Strong Girl Nam-soon week 3
I have made fifteen gifs for this weekend’s Nam-soon. Three of them are references from Bong-soon.
Like last week, more gifs may announce their necessity during the week. Until there are *at least* fiften gifs in this thread, it is not finished.
The issues taken up are many, and if the show was really going to deal with all these things seriously … but that won’t happen. Still, let’s imagine it, and list some of them.

But I’ll start up easy with Nam-soon’s mum, triumphantly, smugly, and with … smooth flourish? … playing the Strange Number Game.
***

***
“My IQ is in the low end of average, my son has an eating disorder, and my dad left us,” is nothing to be ashamed of, but also rarely something you’d choose to boast of. And certainly not to the assistant of a business partner. Well, Nam-soon’s mother does.
Nam-soom is here, being cheeky in her own sweet way – to the dismay of Kang Hee-sik.
***

***
More about that in the gifs to come.

Here are the links for earlier Nam-soon Threads on my wall:
Week 1
https://www.dramabeans.com/members/CecilieDK/activity/1466000/
Week 2
https://www.dramabeans.com/members/CecilieDK/activity/1470692/
Wings https://www.dramabeans.com/members/CecilieDK/activity/1472736/
Bong-soon https://www.dramabeans.com/activity/p/1461083/ og https://www.dramabeans.com/activity/p/1451996/

If you want to be tagged, write yourself on the tag list here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VefOBwrdRhT6Z_rOK-UZUPDeT_xQuL6t291ZLbz20tU/edit?usp=sharing
I only tag once for one post, but I drop gifs in the comments for some days, usually.

7
23

    Strong Girl Nam-soon w3 #2
    That same cheekiness can make the male leads react very differently.
    As you can see elsewhere, Bongsoon was never cheeky to her crush Guk-doo; It was all fingerhearts and giggles.
    But she spoke differently to the Min-Hyuk, (later “Min-min”), and he reacted very differently from Hee-sik:

    ***

    ***
    Alas, this kind of sizzling does not happen with the present ML.
    Chances are better with the SML.
    SML Ryoo Si-oh always reacts uncannily, to be honest, but it is still closer to Hyung-sik than to Hee-sik.
    I love that little toss of his head, pleasurably charmed by Nam-soons lack of linguistic courtesy.

    ***

    ***
    He seems to really want some … democratisation? Equality? But if he does, he is wildly overestimating his own importance and especially how much the ends justify the means.
    But he seems to think he is doing good.
    ***

    ***
    Anyway: Being cheeky, informal, and/or autonomous and impulsive – or over-confident, self-important and ruthless – is definitely something that this show takes up now.

    2
    3

      I really like the camera work in that scene you selected, the pan and circle from the right side was well done.

      1
      1

      Strong Girl Nam-soon w3 #5
      I promise something nice in the next comment! – like a two-seconds dessert when you have eaten you greens!
      Okay, it fun to hear Nam-soon’s mum talk like this. Thought I am sure we are all happy it’s not our mum or prospect mother-in-law:
      ***

      ***
      And this … like the cartoon violence, Nam-soon throwing men across fields and so, this meet-the-in-laws is a physical version of all that “What are your intentions” we know so well. Like a reverse shot-gun wedding. I wonder why she doesn’t open his mouth and take a close look at his teeth?
      ***

      ***
      In another part of town, Granny is not giving a hoot for consent. I wonder what the show’s take on this will be? One thing is to slutshame granny for wanting an affair after her husband has been gone for years, but this … We agree he will get away from this attempted date r*pe, don’t we?
      ***

      ***
      The show seems to be on the side of our villain girl during this part, so it probably has a pro-consent stand.
      ***

      ***
      With this scene, and then how this episode ends … do you think they will treat it … nuanced?

      0
      0

      The comparison between SGNS SML and SWDBS ML hadn’t occurred to me, it’s an interesting one 🙂

      Of all the cast, SML is the one I’ve seen most in other projects and was looking forward to seeing here. I’ve been a little disappointed in how little screen time he’s had and how little he’s been given in the screen time he has had but there’s indication in recent episodes that might change. And in the meantime I’ll enjoy these gifs!

      1
      1

    Strong Girl Nam-soon w3 #3
    Maybe Nam-soon should get back to her nice adoptive parents quickly. This Korean family is so dysfunctional!
    Nam-sin’s brother obviously has an eating disorder, and it is ridiculed by letting him say, as a heavy fate-thing, that “everything just tastes so good”, and by him eating *all the time*. But also, he hasn’t had a real conversation with his mum for six years. Wouldn’t it be normal for a parent to be sad about that fact? And if she hadn’t even found out, to be deeply ashamed?
    He hasn’t initiated talking to her since she compared him to a pig and expected him to think that was funny. And she doesn’t really react to him saying that she likes Nam-sin more than him. Maybe that woman has no heart?
    TBH I knew a family that bonded around fat-shaming one member of that family. And that person kind of laughed along. So I know that kind of relationships do exist, but I still wondered why no one tried to help that ever-eating brother in a more constructive way (even if it is hard to help someone with an eating disorder).
    Though I suspect that the show’s conclusion will be that he should just get his act together (please surprise me!) it actually got pretty serious right at the end, when he decided to help change along by taking this pill that a woman gave to him. A pill that I believe is filled with that horrible drug?
    ***

    ***
    These are some pretty serious issues, and it seems this show will touch on this kind of stuff. Imagine if they actually followed through with a thought-through approach taking in what research has shown about these things? That would be … another show, probably.
    Nam-sins parents were divorced because of his shame of having lost Nam-sin and seemed to long for each other. Maybe the relationship has become more ruined from all that hurt, because they do not seem to be getting back together right away. To be fair, you could say the mother kind of lost that brother like the father lost Nam-sin. And she didn’t even try to look for him.
    ***

    ***
    Does anyone think having the fat brother sit there eating all the time was funny?
    Do you think the show will actually take him seriously now that we saw him being sad, like a real person?
    Do you suppose the parents will get back together?

    0
    2

      I wish the show would address his eating disorder head-on, as well as dispense with the notion that all he needs to do is lose weight and — tada! — life will be wonderful and his relationship with his mother will be healed. But omg, his mom really has no clue here. And dad isn’t much better. Indeed it might be only Nam-soon who can offer the type of family support he deserves.

      2
      1

        I don’t know if they go for so much a cardboard figure that he just eats too much, and when he stops, it will be good, but if they wanted to, there could be room for an interesting figure.
        Losing his sister, his parents separated because of that, his mother is not really interested in him (like, she has not even noticed that he never tells her how he feels or anything – and when she finds out, she mocks him).
        He could be longing all this time for a real connection, though his father seems more OK. Still, his father divorced his mother for shame of losing his (twin?)sister, and nobody seems to have considered the boy’s feelings at the double loss.
        And all the “support” he got from his mother was that she would ridicule him. I know some people actually think of that as support for over-eaters. Because then they would stop. (Insert “as if” gif here).

        0
        1

      I’m not loving how the show’s treating this character, I’ve FFed through some of the scenes

      2
      0

    Strong Girl Nam-soon w3 #4
    Bong-soon said this troublesome thing that seemed the more absurd because of that strength she had.
    ***

    ***
    There must have been more than one voice criticizing that, because Nam-sin shuts that cr*p down with no hesitation.
    ***

    ***
    So at least one person is seeing straight in that family. I would love for her to form a bond with her brother rather than being part of a front against him – do you think that will happen?

    2
    1

      I very much hope that happens!

      And I loved seeing NS shut down that sexist comment 🙌

      1
      0

    Strong Girl Nam-soon w3 #6
    We know Granny’s date is not the only one being harrassed. But as it is, Hwaja is not in a position to do anything about it.
    ***

    *** It’s been clearly shown that girl is just too alone to learn nice things. ANd also, she is remarkably strong … what could happen if she did something really unselfish?
    Things are really not going well right now, but you could hope that Nam-soon would stand up for Hwaja at some point? Despite how this episode ended?

    ***

    ***
    ***
    Lastly, this is something that there this show definitely lacks: Check out Min-min’s thirsty look for Nam-soon. Could we have a bit more consensual and sympathetic thirstiness and less “implementing other human beings for unilateral business needs, procreation needs or fourth-base-al needs”? Min-min, come back!
    ***

    ***
    If something like this ever happens on this show … it would lift my mood.

    2
    1

      Same! Was missing the cute romantic vibes in these past two episodes. And with the drug storyline ramping up, not sure how much of it we will get next week. Although episode preview did hint at something.

      1
      1

        A lot of things may happen, but I doubt there will be actual sizzling happening. If they let her sizzle with the villain, just for a tempting spell, *that* would be a surprise!
        Imagine her straightforward shouting righteousness being shook for a few seconds by the nearness of Ryo-whatshisname … and then, hopefully, vice-versa, like in Grease. But with the nice side winning instead of Nam-soon having to learn to smoke.

        0
        0

    Strong Girl Nam-soon w3 #7
    Meanwhile, Nam-soon sends off ML to relax, in her own, very polite way. And she gets Mr. and Mrs. Vagrant to help her.
    ***

    ***
    They seem to NOT be siblings, as I had hoped because Mr. Vagrant breaks a chip/frie/pommes frite and the girl’s heart. Probably because he is making ready to lose all his money again?

    ***

    ***
    ***
    That’s all for now! As I’ve said multpiple times, I think Nam-soon is perfect as she is, but the show as a whole could use a little more of this slow sweetness. So I’ve gone out and found it for you.
    ***

    ***
    I tried to find it with cop lead boy, too, but that did not go well.

    1
    0

    Tag list greetings, @sp2022 @seeker (Cera)! There’s the main post and then #2 to #7 in comments.

    0
    2