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You’re the Best, Lee Soon-shin: Episodes 15-16

We take some significant steps forward in several storylines, which makes these two episodes rather satisfying (although there are certain other aspects that are less than gratifying, admittedly). But if we must deal with an increase of wrought emotions and mother-daughter angst, at least we get lovelines stepping it up all around to soften that blow. ‘Cause the more we see of Bread Man, Gentle Doc, and Dorky CEO, the better. I’m certainly not watching this show for the birth secrets, that’s fo’ sho’.

SONG OF THE DAY

Sesame Seed and Cotton Candy – “속마음” (Inner feelings) [ Download ]

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EPISODES 15-16

The mothers meet. Mi-ryung says all the right things to Soon-shin’s mother, not knowing that they’re exactly the wrong things to say in this situation: that Soon-shin must take after her mother for being so bright and modest, and that she’ll take good care of Soon-shin (career-wise) if Mom would “entrust her to me.”

Mom fumes internally through the litany of praise, and stands firm on her no-acting rule. Mi-ryung attempts to argue that Soon-shin is a special case, which makes Mom increasingly aggressive until finally she snaps, “Don’t mess with my daughter.” Telling Mi-ryung to butt out, she stomps off.

Mom goes home raging bitterly about the woman who would dare teach her how to raise the daughter she herself abandoned. Mi-ryung also goes home terribly insulted, and it makes her more determined to succeed with Soon-shin.

For now Soon-shin is still living out of the rehearsal studio, running her lines at every opportunity, though at the moment she’s hit an emotional wall, reciting the breakup scene dialogue without much emotion. Hye-shin calls to advise her to come home and soothe Mom’s ruffled feathers, and Soon-shin says she’ll do that after her audition.

The sisters urge Mom to let Soon-shin come back home, asking what happened to her supportiveness and patience. (Good questions.) Mom snaps at everyone that she isn’t going to trust anybody anymore and neither should they. Furthermore, she says defensively to Grandma that she worked her tail off being a good daughter-in-law all these years, and now she’s going enjoy her life instead of “sacrificing like a fool.”

To that end, she orders her gobsmacked daughters to start giving her a cash allowance. Yeesh. All well and good, except doesn’t wielding pleasure as revenge rather knock you off that moral high ground?

Mom’s outburst has Grandma feeling confused and gloomy, and Bread Man Jin-wook happens by as she works in the garden. Thankfully Mr. Bread has a cheering effect, and his teasing about her age (“Fifty? Forty?”) lifts her spirits. He is too sweet. He’s also blessed with the worst timing in the world, because Yoo-shin catches him gaping at her mid-stretch (her rear end stuck out in his direction) and pegs him for (even more of) a perv.

Then as he walks to work, he happens to be trailing behind Woo-joo on her way to school, who shoots him glares and forces Mom to hurry along so as not to share the same space with him. Poor Bread Man. He sighs to himself, wondering whether he ought to return to his gosiwon lifestyle.

Still in a temper over the Mi-ryung encounter, Mom heads over to the restaurant, where she grabs Soon-shin on her way to acting lessons. Mom gets even angrier and delivers an ultimatum: Either go home with her now, or go to her acting class and cut ties for-ev-ah. Yeah, I know. It’s really hard to feel sympathy for her at this point, and I was already at the breaking point.

Soon-shin tries to ask for a middle ground, but Mom literally declares that this means Soon-shin has chosen never to see her again. Whoa there, Drama Mama. She storms off, leaving Soon-shin devastated.

Soon-shin continues her audition preparation, still stuck on that line reading of that teary breakup scene. Mi-ryung coaches her through it despite feeling frustrated at the emotional block, and curtly dismisses Yeon-ah when she calls, saying she’s busy with Soon-shin.

Now that she’s determined to win Soon-shin that audition, Mi-ryung doubles her efforts and checks with Jun-ho to see who else is expected to audition. He says he’s not expecting her to pass—this is just to build up her experience—but Mi-ryung won’t be satisfied with that. Having faced Mom’s disdain head-on, now she wants to show her.

She takes it a step further by taking a meeting with the director to add some pressure on that end, too. He’s uncomfortable at the idea of being made to cast her protegé, but Mi-ryung presses, using her own casting as leverage.

Mom comes home with her arms full of expensive clothes, to the shock of Grandma and Chicken Ajumma. For somebody who’s set on enjoying her life, she sure doesn’t look like she’s having any fun, just sayin’.

Still shaking with anger, Mom tells her friend that she met Mi-ryung and barely tamped down the urge to spit in her face. “I want to get revenge,” she growls. Uh… yes, because that’s the important thing here?

Then Mom demands that Hye-shin hand over her husband’s cell phone number, because she’s going to give him a piece of her mind and warn him not to cheat, basically. Hye-shin argues that it’s unnecessary, and Mom snaps for her to move back to Hong Kong, then, since men can’t be trusted to live apart from their wives without cheating. Sigh. Remember when Mom was sweet? I miss that Mom.

Woo-joo drops by the bakery to asks Bread Man Jin-wook to move out. Aw. Despite wondering whether he should do just that, Jin-wook replies that he’s a legal, contracted tenant, which disappoints her hopes. Then he asks why she lied about Chan-woo being her father, only to get flustered into silence when she counters, “Ajusshi, you like my mom, don’t you?” Hee. He insists he doesn’t go after married women, and of course she’s not about to fix that misconception.

Having requested info on the dead man’s family, Manager Hwang realizes with a sinking heart that Mom is the wife. The kicker, though, is that the youngest daughter is named Lee Soon-shin, and he nervously approaches her to ask about her family and confirm that her father recently died in a car accident. Gulp.

After giving up on acting, Yi-jung indulges in the sulks, and to cheer her up her mother promises to set her up with a great guy, like the doctor at Dad’s clinic. Yi-jung perks right up, and Mom even schedules an appointment with Chan-woo to size up his character.

Chan-woo impresses her with his caring attitude and polite demeanor, but when she asks about his relationship status he informs her that he’s taken. Mom walks out sighing that it’s such a shame.

Chan-woo picks up Yoo-shin for their movie not-a-date (which turns out to be Temperature of Love), during which she spends the whole time fidgeting through the bed scenes and eyeing all the happy couples around them.

After the movie, Yoo-shin rejects his offer of a drink or dinner, and calls him out on him taking advantage of the “just friends” excuse. She’s not wrong about that, though her anger seems irrational given that she admits that she felt something for him. She accuses him of using those feelings to toy with her, and declares that she won’t be friends with him.

Chan-woo shouts right back that he doesn’t want to be friends either, and that he’s using those reasons as an excuse to date her however he can. Aw, and yay for frank declarations! There are enough people in this drama hiding truths and being passive aggressive that a clear-cut conversation is such a welcome change. He doesn’t understand her reluctance to date given her admission of feelings—good point, I say—and says that if she’s worried about their families finding out, they can keep it a secret from them.

At the restaurant the next day, Young-hoon is his usual sweet self by teasing Soon-shin about not forgetting him once she’s famous since he’s her No. 1 fan. Yoo-shin drops by to deliver a fresh set of clothes, prompting a wave of dorky primping by Jae-bum, who’s so flustered that he calls Yoo-shin “unni.” HA.

Yoo-shin’s actually nice today, telling Soon-shin that it’s not her fault that Mom’s so worked up—Mom’s depression just happened to coincide with Soon-shin’s acting.

Then she asks hesitantly if little sis still likes Chan-woo. Ah, is that why she’s being so contrary? That’s actually sweet, albeit expressed in Yoo-shin’s trademark backwards way. Soon-shin guesses correctly that she’s asking because Chan-woo wants to date her, and swears up and down that unni has the wrong idea—she doesn’t like Chan-woo romantically at all.

Jun-ho catches the exchange and guesses that that’s why she’s suddenly able to tap into her emotions. This time, Soon-shin’s audition reading is spot-on and realistic as she tells her fictional ex she’ll be fine, that she was thankful for their time together, and that their memories together will keep her happy. The last teary line ends, “But if there’s a next life, would you marry me then?”

Mi-ryung is pleased with the improvement as well, and gives Soon-shin a new dress to wear to her audition. Soon-shin practically glows at the praise and tries on the dress proudly.

However, the mood quickly takes a turn when Manager Hwang tells Mi- ryung whose daughter Soon-shin is. They don’t seem to have made the Soon-shin = birth daughter connection, but the link to the hit and run accident is enough to spook them mightily. They wonder if that’s also why Mom came by the other day, to talk about the accident and not Soon-shin’s acting.

Audition day finally rolls around, and Soon-shin looks around wide-eyed, intimidated by her competition. Jun-ho actually scoffs, saying that they’re plastic surgery beauties (oh, so now you get to feel superior about her being natural? Ha), and declares, “You’re the prettiest.” Cute.

But they’re informed of a last-minute emergency: Soon-shin’s name isn’t on the audition list. There’s no paperwork, and the producers won’t allow her to audition. Jun-ho gets the confusing news from the director, who tells him that Soon-shin was withdrawn at Mi-ryung’s personal request.

Mi-ryung claims that Soon-shin was a terrible actress whose initial potential was vastly overestimated, and although this makes no sense to anybody who’s seen her recently, she pretends like this is how she always felt. Unfortunately she does have a point telling Jun-ho he has no right to lecture her, given his bet with Yeon-ah.

So Soon-shin can’t audition, and Mi-ryung ignores all her calls.

Now that Dr. Shin has gotten his daughter to quit acting, he’s much friendlier with Mi-ryung. Almost too friendly, in fact. Over drinks, she shares that she’s always been unlucky in live, and that acting was her way of escaping her own misfortunes. He commiserates with her, since they’re both people who seem like they’ve got it all, but who’ve worked their butts off to get where they are.

Mi-ryung tells him her first impression was right—that she’d thought they were quite similar, and that’s why he disliked her so much. Then when she mentions the man who died in the accident, he advises her sympathetically not to regret her past, and look forward. Not surprisingly, that advice appeals to her.

Mi-ryung tires of Soon-shin’s calls and snaps at Jun-ho to break the news so she’ll stop pestering her. Jun-ho can’t bring himself to tell her the bald truth, so he tries a roundabout approach by suggesting a new teacher, feeling guilty when she says she’s sorry to disappoint Mi-ryung by not doing better. She also resists the idea of swapping teachers, because Mi-ryung was the first person in her life to see promise in her.

Jun-ho gets more confused, then, to hear that right before the audition Mi-ryung was actually talking to the director to pressure him into using Soon-shin. What could possibly explain the turnaround.

Yeon-ah is his answer, and while it’s totally the wrong one, you can’t really blame him for jumping to that conclusion. He accuses her of interfering to thwart him in the bet, which has her genuinely surprised since she knows nothing of it. However, she points out that he’s acting awfully fixated on the bet, a bet that she could swear was only half-seriously made.

The unnis decide to bring Soon-shin home and confront the issue with Mom head-on. So they shove her in a room with Mom with orders to beg for forgiveness, only she just gets the cold shoulder. Seriously, Mom? I swear, I’m trying to see your point of view in this, but it’s hard when you’re so damn passive aggressive.

Soon-shin hangs her head and apologizes, and tells her that she won’t be taking any more acting lessons. In addition to missing the audition, Mi-ryung must have been disappointed in her. Mom snaps, what about Mom being disappointed in her? Ugh. You’d think Soon-shin actually did something wrong in this scenario from the martyr complex her mother’s sporting.

Sitting outside, Soon-shin notices a light on in the basement—oh riiiight, she doesn’t know about Bread Man. This is gonna be good.

Jin-wook wanders out at the smell of cooking meat, and gets a broom to the head. And neck. And arm. Soon-shin screams, “Thief!” and wails on him repeatedly, bringing the family into the yard in alarm.

My favorite part of this bit is the way Jin-wook instinctively takes cover behind Hye-shin, who has to fill Soon-shin in on what she missed. Ha. He’s a little miffed at the attack, but accepts the family’s offer to eat with them. See, bacon cures all things. Well, all things not cured by chocolate.

Mom calls Mi-ryung to confirm that she really is going to stop teaching Soon-shin, and gets the same line—that Soon-shin wasn’t talented, and that she was disappointed in her paltry efforts. Aw, now this is a kind of pain I can feel for, since not only does Mom feel like Soon-shin picked her birth mother over her, the birth mother doesn’t even want her.

So Mom confronts Soon-shin and blows her lid, throwing that new dress on the floor and screaming, “Do you even know what she said about you?” Eeeek. Don’t tell her, don’t tell her. But of course she does, and repeats the ugly words Mi-ryung said (and makes them even uglier, sadly).

Soon-shin can’t believe the caring teacher would say that and starts to argue that it was her own fault for being a poor student, until Mom just yells at her, “That woman threw you away!” More than you’ll know, honey. She yells that Soon-shin shouldn’t have come back home, and that she should’ve just lived with Mi-ryung. And just when I was so close to seeing Mom’s side…

In the morning, Jin-wook insists on helping Hye-shin put out the laundry to dry, and unknowingly picks up a handful of lingerie. In his horror, he knocks into the drying racks and falls over and soon there’s underwear everywhere! Mostly on or around him.

Worse still, Yoo-shin steps out and recognizes that it’s her panties he’s fumbling around with. Not doing a lot to rehabilitate that perv image there, buddy. On the upside, at least Hye-shin finds it funny and chokes back a laugh.

Adding insult to injury, at work Bread Boy peers curiously at Jin-wook’s new injuries and goes POKE! “It looked fake,” he says sheepishly. Haha.

Yoo-shin thinks back to Chan-woo’s comments at the theater and seriously considers his offer to date secretly. So she calls him out and makes his day by accepting the proposal, but only on certain conditions. She slaps a dating agreement down on the table, listing conditions that he’s only too happy to accept: (1) The relationship ends as soon as their families find out (because they’d be insufferably nosy and take sides), (2) They’ll respect each other’s work spaces (her love live could make her the target of gossip), and (3) They won’t constrain each other (with nagging or hovering).

Chan-woo has a condition of his own, too: While they’re dating, they’ll respect each other and do their best. She agrees, and finally they’re both happy, together, at the same time. It only took eight weeks!

The already high-strung Manager Hwang’s nerves take another hit when he runs into Reporter Park—the guy Manager Hwang mouthed off to one drunken night after being fired briefly by Mi-ryung. He tries to pass it all off as crazy ramblings, but the reporter’s not about to let him off the hook and asks, “Is it true she has a daughter?” Given that Manager Hwang’s terrible poker face is only to be rivaled by Chicken Ajusshi, the reporter pretty much figures it’s all true and insinuates that he’ll be tracking down the daughter.

When he asks Mi-ryung about “that child,” telling himself that Daddy Lee surely took her to the orphanage, Mi-ryung cuts him off. That chapter of her life is closed, and she’s not going to revisit it. Or, you know, admit it ever happened. Denying it is totally the same thing as it not being true!

Manager Hwang turns his attention to getting to the daughter first, and something triggers his memory. He takes another look at the background report… and Soon-shin’s birthday… and tells himself it can’t be. To make certain, he calls his investigator and makes another report request: a man named Park Bok-man. Chicken Ajusshi, yes?

Soon-shin mulls over all of Mi-ryung’s kindnesses and decides to see her face to face, heading to her house with those sweet buns she brought last time. Oh, honey. This is so gonna hurt.

Soon-shin waits at the gate with naive optimism, while back at the restaurant Jun-ho hears that she left early to go to acting lessons. Realizing what that must mean, he beelines it to Mi-ryung’s house. Drive faster! He’s not gonna drive fast enough, is he?

Mi-ryung arrives with Yeon-ah, who’s back in her good graces since she’s the only protegé left, I guess. She tries to brush Soon-shin aside with the excuse that she’s busy, but when Soon-shin persists and asks if Mi-ryung gave up on her because she was so bad, Mi-ryung gives her the answer plainly: “Well, at least you know it.” Ouch.

She tells her coldly not to come around anymore, ignoring Soon-shin’s pleas to say one last thing. She pushes past her while Manager Hwang shoves Soon-shin back, which sends her sprawling to the ground. Even Yeon-ah’s surprised at the coldness, but Mi-ryung barely spares her a second glance.

Jun-ho pulls up and yells at Soon-shin, asking why she would come here and subject herself to this. He’s fuming mad on her behalf, and so caught up in the moment that when Yeon-ah asks to speak with him he doesn’t even miss a beat as he says flatly, “I have nothing to say to you.”

Grabbing Soon-shin by the wrist, he pulls her away from the house.

 
COMMENTS

Both good and not-so-good things in this week’s episodes. On one hand, I like that our relationships take a drastic shift and that some truths are discovered. Not necessarily by the people we want to be discovering them, but at least it’s out there, making the rounds, and it’s just a matter of time before it’s revealed. It was a much smaller conflict when only Dad knew about Soon-shin’s birth and he literally went to the grave keeping that secret. Then Mom found out, but she’s so closed-mouthed that it felt like she’d take it to the grave as well—and with that much pent-up resentment, it feels like her bitterness is going to kill her from the inside out.

But now you have the wild-eyed Manager Hwang (who can be trusted with no secrets, really) and a shrewd reporter out to sniff out the truth. Finally the secret spirals out of the control of those determined to silence it, and that injects some energy into a fairly straightforward plot.

On the other hand, I continue to be frustrated by Mom, who is the most perplexing character and one who’s so difficult to root for that I can’t help but wonder whether there was a fundamental flaw in her character construction. I’ve been pretty patient with her thus far because I’ve seen enough family dramas to know that you’re just going to spend a stretch of episodes feeling annoyed at or frustrated with certain characters (and often that happens with all the characters, in turn). It’s part of the rhythm. Spun in a glass-half-full way, that’s part of the charm of these shows, because people are actually allowed to be flawed and realistic, not wholly good or bad, who don’t always act in honorable ways.

However, what’s particularly upsetting about Mom’s reaction—even more than the outbursts, the unfair accusations, and the misdirected rage—is that she’s holding something against Soon-shin that she can’t control. She’s resentful of Soon-shin’s very identity, and that’s really starting to piss me off.

Let’s say that her version of the truth were totally true, and that Dad cheated on her and foisted his love child on her to raise. Mom acts as though being “tricked” into it negates the whole of her maternal experience with Soon-shin. I understand that she’s probably reacting to her worst fears, that she probably doesn’t actually believe all that, but it’s really very off-putting. As though Soon-shin’s paternity retroactively invalidates the twenty years of bonding. To take an optimistic look at it, maybe we can tell ourselves that the aggravation now will make the turnaround that much sweeter when it finally comes?

I do like how the Mi-ryung storyline developed, and that we have that relationship fracturing here. Mi-ryung loved playing Mom while she got to feel good about herself for it, but when things got even the least bit hot around the collar for her, she was happy to drop Soon-shin like a hot potato. It really is a nice callback to the whole “She threw you away” line, because it’s not something Mi-ryung did just once in her desperate youth, but something she’s quite comfortable doing as it suits her. Given how Soon-shin lost one Mom as she bonded with Mi-ryung, this is Mom’s turn to step it up and show us all what real mothers are about. Let’s hope she can actually rise to that challenge.

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Thank you!

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Ivoire, do you believe it? I'm actually caught up on this week's episodes. I was at least 3 weeks behind and had to marathon everything. I did do a lot of skipping when it came to the drier, dramatic parts (i.e. Mom's histrionics) though.

I'm just mostly invested in our three sisters and their respective love lines. I particularly liked Yoo-shin and Chan-woo's get-together this week. I just hope they get more of the cute before the inevitable relationship problems arise. We still have a lot of episodes to go that's for sure.

P.S. I love bread. I love man. I love Bread Man. More of him please!

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Bread man has brought awkward to new levels...I just want him to get the girl....coz he's silly hot!! Dorky man-boy!! Love him.

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OMG I love bread ahjusshi too!!!!
Some parts in this series reminds me of Unforgettable You (and I still think that was one of the top top family dramas) but this series is a nice feel good drama. I like :)

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Hello pabo ceo reom (and now I want to sing again :-) )

You are all caught up? Good for you *stands up and claps loudly* I am still behind, though I think I watched episode 13 (where bread man spit rice on the little girl...), which I thought was sooo funny and took some skills on this actor's part, because there was quite a distance to the little girl, I thought:-). I need to catch up as well, however, tbh, I want to see JH realize that he is falling in love with SS and see how he will react to that (and handle it). I hope that he will continue to remain protective of her (I love it when he does that :-) ). I also love her boss (at the restaurant), who is oh soooo cute!!!!

I think when I watch/marathon it, I will watch everything, just in case I need to know something (what can I say, I love details :-) and I don't FF ). Like you, I also like the sisters' love lines and I look forward to seeing what will develop. And yes, yeah for Bread man :-)

Have an awesome weekend, Pabo :-)

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Thanks, you too!

You're definitely a much better viewer than I am. I fully admit I have no problems using the FF button when watching (sometimes even too excessively). I think we would be a great complement to each other though. You tell me all the things I missed and I spazz to you all the things I loved. ;)

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UGHHHHH Jo Jung Suk.... WAE you so muh-shi-suhhhhhhhh / dorky? no seriously... I love when he plays awkward. Most of the time when I see actors try awkward it just weird and comes off as trying too hard but for him.... he can do awkward flawlessly... lol

That's what I love about him in this drama and especially when he was in King 2 Hearts.. MAH GAWD. earnestbot!

but yeah. i don't see this drama for the birth secret... b/c it is SOOOO overplayed in the drama realm... I watch for the cute interactions with the other characters..... and maybe Jo Jung Suk... KYAAA!

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Sigh* I was so frustrated with these 2 episodes. Mom #1 and her attitude are driving me insane ( I'm tempted to hit FF every time she on) da#^* just talk about your issues with your family!! You do have 2 daughters that can help you out.
Then there's Mi-Ryung, I'm sorry but what a horrible woman. It seems like its aways going to be about her and her career no matter who gets hurt.
Thank you writters for having Bread Ajusshi around, he was my only bright spot in both episodes.

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I am having the same "mom" issues, and it is getting pretty tiresome. She refuses to talk to anyone, yet blames everyone else.

Overall, this entire series has not come up to what I hoped for - too much senseless lying, concealment, issue avoidance, angst, and totally unreasonable behaviour.

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I agree about Mi Ryung. Even though she appeared to be totally cool at first, I always wonder if there is any other layers inside that feel guilty about the child she abandoned years ago, and if she still has some of the mother's instincts left that cared about her child. Not to mention that Dad died because of her, but when she knew Soon-shin was Dad's daughter, she just dumped Soon Shin without any guilty. Too bad now I see that she seems to not have any of those.

I also did fastforward some scenes of Mom because it feel so tiring watching her torture herself and everyone else. But I get it, I get her frustrations and anger when she thinks that Dad betrayed her (the person/family that she has devoted all her life to). However, if I were her, the way to the answer would be much simpler. Dad already passed away, but she can always take samples from 3 daughters to test if they share one parent (Dad) or not. If not (and I think this will be the case), she can reassure her faith in Dad again. Well, I guess the writers doesn't want to solve this birth secret so easily since they have 34 episodes more to go.

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i don't get your comment. what's the birth secret that needs to be resolved in the upcoming 34 episodes? did i miss something while fastforwarding? i thought the fact that Dad and Mi Ryung's child is Soon Shin is pretty well-established, no DNA testing required. much less from the other daughters as well?

should i rewatch a certain episode again?

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The fact that Soon Shin is Mi Ryung 's child is well established but whether Dad is her birth father or not is unsure for us (and also for Mom). I believe that later on they will reveal that Soon Shin's birth father is not Dad.
That's why I said that if I were Mom, I would bring samples from 3 daughters to the DNA tests (nowadays the DNA test can tell whether people have the same birth parents or only share one parent or are genetically unrelated). That way rather than frustrating like she is now, at least Mom will know for sure if Dad cheated on her or not.

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it's here!! thank you!! :)

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thanks for the recap.....

Soon shin's mom is really annoying because of her unreasonable behavior towards Soon-shin....I hope now she will support her....

And Mi-ryung is indeed a very cold person as she felt nothing after ignoring Soon-shin.....

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And I totally agree with 'I’m certainly not watching this show for the birth secrets' :)

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LOL Agree that I don't watch it for the birth secret too - I skip those parts -just so that I can watch Jun-ho and Soon-shin. But hating on Mi-ryung - awful woman that she is.

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I am feeling frustrated with Mom as well. I am getting tired with all the angry outburst and the I-am-victim-in-pain scenes. I wish that her character turns another leaf and she is motivated to support Soon Shin even if it is in hatred of actress mom.

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Everyone is hating on Mom! ;) Whereas her histrionics are no definitely no fun to watch, can't her irrational behavior be seen as her fear of losing SS to the biological mom, who is a successful movie star? We already saw that Mom felt inferior to MR. She felt she was a shabby nobody, whereas MR was so stylish, so elegant, so well-off, and a big success. Yoo Shin tells us that SS has been Mom's fav all these years. The more she loves SS, the more she is afraid of losing SS to MR in one scoop, and she doesn't know what to do abt it, other than screaming at SS to stop her dream of acting, n stop seeing MR. I don't interpret her cold shoulder towards SS as blaming SS for MR's daughter, but as a reaction to the immediate threat of losing LSS to MR.

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I definitely agree with the fact that Mom is really scared of losing Soon Shin to her biological mother. But treating Soon Shin so badly when she hasn't even done anything wrong isn't exactly going get her anywhere. I understand that Mom has reason to be upset and frustrated, but it's really hard to root for her if she's just mistreating poor Soon Shin who hasn't even done anything wrong.

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I kind of understand the mum but I'm skipping her scenes as much as I skip Jo Gwan Woong's scenes.

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Me too. FF button was abused this week for this show. It's time to get unlikable characters likable.

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Me three. Though mum's reasons are understandable, but... it's just too much. I like the lighter tone of these series.

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treating Soonshin badly will definitely push her to MY. Mom should start fighting for her.

I think Mom is angry because she's thinking SS is the daughter of her husband and MY, meaning they had affair behind her back. She felt betrayed. I remember in one kdrama I watched, someone asked, who is more pitiful, the one left behind or the one betrayed. Unfortunately for Mom, she experienced both, all at the same time.

But parentage can easily be checked now, right? Take the DNA test.

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"..her fear of losing SS to the biological mom.."

And yet everything she does seems designed to drive her even further away. Her over-the-top behaviour and self-loathing is really dragging this series down. It is no longer on my "must watch" list.

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actually, in episode 17, mom finally will change her behaviour..she finally agree to let Soon Shin to act..just be patient & watch! :)

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I don't understand why Mi Ryung is dropping LSS as soon as she finds out whose daughter SS is. The man helped her in her youth, by, as far as she knows, bringing her unwanted daughter to an orphanage, and in the end saved her life by jumping in front of an oncoming vehicle in order to push her out of the way. She owes that man a hell of a lot. When she finds out that LSS is his daughter, shouldn't she do all that she can to help SS get ahead, that is IF she has an ounce of decency in her as a person? But Instead, she pushes SS away with such emotional cruelty. I've reserved judgement of MR up to this point, and have been trying to be sympathetic. But with this behavior, she shows me that she is a worthless human being.
When the day comes for her n SS to meet as mother and daughter, she might be able to get away with "I was too young to know what I was doing" for giving her baby away, but I don't see how she can get away with "I didn't want anything to do with you bcos I was afraid to be linked w your dad's accident for fear that it'd cause a scandal n affect me as a star"!!!! What a piece of garbage!

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Ditto! You said everything I wanted to say. I'm wondering if Mi Ryung's lack of sympathy and remorse for the person who saved her life is because maybe Soon Shin's dad broke her heart by choosing another woman over her in the past while they were dating? That's the only reason I could come up with. But even with that, I can't bring myself to understand Mi Ryung's cruelty towards him. There has to be more to their relationship, either she felt so wronged by Soon Shin's dad, or he broke her heart big time. I mean, if my ex-boyfriend dumped me unfairly and suddenly met up with me again years later only to SAVE MY LIFE and die in my stead, I don't know about you, but I'd forgive him in a heartbeat! Normal people would also think that they owe their savior their life. So the least Mi Ryung could do was think of Soon Shin's dad in a brighter light...but she didn't. And that makes her such a cold-hearted drama character that I just can't ever root for. Let's hope she cries a bucket of tears when she repents for all her wrong-doings.

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I think it's mostly the fear of losing her prestige, power, and position in society. She's managed to secure this image of a well to do woman who has always mingled in the right circles. If word gets out that she was really a poor orphan with a child (potentially/most likely had out of wedlock) then her career is essentially over. At least I think that is what she is afraid of. That and her connection with Soon Shin's dad's death. She's a witness, and sort of a factor in his death, and so there will be legal ramifications if any ties are found between her and his family.

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I know what she is afraid of. It is her moral compass that I find lacking.

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She's just worried about being connected to LSS's father's death. And the manager egged her on about that too. She's very selfish and capable of being really hard hearted.

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I understand Mi Ryung's fears, but it just doesn't justify her dropping Soon Shin in just a cruel way. If she wants to distance herself to avoid a scandal, she could at least do it politely. Just say that her schedule is going to be busier with the movie and end the acting lessons. There's friendlier ways to cut ties with people. Suddenly crushing Soon Shin's confidence and her dreams (while she gave her hope in the first place) wasn't necessary at all. This just shows that she really doesn't care about anyone but herself.

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This show just gets better doesn't it?
The mom's are really pissing me off, especially the one who reared SS.. right now, it seems that everything is about her, she seems to have blinders where SS's acting career is concerned.. I wanted to shake her like anything when she told SS why MiY told her.. Really i get it that you r hurt, frustrated and fear that you are gonna loose your daughter- to hurting her instead of supporting her.. that makes no sense... And MiY- lets not even go there- I just wonder if she is gonna work on sabotaging SS's career more when she finds out that SS is her daughter, or is gonna regret being so harsh now? Looking at how she reacted to SS identity i bet she is gonna do anything to ruin SS's career. Oh ya whats with granny's woe me attitude? Seriously not everything is about her- something mom needs to figure out also.
But one the other had how cute are the love lines? I think i am never going to be bored watching Bread mans talk/ interactions with he little brat... The doc n the middle sis- they are dating!!! (though it was really sweet that she did not date him coz SS had a crush o him)..

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I'm not a fan of wrist grabs, but was sure happy to see Joon-Ho pull Soon-shin away from that hurtful situation.

I too thought theses episodes were somewhat tedious. Let's get this ship to sail already!

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I actually thought that these 2 eps didn't move forward as much as I would have liked... With the birth secret going round and round, and mum becoming I increasingly frustrating to watch, as JB said. Totally agree. Don't understand the character and her reactions. I don't have adoptive kids, but I imagine if I raised one for 20 years, how can you blame her for something she doesn't know about and couldn't control? She can be angry at dead dad or mom who abandoned child, but I totally don't agree at her anger lashing out at soon shin. Unjustified and negates what she had done raising soon shin for 20 years. The child did nothing wrong! And revenge as a solution?!? I can't even start ...

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Well, the good news is Dr. Shin can't possibly be the baby-daddy since he and Mi-ryung didn't know each other during their "difficult" years. (I got the impression from their conversation they met through Mrs. Shin.) So no incest worries! :D

I agree that mom is... blech. I'm almost happy she's being so shrewish so I don't have to try and feel empathy. She's being horrible to Soon-shin and will need to feel bad and say sorry and do some big stuff to make up for it later. Right now? No love for mom.

But! It does bring in the sisters-love which I adore. (I'm one of three sisters so I completely relate to the whole sisterdom thing.) It's nice to see Yoo-shin showing that, deep down, she does love Soon-shin -- when it counts.

And finally, holy crap Mi-ryung is cold. I didn't expect her to be so ruthless (though, it's not coming out of nowhere). The one good thing about that is that it means Soon-shin will have to make it on her own, not through Mi-ryung's behind-the-scenes manipulations.

But I do worry it's too early for Soon-shin to be set down like that. She was only just getting used to praise! Thank goodness for Jun-ho.

Thanks for the recap, Javabeans! :)

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Bread Man owned the last episode. Or perhaps the last episode owned him. I'm still not sure how he managed to end up with a drying rack around his head, but it cracks me up every time.

Also, Hye-shin has the most gorgeous smile.

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You're the Best, Bread Man! :D

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Love the flying lingeries.... Can't wait for the next scene!

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Episode 16 has engraved Jun Ho into my heart forever. This character is just so unique in its own way, and Jo Jung Suk gave it that extra charm and warmth that makes Jun Ho so endearing. In the ending scene when he yelled at Soon Shin, he was seeing himself in her. He's defending her without realizing it because it's what he couldn't do for himself in the past. No one stood up for him when it mattered, no one said "Jun Ho, stop showing your weakness by offering your heart up to a person who's too selfish to appreciate your efforts". And so he's desperately trying to prevent Soon Shin from that same pain. Oof, he's such a sweetie. I love a hero who defends the heroine against "bullies".

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Aw, i totally agree with everything you said.
The romance is building slowly but surely. I think that's the best thing about a long drama. You see the relationships develop much more organically and witness the OTP falling for each other. Instead of just accepting character's love for one another because it's expected.

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Perfect comment, this is a long family series but it really does have a lot of emotional depth already!

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That's an astute observation. Jun Ho doesn't want SS humiliated like he was.

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I replayed that last few minutes so many times. Gyah. I loved every second of it... from the teary-eyed "President" to the blunt brush off "I have nothing to say to you".

Although I wonder if it will lead to more drama because while we can all see and feel for Jun Ho - that he was trying to protect Soon Shin and he was angry that she was still humiliated anyway. And I agree that he was seeing the old himself in Soon Shin, that went he wanted to do the thing he was passionate about, nobody supported him. But Soon Shin may also interpret it as Jun Ho being angry that she had disobeyed his orders. Although I hope not!

I think... my favourite character in the whole show is Jun Ho... Because he's just such a good person - although he really has some problems expressing it. He's a pretty shrewd judge of character and he isn't afraid to call a spade a spade. Like on his sister getting bruised in a fight, he acidly remarked that she isn't the kind of person who will let another person hit her. If she looked like that, imagine how would the other person look like.

Recap conclusion - Love Jun Ho. But favourite line of this week's episode must be "They have all had plastic surgery. You're the prettiest." Said so absentmindedly. :D

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spot on! me too, loved how he said it so matter-of-factly to her. and her stunned reaction, HA! i want more scenes with them and the romance to blossom...also with hye shin and bread man! i think she likes him a bit because he is sweet and makes her laugh...

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Yeah..that line was awesome. Something said from the heart! Hahaha.....and finally, Yoo Shin wakes up. How can she bear to reject Chan Woo again!!!??? I love that couple =)

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Thank you sooo much!

I really hope Mom does step to the challenge but I have a feeling thats not going to happen any time soon. I see the other people around Soon Shin being the ones to help her through her unnies and her too bosses and not mom. Not for now at least.

As for Mom.. she makes sooooo angry and aggravated and don't think she will ever return to my good grace.

On a good note i love how the love- relationships are developing in this drama. They feel grounded and sincere, and not thinking... "only in a drama" about their interactions.

And i'm liking how the sister relationship is developing too. You can tell there is a bond and support for each other there, even when they aren't being overtly showy of it.

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well what do you know? yoo-shin aint so annoying nowadays.
I can sort of understand her "middle-child syndrome", although that doesn't excuse her hurtful behavior in the the first portion of this show. I'm also really diggin' her loveline with chan woo. Why so cute?
But wow, are we already at 16 episodes? I was wondering how you'd rework the 4th dimension to add in mandate, so i see how you combined the two episodes.

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Omg I'm in love with this ! To my ears !

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Thanks for the recap!

Just a thought on the makjang aspect of this show:

So ooooo ..... The mom has brain cancer right?

That way it's a double header birth secret/ cancer victim.

I'm not satisfied on motivation.

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brain cancer???are you being serious lolololol. aint nobody got time for that.. :D :D jk But still.. I NEED MORE SHIN SHIN MOMENTS

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i'm watching this drama because I want Soon-shin she's deserving the contract Joonho gave her. When will I see it? i'm definitely not watching this because of the Moms.

Yes, I want to see more lovelines too =)

Maybe, now that the acting got push in the back, maybe Joonho can take a different route and turn to music? Let's say at Stage Musical or something? I really, really want IU/Soonshin to turn into music since that is the first love of Joonho. Let her be the one to fulfill his dreams. love it!!!

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@Bengbeng - like this idea - I was thinking about it too - someone soon will find out about SS's/IU's beautiful voice and turn her into a singer instead. That way, the bet with YeonAh will be negated to turn SS into an actress and then Jun Ho and Soon Shin will have something in common that Jun Ho and YeonAh does NOT.

Then, maybe, we get to hear the duo sing ?!?!

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If they can get Jun Ho to sing, i will forgive the drama for anything.. Even if they make Jun Ho's dad and MiR have an affair making Jun Ho's mom against Jun Ho n LSS's paring. Jun Ho loosing his memories and marrying his ex telling him all sort of lies n making him act all evil towards LSS, causing LSS to be kicked out of her home and only get together lin the last 5 min of the show.... :)

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*praying what you just said won't happen in the drama except the junho singing part* LOL :D :D

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hahaha, you're funny!!!

But I hope the show will not waste the 2 beautiful voices of their leads =). And I don't want to wait till it's on episode 25. Can it happen over the weekend? =)

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Mom is not so hard to understand: she's having a nervous breakdown. Or, to be more precise, she's coming out of that breakdown, and getting freaking mad at everyone, especially the person who symbolizes the All That's Wrong, is how she's healing.

Yes, it's unpleasant for everyone to called out on their $#!¥ but so what? Are they such delicate flowers they can't cope?

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Agreed!

Was I the only one liking how Mom would take none of Granny's BS? I mean, yes, Granny is right to tell her to forgive Lee Soon Shin and all but it's just what she always does regardless of who is right or wrong. She's ALWAYS harping on others, and ESPECIALLY treats Mom the worst with her constant complaining and unappreciation. I hate hate hate how these dreadful MIL can get away with treating their DIL like that while the DIL has always been nothing but gracious and doing beyond what is required of them in caring for the MIL.

Did I enjoy Mom's behavior? No. Was she right to lash out of Lee Soon Shin? Absolutely not. But keep in mind that she's already put up with so much over the years with "certain members" of the family that her discovering of someone she thought she knew was just turned upside down. It's like what she was so sure of was just LIES LIES LIES.

It's not surprising that she'd just flip over COMPLETELY and just be completely out of control and out of her mind (to think correctly), hence her treatment of Lee Soon Shin.

Anyways, I hope Mom can get some help from a GOOD friend (not that silly chicken wife) or just be able to open up to her daughters so she doesn't have to suffer alone and cause Lee Soon Shin and herself more unnecessary pain. :)

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I don't really care about Mom lashing out to granny or even the two other sisters - they can cope. But the way she treats Soon Shin is just over the top. It's just cruel to make an already insecure person feel like she's completely incapable and worthless and the cause of every bad thing in the world. I mean, having one angry moment of rage is acceptable, but mistreating a person over and over and over and over and OVER and OVER again for no apparent reason (that anyone knows of except for Mom herself) just isn't fair.

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Thank-you!! I totally agree. It's not that it's okay, and she is definitely going to regret it later, but it's totally understandable given all the circumstances.

Besides the death of her husband, the stunned belief in his betrayal (which she thinks lasted the entire marriage, making it all a sham and a lie), the conflicted emotions that come from meeting SS's biological mom, there is the seemingly small but significant detail that she stayed away from home for 24 hours, and nobody even knew she hadn't come home that night. She feels useless and that her entire life has essentially been a waste and throwing herself away .

I think, too, that if she weren't in the midst of this horrible emotional breakdown which nobody understands, we wouldn't see middle sister rising to the occasion and showing the strength of her bond with SS, either.

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Oh. that's true. That bit about Yoo-shin caring for Soon-shin now mom has gone crazy. I'm glad we get to see that, because it's finally making Yoo-shin likeable.

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Actually, the problem is nobody knows why she is acting like that. Only the viewers knows why. If she can't tell them why, at least fight back and fight for Soonshin.

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I agree. Mom's prolonged lashing out at Soon Shin is causing me to go from feeling fed up with Mom to feeling fed up with the writer. Enough already! Luckily, scenes like Bread Man vs. The Bras delight me so much that my frustration quickly dissipates. Does anyone know how much of a dork Jung Woo, the actor who plays Bread Man, is (or isn't) in RL? He's such a convincing (and hilarious) klutz.

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Looks like my love for this show and my love for Soon-shin's mom is on an equal and opposite trajectory.

While I'm continuously looking forward to every episode (seriously loving all the plots and sub-plots save for the birth secret) the mom is my only dark shadow in the show, making it a less than perfect watching experience.

Nonetheless, I will continue watching it for Jo Jung-suk and IU's surprising chemistry.

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Loved Mr. Bread Man falling all over the girl's underwear. So Funny. and adorkable...

Anyway, Mother's Day is coming up soon in my country. These two moms are seriously turning me off and feeling no sympathy to both of them. Why didn't Mi Ryung use contraceptives? Don't have child if you don't want to love or raise it and don't adopt a child if you end up playing mind games and mistreating it later. Soon Shin is the innocent victim and doesn't deserve this kind of mistreatment.

Thank goodness, Jun Ho is in her corner. He's falling for Soon Shin and finally showing the door to Yeon Ah.

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COME. ON. MOOOOOOOOOOOMM!

GAH.

If this week's eps are as infuriating--at least when it comes to mom--I will flip.

Love the unnis. ~

And oh just sing, IU. Hahaha. And Jo Jungseok. Forget acting! Soonshin-Junho duet NOW.

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I predict another 2 weeks of Mom moping and bent on revenge. She needs to get distracted like Hye Sin's divorce revelation or Yu Sin's dating Chan Woo.

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I second the SS/JH duet.

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Beanies, I need a bit of help.Can y'all help me ID the pieces oldest unni wears?Like a pintrest board or something.I'm in love with every single piece of her wardrobe.

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I know, right! I love all of her outfits but it would probably be hard to track down each item specifically.

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There are lots of Korean online clothing sites. They tend to have items similar to those that appear on the stars in KDs, except for designer pieces that the lead actress wears.

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I know, I know and oh! the woes.I've looked into Korean sites, but I swear most of the tops/outerwear have padded shoulders.Unni's clothes are absolutely glam and have a professional touch.Forever21 has a few similar pieces but they look a bit teenybopper-ish.

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I haven't been watching Kdramas long enough to find the birth secrets trope tiring. I'm really caught up in the whole story trejectory, from the two moms, to the sisters' individual love story lines, to the blossoming of Soon Shin's character in the face of adversity. These last two episodes really broke my heart, and made me absolutely despise the birth mother. She'll be deserving of very heartbreak reserved for her in future episodes. And while I still do understand why SS's adoptive mother is currently behaving the way she does, I have to admit that there were several moments when I wanted to smack her, especially during episode 16. I am absolutely loving the acting of the young woman who plays Soon Shin. It's especially impressive in light of her Kpop background.

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This show is turning into 'You're the Best, Lee Soon Shin's Mom.'

The birth secret, the Mom and her misplaced angst dominates way too much of the screen time. The plot seems to be mainly about the birth secret as opposed to being mainly about Soon Shin pursuing her dream and finding love at the same time. I hope this changes soon...

Since it's 50 episodes I hope they keep moving the birth secret plot line quickly and don't drag it out since this is what they seem to be doing. But somebody please give Soon Shin a clue. They are making her suffer so much :( I mean she was just a lamb out to slaughter at the end of episode 16! I expected Joon Ho to at least have one more raging line asking Soon Shin if she had any pride. How could she show up to that woman's house? Gah!

I hope to see more growth in Soon Shin so that she learns to discern who cares about her and who doesn't, gains not only self-esteem and confidence in herself and her dream, but also a bit of pride and self-respect to not let people treat her any old way. To not be a push-over.

I kind of wish a little bit of that had happened at the end of episode 16, but Joon Ho swooped in to save Soon Shin from the situation which had it's own (poisonous) charm in that it gave us what we all wanted, which was a clear indication to us and to the other characters that Joon Ho was 100% on Soon Shin's side. But I wish that ending scene took the opportunity to show some growth in Soon Shin, that she was willing to stand up for herself. One thing I noticed about Soon Shin is that she rarely says differently when people criticize her, she just apologizes or looks sad and says nothing. I hope that can start to change now since we are well into the series.

The manager guy is the creeps. Stop the violence. (My evil twisted mind thought for a minute, what if he is Soon Shin's Dad after a drunken night with Mi Ryung back in the day. Kekeke/Disturbing...really, really disturbing.)

I'm glad this week is over. I found these two episodes hard to watch because of the Mom and Mi Ryung...also Joon Ho's dad is so sketch. I am giving him the side eye...I really hope they don't have Mi Ryung and him have an affair because that is BS. I will be throwing tomatoes at the screen if that happens! There is already a birth secret and one potential cheating in a marriage. We don't need another.

Looking forward to more fun next week.
Thank you for recapping this 50 episode monster :)

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bread man is a piece of delight! after being abandoned by mom and mi ryung, i hope there will be more and more scenes of soon shin and jun ho, because jun ho will find out a way for soon shin to shine again and blow the two moms away. mom needs to see psychiatrist for healing. ahhh jo jung suk only appears for seconds in these two eps. T_T
i just notice in many dramas, many rich men, managers or CEOs, they still live with their parents. I mean, if jun ho doesnt get along with his parents, why dont he move, he still eats with them (but that's good thing, though...)

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Did anyone else think that was a lot of underwear to be drying all at once - I mean I know it's a house full of women, but still - it's like they saved up a week's worth just to wash.

They overdo it with the bread too - every time Bread man gives the grandma a plate stacked high with buns, I keep thinking how is she going to eat all that. Just eating one will fill her up. It's sort of funny cuz on OB, her character liked these sweet buns as well so TH and JE always bought them for her.

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Both moms worked my nerves so much, i skipped their scenes and had a much more pleasant viewing experience.

Hye Shin please next week reveal your divorce, i want to see Bread Man attempt to flirt and woo.

Jun-Ho, ummmm maybe take it down a notch when getting mad on LSS' behalf? Yell at the bullies not the victim.

Anyone else notice that one of the project Jun-Ho had to approve was called "What's Up?" i geeked out.

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Downside:
Mom continues to annoy the crap out of me, VERY. PAINFULLY. in the sense that this is the very first time I've ever felt this argh!! with a character before (and I've been watching Kdramas since I was a wee little girl).... Mom even surpasses Grandma's level of how painful it is to watch her and tolerate her, seriously D': I mean, I understand why Mom is the way she is and why she has to go through these emotions, but OMG, isn't she just a bit (A LOT, actually) too extreme??? I agree with Javabeans on the point/perspective that Mom being like this is basically invalidating all that she's experienced and gone through with Soon-Shin in the last 20-something years that she's raised her, and even to a point that she's invalidating her marriage and the feels that came with the marriage between her and Daddy Lee, and to a certain point, degrading the births and existence of Hye-Shin and Yoo-shin as well DX sigh
Upside:
YOUNG HOON!!!!!! <3 My favorite 'side character' in any drama EVER!! But then again, that just might be by Lee Ji Hoon bias speaking kekeke
Bread Man + Woo Joo together continue to be a hoot, and FINALLY, there's development and progress with Yoo Shin and Chan Woo a.k.a. Dr. Gentle (and possibly the Mr. Perfect of this drama if it weren't for Young Hoon already taking that title teehee <3)
As well, hallelujah and praise be to the Drama gods, Grandma finally came around and has finally toned down HER bitterness (or has it just transferred to Mom? Yea, I think so....), but then again, it might just be the work and doings of Mr. Bread Man being a part of the house, i dunno n.n I'm just happy there's one less bitter person, in the house and in the drama in general, cuz we've already got enough of those (Mom, Yeon Ah, Chicken Ahjumma)
Last thing... JUN HO COULD NOT HAVE DRIVEN FASTER, could he?!?!?!??! I giggled a bit at the scene where Jun Ho finds out from Young Hoon where Soon Shin had actually gone to (Mi Ryung's house)...
The last couple minutes of episode 16 were painful to watch- to see Soon Shin be put down like that ='( Jun Ho's nice save (and dissing Yeon Ah to boot- I admit, I couldn't stop laughing and rewinding & replaying that part) was a nice touch and helped a little to offset the pain of the scene, but NOT ENOUGH!!!

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"‘Cause the more we see of Bread Man, Gentle Doc, and Dorky CEO, the better. I’m certainly not watching this show for the birth secrets, that’s fo’ sho’."

Word - javabeans - word.

Thanks for the great recap! Now let's hope Soon Shin's mom wakes up and stops acting so bratty. It's getting really old, really fast...as in let's have no more episodes with her being like that. She's only alienating Soon Shin and her whole family. And Bread Man - I think if you give Grandma more sweet bean buns, she might stop being such a sour, crotchety old lady. Breadman! Save this crazy family! Oh, and Chanwoo oppa too - you are rather delightful.

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Girl, that username is the first thing I had in mind. :p Deewanis unite!!

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Thank you for your recap.Your comments made me laugh all over again.
I love JJS but that bread man scenes is so humiliating that it's too funny.Poor,poor guy.
I am now rooting for his loveline with Woo Joo .That kid really does not like him.

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Thanks so much!

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I can't express how much I love Chanwoo oppa! I wonder if Chanwoo and Yooshin will be the first couple to tie the knot in this drama and also how CW's mom will react to their relationship. They have taken the path of least resistance (in comparison to the OTP) so far and it's be interesting for them to face some opposition, hardship, angst, & heartache (aka typical kdrama elements) to entertain the audience.

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I have to admit I wasn't much into those two last episodes... they somehow didn't have the same level of warmth and fun (and logic?) as the previous ones... maybe indeed because there was too much of the birth-secret-story... which isn't the strongest part of the drama.

I was touched by Junho's concern for Sunshin. We don't know much about his story as a failed musician, but I guess he could see himself in her situation and that was one of the reasons why he got so emotional...

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I miss the Mum from the first few episodes. T_T Also, Dr Shin annoys the hell out of me. Every time he's onscreen, I get the urge to do something violent. And poor Bread Man. Heh, I totally want more fail from him though, it's hilarious to watch (I'm just that sadistic, haha).

Also, am I the only one who's actually not annoyed at Grandma anymore? Her nagging was definitely frustrating for the first few episodes, but now I'm actually agreeing with the things she says to Mum. And sympathising with her, because as bitter as Mum might be about this whole cheating/birth thing, you don't just treat an elderly person like the way she's been treating Grandma for the past few eps. =.=

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This is gonna be really off topic but I don't no where else to ask. So I am sorry. Can anyone please tell me why in God of the Workplace her name is funny? The joke is completely lost on me.

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Lee Soon Shin is the name of a famous Korean war hero (who is in fact in Gu Family Book right now). His face is on the 100 won coin. It'd sorta be like if you'd named your daughter George after George Washington, as I understand it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yi_Sun-sin

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Or more like naming your son George when your last name is Washington. :P

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@Noelle - i too am watching YTBLSS and God of Workplace/Queen of Office. Ms Kim's name of Jeonsum is funny to the office folks because it is a very old fashion/country bumpkin kind of name (as per my Korean Friend's explanation wen I asked her the exact question.)

Names are an issue in both YTBLSS and QofO for our lead characters.

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After getting flustered with the Mom character for about 8 episodes, I realize that she's one of those major plot foils that lasts a really long time in family dramas. I noticed that the mom was the sticking point for a long time in Ojakkyo Brothers, although she changed to nice faster than the plot did and ended up feeling guilty for what she did. The mom in Smile You also spent a long time being the sticking point there. So I guess Mom will be the same here and the Men get to be the comic relief. Luckily they do a great job of it and are entertaining all around.

Not sure why everyone hates Yeon Ah, sure she's somewhat of a meanie in some ways, but the actress is certainly very pretty and enjoyable to watch. The same with the actress playing Yi Jung although not really fond of bright red hair. Still, Yoo Inna always dresses well and is also easy on the eyes, and she is pretty good at comedy too, even though she's playing a prickly character this time around, hehe.

Anyway, going slightly off topic, I watched Jo Jung Suk in What's Up and he really plays dorky there, and does it quite well. He also has a great singing voice. I hear that the actress that plays Lee Soon Shin has some experience in singing, so when will we get a duet??? That would be really nice. After all, you can also be a star as a singer just as easily as an actor. :)

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"I hear that the actress that plays Lee Soon Shin has some experience in singing," Some experience? She's freaking Amazing. Ok, so maybe I'm a little biased because I'm a huge fan but really, she is. Just look up IU on youtube. c:

They should change her career path from acting to singing, especially since Jun-ho wanted to be a musician himself.

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Yeah, IU is known for being a singer, not so much as an actor. Though Jo Jung Suk started in musicals, so some sort of singing by either of them would be a treat.

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and both of them plays guitar quite well. I heard IU singing acoustic. I hope they will both show that talent too

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I also notice how mom character kind of similar in every long run drama hehe . Btw , actress that play lee soon shin is indeed a singer .. Can't wait to hear their duet too .. Hee~

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The music video for IU's single, "You and I" (man, they make their MV's long in Korea):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yjv_T2KA8iQ

Jo Jung Suk singing a Korean version of _Grease's_ "These Magic Changes" in _What's Up_:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eoU895b1vw

So yeah, I dearly hope they can figure out some way for them to sing together at some point. JJS singing is almost a given since his character is a former singer in the show, but IU would be harder to justify.

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That should be "Those Magic Changes".

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His hair makes me embarrassed

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whose hair?

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I may be alone in this in that I know why Soon-shin's mother is acting like this, mostly because she has nowhere else to direct her anger. The father managed to avoid taking the brunt of the blame by dying, and Soon-shin stands, unfortunately, as a repeated reminder of your husband's supposed infidelity and lack of respect, I mean in her version of events he knowingly brought her his mistress's baby to raise. Also, for all she knows, this may not have been a one-off, maybe it went on for decades. To top it off poor Soon-Shin feeds fire to the crazy flame every time she chooses Mi Ryung. I think the mother wouldn't be nearly as put out, maybe even be able to see reason if it weren't for that point just poking her innards. I mean revenge dramas have used less to launch entire revenge plots so I can see it. But just because I can see why she is so angry does not mean I condone it, her methods of dealing with her anger reek with intense passive aggression which I personally cannot stand. Soon-shin was always going to get the brunt of her anger (poor Soon-shin) but the degree of anger is mostly because she won't tell anyone which is where any logical explanation for the mother falters. I get not telling Soon-shin, poor girl does not even know she was adopted and then add the fact she is supposedly (I really do not think he is the father) the love child of her father and some young harlot who threw her away would just about kill her. But everyone else in that family knows Soon-shin is adopted, she could tell her mother-in-law at least. Chan-woo's mother does not count because she is a witch and probably only feeds the pain. This isn't even noble idiocy, it's just plain old heavy passive aggression, she would rather feel like the victim then do anything to deal with.

I will add this aside though, how long has it been since she found out the birth secret/the father died? It really could be just a time issue. Yoo-shin was partly right, I mean all that depression that she had after her husband got twisted to anger so it's not just the usual "I'm mad you cheated", it's also "I'm mad you died before I could find out if our entire life was a lie and now I have to put together these details on my own". Though watching her attack the father's grave would be more bearable than seeing all the things she does to Soon-shin.

Mi Ryung, I have no intention of trying to understand. I mean the drama gives the standard it was so hard for her growing up, she is cold to survive but still cannot stand her. She took glee in her maliciousness, you'd hope she'd be a little conflicted but nope, she was smirking through the whole exchange with Soon-shin at the end. When I first read the synopsis I assumed she would make a change once she found out Soon-shin is her daughter and try to right her wrongs but the way her character is going I think she will probably try to kill Soon-shin if she ever found out, just to keep her secret. What's another body on your conscience if you have none. Sigh, I say Soon-shin should just say Hasta la vista to both maternal figures and spend all her time with Jun Ho, because he is just the sweetest thing ever.

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did anyone notice that the musical that JJ was lookign at had the same name as Jo Jung Suk's previous drama - what's Up?

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Yes! I saw the scene with the poste of "What's Up" on his desk and i thought that was a familiar title as I had looked up Jung Suk's profile at the beginning of the drama.

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I had to look at it again coz the first time i thought i was just dreaming it.. Its a nice touch though..Wonder if it'll make an appearance again..

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Maybe JunHo will cast SoonShin in a MUSICAL - acting and singing called "What's Up" - DAEBAK!

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THAT would be niceeee... Maybe he would also get cast in the show.. That way we can hear him sing...

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disappointed... this was the weekend that was supposed to make up for last weekend's lackluster episodes.

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I know right :( :( I really hope this week's pace is better.

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kekeke..sometimes we need to bear all these sadness first in order to get happiness..just be patient..everything will turn out fun & sweet soon~ :)

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Thanks for the recap!

One thing missing from recap was that scene with restaurant oppa (Young Hoon) who questioned Jun Ho's ability when he found out that SS was left out of the audition list. Thought that was funny that Jun Ho's good buddy was questioning his star-making ability and doing right by Soon Shin.

Looooooove restaurant oppa and bread man!

Me thinks Bread Man must have died a thousand deaths already from the dagger looks from the little brat Woo Joo thus far!

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Starting to love Yoo Shin. She can be quite funny and I appreciate how she makes scenes at home a lot lighter.

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Mom & Mi-ryung is making Grandma looking like a saint right now.

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Very true!

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LOL true

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Love the show. Thank you for the recaps!

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jiahh... birth secret drags this story too much...
Why they don't focus on how Soon Shin become a star, like how she should struggling step by step to become top actress?? And how Jun Ho would find one way to another way to make her become top star.. I'm really waiting for this drama's story to be develop like that..
Anyway, Bread man's lingerie scene was the only best part from these two episodes :D

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I can't wait until mom has to realize that her moronic idea that Soon Shin is her husbands daughter is wrong, also can't wait till Mi Ryung realizes Soon Shin is her daughter.

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Those two are the BIG Reveals of this drama!

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One other big reveal -- Hye Shin's divorce. The only people who know about it are Woo Joo and Yu Shin. Hye Shin must be really afraid of the consequences of revealing that she's divorced to Granny and her Mother.

On a side note, it's interesting to see how Granny seems to take every affront, every insult to the family as a personal insult to her. Soon Shin's problems become lack of respect for Granny, etc. I'm not sure if this is because Granny just happens to be a person who thinks the world revolves around her, or if she's a stereotypical Asian elder, where they believe that all of the respect goes up the generational ladder, where their age allows them greater or some might say extreme latitude or power in the decisions or the attitudes of the family.

This is one of the strengths of Asians when it comes to business. Because of the stability of the elders, they tend to be conservative and less apt to get into risky situations. It is also one of the weaknesses, where the glass ceiling prevents younger, more qualified people from rising in rank faster, and may also keep a doddering nearly senile elder in office longer than he should.

It seems this view is changing, probably more in the real world than in dramas. After all, filial piety is a perfect plot point that the writers use when they run out of ideas on how to keep the OTP apart for a few more episodes. I curious as to what Chicken Ahjumma will say when she finds out (down the inevitable road) that her shining star of a son wants to marry the girl next door (so to speak) Yu Shin. I cringe at seeing that scene, as her voice always raises up into a scream . . . I can guarantee it will probably be funny.

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I'm also interested to see what what happens when Chicken Ahjumma finds out about Yoo Shin and Chan Woo's relationship. I hope they don't change how outspoken Yoo Shin is when the relationship is outed. Right now I feel that the only girl who can handle Chicken Ahjumma is Yoo Shin. Can you imagine the two of them in a shouting contest?! haha. It would be refreshing if Chicken Ahjumma actually like Yoo Shin...

It would be funny for Yi Jung to meet Chicken Ahjumma! Laugh riot. I think she would give up her hope for Chan Woo immediately!

Every time Chicken Ahjumma screams I jump back from the screen. Scary woman.

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Scary is right!

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Faridah, you're exactly right, I think. I would only add that the reason the mom cannot tell anybody about what's burning a hole in her from the inside out is because of the betrayal. Everybody around her thinks her husband was wonderful, and she did, too, until just a few weeks ago. To tell any of her family that he cheated, that he brought home his mistresses baby for her to raise and lied about it for 2o years or more is not something a betrayed wife would find easy to do.

The betrayed wife in an adulterous affair often feels massive shame and humiliation over the affair, which is twisted- that ought to be what the cheater feels, but that's why adultery is so cruel.

She definitely needs to talk to somebody rational about this, and badly, but meanwhile, while it's frustrating to watch it is totally realistic.

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