881

Big: Episode 16 (Final)

Well, it ends. Listen, my mother said that if I don’t have nice things to say… waitaminute, my mother never said that. Let the ragefest begin!

This show is basically a lesson in math. Turns out you can have great parts, but the sum can add up to less than those parts. I know! I didn’t know it worked that way either! But math is wily like that. And apparently, so are dramas.

SONG OF THE DAY

Big OST – Gong Yoo “Because It’s You” [ Download ]

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

 
FINAL EPISODE RECAP

Da-ran makes her big confession (handy to have the whole cast rounded up) that she’s in love with KKJ. She takes off the ring and leaves it on the table. Kyung-joon drags her away, and her parents are left to apologize to the in-laws.

Kyung-joon calls her crazy—he’s going to lose his memory and she’ll be all alone and hurt. Da-ran: “I’m going to remember. Even if it hurts, I can’t pretend you weren’t here.”

He stammers, “You’re not going to pretend it didn’t happen?” Is the question you’re really asking, Then was the last episode all for nothing? Because that sure is MY question.

Da-ran: “No. Because I said that my feelings for you were real. The you that I like is there. He’s there now and will be in the future.” He looks at her, dumbfounded—but he might not remember, and he might call her a crazy person!

She says through her tears that it doesn’t matter. She’s going to remember and protect their love, and she’s going to tell him everything. She’s crazy now, so why not go with it? He agrees that she sure doesn’t appear sane.

She gives him the watch she fished out of the lake, and he decides she’s officially crazy. He cups her face in his hands, sighing that she’s all dirty and smelly. She says it again—that even if he can’t remember her, she’s going to remember for the both of them, and that she won’t let go of him.

A tear falls as he hugs her tight.

Little Kyung-joon’s vitals spike, and his heart rate gets dangerously high. Se-young calls the parents, who run over and stay up with him that night, worried.

Kyung-joon and Da-ran walk down the street hand-in-hand, and he asks if she doesn’t want to go home and shower first. But she says she’s going to have to learn to be seen as a crazy person by the entire world, so she may as well steel herself now.

To that end, she decides to pick some flowers out of a planter on the sidewalk, to make up for the time she threw out the flowers he gave her. She runs across the street to wave them about and sing the Pororo song, and she successfully gets called crazy.

Kyung-joon runs over and sighs that he’d hate to forget this—it’s fodder for a lifetime of mockery. She says in turn that there are so many things she didn’t do for him when she thought he’d remember, and now that he’s going to forget she’s just full of regret.

Mari comes back to the restaurant to retrieve her fake ring and asks Aunt and Uncle to be a witness for her when Kyung-joon wakes up, to say that she’s the one who was by his side the entire time.

They nod that she’s right about that, and she sighs that she’s the only one who has the right to be by his side, and not lying Gil Teacher who goes back on her promises.

The Gil family waits on pins and needles for the fallout, and Choong-shik worries—if Yoon-jae and Da-ran left like that, the air must be frosty between them right about now…

Cut to the happy couple shooting furtive smiles at each other across the kitchen table. Kyung-joon starts in on his interrogation: “When did you first start liking KKJ?!” He slams his hands on the table for emphasis.

She retraces her steps, like the time she felt something when he showed up at the theater, or realized in the park that she was no longer waiting for Yoon-jae, but searching for Kyung-joon.

She argues that they should be going over his half of the story since his is the memory they have to recreate, but he counters that his part is just full of pain, like the time he confessed he liked her and she called him a blood clot, and on and on ad infinitum. Well, when you put it like that, *sadface.*

She wonders why she didn’t find the courage to confess her feelings sooner, and he tells her to just do well from here on out, because he’s going to write it all down from now on. And then they just make moony eyes at each other in an explosion of cuteness.

Mom and Dad sit by Kyung-joon’s bedside all night, and Mom says it feels just like when Yoon-jae was young and sick all the time. She wonders how it feels the same now, watching over Kyung-joon.

Da-ran heads home to face the music, telling Kyung-joon that they can’t exactly see each other out in the open anymore. He asks if they should just run away to the boonies and she vows not to do any more running.

She steps through the door cautiously to find the whole family waiting for her. They send her upstairs right away. Mom comes in brandishing a pair of scissors: “Even when my mom cut off all my hair, I still liked your father.”

She tosses Da-ran a wedding photo, and in it Mom’s hair has been chopped off. She asks now if Da-ran wants to end up the same way. Da-ran says it doesn’t matter, because if she has to pretend her feelings aren’t real, then she’ll never be able to smile like Mom in this photo.

She closes her eyes and braces herself, and even when Mom grabs her hair and puts the scissors to her head, she says nothing in protest. Mom stops when she sees Da-ran’s resolve, sighing, “You’re really crazy, aren’t you?”

Mom sobs in her room, as Dad comes to pat her back. She adorably calls him Teacher, and cries that she just said the same things to her daughter that her mother said to her. She wonders now how much she broke her own mother’s heart. Aw.

Kyung-joon stops by the hospital to check on his coma body, and is alarmed to hear about the near-heart attack. Se-young remembers that he first woke up in the morgue after the accident, after being declared dead.

He confirms it. Oh noes. This is going to an ominous place.

He sits with Teddy, blowing balloons, and tells himself the body swap will be fine—just like inflating a balloon, deflating it, and then inflating it again. But next to him, Teddy over-inflates his, and it pops, jolting them both. Kyung-joon grabs his heart in fear.

Meanwhile Mom happily tells Se-young to wait for Yoon-jae to return to his old self. Mari tells Kyung-joon that she’s going with him to Germany, but he says they’re not going anywhere.

He tells her that Gil Teacher will stay by his side when he wakes up and Mari gapes—you mean by your side, the little brother of the man she just cheated on? She calls Da-ran crazy, and he affirms that she is with a goofy grin.

Kyung-joon spends the entire next day trying to see Da-ran, but the Gil Family is on high alert, taking shifts to watch her every move. He finally has to romeo his way to her window late at night, and puts his arms out to 10:10 for her to jump.

She’s about to when Mom stops her, reminding her not to do something as despicable as keep all her options open (ie. play both Yoon-jae and KKJ), a phrase that means in the literal sense, to “maintain your fishing pond.”

Da-ran grumbles that her pond only has the one fish, and then worries, “What if it dries up and dies?” She decides to jump, to water her fish and save it.

She gives Kyung-joon his watch, newly fixed, and then leaves him with a peck on the cheek. He watches her go with a swoon, muttering that if she was going to water the pond, she should’ve splashed him, not given him one little drop. But then he goes right back to swooning.

The next day Mari stomps into the hospital with a team of bodyguards in tow, and declares that she’s going to take Kyung-joon away. Um… are we adding kidnapping to your ever-growing list of crimes? Because you can’t just steal people’s coma bodies and get away with it!

Kyung-joon goes to see Mom to tell him that he’ll go to Germany with Dad, and they should leave Coma Kyung-joon here. To his surprise, Mom says she’ll stay here with Kyung-joon then.

But they’re quickly interrupted with bad news: Kyung-joon is gone. WUT. She really took him? How does a person just walk away with a coma patient? SIGH. Whatever.

She answers Kyung-joon’s call to announce that she’s going to hide him away till he wakes up, and keep him from ever seeing Gil Teacher again. “You said Gil Teacher was crazy? Well then I’m double double double crazy!” Um… were you waiting for someone to argue?

He tells her that he’ll just stay in this body forever then, and not get treated. She starts to panic that he’ll die that way, and Kyung-joon calls her bluff: he’ll meet her tantrum for tantrum, and he’ll just die in this body if she keeps going. She breaks down and tells him she’ll stop.

Kyung-joon tells her that being with Da-ran is what he wants, and Mari can’t force things to go her way while ignoring his feelings. She counters that he’s doing the same, ignoring her feelings and Yoon-jae’s.

She puts the ring on the table to remind him that when Yoon-jae wakes up and finds Da-ran by Kyung-joon’s side he’ll be as heartbroken as Mari. Yeah, but I doubt he’ll resort to kidnapping to argue the case.

At the same time, Little Kyung-joon’s vitals spike again. Teddy and Rabbit worry that they yanked too hard, and we see that the Miracle picture has been torn in two.

Mari continues on her quest to meddle, and why this character is even still trying to run interference at this point is beyond me. She goes to the mandoo restaurant to lie to Da-ran that she hid the ring in the mandoo filling, just to send her digging for it.

Da-ran bursts all the mandoo to look for the ring and then chases after the delivery guy to steal other people’s mandoo dinners, all the while feeling terrible that she ignored Yoon-jae’s feelings.

At the hospital, Yoon-jae-in-Kyung-joon’s-body cries a tear, and then his heart rate goes shooting up again. But Kyung-joon shows up to hold his hand, and he comes back down to normal. Kyung-joon says he’ll wait until Yoon-jae’s stopped time gets cleared up too.

He finds Da-ran trudging along in the street, looking for something. He guesses right away that it’s the ring and he says he found it. They stand across the street from each other, talking on the phone, and Kyung-joon sighs that it won’t work for them to hold hands right away, will it?

The blinking red light and her silent pause confirms that he’s right.

He wonders how long it’ll be before they can be together, hoping that it won’t take too long. He worries that he won’t remember and they’ll be apart for so long that they’ll miss their opportunity.

But she assures him that she’ll remember. Kyung-joon: “If my heart has grown enough to be able to look back at someone else’s heart, if my heart has grown just a little… then won’t I wake up, not as a child who knows nothing, but someone who can remember Gil Da-ran, just a little?”

She says that her heart will grow too, every day as she remembers him. She promises to keep growing her heart, so that it’ll be impossible to ever let him go.

Kyung-joon finally (FINALLY) spells it out plainly for Mari, that he’s not going to wake up by Da-ran’s side right away, but he’s not going to stay by Mari’s side either. He tells her to stop running after him, because no matter how much she does, he’ll never go to her.

Just think of all the felonies that could’ve been avoided had you done this sooner! He says he ignored her feelings completely in all this and did as he pleased, but now he feels sorry and can’t keep letting her do this.

He says he’ll put up a very clear signal for her, and puts up his hand, “Mari-ya, stop coming.”

She looks up with her puppy dog eyes and cries, and then steps forward, just until her head meets his outstretched hand. Aw, that’s kind of heartbreaking. She goes literally as far as he’ll let her, and stops there, resting her head against his palm. He drums his fingers on her head one last time.

And then Choong-shik sees her off at the airport with a long face, as he watches her approach the gate. He calls after her at the last minute and runs up to write his name on her purse.

Mari: “Gil Choong-shik!” Choong-shik: “That’s right! I’m Gil Choong-shik! This will probably take about ten years to repay via pizza. I will pledge that time to you. You wait, Jang Mari!”

And then he walks away, finally getting his cool exit down just right. She smiles after him.

Kyung-joon meets with Mom to go over travel plans, and finds her studying a notebook. He asks what it is, and she says it’s her Kyung-joon notes, gathered from Da-ran and Mari, so that she can learn as much about him as she can.

She worries that he’s a picky eater and that she isn’t the best cook, but Kyung-joon tells her to do her best, and prepare for a cold response since he’s not the most well-behaved child. He grins to himself, touched at her effort.

Ae-kyung and Na Teacher pass around their wedding invitations, and Ae-kyung asks Da-ran what she’ll do next if Yoon-jae heads off to Germany. She says that he’ll return someday to give her an answer.

She says that she’ll tell him then, that she’s no longer waiting for his answer, but has come to love someone else, even more.

Kyung-joon watches over his body and says that he’ll meet Yoon-jae soon, and by now I’m just screaming, You said that eons ago. Can soon be now?

He runs into Se-young and apologizes to her for acting so immature lately, and says that when she touched his arm after the accident that was kinda sexy. She should do it again, when Seo Yoon-jae returns. He walks away with a smile, leaving her confused.

Da-ran walks through the park and stops to drop some money for a homeless man sleeping on a bench, and is shocked to find her green umbrella sitting right there, still with her name and number on it.

Wait… did you just steal from a homeless man? Er…

She takes it to a shop to get it fixed and finds Kyung-joon watering the lawn. She tells him to make it rain and opens the umbrella, asking if he remembers the day they met.

He remembers, and confesses now that he followed her off the bus, not because she stole his umbrella, but because he swapped them on purpose. Ha.

They ride the bus together now, remembering that day, and he says how funny she was, giving herself away with the radio story. He saw that their umbrellas looked similar so he slid his over to her, and she picked his up without even looking.

They wonder that if he liked her enough to do that, maybe when he wakes up, there’ll still be a little of her in his heart.

They get off the bus and she opens her umbrella, and he puts his hands over hers just like that first day. She hopes that if she remains in his heart, he’ll come after her again. He asks that if he does, for her to hold onto him, no matter what, and tell him about their love.

Kyung-joon: “Then we’ll come back to this time.” She takes his watch and says that the moment she tells him her feelings, Kang Kyung-joon will return to this instant, and says he’s now been hypnotized.

They get ready to part, and she starts to cry but smiles through the tears. He ekes out that he’ll be going, but then stops to say one last thing. “I didn’t want to say this. I wanted to say it to you when I returned, but… Gil Da-ran, I love you.”

A tear trickles down his cheek as he says it, and then he puts the umbrella back in her hands, and walks away.

One year later.

Da-ran is a teacher at a new school, and Mari sends her an email to say that both boys have returned to their rightful places, and that neither remembers anything after the accident. Wait… the big finale body swap happens offscreen? @&*#$T#*#KK!

Kyung-joon hasn’t asked about Gil Teacher, and per her promise to Kyung-joon, Mari won’t tell him.

Da-ran says to herself that per her promise, she’ll continue to remember.

Rabbit gets better and even gets to go home from the hospital, and Teddy gives her a big hug. Ae-kyung and Na Teacher are pregnant and happy. And Da-ran still stops every time she sees sunflowers.

Choong-shik slices and dices as the new chef at the mandoo restaurant, and Mom and Dad say that Da-ran is due for a visit, after stopping by her old school. Choong-shik heads out to send Mari yet another package of mandoo, only to find her standing at his door.

She’s here to accept an award, having turned her stalker photographer skills into an artistic pursuit instead. Well that’s lemonade out of lemons if there ever was. Choong-shik asks hopefully if she’s been eating the mandoo he’s sent, and she says her dog enjoys them.

She admits she’s tasted at least one, and he asks her how many points she’d give them. She judiciously says, “One.” Choong-shik pumps his fist in the air, to have finally made it out of zeroland.

At this rate it’ll actually take you a hundred years to get your girl. He asks if they can take a picture together and eagerly awaits the day he’ll get to two points. Aw.

Da-ran drops by Kyung-joon’s old house and sees a mother and her son living there now. She says she used to live here and just dropped by, and as she leaves the kid says that the hyung who was just here said the same thing…

It starts to rain, and Da-ran hops on the bus. She hears her letter being read over the radio, wishing the person she loves a happy birthday this June 24. Da-ran whispers on the bus, “Happy birthday, Kyung-joon-ah.”

The radio message continues that she’ll be going next month to see him, and though he won’t remember, she’ll tell him everything that she remembers. She looks down at her watch and it’s 10:10.

The message concludes, “I’m running towards the time right now, 10:10.” She looks down at the aisle, where another green umbrella lies next to hers, and she smiles.

She gets off the bus with her umbrella, and then suddenly a voice calls out to her: “Gil Da-ran!” Wait, that’s still Gong Yoo’s voice. Urg, and though we only see him from above as he runs under her umbrella, it’s still Gong Yoo. WHY. Why Show, why.

It’s supposed to be Kyung-joon back in his own body, but they refuse to show it to us. This is so lame. I waited sixteen episodes for them to reunite like this?

He puts his hand over hers and she looks up. And then the scene is intercut with Kyung-joon’s farewell scene, earlier in the episode. If we were going to do that anyway, would it have killed you to have Shin playing the present-day half of his own character?

Past Kyung-joon tells her to hold onto him if he comes back. Da-ran looks up and smiles at him now, “Hello, Kang Kyung-joon.”

Kyung-joon plays it cool, saying that he just came around because he was curious how she was doing, and she says she knows the real reason (his little crush). He walks off with the umbrella and an, “Uh-oh, you’re overreacting.”

Back to Past Kyung-joon, who asks her to hold on, even if he’s mean and cold and bristly in the future. She runs after him now, returning that gesture and putting her hand over his under the umbrella.

Past Kyung-joon says that when she tells him her feelings, they’ll return to this moment. She smiles up at him now, and his watch reads 10:10.

Back to Past Da-ran: “I love you.” Past Kyung-joon: “The moment I hear those words, my heart will grow, as big as it is now. Like a miracle.”

They beam at each other, and then we end, on Past Kyung-joon and Past Da-ran, under the umbrella on that day they parted.

 
JAVABEANS’ COMMENTS

What? Huh? What? What? Was that just in her head? What? How did he get his memory back? What? What was the point of the year? Did Yoon-jae get over his sadface? What?

I have no more words for you. Drama, you don’t deserve any more words. Go sit in a corner and think about what you did.

RAGEQUIT.

 
GIRLFRIDAY’S COMMENTS

*HULKSMASH*

THE FUCK? We don’t even get ONE measly glimpse of Kyung-joon in his own body, even when they meet again? BAH. So. Disappointing. I know it’s jarring, but you’re the one who stuffed the hero in the wrong body for the entire goddamn series; own up to it and let us see the couple who’s supposed to be together, TOGETHER. If that’s the line you’re playing, you have to see it through!

It’s not like Shin has to appear 30 for crying out loud; he’s just 21 so how hard is it to let us see the 21-year old hero in his own body, finally getting the girl? I was so ready to say that despite some unnecessary episodes and senseless prolonging of plot points, that they managed to salvage a satisfactory ending. Until they didn’t show the swap. And then that last scene… where they didn’t give me my ONE moment, of Da-ran with the real Kyung-joon! Aaaaaaaaargh.

That’s just… plain mean.

Siiiigh. So many ways this drama went awry, and sadly, I think it began at the roots. They should’ve stuck with the original Big concept of a boy who rapid-grows into his own 30-year old body, because then at least it would’ve been HIS body. Having him stuck in Yoon-jae’s shell (even till the final moments of the show, dangnabbit) just kept me at arm’s length the whole time, knowing that she was having to look past his shell. Sure, it’s admirable that she can, and I went along because I expected that we’d get the final scene with Kyung-joon in his own body to say yes, Da-ran still loves him completely, as himself. IS THAT SO HARD? Why must you take that away from me? How can a story culminating in a body re-swap… not show the swap??? I. Don’t. Get. It. And did Yoon-jae just never come back to see his fiancée, or did that happen offscreen too? Why do you need a drama if all your most interesting narrative payoffs are going to happen OFFSCREEN?

Okay, calming down now. Truth be told, I might be angry now, but I was pretty checked out emotionally for most of the show’s run. There were definitely things that kept me invested, like Gong Yoo’s fantastic performance. But a showcase for one actor does not a drama make. And despite my love for Gong Yoo as the teenage Kyung-joon, my heart is always with the story first and foremost. That’s why I needed to see Shin playing the character in the end, because to me, telling me that they re-swapped offscreen is not enough. If I’m buying into the idea that he’s one character, no matter whose body he’s in, then you have to trust that I’m going to buy it till the very end. It shows a lack of trust in the audience, and for that, I feel betrayed.

I certainly don’t think that it was all bad, because there was a whole lot of cute and some good coming-of-age stuff in there amidst the confusing. But one thing I constantly asked all series long was: Are we there yet? I feel like somehow every step of the way, the show never got a step ahead, never surprised me. I held out hope that the boys would swap back sooner than the final hour (because honestly, I think the fallout is FAR more interesting than the lead-up), but that didn’t happen, and then to top it off, we didn’t even get to witness the big moment. No heartfelt first official meeting between the brothers, who saved each other’s lives? No my-hand-was-warm-because-you-reached-out-to-save-me-first? No wonder twins, activate? Nuthin’?

It’s really too bad that the whole drama failed in the writing department, because the Hong Sisters have penned some of my favorites over the years. I don’t love all their works before Big, and neither am I going to just write them off because of this one drama. But I’ll call a dud a dud, and this one just sailed right into the crapper. It turns out you can’t shape a whole drama on one big premise and leave things like logic and character motivation and emotional payoffs at the door. We kinda like that stuff. It’s sorta why we live here, in dramaland.

RELATED POSTS

Tags: , , , , , ,

881

Required fields are marked *

i agree with a lot of comments here, hence i stopped watching Big since epis 8 i believe i can't even recall, it's a waste of my precious time! i luv Gong yoo that's what prompted me to watch thru those 8 hrs but nahhhhhh it didn't work for me! i'm sooooooooooooooo glad i stopped watching this BIG (mistake) for me to hv spent those hours & i got bored to da max! the story was just blahhh I agree w/one of the comments that the Hong sisters are over-rated indeed! it's like a brand name product u buy coz of the popular name but most of the projs i've seen of these sisters were not really that outstanding! sorry my opinion! i may be wrong but that's how i feel! glad this one ended we can move on, u guys shld consider Beloved, this one has more substance i must say!

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

i stopped around episode 8 too. It was just boring, it felt like nothing was really happening and they were going in circles.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i think what we're seeing lately in kdramas are bad writers, even for example feast of the gods, it was so good fr start then they found out one of the actors' charac was more interesting than the lead, i think they switched the story to make the other character stood out coz their ratings shoots up when he's on the screen! bad bad writers!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think I might go back to watching dramas after they are completed so I can get a better sense whether to start watching or not. It's really an investment of your time because it can be 16-20 hours straight of watching a show.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hmmmm...at least Big ended with double digits in ratings (11.+%)and almost 700 comments in DB...

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

correction...700+ comments now.. :)

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

yes!700 negative comments...hehe

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

That's still consider a very poor rating for a drama finale.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I guess I was too hopeful that she'll still end up with yoon jae in the end. :(
I liked yoonjae's love story a lot more than kkj's. I wish they switched the bodies a lot sooner instead of near the ending. TT_TT I'm just so disappointed with this drama. I only watched until episode 15 and just read episode 16 recaps.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i never do this.....but i have to....i give up on the Hong Sisters!!! im done!!! they always tank the last 4-5 episodes..they should hire a third writer for the ending. i am sooooo dissappointed....*huge sigh* never again!!! we didnt find out anything...does anyone know how to contact the hong sisters???

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Just thought I'd share this...coming from the man himself....

"Since it was my first drama in five years, I did feel a bit of pressure but after filming everything I feel relieved," said Gong Yoo. "It was difficult at times and there are some aspects I feel more could have been done but I have no regrets as I gave my best.”

--via cj e&m enews world
july 26, 2012

i did wonder about how the actual actors must be feeling themselves. for all the bashing and opinions netizens (not excluding myself) like to put out out there. at the end of the day, especially actors of LMJ and GY's caliber, they just do the best they can do. what more can we ask of them? gotta love this guy!

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

it reminds me of Jang Geun Suk's statement after MSOAN.. huuu~ so much for BIG. dem yuuuuu BIG!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i did want to say..i thought the actors were great.gy is the best, i will watch anything he is in lol but Big broke me!!
just watched QiHM in like 2 days!!! it is the best k drama maybe ever! i cant wait for that writers next work.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

gah! a Big disappointment to the ending!
I wasted my time and regret that I stopped 'I Do, I Do' on eps 7. It would've been better than this one.

I waited this scenes:
- Yoon Jae gets the surgery
- re-swap their souls into their own bodies
- when they wake up and they meet each other in their bodies
- the meeting between Kyung Joon & his parents in his own body
- the meeting between Da Ran & Yoon Jae and how they sorted the problem out
- the meeting between Da Ran & Kyung Joon in HIS OWN FUCKING BODY and how Kyung Joon gets his memories back and how they are gonna get through the relationship because of the age gap

and none of these happened.
shit.

0
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

I wanted at least one of those. Was that too much to ask HS?? Geez.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree with the above post too, so much they could have shown but they didn;t.

i thought the acting and chemistry by GY and LMJ was pretty good overall. Humor and overall vibe was pretty good too. the 10:10 joke was a classic and I liked the Kang Panda/Gil Panda bit too. Suzy and the rest of the side character were okay although the sub arc between the uncle and GDR's mother was a little bland.

I understand that the ending was supposed to be GDR and KKJ meetup one year later on his birthday and some people interpret that as he;s his twin brother so maybe they look the same-but no way a 21 year old is going to look like a 30 year old.....at the rate, you might as well assume the swap never took place and the guy meeting is still KKJ in YJ;s body if Mari was telling another lie.

The execution of the ending, well actually the last 2 episodes just got butchered..... like the writers lost confidence in whatever they were planning and just cut it short....first rule of visual story telling -you don;t tell people what happened, you show it to them.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

@Sonia, where the hell is the LIKE button here!? LOL

I agree!! Mostly to the last point. Shit.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Really? Was all that cursing necessary? 

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes. for emphasis on the wtfery this show was..

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Haha....I've never seen so many WTF!!! written in so many languages about a drama b4. I am sure the Hong sisters could feel the anguish from the viewers all over the world.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thanks for posting the synopsis, Dramabeans. I quit watching this drama after the kiss in... episode 10, I think? Anywho, I am totally disappointed. And Da-ran has a shallow love. Boohoo to me for scha-wasting 10 hours of my life!!!!!!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Gong Yoo was the saving grace of this drama and it's a shame the drama couldn't be worthy of his return. Seriously you get Gong Yoo to do your drama and this is the result. The last two episodes seemed like they were thrown together at the last minute. 16 episodes and no Yoon Jae, no KKJ in his own body (you can't tell me he's going to look like Yoon Jae after 1 year) and no meeting of the two brothers? No Da Ran finally getting Yoon Jae's answer? This has got to be one of the worst K Drama endings I've ever seen. They should have just had Yoon Jae die since it looked like he was already dead before he got possessed by KKJ. Just have him comeback in his own body long enough to tell Da Ran his answer and then let him die with KKJ finally waking up in his own body. KKJ would wake up with no memory, which wouldn't be a stretch since he was in a coma for over a year. Then that last scene with them reuniting could have been with the real KKJ. The Hong Sisters made a huge mistake trying to remake "Big" with this body swapping storyline. They should have just stuck to the original storyline and had a young KKJ get older and have his love story with Da Ran only to return to his younger state and lose his memory. Then when they reunited years later KKJ would finally have his memory back looking like the grownup he became when he and Da Ran fell in love.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I totally agree, what was up with the ending? GRRRRR!!! >:I

Shin doesn't look 14, that's over reacting, He looks 17 or 18 though he's 21, I def. think the directors could've done a bit with maybe the clothing and styling to make him look 21 or something, like girlfriday said, they DON'T have to make him look 30 sheesh!

I really liked this drama, I'm not a fan of the ending, it was weak, it was rushed and the follow up AFTER the switch, and the switch itself, would've been more interesting, and I can't believe they missed that >:I

The drama is a 4 out of 5 for me, my only comp'lain is the ending, couldn't they have let Shin play the last part? And it's NOT just because he's hot, which he is, but because I would've bought the story. Okay, I'm leaving now.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

just saw this alternate ending a fan made, it calmed down the rage... a little

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=EKcAPCzDFY4

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

This is fantastic and I'll love you and the vidder for the rest of my life.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Stop! Stop! Stop! All the neg reviews! Stop complaining. Some Obviously watched it to the end bc it was a good drama. So what if it wasn't a clear ending? It is still a good drama. Why are people so darn rude that they have to curse? Is that called for? Why don't the low class cursing complainers not write anything at all? So RUDE!!!!!!

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

"if you can't stand the heat get out of the kitchen."

that is all. ;)

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Indeed. Both negative and positive reviews provoke thought and encourage improvement. Also, cursing provides emphasis for emotional turmoil. I will continue to do them all.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

This was such a disappointing drama from the Hong Sisters. Gong Yoo was the only reason why I kept watching. Ep. 11 was totally useless.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
- the cry from my hearts as Big slowly went down hill

I have to say, I really loved this drama. I mean come one, he has the cutest grin! I realize that the ending was dissapointing, but let's pretend to be optimists and think about the highlights:
One of my favorite parts had to be when he hypnotizes her to remeber him whenever it's 10:10 and then gives her a big hug. AWWWWWW >.<

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I am so glad I stopped watching this around episode 5!!!!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

This drama is sooooooo disappointing! :)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

maybe what happened is that they didn;t get an extension for 2-4 more episodes due to the overall low ratings and whatever reasons(actor/actress fatigue?) so they had to end it abruptly.

too bad because given the comments, seems like alot of people were watching it enough to care. unfortunately, if there are no changes this will go down as a drama with outstanding cast, decent story, abbreviated ending.

the most glaring thing is basically Shin turned out to be a prop from episode 2-16. that couldn;t be what they planned from the beginning ....

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Many of these dramas slated for 16 episodes truly do not deserve extensions, this was one. I've been noticing that opportunities for valuable storyline advancements are wasted in the middle episodes with brain numbing flashbacks and languished writing...methinks the screenwriters are in the throes of writers block midway through, and the 'ahah' inspirations reappear by end of episode 14 requiring either an extension or a hasty messy wrap-up ending. The Hong sisters delivered a huge letdown on this drama in light of the voluminous dissertation comments for 'yea' or 'nay'.... BIG was a disappointment.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

whaaat? comments still pouring in....? wow, Show, you really affected a lot of people no matter what we say!

I'm trolling here coz I can't get over my Big withdrawal syndrome....

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

oops, i meant scrolling here (thru the comments)...i need to get some zzzzs.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

glad i only read the last three recaps instead of watching. somehow, i started off love this show, but yeah... not getting to see the switch back is just... no words. :( no getting to see each soul in its own body. :( after all the building up to them being brothers, and KKJ getting a family again, we don't see anything about it?!?! i thought this show was just as much about the family aspect for KKJ and not just the romance sooo :( ugh. i'm very dissapointed. i'm going to go watch gaksital to cheer myself up. :)

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

You know when you try to cook a delicious frozen burrito in the microwave (Hush! I like microwavable dinners.) and you take that first tasty bite but the next bite has you crunching through ice cold beans that make your teeth ache and gives you brain freeze? Yeah, that's what Big was like. I'm left with aching gums and brain freeze and I don't even wanna finish my meal.

I gave up on this drama a while ago. This drama makes me want to table-flip, punch my hand through a brick wall, and jump from a 10 story window...simultaneously, if possible.

I kept watching only because I wanted to see them go all the way with the seriously taboo premise. As much as I love regular stories, I adore romances about what society considers the taboo: incest, adultery, age differences, LGBTQI, polyamory, racial differences (mostly in period stories), etc. Whatever the end message and whatever my personal view on these issues, I like to see characters struggling with these issues against societal/familial expectations. (I also adore fantasy/sci-fi so this drama was supposed to be a two-for with me.) Ugh...where to start?

I hated Da Ran's weak, milquetoast, and wishy-washy character. I hated that the main pair kept going around in circles over the same damned thing because of her indecisiveness. I only really liked Ma Ri because I find Suzy charming and Ma Ri went so far past psychotically obsessed stalker that she became an amusing caricature to me. The doctor chick needs no mention since she was near nonexistent after the first few episodes. I don't even remember her name. Yoon Jae was in a coma the entire time and Kyung Joon had a good story only for me to never see him awake in his proper body after the first episode. (I feel really bad for actor Shin Won Ho cuz he didn't have a chance to shine after the first episode.)

This was the story of Big:
+A high school teacher starts dating her 18yr old student.
+(They kept going) The student is currently body-swapped into her ex-fiance's body.
+(Even more) The student and the ex-fiance are brothers.
+(AND MOAR) The student was born only to be an organ donor for his older brother.
+(Not. Done. Yet.) The teacher marries the ex-fiance's body while it's still inhabited with the student's soul.

Look at all the story potential they had there if they'd explored any of it properly. They didn't.

My thought process this entire drama: "It's a little questionable that you're dating your student, Da Ran....It's bit weirder cuz he's body swapped with your ex-fiance, right now....OK, girl. It's getting a little out of hand knowing they're brothers....Holy crap! Y'all just got married and they're still body swapped! Are we gonna talk about this, girl?!"

No conversation about how Yoon Jae feels about Kyung Joon's sacrifice? No conversation about how he really feels about Da Ran? How about waking up to find himself married to Da Ran while she dates his little brother? So we're really NOT gonna talk about how creepy and violating it is to marry Yoon Jae while he was in a coma and tongue down Kyung Joon while he's in Yoon Jae's body? (That marriage was 100% unnecessary and 100% creepier than anything Ma Ri did the entire drama including kidnapping his body...and they didn't even explore the fallout to make it worth my time and my distaste.)

The amnesia was a giant cop-out for nearly everything. I can handle the time jump so that Kyung Joon is no longer a minor. (Tho mad props to Majo no Jouken for going there and having the teacher on the run and arrested for dating her under-aged student.) The only thing resolved was that Da Ran finally was able to see Kyung Joon as a man and not her student. And that took entirely too much screen time and should have been dealt with no later than episode 10.

IDK, I'm done. I left this drama wanting to punch baby penguins in the face. Enough said...

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Sad to not see GY anymore. Only when it stops do you realise even a half baked Big provided some GY. And now to wait for the next project. And going by his earlier choices, (One Fine Day etc), there is no guarantee really. *sigh*

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

There were so many possibilities for a good ending and we get stuck with a body swap that we never got to witness and a real Yoon-jae we never see again and a Kyung-joon in his own body who's really in Gong-yoo's body and Da-ran still as stupid as ever. Ugh... what a BIG disappointment!!! I never would've expected the Hong Sisters to write a story this nonsensical. I'm the most upset that we didn't get to see the real Kyung-joon and that the body swap ends up being an event so insignificant that it has to happen off-screen. WTF is the reason for this?!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I realize how disappointed I was. That the Other one soul die or that they chose to switched... strange but maybe...
But clearly we have no ending, She should have accepted Kyoung-joo -young- one, and their age gap. I felt like we have no ending. It sucks.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I didn't think the ending was that bad. Maybe they wanted the actor Gong Yoo to end it.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hated the ending for being such a cop-out. Gong Yoo couldn't step back for 10 secs??? Also, has anyone else noticed Hong sisters end almost every single drama with a time jump? Frankly I'm tired of it, and they need to find something more original rather than always relying on that device to get them out of a complicated mess.

Count me out of their future dramas.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Seriously??? Smh the best thing about this drama was Gong Yoo and his chocolate abs! I could watch those all day hee hee.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I wanted to watch this drama but waited until it had completed so I could watch them at my leisure. (Fast Forward is my best friend). I wasn't disappointed with this drama until it reached the last 4 episodes. That's when it became clear for me the writers had lost any hope for resolving their lack of enthusiams in finishing the drama. you can always tell when the writers throw their hands up and say who cares because the order of events stop making sense. I was dissappointed that Yoon Jae never returned to his body on screen. That there was no explaination for why he treat daran the way he had. I also kept wishing that Daran would get knocked in the head and forget she wanted to maintain a relationship with a little kid. Half way through the drama I had to let go of any hope that Gong Yoo's 30 somthing character was going to make an appearance and the love fest would continue. I tried to accept the love that developed between a Gong Yoo's man-child character and daran but I was repulsed. It was creepy that she went looney at the end. The slap in the face was leaving some of the more crucial elements off screen. In the end I am disappointed in this drama. I would have continued to feel this way until I read Gong Yoo's letter to his fans. Then I remembered I watched this to see him and he didn't disappoint me during the entire show. My time wasn't wasted because I got to see his acting abilities, his smile, and his body. >;) In the end after reading his words I'm fine with the 16 hours I can't get back because he was on the screen the entire time. Thank you Gong Yoo, you always have my support.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

WOW 700+ presumably angry comments. All I'll add in is that all the endings I concocted in my mind were 100 times better. I'm scrubbing this episode from my memory and coming up with my own... oof.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I still think the drama is great! Great beg middle and ending

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oh No! Hong Sisters, you've made this very good story a flop in the end! Why make us hope for the best and suddenly , many things will have been concluded offscreen? Many don't buy your kind of supposed to great drama. This would have been better had you made the story to really appear a good ending. First, how come, after a year, Da Ran was told by Jang Mari that the brothers came back to their own selves. Just like that, without showing the how and the what if they re swapped. Many questions have been left hanging . Everyone is expecting that Gyung Joon in going to re appear but why in the body of Yoon Jae. Did it mean that as brothers, they came to agree that they will pretend Yoon Jae is Gyung Joon and vice versa without telling everyone in the family that they agreed on that after one had explained what happened in the past. Will Yoon Jae be just that amenable to the circumstances. and be that willing to give up on Da Ran just like that? True, Gyung Joon came back to Da Ran ; but still in the body of Yoon Jae? Oh No, I don't get it. And for sure , a lot of viewers were quite disappointed. Hong Sisters, why have you ruined your standing this time? You've got to explain somehow to make the story believable. It's not the fault of the cast. In fact, they did their roles well; the mistake is in the Hong Sisters. Oh my!!!!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I can't believe that I spent 15 hours watching this stupid drama...it was already draggy and boring halfway through but I thought there would be a breakthrough. The last few episodes were so bad that even if I only have one last episode to 'complete' the whole drama, I couldn't bring myself to waste another hour on this doesn't make sense drama. Much as I like Gong Yoo, pretending and acting like an 19 year old just doesn't work for him. In general, I love Lee Min Jung but her performance in this one was disappointing as well..how can you be so naive and yet claim yourself to be a high school teacher.....certainly the worse drama so far this year after 'Lie To Me' which made me fall asleep...

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think...I... might...have missed something? ò_O
How...when....who...
Well...let's just say that the last two episodes never happened to be, and let us all be happy ever after.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The finale alone isn't the biggest problem here, for me. It really bothers me when plot points are introduced, and in some cases belabored, and then dropped completely. I can see that some late-stage rewrites could leave a script with a widow/orphan problem, but there were too many here for me to overlook.

1. YJ's ring. That was a lot of sturm und drang for something that was never (even implicitly) addressed.
2. YJ's answer - did he love her or didn't he?
3. Why was YJ looking for KKJ? Did he want his blood donor on permanent standby or did he want his brother? Both?
4. What's with the characterization of YJ? He blew DR off for dates, he left her sitting alone for 2 hours on his birthday, he worked out for 2 hours per day, he couldn't be bothered to look at his and DR's "newlywed" apt, he let DR shop for their furniture alone, he wouldn't send out his wedding invitations, he never flat out returned Se Young's key to her.
4a. Why had YJ and DR never even kissed? Why did YJ never tell her anything about his feelings directly? Why did she have to find these things out from third parties post-accident?
5. Did KKJ ever outgrow his racecar bed (emotionally speaking)?
6. Did YJ ever come back from Germany?
7. Did YJ and DR get divorced? How did that play out? Did his family just give him the Reader's Digest version of his brief marriage? Was he okay with that? Why?
8. Why was it so critically important to go to Germany to complete a series of blood transfusions? Fine, yes, YJ's father lived there, but still...
9. When did YJ and KKJ switch back? The bit about MR's email made it sound like they didn't switch back for a year. Unclear.

More than anything, the ring still bothers me. How many hours of this drama were devoted to DR fretting over YJ and that blasted ring. I don't care that the ring is a symbol. It's also a ring. Pfft.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Can someone tell me if there is a next season of Big?

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Wow,

Talk about a major disappointment.

The ending failed on so many ways. And also, the drama had too many filler storylines. Like really ?, who cares about that sick little girl ?

I wanted to see KKJ back in his whole body, courting Da Ran again.

And poor Yoon Jae, guy gets into an accident because of his fiance, to tell her that he loves him, he wakes up 2 years later, and she doesn't love him anymore.

And the fact, that she's actually in love your younger faternal twin that you were loooking for in the first place.

Basically, what I learned from this drama is women's feeling are like a fire, if you're not their to feed it, it will slowly disappear...

I feel bad for Yoon JAE!! and pissed off that he gets played like this ... And the fact he doesn't even get any screen time or any major character development.

P.S. I'm a guy...

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm on EP 12 and I'm already sick of the twisted love story. I mean from the plot, it's fine that they fall in love. But to look at the story of how it's been written from the get-go (ie. a 19 y/o in a grown up body falling in love with his teacher and his teacher falling in love with him) is just so so wrong! Sorry, I'm just a stick-to-my-principles type.

I can only give credit to Gong Yoo for his acting.
Somehow Lee Min-Jeong's acting wasn't fantastic.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I would have appreciated the ending more if Yoon-jae in KKJ's body was not lying in that bed 90% of the drama..

I like Gong Yoo so much but the story persuaded me to like KKJ not Yoon-jae..In my mind, Gong Yoo is still Yoon-jae.. and so.. i craved for Shin as KKJ more and more after each episode.. I wanted Shin as KKJ to actually be beside Daran..

Gong Yoo had carried the drama all the way.. He's a great actor.. and it was great to see him in a drama again. but Shin could have been given the chance to play more of his own character..

The writers certainly could have done better.. yes.. Gong Yoo is a big big star.. but the story they wrote strongly called for Shin to be actually KKJ..

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Here’s my ending…
Kyung Joon’s condition worsens after the blood transfusion. Yoon Jae and Kyung Joon both lie side by side at the hospital.
When their souls meet again, Yoon Jae tells Kyung Joon that he has been looking for him and he wished that they had time to be brothers and make memories together. Kyung Joon says “ Hyung , why does it have to be this way?” Yoon Jae says” Because our fates have been decided. There is nothing stronger than fate. We must accept it. I am happy that I met you and that you met Gil Da Ran. Give our parents a chance Kyung Joon. They have paid for their deeds and they are suffering for what they have done to you.” Kyung Joon says nothing. Yoon Jae says. Thank you for saving my life and letting me experience what it is like to love someone. Kyung Joon says “ Thank you for doing the same for me.” Kyung Joon tells Yoon Jae that he is sorry that he took over Yoon Jae’s life. Yoon Jae said he understands. He wanted Kyung Joon to feel the love that he felt with his family and with Gil Da Ran. Kyung Joon tells him that he is in love with Gil Da Ran and that it just happened and he is really sorry about it. Yoon Jae says “then take care of her for me. I cannot be there for her anymore. Kyung Joon asks Yoon Jae “what was your answer to Gil Da Ran’s question? Yoon Jae says “You tell her for me.”
Back to reality…
Commotion because Yoon Jae (or Kyung joon’s body) is in trauma. Se Young is attending to the sick Kyung Joon while his parents and Ma Ri are weeping to the side. Da Ran holds his hand. She whispers “Yong Jae shi” Kyung Joon’s body convulses suddenly and the doctors are scrambling. Tears roll down Kyung Joon’s closed eyes. He flat lines…they paddle him but he is declared dead. Everyone cries. Da Ran looks at Kyung Joon and then at Yoon Jae. Yoon Jae’s eyes start twitching. Yoon Jae suddenly jerks up and wakens. Everyone is shocked. Da Ran yells “Yoon Jae shi!” He looks over at Kyung Joon’s body and starts crying hysterically. Da Ran goes over to him and holds him. In his tears he says… “Teacher Gil”…
later…
Gil Da Ran is running in the rain and Kyung Joon (in Yoon Jae’s body) catches up to her and holds the umbrella over her. She says “Kyung Joon ah” Kyung Joon says. I told you it will rain today and to bring your umbrella. You are just like a blood clot fetus and I’m supposed to be the kid here. I guess I should take responsibility for your life from now on. She smiles up at him and says “I love you, Kyun Joon ah” Kyung Joon bends over and they kiss….THE END!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

What a big letdown this ending was. I kept hoping they would go out with a bang, instead I almost threw my iPad against the wall in frustration. I can't believe I wasted so many hours watching this show. I really hadn't stuck with it had it not been for Gong Yoo. :-(

Well, I've learned my lesson. i'll never watch another Hong-sisters drama ever again. Bleh

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The ending pissed me off big time, period. The drama was fine but the ending was shit. I was expecting to see Kyung Joon at the end at least, memory regained and everything, but noooo. =__= *forever sulking*

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Nothing I can say that hasn't already been said... I just wanted to add this: how awesome would it be to see Song Joong-ki as Gong Yoo's brother? Nothing against Shin, but he was too baby faced to be a believable as a second romantic lead.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm late to the ragefest party, but to be honest I actually really enjoyed the drama. It hurts when we get terrible endings (which is all too common, so I've gotten used to it), but this one didn't leave me so "WTF."

I think the only real time I was like "WTF" was recently with "Fashion King." That ending really was ridiculous.

Big's ending was more of a cop-out though and just left me unsatisfied. I still didn't regret watching the series since I enjoyed most of the episodes before.

I really like lee min jung too, so that helped alot. I hated her last drama Midas, so my favor towards her can only take a bad drama so far for me.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Will the real KKJ please stand up???

I was left baffled by this whole not showing KKJ in his own body at the end. I liked the drama. All through ep 12, I didn't know I was watching a Hong script. It never felt like any of their works. I wanted to look at it positively and think that maybe they were looking to find a different style that left every formula of their writing out of this drama. It was a gamble that failed massively. The ending is just CRAP. Like the beginning of ep 16, every scene was just fluff and merely fillers. And the stuff they should've shown (body-swap) was not there! I only liked the drama because of Gong Yoo. But he can't keep the whole ship afloat. Not with such a bad writing material. :(

Let's move on to the next drama. The Hong sisters need to redeem themselves real bad.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I sat staring at the screen for five minutes after the end with a "WTF" look on my face. I....what just happened?!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

i don't understand a thing... HAVE THEY SWITCHED OR NT!?!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *