If you’re on the market for a show that’s small, simple and sweet, this drama just might be the one for you.
As those of you who’ve been around the blog for a while would likely know, I am always on the look-out for suitable drama nightcap material. Yes, I like my dramas exciting too, but suitable drama nightcaps are just as important to me; I need a show that’s not too complicated nor intense, so that it won’t keep me up, but still engaging and interesting enough, that I’ll still enjoy the watch.
I first tried this show as regular drama fare, and to be honest, it didn’t grab me much, in its first episode. But once I tried it out as a drama nightcap, it fit the bill quite perfectly. Not only did it strike just the right balance between interesting and easygoing, it even has a sort of (found-) family drama feel to it, thanks to our story being more character- and relationship-focused than patient-focused. Not bad at all, I say.
STUFF I LIKED
To be honest, I nearly bailed on this show after the first 15 minutes, because of its hospital setting and my general aversion to hospital dramas. Now, I’m glad that I persevered and gave this one a second chance. It really is rather endearing, after all.
Here are a couple of things that I enjoyed, in this one.
The ensemble lens
It’s been a while since I watched an ensemble type of drama, and this drama’s ensemble lens, casting a rotating spotlight on various characters and their journeys, felt refreshing to my eyes.
Even the characters who appear most annoying at first, get a moment in the spotlight. When Show peels their layers away and reveals more of their context, each character becomes more empathetic in turn. I liked that a lot. It reminded me all over again, that we all have our own backstories, and that we all have a similar need to be understood.
The touches of poetry
I don’t consider myself particularly into poetry, but I did enjoy the thoughtful musings that we got, via each episode’s quiet poetic interludes. Kudos to writer-nim, for managing to weave each episode’s stories and themes so closely with the various poems that are showcased.
It made me wonder if the stories were crafted first, and the poems selected after, or if the poems were selected first, and the stories crafted around them. Either way, I thought this was well done, and I liked the way the poems lent a contemplative, lyrical touch to each episode.
Lee Yoo Bi as Bo Young
The last time I’d seen Lee Yoo Bi on my screen, it was in Scholar Who Walks The Night, which was a show where I didn’t find her character very endearing, unfortunately. Happily, Lee Yoo Bi is really quite winsome and likable as Woo Bo Young, our main lover and purveyor of poetry.
I found Lee Yoo Bi’s portrayal of Bo Young quite charming, despite Bo Young’s crybaby tendencies and her propensity for clumsiness. I also found Bo Young so earnest and sincere, that it really wasn’t long before I found myself rooting for her.
The handling of the loveline
Even though this is an ensemble drama and therefore this loveline doesn’t actually take up as much screen time as most kdrama romances, the treatment of the loveline in this show really is the thing that caught my attention the most. As someone who has consumed literally hundreds of kdramas, I found myself in the unusual position of not actually knowing which of our 2 main male actors was our male lead. Gasp! I know.
Lee Joon Hyuk and Jang Dong Yoon’s characters are both presented in ways which hint that each could be our male lead. Dr. Ye (Lee Joon Hyuk) has a stiff and prickly outer shell, and looks like he’s just in need of the right girl to thaw him out, while Min Ho (Jang Dong Yoon) has such an antagonistic past with Bo Young, that he and Bo Young look ripe for a bickering romance when they are onscreen together.
Imma be honest, I literally went into Show’s finale uncertain of how things would eventually pan out. I actually found this experience quite thrilling, since this suspense made the loveline trajectory anything but predictable and boring, from where I was sitting.
[MAJOR SPOILER – AVOID IF YOU WANT TO PRESERVE THE LOVELINE MYSTERY]
While I can understand why Bo Young admires Dr. Ye, I do find the development of their relationship rather uneventful and mundane, by kdrama standards. Particularly in the first half of the show, Dr. Ye shows only flickers of personality under his prickly shell, and somehow I felt like his liking Bo Young was quite a sudden development, given that he’s so guarded against intra-hospital romances after his past bad experience.
Additionally, once Dr. Ye and Bo Young start dating, they kiss and hold hands – without any fanfare whatsoever. That admittedly felt odd, by kdrama standards. On the upside, it does make their relationship feel ordinary and down-to-earth and therefore relatable. On the downside, I felt like this put a distance between them as this story’s OTP, and me as a viewer, because I felt quite unable to immerse myself in their relationship in a vicarious way. I wasn’t feeling it much, is what I’m trying to say. Which is why, up until the finale, I wondered if Show was planning a late-game turnaround.
On the other hand, I actually felt like the interactions between Min Ho and Bo Young popped more, for me. I liked the idea of Min Ho falling for Bo Young, after having rejected her so spectacularly in the past, and I gleefully enjoyed having the tables turned, when he found himself falling for Bo Young, long after she’d gotten over him. Just as Min Ho points out in episode 15, he and Bo Young can speak honestly and candidly with each other, without fear or embarrassment, and that’s actually why I found myself feeling some regret, that Min Ho didn’t end up getting his girl.
As a silver lining, I very much appreciate the arc of reconciliation that Show gives Min Ho and Bo Young. Yes, they start the show unable to stand the sight of each other, but they do overcome their differences and come to care for each other – as friends. It’s almost like a bickering romance, minus the romance. Since male-female friendships don’t get much attention in dramaland, I actually found this platonic reconciliation a pleasant consolation in the end.
[END SPOILER]
Special shout-outs:
The 2 blockheads
To be frank, I found the side arc of Joo Yong (Park Sun Ho) and Dae Bang (Yoo Dae Joon, aka Defconn) rather lame to start with, but these 2 blockheads eventually started to grow on me.
[MINOR SPOILER] The running gag in episode 3, of Joo Yong and Dae Bang thinking of each other as pitiful outcasts, dragged on for so long that it eventually started to be a tiny bit funny. [END SPOILER]
Episode by episode, the more these 2 grew to understand and appreciate each other, the more endearing I found them.
The 3 blockheads
I was quite highly amused by the fact that Joo Yong had to room with the two people he most wanted to avoid, and I enjoyed watching the grudging tolerance between the boys eventually grow into grudging friendship. These 3 grumble at – and about – one another all the time, but it’s clear that they do care, deep down. Also, I just liked seeing Joo Yong have a good time with his roomies, despite so vehemently not wanting to have anything to do with them prior.
The 4 blockheads
In the later episodes, the 2 blockhead arcs occasionally intersect, and it just amused me to see all 4 blockheads together. It was also nice to see them trying to offer advice and help to one another, although most of the time it was off the mark and quite useless, heh.
STUFF I LIKED LESS
To be sure, Show isn’t perfect, and there were several things that I didn’t enjoy so much, during my watch. Here’s a super quick list, just for the record:
1. I wasn’t into Show’s brand of obvious humor much, and it took a fair while for me to get used to it.
2. Sometimes it felt like the characters were more like caricatures, especially characters like Dr. Park (Kim Jae Bum). To be fair, Show did fix that once we got a look at Dr. Park’s situation and backstory.
[OTP SPOILER ALERT]
3. Once Bo Young and Dr. Ye start dating, I found most of their scenes sweet but quite boring, to be honest. I get that this relationship is supposed to be sweet and understated, but I thought more could have been done, to draw us into this relationship, and make it pop a little more.
4. Once Min Ho finds out that Bo Young is dating Dr. Ye, he acts out so much and is so awfully mean to her, that I can’t reconcile it in my head, that he still likes her. Because, how does he think his terrible behavior is going to help him win her heart? I thought this could have been handled better or treated differently.
[END SPOILERS]
THOUGHTS ON THE ENDING [SPOILERS]
Show doesn’t serve up a nail-biting finale, but this was never that kind of drama anyway. Show stays in character, and gives the roving spotlight to a few individuals and relationships.
Min Ho decides to come to terms with the fact that Bo Young truly likes Dr. Ye, and makes a decision to put his feelings in order and be her friend. Bo Young, on her part, recognizes how much Dr. Ye wants her to be comfortable enough with him that she can freely share her worries with him, and even though she finds it embarrassing, she bites the bullet and chooses to share her thoughts honestly with him. In the meantime, Joo Yong and Dae Bang finally come to a mutual understanding – after one big misunderstanding – and cement their friendship with tearful hugs and a promise to travel together once Joo Yong’s mother is better. Which is so sweet and dorky, that I can’t help but smile.
In the end, even though this is a multi-thread narrative encompassing an ensemble cast of characters, each with their own stories, and even though I fully feel like these characters will continue on their individual and shared journeys after the credits stop rolling, I come away feeling strongly that this was always Bo Young’s story, and Bo Young’s journey.
Through her various experiences over these 16 episodes, I feel that Bo Young’s finally come to the realization that she is enough. She is dedicated and hardworking and experienced enough, to warrant the offer of a permanent position; she is lovely enough, to not have to worry about feeling embarrassed about her boyfriend seeing the less glamorous sides to her. I cheered on the inside, as I realized that Bo Young has grown enough into her own skin, that she now knows this too; she is – in and of herself – enough. Which is a worthy thought for any of us to take away for ourselves, really.
THE FINAL VERDICT:
Simple, sweet, and a touch sentimental. An uncomplicated, feel-good kind of watch.
FINAL GRADE: B
TEASER:
MVs:
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I just finished watching this and up to the final moment I had hoped for Bo Young to end up with Min Ho. Their relationship was the more interesting one.
I agree with some of the comments that it felt like somewhere in the middle the writer decided to switch the storyline and mess up the character development.
Not satisfied with this series at all.
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Indeed just the right material for a night cap.
I am so with you about the OTP. I wished Dr. Ye’s character was fleshed out a lot more to be much relatable. Aside from being prickly and cheated upon, there’s nothing else we’ve learned about him.
I liked best how personal issues and differing opinions were presented. And the poems to emphasize them. I was reminded, in a way, of Misaeng. Realistic life struggles.
Kaiaraia! <3 It's so lovely to see you around the blog! 😘 Makes me think of when this blog was much younger, and we all pretty much spent all our time on the GY post just squeeing all the time. 😂❤
Yes, that's so true, we hardly learn much about Dr. Ye, which I think is one of the main reasons I felt unable to buy into the OTP loveline more. That said, I found it acceptable because this was an ensemble drama with many story threads, and I was able to rationalize that this was just one of many arcs. But yes, we could've definitely used more fleshing out, with Dr. Ye. And yes, the poetry and personal issues were really well interwoven, I liked that a lot too. 🙂
Hi Fangurl!
A bunch of us over on reddit were wondering if there other dramas in this vein. I was thinking about “something about 1%,” but kind of blanked after that and went to Taiwanese. But those just for the lack of plot…. are there any beautiful gems like this show you’d recommend to us, Sunbae?
Thank you!
Sarah Lantz
PS— here are all of the poems from one to eight, without interruption between them:
“Flowers that Bloom when Shaken
by Do Jong Hwan
No flower blooms without being shaken
The most beautiful flowers in this world
All shake as they bloom
As they shake, their stems straighten in an upright position
Pain and Sadness Can Also Become a Path
by Lee Chul Hwan
I realized this after a long time of pain
That pain can also become a path.
There is no life where no wind blows.
The wind must blow, so that the tree will root deep inside the earth
So that it won’t fall over.
That is why the wind shakes the trees
That is why the wind shakes all of us
Pain can also become a path.
Sadness can also become a path.
Every Moment is Like a Flower Bud
by Jung Hyun Jong
At times, I regret it.
What happened back then might have a gold mine
That person back then,
And that object back then
Could have been a gold mine.
I should’ve gotten closer to you
And talked to you more
I should have listened to you more
And loved you more
I wonder if I sent you off
As if I was hard of hearing
As if I was absent-minded
I should have loved those moments more.
Every moment is like a flower bud.
A flower bud that blooms when I’m eager
A Fresh Start
Oh Bo Young
I untangled the twisted knot
I also took out the thorn
Without lingering attachment or regret
I straightened out my position
I let the twisted relationships go
With a lighthearted feeling and a confident mindset
I erased yesterday with the hope of a better day
Pain
by Yoon Soo Chun
After one heartbreak an invisible wound
Remains one’s heart
One Sided Love
by Lee Nam Il
That voice, which happened to call my name
I loved that voice.
I stay up all night dreaming about that one gesture.
And I fantasize about our future because of your smile.
When your scent brushed by me
And told me that it loved me
I shattered to pieces as if I was sunlight.
I Like You
by Kim Yong Taek
One spring day, I saw your love
Light up my backyard with happiness
Which was once dark, under the shade.
You, who called me out from the darkness with your love
With bright light that can only come from darkness
You stood in front of me
And smiled like a wild flower.
Ah, even the thought of you makes me happy.
First Meeting
by Ha Geum Joo
I’m very thankful to you
Who treated me like a flower
When life was the coldest.
I was stepped on a lot
And never got any attention on this journey
By meeting you,
I met a new me.
I’m very thankful to you
Who treated me like a flower.
Episode 4: Standing Close
Standing Close
by Ki Sa In
Her bent back collects newspapers and cardboard boxes
Her work pants are loose on her shrunken body
When a car enters the alley, she stands close to the side.
With her small cart which is her only flesh and blood
Standing close in solitude
Like a spider on a dirty cement wall
Like an old sting ray at the bottom of a water tank.
Standing low and close to a gray wall.
Once the car passes, the grandmother who was like crinkled paper
Slowly straightens out again.
The cart’s wheels follow her at her heels like young goats.
If I think about the worn out television that will turn on in that room
If I think about the tilted sink, pots, and pans
And the bent back that will stand in front of it.
I choke up.
If I think about the rag in the corner which she has probably wrung out
It’s Okay If You Don’t Love Me
by Lee Jung Ha
It’s okay if you don’t acknowledge me.
A new leaf will sprout, even under the cold rain.
And the stars will come out, even if clouds cover it.
It’s okay if you don’t offer me a hand.
I blazed up like a dry leaf
As someone who couldn’t say a word
I’m okay with being in one-sided love.
And then becoming love myself.
My love,
It’s okay if you don’t love me.
Love and Happiness
by Jung Yeon Bok
I’m happy because I love you.
And because I’m happy,
I love you even more.
My happiness grows
with my love for you.
My love, is it okay to be this happy?
As I gently press down my overwhelming love for you.
I’m happy because I love you.
Joke
by Lee Moon Jae
When you’re faced with something beautiful
If you think of someone you wish was by your side
You’re in love.
When you’re faced with quiet scenery or delicious food
If no one comes to mind
You are either strong or really lonely.
In order to make the bell ring louder,
the bell must hurt more.
Family
by Choi Bum Young
If you can’t say you’re hurt when you feel hurt,
You’re not family.
If you can’t say you’re happy when you’re happy,
You’re not family.
A sweet and soft ice cream cone
Isn’t enough to become a family
Pain, happiness, and love must be shared.
And you must endure all hardships in prayer
Until you can feel it together.
That’s how we become a family.
You must be able to express your sadness
And be able to cry together to be a family.
You must be able to express your happiness
and be able to be happy for one another to be a family.
You must feel like you’re under the same blanket
no matter where you are to be a family.
Morning
by Chun Sang Byung
Morning always feel so happy
The day begins
And the starting point is right now.
After I wash my face,
I start my chores
And open a book
Today might be my lucky day.
I hope I hear some good news…
Under the beautiful sky.
The Cricket and I
by Yoon Dong Joo
The cricket and I had a chat on the grass.
Cricket, cricket. Cricket, cricket.
We promised to keep our chat a secret between the two of us.
Cricket, cricket. Cricket, cricket.
The cricket and I chatted under the bright moonlight.
Jealousy
by Jung Ho Seung
The fall rain only loves the withered leaves
I felt so jealous
That I tumbled about in the withered leaves
Until the fall of rain
The Point of No Return
by Kim Chul Hyun
Leaving the person you love
And turning
As if you no longer love him.
Hiding the pain in your heart
And turning around
As if it doesn’t really hurt.
Hiding your unwanted parting
And turning around
As if it doesn’t matter.
Holding back your tears
And turning around
As if you’re not weak.
If you love that person
You can’t turn back
Because you love him.
To You
by Lee Jong Hwa
You’re my everything
All paths lead up to you
All songs are meant for you
And I’m blinded by your light
I can only see you in a crowd of countless people in the plaza
I see you in every flower along the streets
I see you in the coffee that I make time to drink
I can picture you along the mountain hills where the sun sets
Everything in the world looks different now
And “waiting” no longer exists in my dictionary.
I’m always close to you.”
Wow, thanks for sharing all the poems here, Sarah! <3 I'm sure other readers will appreciate the chance to revisit the poems right here. 🙂
As for shows similar to this, the first one that comes to mind is Answer Me 1988 (review here), because of the warm vibes and the love triangle which kept us guessing. I also really liked Answer 1994 – but people’s enjoyment of that seems to depend on whether they boarded the right ship to begin with. My ship sailed with that one, and so I was not upset at Show for the outcome of the love triangle. That said, there are lots of folks who are truly frustrated with AM94. 😛 You can check out my review of AM94 here.
For angst-lite shows in general (ie without the same love triangle angle), here’s a list that also includes the titles that I first emailed you before:
1. Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo (cute, coming-of-age, relatable, and with excellent OTP chemistry. Review here.)
2. Splash Splash Love (so cute! Wanted this to be longer, so bad. Review here)
3. She Was Pretty (uplifting and empowering message, if you can get past the initial screechy. Choi Siwon is the dreamiest 2nd lead in this. Review here.)
4. We Married As A Job (J-drama) (So cute and down-to-earth, yet quirky. Review here.)
5. Life is Beautiful (family drama) (Warm, feel-good, and lovely. My favorite family drama of all time. Review here)
6. Ojakgyo Brothers (family drama) (Warm & cute, basically an omnibus of different romances. My 2nd favorite family drama ever. Plus Joo Won is dreamy in this. Review here.)
7. Father Is Strange (family drama) (Really good. Viewers who don’t even like family dramas loved this one. Review here.)
8. Bromance (TW) (fluffy and illogical, but that chemistry tho. Review here)
9. Just You (TW) (fluffy and mindless, with good OTP chemistry. Review here.)
10. A Love So Beautiful (China) (Loved this one, so cute and nostalgic. Highly recommend! Review here)
11. Noble, My Love (web drama, tropey & fluffy. If you enjoy the OTP chemistry it’s a win. Otherwise, it’s probably not. Review here.)
12. Go Ho’s Starry Night (web drama, pretty good OTP chemistry as well. Review is here.)
13. Bride of the Century (I think of this as the puppy drama, coz the OTP reminds me of a pair of puppies. Tropey but fun fluff. Review here.)
14. Plus Nine Boys (small, sweet lil show. Review here.)
15. Twenty Again (I thought of this coz it’s a sweet, feel-good kind of show. I love the theme of second chances. Review is here.)
16. Go Back Couple (A sweet lil show, if you can get past the initial bad marriage set-up. Love the second chance theme. Review is here.)
17. I’m Not A Robot (Easy and fun, with a good helping of cute. Review is here)
18. What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim (A lot of fluff and cute, if you can get past the fact that there is a childhood kidnapping backstory with associated trauma. I’m working on that review right now, actually. EDIT: Review is DONE! You can find it here.)
Oof, that’s quite a list! I hope at least some of these will fit the bill! 🙂
Wooow!!! Thank you for all of these!! I will suggest them to the community. And it feels great to see someone else whose ‘94 ship sailed!! Thank you for the time, Fangurl, it’s truly appreciated.
Sarah
Ah! Hi5! You were on the same ’94 ship! 😀 And, my pleasure, I hope your friends will find the list useful! <3
Thanks for the review kfangirl. I too liked this drama for all the reasons you mentioned. I came to love all the characters in this drama even Dr Park in some scenes. My favourite character is of course Bo Young. Can’t wait to read your next review.
Glad you enjoyed this show too, D! 🙂 And hi5, that we enjoyed similar things in this show. Yes, I eventually found Dr Park a lot more sympathetic and a lot less annoying, even though I don’t think he will ever not be annoying, ha. 😆
Thanks for looking forward to the next review – I’m working on a post for What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim at the moment. Hopefully I’ll be done soonish! 🙂
Thank you so much for bringing this show to light, Fangurl! I kind of marathoned it when I was sick yesterday, and it while it did have that light, bubbly kind of feel, there was a great deal of suspense regarding whhhoooo was going to end up with Bo Young???
I’m glad that my ship sailed in the end, but it really could have gone either way.
What a sweet little thing, though. The writers did such a beautiful job wrapping each show around a poem or two (or even three). I feel there were a couple of loose ends, but that’s okay. It even worked for show because it felt like their world kept turning without us, and I liked that.
The episode that ended with poetry about “this is what mothers should do” had me in tears. Omo. Thank you, thank you. I’ll save this in my box of KDrama fireflies for later. What a gem!
Aw, I’m so glad this show came at the right time for you, Sarah! 😀 Yes, I would imagine that this show would be quite the perfect companion if you’re feeling sick and need something light to keep you company. Plus, with Show’s rather vague treatment of the loveline through much of its run, I imagine the suspense of not knowing who’d be endgame, would help to distract from the blah of feeling under the weather 🙂
Yes, I completely agree that the loose ends actually worked, because it does feel like this world simply kept on going, while our window to share in it had closed. In that sense, I didn’t feel too badly, even though Nam Woo in particular didn’t see any closure by the end of the drama. I like to think that Nam Woo eventually gets through his tough patch, and that he eventually reconnects with his ex-girlfriend, somehow. 🙂 And OMIGOSH YES, that episode on mothers really was so heartrendingly good. Made me choke up in the best way. <3
PS: I hope you're feeling much better now, my dear!
Wow, what a prompt response! Yes, I’m feeling better today, thank you for asking 🤗 And it makes me feel good that you agree about the poem about Mothers, and the loose ends as a soft curtain to end the show for us.
Do you know if there is a list of all of the poems anywhere? I’d love to reread them.
Heh, I try to respond to comments in a timely fashion, but sometimes time runs away from me and I end up replying after quite some delay. But sometimes I manage to be fairly prompt – yay me this time? 😀
I’m sorry to say I don’t know of a full list of the poems, but, I thought I’d extract the Mom poem for ya, since we both enjoyed that one in particular. Here you go, enjoy <3
I Thought It Was Okay for Mothers to Do That
by Shim Soon Deok.
I thought it was okay for mothers to do that.
Even if she works herself to death on the farm fields.
I thought it was okay for mothers to do that.
Even if she sits on the furnace and eats a cold bowl of rice for lunch.
I thought it was okay for mothers to do that.
Even if she does laundry with her bare hands and cold water on a winter day.
I thought it was okay for mothers to do that.
‘I’m full. I’m not hungry.’ Even if she starves while feeing her family.
I thought it was okay for mothers to do that.
Even if her heels are so worn out that they make noises in her blanket.
I thought it was okay for mothers to do that.
Even if her fingernails are so worn out that they can’t even be clipped.
I thought it was okay for mom’s to do that.
Even if Father’s anger and our rebellion don’t faze her.
I thought it was okay for mothers to do that.
‘I miss your grandmother. I miss your grandmother.’
I thought those were just complaints.
She woke up in the middle of the night and cried in silence.
When I saw that…
‘Ah.’ It was not okay for mothers to do that.
Dear Fangurl,
Thank you so much for this. I will keep it in my phone with the others I have found. Bitches over Dramas (ha, what a site!) has all the poems from episodes 1-8. I’m going to keep looking for the rest on heir site. Here’s what I’ve found so far, if you are interested:
http://bitchesoverdramas.com/2018/04/22/poem-a-day-list-of-poems-ep-1-to-8/
Have a wonderful day!
Sarah
Lol. Yes, what a site name! 😆 It’s memorable, that’s for sure! Thanks for sharing the link, I’m sure that other readers will appreciate it too! 😘
I enjoyed it for all the same reasons that you did but I agree that the OTP needed a little more sizzle to their relationship.
Hi Amy! 😀 Great to see ya! Yes, the understated treatment of the OTP did feel very different, after all the kdrama rom-com conditioning I’ve been through, but I found it acceptable in the context of this being a slice-of-life drama. I rationalized that things were supposed to feel ordinary and true-to-life.. but I can’t deny that I would’ve enjoyed a bit more spark and excitement in the loveline too! 😉
I think this had the same writers as Let’s Drink which focused more on the cast of characters than the romance whereas this one definitely has more focus on the romance. I was satisfied overall with the drama but I think ensemble dramas are hard to do. I enjoyed the romance more on this one but the ensemble cast story arcs more on Let’s Drink. I am not a huge fan of the shipping wars (and boy ever was it going on at DB), but my rule is to want what the character wants. She wanted Dr. Ye and really didn’t waver much so that’s who I wanted for her. That and MinHo was a manchild. I was happy where MinHo ended up, but I thought how he got there was a little rougher than it needed to be. I also don’t know if I understand why he was so mean to her back in the day other than he was a brat.
But, yes, just a nice pleasant watch and glad to see YuBi back in dramaland. I hope if this writer does another drama, they drop the triangle so they can focus more on the couple and ensemble stories. Having said that, I totally agree with you that it was refreshing to watch a drama for multiple episodes having no idea which guy she was ending up with. I didn’t think they were going to switch once she went with Ye because I think it would have made her look fickle. I actually liked that she knew her own mind and didn’t ever really consider Minho as a romantic possibility. She knew her heart even if she was a bit insecure. That’s relatable for many of us.
Ah, I didn’t realize this one had the same writers as Let’s Drink! I agree this one focused on the romance more than Let’s Drink, and I enjoyed the romance more in this one too. Generally speaking, I also tend to want what the character wants.. it was only in this case, because writer-nim left it so open to interpretation, that I found myself sometimes wavering between the two male leads. Based on what Dorotka shared in her comment, it seems that writer-nim might’ve had different plans than what eventually panned out. So her writing of our 2 male leads also felt different. I felt Min Ho’s interactions with Bo Young popped more, and if he was originally intended to be the other half of the OTP, I can see why in this instance, I found myself sometimes wanting the second lead ship to sail. All in all, it was fun not knowing, and to keep guessing, despite how clunky it sometimes felt. 🙂
Also, I agree that Bo Young didn’t waver on her decision. I doubt writer-nim would’ve caused her to have a change of heart too. Possibly by that point in the story, the decision on the direction of the loveline had been made.
Sometimes I hate the live shoot system, but I’m really just ready to leave the love triangles out of kdramas now. It’s hopeless I know, but I do think that it is very apparent the writer didn’t know what to do with MinHo as his character arc was kind of a mess.
I feel like the more seasoned drama fans are the ones who are ready to leave the love triangles behind.. I mean, after watching approximately 1,023 love triangles play out onscreen, it’s only natural to feel ready for something different, eh? 😉 For me, though, if I had to choose, I’d rather leave the live shoot system behind than the love triangles. I feel like the live shoot system messes with stuff too much. People don’t get enough rest; people even die, my goodness. And on top of all that, the live shoot makes it too easy for narrative integrity to get tossed out the window in favor of pandering to audience’s whims and fancies. I feel like if a writer could finish writing the entire thing before the show goes to air, then even if we do get a love triangle in the story, it would likely be better written and better resolved. Which is a really roundabout way of saying, yes, I agree that Min Ho’s character arc was a bit of a mess indeed! 😅
Yes, I agree with you about the live shoot. And I know that not all pre-produced dramas do well or are cohesively put together because there are still behind-the-scenes disagreements but there is more of a shot at some sort of story integrity if the writer has enough power. And, yes, the live shoot is horrible for all staff as best I can tell. I am very interested in how the zombie drama on Netflix is going to turn out. They (Netflix) are known for throwing $ at projects and not getting involved. Six seasons of The Walking Dead has me all zombied out, but I will probably give it a go. The name escapes me but I think – maybe- it’s the writer from Signal….maybe.
That’s true.. one would think that pre-produced shows would be more cohesive, but you’re so right, there are all kinds of other behind-the-scenes things that can get in the way of narrative integrity. The more dramas I watch, the more I realize that narrative integrity is one of my favorite things. 😂
As for the Netflix zombie kdrama, I think that’s Kingdom, with Joo Ji Hoon and Bae Doo Na. It’s written by the writer from Signal. It does sound intriguing and very different, so I can see myself checking that out too, when it comes out. 🙂
I liked this show quite a lot, especially the unique and hard working Bo Young… until the Motorcycle of Doom. Then the writing felt forced and characters inconsistent. (What started to make sense when I read later that the writer had changed the script to follow the viewers wishes…).
Oh, is that what happened?!? If writer-nim changed course in order to suit audience preferences, that would explain a heckuva lot, in terms of how the two male leads were treated. [SPOILER!] I always felt Min Ho was strangely more fleshed out in his characterization and relationship with Bo Young, versus Dr. Ye. So it puzzled me that writer-nim would treat her male lead with such a distant touch. If that wasn’t her intention to begin with, then everything makes so much more sense! [END SPOILER] On the upside, it did make the OTP loveline very vague and therefore quite exciting, to keep on guessing where it was all going. I just read on Dame Holly’s comment that there was a really fun shipping war on DB, on this OTP. I guess that’s as good a silver lining as one could ask for! 😉
Actually, some people on DB are still writing an alternate ending for that ship, which has been entertaining. Several distinct writing voices, one person writes a scene and the next person adds to where the previous left off. We have had some cliffhangers in it! It did meander for a while though, and it’s gotten long, but still a fun read. If anyone is interested, I can post a link.
That sounds like fun! Yes please, do post a link, I think it’d be fun for at least some of us, particularly those who were on the other ship! 😉
It’s starts here. Lots if side conversions are in play here, but you can skip those. http://www.dramabeans.com/members/raonah/activity/488601/
Thanks for posting the link! <3 I took a look, and I LOVE the idea, it's so much fun! 😀 Have started reading.. won't be done for a while I think! 😉
I actually wouldn’t mind Boo Young ending up with either of the leading men IF it were well flashed out. Like you I enjoyed that I didn’t know who is the end game. But then the MoD happened, Minho suddenly regressed to his jerky behaviour, Alligator disappeared (together with his owner’s story line) etc. For me it felt like they switched a writer… and I lost majority of my enjoyment of the show. And yes, as a result I got angry on Minho’s behalf… I expected better (and more logical) treatment of his character. (I would probably got angry also on behalf of Dr.Ye’s character who wasn’t actually treated properly as well, but then Dr.Ye didn’t manage to get any emotion from me…). Anyway, I don’t regret watching the show, at least the first 10 episodes. Just wish the writer sticked to her original script and kept the good writing.
Oh yes, I agree so much, on wanting writer-nim to stick to her original script. I think that’s the downside of the live-shoot (along with its gazillion other downsides).. the production wants to have the flexibility to align the script to audience interest and reaction, but that often results in the story taking weird side-steps that make little narrative sense. I’d be curious to see what writer-nim originally had in mind, for the loveline. Based on what we did see, I’d imagine that it involved Min Ho working hard to win Bo Young back, after the way he rejected her in the past, and Bo Young realizing that while Dr. Ye was someone to admire, that she felt more comfortable with Min Ho.
I had forgotten about this! I wish we could see or read the original intent of the writer now.
Thanks kfangurl, succinct and relatable as usual. In other words, I felt the same way about this show.
It wasn’t actually crack, but enjoyable and easy to relax with. The poetry of this show inspired a bunch of us to have our own poetry slam, which was lots of fun. If there was anything I felt we could do without, it would have been the meddling and the misunderstanding of the senior physiotherapists who kept giving Bo Young a hard time, unnecessarily, (I felt). I didn’t like that way of adding conflict to the show. Perhaps just introducing a couple more difficult patients with complicated cases and giving different characters a chance to deal with them would have sufficed, not only in revealing more about each character but also in offering the romances more to deal with.
Till you write again. Cheers!
The only reason I stayed with this show was the poetry and the Beanies at Dramabeans making it a more social experience as well. I wrote several poems which I had not done in 30 years! I ended up living the OTP but really would have wanted a better ending for several other characters, namely Nam-woo. I was heartbroken he never reconnected with his love. So much so that I ended up writing a fanfic to complete his story arc. Thanks for the recap here. You’ve summed up what made this show enjoyable for me as well!
The insane but goodnatured Beanie shipping war was why I picked this up too. I don’t think I’ve had so much fun watching a show before. It was just so sweet.
Ok, based on your comment, I’m now wistful that I missed out on what sounds like a really fun time! Insane shipping wars are hardly ever good-natured, and most shows don’t have enough mystery about the OTP loveline to afford a shipping war anyway, so this sounds quite perfect! Glad you had a good time with this one, Dame Holly! 😀
There was the Yeliner as a cruise ship and the Ship Min-ho. And a whole community hanging out on the Island of Neutrality waiting to see if they wanted to board a Ship or taking refugees if necessary. It was a hoot. I spent most of the show hanging out in a broken-down tugboat on Alligator Beach with my pet alligator (I fished him out of the sea when he was lost) at the back of the Island of Neutrality drinking umbrella drinks.
Although a lot of people were disappointed their ship hit the rocks or that the show just kind of… ended… I personally felt the final episode was very good. It’s like they punctuated the whole thing by saying it was a slice of life, a short piece of poetry of the ordinary, and the story was still ongoing.
Giggle. You make it all sound like so much fun, like everyone’s taking a virtual beach holiday together! 😆 I can see how that would make one’s watch a lot more fun! 😀 And yes, I did get the feeling at the final episode, that the story was on-going, and that what we saw was definitely not the end. In that sense, I didn’t mind Show’s matter-of-fact understatedness in its treatment of the loveline, because it felt like real life, even though I did feel rather distant from the OTP.
I’m suitably impressed at your poetry-writing prowess! I am no poet myself, and anything lyrical that comes outta my brain always feels like a moment of freak inspiration ha.
I agree that Nam Woo didn’t get much closure and the way his story panned out made this show’s ending feel rather bittersweet. Of course, it’s open-ended, and we are left to imagine how things might’ve turned out – which I guess is exactly where your fanfic comes in! 😉 You’re doing fellow fans a favor, by helping to give Nam Woo a happy ending! <3
Aw, hi5 GB! <3 This wasn't crack for me either, but it was pretty relaxing to watch, and had a comfort food sort of flavor to it. Perfect for a bedtime snack 😉 How fun, that you guys were inspired to write poetry as a result of this show! 😀
Yes, I didn't enjoy the way the senior therapists basically bullied Bo Young in the beginning of the show. I'm glad they eased up on that in the later episodes, or this would've been a lot less fun to watch. I agree that introducing more interesting patient cases would've been a more engaging way to spice up the show. I liked the way the patient cases made each of our therapists reflect on their own lives and situations; I wouldn't have minded more of that! 🙂