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Twenty Again: Episode 13

It’s a contemplative episode and a pivotal moment for our heroine, who’s faced with all sorts of question marks about her future, her marriage, and where her heart lies. And with the help of a certain dimpled manchild, she starts to see why it is that she changed and lost herself along the way, and why it’s worth fighting for the person she was always meant to be.

 
SONG OF THE DAY

Kim Dong-ryul – “기억의 습작” (A Study in Memory) [ Download ]

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EPISODE 13 RECAP

At last, Nora gets to read Hyun-seok’s first love confession from twenty years ago, telling her that he likes her as more than a friend. She looks up to see Hyun-seok standing right there smiling at her, and he laughs that she opened up the keepsake box right away, just as suspected.

He sits down to answer her questions now, so that she doesn’t stay awake all night dying of curiosity. I’m pretty sure that’s your disease, not hers. She’s still a little confused about what all of this means, so he spells it out for her: “Ha Nora, you were my first love. You shined, and were so bright, strong, and pretty then.”

He tells her that he became a director solely because of her, because she was the only person who recognized his talent and believed in him. But hilariously, Nora can’t really remember saying those things, and Hyun-seok grumps, “You changed my life and you can’t remember?”

She asks him to remind her of the conversation, but he refuses. He does casually toss out the offer to tell her… if she keeps coming to work. Nora asks why he gave her the box then if he’s not going to tell her, and he says that it’s proof that she’s special to him: “You might not remember, but you were my only supporter, my friend, and my pillar. It’s because of you I realized my dream.”

He makes it clear that this is why he cares, not because he pities her, and adds the reminder: “So don’t forget what kind of person you were.”

As she watches him leave, she remembers all the times he spoke so highly of her, always saying, “Because you’re Ha Nora,” by way of explanation. She didn’t get it then, but she finally sees what he meant, and wells up with gratitude. Hyun-seok walks away hoping that Nora isn’t shaken from her decision to get divorced.

Woo-chul is waiting for Nora to get home and presents her with the torn-up divorce contract, declaring that he’s calling off the divorce. He says that he has two undeniable reasons to support this, and imagines Nora flipping out and calling him crazy as she leaves to go get her copy of the contract, which he’s already stolen in anticipation of this.

But back in reality, Nora just asks calmly what his reasons are. The first is that he can’t accept her calling him someone with narcissistic personality disorder, and launches into a whole defense… which only proves her point that he’s making this all about himself.

His second reason is that he began the divorce proceedings because they couldn’t communicate, but now Nora has become someone he can talk to. He urges her to consider how she went to school for this very reason just a few months ago, and to remember what kind of person he was when they first met.

Flashback to the dance performance when Woo-chul and Nora first locked eyes. After the dance where he sees that she’s injured, he finds her on the beach and sweetly tends to her wounds, introducing himself as the director’s friend.

He looks at his surroundings and says it reminds him of a movie where a guy has a crush on a girl and she teaches him to dance, and soon Nora is doing that very same thing as the sun sets behind them.

Back in the present, Nora says that what she liked about him was his back—broad and strong, dependable like she always imagined her father’s back would be. He recognized her injuries first and took care of her, and she fell for him because she felt secure, like she would be taken care of.

He agrees that that’s the kind of person he is, but she clarifies that he was… then. She reminds him of what he was like after they got married, when he ignored her and made it impossible for her to contact him at school, even when she was pregnant and ill.

She says that he was ashamed of her back then and tried to keep her hidden, purposely lying to her that there were no Korean people in their city for her to befriend. He made it so that she couldn’t do anything on her own without his help, and she retreated into herself. She spent four years alone in a room with just Min-soo to care for, until they returned to Korea.

Nora: “The reason I want a divorce is because I’ve come to realize why I lost myself. You made it that way. Following you to Germany was my mistake.” She admits that it was her fault for not considering that she could’ve raised Min-soo on her own.

Woo-chul argues that he’s doing this for Min-soo (I call bullshit!), and Nora sighs that she’ll at least hear Min-soo out and make sure that he’s okay with it. Out in the hallway, Min-soo overhears all of this and hides quietly in his room.

Hyun-seok waits on pins and needles for Nora the next morning and beams when she shows up to school as normal. He times it perfectly so that he’ll accidentally run into her on their way into campus, only to miss his window when Yoon-young beats him to the punch.

Yoon-young eagerly announces to Nora that she’s discovered something huge: “Cha Hyun-seok likes you!” She names all the suspicious signs, like how worried he was when he couldn’t find her, and how he got mad over Nora’s relationship with Woo-chul.

But Nora thinks it’s ridiculous that he’d like her, and laughs it off. Yoon-young is shocked to hear that Nora was his first love, and thinks it amusing that he confessed twenty years later. Nora gasps and says it wasn’t a confession, insisting that Hyun-seok would be crazy to confess to her, a 38-year-old mother.

Nora thinks that it’s only because he has no feelings for her now that he gave her that keepsake box. Yoon-young wonders why Nora didn’t tell him about the divorce, but Nora doesn’t see why she would when he never asked. Oh, you two. Min-soo asks to see Mom at home later that night, then wonders why his girlfriend Hye-mi is ignoring all of his texts.

Soon-nam sneaks up to Nora, adorably calling her “Ex-Girlfriend-nim,” and is surprised to see that she’s still searching for part-time jobs. She quickly exits the screen and they head to class.

Yoon-young drops by Hyun-seok’s office, and he asks worriedly why she came to see Nora earlier, and if anything is wrong. Yoon-young smirks and calls his interest in Nora considerable. She says that protecting her because of a loyalty to his first love might’ve flown with Nora who’s naïve enough to believe it, but Yoon-young isn’t: “You like Ha Nora, don’t you?” Heeeeeee.

His face freezes and he can’t speak, and Yoon-young just enjoys teasing him. He sidesteps her questions entirely and asks what Nora plans to do in the future, and Yoon-young catches on right away that he knows about the divorce.

Yi-jin hems and haws all the way to her class today, and can’t bring herself to go in there and face Nora. In the end she runs away like a coward and cancels class. Meanwhile, Min-soo finds out from Hye-mi’s friend that she went on an impromptu trip with her traveling club.

Yi-jin storms into Woo-chul’s office to ask how he’s been living his life that she got told by his wife that she can have him. She’s offended at the idea that Woo-chul is trash and she’s supposed to pick him up, and he’s just as shocked to hear that Nora said that.

She says that Nora declared that they were getting a divorce, and Woo-chul interrupts to say that Nora is mistaken. Um… is that the thing you want to be saying to your mistress? Yi-jin is appalled and asks if he’s suggesting they break up, and he has the gall to say that their plan failed, so they just need to take some time.

Yi-jin can’t believe he’s ending things when she got him a position at this university, and then it’s his turn to be appalled. He argues that he had the qualifications all on his own, but she tells him that there were many candidates—she just made sure he was the one chosen. But instead of being grateful, Woo-chul blows up at her for meddling when he could’ve done it on his own.

With class canceled, Nora enjoys beers on the lawn with Soon-nam and Seung-hyun, and fulfills another of her wishes. They sigh that it’s a rather expensive luxury though, when they factor in the cost of the missed class from their tuition.

Seung-hyun notices when Nora ignores a call from Hyun-seok, and she and Soon-nam tease her for being more than friends with Hyun-seok. Nora denies it and answers the phone gruffly just to prove her point, only to have Hyun-seok show up in person to steal her away by the wrist in front of them.

Nora protests, but her friends get the hint and run off to do other things, and Hyun-seok thanks them. Nora finally relents and says she’ll come back to work, and it’s pretty funny how they both act like she’s doing him the huge favor.

She says she can’t come today though because she has a date with her son, and Hyun-seok is a little flustered at suddenly being reminded that she’s a mom. He walks her to the bus stop and asks about the mixtape, and she says that it has all her favorite songs, but she hasn’t been able to listen to it because she doesn’t have a cassette player.

He guessed as much and takes his old Walkman out of his bag, and she marvels that he still has that same one from high school. He pops the tape in and sticks an earbud in her ear and takes the other one.

Kim Dong-ryul’s “A Study in Memory” (posted above) starts to play, and she asks when he started to like her. He looks at her and notes that she really doesn’t remember anything, and just tells her to search her memory when she’s bored. They sit like that for a while, taking turns stealing little glances at each other whenever they think the other isn’t looking.

Hyun-seok goes home and looks up more part-time jobs for Nora, and calls a friend to ask if a theater usher position has age requirements.

Min-soo calls to say he’s going to be late, and stands outside Hye-mi’s house all evening until she finally arrives. He gets mad at her for ignoring his calls and making him worry when he’s going through so much right now.

But she counters that he’s the one in his own broody mancave and refusing to tell her what’s going on. Touché. He finally decides to share his problems, and she lights up.

Nora paces worriedly at home, and Woo-chul says that Min-soo is rebelling and this is their answer. But when Min-soo does come home, he sits both his parents down and presents them with the divorce contract that he stole out of Dad’s office. Nice. Score one for the kid.

He tells them to follow the contract as planned, adding pointedly that Dad is the one who likes to keep his promises. Min-soo says he thinks he’s an adult now, because he finds it burdensome that he’s a burden on his parents. He’s also discovered that there are more important things than their marriage, and glances at Mom.

Min-soo tells them that he can’t help but rely on them financially while he’s in school, but promises to repay them once he’s graduated. And finally, Woo-chul tells Nora that once the semester ends this week, they’ll end things. For realsies? You’d better mean it this time.

Nora arrives at work while Hyun-seok is mid-interview, and seems awfully curious when the reporter asks him about his last relationship. He doesn’t comment at all on his personal life, and Nora actually looks jealous when Sang-ye helps him with his jacket in between pictures.

After the interview, he sends Sang-ye off to a friend’s opening night production, and Nora remembers that Sang-ye wants to become a director like him. Aw, is she suddenly getting an inferiority complex over Sang-ye?

Woo-chul decides to chase after that new job opening that his friend mentioned, and schmoozes with the professor who’s retiring and choosing his replacement. Meanwhile Yi-jin glugs down a bottle of wine by herself.

Hyun-seok starts asking Nora about choosing her major and studying for exams, and we see that Yoon-young told him about Nora’s plans to live with Min-soo while they finish school and earn her own tuition. He insists that he’s just looking out for her as a sunbae and teacher, which she thinks is overkill when he’s so busy.

She finishes all her work for the day and is surprised when there isn’t anything else to do, since Hyun-seok was so adamant she had to come. You just wanted her to see you getting interviewed, didn’t you?

When she gets ready to leave, he wonders if she’s mad at him and quickly invents a new errand. He asks her to help him shop for a new suit, and Nora says that she’s never done that before, telling him to get Sang-ye’s help. But he makes it worse by saying that he intended to, but she’s not around today. Ha, she’s totally jealous, and it’s adorable.

She hangs back at the store, saying that she doesn’t know his taste, but Hyun-seok insists that she pick something out. He tries it on and it’s written all over her face that she thinks he looks good. Because yunno, she has eyes.

He calls her out on it, so then they bicker about whether or not she thinks he’s hot, and he fawns over his own reflection until she finally laughs and admits that he’s good-looking. Her mood is lifted so she picks out the next suit, and the salesperson asks if this is his girlfriend.

Hyun-seok reacts like he said the most preposterous thing, and calls Nora his little sister who follows oppa around even at this age. Oh no, stop shooting yourself in the foot! That is not what she wants to hear right now!

She frowns and leaves the store feeling down again, and Hyun-seok starts to say that since she helped him shop he should buy her clothes too… but says he won’t because it’s not like she’s his girlfriend or anything.

He tops it off by offering to buy her dinner, though for some reason he feels the need to point out that he’s going to buy her rice because pasta and steak are reserved for girlfriends. Ack, did you wake up with your foot in your mouth today?

He pauses to make a call, which is when Nora sees a sign looking for a part-time employee at a children’s theater next door. They’re looking for someone with dance experience who can work with children and keep their attention with pre-show activities. Wait, you brought her here on purpose, didn’t you? Do you even need a suit?

Hyun-seok says she’d be perfect for that job, though Nora is less sure and says she’ll think about it. He prods her to go for it on the drive back, and she gets mad at him for nagging her all day over every little thing. She wonders if he thinks of her as a child, like she’s incapable of doing things on her own.

He sighs that he’s just nervous is all, though he doesn’t explain what he means by it. He covers up by saying that he must’ve just taken his oppa duties too seriously, and wonders if he should stop being an oppa.

Woo-chul is waiting for Nora at home, and tells her that he’s planning to transfer schools because that’s what’s best for Min-soo and Nora. You mean yourself, but whatever. He says he needs her help to secure the other job though. Hm.

Hyun-seok and Sang-ye are surprised when Nora shows up for work the next day all dressed up. All she tells them is that she has a dinner to attend straight after work, and Hyun-seok just spends the whole day glancing at her curiously, unable to ask questions.

Woo-chul goes shopping for jewelry and picks the most expensive necklace he can find, which makes me suspicious that this favor is just another ploy to stall the divorce.

He shows up unannounced to pick Nora up at work, and Hyun-seok watches with a long face from his window as she heads out. This time she pauses and looks up towards the window back at him, then gets in the car to go.

Sang-ye wonders if Nora is making amends with Woo-chul, since it looks very date-like the way they left. But Hyun-seok says that Nora isn’t going back to him, and there must be a reason she’s out with him tonight.

She attends a dinner with his colleague, who’s impressed by her beauty and guesses that that’s why Woo-chul kept her hidden all these years. And he seems to think Nora is Woo-chul’s age (which Woo-chul must’ve lied about so as to seem less like a college student who knocked up a high schooler).

His German professor arrives with his wife, and Nora is taken aback when the professor asks why she never once came to Germany in the four years that Woo-chul was studying there. What. You kept her that hidden that people didn’t even know she was there with you?

Hyun-seok paces on his terrace all night, clearly more worried about Nora’s date than he let on.

The professor sings Woo-chul’s praises, and tells a story about how back in 2000, he was injured and almost had to cancel a trip to the U.S. for a conference. Despite the professor’s protests, Woo-chul insisted on going with him and presented a paper there.

The men laugh about how much whiskey they drank on that trip, but Nora lingers on the date: the spring of 2000…. Flashback to Grandma’s collapse in that year, when she had clamored to hug her pillow stuffed with money, and made a call to tell someone that Nora’s college tuition is in there, and that Grandma is sorry. She dies, and Nora hears about it over the phone from Yoon-young.

Nora gets the call just as Woo-chul is getting ready to leave on his trip for the conference, and he makes a call and tells her that there are no direct flights to Korea left. They’d have to go through Moscow and they’d miss the funeral anyway. She says it doesn’t matter—she has to go to her grandmother.

But Woo-chul says he has to go to Washington, and argues that she can’t go to Korea alone with Min-soo when he’s this sick. She begs him to take care of Min-soo, crying that he could have another chance to present a paper, but she’ll never be able to see her grandmother again.

It’s hardly a surprise, but it’s still heartbreaking when Woo-chul tells her to ask Yoon-young to handle the funeral, and they’ll go later since they’re already too late as it is. She’s in shock as he explains that this conference could mean a university position and their futures, and then just leaves her there and runs out because he doesn’t want to miss his flight. Wow.

Back in the present, Nora’s eyes flood with angry tears and she looks over at Woo-chul fuming with rage. She darts up and walks away without explanation, and Woo-chul chases after her.

When he catches up to her, she whirls around and just slaps hard across the face. Twice. She snarls, “You bastard. April 2000 is when my grandmother died!” He suddenly realizes his mistake, but she cuts him off to ask if there really weren’t any flights, and he protests that he’s not that terrible a human being. I think you’d have some argument there.

Tears spill out as Nora declares, “You thought of your teaching position as bigger than my grandmother, who was a mother and a father to me!” He has nothing to say in response, and she leaves him standing there in a daze, holding the jewelry box he was so excited about earlier.

Nora runs to Grandma’s (new) ddukboki shop and bangs on the door crying out for her. She sinks to the ground and wails for Grandma with a fresh wave of pain and regret, crying that she’s so sorry.

After spilling all her tears, she looks back inside the shop and pictures her happy times playing with Grandma, and smiles at the vision wistfully before walking away.

We fade into morning, as Woo-chul and Nora walk away from the courthouse together. He stops and watches her walk on ahead without him, and says in a quiet voice, “I’m sorry.”

 
COMMENTS

Omg, they’re divorced! *throws party*

I really thought they were going to drag that out till eternity, especially with Woo-chul’s newfound conviction to keep his family together. It so fit with his character that in all this time, he never once considered Nora’s feelings until the very end. I suppose it’s bittersweet that the one time he can give her what she wants is to divorce her, but at his level of self-centeredness, I’m honestly shocked that he had a moment of genuine empathy and remorse enough to give her even that. It seemed to sober him when his own son schooled him on keeping his word, and at that point he stopped being able to use Min-soo as an excuse to keep Nora around. I found it really heartbreaking when Min-soo discovered that he might’ve held his mother back, not in a self-pitying or guilty way, but just as a matter of fact. He seems to finally see now just how much of herself she gave up to raise him, just as Nora finally realizes how controlling Woo-chul was all these years.

It wasn’t surprising that he kept her hidden away for four years, though given the circumstances—moving to a country where she doesn’t speak the language or know anyone—it seems extra severe to keep her so secluded and solely dependent on him. But to be that blatantly self-serving when her grandmother passed away, for something so minor when he could’ve had plenty of other opportunities to be recognized in his field? He actually acted like she was bothering him with her problems, when he had more important things to do. What kind of person does that? I would’ve wailed like that for Grandma all over again too, because there’s no making up for that lost time, for that mistake in trusting Woo-chul and thinking of him as family, when he’s never once loved anyone but himself.

But what makes me respect Nora is that she puts blame where it’s due, and acknowledges Woo-chul’s flaws, but also her own. She didn’t have enough confidence to raise Min-soo on her own, and she wanted to believe that Woo-chul would take care of her like a father would. As much as he exerted control, she also gave up control of her own life, and let him make the decisions for her. It takes a lot for her to recognize that, and I love seeing her bump up against Hyun-seok’s concern and nagging because she’s trying extra hard to live the other way, where she doesn’t rely on anyone for anything. It shows that she’s learning from her mistakes, even though I’m sure there’s a happy medium in there somewhere, where she allows herself to accept help without giving up the reins to her life. Not that someone as respectful as Hyun-seok would even want that.

I find it amusing that it doesn’t even occur to Nora that Hyun-seok might like her now, though that makes Yoon-young’s discovery all the funnier (I hope she gets to tease him a LOT for it). On the upside, that means we get two confessions—one for the past, one for the present—and get to enjoy Nora’s jealousy and insecurity around Hyun-seok a little longer. I love that he’s trying super hard to give her space and holding his breath while waiting for her to get divorced without pushing her, and the whole time she thinks she’s getting shot down as a potential girlfriend. I can’t wait to see how twisted up things will get for their romance before they finally realize that they’re on the same page. Because from here on out, the misunderstandings can only be of the gleefully embarrassing, adorably happy variety. Okay, I’m ready for my buckets of happy now! Is it Saturday yet?

 
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I have a few things to say:
1. Min-soo, run as far away from Hye-mi as you can. There is nothing in this pairing that makes me support it. Nothing at all. And while we are getting some development on Min-soo’s side, I am not seeing the same for Hye-mi so unless the writer does something for them in the next episodes, if these two end up together, I will break something.
• On a spoilery note, I caught the next episodes preview and oh gosh, are they going that route with Min-soo???
2. It was funny to see a little jealousy from Nora
3. Wow, Woo-chul, how low….how so low of you. Your apology is several years too late. Now we can finally see why Nora did not make it for the funeral and goodness, I wanted to slap Woo-chul myself.
4. NORA IS FREE AT LAST!!!!!!!

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that slap..oh that slap...it felt utterly delicious to have it TWICE!

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I'd have liked it even more if she had slapped his other cheek too, just for balance! Ha ha.

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Two slaps in a a row. I died and went to heaven.

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Most gratifying and twenty years to late!
Should have kicked him where it hurts too!

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Most gratifying and long overdue.

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+1

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Oh yeah. "TWICE !" is the word haha

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why? Min Soo hasn't exactly been the model boyfriend has he? If I was HM, I wouldn't be tolerating that kind of bull treatment from my bf either.

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I could not agree more! Hye Mi may have started things off in a manipulative manner, but she's been pretty level-headed since then. Young women have gotten worse advice than "If your boyfriend is being a secretive moody weirdo who won't communicate, take a weekend at the beach with your girlfriends and give yourself a break". (In fact, I'm pretty sure that's extremely GOOD advice.)

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On acct on his parents' impending divorce, Min Soo has had a spurt of emotional growth. He now has to concentrate on his studies for his own future rather than to please his father. Hye Mi on the other hand doesn't have those worries n can continue in her merry ways.
While it is true that Min Soo doesn't know how to communicate his worries, what 20 year old does, she has really been whiny, demanding and selfish from the start. I for one wouldn't be sorry if he loses her.

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I agree. We see some growth in Minsoo but Hyemi has just stayed annoying. Minsoo isn't making things easy with wanting to keep everything in but she doesn't really respect his feelings at all. Because he wasn't ready to tell her, she decides that she won't tell him she'll be going on a trip. Then he went all stalker-like by waiting hours for her in front of her place. The way her face lit up when he said he would tell her just made me dislike her even more. I'm not sure what she's learning from the relationship class she's taking if she doesn't understand patience is necessary in a relationship.

It's always bothered me that she knew he was a studious individual and yet she pouts every time he has to study. What did she expect? Obviously it wasn't a big secret because his unwillingness to bat his eyes at girls seemed to be what drew her to him in the first place. He seems to have made changes in his schedule for her and yet she just seems to take without giving.

This pairing is just horrible and I feel like they're such a waste of screen time. Then again, I have often wondered if their relationship is supposed to be some kind of juxtaposition on the adult relationships. Should I give them some slack because they're still young and their relationship is still new? I've thought about it but they annoy me too much.

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I'm fine with them breaking up, but not on the basis that Hye Mi has been emotionally negligent in some way. If they break up because they have different priorities and goals, totally fine! If the break up because Hye Mi went away for the weekend without telling him, then she's better off without his possibly genetic controlling tendencies.

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@Miranda, generally I believe emotional negligence is completely reasonable for a break up. I also generally believe that breaking up because of controlling tendencies (her not telling him that she'd be gone for a couple days) is okay being the individual is completely better off without the controlling individual. in minsoo and hyemi's case, i just think they're annoying. lol. if they break up, maybe i won't have to seem them together but if it means we have to seem them moping just let them stay together because at least that means it will just a be few minutes of them together as opposed to double that because they'll be moping in separate shots. :P

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Both of them have a great deal to learn about relationships, no doubt.
If thru his association w Hye Mi, Min Soo learns that next time he shouldn't completely shut a girl out in time of stress, and that he can relax if she goes away for a weekend, that's great. Better to learn it thru losing a girl like Hye Mi than thru a girl who is worthwhile and a pity to have lost.

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There is nothing wrong w Hye Mi going away for a weekend per se. A nicer girl would or could have sent a message saying something to the effect of:

"I'm going away for a few days w my girlfriends and hope to find you in a better mood when I return. My thoughts are with you."

Now that'd suggest to me that she's worth keeping.

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I've kind of wanted Nora to matchmake Minsoo and her student classmate friend - wouldn't that have been a cuter story? Having her son date a girl who befriended his mum even when she was being outcasted, instead of dating someone who watch it happen and do nothing? Also just would've liked to see that girl get more screen-time because she's just much sweeter than Hye Mi has been.

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@anglvue, that's the catch for me: she's not been emotionally unavailable. Hye Mi is very emotionally available, she's made it clear she's there to listen. But apparently she's supposed to wait around for over a week until Min Soo decides that he wants to talk, and then if she's not available immediately, she's emotionally negligent?

Remember, she has no idea what's going on with him. She doesn't know his parents are divorcing. The most she knows is that he signed a contract with his dad to go to the army if he drops below a certain GPA. Min Soo has given her nothing to work with.

@ KDaddict?JCW, she could also have texted him and told him where she was going, true. That was definitely her being a little petty, along the lines of "well if I'm so unnecessary to your life then I guess I can just leave for a while". I'd be a lot more concerned about this if she'd done it expressly to make him worry and pile on stress, like if she'd told her friends not to tell him where she was, or if she's texted him a picture of her and a boy on a beach. But she really didn't DO anything to him, she just lived her life and any freakout he had was his alone. He never had any valid concern about her being in danger, she just wasn't there.

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Sounds like we can all agree they the young-ins are not meant to be. (I'm hoping that for Min Soo he will see in his parents divorce that you need substance for a relationship to work)

However, I think both parties are at fault not just HM(who I have always found irksome).

The ways in which he controls situations or arguments with HM in not that unlike his dear papa, including yelling and making commands without really explaining himself. Yes, he is going through the emotional ringer with the parental bomshells that have been dropped on him, but if he is not going to have the integrity to communicate this to someone who should be an integral part of his life, then me thinks that says something.

Ultimately MS and HM are very different wavelengths combined with having varied personalities. Plus they be hella boring. Bring forth the breakups!

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@Miranda, sorry, let me clarify what I meant. I think that emotional negligence is reasonable for any break up, drama, real life etc. like hyemi i probably wouldn't wait around for him to call me when he finally feels like it. life doesn't just stop. However, whether this becomes the reason for their break up, I could care more or less because i didn't really care for their relationship to begin with.

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He most certainly has not been a model boyfriend and right from the start, I have not liked anything about this pairing.

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I agree with you regarding Min Soo and Hye Mi. I'm not sure if the editing is off, or they're planning to show more in the next episode, but Hye Mi seems selfish and callous in her treatment of Min Soo. I'm all for time out with the girls, since she was in a frustrating situation, but the way it was shown was as if she was completely self centred. If they had shown Min Soo telling her his problems and she was supportive and helpful, that would have shown her in a better light. As it is, what's the point of showing him waiting in front of her house for 3 hours? I was expecting more out of that scene...

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*Me too really want Min-soo break up with Hye-mi, it's for his best. I think Hye-mi is to childish for him. Or, umm, maybe that's because of the writer said so. haha

*I cry a river after known the truth about 'not attending grandma's funeral'. Woo-chul just so amazingly suck. I think twice slap isn't enough, he needs five at least.

*And even if I like Lee Sang Yoon so much in this drama, I don't want him end up with No Ra. I want them just be like best friend. I want No Ra to be free and get her 20 properly now.

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I am really happy about No-Ra and Hyun-Seok, but they are more Fan Service than anything else. The story is about No-Ra's rediscovering and empowering herself.

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HS is consistent thru out the whole show, from Day1 he witnessed her fight with Yoon-young, and bounced back every times she was knocked down, he stand behind her all the times in silent, holding back, only come forward when she needs... holdin his breath and waits,,, till even this moment. while a normal KD hunk will not wait, will seize the day of knowing the impending divorce and tempt her to speed forward. HS knew she needs time. even while been hurt that she don't remember everything. "You don’t remember anything, do you? When you are bored, think back and try to remember.” He said to NR, knowing that while she knowing his past passion is important to her, the timing to know his present passion is not now. She must remember her own passion, her own identity, she must share the same sentiments, else his passion will be of no real comfort to her present plight, at most only a little comfort that an ex Oppa actually still loved her, that’s about all.
But he holding it all in, still trying hard to tease her, to work in her, to stir her to acknowledge that reborn feels… while he refused to tell yoon-young or that magazine interviewer about whether does he like she (someone) now. He knew his heart and “Don’t be shaken”, No, he won’t.

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Yes, Mr. Hyun-Seok is one of the best first male leads in Korean Dramas since Boong-Do in Queen In-Hyun's Man. It is refreshing to see a mature couple loving, accepting and empowering each other in an otherwise inmature landscape. For that reason I enjoyed a lot Prime Minister and I, where both leads did behave as adults (even with the differences that did come from their different stages in life). I was sad with the plot device they used to separate the couple at the end when so much has happened, but loved the reunion at the end: mature, lovely and undestated.

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i always enjoyed watching some noonas drama, Prime Minister and I is quite diff, its the other way round, its like Hyung/ahjushi drama...
i start off doesn't like Yoona in it, maybe i am prejudice as castings Hot Girl Group members in any drama, Hye Mi is from Apink and you saw the flakes she gotten, for both her acting and the way her character written.
but to have Yoona later on handle the role of a step-mom that well, and the mature and natural way they separate and reunited ... is believable, Prime Minister (thought i really don't like that actor, sorry sorry) deserved a good loving help-meet.

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I think the great thing about this show is it genuinely could end up with Nora and Hyun Seok being together, but it could also end up with both of them continuing as friends: Nora starting on a new phase of her life with confidence, and Hyun Seok having accomplished his goal of getting the old Nora back. Either ending would feel true to the themes of the show.

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So much this! As much as I (or the ave. K Drama audience) gets hooked by an OTP coming together, the fact that I would be okay with either really speaks to the quality and consistency of character building within this show.
It almost makes me wish for a second season with her and makes it become a sort of gilmore girlsian dramedy.

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yes, i really hope they will give a second season,'
yeah, since they have so many REPLY this REPLY THAT.... all the teens puppy love...
by the way, REPLY 1998 coming right after this,,,,
so that mature love story is really refreshing.
want to see a different Nora, a second season, with same casts... sometimes second season will means change the main OTP.. like all the Princess Hours or Dreamhigh thingy... i don't like at all.

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like you say, Miranda,
any gal, (Nora in this case) will be fine if remain single and continue to have male close friends in the end, start her life at 38+....
but for Nora, i beg differ, based on the following cases:
1. first, i believed she did felt something different, rathered she did wrote something to HS in the time capsule, so a started passion must continue when it was unfortunately hijacked by WC, and not given closure treatment when it is due.
2. Nora, finally did felt something, and it didn't goes away, it is a mature responsible love, not those teen hot bloodied puppy love, her love now should be answered. not that a woman need a man to survive, but Nora needs to fill that void, that she was depraved of for 20 years, she deserved someone finally to treat her with respect and really like a woman deserve to be caress gently on his palm.
3. but talk about HS, for a man that sulk over a woman, which in fact is his way of loving her, over 20 years, not a normal feat, with his success and load of woman throwing themselves at him, he can give himself excuses to just start something, even plenty of one night stand, even that loving a married woman means you need not hope of "ONE DAY we meet again..."
just like that secret box hidden, he locked his heart there, even kept the recorder so well.... chose not to tell anyone of his passion. in short, he wants nothing, hope nothing, waits for nothing. he is drifting his life 20 years. he deserved more than friendship NOW. you don't understand men, sometimes really needs those "skin-ship" thing, they are unlike women, can jsut live alone on an island.. moreover, a producer is someone with lots of imagination and feels... he will be miserable keep looking at her "available"now and cannot cuddle.... (huh, you can sensor the last few sentence away... PG16)

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@mary of bethany, I don't think Hyun Seok "deserves more than friendship" from Nora for loving her for 20 years. No one deserves a relationship with another person.

If she wants to love him (and it seems she might) then great! But she's not a prize at the end of his trial of waiting, he didn't "win" her if she doesn't reciprocate, or if she wants to stand on her own feet for a while before jumping into another relationship. She doesn't owe him physical contact or wish fulfillment - he's free to seek it, but she's not indebted to give it.

"You don’t understand men" is a curiously confident statement. I get that you're seeing all of this in the context of a grand romance, but I'm also seeing it as a woman who at 38 is about to have to do a whole host of things for the first time, a woman who will have to figure all of this out while also being responsible for a son, a woman who has only just realized exactly how controlled she was for years. This is not the time for her to be doing ANYTHING out of obligation, even if Hyun Seok is wonderful.

We have no idea what she wrote on that piece of paper, and clearly she's not remembering anything from that time as life-shattering. I'm pretty sure I wrote a contract with a friend that I'd marry him if we both hit 40 still single, and then we never talked to each other after the age of 23. What Nora has to focus on right now is Nora. I'm sure Hyun Seok wants to be there for her in any form she'll let him in, but the idea that because he's a famous producer and that men need skinship and he'd been pining for 20 years translates as Nora needing to provide a romantic relationship? That makes my skin crawl.

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Nora is simply amazing!!!! And CHS is the best ever....will be very sad when this drama ends... Thank you TVN

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Gosh, at the bus stop both Nora and Hyun-Seok look so amazing in jeans.

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I knew WC was a jerk, but I couldn't imagine sb stooping so low as to prevent Nora from attending her Grandma's funeral, knowing full well how close they were! 2 Slaps are way too few!

I've been wondering why Nora would sleep w a guy so soon after meeting him, and did it out of wedlock. She just didn't seem that kind of girl. It's to the writer's credit to offer up that explanation, that his back reminded her of his father's, and it gave her a sense of security. Wrong 1st impression. False security. And she paid dearly for it. Let this is a cautionary tale to young girls in whirlwind romances.

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I knew it! I KNEW Woo Chul did something shady around that funeral! There was no way she wouldn't show up, not unless there was absolutely no recourse - and here we are.

I'm kind of glad they keep hammering the narcissistic note with Woo Chul, because it really does make him something other than an evil jerk (still awful, but in a blissfully ignorant way).

He really is so stunningly self-absorbed that he constantly reorients the world around himself. Grandma dies at the same time as his conference? Well... grandma's already dead, and besides this career move will benefit them all in the long run, and Min Soo is sick, and there aren't direct flights anyhow, and Nora's friends can do it... You can see the same pattern he uses today, where he makes a list of "compelling" reasons and then doggedly stacks them up until he thinks the conclusion is undeniable, steamrolling any objection. He's even fooled himself into thinking it's logic instead of selfishness.

He's not actually doing things to intentionally hurt Nora, really. He just absolutely never puts himself in her shoes, and then mistakenly believes that anything that's good for him is obviously good for her. As he's shown time and time again, he sees her as an accessory: the professor's wife. Without the professor, she'd be nothing, so as far as he's concerned putting himself first benefits her. (...the jerk.)

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@Miranda,
The best thing about DB is commenters like you, who take time to ponder the deeper meanings of words and behavior of chars., n dignify dramas w attention that might be worthwhile of literature. Salute. After over a decade of watching KD, n much disappointment in recent years, I tend to be less mindful.
Selfishness and self-absorption, while sounding relatively harmless, are at the root of much pain and conflict in relationships, becos they are the antithesis of Love. WC is not capable of that even if his life depends on it.

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Woo Chul may have a dim glimmer of understanding that he's been unfair, but I think those are really short-lived insights, and probably more related to a mind that realizes there are no more feasible "logical" options available and that any more pursuit of Nora would make him lose face (which is his #1 fear). It took Min Soo's intervention to have him agree to the divorce, and it took Nora's fury to actually get him into the courthouse.

The actor does a fantastic job with this character, by the way. I'm really impressed at the flickers of expression that hint at complicated thought processes, like when he's exploding at Hyun Seok and realizes he's overplayed his hand, or when he's trying to outflank Nora. Nice little nuances that make it clear he's not actually a guy with an evil plan, he's a self-absorbed jerk who really does instantly put himself at the center of any situation.

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yes, this drama actually is very real. Writer didn't plant any Super evil villains here, in fact we normal people do have shades of greys.
some has more tones of black in that color tones selection, some has more white tones displayed.
inside all of us, it neither all black nor all whites.
to have the one all desired to throw stones at, being given a more in-depth psychiatrically assessment / autopsy of WC. Choi Won Young is very blessed to be given very deep roles back to back with IRY and this. that he can played with such layered performance. given that he didn't reallly rest, jumping from a Psychopath in I remember you, straight into another mental nut case, a completely diff one, and he makes you immediately forget LYJ. wow,, not many actor can do that. certainly not the likes of mega hunks that graced the covers of all those fashion mags.

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@mary, totally agree - I somehow ended up watching IRY, KMHM and this all within the span of a few months, and it's remarkable that he's so notable in each of those roles but also manages to not carry over any of those traits from character to character. I'd imagine it's really easy to slip and forge that accidental link for an audience, but I haven't experienced it yet.

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KDaddictJCW.
"it was your back.... its was like seeing the backof my father..i felt a feeling like you were a strong protector for me.... Only back then." that's that. "only back then." that was the problem with us once, when we are teens, what we saw in a flash moment in someone, doesn't last, in fact we may mistaken what we saw as the Real Person in someone we thought we loved. even the feeling we felt once, when we said we can die for our College Senior, even this feeling of love is not love itself. NR paid for her fake imagination of being loved and being in love, as her love faded, but she holds on to MS and still trying to like WC as a wife. i am pleased to realised finally she did not at all loved WC, and that is enough for me to know for this ep.
NR, “the reason why I want a divorce is because I’ve discovered why I lost my former self, and became a clueless person. You made me that way….” Obviously, that treasure box help in founding her “self”.
just before this confrontation, HS said that to her, “It was only you who saw that an odd, sensitive boy like m had talent…you believed in me, you were the only one who helped me become who I am today… you were the reason I kept going, because of you, I lived out my dream. Don’t forget who you were.”
even at that moment, it is still about Nora that HS is concerned with,not about himself. Time that Nora realized, she was such an awesome person, not just a glittering dancer that “can talk with dance-moves”. Not many people can be blessed with such honour after 20 yrs to have someone come up and tell you, you are the one who inspired his success, not just before he loved you for 20 years, but because you are awesome, you have dreams, fighting spirit, you have once believe in him when everyone don’t. this was the confession that outshine the original “I love you” confession I have been waiting since ep 12 done. To have him saying all the cheesy “I love you” may be thrilling. But his selfless confession aim only for remind her to Wake up to Her-“Self” and live on by this remembrance, is so gratifying.

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A thousand times YES!

I do believe that true love inspires you to be a better person, in fact to be the best of eho you can be. In any relationship, love commands that. And that's how Nora was HS first love.

This is what I search for in the romance part of the dramas I watch. It's actually a make or break thing for me.

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@maryofbethany,
Ditto to you what Chesens said.

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Yes, Woo Chul is a jerk. He isn't a villain who kills or causes physical injuries to others, but the emotional pain he inflicts upon those closest to him is tremendous. I wonder how his parents are like, as they never come into the picture in this drama. He could have grown up from a very dysfunctional family to have learnt such selfish ways... All I can say is, beware of all the Woo Chul's in real life, not to fall for their initial charms like No Ra did.

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yeah, i was glad it wasn't just a hot-one night stand fling, just because some handsome senior (that looks much handsome than the teen HS) praised you for your dancing... then the layed with him and get herself wasted for 20 years.
thank God it was like that, that she did feel something for him. of cause, not all feelings are true love, even if at that moment she shaken like never before, it can mount to nothing since it was "love" at first sight, without any root, no proper budding will comes to pass. that bud will wither off at the first sunrise, it did for Nora.
like she said at ep 1 to Yoon Young, couple eating and talk and watch TV together like normal life, and even their "sleeping" together get lesser which is natural.
she just rub off WC not interested in touching her as normal, i believe when MS arrived not long, WC should have lost all interest to lay with her, even if did, its just "duty only".

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With that shotgun wedding, Nora had to leave her grandma, her youth, her true admirer and her friends behind. Bad swap.

2 GFs of mine, when they were dating seriously told their suitors that they'd never move far from their parents. That that condition should be written into their wedding vows. It worked out so well for them, in that they got guys who respect their familial bonds, and that they can enjoy a closeness to their parents and sisters thru their married lives. If only Nora wasn't blinded by a guy who came out of nowhere!

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Whooooo!! She's free! Loved the well deserved slaps.

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Ha, those slaps were no joke. She really wound up and let 'em go. They made me flinch a little.

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Lol... Same here... Think he got off pretty easy though.. Especially after what he did in today's episode

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Have yet to read or watch but I'm so exciteeeeeedddd ahahaha

Cant believe we only have 3 more episodes to enjoy this piece of gem :'(

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for some reason i really don't like Hye Mi for Min Soo, she is just so controlling and she never bother to understand Min Soo.

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me too...please let Hye Mi be gone!

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well, she did ask him what was going on several times, and he was the one who refused to tell her. she can't know what's going on in his life if he doesn't tell her. from her point of view, all he does is get distracted around her, running off to other places and ditching her repeatedly, and never answering her questions.

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You know, I actually don't mind Hye Mi. Especially in this episode - Min Soo's not communicating with her. It's not her job to be available to him 24/7 just in case he wants to talk, and it's incredibly frustrating for her to have him around refusing to talk about the thing that's occupying most of his thoughts. So she left her phone at home and went to the beach for two days. Good for her!

It would be controlling if she was sulking and whining and manipulating him, but she's not. She just opted out of being an unwilling bystander to his Big Secret Drama and did her own thing, probably enjoyed herself and had a nice break. And now she's back and isn't acting particularly sulky, just making it clear that she's there for him if he communicates with her, but otherwise...

The more I think of it, the more it seems like a kind of mature response. Sure she could've told him where she was going, but it's not like he's her dad, and he found out easily enough by asking one of her friends. Girlfriends aren't free therapists who are endlessly on call. They have their own lives.

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Yeah, I don't think HM was at fault either.

I mean, she's giving him time, might as well have fun with pals. What do people expect her to do? Pine over him? Not likely.

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I just get this sense that she's being judged harshly for not being instantly available as soon as Min Soo wants her. And I the uncomfortable feeling that if the roles were switched, and if Hye Mi were being secretive and moody and after a while Min Soo went away for the weekend to clear his head, the reaction would be that Hye Mi had driven him away by being so secretive and that Min Soo was doing a healthy thing getting away from her crazy for a bit. He might even be admired for coming back still willing to date her.

Women cast in the eternal role of men's emotional caretakers. It's a hard pattern to break.

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Should have posted my reply to you here instead of at:
1.2.1.1.5 above.

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ugh, that's an eye-opener. Thank God, the people around me are more enlightened.

This is, I think, especially true in Asian culture and the like, we, as females, should be more accessible to boys etc.

I mean, the amount of 'advice' I had back at school, even in junior high (from adults and friends), to be more happy and smiley and full of cheer and womanly wiles so I can 'get a guy' when at that age I'm like 'what? I don't want a guy, I want books and food'.

I'm at that age when you remember things in your life and you realize that your culture is twisted.

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In Asian or western culture, one can show some sign of being considerate and caring w/o being "in the role of men's emotional caretakers".

I don't think it's not that "we, as females, should be more accessible to boys", more that two people who are dating should have some patience, understanding and consideration for each other, esp. when the other is in some kind of turmoil.

If the roles were switched, I think we'd be calling Min Soo names for not caring about his go's troubles, and going off w/o a word to add to her worries.

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Agreeeeeeeeeee!

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clarification--
@Miranda
I agree that girls and women are expected to be emotionally available and are judged harshly if we are not

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i'm not judging her cos she left. i was never fully on board relationship in the first place. i actually agree with you that it's not her job to be emotionally available whenever minsoo needs it. i just think that it would have been reasonable for her to leave a message to say she's taking off for a few days.

a working relationship requires patience and understanding. and not entirely connected but i'm also big on giving each other space. i need my alone time as well.

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But my problem with her is that she knows that Min Soo is undergoing something very heavy. It's just that he's not ready to talk about it yet.

Being a supportive partner doesn't mean you'll have to be at his beck and call 24/7 or that you should sulk and pine with him. But it was clear that Min Soo has a problem and the best thing HM could have done was to understand that it's probably not time to push for him to talk about it yet. If she wanted a girls night out, she could have said so just to let him know that she's giving him the space he needs. But she deliberately left her phone just to know how much Min soo would worry about her?! That's just the most selfish and insensitive way she could act out. And she's 20years old. I'd forgive her if she was 12, but 20?! I mean whether or not Min Soo tells her his problem, she should know how to support him even just by holding his hand, sitting beside him.

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But she's been doing that for at least a week, hanging around Min Soo and waiting to see if he wants to talk. He's not talking. People knew where she was, as soon as he asked her friend he knew she was at the beach with friends. Hye Mi's gone for 48 hours on an organized trip with people she knows, why on earth would he worry about that? It's only two days! Why does he get to flip out about that? And why should she call him to let him know that the reason she's going out is so that he gets space? Maybe she wanted to go have fun with the friends she's not been seeing as she hangs out with him so much. He is not the center of the universe (...his father is, but that's another topic).

Hye Mi left her phone because he's been freezing her out. Sure, it's a little petty, but she's also probably been driving herself nuts checking to see if he's called or texted, or trying to stop herself from calling or texting him. Leave the phone at home, solves the problem. There's no point in going to the beach with friends if you spend the entire time glued to your phone having anguished chats with your boyfriend.

I don't get why we're being understanding to Min Soo here and not to Hye Mi. Yes, he's experiencing upheaval at home. But she's got a boyfriend who is behaving erratically and keeping secrets, and he's not responding to her efforts to help. That is incredibly frustrating, and she deserves a bit of a break.

There are plenty of worse ways to act out: shouting at him, breaking up with him, flirting with other guys, brushing him off, vanishing without telling anyone, lying, crying... She's not doing any of those. She just went on a weekend trip without telling him. That's it.

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true, i might be a little biased because 1) i dislike this relationship in general and 2) i find hyemi especially annoying. i'm trying to put myself in her place at ~20 years old or so and i'm also thinking screw him because i'm tired of how he is treating me. however, the somewhat rational adult in me would have at least have left him a message to let him know where i would be and when he can reach me when i return.

i think it's precisely that there's upheaval at home that we're more understanding about minoo's situation. her biggest worry seems to be that her boyfriend isn't spending nearly as much time with her as he is studying and he isn't ready to talk about some things just yet. additionally, her persistence in having things her way has been annoying me very much. he's made changes in his life for her but she's unwilling to give him patience in this matter.

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@anglvue, how has she been manipulating him? I may be forgetting things, but she's been rolling with the punches regarding hiding from his father, she's reacted to his studying by leaving him a note telling him she's going outside (not guilting him, just telling him), and she doesn't kill him for ditching her in the middle of the street in an unfamiliar neighborhood at night.

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@miranda, i don't necessarily think she's been manipulating him. i feel like that's too strong a word. it sounds like i'm picking on her, i'm not.

obviously, their relationship has its ups and downs. he's not perfect. minsoo has a long list of things he's done as well. you list them perfectly. getting mad at her for taking pictures with her class project boyfriend left a lasting impression of why minsoo is not great boyfriend material. yeah, she's made strides in being accommodating to his requests. i guess i'm more critical of her because it still continues to bother me all this time that she wanted him to study less so they could hang out or hang out with me or let's break up. i can't remember. trust me, i'd feel the same way if it had been his request of her. it might feel like i'm picking on her, but if he behaved similarly i'd complain about him instead.

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+q

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Omg I've never been so happy to see someone get slapped. Twice! Good for Nora, she deserved to punish Woochul for the way he treated her all those years. I think it woke him from his delusions. He could see she wouldn't accept everything anymore for him.

What a great episode, I like the way her feelings for Hyun-seok are progressing. And Hyun-seok is letting her decide things for herself.

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Saw the preview for the next episode and yes, Hyemi and Minsoo is going to break up. I hope they do, I honestly didn't like Hyemi at all. She's very demanding and is also childish. I hope Minsoo finds love with his mother's friend, the one who is hardworking in her studies and also works 3 jobs to support herself.

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As much as I'd like that...I kinda root for sunbae to be with her though (you know...the girl who's hard on her studies and work 3 jobs)

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The two of them seem like good friends only. Not seeing any sparks at the moment.

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Their "breakup" just looks like them having a hissy fit. I wonder if they'll actually break up.

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I hope they break up for real. Both need some growing up to do...

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I don't think they're the "stay together forever" type of romance, but they are learning how to treat other people through each other.

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If you include the three first love relationships (HMand MS, Nora and WC, and Nora and HS) it gives a pretty interesting blueprint for the main outcomes of such relationships (spoiler alert, ending in true love is does not)

A. Get together because for superficial reasons even though you are both very different people. Breakup for those reasons. Helps each party grow and realize what you want from a relationship and how to do better in the future.Presuming that MS and HM break up.

B. Your struck by this persons quality and think it will fill what is missing in your life. The case of one or both parties changing or not meeting your expectations. This scenario is a bit stickier considering they had an unplanned pregnancy but can also be considered a reason for why they never broke, as one usually would in this case.

C. You become enlightened/empowered by your first love/you never were able to get together. Still you can take the lessons learned in (this case) her impact on yourself as well as being more assertive for what you want. Plus you might just happen to reconnect 20 years later and get together by episode 16.

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Minsoo doesn't need another relationship at the moment. He is young and can take his time to look for another one.

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Romance go go go!

Thank you for the recap!

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Thanks for letting us know the song they were listening to at the bus stop -- it was driving me crazy trying to figure out where I heard it before. I heard Yook Sungjae sing it a while ago and was going to buy it but never followed up, so now I can.

I liked that Woo Chul finally ended up realizing what he had done to Nora, and being sorry for it, and setting her free. Choi Wonyoung is so good at playing bad guys but bringing out their sympathetic qualities also.

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Hi Blnmom,
You probably heard the song in "Introduction to Architecture".
I also love this song :)

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NoRa's marriage is very much like mine: I sympathize. Some foundational mistakes are easily seen in hindsight. It IS better to CUT a dysfunctional relationship in hopes of regrowing a healthy one. Thank God for fiction, because real life rarely has tidy, happy endings!

One of my favorite Kdrama quotes is from Emergency Couple - "Even when it's over, It's Not Over!" and for THAT reason, I'm very interested in seeing where the writers would take this!

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@ Laura:

Totally! I hear ya, and am so LOVING this slice of life easy-going drama. So real, insightful and without the dramamakjang! I enjoyed ER Couple too, for some of the same reasons.

See some deja-vu resemblance to my early 'hero-worshipping' at 19-29 of my intellectual charming tech-guru too. Leaving together abroad at 20, fora foreign university.

How true selflessness can also unhealthily feed that self centered selfishness, and ego. Esp when one partner thriving well outside and climbing high up the corporate ladder as the golden boy loved by everyone at work presents everything so 'logically'. Acceptance of 'justifications' are so easy to happen when tired, bogged with life, routine and running around young kids. And it's tiring for family life to keep arguing anyway.

Thankfully, there was enough of the old-me to salvage and so I also initiated the end with the 'king' ultimately when others would have stayed because being wife of so and so Director is so much more prestigious.

And I had university education to fall back upon to get going. But despite the emotional liberation; life doesn't unfold like a Kdrama unfortunately, esp when with enforced shared custody of kids under the NAmerican system and its 'supposed' well-meaning rules.

Power-tripping and manipulation can/still will unhealthily happen in reality ... no matter how 'fairly' one party tries to follow the ethical book according to what should be in a shared custody for healthy self-development of kids.
Worse when there is 2 to the narcissistic equation to out-logic every decision you try to make for your kids.

Or losing touch with friends when abroad and life takes over ... unlike this Kdrama when NR still has a solid best friend and friendship still waiting for her after her yrs in Germany!

It's uplifting Min Soo is old enough to wake up to see, and mature. Also also heartening to see his own relationship ... and what paths will unravel with their own choices.

This is such a refreshing easy drama! A wonderful peek to the what could be future for 'invincible' teens and their romantic notions of what will always be, happily forever after. I am so glad my daughter is watching this.

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thanks, girlfriday, while 20A get better by the eps , your recap better better too."I love that he’s trying super hard to give her space and holding his breath while waiting for her to get divorced without pushing her" you said.
yes, HS is consistent thru out the whole show, from Day1 he witnessed her fight with Yoon-young, and bounced back every times she was knocked down, he stand behind her all the times in silent, holding back, only come forward when she needs... holdin his breath and waits,,,
my best moment in the best ep of 20A, is when he told the doubting SangYe, “There’s no way. I’m still there’s a reason.” Whatever he saw, he trusted that HR has reborn, reborn as the Real HaNoRa. She is already showing signs of jealousy during post-interview / suit choosing discourse. Moreover, she is waking up not because of him, its because she is founding herself, the NoRa he knew will not even be threatened by WC using MS, just like when she bounced back UP like a bop bag punched by Yoon young, she will bounced back this time. This Bounced-Back Nora was the Nora he loved, not just the glamous dancing Nora. The Nora that saw his gift when no one else did, the Nora who trusted and believed and inspired. While he saw her disappeared into that car, he will hold on to his trust in her.
I believed that Time Capsule should play a part soon to rekindled the final last feels, to make her remembered her love for him, her love even before WC shakened her with his illusion “back” that make her mistakened that that back will be likened to her dad…. WC knows her problem even even her realizing, was just a false image he always put on. When he said he can see what she trying to see, say body language is better than words. (“better” my foot! Does he knows what he was saying, and does he mean what he said? Does he really SEE her as SHE IS?) Given any moments, I believe words rules. So, the door that stand in between HS and NR will be that “remembrance”,
“Don’t forget who you were…” was his urgent mission. But the real thing that save her, will be “when you’re bored, think back and try to remember.” Was the advice he gave her, he can done everything for her. The only think left is for her to do, she has to remember, including her feelings for him, then can she be saved

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Carpe Diem. Seize the day.
the first time I “seized” this was when introduced by “Dead Poet Society”, another awesome film that inspired me.
“be True to the feelings you fell, in the moment.”… when he discovered his own feelings, he has been true to it, not burning the Mixtape and card, is a way to be true to it. No more flip flopping and grumpypants. Now, all the talks about the “girlfriend… rice and being Oppa” are meant to stirred her to face her own feelings, to realize how does she actually feel for him now.
later on, in the car, he told Nora, “maybe I’ll stop being your oppa”. While acting like an oppa who was inspired by her, and loved her in the past does strengthened her. He is questioning now, should he be opening another invisible Treasure Box of his heart, while debating this, he is still holding himself in, waiting for that day to come, that he shall seize and wake her up to her feeling for him. I believe he does know or feel that she does like him. The Guy is full of confidence in her, and their bonding now, yet without any pride. I just loved a guy that waits, and true to his feelings, and tell me to “be true to my feeling.” …. Nora, when will you realized what is in your palm now, and “Seize” him? Carpe Diem, Nora.

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"The good man suffers but to gain, and every virtue springs from pain.
As aromatic plants bestow no spicy fragrance while they grow;
But Crush’d or Trodden to the ground,
Diffuse their balmy sweets around." (Oliver Goldsmith).
Nora is this, "Becoming HaNoRa".
HS saw that balmy sweets 20 yrs ago, he saw a crushed but revived plant, and only he saw that when no one saw, only even WC. as only NR saw his potential alone, so did he alone saw NR potential as the balmy sweet plant.
a very satisfying ep.

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What a beautiful poem! Thanm you for sharing it!

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@Chesens, Cg,
hahaha. pardon me for the full of typo error posts above, i typed them before rushing off to meet someone for lunch appt. thank God ppl do understand what i was trying to say inspite of the many errors.

this show has some unique effects on us all. i keep thinking why these few weeks. today on my way out, then i realised, because we found ouselves in the OTP. the OTP was written in context of what really happens to real people like us, i believed a lot of us here are noonas and ahjummas, with some regrets in life even. as much as we awe over Nora, we feel sad about what cannot redeem in our life, many of us write what we really felt, this is one Drama that really CANNOT goes wrong at the ending, else some of us will really feel "all Hope is not lost." is CRAP.
read some heart wrenching sharings here for past few weeks. we have lots of real Nora here, i believe.

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@maryofbethany,
That's a beautiful poem, and a beautiful post. So apt. Thank you.

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@mary of bethany - i got flutters in my stomach reading your beautiful post. I feel like i understand CHS character even deeper through your post. You have a gift, you know that?

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Hye Mi is really childish! Her boyfriend is having so much problems and all she wants is to make him jealous.

I actually wonder whether there is a TV in their house in Germany. There would be shows Nora could watch and then pick up basic German. Did she even step out of the house to buy groceries or bread? Wouldn't she be the one to take Min Soo to preschool? I find it a little hard to believe this, as she has high school education, not like some village girl who did not have much education from some other Asian country forced to follow her husband.

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Are you serious? Just watch tv and boom you can suddenly learn a completely new language. Whoa it's so simple why doesn't everyone do that? Haha As someone who only speaks english and has spent many months in China for school I can say that NO watching tv does not in anyway help you learn a language. The only way it would help her is if she set up Korean subtitles and she tried to follow along that way but then again she would have to know the german to set up the subtitles. I don't see her husband taking the time to do it for her. Even going outside and attempting to talk to people wouldn't do anything unless they knew some Korean and could help her translate. There has to be some basis for her to be able to learn, she can't magically learn German from scratch. And you said take Min Soo to preschool, uhhh she's a stay at home mom he doesn't need preschool. She's not working she stated she stayed home with him for four years.

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I speak Chinese, English and Malay with intermediate Spanish and German. I can hold conversation in both Spanish and German and understand the conversation between Prof. Lindemann and Woo-Chul.

For me, Chinese is much harder than German to pick since German is with mostly alphabets and close to English but of course, in Nora's case; I don't think she knows English but as what my teacher used to say, learn a language like a baby. Make explanation in the language you're learning's basic instead of translating them. She could have learned through little kids show.

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But she is and was not a baby. Her brain doesn't process like babies, who are able to pick up words and vocabs incredibly fast around the age of two because their brains are still developing at incredible paces. She has to start somewhere. Even if she were to learn like a baby, she'd have to have enough vocab in that language to make sense through all the muddled mess of what she doesn't know.

It's like babies can make their own compasses, so you can just give them a map. At 18, you need someone to give you a compass so that you can make sense of the map.

And dude, she needs guidance, be it a neighbour or a hobo to tell her if her assumptions of the meaning of words are right or not. Sounds like she never talked to anyone except WooChul (and MinSoo who just wailed).

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Min Soo would have been 3 years old at least by the end. They said they lived there for 4 years.

Do you know how much children can speak by 3 years? Min soo is shown to be a pretty bright boy, so he should be able to speak pretty well.

So if she was just a stay-at-home mum, she can actually have a pretty decent conversation with her child.

It was mentioned that his father took care of his education. I am sure he would have taught him English or German apart from Korean.

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There is no such thing as being a baby will pick up the language faster. As a matter of fact, you think baby pick it up faster but it takes them a few years before they could mutter the first full sentence. An adult can actually learn the language faster compared to the baby because we have the basic idea of how to construct a sentence and knowing what item is what. I read about this in a book called fluent in 3 months . You can google it because linking site might be regarded as spam. They have a chapter dedicated to explaining the myth about adult not being able to pick up the language.

When you are learning a new language, the most important part is to get the idea across. I think 4 years living in Germany while having access to the TV, she could just simply watch some kids show and have some basic grasp. Woo-chul as a korean student probably has a dictionary so she could have used it too.

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@Elgarmummy:
1. I'm gonna take it that MinSoo can speak Korean well at that age because there is no question Korean was frequently spoken in that house. So, definitely, that NoRa had a conversation partner by the end (and even then, she only had one 3/4 into the stay). But, it is suspect whether or not he can speak German or English at that time. From the flashbacks, WooChul doesn't look like the kind to sit down and converse about anything with his son at that age, much less teach him a new language. When they said that WooChul took care of MinSoo's education, it is not stated when he started. For all you know, it could be after their return to Korea when he's finished all his studies and where he knows the system like the back of his hand. So whether MinSoo had a firm grasp of German or English by the time he was three, enough to converse witb and teach NoRa, is questionable. Another thing:

2: MinSoo is not blind to how his dad treats his mom. He was so condescending of her so do you think he'd hold a long conversation with her in a language she doesn't understand? It's more likely that he'd think she were stupid and avoid it.

@Dadada:
I never said that babies picked up languages faster. I said that they picked up words and vocabs faster and my point was that if one has a larger vocab range, one can pick out the meaning somehow through elimination or word relations or something of a completely baffling paragraph and from there learn new words and eventually sentence structure. You gotta start somewhere, not no-where..
And I visited that site (you know, the one that ends with a link to "Fluent in 3 months Premium") and two sub-topics from the top it says: "I am definitely against all this "learn like a baby crap...". And the following paragraphs continue on to show how adults and babies learn differently which means that what works for babies might not work for adults and vice versa. In one of the paragraphs he states that adults can learn through analysing... are you sure NoRa, with her preoccupation with sickly MinSoo, cleaning her house, making meals and her loneliness had time to sit and analyse the german language structure? In another paragraph he highlights the importance of a conversation partner, which at that time, NoRa didn't have. Many sites state that adult language learners faul because they do heavy self-study, which is so not the way to learn languages.

I'm not saying that NoRa cannot learn a new language. I'm saying that I understand why she's so crippled when it comes to mastering the german language at that time.

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As an ESL teacher I can tell you that there is not a right or wrong answer when learning a second language. There are so many theories, techniques, and approaches that you never know if you are doing the right thing. Bottom line is that when you are a baby your brain is built to accept linguistic input at an accelerated rate. You may not be able to speak it (because of motor issues) but you understand A LOT. People that learn two to three languages at an early age become fluent in all languages because all that linguistic language gets stored together. Later on new languages get compartmentalized. Unfortunately, later on there are more factors that interfere with second language acquisition. Interest, linguistic abilities, environment...I learned English in school starting in third grade and by the time I graduated I was fluent, but other students that were with me every step of the way we're not as lucky. God, I have been watching Korean dramas with subtitles almost every day for 4 years and I suck at Korean. When I went to Korea this summer I was so embarrassed. So I can see why Nora would struggle even if she had a TV.

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I don't think she had time to watch TV hardcore. She was doing housework and taking care of a child. I think you can learn to understand through TV, even without subtitles although it's harder, but you can only learn basics and unless someone is speaking it with you at home you won't learn to speak well. It's hard to make friends when all you can say is basic phrases. And since they planned to go back to Korea, it was probably really important for her to keep speaking Korean to Min Soo so he could learn it.

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She couldn't even say 'Guten Tag' to the professors. You would have thought living 4 years in a country would at least allowed her to say just one basic greeting. She couldn't.

In earlier episodes, she had studied English to get ready for university, so I don't think it was a totally foreign language to her. She might have been very bad, since she might lack confidence to speak. Even 'hello' would have sounded similar in German. Many Germans could speak English, so I think the writer didn't think deep enough.

I could understand that she was stuck at home with MinSoo, but when she was pregnant, she could not have stayed at home 24/7. Subsequently, wouldn't she have brought him to the playground at the very least? I think it would have made more sense to show her being frustrated at not being able to understand other parents at the playground.

Woo Chul is shown as somebody who is self-centred and narcissistic, and not somebody who is so manipulative and abusive.

I know I am picking at simple issues but up to this stage, I still find it a little hard to accept the part where she got pregnant and then left for Germany.

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Adding to your comment, there was a part she brought Minsoo out because he was crying and Woo-chul was busy with his thesis too.

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Since Woo Chul sent Min Soo to all those cram schools, I would have assumed he would have wanted the best education for his son when he was just a baby, thus sending him to school.

In another episode, Nora said she was a good driver because she would ferry her son to all the cram schools. Woo Chul actually allowed her to learn driving since she was only 17 when she left and too youn, so he is not that controlling.

He would just have been ashamed of her age in Germany.

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I think that WC kept NR pretty much hidden as he didn't want people to gossip about how he knocked up a teenager.
And I think it's possible - pretty much like how he goes sneaking around with YJ. Nora did say that she was in the room with MS most of the time. Sure, she may have taken a walk with him at times, but I think that that was probably minimal.

As for picking up a foreign language, MS won't be able to speak German if no one speaks to him or encourages him. And if he doesn't get to meet and play with German children. I think that it is very unlikely that he even went to play-groups,etc...WC was so intent on keeping NR away from the public. And keeping her under his thumb.

What annoys me is that he deliberately kept her ignorant - so that she had to defer to him all the time, and yet, when she did that, he had the cheek to get mad and annoyed at her! Irritating, controlling, narcissistic freak!

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She could probably pick up really basic stuff like hello, goodbye, thank you, one/two/three, very basic vocab words and maybe some slang exclamations. But very unlikely that she'd get more than that, unfortunately.

Remember, she's not just dealing with different sounds, she's dealing with an entirely different alphabet too - closed captions wouldn't help her too much, and the internet in 2000 was much more basic than today so there wouldn't be as many resources (and they'd be slower to access).

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I think Minsoo was still too young to attend preschool when they returned to Korea and I won't be surprised if Woo-chul did all the groceries himself because he didn't want anyone to know about Nora.

If you're a really young mother in a new country and with a husband who likes to scare you into submission, you would be scared to venture out too. Nora had a lot on her hands taking care of Minsoo and she didn't have anyone else with her other than Woo-chul who wasn't even really available for his wife and son.

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I think we are thinking too much. It is just that the writer did not develop this part that well, and assumes that by giving us that little bit of flash back, we know exactly what Woo Chul is doing.

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My whole point which I still believe is valid , is that no matter how much tv she watched she would need some kind of a basis. I lived in china and even with an intermediate knowledge of the language if someone spoke too fast or with a different dialect I was lost. She had nothing to work with. Why would her husband bother to teach her german? And all you people who keep saying didn't she do this or that? Didn't you see the part where they asked why she didn't visit germany? THATS HOW HIDDEN SHE WAS! They literally didn't know she was there! After four years they didn't know she was there. Obviously she wasn't out and about on the town. And on the tv debate even on dora the explorer that translate, they don't just use constant spanish. And since you have experience learning so many languages you should know that you have to have a back and forth. Someone has to tell you what the words mean. I can sit in a room for hours and listen to gibberish but unless they tell me what it means I won't just magically pick it up.

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this episode is very telling about nora's life in germany and woochul's treatment of her. she only has some high school education, she's pregnant and the only person she relates to is her husband. he pretty much hides her from the world. as she acknowledges, she also retreats into herself. her world, as yoon young previously indicated, revolved around her husband and her son. this doesn't seem like the most productive environment to learn german in. had it been the former nora, maybe she would have been more proactive in doing so and likely more vocal, but the nora in germany is painted as someone who dared not overstep her role as a wife and mother, or what she perceived those roles to be. additionally, if the goal was only for woochul to go to school in germany and then return to korea, maybe she saw no need to learn german.

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There are many Asian immigrants like NR actually.

They know how to walk/bus/ or drive (in the more affluent category) but they can't understand or speak much English to save their lives.

Even sadly after 10-15 yrs, their lives have been put on a backburner selflessly for husband and kids; and worse when cultural/generational gap sets in (their teens are 'white' in outlook thanks to education, friends and school) while mom has been socially isolated ... double alienation sets in. The kids sometimes end up like Min Soo. Everything requiring English has been navigated by husband who has contact with the outside world, thus far.

Their self-esteem has also been gradually eroding over the yrs, as their only lives in a foreign country is that of a homebound (with young kids) homemaker.

Even with they have friends, it's likely with people from their own small community who speaks the language.
They only come on the 'radar' when depression or something sets in.

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its all depend on where these immigrants were going.
here in my "mouse-hole little dot country" , we have loads of all nations gathered, squeezed within small areas. Koreans gathered in groups, shop, eat, even watched movies together in All-Things Koreans.
so not a problem, if the housewife stayed at home, on the 40 INCH LCD, you can find even kor language channels... or English dramas.
but look at those Korean missionaries went Africa or cambodia, their wives will be very stucked and confined to very limited korean cultured things, less even to meet resident koreans (don't count Ktourists in). so, in these places, even the TV don't really have English programmes, not to mention local programmes with Kor Sub. so given that NR is so damn scared of incur WC wrath and disapleasure, i believe she submissively confined herself in her room, till MS reached schooling age and start sending him to playschool and tuitions. but of cause i don't think she will ever mention who she is, who the dad is... so secretive was her identity and limited exposures that the fateful night, it was been revealed that none of WC prof and classmates ever knew of "a wife" being in German for that 4 years. so, she is hidden but allowed to wander only around areas where MS is needed.

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oh, the koreans students in my seminary can learn very basic english after 3 or 4 years, depend on their prog.
their wives, remain "just speak Kor only".

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After an entire hour showing how Nora changed from a spirited, opinionated girl into a dispirited woman totally dependent on an egomaniacal husband, I'm finding it incredibly bizarre that Hye Mi's behavior in this episode would be criticized.

From the looks of things, Hye Mi has been waiting around supportively for a while for Min Soo to tell her what's going on. He hasn't, and instead is doing weird things like dashing off in the middle of dessert dates (imagine how pissed you would be if you found a place on Yelp, dressed up, travelled to get there, and then while literally narrowing down the street number your boyfriend goes "Oh, whoops, I forgot something" and BAILS!). So as the weirdness continues, Hye Mi decides to go on a weekend trip with her friends in an established travel club. GOOD!

Nora got trapped in the role of the woman always waiting at home, always available to her husband and having no outside interests, and we all seem to agree that's no good. There is absolutely no reason for Hye Mi to stick around for weeks just in case Min Soo decides to talk to her. They're the same age, she is not responsible for his full-time caretaking. She's made it very clear that she's willing to listen to him, and Hyun Seok of all people outlined the risks of Min Soo's approach. Min Soo is not going to dissolve if she isn't there to listen the instant he decides he wants to talk to her. She is not his accessory.

In short: it strikes me as rather good sense that, if your boyfriend is refusing to communicate and being a moody weirdo who quite literally runs away from your dates, and he has been directly warned about his behavior by well-dressed hobos sleeping on park benches, then you might as well take a weekend away with your girlfriends to blow off some steam. Go too far in the other direction and you end up a post-Germany Nora.

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Agree with your comments, plus :) - "well-dressed hobos" ahahahahahahaha!

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Soooo true. It's times like these where I wish the old like button was still around.

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I love Choi Won Young...I've always loved him actually....he delivered so well that I almost felt sorry for Woo Chul.

Almost.

What a great episode that was. Now they are divorced and we also learned about what happened at that time.

Now....let's move ahead Ha No Ra~!

\o\~~~~~
~~~~~/o/

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I didn't hate wc that much back then because he took the responsibility of nora back 20 years ago but i was so wrong he was just trying to hide his mistakes he is a jerk but credit to the actor actually made us feel empathy like he finally understood his mistakes (i don't even feel a little bad for him can we get more slaps)

Min soo knew his stand and was quick to react because he knows he is nora's weakness when it comes to wc (which he uses at every turn) his small speech for enough wake up call for wc

I love how HS waits for nora to get divorced & pushes her back silently so she won't back down from her decision and even thinks for her future .
I really want him to stop using names like I'm your oppa, professor, senior in life excuses to help her

I was soo touched when she cried at the shop (i was like could anyone please open the door damn it)HS at least made her place where she could remember her grandma. Love that guy....

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Thanks for recap.. the happy song is out...

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THAT SLAP!!

It was like, like raindrops on my deserted heart. How satisfying!!!

And Cha Hyun Seok you better up the game and give direct hints to the girl you lost 20yrs ago if you dont want to lose her again.

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So last week I mentioned that I never did feel sorry for Yi-Jin. I'm glad to report nothing has changed. I was a bit baffled by her reaction to No-ra telling her she can have Woo-chul. Apparently she only wanted him if it involved her taking him away from No-ra. I guess on some level it would be off-putting to jump into a serious relationship with him if another person rejected him--if you consider the reason behind the rejection. But it didn't feel like that was her issue with the situation. It was purely a matter of vanity for her. Ugh.

I'm not usually one for violence, but K-dramas really have a way of making me embrace, or at least begrudgingly accept, it in certain contexts. And boy could I understand the release No-ra must have received in delivering those two slaps to Woo-chul. She really allowed herself to be beaten down by his contemptuous and totally disrespectful treatment of her. And he has the nerve to want to work things out after 20 years of ignoring her selfless devotion to their family. No-ra--please continue to run far far away.

I think Min-so needs to get the hell out of dodge from Hye-mi too.

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I haven't watched the episode live yet, but I think with regards to YiJin, she'd thought all along that WooChul was just a nice guy unfortunate enough to be stuck with responsibility for a waning relationship - which, you know, is not really anyone's fault because love can change and suck like that. Any couple that lives long together inherently has matching perspectives on the fundamental things and feelings of attachment for the other and divorces can just be because the spark is not there anymore and because the couple just cannot match each other. Not because either one is terrible or something. For someone who studies (and I think accepts) Sarte's marriage, I don't think that's an incredibly big turn off for her.

I think she never expected him to be the kind of guy responsible for the other cause of divorce - a toxic presence, a clue which she probably got from that sentence and NoRa's straight, completely-NOT-sad expression. And so she's seeing him in a terrible light now, for which she is getting all flabbergasted and affronted now - probably because he disappoints her and because she's disappointed in her own ability to judge.

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You know what? I watched the episode and I agree with you now, Elle.

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I think both WC and YJ are narcissistic.
YJ's attraction to WC in this ep seems to come from the fact that he's a married man and that his wife is clinging on to him. Now that Nora has told her that she can have him, she's upset! Why, not so much because WC deceived her but because he leftovers!

"Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practise to deceive!" and "Hoisted by one's own petard" are the 2 quotes that come to my mind when i think of WC and YJ.

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Ditto.

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"because yunno. She has eyes." and the wine shoots out my nose. Thanks GF.

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Oh yes! LSY looks positively divine in that suit! Nora, you've good taste!

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hahaha., i almost believed HS will end up making NR choose a gown for herself to match... and both ended up like Healer's Bongsookie and Youngshin, stunning for once in new looks... then someone reminds them, they are perfect OTP...
urrghhh... nothing like that happens.
ep 16 please?

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So glad we FINALLY got the backstory on why Nora didn't attend her grandmother's funeral. I knew something messed up had to have happened to prevent her from going.

But I NEVER dreamed it was because woo chul was so damn selfish and only thinking of himself. I swear I was yelling at the screen for Nora to slap the crap out of him and I was so glad my wish came true in the form of two hard slaps instead of one.

I also can't believe she stayed married to him for as long as she did. There is no way I could have been with his trifling ass and not do some violence.

When she was crying for her grandmother I was crying right along with her. I kept hoping Hyun seok would show up and comfort her.

So glad they are now divorced. Can't wait for Hyun seok's reaction when he finds out.

Loved all their scenes together they are so cute. Especially jealous Nora.

I was also glad when Nora and woo chul's delusional ass were talking about the divorce that Min Soo overheard how Nora's life was with him and how selfish and uncaring he was to her.

I'm so glad Yi jin finally has seen woo chul's true colors. It's too bad he broke things off with her instead of the other way around. But she is well rid of him.

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The sad thing is, if she'd grabbed a bag and just run out of the house, she would've had to spend the entire funeral wondering if Woo Chul had actually stayed home with Min Soo or had dropped him off with a neighbor. And I don't think she'd've been wrong to suspect him of being capable of it.

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Your comment made me wonder -- was going off on her own even an option? Would she have been able to buy a plane ticket without being able to speak German? Even getting to the airport on her own would have been tricky.

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Maybe she could do some sign language at the airport:)I did that in Korea myself when my husband did his research. like hanora I'm always with my 1 year old and if my memorized Korean phrases and limited ENglish won't work, bowing/nodding or some kind of gestures usually works or at least that made the Koreans pretend they understand me.hee.

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Honestly, she could probably make it to the airport okay but then would be thinking of how she might get stopped by airport staff worried about Min Soo being sick. Or if Min Soo got worse, how would she find medicine or help in German (or Russian)?

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she won't dare to disobey WC. even if she has the money or able to communicate at airport.

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I watched this episode first without subs, and again when the subs come out. I cried both times with No Ra. The grief and regret...

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the real Choi Ji woo finally appeared, when she truly wept buckets over Granny. i was disappointed with all her weepings thru out the whole 12 eps, even when she mourned over her cancer, its more comical then saddening... somewhat the Winter sonata's Yoo-jin tears wonders didn't work here.
but her break down when guilt and regrets over whelmed her, when she realised she has lost the only opportunity to bid the "one that act like dad and mom" to her... only those who ever lost someone by death, and didn't get to say goodbye in time will know. that was the final blow to collapse the Pisa Leaning Tower of that ill fated marriage. she is just like all of us, we are disgusted with WC, but can never expect him to scope to such new low, to forbid his wife (yes, wife, not other people) to bid final farewell to granny (again, not anyone else). NR knows WC is selfish all along, but never expect him to lie in such crucial matter to her. WC is a very self deceive person, that he can truly see whatever sacrifice she made for him, is actually good for her in the end. he is exactly that kind of person who believe in, the End justify all means, and as long as the heart mean good, use despicable means also justify. a very sad person who doesn't know he has caused nothing but sadness and loneliness in the one who suppose to love him most in the whole wide world.

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Thanks for recap!

I love watching this show about the growth of a woman, who can reclaim power and ownership of their lives. I normally hate slow paced shows. But this story has been so beautifully developed and more importantly acted by the three leads, that what has unfolded is a like the unfolding of a rose, slowly a petal at a time teasingly until suddenly all blooms.

Like you said, watching the romance between HS and NR is the icing on the cake.

The acting of the three takes the story to new heights in contrast to the MS and HM story. Their inability to emote and deliver the nuance that should act as the third counterpoint to HS and NR and WC and NR capsized that storyline. I think the youngster story was supposed to be the what could have been with two equals, equally able and yet equally bumbling due to immaturity. Alas.

I love YY. She offers the breadth of fresh air. Her big eyes made it even more comical when she teased HS.

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I love the part where Yi Jin told Woo Chul that he got his current job because she put in a good word. He was so flabbergasted to find out that he's nothing special. lol Such a true narcissist! Way to go Yi Jin for bruising his ego! Honestly, at this point, I don't even hate Yi Jin. Knowing how Woo Chul operates, I can see how he weaseled his way in making Yi Jin believe that he is the victim of an unhappy marriage instead of him being the main cause.

Next episode, they should have Yi Jin slap Woo Chul TWICE on the other cheek just to balance it out. hehe

Thanks for the recap!

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"Next episode, they should have Yi Jin slap Woo Chul TWICE on the other cheek just to balance it out."

Yes! Yes! Yes! Please writers!

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The slaps felt really good to see!

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For some reason I really want to see Hyun-seok and Min-soo interactions! Min-soo is undoubtedly an important (if not, most important) person in No-ra's life so I want to see how he will feel about Hyun-seok because he has probably never seen his mom be treated as a woman from Wo-chul.

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yes, some part of me was waiting for the bonding between HS and MS, because we know MS holds a very importance portion in NR's being, i was glad also that NR reminded HS that she has to go home early to meet MS... somewhat HS need to develop a inspiring role model for MS, someone that will do what WC lacking to acchive in time lost... can't work to see chemistry between Step-dad and new Stepson. i believe new Step-daughter in law Hye Mi will be one person overjoy to see HS as the new Step Dad in law.... HM, keep your hands of HS okay? else we send you back to Apink.

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A little boring, this episode. I'm going to have to think for awhile to decide why.

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@ ?????? Susan

I found the pace slower than before. I will usually go first to the content or narrative to try to figure out why. The things that struck me was that not much was made of the new reveals.

No Ra finds out that Hyun Seok really cared about her before and cares enough about her now to keep nagging her... but we are left with this situation that did not change. It's true that his prodding and teasing about being her oppa and her not being his girlfriend could be to get her to consider that idea for herself.... but she has not gotten there yet after all the hints and questions from Yoon Young and Seung Hyun.

The other thing is that Hyun Seok has confirmed info that No Ra's divorce is certain. In a way his hands are tied, but he could maybe have made it a little clearer to No Ra that his feelings are still current.

Instead of the OTP progress we are given No Ra's n Woo Chul's backstory, Woo Chul's plans for the future and his finally letting her go. Well it's a small step for the episode but better than none. :)

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I suspect your finding it "a little boring" might have to do with that long convo the couple have in WC's study, interspersed w a long flashback of a convo to the spring of 2000 when grandma died, followed by the couple being joined by MS around the coffee table. That segment is long, slow and not exciting.

The best moment in this ep for me is the very last, when they leave the courthouse, Nora walking away from him by herself. That plus the 2 slaps, which are actually 2 too few for my taste!

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My internet was down for most of the day to day, so this was the first raw ep I've missed for this drama! So much thanks for the recap, Girlfriday...I really was dying to know what happened! ?

I don't know how, but could this writer please teach other fellow kdrama writers how to write??? With every passing ep, I get more and more impressed with how naturally the story flows, how characters are so realistic and just how engaging this drama is to watch...much of which is lacking in the fare of typical dramas these days, imo.

So today it was very much resoundingly confirmed that Woo-chul = self-centered egomaniac control freak...who, by drama's end, ain't gonna have anyone next to him - not his wife, son, nor mistress. That's what you deserve!!?

I'm really really happy that No-ra's eyes have been opened up to the world around her -- and making decisions/choices that she frankly never thought were possible, when she was living under the foot of Woo-chul. Her realization that she didn't know that she had it in her to be able to raise Min-soo on her own, and how living with Woo-chul changed both her trajectory in life and hiding her true self -- very heartwrenching and definitely words that further moved Min-soo into outfoxing Dad and putting his foot down into ultimately getting them divorced. While this journey of discovery has undoubtedly been eye-opening for No-ra, it also was for Min-soo as well because it finally threw off the blinders that had been over his eyes all his life -- finally realizing control freak Dad made Mom "that way."

And absolutely karma-riffic that Woo-chul, in preparing to gift No-ra with jewelry at the dinner (presumably to delay the divorce, quite possibly to declare his "love"for her)...only to have the reveal surrounding Grandma's death/funeral. Knew it that he had been the reason why she couldn't go back for the funeral...such asshead-ness to prevent No-ra to grieve and mourn the most precious person in her life. Ugh, I knew Woo-chul was an ass...but further confirmation that he hit Asshat territory ?

Hyun-seok was absolutely super duper in putting his foot in his mouth today!! ? At least there's Yoon-young around to tease him senseless, which is super cute to watch because she's so right on target!! ? Can't wait for the further development of No-ra & Hyun-seok ?

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Thanks for this Girlfriday!

Finally! It's about time they got divorced! I'm so rejoicing with you, guys!

OMG! Woo-chul is such a nasty piece of crap. I thought he couldn't be nastier. Now that I know the reason why Nora wasn't able to go home for her grandmother's funeral just gave me a headache. So despicable! From the first time they met he was all bull, talking about that tetanus shit when it wasn't even a puncture wound. He was all crap! Such a dick! Anyway, now he's finally finished. He's finally out of Nora's life! Finally! What a great relief!

I respect Hyun-seok a lot. He is so careful, always thinking about Nora although I honestly loved to slap him while shopping, talking about Nora being her dongsaeng and all but when they went out and saw that advert (on purpose?), he was back to being adorbs again. Couldn't help but love the guy, what can I say!

Yes, I am so waiting for the feels and loves after such a disturbing episode. About time, Hyun-seok and Nora!

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I really like those slaps! ?

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Gosh this drama makes me dislike WC so much.. I didn't hate JY in IRY, I sympathized him instead. But through this drama CWY has successfully make me loathe WC, the spirit killer, the character he portrays.

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Whooooo!! She’s free! Loved the well deserved slaps.

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Stop being her oppa and be her "oppa" instead... can't wait ^^

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Another great episode!

1) I fist pumped and whooped when NR held her own when WC denied that he was narcissistic and started to list the characteristics of a narcissist, only to have NR show him that she is just as knowledgeable...and then tell him that what he was doing then proves that he is, because he's not considering her feelings at all!

2) Then there was the gratification when MS finally grew up and I loved it when he showed them the contract and told his father that he has to keep word like he always says one should. WC has been having his words thrown back at him a lot these days. Serves him right! Such a pompous hypocrite!

3) Then the slaps.

4) And the backstory about how NR could not attend her grandma's funeral and CJW's tears at the ddokbukki stall was so heart-wrenching!

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5) Ahh, I forgot to add...Cha Hyunsoek in that suit!!!

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FFFFRREEEEEEEEDDOOOOMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!! ??????

Finally!?
Lets party!

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@nomnom

IMO 3 possible scenarios for Hyun-seok & Min-soo interactions.

#1-Time -jump. Fast forward to Min-soo and Mom's graduation where we see Hyun-seok and HaNora arerunning the theater and are involved/dating/getting married.

#2-Min-soo goes to Hyun-seok and gives him the green light.

#3-Hyun-seok has a man-to-man with Min-soo and and asks for his blessing.

I wonder what Nora wrote on her time capsule though.....and I'm pretty sure it will have an effect on the romantic possibility.

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Finally she divorced. I haven't seen the episode but I'm so hopeful to the upcoming episodes!

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"Dimpled man child" that's exactly HS in short words gf you know your words love your recaps

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It's been a while since a kdrama has been sooooo good.

Good enough to.... watch it raw, watch it subbed, read the re-caps, read all the comments and even write my own comments in response.

Yes, I like this drama THAT much!
::derp face::MOARMOARMOAR!!

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i went further than watch it raw...i tried watched streaming LIVE... did it at ep 13...something i thought i will only ever do for Healer.

when i bothered to wait at the right timing and tried desperately to find the site to watch LIVE, means it really hold an crucial portion in my little heart.

LIVE of ep 14 starting soon.
isnim, Twenty A deserved all those above you mentioned, deserved that MUCH liking from you. Loving twenty that much is a beautiful experience isn't it.

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YES , I did all these things and its a first to me
its addiction , this show

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+1

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Nora is divorced! Yipee!!
In tonight's ep, HS & Nora should grow closer and sweeter, but still awkward around each other. Then next week, we'd get the syrup.

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How on earth am I going to make it until 9 am tomorrow morning? I want my syrup NOWWWWW

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*err* I mean 9 am THIS morning!

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Or you can find a way to watch it LIVE in an hour and 20 mins. ;)

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now doing now.

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=( missed live, but watching raw.
Will watch live starting next week.

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Finally, No Ra has arrived. She has gotten some backbone! She's had enough, and she wasn't going to take it anymore crap from him... The two slaps were insufficient. She should have kick him across town! That was the most despicable way she was treated in Germany and being kept from her grandma's funeral. He was totally ashamed he'd knock up a high schooler. This would have tarnish his pristine image with Professor Lindemann. Shoot! No Ra was crying her eyes out, and I used up two Kleenex tissues...
I'm still not buying Min Soo's relationship with Hye Mi. She still seems to be needy and has to be in control like his father.
Also, l can feel No Ra's irritation and jealousy with Sang Hye at the office. Sang Hye's action of fixing Hyun Seok's collar is something intimate that a wife would do for her husband. Sang Hye has to back off because Hyun Seok is too use of letting her pamper him.
How could he say those mean things to No Ra after confessing to her? Anyone would get pissed. Even if he's trying to give her space, Hyun Seok has a way of saying all of the wrong things. I hope in the next episode he can pull his foot out of his mouth.

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I didn't see No Ra as being jealous when Sang Hye was fixing Hyun Seok's collar. To me it looked like she was assessing the situation.

I think she's unsure and trying to understand what her relationship with Hyun-Seok is and where she fits in.

I think she realizes that Sang-Hye has feelings for Hyun-Seok and that Hyun-Seok might also have feelings for Sang-Hye.

She would want them to recognize and define their relationship before expressing any interest.

I don't think she wants to butt in to their relationship. Hyun-Seok and Sang-Hye are close enough that people are asking if they are in a relationship. That's not to be taken lightly. They have developed enough intimacy and trust.

As for pace...For Hyun-Seok this has been 20 years in the making, for No-Ra she hasn't had any time to process her current situation.

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FINALLY DIVORCED
that crying scene was so heartbreaking
HS is beyond words , how can be there someone as gentle , patient , caring , funny as him ?
this show gives me all the good feels out there , I haven’ t felt this way towards a show for looooooooooooong time
cant wait for todays episode
Go Nora & HS

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ahh, i cried so much with this episode..
its okay Nora, you can do it.. Fighting!

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I don't think Hyun Seok was actually putting his foot in his mouth when he kept pointing out to Nora that she wasn't his girlfriend. To me, that was his way of trying to get the idea in her head that "hey, if you were my girlfriend, these are the things we could do together." He's torn between not wanting to push her and also not wanting to lose out on her like he did 20 years ago so he can't just outright say "like me, notice me!" I think he was making a point to show her that even though they could be oppa/dongseng, neither one of them would be satisfied with that and you could see she felt it in how disappointed she was that she was just the little sister. So really I think he was flirting with her in his own weird, Jedi mind trick way lol he knew exactly what he was doing.

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@ Ambrosia

I felt the same way. I believe he was trying to put ideas into her head. She's just so humble and self-deprecating, she does not consider how attractive she is.

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Thank u for that idea. It suits the situation well.

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How perceptive of you. Such a good interpretation!

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Frustrating though it is to us viewers (and THANKFULLY her HNR too) ... thanks yes I can totally see this too.

And I'd say he's also giving her space - divorce in contract or in actual practice, the actual act is still somewhat an adjustment (even if liberating) when actually processed.

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Jedi mind trick is kind of what I was thinking too.
It's a bit on the calculating side.

I see why he would feel pressured to act. Because he doesn't want to lose his chance again.

He wants the best for her, but No-Ra should be able to stand on her own without "guidance".

This is why I feel there will be a time jump.
It will give No-Ra time to graduate, stand on her own feet and become successful and Min-Soo can also become independent.

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Another incredible episode! :)

I kept putting off getting angry at Woo Chul, mostly because I love the actor (I Remember You is still fresh in my mind), but I can't ignore his self-centered piggish character anymore! How could he do that when his wife's only family had passed away! That was a new low which I didn't see coming. I had hoped his character would just be of the mildly irritating variety, but this was just too much. That slap was so very well deserved, and many years too late in coming.

Cha Hyun Suk, on the other hand, keeps rising up as the favourite kdrama hero ever! He is so selfless and understanding. I so wish I find a man like him soon!

And finally they are divorced! Yayeee! Thank heavens!!! I am hoping for the next three episodes to be full of self actualization for Ha No Ra, and the sweetest, bubbly romance between Hyun Suk and No Ra, which has been ignored for way too long.

Dear show, I demand some cotton candy coated, sugary sweet romance now! We need to see those butterflies-in-stomach-feeling so so much.

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And I really like the new rating thing that Dramabeans has come up with! Now we can rate each episode separately! :D

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Hi @ObsessedMuch

How do we get to the ratings page? I was trying all kinds of things to get there and thought it was a rating done by the recapper instead of by commenters. Can we get the ratings on laptop or do you only see it on your mobile device?

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@ ObsessedMuch

Please ignore my question, I found out about the ratings! LOL!

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@Growingbeautifully Haha. But these ratings come up randomly. We are not given the option everytime! oh and nice to see you here after the IRY thread :)

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Same to you and thanks! :)

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Thanks girlfriday!

I found this episode sweet as ever, however a little slow in pace compared to what we've had.

I wonder at the unspoken questions ... so No Ra finds out that she was Hyun Seok's first love from 20 years ago, and she does not ask ... 'How do you feel about me now? Is what you wrote in this card still true? Have you never had another girl that you liked?' I mean.... at least ask the guy to watch him squirm, right? LOL.

She is the epitome of the character in counterpoint to Woo Chul... so selfless and humble in her opinion of herself. Perhaps that's why the marriage could last... they complemented each other, however it was at No Ra's expense. I'm glad that we gone into her growth and realization of her strengths and that in the next (last) few episodes we get to see her develop a more realistic idea of just how attractive and desirable she is, even as an ahjumma with a grown-up son. :)

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"so No Ra finds out that she was Hyun Seok’s first love from 20 years ago, and she does not ask … ‘How do you feel about me now? Is what you wrote in this card still true? Have you never had another girl that you liked?’ I mean…. at least ask the guy to watch him squirm, right? LOL."

She's shy, and somewhat stunted (trapped in teenhood/20) in love and confidence level, despite her chronological age.

Not to mention been put down all these yrs for her 'intellectual' level. Socially isolated, with a (YAY!) ex husband who was selfishly content to let her be that way.

I can see why the acceptance without curiosity - in her selflessness, she's not exactly over-inflated or high in self-esteem. For a person to 'tease or flirt' on a personal level concerning self = she'd need no shyness for that comfort level, and some higher sense of self-esteem.

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thank you girlfriday for an amazing recap

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such a touching episode. i cried when she was at her grandmas shop and sobbing her heart out. does anybody know the sad old song that was playing at that time it was really beautiful. please get back to me if you know its name.

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Choi Ji Woo and Lee Sang Yoon... I hope they will fall in love and get married after this drama. They are both single, right? Dreaming.

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Hahahaha ... yes@ My thoughts after eps 13 and 14 too.

This isn't exactly delusional (I don't enjoy crazed shippers who don't care if there are real families/people and don't care if talk hurts real people too) since in this case = both are currently unattached.

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yes yes yes please
CJW deserves a decent man like LSY , plz be happy , both of you , you look great together

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same here.
the only OTP i ever ship in my whole life is Healer's JiChangwook and Parkminyoung.
here, Choi Ji Woo and Lee Sang Yoon is my second OTP.
problem is CJW is rumored to be with Lee Seo Jin (of 3 meals a day, and Grandpas over Flower.)
whenever it is, just pray that Choi Jiwoo got the one true love of where her heart belongs. Be it Lee Seo Jin, or better eve, Lee Sang Yoon. (in LSY case, will be noonas romance, but i am perfectly fine and happy with Noonas rom.)
she don't like the age gap with LSY.
Yeah, but if she truly liked LSJ (Seo Jin), then i hope her pairing with LSY will made Seo Jin jealous, and speed up the courtship, wed by year end.
CJW, marry someone you loved ardently okay?

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