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Monstar: Episode 3

This show continues to deliver as our story unfolds and this ragtag group unexpectedly finds solidarity in a secret that they’ll take to the grave. We learn more about some of our side characters and our beloved idol does his best to keep his growing jealousy at bay. But what can you do when you pit adorable anger against sexy brains? With imaginations running wild left and right, I may not be the only one seeing things.

SONG OF THE DAY

Ha Yeon-soo & Kang Ha-neul  – 아틀란티스 소녀 “Atlantis Princess” [ Download ]

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EPISODE 3: “Returned Idol Seol-chan Causes a Huge Accident”

At the sight of Sun-woo and Se-yi’s duet performance, Seol-chan silently fumes in the back of the music room. He’s just about to walk out the door when Joon-hee loudly announces his arrival.

He pointedly shoots daggers with his eyes at Se-yi (who looks genuinely sorry for this turn of events) before apologizing for his tardiness. Teacher Dokko asks what he plans to do now since his teammates have just concluded their performance.

Refusing Sun-woo’s offer of help, he answers that he’ll play the piano. With the stern warning that he can’t perform a MIB song, Seol-chan announces this untitled original number is written by an unknown songwriter. He smirks at Se-yi before he begins.

The song starts off with a soft melody and then quickly changes to an upbeat tempo. Seol-chan keeps his eyes on Se-yi as he raps and sings to a thoroughly entertained crowd. Although we know that the lyrics were written with Se-yi in mind, I love that they’re as equally pertinent in this situation, even if it’s a somewhat sarcastic apology/confession.

Impressed, Sun-woo can’t help but acknowledge the idol boy’s creative improvisation. But it’s a completely story for Se-yi, who whispers: “Thief.” She storms out, infuriated.

As Seol-chan’s voice cheerily sings in the background, Se-yi breaks into a run as she dashes through the hallways. Then we transition to the Adam ajusshi, who falls asleep listening to the original acoustic arrangement.

Now outside, Se-yi struggles to catch her breath and stops Nana (who has finally turned up for school) in her tracks. She’s heard of Nana’s infamous reputation as a fighter, so she asks her for a favor—can she beat someone up for her?

“What will give me?” Nana returns. She doesn’t need the money but lays out her terms: “Just kill someone for me. Two of them.”

Taken aback, Se-yi suggests that they forget the issue. Nana warns her: “If you ask me for this kind of favor again, you’re dead meat.” Before she leaves, she advises Se-yi to handle the situation “like you did last time.”

Sun-woo calls Seol-chan out on his cowardice back in the music room when the boys cross paths in the stairwell—if he had something to say to Se-yi, he should have just said it. Seol-chan places his hand on Sun-woo’s shoulder and asks, “Why do you keep interfering? Don’t butt in.”

Sun-woo laughs, and then frames his retort like a grammar lesson: “You’re using the incorrect personal pronoun. First person pronouns are ‘I,’ ‘me,’ ‘we,’ and ‘us.’ Second person pronouns are ‘you,’ ‘your,’ and ‘yours.’ So in this case you shouldn’t use a second person pronoun but a first person pronoun. I’ll put it a bit more simply—it shouldn’t be, ‘Why do you keep interfering?’ but ‘Why do I keep interfering?’ And then I would ask you the same question.”

Omg, it’s a nerd smackdown. Epic. Now it’s Sun-woo turn to pat Seol-chan’s shoulder and tell him that he’ll be happy to tutor the idol in grammar anytime.

Seol-chan is left both puzzled and annoyed and looks up to see Se-yi smirk back at him. As he walks past, she mouths an indiscernible word to his face.

Back at the classroom, Seol-chan happily distributes autographed pictures to his adoring fans. That is, until the girls reel in shock at the back… and show him the set of erotic manhwa sketches. Hahaha.

They collectively cry: “Pervert!” HA—so that’s what Se-yi mouthed earlier.

Teacher Dokko starts to pitch her alternative idea for the concert to the Vice Principal when Gym Teacher Choi chimes in to back her up. His enthusiastic support makes her job that much more difficult, and she ends up having to assemble an orchestra for the event.

As expected, not one of her students are willing to participate, and they all rally for Kyu-dong to perform solo. Aw, it’s terrible how his musical talent is a subject of ridicule.

When Kyu-dong tries to speak to her after class, she interjects and lets him off the hook—she understands that the class was just goading him. However, his disappointed expression suggests that he may have actually wanted to do it.

Before Nana leaves, Teacher Dokko reminds her that she promised to do whatever it takes to graduate. If her tardiness continues, she won’t be able to.

As Seol-chan leaves school, he tsks to find the Adam ajusshi hanging around the school entrance. Dealing with his tainted idol image is a more pressing matter at present, and he publicly pins his manager as the culprit for the graphic sketches.

Hee, I love that Seol-chan is still so bitter about the insulting smackdown that he asks his manager to looks into language tutors. Then Manager Hong hilariously exclaims: “To study?! You’re not going to school to study!”

Seol-chan instructs his manager to pull over when he notices Se-yi on the sidewalk. She refuses the ride as per usual, and remains stubbornly persistent until Seol-chan has had enough and pulls her into the car… and she lands on top of him. Well now.

Sun-woo has caught the latter part of the exchange from his car and he instructs his driver to tail them.

Seol-chan and Se-yi continue to argue in that position in the minivan (to Manager Hong’s continuous protests for them to break apart, ha) as Seol-chan demands an apology—thanks to her little prank, his public image is even more distorted than before.

Manager Hong gapes to hear that an innocent-looking high school girl was behind it, and he asks what her intention was. Looking straight into Seol-chan’s eyes, Se-yi answers: “To get revenge. He stole my song.”

Seol-chan starts to protest that it wasn’t hers, but she interrupts him, yelling: “It was my Dad’s song! It’s not an untitled song by an unknown writer! It’s not a song that you can just butcher like that, you thief!”

Seol-chan falls silent for a moment before he takes offense: “Thief?!” He shouts back that fine, Se-yi can go tell her father that he’s super sorry for plagiarizing his work. Better yet, he’ll call to apologize himself. DUDE.

Which is when he feels something hot fall on his face—Se-yi’s tears. His eyes grow wide and it takes a few more tears before he finally lets go of her.

Wiping away her tears, she asks to be dropped off. She wrenches her guitar out of Seol-chan’s hand before marching down the street. Sun-woo’s car pulls up just as the minivan drives away, and he asks in concern: “Did you cry?”

In the car, Seol-chan can’t wrap his head around why Se-yi started crying: “What did I do wrong? It makes me look like the bad guy!” Oh, honey.

Manager Hong tells him that it could have been worse: “If you two stayed in that position any longer, she would have thrown up!” Hahaha. Then he asks why Seol-chan pinned him as the culprit if he already knew who the real perpetrator was.

Seol-chan’s answer is telling of his concern for her: “If the other kids found out, do you think they’ll leave her alone?”

Up to this point, Seol-chan has been oddly defensive and resistant of the idea of home. We only begin to understand why when he steps inside and is warmly greeted by a woman he calls “Mother.”

Though he’s noticeably awkward around her and speaks to her in halted jondaemal, we have yet to know the reasons why. He instinctively draws away when she approaches—a reaction she doesn’t miss.

As Seol-chan lies down on his bed, he recalls how Se-yi had started to cry in front of him. (Or is it on top of him?) He’d wondered: “Why are you crying? Why?” The next thing we know, we see Se-yi lying on top of him. Ha, now he’s imagining her? He gulps.

Then he starts talking to Se-yi’s apparition as if it was her and calls her crazy for showing up here. O-kay, Mr. I’m-having-hallucinations-of-my-crush-but-she’s-the-one-who’s-nuts.

He tells her to go away, adding that she’ll get in trouble for being here. She doesn’t answer.

Just then, another voice cuts in—Sun-woo’s—and Seol-chan turns to see Sun-woo lying beside him. Lordy, someone’s having multiple hallucinations today. When Sun-woo’s manifestation gives him yet another grammar lesson, he tells it to leave.

He sends off Se-yi’s apparition as well, and she starts to disappear. But at the last second, he summons her back and she reappears.

He asks: “Why did you cry before?” Phantom Se-yi silently blinks her eyes at him until he tells her to scram too.

Meanwhile, Se-yi is so lost in her own thoughts that she doesn’t notice a pole in front of her until it’s too late. Sun-woo has been walking her home all the time, and as he leans in to inspect her wound, he teases,”You hit it just hard enough to get your head on straight.”

It’s then he notices how physically close he is and he draws back awkwardly. He returns the smile when Se-yi says goodbye, thanking him for everything today.

After she leaves, their duet reminds Sun-woo of a time when he was still a young boy and a father-daughter pair performed the song “Atlantis Princess” in front of his class on their guitars.

This is the same song that Sun-woo sings in the present, and a young girl’s voice joins in song. He happily sits next to the apparition of the young girl on the steps, and as they continue their duet, the voice gradually changes into one much stronger and more mature.

Sun-woo turns his face in surprise to find an image of Se-yi in the young girl’s place. They sing together on the steps until the apparition disappears, and Sun-woo finishes the song by himself.

The real Se-yi is inside and she’s reminded of the Adam in the park when Teacher Dokko asks why she hasn’t been going to the park to practice lately. Then we get peek inside the strange ajusshi’s unkempt home with his barren refrigerator which only contains spoiled foods.

The class gathers the next day to do volunteer work at a historical palace. Seol-chan is irritated when he catches Se-yi smile at Sun-woo, and takes out his annoyance on his manager.

Newly-returned badass Teacher Dokko sternly warns her class not to break anything. Ha, it cracks me up that googly-eyed Manager Hong is the only one who answers her.

They get to work and it’s adorable how Seol-chan attempts to grab Se-yi’s attention, only for Sun-woo to cut in between them. So he walks backwards with his broom to overhear their conversation when Sun-woo loudly announces that they’ll need people to clean the bathrooms, too. Seol-chan silently retreats. HA.

He is annoyed, however, when he sees the same strange ajusshi standing nearby. So he confronts the man to get lost and explains the only reason why he hasn’t filed a police report is because he doesn’t want his name associated with a flasher’s name.

Now it’s the ajusshi’s turn to say something and he sarcastically counters that he can tell that Seol-chan is fearless. He warns the idol that the world is a scary place: “Just as much as there is a passion to shine brightly, the passion to ruin someone is just as strong.”

Kyu-dong cautiously approaches Do-nam in an empty courtyard and bucks up the courage to ask him in a stuttered if he wants to participate in the charity concert together “like old times.”

That last phrase gets a charged reaction out of Do-nam, and he grabs Kyu-dong by the shirtfront. Do-nam shoves Kyu-dong into the wall and a shingle falls to the ground with him.

Do-nam gets a few punches in before Se-yi appears, and he pushes her away when she tries to break it up. The noise momentarily grabs Nana’s attention, but she ignores the situation until Sun-woo appears.

He’s quickly followed by Eun-ha and Seol-chan and you can see the Oh crap expression settle on all of their faces as they assess the situation. It’s only when Seol-chan holds up the broken shingle that Eun-ha yells in alarm at the damage and warns: “Run for it!”

One by one, they flee the crime scene. Little do they know that their getaway is caught on surveillance tape which also captures another mysterious man in red.

At school, Teacher Dokko confirms that they are all indeed her homeroom students, but she doesn’t consider the photos as sufficient evidence to name them as culprits. But this has already become a grave issue as she’s told that the media and school board may become involved.

It’s not long before Sun-woo calls the group out to the counseling room to see Teacher Dokko, and Eun-ha wonders if the all-perfect student threw them under the bus.

Teacher Dokko isn’t the least surprised when none of the students admit fault. She reminds them how serious the situation is, but she’s confused when they shrug their shoulders over “a few broken tiles.”

Baffled, she asks: “That was you guys?” Then a moment later, they all exclaim: “Poop?!” Hahaha.

They burst out laughing at the ridiculous thought that someone defecated at the palace. Their smiles quickly fade when Teacher Dokko adds that if the school doesn’t find out who was behind it, the case will be turned over to the police.

What follows is a hilarious montage of the students who all deny the offense and reel in disgust at the photographic evidence. Seol-chan gives an exasperated sigh as if the truth was totally obvious: “Teach, I’m a star!”

Teacher Dokko is just about ready to give up when Gym Teacher Choi offers to help her out, saying that this is a fortuitous opportunity.

She’s impressed with how firm he is with the students and muses to herself: “They say that even dog poop can be used as medicine.” Or in other words, all things have its use.

Inside, the students are horrified at the thought of the school collecting their stool samples and witness statements in order to clear their names. Gym Teacher Choi continues to work his reverse psychology tactics on the kiddos, like how they’ll still carry the embarrassing stigma even if one of them is proven innocent.

“It’ll follow you until you graduate.” he stings. But of course, all is not hopeless, Gym Teacher Choi adds.

They all cast furtive looks at each other when they return to class. Gym Teacher Choi’s voice continues to haunt them, saying how unfair the situation is to have the culprit hiding amongst them, unwilling to repent of their sins. “But all of you carry the sin of your friend pooping.”

So he offers them a deal: In exchange to carry this secret to their graves, they’ll comply with his demands. Then we see all of them hold various instruments in the classroom. Ha, looks like we have our replacement for the charity concert.

Nearly everyone whines over the situation, and they get up to leave one by one until only Kyu-dong is left with his lonely recorder. He surveys the empty classroom and heaves a great sigh until we hear a voice start to beatbox and invite Kyu-dong to join him.

Then we’re transported to one of Kyu-dong’s memories as his younger self performs a Kpop medley in front of his classmates, who enthusiastically cheer him on. Their chants of “Park Kyu-dong!” gradually fade away as we’re brought back to the present, and Kyu-dong catches his breath.

A clapping sound startles him—it’s Se-yi, who compliments him on his performance. Kyu-dong runs for it when Sun-woo walks in behind her. When Se-yi asks why Sun-woo allows Kyu-dong to be humiliated in front of the rest of the class, he can’t give her an answer.

Later that night, Teacher Dokko quickly changes the subject when Se-yi asks if the real culprit is among them. Now we learn that the school had received new evidence on the situation with new two screen captures. Teacher Dokko had gasped at the second: an image of Gym Teacher Choi. She tears up the photo.

With the ajusshi’s question about the song still nagging at her, Se-yi ventures to the park again. At first she doesn’t see anyone by the bench, but quickly crouches down to hide when she sees the Adam ajusshi again.

Se-yi tries to convince herself that his question meant nothing, but she recalls that he mouthed the lyrics to the song that night. As she watches him exit the park, she muses that her father once told her that she was the only person who knew about the song.

So she follows the man at a distance as he walks back home, snapping photos along the way so that she doesn’t get lost. She’s at the door when she’s suddenly whipped around and Se-yi finds herself face-to-face with the straggly ajusshi.

He growls at her, demanding to know what she’s doing here. Se-yi frees her wrist from his grasp and tries to run away, but she trips and scrapes her knee.

The ajusshi returns a short while later to gently treat her wound. His voice is still gruff but softer now, and stop Se-yi to tell her that one of her guitar strings is broken.

He leads her down the stairs to a long-abandoned cellar whose cobwebbed shelves house records and tapes. As he re-strings her guitar, he’s surprised to hear that she doesn’t like to sing in public. She explains that she has no choice since she can’t play at home, so she imagines everyone at the park to be sheep.

Once the guitar is tuned, the ajusshi starts to play a few chords, then a few melodies… He abruptly stops and after he places the guitar back in its case, he sends Se-yi away before she gets the chance to ask him anything.

At the practice room, Seol-chan whines over his minor role in the impromptu group as tambourine player. But the more he thinks about it, he can’t help but wonder: “Will they need me?”

When Manager Hong suggests that he perform a duet instead, Seol-chan imagines himself in Sun-woo’s place, singing with Se-yi on her guitar. Your wild daydreams are absolutely hilarious.

Seol-chan shoots down the idea and while he practices, he stares at his reflection and declares: “I’m a star.”

Then he’s genuinely shocked when Se-yi refuses. He balks: “Why not?!” Hahaha, I’m dying. Her reason? “Your voice doesn’t compliment with mine.”

Seol-chan gets all huffy, declaring that he’s a star and magic happens whenever he steps on stage. But Se-yi remains resolute, and Seol-chan leaves just as Sun-woo approaches.

He wonders: “That punk didn’t hear, right?” Then when he overhears Sun-woo mention it, he cringes: “He did.”

Just like yesterday, the others leave without getting together to practice, and Eun-ha narrows her eyes at Sun-woo and Se-yi before she leaves.

Se-yi walks into the classroom and asks Kyu-dong if he genuinely wants to play in the concert. He nods.

When Se-yi asks why he pulled Do-nam aside to play together at the palace that day, Kyu-dong rises from his seat. But she stops him from running away (“If you keep running away, it’ll become a habit.”) and he slumps back into his chair, his head bowed meekly.

Kyu-dong admits that he doesn’t know what to do, and Se-yi says that she doesn’t either—she’s also running away because she doesn’t know what to do. But Kyu-dong makes a run for it anyway when Sun-woo walks in.

Gym Teacher Choi is displeased to hear that the group hasn’t met to practice once for a week now. When Eun-ha chirps that they could meet the day before to scrounge something together, he puts his students’ “talents” to the test.

So he lines them up to perform “You Were Born To Be Loved,” complete with tambourine, xylophone, and triangle. Gym Teacher Choi deems their performance as pathetic, but he does grant them one last chance to redeem themselves tomorrow.

They hang their heads in defeat.

Seol-chan has already left school by the time Sun-woo calls, telling him to come back. Only at his mention of “Poop Idol” does Seol-chan head back. When he returns, he pulls Se-yi aside and whispers: “Who told?” Se-yi raises her hand. Ha, figures.

She cheerily informs Seol-chan that Sun-woo has happily agreed to help them, and can even perform a duet if need be. Seol-chan scowls and tells her that Sun-woo isn’t part of their original group.

But Se-yi ignores him and asks the group where they should practice tonight. Their options are limited since they’re minors, and Seol-chan’s practice room is unavailable tonight. Then Sun-woo pipes: “What about the park?”

Next thing we know, the group gathers at Se-yi’s usual park bench, and Seol-chan grumbles in his shades. It starts to rain and a few of them run to take cover.

We cut away to the sleeping ajusshi, having fallen asleep listening to the old CD again. We get a glimpse into his nightmarish dream: his bloody hands hover over a dead woman’s face… whose eyes flash open. Woah.

He jolts awake in his chair. At the sound of someone knocking furiously outside, he gets up opens the front door… to find the students standing on his stoop.

Once Seol-chan realizes whose door they’ve just knocked on, he shouts at Se-yi: “Are you nuts?!”

 
COMMENTS

Well, hello to you too. Our mysterious ajusshi who remains unnamed in this episode surely didn’t expect this. Truthfully, I welcome any return of Ahn Nae-sang whose stage presence is able to bring heart and necessary gravity to a series. Thankfully, that’s something we don’t have to worry about, since the series already breathes life into its characters. His sad and frightening backstory presents another mystery to solve, but I have no doubt that his character will be able to handle seven very different personalities.

With a solidly built world that feels lived-in and enriched by a cast who carries their own story to tell, it feels like we’re in a twisty maze with so many different plot threads to explore. Do we know what happened between Do-nam and Kyu-dong back in the day? Or what is the deal with Nana? And because we’re still so early in the game, it’s difficult to draw definite conclusions from the subtle (or sometimes not so subtle) hints we’ve gleaned so far. But with a strong production team churning out one strong episode after another, perhaps it’s better that we sit back to enjoy the ride.

If our episode title and the exchange between Seol-chan and Se-yi are any indication, I’d like to guess that it really was our flawless idol who defecated at the palace that day. And if that is true, then the idol boy didst protest too much when he was accused as the poop culprit. “Teach, I’m a star!” There, there—celebrities poop too.

Seol-chan continues to be an enjoyable and entertaining watch in this series. His hallucinations of his classmates are downright hilarious and I love watching his elephant-sized ego get popped by Se-yi’s one-liners time and time again. His jealousy is just plain adorable as he tries to figure out why the shepherd girl won’t smile for him. The tension between them is palpable from their heated words to their accidental physical proximity. Though they’ve both been affected by it at one time or another, neither of them are willing to admit it and let’s face it, it’s more fun that way anyway. For now, that is.

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kya~~

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yes i laugh so much to bed scene; how he imagine SY & SW
on his bed; shoo them away and call SY's back

and the reason they have to stick together, is because they dont want to be label as ''___ poop'' for the rest of high schools' period

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the scenes were hilarious! part secret garden (rampant imaginations) part sungkyunkwan scandal (habit forming. ^_^)

thank you for recapping

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yup totally Gol Oh line in SKKS

so..can we just conclude that
Gol Oh is SY great-great-great-great-great x 30? grandfather?
the line had been passed down from generation to generation

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Omo, yes. Totally a Georoh reference. :D :D

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BAHAHAHA when the reason why they were in trouble (POOP!) finally came out, I nearly cried from so much laughter. This show just cracks me up. "But teacher, I'm a star. A star!"

And we all know Teacher Choi set this up. Bud I guess if his sketchy tactics get out band together, then I'm all for it!

The other part of the episodes that always make me smile: the boys! They are just soooooo obvious by their infatuation (they literally go slack-jaw at the though of Se-yi). And all of their little fantasy segments. RAWR to the bed scene. I loved the fact that Sun-woo shows up to correct Seol-chan on his grammar.

After the duet, I realized I'm still not over my secon lead syndrome but hummmm I'm considering it more.

I want to know more about Ajusshi! His freaky flashback seems to involve a car crash.....could it have anything to do with Se-yi's dad dying? Eek!

But thanks Gummy for the recaps!

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That duet was awesome and I agree, it completely brings the second lead syndrome up a notch (at least for me).

And the "bed scene" had me laughing so much!

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Me too!! I love the duet and Sun Woo's hallucinatory reactions. Yep, this episode pushed me over to the edge right onto the 2nd lead territory. *sigh Am already hurting for my Sun Woo. waaahhh!

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Haha yeah I was pretty much expecting second lead syndrome from the first episode. Still I want to know the past between sun woo and seol-chan!

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thank you :)

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Great show. I love the cast especially Kyu Dong, but I am having a major case of second lead syndrome with this drama.

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I think the Poop Idol thing was in reference to their group secret to avoid being associated with it. Sun Woo was using it as leverage to have Seol Chan practice. The new photos indicate it was the Gym Teacher who did it

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[potential spoiler]

I thought there was a scene where the principal mentioned having had the poo analyzed and found out it was dog poo? Which sorta underlines the teachers comment about “They say that even dog poop can be used as medicine.”.

Or I could have imagined it (a while since I saw the episode) because that was my theory all along :p

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Nope, the principal definitely did say it was dog poop...might have been episode 4 though?

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I haven't seen ep 4 yet. So was sure it would be in this one. But it's nice to see others having heard the same, proves I'm not just imagining it ;)

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Nope..it was in this epi.3..he mention it to Dokko before giving her the last 2 pics :D

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My thought too. The Vice Principal mentioned that it was found out to be animal poop and that the accusers jumped into conclusion etc or something like that. I didn't ever think that one of the students pooped (esp Seol-Chan as he was too busy stalking Se-yi). I did think briefly that it was gym teacher who did and guessed correctly that he was the last to be caught in camera.

Love the OST to this series. The soundtrack enhances my love for wonderfully written dramas. I'm not really fussy about acting as long as the story and directing carries it through. The OST's just icing, and for this drama it's my favorite: choco butter icing. Mmmmm!

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The OST is awesome indeed. I definitively I it in my life (Just wish I could figure out the downloading of the song on top. For some reason it won't work for me :'( )

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Thanks for the clarification, everyone! :) I'll check to see if it gets mentioned again in Episode 4

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I haven't seen episode 4 yet, so am certain it would have been in this episode. Just a quick scene though, from what I remember. :)

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It was during this episode (ep3) about 55 min into the episode (I'm watching on Viki). It's after Se-Yi runs out to go to the park and Teacher Dokko has the flashback.

The flashback starts with Teacher Dokko saying "You say it's been solved?!" Then the principal replies, "After the content analysis, the probability of it not being human feces is 99%. This incident should go away." She thinks to herself then says, "Then it's a dog." The principal replies, "We survived the incident." etc. (according to Viki subs at least lol).

Then the principal shows her the other pictures/tells her that Sun-woo and Gym Teacher Choi were there too, and that he kept those quiet essentially.

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it was mentioned in this episode...

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Thank you, lovely show!

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Finally found the link and the title of the song. Thank you so much gummimochi for that. Been replaying that song for everyday. Now, I'm gonna go read the recap. :)

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I also thought they clarified that it wasn't human at least. It was still a really funny episode! I love the fantasies, and I also like how the characters feel real. I'm looking forward to learning more about them!

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Thank you so much for the recap!
This show is awesome and really helping to bring me out of the bleak looking drama land from earlier this year. (also giving me major flashbacks to being in high school as a music student like them!)

Besides the duets, one of my favorite aspects of this episode was the hallucination scenes so funny! And also when she is crying in the car and the tear trips down and "fit" into the corner of his own eye. Such a beautiful looking and symbolic moment.

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Second time responding to you haha but I loved the tears scene too. It had a lot of emotional impact for me, moreso than if she just cried.

The hallucinations scenes cracked me up! I loved them, especially Sun-woo's appearance to correct his grammar. I laughed a lot throughout this entire episode...the poop incident being the start of the misfit gang, Seol-chan's never-changing defense "But I'm a star!" and Sun-woo's grammar retorts made my day.

All in all, I loved this episode. So much heart and depth.

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Haha, I like responses so not to worry ;) (BtW sorry for a long reply in advance :p )

Yeah the way the crying scene was done was so much more emotional instead of her yelling "he is dead" and breaking down or something. So much more an emotional punch with her silent tears and retreating into her shell. It also points to the deep feelings she hides within.

The way even his hallucination come to correct his grammar is hilarious! I mean her being quiet (though still laying on to of him) is one thing, and the sort of trying to figure thing out himself. But the addition of Sun-Woo giving a grammar lesson? Took it to another level.

And yeah I laughed when it hit me that the "poop incident" would ultimately be the thing to bring the group together.

"All in all, I loved this episode. So much heart and depth." <--- I completely agree with this. For me this goes for the entire drama so far as well. *legs crossed it will stay that way* (fingers and arms are already taken for other hopeful crossing purposes xD )

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Thank you SO MUCH for continuing the recaps!

I am totally in love with this drama. I was all in from the first episode but this is just getting better and better :D

Seol Chan is a hoot and his "I'm a star" defense never fails to make me laugh out loud^^ (and his hallucinations are just plain funny xD)

The music is beautiful and every single time there is a duet I get goosebumps all over my body (although I guess the duet of Kyu Dong and Se Yi at the end of episode one was the most impressive one!)

I have to admit that I started watching the drama because of Yong Jun Hyung (well I'm a B2uty after all and that - and being an A+ - is the sole reason I sat through all 20 episodes of IRIS II^^) but then there is Kang Ha Neul whom I already liked in TTBY. And the other cast is also finding its way into my heart very quickly :)

The only problem: It takes too long for Friday to come again ^^

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Oh, this episode gave me quite some laugh.... Sun Woo with his grammar lessons... and popping up on bed in Seolchan's imagination...

I like how this show can balance the funny moments and the serious ones.

Only Tuesday today...

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Thank you for the recap!

This was my favorite episode because of that scene in the van and then the "bed scene". The tension in the van scene was so palpable... well-played! And then the "bed scene"-- really cracked me up, with Seon-woo suddenly appearing in order to mess things up, even in Seol-chan's own hallucination. Ha.

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Hi Laya!

The van seen was so nicely done. And so much more of an emotional impact than just her yelling that her dad was death and breaking down. Also this is more in line with her character I feel.

I love the "bed scene" and as you say, that even in his imagination Sun-Woo intrudes AND gives him a lecture! It was you I was talking with about this scene in a previous open thread yes? (or am I mixing names..)

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Hi Manin! Yep, 'twas me :D :D I love this writer already. But then she also gave us the Jalgeum Quartet, and those four were awesome too. :D

Gaaaah, it's still a long time till the next episode. And I hope I can watch that on time, coz I shall be off to the capital to watch the CNBlue concert on Saturday, and I don't know if I'll get a decent internet connection wherever I'll be staying. :D

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I though it was! :D And you are right the Jalgeum Quartet was awseome (and at least the actual male members deserved the name :p ) I resent re-watched that drama. But yes the writer is doing a good job. Everything seems to be planed and all the hints have a reason and so far everything ties in.

I also like how the connection between Se-Yi and Kyu-Dong is portrayed as well. She is the first truly friendly face he has in that class and you notice how she is slowly breaking down he walls (only to have him clamp up again whenever someone else comes along).

And thus I am truly jealous of your Saturday plans! I wanna come too! At least I still have episode 4 to watch..

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This show is a little confusing for me -- since Sun Woo seems so much more stable and normal than "I'm A Star" that I also have second lead syndrome -- "I'm A Star" is way too obnoxious and not really that good looking to me, but I'm a guy so my opinions may not matter.

I'm a little confused with Nana too, who apparently can sing IRL even though she says she can't sing in the show. Oh well, I guess i'll just keep watching and see what shows up this Friday!

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Handsome Sun-woo is the ideal, but he's a little bit distant, hesitant, and sort of comes across as cool and indifferent and believe me that in the end (based on lots of my girl friend's experiences) the not-so-good-looking, annoying, initially obnoxious types win out the girls' hearts in the end. :) Persistence for the win!

Anyway, so far in the drama Se-yi prefers Sun-woo's company not Seol-chan's.

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Anyone else think that the idol who plays Seol Chan looks like Yoochun, or is it just me?

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I think he is more of the young version of Hyun Bin specially the eyes..

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saw it 2, his similarity with hyun bin since day 1. he looks the younger & fuller version of hyun bin.

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He looks like both! I actually started watching "Kpop Survival" because Yoochun's brother reminded me so much of Junhyung. And I've long thought that Junhyung is what Ha Ji-won's and Hyun Bin's kid would look like. :-)

My favorite Junhyung look is his wavy hair in the "Beautiful" video. If you think he is cute here, check him out there!

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wow, I've thought he was Mickey Junior from day one but can't see any resemblance to HB.

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Not much time time to comment today, but I have to say it: that 'bed scene' is my favourite kdrama bed scene OF ALL TIME. Can we have an entire series of Seol-chan's hallucinations, because between this and his 'vision' of himself and Se-yi doing the duet, it is GOLD.

(and not just because I nearly wet my own bed laughing at Hallucination Se-yi disappearing like the Cheshire Cat, and Hallucination Sun-woo giving grammar lessons)

I really like how this drama is pacing itself with revelations of details about its characters, too - that was something I loved in Arang and the Magistrate and it is great to see that particular writerly touch across two very different dramas. I can't wait to find out more about Kyu-dong and Do-nam's past, and to get Nana talking a little more.

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"(and not just because I nearly wet my own bed laughing at Hallucination Se-yi disappearing like the Cheshire Cat, and Hallucination Sun-woo giving grammar lessons)" <-- This! Her Cheshire Cat disappearing was a nice touch into the whole scene.

I agree with you about the pacing. It gives enough hits towards the characters but doesn't feel dragged out, nor do they give you whiplash of new things either. It's enough to make you intrigued but still give the characters a depth rooted in more than just "I have a mysterious past!".

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What a emotionally charged moment shared between seol chan and se yi this episode. Slowly but surely he's trying to understand more about how se yi feels. Why did she cry? Why doesn't she talk to her mother? Why does she smile at sun woo all the time but never around me?? I love how our heroine is not going kiss his feet like everyone else and just seeing Star Boy have his ego shot down is one of the most worthy things to see in arrogant heroes. Im also waiting for the moment when se yi sees past his idol persona and digs deeper. It's obvious seol chan will be the one to fall for her first at this rate since she remains unmoved by his actions while he is already captivated. All of his fantasies are hilarious.
Lots of close proximity this show is giving us. I like. Thanks for the fast recap to catch up on Monstar!! ;)

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Aww. This is turning out to be a fav of mine. Hopefully the further we get in the story it won't lose what I find lovely about it.

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i really like this series, really, really like it....
i also can't describe the feelings i get when i hear the ending song, it gives me a little 'Honey and clover' - the anime - impression

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I'm so glad you're continuing to recap this series. I admit, the only reason I watched this show was because I'm a fan of Beast, and I was scared that Junhyung wouldn't be able to live up to his part, but he surely did. Not only is he decent, but the whole cast is excellent. Not only do I care about the lead, but I care about what happened to the other cast, their back-stories, etc. I can't wait to see what this drama brings.

Also, I agree with others. The hallucinations are hilarious, and it's what gives the show a little extra boost in the comedy department to take away from all the other depressing story-lines.

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Very cute and funny show. I love watching this!

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The bed hallucination is such a gem. Seol-chan is a definite favorite of mine. I think I attribute a large part of the lightness in 'Monstar' to his character. :)

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Not that I didn't think the whole poop investigation wasn't hilarious, but I'm suffering a cultural lapse, here. Why would it even OCCUR to anyone finding excrement in the middle of a hallway of an open building in broad daylight that one of the students from an elite prep school decided to randomly defecate in a public place? Let alone a high school teacher, as someone implied above? And without evidence of toilet tissue or anything similar?

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I have to say, I was wondering the same thing.

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With all the praise for the male cast, here, could I put in a word for the awesome star power of Ha Yeon-soo? That distinctive face and fine, detailed acting make the camera love to look at her. The director certainly knows it. He can have her throw a muttered word at Seol Chan in a one second shot and she conveys it perfectly, or he can leave her looking down at at Seol Chan from above for ten seconds and she holds the camera's eye with a single blink along the way. And, of course, she can play every high school guy's dream girl in whatever fantasy get-up that passes through their feverish mind.

After watching Suzy take acting lessons in the first episodes of GFB and the generic leading ladies in a couple of new American TV shows, I welcome the chance to see someone on screen who knows exactly how to occupy it.

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Totally agree with you about HYS. Not only can she act amazingly well for a rookie, she's so unconventionally gorgeous it takes my breath away. She has such an expressive face. A rare thing in an age of plastic beauties that all look alike. (And I'm a girl, lol.)

Speaking of Suzy, I might get hate for this, but I cannot understand why she's so popular. Her acting is cringeworthy and her looks are just okay, at least to me. But then I am a girl, as mentioned above.

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Well, as a guy I think she's stunning. :-P Suzy's actually gotten a lot better in Gu Family Book past the first few episodes, IMO; she can do cute and testy pretty well. Her BFF IU definitely has her beat when it comes to emotional scenes, though.

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Laica ~

Ha Yeon-soo has s very angelic , pixie, fairy type look, (to me anyways).

It's funny how she's totally in Seol Chan's head. Poor boy is smitten. I would be too.

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I agree with you about HYS's looks.

It's pretty hilarious how little notice she takes of him, versus how much he takes of her. (Also awesome.)

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Thanks, gummi for the recap!!

I just love how this drama slowly revealling each characters' back story....basically making me looking forward to the next episode.

What happen in NZ tt made Seyi blame her mother for her father's death after 5 years? Her memory came back? Will she be able to find peace with her mother? Obviously she still love her mom...

Is the woman Seol-chan called mother his step mother? or adoptive mother? Obviously his family loves him yet he still find it distant. My bet is on adoption....(okay, speculation based on what I deduced from Epi 4)

What is the bad blood between Sun-woo and Seol-chan?

What happen between Kyo-dong and Do-nam? Is that why Do-nam stopped taekwando? Is that why Kyo-dong willingly be the victim of the class bully?

I've this feeling that Nana is some mob-boss's daughter? And daddy mob is threatened by rivals over territory. Hence, the bodyguards are sent to make sure she is safe?

What about Eun-ha? Is there also a story behind her cheerful outlook?

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Hey guys... I didn't get the grammar smack down LOL. I though Seol Chan had it right?? :P Can someone explain?

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I don't know how much was lost in the translation, but I took the subtitles to mean that Sun Woo was dissing Seol Chan by implying that Seol Chan was the one interfering, but that his grammar was too poor to admit it properly, so he used the wrong pronoun to mistakenly accuse Sun Woo of interfering.

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As in, Seol Chan actually said it right, but Sun Woo was twisting his words back at him in a roundabout way.

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I think it was more like a turf war... staking claim, so to say. Seol Chan said it the way he meant it.... telling Sun Woo to not interfere with what he sees as his Se Yi. Sun Woo was basically saying that Se Yi was not Seol Chan's. What was funny was that Seol Chan took it as an actual grammar lesson! HA!

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Thanks for the recap!
"Bed scene" I like! I like how he blows away the apparitions!
I hope they will include in the OST the songs that they covered in this series. Trouble Maker, Replay medley, and Ma Boy.

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SO glad you're recapping this! ^^

Things I love about this show (in point form otherwise I'll be writing an essay):

- Seol-chan's vivid and hilarious fantasy life.
- the fact that Se-yi constantly schools and/or ignores him without batting an eyelash.
- how everyone seems to have their own story, so we have a cast of characters who feel real and alive, like more is going on than we get to see.
- the fact that I have no idea what is going to happen next. (That is, the broad strokes of the plot are obvious, but every moment surprises me, and it's great.)
- the running joke about how the manager is not supposed to let Seol-chan read, as it won't end well (for the CEO).
- the lead actress's stunning and unusual looks, and her acting skills - yay!
- ALL the musical numbers. ALL of them. I need to find them all and download them. If only I wasn't so terrible at this.
- the subtle but constant parodying of fan culture and idol persona.
- the fact that for once our male lead's screwed-up personality has a reasonable explanation. (A teenager who's only ever known screaming fangirls worshiping his every move being an entitled ass? OK. A 35-year-old man who was normally socialized and actually has friends acting like God's gift to the universe? ...Pass.)
- the way the gym teacher teases Teacher Dokko, and how it obviously gets to her (and how he obviously enjoys it. Can these two be a thing?).
- Kang Ha-neul. <3 Even if his character is frustratingly tight-lipped, has questionable taste in friends, and borders on stalker-creepy sometimes.
- the directing, the writing, the acting.

Ok I'm done. Look at that, kind of wrote an essay anyway. Oops. *runs away*

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Is the "Currently Airing" list missing Monstar? Does the 5th episode air on Friday?

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From what I know Monstar is on every Friday. But I realised just now that Friday is completely ignored in the current airing dramas section and that brings my question: are there no dramas on Fridays usually in SK?

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Yeah, i noticed that too. It's always Monday-Tuesday, Wednesday-Thursday, and Saturday-Sunday. Maybe they just play sports or movies or special episodes on Fridays.

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Yes, Monstar airs only one episode a week, and on fridays. There is usually no fri- from currently airing list because the stations don't really air shows on friday.. Mnet is the first to do that but this is also it's first original drama. I've always wondered why there are no shows aired on fridays but that's a usual k-drama airing schedule.

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Love this drama so far. Need to know one of the secrets though, i want to know how the show will tackle a reveal and potential resolution. Will they go all scooby gang? It is obvious that Se yi will have to lead the way there too as well.

If i had to pick, i want to know the relationship between Do Gam and Kyung Do...

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Dear gummimochi, idk when these dramas air or when you write and post these recaps but reading ep 2 last night and having ep 3 up tonight made my day.

Thank you dear person.
Xoxo

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I thought this wont be recapped anymore..
I'm glad I thought wrong, because Monstar is my drama crack lately.

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Awesome awesome:) i love it:) sun woo is just too good:) seol chan isn't bad either:) god.. Multiple hallucinations!!! Lol... I almost fell off my bed reading that.. Ha.. The only thing i don't understand here is the drama title. I know its a lil late to be asking this. But plz.. Does it even make sense???

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MONSTAR ...it's means My OwN STAR

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Really??? Its like that??? Ah.. But y dint they just keep it clearly like that so as to save the confusions...??? Anyway thanks lita:)

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This show is downright terrific. So many mysteries and characters. I love everything about it, just about.

I know Seol-chan is the lead and the hero, and I've liked him so far, but Sun-woo is hard to beat. He makes being smart, sexy in a new way. I can't wait to delve into his back story. I like all the characters. But Sun-woo is a personal favorite.

Thanks for the recap, Gummimochi!

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So many great scenes in this episode. The hallucination was funny, but I loved his manager's reactions in the car! Hahaha...and how cute is it that he is always holding the pillow ?

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I really want an English translation of Jung Sun-Woo's text message to Kim Na-Na to have her come practice, it seems important to know...

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what is tge title of the song that yong junhyung sing with piano?

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