[Drama 2015] Answer Me 1988 응답하라 1988

[monsterlife]

@packmule3 wow, that is very detailed. I cannot help but agree to your points why JH is the husband. I am just shock how much detail you put in on Taek's first love. Gosh my taek-ds heart cannot help but hope more. 

[MrsSoJiSub]

8 hours ago, athie_aza said:

If JH really become a doctor and goes in same hospital like trash oppa there will be 3 doctor Kim rite. Kim Jae Joon (trash), Kim Jung Hwan and Kim Joon Ki aka Michael. Haha...

What is with this team and the love for Kim lol. I know it's a very common surname but can't they throw in some Lee's or something. I about died when in R94 I found out all the men were Joon something. Seriously, of all the men in all of Seoul she just happens to live with everyone named Joon....

[NRGchick]

One thing I have always enjoyed is reading the posts of everyone with different perspectives. I don't think I have ever been  in a drama thread where no shipping has taken place. Many shippers would give their reasons why one character should be with the female lead and there are usually discussions about the main male lead and the second male lead.  The second lead syndrome. The only problem here is that we are not too sure who is the second lead. I remember reading early on that SW was probably the husband ( since he has a lot of dramas under his belt) and he seemed the obvious choice until his love for his noona was revealed. Park Bo Gum aka Taek is also well known after completing I remember you but he was not an obvious contender until the snowfall and movie date request. He kinda snuck in there (LOL)

As for Ryu Jun Yeol, I admit I was clueless about who he was and glad I 'discovered' him through this drama. He is really expressive and if you watch him carefully, he actually expresses many emotions through his eyes and his overall body language and posture. 

However, I think Jin Joo might be feeling a bit left out. 

 

[hushhh]

26 minutes ago, packmule3 said:

As promised –

The main arguments for JH:

 

It was Taek.

 

Convincing evidence nicely reasoned.

I'm going to go with the argument that has PICTURES and specific examples, and suits my particular bias.

[monsterlife]

Can you just imagine, Taek pining for DS for god knows how long? There is no flashback to tell when and if jh is the husband I will probably not get one. It must have stung whenever DS treats him like a little boy. And then now, knowing how his good friend feels about DS before his d-day(confession), it must have hurt a lot. I still condone the pill popping but Taek's heartbreak!!! DS is like his battery, his energizer after a long day's work. And it is just sad that he gave up his chance to be with her.  

[Guest wizengamot]

50 minutes ago, packmule3 said:

 8. First love. Many viewers think that the male character who loved the girl first or longest should get the girl in the end and that’s why they root for JH. 

Personally, I think this is the weakest argument for three reasons. First, the definition of FIRST love can be vague, and kdrama writers have been known to play around with this concept.  In the conventional definition, first love means the male character has never felt this way before towards any girl; he’s love-struck for the FIRST TIME. Infatuation and puppy love fall under this category of first love.  

However, in terms of significance and impact, first love can also mean that encounter when he was MOST affected and MOST changed by his feelings for the girl. It goes beyond puppy love. Even if the guy suffers from a heartbreak, the first love will always be remembered. Finally, in terms endurance and strength, first love can mean the GREATEST love. It might not be first, earliest, most memorable and most painful love, but it’s the love that lasts forever. It’s “first love” because the guy, for the first time in his life, is willing to endure all things for this love of his for all time. 

As you can see then, first love isn’t so cut-and-dried so I personally wouldn’t use this as a yardstick to determine the leading male. 

Furthermore, in this show, the person who loved DS first – meaning, earliest and longest -- was the person who didn’t speak much in the first couple of episodes. lol. Didn’t anybody else *see* that? 

It was Taek. 

 

this is DAEBAK!!!

And I really like your three definitions of FIRST LOVE. basically, DS is TK's first love in terms of time. I guess we have yet to see the first love in the second and third category. The same goes for JH, i'd like to know who was/is/will be his first love based on those 3 definitions.

Anyway, I've been wondering who filled/ fills/ will fill the three categories of first love in DS heart. I mean, i'd like to see who is DS first love in terms of time (is it SW?), then I'd like to see who is her first love in terms of significance and impact, when she was most affected and most changed by her feelings for the boy. And lastly, i'd like to know who manage to be her greatest love (not the first, earliest, most memorable and most painful love, but it’s the love that lasts forever) 

[Phuong Tam Nguyen]

7 minutes ago, hushhh said:

Convincing evidence nicely reasoned.

I'm going to go with the argument that has PICTURES and specific examples, and suits my particular bias.

 

@hushhh hahahaha =)) LMAO, your post is so witty :)) 

Because the middle portion is cut off, so the post reads "As promised - The main arguments for JH: It was Taek" =))

[Wendy Wang]

After watching episode 16, I feel like the time skip is most likely in the next episode. 
1. Bora's heading to study for the bar exam 
2. Taek had his last competition and won 
3. No Eul's career is pretty much decided 
4. They talked a lot about what their dream jobs were 
5. The emotional music and slideshow at the end without any preview 
 - This could just be because they didn't finish filming yet, but the slideshow and ending was quite different from the usual: 
Sudden stop with the last frame which they didn't have 
The slideshow with the sad song which they normally don't have 
We'll probably be getting the missing scenes such as the MBC Singing Contest through flashbacks

[carolinedl]

http://www.allkpop.com/article/2015/12/go-ara-clarifies-rumors-of-reply-1988-cameo

No cameo planned as of yet. Not that they would said it anyway...

[ena_teo]

@packmule3 freaking love your analysis!!! I know, so many signs point to JH being the main lead BUT I want Taekie to be the husband, SO BAD. I mean, who can bear to break this guy's heart???

The scene where he had the talk with his dad and want his dad to be happy? Seriously, Taekie and his dad will go down in drama history as the most compelling father and son relationship in 2015. So much love.

I can completely relate to everyone who is wanting to see some kind of development between DS - JH/TK, i mean, we've had enough of JH and TK giving way to the other! It's seriously so frustrating, they should both just go all out and let DS decide! At least we can see some action, rather than lack thereof and poor DS just being so out of it and wondering what the hell is happening.

So sad that we have to wait 2 weeks before the next episode! T_T

[hushhh]

2 minutes ago, Phuong Tam Nguyen said:

 

@hushhh hahahaha =)) LMAO, your post is so witty :)) 

Because the middle portion is cut off, so the post reads "As promised - The main arguments for JH: It was Taek" =))

Serendipity

I was just wanted to shorten the post.

but the truth will out.

[lalilaa]

Hi All, i'm new here, eventhough i've already lurking on this thread and both shipper's thread since ep.3 to catch on live recap & news. Just wanna say thanks so much to all of your posts, since it's really helping me a lot 

Anyway, i already hooked up with r88 since ep.1. This drama really warms my heart in each episode. I really love all of the families and each characters since they have their own quirks.

For the husband thingy, i'm okay whether DS ends up with anyone, because i believe the writer will link up all the clues somehow anyway with whoever-the-husband-is (no matter how hard we're now linked it up and make any sense of it to match up with someone from the two candidates).

Anyway once again thank you all 

[carolinedl]

2 hours ago, packmule3 said:

 

 

8. First love. Many viewers think that the male character who loved the girl first or longest should get the girl in the end and that’s why they root for JH. 

Personally, I think this is the weakest argument for three reasons. First, the definition of FIRST love can be vague, and kdrama writers have been known to play around with this concept.  In the conventional definition, first love means the male character has never felt this way before towards any girl; he’s love-struck for the FIRST TIME. Infatuation and puppy love fall under this category of first love.  

However, in terms of significance and impact, first love can also mean that encounter when he was MOST affected and MOST changed by his feelings for the girl. It goes beyond puppy love. Even if the guy suffers from a heartbreak, the first love will always be remembered. Finally, in terms endurance and strength, first love can mean the GREATEST love. It might not be first, earliest, most memorable and most painful love, but it’s the love that lasts forever. It’s “first love” because the guy, for the first time in his life, is willing to endure all things for this love of his for all time. 

As you can see then, first love isn’t so cut-and-dried so I personally wouldn’t use this as a yardstick to determine the leading male. 

Furthermore, in this show, the person who loved DS first – meaning, earliest and longest -- was the person who didn’t speak much in the first couple of episodes. lol. Didn’t anybody else *see* that? 

It was Taek.

But DS is JH's first love too.

I actually think that what you are saying about first love applies to JH equally.

[Eichhoernchen]

OMG. Jo In Sung treats all staff and actor of reply 1988. I thought it was random but then again he is bff with sung dong il. Look at all the food

http://www.soompi.com/2015/12/29/jo-in-sung-treats-reply-1988-cast-to-a-buffet/

[Meliere]

On 12/29/2015 at 8:31 AM, wasted_youth said:

For a moment let's see this from a 'neutral' perspective. Let's not argue about DS's current feelings because different shippers see things differently. We will see more of that in the upcoming episodes.

If this series has 30 episodes, I'd say there's still a chance if the writer wants a twist and make the girl falls for another guy. But we're already at ep 16. Watch carefully the development from ep 1 until now. With that kind of build up, with Deok-sun still unaware of the truth about the shirt and does not know JH actually has feelings for her, tell me how the can writer just forget about all of this and make Deok-sun falls for someone else? Yes a writer can make a twist in her story, but it must be consistent with the whole plot. With 4 episodes left and not to forget this drama is a family-friendship focus, they don't have much time for that. If they want to make her fall for Taek, they will need to address and solve a few things — the shirt misunderstanding, JH who has yet confessed to DS, about how JH will react when DS choose TK, how the friendship changes later. The fact that the writer has spent so many episodes focusing on Jung-hwan's feelings/point of view will make it even harder for them to solve those issues, whether there is a time skip or not. If this was a series with 4-5 seasons, then yes, any endgame would still be possible.

All I know, this triangle will end once these two pabo talk or kiss haha. Remember, she still likes JH (I'm sure we all can agree on this, she's not 100% crazy for him like he is for her but she still has that feelings), the only thing that stopped her from 'pursuing' JH is because of the stupid misunderstanding. You may say Taek stands a chance in the future, but please give me a proper development. If they can solve everything and write things without lacking in continuity in this remaining 4 episodes, why not. But if you ask me based from what happened so far, I don't think so.

With all the things that have not yet been settled, it will be ridiculous and OON if Lee Woo-Jung suddenly wants to change the direction of the romance.

I’m usually a lurker on the main thread, but the word “neutral” in your post drew me like a moth to a flame. And since you discussed episode structure, story flow, and narrative direction (given outcome A or B, is our story going to be logical?), I thought I’d chime in.

A preliminary note: though I’m bunkered up in Taek’s room, I do also love JH. Mad props to Ryu Joon Yeol's talent and charisma (and yes! I find him super sexy!). Also, a million bananas to the writer for a wonderful show. I’m not really a kdrama watcher in that I finish maybe 1-2 series a year, and usually do so with my brain completely shut off (let’s be real here .. you can’t exactly think your way through the 100^th double wrist grab or chaebol-financed ‘plain Jane’ makeover). R88 is the first kdrama that’s made me so excited—heart and mind.

I appreciate @wasted_youth's call for us to step back and examine the larger picture. I think this is a germane, important point. As shippers we all get so excited we put on night-vision goggles and start digging in the dark for secret clues. While aforementioned goggles are fun—who doesn’t love a good whodunit mystery?— it is somewhat useless. Ultimately, DS & TK won’t end up together because his gate is freakin’ green, nor will DS & JH marry because of a blurry LMY picture glimpsed in a school scene. IMHO, the dolls and color theory are complete trolls put in by the PD for shitz and giggles.

I’m a complete fangirl when it comes to discussing underlying form and structure in art-music-fiction …  (omg .. like how the Fibonacci sequence plays a role in formal harmony/proportion in Renaissance art, or how a Beethoven symphony is organized around the sonata form, or how writers like Hawthorne or Nabokov stack their chapters in clear building blocks.) sorry to ramble … please bear with me. 

Anyway, I find Lee Woo-Jung much improved as a writer this round. Looking at the story presented, I do think she’s trying to do something interesting and sophisticated with the episode structure. My notes on this subject are too long/boring to post, but here’s a simplified version (that’s focused on shipping alone):

• Episodes 1-2 [2 eps] – Exposition (i.e. who what when where why); key characters and themes introduced.
• Episodes 3-6 [4 eps] – DS→SW, JH→DS. DS’s teen-girl crush on SW explored (“all I can give you is candy/heart” present, post cards, intense determination, cute dressing up / primping / aegyo). JH’s crush on DS explored (alleyway, bus, back-hug, trench coat commercial, and umbrella scenes). TK →DS hinted. TK enters the husband ‘race’ end of ep. 6, while SW is eliminated from the pool.
• Episodes 7-10 [4 eps] – JH→DS, TK→DS, both JH and TK’s feelings are explored with equal weight. DS is a participant in these scenes, but she does not develop romantic feelings for either boys … until very end of episode 10, when she confirms JH’s feelings, and that brings us to the next arc—
• Episode 11-14 [4 eps] – DS→JH (JH→DS on hold). DS’s cute, determined nature again comes to the fore, as she goes after JH. Ep. 11 was full of JH/DS goodies. Yet starting from ep. 13, decreased screen time for JH. TK→DS developed- we learn about the depth of his feelings. Also, DS-TK bond/friendship/whatever is developed and explored.
• Episode 15 – 16 [2 eps]-  A period of transition. DS→JH ends (in that she’s not actively pursuing him anymore, though arguments could be made for her still having feelings), TK→DS continues but is put on hold at the end of ep. 16. DS emerges as an individual (college struggles, DR’s pep talk, decision to fight for college after all). Hints of possible DS→TK.

• Guess how many episodes are left? 4 chingus. 4 again!

So we can see from the narrative arcs that the episodes can be grouped into a 2-4-4-4-2-4 sequence. (OR depending how the last 4 play out, it could be 2-4-4-4-4-2).

I find this episode grouping/structure totally elegant, smart, and balanced. Go writer! Regardless of whether DS marries JH or TK, I think it’s a disservice to the writer, the show, and other viewers to call the story “ridiculous” or “out of nowhere”. Lee Woo Jung has clearly thought long and hard about what kind of a narrative she wanted to create, and has built her episodes in an organized and logical fashion. Any subsequent conclusion or ending will have been carefully planned from the beginning.

Also, enraged accusations of the story being “slow / stagnant / boring", just because Main OTP did not do X Y or Z, make me blink. Said statement could be true if Answer Me 1988 was in fact entitled "Answer Me Love Triangle" or “Answer Me Kim Jung Hwan” (I’m so sorry, guys, truly. But think about it). I would argue neither JH nor TK holds the “key” to the triangle. DS. Deoksunie is the key. In this sense she is pure heroine and oh-so-awesome. The episode structure is in fact in pace with DS’s emotional changes and growth. Let’s revisit the 2-4-4-4-2 sequence:

•        2 episodes to establish DS as the kind-hearted & determined 999^th place middle-child
•        4 episodes of her crushing on SW
•       4 episodes of her being “neutral”, all while spending time with JH & TK in a level ‘playing field’
•        4 episodes of her crushing on JH
•        2 episodes in which she re-examines her heart, steps back, grows as an individual, and sets her heart on college

Similarly, it is DS who signals shifts in the narrative:

•       End of ep. 6, when her crush on SW is terminated
•       End of ep. 10, when she discovers JH’s feelings
•       End of ep. 14, when she rescues class president, ends her pursuit of JH, and considers DR’s words of wisdom

 Now tell me how is the story ‘lagging’? The 4-4-4 episode blocks reserved for “SW-neutral-JH” is fair and balanced … While I felt sad for JH & TK when they both angsted over the love triangle, my heart truly wept when DS held onto her mother’s sleeve and asked, trembling, if “omma had given up on her.” Guys guys guys.. DS is not a child bride. Rather than ship her hard with anyone, my primary desire is to see her grow, see her mature, and see her fight for her education. At 18, that’s what matters. One day, she will fall in love independently. Once she sets her heart on her guy, I’ll be rooting for her.

--

Now that I’ve covered DS, I want to go back to the shipping / love triangle for a moment. I want to point out that R88 does not have an “obvious” main OTP, nor an “obvious” direction of the romance etc.

I’ve already pointed out the 4-4-4 episode evolution of her feelings. Given her crush on SW and JH are mirror images (4 eps each, initiated via suggestions of girlfriends, presents/primping/aegyo/dressing up, hunger for affirmation/self-esteem/validation), the 4 episodes remaining (ep. 17-20) is a balanced & logical length to conclude the evolution of her heart (i.e. another 4 episodes to conclude the 4-4-4 episode sequence).  It could go both ways:

•       4 episodes to show that her feelings for JH will grow from crush to genuine love
•       4 episodes to show she has always loved TK

Both outcomes are logical, given the prior setup. Arguments of “but, but, but, JH-DS has been developed since the beginning” is not really fair or valid. Technically, JH-DS hasn’t happened yet. Neither has TK-DS. Instead we have JH→ DS for 14 episodes (ep. 3- 16), and TK→DS for 11 episodes (ep. 6 – 16).  But even this isn’t a clear indication of romantic “direction”: R88 heavily employs non-linear story telling— although TK “entered the game” in ep. 6, who’s to say he hasn’t loved DS longer? (@packmule3 has already written about this point at length, and also refer back to ep. 2’s childhood flashback). Same argument could be made about JH's feelings.

@chickfactor has also pointed out that R88 does not have a ‘Chilbong’. I cannot agree with her more. JH is not Chilbong. Tk is not Chilbong. Neither of our boys will get chilbonged this round. Why? Because the writer respects both characters, and has surrounded both with warm family and friend narratives. Not getting the girl at the end of the day is NOT a big deal (seriously, girls … who was your first love? Are you married today to Mr. First Love?). So please, shippers, calm down and enjoy the show. Regardless of whether DS marries JH or TK (or commits polygamy), let us appreciate the fact that this time the show has been smartly developed. Let us acknowledge that R88 features multiple OTPs & multiple forms of love, and that some people aren’t even watching it for JH-TK-DS. Let us stop calling each other ‘delusional’. Also, there’s no need to scream at the screen and demand that the writer crawl on her knees for 100 miles in the desert and beg for forgiveness should your chosen husband turn out not to be the husband.

[toera]

@Meliere

Amazing post. I only have a minor disagreement: a viewer is allowed to find something boring, there's no real correlation between quality and interest. It's allowed to say that you found an episode too slow compared to others, mostly because it's about how you felt. It's not always OTP related, sometimes it's just personal preference. Nor an enraged hysterical attack on the writer.

My point of view for example  is that  at least twenty minutes in the last episodes was spend on the participation in the KBS contest, which was humorous (at times hilarious) and told us a thing or two about the parent's relationship and NL's singing and developed nothing else. If the same amount of time was spend on TK's dad baseball skills and the stoxk exchange the episode would be over.

 

[Meliere]

On 12/29/2015 at 4:02 PM, toera said:

a viewer is allowed to find something boring, there's no real correlation between quality and interest. It's allowed to say that you found an episode too slow compared to others, mostly because it's about how you felt. It's not always OTP related, sometimes it's just personal preference. Nor an enraged hysterical attack on the writer.

I absolutely agree with this, and apologize for my strong wording. It's not my intention to "moralize" or be shrill. We gravitate towards these dramas because at the end of the day, we enjoy them. And the enjoyment itself is a highly subjective experience. What "clicks" for one viewer may be boring or aggravating for another. 

I need to clarify though: my original comment does not intend to "tell" people how to enjoy a show (that's your business and your agency as a viewer). Rather, my point is about respecting the main thread as a common space, distinct from 'shipper' threads. A lot of the comments I saw on the main thread directed vitriol towards the writer, the show, other otps (BR-SW, JB-MO, papa bear-sunyoung) for neglecting or taking up screen time from 'main OTP'. And this entire time I've been confused as to who or what is the *main* OTP. 

[hushhh]

1 hour ago, Meliere said:

I’m usually a lurker on the main thread, but the word “neutral” on your post drew me like a moth to a flame. And since you discussed episode structure, story flow, and narrative direction (given outcome A or B, is our story going to be logical?), I thought I’d chime in.

A preliminary note: though I’m bunkered up in Taek’s room, I do also love JH. Mad props to Ryu Joon Yeol's talent and charisma (and yes! I find him super sexy!). Also, a million bananas to the writer for a wonderful show. I’m not really a kdrama watcher in that I finish maybe 1-2 series a year, and usually do so with my brain completely shut off (let’s be real here .. you can’t exactly think your way through the 100^th double wrist grab or chaebol-financed ‘plain Jane’ makeover). R88 is the first kdrama that’s made me so excited—heart and mind.

I appreciate @wasted_youth's call for us to step back and examine the larger picture. I think this is a germane, important point. As shippers we all get so excited we put on night-vision goggles and start digging in the dark for secret clues. While aforementioned goggles are fun—who doesn’t love a good whodunit mystery?— it is somewhat useless. Ultimately, DS & TK won’t end up together because his gate is freakin’ green, nor will DS & JH marry because of a blurry LMY picture glimpsed in a school scene. IMHO, the dolls and color theory are complete trolls put in by the PD for shitz and giggles.

I’m a complete fangirl when it comes to discussing underlying form and structure in art-music-fiction …  (omg .. like how the Fibonacci sequence plays a role in formal harmony/proportion in Renaissance art, or how a Beethoven symphony is organized around the sonata form, or how writers like Hawthorne or Nabokov stack their chapters in clear building blocks.) sorry to ramble … please bear with me. 

Anyway, I find Lee Woo-Jung much improved as a writer this round. Looking at the story presented, I do think she’s trying to do something interesting and sophisticated with the episode structure. My notes on this subject are too long/boring to post, but here’s a simplified version (that’s focused on shipping alone):

• Episodes 1-2 [2 eps] – Exposition (i.e. who what when where why); key characters and themes introduced.
• Episodes 3-6 [4 eps] – DS→SW, JH→DS. DS’s teen-girl crush on SW explored (“all I can give you is candy/heart” present, post cards, intense determination, cute dressing up / primping / aegyo). JH’s crush on DS explored (alleyway, bus, back-hug, trench coat commercial, and umbrella scenes). TK →DS hinted. TK enters the husband ‘race’ end of ep. 6, while SW is eliminated from the pool.
• Episodes 7-10 [4 eps] – JH→DS, TK→DS, both JH and TK’s feelings are explored with equal weight. DS is a participant in these scenes, but she does not develop romantic feelings for either boys … until very end of episode 10, when she confirms JH’s feelings, and that brings us to the next arc—
• Episode 11-14 [4 eps] – DS→JH (JH→DS on hold). DS’s cute, determined nature again comes to the fore, as she goes after JH. Ep. 11 was full of JH/DS goodies. Yet starting from ep. 13, decreased screen time for JH. TK→DS developed- we learn about the depth of his feelings. Also, DS-TK bond/friendship/whatever is developed and explored.
• Episode 15 – 16 [2 eps]-  A period of transition. DS→JH ends (in that she’s not actively pursuing him anymore, though arguments could be made for her still having feelings), TK→DS continues but is put on hold at the end of ep. 16. DS emerges as an individual (college struggles, DR’s pep talk, decision to fight for college after all). Hints of possible DS→TK.

• Guess how many episodes are left? 4 chingus. 4 again!

So we can see from the narrative arcs that the episodes can be grouped into a 2-4-4-4-2-4 sequence. (OR depending how the last 4 play out, it could be 2-4-4-4-4-2).

I find this episode grouping/structure totally elegant, smart, and balanced. Go writer! Regardless of whether DS marries JH or TK, I think it’s a disservice to the writer, the show, and other viewers to call the story “ridiculous” or “out of nowhere”. Lee Woo Jung has clearly thought long and hard about what kind of a narrative she wanted to create, and has built her episodes in an organized and logical fashion. Any subsequent conclusion or ending will have been carefully planned from the beginning.

Also, enraged accusations of the story being “slow” and “stagnant” and “boring” make me blink. Said statement could be true if Answer Me 1988 was in fact entitled "Answer Me Love Triangle" or “Answer Me Kim Jung Hwan” (I’m so sorry, guys, truly. But think about it). I would argue neither JH nor TK holds the “key” to the triangle. DS. Deoksunie is the key. In this sense she is pure heroine and oh-so-awesome. The episode structure is in fact in pace with DS’s emotional changes and growth. Let’s revisit the 2-4-4-4-2 sequence:

•        2 episodes to establish DS as the kind-hearted & determined 999^th place middle-child
•        4 episodes of her crushing on SW
•       4 episodes of her being “neutral”, all while spending time with JH & TK in a level ‘playing field’
•        4 episodes of her crushing on JH
•        2 episodes in which she re-examines her heart, steps back, grows as an individual, and sets her heart on college

Similarly, it is DS who signals shifts in the narrative:

•       End of ep. 6, when her crush on SW is terminated
•       End of ep. 10, when she discovers JH’s feelings
•       End of ep. 14, when she rescues class president, ends her pursuit of JH, and considers DR’s words of wisdom

 Now tell me how is the story ‘lagging’? The 4-4-4 episode blocks reserved for “SW-neutral-JH” is fair and balanced … While I felt sad for JH & TK when they both angsted over the love triangle, my heart truly wept when DS held onto her mother’s sleeve and asked, trembling, if “omma had given up on her.” Guys guys guys.. DS is not a child bride. Rather than ship her hard with anyone, my primary desire is to see her grow, see her mature, and see her fight for her education. At 18, that’s what matters. One day, she will fall in love independently. Once she sets her heart on her guy, I’ll be rooting for her.

--

Now that I’ve covered DS, I want to go back to the shipping / love triangle for a moment. I want to point out that R88 does not have an “obvious” main OTP, nor an “obvious” direction of the romance etc.

I’ve already pointed out the 4-4-4 episode evolution of her feelings. Given her crush on SW and JH are mirror images (4 eps each, initiated via suggestions of girlfriends, presents/primping/aegyo/dressing up, hunger for affirmation/self-esteem/validation), the 4 episodes remaining (ep. 17-20) is a balanced & logical length to conclude the evolution of her heart (i.e. another 4 episodes to conclude the 4-4-4 episode sequence).  It could go both ways:

•       4 episodes to show that her feelings for JH will grow from crush to genuine love
•       4 episodes to show she has always loved TK

Both outcomes are logical, given the prior setup. Arguments of “but, but, but, JH-DS has been developed since the beginning” is not really fair or valid. Technically, JH-DS hasn’t happened yet. Neither has TK-DS. Instead we have JH→ DS for 14 episodes (ep. 3- 16), and TK→DS for 11 episodes (ep. 6 – 16).  But even this isn’t a clear indication of romantic “direction”: R88 heavily employs non-linear story telling— although TK “entered the game” in ep. 6, who’s to say he hasn’t loved DS longer? (@packmule3 has already written about this point at length, and also refer back to ep. 2’s childhood flashback). Same argument could be made about JH's feelings.

@chickfactor has also pointed out that R88 does not have a ‘Chilbong’. I cannot agree with her more. JH is not Chilbong. Tk is not Chilbong. Neither of our boys will get chilbonged this round. Why? Because the writer respects both characters, and has surrounded both with warm family and friend narratives. Not getting the girl at the end of the day is NOT a big deal (seriously, girls … who was your first love? Are you married today to Mr. First Love?). So please, shippers, calm down and enjoy the show. Regardless of whether DS marries JH or TK (or commits polygamy), we should use our brains and appreciate the fact that this time the show has been smartly developed. Let us acknowledge that this show features multiple OTPs & multiple forms of love, and that some people aren’t even watching it for JH-TK-DS. Let us stop calling each other ‘delusional’. Also, there’s no need to scream at the screen and demand that the writer craw on her knees for 100 miles in the desert and beg for forgiveness and offer a 10000-word explanation why your chosen husband was not chosen by another girl named Sung Deok Sun.

 

I so love this.

i'm teaching script analysis next semester 1/16. Do you want Skype  in and do a guest lecture. 

Unfortunately no Korean dramas is on the syllabus, just plays from the American (mostly) Realism canon. 

You can do some math on Angels in America:Perestroika.  LOL

[nearsea]

So the writer is a she? I was not aware of this.Now it seems like trash could be basically writer's love of the life lol.It kind of solidifies her penchant for first loves,because she is a girl.But this is only my personal opinion of course.

[GreenTeandSASHIMI]

http://www.soompi.com/2015/12/29/jo-in-sung-treats-reply-1988-cast-to-a-buffet/

What is the meaning of this?? Maybe Jo In Sung is the adult version of someone in 2015? Hehehe speculations... Speculations.. Watching AM1988 is making me so overanalytical