Aim: binge ep. 21-24 of NOKDU FLOWER
Reality: take a break after ep. 21 because I can’t see the screen through my tears. Ohmygosh I haven’t cried so much in ages. 😭😭😭
Have I mentioned this drama is a masterpiece?
8
10

    I’m at ep 17 and I agree wholeheartedly. And thank you for not posting overly spoiling pics.

    I wish more writers and directors would learn this style of storytelling. Gut-wrenching while being completely subdued and understated.

    2
    1

      I wanted to say how much I like this drama without posting spoilers (I hate spoilers myself).
      The storytelling is marvelous, and a lot of credit goes to the PD. It looks completely natural, feelings are not forced from us…. anyway, I’m going to watch ep. 22 now. See you at the finish line!

      3
      1

        Everything feels insanely natural and matter-of-fact! It actually scares me a bit! If there were more directors this talented they could sell me any lie in history!

        See you there chingu!

        3
        1

          Gosh, you’re right! I’ve been reading a bit about the Donghak Peasant Rebellion and the drama does downplay their anti-Western agenda, which included not only rejection of the Japanese but also European or “Western” influence. It’s no wonder that Song Ja In keeps her Christianity a secret, because neither the Japanese, Joseon Confucians or Donghak members would take that very kindly.

          1
          1

            I felt quite a lot of anti-western emotions especially in the beginning when YH’s Japanese education and love for western technology was never showed in a positive light.
            But on the whole I agree that most subjects are touched fleetingly, but burningly, like the scene where the butcher wants names for his family, whereas many shows would definitely want to get a lot of drama out of such a scenes. Milk it, if you know what I mean.

            And tell me, why not many PDs know like this one that men living in the wild need sunburnt face makeup and uncouth broken hands and nails but they don’t need crazy hair to look like peasants? That a 20000+ men army needs at least a thousand extra actors to look convincing? That every single surprise and revelation doesn’t need deafening drumroll or episode ending credits? Ugh! I could go on and on for ever. This is simply beautiful. Perfect.

            3
            0

    I agree, yesterday I only got partially through episode 22 and had to take a break. This show is really a masterpiece.

    Unfortunately it’s bringing back memories for me when my son was a Marine during his 2 combat tours in Iraq in 2004 and 2005. There wasn’t as much communication and every day I lived in fear that there would be a black car outside my door when I got home from work.
    It was nerve-wracking and painful to say the least – watching the women mourn and worry brought a lot of that pain back. However my son returned home safe and almost sound (ptsd).

    It must have been SO MUCH harder due to the lack of easy communication.

    But back to the show – listening to the Dongkak leaders give those speeches about why they will keep fighting were powerful! I bet the actors are really feeling the words so much more, as it is their history. WOW

    I’ll finish the rest of the episodes this week.
    But just wow all over the place for this drama!

    6
    1

      I can’t imagine how hard it must be to send a son off to war. I am sorry you had to go through that and glad that he came back to you safely.

      Those speeches were so powerful that they made me cry:
      Joeon Bong Jun: “Forget the cause. Fight for whatever you hold dearest.”
      Baek Yi Kang: “Even if it’s for a short moment, I want to live as a human being and die as a human being.”

      1
      1

        Thanks – to be honest, I was taken by surprise at my response. One time my son got annoyed with me when I tried to describe how hard it was to be a mom when he was there. But he wasn’t married and didn’t have a child at the time and so didn’t understand. I hope he does now that he has a daughter.

        This show is so powerful! Still, it’s hard watching the story knowing how it ends, at least in history. I haven’t finished it yet.
        The battle scenes – I took off my headphones and just looked at the trees above my heads until they were over – I couldn’t bear to watch or listen to them.
        But I will finish the show.

        1
        0

    Eps 21 is the hardest to watch. I have to take a 3 days break before I felt okay enough to continue watching.

    1
    0

    Without a doubt this drama is totally awesome. I forget which episode I’m on at the moment, but I still have a way to go until the end. It hasn’t lost steam since this started and I have a feeling it will continue this way until the end. Truly a very good show.

    2
    0