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Lingerie Girls’ Generation: Episode 1

I don’t know if I’m going to be able to handle so much cute all in one place. KBS’s new coming-of-age drama Lingerie Girls’ Generation is just adorable, with endearing characters and a world that lovingly recalls a more innocent time in our lives. The show beautifully brings to life that awkward age when your friends were the most important people in your life, every emotion felt like the end of the world, and your first crush was the most epic romance that ever existed. If you’re ready for a nostalgic trip back to your youth, then dive right in!

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EPISODE 1 RECAP

Daegu, 1979. Four teenage girls dance their hearts out to Gimme Gimme Gimme by Abba, until a voice screeches at them to spend some time studying for once. The owner of the voice, one of the girls’ mother, storms into the room and chases them out of the house with a broom.

As they leave school, the girls talk about the group date they’re going on later today, hoping the boys will be cute. One of the girls insists with a bored expression that she’s not really expecting much.

When the date starts, the four girlfriends introduce themselves as Un-joo, Hyun-hee, Eun-ja, and our heroine, LEE JUNG-HEE (Bona). Jung-hee notices that one of the boys is staring at her with interest, and he takes special note of her name with an adorable grin.

But the boy, BAE DONG-MOON (Seo Young-ju), is slightly nerdy and overeager, making Jung-hee pray to be paired with anyone but him. Of course, she ends up with Dong-moon, who looks tickled pink about it. She softens a bit when he compares her looks to Brooke Shields, though she thinks she looks more like Im Ye-jin (wow, she does!).

Just as Jung-hee starts to make an excuse to leave, someone yells an alert, and the girls panic to see a militant woman in a starched uniform marching up the street. They nearly make it out the back door of the restaurant, but the woman spots them, and the chase is on.

As they flee, Dong-moon takes Jung-hee’s hand and leads her in a different direction than the other kids. They run until they find themselves in a dead-end alleyway, so Dong-moon shoves Jung-hee into a corner, throws a tarp over her, and stands to meekly wait for the uniformed woman to catch up.

When she does, he fibs with a big goofy grin that he’s all alone, but the woman insists that she saw him with a girl. She orders Dong-moon to move aside, but instead he throws himself on top of Jung-hee to protect her, which is equal parts futile and endearing.

Dong-moon and Jung-hee are saved when one of the woman’s lackeys, a girl from Jung-hee’s school, comes to point the uniformed woman towards the other students. Probably figuring that catching the group is better than just these two, she runs off.

Dong-moon celebrates their escape, but Jung-hee grouchily whaps him upside the head for touching her. She does thank him reluctantly for his help, prompting him to ask her out on a second date, but Jung-hee says that she’s busy every day from now on. Awww.

Nearby, at what looks to be a clothing factory, the supervisor addresses recent complaints of too much overtime, though he tells his employees that their real problem is lack of commitment. This is Jung-hee’s family’s factory—the supervisor is her father, and both her mother and her aunt work here.

A young repairman interrupts Jung-hee’s dad’s speech to say that he’s finished with the sewing machine he’s there to fix. His name is JOO YOUNG-CHOON (Lee Jong-hyun), and if I’m not mistaken, Jung-hee’s aunt (who’s young and pretty, if a bit frumpy) seems to carry a bit of a torch for him. But Jung-hee’s dad warns her away from Young-choon, since they don’t know anything about his background.

Young-choon looks embarrassed when his tiny little sister comes inside to find him. As they walk home, his sister entertains him by singing the theme song to the anime Candy Candy, making Young-choon smile affectionately.

Later, Jung-hee whines to her mother that she has nothing to wear, and her mother argues that she has a closet full of clothes. Jung-hee’s brother Bong-soo walks in wearing a new shirt, a designer brand no less, and Jung-hee ramps up her whining. Her mother yells at her to have some respect for her oppa, and Jung-hee is all, Oppa whatever, we’re twins! HAHA.

Their father hears the tail-end of the conversation and reminds Jung-hee that Bong-soo is the only boy in four generations, while she’s just going to end up married to another family someday, basically telling her to accept that he gets special treatment. Well, that’s not fair. He leaves, and Jung-hee proceeds to deliver a beating to Bong-soo.

That evening, Bong-soo spends time with the young ladies who work in the factory, teaching them the latest dance moves. One of them in particular looks at him adoringly whenever he talks to her.

When Mom falls asleep in front of the television, Dad carefully removes a paper bag from a cabinet and takes it to Jung-hee’s aunt’s room. He gives it to her with barely a word, and when she sees the cookies inside, she seems pleased.

Aunt takes the cookies to Jung-hee, who’s busy writing in her diary about how much she hates her family. Jung-hee beams at the rare treat, only stopping to complain that her father never gets her anything like this, and her aunt just smiles knowingly.

At school, Jung-hee’s friend Hyun-hee gets caught feeding Jung-hee answers as she does math problems on the board. Their teacher, Teacher Oh, loses his temper and whips the four girls at the board as punishment.

As the girls change clothes for recess later, Jung-hee’s friends admire the pretty, strappy chemise worn by one of their classmates, SHIM AE-SOOK (Dohee), though Jung-hee sneers that only delinquents wear that sort of thing. They head outside, where it turns out that their PE teacher is the same uniformed woman who chased them out of the restaurant before.

She marches the girls like they’re in the army, while Jung-hee’s friends stay in the back and talk about an event that their group dates have invited them to. Jung-hee complains that she doesn’t want to see Dong-moon again, but she perks up when Eun-joo tells her that a famous local heartthrob will be there.

Jung-hee has never heard of him, so her friends tell her that he’s smart, handsome, and student body president at his school. They’re so engrossed in their conversation that they don’t notice that the teacher has turned the other girls around and they’re marching off in the wrong direction, hee.

The whole class gets punished, and Ae-sook, who was also whipped earlier because of Jung-hee’s cheating, kicks Jung-hee and snarls that this is all her fault. She kicks her again, harder, making Jung-hee cry out and catch the teacher’s attention. The two of them get extra punishment in the form of backbends, cementing Ae-sook’s hatred for Jung-hee.

A little while later, Jung-hee and her friends go to the culture night event that the group date boys invited them to. Dong-moon bounds over to say hi before they even get in the building, but Jung-hee dismisses him irritably and goes on inside. Double awww.

Before the event even starts, Hyun-hee runs off to the bathroom to take off her pinching girdle, with Jung-hee following her. They’re scandalized to find cigarette smoke billowing from one the stalls, though it’s no surprise when Ae-sook and her two sidekicks emerge. Ae-sook croons that she’s happy to see her enemy here, blaming Jung-hee for the sunburn she got while they were being punished.

Hyun-hee is locked in a stall while Ae-sook grabs handfuls of Jung-hee’s hair and starts to grapple with her. Flailing wildly, Jung-hee accidentally gives Ae-sook a bloody nose, and at the furious look on Ae-sook’s face, Jung-hee makes a run for it.

She runs all the way downstairs to an empty room, but she’s not strong enough to keep all three thugs from shoving the door open. Suddenly an arm shoots out beside Jung-hee’s head, holding the door closed, and Jung-hee looks up to see a very handsome teenage boy standing there.

She barely has the brainpower to think, “Mommy…” as the boy looks down at her from only inches away. Without a word, he flings the door open, causing Ae-sook and her cronies to tumble into the room and sprawl on the floor while he holds the door at an angle that hides Jung-hee from their view. Awesome—I like him already.

The girls stand, recognizing the boy as SOHN JIN (Yeo Hwe-hyun), and Jung-hee remembers that that’s the name of the famous heartthrob her friends were telling her about. Sohn Jin tells Ae-sook that this room is restricted, staring her down until she backs off and leaves.

Jung-hee peeks out to see if the girls are gone, and Sohn Jin puts a hand on her shoulder to hold her back. He leaves his hand there for several long moments, making Jung-hee all fluttery, then he grins and praises her for her bravery in taking on three foes at once.

She’s got full-on hearts in her eyes by the time he says it’s safe for her to go. As Jung-hee floats down the hallway with a goofy grin on her face, she narrates that from the first moment she met Sohn Jin, the world was no longer boring and lonely—it was a world where a boy had entered her heart.

Sohn Jin performs for the other students as part of the culture night program, showing off his soft, sweet singing voice. Jung-hee watches, thinking to herself that she’s in love, and from across the auditorium, Dong-moon watches Jung-hee and decides that he’s in love.

But as Jung-hee skips home on cloud nine, she narrates that she didn’t know that being in love also meant being in pain, and that the pain would make her heart feel like a rock wrapped in thorns.

Jung-hee spends her school hours thinking about Sohn Jin, imagining her teachers with his face and confusing them with her dreamy smiles. Everything reminds her of him, and she wonders if he knows how much she misses him.

Her friends tell her that Sohn Jin studies at a certain library on the other side of town, because girls bother him too much at the local library. She sets three alarm clocks to make sure that she gets up early enough to go and get a seat near him, but she tosses and turns half the night, so that she sleeps through all three alarms.

It’s still dark when Jung-hee sets out for the library on her bike (and she nearly runs down repairman Young-choon on the sidewalk, ha). The line for seating assignments is halfway down the block when she arrives, so by the time Jung-hee gets to the front, all the tickets for the coed room where Sohn Jin studies are gone.

She spots Dong-moon just then and she wheedles him to give her his coed room ticket. He meekly argues that if he does, he has to wait until someone leaves to get another ticket, so Jung-hee pours on the aegyo until he caves. Poor guy, he never had a chance.

Jung-hee gets a lot of studying done—of Sohn Jin, anyway. Eventually, she retreats to the bathroom to give herself a pep talk in the mirror and practices approaching him, then she heads out to say hello. But she finds Dong-moon in Sohn Jin’s seat, and he says that Sohn Jin just left.

Jung-hee runs out and jumps on her bike, nearly plowing down Dong-moon—who followed her outside—in her pursuit of Sohn Jin. She follows him at a short distance all through town, until her inattention causes her to steer in front of a car, and an over-correction sends her crashing to the pavement.

She sits whimpering in the street with a badly skinned knee. A voice asks if she’s okay, and she looks up to see Sohn Jin standing over her, looking very concerned. She can only gape as he checks her knee and holds out a hand to help her stand, but soon she gives him her hand and he pulls her to her feet.

He fusses over Jung-hee, brushing gravel from her hands, while she continues to stare at him wordlessly. A pretty girl about their age runs over to see if Jung-hee is okay, and as Sohn Jin looks at her and a strange look comes over his face, Jung-hee narrates that she suddenly felt very nervous.

They’re in the middle of moving house, so the girl’s father leaves her behind to help Jung-hee and Sohn Jin, and Jung-hee freezes again when Sohn Jin crouches to piggyback her.

Convinced that this must be a dream, Jung-hee keeps her eyes shut tight as Sohn Jin carries her. She’s in heaven, but the way that Sohn Jin looks at the pretty girl makes me very nervous.

The girl, whose name is PARK HYE-JOO (Chae Seo-jin), runs ahead to a pharmacy for medicine. But the employee, who happens to be Young-choon, snaps that they’re closed. She blinks at him pleadingly and he blinks back nervously, looking a little unsettled.

But he flies into action when Sohn Jin carries in Jung-hee, asking if she’s okay and interrupting Sohn Jin’s explanation to call the pharmacist out. Sohn Jin tries to ask for medicine and Young-choon cuts him off again, telling him with unwarranted snark to talk to the pharmacist.

Hye-joo steps in to try and clean the wound on Jung-hee’s knee, though Jung-hee ignores her, only to beam at Sohn Jin when he does the exact same thing. Young-choon heads out to yet another job, while the pharmacist takes over doctoring Jung-hee. So much fuss over a skinned knee!

Once Jung-hee is all patched up, Hye-joo gives her a little card with her contact info on it, asking her to call if she needs anything. She leaves, and Sohn Jin watches her taxi driving away just a few seconds longer than necessary. He snaps out of it and offers to walk Jung-hee home, and on the way, he asks Jung-hee where she was hurrying to when she had her accident.

Jung-hee stammers, unable to think of an answer that doesn’t make her look like a stalker, so he asks why she went so far away to study. Surprised that he knew she was at the library, Jung-hee trips over her own feet. Sohn Jin catches her deftly and sets her back on her feet like he executes swoony maneuvers like that all the time.

He keeps asking questions, appearing entertained by Jung-hee’s flustered answers. Her brother Bong-soo wanders over and asks why Jung-hee is out here flirting when she’s supposed to be studying, but he snaps to attention (literally) when he recognizes Sohn Jin, since they go to the same school.

Jung-hee explains that Bong-soo is her twin brother, and she gives Sohn Jin her own name for the first time. He tells Bong-soo where to retrieve Jung-hee’s bike, then he says to Jung-hee with an indulgent smile, “Don’t chase after me so hard next time.” *cringe*

But despite her embarrassment, Jung-hee beams after Sohn Jin as he walks away. Bong-soo pesters her with questions, annoying her as only a brother can. As they near their house, they spot Young-choon working yet another job—this time he’s helping a family who’s moving in down the street.

Bong-soo stops dead in his tracks when he sees the teenage girl directing the movers, instantly smitten by her beauty. Jung-hee isn’t so happy to see Hye-joo again, irritated to learn that she’s their new neighbor.

Jung-hee’s day gets even worse when Dong-moon finds her and asks if she’s okay, admitting that he followed her home because he was worried about her. He looks cornered when she asks why he was at the library way across town, and he seems relieved when she assumes that the boys from his school must all go there to study.

He asks why she was there, but Jung-hee only says flippantly that he doesn’t need to know. She turns to go home, leaving the poor boy watching her go, crestfallen and still worried about her injured knee. This puppy is going to break my heart, isn’t he?

Her aunt fusses when Jung-hee comes home with her knee bandaged, but Jung-hee says she’s fine and heads to her room. She stands in front of the mirror, smiling and giving herself a fist-pump of victory as she thinks about how much attention Sohn Jin paid to her today. But those same thoughts keep her up that night, and she wonders why she was so happy earlier and so down now.

At school the next day, her friends are excited to hear that not only did Jung-hee meet Sohn Jin, but that he even piggybacked her. Eun-ja particularly likes the part where Jung-hee’s chest was pressed against Sohn Jin’s back, hee. They decide that she’s on the fast track to being Sohn Jin’s girlfriend, since he’s famous for not paying much attention to girls.

Teacher Oh and the militant PE teacher are both inordinately impressed, almost awed, when Hye-joo enrolls in their school.

Another student overhears Jung-hee’s friends and starts squealing loudly at Jung-hee. They’re caught by Teacher Oh, who makes them kneel on their desks with their arms raised. While they’re sitting like that, he calls in the new transfer student, and the girls all exclaim at Hye-joo’s pretty face.

Only Jung-hee isn’t happy to see her, surprised to learn that Hye-joo is a high school student. Hye-joo recognizes Jung-hee too, and Jung-hee wonders why she suddenly feels nervous again as the two girls make awkward eye contact.

 
COMMENTS

Lingerie Girls’ Generation flew under my radar, so I went into it blind and I can say with complete honesty and no prior bias that this premiere episode is absolutely precious. It charmed my socks right off, and I can’t wait to see more! I love the whole setup of Jung-hee’s pre-established friendships and rivalries, and how that’s all about to be totally shaken up with the addition of a new frenemy in Hye-joo. Not to mention all the terribly tangled lovelines that look poised to cause all kinds of teenage heartache to poor Jung-hee. Dong-moon likes Jung-hee… Jung-hee likes Sohn Jin… Sohn Jin, Jung-hee’s brother, and maybe even Young-choon all like Hye-joo, and ’round and ’round we go.

The show gives me very strong Answer Me 1988 vibes, in a good way. That’s not to say that it feels like a copy—this drama has that same nostalgic feel, the feel of a simpler time when life’s problems didn’t seem too complicated. The pretty sepia tones of the cinematography give it a subtle sense of the past without making it glaringly obvious that this show is set almost forty years ago, and the music is a gentle reminder of when we are that I find really fun and almost comforting. There’s an innocence to the events in the show that owe in part to the fact that Jung-hee is a teenager experiencing things like a serious crush for the first time, and in part to it being set in a very different time period.

I can already tell that the relationship that’s going to get me right in the heart is going to be Jung-hee and her father. Daddy-daughter love stories are the best, especially when they go through a rocky period in the girl’s teens and the dad is too gruff to openly show his affection (Jung-hee definitely gets the grumpy side of her personality from him!). I actually teared up when Jung-hee’s dad took those cookies to her aunt, knowing she would pass them on to Jung-hee without his having to say anything. I was all ready to dislike him when he told Jung-hee to suck up the unfairness because her brother was the only boy in generations, only to realize that he made a special point to get a treat just for her. It kills me that he wants to make his little girl happy but he’s too brusque to do it openly, so he jumps through all these hoops to get her the cookies she loves without her knowing they’re from him. So sweet.

I think this is going to be one of those dramas that makes it very difficult to choose a favorite suitor for the heroine’s heart. I really like Sohn Jin so far—he’s sweet, funny, a complete gentleman, and he seems to find Jung-hee interesting at the very least. On paper, he’s certainly everything a girl could want, but it also makes me wonder if he’s hiding something. The way he seemed to take an instant disliking to Young-choon (and vice versa) struck me as strange, and I’m anxious to learn what that was all about.

But I can’t help it… give me a loyal, adoring doofus like Dong-moon over a handsome-but-distant boy like Sohn Jin any day of the week. Even when I was Jung-hee’s age, I knew the value of a boy who liked me, even if he wasn’t the best looking or the coolest guy around. That’s not to say that I never crushed on the popular guys, because goodness knows growing up wouldn’t be complete without one or two good, angsty admiring-from-afar crushes. But when it comes to relationships, I would rather date the slightly nerdy, smart, sweet boy who cherishes me. So my heart goes out to Dong-moon, who is exactly my type (I love a cutie in glasses!), and who is probably going to get his heart broken multiple times by Jung-hee before this show is over. He’s obviously just as gone for Jung-hee as she is for Sohn Jin, and I can already hear the love triangle heartache train pulling out of the station.

 
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I will consider watching this drama.

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The recap is super fast! I didn't read the recap as I want to watch it first but based on your comments, I think I'll definitely watch this epi.

Thank you @lollypip for the recap ?

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Female lead actually felt like a copy of Deok-Sun from Reply. Just less likable. I disliked how she treated the boy with glasses, solely based on his appearance. To make it fair, I doubt the guy actually likes her for something other than her looks.

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Actually I liked Lee Jung Hee as a character. She's so believably selfish, vain and petty - very much like a real life pretty girl in school in her small town would be. Is this the same lifeless Bona from The Best Hit? She has so much life here.

I wouldn't like Jung Hee in real life either, probably. But as a character I really appreciate her and can't wait to see how she grows.

[But dramas set in school aren't really my thing. Don't know if I will watch further.]

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<a real life pretty girl in school in her small town would be

Does the show sell her as the "pretty girl"? (Haven't watched yet.) She doesn't look strikingly pretty to me, but then again, the problem with many shows is that everyone they cast is good-looking so when they start going on about one particularly person being the "beauty" it never has much effect (the Chinese O2O did this, they had "department beauties" and just I couldn't see how the beauty was any prettier than all the other girls).

<the boy with glasses, solely based on his appearance

He just needs to take off his glasses, and he'd be totally good-looking.

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I can't agree more with your point. At this moment, I am taking what drama tells me as a fact.
Second Female Lead is definitely pretty but she isn't that much prettier than female lead, so it doesn't make sense why every guy (except glasses) falls in love with her after one glance or how show makes it look like she is a walking goddess.
Boy with glasses looked the best out of all guys sitting there (personal preferences), so it was kinda confusing why Jung Hee didn't want to sit besides him and even gave him a nickname.
Mr. Perfect is a good looking guy but not the type where he would have girls following him around.
Acting is good here so I don't exactly feel like they are miscast, but it is still as weird as people calling Lee Yeon Hee Ajumma in reunited worlds.

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I think it is the fact that second female lead came from Seoul (and maybe someone who is smart) made her popular, not only because of her pretty face.

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only the hair. Deok-sun is much more naive. but i think i will drop this show. because just like you, i dislike her character solely because what she did with the boy.

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She feels like her brother is more loved by parents than her, she isn't the smartest cookie and nor the most hard working one in School, plus her falling in love is kinda random and feels more like a crush.
I agree that deok sun is more innocent, I guess that's what made me like her more

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But the drama is based on the novel and Jung-Hee's character was written like that (novel was released in 2009 so I think there's no way she could be a 'copy' Deok-Sun). And I think her character seems realistic, she has a selfish side but is also somewhat innocent, like a schoolgirl. Apart from being such a heartbreaker to the guy because of how he looks I think she's a lovely character overall. Can't blame her only though when Dong-Moon too liked her at first sight for her appearance since he knew nothing about her before the blind date either.

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I am more in the party that thinks Dong-Moon is hiding something. He comes off a little creepy-stalkerish.
it is interesting to see this era, don´t know much about it. 1970ies seemes like a dismissed period in many places, 1960ies are so much more popular. I also watched Binggoo recently (bc Taeswoon was in it of course!) and the depiction of the era really surprised me. I realized there is so much the dramas haven´t covered yet.

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I have to backtrack and read the previous articles on this series. Well it seems that there is a darker side to this story since there will be an increased number of sexual assaults, as well as female workers disappearing from the toy factory.

http://www.dramabeans.com/2017/08/lee-jong-hyun-up-for-lead-role-in-lingerie-girls-generation/

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Oh dear, I am definitely not expecting this show to turn dark after watching the breezy first episode.

Fingers crossed that the mystery part is done well. I can't go through another Strong Woman Do Bong Soon.

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I feel you! I wonder how they'll cram everything in for the remaining 7 episodes.

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The mystery will most likely start in the 2nd episode.

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My thoughts exactly!

Anyway if the story turns south, it's only 8 episodes - haha trying to convince myself to see the glass as half-full

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I always read "What we're watching" entries and I realize we have similar taste in dramas. So if you @lollypip likes it, I'll definitely check it out! Thanks for the recap~ :)

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Thank you for the wonderful review Lollypip! I love the show already, watching second time now lol. But I think you got the wrong message about dad? I thought he wasn't showing care for his girl, rather bought that sweets for the maid? I noticed the dad and the maid pass some glances between them during the time in the factory too, so guess that meant something?
I would be too heartbroken if dong man is left alone at the end. I think he is perfect for jung hee, who doesn't have many in her family who cares for her properly, so dong man would be the perfect guy to take care of her every small need lol. Also they look so cute together.

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I took it the same way! I thought the dad gave the sweets to aunt and he may have some inappropriate feelings for her since he was sneaking away from his wife (is she a relative? whose? I'm confused about their family structure...), and she gave away to avoid a sticky situation. But lollipop take makes sense too.

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*lollypip, autocorrect seems to know better.

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She can't be her biological aunt right. I think the woman addressed jung hee's mom as madam or something. The dad probably is eyeing her, but she rather has her eyes on the mechanic. I am guessing the drama is exactly how it is in the book, so rather than typical dramas, it would be about multiple subject matters. This event is nothing unnatural considering how frequently extramarital affairs take place in real life.

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I got that vibe too. Have you read the book? I dived in the show without doing any research so I am unaware that this drama will turn darker until a beanie mentioned it

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Nope I haven't. I read a review of the book in a literature site, but the darker part is about some murders happening in the town, and the workers get missing from the factory. It

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Thank you @lollypip for the recap. I am definitely all for the cute.

Looking over the recap pics, it made me nostalgic for my own elementary and middle school Sailor Moon uniform growing up. It is also nice to see that apparently 4 decades ago foreheads enjoyed their half liberation.

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Yay a new youthful drama. I definitely loved the premiere and can't wait for the friendship and rivalry that's to come. I can already spot all the ships from a mile away

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This is a sweet show that does the simple things well - its not overly complicated and know where its impact is.

Lately in dramaland this is not a common trait

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I was pleasantly surprised by how much I like the first episode and like @lollypip, I dived in blind watching the show. Had to stop halfway to google more about the show and the actors coz I was too curious to help myself. And I was more surprised that I kinda like the female lead - her character and the actor (I can't believe she is the same actor in The Best Hit, I find her acting much better here). Her character is just so relatable like the things we do for our crush ❤️ (Well I still get embarrassed when I think about the things I did in my youth just to have a glimpse of my crush).

So the show brought out too many feels for me, esply nostalgia for the simple life and my lost youth. Coming-of-age stories always get me - it doesn't matter whether you are in 1970s, 1990s, 2000s or even 2017, or you may be living through different political and socio-economic climates but that feeling of falling in love for the first time or your family just don't get you (I cringed when I read my teenage diary about it) or bonding with your best friends over boys - those feelings are universal and transcends time and space.

My hope is that the remaining 7 episodes is just as captivating as the first episode. That despite the upcoming angst (since first love and heartbreak always go hand-in-hand), it continues to retain its heart and charm.

Don't disappoint me, Show!

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I love love love it! ? This drama was not really on my radar, but I did give it a try because I love simple high school drama, and I gotta say the first episode is very entertaining. I love the 80s vibe and the music is so on point! I hope DB will keep on recapping this drama because I don't see that this drama under currently recapping.

Anyway, I'm warming up to Jung Hee character faster that I expected. I already root for her to be happy. I was happy when she had her moment with Son Jin, and felt for her when she was head over heels toward Son Jin. I squeed so much when Son Jin asked her if she's alright when she fell. And when the new girl came, I did feel nervous for Jung Hee because it seems to me that Son Jin helped her to look good for the new girl, Hye Joo. Poor Jung Hee. Even Young Choon and Jung Hee's brother also fell for Hye Joo. Hmm.

I know that this drama has a dark side of it. Since I knew about the premise of this drama, (but never spoiled by the novel) it's kinda distracting that I keep on guessing who's the bad guy here because kdrama troop always makes the nice guy (Young Choon, Son Jin and Dong Moon in this drama) as the psycho one. Well, I hope it's another character and all the boys will be the hero in this drama.

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I doubt it's one of the boys who will initiate the murders considering how young they are. If the workers from the factory get killed maybe the killer would be someone older.

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I'm such an oldie kinda girl so I love the musics in this show so much!! I'm liking the show so far, with all the adorable characters and the cringing embarassment of being found out by your crush. It doesn't matter which year it is, the feelings are mutual when it comes to stories of first loves, heartbreaks and friendship. I'm such a sucker for this type of show. And oh, I'm on #teamdongmoon even though I know i'll be going through many heartbreaks along the way. I mean, how could anyone NOT love him?

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OMG i love this drama.
It has a REPLY kinda vibe.

Son jin the bookworm oppa.

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YES, this show exceeded my expectations! I love, love, love it.

It’s a lot like Reply 1988, but without the narrative structure that Reply had to follow in order to be part of the Reply series. I like Jung-hee, an obviously a spoiled girl, but who still managed to gain my sympathy when confronted with her sexist family (been there girl!). I totally get her nervousness toward the new girl, because even though I’m not a fan of pitting girls against girls in drama’s (bleh), haven’t we all been threatened by a new, beautiful, too kind girl showing up and uprooting all our hard work?

I’m most looking forward to Lee Jong-hyun as Young-Choon. His story is 100% going to tug at my heart, and I might already be in love with the poor, hard-working Oppa raising his little sister. Doesn’t help that the actor is amazing, and cuuuute. @Lollypip can have Dong-moon, I call Young-Choon!

All in all, I’m in! This summer, good drama’s that caught my eye were slim picking, but with the fall and the nostalgic drama’s it brings (Age of Youth, School 2017, LGG, Save me), I’m getting pulled back into the K-dramasphere!

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I decided to watch this show since there wasn't anything left after School 2017 ended (sniff) and I'm not ready to watch the next episodes of The King Loves. So I had NO expectations at all.
With that said - any show that starts with a song by Abba is worth a second look!
The female lead is so darned naive, self-absorbed, selfish and mean to anyone who isn't her family - so I'm looking forward to watching her grow up. Also, she is just beautiful and her smile is magnificent!
I was just newly married in 1979 and didn't have a clue about South Korea until about 6 years later when we were hoping to adopt a child. The only thing I'd ever heard was about the Korean War. It's very interesting the sense of militarism in the town. Was the country still very militarized at that time?
So now I have to do some research on S Korea in 1979. Oh to be an American with so little world history - when I was a teenager the only thing we learned about was the US.
Thanks for the fast recap Lollypip! I'm looking forward to seeing where we go in 7 more episodes!

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*Disclaimer and correction:
What I should have said is how embarrassed I am as an American that was taught so little about other countries. Now I love learning about history.

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The old soul in me is loving this drama so far. I love the era to which the drama is set. Thing is, I'm getting creepy feels from Sohn Jin. And gosh, Dong Moon is so adorkable ?

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Omo why was that so swoony the way he held thst door closed for her! ?

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Omg his voice is so freaking beautiful I'm legit swooning here! ??

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That nerd is going to break lots of hearts.

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Some songs that used as BGM.
란제리 소녀시대 OST 노래모음: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLge8SZRDVXSoo9MTssqaiBzFSrPrD7MT3

The song during enchanted/falling in love part:
https://youtu.be/iBmf4yl9bEU

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umm,do you know the song sang by son jin? ?

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It's "Danny Boy," an old Irish folk song.

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I don't know if I loved this epi or not. So I'll give it a try for another epi because I love the set up of this drama. The female lead is annoying, less likeable but relatable. Quite a tough role for inexperienced actress, but Bona was OK in the first epi. I'm looking forward to see more of another female lead, Seoul girl in upcoming epi. The rest of characters are entertaining imo. I'm afraid if this going to be another Reply series - on the popular game who is the guy she will choose, but maybe with only 8 epi I can worry less. It would be better if this drama give us more of girls friendship instead of love square.

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I can feel the angst coming a mile away already. I don't think I can handle it now, so I'll put this drama aside for the time being until I can binge read/watch it. But I do like the setup and the characters, especially Young-choon. He and his sister are adorable.

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I feel like there is a darker undertone to this story. Some of the more mature/ experienced actors hint at this, with their portrayal. If the teenage love story is merely secondary, let's hope the primary narrative will be executed well in this short 8-ep series!

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Right? The dad is strange and the helper is too mysterious...cute but mysterious.

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Thanks LollyPip! This sounds like a show I'd want to watch. Just looking at the screencaps gave me the Reply 1988 vibe and good feels.

Now it's all a matter of finding the time....

Time..., time ... where are you?

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The older male characters in this are the worst . I would've had to fight the constant urge to commit patricide if I was Jung Hee.

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They're awful. I do appreciate their inclusion though. Even today I've heard and seen people treat their sons like they're above their daughters just by gender alone.

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This drama also flew under my radar untill dramabeans posted the Premier Watch thing. After few minutes in I kept thinking that Dongmoon reaally reminded me of someone... Suddenly it dawned on me that he's Lee Soo Wo the kid who commited suicide from Solomon Perjury!! Omg and thank god he's alive here. I'm happy the actor get more work.

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Bona is so good in this! I love her! I can't believe people were criticising her before even seeing her! This is why we need more idol actors! They are actually as good as and in some cases even better than rookie actors and always have a way of surprising us! Now I wish this was a much longer drama!

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I like Bona in this. I think there was concern about her acting because of her performance in The Best Hit. She was supper green and the character wasn't really well written or made sense to even exist in that universe.
I'm not sure we need more idol actors. I like idols and i like idol/actors but I definitely think they need more training, experience and the right role before throwing them into a drama.
Take the MJ character in The Best Hit which was portrayed by Cha Eun-Woo. It was his first drama and he played an idol. He was adorable! It wasn't heavy on his acting skills but a really good easy introduction for him and the viewers.

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Well, I must be the only one that found Dong moon really handsome?? And to see hes sweet and caring seals the deal to me but I hope he gets over his crush for the female lead because he seems to be blinded by her looks instead of seeing shes treating him badly because of her own crush. At least she shared 'a moment' with the'hot guy' to call him her crush but Dm.. please snap out of it, its only ep. 1!

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Please Please keep recapping it @lollypip. I love it!
The music is amazing and everything is so pretty!
I love everyone's outfits.
I dunno about y'all but I'm digging all the actors and their portrayal of their character.
Huh? Jung-Hee's annoying? I like her. She's not perfect and she has room to grow and gain wisdom through experience.
All the guys are so handsome even you annoying oppa. <3 <3

Sigh I'm all for the cute daddy-daughter bonds but something isn't right with her dad and the "aunt". I don't think she's a blood related aunt. I think she's a maid/helper that they call aunt. I like the aunt, she's adorable.
I completely forgot this show had a darker tone mixed in there. I don't know how they're going to introduce that. I'm hoping they tweaked it enough so it makes sense and isn't all rushed or confusing.

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After ep 2, there's definitely something going on between the dad and the aunt. I really don't like dad, he's mean. I think lollypip was reading the situation wrong, even on ep 1 I didn't read it as cute daddy - daughter bond. Ep 2 kinda confirmed it.

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thank youuu

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I'm looking for a show for my kdrama club and this one might be it....will keep reading and fingers crossed it will be good!!!

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it feels like reply 1994 without guess the husband

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Lee Jong Hyun fighting!????

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I loved the first episode also. I thought Dong Moon was a cutie, and Jung Hee kept twisting my heart every time she rejected him.

Shamefully, I probably would have done the same as she did at that age, and only in hindsight did I realize the value of a boy like that.
I love the nostalgic feels this show is giving me and it is the perfect watch right now.

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Hope you keep recapping! I love this show. The characters are all so sweet and interesting. I especially like Young Choon, as his backstory is very intriguing. What did he do in his past that was so terrible and will people continue to hold it against him?

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Please keep recapping this drama. I really like it and i enjoy watching it. So, please recap it. Thanks in anticipation.

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why are the subsequent episodes not being recapped?

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I actually teared up when Jung-hee’s dad took those cookies to her aunt, knowing she would pass them on to Jung-hee without his having to say anything. -- I beg to disagree because I don't see the father in a positive light at all. I sincerely thought that the father only cared for the auntie (and yes, I sensed some affair going on between these two from the beginning). I never thought that he actually wanted to give the cookies for JH at all.

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It seemed to me that the Father gave the cookies to the Auntie because he was attracted to her?

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Just watched the finale. I enjoyed the show, even if it did resurrect deeply-buried memories of social trauma in high school. ;-)

I've posted as much of the non-Korean music on my fan wall as I've been able to locate. I think I may have missed a couple of instrumentals simply because I do not recognize them at all. In ep. 8, I could not hear the vocals clearly enough to identify the very first bit of background music (a disco number that cropped up later in the episode).

Thanks again for recapping episode 1, LollyPip!

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Watching this half a year later

The musical cues from the 70s are amazing and I really do feel immersed in their Daegu world. I like the seeminly unlikeable heroine because she's very realistic and true to heart. In reality there are very very few candy girls compared to kdramas. So seeing someone who's rather judgemental is refreshing becuase in highschool it's rather true that people can be prickly with the tumultous family relationships, friendships, responisibilities and studies that a student must cope with alongside growing up.

Also it seems (and I'm kinda intrigued how) glasses guy likes Jung Hee who likes So Jin who (along with Jung Hee's bro) has a crush on new girl who likes the part timer guy. So the love is rather like a relay race.

The discrimination against girls is rife. I felt my blood boil over the favouritism and surpisingly the discriminatory parents are the exact same from BTIOFL so I'm doubling in the anger. The main leads in both dramas also have a much favoured twin brother. The mom so far hasn't spewed any BTOOFL golden adivce tho, unfortunately.😂

Also I love comparing how different views and the education system were back then. It makes me relish the progress our society has made. Eg. The teacher back then would punish the female students by humiliating them by calling them "pigs" and would then pull their bra straps like a rubber sling so that it would sting. If that happened today in my country that teacher would be out of a job over mental abuse, improper conduct and sexual harrasment. He would also probably face extensive community service and a fine at least. Also back then a mere camisole was considered a luxury.

I got different vibes from the dad compared to Lollypip. I did not feel like he was jumping through hoops to show his love towards his daughter but instead seems to be having an affair (harbouring secret feelings?) towards the "aunt". The aunt however, either doesn't care about him or sees how it's inappropriate and therefore gave the treats to Jung Hee.

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I feel the exact same way about the relationship between the father and the aunt as well. Currently watching this, and I think it's safe to say that there is definitely something going on between them.

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