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Oh My Baby: Episode 15

With chances of pregnancy looking slimmer than ever, our heroine reevaluates her priorities. Love, babies, and family have always belonged together in her dreams, and she realizes that her reality is different. As she prepares to make compromises, her fiancé reflects on how he’s made mistakes in love. He reconsiders what it means to love and how he can fulfill the love that our heroine is worth of.

 
EPISODE 15: “How do we love?”

Yi-sang agonizes over Ha-ri’s heartbreak about possibly not having children and thinks about how lovingly Ha-ri cared for the babies at work. They meet for dinner after work, and Ha-ri continues to force a smile. She insists that the surgery wasn’t that serious and tries to enjoy her dinner with Yi-sang.

When Yi-sang shares that he’s starting hormone therapy again, Ha-ri tells him that she’s given up on having a baby. She doesn’t want Yi-sang to suffer through more painful treatments, and she claims that she’s tired of being so emotionally invested in having a child. Ha-ri blames her selfish desires for causing hardship and doesn’t want to make things difficult for them anymore.

Disappointed, Yi-sang says that he wanted to share the dream of having a baby, but Ha-ri is done with the pain. She asks, “Are you going to keep trying until it works? If the treatment doesn’t work, then we’ll fall into despair and start treatment again with futile hope. Until when? Until we grow too old to do this?” Ha-ri says that she doesn’t want to waste their precious time together and prioritizes their happiness. Yi-sang silently agrees and forces a weak smile.

Mom practices her admonishment to Yi-sang for daring to be with Ha-ri with his infertility and thus ruining her dreams. After running through her speech, she decides that she can’t reprimand Yi-sang for his infertility and sympathizes with his shared troubles with Ha-ri.

Jae-young meets with Jung-won to pick up Do-ah, and he finally confronts her about why she abandoned him and Do-ah. Jung-won responds, “I just wanted to breathe.” In a flashback, we see Jung-won struggling to soothe crying Do-ah, and when Jae-young returned home from work, she numbly told him that she felt minimized to someone who exists to breastfeed Do-ah.

She desperately told Jae-young that she wanted to put on her doctor’s gown and save lives, and Jae-young assured her that Do-ah will grow up soon enough for Jung-won to return to her job. On the day of Do-ah’s 100-day celebration, the family was waiting on Jung-won, who was taking a long break outside. She realized, “I had only heard Do-ah’s cries, but I heard sounds of the world around me. There was the warm breeze and the sun. I could finally breathe. From there, I came home and prepared for my thesis, and I finally felt like I was living.”

Back in the present, Jung-won shares that she belatedly recognized her post-partum depression and admits that she had a difficult time accepting that she wasn’t a mother who was happy sacrificing everything for her child. Jae-young and Do-ah’s presence alone felt suffocating to her. Jung-won didn’t expect Jae-young to give up his professorship and encourages him to restart the process while she watches Do-ah, who she’s become closer to now.

Jae-young says that he’s satisfied with his life right now. Jung-won admits that she misses him and wonders if he can give up his feelings for Ha-ri. She asks if she needs to give up his feelings for him, and Jae-young nods.

At the office, Eu-tteum and Hyo-joo awkwardly share the elevator to their floor. Eu-tteum asks what he can do to make things better post-rejection, and Hyo-joo says that she wants him to disappear. She says that she doesn’t know how to honor her unrequited feelings like him, and Eu-tteum agrees to let her hate him. She asks him to act unhappy so that she can wrap up her feelings quickly, and she walks away, dejected.

Yeon-ho finds Yi-sang brooding in the studio and retrieves him for their next assignment. They’re interviewing a photographer mother who wrote a fun submission from the perspective of her child. As a single mother, the photographer donates proceeds and her talents to single-parent families. When they arrive at the photographer’s studio, Yi-sang’s eyes widen in recognition at the photo of their next subject. It’s his ex-fiancee, In-ah.

Yi-sang captures Yeon-ho interviewing In-ah about her written submission and photos, and In-ah glances at Yi-sang uncomfortably. She poses by her photo, but she can’t get herself to smile widely and offers to send the photo later. Yeon-ho notices the tension between the two and excuses herself to give space for them to talk.

Once they’re alone, In-ah tells Yi-sang that it’s nice to see him again and shares that the hardest part of their break-up was losing her best friend. She asks if he still despises her, and Yi-sang responds, “I thought that you would obviously prioritize me over a child, and that’s probably why I resented you more.” In-ah says that she also resented him and was fixated on their life-altering hardship. Yi-sang admits that he made their break-up harder by clinging onto her when he knew their relationship was already over.

Reflecting back on their relationship, In-ah says that apart from the infertility issue, they both didn’t have the strength to endure the inevitable unhappiness in their relationship. As we see Ha-ri at work, Yi-sang admits to In-ah, “I thought that holding on was how you defended love, but I needed to let you go.” Before he leaves, Yi-sang asks In-ah if she’s happy, and she nods.

Jae-young watches Do-ah at work and thinks back to Jung-won’s suggestion that to live together as a family again. He holds Do-ah in his arms and asks if she enjoyed her time with Mom. He seems to be considering her suggestion.

The editing team eat ddukbokki to relieve their work stress and go around sharing their stressors. Maknae So-yoon says that her dad wants her to quit her job to find another company with better work life balance. Yeon-ho shares her suspicions that the photographer she interviewed today was Yi-sang’s ex, and she wonders if she should tell Ha-ri. Both Hyo-joo and So-yoon advise her not to, and she agrees.

Hyo-joo shares that she told Ha-ri that she’s going to quit. In the conversation with Ha-ri, Hyo-joo explained that she has no reason to stay and doesn’t see a vision for the magazine. Ha-ri asked her to stay until Hyo-joo has a new job lined up and to give her a chance. Ha-ri expressed her desire to protect the magazine and also do something for them.

Ha-ri knows that Yeon-ho was expecting the deputy position when Ha-ri got promoted, and she wants to help Yeon-ho get promoted, just like how Editor Shim supported her. For So-yoon, she wants to help her build her portfolio and not just make her do all the busy work in the office. For Hyo-joo, she can see a solid portfolio in sight and wants to help her get there. Plus, Ha-ri doesn’t want Hyo-joo to leave with only complaints. She asked Hyo-joo to reconsider her resignation.

The three reporters wonder what they do next, and Yeon-ho’s the first one to commit to staying and seems excited at the prospect of a promotion. So-yoon hides her loyalty behind the excuse that she’s curious about the magazine’s future, and Hyo-joo begrudgingly says that she’ll stay to help Ha-ri fight the company. They’re all in!

Yi-sang meets with Ha-ri for dinner, and she excitedly asks about their wedding plans. Committed to Ha-ri’s dream, Yi-sang accuses Ha-ri for sacrificing a child for him and asks what she’ll sacrifice next. Ha-ri responds that she doesn’t want a child to strain their relationship, but Yi-sang continues to push her on this difficult topic that they agreed to confront.

Speaking objectively, Yi-sang asks Ha-ri what they’ll do when their love won’t be enough to overcome hardship. Ha-ri argues that this challenge won’t be an issue, but Yi-sang doesn’t seem to agree. He says that Ha-ri has the option to have a normal family, and Ha-ri interprets this as Yi-sang wanting to break up with her. Yi-sang claims that he’s giving her time to reconsider their relationship and an opportunity to live without giving up her dreams.

Ha-ri looks overwhelmed by Yi-sang’s sudden change of heart and calls out his misguided approach to support her dreams. Yi-sang maintains his detached tone and urges Ha-ri to think about how he selfishly held onto her. He announces that he’s taking a break from the studio to focus on his work and tells her to reconsider their relationship during this break.

Yi-sang walks Ha-ri home, and she turns to him to accept this break. Ha-ri recognizes that Yi-sang needs the time to think about their relationship, but she predicts that they’ll miss each other to the point that they’ll both be hurting. She says earnestly, “I hope you return to me in regret.” Yi-sang watches Ha-ri walk away and already looks regretful.

At home, Yi-sang throws away his hormone treatment and the photo of his hand with the compliment stamp from Ha-ri. He finds the photos from their business trip in his notebook and tearfully stares at the photo of Ha-ri.

Jae-young meets Jung-won and shares their family photo from Do-ah’s first birthday photoshoot. He admits that he belatedly realized the difficulty of childcare. He apologizes for not understanding Jung-won’s hardships. Jae-young recognizes his fault in taking Jung-won’s childcare commitment for granted and for not taking parental leave to help take care of Do-ah.

Jae-young adds that they’re both proud people who love selfishly, and he suggests that they not continue with this selfish love. Jung-won asks if this is because of Ha-ri, but Jae-young maturely responds that overcoming his feelings for Ha-ri doesn’t mean that he’ll return to Jung-won. Things are different now.

Jung-won accepts Jae-young’s decision, and he encourages her to continue living the life she loves. He doesn’t doubt her love for Do-ah and says that their daughter will appreciate seeing her mother pursuing her dreams. “Be a good doctor, and I’ll be a good father,” he says.

Ha-ri calls Yi-sang non-stop after work, but he doesn’t pick up. She runs downstairs to the studio, but she only finds Soo-chul, who tells her that Yi-sang notified him of his leave without a return date. Concerned about Yi-sang’s disappearance, Ha-ri runs to his apartment and cries for him. She can’t accept that he would leave so suddenly, and inside his dark apartment, we see his engagement ring.

Devastated by this break-up, Ha-ri can barely keep in her emotions as she walks home. She crouches on the sidewalk in tears, heartbroken. On the other side of the street, Yi-sang cries as he watches Ha-ri in anguish, but he doesn’t go to her.

Three months later, Ha-ri waits for Eu-tteum and walks into work with updates from him on their marketing contracts. He helps her open her milk carton, and they head into another busy day of work. Vice President Joo stops by to asks for an update on their profits, and he says that he can’t defend their efforts for much longer.

Ha-ri and her reporter team have been drafting more marketing proposals than writing articles to secure enough funding for their magazine, and Ha-ri heads out to meet with more potential partners. Ha-ri and Eu-tteum are attached at the hip as they hop from meeting to meeting with potential marketing partners, and Eu-tteum seems to appreciate their time together.

With Eu-tteum working hard outside the office, Manager Kim doesn’t have a lunch buddy, and he runs into Soo-chul, who’s also looking for a friend. As they each lunch together, Manager Kim tries to convince Soo-chul to enjoy an idol girl group music video with him, but Soo-chul refuses. He’s critical of older men like them finding enjoyment from young idol stars, and Manager Kim sulks at that comment.

Putting his phone away in shame, Manager Kim puts expresses his innocent enjoyment of idol groups and young people who are vibrantly pursuing their dreams. He wants to live vicariously through them, since they don’t have the same vigor anymore. Aww.

Eu-tteum catches Ha-ri zoning off and brings her back to reality with cold drinks. He boldly calls her by her name instead of using professional titles and then takes it a step further by dropping the formalities. Triggered by the disrespect, Ha-ri clenches her fist and chases Eu-tteum to scold him, and that brings her back to the present.

As they walk back from a long day, Ha-ri recognizes Eu-tteum’s attempts to distract her and says that he doesn’t need to be concerned about her. Eu-tteum reminds Ha-ri that he liked her and says that in her lowest moments, she should remember that there was someone who admired everything about her. Ha-ri smiles in gratitude and returns the encouragement — that whenever someone scolds him for being senseless, he should remember that his words uplifted someone’s spirits.

When Ha-ri gets home, she glances down the street longingly, hoping for Yi-sang to appear. She continues to work at home and looks through Yi-sang’s social media for any trace of his whereabouts.

At Jambi Studio, Eu-tteum and Hyo-joo work with Soo-chul on a photoshoot, and Eu-tteum notes that their sponsors wanted a king theme. Hyo-joo scorns that they’re not like the Kingdom of Corea, or something (lol). Eu-tteum tells Hyo-joo that he’s trying to be unhappy around her, but Hyo-joo says that she’s no longer mad at him. When he hears that she’s over him, Eu-tteum notes his unexpected disappointment.

Soo-chul pulls Eu-tteum aside and asks if Manager Kim also tries to show him idol girl group music videos. Eu-tteum nods but then shares the backstory about Manager Kim’s interest in the idol group. Manager Kim had scolded her reserved daughter for not wanting to go to school, and she didn’t talk to him for 3 years. Her daughter only watched the music videos, so Manager Kim watched the videos to try to get closer with his daughter, and now they’re like friends, even going to concerts together.

Feeling apologetic, Soo-chul studies the group, Precious, and prepares the fan chant for Manager Kim as he leaves the office. Manager Kim looks touched by Soo-chul’s consideration and cheers along with him.

The next day, Manager Kim shows off his Precious concert tickets to Eu-tteum and shares that Soo-chul bought them for him. He’s in a good mood and seems hopeful about their advertisement deal today. In the advertisement meeting, Team Leader Park from their partner company asks Manager Kim for help with buying Precious concert tickets, since he’s a part of the fan club. Team Leader Park promises that it won’t affect their deal, but it seems like a trap.

Manager Kim asks if they could consider extending their contract from 6 months to one year, and Team Leader Park defensively claims that these concert tickets aren’t a bribe and that he’s simply asking as a close connection. And as a close contact, he’s willing to extend the contract to one year.

Reading between the lines, Manager Kim reaches into his pocket for the tickets, and Eu-tteum tries to stop him. Manager Kim silently assures him that it’s fine and offers the tickets to Team Leader Park, who then orders the contract to be extended. As Team Leader Park leaves, Eu-tteum demands that he return the tickets. He calls out this exchange as a bribe and says that the representative should not have requested a personal favor to do business.

Team Leader Park is offended by Eu-tteum’s comment and scolds his lack of business sensibility. But Eu-tteum says that he’s learned to carry out business without tolerating unfair treatment from partners, and he trusts that Team Leader Park is a fair and reasonable person. Manager Kim takes credit for Ha-ri’s teaching and takes back the tickets. Then, he pushes for the one-year contract, since a verbal agreement is still an agreement.

Ha-ri receives a call from the infertile couple interview subjects and learns that they’re at the hospital due to a risk of premature birth. She heads to the studio to meet with Soo-chul, who’s negotiating pay for freelance photographer Sang-hee. He says that he misses Yi-sang but quickly tries to wrap up that topic at the sight of Ha-ri. Sang-hee mentions that Yi-sang is back, and Soo-chul tries to shut her up and dismiss her.

Ha-ri doesn’t linger on the topic and updates Soo-chul on their interview couple, who are at the hospital. They need to be on call to rush to the hospital to follow their story at a moment’s notice. Soo-chul first mentions that this was Yi-sang’s project but quickly agrees to step in.

While watching her twin boys, Eun-young meets with Ha-ri and updates her on her almost-successful interview. She made it to the final round, but she declined the offer after hearing about the hours, which wouldn’t accommodate proper childcare. She asks about an update on Yi-sang, and Ha-ri says that he’s back but hasn’t contact her yet. Eun-young and Ha-ri commiserate over their struggles — finding a job, being in love, taking care of kids, and giving birth — and blame each other for making the other cry.

Ha-ri wanders into her regular gopchang pub and runs into Jae-young, who freezes mid-soju shot when she enters. He updates Ha-ri on Do-ah and his new parenting schedule with Jung-won, and they seem be back to their usual rapport. Ha-ri asks if Jae-young has committed to his primary role as Do-ah’s father, and Jae-young says that the world isn’t generous to a divorced man with a child.

Ha-ri says that everyone has their shortcomings, and nothing disqualifies you from being in love. She asks, “Whether you can’t find love or lost love, how could a person live without loving anyone?” Jae-young wonders if love is enough for forgiveness and if sacrifice is necessary for true love. He says that Ha-ri was especially selfless when it came to love, losing herself and being overly accommodating of her partner.

Jae-young encourages her to reflect on her relationships to find true love. He wonders if Yi-sang left seeking this reflection, but Ha-ri thinks that he left for good. Jae-young regrets that someone as lovable and deserving of love as Ha-ri may end up living alone. He advises, “Find someone like me who recognizes your worth, and if that’s Han Yi-sang, then you’ll end together.” He cheers her on with a fist bump.

As they leave, Ha-ri asks Jae-young if he’ll continue to frequent this gopchang place, and Jae-young says that he can’t, now that he knows Ha-ri still comes here. He admits that it’s difficult for him to act like her friend and wishes her luck. They part with a high five, and Ha-ri watches her friend leave with a sad look.

When Ha-ri gets home, she ponders how to love, but her thoughts are interrupted by an urgent call from the husband of the interview couple. She rushes to the hospital at the news of the wife’s labor, and she notifies Soo-chul on her way.

At the hospital, the husband updates her on the situation and says that they only have a short window of time to photograph the process. He’s called into the labor room, and Ha-ri urgently calls Soo-chul. He doesn’t pick up, but we see someone else rushing towards her. Ha-ri turns around to find Yi-sang running toward her, and she looks at him with disbelief.

 
COMMENTS

I was bit unimpressed by the predictability of this episode with Yi-sang’s sudden and misguided cold feet (a.k.a. noble idiocy). The coincidental run-in with his ex would have sufficed to serve as a moment for closure, but somehow, that led to jumps in conclusion about his current relationship with Ha-ri. The key difference I see between Yi-sang’s relationship with In-ah and his relationship with Ha-ri is in their priorities. Both women dreamed of having children, but when it came to deciding between love and a baby, they made different choices. For In-ah, the inevitable hardship that would have strained their relationship was too burdensome, but Ha-ri was willing to endure all of that for love.

Even though I didn’t fully approve of Yi-sang’s approach, I think the break gave Ha-ri the space and time to reflect. Time and again, Ha-ri had been advised by Mom and her friends that she should protect her heart. I think Ha-ri loves very fully, so there’s value in forcing objective reflection, especially if it carves out more space for herself in the relationship. I think Jae-young gave her perfect advice and kindling for reflection — that she lays bare her heart and pours selflessly into a relationship, that she’s worthy of love and should find someone who sees that.

Obviously, Jae-young sees that, but he knows he’s out of the running. I appreciate this version of Jae-young — the mature man-child who is self-aware, honest, and supportive. As I’ve mentioned, I really wish we got to this version of Jae-young sooner so that I could have agonized over some second lead syndrome that I know Park Byung-eun is capable of inducing. I’m bitter, but I guess it’s better late than never for some respectful boundary-keeping in the friendzone.

As we enter the finale, I’m expecting rainbows and butterflies, loose ends tied up in pretty bows, and a wild Yi-sang returning in regret. I came in with different expectations for the show, but I’m leaving with an appreciation for a show that honestly confronted the challenges of meeting societal expectations that are tied to age, a show that is true to the Jang Nara rom-com reign and also introduced me to the delightful rom-com potential of Go Joon, a show that wears its heart and hilarity on its sleeve. It wasn’t perfect, but it was warm and sincere, which I definitely don’t take for granted. This was a light comfy show that lifted my spirits over the past few weeks, and I hope we see some of that cheerful sparkle as the show wraps up. Onto the finale!

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I hate noble idiocy so much! Yi Sang was completely wrong to break up with HR especially since she had shown she was willing to chose him over a baby. He just took that decision out of her hands. SMH.

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While watching this episode I exclaimed aloud "The beanies are going to HATE this episode!"
The one thing we hate most in the world is 'noble idiocy', which is usually ranked even beneath the hated 'wrist grab' and 'time jump'. Yeh yeh yeh, I get it. Ha-ri learns to love herself without a man or a baby. But did it require the most perplexing case of noble idiocy of the last three years to get us there? Oh My Baby was a great show that unfortunately was two episodes too long for the storyline (a common complaint about 16 episode series).

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Thank you @dramallama for the recap! Ha-ri said it - She was greedy. She already found her soul mate and she still wants babies. Having babies doesn't really guarantee a happy marriage later (just look at the divorce rate everywhere!) and I'm glad she has decided to just be happy and go with the flow. And Yi-sang goes and does something stupid! 🤔

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This episode just made me angry and disappointed at the writer. Why oh why is noble idiocy the path that every single rom-com writer takes instead of writing a different scenario to deal with the angst. Why does every character have to go into self blaming and self sacrifice instead of talking it out with their partner. Whatever, I’m done!

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Am sorely disappointed that show pulled up that last moment noble idiocy, really hate it when a character I’ve been in love with form the start suddenly got dumbed down for the sake of dramatic angst. Where is the Yi-sang that confidently stated he will stick to Ha-ri through everything? It's unbelievable he left her when she needed him most. Those 3 months were just too, too much when I believe the Yi-sang I knew wouldn't even last 3 weeks away from his beloved Ha-ri. And he took off his ring... for some reason, I was SO ANGRY over that! *yanks hair*

Our half of OTP being stupid makes room for the other characters' growth, I guess. Jae-young has finally become a true friend for Ha-ri. He's a selfish jerk but he sure got some good lines. The way he casually said he's not coming to drink there again because pretending to be friends with all his might is hard, aaw... Should be an anthem for all who's been friend-zoned.

Am glad show didn't forget about Ha-ri's professional story. It's so good to see The Baby's team standing up together and giving their best for their job. A subdued Hyo-joo somehow look more mature than ever, and Eu-tteum definitely grew in spade professionally and personally. It's lovely to see he's still forever a sweet puppy in his support for Ha-ri. The surprise bromance between the two dads is a nice bonus!

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In fairness, this was a decent episode IF you *forget completely about the 'noble idiocy' stuff*. The workplace stuff was good, the Eun-young/Ha-ri stuff was good, the Eu-tteum/Hyo-joo stuff was good, even the Yi-sang/In-ah stuff was good.

Is there a Korean screenwriting manual similar to the infamous American book 'Save The Cat'? Because someone ought to go in with a pair of scissors and remove that section telling writer to include a noble idiocy trope.

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Totally agreed that this is indeed a decent and warm episodes.

In fact, I find Oh My Baby speaks to me across so many issues that few other dramas do - maybe because I am an older Beanie having gone through similar real life issues In years past.

I still remember the struggle I had in becoming a mom for the first time that returning to work was my fervent wish instead of staying home with a newborn. I hated having to stay home and doing house chores. When Jun- won talked about her desire to just put on the white gown and treat patients - it is SO VERY REAL to me. Years later, I regretted returning to work too soon and should have been spending more precious time with my baby - but this is with hindsight and completely not the thinking at the time.

Priorities are different at different stages through the course of your life. Therefore, why getting married and enjoy life with Yi-sang can’t be a top priority for Hari at that point of her life - than jumping into other alternatives of becoming a mom. It is a very wise decision for the sake of her miracle of finding love and otherwise aN insult to Yi-sang’s infertility problem. Other priorities can take place later - becoming a mother or not.

I also like how this drama spends time on men’s father issues. Their challenges in meeting society expectations while fulfilling the role of father/husband are rarely discussed in kdrama - and that’s why My Unfamiliar Family is another precious drama. The arc of the marketing manager and photographer SC is such a minor but thoughtful piece in this regard. I just love it.

And the girls solidarity - be it within the baby office or HaRi with her best friend or her mom - in meeting the day-to-day job security, career and home concerns are treated with respect and warmth. I like how HaRi has passed on what she learnt from Editor Shim to her crew.

Yisang’s “withdrawal” is understandable and I think 3 months are the right time of separation for both to think through and be clear head again. Any time shorter than this will be a joke in my view.

Lastly, Beanies’ pat hates are noble idiocy and makjang but sometimes there’s a tendency to over-use such terms without looking into the context of the story development. Real life drama can often be more dramatic than a drama. When people say MUF is too makjang, it’s some kind of jaw dropping comment that I would never associate with that drama - because the subject matters there are very realistic and not far fetched at all.

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As other beanies have commented, I didn't like the episode. Too obvious. That stupid noble idiocy, assuming things on his own... No, Yi Sang, as cute as you are, you're stupid. HaRi had already told you at the beginning: she would always choose love.

Regarding JaeYoung, and as much as I appreciate his honest talk to JungWon (and the fact that she recognizes she had postpartum depression), I can't relate to his arch. Suddenly he's forgotten about his "love" for HaRi (which obviously only existed in the writer's imagination) and is balanced and not obsessive.

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dump the idiot, noble or not, Yi Sang. Pick up the sweet puppy,
Eu-tteum, super sperm, have a great career, baby and live happily ever after! Done!

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Like everyone, I didn't like the noble idiocy move. But in the same time, what Hari said and what her face said were pretty different, so I can understand that he felt bad. Now I don't understand why Yi Sang has to feel so guilty, without him Hari's chances were minimal, but everybody acts like it was his only fault.

It's sad Jae-young didn't understand Jung-won had post natal depression. Jun-Won could have been more honest when she came back, not asking to organize a big party like nothing happenned but explaining and sharing her feelings.

Eu-tteum is really a nice character. He knows that he lacks in different ways but he's learning and trying to do his best.

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Yes, I totally agree with you about everybody blaming YiSang.
And what's more important: HaRi hadn't been on a relation with anyone in the last 10 years before dating Yi Sang, and we are to believe that after falling for someone in such a long time, now she will find another fertile man whom she will love and who will love her back, in less than a year and she will get pregnant instantly... c'mon...

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It occurs to me that perhaps the reason we so dislike the noble idiocy here is because at the ages Ha-ri and Yi-sang are at, you'd assume they would know better. But it just goes to show that age and life experience are no guarantee that people will make good decisions.

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I might not have liked the execution of the noble idiocy, but I sort of get why it happened. Yi Sang was in a bad place emotionally, feeling like he is the reason Ha-Ri is unhappy, and he feels like he is watching his previous relationship all over again, only worse (because his ex-fiancee was not subfertile, while Ha-Ri's decision to wait for his treatments might have sabotaged her own chances). THEN he meets his ex-fiancee and sees that, though she is a single mother, she is happy with her child and has found purpose and meaning in motherhood. He was in a bad place where he was not thinking rationally. I think he had a lot of thoughts when he did what he did; he wanted to let Ha-Ri be free to fulfill her dream like his ex-fiancee did, he wanted to not feel the immense guilt he was feeling, he did not want to face Ha-Ri potentially blaming him even though he also can't stand her NOT blaming him, and he just wanted out. He took the easy way out, and if he does not get his mind together, he will the be reason for their relationship not being able to stand hardships, like with his ex.

Don't get me wrong, I still feel like the execution could have been better, or made it more apparent that this was his anxiety and trauma acting rather than anything else. But just because Noble Idiocy, or last-minute-breakups-for-the-angst, has been overdone and used where it shouldn't be used, does not mean it has absolutely no place in drama. Especially if they can acknlowledge that it comes from character flaws they should work on.

I was most surprised by how mature they handled Jae-young and his ex. I definetely thought they would get back together, but no, how they handled the newborn birth and the wife's depression broke the marriage. However, they resolve to be good parents individually, and to be a good example for their daughter (as well as other dramas that a child with divorced parents aren't somehow an infectious curse of misfortune). I truly liked how they resolved that issue.

SPOILER: IwatchedthelastepisodeandasmuchasIdisliketheNobleIdiocytropeIamhappytheyachknowledgehowstupidanddisrespectfulitisandactuallyworkwithit.

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3 months, NOPE, Everything after that was clouded for me. A very very disappointing end to a drama I genuinely enjoyed up until this point.

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I felt the same way.
The last four episodes I didn't really enjoy.
All the JaeYoung situation made me want to drive a truck of doom myself, and all this noble idiocy... the acting was fantastic, but no. This began as a comedy and become a melo. No thanks.

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Basically

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Jae-young and Jung-won disappointed me even as Jae-young in fact made huge progress- and Jung-won has as well. Jae-young simply arbitrarily decided that he and Jung-won could not work because “they both love selfishly” made no sense at all to me. Marriage requires two people who talk to each other, work with each other and try to understand each other- most successful marriages are not the union of two souls. Maybe part of the reasons for marital unhappiness today is that we have imposed unreasonable expectations on marriage itself. You do not have to have an ideal marriage in order to have a good working marriage. Now that he understands what he did wrong before- and Jung-won now understands herself better- his declaration makes no sense- the two of you are really going to be happier living as single people who share a child? That is what he has decided, having apparently forgotten that this is the only woman that he has ever truly been in love with. But, on the other hand, his point to Jung-won that she could add real value to his daughters life just by being a good example of being a woman who is a good doctor is entirely right.

Eu-tteum has matured into the very fine young man that he had the potential to be- and he and Hyo-joo will not be a couple. But it was good to see that Hyo-joo has also matured and is no longer just punching her life plan ticket but instead is now thinking about how to do things better and do her job well. She may be rightfully disappointed that she could not snag Eu-tteum but she a think that she also knows that she learned a lot- including what to look for in a man. I think that when she is ready to look for a relationship it will be with both eyes wide open- and that will save her untold amounts of heartache.

As for our main couple- dramallama has expressed my disappointment with this stupid turn in the story. And, I agree that perhaps it could serve some purpose. This is immediately post operation anyway so it really has little effect on Ha-ri’s desire to get pregnant because she is not supposed to anyway at this moment or for some months to come. But still- it was disappointing. Noble Idiocy is still idiocy.

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Totally agree with you on every point.
I of course know this is dramaland and the baby would be the result, but a woman in her 40 and with endometriosis, with a partner that has fertility issues... that's not real. IFV was not even mentioned, and that would be the ONLY chance for them.
I was really disappointed by the last 4 episodes of the show.

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As far as the fertility issues- so was I.

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I knew this was going to be a bad episode so I refused to watch it until the final posted and I could verify the idiocy would work itself out. I did not like the abrupt nature of the break as it felt out of character and "off". Also, a three month break is just going to make things that much more difficult and dumping the treatment is short-sighted. He's going to be gone for three months... he should have taken everything with him and continued it "just in case" That he didn't meant he was choosing to end it.

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Thank you for the recap!

We have been way to loud gushing over Yi-Sang for way too long, and the drama gods punished us this episode. Why Yi-Sang, why???😤

So Jung-Won had postpartum depression as some beanies correctly guessed ages ago. I felt that it was glossed over to bring it up only shortly in this penultimate episode. This drama dealt with all taboos and topics concerning parenthood and babies under the horizon, was there really no space to add the story of a new mother with postpartum depression? I could have been immersed in her journey to happiness and perhaps motherhood as well, but instead I rooted for her ex all this time…🤔

Once again I must applaud professional Hari, especially mentor Hari. My biggest regret on the work field has been the lack of (adequate) training on the job. If I had a Hari around I would bloom and not be as insecure as I am right now.🙂

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I feel like this was an in-character bout of novel idiocy though. Yi-Sang, for pretty much every step of the relationship, has decided if and when they started and Ha-ri has just gone along with it. So this was kind of his M.O. And in his defense, Ha-ri was lying to him about how much pain she was in, he has no way of knowing if she is actually tired of it all or if she is making her desires small to benefit him. What I did like, though not wild on how it was used, was the ex storyline. That she ultimately chose a child over her partner and is happy with that choice. It has been frustrating watching this show and seeing people dismiss why this is a hard choice for Ha-ri, not everyone lives for romantic love. And the show did a lovely job of showing the flip side.

As for the rest of the episode, I am one of the few who has enjoyed Jae-young, even when he was being childish, because he was mostly harmless, annoying but harmless. And he has always had a deep capacity for understanding, evidenced by his early support of Ha-ri and her hunt for sperm. So I was happy seeing his relationship with his ex come to a nice conclusion. I guessed post-partum depression though not sure why he should have recognized it when she couldn't, they are both docs. Also, when your partner disappears, divorces you, and sends money through a proxy, it feels less temporary and far more personal. I also really appreciated him accepting that their marriage likely had issues before all of this, like asking someone to drop their best friend since birth and then actually dropping them. The two are better off as friends.

The workplace stuff was great, and I love the dad bonding.

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A number of other beanies have said it better than I could already - this particular instance of noble idiocy didn’t feel completely nonsensical to me. It’s not rational, nor is it something that couldn’t have been prevented with some honest communication, but it didn’t feel jarringly out of character or absurd.

It’s a shame it followed the formula of happening in the penultimate episode, but it made sense to me insofar as it didn’t seem inconsistent with Yi Sang’s character and circumstances. Ha Ri was not communicating with him honestly about her feelings and pain so he didn’t believe what she was saying. He felt as though his life was repeating itself (having bumped into his ex) and he had the chance to make the “right” decision this time (albeit misguidedly). The reality is, when people are in pain and they see the people they love in pain, communicating is hard. Being honest is hard. And you make stupid choices thinking you’re protecting the person you love from more pain. Add to that the fact that people who tend to internalise or suppress difficult feelings are likely to cope by running away... So I get it, even if I didn’t like it.

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