[Drama 2015] Answer Me 1988 응답하라 1988

[123konica]

8 minutes ago, melissala said:

That end sounds terrible.  Not sure I believe it, but what we got was better.   I couldn't have taken that happening to the Kim family.  Nope.  

A lot of people say so and I guess this might be one of the reasons the script was changed (in fact, cut off) lol :))) - in case they actually did something to the original script :))).

[hushhh]

1 hour ago, 123konica said:

I've heard of another version for the finale lately. Anyway the drama actually ended, but the feeling of incompletion, emptiness and rushness i've been experiencing for the last 24 hours after watching ep 20 makes me share it with you. It was a spoiler elsewhere after ep 19 aired (and was deleted right then). And this is how the story goes:

 

  Hide contents

1) Based on a true story: a young pilot whose surname is Kim died in an air crash while trying to fly the craft away from a building. He was under 30 then, had a brother with heart issues (just like JB) and their parents were preparing for 30-year anniversary. So (according to this source) originally Kim Jung Hwan was destinied to die. The kiss scene at the airport with DS, the parents' wedding, the flashback when he secretly cared for his first love, etc are imaginations and recalls at his last minute.

2) About how Taek finds out DS's secret about her first love with SW, it was revealed by JH when Taek came to see him at the camp. Acc to the spoiler, T came and spent a night there with JH, they talked about DS, her feelings for SW at first, when T started his feelings for DS (then comes the flashback of childhood as seen in ep 20). JH gave Taek the ring, telling him to care for DS and give it to DS on behalf of him (that's why someone here and there sees something inside DS's pink sweater - in the scene she greeted Taek at the gate and they hugged - it's supposed to be the ring, she wears it with her necklace). The ring wasn't left unanswered as we have been wondering all the time!

3) A week later (after Taek's visit), Hwan came home. SW and BR dating was unveiled. The parents protested while the children supported them. Taek and DS went out for movie, holding hands and kissed (DS kissed T to the cheek and he smiled :))). DS came in and see Hwan, he intended to say something to her but hesitated, instead told her that he wished her happiness; she wished him the same,

4) The night Hwan came back to the camp, mother Mi Ran suddenly felt uneasy and anxious. She cried right after the moment he's gone (like how we saw in ep 20).Father Kim comforted her and the old couple talked about JB-JH childhood.

5) The accident happened. JH died in the crash. Mother Mi Ran fainted, JB had a heart attack, Taek cancelled a baduk competition, DS came back from Japan. The block suddenly became dreary. The mothers cried, hugging eachother. The fathers sadly sat together, drank wine and sighed. Mother Mi Ran didn't cry, staring at the sky. The children looked older. Taek hugged DS when she was crying, BR leaned on SW's shoulder, both crying. DR was the host of the funeral, did not cry, looked like a really grown-up man. JB made a lot of blue paper planes with his and his brother's face on their wings. Mi Ok was beside him then. DR silently stood before Hwan's photograph, cried and shouted at him, remembering every moment between them since they were kids then went to school etc.

The narration goes: "The ones we love will not be with us forever. Someday they will surely leave us. Through loss we grow up" (or something like that).

After the funeral, the block was still flooded with sadness. Mother Mi Ran was ill, sleepless and talked less. She often dreamed of JH coming back at night, woke up and went to the living room to wait for him(as a scene in ep 20). Father Kim woke up with her and they sat there for a very long time.

7) DS worn the ring with her necklace as a memory to the past. (Taek gave it to her after the funeral).

8) SW and BR decided to get married. While BR's mother seemed unapproved, mother Mi Ran told her: "Let the children do whatever makes them happy, we can't be with them for the whole lifetime." Then the wedding took place without JH's attendence (of course!). DR, as the host, introduced a blank chair beside Taek as JH's seat, and in every wedding then, they will leave him a chair so that he can share the happiness with them. The father-daughter issues solved, everyone (and the blank chair) took a photo together.

9) After a match in China, Taek came home and the doves (Taek-Sun) met at the gate (as in ep 20). Taek told DS that he was introduced to a very beautiful girl that day, but he was busy looking after his cat which is cruel and jealousy but very pretty, that's why he couldn't go out with that girl. DS pinched him, telling him that he recently has become more soapy. He said "I am normally a man. Do you want to be Mrs Choi soon by provoking me like this?" (haha cheesy). Then he said with seriousness that it's time they changed their relationship status.

10) T & DS came to visit JH's grave, brought him white daisy and informed him of their wedding in Jan. They also told him about their family moving out due to the clearance plan, SW became a baby sitter :))), JB and MO on honeymoon, DR is dating and opened more restaurants. They recalled it when they announced the wedding to their parents, DS's appa and omma were overjoyed, repeatedly asked them if Taekie had been forced and terrorized to get married with DS (sheep sound and DS stupid face). The friends didn't surprise at all. DR said: "You two always hold hands and hug in the front gate, we're not blind not knowing anything." :))

11) The families really moved out. Mother Mi Ran stood in Hwan's room, father Kim led her out. Ssangmundong was abandoned, Taek's room door's open and we see again the gang watched a movie together - as the last scenes on ep 20 last night.

 

According to the source, too, when asked to change the script (that's why we had ep 17 delayed), the writer didn't want to change the ending, thus she just cut the scenes related to the accident. This means, she just didn't mention the accident, yet whether it happened or not remains unanswered.

 

It's really a complete and fully answered ending to me. Though it's sad, but such is life.

 

A small detail i've been wondering since the very first episodes: the Kim family suddenly won the lottery and their life changed - but they didn't have to exchange anything for it. To my opinion, there's no such thing like a grant from God. It's always trade-off. To escape from poverty, the Kims should have exchanged something as trade-off - and the bigger the prize is, the more precious thing they will have to pay - in this case (well i'd rather not say - it's so painful).

 

 

Interesting.

Curious to know if the public confession was suppose to happen in this version.

From what getting from reading this the husband hunt end game never changed just the trajectory of one character. and I might have missed something, but is doesn't seem that DS changes in this change of scenarios

 

[123konica]

3 minutes ago, nearsea said:

@123konica I am sorry I really had to ask where did you find this piece of info? I feel like someone is trying to sabotage the script/the writer/and the drama with these kind of news.This seems utterly ridiculous.I do not find any coherency in those passages.The writer who has calculatively and with care written the story for 16 episodes,won't go makjang route all of a sudden,.

@nearsea told ya I heard of it eslewhere and because of the incompletion and rushness I feel in the last episode, I just share it coz I find it reasonable somehow. It's your rights believe it or not, I'm not trying to do anything but sharing a point of view. Just consider it as a fanfic, or I'll check if it violates the forum's regualtions, I will delete it. Thanks anw.

[melleri]

13 minutes ago, nearsea said:

@123konica I am sorry I really had to ask where did you find this piece of info? I feel like someone is trying to sabotage the script/the writer/and the drama with these kind of news.This seems utterly ridiculous.I do not find any coherency in those passages.The writer who has calculatively and with care written the story for 16 episodes,won't go makjang route all of a sudden,.

Some stuff I could see make sense, but most sounds like pure fanfic.  The ring under the shirt for example. That was just the pattern of her sweater.  The airport kiss was also not even real.  If it were real, we would have gotten pictures.  JH is also made the center of the story there, and not the Sung family.  Not sure I buy it. 

@hushhh  .   Nothing changes, but it explains why JH was ignored.  But JH has been ignore for awhile sadly.  Wishful thinking to me.  I don't see how they had time to do that AND the wedding.  The wedding would have always have been the finale. 

[odiaz]

@123konica i love this version too much. even if JH's dead, but it feels very complete. all of my questions are answered. 

it's very thoughtful. i even cry a river reading that. the blank chair, the ring and especially this narration "The ones we love will not be with us forever. Someday they will surely leave us. Through loss we grow up" (or something like that).

if this really their first script for ep 20, i think they really made a mistake by not doing so. i can understand how DS and TK came together. but, i think there's more to be told from this drama. maybe they saw how the viewer of this drama love JH so much so they just dont want to hurt us more. but i'd prefer they did this than leaving us completely blind about JH's future.

after reading your post i started to believe this version as the end.

[blue_angel_1004]

@123konica

I can tell right off the bat that that supposed ending is fake, and written by a non-Korean at that.

First, a wife doesn't take her husband's surname in Korea so the whole being Mrs. Choi makes no sense. 

Second, no one presides a Korean funeral. So  the fact that they have DR doing that makes no sense. 

Third, just as the parents did not believe it possible that TK and DS would date, that would have been the reaction of the friends as well. That was just the kind of relation that these people on the block had with each other. 

[melleri]

Thanks @blue_angel_1004 I feel better.  One thing I could not take is JH and his family having a fate like that. That would be too upsetting.  

 

[MrsSoJiSub]

I don't know who quoted me here because I don't remember posting this here but the most important highlight to me is this: RJY cried and sincerely thanked all the fans for the out pouring of love he got. He read all the "confession" messages on his Instagram and such and he's really thankful and grateful for the messages. He's happy/thankful/grateful that he could convey his character and have it receive so much love and support. Most importantly he's thankful for all the love and so many wanting him to be the husband as he did LOL but he asked fans to be accepting of the end they got and move on. Everyone seems to be aware of what the majority of the fans felt (well they are being pretty vocal) and he mentioned the writer and team's (I don't know the right word exactly so I'll use this one) disappointment that the husband and husband hunt is receiving more attention/articles/comments, than the family and friends aspect. Move on.

I hate to think the cast like Hyeri or PBG (I really hope he wasn't at the confession filming poor puppy would cry so bad) are getting any type of hate. It's been a day and I'm over it LOL. I guess I needed to see the real life actor (RJY) talk about so I'm reminded "oh right they just fictional characters". If they flipped or not. Planned it all along or not, had an alternative ending or not where they killed my cold pit bull marshmallow (b u l l s h i t on that fanfic); it changes nothing and we got the ending we got. 

Imma keep my trust issues  still be jokingly bitter with me mates,and continue building me a snowman. Also I really wasn't joking about the mean girl and "bye b**** gifs? Is there a place on the Internet where I can make it for myself?

ETA: Jung Woo my Oppa-ya also go married this weekend!?!?!  *clutches heart* this the big one. I'm coming Elizabeth. This is a weekend that shall  be memorialized....

[lyonesse]

How could anyone, especially JH fans, prefer that kind of ending instead of the real one? I get that some of you annoyed for the lack of JH presence in the last episode, but prefer the  "alternate ending" where he died on the crash is just too much.

JH is a precious and lovely character, and he deserves all kind of happiness in his life. I guess the writer decides not to show his future in order to provide an open ending that can be interpreted freely by the viewer. And i'm so happy that the writer does not give him a 1 minute sudden encounter to random girl just like what they did to chilbong, because Jh deserves so much more than that. Who knows the writer already plans a spin-off, the story of JH in finding his true love. It's sounds impossible, but a fan can have a little hope right?

[nearsea]

17 minutes ago, melissala said:

Some stuff I could see make sense, but most sounds like pure fanfic.  The ring under the shirt for example. That was just the pattern of her sweater.  The airport kiss was also not even real.  If it were real, we would have gotten pictures.  JH is also made the center of the story there, and not the Sung family.  Don't buy it. 

And JB has good luck.  I don't think he has to "pay" anything for winning the lottery.  

Yeah sounds like fanfic to me too.Also there are reference of paper planes,and SW-Bora's wedding.*So they just picked the keywords from here and there..

''The kiss scene at the airport with DS, the parents' wedding, the flashback when he secretly cared for his first love, etc are imaginations and recalls at his last minute. ''\

Also this  line looks problematic to me.It seems like someone tried to give JH a better ending.But as the drama went on we got more TK-DS centric arc,and their story  had gradual developments.If Tk got to know about DS's feeling from JH then the story would look, again been done from JH's POV.In any case,I'm not sure if the writer would try to end the drama on a heavy note.And if JH really died would it have been possible to focus the rest of the episodes on a positive mood? =S Death in itself can be a key factor for changing course of incidents.Anyway I saw some twitter posts already based on the netizen news lol.So that's why wanted to know about the source of this news.

@123konica No problem.Internet is a huge place.It's too hard to check authenticity of any information.

[123konica]

12 minutes ago, blue_angel_1004 said:

@123konica

I can tell right off the bat that that supposed ending is fake, and written by a non-Korean at that.

First, a wife doesn't take her husband's surname in Korea so the whole being Mrs. Choi makes no sense. 

Second, no one presides a Korean funeral. So  the fact that they have DR doing that makes no sense. 

Third, just as the parents did not believe it possible that TK and DS would date, that would have been the reaction of the friends as well. That was just the kind of relation that these people on the block had with each other. 

Thanks @blue_angel_1004 coz I'm not a Korean either :D.

Another interesting point that proves this ending is fake is DS's introduction in the very first episode: "This is Jung pal - the dog. Not yet a human". I guess nobody says so about a person who passed away, right?

[otomame]

Yeah I really can't see that "original ending" being true either. On top of what blue_angel_1004 said, didn't the writer also say that she would never kill off a main character? I don't have a direct quote but I remember reading something along those lines. Such a sudden and dramatic death also wouldn't have suited the slice-of-life genre that Reply 1988 was following the whole time.

I do think it's a shame that Junghwan didn't have much of a presence in the last 2 episodes but in my eyes, episode 18 was already Junghwan's personal final so that episode 19/20 could be focused on completing the love lines.

LOL @ the staff not even informing the cast members of the husband though. I guess they really didn't want any possible spoilers leaking out so they couldn't even trust their own cast

[toera]

I think it's a shame not to have any info on the families (parents I mean), JH and DR  in 2016. Maybe something was mentioned apart from buying papa Sung shoes in the future and I'll read it in the subs. Characters don't end with the love lines in a family drama. and cause of the parents age I'd like a mention in 2016. (I guess all those hospital scenes are to blame for this comment, and that beautiful, sad last scene.)

[Intimate]

Lol, I've been wondering how the actors were going to react when they found out for a while now. I'm going to assume the actor who played JH is grateful and happy for the experience.  Even if it was rough for him temporarily, his career is surely better off for taking the role. Before  this , it looks like he had only a few works.  Considering  how popular he was with the fans, his chances of being cast in an important role or as leading man is much better than it was before he took on Reply 1988. Wouldn't be surprised at all if he's getting lots of job offers already.

[hushhh]

44 minutes ago, melissala said:

Some stuff I could see make sense, but most sounds like pure fanfic.  The ring under the shirt for example. That was just the pattern of her sweater.  The airport kiss was also not even real.  If it were real, we would have gotten pictures.  JH is also made the center of the story there, and not the Sung family.  Not sure I buy it. 

@hushhh  .   Nothing changes, but it explains why JH was ignored.  But JH has been ignore for awhile sadly.  Wishful thinking to me.  I don't see how they had time to do that AND the wedding.  The wedding would have always have been the finale. 

 

Some does sound like fanfic and it doesn't all line up logical/chronologically. 

But fanfic usually wants a different kind of change. Most fanfic would have Taek on the plane or the plane go through his hotel suite.

Spoiler

 I will say 1) when I saw JH choose the military I was uneasy.  But I am always uneasy when the best and the brightest join the military in dramas because they rarely survive. 2) When I saw JH on base in his jumpsuit he had the smell of death about him he exudes competence and inspired respect. In most drama that's the formula for your war dead or casuality.

 

[blue_angel_1004]

For those wondering about the future of JH, hopefully I can give you some closure... 

My uncle graduated from the Korean Air Force Academy and was a commissioned officer/fighter pilot in real life. 

Though many eventually leave the Aired Forces and work as a commercial pilot for major airlines, my uncle stayed in the military and went up the ranks. He eventually retired as a Brigadier General in the Korean Air Forces when he was in his 50s, and then after his retirement, he was later scouted to work for a major corporation where he worked at until his final retirement in his 60s. 

Even after his retirement, people respect him and call him General so-and-so wherever he goes. From his career in the private sector for 10+ years after leaving the military, he also accumulated financial wealth. 

Despite being a stern military man, he is totally whipped at home by his wife and a complete daughter babo. Theirs is the happiest marriage I've ever seen in my life. 

I envision that JH, like my uncle, would stay in the armed forces (as opposed to becoming a commercial airline pilot), move up the ranks, and gain respect and social status in his mid age. 

Though he failed in his first love with DS, he will use that experience as a stepping stone to next meet the love of his life. And like my uncle, JH will love and show his love to his wife with all his heart and his wife will completely and wholeheartedly love him back. And yes. I think JH will also have become a complete daughter babo. 

 

[Vannyah M]

So here i am. I needed some time to post my last goodbye here.

First of all team Taek congratulations ( this is not sarcastic congratulations). And team SWBR i am so happy for you guys, your pair had beautiful love story, development and  beautiful ending.

I was upset by this end but life goes on, i have no regrets of being in team JH and I am thankful to writers for giving me this beautiful character who definitely became my favorite male character in history of kdramas. As i`ve already stated in our thread i feel cheated by writers for few reasons: If i saw this story shown in episode 19 and 20 earlier in series i wouldn`t feel like stupid and blind fool! Story that was served to me was a story of KJH. I watched his character and his development since day 1, CTK was different person in the beginning from this person i saw in ep 19 and 20. To be honest if CTK was like this earlier i would`ve probably liked him same as JH, to me he was even really appealing in ep 17. I feel like i`ve been played because we were not given the opportunity to see CTK in this light never ever before final episodes from my pov  ( kudos to those of you who liked his character this whole time). I appologize for saying this i like PBG very much ( in fact i am his fan) he is appealing, charming and sexy but CTK was nothing special to me. I was kind of upset that i have not seen clousure for JH but in my head he is fine and moved on with his life. And he probably is not that close with TK and DS in future coz it would be pretty painful watching your first love with someone else for years, so that is why he is not shown in future.

I`ve liked family stories, and relations between families, relation between family members. I could relate myself 100s of times with some characters and was really touched by them. What I have learned from this series is that i really should cherish my family more, and especially my dad coz i have similar relationship with my dad as Bora and appa Sung. It was fun watching this drama all this time, i`ve said previously that i won`t watch next instalment in my despair but i probably will in fact i already am waiting for new one.

And p.s. Yaaaah ! Kim Jung Hwan is not grandma from ep 2 to be killed in the end. He is happily married with bunch of kids, maybe they can form whole football team LOL.

[unkyung]

Overall everyone should remember this. The reply series in general are not a makjang. The tragedies you see tends to happen in the past before the current story time to build the backstory for each series. Aside from the people marrying their first loves( which in general doesn't happen often) the story told tends to be more realistic vs dramatic.

 

on a side note: what with the Air Force acadmy in both 1997 and 1988.  It's a very specific branch of the military. I know th backstory within the dramas themselves. But why is the writer choosing Air Force.

[ena_teo]

I'm definitely suffering from Reply1988 withdrawal symptoms and I'll continue to check in occasionally for any Reply1988 cast updates. I foresee that Reply1988 will spawn an entire community and more in Korea and beyond. I will definitely be following each of the cast, kids and adults alike and their following works. I hope each of them get to ride on this high and get even greater works following. One thing for sure, we can be expecting a concert in March, although not the complete cast will be there and I'm hoping there will be online videos and articles after... Park Bo Gum won't be in the concert so I'm guessing this means he is already booked for his next acting project and we will be able to see him again soon. 

Concert news: http://www.koreatimesus.com/march-madness-reply-1988-concert-tickets-go-on-sale/

[hushhh]

8 hours ago, MrsSoJiSub said:

“You guys should really watch RJY's V-app it gave me some answers and was a nice final book end, Some highlights:

            RJY sincerely thought he was going to be the husband. Again no one told him this but that's what he thought and believed would happen. He said he doesn't know why he wasn't the husband neither LOL. He and PBG never talked about the husband game but him being it was what he thought/believed.

            He was informed he would not be the husband during ep 18 filming. A bit of time before the confession filming he was informed of this and he was genuinely surprised that he wasn't going to be the husband. He said episode 18 confession was his favorite scene and that he put a lot in it to try and convey how much Junghwan really loved Deok Sun.

            He and Hyeri had wondered and discussed when their first kiss would be

            He ranked the episodes and put episode 10 on low due to Taek's confession LOL”

 

I am sincerely sorry for cutting your post. (this is not my usual pro forma) I just wanted to focus on this.

I don't want to trigger an "I told you they changed it discussion" but this makes absolute sense to me.

Beyond keeping it a secret from as many people as possible so that you don't have the information slip out unintentionally, having the option of not telling the actors the end game is such a gift for the writer, director and them. [This is not an option when working on a play]

While these guys are trained professional sometimes when working quickly it is very hard to ensure that actors who know the end results stay in their moment and NOT play the ending. Therefore not having any of the actors know who would win meant that they were in the same position of their characters doing their best in the moment. It is the position we are almost always in in life. 

I wonder when (if ever) Taek/PGB was told he would be husband. And I hope DS/Hyeri never publicly state who she wanted to be the husband--which is different from staying who she thought would be the husband because in life many of us thought someone would be the husband when they ultimately wasn't .