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Meliere

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    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    @mustardmaimai @Phuong Tam Nguyen

    OMG I MISSED YOU GUYS TOO! Bwahahah, Bong hyung, I saw your posts on the main thread. So hilarious, especially the one about the two ships disappearing into the bermuda triangle. 

    Sorry to not have joined you guys sooner! I work in the art market and have total sh!tty graveyard hours. I meant to wake up at 5 am to catch the live recaps ... but overslept because I've been so sleep deprived due to work recently. 

    Thank you for the flowers, my lovely handsome Bong hyung. For you, a basket of kittens:

    basket-full-of-kittens.jpg

    @shooastrid

    I LOVE YOU TOO!! I'm so glad we have someone knowledgeable about baduk here. Your post GAVE ME LIFE.

    • Like 12
    • Popular Post
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    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    Chingus, don't panic here. The latest episode was slow, but it helped Taektanic dodge the biggest iceberg thus far.

    I'm now 85-95% sure Taek will actually marry Deoksunie. I was praying all night for Taek to go noble idiot (for a lack of better terms). And YASSS, the drama gods have been kind. 

    Before I get ahead of myself, a disclaimer: I hate noble idiocy as a plot device, and hoped against all hope in the space between ep. 10 & 11 that it'd never happen to this show. 

    But because it did happen to this show, and in such heavy doses -- ep. 11 on basically featured nothing but JH looking hurt and solemn and tragic -- I knew the only way for Taek to break out of second lead territory was to suffer some noble idiocy of his own. It doesn't matter if the writer developed Choi Taek as the god of complex characterization, gave him screen time and a life, wrote him to be refreshingly honest & competitive -- so long as he is oblivious to JH suffering in shadows, he will never get the girl. Why? Because of viewer sympathy and East Asian moral philosophy. While "hey Jude, don't be afraid / you were made to go out and get her" is celebrated in the West, we have to remember that Korean societal values are grounded in Confucian ideals which place individual desires below that of collective wellbeing (i.e. family and friends and bros before hos  something so "selfish" as dating). I mean, look at the Korean word 우리 (woori / uri). Typically it means "we" or "us", but when someone says "my [someone]" woori is also used, in a confounding of personal and collective possession. Also, notice the parents don't call each other by their names; it's always "JB appa" or "BR omma"" or "Taekie appa". This is why, perhaps more than any country on the planet, Korea features so many popular family weekend dramas and dramas which stress the bond of family. 

    The heart and pathos of the Reply series has always been about family. Previous OTP troubles converged along familial lines: R1997 featured a brother backing out for a brother; R1994 featured OTP dating in secret because the parents consider them to be brother and sister. When JH emerged in full noble idiotic glory in episode 11, I thought Taektanic had sunken for sure. Because even if JH made DS cry 1340983029 times and TK made her smile 1340983029 times, viewers would still be sympathetic to JH. Because he's the "bigger guy" and "did the right thing". And face it, no kdrama narrative would ever punish a character for taking the "moral high road"; if anything, he'll be rewarded the girl for being such a righteous dude.

    This is why Girlfriday on DB ended her episode 15 recap with that menacing screencap and the line, "It makes me less worried about this look on Taek’s face. A little." She's been pro-JH, and is understandably confident that he's the husband. By kdrama logic, now that noble idiocy has marked JH as the male lead, the obvious expected thing for Taek to do is march on blindly, chase the girl, force his feelings on her, ignore JH's mute angst, stir some sh!t up, make *evil/menacing/competitive* trouble for the OTP, and lose out in the end. Q.E.D. NEVER MIND that this is inconsistent with the narrative presented so far. Never mind that this is equivalent to character assassination for Taek. IF JH is lead, all of this would be okay-- why? because second leads are disposable. Second leads can change at a moment's notice to service the story & main OTP loveline. (lol remember Choi Young Do from Heirs? Poor guy was given 50 different brain lobotomies, and one sudden hairstyle change.)

    So I prayed all night for Taek to prove everyone wrong. He's been so surprising and delightful as a character. But if there's ONE consistency to his character, it's his kindness. This is why I never believed for one second that he'd be capable of going "sh!t storm competitive" on JH.

    --

    Here are my additional observations as to why Taek will be end game:

    • "Ancestor" Dongryung is Suntaek's matchmaker. The Oracle has spoken. End story. Done. 
    • The past five episodes are "slow" and "stagnant" only if you're team JH, sorry. Here on the Taektanic we've been delighted every episode with important reveals and heart-warming DS-TK scenes. My favs are TK helping JH's dad, TK telling DS that BR "must have been DS in the past life LOL", TK being sassy with SW & BR (and BR's "Choi Taek ... I trust you"), AND OMG TK being the one to beat JB's arcade record LOLOLOL. Oh, and don't forget sassy Taek counting his Blue Marble money in front of his friends.
    • Deoksun's "courtship" of JH mirrors her crush on SW. She liked SW for 4 episodes (ep. 3 - 6); she again pursued JH for 4 episodes (ep. 11-14). Everything from the dressing up and primping to aegyo speech are direct mirror images. 
    • Thematic consistency: the whole point of episode 15 was to establish DS as an individual. What's the point of DR's pep talk if she gets two confessions from the boys and has to choose one?!?! Now the onus is on her to find her heart and go after the boy she likes.
    • EDITED to add: It's also hinted in the latest episode that her feelings for Taek may be more than platonic. The end sequence is soo revealing: instead of sad music + Taek hurting alone, we have sad music + TK & DS hurting together. Plus, our girl can't even burp in front of TK anymore. 

    Happy voyage guys. Get ready to buy @chickfactor ddeokbokki. Also, Taek is bringing more pizza. We should comfort him when he gets here. 

    P.S. go read @shooastrid's post on baduk (if you haven't yet seen it). Taek's presence in the show can be totally interpreted as an allegory for a baduk match. Her analysis is spot on and brilliant, especially the bits about komi and player handicap (omg, Choi Taek is 6-dan, so it means if he played against an unranked player, his handicap would be 6 stones .. .e.g. 6 episodes. BOOM baby)

    • Like 36

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    1 hour ago, mustardmaimai said:

    Guyssss! What does this mean? These dolls are just tooooooooo strategically placed for us to think that nothing's up with them. They make me go a little bit nutty! &#^#%@^$#^$@%

    *weeps* double rainbow, all the way across the sky..! What. Does. It. Mean???

    Bong hyung, those dolls drive me nutty too. I've stopped thinking about them. Trolls trolls trolls. Along with the colors

    Both team JH and team TK are SO SURE green is for our respective boys. But the PD placed green around both boys so the shipping wars would be extra tasty:

    Taek:

    • green kitchen cabinets
    • green lock
    • green gate
    • 'green' name
    • BUT! his appa's jewelry store sign is blue and yellow

    Jung Hwan:

    • Green desk lamp
    • Green dinner table top
    • BUT! blue gate, blue roof, blue towels/bed/clothes 

    LOLOL EVEN DEOK SUN'S BAG CHANGES FROM GREEN TO BLUE IN THE SPACE OF A SINGLE SCENE:

    image.jpg

    image.jpg

    SEE HOW WE'RE BEING TROLLED? :cold_sweat::angry::glasses::grin:

    • Like 13

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    @chickfactor

    Omo, thank you for that-- good point. I totally misremembered that detail from episode 2.

    I do find it interesting (and attractive, to be honest!) that father and son live fairly modestly, despite their earning potential. In terms of interiors and decor, the Choi household looks more threadbare than JH & DR's homes. Also, please correct me if I'm wrong-- weren't beds considered more "western" and therefore indicative of a higher socioeconomic status back then? JH & JB sleep in beds, but DS/SW/TK sleep on the floor. I wonder if there's a narrative function for Taek&appa not having touched their savings, aside from lending it out occasionally. Maybe all that money will come in handy somewhere down the road. 

    P.S. I love how you're our ship's sacred oracle. Which country are you located? If Taektanic dodges all the icebergs and remains floating at the end, I'm so going to ship (pun unintended) you ddeokbokki. Do you want it cooked or dried in a bag? LOL

    • Like 8

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    12 minutes ago, mustardmaimai said:

    Maybe it's because I professionally work with children that it irks me to no end when I see dramas (and society at large) try to shove unattainable ideas of the ideal, perfect human being down our throats. Leads to larger than life expectations that dip us to lower than expected lows. Like the average guy is actually the drop dead gorgeous guy with six packs, flawless skin, genius at everything, can jump across buildings, can beat an opponent with some richard simmons-kicking martial arts moves, can sing/dance/cook/knit/or-fly-a-plane when the occasion calls for it, who aces exams and is socially amicable and loved by everyone, who always does the right thing at all times, who is always there to save the day, and blah blah blah.

    My fav is the suave chaebol who doesn't seem to be actually running his own company. :glasses::heart:

    • Like 2

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    4 minutes ago, mustardmaimai said:

    Taekie will always have the upper hand as far as money is concerned so that might be a bit unfair. To gauge his maturity that way. Of course he's still giving his money away to others selflessly, but do the others even have that choice? Even if they may have the heart for it. 

    Totally agree. That last point in my previous post was not necessary. 

    6 minutes ago, mustardmaimai said:

    And as someone who continues to get the buttons on my cardigans mixed up (yeah, I can't seem to get the order right) the first time around, I guess I'm not that bothered to fix it and do end up being the butt of several jokes in family and friends' circle.

    lol for me it's my incredible talent for weird typos. You guys have seen a ton from me, now that I get so excited about this show that I click "submit" without proof reading. I love reading and writing, but it's like my brain is utterly useless when it comes to catching details on the page. 

    • Like 5

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    4 hours ago, nearsea said:

    Somehow I found the whole scene of JH tying taek's shoelace a bit too sweetening.Why is it they are portraying him one way as baby who needs feeding?

    No, I don't think so.

    We see the close up of untied shoelaces before JH's dad is sent to the hospital. 

    It's a moment of transcendence for Taek's character. Yes-- he sucks at using chopsticks, he can be clumsy with everyday tasks... the untied shoelaces is a symbol of Taek's selective disregard for little day-to-day details. 

    But in things that really matter, Taek is capable. Incredibly so. That he could so quickly make the necessary calls and get JH's dad the help he needs even as his own shoelaces are untied says a lot about his character and his willingness to help others (perhaps even above his own needs). 

    And don't forget it's because of his baduk earnings that Sunwoo's house was not foreclosed by the bank.  EDIT: as @chickfactorkindly pointed out, this is a misstatement of facts. Papa bear helped out Sunyoung by taking funds from his own savings as a storeowner; Taekie's baduk earnings are saved separately as his own.

    • Like 9

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    8 hours ago, mustardmaimai said:

    @Phuong Tam Nguyen @nearsea @mangachickava @Meliere

    So it seems like this is the time for speculations aplenty. I noticed while reading live recaps on different forums how the way different shippers read into characters' actions differently and therefore, we get a very different notion of what is currently happening in the story and what is likely to happen in the future. This basically means that the PD-team is at their best game, doing some epic trolling to both parties.

    When I watched this scene, and this moment in particular:

    https://youtu.be/3-K6tBqOdyU?t=39

    I thought that this had barely anything to do with Taekie's feelings for DS and everything to do with his feelings for JH. It appeared to me to be a knowing look, a mature look. The blinking at 0:40 in particular looked to me like a look of acceptance more than anything. I saw no anger, no sadness even, just a look that showcases a very mature understanding and acceptance of the situation. If people are thinking that this look has anything menacing in it, I don't think there's anything more wrong in their thinking. There cannot be anything menacing about Taekie at this point because he has consistently been shown to be a generous, gentle, kind, considerate guy. Now it would be character assassination to suddenly make his character appear menacing or make decisions out of spite. I don't know if this is where people are going with their comments and maybe I'm just being an overprotective mother hen to our Taekie. 

    Q: Why did they zoom in on the childhood picture before focusing on Taekie's face? I feel like there's something symbolic about that. Like their friendship and the entire squad means more to him than his "love" for DS? I don't know guys. Full on delulu mode here...

    By 1:12 he seems to smiling a little, has he already made some kind of decision? I don't know, but that very small smile tells me that he's ready to continue loving JH.

    Of course, whatever pain he must be feeling, he's doing a good job of hiding. Now I feel like this is the first time in the series that Taekie is hiding his feelings, not simply in an effort to conceal them, but to change them as well?

    So yeah, I can't see anything cold or calculative about that look. But I guess I can understand how it could freak out DS-JH shippers all the same?

    Please fill me in on your opinions about Taekie's expressions in this scene. Don't worry too much about the preview for 16 cause trying to go by that is often misdirection.

    Yeah, I don't agree with people who interpret the scene as a menacing, calculating, or "cold" moment. There's even an edit on Tumblr, taking the scene out of sequence, to make Taek look evil/biding his time/plotting his move. But we kinda have to give credit to the PD and PBG for creating a scene that's open to so many interpretations.

    Here's my read into this scene:

    First the silence. I find this significant from a direction / film making perspective. When Bora rejected SW the first time, and when JH learned about TK's feelings in ep. 10, the background music immediately cut to that sad guitar sequence. PD Shin's directorial hand is assured in this case: he framed those scenes around clear emotions of sadness and disappointment. There's not much ambiguity in the direction here; the picture presented and the emotions conveyed pretty much align symmetrically. 

    Conditioning / priming the audience to feel a certain way with emotional background music is the oldest trick in the book. It's also the most accepted trick in the book ...which means the director can use it however he wants whenever he wants without worrying he's being cliché.

    Now the silence. Popular film and TV mediums are so saturated with sounds and colors and stimuli, absolute silence must be reserved for more important scenes. The effect is so immediately gut-wrenching and stark and disorienting that you can't really use it more than once or twice. I mean, hell, even Shakespeare used it judiciously: Hamlet's last words were "the rest is silence." 

    So we know that PD Shin "used up" one of the most powerful editing weapons in his arsenal for Taek's scene. I would suggest that this means the moment is important to the drama narrative as a whole. Too important to be just another "second lead creates drama and angst for the main OTP!" or "second lead is hurt by OTP!" If it were the latter, it's almost silly to use an auteur-esque "silence" for a scene involving the second lead's reaction. 

    --

    On to PBG's acting, Taek's emotions, and the scene itself.

    Someone here said that PBG is great with micro-expressions. I agree.

    JH's moment of discovery in episode 10 was clearly directed to be a moment of hurt. Ryu Junyeol stepped up to the plate, and delivered all the hurt in the world for us to catch on unequivocally. There's no confusion in that scene. The direction was clear. RJY's acting was clear. JH is hurt. JH is sad. The audience is supposed to feel JH's hurt and be right there with him. 

    On the other hand, Taek's moment is built up in layers. I already wrote about the direction and use of silence. But I'm also sure PBG worked with the director to deliver an intentionally nuanced performance:

    • The punch-in-the-stomach moment when Taek realizes the truth. 
    • The slight faltering of his lower lip. The contained astonishment.
    • The fluttering of his eyelids. Hurt, but also possible disappointment ... he'd been honest with his feelings, but all this time JH didn't trust him enough to reveal his heart?
    • And then the need to hold on to something in the present (and thus the taking of tea) in order to accept and process all he has learned. 
    • But also that glance at their childhood photo! 

    I thought PBG's acting was interesting here (it makes you want to rewatch the scene several times just for interpretation alone). I mean a 3rd grader can cry and look hurt on screen. But what we got out of baduk boy was an understated, elegant performance that hints at so many emotions even as questions are raised at the same time. 

    • Like 17

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    28 minutes ago, mangachickava said:

    @Phuong Tam Nguyen

    and they go to an island? 

    this sounds makjang 

    *cue boys before flowers music* ALMOSSST PARADISE~~~~~~ :glasses: According to this "leak", is Jung Hwan going to become filthy rich and own an helicopter too? Or will he buy DS an island in the shape of a bus?!

     

    35 minutes ago, Phuong Tam Nguyen said:

    I'm not sure who the author is but based on Google translate and my guess haha, the person says that:

    - DS decides to become a director and BR starts to study hard

    - DS meets JH again and they bicker, and realize feelings for each other

    - The gang travels to an island and there will be a kiss

    - Some confessions between TK and DS (but I'm not sure who to who, or TK sees DS's confession to JH)

    - TK confesses/expresses his love to DS but DS turns reluctant and arguments may happen between the 2

    - Some conflicts between JH and DS about things happening during the time gap

    - DS and JH run away (LOL) and TK is waiting. The 3 people face each other at the end

    LOL MAYBE IN A KIM EUN SOOK DRAMA. *insert double wrist grab*

    • Like 9

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    4 minutes ago, ngocdpb said:

    Another thing I'm thinking about is the relationship between TK and the director of the hospital. I dont understand what they said, but maybe he goes there frequently because of a headache? So he knows the director? I think they must be close for asking that kind of helping.

    UGH. You know, if there's one thing I don't like about this show, it's the constant death threats? I mean, look at the hit list so far: Jung Bong, Jung Hwan, Taekie, Taekie appa, JH appa, DS omma.... 

    During episodes 2-5, before Taekie was a big presence on the show, I was so scared the writer was going to make him The Childhood Friend Who Dies and Helps Everyone Come of Age and Face the Big Tough World. 

    I mean, there's still a possibility that the writer will kill him off (or dude, even JH! I say this without malice or desire, team JH lurkers... but with WORRY). BUT if the writer keeps all her IQ points in tact, she will not. 

    My biggest comfort is knowing that Taek is closely based on Lee Chang Ho, who is very respected in Korea. The country has a tradition of treating accomplished public figures as sources of national pride. In my opinion, it'd be a very rude and offensive deed to kill off Taek, given that the real-life Lee Chang Ho is still alive and well. It would be like killing off a character based on Kim Yuna. One simply does not do sh!t like that.

    • Like 14

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    It's good we got more developments from Taek in today's episode.

    But does anyone think the writer/team might be gearing the show for an extension? (2 eps? 4 eps?) Some of the narrative trajectories the past 3-4 episodes makes me think they are trying to pad around all the bones and fatten things up as much as possible. Given the astronomical ratings, I'm sure all the TvN big bosses are giving out orders to milk their cash cow for all it's worth.

    • Like 7

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    16 minutes ago, darafangirl29 said:

    unlimited dubokki and pizza in taek's room now !!!!! 

    14 minutes ago, kilaalaa said:

    LOL its a party in Taek's room tonight! Fried chicken for everyone too!

    LOL how are we paying for it all?

    Who's responsible for breaking into Choi Taek 6-dan's drawer and stealing from his bank account?

    14 minutes ago, mustardmaimai said:

    It's GREAT that he found out. And without anybody telling him. No words, just a very very perceptive person who caught on to the way emotions are revealed by people in spite of themselves. Taekie told JH to his face that he likes DS, but he found out EVERYTHING without being told a thing! And from JH no less, someone who loves to keep his feelings bottled up. Many, many brownie points for Taekie.

    YES TO THIS SO MUCH. SOOO MUCH. Million kisses to you, Bong hyung.

    It's like everyone else is still stuck in "clumsy teenager" mode, while Taekie is unleashing his full mature powers. Our baduk boy is starting to subvert viewer expectations SO MUCH. Who'd have thought that, out of everyone, he's the one to figure things out without "codewords" and "testing the water" (DS & JH).

    Also, it's totally a second lead/ chilbongie thing to ignore the bigger picture, confess, force a kiss on the heroine, and get rejected.

    Taek has circumvented all that humiliation. 

    EDIT: for now. We won't know for sure until the next ep ... that text preview .... :sweatingbullets::vicx:

    • Like 14

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    *mad gospel choir vocalization*

    YESSSSSSSSSS. HALLELUJAH 

    Noble idiocy was my biggest worry. I considered it our biggest iceberg on the horizon.

    BUT HOUSTON, WE HAVE LANDED. BADUK MASTER IS BADUK MASTER AND HAS BROKEN OUT OF "OBLIVIOUS POSSIBLE SECOND LEAD TERRITORY AND ENTERED POSSIBLY ANGSTY MALE LEAD TERRITORY". 

    ALSO BADUK MASTER IS CAPABLE AND HELPED JH'S DAD.

    1 minute ago, darafangirl29 said:

    i think it is a good sign that taek didnt confess right? 

    OH YEAH BABY

    bahahahahha. finally. The latest revelation made waking up at 5 am local time to catch the live recaps worth it. I'm so sleep deprived and loopy right now. B)

    • Like 21

    Park Bo Gum ❤ Girl's Day Hyeri aka REPLY 1988 TAEK x DEOKSUN

    in shippers' paradise

    Posted

    3 hours ago, mustardmaimai said:

     

    Aigoooo! Your charged description of Taekie is giving me goosebumps. @Meliere, I want to ship you off to South Korea so you can join writer-nim and make this happen already!

     

    NO GIRL WHAT WE NEED TO DO IS BUY PLANE TICKES TO SOUTH KOREA

    KIDNAP THE WRITER

    tumblr_m9s55sbDgZ1rpgtk8.gif

    GIVE HER THESE:

    Shelves-full-of-bananas-005.jpg

    AND THESE:

    Money-stacks.jpg

    SHH NO GUYS I'M NOT SUGGESTING WE BRIBE THE WRITER OR "FIX" THE HUSBAND GAME

    • Like 18
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