TY to return to the Joseon times. We could even have an extra with TY trying to fit in Joseon times. lol

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So now I am wondering if BY is the body in the water and if so, maybe she is also alive?? In the very beginning, it looks like her hand in the water and TY's almost touch.

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You're right! Now that i think about it I couldn't understand that part because I had always believed that the dead body was the princess', but now that I think it could be Bu Yong's body this could be veeery important! I had completely forgot this scene!
The body is definitely BU YON'S! Great! bbb

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Maybe they have having their own happy times hanging out in the no man's land between life and death. hee

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I agree the pacing was a little disjointed and fast. But there were some cute/funny moments so I can gloss over those minor details.

I didn't see TY coming back and it's hard to figure him back into the equation again. He could be just a plot device/leverage for TM to get rid of LG. The only way that'll work is if TY's brain isn't fully functioning or the dreaded one-trick-pony of amnesia-sville and can't speak against TM.

With TY back and still alive, whether LG and PH will end up "together" gets complicated again. I would rather that they get separated but retain their memories of each other than have the history reset after the mystery is solve so it's like they never met. At this point, I just don't see an ending where they can stay together while resolving everything.

It's stupid and probably has been said before, but ,hey, maybe Bu-Young can join them and they can have a doubles' double date. :Db

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yay for non-awkward kiss scenes! i really hate watching awkward kiss scenes where the guy has to tilt his head like 90 degrees while the girl is standing real stiff. Here the lips were kinda dead, but at least it looked natural overall.

i think Lee Min-ho is the best on-screen kisser i've seen so far. his kisses (more like make-out sessions) on BOF and PT were so intense!

Lee Seung-gi, not shabby either!

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Add Gong Yu to the list of great Kdrama kissers. Whew!

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The JKS love rain kiss was pretty intense.

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oh, Gong Yu! yes! although i may have to rewatch coffee prince to confirm this. ;p

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About Lee Seung-gi, I am in full agreement.

I'm actually going to rate him higher than Lee Min-ho. Lee Min-ho is cuter but Lee Seung-gi kiss was more intense and natural.

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Yeah. And he creates that eye contact, emotional connection. Actually I don't think that LMH is all that great. He has full lips that get just kinda smashed weird all over the place.

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My question is, what is up with the disappearing photo and see through-ness of our triplet? And if the real TY is alive, how is YG still able to reside in the present time? :O I hope they clear these up and don't just brush it aside, like the mother-daughter-daughter fiasco (which I hope they get back to later).

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I think they were disappearing because YG, after kissing PH, was getting closer and closer to fulfill the mission (finding out who his real love is), but if it's like that it means that he will have to come back to joseon just to understand that his love is Bu Yong (who is definitely the dead one, since at the beginning there was a scene in which the hand of the 2 dead bodies in the water *Tae Yon's and at this time Bu Yong's for sure* was touching! If it wasn't Bu Yong why do let their hand touch?)
I don't want YG and PH to separate!

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This drama is making my brain hurt.

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If it makes your brain hurt, it mean it's Epic. Good Drama's make you confused and thinking and theorizing which leads to brain hurt lol.

Awesome Series.

I knew TY was alive.... in one of the Episodes they showed a flash of him opening his EYES in the water.

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Thx JB for the recap. I always come by to read your recap. since i dont speak korean nor understand what the RAW dramas are saying.

ep 13 is quite boring. Low pace and so on.
1) The thing that made me glad was the Se na cought up scene w/ Lee gak about the envelope things. still, the -Park ha- name that was written in the ticket didnt get too much attention to bring out se na into the deepest pitt. And lee gak doesnt even bother to look up or oppened the ticket's envelope even for once! that makes me like... Ughh!

2) for almost 2years. Tae young finally ALIVE. But where he has been for 2years?? was he in coma and just lying around in the Hospital's bed?? and since this is America, wouldnt there should be a consideration news about "found, Korean male with no identity or family contact is lying now in chicago hospital" -news ??? and on top of that, after some period of time, "this" korean male (tae young) finally have a visited guest (tae mo), didnt the hospital staff/admin will rush to tae mo and asked him about "this" male Korean patient???

oh..my...

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er, I don't know if you needed some reminding of some sort, but this is actually a K-Drama you're watching..? What you do in real life doesn't necessarily have to be in acted in the drama and that they'll do it as well.

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:) i clearly remember that this is a Kdrama, darl. But part of my brain needs to speak up what's been annoyed me in some part of the scene. Nothing serious about that, right? no harm that's come

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wow, many of us think that this eps kinda too fast. and it revealed many things. like real TaeYong have been found (and i hooe there would be more explanation of his whereabouts for the past 2 years in today eps), LG found out that SeNa lied to him. and also LG knows PH have a sister. once he found out SeNa-ParkHa are step sis, he would found out who ParkHa in Joseon =)

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I have a theory that he got out of the water with a full memory, and used his fake death to get out of going back and inheriting the company. Then, when Yi Gak came into that plane, his soul got pushed out of its body and is in limbo, leaving him all loopy and disoriented.

But yeah, suspension of disbelief is sort of the name of the game... not that my explanation is all that plausible :)

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My theory is currently in line with Yi Gak's original. That the same soul can't be on the same plane of existance twice. In order for Tae Young to actually snap out of it (though maybe he isn't totally vacant.. we are working with like three seconds of him being on screen), Yi Gak is going to have to go back to his time period.

Somehow with Tae Young being so near death Yi Gak was able to come forward in time, fill the void, if you will.

I'm just worried that somehow the ending is not going to satisfy. Yeah we have two souls in two time periods, and the attraction was there for both same-time-period pairs...but I've spent how many episodes invested in Pak Ha and Yi Gak's incarnations getting closer together. The other two might have the right souls, but they aren't the same people.

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wonder the disappearing image of the photo is due to the kiss or Tae yong's woke up....is it a hint to how's ending would be....that they will disappear at the end^^

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i also felt the same. i felt that this ep seems to be moving a bit too fast. i wont mind if they slowed down the pace a bit.. but maybe its also my love for this drama that made me hope it would be slower.. well, with today eps, it just 6 eps left.

well, since from the preview of eps 14 released by SBS, it seems SeNa finally agreed with TaeMu to pretend as Ceo Jang’s lost daughter. (maybe she already sense she started to lost her grip on LeeGak?) and it seems CEO Jang, just as many of us hoped, felt angry to SeNa's lie. i just hope SeNa, as to prove herself, will show her pic with ParkHa’s dad n her mom (since she doesnt know that her mom n CEO Jang know each other. i mean when she visited her mom in hospital, CEO Jang was hiding that time). so then CEO Jang will know that it was ParkHa (since she have met her n know that ParkHa was mom’s stepdaughter) who is her lost daughter. i mean if SeNa shows the pic of her, mom n ParkHa’s dad, of course CEO Jang will be able to connect all the dots, right? (since she already know SeNa is her other daughter). and this also could lead another reason for CEO Jang's wrath. first you lie abt your identity, second you know who the real one is and hide her? well, this would be the death of SeNa, and i really hope CEO Jang will side with ParkHa. which since the real TaeYong have been found, would be very much helpful later when TaeMu executed his evil plans to take over the company from Granma n LeeGak/TaeYong.

i was so creeped out when the Josen F4 were vanished for a second in their 'goodbye' pic. and also when ChiSan cant touch his coffe mug *shiver*
but most of all, i was super shocked when they shown the real TaeYong.. i mean we all speculated, but still it took me by suprised they shown us him now n not in later eps... wow the plot indeed thicken =)

and i love how we could smile n laugh in this eps (from Gak n ParkHa’s quarrel), after 2 eps full of sadness. but i still miss my dorky Joseon F3 =)

thx u for the recaps!!!

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CEO Jang just needs to visit mom like TM and see the pic he saw...

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THANKS FOR THE RECAP!!!!! Really appreciate your hard work! I am addicted to this drama and even watch it without subs (of course I can only deduce from their facial expressions and tone what's going on, LOL)

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The previous 2 eps were a bit of a disappointment - way too much of whole the pensive looks/tears thing due to "noble idiocy"/misunderstandings.

Now, this being a K-drama, I expect a certain amount of noble idiocy, but it has been done better w/ RF doing a bit too much of it in a not necessarily convincing manner.

Also, a fire and near death experience to get the 2 leads together? Why don't we hit ALL of the cliches? (Another frustrating thing w/ this drama is the incessant FAIL to explain - grandma and the Board wouldn't be pissed at Yi-Gak's having left the meeting if he simply explained that he sended up saving someone's life).

Finally, we started to get some traction towards the last part of ep 12 and the Yi-Gak and Park-ha finally come to terms w/ and confess their feelings for each other and then Park-ha announces that this isn't a good idea considering Yi-Gak having to marry the "Crown Princess"/Se-na and go back to his Joseon time period (gee, wasn't that pretty evident from the start that it wasn't a good idea to fall from someone from another time period?).

This kinda made all that longing/denial of feeling and "noble idiocy" not worth it - esp. since there is hardly any "happy time" for the two-some and they go immediately back into another round of misunderstanding, bickering and separation.

At this juncture, the whole bit is getting a bit tiresome since RP doesn't do the whole cute couple thing as well as other rom-coms (like CP, MGIAG, My Princess); Han Ji-min's overacting tends to come out when she has to act angry/annoyed and I found the whole thing at Jinan a bit of a bore since it was another redux of what we had already seen over and over again (didn't find the noraebang scene at all funny).

Really think the writers haven't done a good job w/ the ebb and flow and development of the relationship btwn the 2, as well as w/ the other relationships (Yi-Gak who was all excited about getting closer to the "Crown Princess" all of a sudden just sees her as a part of a necessary business transaction?).

Finally, at the end, one of Se-na's way too numerous lies gets exposed, but rather in an overly complicated manner (wouldn't it just have been easier to notice that the ticket was in Park-ha's name, putting an end to the whole mistakenly exchanged envelopes lie?).

As the 3 "Power Rangers" have gotten increasingly decreased screentime, I find that my enjoyment of RP has gone down along w/ it - the rest of the story isn't well developed, relies on way too many cliches and 1-dimensional stereotypical characters and the writers take the easy way out w/ way they set up the misunderstandings, lies, etc. - which leads to too much "noble idiocy."

On a fashion note - Yi-Gak's jeans are way too tight (and what's w/ the faded/overly washed and ripped jeans?) and the tees w/ the overly large V neck openings just look silly (I know it's a whole Korean/Asian fashion thing) - esp. since Yoochun has the physique of a 12 year old boy.

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Wow, people here seems to forget that Lee Gak came from the Joseon period and does not know how to read English. The air ticket was issued in English. You and I would have no problem reading it but it would have been meaningless gibberish to him.

And this being a drama, things will get DRAMATIC so I don't get why some people are so pissed off that they are finding fault over everything, even Yoochun's V-necked T-shirts! LOL!

Frankly, I am enjoying this drama tremendously and like the rest, I am trying to imagine how this drama will end.

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"And this being a drama, things will get DRAMATIC so I don’t get why some people are so pissed off that they are finding fault over everything, even Yoochun’s V-necked T-shirts!"

LOL!

"esp. since Yoochun has the physique of a 12 year old boy."

ROFL! I love yoochun! <3

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OK - let's assume Yi Gak has no rudimentary knowledge of English, tho he managed to learn how to drive and how to be a Manager for a home shopping company, but all that neede to be done was for Park-ha to tell Yi Gak that the ticket was in her name.

This was simply another one of those convenient "shut the trap" moments which has allowed Sena to get away w/ so many lies (she really should have been busted way earlier).

And so - people can't comment on the garb? After all, costume/fashion directing is a crucila part of a show.

And it's not so much a comment on Yi Gak as it is an overall comment on Korean fashion (just like Tae-yong's previous ridiculous ridiculous "poodle pompadour" - buzzed on the side w/ that poodle mop on top - ughh.

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I noted that too. Micky is so lanky I hope he bulks up soon! Anyway I heard that in real life he loves V-neck shirts. Must be his preference and not his stylist's.

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It's a romance drama and Han Ji Min isn't overacting she is acting the way the character is written.The J3 should get more screentime but with only 7 episodes left we will see. Don't forget these actors and actresses are doing what the ascript calls for and it is a comedy so sometimes certain scenes are thrown in or overacted.If you want to get on anyone acting look at Jung Yumi I need her to learn to emote her angry and evil faces better instead of just looking pretty.Now enjoy the drama it's funny and super sweet.

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No - having the heroine be upset over something is quite common in K-dramas - and HJM is overacting a bit (the rest of her performance is OK, but nothing great).

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I extremely disagree. She is half drunk and supposed to be funny and upset she is losing her love. How is she supposed to act? Also we are on ep 13 you have to keep the misunderstandings going until ep 16 where things start coming together.It's a romance/ comedy where you are supposed to look ridiculous. The pacing is fast but i rather if they get the story out and clear up misunderstandings then keep us in the dark on what happened.

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This drama is becoming Epic.... has potential to match the best of the best (City Hunter, Secret Garden etc..)

So many unknowns that will be revealed within the next 6 -7 episodes....

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Secret Garden the "best of the best"? pfffft!

This romcom has soooo many flaws (the only thing that really saves it is the humor of the "Power Rangers" which we haven't seen much lately).

Romcoms like MGIAG and My Princess also had their flaws, but they still got the most important element of a romcom correct - the relationship btwn the 2 leads and how it develops over time.

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Sadly, I have to agree with bd on many fronts. I was really excited about RP from episode 1-7, but the show just kept going down in a spiral from episode 8 and episode 13 is the worst. The charm of RP has seemed to dissipate and the scriptwriter had difficulties recovering the light sweetness and warmth of the earlier episodes. I understand that it is important for YG to solve the mystery and find his true love..blah blah blah. But can Park Ha cry less? She has become another typical Kdrama lead, acting all meek like a damsel in distress. And excuse me, we are talking about a girl who managed to make a living all by herself in New York City ! Geez.

And Han Ji min's acting does not help either. She was doing great earlier in the series, but now, she is acting like she did in most of her other series ("resurrection" and "cain and abel")--she either tries to be overly cute or resorted to one-dimensional teary eye act when it comes to dramatic moments. HJM is surely adorable off-the-screen, but ultimately I still find her acting middling and very limited. I thought she finally demonstrated a wider range of acting in Padam Padam--but in this series, I am disappointed again. It's not bad, but very "formulaic" and nothing impressive.

I so much wanted to see more of F3. I understand that they are auxiliary characters, but still, none of their "strengths" from Joseon period is being elaborated and utilized. Instead, the writer just goes all cliched on plot developments and characters. For instance, so TY is still alive? Not with amnesia ?!? Can the writer be a bit creative? And Sena is not even a character. Such an evil sister is so passe!

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I don't think TY will end up with PH. I mean, isn't it too late for that? how they could develop TY and PH relationship when only 6 eps left?

I personally think, LG will go back to Joseon when he solved the case. When he go back, the time also get rewind to 300 years ago.
300 years later, he reborn as TY and end up with incarnation of BY, Park Ha.

I hope TM didn't kill real TY. I doubt he will kill him (at least for now) , TY existence will help him to get rid LG.

I agree, the editing was awful. it's choppy

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Notice Tae mu's smile at airport, seems like he already got rid of TY or ???

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Or have TY at a secured location until he decides the right time to spring the "surprise" to grandma and everyone else.

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wat more can i say.. I just love this show

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That little kid that put poop in Yo-gak's shoes? Adorably cute and awesome. Too bad I'd hit him upside the head if he were my brother. Hahahaha. Cute nonetheless.

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It's funny, at first I thought he was some creepy reincarnated seer who knew Yi Gak's secret, a la the baby goblin in Gumiho.

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I suspect Taek-soo (Uncle) has a part to play in these...

He did meet Tae-yong at New York right?
Maybe he's the one who moved Tae-yong from New York to Chicago...?

Or maybe Tae-yong isn't suffering from trauma or amnesia, but pretending to be suffering from one...
Maybe it's just part of the plan of Taek-soo (Uncle) and Tae-yong to let Tae-mu fall into the trap...?

Maybe since the moment Tae-yong has fallen into the water, he has regained his past-life memories and decided not to appear as he knew Yi Gak would arrive in modern Seoul... now he reappears because he knows Yi Gak is going back soon and Tae-yong has to put an end to everything...

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I am still very curious about what Park ha read from that history book. It has not surfaced yet.

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Exactly. If that part does not add anything to the drama in the end, I will be disappointed..

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Thanks for the recap Javabeans! Can't wait to see what happens next :)!

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javabeans: you rock! big time ^_^

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Thank you!

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Ooh. Finally Yi Gak is beginning to see that the princess may not be all that.
Lots f theory-spinning above. Be interesting to see if any of them are in the upcoming episodes.
Thanks JB.

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There must be a reason why Se-na is evil!!!

Why pple hate her so much.

I just hate this kind of drama, that the main actor always changes their heart so fast. Today he can fully in love with this girl, another day he can totally forget about her.

I still support Se-Na :P

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I WANT OUR LG AND PH TOGETHER...BUT TY?? ASHH

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Thanks, JB. This drama makes my head spin. Since I have formulated and discarded way too many theories already, I am just gonna take a rest until ep14 airs in three hours.

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Arrrghhhh!!!!

I've afraid that this would coming! That Tae Yong is still alive and will come back later!!

Btw thanks for the recaps!

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I really hope that Yi Gak and Bak Ha stay together, some way or the other. If he ever goes back to Joseon to marry Bu Yong he's going to walk all over her, she is just so demure. Bak ha has more fire and is going to keep him on his toes. It seems that Bu Yong and Tae Yong are more laid back and reserved than Yi Gak and Bak Ha although coming from different time periods and are more suited for each other.
In the case of CEO Jang, I hope that when she realizes that those 2 are trying to deceive her she would just show up at Ok Unni fish store to find out exactly what is going on and to find out what kind of person Se na is to do something like that, then she'd be invited in the back like Tae Mu and then voila ( she sees the pictures) Those 2 are really going to smell like rotten fish I hope after they try to pull the fast one on CEO Jan. She probably realize that Se-na has a personality just like her but would gravitate towards the younger one because she's seen first hand how much nicer she is.

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I've been wondering if back in Joseon if Boo Yong (the crown princess' sister is still alive.) When Yi Gak returns will he make her his new crown princess?

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I don't know about demure. Remember in the riddle scene Bu Yong was rocking the verbal sparring. Still, I hope he ends up with Park Ha somehow, since they're the ones that grew to love each other. But I'm not sure how it will happen!

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Gawd! So much Chunface! And it's still Ep.13. Show really maximized its use. LOL

I'll be watching it later after the dl's done. But for now, after seeing the screen caps, I guess I'll be on to my weekly dose of Rooftop drama and laughs. Still no love for the deceitful, loathsome couple. As per usual, I wanna bitchslap them to the Earth's inner core! Yeah, and I've just seen the previews too.

Anyway, thanks for the recap, JB! <333

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Okay, I was bothered with the bit that Pak Ha had this plane ticket, revealed to be from Sena, but Prince (or writer) never thought it weird. They weren't related in the public's eye, nor does Sena have any business with Pak Ha, or none that I know of... Anyway. Off to see Ep.14.

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I'm really on edge after this episode. So I had to come here and read the speculations for some kind of comfort in the time being.

The part that really stuck with me since watching yesterday was Yi Gak explaining to Se Na about the stamp via her lipstick. He said something about how the little boy wanted to win but couldn't win-so the little boy tried to emulate winning first place by imprinting his hand with a "copied" stamp. But ultimately the boy is a "loser".

To me, this was Yi Gak's way of telling Se Na that he knows she knows, she can't "win" his heart; that Park Ha is the "real winner". So the plane ticket was like the false stamp and ultimately, Se Na is the loser.

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Wonder why LG and PH didn't bother to find out how come TY's Hp was with Sena's Mum...there are so many clues like these through out the 13 eps...hanging around..

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Its been a while since i like to watch raw but i wake up early just to watch it in raw....

Need more skinship....hahahahaha

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I keep wondering where the modern-day versions of the ducklings might be. Would be super-cool for the writers to work their modern versions in..in some way. I'm thinking Tae-young will marry Park-ha in the modern era and Princey will return and marry the burnt sister (forgot her name).

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I've been wanting to say this to someone but never had the outlet.

So here goes. I'm not sure which episode it was but when Yi Gak was asking Park Ha to solve a riddle (about things being dead but still alive and alive but still dead) she answered him with comatose. She explained that you are sort of not alive or dead but in limbo.

When the writers put this in the episode I started to think of it as a clue to the real Tae-yong being alive but in a coma. Ep 13 feels like confirmation to my theory.

Woo...had to get that out of my system.

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i love all the progress we're making this episode!

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OT: Yoochun actually has acrophobia irl. :)

Gah I was betting on a switch, with Tae-yong time-travelling 300 years in the past. Its more likely now that Princey will go back and discover Bu-yong, Park Ha will end up with the real Tae-yong.

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I kinda hope that doesn't happen because they are two different individuals who happen to both like Park Ha.

I'm expecting something unexpected.

But logically your ending sounds logical. Happy Ending on both ends.

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A

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Yoochun, though, has ridden on those cars before for variety activities.

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Thanks, jb!

YAY for YG realizing that Se Na's beauty may be only skin-deep, but BOO for the live-shoot system. I was much more mentally engaged than emotionally engaged in this episode because the pacing was off. It's sad when so much hard work goes into making an episode and yet because it's put together so hastily, it's not nearly as good as it could've been. Still enjoying the drama though.

And seriously, another car-crash caused by a sleep-deprived driver thanks to the live-shoot system? At the very least, they need to implement a designated driver system. Pronto.

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I think Yi Gak din't travel through time to solve the murder of his crown princess but to vindicate Boo Yong. That is why when YG and Park Ha connected/kiss in this lifetime, our Joseon foursome nearly get teleported back.
When YG finally unravels the injustice suffered by Park Ha at the hands of Sena, and admits his love for her, I think that will be the time they will all go back in time. There, it would only be a matter of justice to bury the dead, and make Boo Yong his bride. Park Ha would remain in the present and reunite with Tae Yong, who still had a crush on her, and both will live happily ever after. A bit simple, and a bit overboard to justify a Crown Prince journeying hundreds of years forward to vindicate one girl, but that's how the story feels like to me right now.

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thanks

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This episode was the first one I didn´t really enjoy... that was obvious that everything was done in a hurry and instead of a good solid episode we got some inconsistent scenes patched together. I think that the fatigue caused by the tight schedule has taken it´s toll on the actors and the rest of the staff. Yoochun is gorgeous as usually, and his acting is really good, but he´s obviously very tired and it shows on his face.

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I'd just like to say something about the Crowned Princess (whose name I've forgotten so I'll simply refer to her as CP).

When CP thought she'd have a shot at being the bride only to pushed aside by her kid sister - yeah, she moped, but who wouldn't? And the whole thing with the hot iron and tripping on her skirt - from the way it was filmed I take it that was truly an accident. Then later, when CP gets her wish and marries the prince, it's not like she's having her kid sister's toenails torn out or anything. Sure, she's taking credit for sis's needlework, but is that evil?

Now Se Na - she's evil.

Perhaps if/when we go back to the Joseon part of the story, I might learn more about the CP that may change my mind, but for the moment I don't think the Crowned Princess was even close to being as evil as Se Na

Of course, it may turn out that even though Se Na looks like the CP, she's not the reincarnation of her. Just as YG looks like TY but we now know can't be the same soul.

Anyway, that's just my two cents.

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Thanks for the recap. I loved this episode, despite the odd editing. I love how PH and YG are so touchy-feely all throughout this episode. And Sena finally is going down. I just love it!

I had a really crazy idea when PH received the plane ticket, I thought PH would go to America and meet TY and take care of him. lol.

I specifically loved the part where they foreshadow the real mission of YG and F3. When PH and YG kissed, their picture blurred concurrently. It must mean that PH is the reason why they were brought to the 21st century, and she is also the way to go back to Joseon era.

Now I'm just really wondering about the ending. This drama is EPIC.

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Yup, was thinking about the same - it's not the upcoming wedding (as the ducklings may think) that is causing the 'flickering' in the present, but it's that YG and PH just kisses and THAT'S what holds the key to the time travelling and the events of the past.

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Thank you so much, javabeans for the recaps. My internet was so slow to load videos last week I couldn't even watch episode 12 properly (cable guy came to fix it yesterday-all it needed was a brand new modem-yehey). But your recap was my savior-read it again and again because I was already having withdrawal symptoms from missing one episode. Am still thoroughly enjoying this drama, and reading everyone's posts.

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I am quite surprised to see some people love to spend more time telling actors how to act when if they were so good they should do it themselves. It's about the story and the way it is portrayed. I love Bak-ha and Lee-Gak and the way Han Ji Min and Yoochun play them. It's quite obvious from now on till Ep 20 comes any anti's , people who dislike the show, or people who love dissecting the show will focus on that. Instead complain to Sbs for the late night rushed shoots and sketchy scenes. The acting has been good from most of the cast excluding who I always talk about.Han Ji Min doesn't overact she emotes how the character would be feeling.Her numerous awards through the years can show she must be doing it right. And RTP will be another one where she gets an award for her phenomenal acting.

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Refreshing the website for episode 14 recaps!

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Yaay great episode! Thanks for recapping!

My theory on Tae-yong is that he may have been injured or whatever after the boat accident, but I'm wondering if he's a full-on vegetable now. As in, two souls can't inhabit the same plane, so his is somewhere in limbo while Yi Gak is present, leaving his body totally vacant.

That doesn't really explain his absence for two years before Yi Gak arrives in the present, though. He may have recovered with a full memory, and used his fake death as a means to hide out and get out of inheriting the company. Although I don't know if he would desert his poor grandma. Still, I'd rather have that than amnesia, and it fits with him just now surfacing, if his body can be recognized but his soul isn't present to stay hidden.

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Well, I was just very glad that there wasnt much prolonged aganoy in Park Ka's leaving so I didnt really have any problem with it. HAHA. THOUGH, it really gave me a shock about the picture and the coffee cup!! So much development! And the REAL Taeyong! OMGEE. I just so wonder what Taemu will do about it. When ge got off the the plane from US, I really had a bad feeling. I think he did something that will make me get angrier with him. HAHAHA. AAAAND, LOVE on Sena for being caught! Bwahahaha. Well, I guess it was too much for Yigak to entertain the thought that his Crown Princess and Sena does 'not' have the same inner beauty LOL. Maybe give him another episode? HAHAHA.

Anyways, I cant read yet your EP 14 recap. Still waiting for subs! Cant afford to spoil myself. HAHA

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I was surprised/glad to see TY in this episode. LG needs to stop making out with his woman....lol

Thanks JB!

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gada yang make bahasa indonesia ? bahasa inggris ku kurang lancar.. kurang kurang banget loh #curhat ????

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Hmm..the editing was totally off but I like that they didn't drag it unnecessarily. And I like that it is the prince himself who discovers Sena's lies!

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I son't see how Sena's lie held up for so long when the "switched" ticket had Park Ha's NAME ON IT. Just sayin'.

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towards the end, so proud of Yi Gak for demanding further explanation!

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Thanks for the recaps, and this is so late after the show that no one will pay attention, but isn't the 진안 scenery gorgeous? My father-in-law's family is from there, so I'm somewhat familiar with the place, especially 마이산, but haven't been there in a while. And is that cable car in 진안 as well? That scenery looks almost like 설악산. One of the things that I find very appealing about k-dramas is the additional side-dishes they throw in along with the rice and soup - here's some scenery, some history, some interesting cultural stuff, some thinking about problems around step-mothers, adoption and such. That's what completes a lot of the dramas for me. I know many of you didn't care for My Princess, but for me, her denying her heritage in order to deny that her father was dead and had abandoned her was a wonderful bit of writing.

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