This drama is depressing af. These people are depressing af. Brahms is a true melo.

Yeah you are absolutely right @missvictrix!!

It was a rough week but a believable one! I've been saying that the break up scene was one of the most heartwrenching and honest one I've ever seen in Kdrama world! SA just pouring out her heart out 🤧
And JY, being true to his character, can't just express (yet) how he truly feels about SA and I know that the final week would give us that.

And yes, I won't give up on our OTP!!! I have faith in these two that they truly deserve each other but this break up is a needed one, for them to resolve their own issues and to realize their dreams. 🤗

Bring it on for the finale!! 🥳

Oof. I watched this a couple of days ago and it still hurts. Our Joonsong ship took a brutal hit and sank. Will it rise again? 😭 I kept screaming ‘no’ at the TV: when JY left the cafe, when JK went out of his apartment building, when JY said he doesn’t want SA to be concerned, etc. It was one bad thing after another and by the end, I was spent (and slightly drunk. LOL). I have to hand it to the writer though, it was a beautiful speech and a beautiful scene. The umbrella that gave us such joy was used to rub in the pain, and the rain added to it. If I wasn’t so emotionally invested, I would have applauded.

*Sigh* Show did Schumann dirty. I’m sure the brahmsie beanies will never hear Traumerei the same way again.

I don't have much to say other than I'm sad 🥺

Oof. My heart is so heavy. I basically cried from the minute Songah reunited with Minsung to the very end of the episode 😭

If I were in Songah’s position, I would’ve broken up with Joonyoung too, because that kind of despair is not something that anyone should have to carry with them. I know Joonyoung is in a tough spot, carrying his own burdens and shouldering a lot of his own emotional turmoil. In a lot of ways, this breakup was necessary, because they both need to focus on the aspects of their lives that have completely overshadowed everything else. I only hope that we have enough time for them to find their way back to each other and get the happy ending they both deserve so much.

Jungkyung was really too much this week. She was bitter and spiteful and I don’t have an ounce of sympathy left for her, because she continues to go out of her way to hurt people. She ditched Hyunho like he was a useless piece of clothing and then calls him out to talk about Joonyoung’s problem. She calls Joonyoung pitiful and degrades his act of recording Traumerei for her over the years for the sole purpose of hitting him where it hurts. She continues to pile on Songah, really just out of spite and jealousy. She treats people like they’re nothing, and then cries about how she has no one. The writers want me to sympathise with her? Yeah, I don’t think so.

Thanks for the weecap @missvictrix. You are spot on, the character development and the reactions are believable and they just rang true. (And I noted you said it 3x at least.) And this is why, more than the OTP and more than KMJ dimples, I still like this drama. If that is melo, then reality is indeed melo. That said, I hope we get to see lessons learned and applied in the last 2 episodes.

On HH, I do wish for him to take that NY position but reconcile with JY. Ditch JK forever.

This drama is depressing af and how long we need to spend on fillers really? I thought it was too early for JY to date SA as he is fresh out of decade long one side love and JK finally reciprocate his feelings altho it was too late but man they sure drag JY-JK arc to death and now.. here we are... with too many miserable people but not enough music~

I know the will be a break up scene between JY and SA but I wish it happen earlier so they wont rush their reconciliation next week.

The only good thing happen is DY who straight away know SA is not feeling ok, step out and call MS for her. He can just take advantage of that situation since their situation mirrored JY and JK but I'm glad DY is a good friend and a good man.

tl:dr I'm tired of this drama, DY is boss

p/s: where tf is hyun ho? how dare they cast kim sungcheol and waste him like this

I feel like the writer went off course this week. Some examples:

-the sister who has not supported Song-ah for 13 episodes suddenly confesses her admiration and wants to drink beer and support her. This would be really nice if we built up to it, but it came out of left field, while sympathetic dad was nowhere to be seen.

- Hyeon-ho and Song-ah having tteokbokki together? What exactly was the point of that scene? Did it advance any plot points or relationships? Or was it just a way to get HH on screen without Jung-kyung?

- Professor Yoo stealing JY's music. OK, maybe this is what JY needed to leave his bad teacher and maybe Professor Yoo will get fired and Hyeon-ho will get hired, but it only makes sense to a non-musician audience. Wouldn't a longtime professional like Prof. Yoo realize that he would get caught and humiliated, when a musician like Jung-kyung could recognize the pianist with her eyes closed? Is it really possible for a world class pianist to be playing a recording piano and have no clue that this is not just a regular baby grand?

I respect that Song-ah quietly but firmly expressed herself to Jung-kyung, to Prof. Lee, and to JY. But I don't see that the writer has left her any path forward. She can't even hope to work at the foundation, when Jung-kyung could be continually crossing her path there.

I also appreciate that Joon-young was firm in rejecting Jung-kyung. But I think he would have changed the trajectory of ep. 14 if instead of weakly apologizing, he had just hugged Song-ah with the same compassion as the first time, when they were just starting to be friends. How is it that he was able to be warm and impulsive then, but now, when he's about to lose her, he's just paralyzed?

Writer, I'm disappointed in your choices.

Well these two episodes were heart wrenching. I cried throughout. Maybe it's the effect of the music editing. But yet, I love it.

The parallel between SA's love for the violin and her love for JY played out so beautifully. I was glad she quit both of them. With or without JK's help, SA and JY's relationship was bound to fall apart. There was no communication in this relationship and too much hurt for SA. It was no one's fault. It just wasn't the time. By the end of episode 15, even before SA bumping into JK, I wanted them to break up. I was satisfied when they did (even though I cried my heart out).

I also cried when Min-soo came back. The reconciliation felt real. Friends fight. Friends stop talking, but they come back when you're at your worst. I also liked the minor support from family. Yes, sisters can be cruel, but in the end they do love you and are there for you when they need you. It was so beautiful and sweet. Even more than the romantic arc. (Not to mention, smooth product placement.)

I also wanted to say I’m kind of disappointed with how Hyunho’s character arc has played out. They basically character assassinated him with that whole bit where he cut Joonyoung off... feels like such a waste of Kim Seungcheol’s talent. And now that he’s got that offer from the orchestra in NY, I dread the writers will give him the Seoryeong professsor position only for him to give it up to Jungkyung in a final act of sacrifice before leaving for the US. I wish they had done more for his brotherhood with Joonyoung.

Love your perspective.. thank you. I refuse to give up on them too. At first I wanted them to work things out together, but Joon Young is still not opening up fully to Song Ah. WHY?! You were quite open with her before you guys started dating. I was hoping for Jung Kyung to become Song Ah's teacher but now I don't want that anymore. Song Ah needs to find her confidence and once it does, it'll show in her violin playing too.

It breaks my heart to say this (and trust me, it really does), but I don't know if the writer intends for them to get back together in the end. I hope and pray this will not be the case. This break-up was inevitable and a good wake-up call for them both, so if the writer doesn't at least give Joon Young an opportunity to express IN HIS OWN WORDS AND ACTIONS how much Song Ah meant and means to him, I'd feel like it was all for naught. The writer did mention that the second half of the drama was about "growth", so I want to see the actual fruits of this "growth". Judging from the preview, Joon Young seems to have lost all desire to play the piano now that Song Ah has left him and his world has collapsed, so please Joon Young, go out there and get what you want! I hate to borrow the words of Prof Yoo, but if you don't at least try, nothing will happen.

I know we've all come to love this drama because of how utterly real it is, but it's been too heartbreakingly raw. I don't want them to move on from this love until both of them have really given it all they've got and have no regrets (I'm looking at you, JY).

Also, if anyone is interested, Kim Min Jae and Park Eun Bin held an insta live a few hours before Ep 14 aired where they told us to "enjoy episode 14" and basically made fun of our misery haha. At least the actors are happy >< Someone kindly subbed it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrsB2pK09Kk&list=LL&index=2&ab_channel=forurfeels-

I still haven’t watched last week’s episodes and that’s because with the stress I already have in my life, adding in Song Ah’s and Joon Young’s stress is more than I can handle.

Also I have a feeling that this drama will give us that dreaded open ending to our OTP. If it does tho, I’m going to cry. For real.

i get that breaking up is hard and emotional and all that, but song-ah spoke so slowly during the breakup scene that by the time she was done with her sentence, i've forgotten what the first half was about..

I felt excited next week for a final DYLB week. I felt happy that Song-ah still be remained by supporting the foundation by herself. If Song-ah will resume her struggling musical career by herself, then I predicted that she will happily reunited with Joo-young so that they will be the happiest marriage. Also, I knew that Song-ah will still beloved to her parents and her family (including her sister) along with her friends with tearful promise and emotional support when she still dealing with her emotions and she'll be finally ended up with her first most successful composition before she continued her successful musical career streak after streak like Joo-young did.

Initially I was not planning to follow this drama - I have never been a fan of love triangles and long-time unrequited feelings disguised as friendship. Thus I was happily surprised and satisfied that the status quo sort of exploded, so that all 6 people involved can healthily move on with their lives. Yes, there will be heartbreak and suffering, but also personal growth and maturity that will impact their mutual relationships positively.

So the past episodes have made me sad but for the right reason., Writer-nim and PD-nim, please keep up the consistency until its very end. And thank you SBS, for providing a preview for next week; although belatedly, and after refreshing your site countless times, this heart of mine found some comfort in the glimpses of what's to come.

HAHA I agree with so many comments here that this was a hard week -- as if last week wasn't hard enough. the issue here is that the show was really the strongest in the first half when they were friends and really supporting each other (knowing what's up, SA perceptively reading the situation ie JY has feelings for JK, and JY supporting SA when DY-MS happened etc). the silent support, the hug, the signed CD, the looks they shared was what made the show so special. and what's so ironic is that when they actually got together as a couple, they began to hide things from each other in fear that it would hurt the other party. and this was mostly from JY's end, where he wouldn't let her in fully due to his belief that he shouldn't make her upset with his problems. and this alienated SA even further, and it didn't really help that the JK insecurity was never truly taken care of. (what a conniving little bi***!! @#%^!!!)

they really need to go back to finding themselves. SA especially needs to decide what she wants to do and overcome that insecurity once and for all (with her job/career path, and confidence in her relationship w JY). and JY, boy, he really needs to learn how to let someone in and resolve the JK issue once and for all.

also praying for the best for DY, MS and HH: y'all deserve good things. pls love yourselves and be supportive friends again
to JK: just leave pls

I for one was ready for their breakup.

It had to be done. For several reasons.

She needs to get over her insecurities. Her jealousy for Jang Kyung comes from her own insecurities. Granted JK helps with that but JK is inconsequential in this. Till female lead gets over her insecurities, and stands up for herself, no third person, however vile they are, can not breakup a relationship.

And him, lord! Why can't he speak? Introvert is one thing but someone you love is frankly sharing what is making her anxious and all he says is sorry. He really needs to start talking, share his burdens, make her feel he loves her.

The dude has been very frustrating. He is a piano player and he clearly has opportunities to play the way he wants. His new manager, though a bit curt and greedy, is giving him opportunities so he can have a career. But at no point, our male lead has expressed what he really 'wants'. All he says is 'no' for everything. I really would like to know what exactly he wants to do with himself.

These two need to come to a point in their lives where they are happy in their own skins. They are both frustrating as heck.

Today I wondered, if I have partners like them, can I hold on such relationship and my own answer was a resounding NO. Life will be hell.

So, yeah, glad they broke up. It felt real. It is not fun but I like it.

I am sure end game is the couple getting together. But I hope they show their personalities changing for the better that make living with each other a joy. Not frustrating.

It is a rough week indeed. It feels like I went through a break up 😢.. It hurts so much I can’t wait for the next episode. If the writer do not give me a happy ending, I’m definitely gonna hunt them for my wasted hours and emotional tortures...

Watching the latter half of this drama has been like watching someone knit a sweater. The writer ran out of plot ages ago and is just replaying the same conflicts they pretended to resolve the week prior. I don't know how it's possible, but the main couple has become increasingly incompatible with each second? Sad that the show will end this way.

Full disclosure: I love all things piano, love how KMJ is a rapper and Mr. Dimples and Giggles at the same time, and think PEB is the way, the truth and the life (the Holy PEBle). So I'm biased AF for this show.

So, for what it's worth (nothing), I LOVED the pain of ep13-14:

1) Most kdramas have an up-and-down but steadily growing love trajectory. OTP works through downs and come out of them stronger each time, so much so that the dreaded ep14 cliff doesn't even feel like one at all. But DYLB was almost all adorbs rise from ep1-11, and when there were difficulties, the nice, introverted couple would divert them with ice cream dates instead of fully addressing their underlying issues. So things kept building and building and then BOOM crash landing on Joonsong. I analogize this to a stock market crash, all rise based on unreliable assets like subprime mortgages and overpriced tech bubbles, and then boom, market crash, fakeness exposed. And yes, I just compared tech stocks to ice cream dates. Man, I'm whipped for show.

Some may understandably find this whiplash upsetting, but I love it cause it uniquely and realistically reminds me of first love: big honeymoon period followed by abrupt, random crash, and one is left wondering, “Why did we break up again?”

2) Similarly, most kdramas have an up-and-down but steadily growing career trajectory. By ep16, the sexy men left the chaebol to start their kyoot small business, and the women are doing the squad walk in their new Gucci boss bish suits (think "Because This is Our First Life" X "WWW"). And this is because hardworking Asia/Korea still believes that dedicated work will lead to riches. Korea is still a striving country. But DYLB is the opposite: it's main theme is not achieving one's dream, but letting go of one's dream.

And it's been discussed here, but that's understandably hard to watch for strivers and those who subscribe to Angela Duckworth's book, “Grit.” It was especially painful this week when the show pretty much said, “some of you are arrogant for holding onto your dream and may need to humbly serve your more talented classmates,” as discussed during Youngin noona's speech and the AMAZING scene in which SA is touching her violin scar. But as many have said, isn't that sadly real life, misaeng? And I'm all for coming-of-age dramas, but sometimes real life is interesting, no? I like shows that achieve small victories (OTP plays Brahms) instead of, say, Itaewon Class haha.

3) I started reading a book by therapist Brene Brown on shame and vulnerability while watching DYLB (as if god intended it). Brene defines shame as "intensely painful feeling or experience of believing that we are flawed and therefore unworthy of love and belonging." And its diff for women (who are ashamed of not meeting societal standards) and men (who are ashamed of looking weak). And the key to letting go of shame is vulnerability.

So I find it utterly fascinating to see how...

Bring back the cute smiles, cafe dates and holding hands writer-nim!!

I was thinking JY and SA need their own song.

If there is a time jump, I fear perverse dramaverse fate won’t favor our couple, does it ever ?

Leon Russell’s A Song For You The piano playing is so wonderfully melancholy .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37dw2r45Xzg

This week’s episode was really hard to watch, and I feared this special, sensitively and tightly written drama would topple over :/

Agree with @lindag that the writing went off course and doesn’t feel like it had the grip and clarity for the past 11 episodes, and was disappointed because I binge watch ep 1- 12 and didn’t see this coming at all, I understand the need for angst and learning to communicate with each other as parts and parcel of being together, but omg the amount of projecting ones insecurities onto the other and keeping thoughts and emotions hidden was so hard to watch. Generally a few characters was so out off, JK was one of them and I just didn’t find it unbelievable that JK would be so emotionally raw towards prof lee?

I think the lack of communication and JY constantly apologising threaded on becoming a toxic relationship, the eventual break up was a shock but I strongly supported the decision, because I cannot fathom how they can be together when constantly walk on egg shells. I just dont know how we went from beautifully learning about one’s pain and traumas to episode 13-14.

SA’s insecurity was also something that I wasn’t prepared for, the SA we knew in episode 1 was such a stark difference from what she became when dating JY. In fact I dont understand how SA would expect JY to erase a friendship / love / history of 15 years.

Towards the end of of ep 14 is where I start appreciating what the directors and writers are trying to achieve in giving us all these angst and dramatic emotions. That one cant just write off 15 years of feelings because of someone new, and in this aspect it beautifully portrayed the nuanced feelings and entanglements of getting over someone who has always been in your heart. And the breakup was one amazing plot point for me, because I think they cant truly love each other until they actually start loving themselves and drawing boundaries around them.

But OK I AM READY FOR EP 15 NOW. Time to meet each other as equals. Seeing where this is all going, I wouldn’t mind if out OTP dont end up together (BUT I DOUBT SO!) but with all 4 of them pursuing a path that leads them to their happiness which ever it may be.

I believe it'll be a happy ending for the both of them due to the insta live that both of them did a few days ago. SA said something like "we'll be happy together right?" so it was sorta a spoiler (?)

I don't understand why JY said that he was playing Traumerei for the last time to JK?(when JK confronted him and asked why he was still playing that piece) Was that a lie cos it didn't seem like he would stop playing Traumerei if he didn't get caught in the video? It felt like a "sorry that I got caught" moment for me lmao

Someone pointed that the break up was unfair to JY as SA was only thinking about herself but coming from SA's perspective, I have to say that the coincidences are way too much. From the taxi sharing, JK walking out of JY's apartment and then the ultimatum of him playing Traumerei. I like how the break up scene was being portrayed though, it showed how speechless he was to even give SA a proper answer.

I'm angry against mostly everybody in this drama :p

Professors Lee and Song : Their little power war is hurting so many people around them : JK for the teacher job, HH for the orchestra and the place as a teacher, SA, Ji-Won, etc.

Professor Yoo : He's not a good teacher but he stole JY's music because he's not a good pianist neither... I was surprised how JY wasn't so angry but pretty calm about it. Poor Cha Young-In, she dated him and trusted him.

Song-Ah: I understand her but she's living in a bubble. She doesn't follow what is happening around her. She could avoid this situation, at least undertstood it when Kim Hae-Na talked to her. She always listens JK and takes what she said for granted when JY says the opposite. I think she could trust him more. He never asked her anything about Dong-Yoon.

Joon-Young: He never shares his present struggles with SA but only the past. The fact she always learns things about him by a third party is not fair. With SA's reaction to everything about JK, I understand he doesn't really to talk about her with SA, after all, she connected to his past, the Foundation, his parents, to everything in his life. So it's difficult for him to adress the subject. For Traümerei, again it was his way to close this chapter of his life but he wasn't sure SA will understand. But at the end, it was worse.

Jung-Kyung: She uses her past with JY to gain what she wants and it's not fair. Their relationship is really not simple. I can understand why she was angry against SA who can't not protect JY when she didn't hesitate to help him. But she doesn't have the rights to talk to SA about JY, she knows nothing about them and JY was clear about his feelings.

You know what ending I want? A time juml and their relationship open ended.

Joon Young and Song Ah have a duet. They still broken apart and sometime later they'll meet again and smile at each other.