[Drama 2015] Heard It Through the Grapevine 풍문으로 들었소

[mdj101]

 

DAY FIVE --- POST-HITTG FINALE

(BUT WRITTEN AND EDITED MANY TIMES ON DAY FOUR)

Hello, Everyone,

So very quiet here, now that  Class Action Suit is under way!     I will be leaving the Han mansion soon, too.

Actually,now I can finally think about something other than what is happening with all the interesting "people" in HITTG , wondering  what would be the ripple effects of their choices, how would they all settle their complicated dilemmas. The issues addressed in the drama were never quite as simple or easy as they first seemed.  

While they all seemed like respectable, honest citizens in the beginning, we learned that there were some serious differences in the morals and ethical beliefs they held.   I was completely absorb in the story the drama told all these weeks.  Loved all the actors who created the characters we felt we really knew and  cheered for, even if they were "bad guys", then they were REALLY disagreeable! 

I was creating a little scenario where I would talk about going on a "virtual  TWO DAY/ONE NIGHT"  Rest and Recuperation trip of my own, but never got any further than online investigation of the most luxurious airline flights to Jeju Island.  I was planning to stay at Kim Junsu's hotel, Jeju Toscana Hotel, and purchase the luxury Jeju tour by  personal driver around the Island tourist sites.  

COULD NOT GET PAST the Youtube videos of "first class suites, apartments, and residences" on ETIHAD AIRLINES.

So, for a cheap substitute for our "virtual group trip" to "process our happy/sad feelings as the Drama ends, please enjoy some of these videos more suitable for the lifestyles of the rich and famous.  By the time I had watch a few hours of them (also a few videos about the cramped crew sleeping quarters, I started to see how Han Jung Ho might have come to believe he and his wealthy peers were truly different.  They surely do live very differently            

 

So sorry,guys,

1.       "The Most Luxurious Airline in the world"        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmyB274Ya9Q       .                                                                                                                            

 

So Sorry, but this was the only "link" that would work for me!  BUT, i'm sure you have all got the picture I wanted to convey.  The other videos would have been fun to see. 

 

Well, I should toss all the  pages and index cards filled with dialogue I've written down  (stop, "rewind", play.....stop... & go back again!)  while looking for answers to questions the Drama raised.  

I've had such a good time in this forum, discussing debating, and hearing interpretations of the fine points of the actual Korean dialogue and of the different values held by the characters.

I will drop by for a while to read any final comments. Looking forward to seeing you in the forums of more great (or just enjoyable/funny)  Korean dramas.               

AU REVOIR ,  from @mdj101.

 

(could not eliminate this big empty space!  SORRY. --- nothing under next "spoiler" ---  jump down to the end.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[eyjooniesh]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBOk1P6Md50&feature=youtu.be

I miss this couple.  The show wasn't perfect but Lee Joon and Go Ah Sung had perfect chemistry.  I hope they win lots of awards this year and even the couple award during the SBS awards.  So in the final episode, are IS and Bom living with Teacher Park and Sec. Lee?  How about their jobs?  Why is IS still going to school anyways if he's studying for the bar exam?  Is that college? I was always confused by that.

 

in case you miss this InBom couple, they look very fantastic during Baeksang Awards Red Carpet! i found it in twitter ^^

[eyjooniesh]

I am so eager  to make this post into the 200 pages! So here the attachment of HITTG winning Best Baeksang Drama Awards this year. If someone could translate what the winner said, maybe some hidden clue or something.. huhu ^^

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heEASM7Duls&feature=youtu.be

[eyjooniesh]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvN-iwy645A&feature=youtu.be

Here the link to youtube Go Ah Sung winning Best Rookie Actress. I bet it is not too late to congratulate her.  Han In Sang is watching her with full concentration, his girl wons!

im still trying to make it into the 200 page

[baduy]

Actually one of the long standing "naughty things" on soompi which we aren't supposed to perpetrate is adding posts merely to reach a certain page number.

Since I would never dream of doing such a thing, and since there's nothing much to report on my plumbing issue (the plumber who had allegedly found the requisite valve on Friday then phoned to say he had had an emergency call-out so he couldn't come to fit it. He promised to call  back on Monday) I suggest the following exercise for people who are interested in analyzing what makes a good Kdrama. 

We are familiar with terrible scripts made watchable  (sometimes addictively so) by the redemptive powers of  good acting and directing or stunning photography. That accounts for around 75% of Kdramas in my estimation. But supposing we had a drama where only one of the players could act, and every other aspect of the drama was total rubbish. Let's suppose in addition that  the the one really talented player was  having to speak most of her lines in a language she can't actually talk comprehensibly for more than short stretches (such as she had in Snowpiercer or HTTG). What would that look like?  Well, right now you can see, since someone has posted   Duet on YT 

     
 

Catch it quick before it gets taken down.  Apart from all the other absurdities, you couldn't busk with an unamplified guitar in that doorway on Edinburgh's Lawnmarket, because you'd be drowned out by the rival bagpipers of the Scottish Whisky Experience store and the World of Cashmere Outlet, both walking back and forth as they play, of course, because a moving target is more difficult to hit. I bet paying them to pipe off and go have a wee dram or several consumed a big part of the location budget, hence they had to make up for it by having a supposed up-market personal tour guide drive people around in a Hyundai, And as for stretching out and strumming on the grass outside the Kelvingrove Museum in Glasgow... well I hope the crew inspected the terrain very carefully, because it's normally well sprinkled with items you wouldn't want to tread or lie on. A few months back, I made the serious mistake of taking a short cut across that selfsame stretch of grass while trying to get from the University to Glasgow Central Station in something of a hurry. I have to say though that the young Korean chap who found himself fated with the reserved seat next to mine on the southbound train wrinkled his nose only very slightly. It wasn't until I tried out my Korean pronunciation on him that he had to sink his face hurriedly into a  handful of paper tissues.

And no, Scotland isn't just on the northern side of Hadrian's Wall. You've a good 60 miles of Northumbria still to go at that point. The Romans were savvy enough to keep the Picts and the Scots at a safe distance with an even broader buffer zone than Korea's DMZ.

I have to admit I only know how wooden and otherwise awful the dialogue is because I saw it with Korean subtitles which allowed me to work backwards to  what's actually being said in "English". But there aren't any Korean subs on the YT version. All the same, the sheer talent of Ko Ah Sung is all the more visible when she's acting in a movie where the director can't direct, the editor can't edit, the writer can't write, the other "actors' don't deserve the name, the camera crew can't compose a compelling shot even in prime tourist-brochure locations, and most English speakers won't be able to make out a lot of what she's saying....

[hushhh]

 

The images below of Yu Jun-Sang and Kil Hae-Yeon the absolute delight in which she greets him after he completed his last shoot made me think of the pairing of actors instead of character relationships.  It may me think about the chemistry the actors had with their different partners.

Even though the characters Han Jung-Ho and Choi Yeon-Hee were married, I thinks as actors their primary pairing were with the actors playing their secretary.

Yu Jun-Sang (Han Jung-Ho) was  1) Kil Hae-Yeon (Yang) then 2) Yoo Ho-Jeong (Yeon-Hee)

Lee Joon (InSang) was 1-Ko Ah-Sung (Bom) then post marriage Bom's Dad then later in the series Tutor Park.

Ko Ah-Sung (Bom) was 1-Lee Joon (InSang). Understanding that the phone calls were very likely individual shots/unless the other actor had the  time and was generous enough to feed her lines Bom was rarely actually acting with the people playing her parents until after the character moved out.  So I think the actor she was working most after Lee-Joon with was Seo Jung-Yeon (Sec'y Lee) , Yoo-Ho-Jeong (Yeon-Hee) and the rest of the household. Then Tutor Park. One she moved out she was working with  Yoon Bok-In (her Mom) and Jang Hyun-Sung (her Dad) 

Yoo-Ho-Jeong - it is hard to me to figure out who her primary acting partner. I'd say the baby, then for me it is a toss up between Yu Jun-Sang (Han) and Seo Jung-Yeon (Sec'y Lee). Then Bom, then the investment club.

Seo Jung-Yeon (Sec'y Lee) was 1- Tutor Park, Bom, the household staff.

 

[mdj101]

Thank you both, @baduy and @hushhh, & @eyjooniesh,   Such great comments on page 199.

I feel I must say once more how alike Ko Ah Seung  (age: 22 years)  seems in many, many ways to the actress, Jeon Do Yeon  (age:  42 years).  From her transformation from the not especially attractive Bom, "the Ugly Duckling", into the genuinely beautiful and elegant young woman, "the Swan", who appeared at the Baeksong Arts Awards ceremonies.  Jeon Do Yeon looked drab and plainly unattractive in SECRET SUNSHINE (film, 2010). ANd is elegant and beautiful at festivals in Cannes. Neither chooses roles according to "how will I look?", but rather for the challenge of a very interesting story and/or character.  Such amazing personal integrity and sincere devotion to their craft, and complete respect for the work of the artists with whom they work.        

 

 

[mdj101]

START TIME of this comment --- Sun., June 7.2015, 8 PM  (POSTED - 12:30 AM, June 7, 2015)

 

    Maybe I've reach a new stage in my involvement/"love-affair" with Korean drama ( plus side trips to Taiwanese, then Japanese, then the Chinese dramas with "cross-overs" into Films of same!).   

Since I retired in 2011, I've practically forsaken USA TV, even my favorites, like all the CSI's, etc. --- there's always the "on demand" on cable or simply find them all online.   And since Episode 1 of HITTG, I've slowly let my other kdrama "favs" slide away for catch up at a later date. Not all of them, of course --- had to finish  KILL ME, HEAL ME,  ANGRY MOM, etc..  But I left new dramas for later marathon viewings.

HITTG  slowly  captured my imagination even more than I expected.  Differing greatly from my last drama (SLA) from the Writer/Director duo but equally engrossing during a tumultuous personal time, I was captivated by the storyline, the characters created by the actors and the mixture of comedy and tragedy as several serious social issues at the heart of the drama unfolded over 30 episodes.  When the drama was over, it really was like a "sweet sorrow", the Korean word @baduy explained for us.

I am waking up a little to "things American".   "American"  being what we in the USA  call ourselves, completely neglecting the others  who live in the North, Central, and South  Americas!   OOPS!     

On Saturday I watched that beautiful horse, American Pharoah, win the "Triple Crown", first  time the Trophy has been won in 37 years.  And the hail and healthy 90yrs old (plus a few yrs.) woman owner of the last horse to win the Trophy was in the stands to congratulate the owner of only the 12th horse to do it.  Then on Sunday, I found an old TV station "friend", the Public Broadcasting Station , WHYY in the Delaware Valley area (PA/NJ/Delaware states), the Channel 12 that introduced me to Korean Dramas!     And Masterpiece Theater on that same PBS channel, during the most current of their recurring fund raising drives had a special offering for $90 contributors that included a DVD of a documentary called "The Manners of Downtown Abbey", the 57 min. documentary I had just enjoyed watching.

SPOILER contains all the reasons I think you should look watch this documentary ---OK to SKIP (but who knew the British aristocracy was a lot like the Nobles of the Joseon Era?)

 

The similarities between the Edwardian Era of the British aristocracy and the Joseon Era that poor CEO Han Jung Ho was determined to preserve were absolutely amazing to me.        The narrator, Alastair Bruce, the historical adviser on the show, even described the Lord of the 6,000 acre estate, Robert, as a "dinosaur" and doesn't this sound like our own HJH?

Many of the detailed explanations of the manners, postures ( like those degrees of bowing), types of hats, etc.,   he discussed  and illustrated as related to their importance as markers of class distinctions that served a role in defining one's "place" and therefore  in ultimately keeping the entire estate/"small society" running smoothly to the greater benefit of everyone from the lowest class to the top most aristocratic level.  Sounding much like a  basic idea from a statement of Confucius himself, "knowing your place"  in that era in Britain was also essential in order to maintain proper relationships and to ensure society  operates well for the good of all members.

 "We all have different parts to play and we must all be allowed to play them. Both the low estates and the aristocracy need to know their place", my paraphrasing of Mr. Bruce's explanation of  Sir Robert ( and his peers) view of the privilege, duty, and responsibility of the aristocrat. The elderly dowager remarks at one dinner, "An aristocracy without servants is like a glass hammer." Machiavellian  principles and Han Jung Ho's  "words to live by" and "words to raise your heir by"....!   ..... Anyone?  CEO Han?  Do we hear an echo?

EFFECTS of  ABSOLUTE  POWER: ...... Does power always result in corruption?   How can  people effectively prevent this from happening?   Naturally, I went online to find the original quotation.  Dramas like  HITTG  send me all over the internet  and I have so much fun being led from one subject to another. Often way off into LEFT field!    

I found a site that said a Lord Acton (1700's) is quoted as saying,  

                    "Absolute power corrupts absolutely".

 Not an original idea and one he might have gotten from a French poet/politician, Alphonse de Lamartine (1700's), who said,

                    "Power tends to corrupt and... Great men are almost always bad men", plus " absolute power corrupts the best nature".

(Note:.. all via translations, so what was the original "flavor"?  I like the quotation  as given here.  I know that the excessive power and influence wielded by Han Jung Ho, and by his minion, Sec.Yang, was brutal when applied in pursuit of furthering his own interests. Han and Yang  were captives locked in an unbearably isolated jail of their own creation, as Sec.Min had said.

 

SEARCH:...  ENGLISH WORD  like THREE SYLLABLE  KOREAN  WORD  that best explains why   HITTG  STAFF'S  planned to share a  TWO DAYS/ONE NIGHT  GROUP MEETING ?  (see beneath the Spoiler - OK to skip, but it's fun!))

[

I started with "sweet sorrow" from Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare's play)...."Parting is such sweet sorrow."   And never got any place better than those 3 syllables ( but in 2 words --- so not "equal or the same.   But that was good enough in the end for a better understanding of the actual meaning of that clever Korean word!

Sweet sorrow it turns out, is an OXYMORON, something I remember from an English class very looong time ago--- a word or phrase that contradicts itself.   Oh, those Greeks, what would we do without them ...in the English language?

                            OXY  ===sharp, wise

                             MOROS ===  foolish

Which means "oxymoron" is practically a good example of an oxymoron in itself.   Other examples are these:   open secret,  cruel kindness,  tragic comedy,  original copies,  seriously funny,  awfully pretty,  living end,  &  liquid gas.

"Sweet sorrow" --- "This  apparently confusing phrase expresses a complex nature of love that could never be expressed through any other simple expression."   In casual speech, oxymoron is most often used to show wit, not deep feelings. ( http://literarydevices.net/oxymoron/ )  .

 

EXTRA CREDIT or NICE TO KNOW,  and besides, I already looked it up!      OK to skip - but your "grade"  won't be raised!)

 

The words, "sweet sorrow" also express  "dialectical emotions" --- ex., "to be truly happy, one must first be deeply sad".  When Romeo & Juliet are saying good bye, it triggers deep sadness, but that sadness reminds her of her deep love for him and for this reason the sadness is also sweet.They have not yet come up with a plan to spend their lives together as they would wish  (Act II, scene ii). They've talked most of the night and agreed that Romeo will send word tomorrow about when and where they would be married.    (Info. mostly all Stolen almost word for word from these 2 sources online :   http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/   &    http://www.cliffsnotes.com/   ).

NOW I SEE THAT I TOTALLY MISSED THE OBVIOUS COMPARISON:    Romeo and Juliet  &   InSang and Bom.  Who would all the various characters from Shakespeare's play be in HITTG?  The cities?  etc.  Makes my head ache!

Some of the material I read even compares Romeo's increasing maturity, illustrated as Shakespeare changes the meter of Romeo's speech, paralleling InSang's developing maturity as written by Writer Jung.  Were there similar noticeable changes within InSang's Korean dialogue?  I'll never know.     A fine point for discussion in a future Film/Drama Course/Discussion somewhere.

 

PS:.... I'm going to hit Submit Reply now, because the site is acting very "unstable" now, but it could just be me. I'm tired now.                  Good Night, Everyone.     

 

                           

                             

 

 

 

 

[valsava]

I will miss our theme song and this drama on monday's

[mdj101]

Some final memories I have from the ending of the Drama: 

Bom and InSang playing with that adorable baby on the bed in Bom's room. The baby we've seen from practically a newborn  to approximately 3 months of age!  The sparking eyes and the smiles and gurgling laughter from the child (a little boy?) as he turned and gazed smiling toward each of them in turn. And the way "Baby Han Jin Young" laughed, reaching up and patting Lee Joon's cheek!       Testimony to the warm relationship developed in this important trio,  and a reflection of the warm, cooperative  spirit of the entire cast and crew which grew over the 3 months filming of HITTG.   Children and babies are usually pretty honest and spontaneous with their feelings. 

And Ko Ah Seung was beautiful, sophisticated,  and  gracious at the Awards ceremony.  Exuding self-assurance even with the simple, modest, graceful lines of the black dress she chose for the event. A young 22 year old actress could be forgiven for flaunting her youthful good looks in a colorful or strikingly avant-garde dress from a famous "Name" fashion design house.   While the back of her gown, from the collar line to the waist, appeared to be fine net over bare skin, I would bet cash money that underneath was a flesh-color lining of an expensive fabric to match the gown.  Amazing young woman!   And I must say the same for that equally classically dressed gentleman, Lee Joon. Two young actors to watch  in the future.    I wish them both Good Luck in the future!     

 

[Gasenadi]

@tessieroo - Thanks for the research on Confucious, law and gender beliefs.  I appreciate it, especially given the intelligence with which this drama is written. Yes, those questions about the law education reforms were important for me to understand because of what it says about the world the drama represents.

That said, the issue I think transcends cultural divides (and makes legal reform in the age of globalization even more important). It speaks to how huge, prestigious law firms TWIST the law to favor corrupt clients' practices and how those practices have consequences in regular workers' lives. Since regular everyday people do not have access to corporate lawyers defense teams, those corrupt practices continue unaddressed for generations and become institutionalized, "respected", even, in certain powerful circles. It happens all around the world, and we have seen it. What keeps me coming back to Korean drama is how many kdramas do not hesitate to bring some of those issues to the forefront, especially after tragedies in which lives are lost. (Many good whistleblower Western movies, my favorite is "Runaway Jury"; I LOVED "Silenced" and "Unbowed" from SKorea!!)

About the gender issues, here again patriarchy is alive and well all over the world, even in those very same countries where "feminism" was born. We only need to look at statistics to know where women are ranked in poverty, job discrimination, domestic abuse. 

My heart did not bleed for Mama Han weeping after what IS said. I'm hoping she was shocked into realizing she was wrong: she had told SB she had "won" over her husband, and now knows that she really has NOT won. She has actually lost, a lot. I'm hoping that realization is what's making her cry, but I'm not holding my breath. She might never realize it.

And King Papa Han, despite outward appearances, is soooooo busted as "The Emperor Has No Clothes". He likes to think he controls everything and everyone around him, but he doesn't. Plan A turns into B, into C, into D.  LOL!  Love it!! Hilarious!! 

[eyjooniesh]

finally this soompi forum has made it to 200 pages *clap3x 

thank you baduy for sharing with us the Duet 2012 movie with Ko Ah Sung ^^ 

Ko Ah Sung and Lee Joon both had starred in hollywood movie, Snowpiercer and Ninja Assassin respectively. So proud of them, i ve watch both movie and Lee Joon speaking english is Wow to me, he totally worked extra hard for it and it paid off. here the flash back scene which got LJ as the younger Raizo (adult Raizo acted by Rain Bi). this movie is totally awesome!

 

 

 

 

sorry i post flashback 3 twice, dunno how to delete it 

 

 

[mdj101]

@eyjooniesh:...Stunning videos!  Powerful and very impressive!  Thank you for these videos. 

 Lee Joon is one of the young rising actors I would like to follow closely.  Amazing that I will have the opportunity to watch so many of these young actors as they develop their careers.  There will be the good dramas/films along with the "not so good ones", as these actors stretch and take calculated risks  while working at their craft/art  .

I definitely will watch NINJA ASSASSIN some time soon.

PS:... while viewing the final episode (#18) of LET'S EAT 2, I caught a little "nod" or "tribute" to our Drama  in a line of dialogue by the heroine, exiting an office building after receiving a large "cash advance" for agreeing to write  a Big CEO's Biography (who wants people to know HIS life story) and she dances around, gleefully exclaiming her happiness at this windfall,  she never knew this could happen to her, since  "I only HeardI It Through A Rumor"..???   EDIT:...at 48:47 min.

Actors seem to send these little messages of support to each other frequently, but since I do not know Korean, I must miss lots of them!

PS:... Popping in and out to see any news about the drama, cast and crew!      I look back from time to time at  forums of dramas I have liked.

[Gasenadi]

GENTE! (People, my peeps)

You'll never know how deeply grateful, awed, respectful, and ecstatic I feel to have lurked for over one hundred pages of this forum. You all confirmed my LOVE for kdrama. It might be overrun with mass produced drivel and product placement and kpop idols, but there ARE still gems to be found and thoroughly relished.

As others mentioned previously, I am profoundly appreciative of those Korean language experts who so graciously (sometimes hilariously) enlightened the rest of us. I agree if it hadn't been for them the delicious nuances writer-nim had for us would have been lost. Gracias, mil gracias.

I feel like I've been mesmerized by the HITTG Liberation Army, thoroughly brainwashed, and never want to return to RL. However, the grandcuties call. And there's always SLA to see for the first time. I'm soooo excited!

Hasta pronto.

 

 

 

[eyjooniesh]

@eyjooniesh:...Stunning videos!  Powerful and very impressive!  Thank you for these videos. 

 Lee Joon is one of the young rising actors I would like to follow closely.  Amazing that I will have the opportunity to watch so many of these young actors as they develop their careers.  There will be the good dramas/films along with the "not so good ones", as these actors stretch and take calculated risks  while working at their craft/art  .

I definitely will watch NINJA ASSASSIN some time soon.

PS:... while viewing the final episode (#18) of LET'S EAT 2, I caught a little "nod" or "tribute" to our Drama  in a line of dialogue by the heroine, exiting an office building after receiving a large "cash advance" for agreeing to write  a Big CEO's Biography (who wants people to know HIS life story) and she dances around, gleefully exclaiming her happiness at this windfall,  she never knew this could happen to her, since  "I only HeardI It Through A Rumor"..???   EDIT:...at 48:47 min.

Actors seem to send these little messages of support to each other frequently, but since I do not know Korean, I must miss lots of them!

PS:... Popping in and out to see any news about the drama, cast and crew!      I look back from time to time at  forums of dramas I have liked.

​you are most welcome, wow the way  you said you have the opportunity to watch this young actor as they develop their career in the acting world sounds like you are on vacation or something, i'm very happy for you!   me also want to watch these two rising actors Lee Joon and Ko Ah Seong appeared together in next project, movie or drama probably, i bet it will be great looking at the amazing chemistry they had! and it will be much greater if they are in the next project of HITTG duo partner PD Ahn  and Writer Joo, wow cant wait for it to be true! i wish so

[quockhanh45]

 

FMV

[Guest je_amourx]

Does anyone know what brand and model is Bom's cellphone? I've been searching everywhere and cannot find it. Thanks.

[Mico Ricco]

Gil Hae-yeon aka Kil Hae-yeon won the Best Supporting Actress award in the 4th APAN Star Awards.  Surprise win. 

[Mico Ricco]

Lee Joon won the Excellence Actor award under the Feature-Length Drama category in the 4th APAN Star Awards.  Wow!

[munirdbsk]