[Drama 2018] My Mister, 나의 아저씨 - Best Drama at 2019 (55th) BaekSang Arts Awards

[justamom]

23 minutes ago, sadiesmith said:

Yay, more interviews, this time with O Nara, AKA the lovely Jung Hee:

http://news.joins.com/article/22668492?cloc=joongang|article|tagnews

http://news.joins.com/article/22668493?cloc=joongang|article|tagnews

http://news.joins.com/article/22668494

 

Could someone please translate the parts related to My Ajusshi?  Thank  you in advance!

 

 

 

 

I’ll try and get to it later if no one has by then, but two interesting points:

 

- Jeong Hee’s Bar. Fans are clamoring for one and Lee Seon Gyun actually said he would invest in it! She’s thinking about it.

 

- Sequel. She says it wouldn’t be the same and it’s better to leave everyone with lingering feelings....

 

NOooooooo

[sadiesmith]

21 minutes ago, maddymappo said:

Except that DH was supporting his family, the others may noise, but DH had the depths and gravitas that they followed.

Agreed.  No way could I see Dong Hoon as beta when Sang Hoon is the one behaving like a prepubescent male so much of the time. 

[mylovelystar]

 

Translation by iuteamstarcandy 

 

 

[reign143]

It would really be nice if we could get an interview of IU about MA even just one because I'm curious what's on her mind, IU is a deep thinker I'm amaze  of how she views things, but seems we couldn't get any, she seldoms get an interview but hoping she gets an interview though please jieunah.

[mylovelystar]

 

[akhenaten]

Spoiler

 

 

Hello guys! Stumbled onto this song from Thriving Ivory and the lyrics are so appropriate to Dong Hoon’s feelings for Ji An.  Go have a listen. 

[mylovelystar]

[Veronica Park]

K-DRAMA REACTION: MY AHJUSSI | EPISODE 15

It’s not up to me to ponder whether or not this is something worth crying about. If someone close to you is crying, you should just cry with them.

~ Park Ki-hoon

The Earnest Ahjussi has been constantly proving how kind of a soul he is. My Ahjussi Episode 15 centers on how Park Dong-hoon is giving Lee Ji-an the chance to redeem herself.

 

 

https://ahjummamshies.com/2018/05/30/k-drama-reaction-my-ahjussi-episode-15/

[popai5]

@Kimchi Sweet Potato I saw your kind post giving me credit for giving you an idea for your mv. I think you would have given us that great mv at some point even without my suggesting it! While watching MA I found that I needed more of it between episodes. So, I stumbled upon your wonderful videos as I searched the web. I'm grateful that I did. Your beautiful work kept my hunger satisfied and kept me going. Eventually I found dramabeans and then this soompi site. It's been soompi and your videos ever since! Thank you again for all your hard work!!!

[anipanch]

waiting for LSK and IU's photo together like

 

 

P.S. I hope the show anchor will ask few questions about my mister to IU in You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook

[mushroomsoupie]

http://abk.kcforum.co.kr/2018/research/

 

My Mister was not even nominated for the best drama category in the 2018 Brand of the Year Awards.. (Annual award held by Korean Consumer Forum, which celebrate the best brand that has been brightening the year in a variety of different industries.) 

 

Nominations: tvN's Secret Forest, KBS's Mysterious Personal Shopper, tvN's Mother, tvN's Live, KBS2's Shall We Live Together, and JTBC's Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food

 

If we're just talking about the ratings, even TvN's mother was lower than My Mister's... Wondering if this is because of the controversy surrounding the drama.   Hopefully this will not be the case in next year's Baeksang awards. They deserve to at least be nominated and even win.. 

[akhenaten]

2 hours ago, anipanch said:

waiting for LSK and IU's photo together like

 

P.S. I hope the show anchor will ask few questions about my mister to IU in You Hee-yeol's Sketchbook

 

@anipanch I honestly think the people in charge of the public relations for this drama are being extra careful because of the initial controversies surrounding it and its leads.  Honestly, I think it’s very stupid.  So what if there are photos of LSK and LJE together?  They were working together on the same project.  They were the leads.  And it wouldn’t be surprising if they became close during filming because duh.  

[fauna]

In this interview, LSK rates his fellow actor as being 90% in sync with his character in the A Special Lady movie as a prosecutor. He must think LJE really was perfect in her role, since he had said that she was 100% in sync with JA. High praise indeed.

 

[mushroomsoupie]

So according to this Oh Na Ra interview, the PD, writer, and casts will have a group meeting this Friday! Lee Sun Gyun suggested the idea.. 

 

 

She also mentioned that the My Mister chatroom is still pretty much active even though the filming is over.. I'm so happy to see the close bond between them. 

 

http://m.entertain.naver.com/read?oid=213&aid=0001039649

[Kimchi Sweet Potato]

5 hours ago, popai5 said:

@Kimchi Sweet Potato I saw your kind post giving me credit for giving you an idea for your mv. I think you would have given us that great mv at some point even without my suggesting it! While watching MA I found that I needed more of it between episodes. So, I stumbled upon your wonderful videos as I searched the web. I'm grateful that I did. Your beautiful work kept my hunger satisfied and kept me going. Eventually I found dramabeans and then this soompi site. It's been soompi and your videos ever since! Thank you again for all your hard work!!!

@popai5 This is one of the nicest things I have ever read. Thank you.

 

@mushroomsoupie They better give this drama an award. That's like the ultimate closure for me.

[TJ Starcandy]

1 hour ago, haengbokhaja said:

Okay! So I tried and tried and tried and TRIED!!! But I just couldn't stay away, just couldn't read and not comment...

This is the first time I am EVER commenting on a forum or a show.. seriously people, I am like the KING of silent reading.. I just observe from the sidlelines.

But since this drama has broken soo many cliches, have taken major steps to bring itself and others (us viewers) out of our comfort zone, then why not shatter one more norm and make ME step out of my "comfort observing zone" and actually participate for once?

So I would start of by saying that what initially attracted me to this drama was its discription, and its poster (the one in which IU is bruised), it just looked so different from all the other shows that I decided to give it a shot.

I started this show before the last two episodes came out and finished it about 5 or 4 days ago... I seriously cannot even remember the date when I finished it cause I am still in that phase... still reading forums, reviews, watching clips, and analyzing it in my mind. It feels like I still haven't finished that show, and I am pretty sure you all can relate.

I have NEVER in my life cried like that over a show! Yeah sometimes a tear or two would fall or I would even cry at a whole scene.. But a WHOLE episode? Never! But this time I even did that.. I think I started properly crying from ep 9, and have been crying up until the end of ep 16 (runny nose and all), and still cry if I watch a clip or something. I am surprised at how deeply this show has affected me.

So first of, shout out to the writer, director, actors, and the whole production team that helped make this drama into a masterpiece!

The cinemtography, the use of lighting, color, makeup, and the acting are done to perfection.

A drama is so much more then just acting, its cut scenes and cinematography play as much a role as the actors themselves and this drama displays it perfectly. Cause a setting, mood, environment of the scene is part of the act, it adds to the feel of the moment, and helps convey the emotions that the actors are feeling.

So thank you My Ahjusshi team for bringing this drama to us, I know it wasn't easy.

Now the thing that I observed (it is going to be long, but believe me, by the time you are done reading it, you won't regret it)

First of though shoutout to all the AMAZING people on this forum who have keenly analyzed this show, and kept providing us with all the hidddn hints that the director has put in for us. I appreciate it, and it made me appreciate the dram even more cause of you all.

So now the observation...

I read all your observations and they are marvelous, and since all of you have dig deep to analyze it, I decided to do the opposite. I decided to step back and take in the BIG picture.

This whole drama and all its characters symbolize something, one way or another, and that is the same for our two main leads, JA and DH.

DH symblozies a body/mind whose heart has died, and JA symbolizes that heart.

So let me make it more clear. As some of you pointed out that DH wanted to be selfish, he wanted to recieve in return and didn't want to only keep giving back, and didn't want to feel bad about it as well. All of these were his heart desires yet he suppressed them and his heart became devoid of life, similar to JA who is lifeless.

JA has same family values as DH, she belives in the same things, fight for the same things. She is straightforward though/she speaks her mind, and she is selfish just like how a heart is. Though she is lifeless. Just like DH's heart.

So when she wiretap's his phone and start listening in on him. She literally becomes a part of him. That scene symbolized that she just insterted herself in. The heart that was lost just found its way back, yet neither of them realize it yet. I think the way DH is very uncomfortable in the subway scene trying his hardest not to touch her as she implants the bug also indicates that something has just happened and that made him uncomfortable, albiet unconsciously.

Now what made this symbolism even more profound was the scene when DH goes to confront KI. Again as many of you pointed out, this is the first time he doesn't have a plan, yet his body/mind still compel him forward. This is also the first time that JA breaks down and cries, and later on DH says in JH's bar that it is first time in a long time that he actually felt alive. JA cried, someone fought for her, stood by her, she cried, freed herself in a way. Same way the first time she felt a little free, DH also felt as if he had come alive.

Another scene that added to this was when DH breaks down/confronts his wife. JA is at home, in a completely dark room (also remember that before when she used to listen to the recordings, there would be light in the room, bluish and very gloomy, though it was still light) this represents the darkness inside DH, and you would notice that the room is this dark usually only when DH is confronting a conflict, such as the talk with this brothers. Okay so moving on, the darkness in the room is the darkness in DH and JA is sitting inside that room with a little light illuminating her face (light symbolize slight opening/healing). JA representing the heart is crying and in agony with her Ahjusshi as he cries, and she feels the pain as if it were her's.

She is also in sync with his footsteps, breathing, which also leads to this indication.

Another profound scene was that when DH saw her from the window of the brothers cleaning truck. She looked at him with eyes that reflected the pain in his heart, other then his own heart she is the one other person that knows the true agony and pain that he feels. And he looks at her as if he almost came to that relaization as well.

Also DH, as he becomes more slefish start to adapt the quailities of JA. Confronting her and others, not backing down, telling her to buy him shoes, etc.

Also him saying that she is the reason he is breathing, leads to this indication.

Also the scene where she says that Ahjusshi I really want you to be happy and he says that he will be happy for her. Your heart is the only one that wants you to be happy, and selfish and not feel bad about it, and JA also practically begs him to be that way.

Also the line where he says that I know you and that's why what you do doesn't bother me. He looks so resigned in that moment as if he is done running and would just accept the truth, JA already knows it and accepted it, but he just now came to accept it. He is saying in that line that I know my heart, and I know you are my heart so since whatever my heart does wouldn't bother me, you cannot bother me either.

Also the scene where she starts running to the bus, DH looks at her and only then does he run. As if he was waiting on his heart. Also symbolizes that he is now following his heart.

Lets be happy. One cannot be happy without the other, just as the heart cannot be happy if its owner is not happy and vise versa.

Also in that last scene when he thanks her. He is practically saying thank you for being happy so I could be happy. If my heart wouldn't have been happy, how could I have stayed happy.

This show practically showed us that in healing other person, you heal yourself as well. Helping others you help yourself as well. Through JA we saw how Ahjusshi healed, and how in helping JA, he healed himslef.

That is also why I loved the ending so much. Because it stayed true to its characters. The kiss or anything romantic would've taken away from the pureness of their relationship.

JA and DH are not soulmates. They are actually a vital part of each other that was missing before. In DH, JA found her comfort/true home, and in/through JA, DH found freedom/happiness.

It was as if DH's heart took shape of a human and came into his life. That is why I don't mind it not being romantic, because you connect with your heart emotionally not physically. It supports you, comforts you and is by your side. Though in the most purset way.

Yet, I would've liked to see how the director would've made them have a romantic relationship while still keeping the show from turning cliche or dissapointing. Or maybe he would've handled it just like he handled the whole show and would've made a romantic relationship so unique to its characters, and so very uncliche, that all the romantic relationships in K drama land would've paled in comparison. I would've liked to see it.. maybe an extra/special episode or something..

What do you guys think?

 

Welcome to the ever lively My Mister thread. I am happy to read your thoughts about the show. Please feel free to share them as you may already know most of us here likes to geek out about the details. In your first point, The synchrony between DH and Jian was my initial attraction with this pairing. The aspect of their breathing, walking, and even when they smile together were so interesting to me while watching the show. There was something addicting about it. The mundane simplicity of their relationship and their sense of contentment just by being together. Nothing grand or flashy like any other k-drama stories out there. Sometimes it's the simplest things that have the most impact on viewers.

 

Episode 9 was a turning point episode because it was the moment Jian realized that she is in love with DH. I think she broke down and cried not only because she was touched by DH defending her against Gwang Il, but also the thought of him being physically hurt and in pain was too much to bear for Jian. Any woman would cry buckets knowing the man she loves is hurt and bleeding from fighting for her cause.

 

The definition of soulmates varies and can be individualized. In my opinion, DH and Jian are soulmates in that they are each other's missing piece, each other's home as what you have mentioned. There is no other option for them except each other. Otherwise, they will just both be contended roaming around feeling alone even when surrounded by people. DH and Jian will try to be happy but in the end will always have that sense of loneliness without each other. Their characters are written beautifully that way since episode 1. 

 

The PD and writer made a good decision in prioritizing the healing of the story because seriously both Jian and DH were broken people. I liked the ending because it's a fresh new start and both on equal footing. Although, I agree with you there is always a part of me that will wonder about the romance route.. the what if scenario..

[noor1]

On 5/29/2018 at 1:15 AM, chickfactor said:

Inchon Business

If It's Love, than even Phone-Tapping is ok? "My Ahjussi" should have been rated Age 19

[TV Review] Thoughts after Drama is Over

Kim, Sun-Hee

5/28/2018

 

Watching this drama, I felt like I was watching a swindler with his hand on my money pouch strapped to my waist. The drama’s problematic factors were clear, but when I watched without paying attention, it felt like the swindler’s hand reached inside my money pouch. No, at some points, I preferred to be deceived.

 

 

Thanks @chickfactor for the translation (and @sadiesmith for sharing the original link).

 

It's a good review. I like it, though I beg to differ. Of course, the writer Sun-Hee Kim is obviously coming from a particular perspective and background and sees the drama as subversion of females etc. etc.

 

-  "First, it was clearly the objective (of the drama) to show a romantic relationship between an adult man and a young woman." No, I don't think that was the main point (sorry shippers and non-shippers!), it was about unlikely 'last person to have empathy or anything common with you' respecting and liking and helping you becoming a better individual. The gender is there: he IS a man, she IS a young woman. So the way society viewed them together was through stereotypical lens and they defied that time and again, especially DH who persistently took her side because he is a good kind man. I still believe DH considers Ji-An as his non-monk female best friend and is happy he can still see her in restaurants at the end! He even told his brothers that he didn't want to thank her / praise her for how it would appear (especially since - he didn't tell his brothers - the 'little girl' likes him as a man and he starts to like her as something more too!) so he was always clear about how he saw her (and what he wanted from her, he's not a demanding fellow! Like he says in the end: 'Come by sometime and meet your former colleagues'!). But even if you are a shipper and believe that these two will end up in bed together sometime in the future, the fact is that no one would have questioned the relationship if Ji-An had been a guy. Then the dynamic, conversations, and everything would have a totally different meaning - so who is to blame? The writer or the viewers or the society that is used to seeing men and women as sex / love objects?

 

Edit: Okay I have to add one thing: the drama DID use sexual / sensual suggestive innuendos to frame DH and Ji-An scenes together. For e.g. the first time she eats in front of him, she picks a long nugget topped with white sauce and puts it in her mouth while he looks on. The waiting at the restaurant, forever staring at each other or looking for each other, romantic music in the background, all the frantic running, breathing, raised temperatures and was very suggestive of an under-radar amorous connection. Even when she gives him the gift (which was a very platonic, sensible gift for him, but got read as some kind of confession when he wore them later on as Director!) Even in the end scene of the last episode, he is looking at her lips and then face, his eyes circling her face while she talks. So viewers did get mixed signals with what was happening between the two of them! Though I still think he saw her in a concerned, unconditional affection way, especially since she was his backbone when no one else was, and she liked him because he was the first one to be nice to her and who was unreservedly good and non-judgmental - still their personalities were such, lonesome and serious and way too intense, that viewers were right in interpreting their scenes in more than one way!

 

- "Looking down at Ji-an’s feet in short socks that exposed her ankles and wearing worn-out sneakers Dong-Hoon said, “Why do you wear such short socks in winter? Do you think it’s sexy?” He goes to a bar in which he had a drink with her before, looks around and asks the owner, “Did you see that girl who came with me before, by chance? That pretty girl…” The drama’s PD insisted that he wanted to depict human love rather than man-woman love, but he insisted on referencing “sexiness” and “pretty,” thereby not letting the viewer’s expectations for romance die. He is a skilled hunter who killed two rabbits with one stone: get high ratings and silence the critics.,.........On the other hand, Sang-Hoon (older bro) and Ki-Hoon (younger bro) were excited the moment they became aware of Ji-An’s existence. They wondered if a flirtation had begun between a young woman and their brother, Dong-Hoon, and they became happy and envious." Considering that DH is an enigma, we can only judge him through his words and actions: throughout the drama he justified his helping out Ji-An as an employee and someone who had a calming influence on him. In the beginning, he was curious about the apparently poverty-stricken girl who killed a lady bug and did not wear warm clothes, and that's it. He didn't do anything about it. Did he buy her socks or jacket? No. It didn't mean anything in the beginning, till it meant something - talking about things together without judgements. I see the comments made ('pretty', 'sexy', 'colleague has a thing for my younger brother' etc.) differently and an extension of how guys see girls / women in general: his brothers, especially the irrepressible SH, is a loudmouth and guys DO talk like this about all women! Thank God the writer did not show what score SH held Ji-An on a scale of 1 to 10!!! And maybe he would have, if DH had not stopped him from talking (the second time they saw Ji-An). DH may be an honorable married man, but for God's sake, is he allowed to notice women? Apparently, he did not, until Ji-An. So what's the problem? (and he is the ONLY one in the directors guild to think she's pretty!!!) 

 

Also, if the writer had just given a kiss in Ep.15, I am sure the ratings for Ep.16 would have hit through the roof or at least beyond 10 points! 

 

If people were checking out the drama for romance, boy! were they in for a shock! It has none of the usual tropes (sorry shippers/ non-shippers) and the ones it does have, leave people scratching their heads! (we are still talking about what they meant to each other!!!!)

 

- "the glamorization of violence and crime." I swear, I am so sick and tired of hearing this. Viewers laud the realistic depiction one one hand and then mope about why Ji-An is being beaten up or why punches are shown! That was what her life was like!!!! To show how desperate she was, how bad her situation was, why she swindled or did illegal things, it had to be shown: she was trapped in debt and couldn't get out of it nor could she stop Kwang-il from beating her up! That's what bad guys in real life are like: they show no mercy - and he had double the reason for being nasty on her. She killed his dad! And people (idiotic teenage girls) actually thought Kwang-il was a love interest and sooooooo happy when he turned a corner in the end!!! I did not see any glamor in the beating. It was raw and brutal, not a Quentin Tarantino blood fest!   

 

- "The main character who is in his mid-40s and his family have each failed to achieve independence from such existence and continue to surround each other, and band together in a “sticky” bond and straddle the line between warm human love and collectivism." A lot of soompiers also objected to DH putting up with his family's problems and that he should have separated emotionally from them, even saying that YH was right to feel lonely. I disagree. I think people read / saw this family all wrong. SH was a good employee, he got laid off, then he lost all his savings in a bad business. His wife kicked him out over debts. So that's why he has ended up at his mother's house. My mom still cooks whenever me or any of my brothers show up at her place and she worries about us too! That's what moms do! I did not see anything out of the ordinary in the mom's behavior. What wouldn't any son / daughter give to see his / her mom the way DH's mom looked at DH outside JH's bar after his promotion celebration? That's pride and love and more pride. KH has lost track of who he wants to be and is just killing time but he is a hard worker and a thinker. So should DH let them go to hell or help them? Why wouldn't he help his brother when his only daughter is getting married?! Why wouldn't he help his younger brother? All 3 brothers are failures in their own way! And all 3 learn to pick themselves up from their ruts and move on in life as more empowered individuals.   

 

Same is the case for the community/ neighborhood: this is what lower middle class and middle economic classes are like - they all know each other's histories, problems and try to solve them. This is what 'inner city / town' culture is like every where in the world. When movies on big cities are made, they always show the disconnect and loneliness that people feel because they are alone and by themselves and don't have a support system around like they did in the village / town/ neighborhood. Where do the naysayers / this reviewer think DH should have gone and worked? Jeju island? Far away from his mother and brothers and school friends? They are a part of him and his identity. He is not a young man. In this stage of his life, he is set in his ways, just like any other 40-plus person. He knows who he is and what he isn't. So why should he dump everyone who matters in his life? Who is he if not a family man (and by family, I mean, the entire bouquet of affiliations)?

 

I think the reviewer, like some soompiers / DB commenters, wanted a Western / American image of a family and that is not what DH was. And I don't see why he had to be any other way. It's his story. Not every man's story, but his story!

 

- "The most serious thing is the glamorization of Ji-An’s phone-tapping. She begins tapping Dong-Hoon’s phone with the purpose of committing a crime, but through it, she feels compassion and love......If someone comes to truly love you and you become precious to them, then is it okay to be phone-tapped? In this world, would anyone ever feel okay to be phone-tapped? Even if I think about this 100, 1000 times, and it is still appalling." I did not see any post where the writer or director are telling Koreans and the world at large to tap people's phones. It's a drama - and a dramatic contrivance - deal with it! It's not the end of the world! Yes, they glamorized it and DH did not mind it (I knew he wouldn't). And the way I interpreted his scene with broken-shoulder Ji-An, he played the 'adult' in the non-relationship relationship and admonished her for trying to help him 'as a young girl' when he should've been helping himself and would from here on. By that point, he knows she didn't mean any harm, didn't divulge any 'secret' and is refusing to go to hospital. He didn't care - because he cared about her more than about himself. That's the 'unselfish' part of their weird relationship! That does not mean you shouldn't care. But DH didn't care. That's about it! 

 

- "Third, the biggest, most unpleasant element is that it is centered on one cuckolded man. Dong-Hoon’s wife, Yoon-Hee is having an affair. Her partner happens to be an old foe of her good-hearted husband. Thus, Yoon-Hee’s purpose becomes a "perfect criminal" than no one can sympathize with. None of the character nor any viewer has any reason to sympathize with her." True. I agree, but DH gave her respect till the end (I also thought it significant that Ji-An never met his mom, he referred YH to Ji-An as 'my wife', never said anything negative about her even in front of his brothers, is talking about her pleasantly in the end as 'kid's mom' and has THREE pics at his office desk, which may or may not be an indication of ....... something I don't want to think about!) Does it really matter what the viewers think? 

 

And I think the reason why he spent all his spare time with his brothers and then later at JH's bar (once JH was back) is because there was no one at home, and even when there was, YH wasn't interested in what he was interested in, and vice versa. Many people shared DH in their lives. YH wanted him all to herself. He was not a modern man! He was very conservative, very old-fashioned and very low on conversations. He couldn't change her, she couldn't change him. He couldn't just dump everyone else for her, especially when they were all extensions of him. And she got tired of waiting! I actually had more sympathy for CEO JDY than her - YH was a very disloyal woman. I did not like her but I knew DH, being DH, would never leave her.

 

- "This drama speaks of endlessly warm humanity. But it is all based on someone’s assumed unconditional sacrifice and devotion. In the end, it skillfully and sophisticatedly indoctrinates a very old-fashioned patriarchal perspective that is dream of by men. But after absorbing its lingering imagery and the many varied opinions, I discovered an even greater monster. More than I expected, I witnessed many people saying, “This is the type of adult I would like to become.” I loved this para! Wow! And here I thought the drama actually told DH to live 'selfishly' and 'for himself' and 'do something for himself'! I didn't see the drama give any kind of advice on any kind of behavior or attitude or experience. It showed plenty of unenviable people living unenviable lives, with mostly unenviable results! If it did have a point, it was simply that you should be good, do good and good will happen to you too. And also, live your life to the fullest, without compromising on the essentials, especially if something is making you unhappy. If DH had started 'expecting' something from Ji-An, then all the floodgates of hell would have opened up on him exploiting her! He had to look and act pure because the story was about healing each other without expectations of anything in return. And frankly, he did not expect anything from Ji-An other than her presence every now and then, and that she was happy and settled. 

 

If anything, the drama makes a case against patriarchy, and that women and young women can take care of themselves better than many middle-aged men and know their minds and are more open with their hearts than men! It also showed a young woman taking charge at every turn, while the 40-plus man was left to pick up the pieces of everything in his life and wonder why he ended up that way! 

 

Even YH took a risk - affair with JDY - it failed, but if it had worked, she would have been extremely content with a younger, good-looking, more high-profile lover. DH, his brothers, the entire ajusshi neighborhood, never took a risk in their lives!

 

- "The many strifes in this drama was always left to be solved by an individual. Dong-Hoon, who felt deep compassion for Ji-An goes alone to the feisty loan shark in his 20s, Kwang-Il and fights a life-and-death battle with him. Ji-An is left alone to care for her old, infirm grandmother who is also deaf. Seeing her situation, Dong-Hoon tells her to seek government assistance, and Ji-An begins to be saved by Dong-Hoon." No. Ji-An helped and saved DH more and did more for him than he did for her. That was one of my pet peeves during the show, how this 40-plus man was constantly being rescued by this girl! Technically, DH only took a stand when disclosing the affair and even on that point, YH was the one to first suggest it! He was forever passive! When DH beat up Kwang-il, it made her feel like someone finally understood her, but it didn't end her debt - she ended her debt herself. Likewise, she didn't disclose any of his weaknesses and decided to leave the job, place, neighborhood and be on the run forever, just so that he could be at peace. Even at the end, in the cafe' scene, DH doesn't utter a single word of making a move and simply tells her to 'come by sometime to my office and meet former colleagues of yours' (!!!) It is Ji-An, who makes the move (or what can be construed as a move) and opens up their old way of being together - which may or may not lead to something more. 

 

- "When Ji-An’s penniless grandmother dies, Sang-Hoon gives all his hard-earned money he earned by cleaning so that Ji-An can have a grand funeral for her." He was hiding money. He had debts and debt collectors (I think his wife even mentioned a few in the beginning), so he was not saving it for anything responsible - he certainly was not saving it to pay back his debts!!! (probably wanted to buy that red car! or some expensive dark glasses and suits!)

 

- "But we have come to cross a pond that we cannot turn back from. To achieve our current society in which eating and living has not become so difficult, many individuals had to sacrifice so much. Our lives are so that we barely have enough space to save ourselves. Haven't we all experienced so many times in which the most important thing was so protect ourselves? Now that we solved the problem of how to make a living, and now demand protection from society, "My Ahjussi" tells us this. "The old days were good, that is the true way to live," it tells us warmly and beautifully." I think what Sun-Hee Kim is saying is that we have to grow up and move on and get out of our shells and cocoons in life (as in leave the nest and the old neighborhoods) to forge out new identities and just when we as civilization have achieved it, and stood on our own two feet as individuals, the drama is telling us that good old days when we had the protection and comfort of neighbors and family and mothers were best and are ideal ways of living. Well, yes, but it IS DH and Ji-An's life! If they want to live in Hoogye, why shouldn't they?! Why is that a bad thing? They are small-time people wanting the safety of a small town!

 

I think this reviewer thinks community, family, parents are crutches, or weak spots, that one should leave behind if one has to assert one's independence, because they hold you back! This drama shows them as strengths and responsibilities and a good thing. What's so bad about it? 

 

DH's junior colleagues leave their company to join him in his start-up (independent and risky business). Is that bad?

 

YH went abroad to her family, to pursue higher studies and probably get a job in U.S. and spend time with her son. Is that bad? 

 

Ji-An saw DH again but did not go overboard in her interest like some pitiful desperate girl and still sought him for a meal. Is that bad?

 

The drama was about choices, choices that lead to fulfillment, self-actualization, greater good, hopeful contentment. Not neighborhoods and mothers and patriarchy and visions of great honorable men who stand firm and tall and unmoved when faced with pretty young things! But if someone thinks of the drama that way, that's their choice too!

 

[justamom]

2 hours ago, mushroomsoupie said:

So according to this Oh Na Ra interview, the PD, writer, and casts will have a group meeting this Friday! Lee Sun Gyun suggested the idea.. 

 

She also mentioned that the My Mister chatroom is still pretty much active even though the filming is over.. I'm so happy to see the close bond between them. 

 

http://m.entertain.naver.com/read?oid=213&aid=0001039649

 

 

"Oh Nara - 'Our My Ahjussi chat is just as hot as ever."

 

Actress Oh Nara praises the teamwork in My Ahjussi.

 

It's been ten days since the drama ended. But "it still feels like we're filming", everyone in the My Ahjussi chatroom still addresses each other by their character names, engaging in active discussion. It feels like "we're in an extension" (of the drama).

 

Oh passionately portrayed Park Jeong Hee, owner of Jeong Hee's bar in the drama. Forming strong bonds with of course Dong Hoon, his brothers Sang Hoon & Ki Hoon, their mother and Lee Ji An, she displayed an irreplaceable presence.

 

My Ahjussi has been called a healing story where people learn how to overcome life's burdens, discovering the meaning of life through one another. Oh agrees.

 

"My Ahjussi was my 'insaeng drama' for audiences as well as for me. I was startled to see how immersed I was when I came out ( 제가 나오면 깜짝 놀랄 정도로 몰입해서 봤죠. not sure I translated this line correctly) The truth is, there haven't been many dramas recently with the scent of humanity, have there? It was great to have encountered such a drama after such a long time. It's not just about humanity, it healed and comforted us. Before I knew it my tears were falling. Even the cinematography was excellent, the scenes in Jeong Hee's bar were like appearing in a fantasy. It was very satisfying."

 

The tight teamwork of My Ahjussi is also well-known. Not just among the actors but PD Kim Won Suk and his team. Oh says, "the team work was truly great." It felt like we were a family while filming. Because of that we started calling each other by our character's names very naturally. Lee Seon Gyun became "Do Hoon-ah", Lee Ji Eun became "Ji An-ah". "We're still calling each other like that. It seems like no one wants to let go of the show. It's the same for me," she says.

 

The teamwork of My Ahjussi continues even after the final broadcast. Following the reward trip, they've decided to meet this Friday. Everyone from Kim Won Suk to Park Hae Young is coming.

 

"We decided to have a really big gathering. We're planning to eat sea snails in a restaurant like Jeong Hee's. It was Lee Seon Gyun's idea. Everyone from the production team to the cast is coming. A lot of us won't be taking part in the reward trip due to our schedules. I think this will be the first time that we feel so empty."

 

Me: HAHAHA! They are having just as hard a time getting out of character as us!! Still calling each other Do Hoon-ah and Ji An-ah....

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 30, 2018 by Jillia
Please do not quote images, thanks! :)

[justamom]

21 minutes ago, noor1 said:

If anything, the drama makes a case against patriarchy, and that women and young women can take care of themselves better than many middle-aged men and know their minds and are more open with their hearts than men! It also showed a young woman taking charge at every turn, while the 40-plus man was left to pick up the pieces of everything in his life and wonder why he ended up that way! 

 

You are absolutely right! Someone should translate your response into Korean and send it to that journalist! 

 

@haengbokhaja welcome! and congratulations on your first Kdrama post! Welcome to the My Ahjussi rabbit hole! 

[nearsea]

http://m.dcinside.com/view.php?id=mymister&no=53637&page=1

 

I wish any kind soul could translate this post for us. I was taking a look at Dcinside and although Google translate doesn't help much, but still it seems like something about how Ji An inviting dong hoon for meal has a special meaning . And I think it has a wonderful point. Since it was only during these meals that Ji An would have those in-depth conversations with dong hoon. So her inviting dong hoon for rice/meal again means a new start to their hour long discussions, and connecting again.