[Drama 2015] Answer Me 1988 응답하라 1988

[MissMarva09]

Hiya everyone! 

 

I just wanted to pop in again, and pimp out my new fic! It is again TKXDS, but it's more of just DS's POV as more and more people catch on to her secret relationship and what she learns from them.

 

I hope you like it, and if you do, I'd love to have a line dropped. Also, I love constructive criticism!  Have a lovely day

 

Catching on

[trvasohy]

12 hours ago, __jesse said:

Welcome Home, Taekkie

I'm not here for the shipping war. I don't care about that because the drama has ended; the war is over. But I can't rest until I'm done sorting out my thoughts on this brilliant drama and what the writer hoped to communicate. This character analysis of Taek has become far too long for one post. So, here’s the first part.

 

MOD EDIT: Do not quote pictures.

Great findings!! I think that's why the tagline of this series is 'My last love is family'

[unkyung]

2 hours ago, cinziar said:

anyone knows if there will be in the future another reply?

 

I would think there would be. With the high ratings tons of money was made.

[nearsea]

Hey guys! Presenting a new 'Q&A' session from @packmule3.Feel free to take any points from here and do tell if all these sound plausible or not.Comment what's your take on her post and she can maybe do the next session based on the insights.Here it goes:

***********************************

Questions and Answers.

Question 3: But, according to some shippers, the main OTP is Bora and SW. They say that their couple is more important than DS and TK because their wedding was the one shown. Is this true, packmule3?

Answer: Consider the source.   

I firmly believe that people who say that Bora and SW are the OTP of the show simply because their wedding was one of the main features of the episode have a MINIMAL understanding of this writer. They’re similar to that crowd who say that the scriptwriter didn’t know the husband till end. They’re talking through the hats.  

These people don't get the character of DS as the scriptwriter intended it to be. But the irritating part is, they cling stubbornly to their shippers’ ideas and argue ad nauseam instead of rewatch the episodes with an analytical mind. 

Seriously. They have no business keeping scorecards on who's-more-important-than-whom, when they can't even tally up the POINTS properly.  Let me help them. 

Look here: What was the whole POINT of Episode 1? Family dynamics.

DS was the middle child. She felt short-changed. She didn't get the egg; she got the beans. She didn't get the chicken leg intended for her; she only got the wings. She didn’t get that special Olympic ice cream treat; she got the tub of ice cream instead. She didn't get to celebrate an 18th birthday party [a special milestone!!] of her own; she had to share it again with Bora. She didn't get her own cake; she got a recycled one. She’d been asking for her own celebration; they ignored her request.  She said they treated her like a joke, like garbage. She wailed that nobody loved her because she was always getting the short end of the stick.  “Woe is me!”

Do people see now where the writer was going with this? Should I stop now and let the people think this through on their own? Do JH minions still think I'm delusional now? I only read the script, folks. 

Look again: What was the whole POINT of Episode 20?

Episode 20 was the bookend of Episode 1. Of course, the theme here would be family dynamics, too. But now, the perspectives had changed. 

DS was still the middle child but she didn’t feel ignored anymore. She knew she had a special role to play. She mediated between the two proudest members of her family. She saw that his dad’s shoes didn’t fit but her father didn’t want to hurt his oldest daughter’s feelings. Thus, she fixed the problem herself quietly. 

She bore no resentment that her sister was getting married first and that she had to delay her own wedding plans. That night of the dating scandal? She opted to calm people’s nerves rather than upset them. She put their needs before hers. This wasn't anymore like the birthday parties where she sought to have attention just for herself.  

She didn’t begrudge her sister’s happiness while she sacrifice her own happiness for a little bit longer. She comforted her sister who was having a hard time. Just like when she told TK not to show up at her father’s retirement party, she wanted her sister to have the spotlight on her wedding day.

Do people see now the intention of this writer? 

Bora and her father exchanged emotional letters because of their inability to verbally express their feelings. But DS had always known of her father’s feelings for her, too. They had heart-to-heart conversations with each other. 

For instance, her conversation with her dad in Episode 1 was the equivalent of the father-of-the-bride conversation. DS' father told her how grateful he was to have her as his daughter and how apologetic he was for being lacking as father. He even alluded to her future marriage. “When my DukSeon gets married, how will I live? I’ll be so miserable.” To which DS said, “I’m not getting married, though.” He replied, “You shouldn’t say things like that.” lol. 

The older and wiser DS already knew that she would have her own day to celebrate her marriage. She no longer felt that her family was treating her like garbage. She didn’t have to fight for attention anymore because she was the middle child. 

You see, she had GROWN UP. She’s become mature. In Episode 1, she said, “in the end, what helps overcome obstacles isn’t brains but someone who’ll take your hand and won’t let you go.” At that time, she was referring to her father whose hand she held on the way home because she was still her father's daughter.

But in Episode 20, she meant Taec. Taec's hand was the hand who wouldn’t let go of hers. She didn’t mind any more being the middle child and the second daughter now because she knew that somebody loved her and that she loved him in return. She was secured in her spot because she's found her place with Taec.

Do people understand this now?

THAT’s why it doesn’t matter one bit that Bora and SW had their own wedding, instead of DS and TK. The scriptwriter was NOT at all playing favorites here. lol. In the grand scheme of things, the BR-SW wedding is merely the icing on the cake. You see, the SUBSTANTIVE union of the minds and hearts of TK and DS had already occurred.  

TK and DS were the happily married couple being interviewed in Reply 1988. 

Question 2: But did Taek look like the Future Husband? He didn’t. They just changed his hairstyle at the end to make it appear as if he was Taec all along. This scriptwriter is really forcing this TK as a husband.  

Answer:  lol. Does adult NoEul look like the 1988 NoEul? Adult NE was the complete anti-thesis of NoEul. He was short and squat. For some reason, he reminded me of my ottoman, while the younger NE reminded me of my barstool. 

The appearance of Adult NE should have alerted people that the writers were trolling the “looks”. It’s a misdirection. Rather than focus on the looks, I told people to focus on the conversation. There were snippets of the past in the conversation. Like this:

In 1989, TK brought a banana to DS’ house and NE joined them. DS and NE had a conversation about his appearance. 

DS: How is it possible that you're getting older than our dad?

NE: It's okay. A face like mine becomes younger later on.

TK said nothing but he smiled at DS as she wiped her brother’s dry skin. 

In 2016, NE visits DS and TK, this topic of aging is brought up again.  

DS: How is that you look younger by the day? [addressing NE]

TK: [defending NE] He finally looks his age, that's all. It took me ten years to speak informally to this punk.

See the loop? Of all the guys, TK was the only one who knew the joke about NE looking too old for his age because he overheard it. He was the only one who could defend NE and reassure him that "it was okay."

Besides, NE hero-worshipped TK. And TK wasn't that type of guy who'd put him down. Of the guys in that neighborhood, NE liked JB and TK. NE bonded with JB especially when they found out that they had each other for manitto.  

NE and JH were just not that close. JH largely ignored NE and he threatened to chase after NE when he refused to give the gift to DS.

There’s also the ginseng. The 2016 NoEul passed by their apartment because DS was giving him ginseng. Back in 1989, DS gave him half a banana with him. What’s the connection? Ginseng is expensive, and older people value it because of its anti-aging properties. NoEul is old already. Bananas was expensive, too, at that time. And they’re given to children like Jinjoo and NoEul because they are nutritious.

The scriptwriter interspersed Inside Jokes throughout the script.

@shooastrid "encircling = TK = baduk >>>> linear = JH = Chinese checkers". 

[cinziar]

@unkyung thanks for your answer

 

[cinziar]

@nuckertuck gosh is beautiful!i am sorry to bother you but i hope you will really continue with the story is so good,thankyou

[Guest ktiminie]

Our gang in Phuket

 

[saguer]

I'm quite impressed with Kim Joo Hyuk, He actually uses most of his left hand since ep. 2 (just like Taek is left handed) till the end, holding a cup, etc. The actor himself is right handed. JH is right handed, We should have a clue back then since ep. 2...lols. 

[john100]

5 hours ago, trvasohy said:

@john100

again, i don't think you should be generalizing that all the fans think the romance is sucks, and the response their getting is all bad. The ratings were soaring high and if only you see the comments on dc and naver tv cast there are lots of good response too. Eonamtaek is also trending on twitter the day the final episode airs. Sorry for keep clarifying, it just ticked my conscience hehehe. Glad you enjoyed the family parts! There are lots of people that were blinded by the way romance goes, and forget all the good things happened in this drama

iam just posting what iam reading on all those sites.. and my personal view on it.. if iam wrong, my bad..

anyway it was still a fun show to watch.. (drama with really a perfect cast.. everyone fit there role.. you really dont see that in any other drama) casting was amazing.. 10/10 for casting

 

ps: i also dont think the writer changed the husband,, it was taek from the beginning.. koreans really love their pure and innocent characters..

the only thing i dont agree with is the furture husband that is supposed the be the teak.. thats a personality switch and that just doesnt happen

anyway now the wait begins for the next reply series..

[princessman]

Go Kyung Pyo and Ryu Hye Young (Sunwoo and Bora) were awarded Best Chemistry by Daum voters

(I think they excluded Dukseon's loveline).

I can't help but ship these two  I could never kiss my best friend the way they did on-screen  And kyaaaaaa their couple outfits at the wrap-up party is too adorable. They got alternating stripes 

I can't tell if they are still in character or not.

Here is the clip 

http://tvpot.daum.net/clip/ClipView.do?clipid=73908035

Here is the full interview in case anybody can translate some parts 

http://www.newsen.com/news_view.php?uid=201601211707269110

 

[rembrandtz_5e20]

Let me say this outright, DS is NOT a character that merely serves as a love interest of JH or TK, she has her own coming-of-age story to tell. And I think @packmule3's latest post rightfully pointed out how DS has grown up in the 20 episodes. 

Remember how from Episode 11-15, DS changed her name to SY? On hindsight, I think that chapter of her story was to show how lost she was in the search of her identity and her self-worth, and others' label of her. Coincidentally, that was the peak period of her 'crush' on JH, which ended in EP15, where we see the gradual awakening of DS. 

Being constantly labelled as stupid and feeling unloved as the middle child, DS had clung on to the hope that changing her name to SY will change her 'fate', and that getting a boyfriend meant she was SOMEBODY to someone. So we saw her insisting on being called SY, rejecting her real self (DS), and resorting to all kinds of cuteness to get the attention of JH. DS was losing herself. 

But by EP16, she had moved on from JH, and after her mom had the parent-teacher meeting in school, she decided to focus on her studies. Added to that, what did DR tell her? She doesn't need to wait for someone to love her, SHE can decide to love someone too. What was happening in DS's school and in her 'love life'  at this stage? She was learning that her future lies in HER OWN HANDS. If she wanted to get into university, she has to work hard on her own, not rely on getting better luck by changing her name. If she wanted to love, she has the right to decide whom she loves, and not resort to pretensions to get a guy to like her.

And the wonderful part about the writer, is that she does not resort to preaching to get her message across. So we saw the little details in EP19 & 20 (as mentioned by @packmule3), on how DS has grown up, and in her own terms. Even the restaurant scene in EP19, where she helped TK order porridge, showed not only how thoughtful she was for TK, but that she was no longer the 999th place DS of old. This girl was reading off the English-Chinese menu and had everything figured out, while TK the Genius was scanning back and forth the menu and did not know what the heck was going on!! (ok ok...he quit school since young, so he didn't pick up English).

Through his family and his love story, JH completed his development from 'not yet human', to a complete, and if I may say, an almost perfect human. So too for DS, who completed her metamorphosis by Episode 19. 

Many of us fail to see beyond the loveline, partly because we've been so 'brainwashed' by typical Kdramas where the love story IS everything, and the characters merely exist as the love interest and nothing else. But in Reply1988, the characters are much more realistic and multi-faceted. In real life, we are not defined just by who we love, but who we choose to be.

[FayeChang]

http://www.soompi.com/2016/01/21/reply-1988-set-to-be-torn-down-instead-of-being-preserved-as-a-tourist-attraction/

Gee, this makes the ending even more bitter sweet for me! It reminds me the reason why the neighborhood I lived in got torn down.... to make way for "future" development.

Watching this drama makes me feel like I was going through my growing up phase again.

[Grace1003]

@_jesse, @luluponyazn : I just love your insightful posts! Rewatching the series to do a more thorough and detailed critique of the drama plot and sub-plots. :-) 

Hope we can have more dramas with solidly written scripts, full of layers and nuances, not to mention, brimming with beautiful insights about LIFE!

[rainsnow]

3 hours ago, princessman said:

Go Kyung Pyo and Ryu Hye Young (Sunwoo and Bora) were awarded Best Chemistry by Daum voters

(I think they excluded Dukseon's loveline).

I can't help but ship these two  I could never kiss my best friend the way they did on-screen  And kyaaaaaa their couple outfits at the wrap-up party is too adorable. They got alternating stripes 

MOD EDIT: Do not quote pictures.

Thank you @princessman

Sun Woo ~ yaa

Seriously this is cuteness overload... my Sun Woo and Bo Ra are so good together. I was so happy when the first time I knew that these 2 people are friend in their real life. I really love the clip of their first meeting for script reading, I repeat it many times... hahaha. I hope GKP and RHY wil do another project together again (CF maybe, or drama..haha)

Congratulation for Bo Ra eonni and her stalker LOL

[athie_aza]

7 hours ago, saguer said:

I'm quite impressed with Kim Joo Hyuk, He actually uses most of his left hand since ep. 2 (just like Taek is left handed) till the end, holding a cup, etc. The actor himself is right handed. JH is right handed, We should have a clue back then since ep. 2...lols. 

 

Actually Kim jo hyuk is left hand too...

[jeijei]

Annyeong, chingu. Welcome to the newcomers! *confetti* *taekkie's toothpaste ad-worthy smile *

A reminder to those who aren't familiar with the Soompi forum rules and our Kdrama section rules. Specifically, 

> Do not quote pictures/videos.

> Avoid bashing and other forms of rude behavior towards the drama cast/staff and forum members.

> Stay on-topic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jyj2015]

Major withdrawal. I keep rewatching and I think it was Taekki all along! <3 But I wish there was more closer with all of the characters.....

[beldaran]

On my re-watch... and I think I'm being biased on episode repeats :x

A few more thoughts on this round... I apologize if somebody else (or everybody) has brought this up before...

• Who asked to date first? Taekie! In 1988... but, lol. Deok Sun didn't think he liked her yet when he called her on the night of the first snow...
• *sigh* If only Dong Ryong got half as much story as Jung Bong-hyung... I think that with watching and re-watching, I just want to know more about them because I somehow wish that I'd been part of their gang. XD;;
• Thought it the first time... but the interview must have something to do with Bora... or Bora-Sun Woo. At one point, Deok Sun said her husband was only doing the interview because Bora had asked him to.... but with the theme of "Youth"... this can't be about the makings of Bora, Korea's top prosecutor. Still a mystery. But, I suppose that's ok. The interview was a means to an end; it was just the vehicle to memory lane.
• My husband refuses to watch this with me. ("It'll probably just make me really sad. Then I'll get mad at something that happens.") He happened to walk by in front of the TV, and he did a double-take on adult No Eul. "Does his hat say SWAG? *lol* *walks away* *double take* *points at the side of No Eul's hat* 'Every night is the perfect night. Smoke weed.'??? Haha. I want his hat." :x
• Jung Hwan and his nosebleeds... Taek and his headache and sleeping pills.
• I know, I know... we've all said it so many times. "This show is about family, not so much about the husband hunt." It's like we keep repeating it to convince ourselves as much as each other  Jk. Something I didn't think too much on: If this had been a conventional romance-focused drama, Taek and Deok Sun's "first date" at the movies should have been shown with full effect on how Taek waited for her and how he was around her until he fell asleep, etc. I think the show just pretty much focused on conflicts and major milestones. The drama spent a lot of time on Jung Hwan's bleeding heart because it was conflict.. his internal conflict... his inability to express his feelings. Taek was pretty much always straight forward and didn't really have any conflict with his emotions or with Deok Sun personally throughout most of the show. We mostly saw the toll his work took on him and later got some insight on his love line when he encountered conflict in discovering that Jung Hwan liked Deok Sun as well. The cute moments aired for Taek were mostly milestones (the beach as a precursor for telling the others how he felt), etc. Maybe this is also why we saw little of Dong Ryong's story. He had one conflict: loneliness because he doesn't get much attention from his parents. Aside from that, his life was pretty set. The show didn't care t elaborate too much where there was barely a hint of a problem.
• Timeline notes 
  1971 - The core 5 are born.
  1978 - The gang becomes a gang of five
  1979 - I think it was in second grade when Jung Hwan dreams of becoming a soccer player? (I could be misinterpreting the notebook.) Deok Sun takes up wrestling... *ahem*
  1981 or 1982 - Taek turns pro at the age of 11. 
  1983 - Jin Ju is born
  1983 or 1984 - Taek becomes the youngest ever to win a world title at 13. 
  1985 - Kim famiiy (or Jung Bong) wins the lottery.
  1986 - Sun Woo's dad passes away. The gang should be in 9th grade... last year of middle school, according to the Korean education system. Jung Hwan decides to become a fighter pilot,
  1987 - Jung Bong-hyung has the 10-hour heart surgery. Thankfully, they were well-to-do by this time. The gang enters high school. Taek supposedly has his middle school diploma, but didn't finish high school. They're still in 9th grade through early 1987... so he quit sometime between mid-1987 and the start of the show... still pretty recent then.
  1988 - start of the show... the gang is in 11th grade, turning or having turned 17. they start another school year in 1989, so we know they weren't seniors in 1988. Taek turned 17 on October 1988; Sun Woo (and Deok Sun) are a little older than him (September), but same year. Other birthdays: Dong Ryong in January (he must be the oldest), Jung Hwan in March.
  1995 - Sun Woo and Bora get married
  1996 - Taek and Deok Sun get married
  Did I get anything wrong?
• I don't think there will be any more epilogue. XD; The gang is on vacation... and at least Ryu Jun Yeol is signed on to his next project already. 
• I agree with @princessman about RHY+GKP and kissing best friends, lol. 
• I kinda want more of sassy Jin Ju, haha. I love how she's close with both of her brothers. *squee*

 

Anyway, I'm continuing on with my random episode watch. It's hard letting go. I want to get to know these friends better. (DVDs, come to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...)

[saguer]

2 hours ago, athie_aza said:

 

Actually Kim jo hyuk is left hand too...

nope.. he is right handed.. I saw his clip signing autograph with his right hand. See his interview on youtube. 

[melleri]

 

@beldaran  About the interview, DS said "unni" asked me to do it.  Some people (maybe correctly?) suggested the unni in question was not Bora, but the fanclub president from so long ago. Or it could be any older woman. Though Bora was there, so maybe she did ask.  I agree though, I don't think it really matters why they did the interview.